AN: Hello readers! I have returned with part 3 of this day that will hopefully end in the next chapter with part 4. I wrote...a lot if you cant tell, to the point that this is the 2nd longest chapter I've written for this story so far. Enough so that I could have split this chapter but decided against it to not drag out this small arc by too much.

If it's too much, I'll split it if I have to...but for right now I think it fits in the scheme of things involving some events surrounding Project Wave Influx:)

That's all from me today, so I hope you enjoy this chapter. It's fairly...depressing at times as a small warning due to the depression known as Asher's background/character.

Please leave a review on anything you liked, think I should work on, or just any questions in general! I enjoy reading them and I will answer them at the end of the next chapter;)


Disclaimer: I do not own A Certain Scientific Railgun/Magical Index or any of its characters...the only things I own are:

1. My characters and

2. my ideas


Project WaveInflux Part 1: The Beginning of the End

July 15th, 3:00PM

School District 7 Hospital

Heaven Canceller was typing some things into his computer until he heard the door open, looking over and seeing a somewhat disgruntled Shokuhou come through with Asher right behind her.

"The nerve of this girl…" Shokuhou said under her breath as she stomped into the room. "To think someone as smart and lazy as she is decides on the worst occasions to be actively stubborn and hardheaded, completely throwing out that logic of hers out the window to fight something for her own benefit."

When he was able to see Asher's face, his eyes widened in concern, seeing her staring blankly ahead of her as a small stream of blood came from her nose, signaling to him that there was most likely a small struggle to bring her here.

"Mind telling me what happened?" He asked as he turned in his chair, seeing Shokuhou direct Asher to sit down in one of the chairs a little ways from him and walk over to the sink after she grabbed a wash cloth.

"She became somewhat combative if you can't tell, enough so that she caused the both of us some slight discomfort. I had to basically shut her off before she caused any more damage to her already damaged brain from trying to fight my ability." Shokuhou said with an edge of irritation in her voice, wetting the washcloth that was in her hand. "Surprising from a girl who barely wants to use her energy to do anything most of the time."

She went over to Asher with the damp washcloth and gently wiped off the blood as she looked at her with a notable frown on her face.

"Do you still think it's the best course of action to do a headscan today?" Heaven Canceller asked as he walked over to where she was sitting, hearing her let out a sigh under her breath. "If this was her reaction before you even start, how do you think she's going to react when you do?"

"That is some cause for concern, but it's not as concerning on what will happen if we keep pushing it further and further. So, I think it still needs to happen." Shokuhou replied as she stood up and sat in the chair in front of Asher, laying the washcloth on the table next to her. "She's indirectly harming herself, both emotionally and mentally, by not allowing herself to remember these events to be able to get past them. Ignoring it isn't ever going to make it go away. It will just make it harder for her to get over."

"My goal today isn't to just go in and do it all at once as I'm not in the mood or have the drive to watch a fairly emotionally stagnant girl like her have a complete mental breakdown because of it. I will take my time and give her a break when I know she needs it, but I will hopefully complete the majority of those memories today. But it may take some time."

Heaven Canceller looked over at her for a few moments before he released a small sigh.

"Alright, I will take you at your word, Miss Shokuhou." He stated as he went to leave the room. "I will notify the Head Residents at both of your dorms just in case you have to stay here past curfew."

"Oh, I actually have that covered on my end," Shokuhou said with a smile. "So, you can just do it for Asher."

Speaking of her, I should probably release some of my hold on her to lessen some of the underlying strain for the both of us, Shokuhou thought to herself as she began to dig down in her purse.

She hopefully has calmed down by now, but I will still lessen her thought processing a little more to avoid another encounter of that ability of hers, which might be troublesome if she reacts badly to these memories if they're even the slightest bit active.

After a few short seconds, she found the right remote for the task task and brought it out into the open.

This one should do. I will give her some instructions to allow her to be able to move to some degree, but not to where she can leave where she's sitting.

As soon as she pressed the button, some light came into Asher eyes as she released a small groan and slumped over in her chair cradling her head.

"Dang….it…." She said under her breath.

"Doing okay over there?" Shokuhou asked in curiosity until she heard her let out a wince and put her hands over her ears.

"Sh-..Shoku..hou….Tch…need…Amps…You're…be..ing…too…loud…and what…do you…think?" Asher mumbled softly, prompting a laugh out of Shokuhou's mouth as she rustled through her purse to find them.

"That's the first thing you say to me after being on the verge of snapping on me when I actually was helping you out for a change?" Shokuhou asked as she handed her Amps over to her, hearing Asher let out a small sigh under her breath as she put them on.

"If essentially….locking me inside…of my head…for an extended period of time…is consid..ered helping then, I ….find what I said and asked fitting for…this situ..tion…." Asher stated as she slowly rose her head up from her hands to look over at her. "It was…not very pleasant from how…abruptly you did….it…..so please…refrain from doing that….again or I may…actually throw…up on you upon doing so."

"You sound relatively like yourself, so does that mean you're actually able to think a little bit more rationally and not fight my ability as you did previously?" Shokuhou asked, hearing a few laughs under Asher's breath.

"What's the….use…in do…ing so?" Asher said almost regretfully. "You're just….going to force…me to do this any…way…even if I….tell you….n-not….to. …So what's the point….in trying to prevent….it anymore?"

"M-My head….feels hammered…enough as it is." She continued as she braced the side of her face slightly. "To the point…I can barely…string any…of my words together…right now…let alone…do any…of my calcu….lations to even…begin…to stop…y-you….It's…pointless."

Shokuhou's gaze narrowed slightly at that, deciding to press further in the matter as she pressed one of the buttons on her remote.

"Can you explain that a little further to give me a better idea of the quick change in heart? And why you were fighting it before?" She asked, seeing Asher stiffen before leaning forward in her chair to look towards the ground.

"I know it's…pointless…Fighting it is…so pointless….But at….the same time…everything about this…is just as pointless…..You shouldn't waste….your time….on this….on someone like me….Shoku…hou….I don't deserve it…since it was my fault…it happened in the first place." Asher said in a low voice.

"It may have been a mildly small lapse in judgment on your part, but you do know that stepfather of yours is the one to blame for it all, considering you weren't fully aware of the apparent side effects of his little experiments?" Shokuhou asked, pressing further in the matter as Asher released a small wince under her breath.

"I shouldn't…have trusted him in the…first place….I should've been smart enough….to figure out that…he was using me….And when I finally did….it was just too late….to do anything about it….I just became lost…in the chaos of it all….completely….lost on what I wanted…and what I was being…manipulated to want….for myself." Asher stated with some hesitation in her voice.

"Can you please…stop whatever….you're doing that is…compelling me to say this?" She asked with some discomfort in her voice. "I know you're just…trying to get an understanding…of my current state…of mind…but it's starting…to make me nauseous…and just sick to my stomach in general….for some reason."

"Sure, I'm surprised you were able to notice something like that." Shokuhou said with a sigh, as she disengaged it. "Sooo before we start, you don't happen to think you're going to actually throw up on me, right? I honestly don't want such a thing to happen on or in close proximity to me…"

"I think I'm….fine as of right now….I'm…more…or less used to….this feeling to …some degree…due to having motion…sickness…on…occasion…So I can…ignore it for a while….since…it's not that…bad. " Asher said with slight amusement in her tone. "I'll tell…you if the mood happens… to strike me, though."

"Please be sure to. I don't want to be walking back in such a state as that…" Shokuhou replied with a sweatdrop as she prepared to begin. "Now, just relax and try not to push back when I do this to make it easier for the both of us. If the memory flashes become too much for you, just tell me to give you a break before I start again. This may take a while, but hopefully lessening the number of mental blocks you have will give your head and conscience some type of reprieve after this."

"A-Alright," Asher replied as she closed her eyes. "I guess…I'm…ready…whenever you are."

As soon as she felt Shokuhou using her ability to gain further access into her head, Asher slipped into a sort of daze as multiple memories lost to her before began to flash through her mind.

Showing her the beginning and the overall course of Project WaveInflux….

That led to the day of calamity 2 years later….


4 years ago…

Wright Industries Research Facility 7

Asher walked down the hallways with her hands in her pockets until she arrived to the office she was looking for.

She hesitated for a moment before knocking on the door, where she heard a male's voice ring out on the other side for her to come in.

When she entered, she saw her stepfather, Silas Wright, sitting at his desk talking to a woman sitting right in front of him.

Silas had slicked back brown hair and grey eyes, wearing a grey shirt under his white lab coat and black pants. The woman in front of him had short black hair that went down to almost touch her shoulders, also wearing a white lab coat, though a bit shorter in comparison to Silas's and wearing a lavender t-shirt underneath.

"Late as usual it seems, Zierdan, even though I told you to be on time." Silas said under his breath as the woman in front of him laughed slightly in her seat.

"Cut the kid some slack, Silas." The woman said as she turned back to look at Asher. 'I'm guessing this is your stepdaughter, almost a spinning image of Himari from what I can see."

After Silas sent an annoyed hummed for his answer, the woman casually stood up and walked over to Asher, sending her a smile as she held out her hand for her to shake.

"Silas and your mother are actually two close collogues of mine after working with them over the years. You can call me whatever you like as I'm not huge on formalities, but my name is Yoshikawa Kikyou."

Asher stared down at her hand for just a moment, before she hesitantly brought her hand out to shake it.

"Nice to meet you Miss Yoshikawa…" She said stoically with slight nervousness in her voice. "You can just call me Asher."

"You don't have to be so nervous around me, Asher." Yoshikawa said with a smile, seeing her cheeks heat up slightly as she looked up in confusion. "I promise I won't bite you or anything."

Asher went silent at that as she looked over to the side, releasing a small sigh under her breath.

"I'm not used to talking to people all that much," Asher stated as she released her hold and rubbed the back of her neck. "So sorry if I seem uncomfortable with you."

"No it's fine," Yoshikawa said as she went to go sit back in her chair. "Himari gets about as flustered for it as well whenever I call her out on it."

Asher's eyes widened at that slightly, somewhat shocked at the apparent similarities her and her mother had. Considering they didn't talk all that often to each other, she never had enough time to see something like that.

After she had gotten settled in the chair next to Yoshikawa, Silas began to discuss what he had called the both of them for…

"Project WaveInflux?" Yoshikawa said aloud in contemplation as she looked down at the document in front of her. "Is this the project that you've told me about being in the works a few years ago? I thought it was dropped for something else, after Asher's growth was expected to continue with or without help from doing research on her abilities…"

"Yes, even after I fought for it to continue to give me some more time to show more results, they didn't allow me the resources to continue, since it seemed that her growth stabilized at Level 4." Silas stated in front of them. "It wasn't until just a week ago, that she was promoted into a Level 5 out of the blue during one of her system scans and to my dismay, the old geezer called me to continue my research over her ability. Apparently, Zierdan never committed to using her powerful ability at its full strength during them, with her only doing enough to qualify as a Level 4 each and every time. Which is understandable from the dangers that it poses from her doing so…"

Asher's expression fell slightly at that, which went noticed by Yoshikawa from seeing it from out of the corner of her eye.

"She must have a decent level of control to do something like that, Silas." Yoshikawa stated as Asher looked over at her in slight surprise. "You never know, maybe she just didn't want to draw more attention to herself."

"Or that naivety of yours is giving her more credit that it's worth," Silas stated under his breath before continuing with his explanation. "This experiment is focused on seeing the overall applications towards her ability in further detail in comparison to the last experiment. Especially in relation to the connections of both gravity and wavelengths in concern of her esper power, Gravity Dimensional Shift, and furthering her control over them."

"Alright and what do you need me for, considering you find me such a naïve woman in regard to my opinions?" Yoshikawa asked jokingly, hearing Silas laugh under his breath.

"Well considering you got my stepdaughter of mine to actually talk more than a few words, I would say you're the perfect person to talk to her at least each week to see any changes to her overall life vitals, such as her blood pressure, brain activity, personality, etc. I am predicting some slight changes in some of those aspects due to the use of my waveform device that I'm still working out the kinks on, which will theoretically be able to affect the wavelengths that she controls and is naturally around her."

"Due to actively being connected to such waves even when outside of the use of her abilities, if she changes the waves too much for her brain to keep up with, some changes as the ones I have listed can occur but only for brief spurts of time. I've just been informed it would be best to take note of such changes to see if they get better or worse when she starts to be able to control higher wavelengths for longer periods of time." He continued, seeing Yoshikawa cross her legs as she thought over such a proposition.

"Before I say my answer, according this, you're focusing on something considered to be redshift wavelengths in terms of gravity correct?" She asked, seeing Silas nod to allow her continue. "It seems something like this would have a direct hit to her overall stability if taken too far, which is something I know you quite well for doing when you're passionate for something like this but also slightly concerning if this ends with something on par or even worse than something like RSPK syndrome…."

"I say that all to say, are there other reasons that you're trying to do this experiment, other than finding the upper reaches of potential for her powers? I will not sit here and risk my life for an experiment to end up creating something even Asher, the 3rd Ranked Level 5, can't even control." She finished, narrowing her eyes at the man in front of her and seeing a small smirk grow on his face.

"Wow, you know me so well Kikyou." He said amusedly as he got up from where he was sitting and laid a hand on Asher's shoulder. "But your concerns should be unfounded as I trust that Zierdan can handle such things since she's motivated to do this of her own will as well. I promised to help her out with finding a way to control that side of her ability where she can redshift without worrying of losing control of herself in such a manner."

Yoshikawa looked at him skeptically from seeing something hidden within his eyes, before she sent her gaze to the girl who had been basically quiet up until now.

"Is it true this jerk didn't swindle you to do this?" Yoshikawa asked with a smile, as Asher looked over at her stoically and nodded her head.

"See, you have nothing to fear Kikyou," Silas stated. "Himari is even on board for allowing her to do so…"

As Asher sat there in silence, hearing them deliberating on the last details of what was going to occur over the next few years, she was beginning to have second thoughts before she decided that those were illogical to have.

'No I need to continue doing this….' She thought to herself, thinking back to the person that she was motivated to do it for.

["I need a better explanation than that," Misaka said shakily as her hold tightened even more. "Someone like you doesn't just cry on a whim, Asher. There's more to the story than that. I promise you, that you can trust me, so please stop closing yourself off from someone who really cares about you and considers you a friend."]

'I told him about you…told him that you see me as trustworthy…

'That you see me as something more than just a danger or unapproachable to talk to because of my own lack of talking to others or expressing myself to a normal capacity that seems real enough to like.'

'But Silas, says you're lying to me….'

Says I shouldn't start something that would end when you get bored or tired of me. Instead, telling me that this experiment could allow for something like a friendship to happen, but only in the future when he finds my control at a safe level.

Telling me to end something that….

I know somewhere inside me is genuine. That gives me something to care about for once in my life.

A life that he never seems to care for up until it helps him out one way or another….

His words are not logically sound in any manner when it comes to something like that…

To end something that I know is good for me to have.

But…

I have to do this...

I have to do this, Misaka, which is something I know you would bar me from doing if I told you why I was doing it.

You would probably berate me for it…

Probably even be upset and angry for something like this…

This….

Stupid and illogical fear that I have of myself.

A fear stemmed from something that I still don't know if I actually did, but only form redshifting too high to cause such a lapse in memory to happen.

Something that Silas knows quite well, since he was apparently there and hangs over me ever since it happened….

Saying, numerous th-that I indirectly caused the death of my father from somehow losing control of my ability so many years ago when I actually tried to use my full power for once…

Something that had never happened, until that day. But still happened in the first place and is still currently a possibility.

I need to know…

I need to know that something like that won't ever happen again.

Meaning…

I have to do these experiments to know that I should be trusted….

To have a friendship with someone like you, who I wholeheartedly care to protect from something like that to happen….

To protect from you and everyone else from someone as inherently dangerous as me….


6 months later….

Asher was sitting in a chair in front of Yoshikawa as she was writing down a couple notes on her notepad.

"Sooooo, Asher." She began as Asher looked over at her stoically. "How are you feeling currently? And changes from what we discussed last week?"

"Other than the slight ringing in my head, I feel mostly fine." Asher stated as she wrote something down, reaching over to grab a device from the table.

"Alright, time to check your brain activity to see if anything has changed since last time." She said, with Asher nodding and helping her put it on.

After a few minutes, Yoshikawa's face fell slightly from what she was reading when the activity chart was being printed off from the computer.

'Her brain activity is even more off than it was last time…' She thought to herself in slight confusion.

'They should have fixed themselves by now, since it's been both a week and she hasn't used her ability in a while today.'

'How hard is that idiot pushing you, for something like this to happen?'

As Asher sat there watching her, she felt the ringing in her head beginning to get more and more bothersome, enough so that it started to block everything out around her.

'What the is heck is happening?' She thought to herself, grasping the front of her head as the ringing continued to get worse and worse.

"Asherrrrr…." She heard a voice say somewhere around her that was alluring enough to diminish the sound that was ringing through her head completely.

When she looked around, she didn't see anyone there before it felt like someone hugged her from behind, prompting her to immediately try to jump from its hold before it seemed like her mind fell into a fog.

"Is this what we really want? To keep that power of ours monitored and used for someone else other than ourselves….." It said in her ear, causing her eyes to widen at the familiarity of the voice.

'That sounds like….'

"Don't you want to do something more? Don't you want to do something that you've desired your entire life?" The voice continued, slowly sending her and her mind into oblivion.

"Something I've desired my entire life?" Asher asked almost trancelike. "I don't know what that would even be…"

"I can help you find that, to help you finally find solace in this world. And destroy everything that has wronged you in your life, by allowing me to drive your very world with you mostly present at the wheel…."

"I can help you feel something you've never felt before…to gratify you with power and strength to become a dominant force in this city."

"To bring everyone to their knees, and to protect you from further despair and heartbreak…."

Before her mind seemed to completely fall into darkness, she felt someone shaking her shoulder enough to snap herself out of her haze, startling her enough to nearly jump out of her chair.

"Hey easy, It's just me." Yoshikawa said reassuringly, seeing her fall back in her seat as she tried to catch her breath. "You kinda spaced out for a minute. Is everything okay?"

Asher opened her mouth to say something before she hesitated, feeling something off within somewhere in her head as Yoshikawa waited for her answer.

"Yes, I'm perfectly fine. No need to worry Miss Yoshikawa." Asher said with a sigh closing her eyes as she rubbed the back of neck. "I just got caught up in my thoughts. Were you saying something before?"

"I told you that you could leave for today, but I noticed you staring off into the distance for who knows how long." Yoshikawa said as Asher rose to leave through the door, her face hidden from her.

"Are you sure you're okay, Asher?" Yoshikawa asked for a second time, with her eyes widening slightly from hearing a small laugh from under her breath and seeing something notably wrong with the girl in general.

'Weren't the streaks in her hair blue just a second ago?' She thought to herself, seeing them instead growing into a bright red.

"Yeah, I am. Better than I've felt in a while now to be honest. I would tell you if I wasn't. You should have a little more faith in me." Asher said with her usual tone somewhat shifted as she began to take a step forward before the door was remotely locked in front of her.

"Wanna try that again?" Yoshikawa asked without her usual laid-back tone, saturating it with seriousness. "I never pegged someone like you to lie to my face like that."

"I'm not lying at all, Yoshikawa. Now, open this door so I can leave this damn place." Asher asked, hearing a small sigh come from the woman's mouth behind her as she sat down in her chair.

"I would but it seems our meeting today is going to run a little over than usual, since it seems something has happened that would probably be worth talking about…again with this time not allowing you to avoid it." Yoshikawa said casually as the girl proceeded to turn to look at her, seeing her eyes glowing bright red as a smirk fell on her face.

"Oh really? Do you really think you have a say in the matter? How cute." Asher stated as she began increasing the gravity around them, hearing Yoshikawa let out a small wince under her breath. "I could've just broken the door, but now I think it will be more entertaining to see how much you can stand before you realize your mistake…"

"Asher, c-come to your senses already…" Yoshikawa said as she winced under her breath, seeing the girl in question walking towards her and feeling the gravity increase every step she took."

"What do you mean by that? I am in full control of myself. Haha…I've never felt more in control of myself before in my life. All because of Silas's little experiments so far." She said as she stopped at her desk, a wild glint starting to fill both of her eyes. "But you do always say I should let myself lose once in a while, and what better time than now?"

Asher proceeded to reach her hand towards Yoshikawa's face, her face darkening the closer and closer she got to her.

"Tch…Z-Zierdan Asher!" Yoshikawa shouted, seeing her movement falter. "This isn't funny at all and wasn't funny to begin with! Get a grip over yourself this instant, or I will be forced to do something I really don't want to do!"

This seemed to clear the glaze over Asher's eyes, seeing her eyes widen as she disengaged her ability as Yoshikawa immediately felt the heaviness on top of her body vanish.

"What did I just….why did I just…" Asher trialed off as she gripped her head, falling down to her knees from feeling lightheaded out of nowhere. "Tch, why can I hardly remember why I…"

Shortly after, she began to sway forward, feeling her grasp on her consciousness leave as Yoshikawa grabbed onto her collar to prevent her from collapsing too hard against the floor.

"That lasted much longer than last time." Yoshikawa said aloud with a sigh, lightly laying Asher on the ground. "And it's the second time it's happened this month, meaning it wasn't just a random occurrence."

"She actually is starting to redshift unconsciously to the point she doesn't even notice it herself, which is slightly concerning to say the least if it changes her mood and personality as quickly as it just did…."


1 year later…

Asher was panting on her hands and knees on the ground, as sweat was continuously dropping down her face as the sound of the waveform device was stopped.

"Again…" Silas's voice called out through the speakers as Asher struggled to rise to her feet before falling back down to her knees.

"I c-can't Silas," Asher said in a weak voice, taking in heavy breaths as her heart pounded within her chest. "My h-head hurts…I n-need to take a break….I can't even think straight anymore…."

"Zierdan, you know how important these tests are don't you?" Silas asked. "We still need to get a hold on this esper ability of yours to make sure you and everyone else who will be around you is safe. Don't you still want to be seen as less of a threat and know that you are always in full control?"

"Y-Yes b-but-"

Asher instantly winced when she felt a splitting pain go through her head.

"Tch…my head…feels like it's splitting apart….." Asher winced as she clutched her head with the both of hands, crouching until her head had touched the floor. "I d-don't think….I c-can increase my redshift that high again r-right now…..if I d-do, I don't think I-I'll even be able to control it for that long without passing out…"

"Then don't think then, just do it," Silas stated. "We need to get your mind used to faster changes of wavelengths in order for you to be able to go into this state without a single thought, not just on a random whim. The waveform device allows for this easily by scrambling your electrical signals and brain wave patterns slightly enough to allow for you to be able to use both faster and higher wavelengths than you're used to for longer periods of time as the sound is emitted with its wave being drawn directly towards your brain…."

"I know it's unpleasant, but the pain is needed in order for you to attain full control over this aspect of your Gravity Dimensional Shift, as you this is essentially the most powerful, volatile, and versatile part of your esper abilities."

After taking a moment to consider that, Asher was able to pick herself up from the floor by using the wall as Silas nodded his head in approval with the other researchers around him about to take notes.

"Good, now take the two adrenals on the table to give you an extra energy boost so that you won't end up passing out during this trial. If you do, you'll have restart the trials we did today again." Silas said as Asher grew slightly irritated from his tone.

As Asher looked down at the table, her vision wavered a bit and caused her to lost her balance as she braced herself against the table.

'Crap….why is everything around me fluctuating so much?' She thought to herself as the corners of vision began to cloud over.

"You know why…" A voice that had been very active these last few weeks, said in the back of her mind, feeling her hold over her wavelength slipping before she willed it away.

"Shut up…" Asher said under her breath.

As this was happening, Yoshikawa arrived a little earlier than usual, to sit in to watch for once after having documented the girl's vitals for almost a year now, noticing they were shifting further and further from the usual.

"Oh Kikyou," Silas began to say, before she pushed past him, looking over at Asher who had seen better days with how pale her skin seemed.

"Asher," She called out after seeing the girl sway dangerously before keeping herself upright. "Are you able to continue?"

"Y-Yeah….Miss Yoshikawa….just got dizzy there for a second…" Asher replied as she panted.

'It has been almost a year since I've started this,' Asher thought to herself as she looked at the two shot canisters in front of her.

'And it still hasn't gotten any easier. He has been pushing me too much these last couple of weeks with that stupid waveform device that he has been trying to perfect that always seem to make my head feel like it wants to split in two...'

She willed herself to move her hand towards the adrenals in front of her, hesitating slightly to use them.

'I feel like I'm starting to lose it…with this voice constantly bothering me for no reason at all, that I've tried so hard to ignore. That only happens when I'm at the brink of going over my limit with that damned device of his for some reason.'

'I haven't told Miss Yoshikawa about it all, because some part of me can never bring myself to do it….but I know it's a sign that something is wrong.'

'But why can't I ever bring myself to do something about it?'

"Zierdan, you're wasting time." Silas said over the speaker, feeling her anger starting to come to the surface before she released a sigh to calm herself down and reached over to pick up the two adrenals in front of her

'I have to do this…I have to do this…' She repeatedly to herself, simultaneously sending both of the adrenals into her system and feeling her heart rate accelerate faster and faster as her exhaustion was lessened to some degree.

"Beginning next trial in t-minus 5 seconds," someone said over the speaker.

Those five seconds felt like they ended in an instant, hearing a high-pitched sound go out through the area but almost seem to reverberate inside her head that caused the wavelength around her to rise without her control.

Her eyes and the streaks in her hair gradually turned red as she tried to focus on keeping herself in control, feeling everything fading into a nauseating mess form how much everything seemed to move around her.

"Damn…it…" She said under her breath as she clutched the front of her head.

As he watched his stepdaughter in amusement writhing in pain, Silas noticed that she was on route to lasting far longer than they he had thought with how high his device was on, looking over at the scientist next to him.

"Increase it at least 2x the amount we're at and continue to increase it for each 30 seconds that go by…" He said, ignoring the scathing glare Yoshikawa shot in his direction from hearing it.

She rose up from her chair and pulled Silas into the hallway, looking towards him with a hard expression on her face.

"You're pushing this girl too much, Silas. She's on the brink of breaking if you continue to do this." She said dismissively. "Don't you care what happens if she starts to get out of hand because of what you're doing?"

"Not really to be honest," He said with a shrug. "As long as she's breathing, she's still an asset to this experiment, Kikyou. If we don't show more results soon, this whole thing is going to shut down again. I've spent years on this device, and I refuse to get it scrapped from following what's morally right or that Himari's daughter is giving up from that weak resolve of hers. We need to get that old fart's full undivided attention, right? And what better than to get her to the cusp of a Level 6 esper?"

"But Silas, this wasn't even the what we were supposed to be doing in the first place." Yoshikawa stated with slight anger in her voice. "When you called me to be on this project and informed me what it was going to entail, I expected to find out more on the applications of her unique abilities, not the limits of her strong mentality. You do understand that if we keep this up, there's a high chance that girl's personal reality is going to fall into pieces from how you're forcefully going about this..."

"She's already experiencing sudden changes in her personality and moral code from shifting the wavelength around her unconcousiously, what do you think will happen if she loses control of herself out right because of it?" She continued as Silas groaned aloud.

"That is a foolish way thinking," Silas said as he crossed his arms. "And theoretically impossible, Kikyou. And you're the last person to discuss morals to me, with that other project I've heard they may have you do that's about to be in the works from a year or two from now. Where's your pride as a researcher?"

"I can even look past my pride if it means there's too many risks without any rewards in this situation, Silas." She said as she grabbed his collar. "I don't know what you're seeing in this girl that is something beneficial for you to exploit, but this isn't the best way to go about things. If you continue on with what you're doing, there's no telling what's going to happen and I honestly find myself not wanting to be a part of it anymore, with me only still being here for Asher's sake, not yours…."

"At this rate RSPK Syndrome will be the least of our problems. What do you have planned if this situation goes out of hand?" Yoshikawa finished as a smirk came on Silas's face.

"Oh don't worry," Silas said cunningly as he brought Yoshikawa closer to him to look down at her. "When my device is fully operational, the full purpose of this project will be achieved in full…no one will be able to stand in our way if it does."

Before Yoshikawa could question that, they heard Asher scream in distress, causing Yoshikawa to run back inside as Silas casually followed behind her.

"What's going on?" Yoshikawa asked.

"Her readings are starting to go off the charts…" Someone said nervously, pointing at the scanners in front of him that was completely in the danger area, though trying to somewhat stabilize.

"AAAAGHHHHH!" Asher yelled as her the wavelength around her began to accelerate too much for her mind to handle.

"Silas! We need to stop this right now!" Yoshikawa yelled, forcefully pushing someone out of the way to stop things before seeing Silas casually phase his hand into the console.

'Damn it,' Yoshikawa thought to herself. "I forgot about that annoying ability of his…'

"Now Now…Kikyou" Silas said as he shook his finger. "We wouldn't want this console to break accidentally, correct? I think I've mistakenly wrapped my hands around something that may cause the signal to continue from destroying its failsafe. And I don't think Zierdan would like that all too much if something like that would occur."

"Silas, this is serious!" Yoshikawa said as the man look at her unfazed. "You are endangering all of our lives right now!"

After a couple moments, the reading somehow started to steady out as her screams seemed to all but fade.

"Ha….haha….jeez that hurt…" Asher said under her breath.

As Yoshikawa looked over at the girl, she could see her unsteady on her feet as her head was bowed to the floor. What was pretty unsettling to see was due to the fact that the streaks in her hair still hadn't faded into its usual blue tint…

"Asher?" Yoshikawa said hesitantly on the mic. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Yeahhhh, quite amazing in fact, Yoshikawa… " Asher said with her usual tone shifted slightly as she raised her head. "Why wouldn't I be for this great rush in power. I honestly can't help but to enjoy it when happens."

Everyone's but Silas's eye widened, seeing Asher's eyes tinted in a vibrant red, as a menacing smirk crept on her face.

"There's my girl," Silas said as he had a smirk of his own. "Ready for your next test?"

"I sure am, what are you having me destroy again today?" Asher asked with a wild look in her eyes, in anticipation.

'I almost forgot about this…forgot about this addictive feeling….' She thought to herself.

'This great surge in strength from whenever my wavelength decides to spike higher than it usually does due to that device, giving me a whole new meaning to my ability and how I see things each and every time.'

'it's probably the greatest feeling I've ever had, and probably nothing could tell me or show me otherwise….'

'Even if a part of me right now, believes that to not be true in any capacity…'


Present….

2 hours later

When Shokuhou opened her eyes after reconstructing some parts of Asher's memory, she saw the girl in question beginning to slump down in her chair a little too far for her liking and prevented her from falling any further by grasping her arms.

"Hey what's wrong with you?" Shokuhou asked slightly annoyed, before her eyes widened from seeing Asher's current state.

She was panting hard with sweat rolling down her brow as her cheeks were flushed from her body being so unnaturally hot. She couldn't tell if her eyes where just closed or she was unconscious, seeing a notable amount of discomfort within her overall features.

"Not…hing…I'm fi…ne" Asher rasped as she tried to lift herself backup, feeling her arms shaking. "I just…got light…head...ed all of….the sud..den…."

"You're nowhere close to even say that you're fine. I thought I told you to notify me when you needed a break. I don't want to end up breaking something that I've spent basically 2 years fixing, just because of that random stubbornness you seem to have when the mood strikes you!" Shokuhou stated sternly as her eyebrow twitch in irritation. "Tch, since I need a small break myself, you're going to rest or take a nap for at least 30 minutes, and don't you even dare try to tell me otherwise."

"Wow…I don't…think…I've ever….heard concern…..in your voice…..for…me…b-before….Shoku….hou…." Asher said with slight amusement in her voice, missing the small blush that appeared on the girl's face. "I must….look pretty bad…to war…ant such…a th-thing…from you…."

"I'm not concerned in the slightest!" Shokuhou said as she looked away and crossed her arms, with Asher leaning her back against her chair. "If I was, who wouldn't be after seeing someone like you on the brink of actually passing out right in front of them?"

"So…rry about…that…tch…" Asher said as she winced a little under her breath as she leaned her head back to look up towards the ceiling. "I was...most…ly…o-okay…until that last…memory fl-flash….I thought…I could han…dle it….but I guess….it strained…me more…than I thought…it was going to."

"Hmph, right." Shokuhou said with a sigh before looking at Asher with an annoyed expression. "Just speak up next time. There will be consequences if you do something like that again…."

"Okay…..I-I will." Asher said as she closed her eyes.

After sitting in silence for a while, Shokuhou could tell that Asher was still more or less awake, prompting her to take the opportunity to start a conversation over everything she saw.

"Are you up to talking about anything?" She asked, hearing Asher let out a sigh as she cracked her eyes open to look over at her.

"What is there…. to talk about?" Asher said with a shrug. "It was just the…beginning of the experiments. And I gue….ss the beginning of the end….. in a way in terms of my overall sanity."

"You know that shouldn't be a joking matter? Or that you should downplay something like that?" Shokuhou asked. "I just don't understand why you did this in the first place. On such a flimsy idea as controlling your ability when you've always had great control."

"I kn-know….or at least I know…that now…." Asher said as she another released a sigh. "Silas made me….believe otherwise….Along with me seeing people actively…avoiding me because of….how high of a level I was….with my control….on something as fundamental to this….world as gravity. I don't blame people for…feeling that way….I just blame myself for thinking….it to be true…"

"He was a master…manipulator…to say the least….with his words somehow always… in a sense….twisting my perception of myself…without me realizing it for a long time…..Starting when he said I was the reason….for my biological father's death after my ability went out of control one day….Even though he was the one… who actually killed him….and I reacted from witnessing... it from what it sounds like."

"Wait seriously?" Shokuhou asked as Asher nodded her head. "So that means he…"

"Yeah…not only did he kill my father…for the sake of controlling my power for himself….but he also killed my mother…to cement himself as the only one in control…of my life for a time…" Asher said as her face fell slightly. "We may have…never been close when they got together.…but I still valued….having her within my life….She must've found out something…she wasn't supposed to either involving….my father or the true…..objective of the experiments….but whatever happened…ended with her death because...of his pointless goals that ended with him almost…receiving the same fate at the end."

Shokuhou's gaze narrowed at that, knowing full well that was nearly the case and turning her attention back on the matter at hand.

"Speaking of that," She said as she looked at the time. "I think it's time for us to start up again. "And to say this part may be unpleasant is an understatement."

The room went silent as Asher's eyes widened slightly in realization before she shifted her gaze towards the floor.

"You're going to completely... unlock the memories…involving the last part of...the experiment right?" Asher asked without looking up at her. "Can we…just skip that part….for today?"

"You know the answer to that, Asher…."

"But Shokuhou …please for once, listen to me when…. I say I don't want or need to know what happened… that day or those weeks or whatever….I'm fine with…what I already have even….with what I gained today." Asher said as her body grew tense. "Please….I c-cant do this now…or probably ever….I d-don't want them….I don't want to remember any of it."

"You do. Even if you don't believe it yourself, you need to know in order to finally get past it." Shokuhou said sternly. "Are you really going to sit here and tell me that you're okay with not remembering, when you're just allowing yourself to be riddled with guilt and blaming yourself for something you barely know even happened? You may not show it on the outside, but this is starting to harm your mentality enough to be a problem."

"It isn't….it never has…." Asher said as she gripped her head. "It won't….I promise that I'm okay and will be….What's wrong with actually…. feeling remorse for something I know I did? To feel guilty that it…. happened because of me in the first place?…..What's wrong with wanting to repent for something…by not gaining back what I've lost when... people nearly lost their lives just because I was…doubting myself and allowed….a psychopath to toy and mess...with my head enough to cause it to...basically break into pieces?"

Before Shokuhou could say anything, her eyes widened when she saw droplets falling down to the floor as the girl in front of her was trembling in her chair.

"I don't…want to remember…..I don't want to experience those feeling again or know what I did…." Asher continued shakily. "Tch….I know enough from the bits that…. have slipped through the cracks. I don't need to know anything…. other than that, so please don't do this….please allow me to be in the dark of it all…"

Great…just great, Shokuhou thought to herself as the expression on her face fell slightly.

The one thing I didn't want to see today or ever…and now she's probably too worked up for me to enter that head of hers safely without straining the both of us to some extent….

What to do…what to do…

After a while, she thought of an idea. One that she had saved as a backup, but at the same time didn't feel right to use on the girl in front of her.

She'll hopefully not notice I'm doing this or hold it against me that I did. She thought to herself as she raised one of her remotes from her purse.

And I'll hopefully be able to get my impression of her correct….


I don't want to do this….I don't want to do this… Asher thought to herself, feeling her heart speeding up more and more as the panic of what was about to happen was settling in.

Why is she forcing me to do this? Why doesn't she believe me when I say that I'm completely fine and just want all of it to be left alone?

She was in such a panic, she didn't notice the tears that were streaming down her face, almost blocking out everything as her heartbeat began to pulsate in her ears.

At one point she felt two hands land on her shoulders, causing her to jump in slight surprise from receiving close contact from the girl in front of her.

"Shoku….hou I don't think….I can do this right now…." Asher said shakily before she heard whoever was there laughing a little under their breath.

"You know you're supposed to have more confidence than that in yourself, right Z?" The voice in front of her said, causing Asher's eyes to widen in surprise as she raised her head to look at who was in front of her.

"Mikoto?" She said in disbelief. "What are you doing here? Where did Shoku-"

Before she could finish her comment, she felt both of her arms wrap around her neck into a warm embrace.

"It's okay, you don't have to worry about that right now. She went out for a moment, but what you need to focus on is relaxing. You're way too tense to do anything right now. You know that she's just trying to help you right?" Misaka said in her ear, as Asher slowly returned the embrace.

"I do….b-but Mikoto….I don't want to remember…" She stated as she leaned her head further into her shoulder. "Some part even in you probably… blames me for it to some degree….blames me for what I did…blames me for endangering everyone in this city….along with nearly ending…your life because of my stupid…mistakes even though you were... just trying to help me….I don't want to go through something like that again…to see you suffer through something because of me."

Silence went through the room for a couple moments, before Asher felt herself actively beginning to relax when she felt pressure on the back of her neck.

"I know you don't want to do this, but it has to be done, Zierdan." Misaka said as Asher's eyes began to close. "I know she would never….no I don't blame you for what you did. It wasn't your fault, but in order to move pass this you need to allow yourself to remember, and that's all Shokuhou wants to do for you. So please, don't fight it to make it easier for the both of us."

Asher's eyes were in slits as she felt herself on the road towards sleep, hanging on to every word Misaka had said to her.

"Okay….I wont…" Asher said softly as her arms started to go slack, feeling her mind darkening further and further. "I'll allow it….I won't try….to fight it…"

"Alright, " Misaka said as she kept her falling any further from her seat. "Just go to sleep for right now. Everything will hopefully be done by the time you wake up."

Asher remained quiet at that, feeling her mind fade as sleep immediately took hold of her and trusting the girl in front of her fully ,even though part of her knew something was amiss about her.

But decided to ignore it, knowing for some reason that it was the best thing for her to do…


Somewhere in the 7th District…

"Ughhhhh…" Misaka groaned softly under her breath. "What have I gotten myself into?"

She was currently sitting in the restroom with her hands holding onto a skirt under an air dryer. The lady that Kamijou had basically given over to her to help, apparently had gotten it messed up due to a kid dropping their ice cream on top of it.

Leading to another unfortunate public stripping that she promptly stopped before it went any further…

"Sorry for inconveniencing you so much." The woman said as she sat in the stall, hearing the air dryer shut off as Misaka walked over towards where she was.

"Well, I've come this far…" Misaka said with a sigh as she laid her skirt over the top of the stall wall. "Here you go. "

After hearing a thanks, Misaka sat her back against the wall behind her and looked down at her phone to be welcomed to no messages at all after the 7th time checking.

She should've been done by now…. Misaka thought to herself as her gaze narrowed.

She usually texts me when she's done so we can walk back to the dorm together, but it's been almost an hour and a half since her appointment started and still not a single word from her at all.

I guess she could've gone back to the dorms since she knew I was helping this woman out, but it isn't like Zierdan to not at least text or call me to tell me that.

"Oh by the way, I'm sorry for what I did to your friend earlier. I don't think I've ever seen a reaction quite like the one I saw from her." The woman stated in the stall, causing Misaka to look over towards it in confusion.

"Wait, ohhh. You're talking about Zierdan aren't you?" Misaka said as she laughed a little under her breath. "I should be telling you sorry for that. She was being a little over dramatic even if what you did was….a bit shocking to say the least."

"I guess so." The woman said with slight amusement in her voice. "Oh and also, thank that young man from earlier for me, would you?"

"Young man?" Misaka asked in confusion.

"I assumed he was one of your friends. He could tell that I was in trouble and tried to grant me some help." The woman replied.

"Ohhhh," Misaka said in realization as she crossed her arms. "He's always seems to be butting into things. I think all he wants to do is play the hero: barging into the middle of things, babbling random stuff, and then just disappearing out of nowhere. It's annoying and I don't know how to describe something like that since it always rubs me the wrong way. Trying to act strong while he's naïve, almost like he's stepped out of-"

"He seems to be a fun guy after that statement you created about him." The woman stated before Misaka could finish what she was saying. "Are you, what you could say…"

"In love with this kid?"

Silence fell into the bathroom as Misaka's mind had to understand what she was asking, instantly feeling her face heat up in embarrassment.

"Wait what!? That's crazy!?" Misaka said in disbelief, hearing the woman laughing a little under her breath.

"I think you understand what I'm trying to say here. That thing where you try to pretend you hate someone, but you're actually nuts about them." The woman continued, not hearing the growls of irritation from the girl outside of her door. "What do they call it again?...Oh I remember now…"

"Is it playing hard to get?"

"Grrrrrrrgh!" Misaka said under her breath as electricity sparked from her hair. "THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!"

As soon as Misaka released her electricity, she sweatdropped as she noticed the power go out in the restroom and probably the entire building in general.

Oh no, She thought to herself as she saw the woman come out of the stall in confusion, hearing the fire alarm going off and seeing the power shut off completely.

"What happened out here?" The woman said before Misaka went to her back and started to push her to leave.

"Oh nothing, but there's no time to ask questions so get going!" Misaka rushed out as her face continued to heat up in embarrassment.

I may have a bad feeling relating to whatever she's doing, Misaka thought to herself as she pushed the woman out through the doors.

But thankfully she was wasn't here right now. I don't think Zierdan would ever stop asking questions or teasing me about that idiot if she saw my reaction to what this woman said about him and me….

A statement that would almost be on par with something she would've said to me entirely without any type of holding back whatsoever…


Word Count of Chapter: 9462 |Page Count: 19 pages |Reviews: 29 | Followers: 33 |Favorites: 28


Review Replies

Blankow: Thanks! I try with this and my other story to at least update around the same times and enough, so you guys aren't waiting for me to update for too long after something like a cliffhanger:)

Lol, "Asher exe. stopped working" tends to happen if she can't use her logic to explain something that she isn't used to or has never experienced before, leading to her overthinking it to oblivion and receiving a shock here and there from Misaka because of it. I'm glad you're liking their interactions, as that was probably my favorite thing to write in that chapter, with Saten being a close second (who's sadly not here to bring any comedy within this chapter).

Asher's level 6 shift was going to be in this chapter today, but this part was starting to run longer than I anticipated, pushing it back into a part 2 and hopefully *crosses fingers* the last part of her mini background arc for right now.

To this day (2 years after the events of the end of the project) Silas is still currently imprisoned from his role in it. Whether he will be freed, I guess will remain to be seen, but I can say that due to his second failure leading an experiment as big as this one, he isn't seen very highly with anyone who would be inclined to free him.

It's true that Z would make things a little easier with Kuroko, especially if she pushes her enough to use her energy to do so. And it is true that Z will play some role with the magic side but not at such a major capacity in comparison to the science side. Touma could potentially have more contact with the Railgun Gang due to her being a lot less combative than Misaka is with him, but it is also due to the Electromaster herself being present that may stop that from happening on most occasions.

Yeah, Accelerator would be one of the few people to do such a thing, probably to an even greater extent than Misaka can, due to her logic most likely being turned against her each and every time she tried to block something like that from happening because of him, lol.


Addie101:

(TO THOSE READING THIS AND DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED TO ANY CAPACITY ON THE TIMING OF Z'S ROLE IN THE SISTERS' ARC…..)

(LOOK AWAY!)

(LOOK AWAY NOW!)

(PROTECT YOUR EYES AND SHIELD YOUR SCREENS!)

(I REPEAT: LOOK AWAY NOW!)

(YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!)

LOL, but seriously small spoiler ahead:

Alright, as sad as it is, I actually have already written a probable way for how Z finds out that will end up being around the time Misaka finds out, but technically a little earlier.

And with the depression known as the Sisters' arc, probably my favorite arc though Daihasei is fairly high up there as well, I've written something just as depressing on how Z finds out.

Enough so that I may change it to some degree, but for right now she'll know around the same time Misaka knows.

I can't wait to get to this arc as well:`)


Thanks for your reviews!

-PurpleClover99