Chapter 6

Chifuyu was currently waking up as she couldn't stop the words from Nobunaga ringing in her head after last night.

"You may not see the effect of what happens to the people when your government funds the IS soldiers and lets them get away with whatever they pull, but I've seen them, and trust me when I say that you'll soon see just how dangerous the witches toys really are,"

"What did you mean by that, Nobunaga?" Chifuyu asked herself as she took a shower, and his words came to her mind afterward.

"Tell me, how would you feel if your little brother was in danger because of the IS?"

CR-ACK

A massive fist-sized hole was in the shower wall. Chifuyu breathed heavily, gritting her teeth as she saw Nobunaga's smug smile appear.

"I'll never let that bastard near my brother. I will protect him." Chifuyu said as she then sighed at the damage before making a mental note to let the repair crew know about the damage to her shower wall. Chifuyu then finished up her shower before she accidentally destroyed more of the shower wall.

Chifuyu then left her room after getting dressed and headed towards her office, but when she arrived there, Brunhilde was surprised to see a man standing next to the door before the man walked towards Chifuyu and stopped in front of her.

"Chifuyu Orimura?"

"Yes? Who are you?"

"My name is Kagura Mutsuki. I'm here to ask you some questions about your whereabouts yesterday evening." The man known as Kagura said as Chifuyu looked at him and could tell he was serious.

This Kagura Mutsuki is a rather tall, broad-chested young man. He wore a white, robe-like shirt with long sleeves that were open just above his abdomen; two black belts were fastened on the sleeves. Kagura wore wrist wraps that covered his palm to his elbow, and two metal cuffs sat above the wraps on his wrists. On the lower half of his shirt, two brown belts are fashioned; below this, a large and loose brown belt hangs, and it has a huge golden buckle. Over his shirt, he wears a large, black cape that is separated into three individual cloves. The interior of the cape is a deep crimson red, while the exterior is decorated with a golden insignia on the outer cloves; the cape is held onto Kagura's body via a light brown strap. He wore plain black pants and light brown shoes with metal toe-caps.

"That's a unique uniform. May I ask who sent you?" Chifuyu asked as Kagura chuckled before replying.

"People who are above your pay grade," Kagura said as he gestured towards the door. "I don't want to have to arrest you, so why don't we just chat in your office? Sounds good?"

Chifuyu sighed as she nodded and went into her office with him before Kagura settled into her chair, which made Chifuyu pissed off as she couldn't believe someone was tough enough to make her mad.

Kagura didn't care as he even put his feet up and on her desk before he even picked up her coffee cup and took a sip of it before admiring the taste of it.

"Not bad coffee. I could really go for a chair like this," Kagura said as he leaned back in the chair and enjoyed the coffee some more before setting the mug down on the desk. This made Chifuyu make a mental note to destroy the mug and replace it with a nicer one.

"What do you want, Kagura?" Chifuyu asked, holding in her anger before Kagura began to talk.

"It's about what's happening on the mainland. Tell me, where were you yesterday evening between ten pm and ten thirty pm?"

"Why is that important?"

"Just answer the question."

Chifuyu sighed as she took a deep breath and nodded.

"Very well. I was at my office finishing up some paperwork for the day, and I had just sent Maya to her apartment since she kept falling asleep when helping me." Chifuyu said as she then even pointed to the camera on top of the ceiling.

"Check my office security camera if you don't believe me," Chifuyu said. Kagura didn't care about the camera, so he pulled a flip phone from his pocket and held it out for her.

Chifuyu then took it to see Cao Cao had a brace around his neck, along with bruise marks on his neck. Chifuyu then looked at Kagura, and he then showed a video of someone who looked like a younger Chifuyu slamming CaoCao into the wall before leaving him there for the ambulance to appear.

"Yesterday evening, we received a phone call from this location about the victim CaoCao, and this woman claimed she was Chifuyu Orimura. At first, we didn't believe her, but when we checked for DNA on the blood we found under the victim's fingernails, the results came back as yours, Chifuyu." Kagura said as Chifuyu gripped the bar on her desk and clenched her teeth, seeing this look-alike on the screen.

"Were you able to catch her? The one who called in Cao Cao?"

"Unfortunately, no, but I had to see if you knew her," Kagura then took his feet off her desk and began to walk towards the exit before stopping at the door. Chifuyu was about to ask him what else he wanted but was surprised to see Kagura give him a warning.

"You shouldn't show yourself to the public for a while, and especially your brother. I'll tell them you don't know her nor ask you what your relationship is of this look alike." Kagura said as he knew Chifuyu was shocked by his words before he left, with many of the female students being shocked to see someone like Kagura leave the office of Brunhilde herself, which then began to spread like wildfire all the way to even the first year students.

"Wait. You mean to tell me a man was in Orimura-Sensei's office?" Cecelia asked as Houki nodded and replied.

"That's what the rumors are. I even checked it out with Honne, and she confirmed that the rumors were true. The man was actually Kagura Mutsuki, and I heard he works for the police force and is a cool guy once you get to know him." Houki said, much to Cecilia's surprise, before she asked if the kendo warrior knew Kagura but received a shake of her head instead of a nod.

"No. Kagura knows my sister Tabane, and the two are acquaintances at best since Tabane is annoyed when Kagura puts down her ideas for new IS units. Kagura is surprised that the one who was responsible for such machines acts more like a child than an adult." Houki explained that Cecilia had never met her. Still, based on what Issei told him about Tabane and the rumors about her then, it's understandable that the woman can be a bit childish at times, but she's a very competent woman who's a bit unique.

"Hey, Cecilia, do you have any idea where Issei and Charles are?" Houki asked since she had yet to see them enter the classroom before Cecilia replied.

"Oh, last I heard, Issei asked for special permission to go check on his friend who ruthlessly attacked yesterday. We should be able to see him around sometime in the early afternoon." Cecilia explained as Houki nodded since she knew that Issei probably had some friends on the mainland, and if she heard one of her friends was in the hospital, she'd go and see them, too.

"I hope his friend is okay, but why did Charles go with him?" Houki asked as she was concerned about Issei's wellbeing since the French man seemed to be a bit frisky with Issei at the party yesterday evening, especially since he turned into an affectionate drunk that wanted Issei's attention and even rubbed his ass all over Issei's crotch as she recalled berating the Frenchman when he left the rooftop on the first day of the semester which is where Houki learned something new about the Frenchwoman.

Flashback.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?! Are you trying to seduce Issei-san or something?!" Houki yelled as she continued to shake Charles back and forth.

"I swear it's not what you think! I was just a bit jealous of Issei looking at our teacher's milk jugs and wanted some of his attention!" Charles yelled as Houki stopped shaking him. She then let the Frenchman go and sighed at him.

"Well, I find it hard to believe since it looked like you wanted Issei to bone you and take you up here away from everyone," Houki said before she saw his chest was opened up a bit until she saw some meat on his chest.

"Charles," Houki asked as she grabbed Charles's shirt and ripped off the cover before blushing in shock at the two massive orbs before her.

'Holy shit! She's probably my size but maybe smaller than me!' Houki shouted in her head as she then looked at Charles and asked. "Who are you."

Charles sighed as he decided to come clean. "I wanted to get surgery since I always felt more comfortable as a girl than a boy, so I went behind my father's back and got the surgery. Please don't tell Issei about this! He'll freak out and report me to Orimura-Sensei."

Houki sighed to herself as she looked at Charles. She could tell that he could definitely be a beautiful woman before Houki smiled and placed a hand on the Frenchwoman's left shoulder.

"I'll keep your secret, I promise, but if you want some advice on wooing Issei or if you're interested in becoming a woman, then I'd be happy to help you," Houki said as Charles blushed at the woman's appreciation and desire to help before Charles looked down and asked.

"But do you think he won't see me as a weirdo or a freak if I say I'd prefer being a girl over a boy?"

"Not at all. From what I've seen, Issei doesn't suspect that you are a boy transitioning to a girl, so I would keep that a secret from him for as long as you can, but when you are ready to tell him, then I'll be here to help you in; anyway, I can." Houki said as Charles felt touched by the kindness of the Japanese woman.

"Thank you grande soeur."

"What does that mean?"

"Oh? It means big sister in French." Charles said with a large smile as Houki blushed at the bright light shining off him before shielding her eyes from the light.

'S-So bright! I must protect this sweet little Angel!' Houki said as she was happy to help this sweet Angel keep her secret.

"You can count on me, Charles!" Houki said with joy, as she was going to help Charles with his secret and help him confess his feelings towards Issei after the surgery was complete.

End Flashback.

'This is her chance to score some points with Issei before some of the other girls do. I happen to have suggested Charles go in a special outfit that'll show off his bust and beauty. Issei will be so shocked that he'll be more than willing to accept such a beautiful woman as a girlfriend.' Houki monologued in her head as she was hoping that the two would get closer before Kiyoka and Kanzashi tried to ask Issei on a date since she could tell that the other two girls wanted to ask out the only boy in their school. Still, the real challenge was if Cecilia wanted to date Issei as well.

"Hey, Cecilia, I've noticed you're not so snappy toward Issei lately. Is there a reason why?" Houki asked. Cecilia replied with a sigh.

"Well, we've become acquaintances at best that do show care about each other, which is why I'm worried that Frenchman will try something with Issei as he did back in the arena," Cecilia said as she knew that the Frenchman Charles had a crush on Issei and was worried about him being assaulted by that pervert from France.

Houki sighed in her mind as she was glad that Charles didn't have any competition from Cecilia before feeling her phone buzz as she looked at the message.

It was a picture of Issei and Charles. Charles was wearing a sundress, which made him look absolutely stunning. Houki read the message underneath the picture.

{Thank you for the dress grande soeur. I'll tell Issei who I really am and thank you for supporting me.}

Houki let out some tears of joy as she was so proud of Charles before Cecilia broke her out of her fantasy.

"Uh, excuse me, Miss Shinono, but who is that girl in that photo with Issei? I thought he was with Charles?" Cecilia asked as Houki froze in shock before Houki poked her fingers together and whispered in the British woman's ear, who picked up all Houki said before Cecilia leaned back and looked at Houki with a passive face before yelling.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THAT GIRL CHARLES!?"

Meanwhile, on the mainland.

"So you mean Houki knew about you being a girl?" Issei asked as Charlotte made a so-so motion.

"Well, not really. I told Houki I was a boy going through the surgery to be a girl, so she decided to be a big sister and help me with confessing my feelings towards you." Charlotte said as she ate some ice cream while Issei groaned at that before muttering to himself.

"Probably because you are more of an imp than an Angel," Issei said as Charlotte looked offended.

"Ah! Well, I never. I am a wonderful lady, but calling me an imp is so mean." Charlotte said as she then hugged his left arm between her breasts and smiled at his reaction.

"...Dammit. I hate it when you act like that." Issei said as he tried to push down the blush on his face before a voice called out to him.

"Issei? Issei Hyoudou?" The voice asked. Issei froze in shock until he slowly turned around to see his former girlfriend.

"Yuuma Amano? What are you doing here?" Issei asked as Yuuma looked nervous as if she didn't want to say something rude, while Charlotte narrowed her eyes at the woman, knowing it was the same girl who didn't care about Issei's feelings and only dated him on a dare.

"Oh! Well, I heard about Cao Cao and wanted to see how he was doing," Yuuma said as she nervously glanced down at a small basket she was carrying before Issei sighed at her and asked.

"Are you trying to get back into Cao Cao's good graces after he dumped you after finding out that you are a player?"

"I wasn't trying to play with either him or you!"

"Oh really, because memory serves me well. You didn't care about my feelings and even told your friends that you were only dating me because of that dare. You even called the date, and I quote: 'A mediocre date that made me feel like I was playing house with a pathetic fool.' Also, you used Cao Cao and tried to make me jealous of him. He's my best friend, and I'll be damned that I let a leech like you affect anyone else." Issei said as Yuuma and Issei looked at each other before the IS students left Yuuma alone, who looked down at her basket and turned around, heading back home.

Issei and Charlotte were silent as they continued their walk until Charlotte broke it with a simple question.

"Do you still love her, Issei? Even after what she did to you?" Charlotte asked as Issei stopped. He looked at the sky and liked the breeze that came through before sighing to himself.

"Honestly? No. I moved on from her, and I wished her the best of luck in the future. I was happy to have met Natasha, who was willing to help me not only move on from Yuuma but also told me that someday I'll meet someone who'll care about my feelings and help me become better and vice versa." Issei said as he took her hand, causing her to blush, before he continued.

"And I'm glad for that because if I hadn't become an IS user, that probably would've hurt me much worse than I could've imagined, so I'm grateful to be an IS user and meet you, Charlotte, along with the others," Issei said with a smile as Charlotte smiled before standing on her toes and took Issei's lips, much to his shock before Charlotte leaned away from him.

"I love you Issei Hyoudou." Charlotte said as Issei blushed. He took her hand and led her towards the hospital before Charlotte heard him mumble under his breath.

"I love you too, Charlotte Dunois," Issei said as Charlotte smiled, happy that she went with him and confessed her feelings for him.

'Thank you mother from above!' Charlotte prayed in thanks to her deceased mother as a pillar of light shone down upon her as if Heaven itself had blessed her.

However, while Issei has a reunion with a ghost from his past and an old friend, Brunhilde is about to face another ghost from her past.

"Tch. Who does that bastard think he is, coming into my office, sitting at my desk, and sipping out of my coffee cup!" Chifuyu yelled as she destroyed her cup and cleaned off her desk before hearing a chuckle come from behind her.

"Aw, what's the matter, Chifuyu? Scared that a man actually has the guts to stand up to you and not let you walk all over him?" A voice as Chifuyu turned around to see no one was at the front door before turning back around to see a familiar face sitting in her chair.

A familiar face that looked just like her but was younger, back when Chifuyu was in high school. The woman sitting in front of her also had a petite body and had the same hairstyle and color as Chifuyu. Still, the Brunhilde also noticed something familiar around the intruder's neck: A yellow locket that held a picture of Chifuyu holding a baby Ichika and looking at him with love and affection, while the other side of the locket showed Chifuyu looking away from Madoka, who was younger than Chifuyu and wanted to be held by her, but the older sibling didn't acknowledge her much less care about her little sisters existence.

"Hello, Chifuyu. It's been a long time since we last saw each other, hasn't it?" The intruder said as she narrowed her eyes at Chifuyu and asked, hearing no response.

"Aw, what's wrong? Are you disgusted by the fact your little sister is alive and well? 'Oh, it's nice to see you too, Madoka. It's been a long time since I abandoned you and left you since I only cared about my little brother since you were just a lab rat to be a super weapon.' Ah, thank you, Chifuyu; nice to see you actually still 'care' about me." Madoka said as she did a fake Chifuyu impersonation of her voice. Madoka then saw a sword pointed at her throat.

"What are you doing here, Madoka, or should I call you M since you go by that now?" Chifuyu asked as Madoka didn't even flinch at the sword before pushing it away from her throat.

"Oh, please, as if you care what I'm called now. You made who you care more about clear fifteen years ago when you left me behind and only cared about Ichika because you saw he was 'different' and 'innocent' when your one-year-old sister wanted to have a sister play with her and give her some actual love instead of the cold shoulder you gave me!" Madoka yelled as she slammed a fist on the desk, causing a small crater to form underneath her fist before Madoka took a few deep breaths and stood up.

"However, the past doesn't matter. I'm only here to tell you that I won't be going after Ichika. I just wanted to see how he was doing since I don't hold resentment towards him. If anything, I'm glad he doesn't pilot the IS since I plan to keep him out of Phantom Task and the IS as much as I can." Madoka said as she smiled, recalling seeing her brother enjoying his life as a normal high school student and having two girlfriends.

"Really? Do you care about Ichika? You expect me to believe a monster like you could ever care about my little brother?" Chifuyu asked as Madoka laughed at her question as if it was a joke.

"Hah! Me? A monster? That's hilarious coming from the great Brunhilde, who is also a monster like me. Tell me, how do you sleep at night knowing your hands are covered in more blood than my own? How do you deal with the voices of the innocent people that you mercilessly slaughtered when you used that IS?" Madoka asked as she walked towards the balcony next to the office and smiled at the mainland in front of the academy before looking back at Chifuyu with a look of acceptance.

"Once Phantom Task destroys all of the Infinite Stratos, the world will never know they even existed in the first place, and it'll be thanks to Nobunaga and a little help from the rabbit," Madoka said as she then summoned her own IS and left the academy, leaving a shocked Chifuyu as she was pondering what Madoka meant by her words.

"The world won't know they exist? And how does Tabane fit into this? She hates Phantom Task, right?" Chifuyu asked herself as she sat in her office chair. She groaned as she tried to process the fact that not only did her sister return, but that look of acceptance stayed in her mind.

"Why does she have the same look as those who are sent to die?"

Madoka smiled to herself as she then teleported to Phantom Task and bowed before Nobunaga, who was sitting on a special throne.

"Ah, welcome back Madoka. How was your visit with your brother and sister?" Nobunaga asked as he patted Madoka on the head, which made the girl smile in joy. She enjoyed the affectionate touch before she replied to her master.

"Wonderful. My little brother is living the life you told me about. I still can't believe that you were able to change my brother's fate thanks to the rabbits' Time Machine." Madoka said as Nobunaga chuckled to herself. He looked at the throne he sat on before nodding.

"Indeed. The witch made something more useful than those war machines, and once the witch's toys are gone, the Phantom shall finally be laid to rest and us along with it." Nobunaga said, and Madoka nodded in agreement, her face showing admiration.

"To build a better future for our world, we must vanish like the Infinite Stratos will soon," Madoka said, looking melancholy. Then she asked her master, "In the original version of our world you went to, did I...ever have a different fate?"

Nobunaga sighed as he looked at Madoka before patting her head. "I'm sorry, Madoka, but your fate will either be death by your siblings or loneliness. People like you and me don't have a brighter future even in another world, which is why I want to change this world's fate. Instead of a future where the Infinite Stratos are the war machines and most women believe they are Gods among men, they'll be brought down to the world as I make them come back to reality."

Madoka smiled as she nodded before bowing to Nobunaga.

"And I, Madoka Orimura, your loyal servant, shall fight by your side and be of use to you as you see fit. I only desire for Ichika to live a life that isn't forced into the one he was given when he unlocked the Infinite Stratos." Madoka said as Nobunaga smiled at the assassin before hugging her with a look of gratitude.

"Do not worry, soon we'll show them. We will show them all." Nobunaga said as the sun began to set in the distance as the leader of Phantom Task wished to change this world from the fate of the original one.

Scene!

Now, before anyone asks, yes, there is a multiverse thing, but it's just this universe and the original universe where the anime took place. This alternate reality was crafted by Phantom Task, who doesn't desire to destroy the Infinite Stratos, Tabane Shinono, and Chifuyu Orimura but also wants to change the future of the world they live in without the war machines that altered it.

I hope you all like the twist and remember to Favorite, Follow, and Leave a Review. Ta-Ta!~