A/N: Well, here we go. New chapter done. This was a bitch to write, so apologies in advance for inconsistencies and errors; writing and pacing-wise. I will do better to correct those in the future.

Anyway, here ya go!

Hello darkness my old friend…. it's unfortunate that we have to meet again.

Here I was, floating through the void again. The only bright speck in an otherwise endless stretch of darkness. Alone. All alone.

Just how did I get here again? Last thing I remember was walking and talking with Rimuru after finishing my first day of work. Just what on earth-

*BZZZZZT*

Wha-? Was that-

*BZZZZT*

It's that static again! Just where is that noise coming from?

I looked all around me for the source, but no dice. It was like the noise was resonating all throughout the void like a sound in an echo chamber.

Suddenly, I caught a glimpse of a gleam of light in the corner of my eye. I looked back at the light, which was suddenly expanding at a rapid rate. Was it going to-

Oh no. Not again.

As the light engulfed me, I covered my eyes, awaiting certain doom.

So bright…

-x-

"AH!" I suddenly yelled as I snapped my eyes open. I jerked my body up in a sitting position, breathing heavily, like I just woke up from a nightmare. Just what the hell happened?

I slapped my face a couple times to make sure I was fully awake, before slowly standing up. I tried to focus on my surroundings; looking up and down and all around to see where I was.

Trash strewn along the ground, trashcans, stone walls and concrete ground? I was in some kind of alleyway. It didn't resemble anything that I saw in Tempest; the alleys, if I recall, were nice and clean. Come to think of it, where am I anyway?

"Rimuru! Where are you?" I called out, hoping for him to respond. "Rimuru!" No response. No response at all. Not good. I was all alone in a completely different place, still wearing the same clothes that Shuna gave me. I checked my pockets and found that I still had that manga that Rimuru recreated for me, as well as the money that I got from him and the Goblios. Well, I certainly wasn't expecting to still have those on me when I woke up, but hey, that's the one good thing in this situation so far.

Alright, I'm not going to get anywhere standing around here. Let's get a move on! I'd like to see where I am right now. The alleyway wasn't that long upon further inspection, so I started to slowly walk towards the entrance. Finally, I got out of there, taking in my new surroundings for the first time. My jaw was practically agape with surprise.

I definitely wasn't in Tempest anymore. As a matter of fact, I don't think I was in the world of Slime anymore! This was a city; a modern city! And I was surrounded by normal people too, with nary a monster in sight!

Was I home? This definitely doesn't look like Jersey. I don't recall there being moving trashcans back ho- Wait, what?! Moving trashcans? Just what are-….. Oh my god!

Those aren't trashcans at all! They're robots! Real-life robots! I mean, sure I wasn't expecting them to look cylindrical, but my eyes aren't deceiving me!

Yep, this is definitely not Jersey.

-x-

You know, I should be more shocked that I wasn't just in a modern city, but possibly another world as well. Why am I thinking that? Here's the reason why.

My world back home isn't advanced enough to have robots wandering the streets like it were a normal occurrence. We're still stuck in the planning stage trying to come up with new ways that robots can help humanity. While we may have made some progress so far, we're definitely not at a point where robots like these would be allowed to wander around, let alone be commercially available to the public. I'd imagine that something like that would take years, if not decades to integrate robots into society. I'd probably be an old man by the time that would happen, but I digress.

This city on the other hand, it's like one of those World of Tomorrow-esque cities that you'd see at a world fair or from the setting of a book or something. I bet this is what Walt Disney had in mind with the EPCOT center before it got turned into just another attraction at Disneyworld.

Either way, I was more amazed at being in a futuristic city; to the point where it overrode my shock. This. Was. Seriously. Awesome!

Anyway, this city was huge! A veritable metropolis if I've ever seen one. Sure, I've been to New York, which is another bustling metropolis, but I think that pales in comparison to the city I'm in now. Besides, I never had the chance to really explore New York.

Come to think of it, what was the name of this city anyway? As I was looking around, I noticed some street and shop signs in Japanese, so this was obviously Japan, but the real question was: Where was I in Japan? And which Japanese city had all this future tech like nobody's business? As far I knew, nowhere in particular.

Also, as I was walking, a lot of pedestrians were giving me strange looks as I walked past them. Well, I guess I couldn't blame them. I'm still wearing the clothes that Shuna made for me. They may have been appropriate back in Slime, but here, not so much. To the people of a modern city, it must've looked like I walked straight out of a Renaissance fair or a cosplay convention. I bet that if I was walking around in my Mario pajamas (if I still had them), the people wouldn't bat much of an eye at me.

As I walked up to an intersection, I noticed a short schoolgirl standing at the corner. She had short black hair, a headband with flowers on it, and was wearing the typical white and blue sailor fuku complete with red handkerchief you'd normally see in most high school anime. Also, she was wearing a green armband on her right arm. Hmm. She must be a member of her school's student council or something. I'm sure she wouldn't mind if I ask her some questions about this city. But, won't it seem weird for a grown man like me to walk up to this girl and talk to her? She's got to be in high school or at the very least, middle school. Also, won't she be weirded out by this outfit I'm wearing? I hope she doesn't think I'm-

Come on man, this is no time to be hesitating here!

I know, I know! But still, I look suspicious enough in this outfit. If she doesn't write me off as a weirdo, she might call the cops on me.

That's your problem? Have you forgotten what situation you're stuck with here? You're not just in any other city, you're in a city that possibly belongs to the world of another work of fiction! How do you expect to get anywhere if you're too scared to talk to the locals? Do I need to bring up your first day in Tempest?

No, you don't! But you know as well as I do that this isn't a typical, run-of-the-mill situation! I may have gotten lucky back in Tempest, but who knows what dangers lurk in this city. For all I know, that girl presents many unknowns. Like, what if a cop sees me talking to her, finds me suspicious, and takes me in for questioning. I don't even know what they're gonna do about a man who doesn't have any records, let alone some proof of my existence in another world! Or, what if she has a boyfriend that easily gets jealous and just so happens to see us together. He might decide to attack me while we're talking and send my bruised and battered body to the ICU. I know that I shouldn't be picky here, but it also wouldn't be the best idea to just charge in blindly! I need to be considerate, you know?

I do know what you mean. There's nothing wrong with erring on the side of caution, especially in a place like this. Doubly so because we're in another world. But there's no way that all the people are bad here, and that girl over there should be no exception. I mean, look at her. She looks like she wouldn't hurt a fly. You're just being paranoid. You wanted to ask someone about this city, and right now she's your best bet. If you don't take that first step now, then when will you?

But-

"Umm, excuse me?" A sudden voice called out to me, derailing the back-and-forth I was having with my inner conscious. I all but jumped. I quickly looked around to see where that voice came from, before finally looking in front of me again. To my surprise, that girl at the corner was looking at me now. Shit! Was I just standing still this whole time? I was so distracted by that internal argument that I didn't even know that she noticed me. That's probably what directed her attention to me in the first place. On a busy city street where people are constantly walking to and fro, it WOULD be strange if there's one guy who's just standing there staring off into space like a crazy person.

"Um, excuse me?" the girl called out again, this time making to walk closer to me. "Are you okay?" Hoo boy! Well, I guess this is what happens when you don't make a decision quickly enough, but is this really the time to complain? No, it wasn't. That wasn't important right now. What was important was finding out more about this city - and this world - as soon as possible. I wanted to try asking this girl for help, and now I have the chance to ask this girl for help. Come on Slater! Out with it!

"U-um, y-yeah. I-I'm okay." I finally replied, albeit with a stammer. "A-Actually, I'd l-like to ask y-you something, if that's okay." The girl "hmm'd?" in response. Alright, she's all ears now. Time to ask away. I took a deep breath and prepared to speak.

"Can you tell me about this city? I just got here and I don't know anything about it. How I got here was… complicated for lack of a better term. Can you help me?" I asked my question. Not too shabby if I say so myself. Short, sweet, and to the point. The girl in front of me looked confused, as if this wasn't your typical question. After thinking about an answer for almost a minute, she prepared to respond.

"You're in Academy City." the girl began. "It's the most advanced city in the world, boasting numerous scientific and technological advancements. Like its name suggests, there are many schools and educational institutions here, but that's not all." She was getting progressively peppier. "They work in tandem with the many scientists and research facilities we have toward the common goal of making new discoveries and breakthroughs to make the world a better place. I guess you can say this whole city is like one big learning experience for everyone involved!" I was taken aback by how passionate she became the more in-depth she got. A minute ago, she seemed somewhat hesitant to answer me. I certainly wasn't expecting that little change of mood. But judging by her answer, she's making it seem like this is the best god damn city in the world! I mean, the robots alone were cool enough, but all that stuff about students and scientists working together? I'll admit, that's pretty cool!

Almost immediately after, she seemed to realize that she got a little carried away with her answer. Her face flushed with a tint of red, she gave a nervous chuckle and rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment. "I'm sorry. Guess I went a little overboard, huh?"

"No, no." I replied, waving my hands at her. "You were very helpful. Thanks, ummmm-"

"Uiharu." the girl replied. "Uiharu Kazari."

"Oh!" I replied. "Thank you very much, Uiharu Kazari."

"You're very welcome!" Uiharu replied with a beaming smile on her face. Okay, gotta admit. She's pretty cute when she smiles.

And just like that, we parted ways. The crossing signal turned green, and I made to walk to the other side of the street via the crosswalk. But when I was halfway across, Uiharu tried to call out to me again.

"Wait!" Uiharu shouted, causing me to look back at her. "What exactly did you mean when you said that how you got here was complicated?" Wait, why was she hung up about that? I don't really need to answer that, do I? It's not like she would believe me anyway. Regardless, I opened my mouth to respond-

*BOOM*

And before I could even get a word out, I heard a loud explosion suddenly go off. That was definitely not the sound of fireworks; that was a genuine, bonafide explosion. It was like dynamite. Were they demolishing a building? I looked all around. Everybody stopped dead in their tracks; looking at the source of that explosion. I looked in the direction they were looking in and noticed a billowing cloud of smoke rising into the sky in the distance. That explosion had to have gone off several blocks away from here. This wasn't a building demolition wasn't it? It wasn't long before panic set in and several people started running for the hills.

Reflexively, I looked back at Uiharu, who suddenly had a serious look on her face. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a cellphone. Almost immediately, I started walking back toward her, but I was suddenly stopped when something hit my shoulder.

"Hey!" a new voice called out to me, causing me to look back. It was another schoolgirl. She was wearing a different uniform than Uiharu's, but she was also wearing the same green armband as her. "You need to evacuate! This area isn't safe!"

"What's going on here?" I asked the girl in a panic. "What the hell is happening?" She simply looked me in the eye with a stern look on her face, before making to respond.

"It's a terrorist attack." the girl stated matter-of-factly. "We don't have the full details yet, but eyewitness reports state that the terrorists involved are made up of espers. Unless you want to be caught in the crossfire, you need to get out of here now!"

Wait, what? Espers? The people with psychic powers and whatnot? Did I hear that correctly?

"Hey!" the girl shouted, grabbing me by the shoulders and shaking me out of my thoughts. "Didn't you hear me? Get out of here! Now!"

"B-but, what about her?" I made to protest, pointing at Uiharu. "She needs to evacuate too!" I looked back at her and she was on the phone talking to someone. Just what the hell was she thinking? She should be running for her life; not calling someone! I looked back at the other girl, who had a much softer expression on her face.

"Don't worry about her." she began. "She's a member of Judgement. She knows what she's doing."

"B-but-" I made to further protest, but was quickly cut off.

"I'm not going to repeat myself a third time!" the girl chastised; her expression becoming stern once again. "Get out of here you idiot!"

Left with no other choice, I reluctantly complied and made to run in the same direction as the other evacuees. While I did so, I noticed that several more students in school uniforms had gathered to help with the evacuation, and yes, they were all wearing the same green armband. What is with all these students acting like a law enforcement group? Just what kind of city did I wind up in?

-x-

Okay… that…. was unexpected. And I mean that with every definition of the word!

After spending a good half hour getting away from THAT hot mess, I finally wound up at a park in another part of the city that was thankfully safe and free – I hoped – from terrorist attacks. I was completely exhausted too. I actually ran for half an hour, or attempted to run, stopping every few minutes to catch my breath, before making to run again. In retrospect, that was a bad idea. Sure, I may have wanted to get away from that terrorist attack as quickly as possible, but there was definitely a better way to do it than overexerting myself like that. That's what I get for being so out of shape: being all kinds of exhausted! Luckily, I found a park bench so I can sit down and relax, as well as a water fountain to quench my thirst. I took a long drink and sat down, now ready to go over everything that's happened to me so far today. There was just so much to take in at once, especially since I haven't even been here for half a day.

Here I was, in a futuristic metropolis - though not futuristic enough to have flying cars, as far as I knew - in the middle of Japan that was filled with robots and all that other technological crap that comes with it, and I got to witness a terrorist attack, or rather the explosion, take place. I've only seen shit like that on TV, movies, or games, but that was a real fucking explosion! Even though I wasn't at ground zero, I still felt the force, as well as the sound, when it went off. It was intense. My ears were still ringing. Not only that, but in this city, it's apparently normal for students to act like cops and be put in charge of major shit like coordinating evacuations, despite the fact that in a more realistic situation, they would better getting out of dodge and letting the real professionals handle it. Yeah sure, it's noble to want to help out, but there's a time and place for that, and doing that during a terrorist attack was neither the time nor the place. Hell, it wasn't even noble! It was suicidal! Speaking of students, I hoped that Uiharu girl got out of there safely.

And yet, in spite of everything that's happened so far today, that wasn't the most pressing thing on my mind at the moment. Yeah, I know. Strange right? You'd think finding yourself in a futuristic city filled with robots and what were essentially student cops would raise the most questions, and to some extent that was true, but there was something even more important that needed an answer more than anything.

Just how did I wind up in another fictional world? And why?

The last thing I remembered while I was still in Slime was all that static. In almost no time, and with no warning, it started to envelop me. Or at least I think it was. My body just started to feel…. weak all of a sudden. Before I was completely blinded by that static, I felt as if my senses were slowly dulling away. My sight, my hearing, practically everything seemed to be failing me before I fell unconscious. Not only that, but Rimuru also heard the static somehow. Was the static itself the trigger? Or was it something else entirely? Was it that cosmic asshole's handiwork? I didn't have an answer. All I could do was come up with as many theories as I could, even if they were baseless. I swear, all this talk is making me sound crazy!

I momentarily stopped my little diatribe to look around the park. It was a pretty big, nice-looking park now that I thought about it. Not only that, but the weather was pretty nice too; not too cold, not too hot. It was definitely the perfect place to relax on a day like this.

"Aw man!" a voice called out suddenly. I looked around for the source of that voice, and I saw someone over at the walkway. It was a teenaged schoolboy with spiky black hair who was wearing his school uniform. I certainly have been seeing a lot of students today, haven't I? But what was he doing?

"The limited edition ice cream!" the boy called out in anguish, crouching down to mourn the loss of his now ruined ice cream. "I waited in line for two hours to get that, and now it's ruined! Index is gonna kill me for this!" Two hours? Jesus man! How much of an ice cream enthusiast do you have to be to wait two hours for ice cream? You know, I could probably go for a scoop or two right about now. Vanilla ice cream with rainbow jimmies. Yum!

"Touma!" another new voice suddenly called out to the boy. I looked to my left and saw a young girl running toward him. She was dressed as a nun it seemed, but her colors were unusual. I know that nuns normally dress in black and white, but have there always been nuns who dressed in white and gold-colored robes? And in Japan of all places? I wasn't sure.

"Gah! Index!" the boy quickly replied in a panic, making to stand up. "I-It's not what it looks like I swear!" The nun girl stopped in her tracks. She looked down at the puddle of melted ice cream, then looked back up. Suddenly, she had a serious look on her face. Oh, so that ice cream was for-

"Touma." the girl apparently known as Index began, interrupting my thought before it could be finished. Seriously, who names their kid Index? Did one of her parents lose a bet and they got to decide their daughter's name? Are there other girls named Dictionary and Thesaurus too? Actually, hold up a sec. Index? Why does that name sound familiar?

"What happened to my ice cream?" Her tone became quiet and subdued, but even from here it was obvious that she was furious. I actually started to sweat a little, even if I wasn't involved in the conversation.

"N-Now Index," the boy known as Touma tried to reason with her while simultaneously trying to mask the visible panic on his face. "N-No need to b-be hasty-"

"Touma!" the girl said his name plain and simply.

*CHOMP*

"GAH!"

And just like that, the little nun girl lunged at the boy; her mouth making to bite into his head like an apple. The boy, in turn, screamed in anguish; a victim of her insatiable hunger.

And that was a thought I'd never thought I'd string together.

Yeah, that actually happened just now. That girl got mad enough to not only attack that boy for accidently ruining her ice cream, but also bite down on his head. Talk about harsh! I mean, I can get upset if something or someone ruins my food, especially if I was looking forward to it, but jeez man! And you know what the strangest part about all this was? It was how that girl was latching onto his head. He was standing up, and she was biting down with such force that she showed no signs of letting go. Either she's got pretty strong chompers to be able to stay up there, or she was gripping his back with her hands while she was biting him. I couldn't see well enough to prove my theory, but it didn't make it any less strange. I wonder if this is what it felt to have a headcrab lodged to your head. Hmm?

"Why must this happen to me?! Such misfortune!" the boy screamed as he ran off with the girl still attached to his head.

Okaaaayyyyyyy…. moving on.

Anyway, I can't seem to figure out the why's and how's of my sudden and abrupt exit from Slime to this world. Speaking of which, just what world did I land in? Obviously, it's from a work of fiction, but I can't quite put my finger on which fiction it was. Let's go over what I learned so far.

This place was called Academy City, where practically everyone and their dog works together to improve the world with science. The law enforcement here seems to consist of teenaged students. And that Uiharu girl was apparently part of said law enforcement. What did that other girl call it? Judgement, I think it was? Yeah, that's it. What else? There was that terrorist attack too. Wait, didn't that girl say something about espers too? How exactly that factored into anything I had no idea, but it made me wonder: Does this city also have aliens and time travelers too?

Okay, okay! I'm just kidding around! I'm getting off topic here.

But everything I just experienced; everything I just saw and heard, it all sounded familiar to me somehow. Academy City? Judgement? Espers? That nun girl named Index? Why did it all sound so familiar? I've tried racking my brain for answers, but I had no such luck. I really do feel like I should know a work of fiction like this right off the bat with all these specific factors here, but… I had nothing. Well, to be fair, my entrance to this world left me feeling…. disoriented, for lack of a better term. It'll come to me eventually.

*GROWL*

And that certainly didn't help matters either. I was starving. Come to think of it, I haven't had a meal at all since lunch yesterday. Or was it today? Before I left Tempest, it was early evening, but here, it's the middle of the afternoon. Was I really unconscious for that long? I doubt I would've just stayed unconscious in that alley for that long without someone finding me and taking me to a hospital. Did I arrive here at this specific time of day? I had no way of knowing the answer to both those questions, but right now, I didn't care about that or how this could possibly fuck up my sleep schedule! I wanted food and I wanted it now! I had plenty of water to drink from the fountains, but of course, I couldn't survive on nothing but water. I wasn't a Namekian after all, so I couldn't have an easy out.

Rummaging through my pocket, I brought out the little coin pouch filled with my money. Now obviously Japan doesn't use gold coins for its currency; that much I know. And the silver and bronze coins wouldn't help me much either. I could however, try to trade some of these gold coins for yen at one of those pawn shops or cash for gold places. Gold is worth a lot no matter where you go after all, but there's a catch though.

One: I don't know this city like the back of my head. I'm already lost enough as it is, and as it stands, I don't know who else to turn to for help. Uiharu was much further away from here (and hopefully safe). Not to mention, I'm still not good at reading Japanese. I only got as far as translating certain words and understanding simple sentences. I think I was lucky until this point because all the people I've interacted with so far - including here and back in Tempest - have talked to me using more basic Japanese, so I was able to get my way through easily enough. But next time, I'll probably have to deal with the more complicated parts of Japanese, and what would I do then? That manga Rimuru gave me has helped me a lot, sure, but reading it over and over again can only help so much. Plus I was starting to get bored of reading it so many times! So imagine wandering a big metropolis like this while barely being able to overcome the language barrier. Yeah, culture shock is not fun.

Two: As for the money issue, I don't think it would be easy to trade some of my gold coins away. It's probably not as simple as just walking in, showing someone the coins and proving whether or not they're the real deal, getting whatever amount the coins are worth in yen, and going on my merry way. There's always complications. For instance, these coins look exactly like what you would expect from a JRPG, so whoever I get to appraise them might ask me a lot of questions. Where are they from? Who made them? How did you get these? Those kinds of questions. And if I don't play my cards right, I might wind up getting arrested. And that's an entirely different can of worms that I'd rather not open right now.

As I breathed a sigh of frustration, I heard the sound of footsteps approaching. I looked behind me and saw that a group of four guys were walking up to me. Each of them were dressed in rough-looking clothes. One was bald and wore sunglasses, another one had a bright red mohawk, the third one was a heavier set guy who wore a baseball cap, and the fourth guy had a crazy amount of facial piercings. Oh no….. Are these guys who I think they are?

Oh my god!. These guys are street thugs! Fucking thugs have shown up, and I think they're gonna make me their target! Almost immediately, I tensed up as I felt a chill run down my spine. Of all the things that could happen to me next, why does it have to be something like this? And of all the people they could've chosen to shake down, why did it have to be me?

"Hey, bro!" the bald thug began. "You look a little lost. Is this your first time here in Academy City?" As he said that, he sat down right next to me.

"Y-Y-Yeah," I stammered in reply, trying not to act like I was on to their game. "T-T-This is m-m-my f-first t-time her-here."

"Well say no more!" the mohawk thug chimed in. "We can help you find your way around here." He also made to sit down, opposite to the bald thug.

"Of course-" the piercing thug chimed in "-we will require some monetary compensation for our services, if you catch my drift." He stepped right in front of me as he said that. I quickly looked back and saw that the fat thug continued to stand behind me.

Fuck! Fuck! FUCK! They've got me flanked on all sides in the event I tried to escape! I was completely on edge by this point, and my mind constantly yelling "Danger! Danger! Danger!" over and over again didn't help my case. This whole situation could go one of two ways. One, I give them the money and they beat me up. There was no fucking way that they weren't gonna be beat me up. I've seen enough TV shows and movies to know that much.

Or two, I try to resist them only to get beaten down anyway. Even if I tried to run away, I doubt that I'd get very far. I'm out of shape, so they would catch up to me in a heartbeat. Also, I can't fight off all these guys, let alone one of them. And I doubt that these guys would stand back and watch me beat up one of their friends, not that I would be able to, but still though. This isn't a martial arts movie! I DID used to know karate, but I got bored of it and quit when I was still a brown belt, so I'm long out of practice. God damn how I wished I still knew karate so I can get out of this situation, but I digress! The point is: I'm fucked either way!

"Well," the bald thug - you know what, I'm just gonna call him baldie - said as he got closer to my face, sporting a wicked grin. "What do you say? Sounds like a good offer, don't you think?" I tried to move my face away from his as much as I could, but obviously, mohawkman was right behind me. Talk about being stuck between a rock and a hard place!

I had to get out of this mess somehow! But what are the odds of me making a clean escape? Most likely- no, most definitely a snowball's chance in hell, but damn it, I've got to try SOMETHING! Come on man! Gotta think of something! Gotta think of something fast!

A lot of thugs, punks, and street scum in TV shows/movies/anime/etc. are physically imposing and intimidating, but also mind-numbingly stupid too. Like, a fifth grader would be smarter than these guys! Sure, these guys look like cannon fodder for the hero character to deal with, but is this situation really that simple? What if these thugs that I'm dealing with here aren't stupid? What if they're the rare kind of thugs who were not only strong in a physical sense, but in an intellectual sense as well? I've seen – at least on TV - those kinds of thugs before, and they're usually the leaders of entire gangs, or at the very least, one of their ambitious lieutenants looking to usurp the leadership position by any means necessary.

ARGH! So many variables, and yet not enough time to solve them!

"Well?" baldie said with a hint of impatience in his voice. Shit! I'm out of time here! I'd better go with the first idea that popped into my head. I sure hope this works!

"I, uh, you see, uh- What I mean to say is-" I started awkwardly, but cut myself off before I could say anything else. Damn it Slater! Do you want these guys to ground you into the pavement? There's no turning back now!

I slowly took a deep breath and stood up, before opening my mouth to speak once again.

"Hey, isn't that a cop heading our way?" I said, pointing to my left as I did so.

"What?" baldie looked in the direction I was pointing at in a sudden panic, along with the other three. Now's my chance!

*THWACK*

I kicked the piercings thug - let's call him Mr. Pierce - right in the balls, causing him to grunt in pain and slump to the ground. Not long after, I made to dart away from them as fast as I could. Mohawkman tried to grab me, but I barely slipped away from his clutches.

"Why you?!" baldie snarled in anger. I looked behind me and saw the other two give chase. Mr. Pierce was a little slower to move, but he started running after us soon afterwards.

Well, that surprisingly worked wonders for me. I guess thugs really do have the IQ of a worm everywhere you go; in real life or in fiction. Or maybe I just got lucky that these guys just happened to have the IQ of a worm. You know what, I'm gonna roll with the latter in this case.

I ran through the park with all my might, trying to weave my way around in a bid to lose them. I kept constantly looking behind me to see if they were still- Yep! They were still chasing me! Just like a bunch of predators chasing their prey. I may have gotten a head start, but I knew that I was gonna run out of stamina eventually. Even if I didn't tire out, those guys would catch up to me in no time, so that would make losing them really difficult. Damn me and my mostly unhealthy diet!

"Get back here you bastard!" one of the thugs yelled at me. I don't know who said that, but I didn't care.

I ran through trees, bushes, and walkways, with the occasional bystander watching us. Damn it! Where were the police when you needed them? Why do they have to conveniently be absent when I needed them most? You'd think a futuristic city like this would be filled to the brink with cops, but apparently that's not the case! Hell, at this point, I would've settled for one of those Judgement guys helping me, but as far as I know, I haven't seen one trace of those guys either!

I'm not gonna be able to last much longer. I was getting progressively slower by the minute. I looked behind me once again and those guys were getting closer and closer to me. Even that fat tub of fuck was easily keeping pace with his buddies, despite looking way more out of shape than I was!

Man, fuck my life! In one day, I landed in a completely new world, witnessed a terrorist attack take place, and now, I'm running for my life from muggers! What'll happen next? Maybe I'll be a nameless victim in a drive-by shooting?

This! Day! SUCKS!

I soon found myself nearing one of the park's many entrances. Hopefully once I get out to the streets I can find SOMEONE to help me! As I ran, I saw another schoolgirl walking past the entrance. She had short brown hair and a uniform that was a mix of white, beige, and gray colors. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that she was holding something in one hand. It was… green-ish? Why would I choose to notice such a pointless detail?

I looked behind me again and- OH SHIT! That baldie's almost within arm's reach. I looked forward again and- DOUBLE SHIT! I'm about to crash into-

"Hey! Look out!" I yelled out at the schoolgirl, who only had enough time to look in my direction before-

*BAM*

Before I knew it, we had collided with each other. We both fell on our asses. I put a hand up to my fore- OW! How hard did I hit my head? Enough to leave a big, ol' bump apparently. Before I could even stand up, I was swarmed by those thugs. Two of them held me down, restraining both my arms so I couldn't break free. The baldie then stood before me, crouching down to get a good look at my face.

"That wasn't a very nice thing to do bro." He said with a vile drawl in his voice, before sporting that wicked grin again. "All of this could've been avoided if you had just given us that money. Instead, it looks like we'll have to teach you a lesson." His cronies all laughed at the mere mention of those words. I could hear one of them cracking their knuckles. Oh no…

"Any last words before we send ya to the hospital in a body bag ya little punk?!" the fat fuck (I think?) said with a sadistic glee.

Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god! I'm FUCKED! There's no way I can get out of this situation now! In my panic, I quickly looked around, hoping in vain that someone was nearby and that certain someone had the right sense to come to my rescue, or at the very least, call for help. No dice! I looked to my right and saw my bag of money on the ground. It must've fallen out of my pocket when I ran into that girl. Oh yeah, the girl! I looked over at her to see if she was alright. She seemed to be looking around on the ground for something. Was it that weird green thing she had?

Damn it girl! Are you stupid or what? I'm about to get my fucking teeth kicked in and you're more concerned for your little green trinket or whatever? Sheesh! Either run for your life or call for help; unless you want to be these fuckers' next target? Me getting beaten is one thing, but I don't need, nor want, to drag innocent schoolgirls into this mess!

"Well?" the baldie suddenly chimed in. "Didn't you hear what I just said? Or maybe you're fucking deaf or something?" He suddenly brought his boot down on my head, pushing me against the asphalt. "Here I am being the nice guy, and here you are off in la-la land popping your thumb up your ass!" He grinded his boot against my head.

"Ouch ouch ouch!" I yelped in pain. The four of them just laughed at my miserable state. "P-Please….. stop." I tried to speak as the pain gradually became worse. Tears were beginning to flow from my eyes. "I-I'll… g-give you….. all my money I have….. just plea-"

*THWACK*

"-EEEEE-AAAAAHHHH!" I suddenly yelped out in pain as something hit my back hard. FU-UCK! That really hurt! I was put into a coughing fit, panting heavily as I tried to catch my breath. That bald thug was looking – no – boring right through me with the angriest look that I've even seen.

"Don't fuck with us you little shit!" the baldie snarled in anger. "Do you even have any idea what position you're in here?! You think you can apologize to us now after what you did?! It's too late for that now! It's time to teach you a lesson! Boys?"

I'm fucked. I'm absolutely fucked. What did I do to deserve this? No seriously, what DID I do to deserve this? Nothing. I've done absolutely nothing to deserve this treatment. Not from them. And not from anybody. I've been a good person my entire life. Sure, I've engaged in mischief every now and then, but it was never malicious, and when I made a mistake, I always went out of my way to fix them. I've always listened to my parents. They taught me to be a good person; raised me into the person that I am today. And I was proud of that. I've always tried to help anyone out whenever I could or whenever I was able to; whether it would be offering my shoulder to cry on during the toughest times, or even doing something minor like holding the door open for people. I always did what I thought was the right thing to do when the situation called for it. I was selfless. I was kind. I was me.

But what about now? What about this situation? Being me wasn't going to help me here. To them, it didn't matter. Not in the slightest. No. Through some sick twist of fate; through the machinations of some higher power in this world, or whoever the fuck was pulling the strings, I wound up being the target of some petty thugs. They decided – they actually took the time to make a conscious decision – to make me their latest victim. And for what? Money. No big motivation, no grand scheme in the making; none of that shit. They wanted my money to drown themselves in life's finest pleasures. It was empty and meaningless.

It couldn't be more simple than that; so simple in fact, that you'd think they'd stop at that, but nope, they had to go further than that. They wanted to beat me to a pulp. There was no reason for them to do so. Oh no. They wanted to beat me to prove their superiority over what they called the weak; to revel in their own twisted sadism. And if anybody tried to challenge them like I did, they'd only get pissed off at the notion that a "weakling" would dare to challenge their authority. "How dare they talk back to us!" or "Worthless filth should know their place!" they'd say. I couldn't help but feel angry over their way of thinking, as well as a touch of pity that they would resort to something so pathetic. They truly were the definition of scum. There was once a time when I was bullied by a guy who was bigger than me back in the 10th grade. He too was an asshole and he got what he deserved, but this situation made that terrible memory look like child's play.

And what about me? What could I do? Nothing. I was utterly powerless against these people. I didn't have the strength. I didn't have the smarts. I was trapped. Like a rat in a cage. I couldn't call for help; not that anyone would help me at this point. To me – to this world – I didn't matter. To an ordinary passerby, I'd be seen as someone who wound up being at the wrong place at the wrong time. To them, it was none of their business. They didn't want to get involved, lest they wind up the latest targets of these assholes, so they would just try to ignore me.

I can't stand this. I can't accept this.

Mom….. Dad… Ozzie…. J….

Somebody….. Help me… Please...

"Oi." a new voice suddenly chimed in. We all directed our attention towards whoever just opened their mouth. To our surprise, it was that girl I ran into. I was barely able to see her face from down on the ground, but for just a second, I noticed that she….. didn't look too happy.

"I've spent weeks trying to find this special limited edition Gekota cellphone strap." She was talking slow and deliberately, but even I could tell that she wasn't just mad, she was livid. "I've gone through so many capsule machines, and spent so much money, yet every time, all I got were the ordinary straps you'd find anywhere. I thought it would've been pointless to keep trying, but I wouldn't give up. Finally, I managed to get my hands on the very last limited edition strap. All my efforts had finally paid off." I could feel my hairs standing straight up in- Wait a minute. Did I feel a jolt just now? "But then, you idiots showed up. And you did this!"

She held up something for all of us to see. It was a mangled green….. thing. Wait, wasn't that the same green trinket she was holding earlier? How did it get broken? Maybe when I ran into her, she dropped it, and then those assholes accidently stepped on it. I know that it definitely wasn't me who broke it, since she referred to the others as "idiots." Wait, I hope I wasn't one of those idiots! Please tell me I'm not one of those idiots!

"Aw, did we bwake your wittle toy wittle girlie?" Mr. Pierce said to the girl in a mocking tone. Yeah, something was telling me that he just kicked a hornet's nest.

I could've sworn I was seeing things, but for a fraction of a second, I saw what I thought was a small bolt of electricity.

"Oh, we're so sorry for what happened to your prize." the baldie began with a touch of sarcasm in his voice. "Once we're done dealing with this punk, we'll make sure to compensate you with something better. If you come with us, we can-"

"Not interested!" the girl interrupted as she suddenly raised her voice, before looking at us with that angry look in her eyes. Electricity was starting to cascade all around her-

Wait, what? Electricity? Did I really just see- Oh my god! I'm seeing it, but I just couldn't believe it. Somehow, this girl was generating electricity from her body. That jolt I felt earlier? It must've been because of her. All of us could do nothing but stare at this human dynamo of death with a mixture of awe and terror. I say that because she looked like she was ready to kill someone.

"Bro." the fat fuck said to the baldie. "I think I know this girl. I've heard stories about a powerful Level 5 esper who's able to control electricity. I think-"

"You don't mean?" the baldie replied, suddenly nervous. "That girl? It can't be!"

"Yes bro!" the fat fuck responded in panic. "I think she's the one. She's…" He paused for a second. "The Railgun of Tokiwadai!"

At that point, the four assholes gasped in horror; no doubt at the mistake which drew her ire in the first place. Meanwhile, I was already scared out of my wits as it was, so the apparent notoriety that this girl had went over my head like a ball flying out of the park.

"W-W-Wait!" the baldie began. "M-M-Miss Railgun, please have mercy on us! We're sorry!" Ol' baldie and his cronies all got in front of me and got down on their hands and knees, begging for forgiveness. At least they weren't gonna beat me up anymore. I slowly managed to sit myself up, but the pain I felt caused my body to resist somewhat.

"It's too late to apologize!" the girl stomped her foot into the ground, earning her the fearful yelps of everyone, including me. The electricity around her was getting more intense. I couldn't help but stare at her some more. I still couldn't believe-

STOP!

Huh?

What are doing you idiot?! Now's your chance to escape! Run for your life!

Okay, okay! I certainly do enjoy NOT being dead, let alone electrocuted!

I scuttled away as quickly as I could to avoid the carnage, despite my injury, and made my way to the other side of the street. I turned back to look at the scene, and what I saw was something that I would remember for the rest of my days.

In an instant, I saw a huge lightning bolt shoot out from that girl's hand, striking the thugs before they could get away. I've seen some scenes on TV where people got struck by lightning, but here? I've never seen anyone get struck before, especially up close. Before I knew it, my legs gave way and I fell on my ass again, leaving me lying helplessly on the ground. I looked back at the thugs, who were heavily charred and smoking. I was hoping that they were simply unconscious and not dead. As much as I wanted the worst thing possible to happen to those assholes, I probably would've gone catatonic if I saw a murder happen in front of me. I heard what seemed to be groaning, plus their bodies were twitching, but I still wasn't sure. I don't know if a lightning strike would render someone unconscious, but I do know that you can be killed by one.

I looked back at the lightning girl, who was now walking toward me, like a Terminator who was about to go in for the kill.

Oh fuck! Oh fuck! I should've known that I was gonna be saved for last! Frying those assholes like mosquitoes wasn't enough to abate her anger. My brain was practically screaming at my body to get the fuck out of there ASAP, but no matter how hard I tried to will my body to move, it wouldn't budge. All I could do was stare helplessly as death was literally staring me in the face. I was hyperventilating, my heart was pounding like a jackhammer, and I felt like I was about to piss and shit myself at the same time.

I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to-

"Oi." the girl began, interrupting my thoughts and causing me to yelp. "Are-" Before she could get another word out, I did the most unexpected thing imaginable.

"No don't kill me!" I suddenly yelled, causing the girl to step back in surprise. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry for crushing your trinket! I'm sorry for calling you stupid! Please don't fry me!"

"H-Hey! C-Calm down-" the girl tried to talk some sense, but my mind didn't register it. I just continued my blubbering like I was reciting a mantra.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm-"

"Calm down!" I felt her hands come down on my shoulders, snapping me out of my mantra and causing me to "eep!" in response. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"Y-Y-You're…. n-not?" I sniffled and wiped my tears away as I said that. I looked back at the girl, who gave me a sympathetic smile.

"No, I'm not." the girl replied. "I know you weren't the one at fault. It was obvious that those idiots were picking on you. You don't have to worry though, they won't be getting up anytime soon."

"W-Wait," I replied as I looked over at the thugs on the ground. "S-so they're n-not d-dead... right?"

"Nah!" the girl replied with a wave of her hand. "I only gave them enough of a shock to knock them out. It just pisses me off how people like that think they could pick on the weak and helpless like that!" She balled up her fist in a brief moment of anger, causing me to become somewhat nervous again, although that quickly vanished when she offered her hand to me; a smile adorning her face once more. "Are you okay?" I grabbed her hand and she helped me up. Only then did I realize that there were some bystanders who were looking at us. For how long, I didn't know, but I couldn't help but feel embarassed.

"Y-Yeah, I-I'm okay. A b-bit sore h-here and t-there, b-but I'm okay." I stuttered in reply. "T-Thanks for saving me."

"You're welcome." the girl replied. "Oh, by the way, I think this belongs to you." She pulled something out of her pocket and handed it to me. It was my coin pouch! Thank god no one snatched it up - hell, thank god it didn't get scorched by that lightning attack - during that whole debacle! Without it, I would've been screwed! "Well, since there's nothing more to worry about, I'm gonna be on my way now. See ya."

"O-Ok. See ya." I replied. And with that, she turned to leave. Well, I guess I'll be on my way t- Wait, what?! She's leaving? Just like that?

Whoa whoa whoa! Hold up! Hold! The fuck! Up! Nuh-uh! Not a chance! I do NOT want to be left alone like this! Not after what just happened!

Who knows what'll happen to me from here on out. Continuing to get lost in this city is bad enough; imagine getting into an even WORSE situation than my last one! I got lucky by being far away from that explosion, and as for that attempted mugging and sort-of beating that I took, it was sheer coincidence that I literally ran into that girl, who just happened to have the power to save me. I'm dead serious here! If not for that, I'd be in recovering in a hospital right now, not that that would've been easy mind you. A hospital is going to want some important information from me, like proof of my medical insurance for example, and I just don't have anything like that on me. Keep in mind, I'm stuck in another world. Not only does that mean I have no legal documentation to prove that I exist, I literally have never existed in this world in the first place! I might as well be Michael Knight; a man who does not exist! All I needed was an awesome talking car, but I'm digressing a bit.

I have no idea what the police would do with someone with no proof of existence whatsoever, but it'll probably be something... unpleasant, to say the least. And don't tell me that I can just walk into a store somewhere and get a fake ID or some shit! Like that will ever work!

Damn it! I can worry about that shit later! Right now, I wanted help, and my only help was walking away. Now was the time to act!

"W-W-Wait!" I called out to the girl, who turned to me and "hmm'd?" "Ummmmmmmm..." I stalled for a second before continuing. "I-I just got to this city and I don't know anyone to help me find my way around. I-I'm all by myself you see. Also, I don't really…...uh, have much in the way of money- I mean, I have money, but it's not yen. There are gold coins in my pouch and I need to find somewhere to trade some of them in... to get money and stuff, and you know?. I-I'm having a r-real tough time right now. Sooooooooo... yeah." I awkwardly stated as I twiddled my thumbs. Sheesh! I didn't mean to sound so awkward, but there I went, making a fool of myself again. The girl's face quickly went from neutral to confused to surprised in an instant.

"Huuuhhhhh?!" the girl replied incredulously. "Gold? You have gold coins? Real gold? How is that even possible? How and where did you get gold coins?! And how did you even get into the city in the first place?" I was taken slightly aback by her response, but I tried my best to recompose myself and I continued to speak.

"M-My arrival-" I paused for a second, trying to find the right words to say. "-was…. complicated, for lack of a better term. As for the coins, it's also a bit complicated too." I took a deep breath before continuing. "I-I hate to ask you this after you went out of your way to save me, a complete and total stranger and I know I'm asking for a lot and I apologize, but could you help me out? Please! Pretty please!" I clapped my hands together in a begging position. The girl just kept looking at me like I was a crazy person.

Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if she saw me that way, especially with how awkward I was acting around her. I mean, she had every right to be suspicious and bombard me with questions. I don't blame her. Even if she did go out of her way to save my life, I wouldn't be surprised if she refused me outright or turned me in to a policeman or one of those Judgement guys. And I already established the whole "man who doesn't exist" problem. To her, I'm probably the strangest illegal alien that she ever met. I mean, what kind of illegal alien carries gold coins on their person anyway? I know that it might seem arrogant to demand so much from a girl, let alone a schoolgirl, I just met a few minutes ago, but did I really have any other choice? With this girl, I not only had a way to find my way around this place, but also a way to keep myself safe, given her electric powers. Yeah, I felt bad about having to ask her for help on top of using her as a sort-of bodyguard, but again, what else was I supposed to do? Meanwhile, the girl seemed to consider my request; thinking about what to do next. After a few minutes, she started to speak again.

"Oh alright!" the girl replied, sighing in exasperation. "I guess I can't just leave you here, especially after what happened. I'll show you around. It's the least I can do. Plus, it'll give us time for you to explain yourself." She looked at me with serious eyes as she said that last part, causing me to get a touch nervous again.

"R-Right, g-gotcha." I stammered with a hint of hesitance, before shaking my head and recomposing myself. "Thanks again! I promise that I'll pay you back someday!"

"Oh, don't worry about it!" the girl replied.

"My name is Slater by the way." I replied. "And you are?" Yeah, it was about time I got to know her name. I was starting to get tired of referring to her as "that girl."

"It's Mikoto." the girl replied. "Misaka Mikoto. Nice to meet you."

I just stopped in my tracks upon hearing that name. I knew that name!

Oh my god! It's all coming back to me now! A futuristic city? A task force made up of students? Espers? And a girl with electric powers?

This was….. the world of A Certain Magical Index! And right now I'm getting help from Misaka Mikoto, one of the strongest espers in the setting, as well as one of my favorite characters! Holy shit! I swear I was about to nerdgasm on the spot.

"Hey!" Misaka called out to me from a few feet away, cutting my nerdgasm short. Just when did she- "Come on! Or else I'm gonna leave you behind!" Shaking my head, I recomposed myself again.

"R-Right! Coming!" I replied as I resumed following her.

Things are about to become even more interesting, I just know it!