We are finally back to Australia. Soon, the war shall be waged and leave a vast scar across the land, only to be covered up by the harsh environment and animals. Before we move to comments, I do have one thing to say. Many people wanted me to do an Omake for Valentine's Day. As you can see, I didn't. This is because any idea I had really had been done, Touma being chased around by girls, like normal, but with more of them. Instead, I decided on something else. I am planning to release an Omake on March 14th. You may or may not know why that day is important. If you don't, you will be pleasantly surprised. If you do, I'm sure you will enjoy it. I don't think it's been done and it should be hilarious. Now, onto the comments.

general ironox: I lie a lot, you should never believe me.

Brosephg: You are missing out on a lot of fun. You spoil something really funny or weird but take it out of context completely. That way, people who do read the comments before the chapter are like, WTF? Then you sit back and laugh when they say something about it.

vietnamese guy: Constructive criticism is always fine. As long as it's not just insults. As for the IB, several people actually know what it is. Terra, Ollerus, and there have been signs Aleister and Laura know what it is too. Thinking of the IB in terms of Christianity is narrow-minded. Ayu appeared in a NT volume yes, but that was a flashback volume.

Eurigos: I laughed at you calling it binge reading. Glad you enjoyed it.

Seeker: Most of NT11 was a flashback chapter, so it already happened.

naruhinasakufan1: Chris Hansen is a horrible liar and needs to be stopped.

anand891996: Please tell me you are British so I can keep imagining your comment in a British accent. A lighter arc will appear after Australia wraps up. Raffle and Touma's mom are coming to a chapter near you.

whwsms: You commented on things you shouldn't know but just happen to, like Misaki's outfit. You also caught on a small OC moment that will be explained in this chapter. Then you disappoint me and thing Aleister made an appearance in the outside world. Arthur has been employed by Eve for many years, you learn these things. Jason could ask Touma how he keeps Mugino and lives, she's a yandere.

Guest 13: I can't leave her, but I guarantee you will love this chapter.

Guest: 1) Yes, but we all know they look good in most anything. 2) Could be. 3) I don't suppose it really matters, she would take it from wherever she can. 4) Not really, just some of the prefixes, so can't answer rest of question.

wildarms13: People watching movies are really important. You should always pay attention to them.

akd48: I received to many death threats not to bring her back. Her fan base is vicious. Touma can't get too powerful. His charm is being able to handle things without being completely OP.

FrodoFighter: No, don't try to write short comments, I love reading them. Of course I like drills, all men like drills. Don't you like drills? You know, Touma won't know what it means to have Arthur respect him, but Misaki will. Eww, Touma doesn't need more Yaoi in his harem. "thank you also to Brosephg for his canadian-ness." I liked this part a lot too. Misaki didn't lose her clothes, but Mugino might start. Mikoto and Mugino use energy based powers, so fibers can easily be burned away. Aiwass, well, don't try to understand it. You won't be able to.

Anon Guest: I feel like "The Way of the Tou-Man" would be a great self-help series.

Handsomistic1: Sorry your comment got cut off, but thanks for sending it to me.

Generation Zero: Mikoto met the new goddess and learned the Kaio-ken. Who's this Aiwass of which you speak? Uiharu, yeah, she's not going to be that happy at some point. Explanation of Kuroko? When do I ever explain anything?

Agent Nine: Touma doesn't need a transformation, he's badass already.

Salishious: Explanations on Kuroko will appear at some point.

Savaris: Woo, you caught up. I was actually planning to remove Mikoto's name from the list to see if anyone would notice, but I was too lazy. Misaki's name isn't on there because she didn't appear until chapter… 14? It's been awhile.

Tardis42: Most people figured out she wasn't dead, or they threatened me. Either way, she's alive.

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.

"Something wrong?" Zach asked Touma. "You have been awfully quiet since you talked to the other girl."

"I'm not sure," Touma admitted. "It's just… I have a bad feeling something is happening back in Academy City." He looked out into the distance. It was dark and the only lights were from the camp or the moon and stars.

"And you want to be there to help out if it's true?" Zach asked knowingly.

"A lot of my friends are back there," Touma explained and then sighed. "But I'm needed here. Adam is a definite threat and I can't ignore him just because I think something is wrong at home." He made a fist. "Even if there is, my friends are strong. I believe they can handle it."

"It is possible you are feeling nervous because of the battle approaching," Zach suggested. "It is a pretty common occurrence." He paused. "However, I think you should trust your instincts. It's proven a valuable asset for you so far." Zach looked out across the camp too. "I'm not sure what you can do about it right now though."

"I can't really do anything," Touma admitted frustrated. "Sometimes, I feel people put me on some kind of pedestal because of my hand. I'm only a normal high school student. So what if my hand is abnormal, it's not like I can do everything. Yet, I somehow get dragged into dangerous situations with magicians, ability users, coups, and all powerful beings who want to revive an evil angel. Why do these things always happen to me?!" Touma heard Zach chuckle and turned to glare at him. "I'm glad you think my misfortune is funny."

"This misfortune of yours, is it how you attracted the princess?"

"I didn't try to attract her!"

"Really?" Zach asked skeptically, but then he grinned when Touma opened his mouth to refute him. "I think I believe you."

"Phew...," Touma sighed in relief. "Now if only everyone else would. There's no way the princess would be interested in me."

"Sorry, I meant I believed you didn't try to get her attention. I still think she has a thing for you and is working out how to make it aligned with royal procedures."

"You-…!" Touma spluttered. "Quit trying to give me a death sentence! If people overhear you, I'm as good as dead!"

"It's too much fun to stop though," Zach said with a chuckle and then raised an eyebrow. "I have to ask, do you feel better now?"

"Huh?" Touma asked and then paused. "Actually I do. You acted like some of my close friends do all the time, so for a moment I thought I was home."

"Sometimes if you are worrying about something you can't control," Zach explained. "Focusing on something else is the only way to move past it. This actually happens to a lot of us and it is one of the reasons we do whatever we can to keep our spirits up. Maybe your friends do it on purpose to get you riled up to help stop you worrying about things."

"Maybe," Touma muttered and shrugged. "I could see that being the case in a couple situations, but I think they mostly do it for fun."

"Want to see what the rest of your friends are up to?" Zach asked. "We got some time before we need to retire for the night. I hope you are an early riser, we move out at first light."

"Great...," Touma moaned. He would probably be up all night worrying about the impending fight. "Yeah, let's find them. I want to talk to them tonight." Zach led him through the camp and then looked around. He pointed out a camp site to Touma and they walked over. The area here was obviously Agnese forces' camp, because nearly everyone here was a battle nun. When Touma approached, he saw a lot of them turn to look at him, which only made him uncomfortable. I wish they wouldn't stare. Someone waved at him and he turned to see Ruiko. She was sitting at a table with Sister Lucia and Sister Angelene. Touma walked over to her, but Zach stayed back. He was planning to let them have a little privacy.

"Hey Touma," Ruiko greeted him happily. "Pull up a seat." Touma obliged and sat down to her left.

"We will be off," Lucia said and stood up. She tugged at Angeline's arm and they left Ruiko and Touma alone.

"Sister Angelene is really shy," Ruiko whispered to Touma, before they were sure the nuns were out of earshot. "And Sister Lucia is a little strict, but they are really nice once you get to know them. Is there a reason they always look embarrass when they see you?"

"No idea," Touma lied. There was a reason back when Agnese and some of her forces were being held prisoner by the Roman Catholic Church. Their clothes were magic seals and Touma's hand would destroy them on contact. Agnese experienced it first hand, but Touma was unconscious when the Amakusa used his hand to save the others. Lucia and Angelene must still remember having their clothes explode next to a guy. Ruiko raised an eyebrow skeptically, but to his relief she didn't pursue the subject.

"This whole thing feels like a dream," Ruiko told him and she gazed out into the distance. "I don't really know what to think. They are going to war against an all-powerful magician and here I am stuck in the middle unable to do anything." Touma saw her face darken.

"Are you okay Ruiko?" he asked concerned. She looked into his eyes and he saw her eyes watering slightly.

"They asked me the same thing," Ruiko told him softly, they meaning Lucia and Angelene. "I guess being nuns gave them some insight into people's feelings. I told them I was fine." Touma stared at her for a moment and something told him not to break the silence. Ruiko gripped her hands together and they started shaking. "I'm not," she finally admitted. "I'm scared. It's England all over again. What if we all don't make it through this? How many people are going to get hurt? I tried to keep my spirits up the entire way here, but now that we are right in the middle of everything, I can't control myself. I feel like I'm going to have a break down. I kept telling myself I wanted to get stronger to help out in these kinds of situations, but now, actually being in one, I don't feel I can."

"Ruiko," Touma said firmly and he reached over to put his hand on hers. "Listen, it's okay to be scared. We are students, not soldiers. I don't know how, but I promise we will all make it out of this. Our friends will be waiting for us back home. When we get back, let's make sure to celebrate with them."

"Heh," Ruiko sniffed and wiped her eyes with one of her hands, but made sure her left hand was still being held by Touma. "I want to. I miss them, especially Uiharu." Ruiko grinned slightly. "Her underwear always relaxes me." Touma felt his ears burn, but forced himself not to look away. "I don't know what to do with myself. I don't want to get in the way, but I don't want to feel like I did in England. Being stuck on the sidelines while everyone else fights with everything they have. I think it was worse than actually being out here. If I wasn't so useless-…"

"Stop that!" Touma interrupted her.

"Huh!?" Ruiko looked surprise at how forceful he was.

"You aren't useless," Touma told her and lowered his voice. He was aware a couple nuns had turned toward them for a moment. "Don't say that about yourself. We may not be able to move buildings or shoot lightning, but we still have our ways of helping. There are things you do that you may not even know you are doing. There are not many people that would be willing to go even this far for others. The fact you are here shows how strong you are. Since you are strong, there is always something you can do to help."

"How am I supposed to do anything against someone like Adam?" Ruiko asked. Her eyes had stopped watering, but she still looked depressed.

"No one said you have to fight him," Touma said quickly. "That would take an army. The knights and the church are going to take that role, but there's still stuff we can do. I don't have superhuman strength, but I still get into plenty of fights. My hand is really the only thing special about me and it has caused me no end of trouble. Heh," he laughed for a second. "It caused Mikoto to shock me more times than I can remember."

"I think there's a lot more to you than just your hand," Ruiko said. Touma looked at her and she actually smiled. "Even without your hand, I think you would have still found a way to help us if we needed it. I could imagine a lot of people with your hand who wouldn't go out of their way to help everybody. They would be too afraid of injury." She shook her head. "You are willing to risk everything for anyone, even a complete stranger."

"I'm kind of stubborn that way," Touma said with a chuckle.

"Can I ask why?" Ruiko asked.

"I'm not really sure why," Touma admitted. He had lost his memories of most of his past. "Maybe it's because a lot of bad things happen to me and I know what it feels like when someone doesn't help out. I hated that feeling of being ignored, so I don't want others to go through that."

"Heh," Ruiko laughed slightly. "I remember Misaka-san saying something like that once."

"I don't suppose the reason matters anymore," Touma added with a shrug. "I'm going to do everything I can to help anyone who needs it. Even if others give up, I won't."

"I guess you can consider that one of your other strengths," Ruiko pointed out. She suddenly felt bold and leaned up against his shoulder. Touma felt hot and looked away embarrassed. "I want to be able to do the kind of things you do."

"Don't strive to be like me," Touma replied. "I'm reckless, stubborn, and not very smart. Be the best person you can be and that will be more than enough."

"I still wish I could face danger calmly like you," Ruiko sighed. This wasn't true, but Touma was not planning to correct her. Touma wasn't a calm and collected person like she thought. He was a normal high school boy and fighting magicians and ability users always terrified him. Most fights he saw his life flash before his eyes. He couldn't tell her that right now though, because of how much she looked up to him. He was supporting her right now.

After this, maybe I should tell her. It might actually help her more in the long run.

"Thanks for letting me vent," Ruiko whispered. She was still leaning on him. "I'm still scared, but it's more manageable now. I think I just needed to talk to someone who could relate to my situation."

"Anytime," Touma reassured her and then he received a surprise. Ruiko's hand under his moved and grasped his tightly. If anyone was watching, and several nuns were peaking at them, they would look like a couple. Touma wasn't sure how to break the silence, but he also didn't really want to. It was one of the most peaceful moments he had since they arrived. For now, he was going to try to keep comforting her. He wasn't sure what would happen tomorrow.

"I still wish I could help with something," Ruiko whispered and finally broke the silence.

"Ahem," a girl coughed behind them. Touma and Ruiko instantly set up in their seats and let go of each other. They turned around in surprise to see the red braids of Agnese. "Sorry for intruding, but I couldn't help overhearing."

"Agnese?!" Touma exclaimed in surprise and then calmed himself down. "Sorry, didn't realize you were there."

"Did you think I wouldn't be camping with the rest of my forces?" Agnese asked. Touma noticed she looked a little red in the face.

She must have overheard us, Touma thought embarrassed.

"So, um, Agnese," Ruiko said, trying to find her words. "What brings you here?"

"I heard some of the others say you were wondering around so I came to see if you were okay," Agnese said to Touma and a pink tinge appeared on her face. "I mean," she added quickly. "The princess kept you back and there are a lot of rumors spreading around."

"Rumors, huh?" Touma muttered and turned to find Zach. He was off in the distance talking on a radio, but he caught Touma's eyes and winked. "I wonder why that happened. Seriously, I think most of the knights have the same kind of humor as my class." He rubbed the sides of his head.

"Males never grow up," Agnese told him. "Only their toys change. So why did the princess keep you back?"

"I want to hear what happened too," Ruiko added excitedly. This was the distraction she needed to keep her mind occupied and Touma felt the sweat form on his brow when he realized this. Ruiko noticed him hesitate. "Come on, spill the beans. We won't tell, right Agnese?" Agnese nodded and sat down across from them, before leaning in close to listen.

"It wasn't anything that important," Touma tried to say nonchalantly. He was trying to play it off, but the girls were having none of it.

"Suuure," Agnese muttered and rolled her eyes. "We won't let you go until you tell us."

"Tell us," Ruiko added and then grinned mischievously. "I'm sure Lessar and Birdway-san will want to know, maybe we should find them before you start?"

"No!" Touma cried and Ruiko giggled. It was obvious now she hadn't been planning to tell them. "That was mean! Fine, but it really wasn't anything I needed to talk about." Ruiko and Agnese leaned in closer. "Carissa was passing on a message from her mother-…"

"The Queen wanted to talk to you directly?" Agnese gasped, but managed to keep her voice down. Ruiko looked surprised too.

"Yes," Touma continued. "She mainly just wanted to thank me for coming to help out."

"That's it?" Ruiko asked, but she felt relieved. I thought there would be something more, but if that's all, thank goodness.

"Several people heard shouting and then saw you run out of the command tent," Agnese prodded. "What else happened?"

"That was…" Touma tried to explain and trailed off. How can I explain what happened? The Queen kept joking around about Carissa and I being a… which is impossible. I can't tell them that. He saw Ruiko's expression turn slightly concerned and Agnese's eyes narrowed. "A complete fiasco now that I think about it. The Queen said some crazy things that Carissa took the wrong way. Because the Queen wasn't actually there, all her frustration was focused on me. I ran out of there to save my life and then Zach showed me around."

"Nothing else happened?" Agnese asked suspiciously.

"No," Touma lied quickly. "What did you think could happen?"

"There were signs," Agnese said slowly and carefully. "Then a rumor started to emerge that you and her…" She trailed off.

"What rumors?" Ruiko prodded. She normally loved rumors, but this time she felt like it was going to be one she wouldn't like. However, she realized deep down she needed to know. "I heard a couple of the nuns whispering, but I missed what they said."

"It was probably a rumor Zach's group started," Touma sighed. I guess I should tell them. "Please keep this a secret or I'm going to get in so much trouble." They both nodded. "The knights are under the impression…" he took a deep breath, "…the Queen is trying to push me onto Carissa."

"EHHH!? Agnese started to yell, but Ruiko and Touma covered her mouth simultaneously. When she managed to calm down enough to lower her voice, they moved their hands. "How is that possible?" Agnese whispered urgently. "For a princess to marry a kid from another country, that's unheard of. Marrying a common folk had occurred several times in history, but they always had been citizens of England. If they do marry someone outside of England, it's usually a political marriage. I wonder…" She trailed off in thought, but her face turned scarlet.

"It's not true right?" Ruiko asked trembling and turned to look at Touma.

"It's not," Touma answered and shook his head. Ruiko was still staring at him and her eyes were full of shock and fear. "You met the Queen once before. She likes to joke around and I think she likes pressing Carissa's buttons."

"Phew...," Ruiko sighed in relief. "If you did go with her, that means you wouldn't be able to-…" Her face turned scarlet and she turned away from Touma. "…um, return to Academy City. I bet she would keep you tied up in England."

"That might not be too bad," Agnese muttered softly, more to herself than the others.

"What?" Touma asked.

"Nothing."

I bet that's what the Queen said in their private meeting, Ruiko thought. I saw a little bit of her teasing in England, but I didn't believe it could be serious. Even if she was trying to set them up, what matters is what Princess Carissa thinks. What would happen if she actually likes him? I don't think Touma would leave Academy City instantly, but there could be a lot of reasons why he would. Where would that leave me? What about Misaka-san, Shokuhou-san, and everyone else? Maybe I should tell him what Misaka-san told me. No, not now Ruiko. You can't give him any other distractions. After this is over, I should ask him. I really want to know what he thinks. Maybe he would even want to go out… Her face started to burn as she imagined actually asking the important question. She did it easily enough when they formally met so long ago, but it had been to make Mikoto jealous. This time, it would be for her own feelings.

"Are you finishing up?" Zach called over to them. "If it takes you this long per person, we aren't going to finish until after midnight."

"I should get going," Touma told Ruiko and Agnese as he stood up. "I'm glad I got to talk to you both before tomorrow. Ruiko, remember what I told you, okay?"

"Yeah," Ruiko replied with a nod. "Thanks, for everything." Touma turned to leave and managed to get halfway to Zach, when he felt a hand grab his sleeve.

"Hang on a moment," Agnese said and Touma turned around.

"What's wrong?" Touma asked.

"First," Agnese said slowly, as if she had to weigh every word. "I want to thank you again for everything you did for me and the others. You stopped us from making a mistake in Academy City, you saved us in Italy from our imprisonment, you helped us so much in England, and now this. I don't feel words are really enough to express my gratitude anymore."

"Nonsense," Touma told her and raised a hand. "I helped because I wanted to and a lot of other people were involved in those incidents too. You are a really caring girl Agnese, but there were people who misled you. I know you wanted to help people, so it was an easy choice to make. If you are ever in trouble, all you have to do is ask and I'll do everything I can to save you."

"There you go again," Agnese sighed. "It's making this easier, but more embarrassing." She took a deep breath. "After this is over, I want to talk to you privately. There are a few things I really need to discuss with you. Will you promise to find me when the battle is concluded?"

"Sure," Touma promised. "We will obviously win, right?" He held out a fist and Agnese looked at it for a second before she burst out laughing.

"Ever optimistic," she said with a grin. "Deal." She bumped his fist and then started to turn around, before she stopped. "Oh, I'll make sure Saten-san is able to help out, but far away from the front lines to avoid the fighting."

"Thanks," Touma replied. "I know I can count on you." Agnese turned away when she felt her face grow hot. Touma didn't notice, since it was dark and the lights of the camp didn't cover everything. He steadied his breathing and headed toward Zach. "I finished."

"I tried not to listen," Zach told him. This was true, mainly because a few other things had grabbed his attention. One was the girl, who Touma had called Imouto, had actually walked over and talked with Amelia, who was in the area. Zach could barely make out their expressions, but Amelia had looked skeptical, intrigued, and then concerned at Imouto's words. Zach's radio then went off and he was forced to spend a few minutes answering questions and checking up on other knights. Amelia and Imouto started to head off toward the command tent, which prompted Zach to call out to Touma. "But I did notice you were cuddling up to that black haired girl. Are you two dating?"

"N-no," spluttered Touma. She does like me though and I consider her an important friend. "We have been friends for a while, but we aren't like that. Ruiko's really nervous about the approaching fight."

"So you were providing a reassuring shoulder to lean on," Zach finished. "I understand completely. She actually seems like the most normal person in your group."

"I think she is the most normal out of all my friends," Touma said with a short laugh. "So, any idea where the rest of my group went?"

"There were a couple reports about some young ladies yelling at each other and causing a ruckus," Zach confirmed. "I figured they were with you."

"Of course they are," Touma sighed. "Lead the way." They headed through the Agnese Forces' camp to a tent that was a little further away. The tent looked like it had actually been moved twice. Touma heard a couple of the nearby nuns muttering about the 'new people fighting,' and he grew worried. There were three people in his group that could actually get into an argument that would annoy everyone around them, but he narrowed it down to two of them. When they were nearly upon the tent, he heard the two voices and his suspicions were confirmed.

"Quit throwing your crap everywhere. This isn't New Light's personal closet. I still can't believe they expect us to share a junk tent like this."

"Maybe you should untangle your panties and learn to relax."

"I'll untangle your panties with my foot! You are lucky they need every available personnel or I would have blasted you into the afterlife already."

"I would love to see you try. Why are you so upset anyways?"

"I'm annoyed I have to spend a night in a moldy tent like this and then, to top it all off, I have to share it with you, the slut who does anything for attention. Anyone else would be better."

"I don't do everything."

"Name one thing you won't do."

"I refuse to roleplay as a clown, that's just creepy."

"That's where you draw the line?!"

"Is someone grumpy because you can't share a tent with someone special?"

"I prefer my own tent. Privacy is important. Can't you take anything seriously?"

"I take a lot of things seriously. It's just a lot more fun pushing your buttons."

"And now my wand is going up your…!"

"Woah you two!" Touma yelled. He had finally reached the tent. He reached up to grab the entrance flap. "Your argument is bothering the others. Can't you two stop fighting for a day?"

"Stop!" Zach called out. "You need to wait until…!" It was too late. Touma touched the entrance and they heard the sound of breaking glass. Touma was so surprised, he stumbled slightly, and fell into the tent. He landed on all fours and the deafening sound of silence was his first warning something was wrong.

"Ow," Touma muttered. He had landed on his knees and the force stunned him for a moment. "Sorry for barging…" His voice trailed off when he looked up. "Oh crap." Lessar and Leivinia were staring at him, both looking as surprised as he was. There was one big difference between them though. Touma was fully clothed. The girls were not. Lessar was only in her underwear, while Leivinia had her top half completely exposed for a moment.

"You!" Leivinia growled furiously, but she grabbed the sheet on her bed to cover herself. Her face was as red as a tomato, as unyielding rage welled up within her.

"I didn't know it was my birthday," Lessar cheered and jumped on Touma's back. "Your surprise is great. How far are we going to go tonight?"

"We aren't going anywhere!" Touma thundered with his eyes closed. "Now get off me and please get dressed!"

"You can't come into our tent and give orders," Lessar reprimanded him while tightening her grip. "In fact, you should have to follow ours. There is a maximum dress code in this tent, so take off your clothes."

"Quit joking around!" Touma replied and tried to shake her off, while also trying to stand up. He opened his eyes and saw a hand holding a wand pointed directly at his face.

"You are either stupidly bold or just stupid," Leivinia seethed coldly. "Barging into my tent is one thing, but you seem to have the indisputable ability to do so at the worst possible time. Now, what do you have to say for yourself before I roast you alive?"

"Such misfortune?" Leivinia smiled evilly.

"Wrong answer."

Zach was standing outside the tent with his hand over his face. I should have warned him. Most tents are protected by magic to avoid unwanted intrusion, especially when they house females. His tent wasn't protected because Touma would negate it as soon as he walked through the entrance, like he just did a second ago. Now, he could only listen to their conversation and then took a couple steps back at Leivinia's words. I should apologize for forgetting.

"AHHH!" Touma cried, as he scrambled out of the tent, with a seminude Lessar clutched to his back. A torrent of flames erupted from the tent a moment later and Touma was forced to spin around and used his right hand to negate it. He stumbled backwards and fell, which forced Lessar to jump off to avoid being squashed. Another jet of fire erupted from the tent, which burned away the entrance flaps, and Touma was forced to spin around on the ground and raise his right hand. The grass and dirt around him was seared by the intensity of the flame, but he was unscathed. "Birdway, it was an accident! I'm too young to become toast!"

"Maybe you should think about your actions before you waltzed into a maiden's tent," Leivinia replied and exited the remains of the tent. She had thrown on a shirt, but her wand was still pointing directly at Touma.

"Aww," Lessar laughed. "I appreciate your concern, but I like it when he comes and visits unexpectedly."

"Shut it," Leivinia snapped. "Or you're next." She walked over and Touma scooted back on the ground, but Leivinia was faster being on her feet. She stepped on his right wrist with one foot and then stuck the tip of her wand right up against his nose. "Now, how should I punish you? I don't think I have ever been that embarrassed before. All of my men know the consequences of barging in on me."

"Can we talk about this rationally?" Touma asked.

"You have three seconds to explain why I shouldn't fry you," Leivinia told him.

"That's not enough time to explain anything," Touma protested.

"Time's up."

"That wasn't even two!"

"What happened?" Zach turned around as five nuns ran up to him. Each one was wielding some type of weapon and had an alarmed look on their face. "We heard an explosion and someone yelling," one of them gasped. "So we came running."

"It's fine," Zach reassured them. "The Imagine Breaker boy found out why you have to announce yourself before entering a tent. The boss of the Dawn-Colored Sunlight is reprimanding him." He pointed and the nuns turned their attention toward Touma, Lessar, and Leivinia.

"Oh," another one of the nuns said and peered around Zach. "Can we stay and watch?" They had all lowered their weapons.

"I don't see your boss or mine," Zach said after he looked around. "So I don't see why not." He and the group of nuns from Agnese's forces continued to watch the scene before them.

"Don't be so hard on him," Lessar told Leivinia. "He only wanted to spend some intimate time with us."

"That makes it worse," Leivinia scolded her. "I might let him live with this being an accident, but if it was on purpose…" Her words trailed off and the grip on her wand tightened.

"It was an accident!" Touma explained before Leivinia could fire off a point blank jet of fire from her wand up his nose. "I heard you two arguing and it sounded like it was going to escalate." He closed his eyes when he felt the wand twitch slightly at the end of his nose. "I only wanted to stop the fight, I swear. I would never try to peek on girls, no matter how cute you are." Touma didn't hear anything after that. Is it over? He gingerly opened an eye to see what the verdict was. Leivinia and Lessar were looking at him with a curious expression on their faces. It looked like they both had grown embarrassed, because there were pink tinges on their cheeks.

"Well," Lessar finally remarked and turned to Leivinia. "That settles it. I think we should drag him back into our tent and administer an appropriate rew…punishment."

"I don't normally agree with you," Leivinia commented and seemed to regain her composure. "But I will this time." She removed her wand from Touma's face. "Okay boy, get in that tent and you might be lucky enough to see tomorrow."

This is bad, Touma thought. I am very unlucky. He wasn't sure how to get out of this. On one hand, he had walked into both of them changing. This was entirely his fault and he knew it. If they wanted to punish him, they had every right to. The issue was, he didn't want to be stuck in a tent with both of them. Lessar would try something unladylike and Leivinia was an unknown entity to him. She seemed like she could act like Carissa and pull out a whip, but other times she seemed a lot like Mikoto. He wasn't sure what kind of punishment she would administer. He contemplated his choices and was about to settle on standing up and running away as fast as he could. However, he was saved before he was able to rise to his feet.

"Hang on ladies," Zach called out. He walked over to them and Touma finally noticed several nuns were watching them. "He has other obligations to attend to first. The only reason he is here was because he wanted to check up on you." He glanced at Lessar. "Are you planning to put on clothes?"

"Nah," Lessar replied dismissively. "It's too hot, so imagine it as a swimsuit."

"Humph," Leivinia scoffed. "A lackey like yourself dares to try to tell me what to do?"

"Of course not," Zach replied. "I am only following orders from the higher ups. If you disagree, take it up with them. We had a little time for him to visit you."

"I just might."

"You missed me that much?" Lessar asked. "Yay!" She jumped on Touma, as soon as he stood up. "I'll sneak into your tent tonight," she whispered. "And we can do what you wanted to do to us here."

"You mean talk?" Touma inquired. He knew full well what she meant, but he wanted to make his intentions clear.

"You're no fun," Lessar said with a pout and put her arms behind her back. "So what did you want to see us about?"

"I wanted to make sure you two were okay," Touma explained. "I wasn't sure how used to these kinds of battles you were."

"Aww," Lessar cooed and grabbed his arm. "You care about me that much?"

"I consider you a friend," Touma told her and a flicker of a pout appeared on her face. Zach had to try hard not to smirk.

"We walked into this with our eyes open," Lessar told Touma. "We understand what we have agreed to."

"You don't need to worry about me," Leivinia bragged haughtily. "My group is rather big, so we are used to this sorts of large scale battles. Adam's group isn't even that numerous, so the most we have to worry about is probably reanimated corpses, like St. Peter. Normally, a necromancer wouldn't be that big of an issue, but we have to consider the possibility Adam might be able to take his necromancy a step beyond what is normally achieved."

"What do you mean?" Touma asked. Necromancy is always depicted as evil in the games I've played, but it's usually just skeletons and zombies. Could it be like some kind of infection that can spread to other people?"

"Necromancers put a false soul into a body to animate it," Lessar explained. "The souls are usually slaves to the caster. The thing is, because the corpses are not alive, they don't have life force to refine mana. What they have instead is they appear to have superhuman strength."

"Appear?" Touma asked confused.

"The human body is only capable of exerting a certain level of strength," Zach elaborated. "We subconsciously put limits on ourselves to avoid going beyond what our body can handle. If we didn't, our muscles would tear and bones would break. Sometimes in an emergency, we can overcome the limits for a moment, but it's rare. The possessed corpses don't feel pain, so they are perfectly willing to do damage to themselves to accomplish their orders."

"So we treat them like durable people with enhanced strength," Touma muttered thinking. "And as corpses; they likely don't go down easily. Zombies in video games can be a pain to destroy." His eyes widened when he thought of something. They are magical creations, so… He looked at the others. "If I touched one of those corpses with my hand, what would happen?"

"Look at you," Leivinia pointed out impressed. "Using your brain for once." Touma felt a twinge of annoyance. "Most likely, your hand will negate the connection the false soul has to the body and it will collapse into a harmless pile of flesh."

"You could have phrased that better," Touma groaned. That sounded disgusting to him. I suppose that makes it easier than trying to punch it until it goes down. The next problem is, what about those missing people? Could… could Adam being bringing them in to turn them into corpses? Touma made a fist, but didn't say anything. There was no proof of that yet. Something Leivinia said swam to the front of his mind. "You said Adam might be able to go beyond normal necromancy. Can you tell me what that would mean?" Touma felt a shiver down his spine when Leivinia's face darkened.

"With what we have seen of Eve," Leivinia said slowly. "She can accomplish things we thought impossible without stepping into the domain of a magic god. We have to work under the assumption Adam is the same way. The worst case scenario would be if his necromancy would allow the corpses to keep the power they had when they were alive."

"Since St. Peter was a saint," Touma said slowly, as understanding took hold. "Would that mean he has powers similar to Kanzaki?"

"Even more so," Lessar said.

"St. Peter was actually in the presence of the Son of God and was known as the greatest apostle," Zach explained. "His miracles were almost as famous as the ones performed by the Son of God himself. He could cause people in flight to descend to earth, make dogs talk, heal the sick, and even restore the life of those who had died. It's believed that being in the Son's presence caused St. Peter to retain some of his divine power. If someone with that kind of magic is at Adam's disposal, even an army might not be enough."

"Does Carissa know?" Touma asked. "That wasn't mentioned while we were there."

"Actually it was," Lessar corrected him. "We talked about it a little before you woke up from your little nap. When you returned, we repeated a few things for your convenience."

"Oh."

"There's no point in worrying about it though," Leivinia said with a shrug. "We are going to win either way."

"She has a point," Zach added. "No need to stress yourself over a possibility. We already have precautions put in place. With the knowledge these two have," he gestured to Leivinia and Lessar, "added to ours, we should be able to handle any surprises."

"Okay," Touma sighed in relief. "I feel slightly better now. Both Lessar and Birdway are really skilled, so if they say it's under control, I believe them."

"Aww, Lover Boy admires us." Lessar clutched Touma arm tightly.

"Don't think you are off the hook though," Leivinia told him and pointed her finger at Touma. "After what you did, you still have to make it up to me."

"I promise to do anything to make up for my mistake," Touma promised. "So please don't attack me again."

"Good." Leivinia smirked and Touma felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise. He was going to regret this, he knew it. "After we finish this little problem, I'll think of a way for you to repay me."

"I know how you can repay me," Lessar said happily. "We are definitely going to have a celebration after we win, but when the party is over, it won't end for us. You can-…"

"Not that," Touma said quickly and pulled his arm out of her clutch.

"Meanie."

"I believe we have one more of your companions to find," Zach interrupted after a cough and then turned to Lessar and Leivinia. "Have you seen the small blonde girl?"

"Frenda wondered off in that direction," Lessar directed.

"I heard her telling a couple knights their weapons were outdated," Leivinia added.

"What?!" Zach exclaimed and looked in the direction Lessar pointed. "Well, I guess she is headed to the munitions area. It should be easy enough to spot her." He turned to Kamijou. "You coming?"

"Ah, yes." Touma hurried to catch up and then turned around for a moment. "In case I don't get a chance, good luck." They nodded in response.

"I guess I should get some sleep," Leivinia yawned. "Even if the accommodations are barbaric."

"It would be better if you didn't burn it by overreacting," Lessar pointed out. The tent's door flaps were burnt off because of Leivinia's fire.

"That was a perfectly reasonable reaction," Leivinia refuted. "Not everyone is a slut who wants guys barging into their room when they are changing."

"And they are arguing again," Touma sighed exasperatedly. The girls' voices became softer the further away he and Zach walked. "Those two are like oil and water."

"They are more alike than you think," Zach snickered. "Especially their preferences."

"Huh?"

"Never mind." Zach instead pointed to a tent. "That's the supply tent. The munitions are given out in that attachment next to it, in case you ever need them."

"I don't think I will ever need to go there," Touma said quickly. "I don't think I could use a gun on bombs."

"Eh, just in case." Zach looked around. "I'll probably have to ask someone if they saw your friend. Not sure why she would be here though."

"Frenda has a lot of experience with weapons," Touma explained, but decided on the spot to gloss over the finer details. He wasn't sure what ITEM did was technically legal, even if they did work for some top people in Academy City. "From what Birdway said, I bet Frenda wants to increase the efficiency of your men's explosives. Do you think they would be okay with that?"

"Depends who she talks to I suppose," Zach answered with a shrug. "Most of us know about Academy City's advanced technology, including weapons. I wouldn't doubt there would be quite a few who would be willing to listen."

"So let's ask around-…" Touma started to say before he was interrupted.

Boom!

"…or we follow the sound of that explosion," Touma finished.

"I like option two," Zach laughed. He and Touma headed off towards a roped off field, with several knights standing and watching several scarecrow like dummies positioned in the middle. There was another loud boom and two of the dummies disappeared in a fiery explosion. When they drew closer, Touma heard a familiar girl's voice.

"…and with this slight adjustment you can see the resulting changes in destructive force." One of the knights turned around and saw Touma and Zach. He stepped aside to let them pass and Touma confirmed who was talking. Frenda seemed to be lecturing the knights while holding a handheld missile in one hand and a grenade in the other. "You won't even need new equipment if you use the parts from these weak grenades. You might want to take a look at the C4 too… Kamijou?!" She suddenly noticed him. The rest of the knights turned around and nodded to Zach. Zach made a slight waving motion with his hand and they wandered off to give Touma and Frenda some time alone to talk.

"I'll wait over there with them," Zach said and pointed to three of the knights talking. Frenda waited until he was gone before turning back to Touma.

"What's up?" she asked. "I thought you would be stuck on the other side of camp."

"I think they were planning to do that," Touma admitted. "But I told Zach I wanted to check up on everyone. I was worried you might not be used to this."

"Y-you w-were w-worried a-about m-me?" Frenda stuttered and her faced turned scarlet. "B-basically, you shouldn't have. I'm a tough girl and this situation isn't completely unknown to me. The scale is slightly larger than some of my previous missions, but that only changes the tactical planning."

"Glad to hear it," Touma said honestly. After Ruiko's feelings, he was worried a couple of the other girls might have had similar feelings. Touma was not looking forward to tomorrow, but it was something he was going to have to do. The least he could do tonight was try to help his friends in any way possible. "So are you improving the knight's weaponry?"

"To an extent," Frenda confirmed. "There are limits to what one can do when you aren't starting from scratch with a schematic. Basically, I'm combining some of the weaker weapons into something that packs a lot more punch."

"Pretty impressive," Touma admitted and looked out at the small crater where her last explosive had hit. "I wouldn't be able to do anything remotely close to this."

"Of course not," Frenda huffed and stuck out her chest. "You have to have quite a bit of experience with these things. I originally only came here to stock up, since I only had a few missiles on me. Then I found out how antique their supplies were. I know Academy City technology is more advance than theirs, but I didn't think it would be that far. Sheesh, normal explosives wouldn't work on the knights in England, so I have been experimenting to improve mine. I'm not sure what Adam is going to throw at us, but I want to be prepared."

"I can't say I like what you do for Academy City," Touma admitted. "But it definitely prepared you for this. Anything that gives our forces even a slightly better chance survival should be done. Thanks for helping out."

"I was bored anyways," Frenda deflected with a shrug. She looked at Touma's face and her slightly embarrassed expression became serious. "What's wrong?"

"Huh?" Touma asked confused.

"Your expression betrays you," Frenda pointed out. "Basically, you are probably telling yourself you want to make sure we are okay, but I think it's really to alleviate your own worries. Do you know something we don't?"

"Not really," Touma replied. This was not entirely a lie, but he was also concealing part of the truth. Imouto had told him Last Order and Worst had disconnected from the network. She didn't seem to think it was that big of a deal, but the timing felt too coincidental. I need to talk to Imouto again and see if she has any updates. I hate being in the dark like this. "I can't shake the feeling something is happening back in Academy City while we are here. Though, it might only be because we can't get a cellphone signal out here."

"I actually have that feeling too," Frenda admitted.

"You do?"

"Being in a situation like this," Frenda explained. "Basically, unable to contact your group, it gives you additional stress. You can't be sure if something happened to them or they are in a position they shouldn't answer. It doesn't matter what you tell yourself, your brain will keep imagining the possibility. I keep thinking Mugino ran into something while I'm stuck here. She shouldn't have any difficulties, even if it is true, but I keep thinking about it." Her gaze softened slightly. "There's not much you can do about it, except try to stay occupied."

"I actually haven't been thinking about it as much since I started trying to find you all," Touma realized. "It was mostly back when I was lost in thought."

"Yeah," Frenda agreed. "It's going to be worse when you try to sleep. Your mind will start imagining all the horrible things you can't control. It takes practice to block them out." Frenda had actually been through enough missions for ITEM, she didn't really have any trouble falling asleep anymore. She would still get worried, but she never let the feelings distract her. She was used to it and actually enjoyed occasional destruction.

"I came to make sure you were okay," Touma said with a slight chuckle. "But then you go and reassure me."

"I'm more experienced that you," Frenda laughed superiorly. "Oh, I don't think the fight tomorrow will last very long anyways. Basically, we have an army and Adam probably only has a few skilled people. Break the barrier, take a step back, and let the professionals take care of everything."

"I'll leave it in your capable hands then Frenda-sama," Touma said and then gave a short bow.

"Sarcasm is not needed now," Frenda told him and kicked him in the shin. "Stop acting like Hamazura!"

"Ouch! Sorry." Touma hobbled away while Frenda turned and started working on the bombs. He didn't speak up until he was near Zach. "That's the last of them. Thanks for letting me see them tonight."

"Least we could do after forcing you to come and help us," Zach said dismissively. "If that's all, then I think we should retire." He stretched and yawned. "I would like a couple hours of sleep before a large scale life and death battle."

"You have a warped sense of humor," Touma muttered dryly.

"Worrying isn't going to do anything constructive," Zach pointed out.

"I guess that's true." Touma agreed bitterly. He's right. I'm the one who's most out of their environment. I should trust these guys know what they are doing. I'll do whatever I can to help, but still… something still doesn't feel right. "Can we find-…?" He was cut off as the radio on Zach's belt went off.

"Hold that thought," Zach ordered and raised a finger. "Zach here."

"This is Amelia Taylor," the person on the other end said. "Bring the Imagine Breaker to the command tent, now."

"Roger," Zach said. "But since you are not my direct CO, I need a reason for going."

"The fact I told you to is more than-…" Her voice stopped and another person spoke up. This voice caused Zach and Touma to straighten up instantly.

"You both have thirty seconds to arrive or else," Carissa remarked and the radio went silent.

"Let's move," Zach suggested to Touma, his face pale. Touma was not planning on arguing. Both of them knew what kind of fury Carissa was capable of if they did not follow her instructions. Touma especially did not want to anger her after their last brief encounter. That whip of hers would definitely scar him, physically and mentally. They rushed as fast as they could without full out running. A couple people looked at them, but they wouldn't slow down to answer questions. In no time, they arrived at the command tent. "We have arrived!" he announced and stepped in.

"Twenty nine seconds," Carissa said and glanced up from her watch. "Shame." Touma sighed with relief. He looked around at who was there besides Carissa and Amelia. To his surprise, he saw Imouto sitting in a chair next to Amelia. Imouto looked up at him and gave him a brief nod. On her other side sat William, who looked as stony faced as ever, and then George, who sat passively. No one else was there, so Touma figured Carissa wanted to keep this meeting private.

The others aren't going to be happy they weren't informed, Touma thought. Especially Birdway. "Err, can you tell me why I'm here? I thought we talked about everything already."

"Your friend decided to inform us about the happenings in Academy City," Carissa told him and pointed to Imouto. "She has been rather sketchy on the details on how she can communicate with your city, but the data she has given us seems to be authentic."

"Is this about why Last Order and Worst disconnected?" Touma asked Imouto. He had to try to keep his voice calm, but the worry and unsettling feelings he had were rushing toward the surface once again.

"Disconnected?" Amelia whispered to George, who only shrugged.

"Yes, Misaka confirms. After our talk, Misaka was monitoring the network's activity. We discovered onee-sama and her friend Shirai-san had been attacked by an individual going by the name of Juliet."

"Juliet?!" Touma nearly shouted. "What happened!? Are they okay!?"

"Calm down," George ordered him. "Listen to the entire story before you start shouting. It will save a lot of time and the ending is more pleasant."

"They are fine Misaka adds in attempt to relieve your fears." Imouto paused for a moment. "We did not see the entire fight, but onee-sama won in the end. She and Shirai-san managed to retreat back to their dorms, while Shokuhou-san entered a few moments afterwards. She looked quite tired. It was reasoned she must have fought someone too."

"So Eve's forces are attacking our friends while we are gone?" Touma realized. "What about Accelerator, Mugino, everyone else?"

"The moderator informed us Accelerator won his battle and they are heading back to their apartment, Misaka reports. We believed only the saviors' companions who went to England are the ones being targeted."

"Damn it," Touma muttered and made a fist. "Eve implied she was getting impatient last time she appeared."

"Wait a moment," George interrupted. "When was the last time she spoke with you again?"

"She appeared before me and Mikoto in Academy City a few days ago," Touma explained and realized he forgot to tell anyone except Jason and Motoharu. Part of him probably figured Motoharu would pass it around. "She was making Juliet apologize for attacking us. She did let it slip she was waiting for Adam to finish something." Touma frowned and thought back to the conversation. "Didn't the church tell you?"

"They mentioned Adam was in The Most Godforsaken Place on Earth," Carissa confirmed angrily. "They better not have been holding information out on us. Tell us what all she said."

"If she fails in gathering the wing," Touma explained. "And then Adam succeeds here, they have a backup idea. They plan to convert countless human souls into the remaining gem as a substitute. She wouldn't elaborate on Adam's plan or the spell."

"And you didn't think to tell us this before?!" Amelia demanded. It looked like she was planning to continue, but Carissa cut her off.

"Enough," Carissa said. "I can think of several reasons why the church didn't tell us this. Mark my words, I will be having a long talk with the Archbishop. However, there are a couple of issues I have with this information. One, I have not heard of any spell that can do that. Angels and humans are fundamentally different, but," she paused for a second and gritted her teeth, "Eve and Adam hardly follow normal rules. We must entertain the possibility. The second issue is her telling us this. Only fools tell their enemies their true plan. It almost sounds like she wanted us to find Adam. The question is, why?"

"This makes our theory of a trap so much more believable," George said.

"Did your contacts in Academy City have any other names of Eve's forces moving out tonight?" Amelia asked Imouto.

"And what about everyone else?" Touma asked quickly. "Mugino and her friends, Jason, Uiharu-san, Index, and sensei."

"Misaka had the others check in on them Misaka confirms in order to alleviate your fears. Mugino-san and her companions entered an apartment complex after what looked like a tough fight, based on their clothes. Kagere-san, Uiharu-san, and Komoe-san were not attacked. Index is currently in your dorm with the girl named Itsuwa from England."

"Itsuwa is watching Index?" Touma asked confused and then sighed with relief. "Index should be fine then for now."

"As for the names of the rest of Eve's forces Misaka continues to address your questions." She turned toward Amelia. "The only name Misaka knows is Cain and he was the one Accelerator defeated."

"Bullshit," Amelia scoffed. "Cain's supposed to be a vampire and then it was confirmed it was actually him. You expect us to believe a kid from your city has that kind of power?"

"I will vouch for him," William spoke up unexpectedly. This caused everyone's heads to turn toward him.

"Explain yourself," Carissa ordered. "I met him a couple times, but only saw his power once. He could knock me backwards with a single touch, but it wasn't like he could do any damage."

"He was most likely tired from the fight with me earlier," William explained. "I was still working for the Roman Catholic Church and I had orders to capture the Imagine Breaker."

"Why?" Touma asked incredulously. "I know Vento tried and you took her away, but why do you want me?"

"Fiamma said your hand was the last thing we needed in order to save mankind," William said and looked right at Touma. "I have begun to believe he has not been fully honest. That is why I have returned to England."

"We know that blasted church is after him," Carissa interrupted impatiently. "Now explain the other boy's power."

"He was able to overcome my abilities as a Saint combined with the power of God's Right Seat," William elaborated. "With a single touch, he reversed the flow of blood in my body. A normal human would have exploded from the change." Touma had to suppress a little nausea as he remembered what Accelerator did to the other clones. "Near the end, his power overwhelmed me completely. If the third princess did not intervene, I would have died." Touma gritted his teeth and made a mental note to talk to Accelerator about that. "When he and I fought against you, neither of us was at full strength."

"Do you think he would be capable of killing Cain?" George asked.

"It would be hard to say," William admitted. "We can hardly say we understand vampire physiology. We only know the rumors. While it is true Cain was reported with monstrous amounts of mana, I don't think that would be enough to take down the one known as Accelerator. He has a certain power, if mastered, would probably allow him to win."

"What kind of kids is that city producing?" Amelia muttered.

"Heh," George chuckled. "You weren't on the receiving end in London. You would have understood what kind of kids they are." Touma was about to say something to protest his friends were unusual, but two things stopped him. One, they were kind of right. The second, and most importantly, a thought occurred to him.

Wait, Touma thought. Imouto said Accelerator and Mikoto were attacked for sure, and only Misaki and Mugino looked like they just came from a fight. Could Eve only be going after the level 5s? Why would that be? Maybe Eve considers them a threat after England and Italy. Cain was supposed to be one of her strongest soldiers, so if Accelerator beat him, it would only confirm her beliefs. As soon as I left, she attacked them… "Damn it," he muttered. "Eve must have been waiting for me to leave the city to attack."

"We figured that already," George reassured him. "Why do you think reinforcements were sent?"

"Should we let Lessar and Birdway know about Eve's moves" Touma asked. "They would be upset if they are kept out of the loop."

"I don't believe we need to tell them anything," Carissa scoffed. "New Light has members providing extra security and they probably contacted her already. As for the Dawn-Colored Sunlight leader… I wouldn't doubt she already has spies in Academy City. Anyway, this doesn't concern them at this point. If we stop Adam here, Eve will no doubt suffer a serious setback. We can then focus all of our resources on defeating her."

"Doesn't concern them?" Touma gasped. "Lessar is friends with a good many of them." He couldn't say that about Birdway because she didn't know the rest of his friends nearly as long.

"What she means is," George elaborated. "Was that the information would not be important right now. They can't do anything with it, even if we made sure they knew. Right now, we have our own task at hand and it has to be completed."

"We weren't even going to tell you," Amelia admitted. "If it wasn't for her." She pointed towards Imouto. "She is very loyal to you."

"What did you do?" Touma asked Imouto confused.

"Misaka promised to let you know what happened with the moderator Misaka reminds you. However, Misaka also had the thought the information might trouble you, so Misaka decided to talk to the COs' of the army. They wanted to keep it a secret from you for the same reasons. You might be so focused on what happened back home, you wouldn't be able to concentrate here. This could lead you to getting hurt. Misaka wrestled with her own desires and her promise to you. In the end, Misaka chose to keep her promise. They debated keeping Misaka from telling you by force Misaka mutters angrily." Her tone of voice didn't change at all and everyone heard it.

"It was only under consideration," George remarked dismissively.

"Thanks for taking my feelings into consideration," Touma told Imouto. "And thanks for keeping your promise." He then turned to the others and steeled his resolve. "I am worried about them, but they are fine now. We have a more pressing matter here. An entire continent is suffering because of Adam. I can't ignore it to run back home. I'm going to focus on the task at hand with everything I have. He will be stopped tomorrow and I won't stop until we win."

"Heh," Carissa muttered and a trace of a smile formed on her lips. "That's good to know. Maybe now the nonbelievers can brush aside their doubts." Her gaze fell on Amelia.

"I suppose he seems serious enough," Amelia conceded. "All that is left is to see how reliable he is."

"I trust you won't be disappointed," George told her.

"You are all dismissed then," Carissa announced. "We move out tomorrow morning. Make sure all your affairs are in order." Touma turned around and was prepared to leave with Zach and Imouto, when Carissa spoke up again. "Oh, you need to stay behind." For a moment, Touma thought she was speaking to him, but when he turned back toward Carissa, she was pointing toward Zach. "I have something to ask you."

"What is it ma'am?" Zach answered and snapped to attention.

"I heard an interesting rumor start to spread from a couple of knights and they all claimed it originated from you." Zach's face paled and Touma saw his chance to escape. He grabbed Imouto's wrist and dragged her out of the building as fast as he could. Because he had his back to her, he didn't notice her blush.

I knew those rumors would only get someone in trouble. I'm surprised it wasn't me this time. Touma only stopped when they were far enough away from the tent to avoid any backlash from the conversation about to take place. Touma realized he was still holding onto Imouto and let her go. "Err, sorry about that."

"It was not an issue."

"Thanks for working so hard to keep your promise with me," Touma said again. "It means a lot. I understand why you went to them before telling me too."

"Misaka was worried you might be a little upset she went to them first, Misaka admits relieved. Onee-sama's safety also worried the entire network. You kept your promise with all of us, Misaka adds remembering the Level 6 experiment, so Misaka should too."

"Anyone would have done the same thing if they were in my position," Touma said and rubbed the back of his head embarrassed.

"They would not Misaka corrects you. Plenty of people ignored the ethical implications of the experiment."

"Yoo-hoo," A familiar cheerful voice called out. "Come over here you two!" Touma and Imouto turned to see Oriana waving to them with one hand while holding a canned drink in the other. Touma and Imouto shared a quick glance and walked over to her.

"Hello," Imouto greeted Oriana.

"Oriana-san," Touma said surprised. "I didn't realize you were still here. You weren't at any of the meet-…"

"Onee-san," Oriana pouted and crossed her arms.

"Sorry, onee-san."

"I don't really like those debriefings," Oriana explained. "Too many important people breathing down my neck. They always think they know what's best."

"Why are you still here? Misaka questions to discover your reason for staying."

"Are you going to be part of the assault?" Touma asked.

"Nope," Oriana answered and wave her hand. "I'm not really suited for large scale battles, being a simple courier and all. After you all defeat Adam, there is a chance he may have some object or objects that needs to be brought to certain people immediately. They have asked me to stay behind in case of that possibility. I'm getting paid regardless if they find anything or not, so it's not a big deal." She sipped her drink.

"No wonder you look so relax," Touma pointed out and she grinned.

"If you find yourself stressed out," offered Oriana. "Come and visit my tent. Onee-san will teach you a great many things on how to relax." She grinned and leaned forward.

"I'm good," Touma replied quickly. "Thank you though. We should get going Imouto." He grabbed her hand and Oriana waved goodbye to them. There was a reason he declined. His body was telling him to say yes with every fiber of his being and, if he stuck around, he would lose to the temptation against the attractive Oriana.

"If she has a way for you to relax, wouldn't it be a good idea to visit her? Misaka questions because the savior looks stressed out."

"It's probably going to end up being more stressful," Touma sighed. "It's like when Lessar says it will help me relax."

"Speaking of Lessar, Misaka learned many things from her already Misaka admitted."

"No!" Touma cried. "Forget what she taught you. Lessar has a very warped sense of proper mannerisms."

"If you desire it, Misaka will comply." Imouto, however, decided to keep the memories and sort through what would be considered proper later.

"We should get to sleep soon," Touma told her. "Zach said we are going to have to get up early. Good night Imouto."

"Good night."

Back in Academy City, Mikoto and Kuroko had managed to return to their dorm undetected. Kuroko had been able to teleport around the security systems and through the window. Both of them changed out of their wet clothes and tried to dry off as much as possible, but they were distracted. Mikoto had been trying to contact Ruiko, Misaki, and Touma, while Kuroko tried to reach Kazari and Jason. Mikoto pretended she had reached Accelerator and learned that he was fine. This was so she didn't have to explain the Sisters. "Shokuhou is not answering," Mikoto muttered bitterly. "Saten-san's and Touma's are going straight to voicemail."

"Neither of them are answering either," Kuroko said angrily and threw her phone on her bed. "Juliet can't have been serious about them." Kuroko turned and glared at Mikoto. "Why did you have to bring her back with us?" She gestured to the metal ball sitting on Mikoto's desk. "For all we know she could be biding her time." Kuroko grabbed her hair in frustration. "You should have thrown her away!"

"I can't," Mikoto answered through gritted teeth and put down her phone. "We can't take someone's life or we will become like them. This way, I can keep watch over her and besides," she sighed. "Kagere-san deserves to be told what happened and he should be the one to decide what we do with her."

"I suppose," Kuroko muttered reluctantly and then turned to face Mikoto. "How are you so calm? Our friends could be fighting for their lives, or worse."

"I'm not calm!" Mikoto retorted. "Of course I'm worried, but there's nothing we can do right now. I can barely generate electricity and you need to rest too. If we go charging blindly, we are only going to put ourselves and possibly our friends' lives in danger." Mikoto blinked and stared at Kuroko. "Is something wrong?"

"Huh?"

"You have been acting different since Juliet was defeated," Mikoto explained slowly. "You seem to be avoiding eye contact and I can't recall seeing you this angry."

"Of course I'm angry," Kuroko snapped. "Our friends could be dead! I think it's weirder that you are managing to appear so calm."

"Do you think I like this?!" Mikoto demanded. "I hate sitting here helpless and hoping I'll be able to learn something about what has been happening! Touma used to do this to me all the time!"

"It's always about that ape," Kuroko snarled. "We were supposed to be best friends and you tried to hide your relationship with him forever. I share everything with you, but you hide so much from me!"

"The only things I don't tell you are very personal," Mikoto replied. "Or if it would get both of us in a lot of trouble. I do it to protect you!"

"Maybe I don't want to be protected!" Kuroko yelled. "I thought we were friends, but maybe it's only one sided!"

"Wait!" Mikoto cried, but Kuroko didn't bother to listen. She turned around and walked into the bathroom before slamming the door behind her. Mikoto heard the lock click. What… what the heck was that about? How did we get from worrying about the others to Kuroko saying we weren't friends? Mikoto paced back and forth in her room for a minute before she decided what to do. She was about to bang on the bathroom door and make Kuroko talk to her, when her phone rang. She turned around instantly and dove for it. Huh, I don't know this phone number. She flipped her phone open. "Hello?" she asked tentatively.

"Hi Miisssaakkkaa!"

"Shokuhou?" gasped Mikoto.

"Yep," Misaki laughed. "I figured you are wondering why my number is different. My bag was destroyed in a small skirmish with a person. I lost my phone, along with several of my favorite remotes. A friend is letting me borrow hers until I can get a new one tomorrow."

"I'm so glad you are okay," Mikoto said and tears began to well up in her eyes. "We couldn't contact you and the others, so I thought the worst..." She sniffed.

"I'm fine Misaka," Misaki reassured her. "I'm just a little tired. Thanks for being worried about me though. I didn't think we were that far in our relationship yet."

"Shut up," Mikoto sniffed again. "We are friends, so this much is normal."

"I suppose we are," Misaki relented. "But we have something important to discuss. I take it you were attacked too?"

"I was," Mikoto confirmed. "Juliet said Eve's forces were hunting us down and then," Mikoto took a deep breath, "Juliet received a message from someone. She said Eve captured Kagere-san and Uiharu-san was killed. We can't reach either of them, Saten-san, or Touma. I managed to defeat Juliet, but I lost control and almost killed her. I tried to capture her, but she wouldn't surrender and her shadow body was nearly destroyed. The only bit left is sealed up in a metal ball. I'm scared the others are hurt, Kuroko is acting weird, and I'm almost powerless right now. I can barely use my electricity."

"Calm down," Misaki commanded soothingly. "Listen, there is a lot we need to talk about, but not over the phone. I learned a lot about Eve's plan and I have come up with a couple theories. This can wait. Right now, we need to find out about Kagere-san and Uiharu-san. I can tell you Touma and Saten-san was not attacked."

"How do you know?" Mikoto asked.

"I tried to contact Touma, but his phone was out of range," Misaki explained. "So I asked an old friend of mine and she told me he left the city a couple hours before this all started."

"Why?"

"It probably has to do with the other side," Misaki explained cryptically. "After all, he was with Lessar, and a young blonde haired girl with short hair. Plus Frenda and Saten-san, but I think they tagged along when they spotted him."

"Saten-san is with them?!" Mikoto asked in shock.

"It seems Frenda dragged her along."

"Of all the times to go off on his own," Mikoto mumbled. "He had to choose tonight. At least they avoided the fighting here."

"I think Eve planned this," Misaki said seriously. "She waited until he was called away. I doubt he even had a choice in the matter if it dealt with the other side."

"True," Mikoto agreed. "Can your friend find out what happened to the others?"

"I'll ask," Misaki promised. "And let you know what I find out." She paused for a moment. "You shouldn't listen to what Juliet said. I'm sure it was only to rile you up. Actually, I'm positive and I'll explain everything tomorrow. Try to get some rest."

"Thanks," Mikoto told her. She meant every word. "Thanks a lot."

"Anytime," Misaki said and hung up. Mikoto threw her phone on her bed and sighed.

Touma and Saten-san are okay, Mikoto thought and, for the first time since they arrived, she felt better. Shokuhou is right. Juliet lets her emotions get the better of her and says things to rile us up. Kagere-san would never let anything hurt Uiharu-san, so I bet they are fine. She relaxed the more she talked herself through her feelings. I'll wait until I hear back before I do anything else. This will give me time to recover and talk to Kuroko… Kuroko, what is wrong? She walked over and pounded on the door. "Kuroko? We need to talk." She waited and there was only silence. "Kuroko?! Come out! Please. Don't make me come in there!" Still nothing and something clicked inside her. She reached for the door handle and used a tiny bit of electricity to move the lock. Her head hurt, but it wasn't enough to make her stop. She pushed the door open and barged into the bathroom.

There was no sign of Kuroko.

Mikoto looked around to make sure Kuroko wasn't trying to hide and then walked over to the window. She wouldn't… Mikoto looked out the window. The rain was coming down heavily and lightning crackled in the distance. The storm was not going to let up anytime soon. "Kuroko," Mikoto mumbled. "What happened to you?" She didn't know what to do. It was obvious what occurred here. Kuroko only pretended to hide in the bathroom to avoid further argument and then teleported outside. The issue now was, Mikoto had no idea where she was going. It's not safe with Eve's forces roaming the streets. What should I do? She exited the bathroom and tried to think, but she began to panic again. A sudden knock on the door caused her to jump.

"Misaka-san?" a sharp female voice said. "Shirai-san? Keep it down. Several people reported you two yelling about something."

"Sorry ma'am," Mikoto said without opening the door. Crap, it's the dorm supervisor. Please don't ask to come in.

Kuroko was teleporting through the empty street in the middle of the storm.

She was cold, wet, and shivering, but it was her mind that was hurting her the most. Why was I so upset at her? She was right, but when I looked at her, I suddenly felt furious. She thought about Mikoto's stunned face at her outburst and felt a sick sense of satisfaction. For some reason, she enjoyed Mikoto looking shocked and hurt. It wasn't like her, but the feeling couldn't be suppressed. She stopped teleporting for a moment and stood in a daze in the middle of the sidewalk. She hadn't been paying attention to where she was going. All she cared about was getting out of the dorm. I need to find the others, but how? She's not going to look for them and is content to sitting in our dorm useless. Kuroko blinked at her own thoughts. They were so unlike her, but that was how she felt.

Kuroko tried to understand why her feelings for Mikoto changed. It was true she had been conflicted when she realized she liked Jason too, but she still had feelings for Mikoto. She had even believed she had accepted Mikoto was in love with Touma instead of her. Kuroko took a few steps and leaned up against a dark building. The only source of light was from some streetlamps and a couple signs high above her. She was breathing heavily and then shivered. I dried myself off and now I'm soaked again. Being away from Mikoto allowed Kuroko to actually think rationally and the anger she had felt begun to fade slightly. Why was I so angry? I should be used to dangerous situations like this. Even when my friends are in danger, I'm not usually this stupid, reckless yes, but not like this. She tried to remember what Mikoto said to make her so upset.

At the thought of Mikoto, her brain suddenly started beating like a drum.

Kuroko suddenly relived the countless times she had embraced Mikoto, whether she was willing or not. In their room, at school, and even in the shower, anywhere was fine. It had been one of the ways Kuroko showed her love, through constant, intimate, physical contact. Most of the time, Mikoto responded to her advances with electrical shocks, punches, or kicks. Kuroko had always believed Mikoto was only shy and those attacks were just a sign of her hidden love. Kuroko even remembered all the times they had stayed up late and talked about all sorts of things. She had always believed they were best friends and would share everything. They didn't have to keep secrets from each other. The few times Mikoto went through a very personal struggle, it had hurt Kuroko, but she still did everything she could to cheer Mikoto up.

Now, all those memories gave her different feelings.

Kuroko felt angry and resentful at Mikoto. Kuroko had been honest at expressing her love and affection, but Mikoto had only scoffed at her and resorted to violence. Mikoto pretended to act nice to her, but would constantly complain about Kuroko and talk behind her back to the others. Even when Mikoto was with the ape, she would constantly attack him. It was like Mikoto couldn't resist her violent nature. All the conversations they had now made her feel disgust. She had shared everything, while Mikoto kept secrets. All the memories Kuroko had held so close to her heart were now causing her pain and anguish. She felt like she hated Mikoto, even though, rationally, she knew this wasn't true.

Her brain and heart were telling her two completely different things.

And it was tearing her apart.

Kuroko didn't know what to do and pushed herself off the building. Tears started running down her face and mixed with the rain. She stumbled down the street and turned a corner. Her feelings could not be controlled and she was on the edge of vomiting. No matter what she told herself, every time she thought of Mikoto, the feeling of hatred, disgust, and disdain welled up from deep within her. Kuroko had no idea why this was happening and she felt like screaming. She was about to when she looked up and saw someone. She blinked and wiped her eyes to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. She knew the person who had just gotten off the bus. It was then she realized where she had been running to unconsciously. Kuroko teleported over and he turned when he noticed her.

"Kuroko?" Jason asked confused. "What are-…?" Before he could finish Kuroko embraced him tightly and looked up at him. Tears were flooding down her face and her expression was grim.

"Help me," she whispered and buried her face into his chest.

Jason blinked and instinctively wrapped his arm around her. His shadow had been above him like an umbrella and he increased the radius to shield Kuroko from the rain. His shadow was how Kuroko had known it was him from a distance. He had no idea what was happening either or why Kuroko was outside in the rain without a coat or umbrella. He had never experienced something like this, so he had to resort to knowledge gained from reading manga. When a cute, crying girl he knew ran up to him in the rain and asked for help, there was only one option available to him.

He took her back to his apartment.

Touma parted ways with Imouto and headed back to his tent. He was feeling conflicted now over many things. First, he was worried what was going to happen to Zach when Carissa finished with him, but the other part thought he kind of brought it on himself. The second, and more important, was what had happened back in Academy City. Touma had no doubt Eve waited until he left and this led to even more questions. He laid down on one of the two cots in Zach's tent and looked up at the ceiling. Why would my presence in Academy City prevent her from doing whatever she wanted? She knows more about my hand than I do, so it should be easy for her to avoid me if she wanted to. In order to get the wing, she would have to persuade…

He sat up on the cot and hit himself on the forehead.

She's after Kazakiri-san, he thought. Maybe Eve doesn't want me to be there so she can convince her. As long as Mikoto is there, Kazakiri-san will have someone to talk to. She promised not to agree to anything for Eve without talking to us. Kazakiri-san knows Eve can't be trusted and there's a possibility Eve won't be able to find her until I return. He slapped his face with both hands. My friends won't let Eve do what she pleases and the church sent back up. They will be fine. I need to focus on the task at hand and then catch up on what Eve has been doing when I get back. Too many people are relying on me. He laid back down on the cot and tried to calm his mind. He wasn't having much luck, but at least he was resting his body, even if his mind was working in overdrive. The door to the tent opened and Zach walked in.

"Good," Zach commented when he saw Touma. "You're here. I wasn't entirely sure where you would end up."

"You're the one who said we had to retire early," Touma pointed out.

"Doesn't mean you listened," Zach laughed and started changing.

"Err," Touma asked. "How bad did she chew you out about the rumors?"

"It was more like an interrogation," Zach responded and all amusement left his voice. "I didn't spread the rumors and, I mean, who can really tell where rumors originate from?" He shrugged and Touma felt himself grinning.

"Definitely not those guys playing cards, right?"

"Definitely not." Both of them chuckled for a moment and Zach laid down on his cot.

"How will we know when to get up?" Touma asked.

"Someone will play a trumpet," Zach muttered and turned onto his side. "If you don't hear it, I'll knock you out of your bed."

"Could you not do that?"

"I won't if you wake up," Zach told him and laughed.

"Great...," Touma muttered and tried to sleep. About fifteen minutes passed and he was no closer to a restful night's sleep then he would be walking around. He shifted around in the cot and tried to get comfortable. It wasn't luxurious in anyway, but it was a lot softer than his bathtub. He also had a thin sheet, but it wasn't like he planned to use it. The nights in Australia were still much hotter than he was used to. At this rate, it will be morning before I get any sleep. He opened his eyes when he heard soft footsteps right outside his tent. The tent flap was pushed aside and someone slipped in, but it was too dark to see who. Oh crap, it's Lessar. I didn't think she knew where I was sleeping. The girl slipped quietly onto his cot and laid next to him. At this distance, Touma could recognize the short brown hair. "Imouto?" he whispered softly, as not to wake Zach.

"Ah, Misaka did not mean to wake you Misaka apologizes embarrassed." She took the cue from Touma and kept her voice low too.

"What are you doing here?" Touma muttered, as he glanced over at Zach. The only reason he didn't yell out was he didn't want to wake all the nearby knights. This situation would be tough to explain. "Actually, first, how did you find my tent?"

"Misaka decided to follow you and made note of your location Misaka explains softly." She fidgeted and scooted up closer next to Touma. The cot was made for a large man, so they could both fit on it without much trouble.

"Why did you sneak in?" Touma whispered. "Is something wrong?"

"Misaka was lonely Misaka admits. The others are bunking two per tent, but Misaka had to go by herself."

"Okay," Touma conceded. "But why mine?"

"It would be very embarrassing to spell out the reason Misaka answers with a disapproving tone in her voice. Does the savior not want to spend the night with me? Is Misaka unpleasant to be around?"

"That's not it," Touma quickly refuted. "It's just a boy… and a girl in one bed like this…" He trailed off and felt his ears burned. It was hard to use words. These kinds of things were supposed to be common sense.

"Misaka understands Misaka says in a calming tone to sooth the savior's worries. Misaka will not try any of the activities Lessar told her about before coming here. Will you let Misaka stay? I really don't want to leave." Touma noticed her saying 'I' and suddenly felt weird, like nervousness and pride combined together. Imouto had told him how each of the Sisters were trying to become unique individuals, rather than a collective.

"Just let her stay," Zach muttered. "Then keep quiet, I'm trying to sleep."

"Fine," Touma relented. As long as she wasn't going to do anything, he could let her stay. The thought of what would happen if Imouto was spotted leaving his tent in the middle of the night was sure to cause some problems, but the thought of what would happen if she was caught in the morning was dangerous too. He thought about it and decided they could come up with a better excuse in the morning for her being there. "But we need to sleep. Tomorrow is going to be busy."

"You can say that again," Zach mumbled and fell back asleep. He had woken up the instant Imouto opened the tent, but, since she wasn't a threat, he went back to sleep.

"Thanks." There was actually a trace of happiness in her voice this time. Imouto snuggled her head up against his shoulder and closed her eyes. Her stomach was in knots, but she felt happy. She loved how warm Touma felt against her and how safe him being in the same room made her feel. It completely overshadowed the dark secret she held. Imouto had promised the Misaka Network she would share all information with them on Touma. However, before she snuck into his tent, she had pretended to fall asleep and disconnected. Right now, she was all by herself with the only person who could make her feel this way. The last time she felt her heart beat this rapidly and her stomach churned so violently, Touma had been the one to say she was special. All of the Sisters were unique, they were not dolls to be discarded. Now, they were all working on finding themselves, including her. Imouto gave into her selfish desire.

She wanted this moment all to herself.

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: So after this chapter, three guys are all going to get some snu-snu. Why are we friends with popular people?

Motoharu: It's thanks to our guidance they all found themselves with harems. We suffer so others may be happy.

Pierce: Screw them all, I want a harem!

Motoharu: Hold that thought, the Level 5s have arrived.

Mikoto: I got a small scene, but won't get any more for a bit.

Misaki: But I like how you called us friends.

Accelerator: Whatever, now I can get some rest. We defeated all of Eve's commanders so she is probably running scared.

Pierce: Technically, you didn't win Accel-kun.

Shizuri: Huh, what do you mean?

Accelerator: Don't you dare!

Motoharu: He didn't defeat Cain, someone else had to do it for him.

Shizuri: HAHAHA! Loser!

Accelerator: I'm going to murder you all.