In Brightest Day

(Ryu-Kishi, Marrow, Mirror Devil, Maru(Maru))

I. Shiketsu High

The sun was high in the sky, casting a bright light over the outdoor track where Inigo's class was doing warm-ups. He appreciated the teacher’s passion for fitness and exercise, but there was something more important to him at that moment. As they lined up to perform the 100m dash, his eyes darted around, taking in all the sights of the 1-D girls in their gym uniforms, consisting of a short-sleeved top and shorts that barely reached mid-thigh. The fabric clung to their bodies, accentuating their curves and toned muscles. He could see the sweat glistening on their skin from the warm-up exercises. He grinned sheepishly at his dragon construct, Gigan. This was the best class ever.

He made his way to the back and took out his girls-stats notebook. He started taking notes for the posterity of all mankind and his future sons. He thought about how valuable this data would become once they were all famous heroes. Gigan hovered over him disapprovingly.

First up was Ashleigh. He flipped to her page on his notebook.

Inigo watched as Ash was picked first by their teacher, she seemed nervous as she stood at the starting line. She changed her mind a few times, and was pleading with Ippon-sensei not to go first.

We gotta help her out

He activated his quirk and turned his construct into a cheerleading megaphone. "Go Ash! Show us how's it's done! Ashleigh! Ashleigh!" he shouted doing a little dance in front of everyone. He cheered hard, but he noticed someone else was cheering just as enthusiastically, Imai was doing the same. Inigo nodded to him, and the two shared a brief smile and a look from across the line.

As Ashleigh ran, Inigo watched her uniform flutter in the breeze, her gym shirt was untucked which caused it to ride up every time she pushed off the ground, her shorts were a bit longer than the others, reaching just below her knees, and they had a looser fit. Sweat stained the fabric of her shirt and shorts, proof of the intense effort she was putting into the run. He could see the fire in her crosshair-pupiled eyes as she moved. Inigo cheered as she crossed the line with a time of 13 seconds.

Inigo sent Gigan to get a towel from the lockers, he made his way to the front of the line and tapped Imai's shoulder. "Yo, mind handing this to Ash? Looks like she could use one."

---

The next girl was Atsushi Orochi. He flipped to her page on his notebook.

Inigo cheered as Orochi took the line. With the blow of the whistle, she started and ran with pure confidence. Her ponytail bounced alongside her other assets as she gracefully crossed the finish line. She then made a cute pose which made Inigo's heart skip a beat. He was familiar with the pose, it was the same one she makes when she finished a rhythm-game in the arcade with a perfect score. The class cheered and he whistled loudly. What a performance!

---

The next girl called up was Chihiro.

Inigo looked up and saw Ippon-sempai staring at him. Inigo grinned at his teacher, and gave the notebook to Gigan to put away.

That's enough notes for today. I'll do the rest some other time.

His attention was drawn to Chihiro as she arrived at the starting line. The young sword-prodigy sprinted forward in an incredible pace. Each step of hers seemed to flutter, her movement graceful and fluid. She was like a work of art, but he had the nagging feeling as he watched her expressionless face that she was just going through the motions. It seemed pretty joyless. Inigo couldn't keep his eyes off her for the six seconds it took her to reach the finish line. He shouted and cheered louder as if to make up for Chihiro's lack of celebration.

One by one the others took their turn. He saw Edith about to go next, followed by Faith, and many more girls waited for their turn. He did a quick prayer to the sacred spirits and also Noah's god, thanking them for this bountiful harvest. How was he expected to concentrate with all the hot girls in this class.

---

After half the class had gone by, Inigo's name was finally called.

I could do a giant spring, maybe a catapult.. A giant skate ramp, or a loopy slide. I could turn Gigan into a dragon-horse.

He groaned as he pondered ideas to cross the finish line. If he made the form too complicated he'd end up exhausted with a big headache. He wouldn't be able to cross and everyone would laugh at him. But hey at least it'd be funny. He walked to the starting line.

"You ready, Myoga?" Ippon-sensei held out his timer.

"Just a second, coach!" He looked around, beyond his classmates, some of the general course students had come out to watch them through a fence. A small crowd was growing. It hadn't occured much to him, but everyone in the hero course, were kinda like mini-celebrities in the school. They had different schedules, so no one really hung out with the non-hero course students, but he was sure they were still talked about by them. It was likely the business students were making bets on them right now. He wondered if he had secret admirers in the audience. I better give them a good show.

He turned to Gigan who wasn't in a very good mood. "Hey bud. Let's go with ASW-G-08 armor!" Gigan frowned, it didn't want to see Inigo knock himself out trying to form that armor. "C'mon! Then how about Holding-Hands Harem Jutsu?" That was way too lewd. The dragon wasn't having it and shook its head. "Fine just give me knight armor with big wings, make it look nice."

His construct conceeded and transformed around him into armor. His stylized knight armor gleamed in the sunlight, complete with dragon wings and a fancy cape. He waved to his class and the students watching as he flew forward.

"GO!" The whistle blew as he took off. As Inigo sped forward, he made sure that each beat of his large dragon wings added to the strong swirling winds around him; lifting skirts, causing chests to bounce, and making on-lookers twist away as he passed by. It was a beautiful sight. He reached the end with a sub-10 second score. Not too shabby.

He heard people cheering. Even the support students, had came out to watch them. Of course they were popular. They were all hero course students with bright futures ahead of them. He basked in the cheers and sunlight.

---

---

---

II. Outside Shiketsu High

The sunny afternoon gave way to semi-cloudy skies and chilly winds as the school day ended for the students of Shiketsu High. Inigo, Christopher, and Hoge walked out of the school gates together, their backpacks weighing heavy on their shoulders. Gigan sat quietly on top of Inigo's bag.

"Bro, why didn't you just use Hifumi's quirk?" Inigo nudged Christopher. "Imagine if you got first place? If you did teleport plus Chihiro, you'd be super fast." Inigo did a zooming motion with his hand.

"I couldn't decide. The activity's parameters were questionable," Christopher sighed into his hands. "We should've been given more time to prepare."

"Dude. Exactly! I was gonna turn Gigan into a giant loopy slide! We should try it again at the park! I'll time you. I bet we can beat the record!"

Christopher began to answer but Hoge stepped forward in front of the two boys.

"You two should be studying for our test tomorrow," She looked to Inigo, her eyes narrowed. "You should not be encouraging Chris to abandon his academic endeavours."

"What? Isn't that the great part about you two being brainiacs, you could just ace the test tomorrow, and I'll coast with a C." Inigo placed his hands behind his head. "Let's just hang out at the cafe."

"She's right. I should get home early, my study plan is very extensive. We can practice the dash later man." Christopher suggested as he turned to walk another direction.

Hoge nodded and turned. "Goodbye Inigo."

"B-but you promised me you'd show me all the sweet sword tricks Chihiro taught you!" Inigo pointed at Hoge.

"I don't recall making such a promise. And even if I did, studying is more important. I have to review all the material we learned this week."

Inigo grinned and stepped closer towards her. "I get it. You want me to come over so we can "study" together. We can stay up all night."

"No. You'll only be a distraction."

Inigo leaned in so he was just a few inches from her face. He winked. "Am I a good distraction?"

"I'm leaving now." Christopher interjected as he walked away in a hurry.

"Baka." Hoge put her hand over her mouth and pinched his cheek. "I have to go. I need to stay on top of the class rankings." She threw a glance at Chris, and walked away as if racing him.

She ran off towards the direction of her dorm-room.

Inigo turned his head back and forth, watching his two classmates leave in disbelief.

"That's fine. Go! I got things to do too, y'know! I need to buy another red tie! I gotta give Gigan a bath and-" He sighed as Chris disappeared around the corner, and Hoge just vanished due to her quirk.

"Guess it's just us, Gigs. I might as well check up on things."

He transformed his construct into a skateboard and made his way down the sidewalk.

---

Inigo felt odd as he rode across the park where he and his friends fought the two villains. Part of him was relieved that he was alone. Ever since that night, he felt like he's been watched. He saw his brother Luccione and his gold dragon in every shadowy alleyway and corner. He didn't want his friends around if he got attacked again. He was strong enough to keep himself safe at least. But why did he feel so scared? Could they have lost that night? What if Luccione got a hold of Hoge? He shook his head. He needed something to clear his mind.

He noticed a perfect line of ledges and rails leading out of the park. Without hesitation, he ollied up onto the first ledge and did a 50-50 grind, then hopped off, landing a clean kickflip into a nose manual, balancing perfectly as he road along the top of a set of steps before performing a crooked grind along the handrails.

Suddenly he bumped into a guy with an oyster for a head, the man had come out of a corner. He had dropped his laptop to the ground and spilled his coffee. Inigo rode ahead without stopping.

A bubble popped next to the guy. "I'll get you back for this, you punk! Mark my words!"

"Sorry!" Inigo yelled out.

Feeling his momentum build. He ollied onto a nearby rail, grinding along it before hopping off and pulling off a smooth heelflip. Without missing a beat, he landed with precision into a backside 180, and then ollied unto a picnic table and slid along it with a tailslide. He saw his destination on the road.

"I need a boost, Gigs!"

For a few seconds, his board sprouted dragon wings which launched him into the air, Inigo did a 180 melon grab as he plummeted towards the moving vehicle. Gigan shifted into a mattress just as he landed on top of a large moving frozen delivery truck. He laid on the truck and chuckled to himself, breathing fast.

"What's my score?" A set of numbers and letters materialized out of Gigan.

3,360 pts

"C'mon. I had like two combos in there.. I must be out of practice." He smiled and watched the buildings by the side of the road go by.

---

Twenty minutes later, Inigo hopped off the truck as it made a turn. He walked through an alleyway and into a sidestreet. His uncle operated out of a halfway house in a rundown area of the city, Inigo often helped him with odd jobs in exchange for a little pocket money. As he walked down the street, he passed by a group of homeless people huddled together for warmth under a bridge. Inigo tried to avoid their gaze. As he stepped inside his uncle's place, he could immediately feel the tension in the air. The dimly-lit room smelled of blood and smoke.

Inigo saw three men shouting, he recognized his Uncle Taizo's voice. There was another man shaking on the floor, clutching his stomache. Blood was oozing out of a bullet wound, and they were trying to give him crude first-aid. Inigo ran up to help.

"Hey, what happened here?" Inigo said as he ran up, recognizing the bleeding man as Jenkins, an old friend.

"Inigo bout' time you showed up! It's the Sahagins! They came at us out of fucking nowhere." His uncle glared as he stabbed a syringe full of red liquid into Jenkin's leg. The bleeding man jerked around and then laid still, breathing heavily.

"Let me help him." Inigo focused his quirk and made a floating stretcher for Jenkins as they took out the bullet and bandaged him up.

"There's a car that'll take him to a doctor. Don't worry. What we need is your help to get these bastards back. You in?"

Inigo felt Gigan tense up and he shook his head. "Nah, I'm only here for news on the family. I can't be mixed up in a fight."

"Inigo.. it's Jenkins, you know he'd have your back if.."

"I know," Inigo glared.

"You're a damn hero now. I get it." His uncle and his two men were preparing guns. "Why don't you make yourself useful and deliver that package over there. Make sure you're not followed. There's instructions on the box. Money's in the back."

"Yeah I know the drill." Inigo nodded, taking the package and slipping it into his pack. He knew better than to ask any questions. He grabbed some money from a table full of stacked bills, and made his way through the backdoor.

---

Inigo landed next to the convenience store. The sliding glass doors made a soft hissing sound as he stepped inside and scanned the interior. The store was brightly lit with fluorescent lights that highlighted walls and shelves of colorful packaged items. He could hear the hum of the refrigerators as he walked inside. No other customers were in the store. A dark-haired boy about his age slouched behind the counter wearing a brightly coloured work uniform. He was reading a magazine.

"Welcome to E-Zee P-Zee Mart. Let me know if you need help," the boy said disinterestedly, barely looking up.

"Yeah, I'm here to deliver something," Inigo looked at the boy's name tag. "Junichi."

"I wasn't told there'd be a delivery today. What merchandise is it?"

"I don't know, man. It's not for the store. The box has something scribbled on it. I think it says Legion?" He propped the package unto the counter.

Junichi quickly stood up, dropped his magazine, and looked at the package, his emotion-less face had a flicker of a smile forming in his lips, there was a sudden spark in the boy's purple eyes. Inigo could tell he had surprised the guy. What the hell was in this thing?

"You sure it's for me?"

"Says it's for Junichi. Don't see anyone else here."

"I'll take it then."

"Instructions says don't open it until the 14th. You're good right?"

"Yeah.." The boy hastily grabbed the package and held it, feeling its weight like it was some treasure. His stare was intense. Junichi took out a pack of smokes and lit one.

He held out the pack for Inigo. "You want one?"

"Nah I'm good. I'm on the job." Inigo frowned. He wasn't about to get caught up into whatever his uncle was up to. It's probably drugs or something.

"Did they say anything else for me? A location?

"Hey I'm just the delivery guy. I don't know anything."

Junichi nodded and turned away, he took a long inhale as he put away the box, still pondering its contents.

Inigo was about to leave when something caught his eyes, the boy had marks just below his wrists. Inigo remembered where he'd seen the boy before.

"Hey. Don't I know you from somewhere? You were in my entrance group for Shiketsu Hero Course," Inigo moved closer to the counter.

"I was yeah."

"Bone quirk right? I'm the dragon guy. We took out one of the big mechs together. You were freaking the others out with your quirk, it was funny as hell! Did you change your mind about Shiketsu?" Inigo grinned.

The dark-haired boy was quiet. Inigo could tell he was contemplating something.

"I didn't get in."

"What? You had the highest score in the round. Those robots didn't have a chance! There's no way."

"They rejected my quirk. It wasn't "heroic" enough." the boy's words sounded angry.

"That's fucked up. You were great out there."

"Shiketsu is a shit show and hero society is rotten to the core, but you already know that working for Legion."

"Huh? No I don't work with them. I guess my Uncle does."

"...and you go to Shiketsu? You're a hero course student?"

"You can say that, Class 1-D, but I can see what you mean. I'm not exactly a fan of the system either."

"Then why are you with them?"

"You could say I'm working from the inside. I'm mostly in it for the girls. Check it out." Inigo held out a picture of Hoge on his phone.

"That's just a blur."

"Uh, you gotta squint a little. How about this one?" He flicked to a different picture.

"I still don't see anything."

"Nevermind."

He smirked and picked up some snacks near the counter, placing them in front of Junichi. The dark-haired boy started scanning the things. He had fallen quiet. Inigo frowned. Had he upset the dude?

"Hey between you and me, I'm still a big fan of your quirk. You saved my ass on that round. We crushed those mechs. You're probably responsible for me getting in. "

Junichi bagged Inigo's snacks. "Yeah well, those bots were just lame rip-offs of Zaku II's."

"Dude, that's what I thought, and the ones worth 20pts. They were just.."

"Gryogar 8's"

"Exactly!" Inigo nodded and laughed.

"You're really not with them."

"I wouldn't be delivering you packages if I was. Instructions said there's two more coming up. Plus I just go wherever the cutest girls are," Inigo said collecting his bag.

An old woman wearing the same uniform as Junichi entered the store, she nodded to Junichi, and he started cleaning up. He picked up the magazine he had dropped.

"My shifts over. You should go."

"Yeah. Hey-" Inigo pointed at the cover of the magazine Junichi held. "That's Mecho Corez 12 right? I just got that game."

"Shit. You have it? I've been looking all over, but it's not like I have the money."

"Dude, if you wanna play, my place is just 3 blocks that way."

"That's where I live." Junichi picked up the package marked "legion", and walked out of the store with Inigo.

"Guess we live in the same block, " Inigo grinned.

Junichi pulled out a pack of cigarretes and started smoking as they walked. He offered one to Inigo.

"Thanks, but it's not for me. What's in that package anyway?"

"I don't know.. I think.. something that could improve society. Tear it all up, and replace it with something new, something better."

"Bro, you are intense."

Junichi shrugged. The two teenagers made their way to Inigo's apartment and fired up the mech video game.

---

III. Inigo's Apartment

Inigo yawned and checked the time. They had played Mecho Corez 12 for three hours without knowing it. Snack wrappers and cans of energy drinks littered the floor around them. They had powered through the first half of the co-op campaign and it was already 1 am. He knew he was probably gonna be late tomorrow. Not that he cared much. He needed some time to unwind and blast some Federation scum in the game.

For some reason, Junichi's ever gloomy and angry attitude meshed well with how he was feeling, and the boy had some pretty interesting ideas. They had similar paths at one point, except Junichi had experienced the other side of the coin. Inigo got the best hero support and training available in western Japan, while Junichi was left fighting for scraps against the ugliness of hero society. Inigo had a lot of respect for the guy.

His phone rang and he stood up bleary eyed, moving away from the tv and game console as he picked up the call.

"Inigo?"

"Yo uncle. What's up?"

"Did you deliver the package?"

"Yeah, they got it. What kind of people are you working with?"

"Just some business partners. Thanks for helping out today."

"Happy to help. How's Jenkins holding?"

"..."

"Hello?"

"He didn't make it."

"Damn."

"I'm sorry but it's not too late to change your mind. Help us get the Sahugins back. His death should mean something."

Inigo hung up. Gigan flew out of his pocket and mewed, patting Inigo on the shoulder. He walked back to the couch, feeling numb. Darkness covered his apartment, except for the mechs tearing each other apart on the screen. From the windows, he could tell it was pitch black outside too.

"Bad news?" Junichi asked without looking away from the screen, and rapidly pressing the fire button on the controller. '

"Yeah." Inigo picked up the other controller. Junichi held out his pack of smokes. Inigo picked one out and lit it.

"That's rough man."

The lights from their cigarettes were the only light in the room as the tv screen faded into a dark loading screen.