A Machine's Purgatory

STEPPING STONES OF CHANGE: MEETING OF DISSIMILAR MINDS

Gabriel's sudden arrival surprisingly didn't change much at UA. The angel was simply appointed as V1 assistant and that was that. Though he had an official position, most of Gabriel's time was spent much like V1's when it first arrived; learning about the world he now lived in. Though Gabriel would take much longer than V1 since he required sleep, unlike the machine. The two were currently sitting next to each other, along with the rest of UA staff, to talk about an important step for their student's lives: final exams. The finals for every course in the school were ready except for the hero course, which is what they were about to discuss. A clap of Nezu's paws indicated the start of the meeting, and V1 looked towards the rodent to listen.

"I'm glad everyone was able to make it! Now, I'll get straight to the point. We already have a final exam the hero course can take, however with the rise of villains and multiple attacks against our students, I believe it best for us to change it for this year given the questionable safety of our students in the future. Since such a change needed to be cleared by the Hero Commision, we already have a new final exam: our students will be facing us!" There were a few whispers in the room as Nezu kept talking. "We will be wearing gauntlets designed by one of our support course students as a handicap, and our students will have the option to take us down or escape to pass the test!"

"So, we're here to decide which of us will fight our students?"

"Precisely!" Gabriel shuttered at how gleefully Nezu responded, so V1 leaned to where his ear would be under the helmet and whispered, 'Don't worry, that's normal.'

Then they quickly got to work quickly deciding who would fight which students. Some were easy to figure out; like Aoyama and Uraraka against Thirteen since their quirk was a direct counter to the student's; and others tricky, like where to place powerhouse teachers such as All Might. Tokoyami and Asui were placed against Ectoplasm to focus on their effectiveness taking down groups of villains, and Mina and Kaminari were placed against Nezu for a battle of smarts. As they kept continuing there were only four teachers and students remaining, with Aizawa speaking up.

"I'll take Yaoyorozu and Todoroki. Todoroki is used to having easy access to his quirk to take down foes quickly, while Yaoyorozu struggles with self-confidence and thinking under pressure. I can erase their quirks and force them to think flexibly and outside of the box."

Nezu nods in understanding. "All right, so now we've got Bakugo and Midoriya left. Yagi, I heard you mention something about the two?"

All Might looked up to Nezu before clearing his throat and speaking up. "I think it will be best if I take on Young Bakugo and Midoriya. Young Midoriya idolizes heroes and will be determined to run, while Young Bakugo will see defeating me as the only way to pass. And, given how the two interact, we'll also be testing their relationship."

Nezu clapped his paws in delight. "Wonderful! Now, if there is anything else someone would like to add, I believe it is time to adjourn this meeting!"

V1 raised its hand then "I agree with All Might's decision to fight Bakugo and Midoriya, but we should have a plan B should he, or anyone else, be unable to participate for any reason. I would volunteer; however, the penalty of added weights renders my fighting style inoperable. For this reason, I believe if anyone is unable to fight, Gabriel should take their place. Most of the students do not know anything about his 'quirk,' and those who do know very little about it."

Nezu stared at V1 for a moment, deep in thought, before he made a small humming noise. "A wonderful point and solution V1! Now, does anyone object?"

Gabriel raised his hand this time. "My only worry is the... situation surrounding my 'quirk.'"

That wasn't something V1 thought about, but it was a very good point.

**

Gabriel was sitting on the bed, cleared to walk around campus if school was out to make sure students didn't panic at the sight of a stranger. He struggled to stand, but was delighted to find it wasn't as hard as it was yesterday. The door to the nurse's office squeaked open and V1's coworker, Aizawa, walked through with the principal on his shoulder. Gabriel sat down on the bed again as he acknowledged their arrival. "Good morning Nezu, Aizawa. May I ask, why are you here today?"

Nezu grinned as he responded, "Why, we're here to talk about your quirk!"

Oh, right. The mortals of this world described their abilities as quirks. "I told you; I do not have a quirk; it is simply the Father's light."

"I agreed with you before, however it seems that the light you describe has become your quirk. A blood test we had done proves it."

Nezu handed Gabriel two papers. The first was a circular chart that showed what was in his blood, and the second was a picture of a line of colors. "Apparently, it manifests in your blood stream."

Gabriel looked at the chart. There were five categories that made up a circle. The largest was labeled "White blood cells," and going down the list there was also "Red blood cells," "Platelets," "Plasma," and finally, "Unkown (believed to be quirk-related)." He looked at the second paper, which was labeled "Centrifuged Blood of Patient." The line was compared to a control group of another's blood and was the same except for the golden part at the end. There was no mistaking it, the Light was now in Gabriel's blood.

Gabriel's hand shook. "T-This... This is insane. Did the Ma... Did V1 go through any changes as well?"

Nezu shook his head. "Given we weren't able to get any official test done, we don't know. However, I am under the assumption that V1 has not suffered any changes like you have since they are a machine. You've crossed from a dimension with no quirks into one that does, it's highly likely your body has changed to follow the laws of our universe."

Gabriel's head was shaking from just how crazy all this sounded. "I suppose the Light must be somewhere. We angels believed it was an energy that lived in our body, which I suppose is still accurate. The only problem is that in my world, you would die without the Light. Can it still happen?

Nedzu grinned even wider. "It's probable, but since it's in your blood there's a chance that your body may be able to naturally produce it. We'll have to do some tests but those are best saved for a later date. For now, we want you to get used to this world before any of that."

**

"While it may be a very good backup plan, if I manage to lose enough blood there is still the chance I may die without the Light."

V1 stared at the desk as it thought about what it would say next. "Then we could play it by ear. If someone is out, we can postpone the exam for those students or sub you in if you feel up for it. Worst case scenario two student's test is delayed by a day or two. Is that alright?"

Gabriel gave a small nod; he wasn't used to the machine taking his thoughts into account. No one had cared for his thoughts for a long time. "That sounds good. And... thank you. For listening."

Nezu clapped again to dispel the awkward air in the room. "Well then, if there aren't any other objections, we should be good to go!" No one spoke up, and soon all the teachers eagerly left the room to head home.

Gabriel wanted to talk to V1 for a little longer, but the machine had immediately thrown itself back at work. It seemed to always keep itself busy since Gabriel arrived.

I've had this sitting completed for like a month, time moves by fast. I don't plan on uploading a chapter a day like I did for the previous arc, that was too much for me. I'm basically writing anytime I'm not doing anything in school, which doesn't leave me with a lot of free time.