Chapter 9: Before the Storm
Intro
Ren stood in front of the child error facility. He took a deep breath. The bag in his hand felt very heavy, and not just because it had two billion yen in it. It felt clunky, being so large. He took another deep breath and took his first step towards the facility. He pushed open the glass doors leading into it. Ren asked for Hinata Kurusu's office and made his way to the stai-... took the elevator.
Ren's mind blurred the next several moments together, and suddenly, he was in front of Hinata's office. He reached for the door and noticed his hand was shaking. He clenched it, hoping to shake off his nervousness. It didn't work, but he went in anyway. Hinata was sitting at his desk, looking at some paperwork. He looked up when Ren entered. Ren noticed he had glasses on. He never liked to be disturbed when he was wearing glasses. It meant he was working. Ren considered walking out and coming back later, but before he could, Hinata took off the glasses and set the papers down.
"Ren?" Hinata asked.
Ren's throat dried up when he heard Hinata speak, but he squeaked out a, "Hi." Hinata looked at the bag Ren had, and then back to Ren. Hinata attempted to greet Ren several times, but he couldn't find a way to do it correctly.
"I... it's good to see you," he decided on. Ren nodded in reply. What the hell was Ren thinking, coming back here?
"It's kind of funny, about two weeks ago, a girl came in asking for you. She seemed... worried about you," Hinata continued. Ren nodded.
"Mikoto," he replied. Hinata chuckled.
"Your voice sounds deeper. You... look different, too. How've you been? Did you take my advice?" Hinata inquired. He was slowly getting over the awkward phase of seeing Ren again. Ren was still stuck.
"Er... yeah. Got a couple friends now... I think," Ren replied. Hinata nodded.
"Good. Would you like something to drink?" Hinata offered. Ren shook his head.
"I'm not thristy," Ren said. What the hell is wrong with you? You're dying of thirst! Ren thought. Hinata's brow lowered.
"Is everything okay?" Hinata asked.
"Y-... no. No it isn't. I'm in serious trouble," Ren revealed. Hinata stood up.
"What's going on? Does this have anything to do with that girl?" Hinata asked. Ren took a deep breath and approached Hinata's desk.
"I can't tell you. For your own safety. All I can say is that... it's going to be a lot easier... if you accept this last donation of mine," Ren said, placing the bag on the table. Hinata raised an eyebrow. He opened the bag and saw the money inside. His eyes widened. He looked at Ren.
"Ren... what... what is all this?" Hinata asked. Ren felt himself choking up.
"Look.. Hinata... this money isn't mine. It was taken from these people," Ren explained, pulling a list of names from his pocket.
"I want you to return it," Ren spoke. Hinata was taken back. His eyes were unfocused.
"My god... all that money that you donated before... it came from... them? Ren... you..." Hinata couldn't finish. He looked at Ren. Ren looked back.
"Please..." Ren pleaded. Hinata covered his face with his hands and fell back into his chair.
"How long?" he asked.
"Not long after I left," Ren answered. Hinata rubbed his face.
"Take your money back. I won't deal in anything criminal-"
"Goddammit, Hinata, I am begging for you to take this!" Ren burst out, slamming his hand on the desk. Hinata removed his hands from his face and looked at Ren in surprise.
"Can you not return this money yourself?" Hinata asked.
"I'm constantly being watched by a psychopathic madman that can tear me apart any time he wants- he just chooses not to because he wants this money. But he's not watching you. Please, just take the money. I don't want it. I don't care about it - I just want to make it through this alive," Ren begged. Hinata's face remained hardened. Ren felt his resolve waver.
"I wanted a better life for you, Ren. I wanted happiness for you after you left. This is not happiness. This is greed and fear and hopelessness," Hinata proclaimed, standing up again.
"I will not feed your fear. I will not push you farther into the ground simply because it's easier for you," he continued. Loosening his tie. He sighed.
"But I will not feed your hopelessness either. I will take the money and I will keep it safe. But you will finish things with this madman, and end your connections with the criminal world. And you will come back to me. And you will part with your greed by giving this money back to these people yourself," Hinata smiled. He picked up the list of people and offered it back to Ren. Ren pushed it back.
"Keep these names close to you. So you remember what you must live for. Live for them. Live for me. And most importantly - live for yourself," Hinata said, placing a hand on Ren's head and ruffling his hair. Ren raised his eyebrow.
"Well, at least I know where I got my corniness from," Ren replied. Hinata groaned.
"Take the goddamn list." he insisted. Ren shook his head.
"Keep it. Think of it as insurance. I need to know that even if I fail, my mistakes won't remain permanent," Ren explained. Hinata hmphed.
"You always were lazy... fine, I'll keep it with the money. However, considering that there's a crazy guy that's most likely watching this building right now, I say we give him the slip, just in case," Hinata continued, returning to his desk and opening one of the drawers.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, he's going to be coming for you if you leave the building without your bag full of money. What we need is a paper substitute. Luckily, I have a copy of a certain board game that most of the children hate. Several copies of it, in fact. It was a poor investment..." Hinata revealed, placing several Monopoly boxes on the table.
"You can't expect us to fill the entire bag with monopoly money, do you?"
Hinata continued pulling Monopoly boxes out of several drawers.
"My god. How many copies do you have?" Ren asked, half joking.
"If I told you, you'd think I was crazy," Hinata said.
"I already think you're crazy."
"Well... that makes two of us."
"You think you're crazy, too?"
"No, I think you're crazy..."
"Um... thanks?"
"You're welcome. It's my personal belief that everyone's crazy. And if you're not, you're boring," Hinata said, starting to unload the bag full of money.
"That... actually makes a lot of sense given my social circle."
"Of course it does. Now tell me about your friends while you help me unload this blood money."
Well, there's Touma and Index...
Ren just got back from the child error facility and entered Touma's apartment to find it completely destroyed.
"Goddammit, what is it this time?" Ren grumbled. The window had been blown open and the TV and several of items had been strewn about the apartment as if a hurricane had hit it. He looked outside. Has CLASS already been here? he wondered. Considering how sloppy Suzaku usually is with his work, and how Hideaki sets things on fire with his Hadron Cannon, he doubted it was either of them. And Frances has no offensive powers to speak of. Any thugs they recruited into CLASS didn't have this kind of destructive capabilities either. He looked down off the railing.
"And how did they get up here?" he thought out loud. He turned and looked up at the roof. He launched himself up to the roof, looking for any signs of abilities or equipment that might've been used to get in the building. After finding nothing, he turned and glided to the ground beneath the balcony, doing the same there, too. He saw a crack in the pavement about the width of a plate long. He touched the crack.
"Made recently. Probably by a supernatural power of some kind. Definitely a lot of force behind it. Maybe Suzaku has learned to restrain his powers?" Ren theorized aloud.
"Hmm... yeah, not likely. Someone new, then. If that's the case, they could've attacked the place, but they weren't home at the time. That means either they're waiting for them to return, or they have some way to find them and are going after them now..." He surveyed the area more through observation and reading the air, but found no more evidence.
"Alright. Whoever they are, they've left. Which means I need to find Touma and Index and warn them. So if I were Touma and Index, why would I leave the apartment? I didn't hear about him hanging with anyone else... then again, I am not the extent of their social circle... but they both left, which means it must've been a mutual friend... or food. It's probably food. Yeah, it's definitely food," Ren deduced. He entertained himself as he walked toward the closest restaurant by imagining the conversation.
"I'm hungry!"
"What do you want me to do about it?"
"Want me to eat Sphinx?"
"Jesus, no! But I can't cook anything right now, because Stiyl blew up our house or something."
"Fine, I'll eat Stiyl instead!"
"But you'll get lung cancer! Actually, yeah, go do that."
Wait, Touma didn't hate Index...
"I mean, no cannabalism! Let's just go to a restaurant."
"Yay! I'll eat everything they have to offer with no regard for your finanical situation!"
"Yeah, it's fine, I can just ask Ren for money. Ow! Why'd you bite me?"
"Because I always bite you, I don't need a reason. Or maybe I'm a vampire. I dunno, Ren can't make up his mind."
Ren stopped in his tracks. Wow. He was really messed up. Fun. He continued walking to the restaurant, picking up his pace. Once there, he saw that the window had been broken in. Touma was standing there, looking around. Well, I found the less annoying half, Ren thought, feeling accomplished. Suddenly, he was pushed over by some invisible force.
"Gah! What the hell?" he grunted, getting to his feet.
"Ren! He's got Index!" Touma shouted to him.
"What? Who?" he shouted back.
"He pushed you over. He's invisible!" Touma exclaimed. Ren wasted no time. He read the air. Someone was running not far away, and they had Index.
"Got him!" he shouted, launching into the air and flying towards them. He made the mistake of not reading the air as he approached. Suddenly, he was forced back as a gust of wind hit him, sending him to the sidewalk. He got up and read the air again.
"Another aerokinetic..." he pondered, flying towards them. The person reached out their hand and stepped on the ground in front of them, launching themselves into the air. Ren flew after him. He swatted away the next attack shot at him and tackled him in mid-air. He suddenly became visible.
The man, dressed in a suit, threw a punch into Ren's face, making him let go of him. Ren forced the air behind him, slowly his decent and launching him back at the man, who had raised his arm, which had what appeared to be a crossbow mounted on it, and launched another attack at Ren. Ren attempted to block, but was forced back by it. The man turned and flew after the falling Index. Ren followed, preparing an air slice. He threw it in time for the man to grab onto Index and, much to Ren's surprise, shielded her from the attack.
He then turned and fired his crossbow, lowering himself to a rooftop slowly. Ren landed, protecting himself with air pressure.
"Give the carniverous girl back to me, now," Ren demanded, forming condensed air into his hand. The man stood and prepared his crossbow, aiming it at Ren.
"No. She's crucial to the success of my plan," the man replied.
"And what, pray-tell, is that?" Ren asked.
"Perhaps if I were another man, I'd tell. All you must know is that I do this to prove the extent of my power. The power to prevent death," the man explained.
"What? Prevent death? What do you mean?"
"The saving of a life. I will prove that I can save the lives of even those doomed to die. I'd prefer if you didn't get in the way. Casualties and destruction is not my goal," he continued.
"And you need Index... why?"
"If you know she is the index of 103,000 grimoires, then it should seem obvious."
"What the hell is a grimoire?" Ren asked, his eyebrow arching.
"Hmph. Then you need not worry. I will return the girl when I am finished," the man revealed. Ren lowered his arm.
"Wait, what? So... you're doing this to save an innocent life... and Index won't be harmed?" Ren clarified.
"Correct."
"And I'm supposed to just believe you?"
"You should. But I doubt you are so trusting. Know this- if you choose to engage me, and fight for this girl, I will prevail. The resulting destruction may cause other innocents to be harmed, as well," the man reasoned. Ren looked away for a second and then back at the man.
"I'll let you go. But I want to know one thing. That device on your arm... it allows you to replicate aerokinesis, right? Who made it?" Ren asked.
"Some things are not meant to be known," the man replied, firing the crossbow and turning himself and Index invisible. Ren stood there as they left. He kept awareness of their location with his air-reading and followed after them a while later, about a mile back.
The man had set up a magical barrier on top of a roof of a building much higher than the one they had been on previously. Apparently, he needed it to amplify his power and read Index's mind, which had a bunch of grimoires in it... apparently. He had Index binded by some form of spell that involved rope and was made for demons. Fits Index like a glove, Ren thought as he looked up the side of the building from the ground. Suddenly, the man keeled over and screamed in pain.
What the hell's going on up there? Ren quickly got up and launched over the edge of the building.
"No! You're lying to yourself! You're doing this because you've fallen in love with her! You're willing to do anything to save her! But, you're afraid that if you realize that, then the blame for your actions will shift to her!" Index was shouting.
"What?" Ren asked as he landed. He looked to the man.
"You... you're doing this..."
The man was bleeding from his eyes, his ears and mouth. He turned his head toward Ren.
"I... it's... not true..."
"Stop lying! If you keep on thinking that way, there's no way you can survive!" Index shouted. The man panted as he coughed more blood onto the ground.
"If... I do that... then... yes... she's dying... I want to... save her..." he coughed out between breaths. Ren looked at him in disbelief.
"And... you want to do that, knowing you could die?"
"If it means saving her... then I will gladly die. She... doesn't deserve that..."
"She doesn't deserve losing you, either!" Index continued.
"Index, be quiet for a second," Ren ordered. He kneeled down to him.
"What's your name?" Ren asked. The man stared at him for a moment.
"Ouma. Ouma Yamisaka."
"And hers?" Ren asked,
"Megumi..." he was interrupted by a coughing fit. He fired his bow again. He screamed in pain.
"The answer... has to be here... somewhere..." he mumbled, almost to no one. Ren reached out his hand used air pressure to keep blood from leaving his body.
"Then find it. I don't know exactly what you're doing, but if doing it helps you find an answer, I'll keep you alive as long as I can so you can do it..." Ren said. Ouma looked at Ren in disbelief.
"Thank... you..." Ouma smiled.
"Go!" Ren ordered. Ouma started reading through more volumes. Each time he shot his crossbow, it became harder to keep his body together.
"Ren... you have to stop this... he's going to die!"
"I know what I'm doing, Index! Just hold on, Ouma..."
Touma suddenly burst through the door, with a phone to his ear. Ren quickly turned. He shot over to Touma as he was reaching for the barrier Ouma had made.
"No, Touma! You don't understand! He needs to do this!" Ren exclaimed, holding Imagine Breaker away from the barrier. Ren heard Ouma starting to cough. With his other hand, he turned back and continued to try and keep Ouma together.
"No! If he continues this, he'll die! Is that what you want?"
"I'm making sure he can find what he needs to save her!" Ren exclaimed. Ouma fell to his knees.
"Is it so wrong that I want to save an innocent I love, even at the cost of my own life?" Ouma shouted at them.
"Yes! If you sacrifice your own life to save her, everything you're feeling now will be transfered to her-"
Ren let go of Touma's arm and punched him, launching him back, away from the barrier.
"Goddamn hypocrite! You risk your life all the time to save others. So do I! And Mikoto! Are you saying we shouldn't have done what we did?"
"It's different! He's going into this knowing he's going to die! The girl he's doing all this for- how will she live with the idea that she caused someone to die for her? It isn't his right to decide that she'll feel that guilt!" Touma shouted, regaining his posture.
"Oh, and you do? Have you ever considered what would have happened if you ever died? How many would you leave behind, feeling miserable or guilty at your own death? Don't you sit there and pretend to be on a higher level than all of us!" Ren returned.
"I don't think-"
"Like hell you don't! You always have to be the hero, you always have to stop the bad guy. I wonder if you've even considered the idea that maybe things would be better if you didn't involve yourself in them? That man is dying right now because I can't hold him together because of you! You're deciding for that man how to solve his problem. And do you even know him? Can you even tell me his name?"
Touma was silent. And then he shook his head.
"No. But a name doesn't matter. You don't refuse to help someone because you don't know their name, so why would knowing the name matter?"
"A person's name is a person's identity! You never realized that - all you ever cared about was solving "the problem". You never thought about who you were saving. I wonder if you met Accelerator first, would you try to stop the Sisters? And Mikoto? You don't care about a person's name because to you it doesn't matter because life is just the repetition of saving kittens from trees and punching bad guys over and over again. What if the so called "bad guy" was the victim?"
"That's nothing but an excuse. You're trying to justify this man's suicide!"
"Ouma! His name is Ouma, and he's trying to save the girl he loves. But he's putting himself in danger, so logically, he must be evil! Look at yourself, Touma! You're trying to save Index, and to do that, you're fighting against a man trying to save Megumi, the woman he loves! You're no different than him, so stop creating the illusion that you aren't!"
The two stood there, staring at each other.
"I'm not going to punch you, I don't solve problems that way," Ren followed up.
"I wasn't waiting for that. Fine. Do things your way. But I don't condone this," Touma replied. Ren turned and focused everything he had on Ouma. But Ouma was on the ground. He wasn't moving.
"Ouma... Ouma!" Ren shouted, running up to him.
"I... tried... I couldn't... do it... I searched hundreds... but none... had the answer... I'm... so tired..." he mumbled.
"Don't give up, you can't give up! What about Megumi? Think of what'll happen to her if you fail!" Ren pleaded, shaking him.
"I read so many... ignored the pain... couldn't find... the curse..."
"The curse? The thing that's making her die?" Ren asked. Ouma merely groaned in reply.
"Ouma... can you describe the curse?" Index asked. Ouma's one working eye looked at her. He nodded.
"I have all 103,000 grimoires memorized. I can find the cure for the corresponding curse if you just describe it to me," Index explained. Ouma grabbed Ren. He whispered into his ear the curse description.
"Curse markings all over her body. She's been confined to a wheelchair and has a general weakness of her body," Ren relayed to Index. Index closed her eyes and thought for a moment.
"It's a Biāojì Wúlì curse! I have the counter curse!"
"Touma! Cancel the barrier!" Ren shouted. Touma reached out and touched it, erasing it. Ren turned back to Ouma.
"Did you hear that, Ouma? We've got the counter curse. Megumi's going to be saved," Ren said, happily.
"That's... good. I'll try... not to... die..." he gasped out quietly. Ren picked him up.
"I'll get this guy to Dr. Frog-"
"Frog-faced Doctor."
"Whatever! Get Index out of those ridiculous binds," Ren commanded, flying towards the hospital.
"Since when did we start taking orders from that guy?" Touma wondered.
"I don't want to take orders from the devil!" Index complained.
Later, Ren sat in a chair in the hallway. Dr. Frog approached him.
"There didn't seem to be much permanent damage - only blood loss. Once we got his blood back in him, he was fine. After an hour or two of rest, of course," Dr. Frog explained. Ren got up from the chair.
"Can I see him?" Ren asked. Frog nodded his head. Ren walked into his room. Ouma was sitting up, looking out the window. He glanced at Ren as he entered.
"It's strange. For so long, I prepared myself for my death, and now that it's happened... I'm somewhat disappointed. I was hoping for something... a bit more grand," Ouma confessed. Ren raised an eyebrow.
"You aren't content with living and saving the woman you love?" Ren asked. Ouma chuckled.
"Of course I am. I just never imagined I could save her without dying... if you can consider what I did as saving her," Ouma clarified.
"What do you mean?" Ren asked.
"I didn't save Megumi. It was the index that came up with the counter curse. She had succeeded where I had failed, and she didn't need to bleed from her eyes to do it. Things could have been so much simpler if I hadn't locked myself into death like that. What you said to Touma - about being so stubborn so as to turn away help and convince yourself that you're the hero, so you have to be the one to save the day... I needed to hear that. Without it... I don't think I would have accepted the index's help," Ouma reasoned.
"Just... call her Index. It's pretty much her name now. And just because she found the counter curse doesn't mean you didn't save Megumi. You're the one who'll perform the curse. You will save Megumi. Index just helped," Ren replied. Ouma looked at him.
"You helped as well... though I regret not knowing your name."
"Renji Nakajima. My friends just call me Ren," Ren introduced.
"N-nakajima?" he stuttered. Suddenly, the door flew open.
"Ow! Ow! Get off me!" Touma screamed as he ran into the room with Index latched onto his head.
"Can't you two do this some other time?" Ren shouted. He ducked as Index's fist went over his head.
"God! I feel like I'm babysitting children!" he grunted, grabbing Touma by the collar and pulling him out of the room.
"I'll see you around, Ouma. Keep in touch!" he shouted as he left the room with them.
"W-wait!" Ouma shouted as the door closed. He sat back.
"...Hmm."
Oh yeah, I used to be friends with CLASS...
Hideaki threw open the door. Frances followed soon behind with a dufflebag held over his head.
"We got the money!" Hideaki screamed, startling everyone in the room, as Frances tossed the dufflebag onto the table, breaking it beneath it's weight.
"Goddammit, Frances, we just bought that," Yumiko growled. Suzaku got off the couch and approached the bag. He crouched down. Was it possible? Did Renji-boy really just give up? Suzaku couldn't keep his anticipation under wraps any longer. He fumbled with the zipper for a few seconds.
"Fuck it," he said, ripping the front of the bag off. Pink, white, yellow. orange, and blue pieces of paper exploded everywhere.
"Yeah! Make it rai... shit," Hideaki cursed, dismayed.
"This is monopoly money," Suzaku stated.
"Who the fuck carries around this much monopoly money?" Hideaki shouted.
"Yeah! We're rich!" Frances exclaimed, grabbing as much money as he could and jumping excitedly. Everyone stared at him.
"We can put hotels on all our properties! Our revenue will increase exponentially! Boardwalk and Park Place, here we come!" Frances explained happily.
"How did you survive Project: Divinity?" Yumiko wondered aloud, shaking her head.
"Nakajima, you diabolical..." Hideaki gritted, shaking his fist in the air angrily. Suzaku was still staring down at the bag.
"Boss, calm down. Don't kill anybody," Yumiko protested. Suzaku took a deep breath.
"Frances, until we replace this coffee table, you will be our coffee table," Suzaku ordered through gritted teeth.
"W-what? My backs not flat, it'd be the worst surface to put your coffee on-"
"Frances, I could kill you."
"And I could teleport awa-"
"Frances. I. Can. Kill. You," Suzaku said, turning to Frances sharply. Frances stopped.
"Y-yes sir. I understand," Frances said quickly. Suzaku turned and left the room. Hideaki came by Frances and patted him on the back.
"Don't worry, it's not you he's pissed at," Hideaki consoled. Frances nodded.
"It's not me I'm worried about," Frances replied. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Hideaki walked over and opened it. There was a young girl with pigtails standing at the door.
"Kuroko Shirai. I'm with Judgement. Is this the residence of Hatsuya Kaitabi?" Kuroko asked. Hideaki stared at her a sec. Frances was behind the door. He quickly whispered a pickup line to Hideaki.
"Did it hurt when you fell from Heaven?" Hideaki blurted out. Kuroko just stared at him. Hideaki sighed.
"Goddammit, Frances," Hideaki mumured.
"What was that?" Kuroko asked.
"Nothing. My friend just hates me," Hideaki informed.
"Uh... I have some questions..." Kuroko continued. Hideaki nodded and stepped out of the apartment, closing the door behind him.
"For a pretty girl like you? Anything," Hideaki smiled, leaning against the door. Kuroko closed her eyes and sighed.
"Is this the residence of Hatsuya Kaitabi?" Kuroko asked.
"Former residence of Hatsuya Kaitabi. He moved out about 3 months ago. Me and my friend moved in about a week afterwards," Hideaki answered.
"Did you ever meet Hatsuya Kaitabi in person?" Kuroko questioned. Hideaki shook his head.
"If I did, I didn't recognize him," Hideaki replied.
"How did you acquire the property?" Kuroko inquired.
"I didn't handle any of that stuff, my buddy just said "hey, we got a new place to live"," Hideaki faked recalling. Kuroko nodded.
"Can I speak to your friend?" Kuroko requested. Hideaki turned and opened the door.
"Yo, Suzaku! Anti-skill wants to talk to you," Hideaki shouted into the apartment.
"Judgement," Kuroko corrected.
"Gesundheit," Hideaki blessed. Kuroko pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to ward off the oncoming headache. Suzaku exited the apartment, having been quickly informed by Frances what the situation was. He greeted Kuroko with a nod and motioned for Hideaki to go back inside.
"How long ago did you acquire this property?"
"Little bit less than 3 months ago."
"Did you know the former owner?"
"We met once, but I didn't know him personally."
"Then how did you acquire the property?"
"Like I said, I met him once."
"And he just sold it to you right then?"
"He seemed to be in a hurry. I got the place for a killer price."
"Do you mind if I take a look around?"
"Actually, I do, but I'm pretty sure you're going to arrest me if I don't agree, so, please, go ahead." Suzaku stepped back and let her into the apartment. Luckily, Yumiko had been teleported out by Frances, who was now back and relaxing on the couch. Kuroko avoided Hideaki and went into one of the back rooms. It was completely empty and had no furnishing except it had a freezer in the middle of the floor. It was incredibley large. Kuroko could fit inside it. She stepped forward cautiously and got ready to teleport in case things got ugly.
"Don't open it," Suzaku warned, following her into the room.
"What's in here?" she asked, unnerved.
"My collection," Suzaku smiled. He approached her slowly.
"Every boy has a collection, y'know? I don't really want the other guys to know I have one, so please. Just. Step. Away," Suzaku continued, still smiling. Kuroko quickly turned and through the freezer door open, revealing heaping mounds of disgusting... sardines.
"I fish. It's not a very manly past-time, so I'm afraid that the other guys'll make fun of me if they find out," Suzaku explained. Kuroko looked shocked. She took a deep breath. She exited that room and went to her left, entering a bedroom. Hideaki was inside, leaning against a dresser.
"You know, officer, I'd let you arrest me anytime you want... wink," Hideaki offered, shining his best smile. Kuroko groaned.
"Sir, please stop," Kuroko pleaded. Hideaki shrugged.
"You're loss."
Kuroko looked around the surrounding area and looked in one of the other dressers. Hideaki held back the urge to say that there were other ways to get a look at his underwear. Kuroko went to the opposite side of the bed that Hideaki was on and bent down to look under the bed.
"Okay, officer. This is gonna sound bad, but don't look under there, you will see some things you cannot unsee," Hideaki warned.
"What, do you have sardines under there, too?" Kuroko asked, smirking.
"What? Who the fuck keeps sardines under their bed?"
"Nevermind..." Kuroko sighed.
Kuroko, against her better judgement, looked underneath the bed. There was a plastic container underneath there. She pulled it out.
"Officer, please, you don't know what you're doing-" Kuroko threw open the container. Inside, there were awful, foul-smelling... sardines.
"Okay, I lied, there were sardines..." Hideaki admitted, bowing his head in shame. Kuroko looked at him.
"Are... you a fisherman, too?" Kuroko asked.
"What? Of course not, fishing isn't a manly past-time. I just like the taste of sardines," Hideaki shrugged. Kuroko groaned in frustration and got up, leaving the container where it lay. She turned and left the room, going towards the room across the apartment. Inside, Frances sat on the bed.
"Hi," he greeted cheerfully, waving. Kuroko ignored him and looked around the room. She checked one of the dressers and then under the bed. When she looked up she was greeted by a bunny rabbit face. She was startled and squeaked.
"Isn't he cute?" Frances asked. Kuroko stood up.
"Uh... yeah, sure," Kuroko replied. Kuroko realized that the bunny face was sewn onto the body of a teddy bear. She cleared her throat and turned around, wanting to not look at the thing as quickly as possible. She saw a closet. She approached it and put her hand on the doorknob.
"I wouldn't open that," Frances warned. Kuroko groaned.
"God, just let the sardines be over with!" Kuroko shouted, throwing the closet door open. Suddenly, an ungodly amount of Monopoly money fell out of the closet and buried Kuroko.
"I told you," Frances shrugged. Kuroko burst out of the pile of money,
"Who the hell keeps so much Monopoly money around?" Kuroko shouted. Frances looked hurt.
"I... just wanted to buy Boardwalk and Park Place..." Frances pouted. Kuroko looked at him in despairing disbelief. She finally snapped.
"You're insane. You're all insane. I hate you all!" Kuroko screamed, teleporting away. Suzaku and Hideaki entered the room. They made sure she was gone.
"Well done, you two. Frances, where'd you take Yumiko?" Suzaku asked.
"I took her... to the back," Frances answered. Suzaku stared at him for a moment. Something clicked in his brain.
"Oh my god."
He quickly ran into the back and opened the freezer. He threw a bunch of the sardines out to reveal Yumiko.
"Yumiko... is... cold..." she chattered. Suzaku pulled her out.
"Hideaki, get a fire started with that Monopoly money," Suzaku ordered.
"No! We still have to buy Boardwalk!" Frances pleaded, trying to stop Hideaki.
"What about Park Place?" Hideaki asked.
"Fuck Park Place! Boardwalk is life!" he shouted.
"Get over it."
"Okay," Frances shrugged, stepping out of the way. Hideaki walked past.
"Coffee table, get some warm water," Suzaku commanded.
"Boss, we don't have a coffee table anymore, remember? I destroy- oooooooooh. I'm coffee table," Frances reasoned out. He teleported away,
"I'm sorry you had to stay in there for some time, Yumiko. With all those... sardines... why the hell do we have a freezer full of sardines?" Suzaku asked. Hideaki entered with an armful of Monopoly money. He put it on the concrete floor and fired a Hadron at it, igniting it.
"Hideaki, why do we have a bunch of sardines in our house?" Suzaku questioned. Hideaki shrugged.
"I've learned to not question these things with Frances around," Hideaki explained. Frances teleported back in with a large bucket of warm water. He set it in front of Yumiko.
"Hideaki, blanket," Suzaku ordered. He turned his attention to Frances.
"Frances, what's with all the sardines?" Suzaku asked. Frances just shrugged.
"They were just sitting on the side of the road and I thought to myself, 'Hey, sardines! I bet these will come in handy if a lesbian judgement officer comes to our door asking about that guy we killed!'" Frances explained. Suzaku stared at him.
"Really?"
"Fuck no, I have no clue how they got here," Frances replied.
"Huh. That's weird," Suzaku murmured. Hideaki returned with the blanket. He draped it over Yumiko, who pulled it around herself. They sat in silence for a moment.
"Our lives are really strange," Suzaku noted. The others nodded. They had fish for dinner.
And then there's Stiyl...
"Fuck you, Ren..."
And now I'm dating Mikoto...
Ren suddenly felt the looming threat of lung cancer. He ignored it, he had more important things to focus on. Namely, the fact that he had to get these hammocks set up correctly. The last thing he wanted was for Mikoto's to break and for her to fall. It would probably give her another reason to electrocute him. The exact opposite of how he'd like things to end.
After inspecting the pole for half an hour, and made sure it was straight, he got about setting up the hammock between the two poles he put up. He checked his watch. He told her to be here at about 8. It was 7:55 now. He realized that he hadn't set up his own hammock. Dammit, Ren, he thought. He quickly ran over to the supplies and got out a pole. He stuck it into the ground hastily. He stopped himself. Wait. There's only one hammock, he realized. He turned and looked at it. It did take me like, half an hour to set that one up. I just won't have time to set the other up, is all. It's not like I'm purposefully doing this to have an excuse to be really close to Mikoto or anything. It just seems like wasted energy, Ren argued against himself. He sat there for some time arguing back and forth in his head about whether or not to set up the hammock.
"Are you just that confused about how to set up a hammock?" Mikoto asked as she walked up. Ren looked over at her.
"No, it just took forever to set this one up, I don't think we have enough time for me to set this other one up," Ren replied. Mikoto shrugged.
"I don't mind waiting. The stars aren't super visible just yet, so we have some time," Mikoto said, sitting on her hammock.
"I just thought the sooner we get to watching the stars the better," Ren explained, deflated.
"Well, do you really expect us to watch the stars for an hour or two?" Mikoto asked. Ren shrugged.
"I dunno, have you ever really watched the stars before? It can absorb a lot of time," Ren informed, getting the other pole and starting to wedge it into the ground.
"I don't really see the appeal," Mikoto replied. Ren scoffed.
"Don't judge it until you've experienced it," he said.
"Well, I'm not saying it isn't interesting, but all it really is is a bunch of pretty lights in the sky. After a while that gets boring, and then you turn to the scientific explanation that they're burning balls of plasma located millions of miles away, and that kinda takes the fun out of things," Mikoto replied. Ren shook his head,
"I don't think you're focusing on the right thing," he concluded. He grabbed the hammock and tied it between the two poles.
"Why's that?" she asked. Ren pressed his weight on the hammock, testing it.
"Well, the stars aren't supposed to be something new. They're supposed to be something constant. Think about it. They're balls of plasma burning millions of miles away, true. But it takes the light from the stars thousands of years to reach us. So really, we're watching their lives unfold long after they've ended. No matter what happens to us here on Earth, those stars are still up there living. Even if tomorrow the whole world were to end, those stars will still be there, giving off their stories," Ren said. Mikoto raised an eyebrow.
"That seems awfully well-thought out," Mikoto decided. Ren smiled.
"You know humans give off infrared light, right? Some animals can see infrared light. So, it makes sense that, maybe somewhere else out there, there's another planet, except there are people on it that can see infrared. So that means that they'll be able to see our stories unfold, too. A million years from now, there will be infrared light racing across the universe, telling the story of how two people, in the midst of the most insane situation this world has ever seen, decided to set up two hammocks and watch the stars." Ren turned and sat on his hammock.
"I'd hate to disappoint our audience," Ren finished. He flipped and lied down on the hammock, putting his hands behind his head. He stared up at the stars for a moment before seeing Mikoto was standing. He looked over.
"Do you... think you can scoot over?" Mikoto asked. Ren's heart skipped a beat.
"Yeah... sure," he said. She sat in the hammock and then flipped onto her side, placing her head onto his shoulder. Her hand reached down clasped his.
"When you say it like that, it makes everything we do seem so... small," Mikoto sighed.
"Well, everything we do is small. But not less important. Maybe a million years from now, there are going to be people who see this story, and see thousands of stories similar to it. But this story is ours. And that's what makes it important. In that way, the littler things will probably be remembered more. Look to the sky. What do you see?" Ren asked. Mikoto furrowed her brow.
"Stars."
"Right. Even though that sky is mostly black. There are just a lot of tiny white dots in it. And yet you notice those more than the overwhelming black."
"So... if we make a lot of small gestures, we make..."
"The night sky, which millions of people look up to each night and think about how beautiful it is," Ren completed. Mikoto and Ren were silent for a time, looking up at the cosmos. Mikoto's hand slid out of his and grabbed his arm, pulling it up. She pulled a green bracelet out of her pocket and slid it onto his wrist.
"What's this?" he asked.
"A Gekota bracelet. I got it for you," Mikoto replied. Ren held his hand up so that the bracelet aligned with the stars. Ren smiled
"Fit's right in."
I also made a new friend...
Ren looked in on the destroyed apartment. The lights weren't on, but the hallway light illuminated enough of the room to see Accelerator sleeping on the couch. He entered and knocked on the door.
"Hello?" he called in. Accelerator moved his head. His face relaxed into Yuriko's when she saw Ren.
"Great, more guests," she greeted sardonically.
"Sorry, I don't mean to intrude. Thought I'd stop by, avoid curfew, say hi," Ren explained. Yuriko sat up.
"You're here to avoid curfew?" she asked.
"...and say hi," Ren reiterated. Yuriko sighed.
"The bathtub is open," Yuriko offered. Ren looked over to the bed.
"The bed isn't?" Ren asked. Yuriko looked over at it. She looked back.
"You can try it, but I doubt she'll like it," Yuriko informed.
"She? There's someone else living here?" Ren asked. The covers on the bed moved as a small Mikoto popped her head out.
"Oh my god. Mikoto, why are you twelve!?" Ren shouted.
"Because Misaka Misaka is twelve, Misaka Misaka explained the obvious," the little Mikoto said.
"Oh god, Yuriko, have you been manipulating Time vectors?" he interrogated, clearly horrified.
"I can't do that," Yuriko shook her head, giving Ren a strange look. Ren's horrified look disappeared and was replaced by one of confusion.
"Why the hell not, that'd be the coolest thing ever," Ren complained.
"Do you know how many calculations it'd take? Way more than a human mind is capable of."
"Since when are you limited by calculations?"
"Since always. Everyone is, it's just more of a problem for me since my power needs to be doing many things at once. Besides, no one's really sure how time works just yet, and my powers require me to know how things work to use them effectively," Yuriko explained.
"...so why is there a Minikoto?" Ren asked.
"Misaka Misaka's name is not Minikoto, it is Misaka Misaka, sometimes referred to as Last Order, Misaka Misaka clarified to the obnoxious intruder."
"She's a Misaka Sister. Serial Number 20001. She's tiny because she was released from her incubation pod early. She's been annoying me for a few hours now," Yuriko sighed.
"So wait... you're letting a child... live here?" Ren asked distastefully.
"What's wrong with this place?" Yuriko asked defensively.
"It's completely destroyed! The door can't close! Any crazy person-"
"Like you."
"Shut up. Any crazy person can just waltz in here-"
"Like you did."
"I said shut up! Any crazy person can just waltz in here and take the kid!"
"Which I foresee happening fairly soon here."
"Look, we need to get this kid somewhere safe!"
"Oh, what do you know, you are predictable," Yuriko smirked.
"Just because you know what I'm going to say, that doesn't mean that my point is any less valid! Come back to my place, it's certainly better than this dump," Ren proposed.
"Hey, I happen to like this dump," Yuriko countered.
"Really? 'Cause again, the doors don't even work," Ren continued. Yuriko sighed.
"Last Order?"
"Misaka Misaka wants to go to a place with a door! Misaka Misaka exclaimed her opinion."
"Goddammit. Fine, take the brat," Yuriko accepted, laying back onto the couch.
"You know, I meant that for you, too," Ren clarified.
"I'll pass. Thanks anyway," Yuriko replied, waving her hand through the air.
"Are you sure?"
"Unlike the kid, I can take care of any crazy person that tries to invade my home," Yuriko explained. Ren shrugged.
"Suit yourself." He waited for Last Order to gather her blanket and exit the apartment. He followed. Yuriko turned and lied back down onto the couch.
Ao Amai sat, his hands covering his face. He had lost her. Now, Last Order was somewhere wandering around in the city. Who knows who could find her? And if they find her, then they'll probably find the virus. And if they find the virus, they'll probably trace it back to him.
"Goddammit!" he burst out, slamming his fists on the table.
"Easy, Dr. Amai. The last thing we'd want is to do something rash," a deep voice spoke to him from the shadows. Amai turned to the voice. A tall, middle-aged, bald man with a tightly cropped beard exited the shadows. He wore a fully buttoned lab coat and a light blue button-up shirt underneath it and a pair of jeans. He had a pair of oval glasses settled on his face.
"D-dr. Trauge? What are you still doing in Japan?" Amai stuttered. Trauge smiled.
"Unexpected business brought me back. And as a matter of fact, that business is what brought me here as well," Trauge explained, bowing before walking over and pulling up a chair.
"Last Order," Amai filled in as he did so.
"Indirectly, yes. Tell me, Dr. Amai, do you remember your work on Project: Divinity?" Trauge asked. Amai looked shocked.
"Er... well, yes. Rather vividly..." Amai answered. Trauge smirked
"Still having those nightmares then?" he mocked. Amai shot him a dirty look.
"My subject was incredibly unstable. He was nothing short of a sociopath!" Amai shouted defensively. Trauge laughed.
"Suzaku could've eaten your subject for breakfast. Believe me, if anything should give you nightmares, it would be that," Trauge ridiculed. Amai gritted his teeth.
"That?" Amai asked.
"Suzaku. It. I've molded the thing since I was first assigned to develop it's abilities. It's results were... excellent."
"You say that almost as if you're proud..." he noted. Trauge raised an eyebrow, leaning back in his chair.
"I am proud of it. It's become one of the most dangerous weapons this world has ever seen. Were it not for Accelerator and Dark Matter, I'd say Suzaku was the perfect subject for the Level 6 Shift," Trauge justified.
"Is that why you're here now?" he asked. Trauge shook his head.
"I've heard of this virus you uploaded into Last Order's head. It will make the Sisters become hostile to all around them. I would like to assist."
"What? Why?"
"Well, it seems that a few members of Project: Divinity kept in touch over the years - and they want to take down Aleister Crowley. Using these Sisters to weaken Academy City's defenses before launching their endgame would greatly increase their chances of success," Trauge strategized. Amai looked worried,
"How many members?"
"Four or five, but they have a following. They call themselves CLASS."
"And... they want to help find Last Order?" Amai tried to confirm. Trauge nodded.
"Or kill anyone who wants to interfere. Either or," Trauge added casually. Amai smiled.
"Get in touch with them. There is a lady I need them to find..."
Ren woke up and momentarily wondered why he was sleeping on the couch. He then remembered why when he saw Minikoto standing next to him. She gave a cutesy smile when she saw him open his eyes.
"Breakfast? Misaka Misaka inquired, leaving the obvious portion the sentence go unsaid."
Ren groaned something incomprehensible.
"Is that a yes? Misaka Misaka continued, pushing for the obnoxious intruder who is no longer intruding to make her breakfast."
Ren gave an exasperated sigh.
"Wait here, I can try to throw something together," he grumbled, getting off the couch and walking into the kitchen.
"Or maybe we can go to a restaurant? Misaka Misaka suggested, holding back her distain for the obnoxious host's cooking."
"My cooking's not that bad..."
"You just threw stuff in the microwave and called it food! You can't even make grilled cheese! Misaka Misaka pointed out."
He looked around the cupboards before coming upon some Pocky, He tossed it to her.
"There, snack on that," Ren offered. Minikoto looked at the package suspiciously before opening it and trying one. Her face lit up.
"Ooh, sweet! Misaka Misaka exclaimed, showing her approval."
She started to eat the Pocky quickly. That won't last her long. I better get some real food ready quick or- his thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door. He walked over and opened it a crack. Once he saw it was Yuriko, he opened it fully.
"Well, if you're here to sleep, you're out of luck. Sleeping's not really a thing we normal people do in the morning. If you're here for breakfast, on the other hand... yeah you're still out of luck, I can't cook," Ren greeted. Yuriko stared at him.
"I just came by because I felt guilty dumping the brat on you. I'll take care of her now," Yuriko admitted.
"Oh. Uh... thanks. I was just about to make breakfast," he explained. The box of Pocky hit the back of Ren's head.
"Oops... sorry. Misaka Misaka apologized insincerely."
Ren sighed.
"I mean, we were just about to go out to eat. Care to join us?" he offered. Yuriko sighed.
"Why here? This is mostly freeze-dried crap. What kind of childhood do you want this girl to have?" Ren asked, following the two in.
"The quickest one ever. We're dropping her off at a child error facility as soon as this meal is over," Accelerator replied, sitting at the table Last Order had ran to.
"You're lucky I know a good one. Otherwise, I'd call you the worst parent ever," Ren replied, sitting next to Accelerator.
"Why would I want to be the mother?" Accelerator rebelled. Ren looked at him in surprise and looked at Last Order and then back to him.
"Misaka Misaka knows Accelerator's real name. It was the first thing I learned about her, Misaka Misaka explained, quickly explaining to the boy why Accelerator had used that particular pronoun."
"You are really wordy, you know that?" Ren asked.
"But I have a bigger concern, Misaka Misaka continued, ignoring the boy's insulting question. If you are my mother, would that make Ren my father?"
Ren shook his head, saying, "No, I'm just the crazy uncle that gives you Pocky when you're good."
"Ooh, I like the crazy uncle! Misaka Misaka shouts with joy."
Frances sat down next to her.
"Believe me, I know everything there is to know about crazy uncles," he said, picking up a menu and reading it.
"Wait, aren't you Hideaki's friend?" Ren asked, getting a ball of air ready under the table.
"What gives you that impression?" Frances inquired, flipping the page.
"I met you before."
"No, no. What gives you the idea that I'm his friend?" Frances revised.
"Well, you were hanging out with him."
"I was making fun of him."
"So what? Accelerator makes fun of me all the time," Ren pointed out.
"And note how we're not friends," Accelerator sighed, leaning back in his chair.
"What? What about that thing in the hospital about me being the only one that can call you your real name?" Ren asked. Frances raised his eyebrow.
"Is it Frank? My money's on Frank," he predicted.
"Close. It's actually Bob," Accelerator replied. Frances frowned.
"You're just messing with me. I'm not sure I like that," Frances decided. His phone started ringing. He opened it and put it on speaker phone after seeing who it was.
"Yo, what's up, Boss?" Frances greeted.
"This isn't Suzaku. I want to know if you're done yet," a voice on the phone said. Frances' eyes widened and he quickly started looking around the phone for the speaker phone button.
"Uh... look, Hideaki, I can't really talk right now..." Frances stammered, searching for the button still.
"That's not Hideaki's voice. Who is that?" Ren asked, leaning forward.
"Oh my god, the buttons broken! Uhh... look, Yumiko, I'm kind of in a middle of a thing..."
"What? I am not Yumiko! I'm not even a woman! I am Dr. A-" the voice on the phone cried indignantly.
"No! Yes, Dr. Anno. I know you are a doctor," Frances interrupted.
"Who is that? I could've sworn I've heard the voice before..." Accelerator wondered, also leaning forward.
"I'm not just some doctor-"
"Look, Dr. Amai, you don't want to give out your real na-" Frances stopped for a moment. He put the phone against his forehead.
"God. Fucking. Dammit!" Frances swore.
"Just grab the girl and get out of their!" Amai shouted from the phone.
"Wait, wha-" Ren started. By then, Frances had turned, placed a hand on Last Order, and disappeared, taking Last Order with him.
"Goddammit, Ren..." Accelerator groaned.
"What? I didn't know he could teleport!" Ren yelled defensively.
"You did research on all the most dangerous people in Academy City, but you didn't know he could teleport?"
"I was paid to investigate potential threats, not allies!"
"Yeah, some crazy uncle you turned out to be."
"Said the mother who did nothing to stop it."
"Father!"
"Oh great. Can I talk to Yuriko now? She's much less of a dick."
"I am Yuriko, you ass!"
The two stopped and realized the entire restaurant was staring at them.
"Great, you drew a crowd," Accelerator sighed, standing up and heading for the door. Ren stopped and turned to the people staring at him.
"Espers of Our Lives will return after these messages," he narrated, leaving the restaurant. Accelerator was glaring at him as he exited the building.
"Last Order's been kidnapped and you're making jokes?" he questioned angrily.
"Well, considering you said you heard the voice on the phone before and Frances dropped a name, what was it... Amai? Well, I assumed you knew where to start looking," Ren deduced.
"Good job there, McGruff, now if only you could be less of an asshole when you did that..." Accelerator commented.
"Right, and if you could focus less on being clever and more on being a hero, that'd be great, too," Ren replied. Accelerator hmphed.
"Ao Amai was a doctor that worked on the Level 6 Shift, the project that made me kill 10000 Misaka Sisters. Last I heard he was stuck at some laboratory with Dr. Yoshikawa, cleaning up that whole mess after I quit," Accelerator explained.
"So our best bet is to go there?" Ren checked. Accelerator nodded.
"Can you fly?" Accelerator asked. Ren floated into the air.
"Where's the lab?" Ren asked. Accelerator pointed in one direction.
"The first tall building that way," he informed. Ren took off, flying incredibly fast in the direction he pointed. Ren flew as fast as he could, looking for the tall building, assuming Accelerator was right... behind him... Ren's air reading said Accelerator was now walking in the other direction. He flew back.
"Yuri-... Accelerator, what the hell?" he shouted, landing behind him.
"Huh. That didn't take you as long as I thought it would," he replied.
"What if I didn't figure it out by the time you actually got to where Amai was?"
"You'd have to be incredibly stupid - I walked slowly."
"Do we really have time for screwing with each other?"
"They won't kill Last Order. Not yet."
"How the hell do you know that?"
"What would stop Frances from just teleporting in and shooting her? They need her for something. For what, I have no idea. I hope to find out when we talk to Dr. Yoshikawa."
"How about filling me in on that earlier?"
"You didn't need to know, you'd have figured it out when we got to Dr. Yoshikawa."
"Okay, what the hell is up with you today?" Ren asked. Accelerator glared at him for a moment.
"We're here," he said, nodding to the building in front of him. The building was of average height, and was undecorated.
"Huh. Doesn't look very special..." Ren observed.
"What did you expect, a giant neon sign pointing here saying 'This is where we're creating God'?" Accelerator mocked.
"Well, when you say it like that, I sound like a moron," Ren replied.
"You are a moron, now go get her," Accelerator ordered. Ren rolled his eyes. He walked forward and opened the door, walking into the dark hallways. He read the air. He saw two people farther in the building, in a larger room, probably a lab. The rest of the building was empty. He approached the room. As he approached, he began to hear their voices.
"Listen, don't start trouble. I might have to kill you if you do. Quite frankly, I think it'd be a waste, I mean you're pretty freakin' cute, but I have my orders. I won't kill you if I don't have to, hell, even Amai doesn't want that, but I will if you try that kinda crap again, you hear?" Hideaki's voice leaked from the room.
Ren positioned himself perfectly on the other side of the door. He angled himself so that the door would fly straight at him when he entered. Ren prepared condensed air into his hand. He launched it, breaking the door off it's hinges, sending it flying at him. The door suddenly blew apart in an explosion. Hideaki lowered his outstretched hand.
"Saw you on the cams coming in. Back off, Nakajima, I won't hurt the pretty lady. All I need to do is keep her from interfering for the next-" He checked his watch. "-13 hours-" Hideaki was interrupted by Ren punching him in the face, sending him to the wall behind him.
"Thanks for the info. I'll be freeing Dr. Yoshikawa now," Ren said. Hideaki laughed and stepped forward.
"Always cheating, aren't you? Luckily for me I've always been able to take a hit. Now let's do this salsa dance the right way, shall we?" Hideaki grinned, charging a Hadron Cannon in his other hand.
He shot forward, shooting the cannon. Ren jumped, blowing the wind behind him and flipping over the blast. As he descended, he threw a kick at Hideaki's head. Hideaki moved his head back, making the foot miss. Ren extended his hands, shooting air out to turn himself back to facing Hideaki. Ren moved forward and threw a punch, Hideaki side-stepped and threw a punch into Ren's gut. Ren stepped back and regained his composure, splaying his hands in front of him, sending Hideaki sailing back into the wall. Hideaki stretched his hand out. Ren twisted his body so the blast flew over his shoulder. Ren gliding backwards and threw an air slice at Hideaki, who countered with a Hadron Cannon, dispersing the air slice.
Hideaki ran through the smoke, throwing another Hadron Cannon at Ren as he approached. It hit Ren's air pressure shield, exploding into fire. Ren stepped back, waving away the flames in a panic. As he did, he saw Hideaki firing another Hadron Cannon. Ren bent his back, barely ducking beneath the blast as it scorched his upper back. He dropped, blending into a roll, moving underneath Hideaki's next Hadron Cannon. Hideaki backed up, preparing two Hadron Cannons at once. Once Ren rolled to his feet, Hideaki fired. Suddenly, the beams reversed, flying back at Hideaki. Each one flew past his head, exploding the wall behind him and sending him forward. Ren moved in, throwing a punch directly into Hideaki's jaw, flipping him backwards. He lost consciousness before he hit the ground.
Ren clutched his chest. He was breathing heavily.
"Seriously? Hideaki gave you trouble?" Accelerator criticized, stepping further into the room.
"Well, not Hideaki. But somebody did. I'll... be okay in a sec... just go and talk to... the doctor," he said in between breaths. Accelerator approached Dr. Yoshikawa.
"Thanks for the save," Yoshikawa greeted.
"You can repay me with information. What can you tell me about Last Order? Why would Ao Amai want her?" Accelerator asked. Yoshikawa's face stayed neutral.
"I figured you'd be wrapped up in all this. Last Order wasn't just a Misaka Sister that was released from her incubation pod early. She was planned to be an Administrator to the entire Misaka Network. As such, she is connected to all Misaka Sisters. Amai is going to upload a virus into her, infecting all 10000 remaining Sisters with a deadly computer virus that will turn them hostile. The resulting destruction would be massive," Yoshikawa explained.
"And why would Ao Amai want that? Why would he turn to CLASS for help?" Ren asked, joining the conversation.
"All responsibility for the failure of the Level 6 Shift was placed on Amai. He probably intends to seek revenge. From what I gathered from our friend over there, CLASS is just essentially a gun for hire in this situation. He mentioned a scientist named Trauge, but I've never heard the name before. Perhaps he's the link between the two," Yoshikawa suggested.
"And where would Amai be now?" Accelerator asked.
"Don't be pushy, that's a lot of information for her to remember in such a short time," Ren interrupted. Accelerator turned to him sharply.
"I'm sorry, I thought we were trying to rescue someone from a group of dangerous psychopaths. The more time she spends with them, the more likely she's going to die!" Accelerator argued.
"Giving her a minute to catch her breath won't change anything," Ren shot back. Accelerator grabbed his collar.
"I happen to think it will," Accelerator growled. Ren look worried. Yoshikawa stepped between the two.
"Stop it! I can answer whatever questions you ask me if it's to save Last Order. Now, leave your personal problems aside, a little girl's life is at stake here," Yoshikawa scolded. Accelerator and Ren looked away for a moment.
"Where is Amai?" Accelerator asked, looking back at Yoshikawa.
"He has a lab, but my guess is that he's deserted it in favor of shelter with CLASS. Do you know of any hideouts they have?" Yoshikawa returned, moving to over to Hideaki with a few zip ties.
"I know of one. A warehouse with a lot of dead bodies inside. I think they deserted that one, too, though," Ren informed. Yoshikawa tied Hideaki's hands and feet together.
"It's better than nothing. Go check it out. Call me afterward. And please, don't try to kill each other," Yoshikawa instructed. Accelerator hmphed and walked out the door.
"What the hell's his problem?" Ren murmured. Yoshikawa shook her head.
"If you really want to know, why don't you just ask him?" she inquired, standing up a fallen chair and sitting in it.
"Because last time I did, he just glared at me and ignored the question," Ren replied. Yoshikawa's eyebrows raised.
"Glared?"
"Yes, glared."
"Didn't shout at you, didn't threaten you, didn't condescendingly mocked you. He glared?"
"Well he did stare at me with disdain, yes."
"Huh. He must like you."
"Well, he did say I was the only one he didn't want to kill," Ren shrugged. Yoshikawa looked at him in surprise.
"...He what?"
"Well, that was before I asked him to not kill anyone at all," Ren recalled
"...And he listened?"
"Yeah."
"...Get him a gift," Yoshikawa advised.
"And you think that'll make him not angry at me?"
"Absolutely."
"What makes you think that?"
"Wow, you're kinda dense, aren't you?" Yoshikawa remarked dryly. Ren furrowed his brow.
"I don't think so," he responded. Yoshikawa sighed.
"Just go already, he's probably half-way to the warehouse by now," Yoshikawa said in defeat. Ren's face brightened.
"Oh yeah, I have that thing I gotta be doing," he said to himself, quickly running toward the door.
"Wait! Take this with you," Yoshikawa urged, handing a small device to him. Ren looked at it, confused.
"It's Last Order's personality data. In case they send someone else to kill me, you'll need a copy of it to point out the virus code," Yoshikawa explained. Ren nodded.
"Thanks! It was nice to meet you!" he shouted as he left. Yoshikawa shook her head and turned toward her slightly broken computer.
"So that's why he was never interested in girls..."
Ren caught up with Accelerator.
"Hey, Yuriko, say I were to get you a gift. What gift would you want?" Ren asked. Accelerator looked at him.
"What the hell kind of question is that?" he asked.
"Well, hypothetically speaking, if I were to get you a gift, would that make you not mad at me?" he continued. Accelerator glared at him.
"Can you at least tell me why you're mad at me?" Ren compromised. Accelerator kept looking ahead.
"No, keep pushing your luck, that's worked so well for you so far..." Accelerator grumbled.
"Well, yeah, we're friends now, right?" Ren tried to clarify. Yuriko suddenly spun towards him.
"You want to know what my problem is? You're my problem!" she shouted angrily.
"I'm your problem? What the hell did I do?" Ren cried.
"You don't give a shit about me! You spent all that time talking about you wanting to know who I was, and it turns out you don't really give a damn, do you? All you care about is making sure Accelerator doesn't kill people! Well, he isn't killing anyone anymore, so why don't you just fuck off like everyone else?" Yuriko ranted. Ren was shocked into silence. He just stood there, staring at Yuriko's angry face. He eventually spoke again.
"That's not true. You know that's not true. Sure, I didn't want Accelerator to kill people, but I didn't want him to kill people because that's also what hid you. Truth be told, I wish you didn't flip back and forth between being Accelerator and Yuriko. I just wish you stayed Yuriko. All of today, I hated hanging out with you because you were hiding behind Accelerator. I'm sorry if I acted hostile, it's just not normal for me to stay friendly to constantly hostile people," Ren answered. Yuriko's face had become one of guilt. She looked slightly down at the ground.
"It wasn't how you acted today that made me angry..." Yuriko revealed. Ren looked confused.
"Then... what made you mad?" Ren asked. Yuriko closed her eyes and sighed.
"We haven't spoken since the hospital. After I told you about me, you ran off with Mikoto and didn't seem to care where I was anymore. At first, I really didn't care. But the more I thought about it... about you, I... became lonely. Its part of the reason I let Last Order stay with me. I... wanted company. And then you just showed up out of nowhere and, at first, I was relieved. I was just happy to see you hadn't abandoned me. And then, as the day went on, you just acted like nothing had happened... I hated that. I hated how you treated me exactly like all your other friends. I thought I was special to you. Why else would you have done so much for me? And then it turned out I was just another friend... I became..."
"Angry?" Ren finished. Yuriko looked at him.
"Sad. I just wanted to hide. I didn't want to have to deal with any of the feelings I had..."
"So you hid behind Accelerator and all that sadness you felt became rage," Ren filled in. Yuriko looked down again.
"I don't like being angry... not at you..." Yuriko confessed. Ren put a hand on her shoulder.
"I don't want you to be angry. I don't think it's like you to be angry. And I definitely don't want you to be sad," Ren comforted. Yuriko looked up at him. He smiled at her reassuringly. She looked to be in awe for a moment. Yuriko suddenly leaned in and tried to kiss him. He was surprised and jumped back.
"Yuriko, I... Mikoto and I are-" Ren stuttered.
"I know. But somehow I thought... if things were just a little different, maybe you wouldn't have pulled away. Maybe if I wasn't a former psychopath... maybe if you weren't such a good person... maybe if we were both just a little more... evil... we could've been together... and that's why I'm glad you pulled away. If you didn't, then I would still be Accelerator, and you wouldn't be Ren," Yuriko explained. Ren didn't speak for a time. It was difficult for Yuriko to judge what he was thinking.
"I'm sorry," he eventually said. Yuriko shook her head.
"Don't be. Save the sympathy for when we save Last Order," Yuriko replied.
"Minikoto," Ren corrected.
"That name's never going to stick."
"Not with that attitude it ain't."
Yuriko rolled her eyes.
"She's going to kill you."
"She's like what, 12?"
"I was talking about the real Mikoto."
"...oh. Why?" Ren asked. Yuriko looked at him in confusion.
"Because... Minikoto is her little sister."
"Ha! It is catching on!"
"Let's just go save the goddamn kid."
Trauge walked into the room Amai sat in. In front of Amai, on an operating table, was Last Order. A computer was connected to her by electrodes.
"The virus will activate in a few minutes. Is our escape route ready?" Amai asked, watching the monitor.
"Yes. Frances will be by to collect you after he is finished preparing for Endgame with Suzaku. However, if you meant a different kind of escape..." Trauge's voice trailed off. He put a gun on the table in front of Amai. Amai was stunned.
"To this point, Amai, you have been extremely useful. However, if we are to continue to work together, you may be put in situations most think... inhumane. I offer you this one chance to escape before coming with me. Should you choose the bullet, your life will end painlessly. Should you choose me... your life will continue through the fires of hell. But, you shall eventually ascend to the heavens," Trauge explained. Amai's face dropped. He was clearly horrified. He stood up.
"I-I think I might just leave-"
Trauge shot forward and grabbed the back of his head, slamming it down onto the table. His other hand reached out and grabbed the gun. He jammed the barrel up against Amai's head.
"There is no grey area in this situation, Amai. If you live, you will follow my instruction, no matter how cruel. I doubt I need to explain what will happen should you choose otherwise," Trauge threatened. Amai felt blood and sweat trickle from his forehead onto the metal table. He sputtered out a jumbled mess of mismatched words and crying. Trauge smiled.
"Excellent." He pulled the trigger, making a clicking noise. Amai screamed. Trauge let go of his head. Amai fell to the floor, scrambling away from Trauge.
"The gun was never loaded?" Amai blubbered. Trauge laughed as he approached.
"Did you truly think I would let you take your own life? No, there is no such easy path with me. I simply wanted to know if you valued your own life over my wants. And now that I know you do, I know you will be obedient, won't you?" Trauge explained, towering over Amai. Amai nodded quickly. Trauge smiled.
"Good. Now sit back down over there and make sure this girl doesn't die until the virus spreads," Trauge ordered, walking out. Amai felt his knees weaken as he tried to stand. With difficulty, he walked over to the chair and collapsed into it. He put his head into his hands and began to cry.
A few minutes later, Ren blew the doors open, manipulating the doors to fly away from Last Order. Amai stood up, loaded gun in hand, which he aimed at Ren. Ren shot a blast of air at him, blowing the gun from his grip. Ren glided forward, grabbing Amai and throwing him away from Last Order. Amai hit the wall and fell to the floor with a resounding thud. Yuriko walked in.
"Wow, you actually managed to take down Amai. I was a little worried after what happened with Hideaki," Yuriko mocked. Ren turned to her.
"I didn't see you doing anything to help," Ren shot back.
"That's because you ran in here shouting, 'Don't worry, I've got this one covered, Yuriko!'" Yuriko imitated. Ren stood there for a second.
"Oh yeah. Myeah, myeah, that's about right," Ren nodded. He turned to Last Order.
"So we just take her back to Yoshikawa and she'll fix her up?" Ren questioned. Yuriko nodded.
"...and that's before or after the virus uploads? Because it says it's uploading," Ren informed. Yuriko walked over quickly and looked at the computer. On it, several red messages were popping up all over the computer screen.
"Misaka Misaka Misaka Misaka..." suddenly, Last Order started repeating the word over and over again.
"Is...that supposed to happen?" Ren tried to confirm.
"If she's dying, it is. Otherwise, why on Earth would it happen?" Yuriko replied, quickly pulling out her phone and dialing Yoshikawa's number.
"Yoshikawa, the virus has started early," Yuriko reported. She listened to Yoshikawa's response.
"Uh, Yuriko... it's getting faster..." Ren relayed, still looking at the computer screen. Yuriko grimaced.
"Yoshikawa says she's on her way. If worst comes to worst, we'll have to kill her," Yuriko explained, hanging up the phone. Ren spun around.
"What? That's ridiculous!" Ren shouted. Yuriko hmphed.
"Of course it is. That's why I'm going to erase the virus before we're forced to do that," Yuriko decided, moving over to Last Order.
"What? How?"
"I can control the vectors of her bioelectricity, manually deleting the virus by finding it via brain signals," Yuriko replied, taking Last Order's personality data from Ren and plugging it in to the display. Code started to roll down the screen at an incredibly fast pace.
"Wait, with the amount of signals bouncing around in her brain right now... can you even manipulate that many vectors at once?" Ren inquired.
"Got it," she suddenly said, snapping the device in half, "We don't want anyone to recreate the virus, now do we?"
"Did you just... memorize the code?" Ren asked. She placed her hands on Last Order's head. She closed her eyes and focused on deleting the virus code. The red messages started to disappear from the screen, but more were still appearing.
"It's working!" Ren cheered.
"Concentrating."
"Right, shutting up now."
Ren heard a metallic click. He turned and saw Amai. His hand was shaking as he pointed it at Yuriko. With the amount of concentration focused on Last Order right now, I doubt she has any spare calculating ability for redirection! Ren realized. He shot a blast of air at Amai, knocking his hand to the left just as he pulled the trigger. The gun flashed as the bullet shot out, missing Yuriko's head by a centimeter. Ren jumped forward, grabbing the gun from Amai's hand, throwing an air pressure-enhanced punch into Amai's gut. He grunted and fell to his knees, clutching his stomach.
"Takes a special kind of asshole to attack a pretty lady while her back is turned," Ren said scornfully, turning the safety on the pistol on and putting it in his back pocket. Amai coughed out an incomprehensible answer.
"Sorry, didn't catch that," Ren mocked, leaning in, cupping his hand around one ear. Amai looked up at him with a wicked smile.
"Trauge is much more of a gentleman," he sneered.
Ren heard a gunshot behind him. Ren spun around to see a bald, bearded man unloading a bullet into Yuriko's head from across the table. Ren couldn't breathe for a moment. The bald man looked at him.
"It's been a while, Renji. Or is it Ren, now?" he greeted cheerfully. Ren screamed and sliced air at him. He ducked beneath the table momentarily, letting the air pass over him. He rose again, firing a bullet into Ren's leg. Ren shouted in pain as he collapsed to the floor.
"I know you don't remember me, but rest assured, I remember you. Hinata's boy, if I'm not mistaken," Trauge continued, walking around the table toward Ren. As soon as he got close, Ren pulled the gun from his back pocket and pointed it at Trauge, frantically pulling at the trigger. Trauge took the gun from him.
"Next time you intend to kill someone, make sure you take the safety off," Trauge lectured. Ren splayed his hand at Trauge, but Trauge moved his foot, pinning it to the ground before he could launch any air. Trauge twisted his foot, breaking Ren's wrist. Ren cried out in pain. His breathing became labored. Goddamn heart...
"I know you hurt now, but think of all the business you're giving Heaven Canceller with all these visits to the hospital," Trauge reassured. Ren gave him a hateful look.
"Ah, there's the Ren I remember. I have big plans for you, Ren, just you wait. Until then," Trauge smiled. He turned and headed for the door.
"I...will kill you... someday..." Ren breathed. Trauge stopped in his tracks and turned to Ren.
"Sounds wonderful. I can barely wait," he accepted. He turned back to the door.
"Amai, we're leaving," Trauge announced, exiting. Amai stumbled after him quickly. Ren struggled to crawl after them. The door slammed shut. He growled in frustration. He turned. Yuriko's phone. It must still be there.
Painstakingly, he inched his way closer and closer to her. As he approached, he saw Yuriko lying there. Getting closer, he saw the bullet wound in her forehead. She must have been facing Trauge when he shot her. Ren looked down. He was stunned for a moment. Her face was calm. Her eyes were closed as if she decided to lay down and take a nap right in the middle of the floor. For some reason, he felt his heart move back to it's usual rhythmic beat. He seemed to forget about where he was and what he was doing.
Ren layed down next to her and stared at the ceiling.
"I don't know if you can actually hear me... I really am sorry. I know that you don't think I should be sorry, and that's because if... I let you kiss me, then I wouldn't be Ren. The thing is... I wish I didn't pull away. Does that make me not Ren? Or... does that just make Ren a bad person?" Ren spoke, the deafening silence enveloping the room making his voice sound a thousand times louder. He sighed, closing his eyes.
"Now... she really is going to kill you..." Yuriko murmured, barely conscious.
He heard the door open. He opened his eyes and looked over as Yoshikawa entered with a team of paramedics.
I'm making new friends all the time...
Ren entered the hospital room. On the bed was an unconscious Yuriko, presently connected to several electrodes, heart monitors, and IVs. His heart dropped. It was... sad to see her like this. No. No. No thoughts like that. Give her the gift and leave, Ren ordered himself. He walked over and pulled the hairclip out of his pocket. It had a red flower on it. He thought it contrasted nicely with her pure white hair.
"Sorry, I really couldn't think of anything else to get you," Ren apologized. There was no response.
"You're… you're actually unconscious this time, you're not faking?" Ren asked. Still no answer. Ren sighed.
"Pretty rude what you did back there… catching a guy unawares like that…" Ren continued, rubbing the back of his head. He looked around the room.
"I'm guessing you don't get many visitors-" Ren began. His eyes widened.
"And I don't mean you don't have any friends, just that they're not very good- I mean, no, I'm sure you have great friends, they're probably just really busy and stuff and I'm gonna stop talking…" Ren covered his eyes. Jesus Christ, Ren, you're getting flustered talking to an unconscious girl, Ren thought bitterly. He took a deep breath and stepped closer to the bed.
"In case you're just really good at acting and you really aren't unconscious right now, I wanted you to know…" Ren's voice trailed off. He tried speaking again and failed. He put the hair clip on the table next to the hospital bed and left.
Ren was sitting on a bench in the hallway, his head in his hands. I am so screwed, he thought.
"Hey, are you doing okay?" Mikoto asked, sitting down next to him. He looked up and smiled.
"Well, I'm certainly doing better now that you're here," he greeted. Mikoto smiled back. She looked down and saw his wrist.
"Ren, what happened?" she asked, visibly worried.
"CLASS. We don't need to worry about that just yet. I wanted to talk to you about something," Ren answered, using his good hand to hold on to hers.
"What is it?"
"Mikoto… if I wasn't as… good as I am… not evil, just not as good… would you still like me?" Ren asked. Mikoto's look became very confused.
"Ren, what are you talking about?"
"If I wasn't as… pure, I guess?" Ren updated. Mikoto smirked.
"Yes, because you're so pure regularly," she teased.
"I'm serious Mikoto. If I was… I was just like I am normally, but I… I dunno, I had a lapse in judgement, and for a second I wasn't the Ren you're used to me being. Would you still accept me?" Ren questioned. Mikoto's head moved back and had a mixture of worried and confused on her face.
"Is this about those three people Suzaku killed?" Mikoto tried to clarify. Ren shook his head.
"It's… kinda like that, but if the offense was something a bit more personal. With the family, it was very depersonalized for you because you didn't know them. But if I did something bad, not kill, of course, but if I did something bad to… or with… someone you know-" Ren continued, trying to rush out his words as quickly as he could. Mikoto interrupted him by kissing him.
"Then don't do it again. Remember Ren, I brought about the deaths of 10000 living beings. I feel terribly sorry for it, but I know that because of what I did, 10000 other living beings would've never existed. There is absolutely nothing that you would do willingly that will ever make me feel worse about you. Understand?" Mikoto smiled. Ren arched an eyebrow.
"Something tells me I'm not as good of a person as you think I am," Ren replied. Mikoto rolled her eyes.
"Just take the god damn compliment," Mikoto criticized.
"Don't swear in public, there are children around!" Ren scolded.
"Where?"
"Here, Misaka Misaka introduced herself, having snuck up on the couple when they were having a romantic moment."
Mikoto screamed and jumped off the bench.
"Mikoto, meet Minikoto," Ren introduced, placing a hand on Last Order's head.
"Last Order."
"Sure you are."
"W-w-why is there a tiny me?" Mikoto squeaked out, pointing at Last Order.
"Misaka Misaka, also known as Last Order, is Misaka Sister 20001, who was made to be the administrator for the Misaka Network, Misaka Misaka explained, hoping to calm big sister."
"But… why?" Mikoto asked again.
"She was released from incubation early. What are you doing here, Minikoto?" Ren asked, deciding to ignore the long explanation.
"Misaka Misaka would prefer you refer to her as either Misaka Misaka or Last Order, Misaka Misaka answered, ignoring Uncle Pocky's question purposefully."
"Uncle Pocky? Is that what you call me now? Which reminds me…" Ren trailed off, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small package of Pocky. He tossed it to Last Order.
"Nevermind! Uncle Pocky may call Misaka Misaka whatever! Misaka Misaka shouted with joy, accepting the obvious bribe."
"Wow, you guys can be really loud. I heard you guys from down the hall-" Touma began before seeing Last Order.
"Oh my god when did you two have a kid?" Touma shouted, stepping back.
"What? No! You can't be that stupid!" Ren exclaimed.
"She's a clone!" Mikoto cried indignantly.
"But why is she tiny?" Touma questioned.
"Mifaka Mifaka wuf reweafed fwom incubafion earwy, Mifaka Mifaka expained wif a mouffuw of Focky."
"…what?" Touma asked, perplexed.
"She likes Pocky," Ren added in. Touma looked up at him.
"So what you're saying is that she was a Misaka Clone who was released from incubation early, so she just looks like a younger Misaka?" Touma clarified.
"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Ren answered.
"Shut up, Stiyl. I mean, Ren," Touma replied. Ren squinted his eyes at him.
"That was intentional," Ren stated.
"And you call me Captain Obvious…" Touma scoffed.
"I will punch you."
"I thought you didn't solve problems that way."
"Are you still sore over that? The guy's still alive, the only difference is that you didn't save him."
"Ren, just tell me why you called me here. And why did I have to leave Index? She bit me harder than usual for that," Touma complained, rubbing his wrist.
"Boo hoo. Listen, the thing is, while I was hanging around waiting for Minikoto to show up, I used my air reading. I noticed a large group of people gathering around the outside of the building here. When I looked out one of the windows, I recognized one as Suzaku. He's here, with the rest of CLASS," Ren explained. Touma gave him a funny look.
"And you decided to call us to pull us into the middle of this battle, too?" Touma asked. Ren smirked.
"I'm not that big of an asshole. You're the only one I wasn't certain if you'd be willing to fight with me for this. Mikoto already knows what we're going in to, and so does Minikoto. She's promised to ask the Sisters if they can help. But I knew that unless we were going to have an ungodly amount of casualties, we'd need you. Are you going to help?" Ren strategized. Touma sighed and smiled.
"What kind of question is that? Of course I will. That hero complex of mine wouldn't let me stay out of it," Touma replied, crossing arms with him.
"I figured, but I'm glad I didn't have to blackmail you or nothing," Ren smiled back. He added in that he wouldn't have done it anyway when he got a disappointed look from Mikoto.
"So then, what's our plan of attack, master strategist?" Touma asked. Ren cracked his knuckles and neck.
"I'm glad you asked…" Ren started. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out blueprints. He layed them out on the ground.
"What the hell? Where did you get these?" Mikoto asked.
"I made them. Anyway, these are the floor plans of the hospital and the surrounding area. There forces are shaped like a triangle, with one leader of CLASS at each point. Suzaku is to the North, Hideaki is to the Southeast, Frances is to the Southwest. Our best bet is to break through the South, inbetween Hideaki and Frances. Hideaki will be the weakest link, but it'd be best if we could avoid him altogether. We need to get away from the hospital, and from any largely populated areas," Ren began his plan.
"The Strange isn't completely empty, but it's mostly empty," Mikoto suggested.
"It'll do. Now, considering the sheer amount of people that are in CLASS, Anti-Skill won't be able to just ignore a large gathering of espers like this, especially if they started a fight. If we can isolate Suzaku from the rest of CLASS and surround him with both all 10000 Misaka Sisters and Anti-Skill forces, he'll be screwed six ways from Sunday. He may be a powerhouse, but he knows when it's time to cut losses. Once he's isolated, we'll need to incapacitate him," Ren continued, looking to Touma
"And that's where I come in," Touma filled in. Ren nodded.
"If anyone can take down psychotic Level 5s, I'm sure it's you. Once CLASS is without a leader, they'll fall apart," Ren concluded. Last Order raised her hand.
"Yes, Minikoto?"
"Misaka Misaka is concerned about the scary bald guy from earlier. Will he be there? Misaka Misaka asks, uncomfortably shifting her weight."
"If he's there, I'll make sure to take care of him. He's not an esper, so he won't be much trouble, but he could potentially be seen as a second leader. On the off-chance he's not, we'll need to inform Anti-Skill of his existence, so they can get the information of his whereabouts from Frances and Hideaki, and possibly Suzaku, if all goes according to plan," Ren answered. Last Order still looked worried. He put a hand on her head.
"He's not going to touch you. I won't let him," Ren reassured. Ren stood up.
"This is it. From this point on, there is no going back. We deal with CLASS today, or not at all. Suzaku thinks we're trapped. He's wrong. We have the advantage here, not because we have superior positioning, or necessarily more powerful abilities at our disposal. But because we have-"
"Friendship?" Touma finished, downtrodden.
"Don't be gay, Touma. We have a closer group. We're smaller, and are more familiar with each other. We can respond to another's input more easily, and we're more maneuverable. We've gone through a lot together. We can predict the other's movements in battle, and we can trust each other to pull through when we tell each other to complete an objective," Ren explained. Touma raised an eyebrow.
"So… friendship?"
"Yes… friendship," Ren accepted reluctantly. Everyone groaned.
"Do you try to be corny?" Touma inquired.
"To be fair, it almost didn't sound corny until he admitted it was friendship," Mikoto defended.
"Misaka Misaka is confused. What does corn have to do with anything? Misaka Misaka asked, genuinely confused."
"A lot in my life, kid. I'd get used to it if I were you," Ren sighed. He looked around.
"Can we at least do the hands in thing?" Ren requested. Mikoto and Touma walked away. Last Order put her hand in enthusiastically. Ren teared up a little bit.
"Well, at least someone cares," he comforted himself, putting his hand in.
"On three, we shout-"
"Pocky! Misaka Misaka shouted loudly."
"…sure, kid," Ren finished. After they cheered loudly, they met up with Mikoto and Touma at the South exit.
