Author's Notes: Been busy quite a bit. Industrial training and Starcraft 2 tournaments coming along. I'm still on track though. Just uploads will be a bit slower. Hopefully I can still meet your expectations. Thanks for reading and reviewing.
Chapter 10: The Demon's Price
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Human morality is a very big soup with every flavour in it
You have pure good and pure evil
You have countless mixes in between
You have devotion to faith and devotion to oneself
Just how far are we willing to go when it comes to getting what we desire?
We'll only know when the time comes.
Speech by Dr. Shuji Hisoka at the Convention of Human Morals
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Kuroko woke up from her ill rested sleep. It was morning but she felt her exhaustion hadn't winked out at all. Across her bed was Onee Sama, still asleep. The nights of work are taking a toll on her. Her eyes felt as though they were heavy weights. Still, she cannot rest easy until this case is over. She put a hand on her forehead. It's hot. She believed she contracted a fever. Nevertheless, she has to work. She started to get up when someone stopped her. "Onee Sama."
Misaka was already awake. She gently pushed Kuroko back down. "You'd been having a fever since last night." Did she? She didn't remember a thing. "Get some rest, you've overworked yourself."
Kuroko sighed. She can't argue with her Onee Sama. It looks like she'll take a day off. "Okay Onee Sama."
"Good, I'll call in that you're sick." She turned to the bathroom to get prepared for school. Kuroko stopped her by calling her name. "What is it?"
"Come closer…" Misaka leaned closer. She can't have become that weak has she? "Closer." She leaned in close enough to hear the slightest of whispers. Kuroko smooched her lips for a kiss with her Onee Sama. "How about a get well kiss?" Misaka answered by pulling the blanket completely over Kuroko.
"You still haven't lost it…" She turned again for the bathroom. "No sneaking out of here to work, got it?"
Kuroko answer was a muffled submission "Hai."
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"Hi!" Saten said cheerfully as she entered the usual office.
Konori greeted her entrance before adding. "I'm afraid Uiharu has gotten sick as well."
Saten nodded disappointingly "Yea, she won't be coming to school today." She was here on an errand. She produced several stacks of paper from her bag. "Uiharu asked me to bring these reports here." Konori accepted them with thanks.
Misaka entered, greeting them as she entered. They returned the courtesy as the electric master asked "Does Anti-Skill have anything from those living soldiers?" The night before was a mess. Her dorm was attacked by a random bunch of soldiers from who knows where. Most of them escaped, the remaining four either dead or taken captive. Nevertheless, the school must move on.
Konori picked up the phone. "I'll call to check on it."
Saten said, clearly noting Kuroko's lack of appearance. "She's sick as well, isn't she?"
Misaka nodded in acknowledgment. "Those two really overworked themselves." At least Konori has the sensibility to remain conscious of her health. Her two juniors clearly didn't catch that.
Saten chuckled. "They're a dedicated bunch. Always Judgment this, Judgment that."
Konori put down the phone, her face turned serious. "I have bad news." That doesn't sound good. "It turned out that Anti-Skill never collected any live prisoners." Silence had befallen upon them until Misaka broke its code.
"That's impossible! There are sure to be two of them alive!" Yori had made sure of it, removing the poison capsules. How can such a simple thing be screwed up?
Saten noticed something as well. "On the other hand, where's Yori?" No one had the answer for that either. Now what are they going to do?
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Yori opened the door to a small room. He carried a blue toolbox in his other hand. He entered the dark room and closed the door. Darkness is king in this room. Lights then flashed to life from an old hanging light bulb, killing almost all of it except the remnants of shadows. His captive is here, all bound up to a small old stool.
The attackers of Tokiwadai dorm are in his control. The other one is somewhere else, hidden in this big city. Yori had taken careful precautions for he didn't want them to be taken away in one swoop if found. Yori put the toolbox down and checked the nylon wrong he tied his victim with. They were still strong and tight. Good. His prey had his head covered with a black hood. He pulled it free, revealing the face of his captive. It was Caucasian, rough, seasoned with age and had brown hair as well. Yori said in English, his accent turning a bit to a tinge of American. "I know you have questions. Who am I? What are you doing here instead of an actual police lockup?" He pulled the man's head by the hair to look at him. "I don't, give a damn about them." He let his grip free, his captive defiantly silent.
Yori gave the devil's smile. "I'll tell you something though." He pulled a free chair from the corner and sat on it. "You messed with my friends and my friend's friends. I don't like that." His eyes turned blood red. "More importantly, you lot are working with someone I'm after." He demanded. "I want to know every bit of this operation of yours."
The soldier stared at him for a fierce moment without answer. Yori said "Spetsnaz? Or are you guys' just plain mercenaries? I know you men speak Russian but I know you understand what I want." He leaned forward, face to face, eye to eye. "Now tell me what I want to know." The man did the unthinkable. He spat at Yori's face. Yori wiped the spit off his cheek with a white cloth. He replied with a simple gesture. He stabbed his wakizashi into the man's shoulder. Muscle was cut, blood oozing out. The man was clearly hurt but remained silent, even through the pain. He smiled "I missed an artery…" He slowly retracted the blade, making it hurt every teeny bit of it. Blood dripped from the wound, drop by drop onto the floor. He wiped the blade clean with the cloth. "You see…there's a doctor in Academy city."
He reached for his tool box. "He's very good at his job. He's so good that he's called Heaven Canceller." Yori withdrew an array of tools, a saw, a taser, a hammer with a packet of nails, a plier, and a bottle of acid, a packet of gunpowder and a matchbox. "I'm sure he can patch up whatever I could inflict on you despite his protests. I will hurt you again and again until you either die or break." He smiled again "I'm not going to let you die though. Not until I have what I want."
His tools are all neatly arranged side by side. "It's not too late to pull back now. All you need to do is answer." He picked up the small and shiny saw. "My advice is you better do it now before you wished you died with your comrades."
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MISAKA 14371 picked the lock of an oak door. She only needed several seconds to work the standard door lock. Electromagnetism under her control can easily undo the lock. Her efforts were successful with a click. She was dressed in pure black, like a burglar. She opened slowly, not to cause any noise. The room is empty, exactly as planned. She entered it, carefully closing the door without a sound. She kept the lights off as a precaution. Her goggles will be sufficient to see.
The room she was in is an office. This office possibly holds answers the MISAKAS are looking for. She entered deeper into the office. She brushed her hands along the edge of the large wooden desk. It felt smooth, highly refined with good craftsmanship.
"There isn't much time." Her peers informed. There was no radio. They are distinct and are one.
She let go her touch to reach for the computer under the desk by the leather chair. She touched the computer, bringing it and the monitor to life. She accessed the data, all the other MISAKAs aware of her progress. She plugged in a flash drive. The data will be saved in there for integrity insurance. A few clicks later, she found what they're looking for. With this data, they can finally remove the threat to Last Order.
She began saving the data when she felt a hand wrap her mouth. She gasped by reflex, being lifted up to standing height as an invisible man said. "What do we have here? A thief." MISAKA 14371 felt the hand around her neck squeezed and she blacked out.
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Stiyl Magnus took a puff of smoke from his cigarettes. His carton is almost empty to his distaste. Two left. The winds blew away the smoke being freed from his lips. In the background, planes could be seen taking off the runway or on their landing approach beyond the fence he rests against. A green sign was behind him. It read Dallas International Airport. He took another puff before saying. "Any troubles getting that in?"
Kaori Kanzaki joined him with her sheathed blade. "They treated this as an antique." She was a bit annoyed to that. Though, she wasn't complaining.
"Good." He wasn't in a mood to care about her opinions. It had been a long flight and it made him a bit cranky. There were no problems getting her weapon in and that was satisfactory. He let the cigarette fall to the road and put it out with his foot. "Let's get to work."
They are here on a mission, the find the Magical Assassins association here in the United States of America. Tsuchimikado had informed them of the assassination attempt on Touma. The Assassin was from here. Normally, Stiyl wouldn't give a damn about the kid but since he's now the caretaker of Index, he has to do this mission. Touma is the one barrier that blocks any danger towards Index from the magical world. Without him, Index will have to return home and then she wouldn't be free. Index would have likened to be a beautiful bird in an unbreakable cage. Who knows what Necessarius could possibly to do Index either. So, here he is, doing the stuff he needs for Index's sake.
The travelling wasn't difficult. The highways gave a smooth journey across the state of Texas. The scenery was nice as they took a bus to their destination. Stiyl hoped the information they acquired is accurate. Then again, it doesn't matter as much. Who wouldn't take up a free travel in another country for work? Still, the work begets doing. From the bus station in the city of Dallas, they took a taxi to their next stop. The taxi took them to the opposite side of the city. There wasn't much of interest here for Stiyl. He had seen cities well enough in England, no different here. The taxi stopped outside a series of warehouses. Stiyl paid the fare and the two searched around for the right building.
They stopped beside one, well maintained with a sign
DALLAS FIREARMS ASSOCIATION
So that's their cover. This group of assassins have a very itchy trigger finger. The warehouse is big, big enough for practical use. He observed the building's front while Kaori went around it. The warehouse doors are closed but they aren't locked. It's a weekday in the afternoon which means they could be here right now. Stiyl pulled the side door open slowly and entered. The warehouse appears to be an indoor firing range with some space to spare. The dozen people grouped together clearly noticed their entry. Some were in the firing lanes, preparing for practice. Others were on chairs having drinks or snacks. They look generally fit and like any other folks of Texas.
One of them, an old one stood up from the chair. He was clearly their leader, added with the cowboy hat. "Who in the world are you two?"
Stiyl said with a smug. "We're from Necessarius." Necessarius needed no further introductions. Their surprised expressions confirmed their recognition. They cannot lie that they don't know Necessarius. Jackpot.
Those in the firing range aimed with their weapons. They know why Necassarius is here. "You guys won't be sorely missed."
Stiyl stifled a laugh. "You won't be either." He threw a stack of cards into the air. Kaori struck them with her scabbard, scattering them far and wide within the warehouse on the floor, walls and ceiling. A blade of fire emerged at from his hand. Kaori unsheathed her long blade. "Let's get started." They leapt their separate ways onto the scaffolding. Stiyl slashed at the invisible but definitely arriving bullets. His hot blade melted them to liquid metal to plop onto the scaffolding whereas for Kaori, the bullets can't even get close to her.
She leapt towards one of the firing booths. Her hands moved deftly as fast as light. Bits of metal dropped to the floor as she slashed a death blow. She proceeded to leap backwards to avoid a burst of invisible air. The metal wall creaked with a big dent. Stiyl landed on the other side of the wall. He leaned to his left to dodge a similar burst. He roared "Is that all you got?" A ring of fire burst from his feet. A dart that was en route was burned to asunder as Stiyl threw his fine sword to the left. It stabbed a man before disappearing to nothing.
"Go all out!" Their leader commanded. They are taking no chances now. The air around them surged with energy of magic. A subordinate casted an anti fire spell, a series of ice spikes bursting from the floor. Another threw burst of lightning from her fingertips at the Amakusa Necessarius.
Kaori set the blade forward, receiving the burst of lightning at its tip. She pulled the blade in a slow arc, lightning arcing around the metal blade. She set her own magic to full power by slashing at the air before her. The concentrated energy shot back to strike the magician. Stiyl concentrated his power to a single focal point and sent his own flames in a collision course. Fire met ice, clashing in a mix of natural energies. Fire overpowered ice before burning the ice mage. "Show yourself by devouring my body and show your might!" His magic began to skyrocket. "Innocentious!" The fire spirit emerged to life. It shrieked its power at its foe.
Kaori took her attack to its next gear. "Nanasen." Her metal wires sliced into flesh before she finished with a trio of flashes. Three bodies dropped dead. Innocentious surged forward, bringing the air to a burning hell. The metal walls began to melt under Innocentious' wrath. These assassins were powerless as they were ruthlessly consumed. He gestured Kaori to the door. Stiyl walked out of the warehouse as Kaori slashed the columns holding the warehouse. Heat and stress will do the rest. Stiyl counted to three as Kaori joined him outside. Exactly on cue, the entire building collapsed into burning rubble.
He popped a cigarette into his mouth. He then said after lighting it. "That was easy."
Kaori stared at their handiwork. "A bit excessive but it's enough to ensure a clean removal." This entire magician group is now extinct. Stiyl nodded, this is what Necessarius was meant to do until a shift in policy before his time. To him, it didn't matter. All that's important is he protect his good friend Index from harm. Kaori sheathed her blade. "I suppose we can return to London now."
Stiyl replied after another puff. "Now they'll know not to mess with those two." He threw the cigarette to the floor and extinguished it. "Now, let's head back before anyone finds us here."
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Touma Kamijou is walking down a street all by himself. He was heading to this place called Mon Delice. It sounded exquisite and expensive to his chagrin. He double checked the GPS on his phone for the directions. That was when his bad luck took over, an empty can neatly rolling to his feetp. He slipped right into a corner. He felt he hit someone before falling hard. He felt weight atop his chest as he groaned his senses. He looked at the dead weight to see brown eyes and hair. "Biri biri?"
Misaka pushed herself away from him. "What's wrong with you, crashing into me?" She stood up with a spark. "Besides, I thought I asked you to stop calling me that." She wasn't happy with that. Touma apologized as he got up. Luck wasn't on his side again or was it ever? She frowned as she asked "What brings you here? This isn't exactly near where you stay, isn't it? It wasn't.
"I'm here to get something for Index." He gave the reason.
Misaka soured. "Oh, you mean her eh?" The nun, she wasn't too fond off. "Since I have some free time, I'll show you. Where are you going to get this something?" Touma mentioned the name of the place. She pointed to her right. "It's very near, this way."
It was just down the block. Touma asked as they entered the store. "Is this bakery really that good?"
Misaka nodded. "It isn't very big but the cakes are very tasty." There wasn't much variety either but the pastries did look really good and tempting. The cakes had several sizes, some made for occasions such as birthdays and…
He looked closer. "Is that what I think it is?" It was a cake with tiny baked couple sitting on a green bench on top of the white icing. It had a tiny tree standing tall behind the bench. They looked…happy.
The cashier smiled as he explained in his uniform. "That's a cake for girlfriends and boyfriends. You two looked like a good pair, would you like one?" He laughed as Misaka stiffened. Touma refused as Misaka said with flushed cheeks.
"Hurry up and buy whatever you're here for in the first place!" Touma grunted a yes before going back to the pastry section. She gave a long look at the couple cake. Her, be together with him? Impossible! She turned away when she felt her throat tighten very hard. It was worse than even the worst of sore throats, she felt… suffocative. It felt as if she's being choked by an invisible wire. She touched her neck to free herself but there isn't any wire! She couldn't say a word, her vocals all resistant. She felt her limbs turn weak.
She gagged as she dropped to her knees. Touma noticed and rushed to her "Oi! What's wrong?" She couldn't say a thing, she couldn't even breathe. Seeing her hands around her neck, Touma moved them away for a closer look. There weren't any telltale signs or marks of anything. He touched it with Imagine Breaker and it did the trick, releasing the choking grip on her.
She gasped in fresh air before coughing a few times. Touma stood up; clearly aware this is some skill and not a random phenomenon. It's either magic or esper ability. His eyes scanned the street outside through the open display window. He didn't know why but there was one person who just stood out of the crowd, a boy in school uniform. He opened the door. "I'll be right back!" He ran across the street, nearly running into a car in the process.
The uniformed boy turned down an alley. His suspicions become conviction as he entered the alley. The boy had eyes with an age older than him by a year, maybe two. The guy said in a cool voice. "I don't know how you managed to pick me out from the crowd but you're not leaving here, alive."
Touma felt his neck tighten immensely. It felt suffocating but Touma touched his neck with Imagine Breaker. The choker failed as Touma got his breath again. His opponent was curious than surprised. "Interesting, I see that you can block my power." He swooped up his hand to the air "No matter for me, the Phantom always has a backup plan!"
Touma felt thin wires tighten around his neck. The wires were strong enough to lift his entire weight. He held tight against the wire, not wanting for the wires to behead him. As he struggled, the Phantom explained his predicament. "When esper replicas don't cut it, there are always the real ones." He wasn't kidding about a backup plan. In his life strangling state, he could notice the fine threads of wires all over the alley. It was like a spider's nest! He cursed silently, he can't get free and his lungs now literally had zero air. It would be just a few more seconds before he blacks out.
A ray of light went past his ear. The wire around his neck loosened as he dropped to the floor. His neck felt sore as he turned around. Misaka was standing there, having fired her Railgun. She aimed another coin at the Phantom. "What is your motive for attempting to strangle me?"
The Phantom answered as if it was the obvious "The bounty of course." He swung his arm, the motion as though created a telekinetic force to push Misaka's arm away from him. She shot a burst of electricity from her forehead. The Phantom stepped back. "You're a feisty one. I'll enjoy snuffing the life out of you!"
Touma closed in for close combat as Misaka charged for another bolt of lightning. Phantom swished his hand again as he fired, forcing Misaka's aim off towards Touma. He barely noticed it in time before blocking it with Imagine Breaker. He yelled "Why did you shoot me for?"
Misaka shot back "It wasn't my fault! It's him!" Touma pulled back his fist for an upcoming blow but Phantom twirled his fingers. He felt his legs shot himself backwards to throw him in a hard landing on his back. Just what on earth is Phantom's ability?
Misaka felt her left leg move on its own, kicking her right leg at the calf. She fell in pain before being lifted up into the air by invisible wires around her neck. Phantom laughed "This is just so easy! To find having to fight the Railgun this easy is so….exhilarating!"
Touma charged again but Phantom warned. "Back away unless you want me to squeeze until her head pops off her neck." Either way, she would be strangled if he didn't do a thing. Before Touma could decide, it was already decided.
Misaka grinned. "Did you forget that these wires conduct electricity? Oh….She shot her full power through the wire, electrocuting the man. Touma charged at the Phantom as the wire tension slacked, allowing Misaka to land on the floor. He swung his fist at the charred Phantom.
BAM
The Phantom flew to hit a wall before dropping into an open dumpster. On impact, the dumpster closed its lid, a coffin for the esper. Misaka said as she pulled the barely visible wires off her. "I don't like to be strangled to death."
Touma retrieved his cellphone. "I'll get Anti-Skill to handle him. Have any ideas on his ability?"
Misaka charged the wires with some more high voltage. The wires burnt at the ends, tearing down the nest of wires. "I felt his ability. He could control the nerve impulses in our bodies." That was something unheard of to Touma. Esper abilities are just getting weirder as time goes. It gave him a slight shiver to whatever might be appearing.
"Control our bodies eh." Touma sat on the dumpster as he made his call. "He won't be controlling anyone anymore."