A/N: Welcome back~
Bit of an interlude chapter today with some more character development. I do want to flesh Sensei out as more than just a stand-in for the player, even if he isn't given a name - hence why he actually gets a proper description.
That aside, do enjoy~
Halo
Chapter 5: Onwards
''...Sensei...''
He could feel her near; petite body warm and almost soft against his chest, arms around him in a hug.
''Sensei?''
The warmth faded, stark coldness replacing it.
''Sensei?!''
Sensei flinched awake.
''...ah...'' The raven-haired man breathed, exhaling as he stared at his tiled ceiling. ''A dream...''
His voice was hoarse and throat dry, irritated from a lack of water and prompting Sensei to shift upright. Groggy he ran a hand through his hair, sweeping it back and blearily blinking away the sleep in his eyes, reaching out nigh-blindly until he snatched his water bottle off his bedside table and unscrewed the lid. Taking a greedy gulp spilt some water down his chin but in that moment he didn't care, head heavy from his abrupt awakening.
It was still night; that much was obvious by the utter darkness that bathed his personal quarters. A fumble for his watch revealed that it was just past four in the morning; he'd only been asleep for a few hours then. The thought made him groan but he was too awake now to try and sleep; prompting him to throw off the covers and slip his legs over the edge, rising up to his feet. The students who had been with him thus far were sleeping in the other rooms so he was mindful to keep his movements quiet; wincing at the sharp click his door made when he opened it.
''Haah...'' The cold air gave him momentary pause, and after a second he plucked his grey dressing gown off the back of the door.
Slinging it on he meandered out his room, quiet as he tied the knot and soon made his way out into the common area beyond. In the moonlight the wide room looked a touch despondent; long shadows cast by the couches and tables, the silver light of the moon dulled by the clouds outside to a more solemn grey hue. His own shadows stretched across the floor and up the wall as he walked past the window, his quiet footfalls the only sound in the entire floor.
His gaze peered out the windows, down at Kivotos below. Even now, in the dead of night, the city still carried onwards. Neon signs illuminated narrow streets and beckoned late-night wanderers, porch lights cast cones of light onto garden pathways and the occasional individual wandered about, be they a lost drunkard or a homeless person.
It felt strange to see. Deep down, on a conscious level, he knew that the city wouldn't stop. Even if a great tragedy struck all of Kivotos it wouldn't stop – the lives of millions couldn't simply halt. But with the memories of the last day still weighing on his mind, it just felt absurd it didn't. That the lives of over a dozen students were extinguished, yet the world turned ever onwards. Unknowing, uncaring; he wouldn't be surprised to find both amongst the populace.
Click~
The window in front of him clicked open with naught but a twist of the lock, allowing a refreshingly cold breeze into the the common area. With an exhaled breath Sensei leaned forwards, resting his elbows on the frame and finally feeling like he could breathe – soothed, almost, by the cold gust that weaved through his hair gently, like fingers snaking through his hair. One of the perks of the Schale building being so tall; it got a nice breeze.
The amusing thought didn't last long, though. Quickly the faint smile left Sensei's face and his thoughts turned back to the lost students, to Airi. He'd need to tell Shimiko – tell her that her close friend was now dead. The thought left a bitter taste in his mouth but he knew it was for the best she hear it from him and not from someone else, or worse by gossip. Undoubtedly Trinity Academy would say something about it soon too, now that her fate was confirmed; Shimiko would know sooner than later.
Sensei grimaced at the thought, shutting his eyes. He could almost envision the last message she'd sent him via MomoTalk, only a day or two before she was listed as missing.
''Sensei!''
That was all she'd said at around nine in the morning, probably just before classes started. More than likely she'd waited for him to reply so she could in turn, but he'd been busy and not seen it until evening... and by the time he sent a quick ''Yes?'' back, it must've already been too late, considering she would've already been at Shimiko's home by then. The thought stung more than he first realised.
Perhaps, when she was strapped to those strange chairs in the Containment Chamber, she thought of him, never able to tell him what she wanted to say.
''...tch...'' Sensei clicked his tongue, suddenly running a hand through his hair. The burst of irritation at his own mistake was brief but sharp, but any such bitter feelings were swallowed down with a sharp inhale; pushed far away as he could.
Not least because he heard movement in one of the rooms. He waited, head tilted slightly and peering back at the several doors, trying to remember which of the girls picked what room – when the door near his own clicked open. The angle of the light cast a shadow over it and the oversized dressing gown hid the individual's figure, but there was no hiding their pair of horns and long red hair, even in the dim.
''...evening, Aru.'' Sensei cracked a faint smile. ''Or morning, technically.''
''H-Hello, Sensei...'' A cute yawn made Aru stutter briefly; one hand daintily covering her mouth. ''Mm... what are you doing up...?''
''...just needed some air, is all.'' Sensei vaguely responded, turning his gaze back onto the distant city below. ''What about you?''
''I heard someone moving about and got up to investigate.'' Aru explained with a slight, confident smirk-
-up until he questioned her. ''Didn't I tell you girls not to go about by yourselves, though?''
''Urk-!'' Aru stumbled. ''U-Um... I...''
Sensei chuckled; the sound genuine. Aru pouted slightly but didn't look nearly as embarrassed as she pretended to be, a touch demure as she walked up to his side, joining him by the window. For what felt like a small eternity they stood there, the cold wind blowing past the window and letting only a sliver sneak in through the gap, tickling their exposed skin and cooling their sleepy pyjama-clad forms.
''Sensei.'' Until Aru disturbed the quiet. ''Are you alright?''
''Of course. What makes you say that?''
Aru was quiet for a moment. Only a moment, though. ''You don't feel the same as you usually do.''
''Oh?'' Faintly amused Sensei turned towards his student, one brow raised. ''And how do I usually 'feel', Aru?''
''A-Ah... w-w-well...'' Flustered Aru stuttered, index finger curling around some red locks and twirling it.
Sensei chuckled ruefully and turned his gaze back onto the scenery – and was surprised to actually get a response.
''You feel warm.'' The comment gave him pause. ''You're relaxed, and confident. Now though... you have this distant look in your eyes, like something's really bothering you.''
''...heh. That so.'' Sensei smiled wryly, petting Aru on the back. ''Maybe something is. But it's not right for me to burden you with that information.''
Aru flushed. ''But-''
''No buts.'' He chuckled, snaking his arm around her and slowly luring her away from the window. ''Come on, let's get you to bed.''
The red-haired sniper looked like she wanted to say more but thought better of it, pursing her lips and murmuring a faint agreement, letting him lead her back to her room.
''Goodnight, Sensei.''
''Night Aru. Sleep well.''
With a soft click the door shut, leaving Sensei stood alone in the common area, a faint smile still lingering on his lips.
'...warm, huh.' Sensei internally mused, looking down. '...I suppose I can't afford to act so mopey, not when the others still need my guidance.'
Raising his head he gazed over at the ajar window, the faint howl of the wind audible through it.
Up until he clicked it shut.
'Don't worry, Airi.' Sensei thought, staring out into the starlit abyss. 'I'll find whoever did this. I promise.'
No answer came, but when he returned to sleep Sensei was bothered no more by haunting voices.
X-x-X
Morning came far faster than Sensei would've liked.
With it came his usual routine. Wake up, check his texts and reply to his students as best he could, get showered and dressed, have breakfast – only now he was accompanied by the girls of Abydos and Problem Solver 68.
Each room, including his own, was closer to a small apartment than a simple hotel room – but perhaps because of what happened last night everyone gathered in the common room on their own, including he himself. Thankfully he had the foresight to stock the cupboards with basic necessities, allowing him and Serika to whip up a breakfast for everyone, fuelling them for the day ahead.
And what a day it was shaping up to be.
Click.
''You're several minutes late, Sensei.''
''Yeah, sorry.'' He sighed, running a hand through his hair. ''Had to convince Haruka to let me go on my own.''
Rin merely hummed at that, accepting his reasoning. ''Then sit.''
Sensei bobbed his head in agreement. His steps were swift as he crossed his office over to where Rin waited by his desk, a fresh Manila envelope tucked under her arm. One she withdrew and offered to him as he sat against the edge of the desk.
''The council has dug through the files of everyone arrested at the laboratory last night.'' Rin began. ''Their information is enclosed within the file for you to peruse. What we could dig up, anyway.''
Sensei paused just as he started to open it. ''Come again?''
Rin obliged, elaborating. ''The council holds the information of nearly every individual within Kivotos. Those we don't are held by various autonomous territories. However the files on these individuals were unusually sparse.''
''Unusually.'' The raven-haired man repeated, opening the folder.
The first person in line, a man in his forties with swept-back black hair, drew his attention. Age, name, place of residence, next of kin, so on and so forth, all the basic information was there... but only the basic. More specific information that Rin should've been able to draw up like prior places of work, schools, accolades or distinctions – all of that was absent, the boxes left empty. Considering the number of scientists that were arrested, surely that information would be present. Unless...
''You suspect sabotage.'' Sensei remarked slowly.
''I have no proof. None beyond the absence of the information you can see.'' Rin adjusted her glasses. ''But yes, I suspect sabotage. These records are immaculately maintained and have been for as long as I can remember. Not even high-ranking individuals are immune. So for a collection of scientists and enforcers, all of whom are working for what we presume to be a criminal organisation, to be lacking vital information that directly impedes our investigations into them? It's too suspicious for my liking.''
''Any way around it?'' He asked half-heartedly.
''I'm working on it.'' The bespectacled woman responded. ''Though most of the information is missing, their full names are still there, so we can track them down that way. It won't be a quick affair though.''
''And we don't have time to waste.'' Sensei hummed, closing the Manila folder. ''I'll take this down to Arona and have her scan the names on it, and forward the information to you. That should help narrow it down.''
Rin hummed her thanks. Walking past him she circled his desk to the row of paned windows behind it, her gaze drawn to the city below. After a moment Sensei joined her; a haunting quiet falling over them in the absence of conversation and drawing his focus onto the numerous people below.
Kivotos was a big place. A very, very big place. From dense cities to sparser town areas, from deserts to snowfields, from forests to mountains – there was no way to comb through it all, even if they had years to do so. Even assuming their bases were like the one they just discovered, that still left a lot of wild expanse to cover, which would be arduous even with all of the council's power behind it. As it was though, with their hands already full with other problems around Kivotos, it was borderline impossible.
'But still.' Sensei thought to himself, watching the people meander about their daily lives far below. 'I can't just sit here and do nothing.''
The thought gave him some clarity; enough at least that he could think straight. ''We discovered something on our end as well, me and the students.''
''And that would be?''
''The weather.'' He pointed out at the sun overhead. ''Every time a student has gone missing, it's been overcast or rainy. We think there's a good chance it's connected to that.''
''I see. But even if that's the case, we can't just initiate a curfew every time there's-''
''Yes, I know.'' Sensei cut her off with a tight smile. ''But that gives us something to work with, doesn't it?''
Rin conceded to that. ''Indeed. On another note, Looker will continue to work under myself, and I will forward any information he manages to dig up. Though don't expect much, as his involvement with this mysterious organisation ended with that lab.''
''Understood. Our orders from here then?''
''Track down any leads you can find. If you find another one of these laboratories call it in, I'll have support sent your way.'' Rin curtly answered, turning to face him. ''One thing Looker did make a point of mentioning to me is that there is at least one such base for each autonomous territory. That will be your stating point.''
Sensei sighed, running a hand through his hair. ''That's still a tall order Rin.''
''I know.'' Her blue eyes softened. ''I don't expect this done by tomorrow or anything, much as I would like it to be. I'm fully aware it will take your weeks, months... possibly even years, depending on how well they hide themselves. But for the safety of the students, we have to do all that we can, no matter how arduous it will be.''
Faintly he nodded. ''...Mm. Is there anything else?''
''No. I'll be on my way now.'' Rin said, turning. ''Good luck, Sensei.''
''Same to you.''
Dipping her head in a slight nod the bespectacled woman departed his office. Only when he heard her leave the floor did Sensei truly relax; puffing out a laboured sigh and rubbing at his eyes. Part of him regretted only hiring Abydos and Problem Solver 68 now; there was just too much ground to effectively cover with just the ten of them, not even considering that for each of these outposts they'd likely need to unite against them.
He paused, considering bringing Gehenna or Trinity... before grimacing. The politics of the schools wasn't something to overlook. He couldn't just pick one and pretend it's no big deal. At best the other side would be annoyed by it; at worst they'd take offence and it could worsen relations not just with him and Schale, but the other school too. Other schools were an option, of course, but out of all of them Trinity and Gehenna had the most militaristic forces; useful, considering what they were up against.
'Haah... why can't things just be simple for once?' Sensei lamented.
Shaking his head he dispelled the thought, deciding to think on the matter later. Instead he sent a quick text down to Aru and Ayane, calling the girls up – busying himself by arranging his monitors and pulling up any information he could, cross-referencing all the info they'd gathered thus far.
Several minutes was all it took before the nine students arrived at his office, filing in and forming a vague line by the opaque glass wall. All were dressed in their usual outfits and looked much more refreshed than they had the night before, even Mutsuki stood with her weapon by her side and her usual light grin, whatever traces of the sedative used on her now dissipated within her system.
''Alright, for starters; good work to all of you.'' Sensei smiled slightly, leaning forwards on his elbows. ''Especially you two, Kayoko and Hoshino. Both for getting me and Mutsuki out of there, and for rounding up the guards afterward so the police could take them away.''
''Aw, you're makin' me blush~'' Hoshino smiled sheepishly, scratching the back of her head.
Sensei smiled wryly at that. ''Mm. That aside, our next 'mission' is upon us.''
''According to information we now have, there's at least one outpost per autonomous territory, possibly more. As such we'll be splitting up – it's the only way we'll be able to cover enough territory, and with any luck we'll stumble upon them now that we know what to look for. Generally, anyway.'' Sensei relayed, sitting more upright. ''Shiroko, Serika and Ayane; you three will go to Abydos, since it's your turf and know it best. Hoshino, Haruka and Nonomi, you three will be going to Gehenna. Lastly Aru, Kayoko and Mutsuki; you three will be going to Trinity.''
''Huh? Wouldn't it be better to send Aru's group to Gehenna?'' Serika piped up, sending a sidelong glance at the aforementioned red-head.
To that, Sensei shook his head. ''Problem Solver 68 have something of a reputation in Gehenna. The chance of them getting interrupted during the course of their investigation, either due to prior conflicts or due to interlopers getting involved, is too high. At least if it's just Haruka there, Hoshino and the others can play it off as just friends hanging out, whilst allowing Haruka to act as a guide of sorts.''
Haruka, unnoticed by the others, perked up a little at the phrase 'friends'.
''What about you, Sensei?'' Nonomi inquired curiously.
''I'll be heading to Trinity too.'' He answered lightly. ''Though I won't be going with Aru's group. I'll instead be heading to the academy to ask around, see if anyone noticed anything amiss.''
''Understood~'' Nonomi merrily responded. ''When are we leaving?''
He rose from his seat. ''As soon as you're able, preferably. Remember though; no splitting up. Additionally, if you do discover the location, call it in and alert me. In the event you can't for whatever reason, retreat. Don't try and tackle something this big on your own.''
Everyone nodded, earning a smile from him. ''Good. Dismissed, and good luck.''
A chorus of like-minded replies came his way as the girls formed teams of three and filed out; Haruka nervously following behind Nonomi even as the bustier student chatted her up, clearly trying to ease her obvious nervousness. Privately Sensei smiled at that; Nonomi was the main reason he'd selected Haruka, and not Kayoko, for the Gehenna job. It would do her some good to make friends outside of Problem Solver 68, and while he doubted anything would spring up overnight, it would be a good starting point.
Nodding to himself Sensei gathered up his things, preparing to depart. It'd be a fairly long trip to Trinity, a few hours at least, but at least the scenery would be nice.
X-x-X
Later the day, just as the sun began to descend from its high point in the sky, Shiroko's team found themselves in Abydos once more.
The desert-like terrain was familiar, as was the deserted nature of many districts. Though Shiroko herself hadn't been around to see Abydos at its prime, hints of its former majesty could still be seen in the vastness of the city, in the range of shops and styles of stores, in the vast wealth of knowledge the libraries accumulated.
However it was only a hint of said majesty. Shops and stores laid as vacant shells with sand wafting in through cracked glass windows or holes in the roof where rainwater had broken through. Libraries had long since sold off their most valuable books to stay afloat, and even the city seemed to be shrinking as the farthest reaches collapsed under their own weight or were knocked down to prevent damage to the surrounding city. Government buildings had everything valuable and important removed, leaving them as little more than sand-laden office buildings.
As they walked Shiroko sighed quietly to herself, pushing her morose thoughts from her mind. They had to search the city first for any signs of the bunker; it was easiest and while the chances of there being a bunker just tucked away in an alleyway was small, they couldn't afford to ignore the possibility. The last thing any of them wanted was to overlook a bunker right under their noses. That, and none of them felt up to the task of navigating the open desert just yet.
Procrastination? Perhaps. But considering the number of gangs out there, none of them wanted to put themselves at more risk than necessary.
''So...'' Serika finally broke the silence, prompting Shiroko and Ayane to slow to a stop. ''Any ideas where to start?''
''We stay together.'' Ayane remarked firmly, reminding them of Sensei's words. ''I suggest we start here. The commercial district is right above the sewer system and often has basements; there's a chance we might find something there.''
''Like a tunnel?'' Shiroko's ears twitched, her expression perking up.
''I don't think anyone would build a tunnel under the district, no.'' Ayane denied, smiling exasperatedly when Shiroko looked put-off, her hopes of an underground tunnel chase apparently ruined. ''However we might find a hideout, or some temporary lodging. Abydos is pretty big, but also largely abandoned in many areas. The kidnappers might be lured into a false sense of security and make shelter in some old room until they can continue travelling.''
Shiroko's eyebrows raised. ''You've got a point.''
''But how would we distinguish it from just some kids making a hideout, or one of the gangs using it as a hang-out spot?'' Serika pointed out. ''I doubt they'd just leave a mark saying 'hey, we're part of an evil organisation kidnapping students! Don't mind us!'.''
''I suppose not...'' Ayane murmured, but still seemed determined. ''Nevertheless, it's the best bet we've got. Who knows, maybe there will be such a mark on the wall. Pride comes before the fall, after all.''
''...and maybe there'll be a tunnel after all...'' Shiroko murmured to herself as he made her way over to one of the abandoned stores, missing the exasperatedly looks her two teammates gave her.
Regardless within the minute the three were investigating the nearby stores for traces of life...
...unaware of the eyes watching them from just out of sight the whole time.
[END]
A/N: Oh nyo~ Hopefully nothing bad happens, heh~
See you all next time in Chapter 6: Miscommunications~
Sneak peek:
''Yeah.'' The gothic girl grunted back, wiping her brow of sweat. ''I think we lost her.''
Aru puffed out an agreement, gazing out at the street. It was wider; probably one of the main streets and stretching out into the distance, shops flanking either side. At the far end was a department store with a big sign on the front reading the store's name.
'Though...' Aru's brow scrunched up. 'Is that a... glint?'
Not a second later Aru heard a sharp crack as a bullet pinged off the concrete just next to her head, making her yelp and duck back into the alleyway. Two more quick shots followed the first, blowing dust and small fragments of concrete out of the wall where she'd previously been stood; the bullets only ceasing when she was out-of-sight of the glint.
''Seriously?!'' Aru cried out, clutching her sniper rifle to her chest. ''How did they get a sharpshooter up so fast?! That girl only started chasing us a few minutes ago!''