Chapter 13; The Test

They arrived at the IISA base within short order, so quickly that Maylin wondered why they had to take a plane at all. When she asked Tatenashi, she replied, "Well, I had just returned from an inspection of our North American base, and I didn't want to leave one of our few planes behind. We needed to get to the base, so I figured why not use it?" "That seems rather…lazy," Maylin commented, smirking as the woman pouted at her. "Hey, it's bad enough that your father pokes fun at me," she protested. "And from what he's told me about all the trouble you got him into, you probably deserve it," Maylin retorted, causing them both to laugh.

As they got off the plane, a man wearing the IISA uniform, a dark maroon with black and dark blue trim, was waiting for them with a tablet in hand. "It's good to have you back, Ms. Sarashi-" he began before she vaulted off the bottom stair and tackle-hugged him, sending him stumbling back a few steps. "Oh, I missed you, Kenny!" she exclaimed, rubbing her cheek on his chest while he just sighed. "Please, ma'am, control yourself!" he said, surprisingly calm as he pried her arms from around him, causing her to puff her cheeks in annoyance. Maylin and the others just watched in amusement and shock as this unfolded.

"But I've been gone so long!" she protested, "I didn't get to see my dear Kenny for so long, so how can I control myself now?" "Because your job comes first, ma'am," he replied, stone-faced. "What the heck is going on?" Erin asked, trying to figure out how someone so much older than them could act so much younger. "Oh, that's right! I should introduce you properly," Tatenashi said, grabbing the man's arm, "This is Kevin Alderman, my assistant and the man who's going to fall for me. Kenny, these are the students I told you about." Looking at the kids, Kevin couldn't help but sigh. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he asked, "Ma'am, was it really necessary to bring children here? We have enough personnel on hand already."

"And as I told you on my way here, we can't underestimate these things," she replied, finally looking serious, "And these kids have already survived one battle with them, which makes them more experienced than all of our personnel combined. Now, can you please take them to my sister?" While Kevin looked reluctant, he nodded before motioning that they all follow him. After they had made it a safe distance from the hanger, he told them, "I apologize for my boss' behavior. She can be...difficult sometimes, but she's still a very capable person."

"So, what was that about you falling for her?" Karen asked, smirking as the man sighed again. "I'd rather not talk about it," he replied as he led them to another hanger. This one had been set aside as the IS repair bay, and inside there were several teams working on various projects, one of which was a partially disassembled IS suit. However, while the other projects had teams of three and four people working on them, the IS had all of one person working on it. This woman was currently bent over one of the wings, which she had laid flat on a table before taking it apart down to the frame. Her light-blue hair stood out among the metal, and for a moment Maylin thought that Tatenashi had beaten them to the hanger.

"Ms. Sarashiki? I've brought you your new recruits," Kevin said, causing her to look over her shoulder. The second Maylin saw the large hair pins, she recognized this as the woman that had visited her father a while back. Reaching for a rag, she put her tools aside before whipping her hands off. "Thank you, Kevin," she replied, smiling, "You can return to your duties, I'm sure my sister has need of you." while he didn't look too happy about the prospect of being smothered by the elder Sarashiki, he nodded before heading back out the door. "Now then, let's see what we have here," she said as she snapped her fingers, causing a holo screen to appear in front of her. With a few quick gestures she brought up the personnel files that Tatenashi had filed in regards to the kids before frowning.

They had apparently been accepted under a temporary role, and she had been assigned as their team leader. She had also been asked to evaluate their skills as individuals and as a team. Snapping her fingers again to dismiss the screen, she looked back at the kids standing before her. The two girls seemed attentive, as did two of the boys. The silver haired one, however, was looking away like he couldn't care less. Probably the self-centered type she thought, smiling slightly, we'll see how long that lasts. "Alright, I am Kanzashi Sarashiki, chief technician for the IISA," she told them, "And it seems that I've been made your commanding officer while you're here. So, get changed and meet me at the training grounds in 15 minutes."

"Why?" Ludzik asked, finally looking at her. "Because I said so," she replied, without hesitation, "So, get to it." Without another word, she turned and walked off to one of the side rooms to prepare herself. Looking at her friends, Maylin saw them all hesitate, uncertain as to where to go. "Come on, guys, it can't be that hard to find," she said, turning and heading out of the hanger, "Look, it's got to be that large building over there, right?" Pointing at what obviously looked like a stadium, she began walking in its direction while forcing the others to make up their minds whether to follow her or not. Which they did, with varying levels of enthusiasm. While they walked, Erin couldn't help but marvel at the change Maylin was undergoing. Before, she had been soft spoken and rather reserved, even with her friends. Now, she was much more assertive, and he could see her taking to a leadership role naturally. I can only imagine what Madoka and Anna would say if they could see her now he thought, smiling.


Pain. That's what she felt as she started to drift back to consciousness; a never-ending ache that seemed to have settled into her very bones. She also couldn't move, her limbs felt like they were made from lead. On top of which, now that she was becoming more aware of herself she found that it was rather uncomfortable just to breathe. What happened to me she wondered as she struggled up and out of the black sea. Finally, she cracked her eyes open and was immediately blinded by a white light.

After blinking a few times, her eyes had adjusted enough to focus on the florescent light above her. Turning her head ever so slowly, she saw all manner of medical machines next to her, peeping and whirling away as they worked to keep her alive and in relative comfort. How bad did I get hurt she wondered as she struggled to move her arms. Only her left one would respond, slowly rising before she felt something tug at her forearm. And it hurt. Looking down, she saw an IV tapped to her and realized where the pain had come from. It was also this movement that grabbed the attention of the nurse that had entered the room to check on her. Walking quickly to her side, she grabbed her hand and slowly eased it back down before leaning over her and studying her.

"You're awake," she said, smiling in relief, "You need to remain still, you're nowhere near well enough to be moving around yet." For some reason, her voice was muffled, but she could make out enough to know that she was just being kind. The nurse released her hand before walking away with a purpose, calling for a doctor to come and check on her properly. He was an older man, but he had a kind face and he moved slowly and gently, testing each of her limbs for feeling while asked her to simply nod if she felt it.

Right after he had finished that test, she heard what she assumed to be the door opening and two sets of footsteps quickly making their way to her bed. Turning her head so she could focus, the first thing she saw was a woman with brown hair tied back in a long pony tail. I know her she thought as she struggled to remember. The woman reached down and caressed her face, her eyes swimming in tears of joy as she smiled and said, "Madoka…"

Mom Madoka realized, feeling her own eyes starting to mist up. Just behind Houki, Ichika was watching them while trying to keep his composure. "Welcome back, sweetie," he said, whipping the tears out of one of his eyes. He then walked to the other side of her bed and took her hand while Houki leaned down and kissed her forehead. "I'm so glad you're awake," she said as she looked at her daughter, so overjoyed that she was almost at a loss for words. After a few moments, the doctor walked over and motioned that follow him out of the room. After he had closed the door behind them, he turned and said, "Her recovery is quite extraordinary. I expect her to be able to move around by tomorrow, though she will still need to stay in bed."

"That's wonderful," Houki said, still riding a wave of happiness. "I only wish it were so simple," the doctor replied, getting confused looks, "To be perfectly honest, she shouldn't have woken up for another day or two." "Maybe she's stronger than you think," Ichika offered, "She is our daughter, after all." "It's not just that. Her vitals are much stronger than I would have expected," he replied, taking his glasses off and rubbing his eyes, "On top of that, she showed no signs of serious pain when I moved her arms and legs. And with the beating she took, even with the medication we have her on, that also shouldn't be possible. I'm at a loss to explain it, but somehow she's recovering faster than should be possible."

With nothing else for them, he returned to his duties while Ichika and Houki looked at each other in confusion. "She's recovering faster…" Houki said, looking thoughtful. "That could just mean that she's better off than they thought," Ichika told her, trying to remain positive, "I mean, they can make mistakes, right?" "Maybe…," Houki replied, "Or it could be something else." Realizing something, she turned and walked off, leaving her husband to stare at her in confusion. Why should it matter how she got better he wondered as he turned back to look through the window at Madoka.

Meanwhile, Tabane was up in her temporary lab that she had set up after they had arrived at the mainland. It didn't have half of the equipment that her lab on the island had possessed, but it was sufficient for her purposes. Annabelle was sitting on an examination table, trying not to feel too self-conscious about having her stump exposed like it was. It hadn't even finished healing properly, but Tabane had told her that she had needed to take some readings before she started designing the arm. As such, she had placed several sensors on Anna's head and arm before asking her to think about specific things. She had just finished up and removed them, allowing the girl to roller her sleeve back down, when Houki came barging into the room looking determined about something.

"Well, this is a surprise," Tabane said, smiling warmly, "To what do I owe the pleasure, Ho-chan?" "Cut the crap, Tabane," Houki replied, crossing her arms and glaring at her, "My daughter just pulled off a recovery that the doctors claim is impossible. Care to explain?" "Maybe they made a mistake?" she offered, tilting her head in confusion, "Honestly, I don't know why you would suspect little old me of doing something." "Because you usually do," Houki said, her gaze not wavering an inch, "Spill it; what did you do."

Lowering her head in defeat, Tabane walked over and picked up one of the devices on a nearby table. It was roughly the size and shape of a dinner plate and held a crystal in its center. "This is the reason," Tabane told her, looking guilty about the deception, "I wanted to use it sooner but the doctors refused, saying that it was too dangerous to use something they hadn't tested yet." "You used experimental technology on my daughter?" Houki demanded, taking a step forward and barely keeping her voice down. "Of course not!" Tabane replied, holding it up higher, "I tested it thoroughly, on everything from single-celled organisms to chimps. It's proven to work properly and safely, they just didn't want to listen."

"Let me guess, you brought it in and paraded it around as a 'savior to all their ills,' didn't you?" Houki asked, knowing how her sister liked to brag about her new inventions. Tabane just smiled sweetly and said, "What, me? Why would I ever show off like that?" Anna, meanwhile, watched the two women and tried hard not to laugh at their interaction. The way they could read each other and annoy each other proved beyond a doubt that they were siblings, and for a moment she felt lonely as she thought of her own brother. She was pulled from those thoughts when Houki spoke again.

"So, what does it do?" she asked, looking at the device properly for once. "It generates a localized energy field that promotes and accelerates cell growth," Tabane explained, knowing that her sister had no interest in the actual science behind it, "And before you ask; no, there's no chance of runaway cell growth and cancers. I made sure that the energy dissipates in a short period of time." "So, you regenerated her injuries?" Houki asked, impressed. "It's still not complete," Tabane admitted as she put it down, "I could only use it to fix the serious injuries to her brain and nervous system. She would need more treatments before she recovered enough to sit up, let alone walk again. I also need a better power supply; the device only has two or three uses before it has to recharge."

"But you can heal her, right?" Houki asked, hope in her eyes. When Tabane nodded, Houki walked forward quickly and hugged her, whispering, "Thank you." Her important business taken care of, Houki stepped back and finally noticed that Anna was in the room. "What are you doing here?" she asked, sounding worried and annoyed, "You shouldn't be anywhere near well enough to get out of bed." "I've taken worse beatings than this," Anna said, flexing her one arm to prove her point, "And besides, Ms. Shino here is going to help me get better." "Ms. Shino?" Houki asked, quirking an eyebrow and looking at her sister. "I found it easier than saying her full name," Anna responded, "She gets to nickname everyone, so why shouldn't she have one, too?"

"So, what are you going to do?" Houki asked, turning to Tabane. "Make her a new arm," she replied simply as she walked over to her station and started typing. "Hold on, you're going to do what?" Houki asked, her brain coming to a full stop. She had never known her sister to take much interest in medical science, and now she had created a healing device and was about to build someone a prosthetic. "Are you sure you know what you're doing?" she asked, just to be sure. Tabane just smiled at her as she brought up her initial blueprints on a nearby screen. "I think I know what I'm doing, Ho-chan," she replied. When the other two girls examined the arm, they saw that it was surprisingly like the limb of an IS.


Maylin and the others were able to find their way into the arena with no problems. After she had changed and stored her clothes in a spare locker, Maylin took a moment to lean against it and collect her thoughts. I'm going to do this she vowed, clenching her necklace, I'm not going to be some weak, frightened child that asks others to fight for her. I'm going to be better than that.

Well, at least you have the right mind set 134 commented, and by the way, I won't step in on this one. So feel free to cut loose, girl.

I have a name, buddy she growled as she turned and left the locker room.

I know he replied, sounding like he had one of the smuggest smiles on his face, and maybe if you do well during this fight, I'll remember to use it next time.

Sighing, Maylin decided to just leave it be. If her AI was determined to be difficult, then there was little she could do without risking damage to her IS. As she walked out into the hallway, Karen pushed herself off from where she had been leaning on the wall and followed her as they made their way out to the field. "So, you sure you're okay to do this?" Karen asked, concerned about a repeat of the last time. "I'm sure," Maylin replied, "134 gave his word that he wouldn't step in like that. And even if he did try, I wouldn't let him." She had to ignore the snort from 134 as they walked out to the grounds, meeting with the boys.

For a moment, she wasn't sure why Joshka and Erin seemed to be so embarrassed. Then she looked over at Kanzashi and immediately understood. While she didn't possess the same volume as her sister did in certain places, she was still a very lovely woman and the IS suit only served to highlight that. Walking up to them, Karen lightly smacked their heads while saying, "Oh, grow up, boys." Without another word, she summoned her IS before squaring off against the older woman. They all followed suit, although Joshka still seemed rather flustered.

"Well then, shall we begin?" Kanzashi asked as her own machine materialized. Unlike its earlier design, this one sported an extra pair of missile cells on its wings, as well as a spear in her hands. Twirling it around several times, she charged them suddenly and lashed out at Karen and Maylin. Before she could hit home, Ludzik moved between them and blocked her attack, giving everyone else time to scatter. Joshka dematerialized his rifle in favor of his Rapier and tried to land a blow on Kanzashi from behind, but she just flipped over Ludzik before kicking the stunned Russian into the boy, sending them both sprawling on the ground.

Once she had moved clear of them, Maylin and Erin opened fire with Karen lobbing a wave of missiles. Dodging the beams, Kanzashi took a moment to analyze the missile attack before she launched her own. Believing that she was trying to hit them, the three scattered before staring in amazement as Kanzashi's missiles tracked and impacted Karen's, creating a sphere of explosions and smoke around her. Before they could truly recover from the shock, a second wave of missiles streaked out of the cloud and swarmed the teens. Maylin switched her rifle to full auto before trying to shoot them all down while Karen deployed flares and weaved further up into the sky. Erin, however, was too close to the cloud and didn't have a chance. Almost a dozen of them struck and tore his shields apart, dropping him to 0 and leaving him defeated.

Maylin succeeded in intercepting all but two of them, and she grit her teeth as they impacted and rocked her inside the suit. By this point, Joshka and Ludzik have gotten back on their feet and they charged Kanzashi again. She just smiled and shook her head, pitying their single-mindedness. They swung and lunged at her chaotically, their attacks obvious and uncoordinated. This allowed her to block their attacks with contemptuous ease, her spear flipping and twirling around as she kept it in one fluid motion. She could tell from their expressions that this was just frustrating them further.

Finally, Ludzik had had enough and powered up his sword, the blade splitting down its center in preparation. Now this should be interesting Kanzashi thought. As she watched the energy blade materialize. Swinging in a wide arc, he tried to hit her midsection. Instead, she leaped and back flipped over the attack, letting it continue on into Joshka's stomach. The blow sent him into the wall and drained almost all of his shields, as well as leaving him short of breath and disoriented. "What the hell, Ludzik?" Karen demanded as she closed in on Kanzashi, "Watch what you're doing!" "He shouldn't have been in my way!" he retorted as he lashed out with the blade again.

Sidestepping the second slash, Kanzashi sent a wave of missiles up and Karen to distract her as she closed on Ludzik. Realizing his mistake, he tried to power the blade down in time to stop her but failed. Her shoulder slammed into his chest and knocked the wind from him, sending him skidding and flipping across the ground. Turning to face Maylin and Erin, she brought her spear around before holding out her open hand and arched her finger at them, daring them to attack. As Karen floated closer to Maylin, they looked at each other in concern.

"You have any bright ideas?" Karen asked as she readied a mixed load of missiles. She was hoping that if she used a combination of smoke, sidewinder and conventional ones she might score a hit. Maylin, meanwhile, had activated a part of her Command Link and had the stats of her 'team' displayed on a screen in front of her. Erin was down and out, with Joshka just barely holding on at 22% of his shields. Ludzik still had a little over half of his, but his weapon energy was dangerously low after his last attack. As it stood, she and Karen were the only ones that could still fight reasonably.

She was pulled from these thoughts when she heard Karen shout, "Watch out!" Looking up, she saw that Kanzashi had launched a massive second wave of missiles. Deploy her bits, Maylin tried to intercept as many of them as she could while Karen launched her counter attack. Kanzashi, seeing this, redirected some of her missiles to intercept. She was surprised when several of them exploded in a large smoke screen, allowing the real threats to penetrate her defenses and come straight for her. Sensing moving behind her, she sidestepped as Ludzik tried to bring his sword down from behind. Activating her flight systems, she soared up and away as she watched Karen's attack continue on its way.

Ludzik looked at her briefly in annoyance before the missile attack slammed into him, engulfing him in a cloud of smoke and fire. Flying up and over her smoke screen, Karen expected to see her attack hit Kanzashi. Instead, she saw the woman flying slowly away as Ludzik emerged from the cloud of smoke, dropping to his knees as his IS destructed around him, its shields drained. Landing a few feet away from the boy, Kanzashi just sighed in disappointment before bringing up her coms. "Alright, that's enough," she said as she noticed Joshka was preparing to attack her again, "I've seen all I need to see."

Without giving them a moment to argue, she destructed her IS before walking over and helping Ludzik to his feet. As the others gather around her, she tried not to let Ludzik's attitude about losing get to her. The boy is used to being the best she thought, smiling sadly, he's going to have a tough time ahead if that doesn't change. Looking at them, she took a moment to organize her thoughts. "I'm sure you're all aware of how poorly you just did," she began, looking form one face to the other, "If this had been a real test to see if you were ready to join us, then you would have all failed spectacularly. You didn't show any tactical thinking or planning, instead choosing to rush in and attack at will. In fact, two of you caused the downfall of your own teammates, and that is something that I will not allow. As it stands, I can't recommend you for active duty."

Giving them a few moments to absorb what she had aid, she allowed her look and voice to soften. "But you have real potential," she continued, smiling slightly, "You are all marvelous pilots as individuals. But we need teams, not a group of loose cannons. Work on that, and I don't think there will be much of anything that can stop you." Looking at her friends, Maylin could see that they were all starting to fall into varying pits of depression. She hadn't realized it until now, but they had all been riding a high from their first real battle with the human IS. And now they had just been shown how little they were really capable of. Talk about pulling the rug out from under us she thought gloomily.

If you're going to let it bother you so much, why not change it? 134 asked, giving her an idea.

"What if we get better?" Maylin asked, stepping forward, "Would you permit us to fight then?" "You'd have to prove to me that you are better," Kanzashi replied, "And I think you all know what that would mean." "I do," she replied. Her features hardening into a look of determination, Maylin turned around and pointed at Joshka, Ludzik and Erin. "Alright you three, get your IS back out here," she said, "We have work to do." "And why would I listen to you?" Ludzik asked, crossing his arms. Summoning her IS, Karen walked up behind him and lightly smacked his head. "Stop pouting and do what the lady says," she told him, smiling as he glared at her. He complied, however, and soon he was hooked up to a charging station along with the other boys.

Marveling at Maylin's actions, Kanzashi turned and left. She knew that they would need time to work through their issues as a team, and that it was something that they should do alone. As she left the stadium, her phone buzzed in her pocket. As she brought it out, she saw that it was her sister. Hitting the answer button she brought it up and said, "Hey, sis, what is it? Hey, slow down and speak clearly. What happened? What do you mean Laura's team is down?"

Maylin and her friends take their first steps towards becoming stronger, while the friends she left behind struggle to recover and catch up. What happened to Laura and her team? Can Maylin and her friends become strong enough in time to make a difference? Till the next chapter.

You know, it's always so much fun watching people get taken down a peg or two, and I can tell you that's exactly what happened with Maylin's little group. Look forward to seeing how much they grow.