Author's Note: So, Dad's going back tonight, which means that all my time for writing has just been freed up again, so that's a thing. Read, Review, Favorite and Enjoy!
Chapter 36: Magical Warfare: Engagement
Outside of the local community center, buses full of students from the other eight of the nine magical schools were lining up outside. From Third high leading their security detail was 'Crimson Prince' Masaki Ichijou, followed shortly there after by Cardinal George. This made sense after all, it was the opening volleys of the Thesis competition.
"We're not going to escort the projects inside?" George asked as he saw Masaki walking towards the community center instead of the truck with the projects inside.
"I've received a invitation for tea. It would be rude to refused." Masaki stated as he walked to the school. "You on the other hand are free to join me, or join the security detail."
Letting out a sigh George allowed Masaki to go make googly eyes at Klaud while he went to work doing his job.
Inside a private room normally reserved for sports teams to change into their uniforms Klaud had finished making a pot of tea just in time for Masaki to walk inside.
"I got your message." Masaki stated closing the door and giving himself a little bit of privacy for what he hoped to be a pleasant encounter. "Business or pleasure?"
"Business." Klaud stated seriously as she pored Masaki a cup.
"Hmm. Pity." Masaki stated sitting down on the other side of the table from Klaud. "Well if it isn't a date I would like to ask you out on one." Masaki stated shrugging his shoulders.
"And where would you take me on this hypothetical date of yours?" Klaud asked cocking a suspicious brow at Masaki.
"Unfortunately I don't know you or the area well enough to make any suggestions." Masaki stated with another shoulder shrug.
"Lovely. So can we talk about the thing that I asked you here about?" Klaud asked with a roll of her eyes.
"Go ahead. If something's bothering you then I would like to know if I can do something about it." Masaki stated attempting to sound supportive. Immediately Klaud proceeded to play the footage from the battles between both the GAA and the Americans leaving the Third High ace stunned. "So what you're saying, is that the Americans and the Chinese decided to host the Fourth World War on our welcome mat and no knows about it?" Masaki asked staring incredulously at Klaud.
"Well we know about it. We were the ones who got them to do it." Klaud stated, prompting Masaki to make a eye roll. "Well it's not like it's the worst idea we ever had, I mean the streets aren't exactly jammed pack full of people like in the old days."
"Cute, did you accomplish anything productive with that little stunt?" Masaki asked looking at Klaud with an annoyed look on his features.
"Well the Americans were chased out of the country." Klaud stated sounding slightly nervous.
"And the Chinese?" Masaki asked suspiciously.
"They're kinda, sorta, planning to siege the convention center the day of the thesis competition." Klaud stated awkwardly scratching the back of her head.
If there were crickets in the room, they'd be putting a orchestra on right now, as Masaki just stared, his jaw lining the floor, before a loud smack signalling the moment that his palm met his face before metaphorically and literally wiped the shock off of his face.
"Give me one reason why I shouldn't pack up my classmates and head home right now?" Masaki stated not amused by the sudden revelation about the hostile military force that were planning to attack the place all of his classmates just set up shop in.
"I'll go on a date with you, wherever you wanna go." Klaud stated sounding just as uneasy about this situation as Masaki was.
"Okay." Past tense evidently, as Masaki agreed to lend a helping hand with a 180 degree personality turn that was down right scary. "So I assume that you have a plan to deal with these people, aside from lining up a massive number of cannon fodder for them to shoot down?"
The Next day the competition was underway, at the same time though, a Chinese cargo ship arrived down at the docks, from which several big rig trucks drove off and and headed into the town, making a beeline for the convention center. Having been observed by officer Chiba, who had calmed down since his harrowing experience with spacial warping magic, and informed the people at the convention center of what was going on. The first of the trucks parked in the under ground parking area from which several soldiers, included among them Lu Gonghu who for the occasion opted to dress in a ceremonial tiger costume.
"Guess Klaud's not the only one who likes to play dress up." Erika stated watching the arriving Chinese soldiers get out of their truck via security camera. "Speaking of are yah ready yet Klaud?"
Inside of the locker room Klaud had just finished getting dressed in her new battle costume. It certainly wasn't built for stealth, patches of bright red and yellow with polka dots and stripes with large poofy sleeves and pant legs, a large frilled collar and bells on the ends of her equally color blind jester hat and shoes. Klaud had small thanks for the crystal cut mask that had been decorated to resemble the face of a clown.
"Nice!" This was because the person who was getting dressed with Klaud was none other than Masaki Ichijou, and thus the clown mask hid her massive blush. "Is this spider silk pleated with carbon nano tubes and cotton?" Masaki stated grabbing a hold of the loose material around Klaud's arm, causing her to nearly faint from surprise.
"Is that really the most impressive thing you just saw?" Klaud asked sounding a bit annoyed.
"Of course not but if I talked about that I would be so nervous I'd never be able to get two words in." Now Klaud's face was a read as the rosy cheeks of her mask. "Are you done getting ready? Because I'd really like to deal with these guys before they get to our classmates."
"G-G-Give me a sec." Klaud went over to her bag and loaded what looked like C.A.D. but decoratively given a cover similar to a hard cover book's sleeve. Klaud took the C.A.D. out of the sleeve and loaded it into her staff.
"What's that? You haven't gone modern on us now have you?" Masaki asked smirking at the mechanized looking staff.
"It's my book, containing all of my cards and this other one is my staff." Klaud stated resting the staff on her shoulder as she turned around to face the door. "Come on they won't be in the parking lot forever." After confirming with Erika that the GAA soldiers were still there they set out to work, making their way to the parking structure Klaud went to work. "First off, lets trap em like rats." Saying that, Klaud set her secondary C.A.D. to the Loop card, then she simply tapped the bottom of the staff on the ground.
"Okay... what did that do?" Masaki stated detecting no noticeable change to the environment.
"Open that door." Klaud stated pointing to the door behind her that the two of them just came through.
Doing as he was told Masaki was greeted by a strange sight. Last he checked he was on the bottom floor of the parking structure, yet this looked suspiciously like the top, there wasn't a ramp for cars to go up even further, more important than that though this was a hallway that connected the parking structure to the convention center last time he checked, which it should be noted was not even five minuets ago.
"Oh well played! I heard a rumor you had some kind of space manipulation power." Masaki stated closing the door. "But won't they simply try to jump over the barriers?" Masaki explained indicating the barriers a fair distance away.
"Oh really." Klaud tapped her staff again, releasing the power of another card to no visible effect. "Why don't you try it yourself?"
Humoring Klaud, Masaki walked over to the barrier and hopped over, and immediately found himself on the other side of the structure.
"Oh well played. What is it some kind of illusion?" Masaki asked as he stuck his upper body over the edge and could see his butt off in the distance.
"Gotta keep some of my secrets." Klaud stated as she headed for the ramp leading to floor above.
"I think your priorities are a little eschewed there Klaud." Masaki stated smirking recalling the little show he was treated to earlier.
The two of them could hear the marching of the soldiers from the GAA starting to walk down to the lower levels where they were located.
"Let's go with something unpleasant shall we?" Tapping her staff again Klaud this time produced a more visible effect in that some type of walking shadow emerged from the ground. "The shadow card, in case it wasn't blatantly obvious."
"I see, but can it halt their advance?" Masaki asked pointing at the shadowy figure.
"It can catch lightning I think it can catch a few loser soldiers from China." Klaud stated as she began heading back down stairs.
The two went in through the door where the Loop card connected them to the top floor, where in they discovered the semi-truck/converted base camp for the GAA soldiers. Speaking of whom, the sound of gun fire from down below confirmed that they had already run into shadow.
"Let's be quick shall we?" Firstly Klaud's staff turned into a gun which she used to fire the lightning card into the truck, having it set to work hacking their computers. Next with a second volley she unleashed water, which then proceeded to make it's way down the levels flooding them as it went.
"Wow you don't hold back do you?" Masaki asked looking at the torrent of water that would undoubtedly flood the several floors below them.
"It's alright, Water'll only knock em out." Klaud stated as she observed the flooded ramp. "I'm more worried about the one that isn't knocked out."
"What do you mean the one that isn't knocked out?" Masaki asked looking shock.
Suddenly a huge spurt of water popped out of the opening in the floor like a geyser and revealed the costumed form of Lu Gonghu.
"Oh." Lu smashed his fists into the ground as the two Japanese students dodged out of his way.
"Yohza, and I thought Madison was colorblind." Klaud muttered as her staff turned into a gun. "This time when I take you apart I'm not putting you back together again!" Loading the erase card into the activation sequence of her C.A.D. Klaud fired the bolt of magical power, only for it to collide with a energy field and was instantly dismantled. "Of course they've got Antinite, they were trying to attack magicians. Masaki! Plan B!"
"Plan B? Do we have a plan B?" Masaki asked as he ducked out of the way of a round house swing from Lu.
"Keep him busy!"
Firstly Klaud removed the enchantment from the loop card, then she used the power card to smash several pillars the concrete floor and roof, before picking them up with the Earthy card and hurling them at top speeds thanks to the use of the speed card. Even with the use of Antinite to nullify the magic being used to hurl the stones they maintained the momentum and direction and therefore hurt very much when they had a head long collision with Lu, in spite of his sub-dermal armor.
"Remember me?" Klaud asked standing a few feet away from Lu.
Snarling, Lu gunned after Klaud, the illusion of her dissipating as soon as it collided with his anti-magic barrier. Taking him by surprise, Klaud smashed his legs with a huge pillar tripping him up and sending him flat on the ground, she followed that up with a second swing golf style sending him clear of the building and crashing him into the ground with a hard smash.
"Think that got em?" Masaki asked as he ran over and looked over the edge at the man who made a mini crater in the pavement.
"Nope." True to Klaud's predictions the near indestructible man got out of the ground and brushed himself off. "But this will." Suddenly large chunks of the building were ripped off and were flung at the ground creating a box that the super soldier was now trapped in. With a sound similar to a roar Lu tore through the concrete barrier, but Klaud was faster, already she was on the ground level, having landed safely thanks to the jump card, and removed the Antinite bracelet on Lu's arm disabling his ability to jam magic. With that out of the way Klaud could now do what she wanted to do in the first place and shot the outstretched hand with the Erase card's power, turning the super soldier into gas on the wind. "Any of you still conscious?" Klaud asked looking at the Chinese soldiers who had just come flooding out of the building unconscious. "Good flunkies, but let's make sure." Klaud stated as the ground beneath them swallowed them and buried them up to their necks. "Now than." Klaud turned her attention to the rest of the city, where she saw pillars of smoke from her sister's traps going off. "Time to deal with the rest."
Author's Note:
Hornofdesolation: Hope I didn't disappoint.
Duked: Well, to be fair, in the Canon no one had the top dog in a major Chinese criminal organization for a dad.