The educational institution was, for the most part, quite ordinary, yet possessed a unique structure. It comprised two distinct facilities: one allocated for instructing children who had not yet manifested their Quirks or possessed none at all, and a separate one for those whose abilities had already emerged. Japan's scholastic system diverged somewhat from that of the United States. While American students typically attended classes without regard for their Quirk status, Japan implemented segregation, ostensibly to mitigate discrimination against the Quirkless. However, this approach frequently proved ineffectual, often exacerbating the very issue it sought to address, yet a collective blind eye seemed to be turned.
Lena stood alongside her father, her gaze fixed with interest upon the edifice before her: Fumikami Elementary School. This day marked Lena's initial foray into the extensive realm of formal education. For the very first time, Lena was attending school, and a slight tremor of apprehension—indeed, a significant tremor—coursed through her. She adeptly concealed it behind her characteristic smile, though it appeared a fraction less resolute than usual.
"Well then, I'll return to collect you once school concludes, in approximately three hours—"
"THREE HOURS?! THAT'S AN ETERNITY!!!" Lena exclaimed in astonishment, perceiving the school day's duration as exceptionally prolonged, at least from her perspective.
Nearby parents cast sympathetic glances at Winston, a silent acknowledgment that they, too, had undoubtedly endured similar youthful outbursts.
Winston sighed. "It's not as extensive as you imagine, Lena; it's merely three hours—hardly a vast expanse of time, believe me. You might even find it enjoyable and perhaps cultivate some friendships."
He remained unaware that for a child, a mere three hours could feel like three distinct lifetimes.
Following Lena's futile attempts to persuade her father for an earlier pick-up, she entered the school building with a somber expression, mentally bracing herself for what felt like an endless confinement within a classroom, among strangers she harbored no particular desire to engage with.
Traversing the main hall, she encountered an instructor who directed her to her assigned classroom. Offering a brief smile of gratitude, Lena propelled herself toward the room using her Quirk. She vanished from the teacher's sight, leaving behind a fleeting trail of light blue energy that swiftly dissolved into the air.
Regarding her Quirk, with her father's recent guidance, Lena had managed to bestow upon it a designation.
Goddess of Ti—
No, that wasn't quite right.
Her Quirk was simply named Entropy of Time, reflecting her capacity to manipulate the flow of time's inherent disorder. Nevertheless, her father had cautioned her against excessively accelerating her own Entropy, warning of potentially adverse consequences. Yet, reversing or accelerating it by only a few seconds posed no immediate harm, beyond inducing a slight feeling of hunger.
Upon reaching the classroom, she nudged the door open, only to discover that...
...it was deserted.
Lena was surprised to be the first arrival and made her way to the seat nearest the door, formulating a strategy to ensure an unhindered dash for freedom once the bell chimed. After several minutes that stretched into what felt like an interminable period, students gradually began to trickle in, and before long, the room was nearly at full capacity. Some children appeared uncomfortable, a few openly wept and clamored for their parents' return, while others quietly conversed with their immediate neighbors.
As for Lena... she had simply drifted off to sleep while awaiting her classmates.
After the teacher made her entrance, dramatically slamming the door (a sound that jolted Lena awake), she proceeded to introduce herself by inscribing her name on the whiteboard and outlining the elementary school regulations.
This is exceedingly dull... I'm simply going back to sleep—
"Now then... you, the brown-haired girl who was slumbering, please come forward and introduce yourself to your peers," the teacher instructed, pointing directly at Lena and beckoning her closer.
Lena blinked in surprise before swiftly rising from her seat and positioning herself at the front of the class. Surveying her surroundings, she observed several peculiar characteristics among the other children, likely manifestations of their Quirks. One exhibited horns and a demonic tail, another had verdant skin, one's eyes remained closed yet appeared capable of sight, another sported pencils in place of ears, and the list continued...
"Good morning, my name is Lena Oxton!!! I hail from the United States, so please just call me Lena. I enjoy running, sleeping, and eating. My Quirk allows me to... uhhh... become the fastest or slowest for a brief duration... or so I believe, I don't fully comprehend it yet... anyway, a pleasure to meet you all!!!" Lena declared with a beaming smile before returning to her seat, ceding the floor to the next student for their introduction.
"So... how was school?" Winston inquired, glancing into the rearview mirror at Lena, who occupied the back seat of the car, wearing a look of sheer boredom.
"Well, it wasn't exactly... A LIE!!! IT WAS INCREDIBLY TEDIOUS!!!! AND THE OTHER CHILDREN ARE EVEN WORSE!!!"
Lena exclaimed, her face contorted in profound frustration, as if she had just returned from a correctional facility populated by the most notorious delinquents.
"You are, yourself, a child..."
"THAT ISN'T THE POINT!!!" Lena retorted, pouting in response to her father's comment.
"HAHA!" Winston burst into laughter, thoroughly amused by his daughter's dramatic display.
After both had settled down somewhat, Lena commenced articulating her grievances about school.
"The lessons are unengaging; most of the curriculum for this year I've already assimilated from you, and the absolute worst part, without a doubt, are the other children..." Lena remarked, gazing out the car window.
Winston had undertaken his daughter's education even before her Quirk manifested. As a scientist, he possessed the ability to impart a diverse range of subjects without significant difficulty. While some topics might have been considered overly advanced for a child, Lena inexplicably absorbed knowledge like a sponge, effectively placing her somewhat (or considerably) ahead of her age group.
"What about the children? Did they cause you any trouble or something?" Winston asked, concern evident in his voice that something untoward might have befallen his daughter.
"No, they are merely... imbeciles."
"Lena, mind your language."
"But—"
"No 'buts'."
"Fine. Well, they're unintelligent. I mean, they're incapable of solving a simple subtraction or multiplication, and worst of all, they incessantly discuss the supposed awesomeness of their Quirks and attempt to boast about them to others... but the most vexing aspect is their constant chatter about becoming heroes... I mean, I appreciate the concept of being a hero, like Nana Shimura or All Might, who protect people with a smile, but I don't go around shouting every few seconds, 'Observe my stride? My aspiration is to be a hero,' or 'Have you witnessed my utterly magnificent Quirk? It's simply that my ambition is to be a hero.' IT IS intensely aggravating!" Lena declared with an indignant tone, recalling the irritating situations.
"Well, that is the dream of many; I'm not surprised they proclaim it every second, but they remain ignorant of the risks and perils inherent in being a hero," Winston explained with a somewhat bitter smile. "When they truly grasp what challenges await them, I assure you, many will abandon their aspirations of becoming heroes..."
Following that conversation, they both returned home to prepare food and ready themselves for Lena's customary daily practice session.
Winston had conducted exhaustive research into his daughter's Quirk. He concluded that Lena essentially enveloped herself in Entropic Energy to achieve rapid movement. However, "moving" was not an entirely accurate descriptor; she was, in essence, briefly halting time around herself.
According to Winston's investigations and a series of minor experiments, Lena was not meant to sustain that state of "Acceleration" for prolonged periods. This was because she was effectively advancing her own Entropy to "move" while the surrounding world maintained its own Entropy. It was a convoluted matter, but fundamentally, Lena should avoid excessive consecutive use of her Quirk.
The restriction Winston imposed on Lena stipulated that she should only accelerate her Entropy a maximum of three times per minute. Alternatively, she could utilize all three accelerations and then "Recoil" her Entropy to replenish them, but the "Recoil" function should then be unavailable for two minutes.
(A/N: This information should not be taken overly literally; it merely serves to provide an conceptual understanding of the limitations.)
...
Accelerators: 3 Jumps - Cooldown 1 minute (Resets if you use Recoil), Recoil: 1 Recoil - Cooldown 2 minutes
...
Should Lena exceed the established boundaries... Winston genuinely had no inkling of the repercussions, as no one could genuinely foresee the future, particularly with an energy as enigmatic and volatile as Entropy. But of one certainty he held: the outcome would likely not be favorable. And he was unwilling to jeopardize his daughter's well-being for the sake of his scientific curiosity.
After consuming lunch, father and daughter descended into the basement, where a spacious chamber awaited them. One half served as a scientific research facility, replete with various technological artifacts, while the other portion functioned as a sparring zone where Lena regularly practiced.
Lena made her way to the sparring area while Winston remained outside its perimeter, a remote control in his hand.
"3... 2... 1... BEGIN TRAINING!" A synthesized voice announced.
Subsequently, robots of varying dimensions emerged to engage Lena. This training regimen was devised to augment Lena's resistance to Entropy. Winston hypothesized that increased resistance would enable Lena to perform more Accelerations or shorten their cooldown duration.
Lena adeptly evaded the robots' attempts to strike her without resorting to her Entropy abilities; after all, she possessed only three Accelerations and wished to conserve them. A one-minute cooldown during a confrontation could prove pivotal to victory or defeat.
Lena swiftly moved to the right, dodging a blow from one robot. Capitalizing on her smaller stature, she agilely slipped between its legs and delivered a punch that left a minor indentation on its rear. The robot promptly rotated to confront Lena. The latter, exhilarated by the adrenaline, barely managed to evade a strike originating from behind another robot.
Five minutes into her training session, she was compelled to utilize her first acceleration.
After fourteen minutes from the commencement of training, she had expended all three accelerations.
By this point, Lena was thoroughly drenched in perspiration; although she possessed greater endurance than most ordinary individuals, she was, ultimately, still a young girl.
Twenty-five minutes into the workout, she utilized three accelerations and a recoil.
Forty minutes from the start of training, she had used three accelerations, a recoil, and another three accelerations, rendering her entire arsenal subject to cooldown.
However, Lena was resolute in pushing beyond the thirty-minute mark; she aimed to achieve at least forty-five minutes before relenting. Primarily, her objective was to surpass her own personal record.
Winston, deeply engrossed in perusing some recently acquired research notes, failed to notice that the clock had surpassed thirty minutes and that his daughter was on the verge of committing the most significant error of her life...
Lena deployed the fourth accelerator, straining her musculature.
Then the fifth accelerator, pushing her physique to its absolute limit, inflicting considerable pain, yet her determination to break her record remained unyielding.
Then the sixth accelerator...
BOOOOOOM!
A violent burst of azure energy permeated the basement, momentarily disabling all electronic equipment in its vicinity.
Winston spun around abruptly, confronted by a horrifying scene.
All the training robots were not merely deactivated; they had been utterly obliterated. No trace remained, not even their metallic components... as if they had simply been expunged from existence.
And in the very epicenter of the combat zone there was...
A flickering, translucent apparition, appearing and disappearing at various locations and in different stances, yet each and every manifestation extending a hand toward Winston with an expression of sheer terror...
In that precise moment, it felt as though Winston's world had disintegrated. He watched in profound horror as his daughter desperately attempted to cry out to him for help...
It took him an agonizing, full minute to react. He felt as if his heart had been violently torn from his chest, and his mind was engulfed by an overwhelming wave of panic.
Lena had been torn from her anchor in the present, transforming into a spectral entity without physical form, an entity that should not, and indeed could not, exist within any current temporal plane or reality.