Chapter 2: Calm Before the Storm
Inside the depths of academy city were a group of scientists, politicians and company directors secretly gathering in a laboratory to assess the future of the city. All of the people there were nobles and can be considered important. Some were popular to the mass while some have names that ring in the underground black market. Today they were all called for a meeting to discuss about a certain random uncontrolled force growing inside the city. The place the meeting was being held in was a laboratory secretly located in some Ability Enhancement Facility in the middle of Academy City. The room was huge and designed for vips.
"Is everyone here?" A fat old man asked his partners sitting in front of him. It was obvious that this old man is the leader for this meeting.
"Everyone is here except for the the CEO of the south district who's still not accounted for." A thinner man located east near the leader replied. He was taking attendances and taking note of who came in and out.
"Him again huh? Well that guy was never on time in any of our meetings. Still he does his job fine so let him be." The leader sighed in disappointment but decided to continue. "Today's meeting would be about the growing faction inside our beloved city."
"Faction?" A question was quickly raised. "You mean a group of people fighting against us?"
"Not necessarily against us, but this matter can be a threat if it goes uncontrolled." The leader replied. "A few months ago our strongest esper 'the accelarator' was defeated by a level 0 esper."
"That Toma kid?" A man that looked like he was in his forties interrupted.
"Yes." The leader nodded. "Upon seeing the data on how our number one lost I immediately decided to have a research funded on what made this guy so powerful. But alas we found nothing." The old man sounded depressed with disappointment in his tone. "All we know is that he's a level 0, no powers and a mediocre student in the academy. But I can't believe that someone like him can street fight the most powerful esper and win."
"We understand your concern. It is indeed astounding that a level 0 stood up against a level 5 and actually won. But how is this going to be a threat?" An aged woman asked from the opposite side of the room.
"The problem is that not only his a random existence that we don't know anything about but also the people starting to gather around him." The leader's tone started to sound worriedly. "Example A!" He pressed used is remote to flash a projection of a picture to the wall located behind him. "Misaka Mikoto, a high ranking esper only the third most powerful person in Academy City."
"The Railgun?" A director of a prestigious company asked.
"Yes she's more known as the railgun. This girl has been friends with the so called Kamijo Touma and were responsible for the fall of the Imouto Project." The leader pressed his remote again to move to another picture.
"And that is… a nun?" A politician seating far west from the projection asked in a ridiculing manner.
"Not just a nun." A person in white robes interrupted. "She's known as Index, the girl who holds all the books and tomes of all the spells in the world in her mind."
"Magiic?" The politician ridiculed. "And who might you be?"
"This here is our spy we sent to the country of mages and churches to monitor their movements." The leader vouched for the person in white.
"Magicians regard her as the most powerful weapon and threat at the same time. She literally has all the spells inside her that can be used to take control over an entire country if used by capable hands." The man in white continued with his explanation. "There was a fail safe that would kick inside her to kill anyone who tries to break the seal that bound her from using magic but somehow someway this Toma was able to beat that failsafe."
"So you're telling us that we're supposed to believe this magic crap?" The politician snickered and mocked the idea of mages.
"Hmph!" The man in white flashed an obsidian directed at the man and shot an arrow of piercing light.
"Gyah!" The man fell from his chair as the light just barely missed his head and pierced through the wall. Everyone stood up in panic.
"Calm down everyone!" The leader shouted. "Now, now, no need to be hostile." He said as he beckoned the man in white to sit down. "You may not believe it but mages are real. Just as real as us espers."
"Yes and this Kamjio Touma has the most powerful magical weapon at his side and some high ranking magicians as well." The man in white sat down bashfully as he concealed the obsidian weapon inside his robe.
"Now I guess you can finally realize my true concern. As an individual they're nothing but together these powerful individuals pose a great threat. Powerful espers and high ranking magicians working together with a wild card whose powers are still a mystery to us is a grave threat if we turn a blind eye at them." The leader sounded more firm with his words.
"So what do you suggest we do? Irradicate them?" Another person asked from the opposite side of the room.
"No that will only cause commotion. And we might not get the better end of the result if we clash with them." The leader disagreed, he already had an opinion of his own. "We must get them to our side no matter what. Before someone else does."
"I see, and how do we do this?" A question was raised to the reply almost immediately.
"It should not be too hard seeing the leader of the growing faction lives in our city." The leader gave a mischievous grin. "If we give him a high enough position morethan just a mere level 0 that should give him the push we need to come to our side."
"So we must increase his level and stature in the city? What would that do?" The same person who asked before raised another question.l It was becoming a conversation between two people but regardless the questions being raised were important.
"If he's given importance in the city he would feel that he's a more important part of the system. He cannot fight a system that he's part of." The leader explained. "Then I'm sure his friends would follow him to us as well."
"Would it not be easier to just eliminate him? I'm sure that the result would be just similar but less troublesome." A man sitting at the east side of the room suggested.
"This person we're talking about managed to defeat the most powerful weapon of the mages. It's unwise to kill him off and lose what may be our biggest advantage if we break into a war." The man in white interrupted as he's more legible to explain the matter.
"That's the main point. And also do you really think we can just simply assasinate the man who defeated our best esper?" The leader asked almost mocking the intelligence of the guy who raised the question. "Anyway, this meeting is over, I want this Toma kid's level to be increased to level 5."
"Wait won't that trouble him? He doesn't show any sign of esper powers yet we would raise him to level 5?" A logical question was raised.
"State the reason for the level raise as his prize of defeating the most powerful level five the city could offer." The leader replied almost lazily. He just wanted to end the meeting.
"Okay then, leave it to me. I'll talk with the school's principal he's going into." A man decided to take part of the respnsibility.
"Then with that I declare this meeting closed." The leader stood up before everyone else hurriedly dispesing the group that has gathered inside the room.
Meanwhile in the Arcade
"That insufferable bastard!" Misaka Mikoto roared before punching the punching bag with all her might. She was taking her stress on a 'Punch Machine' game where the machine gauges how powerful a person's punch is and tickets come out as a prize depending on the score a player gets.
"Onee-sama you're breaking the game and everyone's staring at us." Kuroko tried to calm Mikoto down as a score of 500 points appear on the screen beating the original high score by 300. Tickets started to rally down the slot which Kuroko gathered.
"It's not my problem if this machine is so class that it's not able to support my punches." Mikoto grumply sneered as she kicked the machine's bottom.
"I'm not sure if there is a machine in the city that can." Kuroko jokingly commented. "Onee-sama is well versed in fighting, apart from her very powerful esper abilities already." She praised Mikoto in an attempt to cheer the agitated Railgun's mood up.
"I'm going back to the dorm." Mikoto said tiredly. It seemed that being agitated all day caused a lot of strain in her body and now she's tired.
"Wait onee-sama let's claim a prize first using these tickets you won." Kuroko pointed to the claiming booth. There were dozens of prizes there that can be claimed using corresponding number of tickets.
"Don't bother I don't even see anything nice to claim." Mikoto quickly surveyed the shelves of prizes to see if there was something in there that she liked.
"Are you sure onee-sama?" Kuroko pointed at a figure on the upperright corner of the middle shelf. It was a meter tall gekota stuffed toy.
"Y-you're right!" Immediately it was obvious that Mikoto is now interested. "B-but it's not like because I like it. It's just such a waste not to use our tickets." Mikoto tried to hide and deny her fetish for the Gekota series.
"Haii, haii oneesama." Kuroko decided not to tease Mikoto more but it was obvious that she believe nothing of what Mikoto just said. "We only need 200 tickets for that and we currently have a thousand." She took out the chain of tickets inside her pocket.
"Then go use it to get what you want." Mikoto didn't mind to share her tickets with Kuroko. She was very eager to receive the Gekota stuffed toy from the person supervising the booth.
"Onee-sama must be really happy now." Kuroko teased Mikoto as she saw her sempai cuddling the doll frog inside her arms.
"N-not really, it's just so soft and I am tired so it's okay for me to hug it." Mikoto immediately made up a reason. "What did you get for yourself?" Mikoto wondered as she didn't see Kuroko use the tickets.
"I got this." Kuroko flashed a black laced panty which looked like only women working in a brothel would use.
"W-what the hell! They exchange something as indecent as that for tickets?" Mikoto shouted in shock.
"I know, I was surprised when I saw it too. It only caused 500 tickets." Kuroko waved the item making many people stare at them.
"Keep that you idiot! Everyone's staring at us!" Mikoto scolded right after hitting Kuroko's head with an overhand smash.
"Guih!" Kuroko groaned after being hit. "Hey look at that onee-sama!" Kuroko pointed at the an item near them.
"Hmm?" Mikoto turned to the direction Kuroko was pointing at. "T-that's..." Misaka Mikoto paused and was speachless for awhile.
"Isn't that the same design of the pendant that Kamijo guy bought for that Misaka Imouto?" Kuroko remembered the pendant Misaka model number 10032 was showing earlier.
"It does look the same." Mikoto nodded while closely looking at the item inside the glass.
"We still have some tickets to buy that." Kuroko took out their remaining tickets.
"N-no it's not like I want it." Mikoto disagreed to purchasing the item.
"Why not? You looked like you really wanted one back then." Kuroko referred to Mikoto's struggle with Misaka earler. "Oh I get it!" Kuroko clapped her hand looking like she just had an idea.
"G-got what?" Mikoto asked feeling uneasy about how her partner currently looked.
"You don't want it now because it's not something that will come from that Kamijo guy." Kuroko said with a serious face.
"What? What exactly do you mean by that?" Mikoto stepped back as if there was something really scary in front of her.
"It's not because you wanted a pendant like the one that Misaka Imouto has but you wanted that Kamijou guy to buy something for you too." Kuroko deduced hitting the nail exactly on its head.
"G-gah! You're getting it wrong!" The level 5 continued to deny it even though her face is now flustered, bright red all over.
"C-could it be?" Kuroko shouted in fear. "My dearest onee-sama has found someone she wants to make a nest with and leave me alone?" She said while waving body frantically.
"I'm telling you that you're getting the wrong idea!" Mikoto stomped on the ground to make her stand look more believable but her blushing face easily gives her away. "A-and what do you mean by 'make a nest' you hentai!" She roared.
"No! It's exactly as the situations you read in your mangas. Onee-sama has fallen for a lowly bastard and now she's acting all tsun..."
"Such a thing is impossible!" Mikoto couldn't take anymore and unconsciously scent and EMP like shockwave that took the electricty out of everything inside the arcade before Kuroko could continue. "O-oh," Mikoto knew she did something wrong.
"Iyah not again," Kuroko pressed her palm on her face. "Let's get out of here before everyone realizes it's your fault." She whispered silently before grabbing on Misaka Mikoto's shoulder and teleporting to a distance.
Not too far away from where Kuroko and Mikoto:
"This is such a tiring day..." Touma sighed as he tiredly moaned about his misfortune while he walked aimlessly in the city. "I just came back from a long trip then I get ambushed by gangsters and then by biribiri. And then... was that a 10 year old Misaka Imouto I just saw awhile ago?" He asked himself flashing back at what happened a moment ago. He still found what he saw hard to believe.
"What's with your shoulders drooping in an immensely tired feeling, says Misaka as Misaka clings onto your back as a therapeutic mascot."
By the time he realized that the voice was ansering his monolouge he already felt weight added onto his back. At the rouind sensation being sent to his back, Kamijou Touma got the goosebumps.
"Gwahh w-who are you!" He panicked and started screaming. "Is that you chibi nun!?" He asked as flashes of a silver haired nun appeared in his imagination.
"Chibi nun? That answer is way of as having someone in an occult like a nun is nonesense in Academy City says Misaka as Misaka feels weird about your reply. I'm Misaka model number 20001 says Misaka as she introduces herself." The ten year old looking Misaka continued to cling behind him while introducing herself.
"Uwohhh you're heavy get off me!" Kamijou Touma reached behind him to take the load added to his back and pulled it to his front in a dunk shot motion. "Y-you are..." Touma took the time to recognize the girl he's currently holding upside down and inclined his head a little to the side. The upsidedown little girl mimiced his action also tilting her head sideways.
"Misaka will explain everything but please put Misaka down says Misaka as Misaka begins to feel sick." The ten year old acted as if she's about to hurl.
Touma gently put the girl down eager to hear the explanation. He took her somewhere they could speak more casually and on the way the loli Misaka told him everything in a story.
"So in other words you're like a host computer cal'ed 'The Last Order' that controls all the other Misaka clones?" Touma tried to summarize everything he just heard from model number 20001.
"More like a console rather than a host says Misaka as she corrects your metaphor. I do not have the power to inject my will to them and cannot affect them in anyway unless an external factor is added says Misaka as Misaka refers to that incident with the bad scientist."
"Bad scientist?" Touma asked although he felt by doing so he would be involved in a yet another troublesome situation.
"Yes, a scientist once tried to enrage all the other Misaka's by sending them a virus through me Misaka says as Misaka feels scared and mad at what happened." It was obvious looking at her face that what happened is something that she really recented.
"I see." Touma felt no reason to dig into the matter. He found this person to be quite amazing but what was she doing around loitering randomly in the city like this? "So why did you follow me?"
"Misaka wants to thank Kamijou Touma for stopping the 'Experiment' thus giving all the other Misakas their freedom says Misaka as Misaka shows the 'Grateful Crane Like Development'." Last Order bowed respectfully to Touma like a graceful crane.
"No what's your real intention with your so called polite face?" Touma stressed on 'real' using a hard tone of voice on it.
"You didn't believe me even for an instant! Says Misaka as she angrily stomps her feet! To be honest Misaka was not following you. Running to you is only because of chance says Misaka as Misaka reveals her true feelings."
"So my suspicions were correct!"
"Giiii that look on your face and 'want of delicacy' is making me mad! Misaka says as Misaka pounds on your leg." Indeed she started pounding on Touma's leg. Touma was very careful about it since the hits were nearing close to his crotch. The Last Ordeer seemed angry and Touma had to do something about it.
"My bad, my bad," he apologized and surveyed his surroundings. "There's a popcorn stand over there. If you want I can buy you some." He offered hoping that would calm the little girl down.
"You think you can control a woman's sensitivity using food says Misaka as Misaka tries to be terrified."
"N-no it's nothing like that." Kamijou indeed thought he could. Somehow the approach when it comes to Index must have been ingrained so much into his brain. "This won't do", thought Kamijou as he meekly reconsiders. "So shall we just abstain?"
"But Misaka is eating! Popcorn is very much welcome! Says Misaka as Misaka shows a new technique of taking popcorn without letting go of anger."
"Damn it which is which?" Touma already felt confused about the 10 year old's attitude. He bought her popcorn as promised although he did not expect her to ask for the biggest size.
"This popcorn tastes great says Misaska as Misaka indulges in the crunchy delicious taste of the popcorn." She started gobbling on the extralarge sized bucket of popcorn.
"Damn it she has the appetite of Index and the stubborness of Misaka Mikouto" Touma compared the little girl to the two girls closest to him. "Anyway I have to go now. I'm supposed to stay in Misaka Imouto's place because the apartment I was staying in was taken while I was away. Is it okay to leave you here?" He felt guilty about leaving an innocent 10 year old girl alone in the city.
"Of course Misaka is fine. Misaka is not some item that can easily get lost *choke* says *cough* as Misaka." She struggled to reply as she choked on some popcorn.
"There, there don't eat it too fast!" Touma immediately bought a soda can from a machine.
"Thankyou *glug, glug*. Misaka is walking off with these says Misaka as Misaka takes the soda as her property."
"Index's appetite, Misaka Mikoto's stubborness and Misaka Imouto's possessiveness." Touma looked at the girl weirdly as one of his eyebrows twitched to show his confused feelings. "Also I just noticed that this one takes talking in third person to the extreme."
"Before you go Misaka just wants to say that Misaka was serious about thanking you. Says Misaka as Misaka conveys her grateful feelings. I would like to come and spend more time with you but Misaka also has a person taking care of Misaka right now and Misaka is scared that Misaka's guardian is already worried about Misaka. Says Misaka as Misaka waves goodbye in a dramatic fashion."
"Okay then, see you sometime again!" Touma walked separate ways from the little girl and returned her goodbye.
"There you are! Misaka lost the shitty little brat..." Another Misaka appeared to Touma not long after he and Last Order separated.
"You are... Misaka Imouto right?" Touma looking at the familiar pendant around Misaka's neck guessed.
"You are correct says Misaka. I'm sorry for running of like that, Misaka apologizes for your inconvenience."
"Don't worry about it." Touma waved his head. "I'm sorry that I have to trouble you by free loading."
"Please do not worry. It's the only thing Misaka can do to repay Touma for saving Misaka's life." Misaka humbly replied. She sounded happy but kept an emotionless face.
Unlike the other Misaka's Touma has seen before it's only Last Order who really showed emotions like smiling, crying and being angry. Misaka Imouto also shows emotions but it's always not apparent in her face unlike Misaka Last Order.
"It's about to get dark please follow Misaka to her humble home." Misaka gently but firmly grabbed Touma's hand and lead him to her house.
"What? This is your house?" Touma was shocked to see a towering mansion in front of him.
"Misaka used to share it with 20 other Misakas."
"What happened to those other imoutos?" Touma asked and then followed with a grim expression. "Don't tell me that they...!"
"Please do not worry... they just merely went abroad to avoid saturation of resources in one area. After all there are 9968 Misakas that survived after you save us." Misaka explained. "To be more specific there are two Misakas in each town. Me and Last Order live here, but we do not share the same mansion. She chose to live with someone else."
Touma remembered that Last Order talked to him about a guardian, perhaps it was that guardian that this Misaka is talking about.
"Is that guardian some sort of scientist?" Touma could not help but ask,
"I have not seen him yet but Misaka understands why you think that. I personally don't care says Misaka." Misaka sounded harsh but this was only because she was sure that whoever was keeping an eye on Last Order was capable of keeping her safe and out of trouble. "Please go ahead and sleep in any of the ten bedrooms on the second floor. I forgot to get something from a store and it's important says Misaka while she apologizes for not being to give you a tour of the house."
"Why don't I come with you then?" Touma offered his company since he wasn't all that tired yet.
An hour ago at the same time Last Order and Touma met:
"Where did that shitty brat go?" A white haired boy lost his companion in the middle of a crowd. It was Accelarator, the previous most powerful person in Gakuen Toshi. Before, he was close to level 6 however the incident about Last Order where he got directly hit by a bullet on his head caused his powers to deteriorate back to a normal level 5. In fact he's now limited to using his powers for only 15 minutes or the strain on his brain can cause him to lose consciousness. His nerfed condition is obvious because of the cain he wields on his right hand.
He just went to the doctor to have his daily check up. He brought Last Order with him but the little girl has always been adventurous and now they're separated.
"I'll punish that shitty brat later... I'll spank her so much that she will be shitting bricks!" He lamented as he kept looking for Last Order in the vast crowd of people. "Where can such a little snot go *oof*" Because he was so worried looking for Last Order he didn't noticed the person in front of him and accidentally bumped unto her.
"Ow!" The girl fell on her back while Accelarator managed to keep his balance.
"Sorry I was... c-cosplay?" Accelarator was surprised to see that the girl he bumped was wearing a nun outfit. She had silver hair and was just as tall as the person he was looking for.
"... this is not cosplay! I'm a real nun!" The girl felt annoyed and started stomping on the ground as soon as she got up. The girl was nobody else but the certain magical Index