Chapter 34 - Sensei Rescue Mission
...
Within the General Student Council building, a rather sizable group of students has been amassed within an auditorium.
Gathered here are students from a few different schools. Gehenna, Trinity, Milennium, Hyakkiyako, and even Abydos.
At the podium, positioned at the front of the room, on a stage above the floor, the elven member of the GSC, Rin, addresses the gathered students by speaking into the microphone. Momoka, the pink haired GSC member stands beside her, munching of chips, as usual.
Rin clears her throat, as she begins to speak. "Thank you all for taking time out of your schedules to be here today. I'm sure you all are wondering why I've called you all here. The answer is simple, you all have befriended or assisted Joshua Sensei in one manner or another." Rin pauses for a moment, letting out a sigh, before continuing to speak, biting the bullet. "I've gathered you all here for a simple reason. As of yesterday, we have lost track of the current whereabouts of Joshua Sensei."
Many gasps fill the area, accompanied by faces filled with shock.
"Sensei...?" Iori, the brown-skinned girl of the Prefect Team, mutters to herself in shock.
"Aruji-dono...?" Izuna, the self-proclaimed ninja of Hyakkiyako, mutters in disbelief.
"Two days ago, at roughly fourteen-hundred hours, Sensei and four of the five students currently attending Abydos High School, went into the desert outside of Abydos to investigate a cluster of small bases, abandoned by Kaiser PMC after they were ousted, so to speak." Rin explains. "After retrieving the objects of their investigation, they were attacked by a strange creature roaming the desert. It had been known only by reports stolen from Kaiser's former lab in the center of the desert. It's known only as Binah." Rin looks down at her colleague and nods.
Momoka pulls a remote from her pocket and presses the button, causing a screen to come alive, showing Binah. "After this creature attacked, the Abydos students managed to survive its onslaught until our helo arrives, but Sensei was lost in the sandstorm caused by the creature."
"Sandstorm?" Hina, the white haired leader of the Prefect Team asks.
"Indeed. From the documents the Abydos girls brought back, we know much of the creatures offensive and defensive capabilities. However, while the documents mentioned it's ability to swim through sand, it never mentioned that it could conjure up massive sandstorms." Rin continues.
"What is this... thing capable of?" Yuuka, the treasurer of the Millenium Student Council asks.
"Oh, that's simple." Momoka speaks up between bites. "It's pretty much indestructible, can fire off big rounds from its mouth that are... how big were they again?" She asks her elven colleague.
"Thirty millimeters." Rin confirms, causing eyes to widen in the crowd once more.
"Right, thirty millimeter rounds from the mouth, it's got missile silos on its back and can fire two big lasers from its mouth. Plus-" Momoka stops to pop a chip into her mouth. "-it can make sandstorms, apparently."
Rin narrows her blue eyes at her colleague's lackadaisical attitude. "As Momoka said, it can fire large lasers from its mouth. It's smaller one requires less time to charge, yet the creature has complete control over it. The second laser takes longer to charge and is larger, but the creature cannot move its head in any other way other than vertical while firing. The first laser can melt metal and the second can disintegrate most anything."
More shock in the crowd ensues.
"But... how do we know Sensei is all right?" Hifumi, a simple girl from Trinity asks.
"Sensei has a... relic of sorts, left to him by the General Student Council president. It's capable of many things, one of them being keeping track of his vitals and sending that data to us constantly." The elven GSC member explains. "Rest assured, Sensei is alive and moderately unharmed. There are only two problems. Firstly, we have no idea of his exact location, save for estimates. Secondly, Binah is still in the area where it was fought."
"If it's still there, how can we get Sensei out?" Kayoko, the punk girl of Problem Solver 68 asks.
"Because, for all of its invulnerable armor, it has one weak spot. It's four eyes." Rin says, gesturing to the image of Binah. "Sensei shot it in the eye with a modified sniper rifle round, designed to behave similarly to a grenade. It's eye was damaged, but not broken. What I'm asking from all of you is to work together to rescue Joshua Sensei."
Eyes widen at the black haired elf's request.
"I know this is much to ask, which is why all of you here now are acquaintances of Sensei, rather than strangers." Rin explains, pushing her glasses up slightly. "However, in the event Binah does show, we have acquired the help of the Engineering Department of Millennium to build something specifically for use against Binah."
Momoka steps up and speaks into the mic. "Basically, they're making a big 'ol harpoon with a bomb attached to it, plus something to fire it from, to be hooked up to a helicopter. Oh, and a remote to blow it up."
Rin sighs. "Thank you for that, Momoka. But yes, we're asking you all, or at least some of you, to assist us in rescuing Sensei come tomorrow. If you wish to opt out, I won't blame you."
"You already know we're gonna help." Serika, resident cat girl of Abydos says. Her schoolmates, Nonomi, Shiroko and Ayane stand beside her, nodding in agreement. All of them, save Ayane, have bandages on here and there.
"Hmph. There's no job we won't take." Aru, the boss of Problem Solver says, proudly, backed up by her subordinates Kayoko, Haruka and Mutsuki. "But, this is Sensei we're talking about. So we won't ask for compensation."
"Izuna will help!" The fox ninja, Izuna says. "Aruji-don't helped Izuna out, now it's her turn!"
"Keeh. We'll help too." Tsurugi, leader of the Justice Task Force says, backed up by Hasumi.
"As will we." Hina, the head Prefect says, backed up by Chinatsu and Iori.
"Yeah! We've gotta go save the Boss!" Pina, from Hyakkiyako says.
"Why are you still calling him that?" Shizuko, the idol of Momoyodou asks.
"I'll help too!" Hifumi adds, passionately.
"I as well, naturally." Yuuka, from Millennium adds.
"Its my duty to help people, after all." Suzumi, of the Vigilante Crew says.
"We of Red Winter Academy always take care of our Comrades!" Cherino, the leader of Red Winter says proudly, flanked by Tomoe, her secretary.
"Let's get out there and rescue him!" Nodoka of Red Winter says with a raised fist, flanked by Shigure as well as Momiji and Minori.
"It's our duty to assist people as young maidens." Mimori of the Inner Discipline Club says, joined by her fellow members Tsubaki and Kaede.
"Sensei being gone would make people sad, throwing off the balance of the world." Chise of the Yin-Yang Club says slowly, as usual.
"You can expect help from us as well." A sweet voice calls out. Everyone turns to the monitor, no longer showing Binah, but instead Eimi and Himari, if Millennium. "After all, it was my request that made him go out there in the first place. We'll assist in any way we can." The sickly hacker continues, Eimi nodding behind her.
"I... see." Rin says slowly, a small smile on her face. "Then let's prepare for our mission."
"Oh? Seems like you forgot about little 'ol me." A sleepy voice calls out. Everyone turns to see Hoshino of Abydos walk from an adjacent room. She's currently wearing a hospital gown, while covered in a menagerie of bandages and the like.
"Miss Hoshino, you should be resting. We called the Remedial Knights specifically for your treatment." Rin says politely.
"Oh hush. I might be an old lady, but I've been through worse." The pink haired girl waves off the elven girl's concerns. "Besides, they want me to stay in bed for a week. Don't get me wrong, sleeping is a hobby of mine, but I'm not gonna miss out on saving Sensei."
"Hoshino, please. You need to-" Rin begins, but it cut off by Hoshino.
"No, Rin. I was the only thing stopping Sensei from being lost to that storm, and I failed. It's my fault he's missing and hurt and god knows what else, so I am going to save him if it's the last thing I do." The heterochromatic girl says resolutely, causing some to recoil in surprise, especially her fellow students from Abydos.
"Hoshino...?" Nonomi asks out loud.
'Hoshino, she...' Hina thinks to herself. 'She's slipped back into her old persona. She must truly care for Sensei... Or... maybe she just doesn't want to be the first to find the corpse of someone she holds dear again...'
Rin lets out a sigh. "Very well. If you're that serious about this, then be prepared for tomorrow." She says, causing the pink haired girl to nod.
"Well, if you'll excuse me, I'm goona go take a nap." Hoshino says, her lazy voice returning, as she leaves the room.
"Very well then, everyone. Prepare yourselves for tomorrow. We are going to bring Sensei back alive." Rin says, inspiring courage in the crowd of girls.
Back in the infirmary, Hoshino lays on the bed, thinking to herself.
'Sensei... I'm sorry.'
'But I promise.'
'I promise I'm going to get you back alive.'
'Then...'
The pink haired girl lets out a tired sigh.
'Then... I'll tell it to you.'
'The truth.'
'I promise.'
My eyes flutter open with resistance, sand having been gunned over them in my unconscious state.
I rub the sand from my face as I sit upright.
I idly notice my face right arm is unresponsive, but not in pain. Did I knock it out if the socket?
After a few minutes, I final my can look around.
I'm still in the desert. The middle of it.
I seem to be in a bowl of sorts. Rocks and asphalt chunks litter the sand around me.
"Where the hell am I...?" I ask myself, as I begin to stand. With a loud groan, I stand on my own two feet and look around.
There's nothing here.
I begin I climb my way up and out of the sand bowl, only to see a different remnant of a town. This place looks a bit more intact then where we fought Binah.
I stop walking.
Binah.
Fuck...
I gasp in shock at remembering. "Hoshino! Fuck, she must be worried sick."
I hope those girls got out okay...
Looking around myself. I find my guns and grenades still strapped to my body. Reaching into my pocket, I fish out the mystical tablet.
Pressing the button, it whirs to life as Arona appears on the screen, in the middle of waking up.
"Sen... sei...? S-Sen-? SENSEI?!" Arona shouts, increasing in volume as her eyes widen while she moves closer to me.
"Hey, Arona." I greet back.
"You're finally awake! Thank goodness!" She says, happily. Digital tears threatening to spill from her blue eyes.
"Yeah, well, I've been though worse. How long was I out?" I ask.
"About three days." She admits. "Thankfully, the Shittim Chest monitors your vitals, so I wasn't worried."
"Liar, you totally were." I accuse.
She jolts, before looking away from me shyly. "Yeah, I was."
I smile. "Well, I'm glad you're okay too, Arona."
Her gaze snaps back to me as a big smile grows on her face. "Thanks, Sensei."
"Speaking of, send my location to Rin. They oughta know where I am."
"On it!" She says, as the screen goes black. I quickly slip the tablet into my pocket.
Sighing, I speak out. "I know you're there."
"I shouldn't be surprised, I suppose." A masculine voice says with a small chuckle.
Stepping from around a corner, is Black Suit himself.
"Well, long time no see, pal." I greet the mysterious man.
"Indeed. It has been a while, Sensei." He greets back.
"So, what brings you by? Looking to find stuff out about our resident whale?" I ask.
"On the contrary, I merely wished to see if you were alive. It would be... disappointing if you were to perish. Quite so." He says. "Besides, why would we need to know more of Binah?"
I stare at him for a long moment. "You and your Gematria pals didn't have anything to do with it, did ya?" I ask, slowly.
He sighs with an almost happy tone, then begins speaking to me wistfully, like a grandfather happily telling his grandchildren a bedtime story. "It was a very long time ago. Somewhere in the ruins of the old, deserted district on the outskirts of Kivotos, a strange experiment was conducted. The goal was to research a deity to prove its existence and, if possible, analyze its constitution. If such a thing were possible, then it would mean it could be replicated. This is how a new god could be created..."
"I've heard this story before." I say, interrupting him.
"I would be surprised if you hadn't." He says with a chuckle. "The masses laughed at such an absurd hypothesis, but not all. Some were captivated. Gematria supported the research, and immersive funding and time was invested into developing the first AI to prove the existence of God. Imagine, an AI capable of collecting enough information to prove the existence of God..."
He begins to pace back and forth. "That was the beginning of the Absolute Being Autonomous Analysis System. Many years later, the district was deserted, and the lab was buried under sand. Eventually, the memory of the research itself was lost to the passage of time."
He stops pacing to look directly at me. "But the AI continued its directive until it finally made a proclamation from those ruins... QED."
My eyes widen slightly. "Qetesh." Said to be a goddess above all in Egyptian mythos, if I remember correctly.
Black Suit nods solemnly. "It marked the arrival of a new god, proven, analyzed, and reproduced. A new god identified by ten sacred, unspeakable letters."
"Unspeakable?" I ask, laughing wholeheartedly, before staring the man in his 'eyes' and speaking again. "כֶּתֶרחָכְמָהבִּינָה."
He stills with a violent shudder at my words. "You..." He says, before remaining silent for a long while. "Regardless of that, the Decagrammation paved its way to divinity by contacting ten prophets who foretold its arrival. This is the new Pilgrim's Path. Does that make it a true god?" He asks rhetorically. "How should I know? I couldn't care less. But what I do believe is that it's journey to prove its divinity may just be the road to the providence of truth, Sephira."
"You mean 'Sephirot'." I correct. "The ten Sephiroth within the body make up the Tree of Kabbalah, the Path to God."
"So, you are aware of that old story?" He asks, amused. "...Sensei, no, Joshua. The prophet you've encountered is one of the highest celestial triangles of Sephira. It's path is unity through understanding. It is the Contemplator of Disparity..."
"Binah. The third Sephira, the third prophet." I finish.
"How long can your Schale last against a prophet of Decagrammation?" He asks. "How meaningful will the bond you've forged be when faced with the divine power of the new god? Can the inherent Mystic powers of those children really compare to those of the new god?" He chuckles to himself. "Yes, indeed. This is a truly fascinating study."
He steps closer to me. "Tell me, Sensei. Before a few days ago, have you fought a god before?"
"Tell me, what is a god to a non-believer?" I ask with a sly grin. He stills for a moment, silent. "This god was made by man. Man is perfectly imperfect, thus this new 'god' is imperfect. If it deigns to harm my students, I will put it down."
"Can you even do so in your condition?" He asks, gesturing to my limp arm.
Turning away from him. I spot a nearby wall. Positioning myself, I ram my shoulder against the wall with a mighty yell. Pain courses through my body as I regain control of motion in the arm, flexing my fingers as a test.
Looking back, I see the mysterious man still, his 'eyes' wide in surprise.
"I have been through hell, Black Suit. I have been there for a long, long time. At this point, I no longer fear God. I only fear for Him, and what I will do to Him should He deign to cross me." I growl out. "Whatever comes me way, be it God, one of His prophets, or the Devil himself, I will put them all down if need be."
He chuckles mirthfully. "Then, I wish you luck, Sensei. Though, perhaps you won't need it." He walks off, disappearing around the same corner as before.
Looking down, I flex my fingers once more, my arm still completely numb.
I need to get outta here. Here's hoping Binah won't show this time.
Is that...
...
...the sound of a helicopter?
AN
Here we go!
Rather short chapter, but it's just setting up for next time.
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and look forward to the next!