Part 1
In order to open the door to his dorm apartment, Kamijou Touma had to gently place the girl in his arms onto the ground, sitting upright and leaning against the wall.
Unable to call ahead, as his cell phone battery was somehow damaged—possibly during the fray with Misaka Mikoto—Touma now had to personally check if his roommate was still in or gallivanting around the city in search of food, fun and food.
Not necessarily in that order.
The fatigued but otherwise uninjured short-haired Sister, also known as Misaka Jun, stayed close to the other girl as Touma unlocked and pushed open the door.
That was when he found himself in foreign occupied territory.
It was by sheer luck that he wasn't still carrying the unconscious long haired Sister in his arms, as when he stepped into his dormitory room there were four girls awaiting his arrival.
Standing in the middle of the apartment dorm was a maid, a nun, a teacher and a shrine priestess.
Touma was afraid of the punch line.
"What's…going on?"
"Since Misaka Jun didn't have a place of residence, I thought that she'd be able to stay with Himegami instead of here with you and your Sister…friend…" The teacher said while standing on the right of the formation.
Index took no notice of this ambiguous statement as she seemed more focused as the middle of this eclectic gathering in Touma's apartment.
"Ok…" the teen conceded with a sigh. "That explains why Aisa is here, but not you, Komoe."
"Ah!" the small woman squeaked "e-even if we're not in school you should still call on your teacher in the proper manner, Mr. Kamijou!"
'That doesn't answer my question at all!' Touma sighed.
"Let me explain!" The maid standing in the left of the formation stepped forward with her demure chest puffed out.
"Since apparently Misaka's sister decided to moved in here, Index and I have been going over the state of affairs…"
"No that's not right; I've been trying to get her to live elsewhere..."
"...and it seems that the only way to stop your womanizing ways from getting any further out of hand is to reveal ourselves."
"Right!" The silver haired nun pumped her fist into the air as though at a political rally.
"My 'what'? Reveal 'what'?"
"You see,"
"We're the…"
"Convention of Sisters!" "Sister League!"
Maika broke out of the symmetrical pose that she and Index had been doing and stomped her foot.
"What? I've been telling you since our first meeting, Index, we're the Sister League!"
Index spun to face Maika beside her.
"Eh! But I thought your saying 'just do anything you want' our last meeting meant that you agreed to be part of the Convention of Sisters!"
"Don't you understand what sarcasm is? Maa…" the maid shook her head and placed her hands on her hips.
"EH? SISTERS? Then why did you call me here? I'm not a sister!" the pink haired teacher exclaimed at this revelation.
"That may be," Maika continued in a boastful voice, "but you give off the feeling of a sister, and you also bring balance to the rest of our group, Ms. Tsukiyomi!"
"Oh…" the pink haired teacher seemed to come to terms with this explanation. Looking between the other members of this ad hoc group though, Komoe quickly noticed more than just the heights of the girls on either side of her was similar. "EH? Hey!"
"This is the first I've heard about you guys being part of a group…" the tallest of the four frowned from behind the three other girls.
"It never really came up, sorry!"
"Maika! We're the Convention of Sisters since I'm the only 'Sister' here, so…that means I get to choose!"
"What do you think I am then?"
"A step-sister, which isn't a real si-"
"Tsk…IT'S IN THE NAME, ISN'T IT?"
"You know…I'm not a sister or a Sister, so…"
"Does it have to be the literal definition of 'sister'? How about if it was more like, how 'all girls are part of a Sisterhood'?"
"Fine! You're sister-like, Komoe! Also I came up with the idea to create a League not a Convention, Index, and if we use such a broad meaning Aisa, then we don't stand a chance against Misaka's sister at all!"
"CONVENTION! OF! SISTERS!"
"But I'm not a…"
"Can't you just…"
It seemed that Tsuchimikado Maika, as the self-appointed leader of the rabble of girls, now found herself beset on all sides by the others disgruntled by her decisions.
While all this was happening, Touma hung his head in reaction to this state of affairs of what his life had become.
"Such…misfortune…" he sighed.
Peering into the apartment from overhearing the confrontation, Misaka Jun had a thought.
"…" The girl, jumping at this opportunity, stepped closer to the now depressed teenager.
"There, there' Misaka says while comforting you with three head pats."
"Oi! Short-hair's sister! What do you think you're doing?" Index hollered over the other girls, thus sending all eyes onto the Sister.
"Geh! It's Mikoto's sister?" Maika quickly rushed toward the brunette, looking over the girl wearing the blue high school uniform. "…wait…you look like her, but you're not Kate though, are you?"
Before the Sister could respond, Maika's eyes turn over toward the unconscious long-haired girl sitting on the ground outside of the room.
"Whoa!" She screamed out, attracting the other girls to her side.
Effectively pushed out of the apartment at this point, Touma sought more space just outside of the group of girls now gathered at the entryway.
"Let's get her to a bed! Help me get her inside!" Maika yelled, putting in effort along with Komoe to move the unconscious girl into the apartment.
"Uh…my apartment's over here…" Touma offered his opinion, getting two sets of glares in return.
"Of course." Maika offered a polite smile. "But I'd be damned to hand her over to you, you know…"
The girls all huddled into a defensive formation and moved as one away from the spiky-headed teen.
As they came close to the apartment next over the door opened as a blond, sunglasses-wearing teen stepped out.
"Hey Maika, you forgot your handcuffs for that thing you and the girls wanted to do to Kami-yan…Oh! Who's this?" He exclaimed upon seeing his step-sister and teacher carry in the unconscious girl.
"Move it!" the diminutive maid barked out and the girls including Misaka Jun who was dragged by the group, disappeared into the Tsuchimikado apartment.
The boys glanced at each other, both feeling the coldness that came from being shunned.
"…you wanna talk this over at your place, nya?"
"Sure…"
Part 2
Wearing his trademark mischievous smile, Tsuchimikado Motoharu took a seat on the bed further into the apartment.
Closing the door behind him, Touma doubted that this particular Tsuchimikado really needed to be briefed on anything that happened to him. Considering how the blond more likely than not knew everything that was happening in and outside of Academy City, Science or Magic related.
Despite being a Level 0 idiot of the "Delta Force" like Touma, Tsuchimikado was also a magician and member of the English Puritan group Necessarius. Of course, he was also a part of any number of groups in addition, of which Touma couldn't really bother to fathom.
Whether it involved varying factions that sought to sneak into Academy City or knowing troublesome actions taking place in Europe, the blond teen knew such things and more.
Nonetheless Touma decided to explain to him the exact events of the confrontation from how he bumped into the Sister to how Misaka Jun fainted after the long-haired Sister spoke in code.
Touma decided to leave out the part where Misaka Jun was living with him and Index and the altercation between him and Misaka Mikoto just before he ran into the long-haired Sister.
It was a fortunate but mildly disturbing thought to realize that he already knew about the Sisters, prompting questions in Touma's mind like always whenever such events happened just how much detail Tsuchimikado was privy to but kept to himself unless it directly involved him in some way.
Letting out a loud sigh, Touma flopped listlessly onto the floor near the bed, turning his head over on its side without fear of seeming rude.
The blond haired spy amongst spies adjusted his position atop the bed.
"So do you know anything about that long-haired Sister?"
"Oh, taking the initiative during our talks, Kami-yan? In any case, it seems you got yourself stuck into quite a jam!"
"Tell me about it…"
"Well, I normally would if I weren't already on a mission."
"You're on a mission?" Touma asked, forgetting for a moment his question.
Hearing this he sat up properly and looked at the other teen.
Touma could never know exactly who the sunglasses-wearing teen was working for at any given time.
"Yeah, yeah…" the teen smiled. "Since we're such good friends, I feel like treating you by saying that it actually has to do with your recent addition to your harem, nya!"
"Tsk, I don't have a…"
As the walls between the apartments were thin, the two teens sitting in silence could easily hear the continuing bickering going on next door.
"Now spill it, short-hair's sister! Have you been eating my food while I was out?"
"Index…that's not what we're interrogating her for…"
"We shouldn't be interrogating her at all! Sister, please stop bullying my student!"
"I don't like how this girl also has long hair…maybe our characters will overlap…?"
"So back to your question," Tsuchimikado's tone turned serious, trying to get Touma's utmost attention back now.
But after hearing this, Touma couldn't finish his rebuttal once he thought about it.
Next door was a group of girls, all of whom he was acquainted with, who had formed a sort of coalition against his supposed womanizing ways.
He complained about being beaten up by girls all the time, but now that he thought about it…that wasn't normal to be always surrounded by girls, was it?
"Gh! Am…am I one of those whiny oblivious main characters they have on anime now!"
Despite his realization, he still couldn't admit out loud what that group of girls was to him.
He dropped his head into his hands and tried to shake off the thought as though it were dirty water in his hair.
"No, you're just misfortunate. Besides, why would you think you're the main character of anything, Kami-yan?" Tsuchimikado said passive-aggressively.
"That's true…"
There was no way in hell he would admit to Touma about his situation.
Even if he had Maika, Tsuchimikado was still a teen full of fantasies and wishes.
While it would seem like a good idea in order to end his and other guys' frustrations of envy, there was a sort of poetry about mistaking heaven for hell.
Even more so, helping Touma get over his obliviousness would not only hurt on a personal level, but such an action would also probably end an era.
"That girl you found had a protection spell around her that prevents detection."
Touma's thoughts we're steered back after the involvement of magic was mentioned.
"From what I could tell when she passed by me, the traces leftover are similar to the spell 'Chaos and Calm on the Surface', the one Oriana Thompson used."
Oriana Thompson, a formidable magician in her own right, was someone who was able to fight evenly with Touma, Tsuchimikado and Styl Magnus as her opponents.
A magical courier who was an expert at running and hiding hired by Lidovia Lorenzetti when she attempted to use the Croce de Pietro to place Academy City under the Vatican's—the head of the Roman Catholic Church—control.
"It's possible that Index might've noticed it too, but I think my erasing was pretty good when Maika and Komoe brought the girl into my apartment. But also because of that, we won't be able to find where the source of the spell is."
"That's okay." Touma sighed at their loss of a great lead.
It was Tsuchimikado after all who managed to track Oriana's movements, known in the Magical World as "Route Distrub" during the Daihasei sports festival.
"But not being able to be detected…she was plenty noticeable to me." Touma responded with a frown when he remembered the girl's strangeness even amongst the other Sisters. "And unlike Oriana, who snuck in amidst the Daihasei crowd, this Sister said she flew in by plane."
"Being noticed and being detected are two different things, nya." Tsuchimikado said easily. "Think of it as this, Kami-yan. You're walking within a crowd, let's take the Daihasei for example, and you're able to spot someone suspicious. However, when they disappear into the crowd, you forget that you ever saw any suspicious people.
"Now take that same crowd situation, and you're looking for someone. Even if knew what they looked like, what they wore or even how they walked, if you had an overhead view of the crowd and as much time needed to review the security tapes or lots of other people looking out for the same person, you won't be able to find that person unless they were acting out and attracting attention to themselves.
"So unlike Oriana's spell, that let her presence stay anonymous to anyone who saw or met her, or in other words keep her from being noticed, this spell was strictly made to avoid surveillance, or in other words, keep from being detected."
Touma thought about the different scenarios and the different needs that were particular of using the spell.
Oriana didn't want to seem to be out of place during the Daihasei, but no one was actually pursuing her so simply not being noticed was a spell that was efficient for her plan.
The Sister was being pursued, so the spell was aimed at hiding her and keeping her from being found by anyone after her, so not being detected by any means was important.
"Up until you put your hand on her shoulder, she didn't appear on any cameras and I'd bet she couldn't even be sensed by any sort of detection magic. So with that in mind, one could say that she still snuck in 'through the front' since she couldn't be detected. Similar to how Oriana did.
"The main clue is that while Oriana had the benefit of anonymity while she looked like she was sneaking the Croce de Pietro through Academy City, the Sister was either aware or whoever put the spell on the Sister knew that she would be looked for."
"But that doesn't make sense. As a Sister, she's part of the Science side already, isn't she? Why would she be using magic to sneak into Academy City? Since Academy City is comprised of ESPers and others part of the Science Side. Instead wouldn't it have to be some sort of technology that avoids satellite or other electronic detection?"
"That's exactly what I've been trying to figure out myself."
The blond spy leaned back onto his chair with his arm resting on the top of the backrest. "I've confirmed that the spell is one that is controlled remotely, but the question is who was controlling it.
Like Oriana's spell, which Touma had dispersed when he came into contact with her, the Sister's spell that prevented her detection was also destroyed by his right hand. Oriana, who specialized in escaping her pursuers, had set up a number of spells remotely throughout Academy City during the Daihasei festival.
"At the same time, there so far doesn't seem to be anything amiss with the Sisters that are currently in Academy City. They were affected by the confrontation to be sure, but they're all accounted for."
Touma's mind went back to how the Sister with the heart necklace, 10032—no, Jun, had suddenly collapsed after the other Sister seemed to speak in code.
"Zero!"
"Hmm?" Tsuchimikado raised his eyebrow.
"When she acted more like a Sister, I remember her mention 10032, and that's one of the Misaka clone serial numberes, but just after that the long-haired Sister started speaking in code, like a computer…uh…I think I remember hearing her also say 'one'….'zero'…a 'two' I think? Uh, that's all I can remember…"
"That's some pretty useless information, Kami-yan…"
"Shut up."
"Well like I already said, Academy City has already been in the process of checking on all of the Sisters that have been sent all over the world. So far there haven't been any traceable signs of funny business going on, but if that girl is in fact a Sister that's gone rogue, then it's important to figure out what her Model name is.
"Ironically, even with as advanced as Academy City is, it's going to take some time since the many institutions around the world where the other Sisters were sent aren't as high tech.
"There are also other ways to check, like waiting for her to wake up or even taking her in and probing her mind to find it manually. Of course, the clone could always turn hostile again when she wakes up or there might be some sort of security protocol waiting for someone to delve into her head."
Touma tightened his fists at the thought of subjecting anyone to such means, even if it just meant hooking up to a Testament.
It was something that Tsuchimikado easily noticed but didn't show that he did.
"Still the first question that has to be answered is why as a Sister, she had magic cast on her without any damaging effects for so long."
"…" Touma didn't know either.
Part 3
"As it is now, there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with Last Order. Nor have there been any signs of damage amongst the Network."
The Frog faced doctor, without needing to refer to his clipboard, provided his diagnosis with the utmost concern.
A girl wearing a blue camisole and a large men's shirt overtop sat on the examination bed without saying a word. The antenna-like strand that stuck out from her short brown hair-which reached down to her shoulders—seemed to droop as though to reflect her mood.
Last Order, who normally had boundless amounts of energy to run around and because of it create a multitude of disturbances, had been tense and quiet since the whole affair began.
As Administrator to the Misaka Network, Last Order was at a loss as how to effectively juggle so many of the different things that were happening.
It was important to finish building the [FIREWALL] before the rogue Sister showed up, but now that she had seamlessly snuck into Academy City, it would be difficult to continue construction while they would also be targets.
Protecting the Original and the Savior, while not directly a part of their assigned mission, was decided upon for two reasons.
The first was to keep the two of them out of harm's way, since they had often put themselves into danger for the Sisters' sake without hesitation.
The second was hypocritical of the first reason. Afraid that they wouldn't be able to succeed, the Sisters decided to stay close to the two people that would best be able to help them.
It was a decision that not even the Administrator of the Misaka Network could prevent from being enacted.
The Sisters themselves decided on such a plan, even going so far as to hold a private meeting without Last Order to prevent the details from being leaked through to the higher echelons of Academy City.
So far they had been allowed to do as they wished, as long as they continued to finish up the [FIREWALL] around Academy City.
Investigation into the large church complex being finished outside of Academy City was also important, but second to the plans to build the four towers that made [FIREWALL].
Still, the most pressing matter currently on Last Order's mind was Full Tuning, also known as Misaka 00000, appearing and being able to sneak into Academy City as well as confront Misaka 10032.
If it wasn't for Last Order issuing [WITHDRAW] to the Network, Full Tuning's sophisticated attack may have immediately succeeded in not only hijacking 10032 but remotely placing a virus into Last Order which would affect the rest of the 10,000 Sisters all over the world.
Why was their eldest Sister doing such a thing?
"I'm still checking on the state of the Network myself, but I have to agree."
A woman in a white researcher's coat, despite haven not worked as a researcher for a while now, offered her supporting opinion.
"It's obvious we're dealing with someone who knows how the Misaka Network operates, but without any discernable leads, there's nothing we can do but try to lessen our vulnerabilities as much as possible. Look at the nature of the attack, create counters to the specific behaviors of the program and try to start work on a vaccine should that not work.
"What I'm worried most about is not knowing whether it's an attack aimed at 'him' or Academy City itself through Last Order."
The frog faced doctor resisted the urge to frown at what the woman determined and did agree with her concerns, while he brushed the young girl's hair into a slight mess with his hand in an effort to cheer her up.
It had a limited effect, succeeding in getting a sheepish smile from the small girl but thoughts that Accelerator would be affected by people going after the Sisters or her continued to dampen her spirits.
As a doctor, it was always a difficult feeling to know of his patients' suffering, whether he was able to do something about it or not made no difference.
"I can think of a few people or groups who'd do it. Though it's another thing entirely when trying to think who can do it..." muttered Yoshikawa Kikyou. Her hands that were previously in the pockets of her white lab coat were now crossed under her chest.
She sighed. "…especially doing something as untraceable as this."
Yoshikawa was referring to the attempt to attack Last Order through a backdoor in the Misaka Network, which didn't seem to have been initiated by breaking into the network from the outside, but either mimicking or even trying to take control of a Sister's protocols to initiate a malicious upload.
Like a cancer, such a tactic was surely meant to spread by replicating and mutating the program in each Sister to travel throughout the Network until the code reached its target address.
"If it weren't for the program suddenly halting, the [WITHDRAW] order would have fully spread throughout the Network. Even if it was meant for such cases, how it would affect…"
"I'm sure he's fine. He's been through so much, and is putting himself through even worse where he is now. Though the people residing in it may suffer from malnutrition from the castle raising its drawbridges and closing its doors during a siege, the Sisters wouldn't have let anything detrimental to happen. There are several backdoors left on purpose for that reason.
"Of course I wouldn't doubt that he was affected by the trouble that such a protective measure caused, but surely he'll be doing something about it in his own way." The frog-faced doctor said toward both people in his office.
Though a comforting statement for them, such an image of Academy City's strongest ESPer sallying forth as a single person worth an army to break an invading force would make even unaffiliated bystanders become filled with dread any sympathy toward the poor invading force.
Part 4
In a secret facility inside Academy City, an organization called GROUP has met.
It is one of many organizations that operate under the control of the Board of Directors who lead and manage all of Academy City.
GROUP of course, as such an organization kept in the dark side of Academy City, took on missions that could not be acknowledged by those living in the light.
Despite this, the main people who were a part of GROUP sought to protect those in the light by working in the dark.
The facility that GROUP operated from was not only stacked with the most up-to-date technologies that Academy City itself produced, but the members of GROUP and the organization that supported it were privy to know things that only those of the dark side of the city dealt with.
There was a vehicle bay, an armory, a shooting range, a technical lab and even an inclusive medial office.
Though only the size of a small private doctor's office, the medical service provided inside the secret facility was good if not better than most other government or premium services. Not only were regular health concerns addressed in this office, but emergency aid, rehabilitation and specialized treatment of ESPers as well.
What could be found in this office was precisely what one could find at any other. A digital weight scale with an extendable arm attached to measure height, a single chair in addition to the examination bed where the patient would often be and several implements like medicines and tongue suppressers and bandages and healing creams.
The room smelled very much like cleaning products.
Three people were currently inside the office when a technician finished his diagnostic and left.
"It seems the worst has passed."
The one who called himself Unabara Mitsuki, while wearing his face and acted in a manner similar to a student whose identity he was copying, noted without any real concern in his voice.
"If you think about it, I believe this exact situation is your anathema, Accelerator. Hopefully the higher ups don't think of you as a racehorse that has broken its leg."
Adding a smile to that, Unabara earned only the usual scowl as far as Accelerator was concerned.
The meaning behind such a comparison was not lost on Accelerator, who had to walk around using a modern-looking cane.
As someone dependant on the Misaka Network to substitute for the language and calculating processes that his damaged brain was now unable to do, such an attack no matter what the reason was ultimately a personal vendetta aimed at Accelerator.
Just hours ago when he was in the firing range practicing with his pistol, the highest ranked Level 5 suddenly fell to the ground when he lost connection with the Misaka Network. Unable to move in such a state, he was found by members of GROUP's supporting organization and quickly taken to the medical office.
However, before the check up was performed, Accelerator was reconnected to the Network. Thus, instead of a doctor, a technician was summoned to look over the electrode collar that allowed Accelerator to make use of the Misaka Network to find nothing wrong with its functions.
"Screw that shit."
Accelerator, who was sitting on the medical room's examination bed spat out.
"The hell I'm staying in this shithole any longer."
"Pft, and what are you going to do when you find the ones responsible? Drool out a wet slick for them to slip on and fall? You just want a whole gang of cripples, don't you?"
With even less concern for the other ESPer, the twin tailed Musujime Awaki crossed her legs while sitting in a chair across from the two boys.
Wearing a pink crop top and short pleaded skirt and the jacket of her Kirigaoka Girl's school uniform over her shoulders in a cape-like manner, the girl leered with an amused smirk at Accelerator's troubles.
The schadenfreude was obvious and the red-eyed ESPer hated it.
"Shut up, bitch."
"Ha! Hobble over here and say that to my face, why don't ya!" An even toothier grin appeared on her face.
"Sounds to me like you're dead set for another tour of the city skyline!" the white haired ESPer shouted out.
Musujime's toothy smile immediately turned sour and disappeared. She could only grit her teeth as the massage machine connected to the nape of her neck began its effort to lessen her anxiety-based stress from remembering their fight.
"Now, now…" Unabara pretended to play the part of the referee. It was impossible to tell whether he was enjoying the banter between the two ESPers or not.
"Tch…" Taking a breath and calming down somewhat, Accelerator stared angrily at the wall in front of him. "…who'd be stupid enough to go after me using the Sisters, anyway? Those shits definitely don't know who they're dealing with."
"And I'd say that you're definitely right, Accelerator!"
A wide-grinning blond teen wearing a pair of sunglasses stepped into the room, needing only a glance around to find the rest of GROUP waiting since he went to do some errands.
Pushing the door out until it was fully open Tsuchimikado Motoharu flashed the other three an even bigger smile.
"Good news. My source got me some great leads and the higher ups agreed with my report about it, too."
"I'm surprised that you managed to do so much so quickly, Tsuchimikado." The disguised magician commented with barely hidden interest.
"Yeah well, I've been compiling the report since before Accelerator fainted, and it just so happened that I finished it up."
"So they were that eager about reading a report? How lame as always…" Musujime scoffed and re-crossed her legs as she adjusted her posture.
Stepping off the examination bed, a soft clack from the modern-looking cane followed the white-haired teen's eager step forward.
"What are we waiting around for then, huh?" Accelerator displayed his own toothy grin. Rather than happiness, his smile seemed to send out a murderous aura at his senior's news.
"What an antsy Accelerator!" Tsuchimikado happily poked fun at his comrade. Opening the door further, he looked at his cell phone just as a text message was received.
"Just waiting for the Field Trip permission slips!"
Between the Lines 3
"Congratulations on being selected for the Tokiwadai Director's Board, Galen!"
"Thank you very much, Mrs. Unabara. It means a lot coming from you."
"Ohohoho, charming just like your father." The woman chortled in a ladylike manner.
Amidst the party of twenty or so formally dressed well-to-do people, a young man in his mid 20s raised his champagne glass and nodded his head toward the older woman before him.
They were all within a single ballroom of the Unabara home, which was spacious enough to have seven separate round tables, a five person dais and even a quartet of violinists sitting to the side and filling room with the ambiance of the instruments' call.
The young man, who insisted on being called by his first name rather than his family name, kept his true feelings in check while he thanked the woman again for such a compliment and moved his attention to the other guests who sought out his attention and thanked each one in turn.
Most were other guests present that were older than him, but despite this they still were very deferential toward him and his status as the one being celebrated that night.
"Galen, you're coming to the Tokiwadai Board's Party as well, are you not? I'm sure it wouldn't be lively without you there." A heavyset man chuckled amorously. He was also a member of the Board.
"I wouldn't miss it for the world." The man named Galen responded with a smile.
From amongst the crowd of well-wishers, a dark haired SP wearing a dark suit approached the young man with a cell phone covered by his hand.
Excusing himself from the band of three people around him, the young man combed his fingers through his hair and met with the SP away from the busily chattering party-goers.
"Unless it's Ao I don't-"
"It…is him, sir…" the man confirmed Galen's previous instructions.
After pinching the bridge of his nose, Galen sighed.
"…Fine. Give me that."
Snatching the cell phone from the SP, the now sour-faced young man strolled toward the balcony and away from the loud chattering and music of the party. He closed the glass doors before putting the phone to his ear.
"I told you to call me only if either the experiment was finished or if there was bad news. Unfortunately I am fully aware that you weren't scheduled to be finished for another few days and it's obvious by your track record that you're not known to complete projects ahead of schedule, Ao…so don't bullshit me. What went wrong?"
For a moment nothing was said. If he had planned to make up a story, the young man's words had made him hesitate.
"…I…I lost her…"
"Tsk…"
The man could only sigh. Glancing behind himself, he checked to see if he was noticed standing away from the party. He wasn't.
"I'm going to skip the part where I pretend I still think you're a competent human being. Instead, I'll just jump to the part where I ask 'how do you lose a girl when she's tagged like a frickin house cat?'!"
"The logs said she came across a Sister so her GPS tag was turned off so resources could be diverted to automatically upload the Trojan virus to the Misaka Network, but it never turned back on when I lost her bio-readings."
"Automa-AUTOMATIC!? You set her to automatically upload when I told you SPECIFICALLY to do it manually, and only AFTER you get the go ahead! What the hell happened to calling first like I told you to?"
"I tried to call when she came across the Sister but you didn't pick up! I thought it was the perfect time to-"
"Well there's the problem, huh? You thought! Sure you got some great ideas like creating the Sisters but other than that I don't pay you to think, Ao! Thinking made you bankrupt. Thinking left you dumped on the street by Academy City. Thinking got you shot in the chest!
"I have dozens of researchers and scientists perfectly capable of doing both our share of thinking and that's whenever I feel it's a bit too fast and simple to have the COMPUTERS do that SAME. EXACT. THINKING!"
The voice on the other line could barely hold back its frustration "…If you were here you'd know…"
"I DON'T GIVE A RAT'S ASS ABOUT YOUR EXCUSES! You're in Academy City again to make up for that glorious fuck up you did the first time you tried to infect the Sisters! Remember that? Well I'm through with giving you chances, ok?
"You find the girl before I get there and we'll negotiate if you'll be sent out of Academy City in a body bag or not, much less continue wasting my time and money with your petty revenge schemes! You do what you promised to do, which was uploading some lines of mal-code into the Sisters and I guaranteed to pay you for it. You don't, and you pay for it, guaranteed. Simple, right?"
"…"
"Good. Now do your fucking job."
Author's Notes:
Chapter 3 all up in here! Thank you for making it this far in! A few things have happened in this chapter alone, huh? While explaining some things, even more questions have popped up, huh?
Yeah, I personally love it when stories do that but please lend me your opinion as well. So now that we've seen the reactions of a few characters about what happened in chapter 2, let's see how Mikoto reacted...in chapter 4!
- All characters belong to Kazama Kamachi and Kiyotaka Haimura as author and illustrator, respectively.
- Thanks to fellow To Aru Majutsu no Index writers for inspiring me with drive to continue whenever I hit a wall.