Chapter Text
Eijiro was finishing his demonstration of a tight obstacle course that was being televised as a major game show competition called "Tame the Beast". The course was made up of four different levels with a variety of obstacles, all themed around being the internal guts of a metal monster that was long dead. As Eijiro finished toweling himself off, he was approached by the two American contestants.
"Hey, thanks for giving us this chance," the male constant said, "These days all media in America is owned by Vought, so we can only compete internationally."
"Hey, it's no problem," Eijiro said, "I can have the studio give you a full recording of the final edit."
"That would be a godsend," the female contestant said, "Vought won't allow any televised media from out of the country. It'd be great to show this to our families back home."
"Now I'm motivated to do the best job I can," the male contestant said, "We are totally gonna crush this beast!"
Eijiro chuckled as the contestants headed off.
"Red Riot," the anchor said as he came over, "We're ready for the first promos."
Eijiro checked the Hero Network. No major disasters. He grinned and took the mic for the cameras.
"The time has come for the ultimate in obstacle course competitions. 108 contestants from six different countries are here to answer one question... Can you Tame the Beast?"
"The water wasn't that painful when it hit my face," Shoto pointed out to the director, "The pain kinda numbed after the first couple seconds once the third-degree burns set in."
"Yeah, but we gotta exaggerate it for the audience," the Director Takamoto explained, "That's why we have the actress playing Rei sobbing at what she just did. It's called a biopic, not a documentary."
Shoto nodded in understanding.
"Well, the script is largely accurate regardless. I spoke with the actor playing my teenage self about the UA Sports Festival fight I had with Izuku Midoriya. How do you plan on replicating his Regeneration, by the way?"
"The wonders of CGI, my friend," Takamoto said, "We can have him leaping out of the flames with practical effects, then use CGI for the regeneration."
Shoto then got a call on Hero Net.
"Uh-oh. Bank robbery nearby. I need to take this one."
"Alright, we'll continue shooting while you finish that up," Takamoto said, "Okay, people! Let's get ready to shoot the recommendation exam scene!"
"Remember," Himiko said as she spoke into the camera, "I only need blood for my Quirk. But many people need blood to live. So donate to your local blood bank. Who knows? You might become someone's hero."
"And cut," the director called out, "Great work, Toga."
"Thanks," Himiko said, "Hope it didn't come off as too cheesy."
"Ah, the public has seen worse," the director assured her, "And with the footage we have, it'll definitely raise awareness. We just need that song from Miss Jiro."
"Just finished it," Kyoka said as she came over, "Already have the initial recording."
"Great," the director said.
He took a listen to it, and was nearly brought to tears.
"Oh, that is beautiful. That is perfect. Somber without being sad, and just the right amount of hopeful uplifting. Just what we need to convince people that they can make a difference. The client is gonna love this commercial."
"Nice," Kyoka said, "Hey, Himiko, we got the interrogation going on. Chief needs you there to play bad cop."
"Yeah, sure," Himiko said, "Hitoshi being my partner for this, I'm not sure we really need a bad cop."
"And cut," the director said, "Great job, Eri."
Eri giggled as she ran over to Junko and Toshi. After five years, she now had full control over her Quirk. Toshi had brought her to several people he knew who had their Quirks stolen by All For One, and she was able to restore them. Now, with permission from her parents, she was starring in a show aimed at kids. She did her normal pose, which was absolutely adorable.
"And Magical Girl God Horn saves the day again!"
Toshi laughed as he scooped up Eri in his arm.
"You certainly did."
Junko was sitting with Eri's younger brother Mamoru, who had been born four years ago. His Quirk had already manifested, and it turned out he had inherited Toshi's Maximize Quirk. Though curiously, it matched more with how Izuku used Maximize through One For All, increasing muscle density rather than muscle mass the way Toshi did. Speaking of which, Toshi was acting the part of God Horn's Heavenly Father. He only showed up every few episodes, the director concerned that having the familiar image of All Might showing up frequently would overshadow God Horn, who was supposed to be the main character.
"So they're really making a movie about the Reaper incident seven years after it resolved?," Ren asked.
"To be fair, it was exciting," Izuku said, "I'm just surprised they didn't make it a video game. I could see it being co-written by Atlus and Koei."
"I think we should stick to the movie for now," Ren said, "It certainly sounds like it could be a Lifetime-style epic. If Lifetime was still around."
"TV-Asahi is handling the movie," Izuku said, "A real made-for-TV action flick. They even hired a well-known acrobat team to be our stunt actors. The same guys who do the suit acting for Hyoketsu Sentai Gelato Five."
"I heard most of their enemies in Gekko ultimately retired," Ren said, "With Bosslar willing submitting to arrest and getting a cell in Tartarus."
Izuku chuckled.
"You know, I mostly wanted to be a hero to rescue people in need. I never expected to become a celebrity while doing so."
"Disasters don't come every day," Ren pointed out, "Lots of heroes supplement their income with celebrity endorsements. Movies, commercials, interviews. It all goes through their agencies. We get full creative control too."
"I'm just glad I didn't get a diva of a director," Izuku said with a chuckle.
"And as we prepare to add a new hero to Japan's Hero Hall of Fame," the announcer said, "Let's welcome three of our nation's greatest heroes! Ladies and gentlemen... The Icy-Hot Hero, Freezerburn!"
Freezerburn skated in on a pillar of ice before landing using a small column of fire. He gave a wide smile, having long learned how to show emotions again.
"How's it going, Tokyo!?"
The announcer continued.
"The Demolition Hero, Dynamite!"
Dynamite sailed in using his explosions before landing.
"Hell yeah! You guys getting pumped up!?"
The crowd cheered as the announcer continued.
"And finally, your Symbol of Peace. The Invincible Hero, Midorang!"
Midorang flew in using the Wing Quirk, dispelling it as he landed using Float.
"Hey there, ladies and gentlemen. Today we welcome a recent UA graduate who has already showcased amazing heroism not seen in this country since the retirement of my mentor All Might. And so, we induct into the Hero Hall of Fame... The Machine Hero, Robonoid!"
Robonoid, real name Kibo Idabashi, flew in using jet thrusters from his shoes. He landed right next to Midorang, welcoming the cheering crowd. The former Big Three smiled. The future of heroes was looking brighter and brighter.
"This is going to be the most epic thing ever," Kyoka said, "We have heroes across the country ready to add their own musical talents. You'd be surprised how many people in this business can sing."
"This gonna kick so much ass," Katsuki said, "What are we calling this number?"
"I've given it the name 'You Say Run'," Kyoka said, "In this new age of heroes, the people want to know they can count on the new generation while knowing the old one hasn't lost its way. So what we need is bigger splash than what we did in our first year culture festival."
"Can you you even make something that tops 'Hero Too'?," Mina wondered, "That performance blew our entire school away in the best way possible."
"Well, I'd like to try," Kyoka said, "Being able to become a hero and still make use of the music my parents taught me might be the ultimate blessing for me. So why not make the best use of it that I can?"
The team smiled at her and cheered as they got to work on their roles. It would ultimately prove to be the best charity event online.
Takamoto was making a major motion picture featuring the Heights Alliance. Both teams, in fact. As the heroes learned, there were plenty of times when the heroes did their own stunts and even acted in the movie itself, which was a fun experience. The climax featured the team trying to get Midorang's Zero Driver to him in order for him to fight to his max potential against the movie's villain.
"Here it is," Mines said as he handed off the Driver to Uravity, "But I don't know how you're going to get it to Midorang all on your own."
"She won't be on her own," Creati said as she flew in with a jetpack.
Froppy landed near her.
"She's got plenty of backup, ribbit."
What followed was an awesome sequence of the team's female members taking on the villain's army, before ending on a tender moment of Uravity returning Midorang's Zero Driver to him. There was no romantic kiss scene, just a simple shot of the two gazing into each other's eyes before Midorang flew off to finish the fight.
"And cut," Takamoto said, "Perfect shot. Nice work, everyone. That's a wrap for the day."
The team cheered. The movie was sure to be a big hit at the box office.
Tenya was watching the commercial's final edit. It was him as Ingenium, running across a wide expanse with Engine at full power. He finally stopped near a cliff and took off his helmet, sweating as he held up a bottle of a new Mountain Dew. The imagery was of dragons and pitayas.
'Whether you're running at 5 miles an hour or 500,' came his voice on a voice-over, 'Sooner or later you need something to quench your thirst.'
He began drinking the bright silver liquid.
'Mountain Dew Quicksilver. The familiar taste of Dew mixed with the delicious flavor of dragon fruit.'
Ingenium turned to the camera as he finished the bottle, this time speaking on-camera.
'Perfect for anywhere you prefer to run.'
The camera pulled out to reveal him racing through the Egyptian desert.
"I like the final gag there," Tenya said, "Even though I only did a light run through Giza."
"That light run meant we didn't need to do much for the CGI," the director noted, "PepsiCo was blown away by the commercial and wanted it in syndication ASAP. Quicksilver's already starting to fly off the shelves. And no wonder. It is a tasty soda."
The team was invited to the premier of their major Heights Alliance movie, "Champions of Tomorrow".
"Good thing we spent of a lot of time cleaning up the streets before this," Minoru said, "I wouldn't miss this premier for the world, unless I had to."
Reporters were there chatting up the various couples on the team. And some of the team were acting like goofballs to put the crowd at ease.
"I managed to get my folks tickets for this," Ochaco said.
"Looks like you're finally giving them the life they deserve," Izuku said.
He got a text on his smartphone.
It read, "Compound V retrieved. Science working on perfecting it. And creating an antidote."
Izuku was well-aware that Vought was trying to break into the military sector. The heroes from America had told all kinds of stories regarding how controlling Vought was. And the rest of the world owed a lot to that country. So now it was time to give back, and free the country that had fought so hard to remove itself from tyranny centuries before anyone at the theater were even born.
'And to do that, we need to show the real side of Vought's heroes.'