A Lost Guardian

by Apathy of the Abyssal Void

What does one do when confronted with things he cannot understand? Rise. Upon arrival at a school meant for girls only, this one starts a chain of events that slowly spiral out of control, descending into the Dark...Can he quell it before it can destroy him? Probably not. But trying certainly wouldn't hurt.

1. Flight

Chapter One:

Flight

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[Play Track -Deference for Darkness- Halo 3: ODST]

A long time ago, a woman by the name of Tabane Shinonono had proposed a new method for dealing with the dangers of space travel to the World's governments, but was either ignored or greatly ridiculed. Undaunted, she continued to press on to more secretive research, hiding herself for some time. It wasn't until later that the world would soon learn of their mistakes for rejecting the girl genius. One day, all of the governments' military bases were hacked into and launched missiles all across the globe. People began to fear that the world would end. Their despair soon ended as a mysterious flying machine soon eradicated every single missile that had posed a threat to them. It was around the time that Tabane revealed her creation, Infinite Stratos, to the world. That event became known as The White Knight Incident.

The united governments quickly sought this brand new technology. She obliged by sending out approximately 467 IS Cores, AI devices that powered the software functions of Infinite Stratos, to the major governments. This act, among other things became part of what would be known as the IS Treaty. It detailed the importance of the safe usage of Infinite Stratos, mainly outside of armed conflicts. They would only be used in a sport-like competition and Japan would become the centerpiece that would give birth to new pilots, thus creating the IS Academy. The Academy would have the backing of the Japanese government and in turn allowed access to all of those capable of becoming an IS pilot. Therein lied a very, VERY, big problem...

Men were incapable of piloting the IS. This unfortunate fact left a gap in power, which was then grasped by the fairer sex of the world. This also lowered men in every other aspect, thus allowing women to become the dominant force. Those that realized this cried out how Tabane had taken her revenge against those that denied her in the past and had also set up The White Knight Incident. Women had rejoiced that they had finally got the recognition they so rightly deserved and quickly took everything they wanted from the male half.

Thus, the world had turned upside down by a single incident. That was 10 years ago...Who's to say unusual phenomena can't happen twice?

[End]

-Present-

[Play Track – Traverse In Trance- Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance]

It was a bright, if only average, day for people in the small town. However, not everyone would agree on this day, if not for- "OW!" I rubbed the back of my head as I look for the one responsible for ruining my inner monologue. To little surprise, I see my younger sibling glare at me before pointing at the clock above me. I look in her direction to see our little wall clock about to hit the next hour, then turn to her again to see her holding a small notebook (pen included) that read: "You have an hour before school starts."

I raise an eyebrow before asking, "You do realize that day is coming soon, right?" She nodded once before she flipped the page to a new one and scribbled something down before showing me what she said, "I know, but its important that you're early enough to get started before your classmates do. It's not every day that this sort of thing happens." I sigh before replying, "True, but was it really necessary to hit me?" She gives me a pointed look before flipping another page and immediately replied, "I know how you get when you have that look your eye. It's annoying to see you constantly talking to yourself in Third Person whenever you get bored."

I give her an exasperated look before replying, "I honestly don't know what you're talking about, but if you insist, I'll restrain myself from doing so more often. Is that alright?" She simply replied, "Acceptable. Now, let's get you ready for the first day of your new school." I nodded to her before grabbing my things that I set aside before I had yet again blanked out of reality. As I turned away, I could see my younger sister give a small smile before she hurried to her room to ready herself as well. I chuckle to myself as I checked everything that was needed I had packed in my backpack. Nodding in satisfaction, I made sure to close it before hoisting one of the shoulder straps onto my left shoulder.

Now ready to go, I called out to my younger sister, "I'm about to leave without you!" As I begin to walk out of the house, I see her notebook fly right at my face. Grabbing it, I looked to see her in some casual clothes that she picked out in a hurry with a blank look on her face. I looked down at her notebook to see: "You're impatient." I smirked at her and asked, "How am I being impatient if you take too long?" She shook her head and snatched her notebook right out of my hand, grabbing my wrist with her other hand in the process.

She pulled me right out of the house before grabbing a key out of her pocket and locked the door behind her. She turned to me and started to walk to the nearest transportation area, which happened to be the tram station, with me catching up to her rear. Part of me was excited for what would be the greatest few years of my life, although I could do without the drawbacks...

Ah, I forgot something. You see, I moved to this town a year ago on my own and had enrolled to the nearest school for sometime until one day during a weekend, I came across someone who would end up being my little sister. She was wandering the streets with very few things attached to her, and as we traded gazes for the first time, she immediately latched onto me and insisted on coming home with me. Being the nice guy that I was, I quickly obtained guardianship over her not long after she stayed at my home.

Things hadn't been easy for me starting off, since I had stumbled upon the realization she was unable to speak. But I quickly worked around that by giving her a few notebooks and a set of pens to write. She adapted fairly well, but had some difficulties along the way. Again, it didn't long for me to realize how smart and observant she was, though her disability was a given.

Back to the present, we arrived at the station to take us to our final destination. I looked at her with a smile on my face as we stepped into the tram vehicle. She looked back with that same blank face as she always had, mirroring the motion I made. We found a quiet spot to sit down on and watched out the window with the view of the city in front of us. Oddly enough, we saw a blue haired boy in a school uniform who looked to be my age or younger, sitting right across from us. I turn to her with a questioning look and quietly asked, "Isn't that...?" She wrote in her notebook and said, "Yes. It's him." I smiled even wider before resting comfortably for the remaining amount of time we had until we reached the school.

[End]

-Sometime later-

"Wow, this school is quite the marvel..." I said in awe, looking from the main gate entrance towards every other building I could see at the moment. "Alright, that classroom should be around here somewhere..." I felt my arm being pulled and looked at my younger sister, who was holding her notebook up towards me with her most recent message: "I know where to go, but first..." She put her notebook in her pocket and raised her arms as if she wanted to reach for something. I sigh a little before lifting her up and set her on my shoulders, grabbing her legs to stabilize her position. "Well, lead the way, oh wise one."

She lightly bopped me on the head with both hands balled into fists, then pointed with her right hand in the direction she felt was the right one. I usually don't mind this sort of thing whenever we go to places together. Although I have the feeling that the students and faculty would say otherwise. As we continued our trek, we hear a voice call out to us from behind, "What do you think you're doing wandering around the campus like that?" I glance at my sister for a second, with her looking back and nodding in silent agreement.

I turn us around to give the person, now woman, the blankest stares possible, with me responding in a monotone voice, "We are trying to find the classroom I was assigned to. As for her...I'm required to have her accompany me for today. I spoke with the principal a week ago on that matter." The woman frowned slightly before nodding and asking, "Do you know who your teacher is?" I shrugged slightly without disturbing my sister's position and said, "I believe that it's..." I trailed off and my sister took that as her cue to search in one of her previous pages to show me two names written down under the word Teachers.

"Ah, here we go. Maya Yamada and Chifuyu Orimura...Would you happen to know either of them, ma'am?" I looked back at the woman as I had asked her. She gave a wry grin as she replied, "I'm familiar with both of them." I reply in earnest, "Excellent. I thank you for this brief conversation, but we need to find the classroom they're in. Now my cute mute sister, onwards!" She slapped my head with her notebook before pointing back at the intended direction we had originally headed towards.

-Third Person POV-

Unbeknownst to the boy that continued to run, the younger sister was looking back at the woman that spoke to them not too long ago, she scribbled something down and dropped it before smacking her brother on the head, guiding him towards his classroom. The woman that was left behind reached down and grabbed the paper the young girl had dropped with a simple message: "It would have been easier to tell him who you were, Chifuyu Orimura..." She crumpled the paper and muttered, "What a strange pair of kids." The girl knew, yet chose not to say anything at the time. Maybe she wanted to have her brother surprised. I'll need to keep an eye on her forawhile, was her final thought as she watched the pair heading off to the same place she was heading to.

-1st Person POV-

I had arrived at the right building and was currently searching for the classroom by looking at the signs posted over the doors. Finding the right room, I looked at my younger sister and said, "End of the road, kiddo." She nodded and I knelt down to the ground to allow her to move off of me. She got off of my shoulders and moved to my side as I stood back to full height without having my sister riding on me. I knocked on the door gently three times with my sibling doing the same right after. I held my right hand out for her to grab, to which she complied without hesitation.

We hear some noises on the other side before the door slid open to reveal a young-looking woman with green hair, small glasses, a yellow sweater and some pink...thing inside of the sweater. She spoke with a slight cheer, "Ah, you must be the new transfer student the principal spoke of. One moment please." I give a slight nod, with my sibling copying my gesture at the same time. She retreated back into the classroom to inform her students, though I could hear her speaking to the class regarding my arrival. It looks like I ended up being late for class today. Not a problem, it just means I have to introduce myself in front of the whole class. After being signaled to enter, I walk into the room with my sister in tow, ignoring the hushed whispers that were silenced as I faced the class...which comprised of mostly females...Actually, there's one other boy here.

Which means I have him as a classmate. Ah well, might as well introduce ourselves. "Hello, my name is Arthur Hackett." I spoke kindly to the class before gesturing to my younger sister, "And this young lady is-hm?" I look down to my side, only to notice her hiding behind my legs, giving a chilling stare at the class, somehow making a noise that sounded like 'chii~'. I sigh and said, "You know that won't work, right?" she shook her head and showed me her notebook, which read: "I don't like those girls...they smell like THEM." "You mean?" I ask, to which she nods and continues to make the same stare at the class. The class, teacher included, gave looks varied of vexation, confusion and...I swear I thought I saw a sweat drop from one of them.

"Anyway, this young lady is Alisa Hackett, my little sister. Due to certain circumstances, she's to be accompanying me for the day. And with that, I hope to work with you all." I give a courteous bow for a brief moment before facing the class once more. I felt a tug on my leg and saw my sister with earmuffs on her head, handing me a pair she somehow managed to get a hold of, I grabbed them and placed them around my head rather snugly.

All of which, took place in the short span of a few seconds. Afterward, I hear muffled screaming coming from most of the generic students I probably won't bother to remember. After a little while, the door slammed open, causing most of the class (my sister and I included) to look at the source of the disturbance. I gave a look of slight surprise, recognizing the woman who I spoke to earlier today. I looked down at my sister, who glanced at me before scribbling something down in her notebook.

Alisa then showed the notebook to the woman, making sure I didn't see it, which said, "Hello again, Orimura-sensei." I saw her give a curious glance at her before she looked at me and asked, "Is there a reason she isn't talking?" I removed the earmuffs and gave her an apologetic smile then replied, "That's how she normally communicates ever since I've known her, ma'am. She's a mute." She nods and replies, "Alright, make sure she stays with you at all times. Is that understood?"

"Yes ma'am." I reply crisply, wanting to stay on this woman's good side. I was about to ask her about my assigned seat, when the only other male spoke out in surprise, my introduction notwithstanding, saying something along the lines of 'Chifuyu-nee'. After that, she smacked him on the head and told him to refer to her as Orimura-sensei. I look at Alisa, silently asking 'You knew?' She nodded and scrawled another message that read, "I felt that it wasn't necessary to inform you. Besides, you found out anyway."

I nodded in acceptance as I heard the two teachers converse briefly, though I was able to confirm that the green haired one was Maya Yamada alongside the other teacher being none other than the famous, or infamous, Chifuyu Orimura. She then introduced herself as the class' teacher for the amount of time we'd be here. An odd silence ensued before I felt a wash of dread pour over me. Quickly reapplying the earmuffs, I managed to avoid the second wave of squeals and shouts. I looked at the new found target of the girls' excitement, with a few exceptions. She didn't appear to be very pleased by the reactions of the majority of the class. I couldn't blame her for having to deal with potentially insane fan girls.

Afterward, things settled down as the teachers started to go over what subjects that we were required to learn. Due to my untimely arrival, I was exempted from introductions that had meant to be done at that time. I took note of the ones known as Houki and Ichika. Mostly because they were related to two very well-known people. One which just so happens to be in the room right now. Though I can't say whether that's awesome or downright terrifying. By the time they let us go for our first break, I took Alisa out of the class quickly in order to avoid speaking to the other students.

-On the Roof-

I gazed out to the grand expanse of the city that laid out before me, with Alisa resting on my back, having been quite active during the morning. I hear the roof entrance open and turned my head slightly to see two students walking over to the side of the roof opposite of me. Recognizing them as the two students I made note of earlier, I walk over to them as they talked unaware of my approach. I coughed slightly to get their attention, although I ended up startling them. I saw the girl about to get angry at me for being startled, but stopped when she saw my younger sibling resting her head next to mine.

"Sorry to interrupt, I thought since you were up here, I'd take the chance to speak to both of you directly without distractions." I said, smiling a little at them, though the girl did relax a bit. The boy decided to speak first, "Not at all, I didn't know anyone else was here when Houki and I got here." Understandable. Ichika seemed like an okay person, though the girl kept looking at us with a serious frown on her face. I wonder if it had to do with the fact I had Alisa with me...

"-ol before here?" Oh, I hadn't noticed he had said something to me. I must've been bothered by that serious girl's expression directed at us. "I'm sorry. Could you repeat that?" "I asked which school you went to before here." Ah, that one. I smiled and replied, "Well, I actually went to a regular school not far from this one. As you can see, it didn't last when they found out I could pilot an IS. I was rather surprised, since I had rarely paid attention to the news and I had no knowledge of the whole IS business until recently." I chuckle at their gobsmacked faces at my bold statement, though I opted to continue, "Ever since then, I've been trying to learn as much as I could about the Infinite Stratos. I blame curiosity for that."

"That's quite a story Hackett-san." Ichika commented, with Houki now joining the conversation by interjecting, "Hey, what does your sister have to do with you being here anyway?" I shake my head and replied, "I think that's enough for now. All I can say is that it's important for her to stay with me." Before she could retort, the bell begins to ring, signaling for us to return to class. "Time to go. Perhaps, we'll talk during lunch?" I offered to the pair, to which each responded, "Sure." "Fine."

Good, it'll be nice to hang out with these two at that time. I just hope that Ichika doesn't end up getting himself stuck in a difficult situation.

-Later, In class-

Maya took her turn to teach the class and not long after, Ichika had trouble following the material. Somehow I suspected that he didn't read the manual prior to arriving at the school. My suspicion was proven correct when I saw Chifuyu berate Ichika for not doing what he was supposed to do, especially when he admitted he threw away the manual. Deciding to spare him from further torture from his sister, I said, "I can lend him mine, Orimura-sensei. I've read it well enough to follow along in class. And Ichika," he gave me a look of gratefulness as I continued, "be sure to return it when you're done. I don't want anything bad happening to it. Alright?" He nodded frantically as I handed him my copy of the manual.

Whispers began to spread amongst the female students as I smiled at him before I nodded to his elder sibling. She gave me an appraising look and said, "While it is generous of you to lend your manual to your fellow classmate, I don't want a repeat of this in the future. Am I understood gentlemen?" With a sharp nod, we replied without delay and we continued our lesson from there. Though I refrained from chuckling when he replied incorrectly, and subsequently received a minor physical punishment via smack to the head.

-Break-

I leaned back in my chair with my sister sitting next to me, doodling away while keeping an eye out for THEM. Meanwhile, Ichika sat miserably, most likely suffering from a mental strain from having to absorb the information. Though I suppose one reason could be that he isn't a bookish type. I smile to myself as I close my eyes and my thoughts slowly went adrift until...

"HOW COULD YOU NOT HAVE HEARD OF ME!?"

"What the!?" I shot up in surprise, looking to see a blond girl with an unusual hairstyle, staring angrily at Ichika. I turned to Alisa, who actually raised an eyebrow at the blond's appearance and wrote a message to me: "Her hair is weird...I don't like it. Too impractical." I decided to humor her and reply, "Specifics?" "The fact that they look like corkscrews is enough for me." Ah, right. They do look like corkscrews, which is pretty silly for a hairstyle.

Seriously, who would want to have their hair turned into a pair of corkscrews? I shook my at the notion of such things. I figured I'd wait to see how this'll play out. So far the current classmates in the room seemed to have similar expressions as well. The girl went by the name of Cecilia Alcott, the British Representative Cadet...Or was it Candidate? I gave a small sigh and thought, So she's one of those, huh? Fantastic. Her attitude needs a fixin'. Still, she could be worse, she could actually like Ichika and still act like she is right now.

From what I managed to gather, she's a well trained pilot and had managed to defeat an instructor. I was somewhat unsurprised, since it was more of a display of skill and a handicap placed on an instructor. Besides, I figure it would be better to take on an instructor full on than anything else. Though I did find it funny that Ichika had successfully defeated an instructor by dodging her and she crashed into the wall. I, on the other hand... won on a technicality.

While I had mostly took the time to adjust to the usage of a standard issue IS, the instructor did the best she could within restricted limits to take me down. I had simply outsmarted her and made her waste ammunition while carefully knocking down her shield points. Sad to say, luck saved my ass when I pulled a near-suicidal stunt to take her down and almost got myself kicked out for that. If I hadn't done that, I would've definitely lost.

I didn't want to mention my fight because I knew it would rile her up and get myself involved in Ichika's mess. Luckily, she ended up leaving him alone but wanted to continue the matter later. I chuckle a bit as she left and spoke to him, "Not very good at dealing with people of her type, are you?" He looked at me wearily and answered, "How could you tell?"

I shrugged and said, "Simple, she's a proud person. She may have made a few accomplishments in her life but due to the way the world is, she believes herself without peer. Meaning she has no one to test her skills against as a rival and such. Though with that pride comes arrogance. I think the only way to see that her beliefs are incorrect is to challenge those very ideals and crush them so she may start anew." Though I get the feeling he's gonna do that and more. I thought with a smile.

He looks at me in surprise and asks, "What makes you think that?" I lean a bit against the desk behind me, arms crossed and responded, "Familial relations aside, I have the distinct feeling you'll be able to do great and wondrous things here in the academy. All you need to do is find a reason to fight, not just in IS battles, but through life in general." A pensive look crosses his face as he contemplates my response.

I sigh a little and said, "Look Ichika, I may be as new to this situation as you are, but trust me when I say this: There's gonna be times where we have to fight outside of this place, outside the government's protection. The better pilot you become now, the better you can be able to do what you want to do the most. So this is my question to you. You don't have to answer right away but remember to give it when the time comes. What I want to know is..."

-Later at Lunch-

I sat at a table in the cafeteria along with Alisa, Houki, and Ichika, eating our meals in silence. I glance at Ichika, who seemed to be lost in thought, but would glance at my sister and I at random moments before shifting his focus back onto his food. Houki hadn't heard what we discussed earlier and was bemused by her childhood friend's silence. She too would glance at me, almost accusingly, while eating. Alisa silently watched while scarfing down her food with gusto. Being the first to finish, she pulled out a book and read to herself.

Part of me began to wonder if either of my classmates would actually initiate a conversation, or because of my presence that made them like this. Though I probably made things worse when I got volunteered by my sister, the little witch (Ow!), to take part in what was originally a duel between Ichika and Cecilia to become the Class Representative. Now that it's become a three-way fight, it was obvious that neither of them would want to talk to me despite my initial offerings.

"Guys, if you're that uncomfortable talking to me, you don't have to stay here. I don't mind it at all. Besides, I am your opponent in the upcoming match to be Class Rep, Ichika." They looked at me in surprise, Houki quicker to respond, "That's true, maybe we should go Ichika." Ichika turned to Houki in bewilderment and asked, "Why would I do that?" She glared at him in response, "So you're gonna stay here?" "Just because we're opponents doesn't mean we can't hang out together." he retorted, making me blink a bit and look between them in wonder.

"Well as fun as this is, I propose an idea. Ichika, you haven't had any practice with an IS, right?" he nods and responds, "Yeah, I haven't. Not to mention I won't be getting my Personal IS for some time." I shrugged and said, "It happens, but I think you'll get yours when our match comes closer in the coming days, if not on the day itself. What I'm suggesting is that Houki practices with you using the available IS the school has. If they can't lend an IS or two, try and find some other method of training."

Houki looks at me in shock, while Ichika nods with a happy look on his face. Houki angrily responds, "Why would I even help him anyway?" I respond with, "Why not?" Her confused reply, "Huh?" I continue, "Why not help him? Its better to receive help from someone he's familiar with than with someone he doesn't know. Besides, you guys can spend time together and neither of you have seen each other in quite awhile from what I heard."

Houki remained silent, looking away blushing lightly, then Ichika decides to respond, "Are you sure that it's a good idea? How are you gonna get ready for it?" I put up a thinking pose for a moment and said, "Well, I'm mostly guessing on this, but as I know an IS specializes in Long Range, Mid Range, Short Range or any combination of the three. Thing is, I don't know whether Cecilia's IS goes Long Range, Mid Range, or both because I highly doubt she's one to get up close and personal with her targets. If that was the case, it would leave her weak in the Close Range department. The only other problem is if she had any other hidden weapons or a One-Off Ability. Either way, it's gonna be hard for me to know for sure until then."

The pair looked astonished at me for a moment, with Ichika asking, "What's a One-Off Ability?" I glance at him and said, "Basically, it's a unique ability that can be used by Personal IS pilots for only when they have full syncrocity, though there are different effects that a One-Off would have. It varies between PISes, so I could be wrong if there was an OOA that didn't require something like an immense shield drain from the pilot's own IS. Though the only One-Off Ability I know of is..." I shake my head and continued, "At any rate, I wouldn't worry too much about that. However, if your IS does have an OOA, be sure to use it only at key critical moments. Other than that, avoid using it as much as possible. That's all I can say on it until we know more after this battle." Ichika nodded and sighed a little in disappointment.

Houki was absorbing the information with rapt attention. She asked, "Even with the advice you're giving Ichika, how are you gonna fight despite helping him?" I shrugged my shoulders and said, "To be honest, I'm not sure what I'm gonna do on my side. While I know a few key strategies to beat her, Ichika's an unknown. I'm gonna be going in blind not knowing his future IS' capabilities. Not to mention the fact that I could very well lose outright to him if either of us beat Cecilia. Besides, I was never interested in being a Class Representative, so it won't be a big deal to me if I lose."

"How could you not be interested in being the Class Rep? I thought with what you knew, you'd jump at the chance to fight in more IS battles to gain experience as a pilot." She replied in confusion. I reply calmly, "Be that as it may, my involvement is to prove a point, something no one, not even myself, will understand right now. I know it sounds stupid, but you'll understand when it happens. And I promise you, it won't be pleasant."

"What is that supposed to mean, Arthur?" Ichika asks me, perturbed by my statement. I smiled grimly and reply, "It's like Houki says, we're opponents and while I'm not adverse to us hanging out together, I'd rather not have everyone else assuming anything. So from here on out, we're enemies. No matter what, don't hold back against either me or her." I get up from the table with my empty tray, Alisa following behind me, we make our way out of the kitchen.

I avoided looking at anyone else as we leave, unnoticed as they continued to watch Ichika and Houki sit in stunned silence.

-That Night-

Yamada-sensei led us to our new room, which I heard ended up next to Ichika's room. "Let me know if you two need anything, okay?" she asked, and we nodded as she left. Looking back at the door, I reach for it, but Alisa's hand snapped out to stop me from doing so. With a questioning gesture, I motion to the door, and she wrote, "I'll go first, there could be a girl in there. I don't want an awkward situation occurring tonight." I nodded, backing up a little to allow her to enter, but remained close by to ensure her safety. She opened the door carefully, making sure to remain quiet, and entered the room. I close the door behind her silently, making sure to avoid any unnecessary noises from escaping.

I quietly stand next to the door, ear pressed against it to listen for anything that's happening on the inside. After a few minutes a set of noises came from the other side: three quiet knocks, two taps, and another knock. Ah, that's the signal that it's safe. I thought, turning the door handle and opening the door to reveal a rather plain looking room. So far so good, I look around to see two empty beds, a glass door leading to the exterior of the building, a bathroom, and a desk. "Well, this looks great. I'll go ahead and unpack everything. Feel free to let me know what you want for dinner after I'm done." I said, with her nodding once before moving to the nearest bed and hopping onto it.

I brought my backpack and pulled out a set of books and a pair of black steel cases. The smaller contained a gift from a mysterious benefactor after I had been told to attend IS Academy, while the larger contained a high-end laptop computer that had been built specifically for the contents from the smaller box. I set the books at the far left end of the desk, along with the large case. I set the small case in front of me, with the longer side facing me. I lift the topside open slowly, careful as to avoid any potential damage.

As I opened it, I smile as I stared at the contents, which contained a pennant in the shape of a wing colored in white with a silver lining with a small note right next to it. 'Be sure to take good care of him. I expect great results from you Artie!' I read the note carefully and glanced at what happened to be a rabbit next to the message, or at least I think it was a rabbit. Who was that person anyway? There's no way it could be from the genius Tabane. Besides, I'm just some nobody that happened to be fortunate enough to pilot an IS. I thought to myself, looking back at the pennant. I pull it out of the case and set it in front of me, pushing the case aside.

Bringing the larger case closer, I open it to see the laptop remaining the same way it did back when I first saw it. Making sure the top part of the case was open all the way, I lift it out of the case, holding it steadily. I set the laptop at its intended area then moved the case onto my bed. I open the laptop slightly past the 90 degree position and promptly activated it. I grabbed a nearby cord, attaching both ends to the pennant and the laptop after it had finished booting.

In the span of ten minutes, I had prepared a small meal for Alisa, consisting of a mix between beef stir fry and some broiled ramen noodles I had brought from those small cups. Once I had made sure she was eating her dinner, I sat back down at the desk, with the IS and laptop fully activated that was displaying numerous bits of information. So far I've yet to see any key specific info I wanted to find.

Suddenly, a small windowed message comes up that said, "Please insert password before attempting further access." Eyebrow raised in interest, I see a new window that appeared with an empty slot for the desired password. A section that the word 'hint' in all caps that had a message that read:'The answer is a lot easier than you think. All you have to do is jump down the hole.' I mentally groaned as I saw yet another rabbit sitting nearby looking cute staring at me.

'The answer is easier than you think. All you have to do is jump down the hole'. With a rabbit sitting near it, I'd have to assume this person likes rabbits of all kinds, or something in relation to rabbits. Hm, what could be an answer so simple for me to not realize? I do have that tendency to over think things, so go for the simplicity. Well, the first message had that rabbit drawing next to the message and this message is no different.

What's strange is that person called me Artie as some kind of childish nickname. Perhaps that's how the person identifies him/herself as. At the same time, the rabbit could be a motif or have some kind of cultural reference. I doubt that either case would do well on their own, so that must mean together they have a specific reference, like a name someone could recognize. Together with the childlike nickname and a cultural reference to rabbits...I'd have to say the person is obviously childlike in mannerisms, but has to have great intelligence to send me an IS in standby mode before I could even properly activate its First Shift. It's possible this person had this specifically built for me and made sure I could use it without having to go through the hassle of activating-Wait, that second part!

I turn to Alisa and asked her, "Is there anything you might know regarding rabbit holes?" She nodded and held up her notebook that read, "I overheard what you were talking about, so I came to the conclusion that she was referring to an old story you based my name on." Of course! That made so much more sense now. I nodded appreciatively at her and began to type the password in. A-l-i-c-e. There, it worked! A new message came up as I had did mental victory cheer, giving me a slight pause as I read it: 'Establishing connection...'

I sat there cautiously as the window vanished, replaced by a new window that covered the whole screen. At the center, there was a miniature carrot was surrounded by a circle of dots that would rotate around it, like it was a loading screen. I scratched the side of my head at the strangeness this situation was causing. The carrot and dots vanished, replaced by an image of a really unusual place, like it was a laboratory, but it didn't look like any lab I've heard nor seen of. Though that didn't help prepare me for the real surprise that would come up.

[Play Track -Kigen No Yoi Hakase- Nichijou]

HI HI! A woman seemingly popped up from the bottom the screen shouted at me, though I was quick enough to lower the volume to avoid suspicion. I take in the woman's...interesting appearance. From what I can see, she has a unique set of casual clothes, mostly comprising of various shades of purple and lavender. That wasn't as much of a surprise, considering she had similar colored mechanical rabbit ears on the top of her head. I tilt my head to the left, trying to ascertain the absurdity of her choice of headdress.

The only normal thing about her was her hair, but that's all there was to be considered normal about her. I reply, "Do I know you, miss?" She cried out, Wah! Artie's so mean! How could you not recognize me!? I reply in a completely deadpan tone, "Perhaps it's because I'm so used to dealing with oddities that I often forget how incredibly weird they are. Not to mention, you have an odd obsession with rabbits, while it shows a little differently, it doesn't exactly strike me as to be considered noteworthy."

She sniffed as she looked away mumbling, So mean... I sigh and said to her, "Look, I'm sorry if what I said offends you. I've had a long first day here and you haven't exactly helped by acting all cryptic towards me so far. Maybe if you could tell me who you are, it would make things better. A little, but not much."

She lets out a giggle before letting a small smile slip onto her face, replying while shaking her head, Nope, since you can't recognize me, you'll have to guess my name instead. I stared hard at her before relenting and said, "We'll do it your way then. I guess since I don't know your name, I'll call you Alice. Besides, it's a fair replacement. Oh, is there any reason why you call me Artie?" She giggled again and replied, I usually call people I know really well by their nicknames.

I felt oddly uncomfortable at that and said, "How can you possibly know so much about me when I barely know you? Are these other people special to you if that was the reason? If that's the real reason...What am I to you?" She simply smiled and said, Well...there's lots of reasons I know so much about you. Let's just say your presence had affected things a lot more than you realize. When I found out what happened to a boy that survived an incident ten years ago, I had just announced the birth of Infinite Stratos. At first it was because of a certain someone that wanted to get as much information as he could on Infinite Stratos. So I figured, why not give him what he wanted. So I did. Then came the newly adopted sister, I was really really surprised at his generosity and willingness to help her out despite the fact he lived alone.

It wouldn't be long until that boy came to the academy with his own untested personal IS that I gave him. I hadn't given the little guy a name yet, so I wanted you to name him. Don't force the name onto the IS if the name feels out of place. Let it come to you and he'll accept it, I guarantee it. As for the last question... she giggled again before vanishing, having the window closed and replaced by a new window that displayed a 3-D image of my IS from different angles along with a small box that had been titled Arsenal. I expanded the box to show the entire list and was greatly surprised, but was ultimately satisfied with the selection provided for me.

[End]

Alice, or whatever real name you have, I may not know how you managed to do all of this, but I thank you. Truly, you have given me the greatest of tools to help guide me down the path that I set myself for the moment I began to conceptualize and establish it. With this, I may find that place I've been searching for. It may not be today, but I know now it does exist. My one true...

My train of thought crashed when I heard loud noises coming from the room next to me that led to the hall. I quietly open the door to see Ichika slamming his door shut and sat down. I was about to ask him what happened when I saw a brown blur burst through the door, nearly piercing Ichika's head. I was really shocked that someone was trying to kill him, so I grabbed him away from the door and dragged him into our room, closing it just in time for the assailant to slam the door open.

I kept Ichika hidden in the bathroom, trying to calm him down when I heard a heavy knock on the door. Bringing my hand up into the shushing position, I signaled for him to stay in the bathroom. I heard the door knock louder as I got closer to it. I carefully poked my head out the door to see Houki in her nightwear standing in front of the door with what looked like a wooden sword in her hand. She looked at me in slight surprise and said, "I didn't know this was your room. I thought Ichika was the only guy to share a room."

I smile lightly and replied, "As it turned out, the last person that used to be here had transferred to another room, so my sister and I were assigned to it." She felt somewhat off-put by the idea Alisa and I were sharing the room. Honestly, we have separate beds, there's no way we would ever share one. Last time we did, I got a fist to the stomach while she ended up laying on the floor clutching her abdomen from an ill-timed kick. It was a terrible experience we wanted to avoid repeating at all costs.

"So did you need something?" I asked, though I knew what she wanted to ask me. "Yeah, have you seen Ichika? He did something stupid." she replied, though I wasn't surprised that she went to such lengths to harm Ichika if he did something he probably shouldn't have. "Can't say I have Houki. I was a little preoccupied at the time, with the exception of the commotion you two were causing. Seriously, was it that bad to warrant such an overreaction? No wait, I probably just answered my own question. At any rate, if I see him, I'll be sure to talk him and let him know you wanted to find him." she nodded before closing the door to her room. I give a loud sigh and went into the bathroom, letting Ichika out of there for more breathing room.

"Mind telling me why I had to drag your sorry ass into our bathroom to avoid Houki from possibly killing you?" I asked rather bluntly, though it was mostly because I wanted to get back to what I was doing. Ichika had complied well enough, having said that he got into the room, not realizing that he ended up sharing the room with Houki. Certain things had happen, which he didn't want to repeat. I understood gist of it from that point. "Okay then, now that's cleared up, I have something to say about that. You are a perversity magnet." "A WH-!?" I covered his mouth to stop him from screaming and setting himself up for future suffering.

I gave him a pointed look to calm down or else I'd make sure he would. He relaxed a bit as I continued, "Yes, as annoying as it is for me to say, you'll end up saying or doing things others would possibly find inappropriate. While your intentions are pure, you seriously lack in situational awareness. Meaning, you have no clue what goes on around you. Thus, you consistently find yourself caught in those kind of awkward moments which most girls will get offended and retaliate one way or another. Houki is an excellent example, she retaliated in the most appropriate manner she believed was in the right. However, that doesn't mean it always be that way.

"It's possible she or any other girl could react violently towards you if jealousy is involved as well, which is equally bad for you. It's definitely within the realm of possibility that if a male had multiple love interests all vying for him, there is also a very high chance that each girl will get incredibly jealous if one girl spends more time with him than the others. Unfortunately for you, this may be the case down the road whether you know it or not. What's worse is that you're among the type that's really dumb about noticing what a girl feels towards you regardless of how you were raised. You could be the strongest man in the world and still be dumb as a rock when it comes to love.

"What could ultimately boil down to is that A: you pick a girl that you feel you'd want to be with for the rest of your life. B: You choose none of them because there's someone else that you've had romantic feelings for or C: You decide to choose all of them at once. To be honest, any of the choices will be incredibly hard for you as you have no clue about love. But now that I've told you...I very well could have made things worse whether by implication or outright admittance.

"That's up to you to decide as well. That's the second thing I've told where your decision is the most important. Not your sister's decision. Not Houki's. No one else but your own. Wow, I can't believe I've been actually lecturing you on all of this. That's gotta be unfair for me to force all of this crap onto you, though I guess it's because you're the type guy I can't help but want to help out since no one else would. Or some nonsense like that. Though part of me wants to say that since you're such an idiot, everything has to be hammered into your head for you to get it."

I start to laugh when I saw Ichika grumble a little for that jab. Granted, it's not his entire fault that he's an idiot. Though I'm starting to wonder if his sister might have to do with the fact that his possible perception of girls was flawed. That would have to mean his perception was flawed from the get-go. Oh well, it's all about the baby steps. I've probably said what was needed. "Alright, time for you to leave. I've got things to do and I can't have you stay here."

With that, I haul him to his feet and showed him out of the room, though I made sure he didn't see what I was doing. I'm gonna find a better way to deal with this sort of situation from now on. I understood that Ichika was never the brightest with that particular subject, so I made the decision to lessen the difficulties he'd most likely encounter, but at the same time I had the feeling that I needed to avoid doing so for some time. It didn't hurt that his sister happened to be right behind me as I bid Ichika farewell. I couldn't have been any more afraid than I was at that moment. "Oh, g-good evening, sensei." I said with a slight stutter.

She stared down at me with her usual serious glare, though the fact that she was patrolling the hallway made things less than exciting for me. "I heard there was an incident in this hallway, mostly centered around these two rooms earlier. Care to explain?" She demanded, or that's what it sounded like to me at least. I bring one of my hands up to face, slightly cupping the chin, displaying one of my many thinking poses. I gave a small 'hm' and replied, "Well, what I know was that a simple misunderstanding had occurred between Miss Shinonono and Mr. Orimura. After I heard Mr. Orimura's side of the story, I basically told him to be more aware of what he says and does, mostly due to the fact we are the only males attending the school. When I finished speaking to him, I helped him back to his room and that's all."

She nodded and replied, "Okay then. It's good to see you looking out for him, whether or not he needs it is another matter entirely. I don't want any further disruptions in my dorms, is that understood Hackett?" "I understand ma'am." I spoke softly before heading back to my room. "By the way, has there been any decision regarding the housing for your sibling? Since she isn't a student, she won't be able to stay for much longer after tonight."

I shook my head negatively, to which she let out a long sigh. "The problem is that I'm technically her guardian, since I had go through the legal process to obtain that right. Now that I'm here, it seems that I'll have no choice to either leave or I have to find someone I can trust to watch her if I'm to stay here as a resident for the amount of time I am here. Unfortunately for me, that's few and far between. Everything that I've told you is what I told the principal, and yet the principal is hesitant deciding on the necessary course of action."

She brought her hand to her head in annoyance while saying, "This is why I hate dealing with troublesome students. Can't anyone be normal for once?" I wasn't sure if I wanted to point out the fact that this whole IS thing was normal either. The probable reason being my sense of self-preservation was keeping my brain and tongue in check. "I'm not sure if that would solve anything sensei..." I replied, though I made sure to stay quiet after her curious stare was brought on me.

"Well, if there is nothing else, you're free to go." she said, and I nodded to her silently, wanting to return to my work. "Oh and try not to talk to strangers the next time you get a call, alright?" I turn back to her, only to see nothing there. I wonder if she somehow knew of my conversation with that rabbit enthusiast. I wouldn't put it past her to investigate my being here. After all, her brother Ichika was originally the first male to pilot the IS. Maybe she'll see if I've got the capabilities to do so as well. I thought to myself.

I reentered the room to see Alisa sleeping quietly in her bed. I smile as I checked to make sure she was comfortable. I walk to my desk and continued the analysis well into the night. By the time I finished it, it would be ready for the upcoming match and all it needed was to test the weapon systems to ensure familiarity with said systems. As I pondered on a name, I hear a beeping from my laptop with a message stating that I was receiving an incoming call.

I answer the call with a new window to see an old face, no pun intended. Standing in the view of the video feed was an elderly man, but had a well built body underneath his clothing. He had a stern gaze in his eyes as he had his arms folded up to his chest in a disapproving manner. I tried not to flinch as he spoke with that same serious tone he always had, "It's been a long time, Arthur." I reply sadly, "I suppose it has been, sir."

[Play Track – Wandering- Final Fantasy X]

I hear him sigh as he replied, "I know it's been ten years, Arthur. You don't need to blame yourself for what happened back then. Besides, you should at least address me properly when I'm off work." I snorted as I asked, "Is being an Admiral wearing you out already?" "Hardly. You know how the family is, Arthur." "Right, my mistake. I tend to forget how our family has endured over the years." We both stared hard at each other before breaking down into chuckles. I continue after calming down a little. "Anyway, did you call just for our reunion by phone or was there something you needed?"

"Actually, I've been receiving reports about your incident with the IS entrance exam and I have to say that I'm impressed by the results you delivered. I found it unusual that you became the second male to pilot the Infinite Stratos. Not to mention when I also heard about the upcoming match with both the British Representative and the first male pilot." I shook my head and smiled while replying, "After all this time, to think that the Great Adam Hackett of the 5th Fleet has been impressed. It must be such an honor to receive praise from someone like you..." To this, we both laughed a bit, though our mirth ended when it woke up Alisa.

"Uh-oh. It looks like our fun woke up a certain sleepyhead." I commented, to which the one mentioned threw a pillow along with a hazy glare at me. "Sorry about that Alisa, I was just talking to our dear Grandfather. You wanna say hello?" I ask, to which she nods, lazily tidying herself and hopped onto my lap facing the laptop screen. "Hello there, young lady." Adam commented with a small smile, "How's our favorite little girl doing?" She began to type on the keyboard and replied, "I am well, Grandfather. Things have been progressing smoothly today. The school was what we expected. The students behave like they would in a standard high school setting, despite the obvious differences." "I see. Have you learned anything from this 'Ichika Orimura' aside from what Intel has gathered Arthur?" Came the questioning response, to which I state, "He's like the average teenager for the most part, though he's not very good with textbook information. Though I find it odd that he's in the same class his sister teaches."

[End]

[Play Track -Mysterious- Bleach OST 4]

"You mean to say that the Brunhilde is teaching at the IS Academy? That information wasn't mentioned back when the Academy was in the works, Arthur. There was also referencing of the fact that she was in Germany for a year prior. Not to mention the fact that both siblings were involved in an incident back during the Second Mondo Grosso." I raise an eyebrow while asking, "Wasn't Germany involved in the incident as well?"

"That much was mentioned when the other nations were informed, though not much else was stated. From what we know, the younger Orimura had been kidnapped by an unknown organization. With the assistance from Germany's government, Chifuyu had managed to rescue him, though came at the cost of her staying in the country. It's possible that they wanted her to teach their soldiers how to use the IS at the time, though no data on that has been given." Grandfather had replied with the professionalism that he carried for the past forty years in the military.

I 'hm'ed for a second and said, "Knowing that now, it makes more sense with my current situation with Ichika. I have a feeling Germany might send a pilot that had been a trained soldier to this school in the near future. If that's the case, could you...?" "Not to worry Arthur. While most information on a nation's Representative is held a secret, we can deduce the possible strengths and weaknesses from their IS. If there's anything you need..." "Actually, with the Class Representative match coming up, is it possible for you to attend? I understand if you can't." "I may be able to, though there's always work needing to be done if what we've been looking at may be a serious case." I frowned deeply and asked, "How bad is it?" "Bad enough that there's been rumors of an unknown organization setting their sights on stealing ISes across the world, mostly from the larger countries."

"Is there a name you guys can go on, whatever these guys call themselves?" "Not really. We're having your old friends from our Black Ops Organization, Hades, along with other local mercenary groups such as the Azure Giants and Solstice under their respective ringleaders, scouring the planet for any trace of their presence. No word from the Sanguine Horde though, since they've been going under the usual swapping of leaders. Last thing I heard, an old schoolyard rival of yours was selected as their new leader, though the Horde haven't confirmed it yet." I chuckle and said, "Wait a second, you mean that crazy idiot as a leader of one the infamous underground mercenary groups? Next thing you'll tell me that the Patriarch of Three Stars got taken down by some upstart." "That appears to be the case, Arthur. Though I wouldn't call her an upstart by a long shot." Grandfather commented with a wry grin.

I looked at him with an intense gaze and asked, "So, who's the boss now?" "From what we heard, it's none we're familiar with, but still a force to be reckoned with." He pulls up a photo to the right of him and said, "Tanya Didrikson. From what happened, one day she challenged him to a duel and wiped the floor with him. I also heard she has an IS going under the name Omega. Its stats are unknown, but if that's what she used to take down the Patriarch's MG, Dark Crusade, it's power must be something."

"Somehow I get the feeling that I'd die if I cross her in any way, shape or form." I muttered, to which Grandfather replied, "I wouldn't put it past her to do it, since she's a brutal fighter, unlike yourself." I glare at him and reply, "You know I feel about that sort of thing, Grandfather." "I know, you prefer a clean kill with as little blood spilled as possible." He said, and I shrugged a little and replied, "It's how I am. I try to avoid any unnecessary deaths as much as possible."

[End]

He nodded and shifted his stance a little before resuming, "Work related events aside, how are you holding up?" I reply simply, "It's alright. I did receive an unusual call earlier, though." "An unusual call? Who was it?" I scratched my head a little and said, "Hard to say, Grandfather. She was an odd woman. Looked to be some odd years older than me, though I can't say she even acted like an adult. Obviously a childish personality, especially with those weird mechanical rabbit ears she had. She claimed that she was the creator of my custom made IS, though I didn't recognize her when I first saw her. She was pretty upset by that, even to the point where she refused to give me her name because of that. So I'm stuck figuring it out for the time being, while I'm getting acquainted with my new IS."

[Play Track -Fukkatsu No Yukko- Nichijou]

He chuckled and said, "I'm surprised you didn't recognize her as well. The woman you just described was none other than Tabane Shinonono." I looked at him like he grew a second head and said, "If that was her... How could I not recognize her?" "It's hard to say. I've never met her in person, but I knew that you two had interacted when you were only four. Even then it was only in passing, I recall her nicknaming you Artie for whatever reason she had." "That's the thing though, she only does that with people she knows really well. Like she was" "Friends with them?" My grandfather supplied, to which my eyes opened wide with surprise. "It makes sense, she would only give friends nicknames." I facepalm with a groan and asked, "I've been over thinking it again, haven't I?"

Both Alisa and my grandfather nodded, and I groaned again, though with more irritation this time. We spent an extra few hours talking until Alisa had requested sleep, and we bade our farewells until the day of the match. As I entered my bed for sleep, I spoke to my sister one last time, "What an interesting day, hm?" She nodded and we slept soundly, unaware to the world around us.

[End]

-A Few Days Later-

[Play Track -Face Off- Final Fantasy X]

-Arthur POV-

Today's the day of our fight. I'm feeling somewhat nervous about fighting like this. I mean, on one hand, there's the chance I could win if Ichika somehow causes himself to run out of shield points and Cecilia is taken down during the process. Although, if Ichika does better with the advice I gave him, he might prove to be a more difficult opponent to face. That could only mean that Cecilia must be taken down first above all else, even though she has more experience than either of us. Still, with the weapons I have...Regardless, I know what I must do.

-Ichika POV-

This is it. Time to fight against Arthur and Cecilia. I'm not sure if I can beat both of them. I know I can beat Alcott, but...No! Hackett gave valuable information and advice when I needed it. Not to mention he helped me out on our first day. I'm grateful for his help, but I've got to stand on my own feet from here on out. I've got to fight with everything I've got, especially since he wants me to not hold back. It's a matter of pride after all. Not to mention that I have to answer his question...And this battle will prove that when I win!

-Cecilia POV-

Humph. This should be over quickly. That Orimura boy nor that Hackett can stand a chance against my IS. Even if Orimura has a personal IS, there's no way the other one has one as well. If he has the standard model the academy provides, he should be an easy opponent. I will not allow a male to be the Class Representative!

-3rd Person POV-

All three of the pilots were ready to fight. Many of the spectators were excited to see the upcoming conflict. Few weren't as excited, such as the teachers of said students and the childhood friend of one the combatants. Mostly out of a sense of professionalism from the former, and slight concern from the latter. They resided in the hanger bay with Ichika as he prepped himself for the battle in a few minutes. He had received his IS called the Byakushiki. It looked rather plain for an IS, though it didn't match any known series made.

As he boarded his machine, he had recalled his past few days of training with Houki, though they weren't as great as he liked, considering he had practiced kendo exclusively. Unfortunately, he hadn't made much progress in that area. It just showed to him how out of shape he was since he last practiced the art.

It wasn't long until he entered the IS and the armor started up, ready to fly into the arena. Before he began his takeoff, the three women went up to him. Chifuyu had her usual frown on her face, with Houki mirroring a similar expression while Maya had a smile on her face. Ichika nodded to each of them and took off before any of them said anything though a thought went through two of their minds, 'Idiot'.

On Cecilia's side, she had already gone through the necessary steps to launch into the area and was the first to arrive before Ichika had. As she saw the Orimura male arrive, she hovered above him and said with a smirk, "This is your last chance to give up. I won't hold it against you if you admit defeat." Ichika shook his head and said, "No way. I was told to give it my all in this fight and that's what I'm going to do. Besides, someone asked me a very important question to answer and I'm here to give that answer!"

She looked a little perturbed by his response and asked, "What question could be so important to answer in the middle of an IS fight?" "A very good one, depending on who you ask..." came a distorted response from a different voice. Ichika and Cecilia turned to see an ashen gray IS hovering nearby them. Its appearance was unusual, to say the least. Rather than the standard bulkiness an IS would normally have, it had a very sleek and smooth design with few to no edges though it bore similarities to the Raphael Revive. What was more unusual was that the area where the pilot would be had armor covering the pilot entirely, not to mention that this IS had no "wings" of any kind.

It caused many to raise eyebrows and wonder why would an IS have armor covering the pilot. Most people believed that armor covering the pilot would reduce maneuverability for the IS and the pilot. For some unknown reason, it seemed to be holding up fairly well, as if the armor was never there. The distorted voice came back with a chuckle as the armored pilot gazed at the two other pilots. "I take it you're surprised?" Ichika nodded dumbly while Cecilia demanded, "Now who are you!? I was expecting the other male to show up so we could start." The helmet began to separate and detract into the neck base to reveal none other than Arthur.

He smiled and said, "Sorry about that, I wasn't sure if you would've recognized me with the helmet on. Though I wasn't surprised when you failed to realize one important thing: I've been here the whole time." Now everyone became surprised at the declaration. Some had yelled in anger, regarding the impossibility of the IS hiding in plain sight. Others attempted to theorize what had happened, but only two came close to the truth.

[End]

-Observation Room-

Maya had turned to Chifuyu and asked, "You don't think he's implying..." She nodded and replied, "It's possible, but I haven't heard of any company capable of creating a mechanism that allowed an IS to use to such a degree. That boy became a lot more dangerous of an opponent for both Alcott and Orimura." It has to be her then. But why would she build something like that and install it inside an IS? She thought as she observed his smiling face looking at his opponents.

"To think he had an actual cloaking device that reflected all light sources and prevented others from directly seeing him unless he chose to. I wonder if it's a special ability of his..." Maya mused as she watched the pilot as well. "There's also the fact that the IS wasn't made from any known company in the world. However, its design is greatly similar to a certain foreign company that made the Raphael Revive series." Chifuyu replied.

Maya had brought up a visual of said IS' stats and was surprised that no information would show. "Wow, this definitely must be a first in its series. No data has been recorded on Hackett's IS, not even a name has been given to it as far as the records go. What do you suppose this means?" she asked, looking on in wonder as the signal for the fight had been given. "It means that he's just become just as big a target as Ichika the moment he revealed his IS to the whole school. Not only that, the world will soon be just as curious as to what Hackett can really do."

-The Arena-

Not long after the signal had been given, Arthur had immediately gone on the offensive, quickly pulling out a pair of quarterstaves and attaching them together. Once he did so, he swung fast at his opponents to separate them. Both were surprised at his initiative, but regained focus as each of them dodged backwards to avoid the strike. Cecilia had brought out a sniper rifle and fired back at Arthur, forcing him away as Ichika had watched in awe.

Arthur briefly dodged another bullet, ignoring another one of Cecilia's boasts as she continued her ranged assault, saw Ichika's expression and hardened his eyes. He allowed his weapon to dissipate, forgoing the melee angle for an alternate range. Cecilia stopped firing after seeing this action, curious as to what he would do next.

[Play Track -Ascension- Starcraft II: Heart of the Swarm]

Arthur closed his eyes as his helmet covered his head once more and quietly said, "Now that's more like it." He raised his right arm into the air above with his palm slowly opening out, and a semi-snap of his metal encased fingers, the air behind him shattered like glass. As this occurred, six achromatic lights appeared behind him, spinning slowly with their radiant glow under the sunlit sky. The lights descended into the pilot's back, slowly changing shape. Suddenly, one of the lights stretched out before arching down. Each other light repeated the process, until the glow reduced to allow normal visibility for everyone.

"This is the true form of my IS...Endless Respite. This is the first time I've actually seen its First Shift in person. As you can tell, mine is very special. It's not meant for direct combat, rather it's more of a support type than anything else, despite what I've shown thus far. As proof of good faith. I'll use this nifty trick right here." Arthur spoke, firing a small blue ball from his hand rapidly, which stuck to the center of Cecilia's torso.

"W-what is this thing!?" she cried out, trying to remove it from her IS, but was unable to as the object would refuse to remove itself. "Activate." Arthur spoke tonelessly, giving off an eerie vibe that sent chills down everyone's spines. The blue ball then generated a blue sphere around Cecilia, making a whirring noise. A beeping noise then came up from her IS, the display screen popping up in front of her.

She saw the section that showed her Shield Points had noticed that her points were dropping at a significant rate. "What have you done!? My shield points are falling!" she screamed at him, to which he replied, "It was a simple idea that came about as this: 'How does one go about depriving an IS' shield points without physically damaging it?' This is that answer, the Power Drain. It works similarly to an EMP, but not quite the same as you'll soon see."

True to his words, her IS' Shield Points had been reduced to a fraction of its original strength. Soon, the device began to flash red with the same noise increasing fivefold, though the glowing sphere had vanished. Cecilia began to panic as she tried to figure out how to remove it, though was too late as it exploded, sending her towards the arena floor. With a resounding boom, she struck the ground hard with a trail behind her.

-Observation Room-

"I haven't heard of a device capable of draining an IS' shield. Maybe it was custom made?" Maya inquired, to which a new voice came in before Chifuyu could respond, "Technically, yes. It was one of a few add-ons Arthur had requested to have placed within his IS. Even though he never explained his reasons for doing so, I suspected as much when he asked me." The women turn to see an elderly man along with the younger sibling, Alisa. "To what do I owe the honor of having an Admiral of the US Navy in our school?" asked Chifuyu in slight curiosity that was masked by a look of disinterest, making Maya gasp in surprise.

"Simple. I came to see my grandson in his first IS battle. Nothing more to it." came the elder Hackett's reply. He had seen most of the fight before he revealed himself to the pair. While it was exemplary initially, he realized that his grandson had been playing with the girl before he had defeated her. Normally he wouldn't condone such behavior, but he kept his opinions to himself, believing that Arthur had his reasons for doing what he did.

Though he shook his head as he heard the explanation for the Power Drain's ability. He had always drilled the idea of never explaining the functions of one's weapons to his opponents as he would lose each conflict during his earlier years of private military training.

-Arena-

Ichika looked on in shock, hardly believing what he saw. Arthur had taken Cecilia down with little difficulty. He stared at Arthur, who turned his head towards Ichika as he opened his helmet once more. He looked on with eyes full of cold sorrow and spoke, "This is what I meant before on both occasions Ichika. I crushed her with a few tricks that brutally brought her to the cold earth. This was the reason why I didn't want to fight like this, because of my methods. I'm not above such tactics to end battles. Everything I've done so far I did to protect what's precious to me. I came to this city to start over, to forgive and forget what was done to me back then."

As he spoke, he helmet closed once more, the distortion ever present, mixed with an unknown fury rising, "I failed to be a protector once and this time, I will not do so again! I lost that power, that will to fight when the ones I once cherished the most were stripped from me! Thanks to a certain someone, I now have the means to do so once more. So let me ask you again Ichika Orimura... From one brother to another. What do you fight for? Answer me and answer well! I will not tolerate anything less from you!" he spoke with finality, crossing his arms, waiting for Ichika's response to his question.

Ichika's head lowered, his hair covering his face somewhat, silent for a moment. "I..." he mumbled, causing Arthur to raise an eyebrow in curiosity. The audience, including those in the observation room watched with anticipation. Ichika shot his head up, face filled with determination, spoke loudly, "I want to be the one who's protecting others! I want to have the power to do that! It's a brother's duty to protect their family! That's what I fight for!"

Arthur smiled a little before responding, "If that's the case Ichika...What would you do in order to gain that power? Will you do it alone, or would you rather have the support of your friends and family?" "That's obvious! Of course I'd have them with me! I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for them!" he shot back with a grin. Arthur nodded with satisfaction and spoke with increasing volume, "Very well then, I will test your resolve here and now. Activate your First Shift! Show me the true form of the Byakushiki! Show me your strength, Ichika Orimura!"

[End]

Arthur then brought up his HUD and selected a new weapon from his arsenal. Once done, he dismissed it and summoned a long sword in his left hand along with a large rectangular shield covering his right arm. The helmet covered his head again, this time having a different style. Most of the helmet had been traded in favor for visibility, the visor coming from the chin towards the back of the head rather than a small portion that garnered a narrow field of vision.

Ichika watched warily as he had no means of defending himself, though he realized that Arthur knew the Byakushiki was still on default settings. He glanced at the timer, which showed that the IS needed three more minutes until the IS was ready to activate the Shift. I have to survive against Arthur for three minutes. How am I gonna do that!? His IS mostly relies on Close Range, though that Power Drain can be fired from his hand, so that makes him a combination of Close and Mid Range. But those wings of his...There has to be some weakness behind his IS. There's gotta- "What are you looking at, Ichika?"

[Play Track -Ouch- Red Vs. Blue Season 10]

Ichika quickly turned to see a sword heading directly for his head and ducked, only to be sent flying skyward by a shield-enhanced uppercut. He went up to ten meters before righting himself, though he was forced on the defensive as Arthur relentlessly chased after him with a series of sword swings or a random attack with his shield when he could.

Wow, he's really not giving me a chance to breathe, is he? I gotta get some distance between us... Ichika thought as he kept dodging the blade by narrow margins, but Arthur's shield made up for it by slowly reducing his opponent's shield points for every successful blow. As he struck another blow, Arthur shouted angrily, "Is this all you have to show for, Ichika!?"

[End]

[Play Track -Stronger- Starcraft II: Heart of the Swarm]

He then kicked Ichika square in the chest, sending him reeling in pain and reducing his Shield Points down to the halfway mark. Arthur stared coldly at Ichika as he floated with his broiling rage rising at the Orimura boy. His rage then quelled as he spoke, though it grew as cold as bitter arctic wind,"When will you stop playing around and get serious? If you're not willing to do it...I'll use everything I have.Beginning with the activation of Program Sigma..."

Ichika grew worried as Arthur's IS was encased in a frighteningly dark aura, and as that aura became more apparent, a sinister voice spoke, "Hello again, Arthur. I see things have become unsatisfactory for you if it warrants my attention." "That it does, Sig, that it does... You know the routine for this right?" The voice known as Sigma replied, "It has been some time, but I have recalled this particular one very well. Normally this called for..." Arthur interrupted shortly, "I know." Sigma quieted and awaited for the order from its master.

Arthur bowed his head as he spoke loud enough for all to hear, "Voice Recognition Code: Plagam Extremam Infligere. You remember?" Then came the program's response, "Voice Recognition Codes Accepted. I do indeed, Arthur. Only when the target must be dealt with " "Extreme Prejudice." They finished at the same time, making the entire visible audience's blood freeze. Arthur slowly hefted his shield, pointing the lower end of it at Ichika. The shield then grew a vertical line from its center, going to both ends of the shield.

The shield began to split in half, revealing a strange gun that had been hidden within the shield. A loud noise came from the barrel end that was facing Ichika, with a light that began to gather into a small sphere of a greenish hue. Recognizing the need to avoid further damage, Ichika flew away in an attempt to escape Arthur's line of sight. With a bated breath, he fired at Ichika, the green sphere becoming a lance of light heading directly for his target's back.

It was getting closer as Ichika continued to fly as fast as he could to avoid the laser and once it was in striking range, he dove down within a millimeter of it nearly hitting him. The laser continued on its trajectory before it dissipated. Ichika slouched a little to catch his breath when heard "Got you..." from Arthur. Before he could see where he was, he had been struck by another light and an explosion followed with smoke surrounding the immediate area.

[End]

Arthur watched in silence as the smoke cleared from his attack, revealing Ichika appearing to look undamaged as he proudly stood in the First Shift of his IS. Arthur smiled to himself as he muttered, "Perhaps it's time to lift the veil then..." Ichika looked at Arthur with renewed vigor as he summoned a metal sword to his hand. Curious, Arthur eyed the item in his opponent's hand and asked, "Is that what I think that is?"

Ichika shrugged as he held it out in front of him, the sword held horizontally so the handle was facing to his left. He closed his eyes and the sword opened before collapsing, allowing a blue-hued light to exit it and take the form of a blade in its place. "I'm not sure, maybe you'd like to make a guess?" he asked with a smirk, to which Arthur grunted and replied, "It's the Yukihira Nigata, the blade your sister used to win the first tourney. I know that it was only thing she used during the Mondo Grosso. It's obvious you inherited her legacy one way or another. I hope you know how to use that thing."

During this brief statement, the wings grew still before vanishing slowly from the tip to the base. The air began to shift and distort, surprising everyone who was watching when they saw Cecilia hovering in the same area she used to be before she was struck down. She looked around in confusion as she noticed her opponents were observing her, one with the same emotion she felt and the other with a knowing smile.

She yelled angrily at Arthur, frustration clear on her face, "How is it that you're both still standing!? I was sure I defeated you after you showed your wings and defeated the other boy with that strange device of yours!" Ichika looked surprised at that and replied, "That's what I saw when he used it on you!" She looked affronted at that and retorted, "How could he possibly do that? I would never let some amateur get the best of me!" Arthur shook his head as the two argued and said, "That's because I.."

-Observation Room-

"Never used it in the first place." came the finished response from the older Orimura, and the Admiral said, "He always was the crafty one, never really being a direct fighter. Somehow, he must have fooled his opponents using those wings of his when he revealed them." "It's possible that those wings might have created an illusion. But why would he go through the trouble of setting that up, only to dispel his wings?" asked Maya, who had been equally confused by the whole situation as the audience outside.

"He didn't dispel them, that's the problem." the Admiral replied, and Chifuyu continued, "He hid them from view. While it's faint, they're still there. Take a look, Yamada-sensei." She brought up a frozen image of the Endless Respite, right when the wings were 'fading'. They still retained an outline of their shape, but distorted the sky behind them, waving slowly as they had before. Then the pair continued to observe the fight when a loud crash sounded, redirecting their view to a missing Arthur, a panting Ichika and an equally panting Cecilia.

-Arena-

[Play Track -Quatre Mains (chambre cordes)- Evangelion 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo]

As the teachers tried to search for the missing combatant they heard an echoing laugh in the arena, ceasing all conversations or other noises the audience was making. "Having trouble, are we?" asked Arthur, who reappeared between them, not a single scratch on his armor as he glanced both ways before vanishing once more. "It seems as though this conflict has reached its end. Perhaps I had expected too much from you Ichika." Arthur spoke again, this time reappearing beside him, only to vanish as Ichika swung at him.

"Or maybe the reason you can't win against her is because you lack the conviction to defeat her?" he asked, materializing directly behind him, facing the opposite direction. Ichika paused, glancing at him through the corner of his eye, his ire beginning to rise at the jab. "After all, she's still here. You could easily beat her, given proper timing and the depletion of her weapons, she can lose." Arthur continued, turning around to see the target of his one-sided conversation, her composure too far gone. She lost it to her rage, bringing forth her BIT drones, and rained blue upon the males.

As the rain descended upon them, Arthur said, "I knew I forgot something! Her Blue Tears has drones that can be mentally commanded to do anything she wants. Downside is, she has to-oh crap!" he dodged out of an attack by his opponent's ferocious combination of her drones and her rifle. The pair deftly moved around the blue lasers as if they were dancing rather than dodging. As Arthur avoided the assault, he continued where he left off, "She needs to stay still while she controls the drones. Easy way to exploit this is to have one of us distract her while the other sneaks behind and knocks her down. I believe the best way to do this is to have her devote her entire focus on one person long enough for the other to take her down. I'll be the distraction, it is my specialty after all."

[End]

[Play Track -Victory Must Be Grasped- .hack/G.U.]

Arthur then flew off directly towards Cecilia, while Ichika looked on in silence before taking off in a different direction. The female pilot then focused her fire on Arthur as he anticipated, quickly dodging as often as he could manage to do so. Arthur summoned his combined staff he used earlier and separated them into their respective pieces. He widened his stance and curved blades began to form from the upper sections of the staffs. The handles shortened slightly below the hands to ease Arthur's grip on the transformed weapons.

He then took the ends from both weapons and slammed them together, slowly pulling them apart to reveal a chain attached to each end. Grabbing the chain from the left-bladed kusarigama, he gave it a little spin before grabbing the handle and pointing it downward. "Alright, let's get going then." Arthur spoke, spinning both blades before hurling the one from his right as he sped directly toward the oncoming fire raining down on him. Some of the bullets were deflected by the spinning blade, clearing the path for Arthur but was repelled by a few well placed shots by the BITs.

"Those drones are getting really annoying..." Arthur mumbled, trying and failing to deflect the attacks back at the drones, though he wasn't careful enough when he had been blindsided by Ichika as he had been knocked back by Cecilia's rifle attacks. They stumbled in the air together for a moment until Arthur moved Ichika out of the path of another bullet that came dangerously close to his head. "Okay, we need to formulate a strategy here. Those drones aren't letting us any closer to her. We know their weakness, so why is it so difficult to beat her?" Arthur whispered to his fellow male pilot, and he responded, "How should I know? You were so sure that she could lose. It's not like she actually decided to prepare in advance or anything."

Arthur mentally sighed and said, "Sometimes I wonder if you're better at this sort of thing than I think you are. I guess the only way we can win is to move faster than she can see. Any ideas on how we can do that?" "Maybe we don't have to move faster...We gotta make her think we're moving faster than she can see." Ichika supplied, to which Arthur answered, "If that's the case, I have just the thing..."

[End]

[Play Track -The Game Has Changed- Tron Legacy]

Air swirled around the IS, pushing and churning until it spread outwardly in a rapid fashion. The audience watched as the Endless Respite shifted to a kneeling position with the right knee up. His head bowed down, Arthur held his blade before him, its curvature pointed to the oceanic sky above. He spoke lowly, though from what the Orimura boy could tell, it sounded like a prayer, "Let the Light guide me on this hallowed path, for where I go, none must follow in my wake should the Abyss consume them. For those courageous enough to follow, let the Light grant me the strength to protect them. And should the worst come to pass...grant me forgiveness."

Arthur shot up into the sky at a rapid speed, knocking Ichika off balance slightly in the process. As he reached his destination, his wings began to reappear behind his back, though they straightened into lines, each pointing in a different direction like a six pointed star. "Morning Glory" was all that was spoken as beams of light lanced from the wings towards his opponent. Cecilia was taken aback as she vainly attempted to dodge the white rain pouring down upon her.

She had her BITs run interference by firing at the rain to negate the attack as much as possible, but it was not enough to save their master. The drones were systematically destroyed, leaving Cecilia defenseless before the massive wave of destruction. Her appearance faded as the white light consumed her.

[End]

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C͠orru̸pt́ion̷ ̕D͜e͏te͟c̛t̀ed͜.̢.͝.̴

L̴aun̢c͏hin̸g͡ ͡Memo̢r̀y͡ Re̢s͡t̴or̸ation P͢r̕òt͘oc͘o̧ls҉

̧WA̸ŖN̷I̢NG̷!҉

͞P̀r͞o̡tocoļ F͡a͜i͡lure͠

̢Co̶rrųpti͜o̴n ̶at 5%

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08Jul13 (As of this fanfic's creation)

AN: So ends the first chapter of my new story. To be honest, I was having a difficult time trying to write my other story, so I had to try something new. This was the product of a long, long thought process of how I wanted to go about writing an IS fanfic. It's the first fic I've written that far exceeded the writing limits I've been used to doing up until now.

As you can see, I've been extremely busy with things that pertain to my current lifestyle, one that heavily limits Internet usage. Don't be surprised if I don't reply to any emails or PMs during this time period. However, this is not indefinite as of this moment that I am writing this notice. Should I reply, it'll be brief due to the fact I'm attempting to catch up on personal emails and other events I may have missed.

Anyway, feel free to comment on what you think of this fanfiction. I'm going to continue writing in my spare time outside of work-related events.

Until next time, the Void bids thee farewell...

EXTRA NOTE: As you can tell, I had intended to post this fic sooner, but well...*shrug*