At last! I'm back! I decided to quickly write the Thanksgiving chapter quickly, since I got the idea during writing the Power of Two. Anyway, as promised, here's World Purge Part 1! The World Purge Arc will also serve as an opportunity to diverge from the canon in various ways.

Disclaimer: I do not own Infinite Stratos.

On a rare day off, everyone is allowed to unwind and relax.

Ichika is sent to Kuramochi Machinery Development, the place the Byakushiki was made!

Chifuyu decides to send Thomas on a day-trip to the mainland.

Elias is sent back to England for data-collection for the Knight Gunner at the Dansforth Corporation.

The remaining Representative Candidates all do their best to find some way of spending the day without the boys, despite how much of their lives are centered around them.

But their day off is quickly brought to an end.

Without warning, a hacker from the outside suddenly gets through the IS Academy's protection, and quickly upends the computer network in chaos! The girls quickly perform a cyber-dive into the Academy's computers to fix the situation.

However, a program known as World Purge attacks them with illusions of their hearts' desires.

It also appears that the hacker isn't the only one targeting the school...

With little time and danger around every corner, can the Representative Candidates remedy the problem?

Tabane typed away on the keyboards in her private lab.

Suddenly, a location on a map she had on the screen flashed and blinked.

"Ah! I see," Tabane muttered jovially, "So that's where it is~!"

She'd been doing multiple projects at once, not only trying to compile and process the data she'd collected from Kyoto and the Tag-Team Tournament, but on the IS Academy building itself.

"Miss Tabane." Called Chloe.

"Yah?" Tabane responded.

"I baked some bread for you."

"Oh, yay! Yum-yum!" Tabane cheered as she quickly began to exit her lab.

"Ta-dah!" Tabane cheered, waving her arms in the air as she caught sight of Chloe.

A single whiff of the air had given Tabane all that she needed.

"Oh my!" She cheered, "That smells scrum-diddly-umptious!"

Chloe nodded.

"Oh, by the way Chloe," Said Tabane, "I was wondering if you could go run an errand for me!"

"Of course Ma'am," Said Chloe, "Anything you need."

"Boo!" Pouted Tabane, "You don't have to be so formal n' stiff! Go ahead, you can call me Mama!"

"Forgive me..." Apologized Chloe.

"So about that errand..." Said Tabane, "I need you to go deliver a package for me...Pretty please~?"

"Of course, Mama."

"Yay! You even called me Mama!"

Tabane proceeded to devour the baked goods Chloe had made for her.

At the IS Academy...

Lingyin stared into space, bored beyond belief.

Charlotte calmly sipped a warm cup of tea, jovial as ever.

They sat in the cafeteria, as they had the day off.

"This is so boring," Whined Lingyin, "And I'm so boooored."

Charlotte chuckled.

"It's because the boys aren't here, isn't it?"

"Huh?!" Lingyin denied, "No! No it's not! Why should I care if they aren't here, especially Ichika?"

Charlotte laughed.

"If you say so."

Cecelia sat at the table, she looked like death.

No-one had ever seen her so miserable before.

"What's with her?" Said Lingyin.

"As much as she protested against it," Explained Charlotte, "Elias landed in England last night to record data for the Knight Gunner, I heard that he was having the Dansforth Corporation give it an overhaul. But...Cecelia didn't want him to leave, and you can guess the rest, no? Miss Orimura saw him off yesterday after classes."

"Hmph!" Snickered Lingyin, "She so obviously in love with Elias! She's such a puppy-dog around him, begging for attention!"

"Are you talking about Cecelia," Quipped Charlotte, "Or yourself?"

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"Just saying~!"

"...Not like you're any better..."

Charlotte laughed.

"Where's Thomas? He'd usually be doing something cool in principle but stupid in practice by now."

"Him? Miss Orimura sent him to the mainland today. I wasn't able to figure out what he was going to do..."

"Ichika must have gone with him."

"Miss Orimura sent Ichika to somewhere to get the Byakushiki worked on. She didn't say where he was going..."

"Strange."

"Hm?"

"Miss Orimura seems to set on kicking the guys out today..."

"Oui...It's suspicious..."

"I mean, all our Units are in lockup today so they can get tuned up and inspected...So there's not really much we can do anyway..." Lingyin's conspiracy theory turned into a transition back to boredom.

"I can see why you're bored..." Charlotte yawned.

"Ichika better get back soon..." Muttered Lingyin.

Lingyin began to stare out the window, drifting off into blissful daydreaming. She began to dream of Ichika running into her embrace as he returned from a painfully long trip, that the only thing that got him through it was the thought of Lingyin.

Lingyin then realized Charlotte had a look that she was about to tease Lingyin.

"Wh-What?!" Lingyin snapped, "I'm not lonely! Why would you ever think that?!"

"I didn't say anything~!" Charlotte chuckled.

Without warning, the lights in the cafeteria shut off in the blink of an eye, causing several of the girls inside to scream and yelp in surprise. Charlotte, Lingyin, and Cecelia quickly jumped out of their seats, ready to jump into action. Just as suddenly as the lights, the shutters for all the windows suddenly snapped shut, drowning the inside of the IS Academy buildings with darkness.

"A blackout?" Said Lingyin.

"No," Said Charlotte, "The emergency power would've kicked in. We're in trouble."

Suddenly, an Audio Only holo-tab popped up by the trio's ears.

"All of the students with Personal Units," Chifuyu's voice cackled over the comm, "Gather at the Underground Special Block immediately. Directions are being sent now, this is not a drill."

The girls quickly broke for their destination.

The boys were out, meaning whatever was going on had to have been planned.

But by who?

"Hm..." Ichika said, looking at the map.

Chifuyu sent him to Kuramochi Machinery Development, for reasons she didn't say.

Currently, he was standing at the front of the Research Center.

"Guess this is the place."

Ichika walked in, throwing any caution to the wind.

Ichika opened the door to the facility...

...To find it was unlocked, like it was waiting for him.

"H-Hello?" He called.

The lights were off, and all manner of machinery had been left about.

Ichika walked in, exercising caution.

Thomas would've looked for the lights, Elias would've been too nervous to enter until he knew there were people he could trust. Ichika just walked in, not knowing any better than to do so.

"Excuse me! I'm Ichika Orimura, from the IS Academy? I was sent here to get...The..."

Ichika trailed off, as he'd found no signs of anyone.

Suddenly, the silhouette of a woman appeared on the wall next to Ichika.

Ichika began to panic.

How would any of his friends react to the situation?

Blow everything up? Wave a sharp object? Do nothing? Curl into a ball and cry on the floor?

Ichika whipped around...

...Only to find a very oddly-dressed woman standing on a bench behind him.

she had two pigtails, a basic IS Pilot Uniform, a lab coat, a pair of fluffy bunny slippers, and goggles over her eyes.

One would think she either had frustrations she couldn't get out, or she just woke up.

She suddenly jumped from the bench, and vanished.

Ichika began to panic a lot more.

"Hey pretty boy~!" The woman cooed, "Wanna go in my room and we can have some fun~? Me likey~!"

Suddenly, the woman appeared right behind Ichika...

...And groped his butt, her fingers dangerously pressing against certain areas.

Ichika screamed in surprise, whipping around and collaring the woman as he threw her back.

The woman rolled and landed on her feet, laughing like a child.

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding!" She assured, "Mostly kidding, anyway. You're Orimura?"

"Y-Yes Ma'am..."

"Nice to meet ya! I'm Kagaribi Hikaruno." Said the woman as she pulled the goggles off her eyes, "I'm the head of Kuramochi's Second Research and Development Lab."

"Wait-wait-wait," Said Ichika, "YOU?!"

"That's me! Now, c'mon," Said Kagaribi, "Let's have a look at your Unit."

Ichika put the Byakushiki into Inactive Mode, and let Kagaribi scan and analyze the Byakushiki.

"My, my," She said, looking at the scanner monitor, "Just what the crap were you up to?"

"What d'you mean?" Inquired Ichika.

"I mean, look at this! You somehow managed to gain access to a whole mess of stuff that this Unit shouldn't and doesn't have-PDWs, Energy Claw, a friggin' Beam Cannon for God's sake-How? Wait..."

Kagaribi then looked at the Byakushiki with her own two eyes.

"...You put the thing in SECOND SHIFT?!"

"I...I'm not sure..."

"I mean, don't be so sad," Admitted Kagaribi, "This actually INCREDIBLE! With all this data, we can actually finish the Byaku! You're a prince!"

"'Finish?'"

"You probably don't know this," Explained Kagaribi, "But back when we were working on the Byakushiki for you, we actually had to rush and ended up under-developing the Byakushiki to meet the deadline. Which explains its piss-poor functionality, it's high power-consumption rate, and its lack of equipment. At best, it was little more than a tech-demo than a real product."

"Oh..."

"But now that we have the chance," Continued Kagaribi, "We can use the data you've collected to max-out the Byakushiki."

"Will that take long?"

"Absolutely."

"Aw..."

"Hey! Be thankful at least, I bet you sucked when fighting with this thing before! Nut we can fix up the power-issue and make it better in every way!"

"Yeah..."

"Chin up! We actually finished drawing up the Byakushiki's finished production, so we can just do that right here, right now! We might have a problem though..."

"What's wrong?"

"It looks like you irreversibly augmented the left arm with the Energy Claw and Charged-Particle Gun. If we want to actually begin working on the Byakushiki and have the upgrades work properly..."

"Just say it..."

"...We'll...Have to reset the Byakushiki back to it's Default Shift."

"What?!"

"But fret not!" Declared Kagaribi, "Before we reset it, I'll backup and download as much data as I can to preserve it, so we'll be able to replace the data we need when we're done."

"Oh, thank goodness...That'll make things take longer though, won't it?"

"Yeah..."

"Oh come on!"

"Why don't you just go fishing or something?" Said Kagaribi, pulling out a bamboo fishing pole, "You can dig up some bait at the nearby river, and fish there! I mean, if you don't wanna, I think I have some anime and video games lying around..."

Ichika sighed.

"It's fine..." He groaned as he left for the river.

In England...

"Mother? Father?" Called Elias, "I'm home!"

"So you are." Answered Elias's father, Oliver Dansforth.

"Welcome back." Monotonously replied Elias's mother, Rose Dansforth.

Both spoke as though they either hardly cared, or were distracted.

Elias wasn't entirely hurt, as such had been the case for quite some time.

Elias's parents had been so focused upon attempting to save the Dansforth Corporation from going under, that they really didn't have the ability to be so parental and attentive towards Elias.

So instead, they hired a personal maid for the boy to give him company.

"Welcome back, Master Elias." Greeted Elias's maid, Maria Swan.

"Thank you, Maria." Elias responded.

"It's been quite some time, I always wait to hear word of your exploits eagerly, and patiently await your return."

Elias felt a warm smile curl on his face.

Maria was always so tender and loving towards Elias, and she was always there when Elias needed her.

When the girls of Elias's old school had stolen his innocence from him, she stayed by his side and refused to leave. She was with him for most of the time, only letting Elias on his own when he needed to bathe or use the restroom. During the time she spent with him in that dark period of Elias's life, she continuously showered Elias with cuddles and hugs if he was ever on the verge of total breakdown.

She'd been so loving to Elias, he felt she was the older sister he never had.

"I've gotten word that you've reunited with Lady Cecelia Alcott." Said Maria.

"I have." Admitted Elias, "I...Just..."

"What's wrong, Master Elias?"

"Maria...How do I talk to girls?"

"It's as simple as talking to boys, Master."

"Not that way."

"Oh? Oh! I see...You still fancy Lady Alcott?"

"I know you're disappointed in my decision, but...I...I won't back down from it!"

"I never said such, Master Elias. On another note, your parents request that you hurry and deliver the Knight Gunner Unit, they're growing restless in the face of such discoveries..."

"Right away, Maria."

Maria guided Elias to the IS Production Facility for the Dansforth Corporation.

"I'm glad your finally home..." Maria muttered to herself.

Elias dropped off the Knight Gunner to the IS Technicians, and began to wonder what he should do to pass the time. His parents were obviously way too busy to spend time with him, and Elias didn't want to force himself upon them and waste their valuable time.

Currently, the Dansforth corporation was devoting its time to creating a Mass-Production Model for the BT-Weapons System to serve as England's trademark, and they were in a very heated competition with other IS-Manufacturers to secure their Unit, the BT-Production Model known as the Legionary, would be recognized.

Elias didn't want to disturb their work, so trying to catch up with his parents was simply right out of the gate.

However, spending time with Maria would be nice.

But what would they be able to do together?

Maria answered such a question for Elias before he could even ask.

"Master Elias," She said, "May I inquire what you've been up to since you left for the IS Academy?"

"Of course!"

Elias then began to tell Maria everything he could remember from the time he spent in the IS Academy. From Thomas whipping him into shape, all the good fun he had with Ichika and Thomas, his efforts in the Tag-Team Tournament, even to his actions in the Kyoto Incident.

Maria couldn't help but smile.

The IS Academy had done the one thing she failed to do: Raise Elias's spirits. In his old boarding school, every time Maria got the chance to visit, Elias always looked like a walking corpse. He always looked tired, his eyes barely open as they had a lackluster dull. He held his head low, walking with no confidence in the slightest.

It broke her heart to see someone she cared for seem as though he wanted his own life to end.

But, when Elias had returned one holiday, he'd sneaked into the IS Development Labs. It was the night the Dansforth Corporation discovered Elias was a valuable asset, as they conducted tests and found he was indeed very IS-compatible.

Maria that Elias's face still hadn't changed.

But now? After so many months of being separated from him? He never seemed so joyous before. He was lively, his eyes were open, and twinkled with a childish innocence. If Maria didn't know any better, she would've thought he was always this way.

But this startling change only happened when Elias was away from her.

Could she have played a role in Elias's suffering?

Maria's mood soured.

As much as she was enjoying Elias's sudden livelihood, the thought that she had a hand in his prior misery began to fester. Such a deed would be unforgivable in her eyes, and the concept that she'd done so mortified her.

As Elias narrated, she quickly did her best to suppress such feelings, as she didn't want to interrupt Elias's tales with her own meager problems.

If she stayed near Elias...

...Would she only end up hurting him again?

Thomas played in the arcade of a strip mall.

He was utterly bored.

It wasn't that the game he was playing wasn't engaging enough for him, it was that going to an arcade was more of a group activity, and being all alone made it far less enjoyable since there was no one to share such fun with.

Another reason people didn't take too much interest in him was that they had no idea who he was. Many of the IS Academy's events, matches and the like, were recorded and usually televised live. However, Thomas didn't participate enough for people to recognize him.

He was grateful, as the last thing he wanted was to get mauled by fans in public.

However, he was still bored.

Thomas did what he could, but eventually lost interest in playing games.

"I should check on the house..." He thought.

Thomas left the arcade, and began to head for home.

Alex was most likely still working at the IS Academy island, as today wouldn't count as a day off for him, so there was no-one waiting for him when he got home.

It had been quite some time since Thomas last returned to an empty home.

But little did he know it wasn't as empty as he thought.

At the Orimura Residence...

Yin sat at the dining table, sipping a cup of barley tea Ichika had left inside.

She wore a pair of pajamas, as she didn't have much other than her combat gear.

It had been so long since she'd been in such a scene. For years, she squatted in whatever location she had. It had been a long, long time since she'd been in such a peaceful, suburban environment, acting as though she had nothing better to do.

Alex had given her a key to the house, allowing her to come and go as she pleased. She made it a policy to stay as far away from the property as she could whenever the boys were present.

It was a force of habit she just couldn't break.

When she gave birth to Thomas, she left both Alex and Thomas behind for the sake of a mission she just couldn't complete. She didn't understand it at the time, but her son was forced to grow up without her. By the time she stopped to think of them, it was already far too late to just waltz back in like nothing ever happened.

She'd decided the only thing she could do was cut herself out of Thomas's life completely, so he could move on and grow.

As much has she wanted to, she dared not go near her son, knowing that such an encounter would only make Thomas curse his mother rather than greet her.

She didn't want to hurt Thomas by pretending she was a worthy mother for him.

Even though she was thinking of how horrible she was, she smiled.

Chifuyu, being her friend, had a hand in raising Thomas from his youth as a sister. Chifuyu secretly documented as much of Thomas as she could, in order to send such to Yin so she could watch her son grow up.

Despite how much she watched her son live his life, it only made her heart heavy when she finished.

She never tended to him when he was hurt or frightened, she only talked to him for a single sentence, she only held him in her arms once, she was only ever his mother for less than a full day.

Chifuyu, Ichika, and Alex were the only family Thomas had. If she was to return to being Ellen Scott, she just wouldn't fit anywhere in his life. As much as she wanted to take responsibility and finally meet her son...

...Would she really be worthy doing so?

The question weighed heavily in her mind.

If she suddenly forced herself into their lives, would she be able to find a place to stay? Chifuyu and Alex would accept her, but would Ichika and Thomas? The two were near-inseparable, so could she really be able to bond with Ichika as well as Thomas?

Suddenly, the sound of the front door being unlocked ran through her ears.

Yin went stiff.

Alex and Chifuyu would always call ahead before they paid a visit.

Someone was about to come in and she was out in the open.

Yin quickly ran and stashed the barley tea in the fridge, shut the door, and ran for her and Alex's room before whoever was coming in opened the door.

Thomas entered.

"I'm home..." He grunted monotonously, taking off his shoes.

Yin began to panic.

She was now trapped in the same building as her son.

Thomas sighed as he ventured further into the house.

He was far too dejected to realize someone was in the house with him.

From behind the corner of the hall, Yin could spy that Thomas looked quite dead inside. He had yet to smoke her out, meaning he might not know she was there just yet. However, Yin wasn't about to relax her guard. She knew quite well how perceptive Thomas was.

She had to find some way to escape the house before Thomas figured out she was here.

She knew she had to flee, not because she couldn't stand to see her son, but because Thomas had never saw her. She felt that if they made eye contact, Thomas would treat her as a stranger, and rightfully so.

She deserved to live in fear of her own child.

At the IS Academy...

"What is this place?" Houki asked aloud.

She the rest of the Representative Candidates were standing in a strange bunker they'd never seen before. They'd all gotten the call to report here, and they nearly got lost trying to reach it. The room looked like a computer-to-human interface.

"This was here all along?" Muttered Cecelia.

"Allow me to explain the situation." Chifuyu's voice spoke through an intercom.

The girls turned around to find Chifuyu, Maya, and Kanzashi sitting in an overhead observation room.

"As of right now," Explained Chifuyu, "All of the IS Academy's computer systems are down. It's fair to say we've been hacked."

"Thankfully," Added Maya, "None of the students have been harmed in any way by this. Just as a precaution, they've been ordered to remain in the dorms under the watch of the security staff until we give the all-clear. However, we have to regain control of the system fast, because that just might change."

The Representative Candidates all stared as the took in this information.

"In order to fix the system," Explained Maya, "You'll have to perform a cyber-dive into a virtual reality-version of the system through the IS Core Network."

"Y-You mean we're going into the system?" Inquired Cecelia, quite confused by the meaning of Maya's explanation.

"You'll be entering a VR of it, yes." Affirmed Maya.

"Zhat means," Laura muttered, "Ve'll have to bypass our IS Units' nervous system protection and enter zhe network vith virtual avatars?"

"That's theoretically possible," Concurred Charlotte, "But that's still just theory..."

"Well," Said Nana, "Think of it this way: We'll get to experience Tron!"

Everyone simply stared at Nana, visibly confused.

"'Course I'm the only one here who actually watched it..." Nana grumbled.

Chifuyu clapped her hands.

"All personnel, stand by! The mission will commence now!"

The girls quickly began to change into their pilots uniforms.

"Sarashiki," Said Chifuyu, "You'll be providing external tech support."

"Yes, Ma'am." Acknowledged the girl.

The Representative Candidates all sat down in the System Interface, and prepared to venture into the IS Academy's computer network.

"We're connecting you to the school's VR-Interface now," Said Kanzashi, "You need to locate the Core and reboot it."

The girls all did their best to ease their nerves.

They'd faced many battles...

...But this was uncharted territory.

The girls all closed their eyes as their minds left their bodies.

"Now then," Said Chifuyu, "I have a separate task for you."

Tatenashi smiled as she closed her fan.

"Of course, Ma'am. Your orders?"

"There's an uncomfortably high chance enemy forces are on their way here. If so, they'd most likely be behind hacking the computer network, and it's quite obvious what they'd be after if they come here."

"You want me to intercept them?"

"Give them a warm welcome. With the Representative Candidates all currently on this mission, and the boys away, you'll have to do this yourself."

"Understood."

In the Cyber-World...

The girls all woke up, staring in absolute awe as they observed their surroundings.

They were no longer in the bunker.

All around them was an infinite cyberspace, twinkling with all manner of programs, applications, files, and so much more.

It was like they were standing in space, but at the same time, not.

"This isn't the Grid..." Said Nana.

"The what?" Inquired Cecelia.

"Ugh...Never mind." Groaned Nana.

"So...What now?" Said Houki, being the most technologically dwarfed of the bunch.

Several door-like interfaces popped up in front of the girls, one for each of them.

It almost seemed that the computer network was alive, tempting and daring them to venture into cyberspace.

"Do we go in?" Inquired Lingyin.

Kanzashi opened a comm channel to the girls.

"Most likely." She said, "The signal's unstable up ahead, once you go in, you'll be on your own."

"Roger!" Acknowledged the girls.

The girls each opened up an interface, and entered.

What they would find on the other side...

...None of them would've expected.

The interfaces locked.

"World Purge, commence."

Lingyin jolted.

What just happened?

Was she asleep?

Currently, she was...

...Sitting in her old middle school classroom?

A quick look made her realize she was also wearing her middle school uniform as well.

"What?"

All around her, the classroom was exactly as she remembered. The chalkboard, the desks, the bookshelves, all of it was arranged just in every which way she could remember.

It was as though she hadn't even left.

"What's going on...?"

Lingyin checked her wrist.

Her Shenlong bracelet was gone.

"This has to be some kind of trap..." She muttered.

Suddenly, the classroom door slid open.

Lingyin looked...

...Only to find Ichika walking casually into the classroom.

"'Sup, Ling?" Greeted Ichika.

"I-Ichika?! What're you doing here?!" Cried Lingyin, "You're supposed to be getting your IS looked at!"

"My what? What're you talking about?"

"What do you want, anyway?" Lingyin recomposed.

"Can I come over to your place today?"

"Eh?!"

"Well," Ichika pouted, "Since we're dating and all..."

Lingyin's heart stopped.

Was this real?

She and Ichika were...

...Really in a relationship?!

It seemed too good to be true. Lingyin had to be dreaming!

And yet...

...It was all so real.

"It's okay, right Lingyin?" Ichika whispered into her ear.

The girl blushed.

If she was dreaming, perhaps she could afford to indulge herself a little...

"Yeah..." Lingyin conceded.

"I understand." Acknowledged Cecelia, "If that's the case, it would be a necessity to have the groups contact each other more frequently would it not?"

"I am terribly sorry." Apologized the caller, "I shall report to you again on a later date. Farewell."

The conference call ended as the camera screens shut off.

Cecelia leaned back in her chair with a heavy sigh of exhaustion.

Managing politics for the common of England was a wearying task, even more so on a young lady like Cecelia Alcott. She was the CEO of the Alcott Co

But, work was work.

"Now that I've gotten through work," Cecelia thought, "I suppose it's time for play."

Cecelia rang the bell.

She watched the door to her office eagerly, waiting for her most precious butler to burst through the doors and sooth her exhausted self. The young maiden felt that this very moment, the act of waiting her butler, was simply the brightest highlight of her monotonous days.

With not a moment to spare, Elias burst into the room, and bowed before her.

"You called, Milady?"

Elias Dansforth was her most beloved butler, employed by her direct order when he'd been found impoverished on the streets. When she'd first laid eyes upon him, he was the poorest condition on could be. He wore dismal clothing that did nothing to shelter him from the cold, he was on the verge of starvation, his eyes looked dead. It was also discovered that he was about to take his own life to end his misery.

Cecelia had stopped him, and gave him a new life.

Ever since then, he'd become her most loyal companion, and was always there when she needed or wanted him. If Cecelia could work past her anxiety around him, she'd have him betrothed to her on the spot.

However...

"You know what I said about when we're alone together, yes?" Cecelia pouted.

Elias chuckled.

"A thousand apologies, Cecelia."

Cecelia had employed Elias almost an eternity ago, upon discovering his family had served her for generations. He'd been discarded by them for what reason she cared not, only to have him wander back in and return to his rightful place at her side.

"For...Generations?" Cecelia realized.

That wasn't right, was it? She couldn't recall anything up until...Now.

No...

That couldn't be...

Wait. It was! Of course it was!

"I'm quite sorry," Cecelia admitted, "I've had another one of those bizarre dreams...Like one from another world..."

"You've told me so," Said Elias, "Of a world where we attend a school together, something or other. With tales about lads like Ichika Orimura or Thomas Scott. And of ladies like Charlotte Dunois or Houki Shinonono."

"Yes..."

"Ssh..." Whispered Elias, as he got behind Cecelia, his lips blowing softly into her ear.

"Eh?!"

"It's all imagination, my dear." He went on, "The only thing that should matter is what's around you, not some far-flung fantasy."

"You're...So right..."

Charlotte hummed a tune nonchalantly as she scrubbed the windows clean.

She stood on a step ladder, balancing as well as she could as she minded her task carefully. Her short skirt flapped around as she moved to reach as far across the window as she could.

There was nothing better in life than these sorts of moments for the lovely maid Charlotte Dunois.

Ichika, wearing a bathrobe, slicked silently up behind her.

His lips curled with a naughty grin.

Charlotte had finally finished scrubbing the window clean. She sighed, and wiped her brow with her arm.

From behind, Ichika had taken a mop, and used the tip of the handle to lift Charlotte's skirt.

"Sacre bleu!" Cried Charlotte in surprise.

The sight he'd seen was one of places no-one dared look in public.

"Aha!" Declared Ichika, in a French accent, "I've caught you wearing naughty underwear yet again, Charlotte."

"B-But...You ordered me to wear it, Monsieur!"

"Don't be so formal!" Chuckled Ichika, "In a week's time, you'll call me husband, not master!"

"W-Well," Reasoned Charlotte, "Right now, I'm still your maid..."

"Hm..." Ichika questioned, "Are your Sieur's orders absolute?"

"Oui bien sûr-?!"

Suddenly, in a single move, Ichika had spun around and picked up Charlotte like a bride right off the step ladder!

"Oh? What have we here? Ichika teased, "Why, it seems I've caught a lovely bride!"

Charlotte blushed as Ichika showered her with love and affections.

For her, it was pure bliss.

Simply too good to be true.

Laura waited patiently at the dining table, reading a book to pass the time.

"Laura!" Ichika called in a German accent, "It's ready!"

"Here you go," Ichika said, handing her a dish omelette rice, "Mit liebe gemacht."

Laura looked upon the dish with a twinkle in her eyes.

"I apologize for making you do zhis all zhe time." Laura said, "Aber, you are zhe perfekt wife."

"Vell," Ichika said, "You have zhe day off, ja? In zhat case, I'd like to cash in zhis."

Ichika pulled out a slip of paper.

Laura froze.

She knew full well what that paper was, and how much power it gave Ichika over her.

It was an IOU she'd given Ichika, which was good for only a single favor.

But that still meant Ichika could ask for anything from her, anything at all.

"Bu-But...Zhat ish-!"

Ichika's innocent smile turned sinister as Laura could see a glint in his eye.

She knew full well what he was going to do...

...But she was powerless to stop him.

Not that she wouldn't object to it...

Laura's hand shook violently as she tried to drink a small mug of coffee.

"V-Vhat are you going to ask me to do zhen?!"

"Vell..." Ichika had an infuriatingly innocent look on his face, "You know...Vear nozhing but an apron?"

Laura spat the coffee out of her mouth as Ichika said such words.

"Y-You silly boy...Shtop being such a Dummkopf!" She fumbled her words, "Who vould do such a zhing-?!"

Laura was immediatly silenced as Ichika kissed her on the forehead.

"Bitte, Laura," He cooed, "For me."

Laura's will had been broken.

"Ja..." She muttered.

"World Purge, Complete."

A/N: And that's the end of part 1! Hope you all enjoyed! I'm a little bit excited, as I was able to use the World Purge Arc as a means of diverging from the Infinite Stratos Canon a bit more.

Some ways I did this are with what I call the "Full-Package Byakushiki," and the introduction of Blue Tears 4 "Legionary." I'm also happy, since this chapter allowed me to give Thomas a much-needed near-encounter with Yin, who's been out of the story for far too long.

Ichika's Byakushiki is going to be upgraded, meaning he has a ton more fighting power. Elias will also be receiving an upgrade, but I'll save just how far it will go later.

I'll go into details of the Full-Package Byakushiki in later chapters.

The reason I decided to change things like this, is because American Idiot is a story about growth. Everyone has a perfect balance with each other, being able to work together and such. But, if any of them are going to grow, that balance has to be rocked.

By doing the FPB, Ichika will be able to grow as a character, since he'll have a lot more choices available to him.

For now, I'll do a profile for the Legionary.

Legionary is the Blue Tears Mass-Production Model developed by the Dansforth Corporation. Unlike the Knight Gunner, aka Blue Tears 3, the Legionary is a streamlined and superior model due to it's standardized design.

The Legionary is armed with 5 Optical Drones, a Beam Sniper, a Barrier Shield, 1 Rocket Pod, a Vulcan Assault Rifle, a Targeting Visor, and a Tactical Helmet.

Due to being a Production Model, the Legionary isn't equipped with the same overwhelming arsenal as its predecessor, the Knight Gunner. This is due to the fact that the Knight Gunner was a last-ditch effort in creating a quick and powerful Unit, allowing Elias to compensate for experience. The Legionary has a far greater capacity, but it's predecessor is still on equal terms.

The Legionary's design is inspired by the Nu Gundam.

I came up with the idea, since it felt that the Blue Tears was essentially going to become this sort of thing anyway. The World Purge Arc will be a good debut for the Legionary, as Elias might not stay with the Knight Gunner forever...

Hope you enjoy!

Next Time: World Purge Part 2.