Hayze and Adrian are standing on top of a flat rock formation shaped like a circle not far within viewing distance of Adrian’s mountain home.

Adrian: Alright, it’s time for Day 1 of your training, we won’t have enough time for you to learn any ultimate moves, but I’m sure you’ll be learning those at school at some point. Besides, right now, you need to get the fundamentals down.

Adrian holds out Hayze’s gauntlet.

Adrian: For starters, you’re not going to be using this during my training.

Hayze: And why is that? Those weapons help me control my quirk.

Adrian: That’s why. Hero tools and weapons should be an extension of your quirk. If you’re using them as a crutch for your lack of control, then we have a problem.

Adrian puts the gauntlet in his backpack.

Adrian: During the Sports Festival, you used these weapons almost exclusively to deal damage to your opponent, multiple times, they bailed you out of a tough situation. If you want to advance your skill set, you will have to learn how to fight on your own and then find ways to make the weapons work with your fighting style.

Hayze: But my lightning element can’t even be used without the Shock Sabers to harness the electricity.

Adrian: And there’s your first issue; you’re looking at each element the same way. You’ve got five of these things to work with, and they’re all different in their own ways. You’re not looking at the bigger picture here.

Hayze: The bigger picture?

Adrian: The thing that makes your quirk so powerful is its versatility. A Swiss army knife is helpful because it has many tools that apply to many situations. But that versatility is useless if you try using the corkscrew to cut a rope.

Hayze: What do you mean exactly? Aren’t they all supposed to be used for fighting?

Adrian: Yes, but the fighting style you need to utilize is different. Take your lightning quirk, for example. You say that those swords help you harness the electricity, but is that really the case?

Hayze: Well, now I’m not sure.

Adrian: Those swords help you aim the electricity for medium to long-range attacks. They’re a crutch for that element’s weakness. So, with that in mind, what’s the strength of your lightning?

Hayze: It’s best suited for short-range attacks.

Adrian: Bingo, but there’s also something else that you need to take note of.

Hayze: Like what?

Adrian: You don’t have the aiming problem in your fire form.

Hayze: You’re right; I don’t.

Adrian: So, you can do things with your fire quirk that you can’t do with your lightning quirk, so what does that mean?

Hayze: It works the other way around?

Adrian: Exactly, now let me show you what I mean.

Adrian pokes Hayze’s forehead. His eyes then turn yellow.

Hayze: (So it works based on contact, huh?)

Adrian backs up and then faces Hayze.

Adrian: Alright, so what you’re going to do next is try to hit me.

Hayze: Hm? What’s the catch?

Adrian: There is none. I just want to show you something.

Hayze: Okay, if you say so.

Hayze tries to punch Adrian, but he disappears from Hayze’s view at the last second, leaving a trail of electricity leading behind Hayze.

Hayze: (Woah…)

Adrian: Impressed?

Hayze turns around to see Adrian standing behind him.

Hayze: Mind explaining?

Adrian: You understand how your lightning element works, right?

Hayze: I control lightning?

Adrian: Yes, but that’s not all there is to it. You see, your fire quirk allows you to manifest, control and shape fire at will, but your lightning quirk isn’t like that. Instead of creating the lightning, you are the lightning.

Hayze: Really?

Adrian: After you launch a lightning bolt, you can’t control it or shape it. So that means that you aren’t manifesting it either, your lightning quirk makes you a living lightning bolt, and the lightning you use is an extension of your body. So with that in mind, anything a lightning bolt can do, you can do.

Hayze: I think I’m starting to catch on, so basically, the reason I can’t control the direction of my lightning blasts is that I have no control over lightning or electricity like I had thought prior.

Adrian: Exactly, remember your elemental powers aren’t as simple as controlling fire, wind, lightning, etcetera. Each one has its own properties and fighting style coupled with it. So instead of fighting the way you have been with your lightning quirk, you should be concentrating on harnessing the speed and reflexes of lightning.

Hayze: So I can use Lightning Form for enhanced speed, allowing me to avoid hits and strike fast.

Adrian: And this is where your first task begins.

Adrian walks to the edge of the circle.

Adrian: Watch closely because I’ll only do this once.

Hayze: Right.

Adrian’s left hand and forearm begin to emanate electricity. Adrian starts running at an extreme speed towards a large rock.

Adrian: Thunder Punch!

Adrian punches the rock leaving a massive indent on its surface. Residual electricity pulsates through the boulder after contact.

Adrian: And that’s how you do it.

Hayze: (He makes it seem so simple…)

Adrian grabs his backpack.

Adrian: Alright, I’ll leave you to it. I’ll be back in 24 hours to check on your progress.

Hayze: Wait, you're not gonna help me?

Adrian: Nope, I’ve given you everything you need to know to figure out how to harness the lightning element’s speed and electricity. I’m not the type of teacher that’s going to hold your hand the whole way. If you want to do this, you’re gonna have to use what I’ve shown and taught you to do it.

Adrian starts to walk away.

Hayze: Hey, I have one more question!

Adrian: Hm? What is it?

Hayze: I’ve had this quirk for months and have barely scratched the surface of how to use it properly. How… How did you figure all of this out so quickly?

Adrian: That’s for me to know, kid, now get to your training. You’ll need all the time you can get; I gave you the most challenging task first for a reason.

Hayze: And what’s that?

Adrian: To see if you’re actually determined to progress, or if you’re just saying it to make yourself feel better about how weak you are.

Hayze: It’s the former, I can guarantee you that!

Adrian: We’ll see in 24 hours then, won’t we?

Adrian leaves Hayze.

Adrian: (I know he wants me to help him learn the attack and move, but the truth is that he has to figure it out for himself. I’m challenging him to see if he’ll rise to the occasion, but I don’t expect him to. Tomorrow I’ll give him some advice, and then we’ll move on to the next element. He needs to learn the basic principles of advancing his power here with me so that he can perfect the techniques when he heads back to U.A.)

Hayze watches as Adrian walks away.

Hayze: (I guess I’m on my own.)

Hayze looks down at his right hand.

Hayze: (Well, the first step is obvious.)

Hayze’s eyes change to yellow.

Hayze: (Okay, he said that the lightning isn’t something I'm manifesting but something that’s already part of me when I turn the power on. Therefore, I should be concentrating on channeling the electricity rather than creating and aiming it. Luckily for me, I’ve already done that once before.)

Hayze flashes back to the Entrance Exam, where he used electricity to keep the heart rate monitor working.

Hayze: (It’s been a while, but if I can stream the electricity like I did back then…)

Electricity starts to spark from Hayze’s fingertips.

Hayze: (Okay, there’s the easy part… next comes the hard part of imitating this action with the rest of my hand and forearm.)

Electricity starts to stem from different parts of Hayze’s forearm.

Hayze: (There we go-)

Suddenly the electricity starts to go wild, and a lightning bolt is shot straight into the air knocking Hayze down onto the ground.

Hayze: *groans* Well, I think that was a good first attempt…

Adrian has reached his house. He looks back to see the lightning bolt shoot into the sky.

Adrian: (He’s hit his first wall. Let’s see how he responds.)

Adrian walks through the door. Hayze stands up and brushes himself off.

Hayze: (Alright… What went wrong there? I lost control of the electrical impulses after I tried to extend them further down my arm… but why? It felt fine until the very last moment. Maybe I just messed up at the end?)

Hayze holds out his right arm again.

Hayze: (Alright, time for round 2!)

Hayze starts emitting electricity out of his fingertips and then courses the electricity through the rest of his forearm.

Hayze: (Come on… come on… I can get th-)

The electricity loses its consistency, and Hayze fires another lightning bolt into the sky, knocking him back and onto the ground.

Hayze: (Well, shit…)

Hayze gets back up.

Hayze: (Maybe this time I only go up to the wrist? Yeah, I’ll go by increments, that gotta work!)

Adrian watches from his house as lightning bolts continuously are shot into the sky.

Adrian: (If it’s not working the way you’re doing it, try something else. Trial and error doesn’t work if you’re not changing the trial.)

Hours go by as Hayze continues trying to master electricity control. Hayze lies on the ground covered in sweat, completely exhausted.

Hayze: (Even when I try to go from different fragments of my body, it just blows up in my face.)

Hayze sits up.

Hayze: (I’m almost recharged, but I can’t keep doing what I’ve been doing, it’s not working. I’ve gotta try something new.)

Hayze gingerly gets to his feet.

Hayze: (Maybe I should try to utilize the speed, he made it look easy, but I’m sure there is more to it than there is on the surface. Hmm… actually, now that I think about it, it probably makes more sense to do it in this order. This way, I’ll learn how to internalize the electricity before I try to externalize it.)

Hayze starts to concentrate on streaming electricity inside his body.

Hayze: (Hey, I might actually be getting this one!)

An electrical aura starts to surround Hayze’s body.

Hayze: (That’s right! I don’t need help on this one that was easy as hell! Now let’s see how fast I can go!)

Hayze takes a step forward and starts to run. His movement speed is clearly enhanced, but the lightning aura dissipates as he takes his next step, and he trips and falls.

Hayze: And there’s the catch…

Hayze sits up and looks toward the rock Adrian punched earlier.

Hayze: (He gave me two things to do. He probably knew the roadblocks that I would run into with each task. Keeping the consistency of the electrical impulse for a thunder punch requires a ton of precise concentration throughout my forearm; otherwise, it just becomes a standard lightning bolt. Using internal electricity is pretty straightforward, but once I start moving, it becomes a challenge…)

Hayze gets to his feet.

Hayze: (So that leaves me with me in a predicament… how do I keep a high level of concentration for long enough to not only keep my movement speed enhanced but also allow me to fire off an attack?)

Hayze looks out toward the sun.

Hayze: (I still got plenty of daylight to work with, I’m sure I can figure this out!)

That night, Hayze lies on the ground in exhaustion.

Hayze: (Maybe I was a little too optimistic…)

Hayze glances at Adrian’s house.

Hayze: (That bastard is probably enjoying knowing that I’m out here trying to figure something out that he already knows… whatever, at least this can’t get much worse.)

Torrential downpour begins.

Hayze: *deep inhale* FUUUUUUUUUCK!

Adrian sips tea and watches TV inside his home.

Adrian: Oh yeah, I forgot it was supposed to rain tonight, oh well.

Hayze gets to his feet as he’s being drenched by the rain.

Hayze: I know what his plan is: the climb, the limited training guidance, the mountain’s high altitude, and thinner oxygen. It’s all to try and break me, to push me to my limit!

Hayze flashes back to the day he met Doctor Moore and received the Quirk Serum.

Hayze: I was born with a quirk that wasn’t going to get me anywhere in this world; I wasn’t supposed to be a hero. I was given a second chance, whether or not I earned it or deserved it, I don’t know, but it gave me new hope that I could achieve my dream that was once out of reach.

Hayze flashes back to his fights against Silver and Sydney during the Sports Festival.

Hayze: My quirk has its limitations, and I’ve worked around those restraints to defeat my opponents… and I thought that was progress, but when Adrian pointed out that my time limit hasn't changed despite all of the time I’ve spent at U.A., I realized something: I’m never going to become the hero I want to be if I don’t break my limits!

Hayze flashes back to his confrontation with Ivy.

Hayze: I passed the entrance exam with flying colors, I found close friends for the first time in my life, I devised a plan that caught the mighty Colossus off guard, I defeated the top student in my class, I even gave Justus a run for his money! I’ve done all those things, and now here I stand, exhausted, hungry, and drenched! I’ve made so little progress in so much time; I’ve barely closed the gap between myself and the elite of my class. I have every reason to want to give up!

The electrical aura starts to surround Hayze’s body again.

Hayze: But I’ve come too far to go home empty-handed!

Adrian looks out his window toward where Hayze is training; the rain is making it so he can only see the flashes of electricity in the distance.

Adrian: (He’s still at it… I’ll give him credit, he said he wants to get stronger, and he’s putting every ounce of effort in his body into making sure that happens. When Ewing told me that I should take on an intern, I was skeptical, but I liked the spunk this kid showed during the Sports Festival. However, I needed to know if he was serious about his goals or just trying to impress the crowd. I can tell now that I was wrong to be skeptical; he really is committed to becoming a hero.)

Adrian walks over to the picture of himself, Fatal, and Walker and picks it up.

Adrian: (We used to be so close… I wonder if they’ve forgiven me…)

Adrian opens a drawer, puts the picture inside it, and closes it.

Adrian: (It’s better if he doesn’t know about my past with them.)

Adrian looks back at his fireplace.

Adrian: (It should be safe where it is.)

The next day, Adrian walks outside his house and looks towards the training ground.

Adrian: (I wonder if he’s dead?)

Adrian approaches the training ground and sees Hayze sleeping. He lightly kicks Hayze to wake him up.

Hayze: *groans*

Adrian: It’s been 24 hours; what progress have you made?

Hayze stands up and tries to shake off his grogginess.

Hayze: I guess I must have passed out after finishing the training.

Adrian: What do you mean finished the training?

Hayze: I figured out lightning speed plus the attack.

Adrian is visibly surprised.

Adrian: You… you did?

Hayze: Yeah, isn’t that what you wanted?

Adrian: That’s not… I just didn’t expect you to figure it out in such a short amount of time.

Hayze: What! But you basically said you wouldn’t train me if I didn’t figure it out!

Adrian: *sighs* Look, never mind that, just show me what you can do.

Hayze: Right.

Hayze’s eyes change to yellow.

Hayze: I’ll be honest with you, I didn’t figure out how to do exactly what you showed me.

Adrian: Then what did you do?

Hayze: Well, I realized an apparent problem with both of the tasks you gave me. With externalizing the lightning into an attack, I couldn’t handle the consistency of the energy, which would cause me to fire off lightning bolts instead. With internalizing lightning to increase my speed, I couldn’t control the concentration of empowering my whole body while moving.

Adrian: Well, at least you understood the problem that I gave you.

Hayze: Yeah, I tried my hardest, but I couldn’t get past either roadblock. I kept trying and trying, but nothing worked, but then it hit me.

Adrian: What?

Hayze: I already knew how to internalize electricity to a single part of my body, and you need to be able to internalize before you can externalize. With that in mind, I could kill two birds with one stone. If I can’t hold my concentration on internalizing the electricity throughout my whole body, why don’t I just do it on my legs?

Adrian gets a look of realization on his face.

Hayze: If I just do my legs, I only need to concentrate on two parts of my body instead of the whole thing, which is much easier. I won’t be as fast as you were, but it’s plenty of speed for now.

Adrian: And once you figured out how to internalize the electricity on your legs and mastered lightning speed-

Hayze: It was a cinch to figure out my newest attack.

The electrical aura surrounds Hayze’s legs. Hayze starts running fast towards the rock that Adrian hit earlier.

Adrian: (It’s not lightning-fast, but he’s quick!)

Hayze’s right leg starts emanating electricity.

Hayze: Shock stride!

Hayze kicks the rock with the broad side of his leg, indenting it almost as much as Adrian did with his punch. Hayze jumps back as the rock pulses with electricity. Adrian looks amazed.

Hayze: It’s not perfect, but it’s my own rendition.

Adrian: (I don’t know what I was expecting… but it wasn’t this. This kid is something special… and I get to be the one to teach him.)

Adrian gets a smile on his face.

Adrian: Congratulations, kid. You’ve learned a specialized move for your lightning quirk. Just four more to go. Are you ready for the next round?

Hayze: Oh, hell yeah!