Chapter 4 Offensive Manoeuvres: Into the Fray
Everyone scrambling to recover from the flashbang attack once again, Agnes was the first to respond, "Who were those people?!"
"People from the rogue cabal I was telling you about." Akiha replied, rubbing her eyes.
"Right, well can you tell everything you know about them to my subordinate and I'll get back to it later? I need to continue the strategy meeting." Agnese replied, barking out a name in Italian.
A nun quickly hurrying over in response to what was probably her name being called, Agnese turned to us, "This is sister Alessia, she's quite fluent in Japanese."
"Good morning." sister Alessia said with a short bow, my brow furrowing in response.
"Good evening." I replied, hoping she'd pick up on her mistake.
"Lovely day isn't it?" sister Alessia replied, either unaware of the time or very bad at the language.
["Are you sure we'll be ok with her."] I quickly whispered to Akiha
["We'll be fine."] Akiha replied, starting to speak in Italian.
Akiha receiving a slightly weird look at what I'm assuming was extremely archaic Italian as the translator software did not manage to translate some of the words she was saying, Akiha noticed my stare and the nun's weird look before shrugging, ["Don't look at me like that, I picked this language up two centuries ago. I'm kinda rusty by now."]
As Akiha rattled off with the sister in Italian and Agnes continued the briefing without us, I started to wander around looking for possible clues left behind by the attackers and anything that could lead to a possible weakness that I can exploit.
After several rounds around the camp with no clues or evidence I was either using a method of scanning that was inappropirate for the job I was undertaking or there wasn't any evidence to find to begin with.
Sister Agnes' voice jarring me out of my contemplative state, the nuns started breaking up into groups of 2-4 and started preparing all sorts of what I could only assume were rituals and magical tools of some kind as Kamijou, Stiyl and Index retreated to their tents.
"The briefing is done, we move in 3 hours for a portal that the Amakusa Catholics are likely to take to escape with Orsola and the Book of Law."
"Wait wait, slow down. Back up. Did you just say portal? Like, teleportation, movement across a large distance via supernatural means?"
"Yes, why do you find this so hard to believe? You have teleporters in Academy City too do you not?" Akiha replied.
Akiha's words already lost on me as I struggled to imagine magicians performing rituals to calculate the 11 dimensions needed to achieve actual teleportation and then imagining each magician doing it individually I must have started to giggle because the next thing I knew I was hit on the back of my head by Akiha, "Be serious, they are actually going to use a portal to travel out of here."
"How?" I replied, rubbing my head.
"Idol theory."
"Ok, now explain that as if you're explaining it to a complete magical retard. Which I kinda am."
"Idol theory is when you make replicas of extremely powerful symbols to borrow even a fragment of their power. This takes form in the crucifixes you see on churches and rosaries."
"So they're using replicas of super powerful teleportation?" I asked, tilting my head quizzically
"That's the thing, one of your cartographers in history made a map of Japan that was so like the original, he drew portals onto the map causing portals to form in the real world. It's much more complicated than that but that's the basic gist of it dumbed down for you." Akiha said.
Before I could respond, a ear splitting scream came from the other side of camp, both Akiha and I reacting immediately to the noise dashing around the camp to the source.
What we saw, what the rest of the camp saw, instantly raised a death flag for poor Kamijou Touma as he stood over a fainted sister Agnese and a crying Index.
This is not going to end well...
After watching Kamijou slowly crawl himself back to his tent with a head full of bite marks, I looked at Akiha, "I guess we better take a short nap, they'll need time to prepare and we might as well charge our batteries."
"Alright, you rest first then." Akiha said before pulling out a pair of reading glasses and what I can only assume was a grimoire.
"You're not resting?" I asked as I poked my head out of the tent.
"No, I need to prepare for the upcoming battle. But if you are so intent on inquiring about my well being I wouldn't say no to a small... "donation"."
Akiha shoving me into the tent before quickly making sure nobody was looking as she zipped it up, I started to inch away as her eyes took a familiar red glow.
"Umm, Akiha can we talk about this?"
"Shhh, no talk, just action." Akiha said as she pushed me down.
At that moment, only people really close to the tent would have heard it, but if they tried really hard they'd hear a soft cry, "Nooooooooooooo..."
Several hours later, 11pm finally arrived.
Assembled outside of a theme park called Parallel Sweets Wonderland, everyone was gathered in the parking lot as a large gathering of nuns in black robes, a single nun in a white robe, one oversized priest and a student still in school uniform.
Agnese walking over to Kamijou and the others, I turned to listen as Akiha continued burying her face in her book.
"We've found the Amakusa's main forces at Parallel Sweets Wonderland but there's no sign of The Book of Law or Orsola. Although the probability is low, this may be a diversion. So I can't remove the perimeter or recall our patrol squads. Right now we can only use the manpower we have here."
So basically she's saying in a roundabout way that we're on our own.
"For now I'd like to divide our numbers into two groups. 80% of the main force will act as bait. During tht time please act as guerrillas and investigate the interior of the theme park. Once you find The Book of Lw and Orsola take them back.
"What's the R.O.E on the Amakusa?" I asked, receiving strange looks from at least 3 different people, "Ummm, rules of engagement. What do we do if we encounter Amakusa?"
"Whatever is necessary. Just don't expect help to come if you get in a sticky situation. Take them out quickly if you can if not just run."
As Agnese took a silver rod from a nun beside her, Agnese muttered viciously, "... this is unforgiveable..."
"The promotion of Christianity was originally to save humanity and yet these guys are using their power for such a meaningless purpose. Once they use violence for such a trivial matter others will use even more meaningless violence to stop them Why cn't they understand such a simple chain reaction?" Agnese said, several nuns around her nodding in response.
To a certain extent I can identify with Agnese and her indignation. Every time someone starts a fight more people have to jump in to stop it. For every mess created someone has to clean it up. It's an unpleasant truth but it is a resounding truth nonetheless. But condemning the people who did wrong doesn't make you right. Just because you dirty your hands to keep others clean doesn't make your hands any cleaner.
The world isn't as nice and forgiving as that.
As Agnese smiled with self confidence, she tapped both her platform shoes into the ground causing the thick soles to fall off leaving a pair of ordinary sandals.
"If it's easier to walk like that why don't you keep them off?" Kamijou asked.
"Shut up; it's called a sense of beauty. Wearing thick soled sandals is my own style." Agnese replied.
Accomodating for a lack of something are we?
Kamijou, Index and Stiyl headed off to the worker's entrance to the park while Akiha nudged my shoulder, her book nowhere to be seen.
"[Something up?]" I asked.
"[They're back.]"
Both of us splitting off from the Catholic nuns, Akiha bent low sneaking over to the sound of voices, it appears it wasn't just Jin and Saya we had to worry about. They were accompanied by another pair.
"[Ikosawa Kaien and Hana Rin.]" Akiha said pointing at the boy then the girl.
Kaien seemed to be like your classic rock star with unkempt bright blonde hair, tattoos on his arms and piercings studding his face. Rin seemed to have an air of superiority with her hair in a ponytail tied twice as her hair stretched down to her waist, wearing a formal suit specifically tailored for women.
"[What can they do?]"
"[Well, Kaien usually uses elemental magic but Rin never picked a specific magic focus. That lowers her profiency in whatever magic she's using but it also gives her the element of surprise.]"
"[So do we jump them and take the element of surprise or do we just keep them busy?]"
"[Jump them. Ready?]"
Nodding as I activated Combat Mode, I prepared Energy Manipulation and Electromaster before leaping out of the bush with Akiha.
The priceless look of surprise on all of their faces was a moment I'll savour and enjoy for the rest of my life as Akiha sent Jin and Saya flying back with a large gust of wind. Saya countered the wind blast and landed somewhat awkwardly as she rolled back to her feet while Jin wasn't as lucky. He hit a tree trunk with a large crack and crumpled to the ground unconscious just as a tree branch landed on him adding insult to the unconscious person's injury.
Throwing a lance of electricity at Kaien, he quickly fell backwards as his body spasmed from the shock and continued spasming on the floor as though having a seizure.
Although I definitely lack Misaka's control over electricity I seriously don't see how she can shock people to the point they emit smoke while I barely shock a person and not only do I not see smoke they all collapse while Misaka can continuously zap them over the course of several seconds.
As Saya and Rin rounded on us, Akiha smirked like she had already won, "So what are you going to do now that your main form of transport and treatment is gone?"
Saya and Rin glaring at Akiha as they started to tug at Kaien and Jin both tried to shield their partner before Saya spoke, "Pull back, we can't fight them. Not here or now. You haven't seen the last of us!"
As both of us temporarily went blind from either one of them using the flashbang spell, Akiha breathed a sigh of relief, "I guess we'll get our breathing room after all."
"You think there's more of them?" I asked nervously.
"Definitely, there should be at least 8 of them but I guess they're elsewhere pursuing another mission." Akiha replied as we headed back towards the theme park.
The battle was definitely underway as loud booms and clouds of dust exploded from the entrance where the main force of the nuns were carrying out their diversionary tactics. Kamijou and his group must have sneaked in while the Catholic nuns provided a distraction as I heard the distinct sound of him screaming something about being the decoy again from the other side of the theme park.
As much as it sucks to be used by Stiyl screaming your lamentations about being the decoy only serves to make you more of a decoy as everyone gets attracted to the sound of your screaming.
Nodding at Akiha to split up we both ran down separate corners to widen the search area. As soon I cleared the corridor I stopped and flattened myself against the wall as I heard the sound of footsteps probably heading towards the disturbance Kamijou was causing.
The sound coming and going as they passed me I breathed a slow sigh of relief before clapping my hand over my mouth realising my mistake. To my misfortune, a guy came running back looking for the source of the noise his head poking around the corner right into where I was hiding.
Leaping back and jabbing the combat mode button I quickly activated Plasma Flux and narrowly dodged a slice that would have given me a really nasty gash on my cheek before creating a blade of light in my hand.
A look of surprise crossing his face before he lunged in again, I narrowly dodged the attack by pushing myself out of the way with Telekinesis before swinging the blade at his unguarded left side.
Parrying the attack easily he tried to twist my blade and push me back. He nearly succeeded but he lost his footing halfway during the motion but simply stepped forward and recovered as if nothing had happened.
That recovery was physically impossible to pull off, was that some kind of magic?
While I puzzled over his body physiology he lunged at me again, this time his sword in a stabbing motion as he shot forwards towards me.
Summoning a quick rolling telekinetic wave from behind as I stepped back to trip him, I swung my blade out in a wide arc to make him dodge backwards.
Taking the bait and dodging backwards to avoid my swing, he shifted his center of gravity backwards to avoid my attack just as the wave hit the back of his knees to make him fall flat onto the floor.
What actually happened was completely not what I expected.
Falling backwards, he somehow righted himself in midair before landing on his two feet again.
Come on, that's beyond cheating!
Turning around and running I quickly dashed around the corner and waited to fool him into thinking I ran away and ambush him.
Hearing his footsteps as he ran to chase me I quickly came from around the corner swinging out to his unguarded chest.
As he parried the blow and grinned at my failed surprise attack I did something I wouldn't be proud of in the years to come.
I went for the low blow, right in the jewels.
Wincing as he fell to the floor with a small thud, I hid his weapon before roaming around again.
Hopefully Akiha is doing better than I am...
-End of Chapter 4-