Chapter III: We're Not Friends But You Saved Me
There were seven of you in the midst of the chaos.
Four were boys and three of you were girls. There were explosions and fire and scrap metal everywhere, and it took everything in you not to collapse from exhaustion. Instead, you trudged on, sending a magnetized metal piece against the numerous robot things that you were fighting. It looked like your group had defeated over a thousand of those, but there were thousands more to come.
"There's no end to them!" you shouted, sending another robot flying. You panted but you didn't relent, taking a coin out from your pocket and flicking it, shooting it towards four robots that had aligned from your vantage point. A couple more exploded when hundreds of beams of light pierced the air, and you immediately took off at a run—with the help of magnetism to propel you forward—lest you got caught in the massive explosion.
One of the guys laughed, the kind that sounded like he was enjoying watching some kind of sport and was utterly pumped up. "Now that's what I call GUTS! I need to try harder too or else I'll be out-GUT-ted!"
Another one replied, "That's the most idiotic thing I've heard all day!"
Another retorted, "Like you're one to talk, sixth rate."
The girl who had shot out the deadly beams of light rebutted, "The fuck is with you and calling each of us by rank?"
The last guy responded, "It must be a habit of his to show his rank off so that no one would try to fight him. We all know Number 1 is a softie."
"Oh, fuck all of you!"
You would've laughed at the scene, because never in a million years would you have predicted this to ever happen—the seven Level 5s together in the same place and actually having an arguably friendly conversation—but since everything was literally blowing up, you chose to be the sensible one of the group and shouted, "Hey! You can go at each other's throats once we finish this! Now where the hell is Shokuhou and what's taking her so long?!"
All of a sudden, the robots you had been fighting stopped and fell onto the floor in a useless heap. You heard the distinct sound of a microphone being turned on before you heard a panting voice through the speakers, "How rude, Misaka-san. Do you... do you know how many flights of stairs I had to run up to get here?!"
You collapsed on your butt, finally relaxing when you heard the voice. You saw the others do the same thing, and you grinned. "I'm guessing three flights of stairs. That's not nearly enough to exhaust anyone."
"It was three and a half! And the hallways are long too!"
"You're just out of shape. Admit it!"
"Mou!"
You almost laughed at the whiny sound she made but you were too tired. Instead, a big grin settled on your face as you tried to regain your strength. This was only the main security. You still needed to go after that idiot who was going to confront the evil boss.
But before you could do anything, red lights suddenly flashed, and the girl behind the microphone stated in alarm, "The system was overridden! They're sending something to fight you. I can't stop it!"
As if on cue, the doors, that you had thought to be plain walls at the beginning, opened, releasing around fifty cyborgs.
You knew what they were and immediately felt dread. And for the first time in your life (and also probably due to being exposed to this little group of crazy espers), you cursed.
"Oh shit."
–
You've learned everything you could about Misaka Mikoto (yourself) from her (your) friends, but apparently, Misaka Mikoto (former you) kept a lot of things from them. For what reasons, you guessed they had to have been good enough because you thought (hoped) you were a good enough friend to them.
The loss of your memories was decided to be kept a secret between your most trusted friends and family. As it was, only your parents and your three closest friends knew about it. You still didn't understand why but everyone seemed to agree that it would be better that the knowledge was not made public.
You've met your other friends from Tokiwadai Middle School like Kongou-san, Wannai-san and Awatsuki-san, those from Sakugawa Middle School like Edasaki-san and Haruue-san, and even Shirai-san and Uiharu-san's senpai from Judgment, Konori-san. You guessed that you met all of them through your three friends so you were quite confused when an older girl with long brown hair wearing a frown slammed your door open one afternoon.
With her was a blonde guy that looked around her age and two girls, one that seemed as old as the first two with short black hair and one that seemed closer to your age with brown hair that was a little shorter than yours. A little girl with long blonde hair was also with them, and she instantly bounded up onto the foot of your bed, smiling brightly.
"Are you okay now, Onee-chan?" the little girl asked, her phone with a white beetle keychain on hand, "Mugino said you got hurt and we wanted to visit you. Essentially, Hamazura didn't let us until today! He said you were so tired that you've been sleeping for several days. But essentially, he's lying, right? I can never sleep that long!"
You were a bit too overwhelmed by the little girl's sudden questions that you couldn't utter an immediate reply. Thankfully, the blonde male interjected, saving you from answering. "Slow down, Fremea. According to the doctor, Misaka-san just woke up. Don't overwhelm her with so many questions."
The girl with black hair stepped in front of the blonde guy, an apathetic look on her face, and bowed to you in greeting, "We're glad you're alright now." She said with an equally apathetic voice.
You blinked, unsure of what else to say but stutter a soft, "T-thanks..."
"So I hear you got super messed up during the big fight." The shorter girl with a short brown bob of a hair piped up. She crossed her arms as she continued. "You did super great though. Even Mugino here admits that you did good, even though she's super unhappy about it."
The girl who had slammed your door glared at the shorter one, growling, "When did I say that, huh, Kinuhata?"
The blonde guy spoke next, "I thought you two were friends now, Mugino."
"When the fuck did I ever say that, huh?!"
Somehow, the four older people got into an argument that you were not able to follow. You could almost feel a sweat drop on your forehead at the utter ridiculousness of the conversation. In the midst of this, The little girl—Fremea, you recalled—spoke to you once again. "So can you go watch movies with us again?" The girl asked with a hopeful smile. "Essentially, we miss you!"
You tilted your head to the side in confusion, "'We'?"
She nodded her head. "That little kid Last Order and Kreutune, of course! There's this movie this weekend. Essentially, we wanted to watch it together!"
You tried to hide your confusion when you didn't recognize the names. 'Last Order'? The didn't sound like a name to you. And Kreutune? It sounded German. Though, that thought immediately made you wonder how you even knew that it sounded German. Did you like to watch German movies?
You shook your head a little at the ridiculous path your thoughts had gone into. At this, Fremea visibly saddened, and you realized that she must've thought that it was your answer. Not that you would say yes anyway, but you at least wanted to explain to her first why you couldn't.
"I'm sorry, Fremea, but the doctors told me I have to stay here for at least another week." The sad pout on her lips tugged at your heartstrings, and you couldn't help but put a reassuring hand on the top of her head in an attempt to comfort her. "Tell you what. I can't go this weekend but if the movie is still showing next weekend, I'll take you guys there. Popcorn and drinks will be on me."
Her face immediately brightened. "Really?"
You couldn't help but smile in return. "Really."
"You're really spoiling her, Misaka-san," the blonde boy chuckled. Apparently, their argument earlier had been settled while you and Fremea talked. "I didn't really believe it when Kamijou-san told me, but you really are a doting Onee-sama."
You blinked. "Kamijou-san?"
The girl with the long hair—Mugino, you thought—suddenly sent an elbow to his stomach, making him sputter for breath. She glared at him while the others didn't even seem to care that he was in pain. You frowned at this, feeling the tension build quickly.
Before the blonde guy could even recover, Mugino spoke. "Go." She said, jerking her head towards the door. "I need to talk to her in private."
The rest shared glances before dutifully exiting the room, all the while the blonde guy was rubbing his tummy. Even Fremea hopped off your bed to follow them, only to be stopped by Mugino when she asked for the little girl's white beetle keychain.
Once you two were alone, you waited for her to speak first. You weren't really sure who she was and she didn't seem to know that you'd lost your memories. Or maybe it was the others that didn't know and she merely kept it to herself. If that was the case, you felt even more nervous about this girl who had not stopped looking at you so intensely since the others left. You fiddled with your thumbs a little, averting your eyes to your lap in futile attempt to hide your unease.
But you didn't expect a third voice to suddenly ask. "Are you alright now, Misaka-san?"
Your head snapped up, looking around for the source of the voice. "Who...?" you mumbled in confusion. You had not felt anyone enter your room, much less see them in it. There were still only you and Mugino inside.
"Damn it." The other girl cursed. "With that reaction of yours my bet is that the doctor wasn't lying. You really did lose all your memories, didn't you?"
You frowned at her words. Somehow, this girl made it seem like an accusation, that you had made a huge mistake of letting yourself lose your memories. "What's it to you? Who are you anyway?"
She raised an eyebrow at your tone but didn't comment further on it. "I suppose you know who you are, right? That frog-faced doctor had told you that at least."
"Yes. Misaka Mikoto. Electromaster. Level 5. Supposed Number 3. Ace of Tokiwadai. Anything else I need to add to my list?" You said irritably. There was something about her that seemed to give you a bad vibe. Not just the fact that there was this constant beeping coming from her that you had tried to ignore since she came in, nor was it the fact that she was essentially part robot which fascinated you a little (though you'd never admit), but her mere presence set you on edge and you couldn't fathom why.
She snorted, tossing her hair to the side. "Did you lose that brain of yours too? Guess, Railgun. You're Number 3. None of your family and friends have mentioned me, and yet here I am talking to you. And I also know about your fucked up memories even though that knowledge was supposedly kept shut in a tight lid."
You stared at her, piecing together her words. Your eyes widened as you came to the realization. "You're... a Level 5?"
"The Number 4, Railgun. Mugino Shizuri, the Meltdowner." She told you, and you just sat there frozen. But then she added, "Huh. This is the first time I actually had to introduce myself."
You were still a little too shocked. The whole Seven Level 5s had already been a strange and almost magical concept to you, as if they were just myths and made up stories about fictional people. The fact that you were one was already hard to believe but realizing that another one was standing right in front of you made everything very real.
"N-number 4..." you mumbled in slight disbelief. You've heard how powerful Level 5s were but had thought that they were merely exaggerating. You, capable of facing an entire army by yourself? This girl, while only a little older than you were, had enough power to single-handedly destroy a whole city?
You settled on a single thought: Just how powerful are the seven Level 5s if they worked together?
Flashes of a battle came to your mind. Seven kids fighting an entire army of cyborgs. They were strong individually but together, they were unstoppable.
"Sorry," you let out a breath, putting a hand to your bandage covered forehead. You closed your eyes at the sudden assault of the vision (or was it memory? You didn't know). You rubbed your temples and willed the slight pain away, trying to focus back onto the subject at hand. "So you're a Level 5." You stated again, hoping that speaking it out loud would make it more believable to your mind. You had so many questions, but the first thing you asked was, "How come my friends never mentioned you when you know my condition? Were we...?"
"Friends?" She interjected with a snort. "Hell no. We worked together is all."
"Acquaintances would be the better term, yes." The male voice that you had almost forgotten about once again spoke, and again, you looked around for the speaker.
Mugino noticed what you were doing and sighed. "He's right here." She said, pointing at the white beetle keychain that you only noticed to be on the foot of your bed, right in front of her.
You frowned. "I don't understand. What do you—"
"I'm Kakine Teitoku. Number 2, if you will." The beetle's wings moved and from it, the voice came.
You recoiled in shock. "W-what the hell? Did that thing just—"
To your greater surprise, the beetle began to deform and then reform into a humanoid shape, this time into a boy that looked no older than Mugino. He was pure white, just like how the beetle was, and there was a smile on his face.
"It's nice to meet you again, Misaka-san, though I wish it was under better circumstances." The beetle—boy—no, Kakine—Number 2 said.
You just stared at them wide-eyes for a good ten seconds before saying, "Okay, this is too much. Just... give me a few moments to take this all in."
Mugino groaned loudly. "We didn't come here for that."
You glared at her for her very inconsiderate reaction. "Fine. Then what did you come here for? I find it hard to believe that you went all this way just to wish me well."
"We're indebted to you." Kakine replied.
Your brow rose at this. "What?"
"Look," Mugino said, "I hate to admit it but you saved our asses back there. You saved pretty much everyone in this city. We came here to say that even though we hate each other's guts, you can ask for our help if you ever need it again."
You thought about her words, curious now more than ever about what had happened that led you all to this. Hesitantly, you began, "I don't know what you're talking about but... can you tell me something?"
"If you're going to ask about what happened that day, then you'll be disappointed." Mugino shot you down before you could even ask. "That frog-faced doctor was very firm on letting you recover that part of your memory at your own time."
You felt irritation bubbling up inside you. "What's so different about that part of my memory? Why is it that you can tell me all these ridiculous stuff about espers and Level 5s but you can't tell me how I lost my memories? What's the deal?"
"It's for your well-being, Misaka-san." Kakine told you, "And it's not just a precaution for recovering your memories. It's to protect you as well."
"From what?" you demanded. You were becoming a little frustrated because, while people were allowed to tell you about yourself, the events that led to your memory loss was apparently forbidden. And while you were glad that you were relearning who you were, it didn't help much to lack understanding on how you became like this in the first place. And now, you apparently needed protection? "Is that the reason why my memory loss is being kept a secret?"
"You've made enemies." Kakine replied solemnly, "We're just trying to protect you from them while you don't know who you shouldn't trust."
"And I should trust you?" you retorted. You were tired of their vagueness. And you didn't want any protection from anyone. You just wanted to know who you were. "You haven't even done anything that gives me a reason to."
"You don't have to, brat, because we'll be keeping an eye on you anyway." Mugino snapped back in an irritated voice. You were starting to see why you two weren't friends. You two would sooner kill each other than have a peaceful conversation for long. "We're just telling you so you won't freak out if something happens. Less pain in our asses."
Your immediate response was to give her a deadpanned glare and say, "Gee, thanks," as dryly as you could.
Kakine offered a smile before turning back into a beetle—and scaring the living lights out of you again—and saying, "Then we'll be going. I hope you get well soon."
Mugino merely offered a curt nod before she turned her back on you and began walking towards the door with Beetle Kakine flying beside her.
But then, out of the blue, you remembered something—an off-handed comment that shouldn't have meant much to you but for some reason, it felt like it did more than anything—that the blonde guy earlier had said.
"Wait." You called to the two Level 5s, and they stopped to look at you. Hesitantly, you asked, "Who's Kamijou-san?"
The two shared a look and despite one of them being a beetle, the action resembled the way your friends had glanced at each other the day before when your attention had been taken by the disappearing door in your senses. Something began to sit on your stomach, a feeling that the person you were asking about and the incident with your friends were related.
After a moment, Mugino looked back at you and replied dismissively, "It's no one you should worry about."
You were getting tired of the secrets, but you knew they wouldn't say anything. So instead, you swallowed your questions and nodded, looking at your hands on your lap as you said a hollow, "Okay."
They left without another word.
Author's Notes:
I really hope you at least have a vague idea of who had been talking in the flashback because it's been so long since I wrote this chapter that I forgot XD I think i pinned the dialogues down correctly though, after reading it three times that is XD Also, I'm terrible at explaining appearances. I'm really sorry about that. The POV kinda kicked me in the butt with this one since Mikoto didn't know any of them hahaha it's hard not to use their names so next chapter was easier... i think?
this chapter is a few hundred words longer than the last one... well, don't expect this to be a trend. I think the next chapter is a little shorter? i'll have to do a word count. But yeah, some chapters would be short and some would be extremely long XD
By the way, because of Digimon Tri. I got back into my original fandom Digimon Frontier. I think I got way too hyped for Tri. it was meh for me but if you've watched it, what was your reaction? I was just glad Koushiro and Mimi seems to be the ship XDDD Koumi ftw! And someone help me get Vindex101 to finish his fic. He's been neglecting it and i wanted to see some Mikoto and Othinus interaction. They would be hilarious XD
and no one guessed this chapter right D: well, it was very vague. I wouldn't know it would be Mugino and Kakine either XD and if anyone ever gets the character right, i think it would be fair to send that person a snippet of the next chapter, yeah? a little reward for participating in my silly game i guess X3
Next Chapter: IV. Sit with Me for a Moment
You have an idea who the next character would be? Send me a review or just your thoughts. I'd be happy to have feedback :D
And if you liked this story, you can share it to your friends or if you didn't share it to your enemies! as a means of torture that is XD
Thank you for reading, and I'll see you next time! :D
~~61wisampa
