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X❖X
An Epilogue
X❖X
It was the very early morning of the 21st of August.
Vasilisa arrived not on a bike nor on a limousine. But instead an old brown beetle. It was such an old car but quite quaint. Mikoto was a bit surprised that Vasilisa, the red nun who was so dangerous was riding such an old model.
"You should laugh at other people's cars, Mikoto. That's a bit rude you know." Vasilisa said with a smile as she honked her old car. The old machine was making loud noises on the engine too. This really was an old model.
"No, I'm sorry. This clashed too much with the image of a badass woman that I had of you, so I needed to let out a few chuckles. Sometimes we only look at a shallow depth and lose sight of how things really are underneath." Mikoto said. And to that Vasilisa smiled.
Vasilisa hurried the Patriarch into her old car. Mikoto wondered if the old car would be able to make the trip back without at least one of the wheels puncturing. Or the engine failing them halfway. They were in a dirt road a few hundred kilometers from Moscow after all. Vasilisa asked if she would like to ride with them back but Mikoto rejected the proposal. Mikoto needed to hunt one more element in Moscow before dawn came to an end. Krans entered the care with tired eyes. He had been sleeping in the train cart but was still tired from the night's attack. The whole thing seemed to take a mental toll on the poor boy.
"Oh, we're not supposed to take our eyes off you during your stay in Western Russia. At least that was the agreement. But we're not that rigid with rules, are we, young master?"
"No, the fault for this incident lies with us. Erica was one of us. I'm sorry you had such a harrowing night, Mikoto. I hope you'll forgive the Church for threatening your life and I hope that we have a good relationship going forward…" The boy patriarch spoke, even though he was tired, but by the end, he was slurring his speech and he fell asleep in the seat in the back of the car. Vasilisa fixed her rear mirror and smiled.
"Thanks for taking care of him tonight. I am grateful to you Mikoto. I won't forget this debt." Vasilisa smiled again. This woman could face the end of the world with that smile.
Mikoto nodded with a wry smile. Vasilisa-san was Vasilisa-san. That's the only way she could describe this woman now that Mikoto was more intimate with her and they had become close friends. She saw the car going slowly on the dirt road. Thankfully it hadn't rained so the car wasn't going to be stuck somewhere. Vasilisa-san's car was old.
Now let's finish this before breakfast. I need to take a long bath as well. Mikoto stretched well under the sunlight of dawn. A new day was hereafter the frenetic night of the 20th.
Her palms were dried up with blood. Her hair was sticky with the fluids and her outfit was completely covered in dry smears.
Mikoto was having the best time of her life.
X❖X
He did not have any updates on the mission from Artyom. This was getting very tiresome. the doubts about the mission were starting to pile up on him and he felt that somehow the mission went awry. He started drinking vodka like a madman right now he was on the 3rd bottle. He was ingesting alcohol so fast someone else might have died but he was known for this kind of stuff. The problem was that his anger was rising so fast that he couldn't keep up. He felt really really angry that Artyom was not answering. Slava was not answering and Boris had betrayed him. This could not stand.
However he did something that he regretted.
Timofey choked his son in anger. The little scamp had been in the house this morning and irritated him with his spying on the kitchen. The little scamp had bruises over his face, and he had marks of Timofey's fingers upon his flesh. Timofey stopped. He almost killed his youngest son in a fit of rage.
"Go to your room you brat. Don't go spying on your father like that." Timofey kicked the brat in the leg hurrying the boy to get up. The boy choked and his tears fell as he scurried on the hall and went to his room on the first floor.
Dammit. Nearly killed my son. Timofey had a clinical illness ever since he was born. He was angry all the time and that led to increased violence and episodes like this where he was blinded by his rag so much that he lost sight of what he was doing. These manic episodes were something he had to live with, and it caused him innumerable problems ever since he was just a boy.
He stumbled on the kitchen a bit but even as old as he was, he was still healthy, and his liver was still good despite his drinking habits. Honestly, he would die in a few years, he was already old enough, but to leave Russia like this. This stale position as the overall loser of the Cold War and being subjected to criticism from both the West and Academy City. While China and Elizalina silently grew and had hostile relationships. To leave it all here would be a pity. Russia needed to step up and if using the old war machine it had built to crumble their less powerful rivals, then Russia would have a chance. To do so, Russia needed to win against Elizalina and China. The main hostile rivals in the region. Academy City and the US would be the main targets as well. They had messed with the Russian population well enough. The Esper population needed to be curbed as well, with what was shown on the demonstrations, these Espers could be used as weapons of war and capable of mass destruction if not eradicated.
A world where normal individuals hold the power instead of institutions was doomed to crumble into anarchy before long.
Academy City's pursuit of heretical science without even thinking about the consequences is what led to the birth of these Espers. It was against religion itself that Timofey followed. Thankfully, Timofey still had the support of the overall troops of Russia herself and had access to nuclear codes.
The President was too chickenshit to actually go through with any threat, but the President also hated his failure in dealing with the Institute that has plagued Eastern Russia. The Shopping Mall had access to its own nuclear arsenal and that meant that the governing body of the Russian Institution had a tangible threat to bring towards the table of negotiations. The President had been at odds with the board of the Russian Institute since its inception. It was the biggest failure of the President and that made the snake man hate Academy City as well. But the bastard was an opportunist. Not willing to take the first step and instead exploit weaknesses. Timofey could not wait for the President to make his decision. He had to go through with it.
The other members of the cabinet all were praising the ground the Prime Minister walked on, but that youngster was quite the pacifist. Not willing to make Russia go to war. What foolish ideas in Timofey's eyes. Russia was slowly rotting without anything to save it.
There needed to be radical changes or this country was going to fail and then be annexed by the hungry dictator named Elizalina.
He kept drinking. The old ghoul who had protected Russia in the Cold War just kept drinking.
If only I had been born without this… anger. His anger issues stemmed from a mental illness he had been born with. Timofey always had anger issues ever since he was young. He was quite hated by his parents for it. He was beaten severely more times than he could count.
However, Timofey was smart and had a large inheritance. He spent years in the military, getting the ranking of General before integrating himself into the Soviet Party. He also had help from some members of the Church, and he maintained his position of Minister of Defense for the longest time. Despite the anger, he tried his best to take care of the troops of this country. Using his pupils like Artyom, Slava, and Boris to take control of the country's armed groups. Be it the military, police, militias, defense contractors, and other criminal groups. He maintained control over them all to give Russia a fighting chance.
However, his anger issues always reared their ugly head. They always acted when he was with family. How many wives have left him?
How many marriages ruined. Four? Five?
Timofey F. Stanislav had prestige, money, and political power and that has attracted many women that he has wedded in the past. But all of those attempts at a family were ruined. How many wives divorced. How many sons and daughters had left the house?
His oldest son was already a grandfather.
God, he was so old.
Unfortunately, Timofey's attempts at finally having a family were failing again. His mental illness was making him have manic episodes where he abused his youngest son. His young wife was only there for his money and she was already regretting it. She was young, she was younger than some of his daughters too.
No matter how many times he tries. Timofey cannot have one happy family.
Timofey put his hands on the sink. And he anchored himself while frustrations piled up. And that made him angry again. Russia was failing. Nothing he could do was working. Elizalina was such a real threat to their lands and people took that so lightly. Academy City built its damn Institute and the Russians who governed it did not obey Russia. They were a rogue element inside of their country. Academy City took advantage of the Cold War and demoralized Russia and the US. Two superpowers fighting while someone took advantage. And now Academy City was threatening Russia's economy.
The real enemy was not the US anymore. The North Americas were now just pompous fools who thought themselves to be the World police but were too concerned with their own noses to do anything. They were not the enemy anymore, the real problem here was Academy City. It would be a matter of time before Russia entered into depression and things would start to break around here.
He could not leave such a grim future to the troops that have supported him. Timofey needed to go to war with Elizanina and Academy City.
However, somehow this morning. Somehow everything felt like it was crumbling. A sick feeling to the stomach. Something that kept him awake and in a strange mood.
Timofey drank more vodka. He just kept drinking for half an hour.
Timofey took a last swing of his vodka and put the bottle in the kitchen. He climbed the stairs towards his study on the last floor.
He dragged his old decrepit body up the stairs. He stumbled a bit and hurt his little toes. "Dammit, why won't you answer me, Artyom?" With half-lidded eyes, he continued his ascent towards his study He would try again to contact the strongest soldier of Russia. Artyom was his prized pupil and almost like a son to him. He was such a strong soldier and always came back alive. There were missions where he failed. There were missions that Artyom could not complete. But he always came back alive.
But where was Artyom now?
Why wasn't Slava or Boris responding to his calls either?
Timofey used his rotted fingers to open the electronic locks to his study. He stumbled forwards with a frustrated look upon his old face.
The study had no windows, so it was quite dark. He turned on the lights and walked forward.
The study had its books shelves and many volumes. As well as depictions of Jesus Christ with art pieces throughout.
There was something after the last bookshelf. On the shadowy corridor was a wooden chair.
Yes, there was a wooden chair there in the corridor.
And on it was…
There was someone with a big smile.
That face was frozen in time with open eyes. A girl was there without blinking her eyes.
Timofey was never more terrified. Because her eyes were not moving, and neither was her smile. Her head was tilted just slightly.
"Ahhhhhh!" Timofey F. Stanislav screamed and stumbled back, hitting his back on his desk and falling down.
Because near his bookshelf, sitting on a wooden chair like nothing was wrong with the most terrifying smile was the Esper. The Esper that Timofey had ordered to be killed.
"Oh, is little Timofey scared? Oh, poor baby. What do you think of him, Missus Stanislav." Something was on her lap. There were two decapitated heads. She picked one of them and held it by the cheeks and talked to it. "What do you think of your husband Mrs. Stanislav, he's such a coward and a baby. Can't even give little Mikoto a greeting. That's quite rude don't you think?"
His wife's head. His wife's head was being held by Mikoto as she talked to it like it was still alive. But it wasn't. There was blood pouring on Mikoto's lap and it fell on the wooden chair and floor.
"And what do you think, little Timofey Junior?" She put the head of his wife on her lap again and picked the other head by the cheeks, this head was smaller, and it was of a child. It was his son, his son's head. "Your father is quite rude that he can't greet me properly. Isn't that right little baby Stanislav Junior?" She asked the disembodied child's head with a pouting face.
His son was still alive this morning. His son should have been in his room while Timofey was drinking in the kitchen. That meant that this devil had opened the doors to their home. She crept in while he was in the kitchen, watching him while he became drunk with vodka and preyed on his son in his room. Not only that, but she had also killed his wife as well.
"Ah… Agh… Aaaaararghhh… AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" He screamed.
"Oh, poor tiny little Timofey-san." Mikoto threw both their heads towards his feet and walked with pouty lips. Then she tilted her head slightly and stopped blinking. She just stared at him, while her jaw slowly opened, and a smile was seen.
All he could ever see was a smile. As his muscles stopped working. She had shocked him with her powers. And then some sort of black swarm coalesced in the room. It was sand, iron sand.
He saw while on the ground. The swarm of sand formed distinct shapes. They formed hooks on the ceiling.
Hooks of iron, hanging by chains in every corner of the room. They picked his skin and opened the skin of his body; four hooks hanged his body to the air. While they opened his skin and pushed it out, revealing the muscle and the veins. And he was left to bleed.
Mikoto approached with unblinking eyes and a wide smile. " I hear you're quite the pious believer. So I've decided to be creative. Jesus Christ was crucified, wasn't he, aren't you glad that you'll experience something similar, little Timofey?" The sand formed a crucifix, and his body was hanged in the air. In the back was the image of Christ with a thorn crown.
Timofey's rotted body was without skin and his blood pooled on the floor. After thirty mines of bleeding as a cow's carcass. He died. This was not similar to Christ's crucifixion at all, he was treated like a cow in a butcher's shop with the carcass hanging left to dry.
"Huh? didn't that Jesus guy last many days in his crucifix? You died after half an hour, that's quite weak Timofey-san." Mikoto stepped on his wife's head and his son's head and they squelched like tomatoes on the floor. They were completely innocent. However, they were killed so it could draw a reaction out of Timofey. Mikoto killed them purely because of her own cruelty.
Mikoto killed them because she thought it would be a nice theater, having both their heads on her lap as Timofey arrived at his study. Anyone who thought Mikoto was a good person that only killed bad people was wrong. Even with those four hundred researchers killed, were some interns that were not even aware that the project ever existed. Mikoto killed them because she loved it.
Mikoto loved it so much.
Mikoto was sick to the head.
She should have died that day, but she was here.
And what did the girl named Misaka Mikoto want?
Well, that was already clear.
She was a girl that wanted it all.
X❖X
Mikoto walked upon the dawn, with her bloody clothes she walked on the streets of Moscow. Nobody was awake at this point, but she walked with a smile on open streets. She passed through expensive shops with their windows closed. Mannequins with expensive clothing and bags. Mannequins… hah…
She passed through the rich shops just looking around and right on there on the streets was a homeless guy.
There was a homeless guy with a smartphone camera with a worried look. Even homeless people had smartphones these days. Her body was covered in blood and he was filming it. Maybe to deliver the footage to the police?
"Hey, old man." She arrived near him and he folded on his makeshift home. He had a green jacket and a cap. He was sweating intensely at the sight of her. "You should stop right there. Old man. I can't appear on smartphone cameras. My voice can't be recorded either."
"Yo—You're that girl from the demonstration… That amount of blood, you killed somebody."
"Yes. I've killed a lot of people tonight. I've killed so many people that it makes me one of the worst serial killers to ever exist."
Mikoto spoke with the homeless old man. She crouched with her bloody clothes that had already dried. She said that no matter how many times he tries to get some footage, she would never appear on a camera if she did not want to. And she was right, no matter how hard he tried, his phone could not even capture her, she was right next to him, crouching down with a happy face and yet nothing showed. Not even her voice was recorded. It was like she was a phantom of his imagination.
"What are you doing anyway? Why do you care so much that I've killed somebody? Even if you call the police and tell them your story, they will most likely beat you for sleeping in front of expensive brand stores rather than believe your ramblings. I killed a lot of privileged people today. Those kinds of people that had warm beds and warm foods for all their life. Why do you want to be a good samaritan for their sake? You won't be rewarded." Mikoto said with a serene look.
"…" There was only sweat in the homeless man's face as he lowered his smartphone so that could not capture her at all.
"Isn't it sad? People rather believe what the machines have captured instead of the words spoken by people?"
"…"
Cameras and videos being produced by machines and so-called smartphones were more believable than the words of a human being. Mikoto smiled wryly as she spoke of things with the homeless man kept quiet.
"Hey. Old man, is there something you want to say to the world? Isn't there something inside you wanted to say ever since you were young? Isn't there something you wanted to complain about? Some frustrations left behind?"
"…"
And yet the old homeless man kept quiet. With sweat running down from his face.
"…I see. Nothing? I guess I was expecting too much. Why does every single person that I murder have nothing to say in the end? All they do is scream or stay silent or die suddenly."
Mikoto raised herself and the old homeless man grabbed his sheets, intent on running away at the first chance.
And then, thunder sounds blasted the road with its noise. And electricity struck the man suddenly. And he keeled over dead onto the used sheets and his tiny little makeshift home on the streets.
Mikoto had killed the homeless man in less than a second. She didn't have to raise a hand to do it.
His heart had stopped, his organs had failed. However, there wasn't any outward sign of injury.
If the homeless man stayed silent in his bed and not tried to film her, he would still be alive. He had no business in trying to be a good person. Society had screwed him over completely and he was trying to be a good little citizen when the police itself would spurn cruelty upon him?
Madness.
The world was truly mad along with its people. It felt like nobody knew the true meaning of justice anymore. Mikoto just shook her head and continued forward.
It was what made life beautiful in the end.
She walked forward.
…All while wearing blood-stained clothes in the lonely streets of Moscow.
Again her killings were not stopped, and it only reinforced her beliefs. Misaka Mikoto was a monster and was now living life as a monster.
Was it even possible to ever heal Misaka Mikoto?
This night revealed the answer.
Misaka Mikoto was a monster who reveled in cruelty and needed to be put down for the good of the world.
That was the best course of action.
Wasn't it?
Despite that, that boy who she liked wanted her to live.
She stared at the beautiful dawn.
"Life sure is beautiful."
X❖X
"So they weren't able to kill Vasilisa?"
A man with blond hair and beard walked the silent halls of his church, far removed from Moscow itself. This man walked with purpose, being followed by many magicians who were loyal to him. Bishop Lazar operated magnificently to his tune and the young man never even noticed.
"I hoped Lazar would take down Vasilisa with him at the very least. This was disappointing. But in the end, there is one less rival for the patriarch position." The old man entered his study where many of his comrades worked with him. He was the one who instituted Timofey into his position after the Cold War had ended and continued to recommend Timofey to the cabinet along with the President.
"It's a pity that damn woman is still alive but what can you do? It doesn't matter in the end; our plans are going smoothly. The day where I become the Patriarch is not far off."
He was a serious man with cold eyes upon his old face. His presence screamed of power hidden and his words were full of wisdom and malice upon his old age. This man was yet another bishop. Bishop Nikolai Tolstoy was a greedy man who wanted the position of the Patriarch and he led Bishop Lazar from the shadows and the boy did not even notice. All of tonight's slaughter was engineered by Bishop Nikolai Tolstoy.
Bishop Nikolai Tolstoy was in communications with a certain someone as he ironed out the details. He had lost Timofey but that wasn't too bad. The old ghoul had been too proud and too uncontrollable as a pawn. The next Minister of Defense would be much more malleable and loyal to Tolstoy.
"Well, we gained some good rewards from this at the very least." Bishop Nikolai Tolstoy smiled in cruelty. He had gathered two things that put him in a severe advantage over all his competitors in the game for Russia. He now had in his possession both the nuclear codes and the Kremlin Report. Ready to be activated at any time.
Bishop Nikolai Tolstoy was the overall winner of the confrontation and the key players did not even know that he was involved with it all. Just like he planned.
"Now it's time Boris, send some of your people to storm the houses of both the Chairman of the Lower House and the palace of the Chairwoman of the Upper House."
Bishop Nikolai Tolstoy ended the call with his loyal soldier Boris, once the protégé of both Artyom and Timofey, the man was disgruntled that the Chairwoman was allowed to live in peace in the St. Petersburg palace. The woman named Sashura V. Makarova had some rumors about her, that she was a serial killer of children. And Boris's child had been kidnapped by her and killed. Boris had hoped his leader Timofey would have a mission for him to murder Sashura for what she had done to his son, however that mission never came. Even as Boris pleaded and begged for it. Even as he got on his knees in front of Artyom and Timofey, they never gave him the mission. They were comfortable in putting Boris as the leader of the military contractors of the country while Slava worked on the hidden militia groups.
Time passed and Boris got more and more frustrated and then Tolstoy came passing by, offering him a way to kill Sashura for what she had done to his small son. Boris had to betray his masters Artyom and Timofey for it. And Boris carried it through.
All for a chance at storming her opulent palace in St. Petersburg.
Boris weighed in the loyalty and friendship he had with his revenge and his revenge took precedence in his heart.
His son would have turned eighteen this year if not for Sashura V. Makarova. Boris was done waiting. He burned the bridges all around him for just a chance at revenge and Bishop Nikolay Tolstoy took advantage of that. But was it manipulation if Boris was getting what he wanted in the end?
This was a relationship of mutual understanding. For a chance of revenge, Boris would sacrifice everything. Revenge for his son was all that mattered to him. And Timofey and Artyom had ignored that aspect of Boris. Bishop Nikolai Tolstoy walked on his study with a smile as everything was going smoothly. Then he received a call, from an individual inside of the… Roman Catholic Church?
It seems the slew of new allies is a blessing for me. Before long, I will be the one to rule over Russia.
Bishop Nikolai Tolstoy was the rightful ruler of Russia, he wouldn't let anyone dispute this.
X❖X
"So everything is going according to your plan, isn't it, Vasilisa?"
Krans said to her as she drove the car.
"Yes, everything is going according to my plan. Before long the Russian Orthodox Church he built will become unrecognizable."
"So you want to destroy everything my father built." Patriarch Krans Romanov Tsarskiy said with a sad smile.
Vasilisa was supposed to be born in Ukraine, she was supposed to be a child of Ukrainian parents, and she was an orphan picked up by the church. Vasilisa did not have family names because she was an orphan. Vasilisa was just Vasilisa. It was supposed to be this way. But it was wrong.
"Of course~ I cannot let anything our father built go on." The red nun Vasilisa Romanov Tsarskiy said to her little brother.
This was her revenge for her father abandoning her in Ukraine after being born. Not even eight-years-old, Vasilisa Romanov Tsarskiy infiltrated the Church of her father and manipulated and brainwashed him. He didn't even recognize his daughter. Perhaps he did not even remember her. This only fueled her wrath even further. Every action she made was to crumble the things he built after she took his life. And the first thing she wanted to crumble was his dear Church and after that, his dear Country.
And from the ashes, Vasilisa's Church and Country would be born.
Completely undermining everything her father had ever done in his life.
She took control of the church, instating her little brother that her father had raised. She ravished and molested her own brother by blood and took control over his own life. He was made the Patriarch by her decision while she crumbled the structure of magicians in her grasp. Lazar and Erica rebelling were planned by design. Vasilisa felt pity that Erica died since she was such a good warrior in battle but what can you do?
Vasilisa owned the Church her father had built. And Vasilisa was the most powerful person politically in the country since she had control over the Patriarch's position through her little brother.
"You hate father that much, sister?"
"Yeah. I do. However, I'm doing this because of my own destructive desire. Did you know that nothing can escape the wrath of a phoenix~?"
"With how much death and destruction you cause, no wonder you have no friends, sister."
"Oh? But I do have a friend. She's quite a cute little Esper, isn't she? My friend Misaka Mikoto."
Many players were wishing to control Russia, but she was Vasilisa Romanov Tsarskiy. She was directly related to the old Patriarch and also… Her ancestors were a family of Tsars that controlled Russia in the 19th century. She was rightfully royalty in Russia. Her little brother was as well but that did not matter. Vasilisa would raze everything to ashes and build a new Russia and a new Church just to spite her father's memory. That's the kind of woman Vasilisa was. A woman that can smile serenely even staring at the end of the world.
Vasilisa Romanov Tsarskiy was the owner of Russia, she wouldn't let anyone dispute this.
X❖X
Boris's wish was realized. He prepared his submachine gun with the bayonet by the end. And then he grabbed another. A dual wield style with two SMGs. Something that he had emulated from Artyom's style of fighting. His friend Slava did similar things. Masters of guns and swords. These three were like this.
Artyom… he was Boris' mentor in life, however, revenge for his son took precedence over the life of Artyom.
"I'm sorry that it had to end like this. Timofey, Artyom, Slava… However my revenge on Sashura is more important, I hope you understand. One day Academy City will crumble too, don't worry. The Esper that killed you will suffer before long."
He picked up a tiny little cross and prayed. For the lives lost.
He stood in St. Petersburg, at the foot of her palace.
Sashura V. Makarova's palace.
The senator who had taken control as the Chairwoman of the Federation Council. The Upper House of the Legislative Branch. She was a woman who looked eternally 20-years-old however was older than 50. She controlled the region of S. Petersburg and had influence over what legislation passed in the country. She was a centrist and a moderate, always compromising and staying in the middle. Not involving herself in conflicts or things that made her tired. However, she was extremely political and loved power and influence. In the same cloth, it could be said that she avoided conflicts entirely. It was stated that she had some degree of influence over Scandinavia but it was small. Only along the borders.
However, Sashura V. Makarova was an evil woman that had kidnapped and murdered his child.
Boris could never forget that.
Earlier this day Bishop Nikolay sent him on a mission to invade and threaten the Chairman of the State Duma the Lower House. He sent soldiers that pointed guns at the old rapist. Daniil A. Korolev was a rapist who used drugs to target beautiful women of less wealthy houses. He raped them while under the influence of drugs and his crimes were spread apart. Often attacking a woman once per year. He had two allegations of rape in court but it was dismissed a long time ago. Not one soul remembered it anymore.
Daniil A. Korolev was also a corporate slave. Doing anything and everything and just drinking the rotten milk from the multinational corporations. Just a little money here and there and he became a cheap prostitute for them. Willing to pass any legislation for them in the Lower House, however Sashura who held control of the Upper House often blocked the most egregious bills.
Boris sent soldiers to his home with pleasure. With guns pointing at the Chairman and his family. Threatening him with old videos depicting him committing rape upon defenseless drugged women. It was great seeing the buffoon cry in fear of the threats. The Chairman folded very quickly. He was just a coward put there by some corporations' interests. He was easy to control and blackmail.
However, now that Boris was at the feet of Sashura's palace. He reminded himself of his mission and revenge. Sashura was not a woman that could be blackmailed. She was a major roadblock for Bishop Nikolai Tolstoy's plan. And that aligned with Boris's revenge. Sashura needed to be removed from the equation. And so Boris personally came here to be the one to end her life.
Wait for me, my son. Papa's going to avenge you now.
Boris had eyes full of revenge and a grim face made from twenty years of waiting. He had betrayed his brother-in-arms and both his mentors for this. He had killed over a thousand men. He was the leader of the military contractor companies in the Country. However this time he would not stand back he would not let up the chance to kill the blyat himself.
Boris prepared his SMGs and with twenty soldiers he headed inside of the palace of evil.
X❖X
They invaded the Palace. it was very opulent in nature and gaudy. it could be considered a Palace fit for a Princess or a Queen with many artworks of the past. Paintings, statues, windows, and tapestry. all around them were expensive items that could be sold at an auction for millions and millions of dollars. This was a Palace fit for the upper class. one of the most powerful political persons in Russia. Sashura V. Makarov. She was the chairwoman of the Russian Federation council. the upper house where senators are elected from every part of Russia. She held the position since 2002 and was thereby elected chairwoman ever since then. She was the one that passed legislation on the country. a woman that notoriously avoided conflict but was very addicted to the political space.
But that woman had a secret.
An open secret to some and a closed secret to the rest.
Nobody talked about it in the open.
It was nothing about sexuality or identity. she did not have a controversy with romantic partners or anything else, the woman was single after all. but that in itself might be a controversy. After all, an unmarried woman in this place was not the biggest controversy.
Being unmarried in a patriarchal country wasn't the reason. That was not the hidden secret of Sashura V. Makarova.
She was a serial killer and kidnapper.
Her victims were children under the age of 10, specifically under the age of 10. She did not target children over that age.
She had killed Boris's baby boy as well.
And that was why Boris was not surprised to see children without clothes and the chains around their feet. And her bedroom. They were changed to the wall. 10 to 15 children all chained to the wall naked as the day they were born. The line of children spooked even the hardest soldier and made them gulp as tensions rose. The room was very luxurious. It had a very large bed with a canopy and silk around it like curtains. There were expensive mirrors all around that showed the tense faces of the assault team along with Boris.
And on one corner of the room was that certain individual they came to hunt.
She was wearing a white dress that served as a pajama. and She was wearing a Russian hat that was quite fluffy. She had on her hand a squishy thing called a human torso. That squishy thing was still alive. It was a child with the hair ripped out from the head. The little girl was bleeding intensely. She picked the little girl with both hands and bashed the body on the wall again and again and again. Each time the soldiers who had their weapons pointed at her and were frozen with tension they would flinch from the noise of the body. the tiny little body of the girl being smashed and bashed and smashed and bashed and bashed again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again…
Until Boris had enough of the macabre show and charged towards the psychotic woman that was there.
However, Boris did not account for one thing. right now that woman was not shown on any mirrors. almost as if she was a vampire.
Sashura turned her head around. The chairwoman of Russia turned her head to stare at them and her eyes were deep red with blood on her white hair.
Boris charged nonetheless and thrust both his SMG's onto her stomach and fired relentlessly. He cut her apart with his bayonets and pierced and impaled her everywhere he could. He even shot despite the child being there and was still alive despite being bashed on the wall, her little torso was grazed by the bullets. He felt that that child could not be saved due to her injuries and apologized for it. But his revenge took precedence. If he could annihilate and kill and destroy this psychotic murderer, then Russia would be better for it. His revenge was aligned with justice. He was righteous, and this action was the correct one.
However, guns and swords did not affect that murderous being, that targeted children under the age of 10.
She threw Boris like some sort of ball across the room as if he didn't weigh 86 kilograms of pure muscle.
"Boris!" His soldiers cried and some caught him. He was bruised but he was fine.
They locked their assault weapons upon the monster that was the Chairwoman of Russia.
However, she just walked towards the wall of jailed children and took centerstage with about 15 children near her feet. They could not fire anymore.
"What are you doing! Fire." Boris said despite the pain. However, the soldiers still hesitated to open fire on children even if it would get rid of the devilish woman.
Sashura smiled at their hesitation.
And the children near her feet cried like abused dogs all of them cried and screamed. As if they had some sort of terrible premonition or knew something was going to happen. They wailed and cried like banshees, stuck to a wall. Trying to run as far away from the monster. Those naked children were so unresponsive before but now they were completely horrified for their life.
"I normally stay at my palace most of the time. During the congress's recess, I rarely step out of my palace. St. Petersburg is the land I have for myself. It has developed into quite the city since 2002 and now rivals Moscow in economic development. That's because this is my dear territory. I am quite the introvert you know. I don't concern myself in searching for conflicts or creating enemies. That's why I mostly go on a path of compromises in the Federation Council. I try to appease both sides of the argument and I am generally well-liked."
"You killed my baby boy you bly—"
She looked and Boris stopped yelling. The children stopped shrieking. The soldiers could not move their bodies, everyone stopped even moving.
Sashura continued her monologue as she looked around with tired eyes on her beautiful face. Her white strands of hair were quite alluring as she continued speaking amongst terrified naked children.
"On most days I spend my time playing party games in anonymity and I quite like them as I play them with my children slaves, they are quite good at video games, better than even old me. I quite like the political scene, but I also like my quiet life. I am reclusive, I just kidnap some children here and there. My target countries are Russia, Sweden, and Norway. But sometimes I like to go to Hungary or Bulgaria for them. I derive joy from torturing and killing them as a hobby and that's what brings me happiness. It did a long time ago and even now I am still not bored. Killing innocent children is wrong but I am not doing any harm."
The soldiers and Boris were frozen by her presence, the children were crawling on the floor away from her.
"I just want to live a peaceful life without too much hassle… So I cannot let you leave this palace of nightmares alive."
Sashura cracked her neck and a wooden hammer appeared on her hand.
A normal wooden hammer.
And then a moon of blood appeared in the sky. The brilliant gold of the palace was replaced with a deep dark sea of blood. The fifteen children were not there anymore. Only the soldiers that accompanied Boris were there.
They had been transported to somewhere where the sea was a deep dark red all around them. The small island they were on had red grass. And the moon was so close to the sky. And there was a waterfall of blood dripping constantly from the moon.
"This can't be real," Boris whispered.
"Th—This must be a dream." A soldier yelled.
It was like they weren't even in their world anymore. They were not in the palace; they were not in any place on Earth. They were in a deep dark nightmarish landscape.
On the small little island were wooden stakes fixed to the ground. They were thick as a tree trunk and as long as a small tree. And impaled on each of them were children and adults. Bodies impaled and fixed in the air by the wooden stakes.
And before the field of impaled bodies was her. Wearing a white dress pajama and a wooden hammer.
Then the soldiers who were in this nightmare pointed the guns at her. They had no more hesitation in what they wanted to do. They fired a barrage of bullets. But the bullets themselves were absorbed by the atmosphere before even landing on her.
She cracked her neck and then raised her hand.
She grasped an imaginary nail.
Both her fingers pinched that imaginary nail, and she prepared the wooden hammer.
She swung the hammer against her index finger and thumb and both her own fingers were hit by a massive force of a hammer that turned them blue in color due to the bruise. She bled and they were broken, bent out of shape, and twitching. She did not even scream as she caused self-harm on her own fingers for no apparent reason.
However, at the same time, a soldier next to them suddenly got impaled by a thick wooden stake. As thick as a tree trunk and as long as a small tree. That stake immediately appeared on the soldier's stomach without any delays.
Without any time for reactions. Almost as if his stomach and a wooden stake were replaced in the fabric of reality. As if the stake teleported inside of him. He was stabbed and thrown back. Then the pointed part of the stake dug to the floor and the soldier was suspended in the air and impaled.
He was impaled just like that. In the middle of all the soldiers and in front of Boris's eyes.
The man who was impaled was still alive. He was suspended so he had to forcefully raise his chest, neck, and head to see what was happening and he saw a massive log in his stomach. His arms tried to grab the log but it was not moving. He was losing strength and his body relaxed again. He raised himself but could not muster any strength to flex. And his blood was leaking and staining the wooden log.
"Th—This must be a mistake. Th—This is a lie right, this is a dream, right? Boris, comrade Boris please." The man who was impaled begged as his blood slowly fell. Boris fell to the deep red grass with a shocked face. The man was not dead and was still well enough to talk. But it was impossible to remove him from that. He was impaled to the ground on a stake. His body was suspended in the air. A human did not have enough strength to get out of that situation.
However, that woman did not relent. She walked and the blood moon behind her illuminated her body. She grasped an invisible nail in the air again with her broken fingers and swung hard with her hammer.
She swung again and again and again. Until her hand was broken and twitching. Her palm bleeding and her fingers black from the abuse. And yet she kept swinging.
And after each swing, another soldier would have his stomach replaced by a log and impaled, left to bleed in the air. Left alive and screaming for help.
There was no salvation here.
Boris cried and ran away. Ran away from the woman who had killed his dear baby boy. Ran away from his feelings of revenge. His body screamed in pure despair as it refused to accept a reality where his righteous justice could not be carried out. His body violently cried about the unfairness of it all. When did assault rifles and trained soldiers become so useless? What was this reality where cruel monsters existed just to toy with people?
The soldiers that were left, ran away with him, each being hit by another stake as time passed.
The only way to run was the blood sea. The dark blood sea.
Their legs were covered by the liquid as they ran through the shallow waters with all their might. There were five, four, three remaining.
And then suddenly, a deep hole in the shallow waters. A deep valley of depth, just like a normal sea. However since this sea consisted of blood, they could not swim very well and were swallowed by it deeply. 10 meters down was the bottom of the sea. They sunk with the weight of the thick liquid and tried swimming up to catch some air.
There was only Boris and one other soldier left. However, something grabbed their legs.
On the bottom of the sea. Something grabbed them and pushed them to the seafloor 10 meters below sea level.
Glowing red eyes and hairy legs. It was two giant spiders, each capturing their prey beneath the blood sea.
Boris struggled as the giant spider crawled over his body. Its jaw was as big as his face. The spider titled its head before its jaws hugged Boris's face and started eating it.
Boris struggled and swung his arms but the spider had hugged his face and its massive body pressed down on him. He could not make a word as the spider chewed his tongue out. And then, the rest of his skull over a few minutes later. And then the rest of his body over a few hours of eating.
Boris had died of asphyxiation while his face was being chewed on.
Lucky him.
The ones above impaled would spend days screaming under a blood moon. As the blood slowly left their body and ran down the wooden stakes.
X❖X
Sashura V. Makarova laughed deeply. Her hand that was previously bruised was now completely healed and pristine.
Then as if a bad dream were over. The landscape turned into a lavish palace once again. But now there were no soldiers. And the only remaining lives were the fifteen naked children chained to the wall. And the one girl she had been bashing against the wall. The soldiers would spend days and days there on the black sea, slowly bleeding to death.
Boris could not avenge his child and Sashura V. Makarova lived to enjoy her quiet life once more. Her tiny little quaint life in St. Petersburg, where children are slaughtered in her palace.
Solitary and quiet. That's the life led by this woman.
A lot of it stemmed from her true nature and her age. As well as the wisdom she gathered from many centuries of living upon this Earth.
She was someone who was commonly referred to as a vampire.
Vampire. Though nobody in this entire Earth knew that fact. Most of them thought that vampires were still myths and she wanted to keep it that way.
Her name Sashura V. Makarova was slightly fake as well.
Her true name was Sashura Vlad Makarova Corvinus. She was the unrecognized daughter of Vlad the Impaler. The one who survived the last vestiges of the family's reign and fled to Hungary back then. She then made her way to Russia back when Tzars still ruled the land and built this palace of evil upon this land where a Saint once stood. And ever since then Miss Corvinus kidnapped the children from the Nordic states.
There was a peculiarity in the last 400 years.
There are usually more than 50,000 missing children annually across Russia and the Nordic states. No one knows why this happens, but it is a big problem. The world recognizes it as a big problem and the rich Nordic states all try their best to combat this statistic, however no matter what they do. They can never go under 50,000 missing children annually. And with tourist children also being kidnapped the Nordic states have a warning to not take your children there if you want to travel. Finland and Sweden are especially problematic regions.
Normally, missing children are a result of family members abducting their own children, sometimes in legal battles, sometimes in divorce situations. Other cases are running away from domestic violence, or maybe running away just as a prank. However, a lot of these children are found.
Both Russia and the Nordic states never find those children.
50,000 kids missing every year to never be found.
And they all go to die in the palace of nightmares.
To this day, Sashura Vlad Makarova Corvinus. Miss Corvinus herself has brutalized and massacred over 20 million children under the age of 10. It was five times the entire population of Academy City. That's the enormous sin placed upon her. However, the little old vampire that survived into the modern age did not care. The vampire did not care for confrontations or things that make life difficult. She did not care about the Esper visiting the country or squabbles in the Church or the Executive branch. She wanted a good life full of enjoyable politicking and a solitary life in her palace with her child slaves. She did not care that an Esper was causing disturbances in the country. The girl was too old for her tastes. Now if the Esper coming here was under the age of ten, then it would be another story.
But the girl named Mikoto was over 14-years of age.
It was 5 years too old for Miss Corvinus to target. She gave a passing glance and forgot all about this whole demonstration business, she didn't care for it and she had returned to her palace the same day after the girl arrived, to avoid any and all annoyances that came with even interacting with Academy City and its people.
The Patriarch who was now 10, unfortunately, was too old for her to target. It was a missed opportunity but what could she do? You can't win them all. Miss Corvinus was nothing but patient. She had lived her quiet good life until this day after all.
Miss Corvinus picked up her brand new smartphone and called the mastermind behind this military operation. Someone in the Church who wanted to threaten her quiet life. The little bishop named Nikolay Tolstoy was likely behind this attack. A tiny little vermin playing the game for adults. Miss Corvinus hated vermin who did not know their place in life. Especially vermin who tried to barge in her quiet life.
"Wh-Why are you calling me, comrade Makarova?"
He was panicking on the other line. He was not expecting her to answer. He thought that some soldiers could kill little ole Miss Corvinus herself. What a complete joke.
"Let's not make theater here, little Bishop. Don't think that some soldiers can kill little old me. You thought that you could replace me with someone else on the Federation Council and take over the legislative branch while the others squabble for the executive branch. But I am not so easy to get rid of."
"Wh—What happened to Boris?"
"Poor little Boris couldn't even avenge his baby boy. How sad~."
"What do you want?"
"Oh, I am easy to please, little Tolstoy. If you want to parley and get me on your side, bring me at least 100 babies 'fresh from the oven', you understand it, right?"
"Yo—You monster!" His gruff old voice called her names. Such cruel names.
"You'll do what I ask, right little Tolstoy? After all, you want to rule Russia, don't you?"
"Grh…" Bishop Nikolai Tolstoy closed the call in frustration but before that, he had given his confirmation that the deal was made.
Miss Corvinus walked and picked up the girl she had been bashing in the wall earlier. She was twitching and still alive with toothless gums and one eye popped out from the socket and one stray bullet on her back from little angry Boris. She was silently crying and pleaded for everything to stop. However, Miss Corvinus had rolled eyes of pleasure and an open jaw. And the naked child was bashed again and again and again and again until the child died.
She then consumed the dead child's soul. A delectable treat once again.
The other fifteen naked children cried and screamed in terror but were chained to the wall of her luxurious bedroom.
There was a simple reason Miss Corvinus targeted children, first was that her sustenance consisted of eating human souls, both her life and immortality were dependent on her feeding on human souls. The second reason was that the older a human was, the nastier their soul becomes. Consuming humans older than ten years old? No. She found the thought unbearable and wretched. After that age, their soul is already soaked by unpalatable sins and misdeeds at that point. She needs them young and pure.
Miss Corvinus admittedly overindulged in her desire, she was addicted to her food and wanted large amounts of it. She binged more in the holidays. Just like humans prepare turkey in thanksgiving. She prepares exquisite murders of hundreds of children on those occasions. A special treat for every holiday always. It's all such a joyous occasion for her.
Miss Corvinus arrived in front of the children and took them by the chains by their neck and led them out from her room like dogs on leashes. They cried as they walked on all fours and she led them with a smug smile.
"Now what shall we do next? Oh, I know! I just bought the new Smash bros game. What about an impromptu tournament? There's a chance for the loser's bracket as well!"
"The winner gets to live until their birthday." Miss Corvinus stated the pros of winning the tournament.
The fifteen children looked at her and nodded. With hopeful eyes. A chance to live longer and not be abused was a blessing.
"The second place gets their eyes removed." The children paled. However Miss Corvinus continued, uncaring. "The third won't need their legs anymore."
"The others will die tonight." They kept trembling on all fours on the big carpet. Some of them even peed out of fear, however the carpet self-cleaned, and no urine was left staining the carpet as the children leaked.
And thus she led them to the Playroom where her modern consoles were situated. Miss Corvinus loved technology. And she loved games especially. Playing games with her child slaves was her favorite pastime.
Only the podium finishers would still be left alive and 2nd place and 3rd place would still get a bad deal from this. However, they could not defy the orders of Miss Corvinus. She was the ruler, and she was the god of this place. There was no one coming to save them. The assault team could do nothing to this monster, and she kept practicing her cruelty. Even now and into the future, she would still be here, living her quiet life. A villain who practiced her evil behind closed doors.
And thus, the deadliest tournament of Smash brothers began in closed doors.
Nobody could hear the children scream outside of this luxurious and empty palace.
Sashura Vlad Makarova Corvinus smiled.
The titular Miss Corvinus was happy.
—A vampire who failed to become a Magic God.
Miss Corvinus would continue to enjoy her quiet life today and tomorrow. Her quiet life would continue while doing the things that made her happy.
Sashura Vlad Makarova Corvinus was the rightful owner of Russia, she wouldn't let anyone dispute this.
X❖X
Now that Mikoto reunited with Vasilisa-san and Krans-san in the monastery, Mikoto took a long bath. The monastery's bath was enormous, filled with black stones all around, and with a pool big enough to swim instead of a normal bathtub. Then there were literal golden tiger sculptures feeding the bath with water. Saying that Misaka quickly dived in she was quite energetic after quite the complicated night. And she frolicked about in the bath. She was quite athletic and had quite a round ass as she swam across the side. She had already cleaned her body with soap on a nearby stool and was quite happy that she could take care of her beautiful hair after quite the incident.
The legend of massaging her breasts to grow bigger. Mikoto wanted to try it. She grasped her own tiny breasts and fondled them a bit as she leaned back, with her head situated on the cool stone. She smiled. Mikoto was now relaxing a bit. She was still far away from her sisters and still quite homesick, but a vacation wasn't that bad after all. Speaking of vacation, Vasilisa and Krans were going to show her around Moscow today. This was quite a beautiful city with small buildings. And quite different from the mega-skyscraper and hyper-skyscraper paradise of Academy City.
"Yahoo, can I come in, I'm coming in. Mikoto~" Vasilisa appeared on the bath. Mikoto looked over her as she undressed from her nun robes. With black transparent lingerie over her buxom body, Vasilisa was quite the curvy woman. With blond hair and very big breasts that jiggled. The underwear was transparent so Mikoto could very well see her pink nipples and blond pubic hair.
Vasilisa entered the bath, showing her long legs. Vasilisa was quite a deal taller than Mikoot and it showed both in her curves and in her presence. Vasilisa swam until she was near Mikoto, she had a smile and then hugged Mikoto like a teddy bear in the bath. "Hey, Vasilisa-san!"
Vasilisa just nuzzled Mikoto with her cheeks. Mikoto felt quite a bit embarrassed by the situation because Vasilisa's breasts and nipples were pressing against her own boobs. And she felt the difference in weight. Vasilisa was quite buxom, and Mikoto was quite flat. Mikoto was meeting too many women with weapons of mass destruction. It was honestly becoming a gag at this point. Honestly, Vasilisa was treating her as a huggable teddy bear at this point. how can this perverted red nun be so likable at the same time, Mikoto had to wonder. Vasilisa was like a fusion of the dorm supervisor and Kuroko, stern and intimidating when needed, and perverted when she could display her inner self.
Despite her antics, Vasilisa was her friend. And quite the understanding one. Vasilisa made this trip bearable for her and she was grateful.
Both Mikoto and Vasilisa took their bath together, to relax after a night of fighting. Unfortunately, they had no chance to get a full night's sleep, it was already early morning, and there were a lot of demos that needed to be done.
Nevertheless, Mikoto rested her head on Vasilisa's shoulder, relying on the older woman as she slept in the bath. Vasilisa just smiled and petted Mikoto's head.
X❖X
The first visit they were able to go to was the Red Square, they passed through the metro area, it was quite a beautiful interior with white walls and golden painting all around. the red square had a lot of pretty gardens and a very distinct architecture, Reminiscent of Vasilisa herself, the red nun. Mikoto wondered how they were related by history. It was quite beautiful, Mikoto was enchanted by Russian architecture. Academy City had such historical buildings. It was quite the new city and the only old buildings you see are in the School Gardens. The School Gardens were more of a thematic park. An imitation of old European architecture to distinguish its landscape. Now that Shokuhou Misaki owned the whole place she was building taller buildings, but still with the same style.
In any case, Vasilisa bought some icecreams for the three of them as they enjoyed the view. And they enjoyed the stay at the gardens overlooking the red square. The ice cream reminded Mikoto of Erica-san and she smiled in remembrance. The fight was just yesterday and she was remembering it as a fond memory as if they fought months ago.
What really dampened their moods was the attention they were getting. Onlookers and paparazzi trying to take the photo of the Esper. Right now Mikoto was allowing them to take photos of her, she was appearing on the cameras. There is no need for them to know that she could control technology.
Mikoto was already used to this kind of attention back in Academy City, this was just one step above. Thankfully, she could just ignore it as background noise.
Then after that, they visited St. Basil's cathedral. A red building with towers with onion-shaped domes. It was quite the sight. It seemed Vasilisa and Krans had a complicated look ats they viewed the building. The Soviet Union had stolen this place from the Church back in the cold war. It now served as a museum and was a state-building and was a UNESCO World Heritage Site. To get the ownership of this cathedral back, there was a lot of bureaucracy that they needed to swim through. Something the old Patriarch had given up upon. This building was a source of conflict in the Church even now. With factions wanting to give up on it, and others wanting to appropriate it for themselves again.
Vasilisa was more utilitarian and did not care much for the building. however Krans cared a lot, he wanted the Church to have this place back, a goal for the future. he was quite stubborn on this point, despite being a kid. Mikoto could understand both of their feelings towards this place.
Their tour continued.
The late morning, she had another demo in Moscow. And after that. They quickly visited the Moscow University at night and had lunch near its premises. Quite the large campus and quite the big school indeed. Vasilisa was looking to study here next. She said that the Prime Minister, Afon-san was also an alumnus of this school. Mikoto was reminded that Vasilisa, despite being so capable and strong, was only 18 years of age. She finished high-school and was ready to study law next semester. Quite the strong center of education and the white building was certainly beautiful, this campus was large and had a lot of good facilities.
However, Academy City had a point over even this.
"Hey, Vasilisa-san, have you heard of mega-skyscraper schools?"
Vasilisa and Krans looked as if she said something alien.
While Tokiwadai was quite large and one of the best schools. It wasn't the biggest.
There were some districts where there were schools inside mega-skyscrapers.
Mega-tall, with their building reaching over 600 meters off the ground. Some universities were like that in Academy City. That city loves tall and wide buildings. So much so that Academy City was the only place with the name 'hyper-skyscrapers', reaching over 1,200 meters off the ground. Academy City loves high buildings so much that it dredged out some old theorized buildings and tried building them.
—District 23, The world's first Space Elevator, Endymion.
—District 4, Biggest Vertical Farm, the X-Seed.
—District 16, Shimitsu's Mega-City Pyramid.
—District 22, Underground Town.
—District 21, The biggest generator of Hydropower, The Water Peak—Still under construction.
—District 23, The Launch Loop—Still under construction.
—District 3, Academy's Tower of Babel—Still under construction.
That's all that Mikoto could remember from the top of her head. Academy City loved infrastructure like no other city in the world did. And that also made some problems for the citizens there. There was too much space and not too many people in Academy City, the city itself was at 23% capacity right now. They were building mega-structures faster than they could fill it with people. Mikoto predicted that the board was going to make big moves in the future to fill the city with outsiders, more than they were doing now. The board of directors had a weird rivalry with Tokyo, and they envied that the metropolitan area had ten times as many people as Academy City did. Academy City was projected to be the densest city in the next 15 years at this point. That's why they focused so much on hyper-skyscrapers. Mikoto could not really imagine it. Imagine that in the future Academy City's population could exceed 100 million inhabitants. And so fast…
Honestly, Mikoto was a bit skeptical, where would they ever find so many people outside in the world, that fitted the criteria? Academy City's population was filled with 4 kinds of people and only those 4 kinds: Students, Teachers, Scientists, and Businessmen. Those four kinds made up the majority of the population, of course, some people did not fit into those categories here and there, but they were in the extreme minority all things considered.
It was a strange thought that plagued Mikoto's mind, it seriously bothered her, where the hell would they find so many people trying to emigrate to Academy City?
The board of directors would not accept anyone without qualification in the city, and it was hard to bring in 100 million children under the age of 9. Teachers needed to have specific qualifications to even apply. So 100 million teachers did not make any sense either. 100 million scientists was also a pipe dream, where would you find so many accomplished and experienced researchers? 100 million businessmen were not needed, there comes a point where there are too many products and those businesses start to fail. Academy City did not need 100 million corporations making a mess of their economy.
No matter which way Mikoto thought, it was too weird. Academy City had births, there were teenage pregnancies, adults were marrying there and there were new babies and children whose only nationality was Academy City's. But the birth rate did not come close to even Germany's, and that was an aging country. With high education and welfare, births in Academy City were extremely rare. It certainly wasn't enough to reach the replacement rate which was why Academy City relied on the migration of highly educated people and children with young minds. This was why Academy City scored 20 points above the highest-scoring IQ-country on average. So the premise of bringing in more than 100 million people in 15 years or less was flawed either way.
Some stray thoughts Mikoto had, have led to a burning mystery. And hse also hadn't forgotten the #4's fate. There were too many dark conspiracies underneath the surface in that damn utopian city. And this was one of them, where the hell would they procure more than 100 million people in the next 15 years?
There were two answers and Mikoto already rationalized both of them. And because of that, today she hated Academy City a bit more than yesterday.
Mikoto was many things, stupid wasn't one of them. And her disgust towards the board of directors only increased.
In any case, Moscow was full of people, very different from yesterday where everything was closed off.
The tour continued into Alexander's garden and Victory park, where Mikoto oversaw the tributes the Russians made to those that fell in the war. The tomb of the unknown soldier and the monuments to millions of Soviets who died in the second great war. Mikoto did not forget the irony that she was paying respects to old Soviet soldiers while she went on a rampage yesterday night and killed more than a hundred Russian soldiers. As well as the Minister of Defense that was universally beloved by the armed forces of this country, Mikoto even cringed a bit that some reporters were taking photos of her when she was paying her tributes to dead soldiers that died way before she was born. Even as psychotic and sadistic as she was, there were still moments that she was able to cringe hard. Russians taking photos of a person who killed Russians in front of a celebrated memorial was a bit too much. It was almost akin to American reporters taking a photoshoot of a terrorist in front of the 9/11 memorial, not cool.
Finally, a visit to Bolshoi Theater and they ate dinner after a great performance. Mikoto was served vodka and she partook in the drink despite being a minor. She was asked frequently to drink alcohol in her demonstrations outside of Academy City, she never refused a drink.
The second world war was a period in history that Mikoto was not very knowledgeable about. But it seemed incredibly important to the Russian people, as well as the European people. A war that encompasses the world, it was a scary thought. And it happened twice and a few decades apart.
The thought of having a third one scared Mikoto a bit even if she never lived through the time period, even a psychotic murderer was scared of the idea of a third great war. To think that the man she killed yesterday wanted to kickstart the third one, Timofey-san. Mikoto killed him purely because of the pleasure of killing people that got in her way, it was not due to a greater cause or anything of the sort. But maybe in a few centuries, she would be celebrated for stopping him.
X❖X
The late-night of the 21st of August, Misaka Mikoto saw the news of a storm circling around the Okinawa Prefecture and its surrounding islands. She was enjoying the evening while talking to Vasilisa-san in the bedroom and she was surprised.
"Hey, Vasilisa-san, didn't your subordinate go to Okinawa?"
"Yes, Sasha went there on a self-imposed mission of some kind. But…"
"Are you worried about her?"
"No, she's my direct subordinate. She's quite the strong girl. She's also quite loyal so she wouldn't betray me… But this storm, it feels strange."
Mikoto felt it was weird as well. 4 million people were stranded and without any communication. Academy City's satellites couldn't pick up anything and they were in the dark about what was happening there.
"I hope your subordinate is doing well despite that."
"Don't worry. Sasha Kreutzev is strong." Vasilisa smiled.
Vasilisa showed her a present.
"I wanted you to wear it but maybe it's a bit too much. I'll still give it to you in the hopes that someday you'll wear it."
Vasilisa left the room with a wink. And on the bed was a cat maid outfit.
The name of the outfit was…
Black Cat Ero Maid.
There were cat ears as well. And it had a butt-plug tail.
Mikoto blushed intensely. She thought of a certain someone while imagining herself in the outfit.
W—Would that idiot be happy if I wear this?
Mikoto went to bed that night with complicated feelings. But she still stored the clothing in her luggage.
X❖X
Mikoto jumped in the bed and looked to the canopy above her. There was a depiction of that prophet guy from 2,000 years ago looking at her. Mikoto put her hand on her face, blocking her eyes, And sighed. She parted her hand and saw him looking at her again. It was just a painting on wood. However, this Jesus Christ guy was definitely staring at her with pity in his eyes. Most paintings of him depicted him with a sad look, and she was just imagining the pity in his eyes.
"Get off your high horse please." She mumbled and turned in the bed, placing the pillow over her head.
Mikoto wasn't about to let a guy that kickstarted a religion she didn't believe in, pity her, of all things.
"You died for the 'sins' of humanity? They weren't at all worth it in my opinion. Though the fact you came back to life was pretty neat." Mikoto mumbled on her bed.
Mikoto went to sleep and dreamed of her sisters cuddling with her.
X❖X
It was the night of the 22nd of August.
Misaka Mikoto had continued doing her demonstration of over seven cities. She would go to two or three cities in a day. She demonstrated in the morning, afternoon, and night. She would also do tourism on those it is along with Krans and Vasilisa.
She enjoyed her frenetic vacation here in Western Russia. It was a wondrous country indeed even if living in Academy City was better. There were so many places and so many people around. However, one curious thing that she witnessed was that this was a pretty homogeneous country just like Japan. and instead of Asians, it was white people. There was no one with black skin. there were a select few Asians around that she saw. There were only white people in Moscow for some reason. Academy city was prized for its multiculturalism and many different kinds of people, ever since she started doing these demonstrations. She was proud that Academy city was more diversified than ever before, so it stuck as something that she noticed but well, she shouldn't judge your country for that. Japan was a notorious homogenous country and some of the older students still acted standoffish with kids from other races back in Academy City.
And finally, on the night of the 22nd of August, there was a party in Moscow. A high society party. Mikoto disliked these sort of gaudy parties and prepared to stay near the pillars. Some came to greet her, and she just gave a passing greeting.
The buffet was good. Free food is good. But she didn't eat much. Ever since this morning. There was a pain in her stomach for some reason. A stinging pain came and went. It could have been her period, but she already had her period this month. Mikoto felt a bit strange.
There were good drinks as well. There was this specific drink she was served. Vermouth was it? Quite flavorful and good. Mikoto often had to drink alcohol and dance in these particular parties so she just kept drinking more and more of this tasteful vermouth.
She was leaning against the wall. Looking a bit dreamy.
When a creep approached and pushed his fat hands against the wall she was in. With his breath full of alcohol in her face. She felt quite disgusted. It was the old Daniil A. Korolev. He was the Chairman of the lower house. The State Duma. He was quite old and fat and seemed drunk and very irritated for some reason.
"Oh, what would I do if I could have a night with you."
What a creep. Mikoto turned her head and stared at him as if he were lower than garbage.
However, a hand appeared and stopped the old creep from doing anything else. It was the tall, good-looking, and smartly dressed Prime Minister.
"I think you had enough comrade Daniil. Please take him to a resting area so he can get his bearings." The Prime Minister ushered a servant, and the servant took the Chairman out of the hall before a scene could happen. Prime Minister Afon P. Sorokin avoided quite the disaster.
"Can you grace me with one dance, my lady?" The Prime Minister got on his knee and kissed the back of her hand, not really, he just kissed the air near her hand, but it was performative.
"We're not in the 19th century you know, Afon-san?" Mikoto looked at him with an unimpressed look.
"I want to talk to you about some things before you depart for Elizalina. Care to accompany me, Mikoto?"
He offered his arm and Mikoto took it with a suspicious look. However, as they danced in the middle of the hall things started getting clearer. This man was warning her about Elizalina. Not the nation but its ruler. The Regent herself Elizalina.
"…There are so many strange things happening in this world so suddenly. The Minister of Defense is missing. Russians are entering a coma and the world is going insane. A fire in Mexico City devastated lives. The biggest earthquake in Indonesia crumbled the country. A terrorist attack in Paris. Refugees from the six wars in the Middle East. Refugees from the fifty-seven wars in Africa including Egypt. Honestly, what is wrong with this August? Despite the world being the way it is. I hope you enjoyed your stay here in Russia."
Prime Minister Afon P. Sorokin was quite the professional man and quite serious about his job. Despite her presence here being a negative factor against the Russian economy, the Prime Minister did not find her displeasing and was even helping her with a few warnings about Elizalina.
"Thank you for giving me this dance. I have another business to attend to. I hope you enjoy the rest of this party."
When it was over, he quickly left the venue.
Quite the busy man the Prime Minister was.
Perhaps she found another interesting person outside of Vasilisa? Another tentative friend in Afon?
When she remembered how she murdered and executed Timofey she felt happiness wash over her. Yes, she had a lot of fun in Russia. Misaka Mikoto was quite content.
Tomorrow she would head to Elizalina Alliance of Independent Nations.
Home of the most disastrous dictator of the 21st century.
X❖X
"Welcome boy."
Afon P. Sorokin, the Prime Minister, walked on an empty patio in the middle of the night. There was verdant forest all around and the concrete patio was full of grass in the cracks. Tonight was a new moon, so it was quite dark.
"I have arrived just as you requested Dryad."
"Have you made your decision then? Will you make the contract with the woodland beasts, boy?"
Afon P. Sorokin was a fake name. The hard-working Prime Minister of 25-years-old had a giant secret.
He was called Edward William Peter Vladimir.
There were so many names in his family tree. Enemies and rivals. Great names and scorned names of the past. His ancestors consisted of Saint Vladimir the Great, who ruled the Kievan Rus and Christianized his people. Canute the Great, the monarch of the Danish Empire of old that dominated England. Edward the Exile, who was off the old Wessex lineage of Royalty of Britain, was slated to be executed while he was a baby but survived despite all odds. Saint Margaret, the Queen of Scotland herself.
To this day Edward carried the blood and dreams of Kings and Queens of old. He had the blood of the Russian Empire, the Danish Empire. Hungary, English, and Scottish kingdoms alike.
All were concentrated on one boy.
And he was born a Saint.
Edward William Peter Vladimir was a Saint. He could crack the Earth and split mountains apart. He was born with the blood of the Son of God. He was born in Russia and saw the wrongs of the land. The decay setting upon this great country and felt that he had to do something. Those born with great power must take responsibility and act. And so he did. At a young age, he was the most important member of the cabinet, and soon he would amass the power to lead this country again.
The dryad sitting on the tree mocked him. "Edward. Edward. Edward. Born with everything he could want. The rightful ruler of Britain. The rightful ruler of the Danes. The rightful ruler of the Russians."
"Russia will go to war before long. I need to pick up the pieces and lead this country to a better future."
Edward wanted to unite the Slavic Nations again. As well as the Nordic countries and the Commonwealth into one giant economic block that would overtake even the US. This was all so he could give his homeland a fighting chance in the world. A chance of recovery and unity under a fair and well balanced economic empire. He had the hopes of his ancestors resting on his shoulders. He had the weight of Russian lives over him. He was born to do this.
"Oh, what else does the baby want? Want some Saint powers to go along with it? Quite a handsome face and tall body as well just for good measure. Oh let's sprinkle in some more lucky events for the poor boy. Edward, born with everything he could ever want. What more does the poor boy want? Hey, say it Mr. Perfect, born with everything." The dryad kept mocking him.
"What do you want to say?"
"Oh no. I'm just pointing out how you are the luckiest boy alive ever since you were born. You were just given everything and nothing went wrong in your life, did it? Oh, people are just wanting to be ruled by you!" she finished her speech on a sarcastic note.
It was true. He had been born with everything. Power, lineage and handsome looks, and more. He was the luckiest baby to ever been born and he was still lucky today.
People might not want to be ruled by him. He might have been overstepping his bounds. But this was truly something he wanted to do. He wasn't looking at the present. He was looking at the future. 50 years from now, what would humanity look like? 100 years from now, what would humanity look like? He wanted to leave a legacy that would last to the ages. And he wanted to give humanity a fighting chance for the 22nd century. Edward always looked at the future instead of the present. However, he was also bound by the past because of his blood.
And the past demanded war.
One day, he would accumulate enough power and influence. One day he would rule over the lands left by his ancestors of old. If that meant destroying the people that currently ruled those lands, then so be it. He would never hurt innocent people; however rulers were not innocent, they were sinful and horrible people.
His major opponents in Russia right now were Vasilisa and Sashura. Both evils needed to go. His major opponents in the world were the British Royal family who did not deserve the throne. The Lady of Versailles ruled over European Union. Elizalina ruled over Central Asia. And Academy City's Board of Directors Chairman Aleister. All these names were trouble.
Edward would not hesitate to hunt down the rulers.
And for that to happen, he would need allies, people that he could confide in, and people that shared in his dreams for the future.
If he had to convince this disrespectful dryad then he would. He was often mocked and envied when his pedigree was revealed. Nobody liked a baby with a silver spoon, and everything was given to him, born as the luckiest man alive. However, he would show it not by words but by actions. That no one worked as hard as he did for his dreams. That despite everything he was still lacking and flawed as anyone else.
Mr. Perfect… huh? I'm still not strong enough, I'm still so far away. But I will still try.
Edward William Peter Vladimir was the rightful leader of Russia, he wouldn't let anyone dispute this.
X❖X
Edward William Peter Vladimir, a Saint. The Prime Minister, who wished to give humanity a fighting chance.
Vasilisa Romanov Tsarskiy, a Phoenix. The red nun, who controlled the Church from the shadows.
Sashura Vlad Makarova Corvinus, a Vampire. The Chairwoman, who failed to become a Magic God.
The battle for the soul of Russia was merely in its prologue.
And as for Misaka Mikoto, she would be leaving this land behind, because this was not her story. She was a stranger caught in an intricate web of Russian politics. She was not obligated to see this conflict to the end.
Her true fight laid somewhere else.
X❖X
Misaka Mikoto was waiting on the border of Elizalina. The southernmost city of Russia was of course Volgograd. Elizalina was a big nation overall, the second biggest country by landmass, only losing to Russia by a few hundred meters squared. Mikoto wasn't knowledgeable about the situation of this place. However, she could tell you this, it was the entirety of Central Asia combined and more.
There were no flights from Russia to Elizalina, Mikoto had the idea of picking up a flight to Germany, then entering the territory through one of its biggest states, Turkey. However, that wasn't an option, because the leader of Elizalina insisted to pick up the Esper at the border of Georgia. There were so many different states with different names that made Mikoto feel dizzy. The pain in her stomach was worsening from yesterday. Honestly, what was wrong with her? Did she eat something bad?
Now she had to wait at the border, however, that wasn't easy. Because the border was a barren land full of verdant forests and rocky deserts. And right at the border was a twenty-meter tall fence, with full openings. A dirt road. That's how badly maintained the border was. There were no patrols, there was no checkpoint. Russia and Elizalnia did not trade with each other, hundreds of kilometers from every city was an empty land full of nothing and a dirt road with a fence on each side. Mikoto knew that the cities of Elizalnia were rich, golden rich cities. Metropolis with bustling commerce. However nothing showed utter disdain for Russia than hundreds of kilometers of nothing.
That's dumb, if the Russians attack through this border, how will they defend? Mikoto's question would be answered much later.
She took a transport to this place, from a village a few hundreds of kilometers up. It was a kind man with a pickup truck. However, he was fearful of even going closer to the border. He left her twenty kilometers from the border with an apology. And she walked the whole way here on dirt roads. Mikoto carried her tiny baggage on wheels. And she sat on the dirt. She watched the rain clouds gather, all she could see was verdant forests, the desert was far from here now. Russia had a lot of deserts, surprisingly. Central Asia would have a lot of them too. Mikoto did not like deserts much, mainly the sand, she did to like sand.
It started to rain, and the cold rain was fridged. Mikoto was supposed to wait here to be picked up. But even now, there were no signs of life. She rested on the ground, not caring that the dirt turned into mud. She kept waiting on the ground, with her eyes open as the frigid rain kept pouring.
After two hours, the rain was gone, Mikoto was still with her eyes open. And she saw signs of life. A bear, typical of these regions. It was walking and sniffing close to her. Its black eyes were shining, it was quite cute. However, it wanted to maul her.
"Hey, you should just leave. I know I am slender and all, but I can kill you very easily, you know. Just go away." Mikoto mumbled to the animal, she was still sitting, with her hands beneath her knees.
However, the black bear was still coming to her. His eyes were round and tiny, they were black, and she could feel no human emotion from them. Bears are quite the psychopaths, aren't they? It started to growl and open its jaws as it approached her.
A gunshot was heard. It was from a pistol with a high caliber. It blasted off the head of the animal. Mikoto was shellshocked. A military jeep drifted on the muddy road and from the back of the jeep. A woman arrived. She had unkempt blond hair, it looked like a jellyfish with how wet the hair was. It was like she had a mop for hair instead of a normal one. Her eyes were blue, yet there were very big bags under them. She wore a platinum coat and had a silver pistol in her hand. She pocketed the smoking pistol on the pockets of her coat, not knowing how dangerous that was.
She kicked the bear's corpse off. And stared at Mikoto, who was still on the floor, looking like a kicked kitten with mud all over her.
"Misaka Mikoto, You are?" Mikoto did a brief introduction. And asked for the name of the woman.
"So you're the little Esper, my name is Elizalina."
"YEAH!" From the jeep, four military types were there. With jackets on top of their gear. And with assault rifles pointed at the air as they celebrated. They chugged vodkas as the radio blasted country music.
"I feigned this whole demonstration on the Elizalina nations to get an Esper here, I don't care about pretty demos or whatever. All I want is your skills. Right now I am your contractor and you are my mercenary."
Elizalina smiled widely and drank her own vodka, chugged the whole bottle, and then threw it in the bear's carcass she had just killed. She killed a member of an almost endangered species and now was literally without care. With no regard to nature.
Elizalina jumped on the back of the jeep. Mikoto was still reeling from the woman's insanely psychotic introduction.
"Now come with us, we got druids to kill." Elizalina smiled with her mouth open again.
"HUH?" Mikoto was completely stumped. This was too much even for her. She needed a few seconds to properly—
"YEAHHHHHHH!" The military types aimed their rifles in the air and shot while celebrating that they would murder someone today. The driver bashed the honker over and over.
She would learn who the most disastrous dicator of the 21st century was. And how that dictator kept her countries in line. Mikoto's wild adventure in Central Asia was just starting.
XX
Review Corner
XX
GlassyHades
I just used randomizer on the names and picked those I liked, don't kill me!
YoLO1992
Part of why I chose to write this fic is I wanted to develop the power system and develop a character. And Mikoto filled that position.
DualEquinox
I am setting up for Mikoto to kill Ladylee, I have no intention of making Ladylee a harem member. Mikoto is not a good person in Old Testament, hell she won't be a good person in New Testament either, only on Genesis will she start playing nice with her antagonists.
CodeTalker69
The next arc is going to be brutal on the emotional side. It will have quite the foreshadowing for later in New Testament as well.
7eddy
Late January is nice? This chapter is immense.
ElDragonZangetsu25
Yeah, that's what happened. Little Kamisato was angsty and wanted an outlet.
Aminadab Brulle
Yeah, I'm sorry about the typos, I will make a sweep of errors later on. And the royal families, yes, there are a lot of descendants, these people claim to be royals because they have the power and drive to dominate a country and are finding any excuse; Being the 'descendant' of a bloodline is the perfect excuse for them. That was completely intentional.
AlLenaLeeWalkerXD
I hope you also liked this chapter.
KaleidEmiya
People worry about the quasi-immortality too much, it's just another tool to torture Mikoto when the scenes in my mind come to fruition. In particular, September 30th will be quite a harsh blow to little Mikoto. As for Mikoto's powers, she's just going up from here. She will develop many interesting powers, and many upgrades to her existing powers. As for GROUP, just you wait for it.
Don't forget to leave your review on the latest chapter if you want questions answered or engagement with the author in the next chapter.
X❖X
Author's notes
X❖X
This chapter was quite dark, but I hope there were enough bright spots to make it better. So we introduced two A.U antagonists, Miss Corvinus, and Saint Edward.
Miss Corvinus was heavily inspired by Kira Yoshikage, and she will be a major antagonist for Mikoto. She is also a vampire who failed to become a Magic God. She could be killed by Deep Blood but no, Aisa won't be involved in Russian affairs. Miss Corvinus is straight-up evil and needs to be dealt with.
The next arc is Angels Fall when Demons Rise. What happens when an archangel and a great demon mess with a set of islands? With another Great Demon hidden in plain sight, just laughing silently.
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