Chapter 3: The First Clash
"Why am I here?" Accelerator asked as he suddenly found himself near broke inside a burger restaurant. "Why am I drinking pepsi? Why is this blue haired nun in front of me gobbling up everything I give her? And why am I still here waiting for this girl to deliver the final blow to my wallet?" Accelerator continued asking as he gave the nun an annoyed stare.
"What's wrong? It's bad to stare at other people when they're eating Touma told me so!" Index noticed Accelerator's stare and paused from gobbling the hamburger in her hands.
"Nothing it's just that you surpassed a friend of mine's appetite." Accelerator ridiculed while having his chin rested in his hands.
"Haii! Index will never lose!" Index replied spiritfully and cheerfully with a determined fighting expression.
"Oi, oi that's not the right response at all," says Accelerator before giving out a huge sigh.
Meanwhile just outside the burger restaurant Accelerator and Index were eating in:
Unknown to Accelerator and Index a black limousine was waiting fervently for them just outside. They were being watched.
"Is that our target?" A blond long haired petite girl wearing cabby hat asked the person in front of her who in turn had a long black hair a lot taller than her.
"Yes Brenda that is our target. That's number 1 alright" replied the taller girl who seems to be in charge of the group. "And that little girl cosplaying as a nun should be that Last Order we were supposed to capture."
"I still don't understand why we were asked to take number one out and kidnap that little girl." Brenda took out the confidential letter they were given.
"It's because Brenda, Accelerator is no longer the number 1 we all feared. He's now a mere shell of his former self." Meltdowner grinned. "We're merely taking out the trash."
Back inside the burger restaurant:
"Well, sorry again for bumping into you and ruining your dinner. I've repaid it with this though." Accelerator stood up as he was about to leave to find Last Order.
"Hai it was great desu! Arigatou!" Index thanked Accelerator with a grateful smile.
A few minutes later on the way to Accelerator's home:
"I just don't get it. I already paid you for the food I made you spill with interest included but… why the hell are you still following me!" Accelerator shouted at Index who was just behind him as he walked.
"It's just that I have to take the same route I'm definitely not following you!" Index retaliated stomping her feet like a child.
"Now Brenda!" Meltdowner finally ordered her partner to initiate the attack while she observed from the top of a building.
"Here we go!" Brenda replied cheerfully then tossed three dolls infused with bombs at Accelerator and Index.
"I'm telling you to stop follo… huh?" Accelerator noticed the dolls that just gently dropped beside them. "Shit!" He threw aside his cane to give him a pushing leverage and leaped onto Index to cover her from harm.
*BOOM KABLOOM GRABRAGHHH* Three simultaneous explosions destroyed the cemented sidewalk Accelerator and Index were standing on. The blast echoed all throughout the street but no one except the four were there to hear it. Accelerator rolled along with Index out of the blast's way but did not get out unscathed.
"Fuck if not for my power that would have totalled us." Accelerator who was able to redirect some of the impact away was first to stood up.
"What was that?" Index was still on the floor coughing thanks to the dust floating in the air because of the explosion.
"I'm sorry Accelerator-san but you were assigned to be killed by us." Apologized Brenda in a sarcastically cheerful manner after landing on her feet from the high ground she used to target the two.
"You are… Oh fucking shit!" Before Accelerator could manage to assess their situation he blocked a mind blast from above redirecting it to Brenda in front of him.
"Hwoah!" Brenda fell on her back on purpose to dodge the redirected mind blast.
"You've become weak Accelerator. The previous number 1 wouldn't have needed to raise a finger to reflect all those attacks." Meltdowner, finally deciding to enter the combat, descended from the top of the building using levitation.
"I knew it was you," said Accelerator trying his best to look calm and composed as he cautiously observed Meltdowner descend.
"Who are they? Your enemies?" Index innocently asked looking angrily at the opponents in front of them.
"Allies before but yes they're my enemies now." Accelerator replied with a soft grin on his face.
"The title of number 1 no longer fits you Accelerator!" Meltdowner roared before firing 7 multiple mind blasts at Accelerator.
"Crap at my current state… arghh whatever!" Accelerator redirected two mind blasts to collide with the others.
"Brenda now!" She yelled to her comrade who was already preparing her move before Meltdowner fired the mind blasts.
Brenda hurled a 11 feet tall teddy bear at Accelerator. Obviously it was one of her bomb dolls only this time it's in a giant scale and has a god tier explosive power.
"N-no, at my current state I can't stop something that big right after redirecting those level 5 mind blasts. Is this it?" Accelerator watched helplessly as the giant teddy bear dropped towards him.
Before the bear exploded on top of him a sparkling light pierced through the bear completely obliterating it while halting its power to explode. The pillar of light drew a sharp line on the starless night sky leaving everyone including Accelerator dumbfounded.
"Magic number 97 from the 48th sealed tome! Hikari no Hane!" Index exclaimed while looking angrily at Brenda. Countless feathers floated above Index, the same lethal feathers that caused Touma his memories, but for some reason the feathers just continued to float above Index instead of falling down.
"W-what the hell was that?" Shouted Brenda in surprise after retreating behind Meltdowner.
"I thought the brat with him was supposedly just a useless mascot!" Meltdowner looked angrily at Index who was now leading in opposition.
Accelerator also stunned by what he just saw turned to Index. "What was that?"He whispered to Index glancing at her by the side of his eye.
"Mahou desu," said Index proudly with a confident smirk on her face.
"A wha… ah forget it! If you have some kind of power I could really use your help right now." Accelerator heard Index perfectly but didn't know whether to take it seriously or not.
"Should we retreat for now?" Brenda asked her leader after having assessed the situation.
"I don't know what that brat's power but we're supposed to be one of the numbered strongest in this city. The underground does not know retreat!" More than her duty, Meltdowner decided to protect her ego more thus she decided to continue. Her face contorted in anger as she charged with mind blasts.
Around 12 rays of mind blasts rushed at Accelerator who remained motionless. Each had a different arch and different route but had the same target. This way Accelerator would have a hard time calculating the right move in order to use his power. Meltdowner could already feel victory in her hands as her mind blasts close in. She could paint a helpless look on Accelerator's face with her imagination as she was certain that she had already delivered the finishing blow. However…
"Stop kidding with me!" Accelerator roared with an angry stare whirling his hands over him as if he was about to hurl an explosive move. Before an explosion from the mind blasts could occur every ray's vector was altered to hover around Accelerator.
"The fuck this brat!" Meltdowner, sensing a change in tide in the battle quickly stepped back to avoid the attack. "You're not supposed to-"
"That's right! I did fall from grace! However even for just thirty minutes allow me to show you the throne I once carried as the ultimate esper!" With a proud grin on his face, Accelerator continued to control the mind blasts hovering above him and made them revolve faster. He sped them up until a vortex of destructive rays sparked from the ball of psychic energy that once came from Meltdowner.
"G-gyahhh!" Index pushed her skirt down as Accelerator's move was drawing in more and more pressure which created a mini tornado which was blowing everything smaller than a human away.
"If it's like this then I will just have to use my own trademark!" Meltdowner prepared to use her special move "Melt Downer", a move that has an offensive strength comparable to Misaka Mikoto's railgun, basically it's a really powerful mind blast 10x more powerful than her normal ones. The only main reason that Misaka continues to reign supreme over her is Misaka's ability to continuously use her railgun compared to Meltdowner's one hit wonder.
"Wahhh you're not using that in here are you?" Brenda, familiar with her leader's powers, was afraid of the catastrophe the two level fives are about to unleash.
"Forget it Mugino!" Accelerator warned as his opponent started gathering a force of her own to rival his accumulated pressure. "I'll just add whatever you throw at me into my arsenal!" He tried to intimidate the lower level 5 to avoid wrecking the place.
"You're just like that electric brat! Do not underestimate us ITEM!" Mugino had little flashbacks of her battle with Misaka which ended in a draw. Although it was a draw, it was clear that Mikoto already suffered injuries and lost most of her power even before the fight thus the result of the fight being a draw clearly shows Misaka's superiority over the other. "Brenda our mission still has priority take the target in the confusion when we clash."
"H-haii," Brenda was hesitant at first since saying yes would be to agree to get in between the projectiles of the two level fives. "I'll throw some bombs just as they clash then grab the girl," she planned.
Brenda formed a scenario in her mind. It's similar to the imagery training athletes do before a tournament to encourage themselves and perfect their art. First a bomb then a dodge to the left and a forward lunge would save her from the clash of the two powers or at least that's how she sees it. She can also see a few glimpses of her death in case she miscalculates her steps. She could see her body totally torn apart into pulverized little pieces if she makes a mistake as much as an inch. Also her target isn't helpless as they previously thought. If Index would notice her plan she could be obliterated into cosmic dust with the power she just used awhile ago. Also, the fact that she doesn't know what Index' power is makes everything more complicated. She could only hope that the blast from both her bomb and the power clash would distract Index enough before she could restrain her.
Accelerator, getting more impatient with his opponent, made a stance to throw everything he has gathered so far against his enemy. His stance was confident and he was sure that his move would stand up hold up against the Meltdowner. However his calculations missed a fatal flaw which Is Brenda.
Meltdowner on the other hand was not confident. No, her ego would not allow her to be unsure of winning rather what she was unconfident about was Brenda's success of capturing the target. The fact that their target displayed abilities out of their research and prediction throws a wrench in their plans that could ruin the whole thing. However right now wasn't the time to be unsure because her opponent was the acclaimed strongest in the city and a single hesitation could mean her death.
"It's time to end this vector brat!" With a roar Meltdowner unleashed a mind blast the size of an aircraft carrier at Accelerator. The recoil of the blast was so powerful that she jolted backwards.
"This move was supposed to be reserved for 'him' and only him! Be proud that you will have the honour! Grahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Accelerator, using his abilities accelerated his whole body to whirl and threw the ball of plasma and psychic energy. Using the whirling motion to increase his momentum combined with his ability the ball was able to reach speed of sound which added to the destructive power it already possessed.
The blast created by the attacks was the signal for Brenda to take action. Brenda compared to the other members of ITEM is very agile. She managed to duck for cover while reaching for her bombs to initiate her manoeuvre.
"There!" Brenda hurled a doll right between Index and Accelerator.
Time slowed down for Index and Accelerator as they saw the bomb flew past the corner of their eyes. Seeing Brenda's power first hand just awhile ago, they know that they're in a dire situation. On the other hand Brenda had a victorious smile on her face as she started to sprint towards Index. She was waiting for her bomb to explode and cover the enemy side with dust but for some reason it was delayed, no actually instead of an explosion she heard a gunshot followed by a buzzing sound. It was the kind of gunshot that only a sniper rifle would make and the kind of buzzing sound that she faced before.
*Pewgh Bzzt*
Brenda saw something pierce her doll bomb by a bullet coming from behind Index and Accelerator. It was an electrically covered bullet which is now speeding to her face. With a little luck she managed to shift the centre of her gravity to her left to purposely fall on her shoulder and dodged the shot. The stray bullet hit a lamp post which got bent over and snapped.
"That's…" Mugino the Meltdowner saw what happened and she was all too familiar with that move. "That's the railgun! That brat is here?" Mugino was furious to know that her rival the Ace of Tokiwadai was here foiling her plans.
"Misaka is flattered that number 4 would consider me on par with onee-sama but sadly Misaka is far from the orginal's power. Say's Misaka as she reloads for another shot." The person who just used the railgun right now apparently was no other than Misaka Imouto model number 10032.
"You are," Accelerator turned behind him to acknowledge their saviour. "Huh," he smirked. "So you're powerful enough now to copy a level 5's special move?"
"Negative says Misaka in a disappointed tone. Misaka is using a special gun designed by Misaka's friend. It's made out of orichalcon which enables Misaka to coat bullets with electricity without discharging them or breaking the gun says Misaka while proudly waving her gun." She explained the process of her railgun to Accelerator.
"Tch whatever I'm glad you came." Although Accelerator was grateful it definitely wasn't in his tone.
"Fuck, the enemies just keep piling up huh?" Mugino looked worn out. "At this rate this body won't hold up."
"Misaka is not sure of what's happening but Misaka is definitely sure that a friend of Misaka will scold Misaka if she does not stop this." Touma who's Misaka Imouto's symbol of justice appeared in her mind. "Also Accelerator-sana is the friend of Misaka's little and most obnoxious sister."
"Tell me Mugino who and what were you after?" Accelerator asked. "It's definitely not the title of number one or else you would have came to me alone!"
"How perceptive of you but do you think ITEM will give out information secretly?" Even in a losing battle Mugino kept her egoistic appearance.
"Tch whatever! But it doesn't matter since you will not be able to fulfil it!" Accelerator retorted with his usual proud and esteemed gestures. "The moves meltdowner used compared to the moves her companion used… there's something I'm missing. Compared to her companion all moves Mugino used were all flashy and top class. Her companion on the other hand were only throwing bombs with mediocre level explosive power it was as if… wait don't tell me…" At that instance something snapped inside Accelerator's brain. "You're after Last Order aren't you?"
"However did you figure that out?" Mugino didn't look surprised at all after Accelerator figured out her secret. "You win this time number 1 but I assure you we will have that brat!" Meltdowner threatened and pointed sharply at Index.
"W-wha?" Index innocently pointed at herself oblivious of the situation she was in.
"Ehh? Last Order? Misaka wishes to correct that this is mmphhhh…" Before Misaka could speak and reveal Index' true identity Accelerator stopped her and covered her mouth.
"Shh shut up you numbskull," Accelerator scolded Misaka before turning back to Mugino and Brenda. "Try as many times as you can but unless you can surpass me you might as well give up!"
"You can be arrogant now but I will beat you! Mark my words!" Mugino gave her last threats before escaping with Brenda.
Just a few meters away from the three arrived figure whose blood rose upon seeing Accelerator whose hand was still on Misaka's mouth. At once the figure swiftly run to the scene reaching Accelerator's back in just 3s. It was a feat that he did so for he was 20 meters away that time and if it was a sprinting competition he would have gotten a medal.
"What the-" Accelerator turned to the anonymous person who just grabbed his wrist.
"You might have forgotten my face but I'm sure your face definitely hasn't forgotten this fist!" In one swift straight Touma sent Accelerator flying away from Index and Misaka.
"Wha? Touma!" Index was surprised to see Touma appear beside her.
Accelerator crashed on the ground and struggled to get up. The punch from the imagine breaker killed his Esper Mode and he immediately felt the effects.
"Y-you," Accelerator could only moan these words as he looked up at the figure which sent him flying just now.
"You haven't given up on killing the sisters yet? Well I'll make you give up right here and now!" Touma said this angrily and approached Accelerator slowly with a menacing look.
"No please Misaka begs for you to stop pleads Misaka as she pulls on your hand." Misaka Imouto clung to Touma's right arm to pull him away from Accelerator.
"But Imouto," Touma immediately cooled down after seeing Misaka's calm face.
"It was a misunderstanding says Misaka apologetically. After acquiring the object I left, Misaka saw that four people were fighting and Misaka decided to help."
"Touma! How dare you punch a good man so coldly!" Index scolded Touma and kicked his shin.
"Ouch! G-good man? Just what is it that I missed?"
"I'm here sorry for waiting says Misaka as Misaka apologizes sincerely and ehh…" The Last Order appeared from an alley all sweaty. She was looking for Accelerator all this time. Having arrived in the scene her eyes were wide open to see Accelerator bleeding on the ground and Touma standing above him with his fist covered with Accelerator's blood.
"You are…" Touma noticed the little girl and immediately recognized her.
"No please!" The Last Order quickly went in front of Touma and protected Accelerator. "Don't hurt Accelerator please Misaka begs as Misaka cries for mercy!" Tears gushed from The Last Order's eyes streaming down to her face. "He's not bad at all Misaka says as Misaka testifies for her friend!"
"I- I…" At once Touma knew that he was mistaken. His once frowning lips turned into a smile as he walked forward then gave The Last Order a rub on her head. "I'm sorry I misunderstood."
"Well isn't it a surprise?" Accelerator managed to get back on his feet. The Last Order quickly gave him his cane which he threw away awhile ago to save Index.
"Sorry." Touma repeated himself as he offered a handshake to Accelerator.
"Tch," instead of accepting the handshake Accelerator slapped Touma's hand away to hide his shyness. It was too late though since Touma noticed him blush a bit.
"I'd like to ask what happened but it seems it's not the time." Touma surveyed the wrecked surroundings and was puzzled on what the hell happened.
"Hey Touma! Have you forgotten about me?" Index called to him jumping up and down.
"… Ah! I thought you were supposed to be training in the Vatican!" Touma was surprised to see Index. Apparently all the commotion caused him to totally not notice the blue haired nun until now.
"My training just finished desu! I can use magic now!" The nun proudly told her friend.
"Mahou asks Misaka while looking weirdly at you?" Misaka asked in a confused tone.
"It's hard to explain." Touma scratched his head. "Anyway Last Order and Accelerator please allow me to escort you home. If your attackers come back and beat you my conscience will never forgive me."
"It's not needed you-" Accelerator was about to turn down the invitation but…
"Please do that Misaka asks as Misaka gratefully accepts your invitation." The last order cut Accelerator and pulled on Touma.
"Hey wait you!" Accelerator grabbed for Last Order.
"Don't be shy Number 1." Touma smiled at Accelerator which just annoyed the latter more.
"S-shy? Who the hell are you calling shy?"Accelerator roared angrily at Touma waving his cane at him frantically while his face brightens red.
"Ahh Misaka recognizes this attitude from the original!" Misaka Imouto claps her hand. "Tsundere!" She pointed at Accelerator while still keeping an emotionless face.
"What the fuck! Forget you guys grahhhh!" Accelerator grabbed the nearest block of cement and was about to throw it at Touma but The Last Order clung to him to prevent him to while Touma backed away a bit for safetly.
After a few moments of bickering Accelerator could not refuse Touma's offer to escort them home. However as Accelerator reached the place where his apartment was.
"What the…" Accelerator was shocked. A huge pile of rubble now occupies the place where his apartment used to stand.
"Wahhh where are we going to stay now asks Misaka as Misaka panics." The Last Order clung to Misaka Imouto's arm teary eyed.
Accelerator picked up an envelope lying on the ground. In it was a letter carefully folded.
Dear Number One,
This is a present coming from the Queen of Tokiwadai as my thankyou for your arrogance awhile ago. I hope you like camping out.
-Melt Downer
"I'm gonna kill that bitch!" Accelerator crumpled the paper as he scorned Mugino angrily.
"Well this won't do. Oh I know why don't you stay with us in Misaka Imouto's mansion for now? That's okay right Imouto-san?" Touma turned to Misaka with a smile.
"A-ah… haiii Misaka agrees and invites all of you to stay in Misaka's place for now." Misaka looked hesitant but seeing Touma smile at her like that she just couldn't turn him down.
"No wa-"
"Yayy Misaka cheers as Misaka is happy to be able to stay with both of her heroes tonight!" The Last Order cheered before Accelerator could have the chance to decline.
"Ugh why do I even bother… This is going to be a rough night. Staying together with the guy that beat and humiliated me and the girl I tried to kill not to mention that weird blue haired nun is going to be a drag." Accelerator sighed to himself. "Tch, then please take care of us." Accelerator tried to sound politely but it sounded awkward instead that everyone fell silent.