Well, a long break is over. A cliffhanger has to end somewhere…in order to set up the next cliffhanger :3

It's time to start again in completing the Albion Arc, with a few other points and tidbits sprinkled in. I hope you'll all enjoy as we continue the adventures of Misaka in Halkeginia. As always, your infallible author asks you to point out contradictions, typos, and inconsistencies so that they may be corrected. Thank you, and enjoy the chapter!

KKid

Chapter 13: To Protect and Serve

Once again, she found herself at that place, the one deep in her memory.

The moon was as bright as ever, the river under the iron bridge as calm as she remembered it.

Footsteps approached. She turned around, seeing him. She watched as he came over to her, a piece of paper in hand.

She turned, ready to hear the accusations out of his mouth. Accusations about the Sisters project that she had been unsuccessfully sabotaging,

This time, the Misaka he was walking over to was not her. At least, not the present her.

Misaka watched as the Misaka – no, it was not one of the Sisters, so it would be more apt to describe the person as her past self – held back against him, despite the concern that he had for her. The brunette held her breath as her past self attacked him. She even shed a tear as he collapsed, finally tiring out after resisting each of her past self's electric blasts.

The past self and the teen disappeared, leaving Misaka alone on the bridge.

But not for long.

"Your friend here caused some problems for my scientists back then." The voice came from everywhere around her. Misaka looked around everywhere around her for the source. "Then again, they would probably try to undermine my authority once the Level 6 Shift project was completed. They did try to destroy the city by augmenting your powers, after all."

"Hey!" she shouted. Something was telling her that this was not just an ordinary dream or nightmare. "If you're going to mess with my head, at least show yourself!"

"Oh, this is no dream, Mikoto Misaka." The voice was now behind her. "But very well." Misaka turned around. The voice had a body, an effeminate male one to be exact. He wore what looked like a long-sleeved green hospital gown, and had white hair that nearly reach the ground. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Railgun." Misaka studied the man; however, nothing was coming to mind as to who he was.

"Who are you?" she asked, frowning. "You're definitely not one of the people that I've crossed with in the past…and yet you seem to know a lot about who I am…" The man had a soft smile, which looked just plain creepy with the body it was attached to.

"Let's just say that I am a person with high regard in Academy City," the he stated. "I have been watching your development for many years now, but I could never have imagined what this world you have landed in would do to you." Misaka tensed up. She knew that her esper abilities made her immune to forms of mind control, but alarm bells were going off in her head nevertheless. "If you think that you can defeat me now, I can assure you that you're sorely mistaken. Your rune-amplified electrical attacks will not stand up to the power to bring gods to their knees." As if on cue, four large spikes shot up from the ground around Misaka, trapping her in place.

"The hell-?!"

"If you try to shock me now, I will have no choice but to skewer you," the man replied calmly. Misaka had no choice but to comply. "I must admit, while I had noticed that there were items and people that have disappeared from Academy City, I did not have any reason to search the multiverse for their destinations until the third-ranked esper disappeared without a trace." He began to walk around the cage that had popped up around the brunette. "This world has afforded you many luxuries, Mikoto, none so more than that rune on your left hand." Misaka looked at the rune of Gandálfr on her hand. "That power is beyond anything that the Aeons of Osiris or Horus have brought upon our Earth; moreover, it is not conflicting with your esper abilities, but is in fact augmenting and magnifying some of them…in effect, if I had to estimate, you are neither a Level 5 nor a Level 6, but something in between…"

Misaka's head was spinning as she tried to piece together what this man was saying. Several of the terms the man was speaking were foreign, even to her. However, the mentions of the Sisters Project and the later Level 6 Shift attempt on her were items of intimate knowledge to herself alone, at least in Halkeginia. If this was a dream, which she truly hoped was the case, she was being thrown for one heck of an acid trip. She'd have to complain to Guiche about the water he had obtained when they made camp.

As if on cue, Guiche appeared in front of her. So did Louise, Kirche, Siesta, Tabitha, Henrietta, Prince Wales, and even Osmond and Colbert.

All of them were nailed to separate crosses, crucified at the stake in a circle around Misaka's prison.

Misaka nearly vomited.

"I do apologize for this gory scene before you," stated the white-haired man. "However, right now, I demand your highest attention, and your mind was, say, running elsewhere. Bear in mind that these are only constructs I pulled from your mind." Misaka clenched her fists, as she struggled with her composure.

"You…why are you toying with me…what purpose do you have to be here?!" she yelled angrily.

"I am only stopping by to warn you that you are being pursued," the man stated. "It seems that magician you have faced twice has been ordered to kill you and your charge before you get back safely. Now that you are a factor in my plans, it is in my interests to make sure you do not kill yourself. I understand that you yourself would be physically fine, but it is likely that your mind would shatter if your friends here were to die." He turned around.

"And how do I know that you are not after me or my friends as well?" Misaka asked. The man stayed still for a moment.

"I do have the power to shatter this dimension of existence and crush all lives in it, including yours," he answered. If she had not felt so nauseous, Misaka would have crackled with angry electricity. "However, your new powers lead me to believe that you may be able to further my own plans. For the moment, I am your ally; so long as you do not oppose me, this world and its constructs will remain." He began to walk away. "Oppose me, and it will not be only this world that will suffer." As he said this, more crucifixions appeared. This time, it was her friends in Academy City: Kuroko, Satin, Uiharu, Mitsuko, Misaki, and several of Sisters. Another wave of nausea went over Misaka, and her vision began to blur. Before she collapsed, she did shout out to the man.

"If you think…that I will not oppose you...after toying with my emotions…you are sorely mistaken…" she informed him. "I will come after you…we will come…after you…and he…will come…after…y…you…" Misaka collapsed against the front spike that trapped her. Her vision went completely blank.

"Now that would be something I would like to see," she heard the man state. "The power of the Void, which breaks the boundaries of this world's magic and science…against the power of Imagine Breaker…"

The brunette heard his voice echo in her head, then disappear, leaving her in an empty, silent void.

Misaka awoke solely, her head groggy and her muscles aching. She lifted her arm up, placing her hand against her head, which was throbbing in pain. The vague memory of the dream was still with her.

"U-Urgh…" she grumbled. "What a nightmare… I really need to get some actual sleep…" She looked around, taking a scan at their campsite. The group had tried to go on as far as they could, but after powering through the night to reach Albion, they were exhausted and ready to fall asleep at any moment. Halfway to the Capital, they were forced to make camp in a wooded clearing.

Taking a glance, the brunette saw Kirche and Tabitha both resting against Syplhid, who was sound asleep as well. Guiche was supposed on watch duty by a tree, although he looked to be nodding off on the job. Prince Wales, who had taken the first watch, seemed to be keeping one eye open as he slept by a tree. Months of fighting rebels had likely kept the crown prince wary of his surroundings.

Louise, to Misaka's surprise, was not anywhere to be seen, at least until the brunette tried to get up. She stopped, feeling something on her left arm, only to find the pinkette's right hand, with the rest of her body curled up not too far away. From the fresh dirt on her uniform, it seemed that Louise had crawled up close to Misaka, but then had turned over in her sleep, resulting in her present position on the ground. Somehow, the thought of Louise meekly clinging to her made the Electromaster smile just a bit. Less than two weeks ago, this girl, who merely saw Misaka's presence as being a tool for self-improvement, was ordering the electromaster onto a pile of hay to sleep without covers. Now, the pinkette was clinging to the brunette as if she were a comfort blanket, without which the pinkette's life would become lost and hopeless.

Hopelessness like Misaka had felt before.

Even though she was convinced it was merely a dream, the somber faces of her crucified friends, both from this world and her own, still haunted her vision. For a dream, it had seemed so realistic, so life-like. Even her nightmare the previous night could not hold itself up against the green-robed man that seemed to be warning her of something.

It seemed too coincidental that the strange long-haired man's image was unusually particular for a person she had never met. Very long hair on a guy seemed very unusual, and his green hospital gown appeared realistic to a tremendous degree. Speaking of the gown, that placed him as someone not of Halkeginia; she was not really sure that this world even had hospitals. However, a person that looked like he did would have been memorable at least, and she could not pick out who that person was at all. Sure, he did remind him of a red-haired guy that she sometimes sees around Academy City, but he had red hair and black robes…and his hair was not nearly as long as this person's had been…

As Misaka thought about this, her right hand subconsciously knocked into Louise's head. This caused the pinkette to stir out of her sleep.

"Nh…ngh…" she mumbled, slowly opening her eyes.

"Ah…" Misaka looked at Louise, noticing the girl's movements. "Did I wake you by accident? I'm sorry." Louise turned her head, finding herself looking right up in the brunette's face. The noble's cheeks quickly went cherry red. She scrambled upright, and turned to face away from Misaka.

"D-D-Don't get the wrong idea!" she stammered. "I-I'm not one that needs any comfort around anyone, n-never ever!" Misaka smiled.

"Of course," the brunette noted, getting up. It was probably best not to pursue this matter. She brushed off the dust off of her skirt. "How are you doing?"

"I-I'm fine, really…"Louise responded, circling the ground with her feet. "Although, I do not know of what happened after you appeared and…fought…" She seemed to be dodging the mention of the former Viscount.

"Well, we achieved all of our goals, if that's what you're wondering," Misaka informed her. "We got the letter that Henrietta had written, and we all managed to get out in one piece." She looked over to where the exiled prince of Albion was located. "We even convinced the Crown Prince to escape with us to Tristain." Louise looked over to where Wales was resting.

"Is that so?" she replied. "Then, that's better than I thought. I'm sure that the Princess will be very happy to see that…"

"I'm sure she will," echoed Misaka. The two stood in silence for several seconds. The trees rustled in the wind, as the early afternoon sun shone down on them.

"Misaka…I'm…I'm sorry," Louise suddenly stated.

"Eh?" replied the brunette. "Whatever for?" Louise seemed to be slightly uncomfortable with what she was going to do, but her eyes remained on Misaka.

"We had said just days ago that we would be restarting as friends," she explained. "After what I had put you through in your first week as my Familiar, I naïvely thought that I could easily set things right, that it was simple as that…" The pinkette looked up into the sky. Misaka followed her gaze, which the brunette noticed was the direction of Albion.

"But then Wardes appeared back into my life, the Wardes I thought was the only person that truly cared for me. After he said that he wanted to marry me, I felt that I was finally going to get the equal treatment I had sought after for so long, that I would finally be respected by my peers…I ignored all your warnings about his character and behavior, and went towards my past, failing to see that the present had become a twisted future. If it hadn't been for you or the others…we would have failed in our mission…and I…I-I…" She nearly choked up. Misaka stepped towards her, placing a comforting hand on the girl's right shoulder.

"It's alright," the brunette stated, looking straight into the pinkette's eyes, "You don't need to say anymore. I can tell that this has been a trying experience for you." Louise silently nodded.

"But…but…" she sniffled.

"If we all thought about what would have been, we would lose sight on what could be," Misaka continued. "I think at some point, everyone is guilty of losing sight of what's really important in the end: that everybody we hold dear are safe, and are out of harm's way." The electromaster paused for a second. "It took someone dear to me to show me that truth in order for me to believe it. I think that's the only way for it to be taught. So I don't see any reason why you need to apologize. There was not much we could have planned for what went down, but all in all, I think you and everyone else were very brave in standing up to the enemy." Louise did not know what to say for a moment. The trees rustled in the wind, and the sun briefly ducked under a cloud, before popping out once more. As it did, the noble daughter smiled, in a way unlike anything that the brunette had seen from the girl before. Her face was a mix of relief, sadness, and joy, all accentuated by the sunlight beaming down on her face.

"T-Thank you, Misaka," Louise stated, futilely trying to fight off tears. "You never needed to do this for me, b-but I am more grateful than you could ever imagine!" She then buried herself into Misaka, and began sobbing uncontrollably. Tears ran down her cheek, her pent-up anguish splashing and staining Misaka's vest. "Y-you are the greatest friend I could ever have!"

Misaka didn't know what to say; this was not a reaction that would normally be associated with Louise. However, her initial surprise wore down, and her face turned into relief. She wrapped her arms around Louise, and stood there, embracing the distraught pinkette as she let out her emotions. She did not say anything, for the brunette did not feel that anything else needed to be said.

Movement in her field of vision brought Misaka's head up slightly. Behind Louise was Prince Wales, who had seen everything. He placed a finger to his lips, indicating that he did not want to be noticed by Louise. It was probably for the best, anyway; no doubt if Kirche was the one who had seen this, Louise would never hear the end of it.

Of course, Kirche and Tabitha had snuck to a bush to the side of Misaka and Louise, and were watching the whole exchange without the Master and Familiar none the wiser.

In the mid-afternoon heat on the battlefield in Albion, the former Viscount Wardes was inspecting the battlefield of Newcastle. There was not a cloud in the sky, and the intense heat from the sun made the many dead bodies of both the royalty and the nobles rot quickly, creating a pungent stench in the ar. Wardes wept his brow as he approached the collapsed ruins of a small church. The remains of his left sleeve fluttered in the wind; below the sleeve was the stub that remained of his left arm, which had been incinerated off by the Railgun attack that Misaka had launched at him.

'Mikoto Misaka…' he thought, clenching his teeth. He thought of the strange girl that had been the Familiar of Duke de la Vallière's daughter. The commoner, who, for some reason, was bestowed with powerful elven-type magic. Powerful enough to obliterate his left hand. Powerful enough to interrupt his marriage to Louise. Powerful enough to prevent the execution of his mission.

Powerful enough to become an adversary of all of Reconquista.

His face contorted in rage. The mere thought that Prince Wales, the Crown Prince of Albion who was supposed to be dead at his hands was still alive on the mainland made his heart pound. The fact that Louise, his betrothed fiancé for years, was not in his grasp made his eyes glower at the ground.

And the thought of the one who did it all, Mikoto Misaka, made him tremble in a mix of fear and anger, something no other person has ever made him feel.

"Viscount Wardes! Why are you out of your bed so soon?" Wardes coughed, and turned around. Walking over to him was a man in his mid-thirties, who looked at first glance to be a member of the clergy. He wore a round hat, from which curly blonde hair peeked out, and a green mantle that covered his entire person. His face resembled that of a soldier, with a long aquiline nose and smart blue eyes.

Wardes kneeled down, bowing his head. "I cannot stay in bed when I have failed your Excellency. The letter slipped through my grasp, and worse still, the Crown Prince as well. I cannot begin to think how to make up for my error; please, hand out whatever punishment you think is necessary."

"What are you saying, Viscount?" the man stated, a friendly smile on his face. "We were able to take the last of the enemy's strongholds thanks to your infiltration and messaging of the lay of the castle. And more importantly, you have brought to light a chillingly terrifying enemy to the dream." He tapped the left shoulder of Wardes, who flinched at the contact.

"Your Excellency, I have failed your expectations," the grey-haired man repeated, standing up. "How can Your Excellency remain so pleased with my failure?"

"Do not fret, my dear Viscount," the blonde-haired man assured Wardes. "While both tasks were indeed important, I do value the life of one of my prized allies." He looked out towards the ruins of the chapel. "Besides, what we ran into this morning was a critical variable. I have never heard of a mage that could take down a such a building with elven magic, let alone a simple commoner. What did you say in your report that her name was again…?"

"Mikoto Misaka, Your Excellency," responded Wardes. "From my travels with her, I have gathered she is the princess of a faraway land called 'Tokaywadai.' She also is the Familiar of Duke de la Vallière's third daughter." His superior thought about this information.

"Princess Mikoto…" he thought aloud. "And she is allied with a Tristanian noble? I shudder to know if there is anything else about the land she is from. The traders from east of Germania have tales as long as the distance is to their lands." He paused. "Is anyone pursuing them now?"

"Your Excellency, word has been sent to Fouquet the Crumbling Dirt, who is currently based in La Rochelle," Wardes explained. "She shall lead some forces from our allies in Tristain to intercept this letter, and terminate the Crown Prince." The man in the green robe smiled.

"Ah, the Fouquet that sent all of Tristain quaking in their boots?" he stated. "I shall send word for her to return here after she is done with her task; I would quite like to meet her." He began to walk away. "I shall see if we can recover the body of the former King…It is a shame, I quite wanted to be on better terms with our dear Crown Prince Wales, and this Princess Mikoto; but alas, once dead, everyone becomes a friend…" Wardes' cheeks flinched slightly. The sarcasm in his words was a little too real, especially after nearly facing his end just hours ago.

Back in the Capital of Tristain, word had just started to reach the citizens about the fate of Albion. As these were coming from the people who had left as evening fell the night before, the details of the battle at Newcastle were still unknown. However, with Reconquista being right at the throat of the old nobility, the talk of the town was solely on the speculation on what had happened. Everyone from the beggars on the street to the guards in the Palace were wondering how the Kingdom had been defeated, whether there were any survivors, and if the new government would set its sights onto their small kingdom.

In the Royal Palace on Bourdonne Street, Princess Henrietta was pacing back and forth, wearing down the marble tile floor in the throne room. She was waiting for word about the messenger party that she sent to Albion. While she and her advisors had known that Albion had been doomed for months now, everyone had thought that there were still a few weeks before the kingdom would fall. The fact that the kingdom had fallen only hours ago, based on the estimates of the recent refugees, meant that she had inadvertently sent her best friend and her familiar, along with their friend and the kingdom's top commander, into a war zone. Worse, word from Old Osmond had come in that two students that were friends with those in the party had disappeared on the same day that the expedition had set out. If the purple-haired princess was a betting woman, the two of them tailed the party to Albion.

"Louise…Mikoto…" Henrietta said under her breath. She was praying to the Founder Brimir that the next messengers that entered the chamber would be the two of them.

In the windowless building, Aleister Crowley floated in his chamber, in the usual upside-down position. He had just finished a conference call with Judgement, Anti-Skill, and the Board of Directors; apparently, there was a recent run of unauthorized hackings into security cameras around Academy City, perhaps from someone within one of the organizations. There had also been an illicit deletion of records from a border checkpoint the previous night, making the board worry about any number of spies having infiltrated the city. Of course, Aeister knew the circumstances behind both incidents, but elected not to inform the other parties. There was a good chance that both instances may be able to right the path that had deviated over a week ago.

"It seems that the ball is heading towards your court, Imagine Breaker," he stated to nobody in particular. "Will you choose to save your dear friend, or will somebody else be the one to do so?" He smiled, as a screen appeared in front of him, split between the information on Kamijou Touma and Kuroko Shirai. "Of course, that is on the assumption that she will still be alive within the next 24 hours."

In the late afternoon, the escape party was back in the air, and were making their way towards the Royal Palace. With Sylphid's speed, they crossed the distance that took a whole day by horseback in only a couple of hours, and they were soon approaching the edge of the Capital. The Royal Palace was beginning to appear in sight.

Misaka, however, was on edge. Her nightmare, which she was beginning to call a premonition, was still bothering her. She had yet to tell anyone about the experience, but held onto the images and words closely, racking her brain for anything that would connect her to that man in the green gown. Why did he seem to know her? How did he know terms that were alien not just to her, but anyone in the new world she was currently in? Why did he seem to take such interest in her? And most importantly, why was he so keen on ensuring that she would survive?

Vaguely, she was beginning to recall some images she had seen of this man. It was not anything that was concrete, only some images buried in paperwork, randomly inserted among thousands upon thousands of documents that she had searched and destroyed when she had been trying to shut down the Sisters Project last year. A name was not coming to mind, but if he was someone associated with the underworld of Academy City, nothing good would come out of anything that he mentioned or wanted.

*BOOM*

Misaka was brought out of her thoughts, and joined the others in looking to their right. About 100 yards away, a large explosion filled the air with dust and smoke. It was not a very large explosion, so they were able to see the cloud as it dissipated.

"What's going on?" Kirche wondered. "A duel?" Misaka suddenly got a very bad feeling, a feeling only confirmed through her AIM field.

"Tabitha, BAIL!" she shouted. The bluenette took the urgency of Misaka's words at face-value, and immediately ordered Sylphid to dive away.

*!BOOM!*

Too late, they were struck by another explosion, which occurred near the front chest of Sylphid. While there was minimal injuries, the wind dragon was still caught off guard, and briefly roared in pain while briefly bucking the air. That was all it took to start a chain reaction.

Tabitha and Kirche were near the front on Sylphid, and took the brunt of the blast. Tabitha briefly lost her grip, but recovered quickly. Kirche, on the other hand, was shaken right off. Wales and Guiche were next on Sylphid's back. Being in the middle, both were in a stable positioning when the wind dragon bucked. However, Prince Wales was torn off along with Kirche. Guiche only just managed to keep onto the dragon's back.

Finally, there was Louise and Misaka. Both were by the rear of the party, and were both thrown off when the wind dragon's tail whipped upward. Misaka reached over to Louise as they began to fall, and was able to grab the pinkette by the waist as they tumbled in the air.

Louise and Kirche were screaming near or at the top of their lungs. Misaka and Wales remained calm, but were franticly looked for a way to save themselves. As luck would have it, the four happened to be above a rather thick forest at the time, and were able to cushion the fall in the canopy. Misaka pushed off of a thick branch, and landed feet-first on the ground. She caught Louise in her arms, though the sudden force of doing so made the two crash onto the ground in a pile. Wales and Kirche (after the red-haired girl regained her composure) used their wands to break their fall before hitting the ground. The two then helped their friends get back up. Above, they heard a wounded cry of a wind dragon, as Sylphid flew off, away from the Capital.

"Looks like we've been found out," Wales stated. "We have to move!"

"The Capital mustn't be too far!" Kirche stated. "We'll make a break for the nearest gate!" The four nodded, and began to run. Sure enough, a gate did appear after a few minutes. However, the otherwise uneventful panic that they had been in was quickly broken. A group of mercenaries, clad in brown cloaks, poured out of the entrance, arrows and wands at the ready.

"They've already taken over the gate!" Misaka exclaimed. "Everyone, stay back!" Planting her foot down, the brunette fired off a wave of electricity into the ground towards the men, stunning them where they stood. She then swept her arm forward, unleashing a concentrated blast towards them. Before it could connect, however, it deflected off an invisible shield, sparing the men from further harm.

"They've even prepared a magic barrier for lightning?!" Louise exclaimed. Kirche and Wales pulled out their wands, and Misaka pulled out Derflinger.

"Looks like we'll have to break our way through the gate!" Wales stated. "Wind!" A gust of wind flew at the feet of the mage with the lightning barrier, and he fell down. Others, however, came from behind, casting magic right back at them. The Crown Prince rolled out of the way, while Kirche launched a fireball at the crowd of people.

"Louise, stay back!" Misaka ordered, and she charged into the fray. She struck a volley of arrows down with a wave of electricity, then roundhouse-kicked at the first mage she could reach. Another mage began to cast a water spell at the brunette, but it was sliced in half by one swing from Derflinger, who absorbed the attack into itself. That energy was dispelled back into the mage by way of a blunt hit combined with electricity. More mages forced the electromaster to fall back to a better position, as one magic attack after another began to launch back and forth.

Wind and Fire clashed with Earth and Water for about five minutes without end, with Misaka's electricity sprinkled in for good measure. The brunette wanted to blast the group away with a Railgun, but she would be likely launching straight at the center of the city; with the way the attack had been powered up, a lot more than the mercenaries would be killed in the aftermath. Besides, the amount of attacks in close range had kicked up a lot of smoke and dust, and it was getting harder and harder to see, especially as the late afternoon sun was starting its descent towards the ground.

*PANG*

"AAAGHH!" Wales screamed, and he fell to the ground. Misaka was not that far away, and she ran right to his aid.

"Wales!" she called out. The Prince of Albion was gritting in pain, and was clutching his leg. He let go when Kirche and Louise arrived, revealing a small wound and a good amount of blood. "A gunshot wound?" More pangs began to echo across the air. Several of the mercenaries let out bloodcurling screams as they fell to the ground. Magic attacks began to ring not just towards the four, but towards the gate.

"It must be the Musketeers!" Louise stated. "They're a unit of the Tristain Army that deals in the art of gunpowder and pistols."

"Yeah, and in this commotion, they don't know that we're friends and not foe!" Kirche noted. She kneeled down, and helped Wales up, supporting him with her frame.

"We've got to move now!" Misaka stated. "In this confusion, we should be able to slip into the city without anyone noticing!" The others nodded, and they began to hurry to the gate. The injury to Wales's leg meant he could only support himself with Kirche's help, so the trip was a hurried hobble for the two. Eventually, they made it into the city, ducking down several roads and alleyways in order to elude anyone who might have tailed them, before coming to a stop behind some crates in a narrow passageway. The fire mage set Wales down onto a crate, and began to tend to his wound, tying her cape around his leg as a bandage. The prince winced as she tightened the bandage.

"Unfortunately, all of our medicine was with Guiche," Kirche stated. "Even if we had it, it would have probably all been smashed on the ground when we fell off of Sylphid."

"I hope they're all right," Misaka stated. "They flew off away from this mess, but that doesn't mean they weren't tailed themselves."

"I'd be more worried about ourselves," Derflinger stated. "We can't write off the fact that some of those men could have slipped through the gate the same way we did. Plus we have a man down right now, so our movement is limited to a crawl."

"Any way you put it, we're in a bind," Kirche stated. "What we need is a place to lay low at, until all of this dies down."

"Oh? What are we hiding from?" The four turned around. Just behind them was a rather strange man. He seemed rather well built, with a slightly muscular body. Everything else, however, reeked of feminism; he was wearing what Misaka best described to be a purple sports bra, a tight black speedo-like shorts, greasy black hair, and puffy lips between a handlebar mustache and a goatee. He reeked of perfume, and he was swaying back and forth in a very feminish way.

"Ah…uh…" Louise stammered. She was at a loss for words to this strange man. Misaka and Wales tensed up, apprehensively sizing up the man.

"Are you with Reconquesta?" Misaka demanded, curling up a hand into a fist. The man furiously shook his head.

"Nonononono!" he replied. "I'm just a shop owner here in town! War doesn't suit me, and it certainly doesn't help my business!" The four relaxed just a bit.

"Then, you are with Tristain?" Wales asked, wincing at the pain in his leg. The man nodded.

"It is the only country that I have known, monsieur," he replied.

"That's a relief," Kirche sighed. "It doesn't help us with our present situation, though…" The man looked at the three.

"Are you why there are more cloaked men around the town today?" he asked.

"You mean, they've been here even before the day started?" Wales stated. "That isn't good for us..."

"We won't be able to continue on to Lady Henrietta…" Louise said with disdain. "Worse, she'll be in danger herself, especially if we get close to her…" The effeminate man paid close attention to the four as they discussed their predicament.

"…Well, then come to my place," he stated. The four turned and stared at the person.

"Eh?" said Misaka. "What do you mean?"

"You seem to be working for the Princess," he stated matter-of-factly. "And it seems you are being followed and are in need of a place to rest. I run an inn, so I can give you girls a room to lay low in."

"Really?!" Louise exclaimed.

"SSSHHH!" Kirche and Misaka went, with the red-haired girl covering her mouth. Everyone held their breath, as a cloaked man on the main street turned his head towards their direction. After a few seconds, he walked away. The five let out a sigh of relief.

"Looks like we'll take the offer," sighed Misaka. "It'll be about the safest thing that we can do right now."

"However, there's one condition," the man stated, holding up a finger.

"Oh come on!" hushed Kirche. "You just saw what happened!"

"We'll do anything!" Misaka stated, agreeing with the man's . Kirche groaned in discontent.

"Eh?!" she said. "Why?"

"We're in no position to negotiate," the brunette reminded her. "Reconquista's right on us, and we're sitting ducks until we lie low."

"And with my leg in the condition it is in, there is no way that we'll be able to outrun them for long," Wales reminded, pointing to his bandaged leg. Kirche and Louise were still upset, but knew that the two were right. "So, fair sir, what is this request you have of us?"

"Oh, no need to be so polite with me, you handsome gentleman!" the man said in a deep blush. "Please, call me Scarron. The inn has a tavern on the first floor. The four of you can stay in a room, but the three girls, you will help me run the shop. You'll be given new clothes, so you won't stand out in case your pursuers drop by. While I cannot pay you anything aside from the tips that you would receive from the customers, I will pay in full to treat your friend's injury." The three girls looked at each other. Once again, Louise and Kirche looked at each other with reluctance, but Misaka was determined. One look at her, and the other two fell in line.

"We'll do it," the brunette whispered.

"Then it's decided!" Scarron replied quietly. "Follow me; I know a back route we can take that not many people know about." The man started to lead them away, swinging his hips as if to a rhythm.

"He's…weird." Kirche said in a low voice. "Definitely not my type at all."

"I don't really want to follow him," concurred Louise.

"Right now, we've got no choice," Misaka declared. "We need to lay low for a bit until we can get our bearings." She began to walk behind Scarron. The other three followed behind closely.

"Why the hell did we follow this guy?" groaned Misaka.

"I think you were the one who told us," reminded Kirche. "We have no other options but to lie low somewhere until Prince Wales is able to move, and the commotion over our fight has died down."

"I seriously want to make blasting the town to the ground an option right now," the brunette grumbled.

"…" Louise stayed silent, but was visibly upset.

What Scarron had neglected to inform the three was that his inn, called "Charming Fairies," was one part medieval English tavern, and one part Akihabara maid cafe. All of its waitresses were dolled up as maidservants, the "fairies" of the dinner. Each of them had a colorful maid outfit to go with the role, with a skirt that did not provide much cover to the imagination.

The three girls were no exception to this. Kirche and Louise were decked out in what Misaka identified as traditional French maid outfits, complete with a short skirt, high heels, black ribbons, and a white ruffled headpiece. Louise's outfit was completely white, while Kirche's was black with white trim. Misaka, meanwhile, was dressed a little more modestly; while the other two had sleeveless outfits with separate armbands, the brunette had a onepiece black outfit, complete with a white apron, cuffs, and chestpiece. Her skirt was also noticeably longer that the other outfits the hostesses were wearing. Even so, she was not one ounce more comfortable than either the pinkette or red-haired girl.

Scarron walked down from the second floor, having ensured that Wales was as comfortable as he could be in his condition. He moved around the store, moving his hips seductively while looking around the empty store. It was enough to make Misaka want to hurl. "Good words! Fairies!"

"Yes, Mi Mademoiselle!" the other girls in gaudy outfits answered.

"Très bien!" Scarron applauded, trembling pleasantly with his sway.

'Although 'pleasantly' would be too generous,' thought Misaka.

"All right, our first business is a saddening notice from Mi Mademoiselle," the owner began. "Recently, the 'Charming Faeries' Inn's sales have been dropping. A shop called a 'cafe' has been bringing out 'tea' that has been recently imported from the East. It has been stealing all of our customers... Sniff..." He began to cry.

"Don't cry! Mi Mademoiselle!" the other girls exclaimed.

"Yes, please don't," muttered Louise. "We wouldn't want that gaudy lipstick to smear." She hushed up as Misaka jabbed her.

"...You're right," Scarron stated, drying his eyes with his right hand. "If we lost to this 'tea', the words 'Charming Faeries' would cry." He suddenly jumped onto one of the tables, and began to pose intensely. "The Charming Faeries' promise! Un~"

"Serve with a cheerful smile!" the other girls responded enthusiastically.

"The Charming Faeries' promise! Deux~"

"A clean, sparkling store interior!"

"The Charming Faeries' promise! Trois~"

"Receive lots of tips!"

"…Seriously, you can't make this stuff up," Kirche noted, trying not to laugh.

"Très bien, Très bien!" Scarron said, beaming from end to end. Then he bent his hips, and made a pose. The image burned itself into Misaka's mind, to the point where the image was irreversibly grained into her conscious. "Well then, I have a wonderful announcement for you faeries: we get to make three new comrades today!"

"Well, that means us," Misaka groaned. Surrounded by applause, the three girls stepped forward, various stages of awkward smiles and sheepish grins on their faces.

"Louise, Kirche, and Misaka here were about to be sold off to the circus, but they were able to escape with their brother just in time!" Scarron continued. "They're all very cute, but very poor!" Sighs of sympathy came from the girls, which was a good thing. That was the cover story Misaka had come up with on their way to the inn. The other three agreed to the backstory, as did Scarron. It was the strangest group of siblings that one could find, but there was not much they could do about it. Besides, Scarron agreed to vouch for their character if anyone questioned the false siblinghood. "Well then, you three! Greet the faeries that are going to become your new co-workers!" The three stepped forward. Louise was first.

"I-I-I-I'm Louise, ni-ni-ni-nice to meet you," the pinkette stammered. She was shaking all over, apparently angry at something. Misaka suspected it was the girl's noble pride being forced to bow in front of commoners. Still, she forced a smile, and was applauded for her greeting (at Scarron's lead).

Kirche's introduction was much smoother. She bowed gracefully, even lifting up the hem of her skirt a bit. "My name is Kirche. I'll be looking forward to working with you." The red-haired girl got a much louder group of applause, as well as many comments about her voluptuous appearance. Even Scarron seemed to be swayed by the Ardent's charms.

"Showoff," muttered Louise. Kirche raised her arms in surrender.

"Well, what can I say, I can't just lose to a Vallière," she admitted. "Even if it is in a matter that throws our pride away." Louise simply scoffed.

Finally, it was Misaka's turn. She did a little twirl, before bowing in a typical maid fashion, as per her training by Tokiwadai. "My name is Misaka. Let's all work together and do our best!" She bowed, and awaited her applause.

Five seconds later, she lifted her head. Instead of cheers, there were mutters of confusion from the other girls.

"Doesn't she look a lot like her…?"

"Yeah, and she even has her name as well…"

"I never heard she had a sister…"

"Huh…" the brunette pondered. This was not at all what she expected.

"What's gotten into the others?" Kirche wondered. Before they could get an answer, music suddenly filled the store. It was coming from a group of dolls at the corner of the store; apparently, they had been charmed to play a march rhythm. Scarron began walking hurriedly, talking in an excited voice.

"Alright girls, alright!" he said, clapping his hands together. "We have no time to gossip now; it's time to open!" At that command, the doors to the store opened, and a crowd of waiting customers walked right in.

Princess Henrietta was returning to her room after her evening bath, her still-drying hair occasionally dripping onto her lacy nightgown. Word from Louise had still not reached her, a full day after the final stand in Albion. The purplette was silently worried for her friends, hoping beyond hope that they had made it out in safety.

As she approached her room, she noticed a person standing in front of her doorway. The person was a short-haired blonde woman, with a green combat dress and a white cloak. A rifle and sword were at her side, held onto her person by a thick black belt.

"Princess Henrietta," the woman greeted, giving the royal daughter a curtsy.

"It is a surprise to see you here this late, Commander Agnes," the princess noted. "Is something the matter?" The blonde shook her head.

"It is an update on today's incident, My Lady," she informed her. "My musketeers have finished dispelling the mages that had gotten into a firefight outside of the city. They are currently interrogating those we were able to capture in order to discern their motives, but the evidence is that they were Reconquista operatives." This took Henrietta a little by surprise.

"Reconquista?" she said in concern. "Here?"

"It's not that surprising, considering how they've swept through the White Country," Agnes stated. "There were reports of Foquet the Crumbling Dirt having lead the charge, but her presence or the reason for this ambush are still unaccounted for. The band was loosely formed, however, so there should be no worry of a larger invading force. " The Princess calmed down at this statement. "In addition, we have received word from both Reconquista and our own spies about Albion's final moments." Henrietta tensed up; this was the information she was waiting for all day, although not exactly from the person she had been hoping for.

"Go on," the purplette urged.

"Reconquista has declared the monarchy dead, and all of the noble King's men were slain," the gun-wielding woman informed. She held a hand up as Henrietta gasped, intercepting her next statement. "However, our spies were only able to confirm that the King and the common soldiers were killed; Viscount Wardes, Prince Wales, and Miss Vallière are unaccounted for. In addition, they reported of an unusual light, before which a portion of the Newcastle stronghold was destroyed by."

"An unusual light?" Henrietta asked, to which Agnes nodded.

"They said it had the sound of a thousand thunderstorms combined into a massive arrow," the commander stated.

"Mikoto," the princess said, realizing who it was. She knew what power had lay into the girl, but to hear of its destructive force used onto a fortress the magnitude of Newcastle… "Very well. Report to me in the morning should your Musketeers find anything."

"Understood, My Lady," Agnes said with a curtsy. "Good night."

"Good night, Agnes," Henrietta replied, watching the commander leave. The purplette walked to her room with a lot on her mind. Despite the wishes of her commander, she would not be getting much sleep for a while.

The "Charming Faeries Inn" was less of an inn, and more of a bar. It was a rather popular location in which cute girls in suggestive clothing brought customers their drinks. All of the girls here had been scouted by Scarron, and were brought in to work as a waitress based on their beauty and loveliness.

That was not the case with Louise, Kirche, Misaka, and Wales. Given the dire straits they found themselves in, there was not enough time for him to vet the three girls based on their talents (the exiled prince, meanwhile, was hidden in an upstairs room, nursing his injuries from the fall.). As a result, the girls were split up into three roles not based on their looks, but on what the tavern needed at the time:

Louise was a server, taking orders and delivering them to the tables.

Kirche was a cleaner, who made sure that the tables were spotless for when the next set of guests arrived.

And Misaka was given the odd jobs, running between the storeroom and the kitchen with supplies. The crates were rather heavy, and the brunette struggled at times to make it into the kitchen. She set down a crate of chinaware, wiping her brow full of sweat. She turned towards the outside, seeing Kirche trying to teach Louise the finer points of catering to the customer...to which Louise was arguing back over how exactly those acts would be carried out with her thin frame.

"Man, those two get the easy work, and I'm stuck back here lifting these things!" she complained. "I probably have more training in serving others than those two combined, not that I would like to be in their positions full-time…"

"It's father's orders," said a girl washing dishes. She had long, straight black hair, and was wearing a green one-piece outfit with an apron, giving Misaka the image of an 18th century colonial woman. The only difference was the openness of the apron's front, which revealed a very ample bust that made the brunette quite uncomfortable.

"Who's father?" Misaka asked.

"My father," she stated. "Manager Scarron doesn't want you at the front for the time being, mainly because you appear to be younger than your other two sisters. Considering the nature of many of our customers, he doesn't want to expose a younger child to their tastes."

"Hey, just because I'm only 14, doesn't mean I'm not qualified!" the brunette protested. "And wait a moment, you're saying that he's your dad?"

"Yes," the girl stated matter-of-factly. "My name's Jessica. I help father in the back with the dishes and other management tasks. Like with you, he doesn't want me too close to the customers. After mother passed away, he only got more stringent with that." Misaka had to wonder just who would marry that ambiguous man, and what gene combination gave such a generous body to the girl.

"M-Mikoto Misaka," the brunette stated. "But please just call me Misaka, I've had enough explaining it to people."

"Hmmm…" Jessica stated, pondering for a second. "I can see why people would wonder that. It's a rather strange name, and nobles are usually the only ones that have two names."

"And that's why I don't like explaining it to people," Misaka groaned. She began to unpack the crate she had brought, placing the cups and plates in their rightful cabinets. Jessica went back to washing the old dishes...at least, for a few seconds. Every so often, Misaka noticed that the girl was stealing long, analytic glances at her direction whenever she was looking away from the innkeeper's daughter. The girl turned any time the brunette looked her direction, feigning ignorance. After a while, the electromaster decided to bite. "Um...is there something wrong with me?" Jessica looked around a bit, before turning towards Misaka.

"That thing about you all being siblings…that's gotta be a lie, right?" she asked softly. The question caught Misaka a little off-guard, prompting a rather lame response.

"Ah, no, not at all," she responded. "We're all siblings, through and through."

"Really?" the girl said with a wry smile. "You have four different hair colors, four different eye colors, four different faces…heck, you even have someone who looks to be from Germania. There isn't anybody in all of Halkeginia that would believe you."

"U-urk…" Misaka groaned. Jessica giggled.

"Relax, it doesn't really matter," she explained. "All the girls here come from different backgrounds and situations. They wouldn't want to pry into someone's dark secrets if they didn't want to keep their own, so nobody really asks."

"I-I see…" the brunette responded. Jessica stared into Misaka's eyes, which unnerved her a little.

"Although…you have to have a sibling yourself, right?" she asked. Misaka was confused.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Well, this may seem a little strange, but you look almost exactly like someone else that works here," Jessica stated. "The only thing is that she has this weird habit of always referring to herself, as if she is reading a book or something. She even refers to herself as 'Misaka,' too, but she called herself 'Misaka Cero Cero Cero Cero Cero,' so we just call her Cero."

A chill crawled up Misaka's spine. She was in an unfamiliar world, one where technology was almost nonexistent. There was no way that one of them would be in this world…and yet…

"This girl…she wouldn't happen to be here now, would she?" the brunette asked. Jessica thought for a second.

"Manager Scarron did send her for fresh vegetables earlier today, so she might still be out-"

"Oy, Misaka!" Misaka turned out towards the galley. The voice had come from Louise, who was cleaning up after accidentally spilling a tray of full beer mugs onto the floor. "What are you doing back in those clothes?"

"'Misaka does not understand what you are saying. This the first time Misaka has met you,' states Misaka in a sense of confusion."

Misaka, who was still in the kitchen, dropped the plate she was holding. It shattered onto the floor with a loud 'crash,' with all eyes going to the kitchen, including Louise and the girl she had been talking to.

"Ah!" Jessica exclaimed in surprised. "What are you breaking?! That's going to come out of…your…" She looked from Misaka, to the girl in the tavern, then back at Misaka. "Wow, I was right! You and Cero look almost exactly alike!" She noticed that the brunette was in a state of shock. "Misaka?"

"No…no way…" Misaka stated breathlessly, staring back into a reflection of herself. Her double stared back, confirming Misaka's worst fears.

It seems that even here, in a fantasy world where magic outperformed any feat of science its citizens could imagine, the electromaster's past would still haunt her as far as she ran.

To Be Continued…