A Certain Infinite Possibility

by Darkbetrayer

An ancient organization has emerged from hiding in order to bring the world into darkness. Will Touma be able to stop them or will his actions make everything worse. Will Touma finally develop the harem he deserves? Magic and Science will collide in ways no one thought possible. Touma X Harem (Maybe, he is really dense.)

78. S3 Needed Explanations

This is it, the big wrap off for season three and dang it is long. The length surpasses all my other chapters by a wide margin. It makes sense as a lot of things had to be wrapped up before the season ended. Something I noticed recently. It seems like for a week or so, a lot of Index fanfics were a little more on the serious/depressing side when my arc started reaching a similar point. "The Lost Light" was really emotional but the summary implies it should be getting a little lighter. "A certain Strange Scenario" which is a new serious future Academy City story when things start going downhill. Then there was the popular "A Certain Unknown Level 0" by a very shady Mr ?, started to get rather violent and bloody. I was lucky funny stories like "Total Drama Harem," "Certain Virtual Conquest," and "Harem Civil War" appeared and lightened my mood.

NT16 exploded with action. Loved the Mikoto/Misaki/Touma moments, but Mikoto really did shine. I did notice how Touma kept thinking about Mikoto and if she was okay more than just once or twice, I wonder if that implies something. Mikoto is enjoying her newly made AAA and even made a club to repair it. Just when you think they solved all the problems with the Elements and the heat, more problems arise and familiar faces arise. That ending though…. Wow it was intense. I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't read it yet though, so let's move to comments.

Whwsms: Everyone really has grown just being near Touma. He has that effect on people. I think Ruiko should have sent Bayloupe a message trying to get her to come to Academy City, it would be great to see her, Saiai, and Hibiki all at once with Last Order stuck in the middle.

Guest: It actually takes a long time to go through even a basic review. I doubt I could do one a day consistently while being able to have time to fulfill all my other obligations. As for Mugino, they have a 'talk' this chapter.

Brosephg: Touma is one of those guys who if he says he will do something, he will. That's why when he tells people he will return, he does.

wildarms13: Shuuuuuu, don't worry about the small things.

321jaz: I know everyone thought the body swap arc was just for fun, but it lead to a very important scene. I never do anything just for laughs, but I will always add humor if the situation allows it.

Kuroppy: Okay, but just because I like you

Shikaku Zetsumei: All will be explained below.

Handsomistic1: I can't trust people to ask Touma questions. It's all going to be, so "what girl do you like" or "why don't you date X" or, "go after X."

Agent Nine: I was going to call this story "Certain Infinite Cliff Hangers"

Salishious: Body swap arc takes the place of gender bending. I do have another big plan for Kami the Harem King antics in next season. Everyone wants Saten to win, but her being 'normal' makes her much more relatable. If she gets to powerful, she might lose that.

RPGPersona: Your wish for Mugino has been granted. Also, "Just a second Juliet, we are having a team meeting hear. Didn't anyone tell you it is rude to interrupt people when they are talking?" I died at this comment.

Anon Guest: After how long that joke has been around, everyone expects the inquisition.

I'm still surprised how much people like Jason/Uiharu. Usually OCs don't get a lot of love. I tried to prevent him from overtaking the story, but I knew having 1-2 chapters devoted to his past was going to happen. Any significant character gets a section about them, whether good or evil. I just try to blend it with everyone else.

Disclaimer: Random people do not own Toaru Majutsu no Index or any of the characters. Reading this story may cause you to burst out in laughter or start yelling at fictional characters. This may cause nearby people to assume you have gone crazy. Please read responsibly. Magic Gods own all so they can do what they want.

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"Once…," Touma started to say, but Mikoto quickly interrupted him.

"If you say once upon a time," she told him, a vein throbbing in her forehead. "I'm going to hit you."

"I wasn't going to," Touma lied unconvincingly. He had been planning to start off by saying that to try to make the story seem less disheartening. He could tell Mikoto didn't believe him and even Misaki raised an eyebrow skeptically. Kuroko glared at him and Kazari looked like she wanted to say something, but held her tongue. Accelerator had the shadow of a smirk on his face and Ruiko was looking apprehensive. Lessar almost laughed, but kept quiet and Index appeared confused at what was happening. "I was going to say, once I was released from the hospital after out fight with the Herald and the sins, I passed Jason's room and accidently overheard he was awake and talking to the doctor."

"Get on with it," Kuroko said impatiently.

"I stopped when I heard a few things," Touma continued. "The first was his shadow ability was running wild, which we learned was because of those sin marks he stole. The second one was the doctor was asking if he missed his old ability in exchange for his shadow." He stopped when everyone started muttering. He knew the information was going to cause a lot of questions, but the background was important for the later parts of the story.

"Juliet mentioned he had a different ability too," Kazari spoke up. "But that should be impossible, right?" She looked around at the others.

"Damn right it's impossible," spat out Accelerator. "Our abilities are based on the premise of the uncertainty principle. We actually end up ignoring it by distorting the micro world to select the possibility that coincides with the individual. Once that possibility is selected, we can't change it. It's why our abilities will always stay constant. An ability could grow and appear to change, like when the third rate finally learned how to fire a railgun, but the fundamental ability doesn't."

"My railgun still relies on my electricity manipulation," Mikoto agreed. "It's not like I could suddenly control water." She frowned. "I know there were theories involving trying to change abilities, but nothing has been released about it succeeding."

"The city can't even choose what abilities are unlocked for an individual," Misaki added. "They couldn't tell us what our ability was until we started generating an AIM field." Index and Lessar looked at each other in confusion. They didn't know anything about the abilities from Academy City so, to them, everyone was talking a different language.

"If they could," Mikoto continued. "They would probably replicate all the level five abilities, especially Accelerator's. No one else in the city has his ability."

"Because no one in the city is as great as me."

"We know all this," Kuroko said impatiently, rolling her eyes. "But we are getting off track."

"I agree," Ruiko said, glancing at Kazari. She was still holding her legs tightly and her face was apprehensive. She's trying to act strong, but she wants to know. "We should try to stay on topic and let him finish."

"I have to agree," Misaki said. "I noticed our comments seem to spiral out of control when we get together." Mikoto and Accelerator glared at her and she smiled in response, like it was never her fault. "I'll fill in any gaps of Touma's story with what Juliet told us, but other than that, we should wait until he finishes before discussing it. Only ask a question if something needs clarified."

"Fine," Mikoto agreed. She hated to admit it, but Misaki was right. It's more for Uiharu, but I need to hear this too. Touma knows something that will definitely cause something to happen to him if he keeps it a secret. A couple hours in his body and I understand how his luck works. Accelerator huffed, but didn't say anything.

"Thanks," Touma said, glad they weren't going to interrupt him as often. This story wasn't something easy to talk about, not only because Jason wanted to keep it a secret, but it was also very grisly tale to talk about. "Where was I… ah yes. We talked about what I overheard and it turns out the sin guys we fought were also involved in his past. He relented and told me about his arrival into the city." He scrunched his forehead, trying to remember all the details. It had been a while since their conversation. "He was four or five when he first came to the city and was a gemstone with the ability called Reconstruction."

"Reconstruction?" Ruiko asked.

"I don't have much information on it," Touma admitted. "But it was definitely a regeneration type ability. What made it unique was the way it repaired his body. The injured part of his body became more resistant to the same type of damage."

"Huh?" Mikoto asked.

"The example he used was if he burnt his hand with boiling water. The burn would heal quickly, but then the part of his hand that was injured would be more resistant to heat."

"That sounds really useful," Misaki said. "No scars left over from accidents injuries and he could avoid future injuries." I would probably go outside more if I knew I couldn't get cuts, bruises or scars on my fair skin.

"I would have liked that when I was younger," Mikoto added. "I played at the park a lot and took a lot of risks." She remembered when she first started learning how to magnetize herself to walls. She had fallen countless times before finally getting the hang of it. All those bruises took forever to fade.

"It wasn't as convenient as it sounded," Touma told them. "His ability only strengthened the damaged area slightly. If he cut himself with a knife, only that small cut would heal and become resistant to future cuts, though resistance was used loosely. It was so slight, he would have to cut himself numerous times to achieve any real noticeable difference. If he wanted to keep submerging himself in boiling water, he could acquire full body resistance to heat eventually. Theoretically, he could eventually become completely immune to certain types of damage, but his exact words were something like 'I wasn't stupid enough to injure myself just to get a slight resistance to some damage.' I figured it was never tested that far."

"I could see that," Ruiko said understandingly, while nodding. "But how would that work? Getting tougher after receiving damage?"

"His ability probably manipulated his cellular structure to turn his cells into something resembling stem cells or satellite cells," Accelerator said, and found everyone turning their heads and looking at him confused. "What? Didn't they teach you biology in schools?" He actually didn't know for sure. The only true schooling he received was when he joined Touma's class, and it was a normal pace curriculum. There was a science class, but they were currently focusing on physics over biology. He had been isolated when his ability developed and was placed an extremely advanced specialized curriculum. He was years ahead of even Mikoto and Misaki.

"We learned basic biology," Misaki informed him. "But we haven't had time to learn everything. Stem cells are undifferentiated cells in multicolor organisms, like people, and are capable of differentiating into all the specialized cells in our body." She was rather proud of how much she knew, even if it was a fraction of what Accelerator knew.

"There have been a lot of news stories about them too," Mikoto said, slightly eagerly. "They are used a lot in new medical research and therapies." I wonder if stem cells had anything to do with the creation of my sisters.

"What are satellite cells?" Ruiko asked Accelerator.

"They are a type of muscle cells," Accelerator explained gruffly. "If you strenuously exercise, like the third rate and hero does, you cause trauma to your muscle fibers and damaged them. This trauma activates satellite cells which are around the fibers. The repair or replacement of the damaged muscle fibers begins with the satellite cells fusing together to the muscles fibers. The cells divide and differentiate into specialized muscle cells while some stay as satellite cells for future injuries. You then get new fibers and repair the old ones. It's how people get greater quantity and stronger muscles. Basic stuff." He shrugged, but there was an air of smugness that annoyed Misaki and Mikoto.

"This is really interesting and all," Kuroko interrupted. "But what does this have to do with Jason and Juliet?" She was trying to remain calm, but she wanted Touma to hurry up and make sense. We don't need his entire life's history, just how it involves meeting Juliet. She felt a weird sensation in her stomach when she thought about those two. "Didn't we just talk about not getting off track?"

"His ability had a lot to do with what happened," Touma informed her. "But I'll try to avoid unnecessary information. It was quickly discovered he was really smart, you all know this with him being involved in the research division, and he was put into an advanced curriculum." His eyes darted to Accelerator for a moment." He was around… nine I think? Anyway, he was chosen to participate in an unusual experiment. From what I remember him telling me, he had been told at the time the experiment was to learn abilities developed outside of Academy City." Everyone there instantly knew what those words meant, but Kazari actually said it out loud.

"Magic." They were finally getting to the important part involving Jason and Juliet. Kazari was listening quietly, not saying anything, but it was because she had nothing to say. The others could discuss the specifics on how abilities worked, but she didn't really need to know that. Her focus was purely tuned to figure out what happened to Jason that caused him to lose himself at the mere sight of Juliet. I can't help him if I'm left in the dark. I won't forgive her if she did something to him. She tightened her grip on her legs as she continued listening.

"Didn't they know how dangerous that is?" Mikoto asked angrily. "People can die when they mix science and magic."

"It could be they found out because of that experiment," Lessar shrugged. "But even if they did know, they probably didn't care. Plenty of groups try dangerous experiments in order to figure out problems with spells and ceremonies. I bet the science side isn't much different."

"Tell me about it," Accelerator mumbled. They wanted me to kill twenty thousand clones, and I even went along with it.

"But doing that with children?" Mikoto asked shocked. "They better not have known." The magic side is just as bad as this city. Why do people treat kids as if they are disposable?

"They knew," Touma said coldly, his hand making a fist. The others got quiet again and turned to him. "They were chosen because someone calculated he and the others had the best odds of survival." Mikoto, Misaki, Kazari, Ruiko, and Kazari gasped, but Accelerator, Lessar, and Index's faces darkened. They were more use to the lengths people would go to in order to accomplish their objectives. "Jason's group consisted of him, two guys, and three girls. They spent almost a year learning theories and basics of magic, but were not permitted to cast spells. He didn't know why at the time, but we do. I remember he mentioned the researchers pitted everyone against each other. His face went dark when he told me about it."

"Why?" Ruiko asked. "Wouldn't having everyone work together be better?"

"It's a common practice actually," Misaki told her. "If you keep people pitted against each other, they don't share information or question what they are told. They focus on the hatred toward the other groups. It makes it harder for them to figure out if something is wrong or unusual. I bet with their rivalry, none of them began to question what they were actually doing."

"Oh," Ruiko muttered. I don't like the sound of that. She and Kazari had the least experience with the underground organizations, so they were learning a lot, even if they didn't want to.

"I don't know much about what happened during their training or the rivalry," Touma admitted. "One thing he did mention was out of everyone participating; only one girl was actually nice to everyone. I think we know who that was."

"Juliet," Kuroko muttered. That was obvious.

"He called her Emiko," Kazari added softly. "That must have been her real name."

"Might I interrupt?" Misaki said, looking at Touma. "So far everything you said has coincided with what Juliet told us before you all arrived. She gave us some information about their time during that experiment. After mulling it over, I think the information is important because it gives a glimpse into his psyche and describes how he acts now."

"Tell us!" Kuroko said a little more forcefully than she intended. Everyone turned to look at her and she tried to act casual, though her cheeks were slightly pink.

"Anything you can tell us will help," Touma nodded. "You are the most experienced one of us in determining how to understand how someone thinks."

"Thank you," Misaki replied, glowing form his praise. Mikoto gritted her teeth, but kept silent. "From what you said and what Juliet told us, she was indeed trying to be nice to everyone, even if they were growing more distant. All except one. Kagere-san, or Romeo as she called him, was the only one she was able to stay friends with. He joined the experiment because he was getting bored with Academy City's curriculum and wanted to learn something new. When they first met, she said he was unusually serious, didn't talk much, and never cracked a joke."

"Really?" Kuroko asked in disbelief, while Accelerator snorted.

"That doesn't sound like him," Mikoto admitted and Touma had to agree with her.

"I thought she must have had him confused with someone else," Misaki admitted, nodding at them while putting a finger up to her cheek. "But she continued and mentioned how he came out of his shell. Juliet and Romeo were nicknames they called each other after getting close, while everyone else focused on the rivalry." Kazari shifted in her seat. "She eventually turned Juliet into her magic name to represent her resolve." Misaki looked at Index.

"That's a common occurrence," Index said nodding. "Many magicians take the names of important historical and religious figures in order to develop their magic. I doubt Juliet is part of her actual magic name, just an alias."

"Juliet didn't give much information about the first spell they actually cast," Misaki finished. "What she did say… wasn't pleasant."

"Jason remembered what happened," Touma said, and his face went dark. "He and the others were told for their first spell, they were going to work together as a group. It was supposed to be easier since the burden would be shared among them."

"That's wrong," Index interrupted. "While having multiple magicians casting a spell can cause a larger area of effect, each person still has the burden when they refine their own mana."

"Sounds like those researchers didn't understand magic," Lessar commented.

"It was a lie," Touma explained. "The researchers knew it was dangerous for ability users to use magic. The spell they cast was some kind of continuous magic that couldn't be stopped until it was completed or the magician's mana was used up." Lessar and Index nodded, letting Touma know he remembered correctly. He took a deep breath and continued. This is when it turned nasty. "What he remembered was this. Everyone started collapsing one by one as blood erupted from their body."

There was a collective gasp from the girls, while Accelerator looked like he tasted something sour.

"How horrible," Ruiko gasped, her hands over her mouth.

"Those…," Mikoto growled, her anger choking her and preventing the rest of the sentence.

"I heard rumors the experiments dealing with that didn't have positive results," Lessar said solemnly.

"This can't be true right?" Kuroko asked, looking at the others. "Someone tell me that's a terrible joke." How could anyone recover from that?

"That's almost word for word what Juliet said," Misaki confirmed, causing the girl's faces to go even paler.

"How did they survive?" Kazari asked softly, her body trembling slightly. She had braced herself for some terrible news, but her mind wouldn't even have considered the possibility of something so gruesome. Who would do something like that to kids? This…. This is beyond anything I could imagine. He survived, by the fact he's here with us now. The question is how he is able to act so carefree now. Something like this would leave a permanent scar in even the strongest individuals. Even if Juliet never showed up, the trauma should still be affecting him.

"I don't know about Juliet," Touma admitted. "But Jason's regeneration ability saved him. He kept healing at the same time his body was destroying itself from the conflict of laws. He couldn't do anything else except try to bare the pain as the spell took its toll." The girls didn't say anything, until Accelerator spoke up.

"So that's what happened," he muttered and everyone turned to him.

"What do you mean?" Kuroko asked, speaking what was on all their minds.

"His reconstruction was repairing the damage to his body from the conflicting laws between magic and science," Accelerator said. "Since his ability makes the repaired tissue more resilient to damage, I'm going to infer this was the moment he was able to cast magic without killing himself."

"Of course," Mikoto whispered, hitting her forehead with her hand. "It's obvious. His body was being repaired to resist the damage from conflicting laws. You said he mentioned earlier, given enough time, he could be immune to certain types of damage. If his body was continuously being destroyed, he would keep regenerating and get stronger each time."

"That's exactly it," Touma confirmed. "His body was changed to resist the laws between magic and science. He mentioned there were other changes before, but nothing really noticeable." He heard Index gasp and turned to her. "What is it?" Index shook her head and motioned for him to continue. She wants me to finish before she tells me, huh? I wonder what shocked her. "What happened next, even he doesn't know the entire story. It was a blur." How can I tell the others about this? He and Juliet were going to be murdered.

"Please continue Kamijou-san," Kazari told him. "I'm ready." This wasn't a lie. She had resolved to listen until the end, regardless of what happens. To her, this was something she had to know, no matter the cost.

"I have some information to help supplement what you know," Misaki added. "We should be able to get most of the picture this way."

"If you're sure," Touma sighed and continued. "Jason collapsed and his mana finally ran out, leaving him unable to move, but alive. One of the people overseeing the experiments was actually one of the sin guys we faced in Italy. He found out it was Greed after we arrived."

"Looks like he is more closely tied to Eve and her minions than we knew," Accelerator commented.

"That must have been a shock for him," Ruiko pointed out.

"Wow," Kuroko mumbled, leaning back in her chair. "With how he acts, I had no idea he went through so much." She frowned and leaned forward. "Didn't you say this story would explain how he acquired his shadow?" Touma nodded.

"I'm getting there. He was still conscious and could hear what the supervisors were saying. The sin, Greed, told them to kill the survivors." There was another round of gasping and the girls were leaning in close, hanging on to his every word. "It was then he realized Juliet was still alive." Touma rubbed his face with his hand. "He's going to get mad at me for saying this next part. He hates showing weakness."

"Go on," Kuroko told him impatiently.

"I'm sure he will forgive you," Ruiko added reasonably.

"He still had a small link with the spell they were casting," Touma relented. "With no options to turn to, he begged for help. This is when things went wrong." His face darkened and the girls exchanged a look. They wanted to ask questions, but they could tell at this part they needed to be quiet. Accelerator raised an eyebrow at Touma's expression. "Something responded to him and wrapped him up in darkness. At this point, he could no longer use Reconstruction. His shadow ability was formed."

"How?" Mikoto couldn't resist asking. "Did he give any reason? Scientists have been trying to figure out how to change abilities since forever."

"His personal reality must have been changed during the experiment," Touma said shrugging. "It's not like we have a way to verify what happened. He doesn't even remember much of what happened next. The researchers tried to kill him and Juliet and he must have fought back in a blind fury. All he remembers was he was standing up, surrounded by bodies. The only reason he came back to his senses was because Juliet woke him up."

"She saved him?" Kazari asked, dumbstruck. Did I have her pegged all wrong? Touma shrugged.

"Do you have anything to add?" Mikoto asked Misaki, who nodded.

"Juliet saw part of what happened," Misaki said, and everyone turned to her. "Kagere-san was fighting the researchers, but she said he resembled a monster more than human. Whatever caused his ability to change, must have messed with his mind. Juliet grabbed him and snapped him out of his rage, but her wounds were too great and she eventually succumbed. She doesn't know what happened to him after that."

"He traveled a bit and found magicians to teach him magic," Touma remembered. "Then he came back to Academy City." He purposely let out the part about him being held hostage, since it didn't have any purpose in their current conversation. "Anything else you found out about Juliet? You said she succumbed to her wounds, so how did she survive? Jason thought she had died."

"This is the part I don't understand much of," Misaki continued, frowning slightly. "She said she was floating in an endless abyss and only had her memories to pass the time. Unable to do anything but think, her obsession over Kagere-san probably grew during this time. Eve and Adam freed her from the abyss and taught her magic. The rest we know." She turned to Index. "Any idea what she meant by the abyss? It had to be just her memories since her body was left behind."

"There are a lot of possibilities," Index said slowly. The look on her face said she didn't want to give her an answer without more information. "Once I narrow down the options, I'll let you know."

"What were you going to say earlier Index?" Touma asked. "You looked like you wanted to comment on part of Jason's regeneration ability."

"I would keep it a secret about exactly how he is able to use magic with your science abilities," Index said. "His ability, from the sound of it, fundamentally altered his body structure. A lot of religious groups look down at this because they see it as man saying God is imperfect. It's one of the reason there is so much tension between both sides. Since man was made in God's image, they do not believe we should be altering the human body."

"Okay," Ruiko said. "But why would that matter with Jason? It was an accident."

"Some radical group might kill him so the secret doesn't get out," Lessar explained.

"Oh." Ruiko got quiet and the other girls looked uncomfortable. They were getting another in-depth glance at how the magic side operates.

"Thanks for the warning," Touma said. "I trust everyone here to keep this information private." He turned back to the others. Most of them were sitting in silence, digesting everything they just heard. "That's everything I know of his past dealings with Juliet."

"Pssh," Accelerator said, waving his hand dismissively. "After all that build up, I thought it would be something a lot worst."

"How insensitive can you be?" Mikoto demanded, turning toward him in anger. "No kid should have to go through something like that."

"Who do you think you're talking to?" Accelerator snapped at her, causing Mikoto to go silent. Touma knew what he was referring too. All three of them knew about the sister experiment where Accelerator killed over ten thousand clones as part of an experiment to reach level 6. "Let me explain third rate. Nothing he did up to casting the spell was wrong. Even fighting those researchers to the death was perfectly justified self-defense. There's nothing for him to be upset about. I was expecting him to have accidently done something that directly caused her death."

"That's not what he thinks," Ruiko pointed out. "I bet he thinks it was his fault Juliet was killed."

"He does," Kazari confirmed. "After realizing who it was, he started mumbling to himself. Based on what I pieced together, he believes that." It's going to be tough to convince him otherwise.

"He really shouldn't," Lessar added, kicking her legs as they hung over the side of the bed. "But some people naturally blame themselves for being unable to help others." Her eyes darted to Touma.

"What should our next course of action be then?" Mikoto asked. "Should we find him…?"

"And give him a good kick in his…"

"Kuroko!"

"What do you want to do?" Ruiko asked Kazari. "I feel your opinion here is really important."

"I don't know," she replied, her eyes filling up with tears and Ruiko started to pat her on the back. "I want to do something, but if I go about it the wrong way, I could make it worse. He's not answering his phone or messages. Should I go after him, should I give him time to sort out his thoughts, or should I find someone to look for him?" She started trembling.

"I could offer some insight to help you decide," Misaki said kindly. "Different people need different approaches. All your ideas have merit but, based on what I know about him, one would probably work better. Kagere-san is smart and likes to joke around a lot, most likely to cover what he is really thinking. If you talk to him, you need to be able to get through that protective layer first. I don't think leaving him alone would be a good choice. With what just happened, he might start distancing himself from everyone."

"Then we need to find him first," Kazari said, standing up. "I'm going to look for him. Saten-san can let me know if anything else happens."

"Okay," Ruiko said nodding. Kazari had just opened the door when Kuroko stood up.

"I'm coming too," she declared.

"Huh?" Kazari asked surprised.

"I want to give him a swift kick in the butt for bailing on us," Kuroko said.

"I don't…," Kazari tried to say.

"I already made up my mind," Kuroko interrupted, teleporting out the door. Kazari called for her to wait up as she followed, but Kazari couldn't keep up with a teleporter.

"Kuroko," Mikoto sighed exasperatedly, rubbing her head. "I know you have complicated feelings for him, but still... you might just make things worse."

"Actually," Misaki said. "It might work out better this way."

"Why do you say that?" Ruiko asked.

"Shirai-san is use to Jason joking around and being untruthful with her," Misaki explained. "She would not be deterred if he tries to deflect her worries and pretend he's okay. Not only that, she can help Uiharu-san cover more ground quickly. The rest of us are not really in a position to help. This is something they need to work though."

"All this feelings and crap is so damn annoying," Accelerator grunted. "I deal with that enough when the brats start freaking out over nothing. If anyone thinks I'm going to look for him and have a heart to heart talk, they are sadly mistaken."

"Your kindness knows no bounds," Mikoto said, rolling her eyes. "I suppose Shokuhou has a point." She purposely diverted her eyes from Misaki's smug face. I want to help, but there's not much I can do right now. Once again, she felt powerless, but for a different reason and turned to Touma. "What do you think?"

"I have to agree," Touma said, after a moment of silence. It's not like he wasn't worried about his friend, but he had already ran over the possibilities in his mind. Jason's not doing anything wrong, so it's not like I can go up to him and get him to stop. I'm not great with these complicated feelings like Misaki is. Going along with her plan is probably the best course of action. If I notice something I can do, I'll step in. Is it wrong I wish a problem could be settled with a punch? "Misaki is a lot more experienced with these kinds of things." He sighed. "Wish there was something I could do."

"Let's give Shirai-san and Uiharu-san time to solve it on their own," Misaki suggested. "If it doesn't work, we can think of something else." She knew Touma was one step away from going after Jason. She yawned slightly and grinned sheepishly, after quickly covering her mouth with her hand. "Sorry, it's been a stressful day."

"I have to admit," Ruiko yawned, standing up and stretching. "It has been a very long day and it's not even eleven. Body swaps and finding out all this is making my head hurt…" She was interrupted by a very loud rumbling. Everyone turned and looked at the source of the noise.

"It's not my fault," Index protested, noticing everyone was staring at her. She and Lessar had remained silent, since neither of them was skilled with emotional problems. "I haven't had breakfast and it's almost lunch time. I'm starving!"

Everyone burst out laughing and even Accelerator smirked.

"You win Index," Touma sighed. "I'll get you something to eat, okay?"

"Yay!"

"I want to come too," Lessar said, jumping up. "Index keeps eating all the food here so I'm starving. As thanks, I'll even feed you. We won't need any silverware, I'll just use my lips."

"That's not happening," Touma told her quickly, before the dark auras could emerge again.

"How do we get from such a serious conversation to their antics again?" Mikoto questioned no one in particular.

"It's fine though," Ruiko told her happily, disguising her true thoughts to make everyone feel better. "It means everything is going back to normal. Sitting around and fretting will get us nowhere."

"I suppose you're right," Mikoto relented, before turning to Accelerator. "You can invite Last Order and Worst to join us if you want. I know they usually want to spend the weekends with you."

"Why would I want to?" Accelerator snarled, but grabbed his phone out of his pocket. "I suppose the brat was insistent about that." Mikoto grinned, but hid it when Accelerator glared at her.

"I think you are not being completely honest with yourself Accelerator," Misaki laughed, making a cute pose. Before Accelerator could snarl at her too, a loud knock came from Touma's door.

"I got it," Touma said quickly, walking over to the door. "I bet it is Tsuchimikado. The walls are super thin here and he probably wants to know what's happening." Touma wasn't looking forward to explaining what happened to him, and he was debating what to say as he opened the door. He froze a second later. Right now, he wished it had been Tsuchimikado. Actually, he would have even been okay with Eve, Juliet, or even Cain. Anyone would have been fine besides the person who was far beyond what could be consider furious. Before he could say anything to diffuse the situation, a hand grabbed him by the collar and yanked him out through the door.

---

Where is he? Kuroko thought, teleporting to one of the highest buildings in the area. She knew Kazari would probably go to their Judgement branch to access all the security cameras, but it would take her time to arrive. Kuroko was hoping she could find Jason before that. While she was indeed worried about him, there were a few choice words on her mind she wanted to give him without anyone else hearing. A breeze blew some of her hair into her face, so she brushed it back. I could check his apartment, but something is telling me he's not going there. What would I do if I were him? Maybe someplace quiet to think… How about the river? Parks would be crowded this time of day.

Given the amount of time between him fleeing Touma's apartment and their discussion on what happened to him, getting anywhere in the city would be easily accomplished. Kuroko seriously doubted he wanted to be anywhere with people, so that limited the choices. The river was normally a quiet place with only an occasional person passing through. If he wanted a quiet place to think, that would be one of the prime locations. Teleporting across the rooftops, she finally saw a bridge indicating she was close. Stopping at one of the last buildings, she saw a familiar figure skipping rocks on the water. Knew it. She paused for a moment, debated what to say, fortified her resolve, and teleported through the air until she was right behind him.

Kuroko then gave him a powerful kick in the butt.

Jason obviously didn't see it coming and was being distracted with his own thoughts. If he had been his normal self, Kuroko knew he would have reacted in some way to avoid the blow. Instead, he flew forward into the water with a splash. "Who did…!" he sputtered, turning around. "…oh, it's you." He stood up and started to wring out his shirt. "Why are you here?" Kuroko could tell he wasn't happy she was there, because of his tone and the fact he was deliberately avoiding eye contact.

"Looking for you obviously."

"Why?"

"Because," Kuroko started to say, and then stopped herself. What should I say, that I was worried about him? That Uiharu is looking for him? She settled with the truth about what she knew instead to give her time to think. "The ape told us about your past… about you and Juliet, the shadow, the experiment… everything. Shokuhou-san verified it with what she was told by Juliet."

"Damn it Touma," Jason muttered, rubbing his head. "I thought I told you that was a secret." Kuroko gritted her teeth in anger and couldn't hold herself back anymore.

Her hand shot forward and slapped him across the face, causing him to take a step back.

"Are you stupid?" she asked him furiously. "I can understand not wanting to talk about what happened, that was one of the most horrible things I could imagine, but when it comes back to haunt you now, it affects all of us. You, me, onee-sama, Uiharu, your friends… It also isn't right." Jason tilted his head slightly to the side as he looked at her. "It's obvious you're hurting, even if you try to deny it. We all can tell. We are your friends, right?" She took a deep breath. "You may annoy me all the time, but we have all been through so much together. You are an important friend to me." Jason's eyes widened slightly and Kuroko continued.

"Everyone back there is worried about you, Saten-san, onee-sama, Shokuhou-san, Index, the ape, maybe not Accelerator, but Uiharu is devastated. Do you understand how much pain SHE is in? She wasn't able to help or support you. She saw you lose your mind at the mere sight of Juliet and then ran away before she could hear what transpired between you two. Uiharu pressured the ape to tell us what he knew so she could help you. I never saw her act so forcefully before. You changed her more than you know."

"I realize that," Jason said softly, shifting uncomfortably.

"That's not even counting my feelings," Kuroko added, putting a hand on her chest. She was unloading everything on him. Every thought, every feeling, and every piece of frustration he fostered on her since they met. "We may not always get along, but we are definitely friends. How many times have we fought together? Some of them were life and death struggles. You must have felt… something. Ever since England I haven't been able to…" She stopped herself from going any further and looked at the ground. She finally realized why she had all those confused feelings when she thought about him. I like him… When she realized this, her heart started beating fast and it felt like a weight had been lifted.

"How would I be able to tell you, or anyone, that?" Jason asked, breaking into her thoughts.

"Huh?" Kuroko replied, looking up. The look on his face caused her heart to hurt. He looked broken and downtrodden again.

"How do I tell someone I became a monster and killed people?" Jason demanded, his voice rising. "I couldn't remember what happened, but I was covered in blood and bodies all around me. The one person who was important to me died embracing me. How the hell would I bring that up in conversation?! I couldn't protect the only person I cared about."

"No one would expect you to!" Kuroko replied, finding her voice rising too. "I don't know how I would react if something like that happened to me but, now that it has come back to bite you, you need to face it. Running away from your problems isn't going to help. You need to realize what happened wasn't your fault."

"I keep telling myself that but it doesn't make it go away!"

"It's not supposed to!" Kuroko retorted. "It made you who you are today. The person Uiharu fell in love with! The person I… consider a friend. You can't change what happened, but you aren't alone anymore! You have all of us to help you face this!" She stopped and started to breathe heavily. She felt so much better yelling at him, but she was embarrassed about what she almost let slip. She couldn't take advantage of him when he was in the middle of a mental struggle with his past, let alone that it was one of her best friend's boyfriend.

"Even now I'm weary of what our abilities can do," Jason said softly, turning away and looking out across the river. He was still standing ankle deep in it.

"Why?"

"Most ability users don't understand the type of destructive powers we wield at our finger tips," Jason explained. "We could easily kill with a mere thought. Some of the higher levels understand this, like Accelerator and Mugino-san."

"You can say the same about a gun," Kuroko pointed out. "Or any tool. I shovel could build or destroy."

"True," Jason conceded. "But there's a difference between giving someone a tool capable of killing and giving someone something capable of taking out a city." He paused. "Answer me this," he said. "What would happen if Accelerator, Misaka-san, and Shokuhou-san all decided to go rogue and started attacking people."

"They wouldn't do that."

"I know, but this is a what if scenario."

"Anti-Skill would stop them."

"Do you really believe that?"

"Of course…" Kuroko trailed off when a thought crossed her mind. Anti-Skill is armed with a lot of high tech weaponry designed to subdue ability users, but onee-sama can disable most of them. She can even bypass all of Academy City's security. Accelerator's supposed to be able to take on the world's military by himself. Shokuhou-san could disappear into a city and take over countless people. She might be able to even control people in higher level positions. The thought did not make her happy and she felt a shiver go down her spine. "They wouldn't though."

"I don't think they would either," Jason said with a nod. "But things can change quickly. It might start with using your ability for personal gain or someone important to you gets hurt." He glanced back at Kuroko. "Can you honestly say they, or you for that matter, never used their power unwarranted against others just because you get irritated?"

Kuroko couldn't respond to that, because she knew he was right. She had seen Mikoto electrocute thugs just for annoying her and others, even if they weren't technically doing anything wrong. She held back, but still. Even I have teleported people away from me because I was in a hurry or they annoyed me. Accelerator's probably hurt people who annoyed him, actually, he definitely has, you can tell from his attitude. Onee-sama always complains about Shokuhou-san using her powers on people. She might have even used it on me without me realizing it. Jason must have felt her mental struggle.

"It's why I never truly forgave myself," Jason continued. "It's more that I believe if I lost control once, it could happen again. I might accidently kill someone."

"Then we will stop you," Kuroko shrugged. "Friends stick with each other. If you need someone to snap you out of it, I'll give you another kick in the butt. What's so funny?" Jason had started laughing.

"Touma said something very similar when I told him my past," Jason replied, calming down and straightening up.

"I guess the ape isn't completely dimwitted," Kuroko huffed, feeling slightly better now that Jason wasn't looking as depressed. "You can't dwell on what ifs though. Now, I think what you need to do is find and talk to Uiharu. She's the one who you need to explain yourself too. I kind of hope you smacks some sense into you too."

"I don't know if I can," Jason mumbled, and Kuroko grabbed his collar.

"You are going to talk to her," she told him sternly. "Even if I have to drag you back by force." Jason reached up and grabbed her wrist. A shadow started to unwind around her arm, but Kuroko refused to flinch.

"I don't think you could," Jason replied, looking at her in the eyes. There was a moment of silence, as both of them glared at each other, neither wanting to back down.

Are you two going to kiss?

The sudden voice caused them both to let go of each other and jump back.

"You heard it?" Jason asked wildly, looking at Kuroko. "How? You aren't in my body anymore?"

"I don't know," Kuroko answered, turning red. "What the hell is that voice anyway? It kept talking to me while I was in your body. Some of the stuff it told me was related to your past."

"I always figured it was a side effect of that experiment when my ability changed," Jason told her. "I have been treating it like a grimoire, a book of magical knowledge. It's one of the reasons I have some magic and history at my disposal. Grimoires have been known to become sentient. The voice was occasionally a soft buzzing, but started being a lot louder and more active after we returned from Italy."

"A living book?" Kuroko asked slowly, her mouth slightly open, before shaking her head. "I'm not even surprised anymore. Is the reason you didn't want me to talk to it was because it was a pervert?"

"It was more along the line it doesn't have morals or understanding of basic human interactions," Jason said. "It always recommends the quickest way to solve problems, regardless of the moral or ethical implications. It doesn't mean anything bad, it's just not always something enjoyable to hear." He frowned. "It thinks you can hear it when my shadow touches you, since you can't hear it now. Something must have happened when Eve's magic switched us." His shadow extended from under his sleeve and lightly tapped Kuroko on the arm.

Interesting, you can hear me with direct contact. Sorry if I started you, but I was interested in observing as many human mating rituals first hand as I can.

"Okay," Kuroko said, raising an eyebrow and pulling her arm out of reach. "It's not that important I guess. I was just curious and a little surprised. Maybe when we have some downtime we can figure out why. Index might have an idea. For now, you really need to find Uiharu. Are you feeling better?"

"Actually, yes," Jason nodded. "I think I can talk to her. It's going to be a long conversation though."

"I think she knows that already." Kuroko paused. "Glad to see you improving."

"Still got a long ways to go before I can say I'm back to normal though," Jason admitted, and then he looked suspiciously at her. "I feel like there's more you aren't telling me."

"I need you back to your usual self," Kuroko answered, a slight grin on her face. "Otherwise, I won't be able to fully enjoy my revenge for winning our little wager."

"Oh yes," Jason muttered. "Forgot about that." He laughed. "I look forward to seeing what you come up with."

"It's going to make you apologize for every joke you have pulled on me up to now," Kuroko declared and he laughed again. "You should get going now and see Uiharu."

"I have something to say before I go," Jason added, stepping out of the river and turning to her.

"What?"

"Thanks." Jason smiled at her and Kuroko's heart started beating wildly, her face felt hot, and her brain wasn't thinking clearly. His smile was completely sincere and lacking any trace of his normal joking manner. He was truly thanking her for snapping him out of his previous state. "Can you do one thing for me though?"

"S-sure."

"I have one stop to make before I can meet Kazari," Jason explained. "Can you let her know?"

"I can do that," Kuroko replied. "I need to talk with her anyways." She watched him leave and put a hand over her heart. When did I actually fall for him? England, or was it earlier? Should I tell Uiharu-san or hide my feelings? I could hide the truth, but if she ever found out by accident, it could ruin our friendship. I don't want to hurt her. Why couldn't onee-sama just love me back? None of this would have happened then! Why can't I like someone who isn't involved with someone else?

---

Shizuri was not happy.

She woke up a lot earlier then she intended too, when Touma's cellphone started ringing and interrupted her sleep. For a brief moment, she had thought it might have been his default alarm, until he answered it. She heard him mention 'Shokuhou' and she grimaced. Damn, it's her. What does that bitch want so early? If she had been fully awake, she might have noticed Touma had used Misaki's last name instead of her first. Shizuri smiled to herself slightly at Touma's annoyed tone. The conversation between Touma and Misaki was pretty short and then everything went quiet as he stood up and walked over to the mirror. Shizuri figured, now that he was up, he probably needed to satisfy his basic human needs.

"If you need the bathroom it's down the hall," Shizuri yawned, glancing at him for a moment, before turning over and laying back down. She may not have known him as long as the other level 5s, but she knew him well enough to know he wouldn't run away after promising to explain himself. She heard the bedroom door open and close, but then her eyes opened once again. She could feel something was wrong, but wasn't sure what it was. She sat up and stretched, looking down at her nightwear. I know his self-control is ludicrous, but he should have at least had some reaction when he saw this. She felt a twinge of annoyance, like she lost something important. Shaking off the feeling, she stood up and walked toward the door. Instead of opening it, which would reveal her presence, she leaned up against it and listened.

"…injured… suspicions… something big yesterday…. happened to you… sore… hiding everything…"

Damn I can't hear, Shizuri thought. The door is too thick and he's whispering. She reached for the door handle again, but stopped herself. He's rather perceptive in these situations, I can't risk it yet.

"… sleeping… same bed…"

What?! For a moment, Shizuri was stunned because it sounded like Touma was bragging. She had mix feeling about it, but had to restrain herself from busting through the door and strangling him.

"…sleeping…right next to…adult… Really? What happened..? What… possibly gain…something like this"

Hmm, it sounds like something happened.

"Her plan… England…well thought out…got hit…her magic…someone has to…call back…"

Her plan in England? Does he mean the princess… no, it's more likely Eve. Sounds like she did something to somebody and Kamijou just found out about it. Fuck, I know what that means. She opened the door and saw Touma was nowhere to be found. I knew it. He skipped out on explaining what happened yesterday to save some damn loser. She crossed her arms and thought about it for a moment. I should have expected this. He's the type to rush into things before worrying about explanations. It's why he ran into me and Kakine. I'll give him a couple hours to sort out that problem and come back, if he doesn't, he's going to regret it. She made a fist for a moment, before she pulled out her phone, and sent a message to Shiage telling him to bring coffee from her favorite shop in the area.

After getting changed, she sat on the couch and turned on the TV to the news, interested in seeing what was being reported on the destruction that occurred between her and Teitoku. Her head still hurt slightly, but it was dull enough to ignore. Most of the news was boring and monotonous but, after flipping through several stations, she found a report on her fight. Looks like a pretty extensive cover up, but who believes this crap. A localized lightning storm causing a gas explosion from a broken pipe, seriously? I guess that could explain the complete destruction of that building hit by his red lightning and the upturned street. It's not like anyone is going to believe in magic. She heard a door open from behind her and turned to see Frenda and Saia walking in.

"Morning Mugino," Frenda yawned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She noticed Shizuri was alone and looked around. "Is Kamijou still sleeping?"

"He ran out about half an hour ago," Shizuri informed her. Her response caused Frenda's and Saiai's eyes to widen and then take a step back in fright.

"And you are okay with that?" Saiai asked hesitantly, when it didn't look like Shizuri was going to explode. "I super thought we were finally going to find out what happened."

"Basically," Frenda added. "You wanted some kind of explanation from him. Are you okay?" She quelled under Shizuri's glare.

"If he had tried to sneak away," Shizuri replied, turning back to the TV. "I would hunt him down and strangle him myself. He got a call from the fifth about some kind of magic issue."

"And you let him go?" Saiai asked incredulously.

"You know how stubborn he is," Shizuri replied, waving her hand dismissively. "If someone gets attacked, especially if it's someone he knows, he's going to rush after them. I was debating if I should follow him, but I'm not at a hundred percent yet." She glanced at Frenda and Saiai. "Based on what I heard, I think Eve might have been toying with someone."

"Eve's here?!" Frenda gasped. "We can't just leave him alone then. Basically, Eve is really powerful and he will need help."

"If we go now," Shizuri told them calmly, but there was a trace of irritation in her voice. "We would just get in the way. For now, it didn't sound too serious. I planned to give him a couple hours to return. If he doesn't, we will hunt him down and drag him back by force." She stopped when Rikou wondered in, rubbing her eyes.

"…Morning…" she said and then stopped, feeling the tension in the air. "…What is going on?"

"Kamijou left this morning," Saiai told her and Rikou's eyes widened. "It seems like one of his friends was in trouble and he super rushed off to play the hero."

"Mugino decided not to go after him," Frenda added. "Basically, we are going to give him a chance to come back." Rikou nodded in understanding and her facial expression turned passive again. "You know he would do the same for any of us if we were in trouble." She saw Saiai grinning at her and she changed topics. "Uh Mugino, are you going to tell us what happened yesterday with you, Takitsubo, and Kamijou?"

"I suppose there is no reason why I shouldn't give you an overview," Shizuri sighed, muting the TV. She turned around and faced them. "The reason we were so beat up was because Takitsubo and I encountered the number two, Teitoku Kakine."

"What?!" Frenda and Saiai exclaimed.

"Why would he come after you now?" Frenda asked.

"Did you super kick his ass?" Saiai asked. Before Shizuri could respond, the door opened and Shiage walked in, holding a tray of coffees.

"Mugino," he called out, closing the door behind him. "I got your coffee and I figured everyone would like some too when they get up…" He trailed off when he saw everyone gathered in the living room. "Oh, I didn't know everyone was already awake."

"Good timing Hamazura," Shizuri said, grabbing her coffee. "I was just thinking I was going to beat you if you kept me waiting another minute."

"It seems like being around Kamijou made you less Hamazura-y," Saiai added, taking a coffee.

"Maybe we should make them spend more time together," Frenda suggested and both of them laughed.

"…Thank you…," Rikou said taking hers and Shiage felt like he could take the others' ridicule as long as he was helping Rikou.

"As you know, Kakine was the one responsible for those break-ins and research thefts," Shizuri explained, not bothering to fulfill Shiage in on the earlier details, but he knew that name belonged to the number two. "He wasn't happy that we interrupted his plans at that one research facility awhile back. The sniper who attacked you was employed by him. Anyways, we talked, but it was mostly to brag about his new skills." Her face darkened. "Not only was his ability in the same league as Accelerator's, that bastard taught himself to use magic!"

"Magic?" Shiage asked completely confused, but the other girls gasped.

"How?" Frenda asked. "Shouldn't it kill him if he tries?" Saiai shifted uncomfortably. She remembered Teitoku had mentioned he could use magic, but never saw any proof of that and forgot to mention it to the others.

"I wanted it to," Shizuri spat. "But he found a way around those damn rules. His dark matter ability allowed him to create body doubles capable of wielding magic. The red lightning was his doing. He took down an entire building with one strike. His wings made of dark matter were capable of blocking my attacks, so we were at a disadvantage. If it wasn't for Kamijou's timely arrival, we would have died."

Wow, Shiage thought. Kamijou saved Mugino? Kinuhata keeps saying he saved Frenda, so maybe this is why he gets preferential treatment.

"So why do you need an explanation from him?" Saiai asked, with a slight frown. "It super sounds like he found you. Anything he knows, you know."

"There was an…incident," Shizuri said slowly. "Something he did…" She didn't elaborate, causing Saiai and Frenda to look at each other in confusion. Shiage however noticed the change of expression on Rikou's face. She usually wore a passive expression except in dire situations and this must have been one of them. She was shaking slightly and fear was slowly beginning to get etched on her face. It was obvious Rikou was trying to stay calm, but she couldn't mask it completely.

"Is something wrong?" he whispered to Rikou, soft enough so only they could hear, and put his hand on her shoulder.

"…Ah," Rikou said looking at him. "No, I'm fine. Thank you." She gave him a brief smile and his heart skipped a beat. It looked like she had calmed down, so Shiage let the matter drop.

"Can we stay and hear everything then?" Frenda asked.

"I suppose there's no reason to keep you in the dark," Shizuri said. "If he doesn't come back soon, we will find him. Enjoy your break while you got it." She turned back to the TV and unmuted it. The others moved toward the kitchen, so they could talk in low voices without disturbing her.

"So what did she mean about magic?" Shiage asked.

"That's right," Frenda said, turning to Saiai and Rikou. "We never told him about the events in England."

"Well Hamazura," Saiai said, punching him in the arm. "I super think you have been with us long enough to learn about the dark secrets of this world. And why Frenda is madly in love with Kamijou."

"W-what?!" Frenda stammered and Saiai laughed. After they finally stopped arguing, Shiage was able to get an overview of their adventures with the magic side and Touma's battle prowess.

The morning passed slowly for Shizuri. With the others behind her talking in low voices to Shiage, she didn't have to take the time and tell him about magic herself. At least Saiai was busy, which meant Shizuri had the TV to herself. The problem was it was a Sunday, and nothing good was ever on then. Anything in the news she was interested in was over and the rest of it was useless. Trivial moronic fodder. What the hell is taking Kamijou so long? I should have gone after him. The bitch will try to monopolize his time if she gets the chance. She paced around the room, aware the others were watching her in silence, but she ignored them, except for punching Shiage a couple times to relieve her stress. She eventually turned back to the TV for a little while longer.

Her patience eventually reached its limits.

"He's taking too fucking long!" she roared suddenly, causing everyone else still in the room to jump. Shiage came running back into the room at her words. "Takitsubo, find him!"

"…He doesn't have an AIM field though…" Rikou reminded her.

"He was talking to Mental Out," Shizuri snapped. "Find her!" Rikou nodded and stared off into the distance. After a moment, she nodded.

"Found her," Rikou said. "She's with the Railgun, Accelerator, and a couple of their friends. They are currently moving."

"I bet anything he's with them," Shizuri said, marching toward the door. "Let's go and find him."

"Wait for us!" Frenda called, while she, Saiai and Shiage followed them.

The journey was not a comfortable one. Shiage was driving them and following Rikou's direction, but Shizuri could see where they were going. Rikou said they stopped moving a little white ago and, with the direction we are heading, they must be at his dorm. The ride took longer than usually because it was midday and traffic was in full swing. It wasn't dark out nor were they on a mission where someone else would help keep their activities secret, so they had to follow all applicable laws. Shizuri's impatience was evident as her dark aura slowly grew the longer they took. The suffocating presence kept the others from saying anything, in case they made it worse.

"They are right up ahead," Ruiko pointed from the back seat.

"Pull over here," Shizuri ordered Shiage.

"Yes ma'am," he replied, sighing in relief. He was glad he managed to get them here in one piece or Shizuri wouldn't let him see the following day.

"Look look," Frenda called out pointing. "Remember those two? They are leaving his dorm." They saw the familiar forms of Kuroko and Kazari leaving a room on the second floor. Kuroko teleported off and quickly disappeared, while Kazari slid down the rails of the stairway and ran off too. "I wonder where they are off to in a hurry?"

"Who cares?" Shizuri said, throwing open the car door. "That just means fewer brats to get in my way." She started storming toward the dorm and Frenda, Saiai, Rikou, and Shiage were right behind her. They marched up the stairs and stopping in front of Touma's apartment. Shizuri briefly thought about blasting the door down, but Accelerator was there and it might start a fight she wasn't in the mood for right now. Instead, she did something she normally didn't do, she knocked. Hearing his muffled voice made her smirk. Heh, he is here, knew it. The door opened and she stared directly into his eyes. His expression changed almost comically from exasperation to shock and fear. Before he could respond, Shizuri reached forward grabbed his collar, and yanked him through the doorway.

"Mugino?!" he croaked and his eyes widening further. "Oh crap…"

"I knew you forgot," Shizuri snarled, dragging him after her.

"I didn't forget," Touma denied. "Something happened this morning that had to take priority."

"Like?"

"I rather not say."

"You think that's going to be good enou…?" Shizuri snarled, before being interrupted by two other girls.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Misaki and Mikoto burst through the doorway, looking around before focusing on Shizuri. They only briefly registered Frenda, Saiai, Rikou, and Shiage.

"Great," Shizuri muttered. "The peanut gallery arrived." She turned toward them, not letting go of Touma's collar. "He and I have business to attend to. You can have him back when I'm done with him."

"That's not happening," Mikoto told her, sparking up. In response, Frenda reached under her skirt and grabbed a couple handheld missiles, Saiai stepped forward and gathered the nitrogen around her hand, and Misaki pulled out a remote. Rikou and Shiage were forced to step back as the tension between several high levels was reaching a breaking point. "There is no way your intentions are pure. You are up to something or you wouldn't have snuck into his bed last night…" She stopped when she realized what she let slip. I wasn't supposed to mention that. It's going to lead to questions.

"What?!" Misaki demanded, turning to her. "I didn't hear about this."

"Mugino?" Frenda asked in shock, turning to Shizuri.

"Impressive," Saiai added.

"That has nothing to do with…," Shizuri replied, and then her eyes narrowed. "How do you know about that?" Her head turned slightly to glare at Touma. "I heard him mumbled a few words to Mental Out this morning, but I didn't think he had the balls to say something like that."

"So it's true?" Misaki asked softly, narrowing her eyes. "Could you explain what you are up to?" Her hand was tightening around her remote. Calm down and don't act rashly. He won't like that.

"I don't believe this concerns you," Shizuri replied back in defiance. "But if you are going to continue to pry, I'll let you know I have questions for him to answer. Now," she turned back to Mikoto. "You didn't answer me. How do you know what happened?"

"Oh let me tell her," Accelerator's amused voice came from Touma's dorm. He stepped forward and pushed Mikoto and Misaki to the side. "I can't wait to see her face when she finds out." He sneered at Shizuri, and Touma felt every danger sense in his mind go off. Determined to stop this from going any further and causing the risk of a battle decimating the dorm building, he turned toward the others, which was difficult with Shizuri's iron grip on his collar.

"Accelerator," Touma begged. "Please don't go into that." He turned to Mikoto and Misaki, noticing Ruiko, Index and Lessar were looking out the doorway, but trying to remain unnoticed. "I did promise to give her an explanation for something that happened." I kind of forget with what happened this morning, but I made a promise.

"I can go with you to make sure she doesn't try anything," Mikoto suggest, but Touma shook his head.

"Thanks for the offer," he told her. "But this shouldn't take long."

"I'll be the judge of that," Shizuri said, letting go of his collar and pushing him toward the stairs. "I have a lot of questions." Her dark aura intensified slightly, causing Frenda and Saiai to decide to wait until Shizuri finished questioning him, before finding out what happened. The others watched them walk down the stairs and away from the dorm building. Shizuri and Touma stopped near an ally and started talking. They were still within view of the others, but way too far to overhear.

"I really want to know what they are talking about," Mikoto mumbled. Mugino wouldn't come all this way over something trivial and Touma knew what she wanted to ask.

"Mugino's ability won't let me read her mind," Misaki replied. This is so frustrating. MY prince is with another girl, and a horrible one at that.

"We would have to stop you if you tried," Frenda told them. "But it has something to do with what happened yesterday." Both of them were injured, but they healed quickly enough.

"You still won't super tell us the details?" Saiai asked Rikou, who shook her head. I wonder what scared her.

"…Mugino was very clear about it…," Rikou protested. This was entirely true. Shizuri told her explicitly not to say anything about the events that transpired until she gave the word.

"Can't you two stop asking her," Shiage asked. "Whatever happened, it must have been dangerous. Even without Mugino's orders, she doesn't want to talk about it."

"You always stick up for her," Saiai pointed out, and then she grinned. "It's because you lo…"

"That's not it," Shiage lied.

"I see," Accelerator muttered, frowning. From what he heard from everyone, he pierced together what Shizuri and Touma were talking about. That guy who called himself the Doctor gave me some insight. If what these brats said is true, they are probably going to discuss her transformation and his dragon. I need to hear this. "Well, I know what they are talking about."

"You do?!" Mikoto, Misaki, Frenda, and Saiai asked in shock.

"And it concerns something I want to know," he continued. "So I'm going to go interrupt those two. I recommend you two," he jabbed his finger and Misaki and Mikoto, "should interrupt them too. You will be interested in what happened, as it would remind you of Italy." Misaki and Mikoto gasped after a moment of confusion, knowing what he was referring too. "You brats," he glared at the rest of ITEM along with Ruiko, Index, and Lessar. "Better not interrupt. This is level 5 business, so fuck off."

"But…" Frenda protested, but she quelled under his glare. The three level 5s started walking down the stairs.

"You're as nice as ever," Mikoto mumbled. "Since you were involved with what happened, why did you take, so long to know what they were talking about?"

"We thought you and Mugino were fighting someone," Misaki added. "Based on what we saw, it had to be her and another high level ability user."

"What?" Accelerator snapped. "I was off doing my own shit. I just heard what happened to them by some bastard who tried playing a game and lost."

"When I called you about it," Mikoto protested. "You said not to worry, so I thought you took care of everything."

"Miscommunication," Accelerator mumbled. "I bet we will all get a full picture in a moment. I'm going to tell her you were in the hero's body this morning."

"If you do that, I'm going to tell her what happened to you."

---

Touma followed Shizuri in silence as they marched away from the others. Shizuri must have decided they were far enough away, because she stopped, turned to face him, and leaned up against a wall of a building, right next to an alleyway. "So," Touma said slowly, rubbing his head. "Where do you want me to start? I'm going to tell you this now, I don't know everything, but I'll tell you everything I do."

"I have something to say first," Shizuri cut across him abruptly, staring him straight in the eyes.

"Okay."

"Let's see," Shizuri muttered, her voice losing the curt tone. This was not easier for her. She thought about it constantly and knew she had to do it. If it had been anyone else, she wouldn't do this, but Touma was a unique existence to her. The feeling in her chest would slowly grow and start to interfere with her daily life if she didn't do it now. "You arrived at a desperate time for me and Takitsubo. I'm not going to lie or try to deny it. We would have died without you. So for that… I want to thank you." The words were foreign to her, but she managed to say them.

"You're welcome," Touma said automatically, but he was taken aback. He always pictured Shizuri as someone who would never openly thank others, even if she appreciated their assistance. Maybe this is why she wanted to talk privately.

"Don't get a big head," Shizuri snapped at him. "In my line of work, fooling yourself is a sure way of getting killed. I'm my own critic. I just wanted you to know what you did was important."

"I didn't do it for thanks," admitted Touma. "I saw the lightning and knew a magician was there. When a magician appears in Academy City, in means trouble for someone… usually me." He muttered the last two words.

"Sounds like the kind of things you would find yourself involved in," Shizuri said with a smirk. This guy's luck is so horrible, it's actually amusing. I bet he has a lot of entertaining stories about it.

"I know," Touma replied with a sigh. "Such misfortune."

"Enough of these pleasantries," Shizuri said, her voice becoming more businesslike. "We have a lot to discuss. I have questions and I'm sure you have questions. I'm going to forget you ran off this morning, as long as your answers are to my satisfaction."

"I warned you I don't know everything," Touma protested.

"Then you better tell me what you do know," Shizuri responded, before her eyes darted to the side. "Damn, the peanut gallery is on their way." Touma turned and saw Accelerator, Mikoto, and Misaki heading right towards them. "I thought we told them this was private." Touma shrugged, but he knew they wouldn't want to be left out if they believed this conversation was important.

Mikoto knew I got hurt yesterday, so she would want to be here for sure. Rather than repeat themselves, Shizuri and Touma waited for the others to arrive.

"What do you three want?" Shizuri snarled.

"I want to hear everything that happened yesterday," Accelerator said. "I believe I can add some information to what you two are going to discuss. These two followed me because they don't have lives of their own."

"HEY!" Mikoto and Misaki yelled.

"I want to know what happened because we found out Touma's hurt and it somehow involved you," Mikoto said, crossing her arms.

"We snuck into the barricaded area where a large fight took place," Misaki added. "We saw signs of a fight, including marks left behind from your ability. We originally though you and Accelerator fought a magician, but then he says he wasn't there."

"Those two were fighting Dark Matter," Accelerator said, pointing to Touma and Shizuri. "The number two level 5."

"Huh?" Misaki and Mikoto asked, completely shocked by this declaration.

"How did you know?" Shizuri asked, stunned. "You weren't there and the city covered it up."

"I was fighting somewhere else," Accelerator explained. "Someone there decided to annoy me with his constant blabbering. The only bright side was he mentioned you two fighting him."

"So are you going to tell us what happened or not?" Mikoto asked, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Damn it," Shizuri muttered. "I only wanted to get answers from him about what he did." She sighed. "Fine, whatever. Takitsubo and I were minding our own business when Kakine attacked us. It turns out he was in charge of all those thefts and break-ins around the city. He was mad at us for stopping him once when we were performing routine guard duty."

"Kakine?" Mikoto asked. "Why would he want ability development research? He's already a level 5. I never met him, but from what I heard, he's not the type of person to try to make others stronger."

"He was trying to surpass me," Accelerator shrugged. "Trying to reach the fable level 6 and all that bullshit."

"He was using all those other ability users as Guinea pigs then," Misaki reasoned and Accelerator nodded. "He wasn't willing to test his drugs on himself until it was perfected. He's diabolical, but smart."

"I didn't know that," Touma said, his face turning white. All I saw was him attacking Mugino and Takitsubo. So he was the one who was leading the thefts? Arg, I can't stand people who are willing to hurt others for their own gain. How many people were hurt just so he could try to increase his power?

"How did Touma get involved," Mikoto asked.

"I'll get to that in a moment," Shizuri growled. "Don't interrupt." Both of them glared at each other and Touma could swear there was sparks flying between their eyes. "I might have been able to take care of him myself but, due to …being under the weather, it was a little more difficult. Then he couldn't resist showing off the new skill he learned. Someone taught that bastard how to use magic. That red lightning you probably saw was his doing."

"How could he use magic?" Mikoto asked in shock. "It should have killed him if he tried."

"He created clones of himself with his ability," Accelerator explained. "It allowed him to cast magic without destroying himself."

"How do you know?" Misaki asked, her brow furrowing.

"I fought him yesterday." Accelerator didn't bother telling the others they actually fought once before that.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Touma asked.

"The timing never came up."

"The lightning magic he used was called the Gregorian Chant," Shizuri continued. "It decimated an entire building in one hit. Kamijou here jumped in and blocked the second strike with his hand."

"I knew it," Touma said, hitting his fist into his open palm. The others all looked at him and he explained. "I've seen it once before. It requires one person to say an incantation and thousands of others to simultaneously perform a chant somewhere else."

"So he made clones to perform the chant," Misaki finished. "He found a way around the laws of using magic and science, and then used it to his advantage."

"It was lucky he didn't try firing again after that," Touma admitted.

"Luck my ass," Accelerator laughed and everyone looked at him. "I discovered the second rate's lair where he kept his clones. I started annihilating them and that would have stopped him from being able to use his magic if it required them all to chant."

"I'm not going to thank you," snapped Shizuri, looking annoyed while Accelerator smirked at her. "You had no idea at the time. Anyway, we beat him, but how we did that requires an explanation from him." She jabbed her thumb at Touma.

"Not just me," Touma retorted. "What about that transformation of yours?"

"Transformation?" Mikoto asked. "Like the one Shokuhou's experienced in England?" It could be like mine too I suppose, but I require getting forcefully linked to the sister's network. I hope it's not like Accelerator's wings though. He used them in Italy and the ending is a little blurry, but I still remember them.

"Tsk," Shizuri made a noise with her mouth. "It's not like hers. I didn't have a source of Telesma to fortify my ability. Plus, our abilities are fundamentally different. She uses links while mine is a one-way emission type."

"Then how did you do it?" Misaki asked. "I don't know how yours was, but mine was dangerous. I felt like I lost control of myself for a little bit."

"Maybe you just weren't as strong willed as I was," Shizuri smirked, causing Misaki to frown slightly.

"Mugino…" Touma said slowly and she rolled her eyes.

"Whatever," Shizuri said. "Yes, the same thing happened. It was hard to think for myself as power consumed me, happy? The reason I was able to accomplish this feat was because of a theory a scientist in the city concocted." She decided to avoid mentioning Jason by name because the others might question him. Both of them had dirt on each other and it was a balancing act. If one of them ratted the other out, the other would use their information. It was a stalemate keeping both of them in check.

"Which was?" Mikoto asked, not sure she wanted to know.

"You may not know this," Shizuri told them. "But our rankings are not based on pure power. It's based on our potential in how far we can grow. They determined this based on our AIM fields. Accelerator's potential is much higher than ours, which is why he is ranked first."

"Naturally," he smirked.

"After England," Shizuri continued, ignoring Accelerator's smug look. "It turns out she," Shizuri pointed to Shokuhou, "had an increase in potential, which is why they promoted her. The theory the scientist worked on with me was I could break the ceiling on my ability's potential by overloading my powers ever so slightly. It was the same thing Kakine was doing to the others, but mine was a controlled dosage rather than just a random amount. It's why they were dying, they couldn't handle the increase in power." She also decided to keep Rikou's involvement a secret. "It worked and I experienced a similar type of transformation she did."

"So this transformation is you stepping past level 5?" Touma asked.

"Exactly," Shizuri responded, a note of arrogance in her voice. "I'm one step closer to surpassing them."

"Are you stupid?" Touma demanded, causing the others to look surprised. "You purposely did that? You could have died! What idiotic and irresponsible person would even suggest that to you?"

"Someone who was bored," Shizuri shrugged. "He did warn me of the risk if that calms you down. I accepted it." She paused and looked at him. "Aww, were you worried about me?"

"Of course I was," Touma declared, causing two dark auras to erupt from behind him, but he didn't care about that right now. Accelerator looked surprised at his words. "You think anyone would be happy if one of their friends took a stupid risk like that?" Even Shizuri looked surprised at this, but Touma didn't stop. "It's one thing with Misaki who only did it to save everyone as a last resort in England. Accelerator and Mikoto both experienced it before, but it was still to save us. It is completely different when you risk killing yourself just to gain strength. I told you before it didn't matter."

For the first time Shizuri found herself unable to respond immediately. What the hell is with this guy? His words are so stupid, but have such weight behind them. As her brain began to process what he said, something else pushed its way to the front of her thoughts. "They have experienced a transformation too?" she asked, pointing to Mikoto and Accelerator. "Do all the level 5s have this ability!?"

"I don't think Gunha-san has," Touma admitted. "And I don't know the number 6."

"Each of our transformations are different though," Mikoto added. "They may have some similarities with physical changes, but they aren't exactly the same." I actually experienced mine twice, but the first time I was forced.

"I would prefer not to experience that again," Misaki admitted and Mikoto secretly agreed. "I don't really care about that kind of power, as long as I can stay near Touma." She grabbed his arm and leaned up against him. A vein throbbed in the head of both Mikoto and Shizuri at her action.

"Stop trying to grab him at every opportunity," Mikoto said, grabbing Touma's other arm.

Great they are at it again. The fighting was a little annoying at times, but Touma couldn't say he hated being grabbed by them. "So does anyone know why these transformations occur anyways? No other level has physical transformations like that, unless someone purposely uses their ability to do so. With you four, it seems automatic."

"I honestly have no idea," Mikoto admitted. "All scientists believe level 6 is just a myth, so there's really no data above level 5."

"I figured mine was based on the Telesma I absorbed," Misaki shrugged. "Magic fortifying my ability would undeniably have some unexpected changes."

"I don't recall even feeling the physical transformation," Shizuri said with a slight frown. "My mind almost succumbed to the power I received during the transformation, so I didn't notice it."

"I guess you have to find someone to tell you about it then," Accelerator said. He didn't want to mention he could control his transformation to a certain extent. It still continued to threaten and overwhelm his mind with anger and hatred. He didn't want to use it near anyone important to him, in case he lost control. While he was milling around in his own thoughts, the others immediately knew who they were going to question when they got a chance. None of them shared that information with each other though.

Kagere-san might have a theory, Mikoto thought. I could ask him without worrying about drawing attention to myself.

I suppose I could check with a few scientists I know, Misaki thought. It's not like they can hide anything from me. They should at least have a theory or two.

That bastard should know something, Shizuri thought angrily. He helped me achieve it, so he better have an idea what this transformation is.

"I guess it was too much to hope for," Touma sighed. "There's so much about abilities yet to be discovered. Komoe-sensei always tells us that. This has to be one of them." Mikoto and Misaki nodded in agreement.

"Well now that we discussed my transformation," Shizuri said, glaring at Touma. She was still irritated the other two girls were holding onto him. "Now it's your turn to answer the important question I have."

"What is it?" Touma asked, and then he felt his stomach sink as he realized what she was most likely going to ask. Oh shit…

"WHAT THE HELL IS WITH YOUR HAND?!" Shizuri demanded, causing them all to jump.

"What do you mean?" Touma asked, knowing full well what she was talking about. I don't think I can pass it off as a hallucination.

"It was blown off when you tried to stop my attack and then… WHAT WAS THAT?!"

"Looks like she saw it," Accelerator stated, trying to smirk, but he frowned instead. I already knew it though.

"The dragon," whispered Misaki. She still remembered the overwhelming fear it produced when it emerged from Touma's severed arm. It was even worse knowing Touma had been in so much pain, yet still stood up to protect them all.

"You all know about it?" Shizuri asked. She was completely surprised at this news, but quickly realized she shouldn't have been. Something like dragons emerging from Touma's arm didn't seem like something he would be spreading around. Since they have been around him longer than her, they had to have seen it. I should have known. Those three butt into everything when it concerns him. It's no doubt they found out about those dragons.

"We saw it before," Mikoto confirmed her suspicions. I actually saw it twice, but the time in Italy was different than I remember. "A giant invisible head came out of his arm. It was covered in blood and radiated fear." Her eyes widened a moment and she shivered. Even being partially transformed, she remembered the terror and power that surrounded it.

"One invisible head?" Shizuri asked, glaring at Mikoto, trying to determine if she was being funny. "There were eight of them in total and they were obviously solid."

"There are eight?" Accelerator demanded. "How many fucking monsters do you have hidden in your damn hand hero?" Wait, I think the Doctor mentioned that, but I was mocking him at the time. He glanced between Touma and Shizuri. "You better not be making shit up."

"Solid?" Misaki asked. "Why would it be different than what we saw? Are you sure you weren't hallucinating."

"I was not," Shizuri snapped. "Takitsubo saw everything too." Accelerator and Misaki still looked skeptical. "Are you doubting me?!"

"She's telling the truth," Touma and, to everyone's surprised, Mikoto said.

"What?"

"I saw them solid once during one of my transformations," Mikoto mumbled, kicking the ground. She didn't like thinking about that incident. Misaki frowned too, remembering the incident, even though she didn't get a chance to see the entire fight between Mikoto, Touma, and Sogiita.

"This is getting us nowhere," Accelerator growled. He pointed to Touma. "Explain everything you know about those dragons of yours."

"They aren't mine," Touma protested, finally getting more than a couple words in as everyone stared at him. How am I supposed to explain them? I don't even know what they are. "I have no idea how to answer that and I have no idea how they exist in my hand. All I can tell you is what I have seen." The others nodded and he continued. "The first time it emerged, Stiyl and I were fighting a magician that took over a cram school in the city. He managed to use a magic that could turn his thoughts into reality. We tricked him and used his own magic against him. That's the first time I saw the invisible dragon covered in blood, but Stiyl said it was just an illusion created by his magic, so I didn't think much of it at the time. The second time was when…" He stopped and looked at Mikoto who nodded.

"Go ahead and tell them," she said with a sigh. It's going to be easier if you say it.

"The second time was when Mikoto experienced her first transformation," Touma continued. He neglected to mention someone else had forced her to transform. "Gunha-san and I fought her to snap her out of it. During the fight, her power blew off my hand and the dragons emerged. They were solid like Mugino said. They devoured Mikoto's transformation and disappeared. I don't know how, but my hand came back afterwards. Then there was our rescue trip to Italy, when we first met Eve and Adam. We fought one of Eve's minions called the Herald." He was giving a short explanation for Shizuri's benefit. "It was the invisible head covered by blood. When we fought Kakine, I tried to stop Mugino's attack from her transformed state in hitting an explosive bomb he created. Her power blew off my hand and the solid dragons emerged. My hand grew back both times."

"And you are okay right?" Misaki asked worriedly, lifting his right hand up and looking at it. So she blew it off, but it sounds like my prince jumped in front of her attack. That is so like him. If he was seriously hurt though, I would never forgive her. "There's no lasting damage right?"

"The only lasting damage I have is a couple of Kakine's attack into my back," Touma said, pulling down his collar and showing the top of the bandages. "Mugino had a doctor patch me up and I'm almost fully recovered."

"Mugino did that?" Mikoto asked in shocked, turning to Shizuri. Could she actually be acting on feelings for him? That's not good for him if she likes him, or the fact I have another rival.

"Tsk," Shizuri said annoyed, noticing Accelerator had snickered. "It's not like I did it out of kindness. He helped me and I simply paid him back."

"Sure," Accelerator sneered.

"And you have no idea why it comes out invisible and alone or solid and in a group?" Mikoto verified with Touma, who shook his head.

"No idea. I don't even know what they are. It's not like I can just ask them."

"From what you told us," Misaki said, putting a finger up to her cheek. She still wasn't letting go of his arm. "It seems that these dragons appeared solid when you were facing a powerful science side ability, like when we transformed. When I transformed, you didn't lose your hand, so we should assume your hand must have to be removed for them to escape. When you fight a powerful magic side individual, the single invisible head comes out. I wonder if there is a correlation."

"That does make sense," Mikoto agreed. "Based on what we saw in Italy, that does appear to be the case. He lost his arm to the Herald's wind magic."

"Why don't we test it out then?" suggested Shizuri.

"Cool," Accelerator added. "Let's cut off his hand and draw them out."

"No!" Touma protested.

"Definitely not," Misaki added.

"Don't even think about it," Mikoto finished.

"Pssh," Accelerator said, rolling his eyes. "His girlfriends are always making life difficult." Before Misaki or Mikoto could reply to this, Shizuri spoke up.

"Could it be related to his Imagine Breaker?" she asked, looking at Accelerator. "Maybe it's the power that lets him negate abilities."

"I doubt that," Accelerator said. "We already know how he negates abilities."

"You do?" Shizuri asked, completely ignoring Touma and focusing on Accelerator. "How the fuck does his hand do that?"

"You will love this," Accelerator laughed. "It's the most bullshit explanation I have ever heard. If I didn't see it for myself, I wouldn't believe it. The hero's hand produces an Anti-AIM wavelength that cancels out AIM fields, which causes our abilities to disappear."

"I'm not in the mood for games," growled Shizuri, her face darkening. "If you're going to lie, at least make it believable."

"He's telling the truth," Touma reassured her. "I had some tests done by the city on it a while back." He decided to avoid saying it was Jason for a couple reasons. One, Shizuri would most likely hunt him down and demand answers and, two, because Touma knew Jason was keeping it a secret since his hand wasn't a science ability. Mikoto and Accelerator realized what he was doing.

I overheard them talking about Kagere-san researching Touma's hand, but I didn't hear about the Anti-AIM wavelength, Misaki thought to herself. Interesting.

"Who was the scientist who told you this?" Shizuri demanded.

"I don't remember," Touma lied. "It was only once and the city made me do it."

"I see," Shizuri said slowly, glaring at him.

You are such a horrible liar, Accelerator thought.

"With how much you know," Shizuri pointed out. "Those dragons could be generating this… Anti-AIM thing." Touma couldn't do anything but shrug. "Whatever," she sighed, rubbing her forehead with her hand. "You obviously don't know anything more, so I'll just have to find out for myself. I know people higher up in the city who might have a lead." I know he's lying, but I can't push the subject with the others here. Damn it, I need to beat up Hamazura to relieve some stress. "I'm done," she said standing up straight and stretching. "We will be leaving now." It was obvious she was not going to drop the matter. When she was out of earshot, Touma breathed a sigh of relief.

"That could have gone a lot worse," Touma sighed. "But I know she's going to continue investigating this." Jason hasn't been prodding me recently for any experiments. I wonder if he hit a dead end.

"Should we let Kagere-san know?" Mikoto asked. "If she finds out it's him…"

"She would threaten him until he told her everything," Misaki finished.

"There's probably nothing to worry about," Accelerator said, pulling out his cellphone. "He's smart enough to cover his tracks. Anyway, weren't we planning to do something with all the other brats? I'm actually getting hungry after she wasted my time."

"Oh yea," Touma said. "Index is probably dying of hunger. We should get going." The four of them started heading back to Touma's apartment, as Shizuri and her friends began to leave. As they were heading back, something occurred to Mikoto.

"Have you told Index about the dragons?" she asked Touma. "Last time I remember us mentioning it, you changed the subject."

"No," Touma admitted. "Index doesn't know a lot about my hand, except what she told me already. If she found out about the science side examining my hand, she might panic. She still doesn't completely trust some of the city's motives. Since the dragons haven't been causing any problems, I didn't see the reason to let her know about them. I didn't want to worry her."

"I see," Mikoto said, while Misaki and Accelerator were oddly silent. I can tell we all think he should tell her, but I guess that's the way he is. If it comes to it, we can tell her about them.

---

Bang!

The heavy black metal door behind Jason slammed shut as he stepped into a small square room, less than two meters wide. The temperature dropped by about twenty degrees Celsius, before the second door in front of him opened. It was made of the same black metal and Jason quickly stepped into the main room before the door shut. This one was much larger, but the walls and ceilings were also made of the black metal. The temperature in this room was kept at a constant negative one degree Celsius, just below freezing. Jason pulled the collar on his coat closer as he looked around, his breath becoming visible. Several speakers were playing soft music and monitors were constantly beeping. There was a large cylinder full of an eerie green liquid, that looked like it was glowing slightly, placed in the center of all the equipment. The cylinder was large enough for an adult male to stand up in, but it was currently only being partially utilized.

Several organs were floating in the liquid, connected by thin strings of a white chalky substance, about half the width of a pencil. The substance appeared to be moving and constantly wrapping around the organs. The liquid might have been a preserving the organs in their current state, but then one of the organs began to move on its own. The brain started floating to the top of the cylinder and a thin strand of the white substance pushed out through the only opening in the lid. The tip of the strand moved down the side of the glass wall for about a foot, before a bulb slowly grew on the end. It continued to pulse and grow until it formed the shape of a white Rhinoceros beetle. It was less than a foot long but moved to position itself to stare directly at Jason.

"So," Jason said conversationally. "You regained full consciousness and have begun to reform using your dark matter already. Do you recognize me?"

"You are the one I made that deal with," Teitoku'a voice came out of the white beetle. "You finally returned. Whatever this music is, it's interfering with my concentration. Turning it off would speed up the process of regeneration." His voice was determinedly steady and monotonous. He had almost an entire day to himself with only his thoughts to occupy the time. I can't give this guy any information until I know what he wants.

"There's a reason for that," Jason replied. "I promised to give you the power you sought, this is step one. That liquid you are in is not only preserving your organs, what's left of them, but also contains drugs to help your brain operate at peak efficiency. The music is doing the opposite. It's causing you to have to forcefully exert yourself to rebuild your body out of your dark matter by interfering with subconscious use of your ability. Your organs should probably be replaced too at some point."

"What's with the contradictory effects?" Teitoku snapped.

"Your new body has to be made of your best material and intricately designed," Jason said. "This is more than just making a basic clone. You are now completely one with your own ability. That's the reason for the drugs. The music is to make sure no shortcuts are made subconsciously. Every atom you create will be purposely designed by you. If you want to be stronger, you need a more powerful body to handle your new power."

"Who are you?" Teitoku finally asked. "And what do you require of me to go to such lengths?"

"My name is Jason Ka…," he stopped and grinned. "Kihara." He started pacing back and forth in front of the tank, while the beetle's eyes followed him. "I'll skip the details but, in short, I am working on an intricate experiment that has a step requiring your ability of creation."

"So again," Teitoku growled. "You plan to use me and throw me away. Am I just a backup plan to you?"

"No," Jason corrected him. "I already have backups. You have one of the most important steps. You see, unlike Aleister and Ricane, who have multiple plans going at once in case one fails, everything I do is for the sake of a single plan. I have ways to exchange parts, but you are the only one who can do this necessary step."

"Heh," Teitoku laughed for the first time. "You are laying all your cards on the table. Now I know I am in charge. How do you know I will fulfill my end of the deal?"

"You have to."

"I thought you were involved in the dark side of Academy City. Do you really think someone's word is trustworthy?"

"Nope," Jason replied, smirking. "Which is why I took precautions. You can't betray me no matter how hard you try." His tone was provocative and Teitoku felt his anger rise.

"You think so?" he demanded. A white missile shot out of the beetle at Jason's face. Instead of hitting him where Teitoku had aimed, it flew past him and hit the wall with a loud clang. Jason didn't even flinch. "What the hell is wrong with my aim?"

"Nothing," Jason pointed out. "You can't hurt me and also, watch this. SIT!" The beetle's legs suddenly caved under it and its body was pressed against the glass, almost like it was sitting.

"What the hell?!" Teitoku yelled in shock.

"You always hear of people saying never make a deal with the devil," Jason told him coolly. "It always has unintended consequences. You see, when you agreed to my terms, you activated the Mark of Lust. It's a magical curse that, for simplicity's sake, causes you to sell your soul. You can't hurt me and have to follow all my orders." Teitoku was about to roar out in anger, but Jason continued. "But, I don't want that. I want this partnership to be willing." Teitoku suddenly regained control of the beetle's legs and he stood back up on the side of the tank. "That is why I promised to increase your power. I am also taking the time to answer any questions you may have since we have time while you recover."

"Interesting," Teitoku mused to himself. This bastard tricked me into being at a disadvantage to use me for his gain. I bet the promise to increase my power is only because he needs my dark matter at a certain level. There's not much I can do right now though. Teitoku was smart and experienced enough to know he wasn't going to be able to fight back until he learned more, so he decided to go along with Jason, for now. "Any questions huh. Fine, how about you tell me how the Meltdowner managed to transform to start off with."

"That's simple. She came to me demanding power and I gave it to her."

"WHAT?! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT THEN!"

"How was I supposed to know you would go after her?" Jason pointed out. "You see, causing Meltdowner to start surpassing level 5 is part of my master plan. All it took was the right combination of enhancements to modify her AIM field. When you started using magic against her, I was a little worried."

"It wasn't enough to beat that damn Kami and his negation," fumed Teitoku. "Then those monsters appeared after he lost his right hand to one of Meltdowner's attacks after she transformed. Speaking of which, what where they? They devoured my dark matter and broke her transformation."

"They are a pain in my ass that's what," grumbled Jason. "I've been researching into lore about them and the main head for a… side project. The dragons would be what Christianity and many other religions call demons, fallen angels, or devils. They are depicted as the enemy of god and his angels. You started learning magic from Ricane, so I don't want to hear about how you don't believe in those things now."

"Then to crush those beasts and that fucking Kami," Teitoku declared. "I will have to become a level 6 or, better yet, become a magic god." He paused for a moment. "Ricane mentioned them once and their virtually unlimited power. As a magic god, I could obliterate all that challenge me and get my revenge on Ricane and Aleister."

"So you just want to be another child playing in the sandbox?"

"Are you calling a magic god a child? What do you know about them?"

"It's true their power can reshape our world at their whim," Jason admitted. "But you have to think about how they are formed. Magic gods are created when a magician 'steps into the domain of God.' This has serious implications about how strong they truly are."

"It means something created a level where magicians could reach…" Teitoku said slowly, trailing off as it dawned on him.

"Precisely," Jason said, pleased he caught on so quickly. "Magic gods might be all powerful, but that's just from our point of view. Something had to create our world and grant them the opportunity to reach that height. The original God you could say, the one the Anglican Church, Roman Catholic Church, and many others probably follow. I never found signs he was originally human."

"This is really interesting, but so what?" Teitoku asked. "Once you reach the level of magic god, why not just see if it exists."

"Because if it was that easy," Jason replied. "They could prevent others from trespassing into that domain. However, people continue to strive toward it and some succeed. Because of this, I'm not interested in magic gods. I am interested in THE God."

"To see if he exists?"

"Kind of," Jason shrugged. "I am creating an experiment that will blur the lines between magic and science, something you will have a significant part of. I am going to use technology developed by science and perform a magic ritual great enough to change the course of our world."

"And you think a single person can do this?"

"The plan is already moving smoothly."

"In your opinion, is a magic god stronger than a level 6?"

"Would be tough to compare them side by side, but I would say a level 6 would be equivalent to an angel maybe even one of the four archangels, a level 7 would be a magic god, and a level 8 would be God. This is just theory though and I haven't been able to test this. We haven't even managed to truly reach the fable level 6 yet."

"I'll humor you," Teitoku said, sounding skeptical. "Why don't you tell me some details of your plan?"

"I have been researching lore, every piece of evidence, every lead on the beginning of our world. I have read and heard about all of God's miracles, his creations, the order he performed them in, but then I reached a point where I was stuck. How could I find the history of God before he created the world? This frustrated me to no end. With no leads, I gave up for a time and moved back to Academy City and started working with ability development. Even though the laws for science and magic clash in the body, I discovered you could use science abilities in magical rituals. The only backlash occurred on who actually cast the spell. This was a momentous discovery. I started working on my theory and design of the ritual which once eluded me. I've been working backwards from when the Son of God appeared on earth."

"Anyway," Jason continued. "While I was progressing, I still needed to find out more about God, the bible only starts when he started to create our universe. Unable to find out about this on my own, I did what others do. You work and share information with other groups. This group had a different end goal then me, but our goals did not clash. We traded information and worked together loosely, while still staying separate." He started mumbling under his breath. "Well, until that bitch decided to go and do something unforgiveable. Next time I see her she's going to answer for it." His voice returned to normal and he pulled a book out from under his shadow. Teitoku was interested in the shadow itself, since it was the first time he saw it with his eyes.

So that's his ability, but I also sense mana within it. "What's in that book?"

"This is called the Book of Genesis," Jason explained. "It wasn't easier to get it. I had to trade a lot of information for a copy. I pretended to get it stolen so other magicians don't question why I never gave it up. This book contains two relevant pieces of information. One, it has history long before the bible starts. Two, it is the source of creation magic." He grinned. "When you are fully recovered, you are going to learn this."

"I can already create anything with my dark matter," Teitoku replied, snorting. "I even learned how to replicate human tissue. Why would I need to learn magic that does the same thing?"

"Your dark matter ability uses material that does not exist in this world. The Book of Genesis can create everything that exists in this world, or use to exist. I saw a powerful magician create a bird of fire that could fight an army. Think about the power you could wield if you combined them."

"If it's so powerful, why don't you learn it?" Teitoku questioned. I think I should learn it. The possibilities would be endless with that kind of knowledge. Nothing would be out of reach.

"My compatibility is wrong. I don't know if Ricane told you, but magicians tend to specialize in magic once they learn the basic. The knowledge of magic is so vast, it would be impossible to learn everything in enough details. Of course, there is an exception to this. I specialize in magical tools, give me time and I can figure out how any artifact works, and ceremonial summons by replicating the aspects of angels."

"Oh," Teitoku asked. "Why don't you show me? You sound confident in your explanations."

"I figured you would ask," Jason sighed, putting a hand on his head. "But if it will take away all your doubts, then I could give a short demonstration." His shadow started flowing out of clothes into a circle below him. Pillars of darkness started rising around him and he started to mutter. Ripples went through the pillars, as if they were made of water, before they shattered like ice. The shards fell to the ground and every piece exploded. Instantly, dark green vines erupted from the floor around Jason and spread throughout the entire room, engulfing everything. They were covered in thorns, and one of them lightly touched Teitoku's dark matter beetle.

"ARG!" he yelled, feeling as if his entire body was on fire. He severed the connection to protect his mind and the pain stopped. The vines disappeared as quickly as they arrived and the floor beneath Jason fused back together. Teitoku created another beetle outside of the tank, but it took a moment before he could talk. "What was that?"

"This was a spell derived from the angel Abaddon," Jason explained, brushing his sleeve. "He's the Angel of the Abyss, King of Plague, Destroyer, and Lord of Suffering. He is one of the angels who performs destruction at the whim of God. Even the smallest scratch of his throne can cause pain beyond imagination. I usually combine his aspect with a normal nameless angel. By torturing the angel, I can heal someone by transferring the wounds to the angel. I only feel a slight… discomfort in the process. With the right conditions, I can even replicate the aspects of archangels. It takes a lot of preparation or a sample of their Telesma."

"Okay," Teitoku said quickly. "I believe you. Now one last thing, what is your final plan with all this information and people you have been gathering?"

"I am trying to learn the secret that has eluded man since the dawn of time," Jason said simply. "I want to know where God came from and how he was created." There was a moment of silence, before Teitoku started laughing.

"I can't believe this," Teitoku said between laughs. "It sounds like you actually want to learn how to become God don't you? You sure are arrogant."

"No."

"What?" Teitoku stopped laughing. I thought I finally figured him out.

"I would not trust myself with such power," Jason explained. "I have neither the will nor self-restraint to wield the power of God. Giving me that kind of power would doom this world. I also don't have the ability to create or lead an army of angels."

"So this entire thing is just to satisfy you scientific curiosity?" Teitoku asked incredulously.

"Nope." Jason shook his head. "I just have to find someone to fill that role instead of me."

"You would trust someone who wants that kind of power?"

"Of course not."

"So why try to give it to someone else?"

"If someone wants that kind of power, they should never get it. The optimum choice would be someone who doesn't want the power, but is dragged kicking and screaming into the position, preferably because no one else can fill the void. I already have a suitable subject in mind, once I figure out how to remove a few complications."

"Let's assume your plan works," Teitoku said. "What makes you think God will stand by silently while you do this?" If he even exists in the first place." He could stop your plan in its tracks."

"Then we have to find someone who specializes in crafting magical weapons," Jason answered. "With your ability to create matter outside of this world, we theoretically should be able to create a weapon capable of killing a god, but I don't think that will be a problem. The group I share information with is working on killing God. I plan to use the moment they succeed, to cast my ritual and fill in the void. They are quite capable."

"I can't believe how ridiculous your plan is," Teitoku grunted. "But if it makes me strong enough to get revenge on my enemies, I'll help. I have to ask, you aren't completely sane, are you?"

"I simply like to push the boundaries of our world," laughed Jason, solidifying the fact in Teitoku's mind. "Sure some may call me insane, but I enjoy dethroning those who tower above others. I guess you could call me a heretic but, if everyone was the same, life would be boring."

---

Touma sighed and continued to clip coupons for sales this week on the kitchen table while Index and Lessar watched TV. It took a while, but everything had finally calmed down and went back to their lives. Shizuri and her friends left while the rest of them got lunch. Everyone was really subdued until Kuroko returned and explained Jason and Kazari were discussing some issues and that everything looked like it would return to normal. Touma felt like Kuroko was acting slightly different, more passive but cheerful, and, after sharing a look with Mikoto, believed she thought so too. After they ate, everyone had to split up to finish homework or study for school the next day. It had been a busy weekend for all of them. Komoe didn't assign a lot of homework, so Touma finished early enough to start working on coupons. His phone beeped and he received a surprise.

It was a message from Kazari.

Touma frowned, because he didn't normally get a message from her. Usually Ruiko was the one who contacted him when one of them needed to know or ask something. Flipping open his phone he glanced at the message.

Kamijou-san, Jason and I talked through a lot, but I was hoping you could do something for me tomorrow. He promised to go to school but, after everything he has been through, there is a chance he may decide to skip. Can you let me know if he shows up?

She really knows him well, Touma thought to himself. I guess they have been a couple for a while. When I finally get a girlfriend, I hope she's as kind and caring as Uiharu-san is. He messaged her back, promising to let her know, and put his phone down. Homework is done, coupons are clipped, and enough food for tomorrow is in the fridge. I finished everything early. His eyes widened. This isn't good. When things go this well, something bad is going to happen. True, misfortunate things happened this morning, but my luck doesn't work this way. His phone started to ring and he answered it automatically. "Hello?"

"Kami-yan," Motoharu's voice echoed loudly in his ears. "How have you been since our adventure into the holy garden?"

"I'm still pissed at you two for coming up with that plan," Touma muttered. "But everything has quieted down now, so I can't complain."

"You had a busy weekend spreading the Kami-yan disease, fighting the number two, and even swapping bodies while facing Eve and her group."

"H-how do you know all that?" Touma coughed. Has he been spying on me again? Seriously, he ALWAYS knows what's happening.

"You know what my occupation is," Motoharu laughed. "It takes a lot of hard work and dedication to slip undetected among the crowds… is what I would like to say. I heard everything that happened today through the walls. I keep telling you how thin they are but you never learn. The rest I worked out on my own from what I saw happening around the city."

"We had a lot of important stuff to discuss," Touma admitted. "It's not like we could worry about our volume. One of our friends got hurt badly."

"Kagere is pretty tough," Motoharu said. "And Uiharu-san is devoted to him. I think he will be fine. I'm more worried about Eve's continued activities in the city. It sounded like Juliet is ignoring Eve's plan and doing her own thing. I'm debating if we should try to approach her and get her to defect. What do you think of her and our chances?"

"I don't think that will work," Touma admitted. "I suppose if Jason was the one to ask, you might have a chance, but I don't think it's going to work well. Cain mentioned Juliet's magic was being bound or kept by Eve, something like that."

"Oh well," Motoharu sighed. "One last thing Kami-yan. I'm deeply disappointed in you."

"For what?"

"Once Shirai-san and Uiharu-san left, you should have kicked Accelerator out too. Every other girl in that room was utterly devoted to you. You should have started an…"

"I'm hanging up."

"WAIT KAMI-YAN! I have something serious to ask you."

"It better be or I'm hanging up."

"After everything that has happened recently, I feel like you need a break. How would you like to increase your frequent flyer miles on an all-expense paid trip to…" The line disconnected as Touma hung up.

Can't he be serious? Even when we are being shot at and chased, he continues to do stuff like this. He couldn't help shaking the feeling there was something more in Motoharu's words. He frowned while trying to figure it out and turned to look at Lessar and Index. They were playing a video game and, by the sound of it, Lessar was winning and being a sore winner. Touma yawned and stretched. I guess I'll worry about it tomorrow. He didn't call me back or come knocking, so it must not have been to important.

---

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.

Pierce: Season three has finally wrapped up, so it's time to reveal the rankings.

Mikoto: What rankings?

Motoharu: Why the girls in the top three spots of Kami-yan's potential best girl.

Misaki: I'm naturally first right?

Mikoto: You're third at best.

Accelerator: Coming from the third rate.

Lessar; Where am I?

Pierce: Before we reveal, there are many girls who have not had enough screen time to truly be added to the rankings accurately. After the next season, it's sure to change. There are also several ties so they will be listed together.

Frenda: Get on with it.

Motoharu: Let's see. Tied for third we have Mugino, Frenda, Lessar, and Itsuwa.

Itsuwa: I-I made it? B-but I haven't shown up since season two.

Pierce: You had instant capability.

Shizuri: It's not like I care about these rankings.

Frenda: Why am I only third?!

Saiai: Someone's upset, hehe.

Motoharu: Ties for second place is Misaka, Shokuhou, and nee-chi, I mean Kanzaki!

Kaori: W-why am I there?

Misaki: What do you mean second? I'm obviously the best girl.

Mikoto: Your place is right, but why am I there? I'm his best female friend.

Misaki: You wish tomboy.

Mikoto: Why don't you try to run a couple blocks? Hang on, if we are second, who's first?

Motoharu: A completely unexpected girl. Now if you would all turn to the curtains over there.

*Dramatic Music*

Motoharu: Aogami, reveal the winner!

*Curtains fall*

Mikoto: Saten-san?

Ruiko: Umm, hi? I didn't know why I was here. They just asked me to sit in this chair until they called for me.

Kazari: You won Saten-san!

Accelerator: Where is the hero anyways?

Motoharu: We traded him to some girl name Birdway in exchange for several one of a kind magic side cosplay outfits for Aogami's birthday.

All the girls: WHAT!?

One thing I would like to address to all the readers is thank you. I write this story for fun and because I enjoy it, but reading all the comments and messages people send me letting me know they also enjoy it means a lot. As a writer, and I'm sure everyone who posts stories on this site feels this way, it really makes us feel good knowing others are being entertained by our work. With how popular this story has ballooned into, I plan to keep writing, even with more RL things going on. I thank everyone for their patience and hope you continue to enjoy all the events that make up the world of Index.

A lot more people will be introduced in Season Four, including some girls people wanted to see or have return. Naruhinasakufan1, yes, she will return, stop asking.

One last thing:

I have decided to tentatively, allow Touma to answer questions for the beginning of season four. BUT, I can't stress this enough, do not ask him about what girl he likes or anything similar. It will cause him to run and hide or deflect the question. If you want to poke fun of his harem, that's cool, he can't deny he has one. If the questions get to bad, it might have to be a normal opening.