italics - thoughts
Bold - Emphasis
Italics Bold - Magic names or titles
"normal" - speech
" underlined bold " - Mental transmissions
Underlined Bold - Flashback
{Bold}- Magic spells or abilities
Disclaimer:I do not own Toaru Majutsu no Index nor its characters. All rights belong to Kazuma Kamachi. Except for my own characters that I create
Chapter 14:Game time
High Priest sensed Touma.
"Oho?" For the first time in the past few hours, High Priest looked up from his game. He was on a winning streak of 1,000 wins to a hundred. Although, the main problem for him right now was that he was bored. VERY bored.
At first, the game was extremely satisfying. Enough to sate his desires for Touma to become their Scorer. At least, for a bit.
He had felt alive. So full of life. Like a battle junkie fighting a very tough battle. Then again, considering his personality, he could be considered a battle junkie. Anyway, with every win, with every fight, he felt more and more adrenaline following through his veins, the thought that he could lose keeping his interest off of Touma and his goal with every passing fight. But soon, that was it.
The adrenaline stopped flowing.
At first, High Priest thought that it would come back. One fight passed. Then two. Then three. Many more fights passed. Pretty soon, 100 of them had passed. And whether he won or lost, he never got back that high from fighting. That rush he had felt.
If this was in the past, his old self would have been astonished at him, astonished at the fact that he had not abandoned his worldly desires. Astonished, that he had become this sort of person...this monster...
Pain, hurt and such simple emotions like that could do so much change in a person. In their mindset, their personality, and their body. And High Priest was no different, due to being the subject of the jealousness of multiple people, both young priests and influential nobles which hated him. Which turned him into a monster which was not that different from a bipolar, crazed yandere individual.
So, he was rapidly becoming bored with the game, and was about to go off with his initial plan of wrecking everything in sight to attract Touma's attention, when he felt Touma's presence near the edge of Academy city. "Oho, oho oho...Kamijou Touma," High Priest grinned a spine-crawling smile. "I do hope you know what is coming. You should become our Scorer, before all of this goes up in flames!"
Flashback
"Ready?"
"Not really." Touma felt very anxious. He had taken off the nano-armor, replacing it with another piece of equipment Percival had supplied him. Something he called the Daybreaker. You know, that would have been much better name on a weapon. It looked more like body armor with some gauntlets attached to it then some cool armor, so he was going to have to make do with it. "It may have been my plan-"
"OUR plan." Mikoto cut in, hand on her hip.
"Our plan," Touma amended. "but that does not mean I am 100 percent certain on its success or such. You know, my luck and all."
"Eh." Percival shrugged. "I can understand that. What I am asking you is if you are ready for this. What I am asking is this: Are you ready for a girlfriend?"
"Wha-" Touma was so shocked, he stumbled and tripped over his own feet. Misaki, who was nearby, blinked in confusion at the over-the-top reaction at the simple question. Although, inside her head, she was struggling to not blush. Kuroko would have attempted to do a drop kick on the misfortunate boy(she still had no clue on the newly created relationship), had Informant not stuffed a specific doughnut into her mouth.
Screaming in pain, albeit muffled, Kuroko instantly teleported herself away. Touma could make a guess as to where she was, despite not knowing the pig-tailed teleporter well. All the while, Percival ignored this, instead settling to look at Touma. "Well?" He prompted. "You ready to have a love life?"
"...Let's just not answer that question." Touma sighed, averting his gaze from Percival's. "Besides, what about you? Are you ready for this?"
"Meh." Percival scoffed. "Am I ready? Let me quote something I have always loved to say." He gave a Touma a toothy grin as tapped onto his shield twice. "Who's ever ready?"
"I have been wondering..." Misaki chose that time to cut in. "Yurei-san, what are you doing?"
"What, this?" At that, Percival began to-
"Erm, no." Misaki averted her eyes. "Not...that storage ability of yours. That is...rather disgusting, what you just pulled out.."
"I know. " Percival had a disgusted expression on his face as he put away the dripping carcass he had taken out from the green jewel. "This was just to screw with you guys...but now I'm regretting it." Wiping his hands on his pants legs, he indicated to his shield. "I assume you mean me tapping my shield and stuff."
"Indeed."
"Well...it's a focus of sorts. Like how you guys need to concentrate to use your abilities." Percival explained, taking out various things from his shield. "But that is a conversation for another time." Percival tossed one of the items to Touma. He barely caught it, having been caught unawares by the sudden toss. But when he opened his hands to see what it was-
"Put those in your ears." Percival fitted the ball-like thing into his right ear. "It acts not only as a communicator, it also acts as a GPS locator. This would help to locate anyone anyway within a certain range that has one of these nifty things. Word of advice: Put them in the ear which has better hearing. It also has the added benefit of increasing your auditory capabilities by quite a bit. Three times, to be exact."
"Would we get impaired if there is a loud noise?" Kuroko asked as she placed her own communicator into her ear, having just got back from wherever she was.
"No." Percival fitted some other things onto his body. Multiple grenades, a few knives, and a single pistol. "The way the amplifier works is to make it feel as if you do not have anything blocking your ear. If you use it often enough, you would be able to detect footsteps within 10 metres from you, behind several walls. So, if there is a loud noise, like say, an explosion, it would automatically act as a soundproof barrier, protecting your ear with better hearing." Patting himself down, Percival ensured he had all his items ready, before he stepped off the platform Kanzaki had made with multiple wires and scaffolding. "If you want to talk, you can either tap onto it one to turn the mic on, and tap it again for the mic to turn off. Or, you could snap your fingers."
"That's it?" Mikoto looked skeptical. "Just, snap your fingers, and it turns the mic on and off?"
"Yep." Percival stretched his body. "By the way, the comms airways would be always on, so no unnecessary talking."
"Everyone ready?" Seeing their nods, Percival smiled. "What are we waiting for? Let's all become God killers."
Present time
"Oho ho ho..." High Priest finally arrived at where he had last sensed Touma, creating a crater when he landed. When the dust finally settled, he observed his surroundings. Nothing looked out of the ordinary. At least, not to the untrained eye. "I can sense you, Kamijou Touma. Best you come out now."
Silence met High Priest's words.
"Ho ho...I expected you to come out...To think you would stay hidden instead..." High Priest shook his head. "Perhaps you do not realize what I have in my grasp. I can just leave right now and cause a few ants to have their sparks of life snuffed out. Whatever you do, will not be able to stop me. Unless, you become our Scorer."
"Really?" As he spoke, Touma stepped out from behind one of the pillars. It was located in one of the blind spots that would hide a person from view. Unless they stood in a specific spot. "You will stop this, as long as I become your Scorer?"
"New toys, Kamijou Touma?" High Priest was facing Touma when he stepped out, so he saw his new appearance.
Covering Touma's body was a simple jacket. But, there were other things attached to it.
His sleeves had the appearance of metal arm protectors(Similar ti Danmachi). Attached to his cuffs were fingerless gloves. Touma was wearing the one on his left hand. Touma did not want to wear it at first, but when Percival gave it to him(read as forced), he did it to humor him. This just looks like a jacket, but Yurei-san said that he should use it if Othinus ever tags along for a fight. There is a special pocket that would allow her to hitch a ride, unseen by others, yet is able to see the outside. That would be good if I want to surprise any magicians, if Index is not with me.
"Not mine." Touma leveled a hard look at High Priest as he raised his fist, sparing a glance at his new outfit as he shifted into a battle-ready stance. "Yurei-san gave them to me."
"Ku ku ku." High Priest gave a creepy laugh. "No matter. Since you refuse, let me-"
"My answer will always be no, High Priest. No matter how many times you ask me." Touma cut off High Priest mid-sentence. Partially because he was tired of hearing him repeat that sentence again and again.
"Haaaaaa" High Priest heaved a large sigh. "Is that so..." The mummified man leaned on his golden oriental sword like a cane. "You know, your choices always lie in front of you and the infinite possibilities of the future are determined by the choices you will make. Those possibilities include tragedy and comedy, fortune and misfortune, peace and war, and everything else, so you can walk down a path where everyone survives as long as you make the right choices."
The thick asphalt of the runway split apart.
A giant arm rose on either side of the High Priest like towers. As the mud arm wriggled like a living creature, the mummy gave his disinterested conclusion.
"You should have figured it out by now. I have a very deep connection to the earth...I have controlled mud to produce a variety of phenomena. But the finite is still finite and I have not altered the conservation of mass...What do you think happens underground when this much of the dirt is pulled out?"
"It collapses." Touma's response caused High Priest to tilt his head. "I have an idea of what you are going for. You wish to drive me to despair, to break me so utterly, that I either die, or I take up your offer of being the Scorer of Gremlin."
"...Yes...that is my plan. If all else fails, we would just look for another candidate." High Priest had no change in his expression as he talked. "By far, you are the best candidate to be our Scorer. Of course, if we have no choice..."
"We will just find another one."
A second earthen arm practically exploded into existence, causing the ground underneath them to collapse under its own weight.
"Hmm...Hmmmm!?"
High Priest gave a shocked hum as he found the person he expected to fall to the bottom, did not. In fact, he remained where he stood, or rather, floated, even as the ground underneath his feet collapsed. As for the Magic god himself, he too remained in midair, albeit closer to the bottom of the hall he had made.
After the initial shock wore off, however, his thoughts became clearer. He doubted someone fundamentally abandoned by luck would experience such great fortune now of all times. Also, the boy himself would never work from a plan that relied on coincidences or miracles. He would have been acting based on the assumption that nothing like that would happen.
So...
"That did not happen naturally. I do not see the girls or boy who were with you... Did you get their help? In that case, were you planning to let me fall down here from the beginning?"
"Not exactly." Percival popped up from beside the floating Magic god. "See, you have no information on me, right? After all, I can be considered a wildcard. If Kamijou-san is your joker...perhaps I can be considered the extra card. The one which is not played, but comes with the entire deck. And as such, I will make use of this lack of information to obtain my objective."
"Ho ho." High Priest strained to look at Percival. It was hard for a regular person. But not so much for the mummified old man. "And, pray tell, what is this plan of yours?"
"No need to tell you. I'm no third-rate villain who explains his entire plan to his enemy." Percival let a smile show on his face. "Buuuut...you do deserve this." A familiar green light enveloped Percival. "Munio057: Copy. Target:Magic from past minute...Select earth attribute only."
The green glow briefly extended to his shield, before it concentrated itself into his left hand, and faded out of sight. "Thanks! Now, Kanzaki-san!"
"Nanasen!" High Priest briefly felt a tightening around his body, before he felt the wind rush past his face and body.
He was launched into the sky.
Normally, Kanzaki's 'Nanasen' would be unable to launch a person into the sky. It could cut, it could defend, it can restrain, and it can hold the weight of a person. All of that was possible with 'Nanasen'. However, she has had no practice using it to launch a person, at least, not from the angle she was in. The best she would be able to do is make him fly 20 metres into the air. Not the few kilometres, like just now.
This was helped by the most powerful electromaster in Academy City. Misaka Mikoto.
She first coated all the wires Kanzaki had with iron sand, or used wires she could control. Then, she waited, hidden, until High Priest was in place.
Using the same calculations(with some slight modifications, since the ammunition was multiple wires, each the size of a coin), she fired High Priest into the air with her technique, the Railgun, and used her powers to repel the wires as strongly and quickly as possible, at the same time Kaori pulled upwards with all she had.
The effect was what they had hoped.
The force of Kanzaki launching High Priest, as well as Mikoto's multiple target Railgun attack, launched the immobile High Priest into the air, like a bottle rocket taking flight from the ground.
Wow... Mikoto marveled the sight of the old man flying skywards, his robes fluttering like a flag in the wind as the wind rushed past them.
"That was a great launch, Misaka-san." Percival praised Mikoto. "Was it too much of a difficulty for you?"
"Not really." Mikoto shrugged as she proceeded with the next stage of the plan. "I just made sure to make a big enough target for me to punch it, even if all of them were around the size of a coin I usually use."
"How much power was behind that?"
"Around the same I usually use to fire two railguns." Mikoto squinted as she looked at High Priests tiny form in the sky. "I have no idea if his body would be able to withstand that attack, so I limited myself. Don't want him to splatter all over the place."
"I...actually think he might be fine, even if you launch him with the power needed to fire a railgun the size of a shipping container." Percival's statement caused Mikoto to blink in shock as she imagined the elderly man still holding up as she delivered the power need to fire off such an attack.
"That's...kind of terrifying." She admitted.
"Well, start the third phase of the plan." Percival's hand made some odd movements, before a clump of metal began to form. "You will need to keep our ball in the air."
"I still love and hate that part of the plan." Mikoto grumbled. "Why do I have to ping-pong ball him up and down? It's a waste of my abilities."
"And you shocking delinquents and using martial arts to get yourself free drinks isn't?" Mikoto had the decency to blush faintly at that jab. "Just go. Remember, if you are still hesitant to do this, maybe you should imagine High Priest as a-"
"Alright, alright I get it." Mikoto used her abilities to bring her up to Touma's current location. "Just keep quiet. You are like a broken player."
As she propelled herself skywards(though, not as high as High Priest), she was still a little worried about Percival. Because that was one of the more dangerous phases of the plan.
...
Flashback, planning in the van. 20 minutes ago.
"So, after we get High Priest here," Touma indicated to the marked location. "We would have to stop him from creating any earthen arms or constructs."
"And how do you propose we do that, my Prince?" Misaki lounged on the large sofa like seat, her handbag clutched next to her. "And, for that matter, how will this work, exactly?"
"Most magicians use some medium or symbolism to bring their creations or magic to life." Kaori interjected. "Stiyl uses rune cards to amplify his magic to make Innocentius, the with-hunting demon made of flames. Levinia Birdway uses Tarot cards to produce effects. For example, if she uses the Hanged Man tarot card, she would be able to make said card take the damage intended for her. Be it an explosion, a bullet or a magic spell. If we put High Priest in such a position he is unable to draw power from his symbolism, which is the earth, we can hold him off for a while."
"...That still does not answer my query though..." Misaki pouted.
"The symbolism behind each magic uses is like a supporter." Touma decided to explain it. Although he was not quite sure if what he was saying was right. "That supporter helps to make the creation of magic come alive. Like, for example the tarot cards Kanzaki-san stated earlier. From what I heard, Birdway purposely misinterpreted the meaning of one of the cards to help defend herself against any attack. It was only valid for one use, but it is very helpful if you want to escape a death blow. In this case, we will try to keep High Priest away from his source of power, which would be the earth, by putting him high above the ground."
"And, how will we do that? We do not have anything with that sort of propulsion ability on us...unless you coat that old man with barrels of iron sand and allow Misaka-san to fire him off into space." Misaki giggled at her suggestion, only for her eyes to widen when she saw Percival's face. "...You aren't serious?"
Percival smirked. "I have some idea...Since we need some way to keep him occupied...Perhaps Misaka-san could help us do so."
"M-me?!" Mikoto spluttered. "H-how am I supposed to keep him occupied? You said that a railgun would not work!"
"It will not kill him, no." Percival muttered as he tapped his shield again, apparently looking at some sort of screen on the shield. "Will it hinder him? Well, that is something I am not too sure about. Magic gods are very hard to kill. And even then, even if, IF, you managed to obtain a way to kill a Magic god, it is a completely different ball game to actually using said method to kill him. So, the other option is to blast him out of the planet. Right Kamijou-san?"
"...Yeah. That's right." Touma agreed, albeit hesitantly, when he saw the gazes directed at him. Touma was nervous, as this was something that was out of character for him. Usually, he would be fighting the enemy head on, regardless of the injuries to his body. He would be able to reduce the possible casualties to the bare minimum, at worst a few dozen, at best none.
However, this time, the enemy he was facing could not be defeated by normal means. They had tried bullets, gas to knock him out, and Touma's hand(Which was later confirmed to be ineffective via two Magic goddesses.). This left two options. One, he surrender to his demand, which is to be their Scorer. The other, more dangerous one, is to incapacitate the Magic god. They could use the 'Turn into a fairy' spell, like Ollerus had once did with Othinus. But, none of the people currently here could use such a spell. Nor was he sure it would even work on High Priest. That left the other option.
Instead of killing High Priest, they send him far away. So far, he could not touch any of them.
Touma explained his reasoning to them. "High Priest is a Magic god. They have the ability to change reality on a whim, if they wanted to. This is common knowledge for the magicians in the Magic side. There is a way, however, for one to defeat a Magic god. Or rather, kill one. The 'Turn to Fairy' spell. This was developed to be used against Othinus. Unfortunately-"
"None of us know how to use this spell." Kaori sighed. "So, we will have to avoid fighting him entirely."
Touma continued his explanation. "If we can't defeat him, we will have to avoid encountering him. Which then begs the question: How will we do so?"
"That answer is easy. We take away his ties to his ability, which in this case, is the earth. So, if we force him to not touch the ground, we should be able to prevent him from attacking us at all."
"But, that is only in theory" Mikoto frowned. "What happens in actuality, and what happens in theory, can be as different as polar opposites of a magnet."
"Exactly. So, what is the most plausible way to remove his ties to his source of power?"
Everyone thought abut it for a few seconds, not too sure on where Touma was going with this. And then, Misaki recalled her earlier joke. "...removing him from the planet."
"Yes, Shokuhou-san." Touma nodded. "The best way would be to get him off our planet. If he has ties to the earth, then the best bet would be to launch him into space, where there it would take many years to come back, even if he did mange to do so. And, by the time he does come back, he would have to find the next Scorer, which will take a longer period of time for him."
"But...I don't have the power to launch a person like him into space." Mikoto frowned. "My range for a railgun depends on the mass of the object I am using. I may be able to produce the mass needed to launch High Priest into space, but keeping him immobile enough so that he reaches out of the atmosphere of the planet is another thing. I also have to factor how much stamina and time I will need to produce such calculations to actually get him to even one-hundredth of the height we are looking for."
"Leave that part to me."
Percival's statement caused a few eyebrows to be raised. Especially Touma's.
"Don't you have that restriction?" Touma asked Percival. "You should not be able to make a way to launch High Priest into space. At least, not for the next, 30 minutes?"
"45 minutes." Percival corrected Touma. "And I have a hunch on how to overcome that fact. Misaka-san." Percival directed his attention to Mikoto. "Could you use your ability continuously for 15 seconds?"
"Why?"
""To try out a theory I have. If not, I will have to resort to other means."
"Your answer is not really comforting..." Mikoto muttered. Then, louder. "Okay. Let me go outside first. Then, I will start."
Stepping out of the van, Mikoto, Percival, Kanzaki, Informant and Kuroko gathered in a loose circle. Touma(For obvious reasons) and Misaki chose to stay inside the van. "Okay..." Mikoto looked around nervously to make sure there was no transformers or electrical sensitive electrical equipment was around, before she took a breath. "Starting...now."
*Bzzt*
The familiar sight and sound of electricity crackling was heard.
"Munio057: Copy. Target, esper in line of sight." Percival intoned, left hand raised. "Select electric attribute only."
A green glow enveloped Percival's body, before it concentrated itself into his shield and faded from sight.
"Oookay..." Kuroko gave her two cents in a confused tone. "That was a nice light show, but what was the purpose of this, Yurei-san?"
"This." At that, sparks started to emit from Percival's still outstretched palm.
"This is like from then..." Mikoto stated, her eyes open wide. "I forgot that you said that you had the ability to copy the abilities of others."
"That is not all. If I am right..." Percival's eyes narrowed as he concentrated. then-
*Kiririri*
"Wha-" Everyone backed away from the sudden surge of electricity. "What...is this?" Mikoto asked, half in awe, and half in shock. "I am pretty sure I can't do this."
"With the way your esper ability developed, no." Percival confirmed. "You could do something like what I am doing right now if you try to create a melee version of it. I am sure that you have seen it before, Kamijou-san."
"...Thor's Arc Fusion Blades." Touma said after a few seconds of thought. He could see the similarities.
Percival held a crackling mass of pure electricity in his hand. What's more, it was in the shape of a weapon. A very familiar one, especially since there was one holding it with them. "I call this my elemental katana." Percival swung it a few times. "Normally, this outside of my restrictions. But, if I copy someone's abilities, I will be able to bypass these restrictions, as I had just showed."
"So, how will this help us?" Kuroko asked, slowly approaching the crackling weapon. She had teleported a fair distance away when the sudden surge had occurred. She was very jumpy when Informant was around. Not that anyone could blame her. She was forced to eat spicy foods meant to be sweet, twice.
"Percival can control earth." Informant spoke up. "And, by extension, metal. And, he also can produce any type of earth or metal, given time and power."
"So, I will build a rocket." Percival took over the explanation. "It won't be a proper one, and it will not be able to bring High Priest all the way without exploding, but if I use the knowledge both me and Informant have, we should be able to produce a rocket that can drag that old man's ass all the way to space."
"That is great and all, but what about fuel?" Kuroko questioned.
"That's very easy." Percival pointed to the sky "Rare metals, water, and oxygen."
...
Present time
Geez, this is harder than I thought. Percival mentally complained to himself as he created the rare metal he needed as fast as possible without causing it to blow up in his face.
Right now, he was working on the fuel source, which would be a combination of Francium, water, and wax. Francium was the most reactive metal that he knew existed, so he was using that. He had Mikoto and Misaki help with the calculations, since they were both Level 5's and got the exact amount he needed. Well, he could always make extra, but time was of the essence.
Anyway, right now, he had to be very careful. He could create the Francium no problem, even if it had to be in an enclosed box, with his entire body outside of said box to prevent the metal from reacting with the moisture in the atmosphere prematurely, pretty easily. The problem was that he not lose focus and accidentally create even a small bit of the precious rare metal outside the box, which was much harder than he had imagined, seeing as his creation and manipulation of the elements required his imagination and focus. More focus when he could not see what he was doing.
After he was done, he would put more focus into the creation of the mini-rocket that would be used to push High Priest into space. That was the other reason why he was being extra careful.
He was making the rocket(Well, part of it. The other parts of the rocket could be cannibalised from the various metal parts that made up the destroyed robots that they had managed to salvage from the last battle.), as well as he fuel source, simultaneously. A human is unable to multi-task efficiently. Only switch gears, focusing only on one thing at a time. So, he had to strain his mind even further to ensure he did not mess up both of them at the same time.
..
..
Meanwhile, Mikoto's group was working up quite a sweat. She was running back and forth, getting Kuroko to teleport her and Kaori into the air, then getting Kaori to launch her even further to maximize the distance between her and the ground, before launching her railgun at the falling High Priest to blast him back into the air again.
This was the third phase of the entire plan. The occupation of the Magic god.
The first phase was the luring and preparation time of High Priest. That phase was also used to help Misaki link up Kaori and Mikoto's actions to maximise the distance High Priest was to gain when he was to be thrown sky high. That was nearly impossible at first, seeing as Misaki was unable to use any type of mental abilities, helpful or otherwise, on the electromaster. But thanks to the comms Percival gave them, Misaki got the idea to use her abilities in a rather unorthodox way. By using her powers to link her own sight with Kaori's, this would allow the Saint to see what Misaki was seeing.(Which was Mikoto, High Priest, Percival and Touma.), and allow her to time her actions accordingly.
The second phase was, of course, the throwing of High Priest into the stratosphere. Despite it being simple in nature, it was actually the most crucial. Because, if High Priest reached the ground before everything was done, their entire plan would be thrown to the winds, and the fate that awaits all of them would be death.
Now, they were doing the third phase. This phase came in two parts being acted out simultaneously. The creation of the projectile needed to launch High Priest into space, and the keeping of said Magic god occupied long enough for the rocket to be finished. This phase would have to be completed in 10 minutes, tops.
Percival could create the fuel source in under 5 minutes. That part was the hard part. The easy part was the assembly of the rocket, which would be sped up with the dual element control he had(Electrical from Mikoto, Earth and Metal from High Priest). The more taxing part of this phase, however, was on the two espers. Mainly, Kuroko.
Kuroko could teleport multiple times, sure. But, that did not mean she is able to teleport indefinitely. Her mind and stamina would be severely taxed due to this venture, as she would have to teleport not only herself, but her 'Onee-sama' and the ammunition Mikoto would be using(Which was actually broken pieces of robots and drones.) with her to get to the optimal location to hit High Priest(This was helped by Kazkiri with her simulations, back in the Judgement office.). Then, afterwards, she would have to teleport into the air with Mikoto and a part of the ammunition, for Mikoto to fire at the falling Magic god, before she teleported back to the ground with Mikoto, and repeat this process a few times.
And, it was estimated that Kuroko would have to do this process around 20 times, as High Priest would have used his connection to the earth to most probably pull him to the ground faster, like a metal object being attracted to a magnet.
Kaori was on standby, acting as their bodyguard and helper. With her Saint speed, she would be able to catch up to Kuroko's teleportation, with only a few seconds in delay for every time they stopped. She was also carrying the bulk of the ammunition Mikoto was using, so she was not acting as an extra. Not. at. all.
...I feel vexed that I am only able to contribute this much to Kamijou-san's plan. Kaori frowned, feeling that her debt towards the spiky-haired boy had not lessened in the slightest. Every time she did something that would help Touma, he would then do something that would make her feel even more in his debt.
Exhibit A: Index's yearly memory wipe. Touma managed to release her from the Church's grasp, at the cost of all of his memories.
Exhibit B: Angel Fall incident. What was meant to be something that she should have been able to do(protecting Touma's dad), ended up requiring the help of Kamijou Touma's right hand once more to finish it off.
Exhibit C: World War 3. Kamijou Touma should have been resting back in Academy city. However, he had been beaten within an inch of his life, and had to fight against Fiamma of the Right at the end. He won, thereby putting an end to WW3. Though, at the cost of him being thrown into the icy waters of Russia, and later picked up by the cabal, the Dawn-Colored Sunlight.
There were a few more exhibits that could be shown, but this last one was the clincher.
Exhibit U(Unknown number): Saving the entire WORLD. In exchange for him becoming the target of the entire world by protecting the one behind it all later on, he managed to save the entire world, and they did not know it. Well, most of the world anyway. A select few souls knew, and one of them now happened to be one Kanzaki Kaori.
She, of course, did not find out about this by chance. She had this feeling in her stomach that the world had been destroyed and remade multiple times. Countless actually, but she did not know that. All she knew was the world had been destroyed, and then for some reason, remade back to its original state(Or, as close to the original it could be.). To try and help Kamijou Touma, she held back some of the forces of the entire world as long as possible. But, that being said, she felt that was nowhere NEAR enough to even pay Touma back one quarter of what he had done for her.
One quarter.
That number, that...figure...was one of the reasons she felt so many things about the spiky misfortunate boy.
Anger, sadness, embarrassment, just to name a few. These feelings, along with the feeling of being indebted to him(and a few others, which shall not be named in the name of her teenage mind), were all thrown into the huge pot known as life, and was stirred and mixed so thoroughly, she did not even know WHAT she should do to pay him back.
So, when word was told that there was a Magic god after Kamijou Touma, she acted as quickly as possible.
Going to the Archbishop for permission to act on this intel, flying to Academy city as fast as possible in one of the supersonic jets, and then bypassing the security that surrounded Academy city, all to reach this boy she did not know how to feel about.
Anger...pride...pain...sorrow...respect...
...maybe love...
These were all, and yet, none, of the feelings she wanted to convey to the individual known as Kamijou Touma.
She was one of the 20 Saints in the entire world, and yet she keeps becoming indebted to this boy more and more every time she sees him.
She, who was said to have luck and fortune, was being indebted to the one who had an aura of misfortune. That was a first to the Japanese Saint, and it surprised and irked her at first. But now...
To repay this debt...what should I do?
High Priest was getting turned into a punching bag. And he was not amused.
Actually, that was a lie. He was being amused by these turn of events. Just a little.
I had expected Kamijou Touma to take up my deal by now... High Priest thought this as he was yet again railgunned(Is that even a word?) into the air. But for him to come up with this sort of thing... High Priest chuckled as he free-fell back towards the ground. Such a futile effort...and such a bore.
Kamijou Touma has never fought logically, at least, not to this extent. He does things on the fly, so his opponent is unable to predict his moves too much. But his ideals also make him predictable to an extent, so his enemies can trap him. I planned to do the same, but it seems logical planning has prevented me from doing so.
High Priest frowned. A new thought entered his mind...This is becoming boring.
And with that thought in mind, he acted.
Kuroko was the first one to notice it.
"Onee-sama...what...is that?"
"Hmm?" Mikoto looked in the direction that Kuroko was currently facing. As they were in midair, they had a great view off their entire surroundings, very similar to a vantage point that snipers would use. And, as such, they were the first ones to notice what was happening.
A large cloud was gathering. Or, at least, that was what it seemed to be. Then, the two espers realized what it was. First, Mikoto, then, Kuroko.
"...Is this the extent of magic?" Kuroko asked Mikoto with wide eyes, taking a few seconds to observe the huge wave of dirt and dust approach their location. At the speed it was coming, they would be hit in around a minute. If they got to Touma, they would be safe. Theoretically. Mikoto knew that there was a limit to how much Touma could negate at once.
"...Maybe Kuroko. Maybe." Mikoto used her powers to allow them to gently float to the ground. Once they did, they informed Kaori of this new development.
"...We should have expected this." Kaori frowned, dropping the ammunition as she did so. "High Priest has a deep connection to the earth. We should have realized he would have been able to gather enough dirt from the explosions and destruction he had dealt earlier."
"I'm telling Yurei-san." Mikoto was about to tap onto her communication ball, but a blur of green, black and blue dropped down from beside her.
"No need." Percival panted heavily with exhaustion as he tried to catch his breath. "I could feel the large gathering of earth with my powers. Honestly, that old man sure loves to make things dramatic or over-the top. He could use smaller arms the size of cars, but nooooo, instead he makes ones the size of shipping containers." He took a deep breath before he released it, then spoke in a calmer tone. "Then again, this would help us as it would be hard for him to make a preemptive strike."
"So, is the rocket ready?" Mikoto asked worriedly. "Maybe if we shoot him into space, that wave of earth would stop its destruction."
"...Unfortunately, no it isn't." Percival brought up a cylindrical container about the size of fire extinguisher. "I managed to make the fuel, but the rocket is not complete. So, unless we stick this onto his body, and surround this entire thing with a mixture of titanium, steel and tungsten, and make it so that he flies up to space without much trouble, then we essentially have a mini-nuke, only without the radioactive fall-out."
"...What should we do..." Mikoto murmured under her breath as she racked her brain for some idea of getting out of the predicament they were in. Or rather, the question is, what CAN we do? Touma's hand has a limit to how much it can negate, so that wave would only have a small portion of it negated at best. My railgun would only blow a small hole in it. If I use anything metal larger than the diameter of my fist, it would definitely reach the populated areas! Kanzaki-san's magic spells might work, or her nanasen, but we don't know how effective it will be. Shokuhou is essentially useless here... her thoughts went to the large-breasted, starry-eyed girl. And Kuroko is not able to teleport all of the earth wave in time, even with Kanzaki-san's speed helping her reach her locations faster... What do we do!? We have to stop High Priest, and we have to find a way to stop it before it comes into this area! I'm sensing so much equipment around here... Mikoto bit her lip. What do we do...
Meanwhile, back at Percival's previous location.(Or close to it)
"Shit shit shit shit shiiiiittt!"
Touma was running for his life. And that was no joke. After all, a hug wall of earth was making its way towards him!
"Why?! Why does these things all happen to me?!" Touma shouted out into the sky. "Such Misfoooooortune!"
Informant, having noticed the wall's formation, grabbed onto Misaki in a bridal-style carry, and rushed forwards, away from the wall and towards Percival's destination. As for Touma, he had noticed it only when it was too late.
"Gah!" Touma stumbled over a piece of rubble. "Such misfortune!" He continued to run.
At the speed we are both going, that wave is going to reach me first! Touma observed that the distance between the two of them was becoming smaller. He also recognized that he was at a disadvantage, seeing as the wave would swallow up any and all obstacles in its path like a ravenous monster, and in turn making it a part of it.
Whereas Touma had to constantly weave and move around obstacles in his path, causing his speed to fluctuate constantly. But, it was thanks to this weaving that he noticed something out of the corner of his eye.
"Is that- "
"Guys!" Touma's voice burst into their comms. "I have something that Yurei-san can use!"
"What is it?" Percival responded, his eyes frantically scanning the inside of his shield, hoping that he would have something that could stop the upcoming wave.
"I found a rocket!" Touma's words made Percival pause in his actions. "Its more of a missile, since it is part of an Six-Wings, but could Yurei-san use it?"
"Maybe." Percial took out a scanner from his pocket. "...I can see you. You're not too far from Kuroko's position. Kuroko, can you-"
"Hai hai. You wish me to pickup the ape?" Kuroko's tired voice made itself known over the airways.
"Not exactly. I just want you to get part of the Six-wings. More specifically, its rocket engines." Percival began to make some adjustments to the canister full of Francium. "If you could bring both of them, that would be great. At least get one. Kanzaki-san will get Touma, since she is able to move at high speeds while having his right hand in contact with her body."
"Roger." Kuroko's voice fizzled out, signalling that she had cut off her microphone function.
"What are you going to do, Yurei-san?" Misaki peered over Percival's shoulders. After Kuroko had left to keep an eye out on the wave(Seeing as she could get to any location quickly with her esper ability), Miskai was brought in by Informant. (Said person was messing about with one of the destroyed drones.). Mikoto was standing above their location, using whatever large objects she could find to try and launch at High Priest like a railgun. From her sonar-like improvisation, she could detect that the heat given off from each railgun she fired off was keeping High Priest in the air, but it was not stopping whatever he was doing.
"I'm modifying my fuel tank so that it can be used in short bursts." The cylinder began to slowly, but surely, change it shape into a more box like one. "Right now, its made so that once the reaction starts, the entire fuel stock would be depleted in an instant. So, I am separating the entire fuel into 20 different parts, and a further 20 sections will be added and exposed to allow me to fill it with water. This would allow me to maximize the amount of energy that is going to be released in that split second, as compared to it being exposed to the atmosphere."
"But, will your designing ability allow for your complicated design to work effectively?" Misaki titled her head in confusion. Despite what she had just said, she was a Level 5, so she keep up with the explanations that Percival was giving. What she was not too sure about was Percival's accuracy and control with his ability. If he made the slightest mistake, all of them would die.
With that being said, there was also the question of how the 20 different sections will release its load at different times, but Misaki was waiting for his answer to the first question.
"By using a principle similar to firearms." As Miskai watched, she saw the long box break off into 20 separate parts. "If I think of each separate compartment as a single 'bullet', and as the engine that Shirai-san is bringing as the 'gun', I will be able to modify the entire thing to fire off, or give off, the reaction at set intervals." Finally, Percival steeped away from the fuel. Now, it all resembled the shape of a one litre water bottle, but its metallic shine gave it the impression of being a thermos flask. "So, I will also have to modify the engine that Shirai-san is bringing to a certain degree."
"Here it is." Speaking of the devil, Kuroko appeared, dumping the large engine onto the floor as well. "I might have damage the engine a little, since I used some metal sheets to separate the engine from the body."
"It's fine." Percival knelt down next to the engine. "I just needed the body, as well as most of its internal components. The rest, I can substitute with the parts I have."
As they watched, the engine began to change shape. Its box like form, and exposed wires, all seemed to melt into a blob of metal roughly the shape of the rocket engine, before it made definite shapes and solidified.
The entire thing was rude, nothing like one might find to have been built by other countries. Its body was slightly warped, and the thruster part was slightly deformed. But, its shape was undeniably that of a rocket.
"Haahhh..."
"?"
Percival suddenly sighed, causing the people inside to look at him with confused looks. Just then, a blur came in.
"Yurei-san, is the missile ready?" Touma was set down onto the ground. He had been carried bridal-style(Much to his embarrassment.) Despite his many protests, Kaori had still persisted in carrying bridal-style, instead of carrying him like a sack of rice, or allowing him to piggy-back ride her. The first option, she said he might slip. The second one she refused as well, saying the speed she would be moving at would most likely break his back.
"It's ready." Percival responded. "But there is a problem."
"...What is it?" Touma did not have any change in his expression, his tone full of resignation. "Do we have not enough fuel? Is the rocket not working right? Or is High Priest coming down now?"
Normally, when a person is asked 'Is there a problem with *****' and they are responded with 'Yes.', the person who asked the question would have some facial feature change, or a change in tone to one of worry, concern or exasperation(Pranks at the workplace, ya know? Stress relief, stress relief )
So, Touma's reaction would have been judged as weird. At least, to the average onlooker.
Touma is a person constantly plagued by misfortune. This was a fact. And, as such, he would always half expect things to go south, or go wrong, for him at every waking moment for him, so it was no wonder his voice would be filled with resignation.
"The rocket is finished, and we have enough fuel." Percival indicated behind him. "It looks ugly, but it works. The main problem is the fuel intake. Due to lack of time, there is no way to make the fuel distribution automatic."
"..." The three girl's present did not understand what was wrong. But Touma knew within a few seconds.
"...No." Touma could see where this was going. "I will not allow anyone to be sacrificed to stop High Priest."
"Who said anyone has to die?" Percival picked up the rocket with his right hand. "It is just that the fuel has to be added manually. And I will be the one to do it."
"I won't allow it!" When Percival turned to get out of their current location, he found Touma to be blocking his way, as was Kaori. "There is no need to involve you in my battle this much, Yurei-san!" Touma raised his right hand. "I know your weakness. You can't attack proficiently right now, right? And there is not enough time. That wave is going to destroy this part of Academy city."
What Touma had just said was true. After this event was over, there is bound to be loads of panicked individuals. That would be when Anti-skill and Judgement comes in to help soothe the populace, as well as protect Academy city from outsiders who would wish to take advantage of the situation. If Anti-skill were to lose all of their specialized equipment right here and now, the effects could end up with Academy city having many losses, in terms of monetary terms, livelihoods, and technological development, which was essential in this city of Science.
"I came into your life knowing this would happen, Kamijou-san." Percival placed the rocket back down. "I believed I mentioned it before. That there were many events coming. This is one of them."
"...And you knew of this, but didn't warn us? Or even prepare things to help take down High Priest?" Touma knew he was wasting time, but he wanted to also know what was going on. "At least tell us what is going to happen when all of this is over."
"No can do on the telling." Percival rolled his shoulders, making Kaori reach for her blade by her side. "I don't even know when they might happen, or who they will involve. All I know is the names of the possible enemies you would face, and the number of events that would take place. This is just one down on that list."
The next thing Percival did, none of them could react to it in time. Not even Touma, who had precognition.
Something was thrown into the air. A split second later, it exploded with a blinding light. It was a that flashbang had been released. And it was a military grade version too. So, the moment it was thrown into the air, Percival had looked away and ran, grabbing the rocket as he did so.
Touma and the rest were not so lucky.
Kaori and Touma took the full brunt of the attack, which momentarily blinded the two. There was also a large ringing in their ears, making it hard for them to concentrate, much less walk. The two bystanders here, Misaki and Kuroko, were slightly better, but not by much. They too had been blinded, and had a slight ringing in their ears, so they stood on their feet unsteadily. Their communication balls had also seemed to fail, so they were unable to defend against that attack.
Half a minute later, maybe less, they heard Mikoto speak. "What's going on?" Mikoto's voice resounded dully in everyone's ears. They then heard her land on the ground.
"Yurei-san is going to launch the rocket at High Priest, with him on it!" Touma shouted out, the ringing in his ears making it hard for him to even hear his own voice. "He has to manually add in the fuel, so that's why he is doing this!"
"Tsk." Mikoto clicked her tongue, using her powers to try and find the moving Percival.
"Don't bother, Misaka-san." Percival's voice burst to life in her ear. "I threw the rocket upwards, then fed it the fuel. By now, I am just above your reach, even if you use a electrical slingshot to fire yourself towards me."
"How did you get up so fast?" Mikoto could not help but look skywards, searching for any telltale signs of the rocket and Percival.
"It's amazing what using a combination of electricity and reactive elements, combined with water, can do to launch you so high into the air." Percival's voice began to have some slight interference in it. "Although, my launching area might be partially melted and blown up."
"You should have expected that." A glint of metal caught her eye, and she focused on it. When she strained her eyes, she could dimly see white smoke and debris falling back towards the ground from below the metal glint.
"Well, now is time for my debut as the first man to launch a rocket using rare metals! I'll see all of you in time for dinner at Kamijou-san's place. Please be gentle with my punishment." "You-"
Mikoto knew that further words were unneeded. Not because she was too late to change his mind, nor because she would be unable to do anything. But because the comms were now filled with static, indicating Percival was now out of range.
Mikoto could only look at the glint once more, before she looked back to her surroundings. Already, she could hear sirens approaching their area due to the large mass of earth suddenly collapsing, as well as the chatter of people.
"Such misfortune..." Sighing, Mikoto uttered Touma's catchphrase, before she went to work.
..
..
A few minutes later, various Anti-skill members arrived. The only things that they saw when they arrived at the silo like area Mikoto and Co. were at before was a few damaged drones, a burn mark, and a few pieces of metal.
AN
Well, I guess this is not too bad of an ending, right?
...Who am I kidding, this feels really lukewarm. Well, not too worry, the next chapter would put an end to the High Priest Arc. After that, I will try to release a new chapter in conjunction with the ending of my first arc in this series! Stay tuned for my next updates!
Also, this is about Aogami. If you interested, read on! If not, wait for my next chapters, yo ;)
Aogami's newest, yet stupidest, ability is a small bit of inspiration from a chapter I read. If I recall, its from...A Certain Unknown Level 0(More Specifically, the separate project known as Between The Lines by the same author.) Its chapter 76. There is also another inspiration story, but I can't recall where its from. Too many series that I have read over the years, ya know?
Sorry for the late update too. Had a bit of trouble with editing cause wifi became down in my area suddenly.
Anime is Life!