At long last, Season 3 is here. I have surpassed the anime. I hope it exceeds your expectations, because some of you have some unrealistic ideas of my abilities. Actually, some of your ideas are just borderline crazy. But they give me a laugh, so I still love you all. Anyway, I have A LOT of stuff planned this season and are looking forward to trying a bunch of different things. One thing I want to do is move away from some of the more, main stream, characters and break off to some of the less used characters. The Index universe is huge, yet most people focus only on the level 5s. Though, I do that too because it's fun.
Why does everyone think that letter is a love letter from Carissa? Maybe it's a check as payment for his services?
Swoob: I originally started this story after the anime, because I was in the middle of reading the novels. So the time line is all screwed up. Like Worst was introduced long before WW3 so don't try to figure it out lol. As for all your questions, this chapter should answer some. Saiai has competition now though.
Generation Zero: Let's add another couple organizations too to make it a real FFA.
Whwsms: That line is for season five only.
Handsomistic1: Hmm, your questions are interesting. I'm sure some people found out about it, but you might have to wait till next chapter. As for Kuroko and the clones, not sure when I want to put that in and have her reach the breaking point.
general ironox: Acqua is not bound by normal rules.
MrQuestionMark: This guy here….
Guest: Carissa's fate wasn't up for a vote. I have a very sophisticated, overly complicated and convoluted plan for it.
Agent Nine: I know right? As for the ID, you may have to wait a TINY bit longer.
Guest 10032: Don't spoil everything for the others lol. Saten has been developing nicely, with a little prodding from her friends, and there is actually a purpose for all of this. Lessar antics, always fun regardless of what is actually happening.
EpicReads: Wishful thinking indeed.
Anon: Carissa's in her upper 20s. She couldn't be a student, teacher assistant maybe.
Haku Katsuki: There will be a lot more science side this arc, with a little magic sprinkled in.
On a positive note: 1000+ REVIEWS YAY!
Disclaimer: I do not own Toaru Majutsu no Index or any of the characters. Reading this story may cause you to burst out in laughter or yelling at fictional characters. This may cause nearby people to assume you have gone crazy. Please read responsibly.
Their plane had left England at roughly 3pm Saturday afternoon. It was over an eight hours trip, before they finally arrived back in Japan, and then there was another eight or so hour adjustment to make up for the different time zones. To them, it had felt like it was around midnight but, when their plane touched down, the sun was just beginning to rise. Even though most of them had slept at least part of the flight, they were still a little groggy. Daylight savings time is bad enough with a single hour, but this adjustment was giving Touma a massive headache. He was glad it was Sunday morning, so they could rest and recuperate, rather than trying to immediately head back to school. His group were rather subdued, even Lessar, as they exited the plane and made their way into the lobby. They could see one car parked out of the nearby exit. A lone teenager was sitting on the hood, looking through his cellphone, and yawning.
"Looks like he actually arrived on time," Shizuri commented, noticing the young man. "And here I was thinking he would be as useless as ever." She started walking toward him, without explaining who he was to the others. She wasn't the type of person to get all emotional with good byes and she knew she would see Touma soon enough. I'm going to make sure I see him again, regardless of circumstances.
"…He can be reliable when needed…" Rikou said, almost like she was defending him, but her monotonous voice made it difficult to tell.
"He's usually super Hamazura-y," Saiai sighed, shaking her head. No one besides Shizuri's group knew what that meant.
"The point is he is here on time," Frenda said and turned around to Touma. "Basically our ride is here," she said cheerfully. "We'll catch you later. Thanks again for the vacation." She was slightly more hesitant to leave than the others, but she had to follow Shizuri to their next assignment.
"It wasn't a problem," Touma said waving to them. He felt like he had seen the guy picking them up before, but it had been a long time and he couldn't quite remember. "Good luck." He had heard small snippets of Shizuri's conversation with Frenda and the others, and realized they were planning something, probably dangerous. Frenda grinned at him, and Shizuri turned her head slightly, to barely see him out of the corner of her eye. Then she did something surprising and raised her hand in a slight wave, but put it down quickly. Saiai also turned and waved, but her eyes were on Accelerator. Touma watched them load up and leave, when he heard Mikoto sigh with relief from behind him. "What's wrong?" he whispered
"Just glad she's finally gone," Mikoto replied. "She's not very… stable."
"I know what you mean," Touma said, nodding slightly. "But she's not that bad once you get to know her, and her friends are pretty nic…" He felt sweat formed on the back of his neck and his words died out, as Mikoto glared at him.
"Oh," Mikoto whispered back, slightly irritated. "So you like violent girls?"
"What?" Touma said, slightly surprise. "It's not like that." He wasn't sure what he said wrong, but he wanted to deny whatever she thought he had said.
"Not like I care or anything," sniffed Mikoto, and she looked away.
"He's obviously into kind, sophisticated girls," Misaki told her smiling, out of earshot from Touma. "Not tomboys."
"He's not into conniving manipulative girls either," Mikoto pointed out. "So I guess that takes you out."
"I would never," Misaki replied, puffing her cheeks slightly in anger. "You sure have gotten bold lately. The Misaka-san I first met was always so much fun to tease."
"Maybe because I had a reason too," Mikoto answered and the two girls glared daggers at each other.
"There's Yomikawa-san MISAKA shouts as MISAKA points at her to broadcast her arrival!" A black car had pulled up and Aiho stepped out, followed closely by Kikyou. Last Order waved excitedly to them, as they entered the airport. She then ran over and hugged both of them. Worst shook her head, but didn't bother to go over and greet them. When Last Order ran over to hug Kikyou, Aiho walked over to Komoe.
"Hey," she said, grinning, to Komoe. Touma saw she was in her traditional green jersey. "Thanks for chaperoning. I hope these kids weren't too much trouble for you by yourself."
"Not at all," Komoe said. "They were all very well behaved. I mean, there were a few occasional arguments, but it's to be expected. They always went back to being friends in the end."
"Well that's good," Aiho replied. "I was worried a couple of them might have started something." She glanced over at Worst and Accelerator, who glared back. She suddenly grinned. "I also was worried you might have been mistaken as a lost child and get held up until they found your parents."
"Don't joke about that," Komoe cried, tears welling up in her eyes. "That actually happened!" Aiho tried to suppress a laugh, but she couldn't completely hide it.
"Well tell me all about it while we grab a smoke," Aiho said, still unable to hide her grin. She led Komoe toward the airport exit, while Accelerator, Last Order, and Worst grabbed their things.
"Oh yea," Accelerator spoke up, remembering the situation he had set up for some reason. He still wasn't sure why he volunteered. "We need to drop that brat off on the way back." He jabbed his thumb at Lessar. "She's staying at someone else's place and doesn't know the way."
"Wow," Aiho said, stopping in her tracks and looking back at Accelerator. "Doing something nice for a girl?" She walked over and put her arm around him. "Did you finally get yourself a girlfriend?"
"F%^& that," snarled Accelerator. "She's one of the f&$^&# hero's girls." He motioned to Touma with his hand. Lessar took his cue to mean she could jump on Touma's back and wrap her arms around him, which she did immediately.
"Yep," Lessar said grinning, her head right next to Touma's ear. He could feel her breath and then she purposely blew into his ear. "He's going to realize I'm the best girl and then invite me to stay in his room."
"No he's not!" Index and Mikoto said loudly. Misaki was unusually quiet, with a thoughtful look on her face. Her thoughts didn't prevent her hand slowly sliding into her bag though. Since they were now back in Academy City, she had to be more mindful of her actions. Of course, she would act like her normal self in a second, if it meant Touma would be hers.
"Besides," Motoharu added. "Accelerator found a different girlfriend in England."
"No he didn't MISAKA denies loudly." Last Order was particularly adamant about anyone saying that. Worst also hated bringing up the topic, in front of Last Order, because of the flood of emotions she felt from her. If it was just Accelerator, she loved to needle him about it constantly.
"Kamijou-chan," Komoe protested, turning to face him with a stern look on her face. Touma noticed she didn't reply to the information about Accelerator and thought that was kind of unfair. "You are too young for those kinds of activities. You should be…" But she was interrupted by Aiho, who had started pushing her out the door to take a smoke break.
"He's a nice kid," Aiho said grinning. "I'm sure he's not going to do anything he will regret. Besides, kids need to learn from their mistakes, right?"
"But…" Komoe tried to keep protesting, but Aiho wasn't hearing any of it and they left the airport to take a quick smoke before they had to leave. Academy City was really strict with smoking. You could only smoke in designated areas with air purifiers, to prevent anyone else from inhaling second hand smoke. Teachers could do it at their office desks in the school, but they had small personalized air purifiers set up there.
"What kind of bullshit are you sprouting?" Accelerator growled, rounding on Motoharu.
"You were flirting with that girl, Bayloupe, last week right?" Motoharu asked innocently.
"She did say nice things about you," Lessar added grinning. "And she rarely compliments people."
"But I thought Accelerator was a lolic…" Jason started to say, but Accelerator interrupted him
"If you finish that sentence," he said, with his voice full of malice. He was getting annoyed at the others making fun of him. So what if a damn girl likes me. People are always attracted to power. "I'm going to kill you."
"If you threaten me like that," Jason said grinning, but Touma noticed he didn't finish that sentence. "I might have to curse you to protect myself."
"Huh?" Kuroko asked. "When could you curse people?" Is he referring to those sin marks? But he said those were sealed away by the church.
"Jason," Kazari reprimanded him. "You shouldn't use magic like that." She would have said the same thing if Jason was planning to use his ability on someone like that too.
"I like to see you try," Accelerator sneered. He was confident he could handle any curse Jason could conjure. With the experience he had gained fighting magicians in England, he was confident he knew enough to disperse any magical attack aimed at him or, the very least, keep it away long enough to dodge. Though, I doubt he can use anything comparable to Curtana's power. "I bet it's some lame trick you play on the brat there." He pointed toward Kuroko.
"Hey!" she said angrily. "I'm not a brat."
"Of course not," Jason answered, waved his hand dismissively. "I don't use magic on her. I tailor each of my pranks specifically to the individual. I use it on my good friend Touma." Touma coughed when he realized what Jason was talking about.
"Please don't ever do that again," Touma told him. "If you cursed him with that, there's going to be a horrible ending, probably for you. No one should ever see a female Accelerator. I'm getting the shivers just thinking of it. Mikoto eye's widened and she covered her mouth to prevent herself from laughing at the possible outcome. Kuroko looked over at her and frowned slightly.
She knows, Kuroko thought to herself. Onee-sama, why won't you share the joke with me?
Misaki was trying to keep a straight face too, but she also had to cover her mouth, because she couldn't stop the smile forming. This would be really interesting to see, but Touma's right. Accelerator wouldn't take it lying down and who knows how much he would destroy to catch Kagere. Ruiko, Index, Last Order, and Kazari shared confused looks, as none of them knew what the others were talking about. Motoharu was laughing silently, enjoying every moment of their conversation.
"Fine," Jason said, putting his hands behind his head. "I rather not get into a fight with the number one." Accelerator smirked, as if saying no one messes with me. He and Last Order made their way towards Aiho's car to pack their bags, Lessar grudgingly followed, but Worst lagged behind.
"If you need any help pranking him," Worst told Jason. "Let Misaka know." Jason grinned and gave her a thumb up before she headed toward the car. Touma sighed, but knew this issue wasn't settled yet, as Jason gave up way to easily.
"Want to go together?" Touma asked the group, unable to stifle a yawn. "We need to take the same bus anyways."
"Yes," Mikoto nodded. "Komoe-sensei doesn't really need to watch us anymore, now that we are in the city. Let's make sure to say good bye and thank her."
"Can't wait to lie down in my own bed," Ruiko said, stretching. "The hotel rooms were comfortable, but nothing beat's your own bed."
"I miss my bed too," Index chimed in. "I couldn't sleep the same way on a hotel bed. It just didn't feel right."
"I hope we can concentrate tomorrow," Kuroko said. "Even though it's morning, I'm ready to go back to bed."
"Jason, are you able to come with us?" Kazari asked, turning to him. "You said you had to work when we got back."
"I know," Jason groaned. "I had to promise to do a lot this week to get last week off, bunch of tightwads all of them." He looked off into the distance, as Accelerator's group left. "I think I see them, dang. They are punctual." He turned back to Kazari. "Oh, do you and Kuroko have Judgement duties Monday?"
"No," Kazari shook her head. "On Konori-senpai's advice, we requested leave until Tuesday. She said we would probably have jet lag and, after a full day of school, wouldn't be in any condition to participate in Judgement." She yawned slightly, covering her mouth with her hand. "I'm glad we listened to her suggestion. Why do you ask?"
"Well," Jason replied, slowly, before grinning broadly and turning to Kuroko. "It's one of my last free afternoons for a while and someone has a bet to fulfill." Kuroko's eyes widened in surprise and recognition.
"Ah," she cried, grabbing her head. "I completely forgot about that bet."
"I warned you," Mikoto sighed, while face palming. "You brought this on yourself."
"What are you planning to have her do?" Ruiko asked Jason.
"Surprise," Jason said, grinning. "But if you all want to come tomorrow and see, the more the merrier. I figured because she wanted me to dress in an embarrassing costume, I should return the favor." Kuroko glared at him, but didn't say anything, in case he decided to make the bet worse.
"You aren't doing anything too bad right?" Kazari asked him again, and he smiled reassuringly at her.
"Nah, just a little embarrassing."
"Well Aogami has everything," Motoharu said. "So it doesn't have to be perverted at all. It could be though…"
"How did you get him to agree?" Touma asked.
"Promised him a picture," Jason shrugged. "And he agreed instantly." Motoharu and Touma nodded together in instant understanding.
"I don't know if I will be able to go," Misaki spoke up, pouting slightly. "If I can't, will you send me a picture?" Jason nodded and she smiled in thanks. She knew she had a lot of work she had to do to catch up on everything that happened over the last week. She had to hear the news on other cliques and check up on all her 'friends.'
"I can't believe I have to do this," Kuroko moaned and Mikoto patted her on the back.
"I really want to see this now," Ruiko said to Kazari. "Let's go with them tomorrow."
"Okay," Kazari said. "We can support Shirai-san."
"Looks like they are here," Jason mumbled, grabbing his bag and walking to a large black car that had pulled up in front of the airport. He gave Kazari a hug, fist bumped Touma and Motoharu, waved to the others, and left. Touma didn't see even a small glimpse of the other people in the car, as Jason got in.
"Should we go then?" Touma asked, and the others nodded. They left through the main entrance, said good bye to Komoe, and boarded their bus. They were relatively quiet, as all of them were suffering from jet lag and not in the mood to do anything requiring thought or action. Misaki was leaning up against Touma and was on the verge of falling asleep, when he, Motoharu's and Index reached their stop. Mikoto, Misaki, Ruiko, and Kazari waved good bye to them, but Kuroko just gave them a brief nod of her head in acknowledgement. She was obviously worried about what Jason was planning. Touma, Motoharu, and Index had to board another bus, before they finally arrived at their dorm. Motoharu waved them goodbye, before entering his apartment, and Touma and Index entered theirs. Index walked groggily to the bed, swaying the entire way, and fell onto it, without bothering to change out of her nun clothes. Touma yawned again, went into the bathroom, and climbed into the tub he used as a bed. He fell asleep a few minutes later. Because he was so tired, he forgot to lock the door.
"Mmmm," Mikoto mumbled, slowly opening her eyes. She was lying in her own bed, back in the Tokiwadai dorms. She and Kuroko had gotten back and wanted to go to bed, but had to check in with the dorm mistress first to let her know they had returned. Even though they had done nothing wrong, Kuroko and Mikoto had both straightened up at the sight of her, before she told them to relax and marked them in. They had then proceeded straight towards their room and fell asleep in their own beds, without even unpacking. Mikoto laid in bed and stared at the ceiling, knowing she had to unpack, but didn't really want to get up. She glanced over at her clock and saw it was only a little after noon. I guess all I needed was a couple hours of sleep, she thought, when she felt something move in her bed. She instinctively lifted up the sheets and saw Kuroko.
"Onee-sama…" Kuroko mumbled, still half asleep. "Your scent is so nice…" She clamped tighter to Mikoto and snuggled close.
"Kuroko!" Mikoto fumed, and sparked up for a moment. Kuroko fell off of her and onto the floor, smoking slightly. "Will you quit sneaking into my bed? When will you learn?" She got up, stepped over Kuroko's twitching body, and went over to her suitcase. She started unpacking, as Kuroko picked herself up off the floor.
"But you smell so good," Kuroko sighed. "I can't help it. I put up with it during our vacation, to avoid waking Uiharu and Saten-san, but I couldn't resist it any longer. Then you woke me up with your whip of love…" She trailed off, grinning happily. "You must have missed it too."
"You confuse…" Mikoto sighed. "Never mind, you going to unpack or what?" Kuroko nodded and she too started putting away all of her personal belongings. She had a lot more merchandise than Mikoto, because she had a bought a lot of clothing during their trip. Mikoto had a few things, but most of what she liked many considered childish, and she had been aware of Misaki watching her closely during their shopping trips. I know she was looking for a chance to make fun of my taste in clothes. I can't stand her. She reached the gifts she received for her birthday and began putting them away. She put the radio up on her desk and then picked up Touma's music box gift. She held it gingerly for a moment, before putting it on her bedside table. She then reached into her dresser and took a couple small objects to put in the side pocket of the box. Kuroko noticed this and watched with slightly jealous eyes.
"You really like the ape's gift," Kuroko pointed out.
"He put a lot of thought into it," Mikoto replied, not turning around, as her face turned slightly red. "It also is useful and he adjusted it to match my tastes." Though I don't think he understands how adorable Gekota is. He at least knows I like him. She really didn't have any expensive jewelry to store in it, but she did have a couple Gekota straps she had been looking for a storage case for them.
"I put a lot of thought in my gifts too," protested Kuroko.
"I know," Mikoto sighed. "And thank you, but I told you a hundred times I don't have the same interest in clothes as you do. You have rather…" she wanted to be kind, but still make Kuroko understand. Getting angry hasn't helped, so maybe a different approach would work. "bolder… taste in clothes then I like."
"You need to dress more feminine onee-sama," Kuroko admonished. "You are Tokiwadai's ace, and everyone looks up to you. You need to dress in a way to show off your status." She always thought Mikoto looked great in anything, but she had always wanted Mikoto wear more adult style clothes, rather than childish ones, especially in the underwear department.
"I don't want to be treated like some celebrity," Mikoto said, slightly irritated. "That's why I prefer our friends. They treat me like a normal person, even Accelerator isn't all bad. He at least treats me the same as everyone else."
"But I bet you want one person to treat you differently than then others," Kuroko said slowly. She tried to keep her voice as even as she could, but jealousy was still seeping in, which didn't escape Mikoto's notice.
"Yes," Mikoto said, refusing to turn around, and started rummaging around for a new set of clothes. She didn't want to elaborate any further, because she knew Kuroko understood everything with that one word. She stood up and headed to the bathroom. "But enough about me, what about you?"
"What about me?" Kuroko asked, confused at the sudden change in topics.
"How's your relationship with Kagere-san going?" Mikoto asked, laughing slightly, as she shut the bathroom door. She enjoyed the look of shock on Kuroko's face, because it was usually Kuroko who surprised her.
"ONEE-SAMA!" Kuroko cried loudly. "Stop suggesting such a horrible thing."
"You seem oddly defensive," Mikoto's voice came through the door. Kuroko grabbed her head and shook it back and forth, until she finally got a couple inappropriate images out of her head.
That was horrifying, she thought. Only onee-sama can be in those kinds of thoughts. An evil grin appeared on her face, as she heard the water start running on the other side of the door. "I didn't know you were in the feisty mood onee-sama," Kuroko called out and teleported into the bathroom.
"What are…? KUROKO!" Mikoto yelled and a large electric discharge went off, knocking out the power to the floor.
"Thanks Konori-senpai," Kazari said, speaking into her phone. She was standing outside a department store, waiting for Ruiko to finish buying some more paper for school. "I just wanted to let you know we are back in the city. Okay, I will see you Tuesday." She hung up and gazed off into the clear blue sky. After everything that happened, she was glad to be home. Over all, she had a lot of fun during the vacation, seeing the sights, hanging out with her friends, and enjoying tons of delicious sweets unique to England. She sighed, remembering how delicious some truffles were, when she felt a breeze under her skirt. She looked down and her long skirt was falling back into position. A couple kids started whispering and pointing at her, before her face turned bright red. "Stop it Saten-san!" Kazari cried, turning around. No one was behind her, but that didn't deter her. She looked around, until she saw Ruiko peeking out from an ally, fifteen feet away.
"Orange today?" Ruiko asked. "Unusual choice, were you still tired?" They had slept till around noon and then had gone out to get a late lunch, since Ruiko needed some school supplies. When Kazari noticed her, Ruiko walked toward Kazari, carrying a bag of assorted goods.
"Will you please stop flipping my skirt," Kazari asked again, slightly upset and ignoring the color comment. Ruiko had always been into flipping her skirt but, ever since her ability increase, she could do it at a distance and then started doing it more often. During the trip, she had done it at least ten times. "It's really embarrassing."
"But I needed to check to make sure you didn't forget them," Ruiko pointed out, but unable to conceal the look of amusement on her face.
"It's not your job to check," Kazari replied, while turning around and started heading back to their dorm. "Maybe I shouldn't help you with the makeup homework you forgot to do that's due tomorrow."
"No!" Ruiko pleaded, all amusement disappearing from her face instantly, as she followed Kazari. "Please help me finish. It's so cruel of the school to give all their tests the same week before break, and then give extra work for me to complete over our vacation. It's due Monday and I haven't even started it yet."
"I did warn you to do some of it during break," Kazari said, grinning slightly. She knew, in the end, she was going to help Ruiko, no matter what she said, but she was hoping it would stop Ruiko from flipping her skirt as much. Ruiko continued to beg for help, until they reached their dorms, and Kazari finally agreed to assist her. They sat down, around the table in their room, and started working. "Remember, I'm not doing the work for you. I'm just helping you where you have problems."
"Fine," Ruiko grumbled. "I'm desperate and will take what I can get." With Kazari's help, they slowly worked their way through Ruiko's homework. After a couple hours, Ruiko was laying sprawled out on the floor and moaning, while clutching her head in an overdramatic fashion. "I can't take this anymore," she complained. "We have been at this all day, I need a break."
"Come on Saten-san," Kazari said encouragingly, looking up from her laptop. "You only have a little more to do."
"A short break won't hurt," Ruiko pushed. "Maybe we can grab some ice cream." She grinned slightly when Kazari's eyes widened slightly. Got her. "There's the one shop only two blocks away. We could hop over there and back in only a few minutes." She looked into Kazari's eyes and saw her resolve weakening. Just one more push should do it. "Well," Ruiko continued, sitting up. "You might have had too many sweets last week and got sick of them. We probably shouldn't let you eat anymore for a while."
"Let's not get hasty," Kazari denied quickly. "I suppose we could take a short break and get a treat for all the hard work you have done so far. Also, I don't eat that many sweets."
"No," Ruiko said dismissively, sitting up. "You are probably right. We should remain here and continue before we get distracted. Neither of us needs any sweets." Good, it's almost to the point where she is going to want to pressure me into going. Everything was going according to Ruiko's plan.
"You have been working hard," Kazari muttered softly. "I think you deserve a short break, as long as we don't get distracted for too long." She looked down and frowned for a moment. "Give me a minute and we can go." She got up and went to the bathroom, closing the door behind her.
"To easy," Ruiko laughed, leaning back on her arms. "I wonder if there's a way I could get her to finish my homework for…" She fell backwards when she heard Kazari suddenly scream. Ruiko got up, ran to the bathroom door, and threw it open. "Uiharu, what happened?!"
Uiharu looked at Ruiko with a combination of fear and sorrow. "Saten-san…" she replied softly. Kazari pointed to the floor beneath her and Ruiko saw she was standing on a bathroom scale. It dawned on her what Kazari screamed about. She walked over to see how badly the damage was. To Ruiko, Kazari didn't look any different, but the scale said otherwise.
"It's not that bad," Ruiko said, trying to comfort her.
"No it's horrible," Kazari wailed. "And the judgement physical is in less than two weeks."
"You simply have to exercise and not eat sweets anymore," Ruiko pointed out. Because Kazari was her best friend, she forced herself not to laugh at the depressed look Kazari made when Ruiko said that.
Shizuri was milling over several folders of information. When they returned to one of their safe houses, she found a package, from her contact, filled with all the information she would need about their next mission. Frenda was rummaging through the refrigerator, while Saiai and Rikou were watching TV, waiting for Shizuri to finish. There was a fifth person in the room. He was the male with dirty blonde hair that had picked the girls up and brought them to their base. His name was Shiage Hamazura, a level 0 and the former leader of a Skill-Out group. Skill-Out was a terrorist organization made up of low levels, mostly level 0s, who worked together in order for safety and revenge. Because Academy City treated higher levels with greater preference, it was only natural the ones left behind would join together. Shiage was busy surfing through his phone. He was, drafted, into working for ITEM.
Shizuri leaned back in her chair and rubbed her temple. "Damn, we were gone for one week and all hell has broken loose. What the f%^$ were the other groups doing?"
"… What happened Mugino…?" Rikou asked, turning toward Shizuri. Frenda, Saiai, and Shiage turned to listen too.
"First," Shizuri said irritated, throwing one of the folders back on the table. "Over the last week, someone has been breaking into a lot of high security facilities. They seem to be after two things. Ability development research and, this appears to be more important to the people at the top, information on some interesting people. They are nervous and want us to get involved now. One of their security groups has been completely wiped out already. Seriously, why the f#&% would they hire such useless people."
"Any idea who the person is?" Frenda asked. "Or are we basically going in blind?"
"No," Shizuri shook her head. "But I think they do know, based on the information I received."
"Why would they super keep their identity secret?" Saiai said angrily. "We could prepare better if we knew."
"There's probably a reason," Shiage yawned. "But it's probably someone they can't advertise…" He was hit in the head by a remote and fell off his chair. Saiai had thrown it at him. "What was that for?" Shiage demanded, rubbing his head.
"It was a rhetorical question," Saiai said, crossing her arms. "We all know the answer."
"Why are you always a step behind?" Frenda sighed. "Basically, you're so useless. Why can't you be as useful as Kamijou?" Shiage frowned. He never had a chance to meet the famous Touma Kamijou, since Touma had helped ITEM with a previous mission. As he drove the girls back, he heard them talking about the trip and he was pretty jealous of him.
I can't believe he got to see them all in bathing suits, Shiage thought. They treat me like crap most of the time, well except Takitsubo. She's the only one who treats me like a person. Still, you would think being in an all-girl group I would get more sights, but I barely get any. It's mostly just awkward and painful situations. How did it all come to this? He sighed and muttered under his breath. "I use to be the leader of a 100 skill-out members and now I'm an errand boy. When did a level 0's life become so cheap…?"
"Did you say something?" Shizuri asked, glaring at him.
"No, nothing at all."
"That's what I thought," Shizuri said. "Why don't you make yourself useful and go get us refreshments. Frenda has been complaining she's out of her favorite drink."
"Name brand," Frenda told him. "Basically, I won't accept knockoffs."
"Right away," Shiage sighed and left the base. Errand boy again. How did this Kamijou get them to regard him so highly?
Shizuri waited until he left, before speaking to the others. "Now that he is gone, I can tell you about another interesting piece of information. It seems several smaller Skill-Out groups have begun moving strangely. As you know, the higher ups keep them monitored to ensure they don't get out of hand. Well, it seems they found a new rallying point and have begun to start bringing themselves together."
"So what?" Saiai asked. "They are super just a bunch of level 0s? What could they possibly do?"
"Wait," Rikou spoke up. "…Ability development was stolen…"
"Of course," Frenda exclaimed. "Their new leader must be promising to make them all powerful."
"Exactly," Shizuri said, nodding. "But I believe whoever stole the actual research couldn't be a low level, especially not a level 0. Whoever it is probably wants to experiment on themselves, but is too afraid of the consequences. I bet they are a level 4 trying to reach level five."
"So they super just want a bunch of guinea pigs," Saiai said and Shizuri nodded.
"…Why did you wait for Hamazura to leave…?" Rikou inquired.
"He may still have some old acquaintances in Skill-Out," Shizuri explained. "I don't want him to have a change of heart in the middle of the mission. It would be a pain to have to capture another peon."
"… And then Eve left with Adam and the resurrected St. Peter," Jason told Aleister. Jason was standing before Aleister's capsule and had just finished giving an explanation on the events in England. He described his encounter from when Carissa started the coup, to when Eve and Adam left. He did some selective editing, such as skipping the part about him facing Knight Leader and the humorous conversations between the princess and Touma. "But I'm sure you knew all of this. You knew the princess was planning to start a rebellion."
"I did," Aleister confirmed. "But her exact timing was unknown. I have limited sights outside of the city. Regarding the incident, you could not have hoped for a better outcome. Everyone was brought back in one piece, your secrets weren't revealed, and your objective should be moving forward. I am interested in hearing your analysis on the fifth rank Misaki Shokuhou's shift."
Jason frowned. "I wish I had been there personally to get as much information as possible. I consulted with Index about it and it's a pretty interesting case. The drug she took was designed for Rikou Takitsubo and, while both of them were mental type users rather than more physical emission types, it shouldn't have had that kind of effect. The drug gave her concentration a boost in order to allow her to infiltrate into magical defenses. What should have happened next was her body or mind should have started to break down because of the stress. Instead, Telesma started to flow into her from the knights she was controlling and gave her the initial push past level five. It would be similar to Mikoto Misaka's transformation in needing an outside stimulus. Also, Shokuhou's transformation leads to several interest questions."
"Go on," Aleister said.
"Normally," Jason continued. "The laws of magic and science can't work together. I was one of the few exceptions. When an ability user uses magic, the conflicting laws cause their body to destroy itself." He shivered slightly remembering his own experience. "However, when a magician who has learned to refine mana uses an ability, they do not suffer this problem. Shokuhou had absorbed Curtana's Telesma, but did not use magic. Instead, it fortified her body and there were physical changes. Including, changing hair color, wire like fairy wings, and white outer clothes. I'm not sure how to explain this. With many computer programs, an older program can't run a newer format saved file, but a new program can run a saved older format. If you want an older program to run a newer file, you have to format the file to one the older model can understand or it doesn't run correctly." His eyes widened as he slowly formed this reasoning. "Are the abilities developed here designed to create a new overall system? Is this your goal?"
"An interesting comparison," Aleister commented. "But I can't find flaw in your logic based on the information at your disposal. As for my goal, I can just say your goal coexists with mine, so I have no reason to prevent your experiments. But if you delve too far in matters that do not concern you, you may not like what you find." His words were a warning to Jason, and didn't take any explanation. Jason wasn't the kind of person to take that lying down. He needed answers, but he knew now wasn't the right time. After a moment of silence, as the two watched each other, Aleister continued. "Why don't you move on to your observation of the others?"
"Three of the levels fives have shown there is potential to reach the next stage," Jason pointed out. "Each one required a different stimulus though. Accelerator is the only one who can hit the Awakening stage. Misaka and Shokuhou can take the first step into level six, but one requires the Misaka Network, and the other required a drug and an enormous amount of Telesma. Awakening and level 6 may be similar, but they seem like parallel paths… that can reach the same end point?" He took Aleister's silence as a yes and continued. "Normally a level 5 is mentally unstable, which is why they need an anchor."
"You are hardly one to go on about mental stability," Aleister pointed out. "But continue."
"Touma Kamijou," Jason said, smirking slightly. "He is incredibly unusual. It seems like just being around him causes people to change. Even I… never mind, it's not important. I never encountered anyone like him. He made the experiment I wanted to carry out possible. It will be the ultimate perversion of magic and science. If I take Idol Theory and replace the core parts with science, they should be able to coexist, if the traditions and beliefs are correct. It will be the only one of its kind. You obviously know what I am planning and so I know your plan will incorporate it. But I also know you are only interested in the end results, even if the magic part doesn't suit you. I can only think of one ambitious idea that could use it and that would be to create…"
Jason didn't see what happened next. One moment he was talking to Aleister, the next he had been blown away and slammed into the wall. He just managed to have his shadow expand enough to absorb most of the impact from the collision. He still fell to his knees and started coughing up blood. Aleister hadn't moved, and Jason still had no idea how he was hit. "I did warn you," Aleister told him, his tone still not betraying any emotion. "It would be a shame to waste a valuable resource, but everything can be replaced."
"My apologies," coughed Jason, struggling to his feet. His body felt heavy and his bones ached. He didn't normally apologize, but he could tell instantly what would happen if he continued his normal route. "I will refrain from investigating that. If you are interested in my experiment progressing, I need you to do something after the system scan tomorrow. I know one is planned to verify if anyone was altered or had progressed over break. A small change might need to be made."
"If there is evidence her potential has changed," Aleister said. "Then it will be done. Otherwise, everything will stay as it is." He paused for a moment to let his words sink in. "One last thing, you may not be aware of the recent theft of research information. Your research data had been accessed too, but I made sure to move all information you had on the Imagine Breaker."
"If you had time to do that," Jason asked. "Why didn't you remove all the information so the intruder didn't get anything? Unless you wanted them too…"
"The Imagine Breaker information is more valuable than all of the stolen data put together," Aleister said. "I have plans for the Anti-Aim wavelength you found and would prefer it not to fall into the hands of others."
"You certainly are thorough," Jason replied dryly.
"What do you two have to say for yourself?" the Tokiwadai Dorm Supervisor asked, her glasses glinting dangerously. In front of her, Kuroko and Mikoto were standing at attention side by side. Both of them were shaking in terror under her stern gaze. None of the residents of the Tokiwadai dorm could stand up to the might of the Dorm Supervisor and her iron clad view on rules.
"I-it was an unfortunate accident," Kuroko stammered quickly. "It must have been leftover excitement from our vacation. We know we can't use our powers in the dorm."
"An unfortunate accident," she repeated slowly. "I see, if that's the case…" She moved faster than Kuroko could react and appeared behind her. The Dorm Supervisor, in one fluid motion, snapped Kuroko's head to the side, and she fainted. Two nearby girls, who saw what happened, fled. Mikoto's fear doubled at the sight of Kuroko's unconscious body. Kuroko had received this punishment many times, but it's not something you could get out of your head easily, if you saw it firsthand. "Misaka-san," she said slowly, turning to Mikoto. "I wouldn't be able to keep the order in the dorms if I made exceptions for unfortunate accidents, right?"
"Of course not ma'am," Mikoto said quickly, sweat forming on her brow.
"I'm glad you agree with me," the Dorm Supervisor told her, pushing her glasses up. They flashed dangerously again. "You and Shirai-san will spend the afternoon helping the swim team clean the pool. It needs to be ready for summer. Any complaints?"
"No ma'am," Mikoto answered. She felt a wave of relief that she wasn't going to have her neck snapped.
"Then please inform Shirai-san when she wakes up." The Dorm Supervisor turned around and left, leaving Mikoto to drag Shirai back into their room. A short while later, when Kuroko finally woke up, they grabbed their school swimsuits and headed toward the pool.
"I can't believe we have to waste our first day back cleaning the pool," Kuroko wailed. "It was supposed to be a relaxing day before we had to go back to class."
"It was your fault," Mikoto reminder her through gritted teeth. "You jumped at me in the bathroom."
"I was just showing you my admiration," Kuroko said happily. "And you replied with your whip of love." She suddenly looked happier. "Now we get to spend all afternoon together." Mikoto rolled her eyes.
"Hello Misaka-san, Shirai-san," a lofty voice said. "I heard you were back from your vacation. I hope you are doing well." Mikoto and Kuroko stopped and turned to the speaker. The girl's name was Mitsuko Kongou. Her most distinguishing feature was her prominent forehead, which was flanked by two, long, neat fringes of her long black hair. Hey well-endowed figure was prominent, even in the Tokiwadai uniform. She was holding a fan and it was covering part of her face.
"Hello Kongou-san," Mikoto said, smiling. "We just got back from our vacation this morning. How have you been?" She liked Mitsuko as a person, even if she was a little proud, like a stereotypical ojou-sama. They had been through some difficult times protecting a little girl awhile back, and since then had been good friends.
"Hello," Kuroko said, a little stiffly. She kind of viewed Mitsuko as a rival, even though they were technically friends. Mitsuko had opposite traits of Mikoto and, when she acted all high and mighty, it annoyed Kuroko. It also annoyed Kuroko that Mitsuko always appeared to be unaware of everyday things, like finding simple directions from a map. In situations where she wasn't sure what to do, she embellished to truth to keep up her façade. Once Kuroko got past that, she realized Mitsuko was honorable, looks out for her friends, kind to children, and willing to help people in need.
"I just got back yesterday," Mitsuko told them. "I was on vacation in Hawaii and, while I was there, managed to do a little swimsuit modeling. I hope to have the magazine when it is published. I'll show it to you if you like."
"That sounds great," Kuroko said sarcastically, but Mitsuko didn't catch her tone.
"We were on vacation to England," Mikoto told Mitsuko. "We were fortunate to get invited by a friend of ours." Kuroko crossed her arms, but didn't say anything. "We did a lot of sightseeing and enjoyed some time at the beach too."
"Sounds like you all had an enjoyable time," Mitsuko said smiling. "Are you doing anything now? If not, would you like to accompany me this afternoon?"
"We can't," Kuroko said quickly. I'm glad I have an excuse, who knows what she will want to do. "We… were punished by the Dorm Supervisor and have to help clean the pool."
"Oh my," Mitsuko said surprised, tapping her chin with her fan. "What happened?"
"Because of Kuroko," Mikoto sighed. "We used our abilities and she wasn't happy about it."
"I see," Mitsuko said, appearing slightly crestfallen. "Well, I know Wannai and Awatsuki are cleaning the pool too and they will be happy to see you. I wish I could chat longer, but I need to go look for someone. They should be back by now"
"Who?" Kuroko asked, for the first time paying close attention to the conversation.
"Someone who embarrassed me," Mitsuko answered. "I am not going to take that lying down. Good bye Misaka-san, Shirai-san." She waved to them and then left.
"Who do you think she is looking for?" Mikoto asked Kuroko, as they made their way to the pool.
"No idea," Kuroko shrugged. "I bet whoever did it doesn't know what they got themselves into. Kongou-san is persistent and won't give up easily." They can't be all bad if they just embarrassed her.
"You're right," Mikoto nodded. "I actually feel a little bad for them." Both of them laughed and made their way to the pool.
Unknown to Mikoto and Kuroko, Misaki was sitting near a window and was watching them go. She heard of the power outage caused by Mikoto and knew immediately what happened. Shirai is really aggressive when it involves Misaka. She sipped her tea and turned back to the four other girls sitting with her. "It seems that power surge was caused by Misaka-san. She and Shirai-san must have been too excited about finally being back home." Misaki had started talking with her clique about what had been happening in the city, while she had been on vacation.
"We are glad you are back too Queen," the first girl said with purple hair in ringlets said. "I hoped you enjoyed your trip."
"It was quite fun," Misaki said. "We saw England's famous sights and I got to spend a lot of time with someone."
"Oh," a second girl with short brown hair said eagerly. "You didn't say he was coming with you."
"I wanted to keep it quiet until I return," Misaki explained. "I was worried someone might follow me when I left to meet him. He doesn't like to stand out and I try to respect his wishes. Not everyone else would feel the same way though." She sighed.
"Some people have no respect for others," a girl with short black hair and glasses said.
"Who else accompanied you?" the fourth girl with shoulder length blonde hair asked.
"Several of his friends came," Misaki answered. "And, of course, Misaka-san and her friends." She decided to not include Shizuri's group.
"What was your favorite part?" the blonde girl asked.
"Hmm," Misaki said thoughtfully. "There were so many great things during the trip, but I believe meeting the Queen was the most exciting." Of course, she couldn't say anything about the princess's coup. The girl's around her widened their eyes in surprise, and Misaki had to explain, for several minutes, about her thoughts on the Queen. She couldn't tell them anything relating to the magic side, but she told them all about the extravagant castle and the Queen's royal demeanor. After she finished, it was her turn to ask questions. "Anything happen in Academy City during my absence?"
"Actually yes," the glasses girl said. "It was mostly quiet, but we found out a couple research buildings had been broken into. We aren't sure what was the intruder was after or who they were, but we heard the damage was immense. It had to be a high level ability user."
"Interesting," Misaki said thinking quickly. Normally, I wouldn't look too hard into these types of things, but the timing seems rather convenient. Three level 5s were outside the city along with Touma. I suppose I can keep my guard up in case this turns out to be important. Wait… I think Kagere did something with research. I can ask him in a way to avoid attention. "I doubt these break-ins will concern us, but keep an eye out, just in case." The girls nodded.
"Um Queen," the girl with ringlets spoke up. "I have a question."
"Yes?" Misaki replied.
"I know you want to respect his wishes," the girl continued and Misaki knew she was talking about Touma. "But after hearing you talk about him so much, do you think we could meet him once?"
I knew this would happen eventually, Misaki thought, thinking fast. She knew talking about Touma would cause the other girls to be interested in him, even though she had told them several times he didn't like attention. The other girls usually followed Misaki's wishes immediately, but they were still young girls and their curiosity continued to grow. Several times Misaki was debating if she should use her power to stop them from wanting to meet Touma, but she kept avoiding doing so. Touma doesn't like it when people use their powers so frivolously on others. He really has influenced me a lot, but I have never been happier. She knew it was partially her fault for talking about him so much, but she couldn't help it.
"Ok," Misaki finally relented. "I will talk with him and see if he is willing to meet you all." The other girls smiled and looked excited. "Please do not stare at him or make him uncomfortable, he gets embarrassed easily." She figured it was best to let them see him once or at some point someone would follow her to see him. If that happened, they might see something they shouldn't, since Touma got involved in a lot of dangerous situations.
"Yes Queen," the girls said all at once, and then began to whisper excitedly among themselves.
Now, how should I go about getting my prince to agree to this? The rest of her meeting went smoothly and the girls eventually had to leave. Misaki stood up, stretched, and looked out her window, until her phone suddenly range. She looked at the caller ID and frowned. I haven't seen that number in a while. I can't say I'm happy about it though. "Oh my, it has been awhile hasn't it?"
"Yes it has," a cool female voice came from the other end. "I suppose you have an idea why I called." Misaki did, but she wasn't happy about it. "So he can remember you now. I would have contacted you sooner, but certain… situations… required my immediate attention. Then I go and find out you have been rather aggressive lately."
"I have no idea what you mean," Misaki lied, keeping her voice cheerful. A moment later she received a picture and she opened it. Her mouth fell open in shock. "How did you get that?" The picture was her, holding on to Touma, wearing the Spirit Maid outfit in England.
"Let's say someone I am not fond of sent it to me, most likely to annoy me. We had an agreement to stay away from him, as long as he couldn't remember you, but I think I should take my turn now." The phone disconnected before Misaki could reply.
That old hag will never have my prince.
Touma woke up the next morning and glanced at the alarm clock. It was a little after one and he yawned. He was tried and had a slight headache, but he guessed that was part of the jet lag. He tried to get out of the bathtub when he felt something heavy on top of him. He only just realized the door to the bathroom was wide open and then felt something move under his blanket. Did Lessar find my dorm? He lifted the blanket, expecting to see the magician girl, but he got another sight instead.
Index was gripping him tightly and sleeping soundly.
He had been so use to Lessar sneaking into his bed and jumping out at him last week, he completely forgot Index liked to sleep walk into his bed. It was the reason he slept in the bathroom and locked the door. He had been so tired last night, he had forgotten to lock the door. What do I do? Can I put her back in the bed without waking her? He used his arms to pull himself up and out from under Index. He got out of the tub, stretched, and bent down to pick her up. He carried her, princess style to the bed, and set her down gently. He sighed in relief, and wiped the sweat from his brow. I'm safe, he thought to himself and turned around. He took a single step and his foot landed on a loose cushion. The cushion flew forward on the hard wooden floor and Touma slipped, falling backwards onto the bed. He twisted his body in midair to avoid landing on Index, and his body missed her, barely. His head hit the bed right below her feet. The force of his fall shook the bed and woke her up.
"Touma...," Index said sitting up, and rubbing her eyes. "What are you doing?"
"Nothing," Touma said quickly, sitting up. Index looked at his red face, and then down to where his head had been a moment before. Index was in her Walking Church nun outfit, and her lower half was robe like. Which meant, to her, Touma's head was lying on the bed below her robes, like he was trying to look up her skirt. Her eyes flashed dangerously when she realized this, and Touma realized the danger to late. "It's not what it looks like…"
"TOUMA!" Index yelled. "You have given in to your evil desires and need to be punished for your sins."
"Wait!" Touma said, but Index jumped at him, teeth flashing, before he was given a chance to explain. A cry of pain echoed through the dorms, and Motoharu rolled over in his bed, covering his head with his pillow.
It's too early for his antics.
Touma ran out of his dorm as fast as he could. He only had one bite mark in his head because he had told Index he needed to buy food for lunch. Index was torn between wanting food and having to punish Touma to save his soul. During her brief moment of confusion, she loosened her death bite and Touma used the opportunity to escape. As he rushed out, he grabbed a small stack of flyers he received while he was gone. The last thing he heard Index shout was "I want meat!" When Touma was a good distance away, he slowed down and pulled out a sale flyer.
Days not starting off well, he thought. But luckily there are some sales still on today. It looks like there's some beef at a reasonable price. I should make something special to put her in a good mood before I tell her about my memory. It's not really hot yet, so maybe a hot pot to celebrate the end of spring. Touma rushed toward the market to buy the beef before they ran out, and then started gathering the other ingredients. He found a couple good deals on vegetables and was able to splurge a little on the ones that weren't on sale. He shopped quickly, knowing Index was waiting for him, but made sure he took enough time for her to calm down. He headed back to his dorm, arms laden with supplies, and cautiously opened the door. "Index?" he called out.
"I'm here." Index replied as Touma walked in. He looked into his room and saw Index push something under the bed. He didn't see what it was, but was glad Index didn't seem to be upset, though she still appeared a little red. "What are we having?"
"I managed to get everything we need for a hotpot," Touma said grinning, holding up the bags.
"Yay," Index cheered and then looked at him suspiciously. "What's the occasion?"
"No reason," Touma lied. "Think of it as a celebration for returning home."
"Touma," Index said, putting her hands on her hips. "You aren't telling me something important." She looked at him, her glare melting into concern. "If something is bothering you, you can tell me."
"Ah," Touma replied, putting down the bags and rubbing his head. "I do have something important to tell you, but it can wait until after we eat. I'll tell you everything then."
"Okay," Index said nodding. She trusted Touma, but still wondered what was so important. She sat down and watched TV while Touma cooked and, after what felt like forever, Touma called her to eat. She sat down at the table and started to inhale the food. Touma was also enjoying the food, but he had to act quickly to get some of the meat before Index took it all. When they finished, Index sighed and laid down on the floor, happily digesting the delicious meal. Touma was leaning back, looking up at the ceiling and thinking about how he should tell her. Index's voice suddenly broke through his thoughts. "What did you need to tell me?" Her perfect memory didn't allow her to forget.
Touma sighed and looked at her. Her head was tilting slightly to the side in curiosity, and her eyes were watching him closely. "Well," Touma said, rubbing his head. This was a lot harder for him then he had thought, and he had already known it was going to be tough. "It sort of came up during our vacation and someone else found out about a secret I have been keeping to myself." Index curiosity turned to confusion. Touma decided not to say it was Mikoto and Misaki who confronted him. "I realized I had been selfish and I need to tell you the truth."
"What do you mean?"
"Do you remember when I woke up in the hospital and you thought I had forgotten you last summer?" Touma said slowly. Index nodded and when Touma didn't respond immediately, her eyes widened when the truth dawned on her.
"You lied to me," she replied softly.
"I actually lost all my memories that day," Touma told her, he forced his eyes off her and onto the ceiling. For a moment, he saw sadness well up within her normally bright green eyes. With just a small glance, Touma could feel his heart start to break. He couldn't look at her, but continued, knowing if he stopped, he wouldn't be able to start again. "The first time I can remember meeting you was when you entered my hotel room that day, after the doctor left. I had no memories of my life before that." There was only silence, but Touma couldn't tear his eyes away from the ceiling. His body was shivering slightly in anticipation.
"Then why did you lie and stay with me?" Index asked, her voice was deliberately calm, and Touma couldn't read into it.
"I didn't know why at the time," Touma admitted. "But when I was told everything by a note Stiyl and Kanzaki left behind, something deep within my told me I had to. I couldn't stand to see you cry. I can't explain it, but even though my mind couldn't remember you, my heart hurt. I saw the forced smile you gave me and I couldn't go through with the truth. I had to pass it off as a joke." He heard Index move, but he didn't look at her. He stared resolutely at the ceiling. He didn't know what she was going to do. Was she going to cry, get angry, hit him, leave, he didn't know, but he mentally prepared himself for any of the outcomes. What she did next surprised him.
She walked over and embraced him as he sat on the ground.
He glanced down at her. She had knelt down next to him and wrapped her arms around his chest, clutching him tightly. Out of everything he had expected her reaction to be, this was not one of them. "What…?" he asked confused, his voice coming out softer then he meant it to.
"It's okay," Index told him. "I already knew."
It was only five words, but it completely stopped Touma's thought process. He had been so careful to prevent Index from finding out, and now she admitted she already knew. No one except Mikoto and Misaki knew about it, and they both had promised not to tell. Touma trusted both of them with his life, and knew they hadn't told anyone. "H-how?" he croaked.
"I knew from the beginning," Index told him. "I'm not stupid. When I stared into your eyes, I knew you were lying, but…" this time it was her voice that cracked. "When you lied, I saw the old Touma. You pretended to be okay in order to protect my feelings. I couldn't let that piece of you left behind fall in vain. It gave me hope, and I forced myself to treat you exactly the same. You still wanted to stay with me and protect me, not as a guardian or a keeper, but as my friend. Even with your memories gone, you still stayed by me. It was all I ever wanted…." She started to tear up and buried her face in his chest.
Touma wasn't sure what to do in this situation, but his body moved automatically. He wrapped his arms around her and embraced her back. "I will always be your friend Index," he told her. "Regardless of the dangers you get in. I will make sure to bring you back to the normal life we, and our friends, enjoy."
"See," Index said, looking up at him and, for the first time since their conversation started, their eyes met. Touma could see the sadness still in her eyes, but there was now something more. There was happiness and the spark of liveliness he was used to seeing within her. "Touma is still Touma. When you first met me, a strange magician in your city of science, you fed me a delicious meal, even when you were living with almost no food. You took me, a stranger, into your house and protected me when I was in danger. Yet, you asked for nothing in return." Her eyes started to water again. "Everything was really my fault. You fought powerful people for my sake and you lost your very self to save me."
"It's not your fault," Touma said sternly, and she wiped her eyes in surprise. "I was told by the other person, who learned I lost my memory, I was still the same person. If you were in danger now, I would do everything I could to save you. I'm sure the old me would have done the same thing. You didn't force me to do anything, I chose to do it. I don't want you to blame yourself for my memory. I'm your friend and I will always be. Never forget that…" He stopped when large tears started flowing form her eyes. "Index…?"
"Touma!" Index cried and knocked him down on the ground. She hugged him tighter than she ever had before and Touma didn't have the desire to remove her. "I love you so much." Touma's eyes widened, as her words sunk in. He didn't say anything, except pat her slowly on the head. They were lying in that position for several minutes when Index finally raised her head, after she had stopped crying. Her face had turned bright red, which might have been a combination of her tears and embarrassment. She ran over to his bed and hid under the covers, so Touma couldn't see her anymore. Touma slowly stood up, and walked into the kitchen, before sitting down. His dorm room was small, but he had an opportunity to think.
His feelings for Index… were complicated to say the least. He didn't know what kind of relationship they had before he lost his memory, but the way he felt about losing her, made him believe it was important. Spending so much time with her, and her living with him, always made him feel like she was family, much like a younger sister. He actually felt more attraction to other girls, but he knew he couldn't just leave Index behind. I wish I knew how I truly felt before, but aren't I my own person now? It's such a strange feeling to have these feelings that I don't know where they come from. With so much magic around me, souls existing really feel possible. He sighed and looked around, when something caught his eye. He reached over and picked up the envelope on top of the fridge. He had put it up there because he didn't have time to read it, and Index wouldn't check above the fridge. I might as well read it now that I have time. Knight Leader didn't give me any details. He opened it, unfolded the envelope, and quickly read the short letter.
His mouth fell open in shock.
"This will be your new lab," Teitoku told Ricane, as they entered an underground bunker. Ricane looked around at the walls of high tech equipment. He recognized most of them and their purpose but an occasional machine he hadn't seen before. In the middle of the main room, two individuals were sitting at a large table. One of them, a tall adult male with strong facial features, short black hair, and rather solidly built, didn't even look up. His attention was on a large sniper rifle. It looked like he was performing maintenance on it. However, the other person at the table, who was watching the news on a small TV, looked up.
"So this is the infamous Dr. Ricane," she said, looking him up and down. "Kakine has wanted to meet you for a while now." Ricane examined her back and frowned slightly. The girl had to be only around fourteen, but she was quite stunning. Though, it might have been her red showy dress with the open back and jewelry making her look order. Her light wavy hair was tied up on the back of her head. "Are you here to help us?" She laughed before he could respond. "What am I saying, of course you are. I mean, are you here willingly?"
"I am," Ricane confirmed. "I have much to verify with him if he wants my research."
"No one followed you," a young male said from the corner of the room. He was sitting in a reclining chair and was watching about ten monitors simultaneously. He had short black, slightly spikey, hair, but the most unusual thing was the metal goggles he was wearing. They circled his head completely, like Saturn's rings. There were many cables and plugs connecting the goggles to other machines.
"Then let's get to work," Teitoku said, turning to the girl in the dress. "How are things progressing?"
"Perfectly," she replied, grinning. "All I had to do was put out a rumor to a couple Skill-Out groups, that there was a way to raise the levels of weaklings and it spread like wildfire. In a couple days, we can bring them all together, now that we managed to raise a transporter."
"Weaklings are so easy to manipulate," Teitoku laughed. "They will risk their lives for a slim chance of power. We only lost around a dozen people trying to speed up developments." He shrugged, but his face showed he didn't care at all about the sacrifices. "Isn't science just trial and error Dr. Ricane?" Ricane nodded and walked over to one of the machines to examine it. "But all the bugs have to be worked out before I'm willing to use it. Those fools at the top have no idea what they had at their disposal. With all the secrecy and backstabbing each other, they could have combined all the research to actually make something useful."
"I couldn't agree more," Ricane said, without turning around. He had never met Teitoku Kakine before today, but he knew about him. The rank two, level 5, was perhaps one of the most scientifically useful of the level 5s. His ability, Dark Matter, was the most unusual ability. It allowed him to create and control an unknown material. It had been noted that the term "Dark Matter" is not to be confused with true "Dark Matter," which is among the components of the universe. 'Unknown material" here does not mean matter that has not been discovered yet, but matter that did not exist until it was created by Teitoku. The material he creates defies the current Laws of Physics, allowing him to produce 25,000 different types of energy and matter. He can use the substance and shape it in any form he desires. A good portion of Academy City's infrastructure used energy he created. With his power, it makes getting any equipment I need viable now. However, Teitoku had the same issue many of the other level f5s had.
Teitoku was not mentally stable.
As a side effect for raising an ability up to level 5, an individual's brain was manipulated to allow their Personal Realities to manifest. This caused mental instability to be prevalent in the higher level ability users. The Railgun was the most stable of them, with the Number 7 being a close second. The rest of them demonstrate more sociopathic or psychopathic tendencies, with the willingness to hurt others. A while ago, there were signs Mental Out had begun to change, but the research on that had been stopped. It was hypothesized, if there was a way for the level 5s to be stabilized, their abilities would grow with even greater potential then they did now. Ricane had observed several of the level 5s and didn't believe they could be controlled like that.
I have access to everything I need, Ricane thought to himself. And he will create anything I am missing. As long as I am careful, this might work. Getting Kakine to be able to use magic will be a difficult, but most interesting, challenge. My last specimen was unique, but he managed it all on his own. I suppose we have to have Kakine alter his body in a way to allow magic and science to coexist. His ability is too far developed to have them grow side by side. Ricane smirked to himself as he started planning.
On a tall skyscraper, overlooking a certain windowless building, three people were sitting down. Eve was munching on an apple, while Juliet was standing up with her arms crossed. "Why did we have to bring him?" she asked, flipping her long brown hair out of her face. The wind at the altitude was causing her hair to blow around and it was making her irritable. The person she was referring to was the man sitting on the roof behind them, leaning against a door to the stairs that lead into the building. It was impossible to determine his age or appearance, as his entire body was covered by black clothing with gloves, so not a single shred of skin was visible. His head was covered by a large hood, so even his face was hidden. However, there were two soft red glows from his face, as he turned to look at Juliet.
"Because," Eve explained. "Adam took Caesar to the most God forsaken place on earth to prepare for the next stage. Our job is to acquire the last wing. The problem is it is in a difficult place to locate and will take some time to enter, since the area doesn't exist."
"Wait," Juliet said, turning to Eve. "What?"
"So we might be here awhile," Eve continued, as if not interrupted. "And as HE is here, we will probably need some muscle. After all," Eve suddenly got an innocent look on her face. "We would be two young attractive girls, alone in the city without any adult supervision. Who knows what could happen to us." Juliet face palmed.
"We have company," the man said calmly, but he didn't even look around. His voice was cool and calm, but sent a shiver down Juliet's spine. However, Eve and Juliet looked around at his words. Jumping over the edge of the roof were two power suits. Both of them were heavily armed with rifles and, as they raised their guns, it was obvious they weren't here to chat. "There are no living beings in there," the man continued, seemingly unperturbed by their sudden appearance.
"Perfect," Eve said and held out her hand. A purple glow appeared and the machines stopped in their tracks. They looked like they were still trying to raise their weapons, but they were just shaking slightly. Then suddenly, the space around them started to shimmer, like heat in the desert, and the power suits began to twist unnaturally. It was like the power suits had suddenly been turned into fun house mirrors. They stretched and twisted until they were nothing but unusable parts, incapable of moving. "It's been awhile since I did some of my non creation chaos magic."
"It seems like he knows we are here," Juliet commented.
"He knew the moment we arrived," Eve said. She walked over to the suits and spoke to them. "I know you are listening because you never miss a thing. How about you just give us the wing and we leave. You know, for old time's sake Aleister."
"It has been a while Eve," Aleister's voice came though clearly, even though the machine was a wreck. Juliet shivered at his inhuman voice. She had never heard him speak. "You know I am unable to do that, and I will prevent you from taking it."
"You're lucky we can't just cause death and mayhem," Eve sighed. "Otherwise, Adam would have taken care of this personally. If we kill to many of your ability users, we won't be able to enter the Imaginary Number district." There was a moment of silence.
"You will not be able to access that location," Aleister commented.
"Once we find the key we will," Eve giggled. "The only way to stop that is for you to destroy the key itself, but you won't. You are the same person I met so long ago. You wouldn't be this far along without that wing now, would you? If only you would join us. After all, you were betrayed by God too." She waved her hands and the power suits exploded. "Well," she said, clasping her hands together. "We should move and find a base of operations. If we wait, we will get swarmed by his minions."
"You just had to antagonize him," Juliet sighed. "Just remember your deal."
"I promise," Eve said, raising her hand. "Before we leave this city, you will have Romeo." The air behind her started breaking apart and she stepped through it. Juliet nodded, and followed. The man stood up, looked behind him at the remains of the power suits, and followed.
Feel free to leave a review, comment, suggestions, or ideas, I love reading them. If you have a question you wish I ask and would like a quick answer, feel free to message me directly. I try to respond to those within a day or two. Comments, I tend to respond to in the next chapter.
There is a lot of setup for Season Three in this chapter. I have so many things I want to cover and so many people to introduce. I hope I have time.
Accelerator: Where the F$&*% was I? Everyone else got a scene.
Last Order: MISAKA tried to wake you but you wouldn't get up MISAKA explains.
Shizuri: Sounds like him.
Frenda: The author said at the beginning there would be more adventures for other characters then the main ones. Basically, I totally have a shot at being the star.
Saiai: Yea right. We know what happens to you. The audience super wants to see me and Accelerator beat up some weaklings.
Ruiko: I can't wait to do something, as long as we don't get captured again.
Kazari: I'm sure the author wouldn't do something so cliché again.
Kuroko: We will probably do something against Skill-Out by the looks of this chapter.
Mikoto: I don't know, he seems like that kind of person.
Misaki: You sure are rude to people. Don't worry author-san, I believe in you. Maybe you can give me some alone time with Touma.
Lessar: I know what I am doing next chapter.
Touma: Please don't.