Disclaimer: I do not, repeat do not, own Gakuen Alice… I wish I did though… Oh yeah, Demon and Angel are not Gakuen Alice characters; they're mine…
Summary: The academy's finally getting serious about dealing with Mikan's alices, and the Dangerous Ability Class is getting a new teacher in the bargain. What's going to happen next?
Chapter 37
Natsume glanced at the distance, only to find the primary subject of his thoughts passing through the area. They've both steered clear of each other since that night. The night he'd openly called her Mikan, the night he'd watched her mercilessly slaughter almost everyone who'd seen her, the night that had badly shaken his belief that she's Mikan, the night when he'd mostly convinced himself that she's not the person he loves.
Mikan stared down at the letter in her hand. She'd gone to Demon early this morning to get the letters approved. She'd already left the letters in the mailroom right after Demon checked them. Now there's only one letter left to take care of. She was so intent on the letter. She didn't notice where she was going, or the guy that was blocking her path. Before she knew it, she bumped into something solid, and the letter she was holding was gone.
Natsume snatched the letter in her grasp. His eyes widen when he saw his name on the envelope, written in a barely legible penmanship he knows so well. He'd see Kana's neat handwriting, and this is definitely not hers. Before Kana could recuperate from the collision, Natsume had already unsealed the envelope and pulled out the letter. The first thing that snagged his eye was the name at the bottom of the page, the name of the sender.
If he'd caught her with this letter before the events last night, he would have been very convinced that she's Mikan. But after that mission… "Where did you get this?" he snarled.
Kana met his eyes, thumping down the panic rising inside her. He'd seen her with the letter. She hopes she can slip out of this without too much trouble. "In your room," she answered plainly, indifferently.
"And what the hell are you doing in my room?" he glared at her, feeling his patience running thin.
Kana kept up her unaffected façade. "Would you believe snooping around?" she shot back rhetorically.
Natsume's tolerance finally snapped at her answer. "Get away from here," he said, his bangs covering his eyes. Kana didn't move in shock. Was he serious? "I said get away from here!" he shouted. "Leave!"
"If that's what you really want," she uttered softly and stiffly before walking away. A single thought run across her mind. It's quite ironic that he'll say that to me here, of all places.
Natsume felt his chest tightened as he watched her disappear from view. Closing his eyes for a second, he opened them again to glance at letter clutched in his hand. He hates being played and misled, especially by those he'd allowed to be close to him. People he considers as friends.
But, whether she's Mikan or not, he knows that he'll have to find a way to apologize for losing his temper and snapping at her for some minor infraction. He knows that baiting him is one of her ways to lighten the mood and defuse the tension between them whenever they clash. But why do her last words feel like she's saying goodbye to him?
Mikan parked her Harley outside the house and got off. She'd already teleported her personal things from her room in the academy back into her room in here. She opened the door and strode inside.
"Hi," Angel greeted her as she came in. She and Demon were both in front of the computer. Angel was perched behind him as Demon's fingers flew over the keyboard. From the looks of things, Demon was decrypting the files about the AAO.
Demon hit a few keys more before stretching and rubbing his nape. Angel smiled and started kneading his neck and shoulders. "You want to take a break for awhile? I could take over while you rest a bit," she asked soothingly, loosening the knotted muscles on his back.
Demon shook his head. "I'll finish this in a few minutes more." He gazed affectionately up at her. "You can just continue massaging my shoulders and back until I'm done," he grinned at her.
Mikan leaned against a desk as she observed the two of them. She was feeling a little envious, wondering if she'll ever find someone to have that kind of close, loving relationship with in this lifetime.
The sound of tapping keys went on for five minutes more, before the computer started groaning, processing the data into human-understandable language. Mikan came closer to see what the files contain, and Angel leaned in to get a better view of the monitor. They faces turned grim as they realized what's enclosed in the files. Demon started printing the all of it, handing each printed page to Angel. Angel, in turn, arranged the paper on the wide dining table which Mikan had cleared for that purpose. Mikan helped her pin the papers down in the right order.
A map of Alice Academy slowly emerged on the table. Each building was labeled on the map, including detailed measurements of paths and passage around the academy. But the last pages of the file were the most critical, specifying their enemy's exact preparation. It was the AAO invasion plan against the academy, and it was set five days from now.
Angel keenly studied the map, noting the red dots that symbolize enemy troops. The enemy had studied the terrain around the academy. Since the land south of the academy was lower and devoid of foliage, they can easily be spotted and gunned down if they came from there. And the north side was bordered by their land. They probably already know the futility of stepping foot around here uninvited. Shadow and Lumi would have fun picking out their men one-by-one. That left the east and the west. According to the dots, the AAO was to mobilize outside the Eastern gates and initiate their assault from there. She frowned at the map. This was good for a surprise attack, but it's not going to work that well if the enemy knew what you're up to.
She glanced up to see that Demon was also scowling at the map. "They're not going to go with this plan. They're bound to change something, now that we have access to this information."
"Yeah, they'll alter part of the plan but not all of it," Demon's scowl deepened. "If they'll still go with their damn attack date, they don't have that much time to come up with a totally new plan. And they don't have much of an option on which side to attack either. They only have the east and west as a viable choice."
Mikan stared at the map taking notice of the number of men the AAO has. "If they really have 6,000 troops, they could split it into two groups," she thought out loud. "They could attack on both sides."
Angel brows knitted. "Yes, and if that sniper they sent to do in Natsume is any indication," she muttered, remembering the gunman they captured and interrogated. The AAO had mistakenly thought Natsume was the agent who was successfully in retrieving the first flash drive. They wanted to make sure the academy won't be able to use him in getting the second one. "Their spies had probably already reported that the DA Class is a little shorthanded. The class can't be divided into two groups, because it'll lack the strength to attack and defend properly," she growled, rubbing her temple. "Now I know why Persona seemed so desperate at times to convert more students from the four other ability types into a DA type. It'll cause less of a headache than trying to organize this undermanned class," she moaned in frustration.
Demon and Mikan couldn't help grinning at Angel's complains. She may grumble about wanting to transfer some students into the DA Class, but they know she'll never do it. She'll even be the first to protest if a student is reassigned to the DA Class without a justifiable cause.
"Since we got the data, they'll probably assume we'll follow it and concentrate our forces to the east," Mikan voiced out, returning them back to the topic.
Demon scoffed. "Knowing those sneaky bastards, they'll leave some decoy troops at the east and send the rest to the west."
"Then we'll just have to cover both points don't we," Angel sighed. "How about we station the DA students at the west, and Demon and I will handle anything coming from the east. The group that finishes on their side first, acts as reinforcement to the other."
"That sounds good," Mikan piped up. Demon nodded in agreement.
The DA Class was called in for an urgent meeting in the Southern Woods. Natsume kept an eye out for Kana. He hasn't seen her since yesterday. He'd even tried her room that night, only to find the sliding glass doors of her terrace lock with no one inside the room.
Angel had just come from a faculty meeting. The headmaster and rest of the faculty have already planned an evacuation for the rest of the student body. She arrived in DA Class a bit late, but quickly got down to business. She explained the situation, gave the details, and asked any objections to the proposed plan. No objections received from the class. They were all to treat defending the academy as a compulsory mission.
"Shouldn't the middle school principal's boundary alice keep them out?" one of her students asked.
"The boundary alice can act as a barrier when concentrated only on one area, but it still isn't a barrier," she clarified. "It's more like a filter. Your alice can get through if you push hard enough against it. That's how I can teleport in and out of the academy. People and objects can also pass through it, that's how everyone can exit the academy when the gates are open." She paused for a moment. "Or through the wall if you can blow a hole in it," she discreetly coughed out. "But I won't suggest doing that. You might be able to successfully get out, but the middle school principal can also detect you." She sighed. "And you'll probably piss Demon off if he had to go after you."
Everyone blanched at that draw back. No one wants Demon hunting them down.
"Well, anymore questions?" Silence greeted her. "Then you're dismissed." She turned toward the direction of the HQ building to see to some more preparations. Before she could get too far, a certain someone blocked her way in a secluded spot.
"Where is she?" Natsume asked her.
"Where's who?" Angel asked back. She, of course, knew who's he's asking about. Mikan already told her what happened, and she's not in charitable mood today because of it. If Natsume wasn't her godchild, she would have most probably kicked his stanch, arrogant ass by now for making her imoto feel miserable.
"You know who," Natsume rumbled with a frown.
"Oh, you mean Kana?" Natsume gave a curt nod in reply. "She's at home, I think."
"She not in her room," he stated, aggravated that his not getting straight answers from her. Too bad he can't browbeat her for information. Angel will definitely tear him to pieces if he ever does that.
"I didn't say anything about her room," Angel rolled her eyes. "I said home, as in home," she emphasized before she walked away from him. "Don't worry too much about her. She's a big girl and can handle herself. She'll be back for the mission, if you're wondering." Angel disappeared from view with a wave.
Gray clouds seem to linger on the sky as the day of the scheduled AAO attack arrived, matching the tense mood in the atmosphere. At first glance, the academy appeared like always, lush and serene. But upon a closer inspection, the silence and peace are too pejorative. The usual laughter and chattering buzz of students were absent. Even the animals were in hiding, sensing danger looming in the horizon. Shadows can be seen lurking in the Western Forest, as if waiting to capture anyone who came too close to the place.
Angel took up her post on top of a tree branch in the Eastern Forest. Not a sound can be heard around her, just the hum of the wind followed by the soft rustling of leaves. She kept a close eye on the tree line just beyond the academy's gates, and rolled her eyes at the absurdities of some people. That the heck do they think she is? Blind? She could very well see the silhouettes trying to blend in with the shadows and failing miserably at it. She didn't know if she should thank them or be terribly offended. Either they're stupid enough to make this easy for her, or they're insulting her eyesight, not to mention her intellect.
She shut her eyes and activated her earth alice, scouting out how many men there were by the pressure their weight applies on the ground. Her brow puckered when she finished an estimate. Looks like Demon was right, the sneaky bastards had sent most of their troops to the west side. If the number of troops on the flash drive was accurate, less than a third was assigned to attack here in the east. She normally wouldn't worry about numbers if she and Demon would fight together with the DA Class against 6,000 men at once. But with only fifteen members, and that included Aoi, Ayane, and Youichi who were ordered to stay well into the back of the group to keep them out of any imminent danger, the DA Class is bound to get overwhelmed fighting against more than 4,000 soldiers. She and Demon need to finish their side and rejoin the others as quickly as possible.
The attack started at dusk. The enemy had assembled a frontline just outside of the gates. A couple of seconds later, explosions shook the academy, coming from both the east and west side. The walls crumbled down, revealing a huge gaping hole when the dust had settled. The thousands of enemy troops marched in, ready to take down the academy.
The men who entered through the west got to about half-a-mile inside the academy's borders. And some of them started growing complacent. The plan must have worked, and the academy had stationed its forces on the east side. No one was there to stop them.
Just as the first hundred or so took another step forward beyond the half-mile mark, the carnage began. Men among their ranks started bursting into flames, turning into ice, and getting cut into pieces. Others were already dying on the ground, their throats slit, or stabbed at various vital places.
Natsume rested his head against the defensive trench Angel had created with her alice earlier on. It was there for them to fall back in and rest, secure from any oncoming bullets. And were they ever grateful for it.
After their initial ambush attack, the enemy had regrouped and pushed back at them. Not only were the enemy armed with guns, most of them also had alices. The sheer multitude of the opposition forced them to retreat. Bullets were currently whizzing overhead, peppering the raise portion of the deep ditch they're in.
He looked at the other members of his class. Some had gotten injured in their retreat, and were currently being taking care of by Aoi. Angel had left two healing alice stones with his sister, for her to tend to any injuries that resulted in this battle. But he knows those stones are going to ran out of juice, and soon, if they have to heal too many injuries, especially serious injuries. But they can't do anything right now except to wait until the enemy ran short of ammo.
The barrage of bullets suddenly stopped. Looks like it's time to get to work. Heaving a helpless sigh, Natsume glanced up before standing, only to see a shocking sight. He can see hundreds of thousands of small glinting object in the sky, and they weren't stars. Someone from the enemy camp had stopped the bullets high in midair. Dropped from that height, they can penetrate flesh and cause some serious damage depending on where they hit the body. "Take cover!" he shouted.
Everyone looked up to see the bullets hanging airborne. Curses were uttered. They tried to get out of the ditch, but some kind of barrier was keeping them in the trench. Everyone gathered closer together. They pretty much feel their doom closing in. But they won't give the AAO the satisfaction of killing all of them in one blow. The class grabbed Aoi, Ayane, and Youichi, and pushed them towards one corner of the dugout, shielding them with their bodies. If they were going to die anyway, they'll take this final chance to at least try to save the youngest and most innocent members of their class.
Natsume couldn't stop the small smile forming on his face. The DA Class had changed a lot since Persona handled them. More than five years ago, the students in this class won't even blink or think twice when ordered to backstab or kill a co-member. Now, they're acting like a bunch of protective older siblings. He came closer to the group and placed himself in front of Aoi. Nobara had created an ice barrier around them, but they know it wouldn't hold for too long once the bullets start falling.
There was a tense silence, before the slugs were released. The ice caught the first volley but began cracking in the next. Natsume protected Aoi by hiding her behind his back, just as the ice barrier finally shattered and collapsed. After a moment everyone slowly opened their eyes, wondered what happened. They were supposed to be either dead or injured by now.
A light-blue barrier surrounded them. It shielded them from the bullets they realized. They all turned as someone jumped down into the trench.
Kana stood in front of them, in her customary mission attire consisting of a tank top and cargo pants, grinning. "Sorry I'm late, guys."
CHAPTER END
A/N: Okay, school's back (Oh, the agonizing horror! There'll be exams, schoolwork, and everything again! Noooo!)… So, I'll also be back to the weekly updates. But I might update twice a week if my schoolwork's light enough to spend some time on the computer.
If your wondering when this story will be finished, it'll probably be concluded by the end February IF my professor ease up a bit on all the exams and schoolwork.
Read and review. Explicitly NO FLAMES. CONSTRUCTIVE criticism and suggestions are, of course, allowed.