A/N: Here it is, the next chapter. This is not quite as action packed as the tournament chapters we've all grown used to, but it does serve as a bit of a return to normality while still pushing the plot along.
Chapter 31
Were it not for the sound of waves lapping at the nearby shore, Madoka wouldn't have realized she had surfaced. The sky was completely overcast, hiding the thin crescent moon and stars, and only the distant glimmer of her destination's lights illuminated the area. She shivered as she waded ashore, the Silent Zephyrs' shield having done a good job of keeping her dry, but a less than stellar job at keeping the pelagic cold at bay. Then, back on dry land at last, she stowed away her IS suit's shield and from her storage equalizer she deployed her cleanest set of clothes and a long coat, which she changed into.
A moment later, a ping notified her that Squall was attempting to contact her, her superior evidently having been tracking her movements.
"Madoka, it's good to see you've made it here safely. Have you been followed?" Squall asked.
"Not to my knowledge." Madoka replied, clambering up a rocky shoreline towards a line of trees.
"Excellent. I'm already here under the name Stella Magdeline. Yours will be Okabe Minori. I've already told the staff that you are coming, so mention my name and they'll take you to me with no questions asked." Squall replied.
"Is there anything else I should know? In case they ask something?" Madoka asked as she saw the light of streetlamps through gaps in the trees.
"If they ask anything, tell them it is none of their business. They are here to service us and take our money, not to pry. If they are unaware, remind them." Squall replied.
"Understood."
"Good... I'll reserve a private bath for you in the spa, and have a hot meal brought up. We have some things to discuss, but I'd think it best to do so after you're clean and fed."
"Understood... Thank you."
"It's well earned. You did well today. See you soon." Squall replied, before cutting the channel.
So that was Squall's game. Butter her up with luxury, bait her into a honey trap to lower her guard, and then pull out the stick once more. Madoka sighed as she continued to follow the road to the resort. As much as she hated the older blonde, she was at least better than her mother. Madoka idly wondered how Reikou was faring nowadays. It was as if the old hag had ceased to exist after her catatonic body had been loaded onto a submarine for transport back to base. If she was even still alive, she'd probably be a cripple in no shape to enact the tortures she had once inflicted on her sole remaining daughter. Come to think of it, Squall's father had killed off the majority of the Phantom Task ruling council during his coup, and her mother had held a seat on it, meaning she was probably dead. Of course, with her dead, Madoka disowned, and the rest of the main family long gone, the Orimura family's assets would have likely been either picked apart by other families or usurped by the Meusels.
That was one concern gone, at least, and the loss of Orimura family assets would have probably bothered her more had she not been intimately aware of their declining state. She still had Squall to contend with, and while once upon a time not many people would have shrugged at the blonde's death, she was now all but untouchable. Still, while Squall had been vicious in their younger years, she did seem to have mellowed out in the time since then, relatively speaking. She was still a heartless, manipulative bitch who took too much pleasure in her suffering, but she also seemed to have decided that antagonizing subordinates who did as they were told was not a good long-term survival strategy. That meant that with Autumn dead and gone, Madoka just had to keep her head down and do as she was told.
With that in mind, Madoka reached the resort and took a moment to inspect her reflection in the glass door. To her utter lack of surprise, she looked quite bedraggled and filthy. A month on an island with only rain for showers and a small creek for bathing tended to do that to a girl. Her hair had grown out, and not just on top of her head, even her cleanest clothes were filthy from being worn repeatedly and she probably stank like a pig. As she pushed the door open, she wondered just what the people inside would think.
"I'm afraid I will have to ask you to leave. This is not a homeless shelter." Well, there was her answer. She fixed the staff member with as icy a glare as she could muster as she replied.
"I am Okabe Minori, here to meet with Stella Magdeline. For your own sake, I suggest taking me to her immediately." It was remarkable just how quickly the man's expression changed from condescension to trepidation.
"M-My apologies, ma'am. Right this way." That was a relief. She'd half expected Squall to leave her to argue with the staff for a while before coming down to bail her out, but evidently her leader had made good on her word.
"Good." She replied curtly as she allowed the man to lead her to an expansive gilded staircase that spiraled up ten floors through the center of the building. Her bare feet made next to no sound against the mahogany steps as she ascended to the top floor. Once there, the man led her to a pair of expansive double doors marked with a gold number one.
"Madame Magdeline, your guest has arrived." The staff member said in English after knocking. Squall opened the door a moment later, clad in an elegant black dress with a slit leading up past mid thigh.
"Ah, Minori-chan, it's so good to see you! Congratulations on a job well done." Squall greeted her, and Madoka noticed the man beside her stiffen slightly at those words. Suddenly, it clicked. With a disheveled, dirty appearance, a long coat that almost completely obscured her, Squall's comment about a job well done and her IS pilot suit making a noticeable bulge in one of her coat pockets, the man must think of her as some sort of hired assassin or bodyguard.
"It is good to see you again as well, Magdeline-sama. It was no trouble." Madoka replied, bowing her head. Squall smiled, returned the nod, and then turned to the man beside her.
"I believe I had reserved an appointment at the spa for her. Why have you not taken her there?" She asked.
"I... We merely wished to confirm that she was indeed your guest, madame." The man replied, his tone only wavering slightly.
"Then consider it confirmed. Is there anything else?" Squall asked.
"No, madame. I shall take her there at once." The man replied, before turning to Madoka.
"If you would please follow me, Okabe-sama." He said in Japanese. Madoka nodded, before allowing him to lead her back down the stairs. He proceeded to guide her down a side wing on the first floor, before stopping at the very end.
"Magdeline-sama has reserved the gilded room for your personal use for as long as you see fit. A bath has already been prepared for you. Within, you may also browse the various treatments available to you, and once you have bathed you may call for attendants as you desire. Magdeline-sama has already sent down a change of clothing for you as well. Please enjoy your stay here at Moonlit Towers, Okabe-sama." With those words, the man opened the door, revealing an expansive room with gilded mirrors along its walls, filled with scented mist. A steaming bath was located in the room's center, its surface covered in flower petals, while off to the side sat a table holding a light meal carried by porcelain china. The rest of the room was filled with various implements that could only ever be found in a luxury establishment such as this, and Madoka couldn't help but smile as she stepped inside, the door closing behind her. She promptly stripped off her clothes and without hesitation dove into the bath, relishing the feeling of warm, clean water after so long. A honey trap this may have been, but at least the honey tasted good.
After more than an hour of delectable soaking, and even more time spent being waited on by sharply-dressed masseuses and stylists, Madoka finally walked out of the gilded room. She was clad in a perfectly fitted violet yukata, courtesy of Squall, while her hair was now in elaborate twin tails and decorated with silver and sapphire ornaments, also from her cell's leader. A faint smell of lavender surrounded her, and as her slipper-clad feet softly ascended the staircase, she felt like nothing less than royalty. Even after knocking on the door and entering Squall's suite, the smile did not completely leave her face.
As far as accommodations went, it was certainly an upgrade from her old room in her cell's headquarters. A quarter of the suite was dominated by a large bed, complete with dark red curtains. Beside it was a large table, currently laden with food. On the opposite end of the room was a large couch facing a television, which was in turn surrounded by a decently sized library. The last quarter was occupied by a pool table, which had evidently not been touched as the balls remained perfectly arranged. Near the pool table were a pair of doors, one leading to what was presumably the bathroom, while the other led outside to a balcony. This balcony in turn held a dining table and a decently sized hot tub. To her, it may as well have been a palace.
Squall was sitting at the dining table, a clean plate in front of her.
"You look wonderful, Madoka. I trust the spa was to your liking?" She asked.
"It was." Madoka replied, taking a seat across from her.
"Good to hear. Thanks to you, the mission was a success. We have located what we believe to be Code Black's primary base of operations. My father sends you his personal commendation, by the way." Squall continued as Madoka served herself some of the delicious-smelling food and began to eat, relishing the taste of something that wasn't ration bars.
"Thank you." She replied in between bites. Squall gave a small laugh at that.
"I trust the food is to your liking?" She asked.
"It's delicious." Madoka replied.
"Glad to hear." Squall replied, serving herself as well.
Of course, hungry as she was, Madoka still finished well before her superior by virtue of her body not requiring a ridiculous amount of calories to function at optimal capacity. Eventually though, the food was gone and the smile on Madoka's face slowly disappeared. Now was when the other shoe would drop.
Squall too had a frown on her face as she scrutinized her. Finally, she spoke.
"Hmm... I think amethyst or tanzanite would suit you better than sapphire. What do you think?" She asked, gesturing at the large gemstone that glittered in her hair.
"Huh? Oh, I like it as it is, but I wouldn't be against trying others." Madoka replied, caught somewhat flat-footed.
"Then it's settled. I'll commission a few more and have them sent over. You're a princess now, and you ought to look the part!" Squall said decisively as she stood and made her way to the couch. Madoka followed suit.
"What do you mean?" She asked as she sat down beside her commander.
"In light of your recent success, my father has elected to back your claim to the Orimura family's remaining assets, and officially removed your mother from the position of family head. Granted, those assets are rather small after your mother's... Mismanagement of things, but the Orimuras are an old family, and had the council not been dissolved, you would have had a seat." Squall explained.
"W-What? But-" Squall simply smiled at her confusion.
"All this was at my own recommendation. However, your tour of duty as a Phantom Task operative has yet to end. Until then, you will remain a field operative under my command. Once your tour of duty is over though, you will be permitted to detach and create your own operative cell for future deployments, as befitting of your new station." She continued.
Madoka was speechless and fought to keep her face impassive. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined this to be the greeting she would have received. Of course, Squall's sudden change in heart now made sense as well. Where before Madoka had been a mere subordinate, now she was a potentially valuable future ally.
"I... Thank you, Squall." She finally replied. Of course, she hadn't missed the fact that all this had apparently come at Squall's recommendation, and what her leader could give, she could also presumably take away. Nevertheless, the thought of a cell of her own, free from Squall, was a comforting one. She could definitely play ball with her leader for another two and a half years if there was a light at the end of that tunnel.
Squall didn't respond for a long while, so Madoka decided to change the subject.
"With the Code Black base located, what will we do?" She asked.
"Nothing for now. My father advocated for an immediate strike, but our leader overruled him. After thinking about it, I'm inclined to agree with him. To strike at a fortified position immediately without building up our forces would be suicide, and a massive force buildup of the type we needed to overwhelm a base of that size would easily put us on an international radar and have everyone from Beijing to Pearl Harbor sending everything they had against us. No, better to wait until after Coronation takes place then crush them." Squall replied.
"Coronation?" Madoka had naturally heard that word before, and knew that it meant something big. Squall looked at her for a long moment before finally shaking her head.
"I can't tell you much. Suffice to say that it is the past few centuries of effort all coming to fruition. I know more than most on account of my father being so intimately involved with it for so long, but for reasons of operational security even I cannot tell you more than its name and the fact that it is proceeding on schedule." Squall replied. A possible lie, but Madoka nodded all the same.
"Understood. Is there anything else?" She asked.
"Yes, and I think it's something you'd like. You've probably seen by now that our cell is rather undermanned. Well, being as well connected as I am, I had a group of agents hand-picked by my father sent over to replenish our losses. There are six of them in total, three of whom are IS pilots. I have been assured that they are well trained, professional, and well equipped. Rest assured, we won't have to be dealing with psychopathic dregs like Autumn any more. With that said, I need a deputy and you are the best suited for the job. You will continue to serve as my second until such time that you are free to leave my cell."
"Understood." Madoka replied.
"Good. I'll provide you with a full set of dossiers later this week. I expect you to read through them and give me your thoughts."
"Understood."
"On an unrelated note, on account of the tournament having been shortened to well below its expected length, I've taken the liberty of extending our stay here by two weeks. I do hope that won't be too much of an inconvenience." Squall continued. Another lie. Squall had probably just been seduced by the gilded room and delicious meals.
"Understood."
"I have also taken the liberty of expanding your wardrobe and having it brought over here. You will find your new clothes on the left side of the closet over there." Squall pointed to a door that was previously obscured by the bed's curtains.
"Thank you." Madoka replied. Throughout the entirety of the conversation, her face hadn't shifted.
"Is there anything else? Any questions you would like to ask?" Squall asked after a few moments of silence.
It was now or never. Looking away, Madoka asked a simple question.
"Why?"
"Hm?"
"Why are you, of all people, doing this?" Madoka asked. Then, before Squall could respond, she stood and turned back to her.
"The first time we met, you knocked me to the floor, broke my leg, and beat me until I could barely move. The next time, you beat me over the head with my own crutch. Every time I saw you, your sole goal was to make my life as painful and miserable as possible. You would sedate me with chemicals stolen from your father's lab. You set my hair on fire, you scarred me with a knife, once you even poured acid on my face! It was only because my mother was crazy that she'd constantly order my skin repaired and my bones set, so that I'd always look exactly like my precious older sister. Every moment we were together you spent it trying to make my life as miserable as possible, and now you have the nerve to do all this?" Madoka demanded, her face now inches from Squall's own. For once, Squall fought to avoid meeting her gaze.
"I..." Squall made to stand, before collapsing into the couch.
"I've been a terrible human being to you, haven't I?" She asked, eyes fixed on the floor.
"That's an understatement." Madoka growled.
Squall was silent for what felt like an eternity before she finally replied.
"I met your sister when I was two, and she was one... Her mind had developed even faster than my own, and so Reikou had decided that her perfect little daughter should learn her place in the world with a friend by her side. I was to be that friend. Of course, the two of us didn't need any prompting and we quickly became damn near inseparable... We'd sneak off into the ventilation ducts to plan operations to steal sweets from the kitchens, we'd pick flowers in the gardens and weave them into long braids, one time we even stole a sub pod and took it out for a short ride..." Squall's face was stony as she spoke.
"Then, when she was four, her training started and I learned my real purpose. Since Reikou couldn't bring herself to punish her perfect little daughter, I was to be her whipping girl. One morning when I was waiting for her to finish her day's training, two armed men seized me and tied me to a post. I heard Reikou bring Chifuyu out a moment later, and tell her that I would get three lashes for every imperfect repetition of some sword kata. Then, to prove she wasn't lying, she pulled out a whip then and there and went to work." Squall paused to take a breath.
"I can't forget the rest of that day. Every few seconds Reikou would shout 'again!' and if Chifuyu didn't do it perfectly I'd feel the whip tear open my back. I remembered every crack, every searing line of pain across my back... Most of all, I remembered Chifuyu's silence. Not once did she protest. Not once did she do so much as speak on my behalf. I screamed her name again and again, begging her to make it stop, but all I heard back was again, again, again!"
"Chifuyu didn't even bother helping me down when it was finally over. She was gone when they cut me loose, along with her wretched mother. She didn't speak with me for months after that, but that didn't stop Reikou from dragging me in, every damn day and tying me to that same damn post. I fought back once, only for her to snap my legs like twigs. For two years I'd be dragged up to that damn post, and when Reikou became pregnant with you and your brother, I knew my sister, still in her tube, would end up being the same for you." Squall turned around as she spoke, and allowed the straps of her dress to slip off, revealing clean, porcelain skin.
"My back was one thick scar back then. My father did his best, but Reikou forbid him from doing anything more than preventing infection and dulling the pain."
"Then, when I was seven your sister defected, sliced your mother open, took your brother, and didn't even spare me a thought. Your mother went crazy after that... My father finally got the chance to repair my back and Lily... She had the childhood I could have only wished for."
Now Squall turned around again, and looked Madoka in the eye.
"Then, five years later, you were revealed to the world. When I first saw you, I didn't notice the malnutrition, the bruises just beneath your coat, or how you cringed every time your mother reached for you. The only thing I saw was her face, staring back at me as emotionless as ever and I suddenly found myself beside that damn post again." She sighed.
"Only this time I wasn't tied. I... I did to that face what I'd always wanted to. Even if the person behind it was just as wronged by her as me. I tormented you, brutalized you, I made your life hell for years before my sister finally saw what I couldn't. I..." Squall's hands came up to her face and she let out a soft sob.
"In the end, I was just as bad as her, and it took me being alone with you once again to realize it."
Throughout all this, the expression on Madoka's face didn't change.
"Orimura Madoka... For all your life I have been despicable to you. I don't deserve anything but your hatred for all I've done... Is it even possible for you to forgive me?"
It took every ounce of effort Madoka could muster to not deploy the Silent Zephyrs then and there to gut the woman sitting in front of her. It would have been so damn easy. Even Squall's superhuman reflexes couldn't stop an IS at such close range, and the temptation was never more real than it was now. How dare she? How dare she try to buy her with empty gifts after treating her like garbage for months while she was under her command? How dare she tell a sob story, shed some crocodile tears, and then have the unmitigated gall to ask for forgiveness? How dare she bring up her mother, her sister, her brother and even Lily?
Slowly, Madoka fought the urge to kill her commander where she sat. Slowly, she began to think rationally once more. If Squall thought now was a good time to start such a charade, Madoka thought, then why not let her? At the very least, a Squall pretending to play nice was better than one who didn't. With that in mind, Madoka sat down, staring down at the ground. She stayed silent for a long time, letting the tension build before she finally spoke.
"Squall Meusel... I forgive you. For everything that you have done to me in the past." She lied. Squall made to reply, but Madoka continued.
"But I will not forget. I will never forget. Every moment has been etched into my mind, and I will not let those memories die, ever." She finished.
"I... I understand." Squall replied simply. For a few moments they sat there, before Squall tentatively reached over and Madoka, overriding years of hatred and distaste, allowed Squall to pull her into a hug. After allowing a moment to pass, she returned the embrace and soon felt tears falling down and soaking through her yukata. It might have been touching, had she not known that Squall could fake tears as easily as she could fake a smile. They stayed together for a few moments before Madoka let go and stood up from the couch.
"Is there anything else?" Squall asked quietly.
"No." Madoka replied, and Squall nodded.
"I know you've had a long, uncomfortable month so far. You should get some sleep. I should too, for that matter." She said. Madoka nodded at that, before walking over to the bed and slowly slipping out of her yukata. Less than a minute later she had crawled under the curtains and closed her eyes. She heard Squall turn off the lights with a spoken command, and a few moments later Squall slipped in to the opposite side of the bed, maintaining a respectful distance. At least she knew better than to try to be like her sister. Madoka lay awake for a while longer, listening to Squall's soft breathing on the other side of the bed, monitoring her for any possible change or movement that could indicate an attempt at sedation or a simple attack from behind. Eventually though, that same soft breathing ended up lulling her to sleep.
"Hey, Ichika! It's about time! Finally had enough of Nemuro?" Theresa greeted him as he stepped off the monorail.
"The tournament ended, no reason to stay any longer." Ichika replied. His squadron had elected to head back to IS Academy following their loss, Theresa wishing to find and make arrangements for the squadron's weapon shop, as well as make preliminary preparations.
"So we've heard. Congratulations on your victory, Alcott-san." Ayane replied.
"Thank you." Cecilia replied as she stepped off the monorail, her squadron following close behind.
"So, any news regarding those rooms you wanted?" Ichika asked, turning to Theresa.
"Well, as it turns out there was another group that wanted to reserve them and turn them into an on-campus bar and grill." Theresa replied.
"And?"
"After a bit of an argument, we settled on a compromise. They'd get what we'd originally intended to use as a storeroom as their kitchen, and in exchange they'd move most of their seating outdoors and give us all their original dining space save for a wall that they planned to convert into a bar." Theresa explained.
"We could have had a better deal if you'd been willing to give them free guns..." Sakura pointed out.
"As I've said before, what kind of a businesswoman would I be if I started giving away free stuff before the store was even open?" Theresa exclaimed.
"One with a full store that didn't need to share its space with a bar and grill?" Sakura replied.
"Shush, it was a marketing strategy! The food will draw people in, the beer will get them drunk, and then we'll sell them twenty rifles they'll never use!" Theresa replied.
"Wait, they're allowing a full-blown bar on campus?" Houki exclaimed as she stepped off the monorail.
"Alcohol is for third year adults and instructors only, and from what I've heard, the bar is to be operated by a faculty member, not a student." Ayane replied.
"And you think putting that inside a shop that sells IS-grade weaponry is a good idea? Scratch that, you think putting it inside a school where every student has been issued an IS suit is a good idea?" Cecilia asked, arching an eyebrow.
"Well, when you put it like that..." Theresa said.
"It had better be a good idea. You negotiated an entire room away for it." Sakura deadpanned.
"On the contrary, I generously granted them a kitchen in exchange for their drawing in customers!" Theresa replied.
"We'd have had those customers anyway... We're the attraction, not them." Sakura countered.
"But think of all the delicious food we'd have access to while we're minding the store!" Theresa pleaded.
"You mean the food we have to pay them for?" Rei pointed out.
"Anyway, the gist of the matter is that for future negotiations, Theresa is to be kept in a side room, bound and gagged until we've secured a suitable deal." Sakura finished.
"Hey! Ichika, Sakura's being mean!" Theresa pouted.
"Sakura, stop pointing out Theresa's lacking negotiation skills. Theresa, do you mind showing us this room you've supposedly negotiated for us?" Ichika asked.
"The entire squadron's turned against me... Alright fine, follow us. We need you to help set up the display pieces anyway." Theresa replied, turning and walking towards the station exit. Ichika briefly bid farewell to the rest of the girls at the station before following her.
"By the way, did you get that modular ammunition packages done?" Theresa asked.
"Yes." Ichika replied, a bit of embarrassment tinging his voice.
"Shame it wasn't ready in time for our battle." Sakura needled.
"Look, we all make mistakes..." Ichika sighed.
"And you just so happened to give us plenty of guns but nowhere to hold their ammo." Ayane noted.
"To be fair, I did design an upgrade package for the baseline Blank Slate with plenty of ammunition holding space available." Ichika pointed out.
"And what good did that for our upgraded Slates when we didn't have any facilities to modify them?" Ayane asked.
"Not much..." Ichika sighed.
"Still, at least you've got it all ready now." Theresa said as they reached the engineering building. They came in through a side entrance, and Ichika immediately noticed a set of large neon letters lying on their side next to a door, spelling out 'Fox Four Bar, Grill and Armory'.
"That it?" He asked.
"Yeah. The restaurant club finished them earlier today, and had planned to get a staff member to put them up. Anyway, let's come inside... You do have weapons ready for display, right?" Theresa asked.
"Yes. As you requested, I've got enough copies ready." Ichika replied as he entered. One part of the room had been cordoned off for the weapon shop, with a half-assembled counter being in place against the wall while a pair of taped lines led to a pair of double exit doors. The rest of the room had a few tables positioned throughout, as well as another work-in-progress counter against the wall, clearly part of what would eventually become a bar.
"So, let's say that the entire student population of IS Academy were to arrive tomorrow. Would we have enough copies ready for them?" Theresa asked.
"Hmm... I don't think so, but in a day or two we should have enough. It shouldn't be too difficult. With the weapons done, my IS can mass produce them easily enough." Ichika replied, before noticing a set of attachment fixtures on the walls.
"This where you want to display the weapons?" He asked.
"Yes. Will these hold them?" Theresa asked.
"I don't see why they wouldn't." Ichika replied, before deploying his IS.
"Which one do you want there?" He asked.
"I think we planned for the heavy machine gun to be mounted there, right?" Theresa asked.
"I thought we were putting the heavy sniper rifle there." Ayane replied.
"How about this? I'll deploy the weapons, you pick where to mount them." Ichika replied.
"Does that mean we finally get to see them?" Sakura exclaimed, suddenly excited.
"Yes. Is there anywhere in particular I should put them?" Ichika asked.
"Just stack them on that table over there." Ichika shrugged at that, and began deploying weaponry.
Immediately upon deploying the first weapon, which was his heavy thirty-six millimeter cannon, Ichika realized there was a slight problem, specifically that the immense weapon took up the indicated table all on its own. As soon as he let the weapon go, the table also proved to be rather flimsy and collapsed under the weight of the cannon, which weighed around three hundred kilograms unloaded.
"So... Where do I put them now?" Ichika asked, picking the gun back up.
"Just... Just leave them there, we'll move them later." Theresa sighed.
"What's that?" One of the other girls in the room, likely from the group turning the room into an eatery, asked. Ichika quickly gave her the rundown before setting the weapon down and deploying the next.
"I don't think I've seen that one before. It looks like a slimmer version of the one before it." Theresa noted.
"I intended it to be a more marksmanship-focused weapon compared to its brother, which is designed for long duration sustained automatic fire. Same thirty-six by two-twenty-five millimeter ammunition, but I stripped out some of the heat management equipment and lengthened the barrel. It's about a hundred kilograms lighter, and due to it being primarily optimized for short bursts of fire it doesn't require huge ammunition drums and feed equipment to also be attached to your IS to be used to its full potential." Ichika replied, setting the weapon down.
"Out of curiosity, what's it called?" Ayane asked.
"Ah... I haven't really come up with a name yet. Right now those are just Designs 01 and 02." Ichika replied sheepishly.
"Alright, new plan. Time to name the merchandise!" Theresa declared.
"How about we do that after Ichika has had the chance to show them all off?" Rei suggested.
"Alright." Theresa sighed.
"Thank you, Rei." Ichika said, before deploying the next weapon.
"This is Design 03, which is more of a traditional IS rifle. It's chambered in twenty seven by two-twenty millimeter, and is designed to be more of a jack of all trades than the previous weapons. It's light, its ammunition is lighter and it's more compact, allowing for easier storage. Its recoil is smaller as well, making it easier to handle at full auto without requiring supplementary bracing. It sacrifices some range and stopping power for this, but I don't see that as being too much of a problem." He explained, placing it down beside the other two.
"Looks good. In fact, it looks a bit similar to my own rifle." Rei commented.
"I guess I can see the resemblance, but there isn't much, if any, part commonality between the two. For starters, it lacks the supplementary magnetic accelerator your gun has." Ichika replied, before deploying the next weapon.
"Design 04, as you can see, is much smaller than the other ones. This is a forty-three millimeter automatic grenade launcher, designed to be fired one handed at close range. My intention was for it to be a sort of holdout weapon, to empty its magazine at a charging IS at point-blank range and hopefully take it out. It's not much good out past a few hundred meters, but it's small, light, and can be holstered pretty much anywhere." He explained, putting the weapon down beside the rest.
"Looks a bit too small." Sakura commented, walking over and, with some difficulty, hefting the weapon up into her arms.
"Of course it is, otherwise it wouldn't be a very good holdout weapon." Ichika replied.
"Still, seems a bit small. I'm going to have to confiscate it. For... Testing purposes, naturally." Sakura replied, trying and failing to hide the interest in her voice.
"Go ahead, I've got another." Ichika replied, promptly deploying a second such weapon.
"Sakura, don't steal from our own store before it's even ready!" Theresa admonished.
"Just performing a quality assurance check!" Sakura assured, before reluctantly putting down the thankfully unloaded gun. Ichika promptly stowed the second grenade launcher away, and deployed the fifth design instead. This one easily dwarfed all the others, and Ichika was thankful that he had deployed it horizontally, otherwise it would have likely punched a hole in the ceiling.
"This is Design 05. As you can see, it is very big. It is basically a tank cannon designed for mounting on an IS. It weighs in at around one thousand and two hundred kilograms, and fires one hundred and fifteen millimeter shells with built-in proximity fused plasma warheads that I've taken from the Aurora. As some of you already know, it can fire both regular and rocket-boosted ammunition. Smart shells might also be on the table down the line, although at the moment they are not ready." Ichika explained, before laying down the heavy weapon beside the rest.
"Will that thing even fit on a Blank Slate?" One of the observing girls asked.
"It will require some specialized modification. An entire arm will have to be converted into a dedicated mounting, and the second arm will have to support the weapon while firing, but yes it can still fit. I had originally intended to allow it to just be held in the arms like all the others, but that proved impossible." Ichika replied, Sakura nodding as well.
"Is that even possible?" The girl asked.
"I have a standardized template that can do the job for a stock Blank Slate. For one that's already been modified by a third party, it becomes a more difficult problem. Fortunately, I have another weapon that doesn't require an entire arm to be sacrificed for its use." Ichika replied, deploying the next gun.
"Number six here is smaller, lighter, but still very long ranged. It is a seventy millimeter cannon designed to fire unguided, hypersonic rockets. In fact, it actually has an even longer range than number five, even if the difference is rather small. The rockets have proximity fused fragmentation warheads, meaning that direct hits are not necessary to deal damage." He explained.
"Wait, it fires rockets now? I thought it just had regular shells." Theresa said.
"Yes, I deemed the standard shells to be insufficient, meaning that in between this weapon's lower damage and range compared to design five and severely decreased fire rate when compared to designs seven, it really didn't have much of a use. This has made it much more effective." Ichika replied.
"Why can't it just fire missiles?" A girl wearing a stereotypical chef's hat asked.
"Because a missile would require an added-on guidance system, and besides that's what design ten is for." Ichika replied, setting the weapon down and deploying the next before the girl could say anything more.
"Next we have number seven, which is the intermediary between designs two and six. It fires conventional, fifty-five millimeter unguided shells, and is capable of firing in single shot, slow automatic, or rapid three round burst modes. It hits much harder than number two, and has a longer effective range, but fires more slowly and its ammunition weighs significantly more." He said, setting the gun down. No questions came, so he deployed the next.
"As for number eight, it is an IS-scale shotgun intended for prolonged close range battles for those who don't want to mess around with melee weaponry. It can either fire packets of flechettes, similar packets of the grenades fired by Design 04, or a single one hundred and eighteen millimeter bomb. The weapon is semi-automatic, although individual shells may be loaded in through a port in the top of the gun should you wish to fire a different type of round without changing magazines. Just remember to pump the weapon after doing so, otherwise it will continue shooting from the magazine." Ichika explained before setting the short but bulky weapon down beside the others.
"Wow... With this stuff even the regular Blank Slates can become a real threat!" One of the observers exclaimed.
"What's the catch?" Another asked.
"With this one, the catch is a slow fire rate, short range, and the need to carry ammunition both loose and in magazines to quickly swap between them in the field." Ichika replied.
"What about just giving it three magazines and have it be able to select ammunition from each one?" The girl asked.
"Because that would make the gun much heavier, probably very prone to jamming, and a nightmare to reload." Ichika answered before deploying the next weapon.
"Design Nine, meanwhile, is an IS-scale pistol. It fires thirty-three by two-thirty millimeter ammunition, and much like number four is intended to be used as a last resort weapon. Compared to design four it has a longer range and significantly improved accuracy. When combined with its light weight and low ammunition consumption, it can be fit relatively easily into a melee-focused loadout to ensure it is not completely helpless in ranged combat." He said, setting the weapon down. When everyone watching simply nodded, he deployed the final ranged weapon of the bunch.
"Finally, we have design ten. This is a missile launcher capable of taking two different kinds of missile. The first is a fairly standard impulse seeker meant for medium range combat. This one can be fed in via magazine. Alternatively, there is a larger missile that uses networked hyper-sensors to guide the missile to the target. For this to work, at least two IS suits in the squadron must have line of sight to the target, although the shooter does not necessarily have to be one of them. The missile is longer though, meaning that it must be loaded into an empty launcher via the muzzle. By virtue of its size, the networked hyper-sensor missile has a much longer range and has a slightly more powerful warhead as well." He finished, laying the launcher down.
"So that's the ranged portion of the weaponry, unless you've got more surprises up your sleeve." Theresa said.
"Yes. Next up are the melee weapons." Ichika replied, deploying several weapons at once.
"Designs eleven, twelve and fifteen are fairly simple and all similar to each other. They are a machete, glaive and sword/shield combination respectively, all built strong enough that you don't have to worry about them shattering as soon as you slam them into an IS shield. As for the shield on design fifteen, it is a large armor slab that can block bullets and plasma somewhat well, but will probably fall apart under sustained fire. It's mostly intended to parry melee attacks." He said as he set the weapons down one by one. He then deployed two more.
"That leaves designs thirteen and fourteen. Thirteen is a chainsword, nothing too fancy. For those of you who have never used one before, the objective is to hold it against the target's shield for as long as possible and let it grind away. As for fourteen, it's a pneumatically driven spear. When driven into a target an explosive charge goes off, driving the tip harder into the target. It needs to be reloaded after every successful strike for the effect to be repeated, but even without this it can serve well as a spear." He explained.
"Finally, design sixteen is special in that it is a set of specially formed striking surfaces designed to fit over your IS suit's joints to aid it in fisticuffs. Unfortunately it must be directly integrated into the IS, so I can't really deploy an example." He finished, stepping back from the weapon lineup.
"And you made all this? For us?" Chef's-hat girl exclaimed.
"I mean, most of it was originally made when I thought I'd have to equip my squadron myself, but yeah, it's made so that all squadrons can fight on somewhat even footing, regardless of sponsorship status." Ichika replied.
"I..." The girl blushed, looked at the others briefly, before nodding her head.
"Thank you! For this, you and your squadron can eat free here, any time! Even Theresa!" The girl declared.
"Hey!" Theresa exclaimed.
"You did insult her cooking..." Sakura muttered.
"It was a negotiating tactic!" Theresa protested.
"While I'm sure there is a story there, I think now isn't the best time to tell it. Besides, didn't you want to start naming these?" Ichika asked as he stowed his IS away, leaving the guns lined up on the floor.
"I think we have another problem to think about first..." Sakura said.
"What is it?" Ayane asked.
"How the hell are we going to display that thing?" She exclaimed, pointing at Design 05.
"Yeah, that could be a problem... How much did it weigh again?" Theresa asked.
"One thousand, two hundred kilograms, or around one point two metric tons." Rei replied.
"That... Is definitely problematic." Theresa said.
"I can move it, or stow it away if needed. The question is whether or not you have a mounting strong enough to hold it." Ichika pointed out.
"Hmm... What if we use it as a divider between the bar half of the room and the armory half?" The chef-hat girl suggested.
"I don't see why we can't do that." Ichika replied.
"We're still going to need some mountings that can hold it." Theresa pointed out.
"Ah... I can take care of it." Rei piped up.
"Are you sure?" Ichika asked.
"Of course. It's just some mountings that can hold the gun horizontally above the floor. I'm pretty sure I can do it. Besides, I can't let you do all the work, can I?" She replied.
"I'll leave you to it, then. In the meantime, I'll stow it away." The gun vanished a moment later in a flash of light.
"Getting back to names, I think we should decide on a theme first. Any suggestions?" Theresa said.
"Hmm... Animals, perhaps?" Ayane suggested.
"If that's the case, we're calling number five the Elephant. It's big, grey, heavy, and has a long trunk." Sakura replied.
"It probably hits like one too. I have no objections." Theresa added.
"It seems a bit... Docile for a weapon of that size. Elephants aren't exactly known for their ferocity..." Ayane commented.
"On the contrary, drunken, rampaging elephants are a constant menace to villages in Africa and India, and elephants were the ultimate beast of war in ancient times. They stormed across ancient Roman battlefields, trampling legionnaires by the hundred while carrying immense howdahs full of archers and javelinmen on their backs. They are fearsome creatures, and the name of Elephant fits the big gun perfectly! More so than Big Bertha, at least..." Theresa replied.
"Noted." Ayane replied.
"As for number four, I'm thinking Viper. Small, light, but devastating if you get too close." Sakura continued.
"No objections." Theresa replied.
"Same." Ayane added.
"With that being said, I feel like just naming them after animals is a bit... Underwhelming." Theresa continued.
"What do you mean?" Ayane asked.
"I feel like we need something before the animal, so to speak. An alphanumerical designation to make things seem official." The red-haired girl replied.
"I don't get it." Sakura said.
"What I think Theresa means is that if you just call a fighter jet a Raven, it doesn't have the same... Flair as calling it the F-36A Raven." Rei replied.
"Exactly! We need some designation system for these weapons. We can keep their design numbers, but we need a preliminary acronym of some sort. Ichika, do you have any ideas?" Theresa asked.
"Hmm... Let's see, we're making a set of standard weapons for unsponsored students to use at IS Academy so... Standard Academy Weapon? SAW?" He asked.
"Afraid that one's already taken. How about replacing Weapon with Armament? SAA?"
"I don't see why not." Ichika replied.
"Also add an X to the front. Everything is better with an X for Experimental." Theresa continued.
"XSAA. No problem." Ichika shrugged.
"And of course, since you've designed it, you get to put your name on it! So, how does the Orimura XSAA-05A Elephant sound?" Theresa finished.
"I do see the appeal..." Ayane said.
"It sounds quite official. I like it!" Sakura added.
"Then I guess it's settled." Ichika said with finality.
It was late afternoon by the time all the weapons had been named and, with the exception of the Elephant, had been mounted on the room's walls. It was around then that Ichika received a message from Giorgi, who had requested a brief meeting in his office. He bid farewell to his squadron, and promptly set off to meet with his old mentor.
Giorgi's office, like most of those belonging to the newer staff, was located in what had once been arena nine. The structure had been hastily partitioned, an actual concrete floor had been put in and makeshift lighting had been run through it to make it usable in its new role, but construction work was still going on inside.
Fortunately for Giorgi, his office was positioned above the mess in what had once been the announcer's room. Whether through AI-assisted manipulation or through sheer luck, he now had a commanding view of the entire arena and of the office space that now took up its floor, as well as a private room where most of the new hires had to deal with open-air cubicles until construction was finished. With that being said, most new instructors had abandoned the area entirely and had instead claimed other rooms to use as offices until construction had finished.
"Come in!" Giorgi called out as Ichika knocked on the door.
"Good to see you haven't lost your punctuality." He continued as Ichika entered and sat down across from him.
"You drilled it into me hard enough that I would never forget." Ichika replied, accepting the hot cup of tea that his instructor offered.
"Good, good." Giorgi paused, allowing Ichika to take a sip of tea.
"So, now that the tournament is over, what are your thoughts?" He asked. Ichika thought for a moment, before giving his reply.
"First and foremost, it was too long. Even after most of the unsponsored squadrons had forfeited, it took several weeks to finish." He began.
"Yes, that seems to be by far the biggest complaint." Giorgi sighed.
"Furthermore, I feel like the flag didn't really act as the equalizer it was intended to most of the time. If I remember correctly, the purpose of the flag was to allow a disadvantaged squadron to secure victory without having to confront the enemy directly. However, in almost all cases the better squadron was able to reach the flag first. Then there was the issue of the supplementary equipment being offered. Most of it was broken down by the time the second round ended, and what little remained was often more of a hinderance than an advantage. Finally, there was the issue of us having absolutely nothing to do in between matches, especially if we'd been knocked out of the running." Ichika finished.
"I see... Do you have anything positive to say?" Giorgi laughed.
"It was fun." Ichika replied, and the ex-Spetsnaz instructor nodded.
"Good to hear. We're already planning the next tournament after all, and we'd like to make sure it isn't a near-disaster like this last one."
"Is that due to the length or the appearance of the Silent Zephyrs at the end?" Ichika asked.
"Thankfully the former and not the latter. It was a case of students being out of class for too long, runaway operating costs, and a logistical nightmare that we called a power conduit." Giorgi sighed.
"What about the Silent Zephyrs though? Do we have any idea as to why it attacked?" Ichika continued.
"At the moment, no. The attack was almost certainly a diversion, but the intelligence analysts are still wringing their heads in trying to figure out what it was a diversion for. The only Phantom Task operation that we did detect and foil in the time since was an attempt to smuggle what was likely a Golem into the United States, which the CIA ended up taking care of once we gave them advance warning. However, that wouldn't have been affected by our forces in and around our base regardless of the diversion, so that couldn't have been it." Giorgi answered.
"I see." Ichika replied.
"With that out of the way, it's time to talk about what I called you here for, namely the upcoming teambuilding exercise that I'll be leading." Giorgi continued, causing Ichika to raise an eyebrow.
"Oh? Do you need me for something?" He asked.
"More like I need your IS." Giorgi replied.
"What do you need me for?" Ori asked, her avatar shimmering into view.
"One moment." Giorgi pulled up a datapad and turned it on.
"On here, there is a list of various items I want you to construct. Can the Infinite Arsenal do it?" He asked.
"Hmm... Yes, I don't see why not. I can even do you a favor and make the larger objects self-erecting." Ori replied.
"Mind telling me what this is all about?" Ichika asked.
"Afraid not. That would be underhanded and unsporting." Ori replied with a cheeky grin.
"What she means is that you'll see it soon enough, but to see it now would give you an unfair advantage during the exercises." Giorgi added, also smiling.
"Alright, I trust you... But then why didn't you just email me about all this?" Ichika asked.
"Because of the other thing I needed to tell you. Ichika, what do you know about Lily Mallory?" Giorgi's face became serious. Ichika thought for a few moments before replying.
"Hmm... She contacted me in the middle of summer break, asking questions about IS Academy, apparently on a dare from a friend. Having nothing better to do, I responded and we ended up exchanging messages over the summer. Her family lives in Ohio, upper middle-class. Did well academically, and passed the representative candidate selection process for the Blazing Phoenix, although she hasn't supplied me with much details about the selection process or her training." Ichika replied.
"That is not particularly unusual. The US likes to design most of its TIS suits in utmost secrecy, only revealing it when they deem them ready for IS Academy. This is usually because there is some advanced technology that they don't want shared with the world until the Alaska Treaty absolutely demands it, and even then they tend to skirt the line." Giorgi replied.
"What do you mean?" Ichika asked.
"I mean that in the last five years alone, there have been three American IS suits, counting the Blazing Phoenix, that quite literally came out of nowhere. There was the Golden Dawn, which was completely unknown to us until about a month before its debut at IS Academy, and even then we didn't know about its Corona vaporization defense module until Maya's predecessor sent in her analysis after its first match here."
"Golden Dawn? Isn't that-"
"Phantom Task stole it while the student was on vacation during her second year. Poor girl was apparently caught up in the whole affair, disappeared alongside her IS. Next we had the Blazing Phoenix, which again we only began hearing its name about a month ago, and it appears to have been designed by the same company. Once again though, we knew nothing about it until it revealed its teleportation abilities in the tournament. Finally there was the Silver Gospel, which was still undergoing classified testing and was only revealed when it went on an unplanned rampage. Incidentally, Phantom Task also attempted to steal it as you very well know." Giorgi explained.
"Was it designed by the same company as well?" Ichika asked.
"No. Phantom Task just likes American goods, and they are always particularly vulnerable when being moved across the Pacific."
"So what does that have to do with me?" Ichika asked.
"Long story short, some bright guy in Intel decided that it would be for the best for us to acquire teleportation technology, and by far the best source of it is the Blazing Phoenix."
"Can't we just hack into its creating company's computers and steal the information that way?" Ori asked.
"Unfortunately not. Recent events have shown that the US has begun producing AIs of its own. While relatively primitive compared to our own, they pose enough of a danger to ensure that we can no longer operate with impunity throughout American cyberspace. We can still force our way through if needed, but doing so would create problems with the Americans that we don't want to deal with, especially since we rely so much on their navy to help with patrolling the Pacific for Phantom Task activity." Giorgi replied.
"Understood. So where do I come in?" Ichika asked again.
"Long story short, the higher-ups have ordered us to start sizing up Lily for recruitment. They want you to get to get close to her in preparation." Giorgi replied.
"They want me to seduce her?" Ichika exclaimed and Giorgi burst out laughing.
"Oh god, no! Just befriend her, get to know her, and try to figure out her background. If she's anything like the Golden Dawn's pilot, she herself wasn't involved in the intelligence side of her IS suit's design, so cloak and dagger elements are probably going to be minimal." He replied.
"Whew. That's a relief." Ichika sighed, taking a sip of tea.
"How long until we attempt to outright recruit her?" He then asked.
"It won't be as fast as it would have been with your friend, Kanzashi, that's for sure. With her, we had the advantage of a complete profile, her family's unique scenario, and her sister already being one of us. With Lily, we have a few more hoops to jump through, so we definitely wouldn't be recruiting her this year. Intel hasn't deigned to share anything with me, but my guess is that we'll have to make our move sometime during second year, lest Phantom Task make theirs first." Giorgi sighed.
"I see. Is there anything else I need to know?"
"Yes, regarding the upcoming exercises you're both going on. I have taken the liberty of reserving a campground up in the north that is currently closer to the public. Back in the day, it also used to be a training area for Organization field operatives, and the owner is friendly enough to us to offer IS Academy access to it in exchange for a relatively small payment. I've managed to lower that payment even further by offering him some of the items that Ori may have already started working on." Giorgi explained.
"Guilty as charged!" The AI exclaimed.
"Anyway, I will be pairing off the involved squadrons to form groups of ten students."
"Let me guess, my partner will be Lily?" Ichika asked.
"Exactly. Her squadron will be joining yours. Do act appropriately surprised when the moment comes. Ori, spread the word to the other AIs. Don't think I didn't notice what some of your friends pulled during the last tournament. Tell them that Ichika's partner is not to be swapped out under any circumstance." Giorgi ordered.
"Understood." Ichika and Ori chorused.
"That should be all the official stuff out of the way. With that being said, how are you doing, Ichika?" Giorgi asked.
"Well enough. The recent attack has got me a little on edge to be honest, but aside from that everything has been going well." Ichika replied with a smile.
"Your squadron's weapon shop seems to be taking shape as well. Do you know when it will open?"
"It can theoretically operate now, although the shop itself still needs to be fully furnished. There is also the issue of a payment system, which Theresa said she'd set up but I'm not sure if it's ready yet." Ichika replied.
"Sounds good. I think everyone would agree that having more than two thirds of the squadrons here be unable to do anything in combat is far from ideal."
"I agree." Ichika took another sip of tea.
"So are you enjoying your stay here at IS Academy?" Ichika asked.
"It has a way of growing on you, that's for sure. The food is good, the lodgings are great, and if this coming trip is a success, I might end up getting something approaching a guaranteed week-long paid vacation every year. There are worse places to be posted until retirement, that's for sure." Giorgi replied.
"The Organization would let you retire?"
"Of course! They'd be facing a mass mutiny if there was no way out. The Organization owns some nice property in the US and Canada, and retirees who don't already have places of their own to return to will get their pick. I'm thinking a house up in Canada would be a nice place to live once I'm too old to stay here."
"Sounds good. I might visit sometime, if the Organization permits." Ichika said, causing Giorgi to laugh.
"I've still got a good twenty years left in me, and I'm not exactly rushing to leave!" He exclaimed.
The sun was setting by the time Ichika left Giorgi's office. Realizing he hadn't eaten since breakfast, his first stop was the cafeteria. There, he ate a quick dinner before heading back to his room. Naturally, the hole in the wall had yet to be fixed and he quickly slammed the door due to a particularly aggressive seagull currently nesting inside.
With that lesson learned, he returned to the room he shared with Tatenashi, and upon realizing that classes were going to start up the next day, he soon went to sleep.
A/N: I feel like I could have wrapped this chapter up better. I had another scene planned, but shifted it to the next chapter due to me reaching my self-enforced word count limit. Still, I feel like this is a decent enough segue for a return to normality. Next up, I'll have to quickly go through the anime's filler and set up the teambuilding exercises arc, which I feel like I can do in two chapters.
With that out of the way, time for a recap. First, there was the scene with Madoka and Squall. There will be a few follow-ups to this scene, where some more Orimura family history is explored, and the new status quo between these two characters can be established. Squall in particular is in need of actual characterization, and I feel like this is the ideal time to both flesh out my interpretation of her character and give Madoka some much-needed spotlight as well. I do hope I can do so in a satisfactory manner.
The next part of the chapter was devoted to Archer Squadron's weapon store, which primarily served as a way of finally revealing the weapons that Ichika and Ori had been working on over the course of the tournament arc. They are all low energy consumption weaponry that remains fairly effective, although they are hampered by the need to carry around large amounts of heavy ammunition for prolonged engagements. Still, in between the weapons and the IS modifications, it will be enough to make the Naked Slate squadrons combat-viable by the time of the next tournament.
In terms of tournaments, my plan is to have no more than two (not including the Student Council tournament, which will be limited in scope) more tournaments take place in the first year, and neither of them will involve trips off-campus. I most certainly do not want to drag another tournament arc out for more than a year, that's for sure!
Finally, we had the scene with Giorgi at the end. It was rather small, and served primarily to start setting up the aforementioned teambuilding exercises arc. As you may have inferred from the text, Lily will feature somewhat prominently in it as well. I think you will like what I have planned for it, which should be revealed in the next few chapters.