Misato Tachibana had a mission and a rocket launcher. A student in her class said she heard from a student in class Q that Yuuko Aioi had said that Sasahara was going out with Nano. It was well known that Nano was a robot. She probably had a lot of weaponry that could take Misato out before she was aware. If she was going to reclaim Sasahara for herself, there was no other way to go about it but a sneak attack.
Fecchan and Weboshi had bailed on her. This shrine was on the way to Shinonome's house. Misato had the targeting sight over her eye, waiting for the moment when her love rival passed her by, and she was able to take aim.
"I-it's not like I care about who he's seeing," said Misato to the wind.
Someone came into her line of vision. Misato pressed down on the trigger, but her launcher didn't fire. There was something blocking the opening. Something round and long and made of wood. She looked up from the sight to see Yoshino Naganohara standing there, casually leaning on the weapon.
"Akane! Is this who you were looking for?" asked Yoshino. "Short, red hair, a bit of a temper. This looks like your sister."
Another girl with long, red hair and a pair of underpants on her head appeared. She looked down at Misato with a curious glare. Misato felt uncomfortable. The feeling passed, and Akane turned to Yoshino. "This isn't her. Akari doesn't need a rocket launcher. She has her hair balls, you know."
"Ah, my mistake," said Yoshino, plonking her hand against her head and sticking out her tongue.
Misato felt the recoil from her launcher, knocking her to the ground. She hit her head against a wooden wall, and, as she saw Yoshino and Akane walk away, asked to herself "What did she need to bring the sword for?" When Misato would next wake up, her rocket launcher would mysteriously vanish.
Nano was humming a tune to herself when she passed by the shrine. She saw her friends off in the distance, and called out. The screw on her back started spinning at an increasing rate. Nano tried to hide it with her textbooks, but it was too late.
"Nano. How's the Professor doing?" asked Mio.
"She met a new friend," said Nano, trying to dodge the question of the girl grabbing onto her back, "It looks like you did too. Get your hands off that, it's private," she said, blushing bright red. "Who are you?"
"Kyoko," answered the blonde girl, stepping out from behind Nano. "So you're a robot?"
"It's impolite to ask that on the first meeting," said Yui, walking up to the group.
"I bet one of your prototypes was the inspiration for Ganbo," said Kyoko, flipping to a certain page of her volume. "If they can be made as humanoid as you in such a short amount of time, the science in this place must be amazing."
"It really isn't," said Nano. "Aioi!"
Yuuko, who had been lagging behind, caught up with the rest of the group. She couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. The shadows of two adults were discussing something on the steps of the shrine, and mechanical sounds could be heard coming from the foliage. How did Yuuko mention this to everyone without coming off as crazy?
"I know!" said Yuuko, an idea coming to mind. She cleared her throat and made a V-sign, flashing it in front of the girls. "Have you ever heard the story about the raunchy launcher lunch?" asked Yuuko.
"The what?" asked Mio.
"Look out!" said Nano, her screw spinning in the opposite direction. She jumped in front of the girls. An electric shield rose up around her, blocking off the highly explosive missile that was heading their way. The shrine's gate had been half blown away. The ground was littered with rubble and dead grass.
Standing in the middle of the smoke, blowing it away with her straw hat, was Mai. Chinatsu ran up to the group. "I heard the explosion," she said, "What's going on over here? Are you all unhurt?"
"Nano saved us," said Kyoko, popping out from behind Nano's shoulder. Her hair had been frazzled by the shield starting up. "She's a robot."
"I'm not a robot!" said Nano, feeling a sigh of relief as Kyoko started winding her screw back into its proper position.
"Mai, what are you doing here?" asked Yuuko.
"Oh. Kyoko, Yui, I should introduce you. This is Mai. Nobody understands anything about how she works," said Mio.
"Sounds like your kind of company," said Chinatsu to Kyoko.
"Thanks!" said Kyoko, placing her fist against her chest.
"I wasn't complimenting you!" said Chinatsu.
"Is it always like this?" asked Yui.
"Oh, no," said Nano, checking the contents of her bag to make sure soot hadn't fallen in, "Sometimes I cause the explosions." She checked the watch in her arm. A portion of her shell on her forearm slid away, revealing a digital watch embedded in her wrist. "I need to go pick up the Professor from the aquarium. It's been nice meeting you all."
Chinatsu ran up to Nano and grabbed her by the arm. "Don't leave. I don't want to be stuck here with that monster Kyoko. You look elegant and cool, Nano." Chinatsu gave a quick glare in Kyoko's direction.
"Where'd the explosion come from?" asked Yui.
Mai reached into her bag. She showed Chinatsu's drawing of a black hole with eyes to the rest of the group. Kyoko and Yui shot a glance in Chinatsu's direction, while Mio and Yuuko titled their head in confusion.
"Wrong picture," said Mai. "This is the cause."
Mai produced a lavishly drawn page. The details were still being filled in, but the basics could be made out. A lithe man with glasses and a muscular older man were wrapping their arms around each other, and neither of them was wearing shirts. The speech bubble above the second man's head named the first man as Sasaha-
Mio raced in to grab the image. "They don't need to see that," she said with a low fury, "put the drawing away, Mai. Right now."
Mai moved the drawing above her head. Mio jumped up, but Mai kept moving it. Mio wasn't used to dealing with a moving target. She knew she had let Mai work with her on her manga before, but to think Mai would steal a page of it? For blackmail? No thoughts crossed her mind. There was only ire.
Himawari and Sakurako had gotten separated from the rest of the group. They stopped at a crepe stand in the middle of the city. Sakurako's messy hair blew in the wind coming off the explosion in the distance, while Himawari retained her calm demeanor in spite of it all. They were next in line for their food. Someone could be heard gossipping behind them.
"Hey, Fecchan," said the green haired girl with the ponytail, "I think that girl has bigger boobs than you."
"She's bigger than you too," said Fecchan. "Just talk to her already. She's looking at us."
"Excuse me!" said Weboshi, "Fecchan would like to talk to you."
"She's throwing me under the bus," thought Fecchan, "I can do it." She spoke aloud, "How old are you?" she said nervously.
Himawari brushed her hair back and turned around. Her sizable chest jiggled, much to Sakurako's impotent fury. "Himawari Furutani. First year middle school," she said in a dignified manner.
"Middle school?" said Fecchan and Weboshi. They bowed their heads down to her. "Please teach us your secrets."
"See?" sneered Himawari to Sakurako, "They're better at listening to me than you are, with your snippy way of speaking and empty head."
"At least most of my energy's going to my head and not to my boobs!" said Sakurako. "They're not allowed to be around you! I'm the only one who should outdo you. That's how it's always been!"
"We didn't know something like that was going on," said Fecchan.
Himawari turned around. "I'll be ordering crepes for all for of you, is that okay?"
"Yes!" said Fecchan and Weboshi.
"No!" said Sakurako.
"Four crepes, please," said Himawari.
"You two look like you're a lot more fun to be around than Misato," said Weboshi, "She focuses her tsuntsun on us. You two just focus it on each other."
"Misato?" said Himawari, taking the group over to a nearby table.
"She's got this short red hair and all these weapons. She's got a lot of presence at our school," said Fecchan.
"She told us not to come on her mission to get Shinonome. It's a good thing we met you guys," said Weboshi, taking a bite of her crepe.
Sakurako was chewing on a bite of her crepe when an idea popped into her head. "Red hair... helpful... your Misato reminds me of Akari. She's a far better person than the boobs alien over here," Himawari hit Sakurako on the forehead. Sakurako ignored the bump that appeared and continued telling her story. "Akari's the kind of person..."
Ayano, the Ikeda sisters and Sasahara approached the shrine. Sasahara adjusted his glasses, looking at the carnage that had ensued. Mio was clutching a piece of paper in her hand, a guilty smile crossing her face.
"Kyoko Toshino!" shouted Ayano, "Did you cause this?"
"No. But Nano's a robot! Isn't that cool?" asked Kyoko. "Come on, let's go make a wish together."
"To-together?" asked Ayano.
Mai held out her hand, and spoke in English. "Wait," she said, reverting to Japanese. "You look cute." She walked over to Chinatsu. She had come to understand Chinatsu in those few hours they'd been together. She was someone with definite goals. This made her an easy target. Mai's favorite kind.
Mai moved closer to Chinatsu, opening her lips and leaning down towards Chinatsu's mouth. The air became thick between the two girls. Chinatsu closed her eyes and hoped it would be over soon, apologizing to Yui under her breath. There was a disturbance, something cutting through the air. A silhouette leaped out from behind the shrine and knocked Chinatsu out of the way, taking the impact of Mai's lips on her own.
The air started to warp, as the figure came into view. Short, red hair and wild eyes, someone who had been in this scene the entire time, her lack of presence unaccounted for. A single tear rolled down Akari Akaza's cheek as her eyes blanked out. She stood as still as the statues. Mai pulled away.
"Oh my," said Sasahara.
Chitose and Chizuzu removed their glasses. Saliva splattered over the sidewalk, and blood dripped onto the collar of Chitose's clothes. The sisters helped each other put their own glasses back on as their brief fantasies of Mai whispering sweet nothings in Akari's ear faded away, the pink bubbles remaining over their head for a moment or so longer.
Akari looked into Mio's eyes. She turned her gaze upward. Holding Mio's blue hair in place were two blocks of wood. Akari's energy returned. She pointed her finger at Mio and shouted to the heavens.
"Mogami River!" she said.
"I haven't done a haiku in a while," said Yuuko.
"Hand it over," said Akari, walking in front of Sasahara.
With Sasahara's strong front at her back, and his strong back at her front in Mio's manga page, Mio came to the only conclusion possible. "So, another red hair is after Sasahara? I don't know what you're planning Akaza, but I'm not handing it over."
"I need it!" Akari said, "This is 'Akari's' Ordinary Life. That means me, Akari Akaza. I wasn't even in this chapter until this page! I'll do whatever it takes for presence. Even if the world is destroyed!"
"A gold digger too?" said Mio, her anger boiling. Mai silently watched the fireworks. The Student Council and the Amusement Club whispered amongst themselves. Akari had finally snapped.
"My presence!"
"Sasahara!"
Akari and Mio spoke at the same time. A feeling like a shock wave spread through the shrine grounds. Nishigaki had discovered Misato's ammo reserves, and was ready to fire the rocket launcher into the sky once more, not caring what she hit. It was enough to turn the page.
Those in service to the Fey Kingdom were high above the clouds, as they had been for years. Their blimp majestically circled the greater Tokyo area, searching for the signals of the Woodcubes. There had been no sign now for weeks. Number 8 was walking down the hallways, contemplating getting a new job. He leaned out the window and saw a missile come blazing by, exploding in dangerously close proximity to the airship.
"We're under attack!" he called out, signaling the rest of the crew. "The Princess! The Princess! Help!"
"She's safely within the inner chamber," reported Number 11.
"Save us from the Princess!" said Number 8, "To think that we would allow such a thing to happen. The retribution to us will be worse."
The Woodcubes were keys. The ancient weapon had a perfectly square slot for them to slide into, powering it up with the magical energy inherent in the cubes. If someone were to wear them, however, they would become a destroyer. Even the royalty of the Fey Kingdom had to be authorized to use their great power.
"She's back!" said Number 42.
"The Princess?" asked Number 11.
"No!" said Number 13, shaking, "Her..."
The girl with blue hair, the Woodcubes' current master. Number 8 recognized his pom-poms and the Cubes themselves. Both had fallen over the edge of the airship many months ago in ignorant moments, and attached themselves to the body of this girl. That she would return to this ship again struck terror into the hearts of the Fey Kingdom soldiers.
She walked through them, pushing them aside. A faint heat could be felt radiating from her hands. The weapon's power was coursing through her veins, liable to blow at any moment. Her footsteps echoed off the cold metal floor, shaking the airship with every step. She reached the end of the hallway and turned around, staring at the soldiers. Her eyes had hidden themselves behind a veil of shadow.
"Akaza," she mouthed.
Number 18 felt the air start to vibrate behind him. It took on the shape of a human body, far smaller in frame than he. The girl separated herself from the background, her transparent outline filling in, starting from the dango braids on the top of her head. She then reached out and grabbed the narrator.
"This is my moment!" said Akari, pointing the narrator's eye in the direction of the Woodcubes atop Mio's head, "I'm..."
Akari thankfully let go of the narrator as The Advisor, one of the senior members of the Fey Kingdom troops, spoke up. "...the star. The star!" he said.
"That's right!" said Akari. Her dango turned at an angle so the end of the braid was pointed forward at Mio. Heat was gathering at the barrels of her hair. "I'm the star, Akari Akaza!"
"The star is the only one who can stop the destroyer. It's written in the ancient texts of the Fey Kingdom," said The Advisor, "The one whom everyone looks up to! The moral center of everything, with a presence that no one can ignore. That is the star, our hero!"
Akari's face changed into a confident smile. This Fey Kingdom, one of the few things she didn't understand, had granted her rule. She pointed her finger forward and shouted across the ship. The soldiers ducked and covered their ears.
"Dango Funnel, LAUNCH!" shouted Akari.
Her hair braids launched off her head, flying through the air. They hummed as they skirted past the soldiers' heads, heading straight for Mio. The high school girl slid out of the way, creating a shadow image of herself. She clenched her hand into a fist and punched Akari in her solar plexus, sending her flying across the ship.
Akari's dango approached Mio's back. One of them fired a powerful beam of heat into Mio's shoulder. She fell out of her shadow boxing. Mio grabbed her other arm, not noticing the other dango knocking her left Woodcube off her head. Mio felt her power significantly decrease. She reached down to grab the ancient key, only to feel another hand on top of it before her own.
Akari, in stealth mode once more, had obtained the Woodcube. She had also obtained Mio's entire ponytail. Akari grabbed the cube and the hair it was attached to, sticking it on the right side of her head. Her dango scout docked on her left. Her other scout fell into her left hand. With her right, she reached out across the air, grabbing the other Woodcube off Mio's head.
Mio showed no reaction.
Akari moved her dango to the back of her head, and affixed the Woodcube onto her opposite side. With both of the ancient weapons, and a decent pair of pom-poms, she could feel the power flowing through her body. A voice, deep and commanding and not the least bit hammy, spoke to Akari from the center of her mind.
"So you are the Woodcube's new owner," said the voice, "You are now the ruler of the Fey Kingdom, Akari Akaza. I ask of you, what shall be your first proclamation?"
"To become the protagonist I was always meant to be," said Akari, to no one in particular, "From this day forward, the Amusement Club's agenda will be written by my hand! Our first order of business is to..." her eyes went blank, "Give me a minute. I've never made decisions that matter before. It's kinda funny."
"The Star... the Star has become the destroyer!" said The Advisor.
"Two outsiders have gotten a hold of the Woodcubes," said Number 8, backed up against the wall, "The Fey Kingdom's final era is before us. I'm sorry, Your Majesty. It's been a pleasure to be in service to you all these years."
Akari placed her hands to her hips and laughed. Her dango rolled out of her hand. Akari opened the window and looked down at the ground. She wasn't wearing a costume or a cosplay chosen by Kyoko. Yet she felt as if she had changed into someone else. The world was a beautiful place. A place that would always look up at Akari.
Akari felt a faint tugging sensation at the back of her head. Her hands scrambled behind her head, looking for her other dango. She felt someone grabbing her, with one strong arm, by her shoulders, back into the ship. Akari was thrown across the floor, knocking down Number 8. Akari was sitting on his chest, looking around for her attacker.
Mio stood above Akari. Her sky blue hair now had an uncharacteristic shade of red in it. Akari's dango drones had been attached to the side of Mio's head. She was infused with Akari's antipresence. She was overshadowed by the world, and in doing so, became the shadows themselves.
Akari's weapons of justice had been turned against her.
Mio positioned the dango drones towards Akari. The air was swirling around them, forming a small tornado. Number 8, watching the clouds from the open window, saw the nose of something tube like popping out of the end of the clouds. It was propelling itself towards the ship, not caring what it hit.
"Another attack is headed in our direction! All hands on deck!" shouted Number 8.
More rockets bombarded the ship, sailing in through the window. The alarm in the ship was set off. Iron barricades started closing around anything that led outside. Except for the window Akari had opened. Without the extra layer of protection, another missile created a large hole in it. The soldiers and the girls were covered in a layer of black soot.
Mio finished charging the dangos. Akari's eyes sparkled with forethought. Mio released the weaponry hidden in her hair, only for it to suddenly shift into the reverse direction, propelling Mio to the back of the ship. She was close to the open window. Mio coughed and walked towards Akari, her hair, scorched and messy, swinging in the decompressed wind.
"Grab the Woodcubes!" shouted one of the soldiers from the back.
"Nobody's getting these!" said Akari, "I know exactly how to use them, too!"
"That's impossible!" shouted the Advisor.
Akari crossed her arms. The alarms were blaring around her. She shook her pom-pom like hair, and shouted over the sirens. "Mogami River!"
"That's not it," said the deep, imperial voice within Akari's head.
Mio's lips curled into a restrained smile. She could be heard chuckling under her breath. "Did you get that from Yukko?" she said, "You're never going to be the leading role that way. I can't believe I was fighting you seriously this whole time. Tell you what, Akaza, let's go get something to eat and..."
With Mio's emotions untethered, she launched the dango missiles towards Akari. Akari jumped into the air and snatched one of them with her hands. She could feel her evasive abilitis heightening. Akari stepped onto one of the fallen doors, pointing towards the open sky. The dango drone was affixed to the side of her head.
In the heat of the moment, Mio reached out towards Akari's head, getting her hairstyle half back to normal.
"Give me back my hair!" said Mio.
"I'm not giving this up!" said Akari.
"Neither of you can do anything," said Number 8, "Presence and antipresence..."
Akari and Mio had their hands on each other's head, trying to obtain the rest of their hair. They could feel the wind sweeping up. Number 8 raced towards the two, hoping to catch at least one of the Woodcubes. He stretched out his hand. A fourth missile hit, breaking open the recently repaired hole in the floor from Mio's last visit.
Akari and Mio fell to earth, grappling all the way down.
They barely noticed they were descending. The freefalling world became enveloped in a swirl of sound and color. Not even gravity entered their minds.
Akari and Mio, their hair having swapped back to normal in mid-drop, landed on the center of the shrine, sending out a wave of dust and noise, shaking the ground for miles around.
Yuuko, reclining against a tree, woke up. She looked around. Akari and Mio were there, fighting with each other over Sasahara. Yuuko's eyes widened, and she let out a large scream. She dashed up the steps to the shrine, prostrating herself before the Buddha.
"What's gotten into her?" asked Mio, taking her hands off Akari.