Traces of your Tears
CHAPTER 7:
"But you can't! Don't go there! Don't go Mikoto!"
With a deep sigh, Mikoto rubbed her head in annoyance.
"For the last time Hyouka, just drop it. I've made up my mind to go, okay? If you keep pestering me, I'm gonna be late."
The large glasses slid down the younger girl's nose dolefully and the corners of her mouth drooped.
Mikoto gave her a sidelong glance, eyebrows twitching in irritation as her fingers adjusted the straps of a large backpack. When she had first opened her eyes early this morning, the unexpected sight of the other girl's face staring intently down at her had nearly given her a heart attack. Somehow, Hyouka had managed to find her sleeping spot after being mysteriously teleported back to this place. Before Mikoto could even get a word out, the excitable girl was babbling about how much she had missed her and what they could do together around the city. When Mikoto told her that she was leaving with Accelerator, she had become distraught.
Now she was desperately trying to convince the Level 5 not to go.
"Just stay one more day with me? Please, Mikoto? Just one more day-"
"No," Mikoto huffed, growing more exasperated with every word, "Look, I have to go. This is my only chance!"
She swung the backpack around, fitting it snugly around her shoulders. Its contents were quite heavy, but Mikoto knew from past experience that she could manage this weight just fine.
Turning to look at Hyouka, she noticed the golden eyes welling up with unshed tears as they looked sadly at her. Mikoto grimaced to herself.
'Why do I suddenly feel like the villain here?!'
"I'll come with you!" Hyouka cried suddenly.
"No!" Mikoto snapped out harshly. Seeing the other girl's frightened look, she took a calming breath and continued on in a lowered voice. "Sorry Hyouka, I know you mean well, but this is something I have to do on my own. That guy you saw last night isn't any ordinary person. He's… dangerous, and I'm the only one who can deal with him right now."
Hyouka continued to stare at her.
"Look, you don't have to worry about me. I can take care of myself," Mikoto assured her confidently.
The golden eyes slowly looked down, fixing upon her shoes.
"I know that…" she whispered, "I believe you. I just… Maybe this is selfish of me… But I… I wanted to spend more time with you, Mikoto!"
Mikoto's eyes grew wide at the sudden outburst.
'Of course,' she thought dazedly, 'I'm an idiot.'
By now, it was highly evident that Hyouka was probably another creational victim of this twisted experiment, or whatever it was that was happening here. Experiencing human contact for the first time must have been a significant event for her if that was the case. Mikoto remembered her Sisters, and how they had valued themselves to be nothing more than guinea pigs. Wasn't this exactly what she had been trying to fight against?
"Just don't forget this: we're here for you, okay? If you can't handle it yourself, just tell us whenever. That's what friends are for."
"You shouldn't try to do everything by yourself, Onee-sama."
Was she the one being selfish again? Even so, there was no way she could…
Mikoto walked up to Hyouka, placing a gentle hand on her head with a regretful smile.
"Hey… We're just parting ways a short while, okay? I'm sure we'll see each other again, and then we could hang out, as friends."
"You mean it?" Hyouka's head jerked up, revealing hopeful eyes.
"Yeah, sure."
"Will you also take me to see your friends? I want to meet them and hang out with them too!"
Mikoto paused for a moment before nodding. "I promise, Hyouka."
Guilt inside her reared its ugly head. What was she doing making more promises she probably wouldn't be able to keep?
'I really am the worst…'
"Thank you, Mikoto!" Hyouka grabbed her into a big hug, looking overjoyed, "You're such a wonderful friend!"
"Ah~ hahaha… It's… really nothing…"
'If you knew the whole story, would you still think the same way about me?'
Mikoto gently pushed Hyouka aside, unable to meet her eyes. She glanced around the small room that had served as her hideout last night and turned to face the door.
"I'll be going now," she shifted her head to give a half-hearted smile at Hyouka. "Take care, okay?"
"Yes… Yes I will," Hyouka sniffed, putting on a brave face and waving to her energetically, "You take care too Mikoto! I'll see you soon with all your other friends…!"
With an agreeable nod, the electromaster turned away and quickly walked out of the building. She leaned against a wall, taking a few breaths to steady herself. The cold morning air was refreshing and somewhat cleared her head, the first rays of sunlight beginning to bloom beyond the shadows of the alleyway. Across the street, a digital clock on a hologram advertisement flashed the numbers 06:45. Determination steeling her resolve, Mikoto set off towards the promised destination.
She could only look forward from here on. There were no other options.
XXXXXXX
"You're late, third-rate," the unpleasant voice grated against her eardrums.
"I am not," Mikoto growled out the last word with emphasis, "Just because you came here early, doesn't mean I'm late."
When she had arrived at their proposed place, Accelerator was already there, dressed just as he had last night. The dark cloak still covered his lanky form, a bulging pack half-concealed upon his back. He didn't seem surprised that she had come. Rather than a greeting, all she had received were chastising words to put her on edge. Not that she had expected anything better from the likes of him of course.
"Tch, whatever you say, brat."
Mikoto stormed up to the pale figure, glaring at him with fierce eyes beneath the bill of her Gekota cap. Her index finger pointed at his chest accusingly.
"Look here bastard! If we're really gonna do this, we have to friggin' cooperate. And that means you stop with the name calling and twisted attitudes!"
"Look who's talking," Accelerator muttered. Rolling his eyes, he turned around and started heading off on his own. "Hurry up, else you're gonna be left behind."
Seething, Mikoto took off after him, grumbling fervently under her breath. She only stopped when her widening eyes were met with an unexpectedly ordinary sight. The wall of black void Mikoto had encountered along the boundary between Districts 17 and 9 four days ago was not there any longer. The way was clear, lit up by the innocent morning sun.
"What on earth…?"
"Tch, I thought so…" Accelerator spat.
Mikoto glanced at him, raising a sceptical eyebrow. "You have a theory?"
"Like you said last night, I couldn't cross either when I tried before. I bet there is some shit watching us that is controlling this place. They obviously want us to fucking stick together for some goddamn fucked up reason."
The albino's unhappy expression contorted into a massive scowl, displaying exactly what he thought about the last statement.
"Well, that sucks," Mikoto grimaced fiercely in return.
"The sentiment is mutual, Railgun."
"You don't have to say," she muttered. Accelerator ignored her, cold red eyes staring straight ahead.
With a sigh and hands on hips, Mikoto gazed into District 9 as well. There didn't seem to be anything suspicious… It was just strange seeing the streets so empty. No security robots, no people, no sound. District 9 was an area dedicated to arts and crafts, so many of the structures were aesthetically pleasing. There were also colourful holograms designed by students displayed around the streets. If this was meant to be a trap for the two of them, there were no indications.
'Oh well, here goes nothing.'
Mikoto moved to step forward when a sickly feeling of cold dread pierced her stomach. Suddenly, leaving District 17 felt like a terrible idea. She bent over clutching her middle, trying to stifle the horrible feeling that lurched her insides.
"What the hell is wrong with you?"
She vaguely heard Accelerator's voice, jaws clenched against the hot sweat that had abruptly broken out and covered her skin. She breathed in deeply, trying to control herself. It was just a stupid feeling; it didn't mean anything… It was probably just being with Accelerator that was messing with her head… but she couldn't let him win…
"Hey, are you listening?"
"I'm fine!" Mikoto ground out through gritted teeth. Curling her palms into fists, the electromaster straightened to her full height once more. Much to her relief, the sickly feeling in her gut was already fast fading away. There was absolutely no way she was going to show any weakness in front of the other Level 5.
"Hurry up then."
"Why don't you go first, if you're so keen?"
There was a hard glint in his red eyes. "You're in my way, third-rate."
"Then friggin' move and go before me, you lazy git!"
Much to her surprise, Accelerator wordlessly took a piece out of her heated advice and moved closer to stand beside her. Mikoto fought the urge to jerk away from his presence. The hot sweat on her body was cooling against the morning breeze, and the unpleasant sensation elicited a shiver.
He regarded her coldly for a moment before a lopsided smirk twisted his facial features.
"Scared, Railgun?"
"What?! No!" Mikoto turned to fully face him, her heart thudding in protest at her denial. "Why the heck would I be scared?!"
The smirk grew, splitting his pale lips into a wide grin.
"You're trembling like a little kitten~."
"I am NOT!"
"I know that look on your face," Accelerator drawled mockingly, "I've seen it more than 10,000 times, haven't I?"
A wild fire of hot rage exploded out at the casual mention of her Sisters.
"!"
A savage snarl ripped from her throat, and before she could even think, she was leaping towards the murderer. It felt like every muscle in her body was strung ready to kill. She saw the reflection of her own dilated pupils in the monster's widening eyes before she slammed into him sending them both over the edge.
The world shattered around them, breaking into tiny pieces that became consumed by darkness. The buildings, the streets, the sky and the sun… Everything twisted into grotesque shapes and fell apart like irreparable puzzle pieces. Driven by the momentum of Mikoto's sudden attack, the two Level 5's flew back and began to fall together, the ground also melting away underneath them into the void.
The air blew harshly into the electromaster's eyes as she plummeted above Accelerator, but she forced them to remain open wide. She paid no attention to the ensuing chaos around them, for she could only see him… Him, staring up at her with those hateful, cold eyes. But now there was fear in those crimson pools too, and Mikoto wanted to seize it, forcefully cleave out that delicious weakness for the world to see, and scorn the monster's pitiful state.
Her hands were grabbing onto the collar of his shirt, almost choking him with gravity as they dropped into the abyss below. She brought one hand back into a fist and struck him on the face, revelling in his cry of pain that quickly became swallowed up by the crackling sounds of the world shattering. Amongst the din, the shouts of her dead Sisters desiring their vengeance were the loudest in her ears. Their voices fuelled her to repeatedly strike at the object of their suffering, finding delight in his open displays of trepidation and agony. The metallic scent of blood filled her nostrils, the red-hot droplets splashing against her cheeks and boiling the fire in her veins. The intensity of her stimulated senses further fortified her rage.
Their rage.
As she cocked back her fist for another punch, the world suddenly shifted and solidified. Accelerator hit the ground hard, loosening Mikoto's grip on his shirt and sending her spinning away. Bright stars exploded in her blackened vision as she slammed into something hard, before dropping limply onto the ground below. The ghostly voices of her Sisters fell dead silent with her cry of pain.
Rich, musky scents of wet earth and wood invaded her nose, although the iron taste of blood on her tongue remained. The flames that had surged deep within suddenly felt extinguished, replaced by simple confusion and dull pain that radiated throughout her body.
'What… What just…?'
Mikoto pried her heavy eyelids open, squinting against the sunlight that whitened her vision momentarily. When it faded away, her eyes widened at the sight before her.
She was lying prone on green grass, her spine weighed down by her heavy backpack. Raising her head, she saw tall trees and thick bushes in the distance, spreading from the earth without any rules and forming what looked like a dense forest.
'What the hell…? Where is this?'
Her bruised hands pulled and ripped the grass as she struggled to sit up, aching arms supporting her weight tiredly. She found herself at the foot of a large tree, its gnarly branches expanding out high above and reaching towards the sky. Sunlight still streamed in between the flimsy leaves, brushing gently against her skin and forming irregular patterns with the shade.
Looking around, it was evident this was an open grass meadow, surrounded by thick trees that grew far beyond the rough circle they formed. The smiling Gekota on her cap pressed against her knees as Mikoto curled over and took a couple of breaths in and out, trying to think clearly and work out where she was. Her mind felt sluggish and disoriented. There was no way this was some park within District 9 – the vegetation surrounding the area were just too thick to be anything other than an actual forest.
Strengthening her resolve, the electromaster gingerly stood up, leaning against the rough bark of the tree she had probably slammed against earlier. Her gaze fell upon the pale form lying on his side just metres away. Lips thinning into a line, her feet slowly carried her towards him, stalking like a predator.
Seeing the Railgun approach, Accelerator pushed himself to sit up.
"Fuck," he cursed as he spat out a glob of blood.
Mikoto stared at him coldly, feeling an odd mixture of elation and hatred mingled with exhaustion. The hood of his cloak had been thrown off, revealing rivulets of crimson running down across most of his face and reddening the whites of his right eye. Large black bruises were already starting to form where she had repeatedly bashed him. It was strange to see the strongest of Academy City in such a sorry state, but it was very much satisfying all the same. Flecks of his blood covered her knuckles, and it still stung from the impacts it had suffered, but somehow, even that pain felt good.
Licking her dry lips, she tasted the saltiness of sweat mingled with the iron of blood upon her tongue.
"You deserved every bit of that and so much more, you son of a bitch," she spat at him.
Burning eyes full of wrath and agony glared at her, a spidery hand elegantly wiping away the red liquid blossoming around his mouth. Weighed down by the backpack on his slim shoulders, the albino stumbled onto his feet.
"You'll regret that sooner or later, Railgun," he said quietly.
Mikoto smirked with arrogance, raising her fists in response to the threat.
"Come at me anytime, Accelerator… If you want another beating that is."
Wordlessly he stared at her, the crimson eyes outlined by patches of blood brimming with promises of retribution. Then he raised the hood of his cloak and began to trudge away, heading into the forest ahead.
"Wait, where do you think you are going?!"
Mikoto followed after him, as much as she hated to do so. While they were mortal enemies, they had landed in this stupid situation together and shared the common goal of getting out.
He replied in a bored tone without bothering to look back.
"None of your business."
"What?! Do you even know where this is?!"
"No, don't have a fucking clue."
"If that's true, shouldn't we think about this first before just randomly charging into the bushes like wildebeests?!"
They were now on the verge of entering the forest, the edges marked by looming shadows of trees. Closer up, the place looked ominous, the sunlight seeming to fade away in the distance and eventually giving into complete darkness. Mikoto blinked, feeling a trickle of unease slide down the back of her mind. She had gone to field trips with her parents when she was younger of course, but that had never involved bush-bashing her way through an unknown landscape. Besides, this situation was anything but normal. What were they doing here instead of District 9, as they were supposed to be?!
"Hey, are you listening to me?!" Mikoto yelled when Accelerator didn't answer.
Annoyed by his lack of replies and cooperation, she rushed forwards to grab his arm.
"Don't fucking touch me, you brat!"
He spun around at the contact, the other arm swiping out into a wide arc and forcing Mikoto to jump back in order to narrowly avoid the incoming blow. Mikoto's eyes narrowed. That one would have swept across her cheeks harshly.
Accelerator fixed her with a look that could kill.
"Don't push me, Railgun, or you really might just regret it. I'm being lenient on you right now. I may have lost my powers but I haven't lost my brain, which is obviously far superior to yours."
"Hmph," Mikoto folded her arms crossly, "is that the best insult you could come up with?"
"Whatever," He sighed, suddenly looking worn out. "Look, I don't think it matters where we go. Whoever is watching us can change the scenery to their screwed up tastes anyway. We just have to keep moving, so shut the fuck up and walk if you don't want to get lost and eaten up by some pathetic wild animal. I'm sick of hearing your stupid whining."
Mikoto indignantly opened her mouth to counter the insults, but thought better of it. There was no point wasting her energy arguing like this. She frowned as Accelerator turned away once more and began to walk deeper into the bushes. He had a point. When they had supposedly stepped into District 9, the scene had purposefully changed altogether. It was highly likely that someone was observing and controlling their environment. If that was the case, it didn't really matter where they moved to, because the enemy could adjust the field to their liking.
"Tch…" This was a bad place to be in. Just who were they and what were they planning?
Thoughts flittered across her mind like rogue spiders as Mikoto walked in silence behind the other Level 5. If this really was another experiment planned by sadistic scientists, she wanted to strangle whoever was responsible with her bare hands. She would not let them take advantage of her and get away with it.
Not again.
Her eyes flickered over to Accelerator's thin figure ahead, slightly hunched over by the weight of his luggage. Mikoto still had an uneasy feeling about following him like this, although she knew she had limited options. Despite the fact that she had beaten him up pretty badly twice already, he didn't seem as fazed as he should be… or at least, not as much as Mikoto wanted him to be. He was acting too confident for her comfort, rousing her suspicions that he had something hidden up his sleeve. She wondered what was driving him forwards, what was fuelling his self-assurance that seemed to have bloomed since last night.
She sighed, shaking her head.
'Why do I even want to know how his twisted mind works?'
Accelerator suddenly stopped, dropping his pack roughly on the ground and sitting against a tree.
"I'm taking a fucking break."
Mikoto watched as he took out a drink bottle from the holder of his pack, taking large gulps and rubbing some of the liquid on his bruised face to wash the dried blood away. She noticed how laboured his breathing was, and the way his eyes scrunched over in pain as shaky hands rubbed water over the wounds. Although he was hiding it quite impressively, it was obvious how unfit he was – probably a direct result of relying too much on his powers. Being the strongest had its downsides after all.
Her lips twitched into a grin.
"What are you looking at?" Accelerator glared.
"Nothing~" Flashing him an insolent smirk, Mikoto also tossed her pack aside and picked another tree to rest under.
Opening her bag, she looked into it with satisfaction. Back in District 17, she had packed as much food and water as she could, along with some spare changes of clothes. She had thought they would become handy, and she was now going to be proven right. Taking out a chocolate bar, she began to nibble on it.
The sugary sweet melted enjoyably in her mouth as Mikoto focused on her surroundings. The trees and bushes were becoming denser, although there was still plenty of space for them to make their way through easily. It was hard to tell the time here, with the sun mostly covered by the canopy above, but she estimated that it was probably just past midday.
She sighed, rubbing the back of her head with a free hand. Accelerator turned towards her at the sound, his red eyes zoning on the edible treat in her hand.
Mikoto took another bite forcefully, feeling his eyes on her as she chewed and swallowed. She caught herself wondering if she should offer some of her food, but quickly chased the stray thought away. He could bloody take care of himself and find his own if he got desperate. She wouldn't care if he starved. Besides, Accelerator also had a large bag with him, so he probably packed his own snacks.
She decided to nail the claim in stone before he could pull any moves against her supplies.
"I brought plenty of food, but none of it is for you."
"I don't want your fucking food."
"Good. Don't come begging when you get hungry."
He turned away in silence, but Mikoto caught his sulky expression.
Suddenly feeling very cheerful, she gulped down the remainder of the sweet and jumped up eagerly.
"Alright~! Let's get moving again!"
Accelerator grumbled something under his breath, but he picked himself up along with his luggage and began to trudge on once more.
Mikoto followed suit, selecting a happy tune to hum, just to annoy the irritated albino.
XXXXXXX
The electromaster wiped the thin film of sweat off her forehead with a hand, still powering on deeper into the forest. There didn't seem to be anything much living in this dreary place apart from trees, shrubs, and more trees. Since their break, they had continued on for hours, barely exchanging a word. Her previous good mood had long faded since she stopped humming and exhaustion was now at the forefront of her mind, but she forced herself to continue. Behind her, the albino was struggling to keep up.
She stopped to catch a breath, turning around to see a distant white figure stumbling over some stray roots.
"Oh geez," she grumbled.
Mikoto retraced her steps, heading back to where he was making slow progress. Hands on hips, she glared at him in half-annoyance and half-amusement.
"Honestly, this isn't even funny anymore. Did you ever participate in sports events without cheating using your ability?"
"Shut… Up…" the albino growled. He almost tripped over another root that had twisted its way out at an awkward angle from the earth. He breathed out a long line of filthy words.
The electromaster gave a demonic grin, dramatically putting aside her luggage and sitting down in a lazy manner. She leaned forward tauntingly, as if she was enjoying a good show.
"Hn~ You're like a snail, Strongest-san~ I guess I'll have to sit here and wait for you to come. I wonder how long it will take?"
Accelerator gritted his teeth, coming closer to her with every heavy footfall.
"Ah, but can you get here before I run out of patience?" Mikoto continued in a cheery voice. A small part of her instincts told her to stop, but the twisted feeling growing inside her wanted to grab at every opportunity to savour the sweet pleasures of jeering at his weaknesses.
"Even though you're the one who suggested this first, maybe I should be the one leaving you to rot here instead."
His steps became faster, spurred on by the mocking backfire of his own words from last night.
"After all, I don't want to let you pull me down-"
"… … SHUT THE FUCK UP!"
He rushed at her so fast, so unpredictably, Mikoto hardly had any time to react.
A pained gasp pushed out from her lungs as her back slammed violently against the forest floor. The fallen branches bit into her flesh like claws. Her eyes widened as a pair of ghostly hands reached for her unprotected throat, and she immediately tried to throw him off by countering the attack with an assault of her own.
'As if you could pin me down like this..!'
Something glinted silver in his hand and Mikoto froze.
It was a knife.
Right on her throat.