On a random school day, Class 1-A is enjoying their free period in their classroom. Kevin, Aaron, Wes, and Hayze are talking to one another.

Aaron: It’s funny how it feels like our entire day is always just a waste of time until we can get to hero training.

Wes: Aaron, this is a school. You’re supposed to learn.

Kevin: Aaron is right though, we’re here to be heroes. It sucks that it's the last class of the day.

Hayze: I can’t disagree with that.

Aaron: Yeah, and I wish our academic classes weren’t so difficult! It took me this whole month to catch up with everyone after missing one day because of that beating Mr. Walker gave us.

Wes: Speak for yourself! You’ve made me do all your work!

Aaron: Yes, and you did it poorly!

Wes: I don’t know why you would trust me with that...

Aaron: It’s your punishment for knocking me out against Mr. Walker! I would have had him if not for you!

Wes: And you’re okay with C’s?

Aaron: Like you could get C’s.

Wes: That’s… worse.

Kevin: I hope we get to fight each other again. Over the last few weeks, many training exercises have been rescue training and formulating plans, not too many actual fights.

Wes: I don’t…

Aaron: Shut up, Wes.

The girls are all grouped together.

Eve: The guys always want to fight one another. It’s like they think we’re chopped liver.

Karma: To be fair, Aaron and Kevin are amongst the strongest members of the class. They have reason to be confident.

Blair: True, but based on my experience, Silver and Justus are pretty clearly number 1 and 2. I’m not really sure which is which, though.

Alexis: Funny hearing that from you considering how much you pride yourself on your strength.

Blair: What is that supposed to mean!

Karma: Ash, you said you had to team with Hayze for the entrance exam, right?

Ash: Uh yeah, why?

Karma: For most of the boys in this class, it's easy to tell where they are on the hierarchy. You have the Strongest in Justus and Silver, the Pretty Strong in Kevin, Aaron, Zach, and Angel, the situationally strong in Isaiah, Demetri, Jace, and Gus, and the bottom feeders in Wes, Jake, and Alden. I'm not sure where Hayze falls. At times, his quirk seems like it can be really powerful, but at others, he looks like he is just trying to keep himself afloat.

Ash: Well, in the entrance exams, he mostly came up with the plan that we used to take out the three villains; he only used his quirk a little.

Eve: He's not much; the pure limitations that his quirk has make it seem like a burden in some instances. He's one of the bottom feeders at best.

Lilith: That seems a little harsh.

Eve: He can’t aim his lightning blasts and only knows basic fire attacks. It’s not harsh; it’s the truth. I hated that I got paired with him on the first day, he did talk to me about how he worked hard to get here during that exercise, so I’ll admit that there’s a reason he’s here, but until he proves otherwise, I wouldn’t trust him in combat.

Blair: I got to side with Eve, he’s got the right instincts, but If I had to pair up with someone for a fight, Aaron’s gun quirk is much more powerful and valuable.

Karma: True.

Zach, Demetri, Isaiah, and Jace are nonchalantly listening in on the girls' conversation.

Demetri: WHAT DOES SHE MEAN “CAN BE STRONG!”

Zach: Calm down dude, what do you care what they think?

Demetri: It’s not my fault I’ve had sleepless nights trying to catch up after missing the first day.

Jace: Isn’t it kind of your fault?

Demetri: Jace… just let me pretend it isn’t.

Isaiah: I don’t understand what the big deal is. It’s not like we’re here to impress one another. I think we’re all strong in our own right.

Zach: See, Isaiah’s got the right idea.

Walker enters the classroom; everyone takes their seats.

Walker: Alright, I'll be your hero training teacher today. Today's lesson will be about working together in high-pressure situations. You have the sports festival coming up soon, so you’ll need to be in tip-top shape to show off to all of the hero agencies. You’ll thank me for having this hard training to prepare. Furthermore, you'll be divided into three randomly selected teams. Change into your hero costumes and meet me at Facility J, and I'll explain today's exercise further.

Class: Yessir.

The students gather at the facility; however, this one is different from the others. The entire area is a flat dirt plain.

Walker: Welcome to Facility J. This is one of our “special arenas.” You see, we have a technology known as “Solid Vision.” We can select a different scenario inside the control room, and the grounds here will change using holograms and virtual imaging devices. Everything will look and feel real, down to the touch and smell. This makes ideal training grounds for you to work in, but you’ll see what I mean soon enough. Anyway, these are your teams for today:

Walker holds up a piece of paper with the team assignments written on it.

Group A: Justus, Hayze, Alexis, Ashley, Zach, Karma, LilithGroup B: Silver, Gus, Jace, Wes, Kevin, Angel, JakeGroup C: Isaiah, Aaron, Demetri, Alden, Blair, Eve

Walker: Your goal will be based on the scenario your team receives. Group A, you’re up first. Everyone else, follow me.

Groups B and C leave alongside Walker.

Karma: Well, I guess we should come up with a strategy.

Zach: Yeah, good idea.

Justus: I agree, but it’s difficult because we don’t know what we’re going up against.

Karma: That’s true, but we could at least figure out which of us work well together and go from there.

Ash: That seems like a good idea to me.

Justus: Zach, our quirks are both strength-based, so we should pair up.

Zach: Alright! Let’s do it!

Karma: Alexis, if you let me wear your jacket made of Paper, if I rewind myself in time, then you can have an infinite supply of paper.

Alexis: That’s a good idea; we can stick together on this one.

As Walker and the rest of the class walk away. Walker pulls out his phone. He sends a text to someone saying, “get ready; they’re starting soon.”

Ash: I guess we’re gonna be working together, Hayze.

Hayze: Yeah, it looks like the others are pairing up.

Walker: *Through an intercom* Alright, it’s time to start. Brace yourselves.

Ash: What’s that supposed to mean?

An intense light blares as a lively holographic city appears around them. Unfortunately, they have spawned on a highway with fast-moving vehicles all around them.

Zach: What the heck!

A car barrels toward Justus and Zach. Justus smashes his fist through the hood stopping it dead in its tracks.

Zach: Woah! Thanks, dude, that’s… wow.

Justus: *yelling* Everyone! Move over to the median!

Zach: Right! I gotcha.

Karma: Good idea!

The group dodges cars and trucks as they run for their lives to the median. They all catch their breath after escaping harm.

Alexis: He wasn’t kidding about this feeling real.

Karma: That could have been really bad.

Voice: Well, well, well worn out already?

Justus’ eyes widen.

Justus: *under his breath* That voice...

Everyone looks up to see a prominent buff fighter standing on top of a billboard across the road from them. Their eyes flare up with a star shock, except for Justus, who looks shaken. The fighter is none other than the Number 1 hero himself, Colossus, the world's strongest warrior.

Colossus: Don't look at me with those starry eyes. In this exercise, I am your enemy!

Ash: What? We have to fight Colossus?

Zach: No way we can beat him!

In the control room, the rest of the class are confused and excited at seeing Colossus.

Walker: *Into a mic* Listen up, you’re not trying to defeat Colossus. You’re trying to stop him from defusing a bomb located inside the tallest building in the city.

Cut back to Group A.

Karma: Wait... so that means we’re the villains?

Lilith: That doesn’t sound good.

Walker: *Over the intercom* To defeat villains someday, you should know what it’s like to be in their shoes. You have one hour; stop Colossus at all costs.

Justus: You don’t have to tell me twice!

Justus jumps towards Colossus with his arm cocked back to try and punch him.

Colossus: A bold strategy!

Colossus swats him down with a single punch, Justus plummets at an extreme speed and collides with the ground leaving an indent in the dirt, and all 19 members of the class watch with fear.

Colossus: But a dumb one, nonetheless.

Zach: I just saw Justus take out a car moving at least 60 Miles per hour, and Colossus took him out in one punch!

Karma: He’s the number one hero; there’s no doubt about that!

Colossus: Listen here, I’m wearing hefty weights on my arms and legs to restrict my speed to give you all a fair chance of actually stopping me, but don’t think that gives you an edge. I’m sure Justus here learned that lesson.

Justus is out cold.

Hayze: Guys, we have to run.

Zach: What? But we’re supposed to try and stop him.

Hayze: Yeah, and look how that turned out for the strongest guy among us.

Karma: Hayze is right. If he knocks all of us out right now, he's free to just go look for the bomb with no opposition.

Ash: So, what should we do?

Alexis: Karma and I will try to hold him off. The rest of you should get as far away as possible.

Lilith: But what will happen to you guys?

Alexis: Probably the same thing as Justus, but it’s worth it to give you guys a shot to get away.

Colossus: ALRIGHT, I’M DONE LETTING YOU STRATEGIZE!

Colossus leaps off the billboard.

Alexis: Run now!

Hayze, Zach, Lilith, and Ash start running through the traffic.

Alexis: Karma, are you ready?

Karma: Y- yes!

Alexis: Alright!

Alexis and Karma dodge Colossus' punch, with each of them jumping to one side. His fist leaves an indentation in the ground.

Colossus: Just in case you think it’s admirable to sacrifice yourselves and take me on for the sake of your group, suicide isn’t admirable.

Karma: (Those types of lines have always been so cool to hear growing up, but now, we’re the ones facing the greatest hero this world has ever known.)

Alexis: Take this!

Alexis uses all the paper from her Jacket to engulf Colossus.

Alexis: That’s industrial strength! It’s gonna take a lot to break out of that, even for you!

Karma rewinds herself backward to regenerate the paper cloak. Colossus breaks free of the paper’s hold without moving a muscle.

Alexis: What? How?

Colossus: You really thought a bunch of strong paper was going to hold me? I’m the strongest hero alive young lady. You should know better than to challenge me with a trivial attack like that!

Karma uses her quirk to accelerate over to Alexis.

Karma: I don’t know what to do here.

Alexis: We have to buy the others more time to get away.

Karma: I think I have an idea. Send a swarm of your Origami Birds at him.

Alexis: Okay.

Alexis uses her paper cloak to form a massive swarm of Origami Birds that begin to flock around Colossus.

Colossus: What’s this?

Karma: (Now! While he’s distracted!)

Karma runs at Colossus and grabs him.

Colossus: Huh?

Karma accelerates herself and Colossus forward in time. The momentum of the time shift gives her enough force to send Colossus flying toward the billboard; he smashes into the pole.

Karma: Now, Alexis!

Alexis: Take this!

The swarm of Origami birds strikes Colossus, making mini-explosions on contact.

Karma: Those things explode?

Alexis: All of my paper is explosive. Ever heard of Paper Bombs?

Karma: I thought that was only in anime.

Alexis: Oh, they’re real alright!

Colossus isn’t moving. His body is smoking from the explosive impact.

Alexis: Did we get him?

Karma: Maybe?

Suddenly, Colossus zooms behind them.

Colossus: No, you didn’t.

Colossus punches them both in the back knocking them to the ground, unconscious.

Colossus: That took a little longer than expected. Now to go find the rest.

Hayze, Lilith, Zach, and Ash have taken refuge in an alleyway. Heavily breathing from having just ran for their lives, Hayze looks out and sees Colossus jumping off from where they left Alexis and Karma.

Hayze: Damn, he took them both out already.

Ash: Seriously? Alexis and Karma?

Zach: Dang, man, this is intense for a training exercise!

Lilith: Yeah, isn’t Colossus way out of our league?

In the control room.

Jace: Colossus has taken out Justus, Karma, and Alexis in the first five minutes of the exercise; I think Zach is right; that’s a little intense.

Gus: Yeah, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say it’s like they were set up to fail.

Walker: Quiet down; they still have 55 minutes left.

Blair: With all due respect, Mr. Walker, I don’t see how they can win with nearly half of their team down already.

Walker: I don’t like this dismissal of your classmates so early on in the exercise.

Recovery Girl appears on a separate monitor.

Recovery Girl: Alright, I’m going to tend to the three that have been taken out already.

Walker: Okay, just don’t let them help out the remaining members of their group.

Recovery Girl: Roger that.

Recovery Girl disappears from the monitor.

Walker: (I knew Justus would be shaken by Colossus, but I didn't expect him to do THAT. His classmates look up to him as one of the strongest among them, and all he did was serve as an example of why Colossus is the number one hero: he's unstoppable.)

Back to the group in the alleyway.

Zach: (Damn it, why did Justus have to go and get himself knocked out in the first minute? Now with Alexis and Karma down for the count, It’s just me, butterfly girl, ghost girl, and the beginner. We don’t stand a chance here.)

Ash: So, do we have a plan to go with or?

Zach: I hate to be a downer, but this feels hopeless. What are we supposed to do against the greatest hero ever? We can’t beat that!

Hayze: We don’t need to beat him.

Zach: Okay yeah, but he’s gonna figure out where that bomb is pretty quick, there aren’t too many buildings, and if I was him, I’d check the biggest one first.

Lilith: Zach has a point...

Hayze: Look, there are three ways we could beat this challenge: The first, beating him head-on, that option was foolhardy even if we had our strongest fighter. The second, delaying him long enough that we win the challenge due to the time limit, that option was eliminated with Karma and Alexis. If Karma was here, her speed due to her time acceleration quirk could have been used to move the bomb effectively around the city. Alexis’ paper quirk could have been used to hold back Colossus for a limited period to create walls to separate him from us. With them gone, we only have one way of winning this.

Zach: And that is?

Hayze: Mr. Walker only told us to stop Colossus from defusing the bomb. He never said that we needed to keep the bomb safe.

Zach: What do you mean? Don’t those go hand-in-hand?

Hayze: Not precisely; keep in mind one crucial detail of this scenario: we’re the villains. So, what would our end goal be with that bomb?

Lilith: Oh, I get it! If we blow up the bomb, then we technically accomplished our goal!

Zach: Hey yeah! That’s pretty good, but one problem, there’s no way Colossus will just let us blow that thing up without trying to stop us. Just one punch from him, and we’re done.

Hayze: When did I say WE were gonna be the ones to blow up the bomb.

Zach: Alright... I’m listening.

Colossus is standing in the middle of a street.

Colossus: Well, if those kids are smart, they’re going to try and make a run for the building with the bomb and try to form a defensive perimeter. I don’t think they’ll be foolish enough to try and attack me.

Zach: Over here, Superman!

Colossus: *under his breath* Or not.

Zach runs at Colossus with his claws extended.

Colossus: Superman, eh? I haven’t heard that one before.

Colossus winds back a punch, Zach quickly reacts and blocks. Zach’s claws stop the punch; Colossus marvels that Zach’s claws were strong enough to withstand his force, even though it was weakened by the weights. However, cracks begin to form all throughout the bones.

Colossus: Huh, quite the powerful defense those claws provide. I can tell that you’re a very adept fighter with a quirk that provides both offense and defense. It’s too bad that against me; they’re only good for one punch!

Colossus uses his other fist to punch Zach in the stomach. Zach gets launched backward about 50 yards, knocking him unconscious.

Colossus: WELL, THERE ARE ONLY THREE OF YOU LEFT! I DON’T KNOW WHAT THAT PLAN WAS, BUT I’D HOPE THE REST OF YOU HAVE SOMETHING BETTER UP YOUR SLEEVES!

Hayze watches Colossus from afar.

Hayze: Colossus’ biggest flaw is he doesn’t really strategize. Why would you need to when you have that much brute force under your belt? But he should learn the first rule of strategy: The first move is always a fake.

On top of Colossus’ head, Lilith, in her butterfly form, stands tall.

Lilith: (Alright, it’s time to show everyone I’m not just a little butterfly!)

Lilith slams down on a button on the chest of her costume. Lilith suddenly grows 600 feet tall, crushing Colossus under her left foot.

Colossus: What the hell!

A flashback starts of the four members of Group A in the alleyway.

Hayze: Zach, you’re gonna be our fake-out. You’ve got the best counter to Colossus’ punch, but you’re probably gonna get knocked out in the process. Are you okay with that?

Zach: If it helps the team get to the win, then, of course, I'm a team player.

Hayze: Lilith is going to shrink down and hold on to you when you run at Colossus, then while you distract him, she’ll fly on top of his head, after that-

Lilith: Um, can I make a suggestion?

Hayze: Yeah, go ahead. This is a team, after all.

Lilith: My quirk doesn’t just allow me to shrink; I can also grow big. The only problem is that I’ve never been able to control it, but since we got our hero costumes, I asked for a way of helping me command the process. That’s what this button on my chest does.

Zach: That sounds cool, but how big do you get?

Lilith: I’m um… not sure?

Ash: Well, I guess now is a good time to find out.

Hayze: Yeah, once you’re on Colossus’ head, smash the button.

The flashback ends.

Lilith: I did it!

Hayze: Okay, she meant really big…

Lilith looks down at her feet.

Lilith: Did I get him?

Everyone in the control room is shocked.

Kevin: Huh.

Wes: (DAMN IT, I THOUGHT I WAS AT LEAST STRONGER THAN BUTTERFLY GIRL!)

Angel: Well, that’s interesting…

Demetri: Damn, maybe she’s the strongest chick in this class.

Isaiah: Man, Hayze has the best view right now.

Blair punches Isaiah into the wall.

Blair: Damn, perverts!

Demetri: *trembling* (Blair is still the scariest, though... that's for sure. I bet if Isaiah didn't say that, she probably would have punched me instead…)

Walker: Blair, don’t beat up your classmates, and Isaiah, don’t objectify your female classmates.

Blair: Sorry, sir.

Isaiah: Ow...

Back to the arena, Lilith starts to feel movement under her left foot.

Lilith: Oh no...

Colossus forcefully pushes her foot off of himself, causing Lilith to lose her balance and fall backward onto many buildings.

Colossus: (When I talked to them about this arrangement, Ms. Fatal said that this class of kids was one of the strongest she’s seen in her short time as a teacher at U.A. I’ll tell you what, they’re certainly giving me more of a workout than I expected, well everyone except him. He’ll be very disappointed about his performance today, but it’s a lesson he’ll have to learn for the future.)

Lilith starts to get up.

Lilith: (It’s hard to keep my balance at this height, but I’ll have to get used to it to beat Colossus. I need to do the second part of the plan now!)

Lilith stands up and extends her wings out. She starts flapping them, creating a whirlwind. Colossus endures the strong storm winds.

Colossus: (Her winds are enhanced by her size, and inside a city, the winds can be even more powerful on their own.)

Suddenly, Hayze comes flying in at Colossus; his irises are a light gray color.

Colossus: Huh!

Hayze: Tornado Tackle!

Hayze punches Colossus, which doesn’t hurt him, but it causes Colossus to lose his balance and go flying backward with the wind and collide into a building.

Colossus: (Between these weights and winds, I’m fighting out of my element, but it looks like I’m in his.)

Hayze: Sorry, Colossus, I've looked up to you for a long time, but man, did it feel good to land a hit on you. (It's a good thing I've practiced with this wind quirk a little bit since the start of U.A. I’m still a novice, but the ability to control the airflow around my body works perfectly when fighting in a windstorm. Colossus will have a hard time fighting me and the wind. He’ll figure out a plan soon, but hopefully, I can distract him long enough.)

Colossus: Don’t be too proud of yourself kid, that punch didn’t even hurt, but it was enough to make me succumb to these winds your friend is making.

Colossus stands up and braces the winds again.

Colossus: (He may not be that powerful, but beating him in this storm is going to be time-consuming, which I assume is their plan. Although... there are still well over 25 minutes left; he can’t honestly think the three of them will hold me off that long? Wait a second... Where is the third one? I have yet to become familiar with her quirk. Maybe that is their plan?)

Hayze: (I can’t engage him again, I only connected a hit because he was distracted, I gotta give the signal, we’re out of moves now.) Alright, Colossus, it’s time for us to put you in checkmate.

Colossus: (What? Does he have another attack in store for me?)

Out of nowhere, Ash appears in her astral form behind Colossus.

Ash: (There is the signal! this is my only chance!)

Ash enters Colossus’ body; he begins trembling.

Colossus: What the hell? What’s happening?

Hayze: (Good work, Ash!)

Colossus falls to his knees, holding his face.

Colossus: (Is this a trick? I feel like I’m losing control of my body.)

Lilith stops flapping her wings, and the windstorm slowly subsides.

Lilith: Sorry, Hayze, but I’m out of energy.

Hayze: *Shouting* It’s alright, you did enough! I think we have it from here!

Lilith: That’s good-

Lilith shrinks down to standard size and passes out from exhaustion.

Hayze: Well, if this doesn’t work, I’m getting my ass kicked, so... let’s hope it works.

Colossus continues to try and fight off Ash’s control.

Colossus: (I see the final member of this group has a mind control quirk of some kind, it’s too bad for her that I’m almost as strong mentally as I am physically.)

Colossus overpowers Ash, and her astral spirit gets bounced out of his body and sent back to her own. She passes out due to having fought such a powerful opponent in astral space.

Colossus: That was a clever plan you had. It’s too bad that it wasn’t good enough to stop me.

Hayze: Ah… fuck me sideways.

Colossus: *Laughs loudly* If you give up, I won’t have to punch you to the ground like the rest of your team.

Hayze: Yeah, but then I’d be a wimp, so it’s a lose-lose.

Colossus: Well, I gave you an out.

Colossus knocks Hayze out. A few minutes later, Hayze wakes up to Recovery Girl healing his wounds. The city is gone; the facility has turned back into a flat plane. Mr. Walker and Colossus stand before Hayze, Zach, Lilith, and Ash, who have also been healed; Justus, Alexis, and Karma join them.

Walker: Now that you're all here, I need to lecture about your performance in this exercise as this will likely be your last taste of hero training before the Sports Festival. As a group, you pass this exercise. You couldn’t beat Colossus in any facet. That said, you were really being evaluated on effort, teamwork, and planning. I was very impressed with that final plan that was put together, it had a fool’s shot in hell of working, but that’s just because you were against Colossus. You faced some severe adversity early in the test and were still able to work around the serious loss in manpower. Karma, Alexis, and Zach, your sacrifices were essential contributions to the team's success. Hayze and Lilith, your fight with Colossus, was better than I could have expected, and Ash, your quirk was the key to your potential victory, so your ability to stay hidden and wait to strike was needed. Don’t think you didn't contribute. Finally, Justus.

Everyone looks at Justus. He seems visibly angry with himself.

Walker: Grow up, your team needed you, and you failed them. You receive a failing grade for this exercise. I don’t think you need me to tell you more. All of you, head to the viewing room; Group B will take its turn.

Walker walks off toward the viewing room.

Colossus: This group was very impressive. Thank you for a good workout and good luck in the upcoming sports festival. I look forward to watching you all in action.

Colossus jumps off. Justus walks off without speaking.

Alexis: Thanks for doing a good job without us, guys.

Karma: Yeah, sorry we couldn’t do more.

Ash: You guys let us get away and make a plan; you did as much as you could.

Zach: Yeah, don’t worry about it.

The girls all start to walk back, Hayze and Zach follow.

Zach: Hey man, I just want to apologize for doubting you.

Hayze: Eh, it’s okay. I’m used to it at this point.

Zach: Yeah, but it wasn't fair, I was willing to give up, and you were able to come up with a strategy to at least give us a shot at beating Colossus.

Hayze: Shouldn’t I be apologizing for using you as fodder?

Zach: Ah, it’s alright. I’m just happy to be helpful.

The girls converse ahead of Zach and Hayze.

Alexis: We got healed in time to watch you go Godzilla on Colossus, Lilith.

Lilith: Oh, I didn’t do much... It only worked because Zach took a punch from Colossus head-on.

Alexis: Maybe, but you still stole the show.

Karma looks over her shoulder at Hayze.

Karma: (Just like what Ash said about their entrance exam, his physical contributions weren’t that impressive, but he provided leadership to a group that was splintered and panicking. I understand why he’s here and why this school took its chances on a project. I’m one of the two people in this class that were accepted by recommendation, and I’ve contributed so little in these exercises, being nothing more than a sacrifice on the first day and now. Hayze found a way to contribute even with his handicaps. I need to do better; I’m supposed to be one of the strongest people here.)

Ahead Justus walks alone.

Justus: (How could I let my emotions get the better of me, I humiliated myself, I failed my teammates and myself. When I saw him, I thought of everything that I'm destined to do, everything that my career as a hero will build up towards, to defeat Colossus and take his place as the number one hero at all costs. But at that moment, I didn't see him as the predecessor to my throne. I saw him for what he is right now… my father. And I will not lose to him again.)