The sun had reached its zenith. He was starting to feel hungry, but lunch could be for later, probably after this short excursion to crush the den of a delinquent gang… Man, they sure mean it when it comes to living a long life and surprises.
"Say… you sure you don't wanna go with us on foot?"
Vash heard the question and saw slender feet wrapped in shoes at the edge of his vision, but he was unfortunately in the middle of a delicate work. Holding two cables together, he pushed both ends to each other. When a blue spark flourished, the weathered steel frame above him rumbled, its engine coughing and sputtering before the growl became a constant, unbroken rhythm. After patching up other details, Vash quickly crawled out from beneath the four-wheeled car, wiping the oil stains off from his face and looking back to see a joyful Ayane in the driver seat.
"It works! I can't believe it!"
"To think the half-buried junk we found the other day can still move… It's almost hard to believe." Serika gazed over the shuddering engine from a slight bit of distance, likely out of safety concern. However, the tone of her voice betrayed her words. "How did you even do that, sensei?"
"Who? Me? I didn't do anything important, for what it's worth." Vash shrugged at the looks of disbelief he garnered. "I simply made do with the stuff I know about. Sure, you can kick down the gas, brake, clutch pedal, gearbox and handbrake, but don't expect anything else out of this old bat."
"Wh-whoa. So you're jury-rigging it…"
"It'll probably fall apart after a circuit, then." The third-year student of Abydos mused with a hand cupping her chin. "You sure it won't blow up along the way, sensei?"
"It's as old as it could be, but old things were made to last." Vash huffed, twirling a monkey wrench up and tapping it against the big jeep truck's top. "And since it's been kept in the storage room, it's in a relatively good condition. We would have never got this far without Ayane's initiative."
"Eh… ehe he, to tell the truth, it was because I found it too much of a waste to scrap it, the frame and internals were still in one piece, after all." Said glasses girl rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.
"Yeah. And because of that, it didn't take long for us to get it ready."
Vash smiled in gratitude while putting away the tools. His joints were aching, especially his back, but it wasn't something that couldn't be fixed with a small stretch. Once he was done, he felt a cold object pushed against his back. He turned around to see Shiroko holding up a blue drinking bottle.
"What's this? Are you offering, Shiroko?" The adult chuckled at her bashful nod. "Well, thanks for the offer… oh. This tastes good, but it's no water, isn't it?"
"Sports drink," the girl with a scarf explained. "Always carry one with me."
"Ooh… Looks like even Shiroko-chan has circled around to acceptance." And then walking into the scene was Nonomi with her minigun and a large duffle bag in each hand. It was quite an awe-inspiring sight, what with her slender stature as well as age in mind. This girl was definitely born gifted with a Milly-type build. "You're so versatile, sensei. Does becoming a teacher means you get to master a bunch of skills like this?"
"Ah-hah. Well, not at all." Vash rubbed the space between his nose and lips with his index finger. "Folks back home have to grow up with a mindset for self-sufficiency. You can't hope nothing bad will ever happen, so dealing with the cards you're dealt with ends up as the norm. Emergency maintenance like this is just the sort of thing you get to pick up over the years, you see."
"Wow~…! So you're the adventurous sort, sensei? I think you'd fit well in our school, what with all the desertification."
So the district is getting swallowed up by sand… wait, what? "There's a desert here?"
At his question, Nonomi's smile turned for a mysterious, ethereal vibe. Felt as if Vash was about to face something bad, which tended to happen more often than not. However, before he could react, Shiroko and Hoshino hooked their arms around his and dragged him to the barely-functioning rusty vehicle.
"Now, now! Let's be off, shall we?" Hoshino said, "Time's be a wasting~."
"Nn. We need to get this done before lunch break ended. Best to strike when it's hot."
Hold up, what are you girls doing, hey?! "Hello!? What do you mean by desertification, you girls!? Are you listening?! Wait…!"
Minutes later, a deafening roar followed by screeching tires flew out of the main gate of the Abydos school. As clouds of sand trailed behind, the box-shaped vehicle could be seen running through broken, sand-filled roads left to disuse. Surrounding it was mountains and hills made of sand baked by the dazzling sun, ruined buildings, and a clear blue sky decorated with faint rings of light.
"I didn't make adjustment for heavy desert terrain, heeeeeyyyy….!?"
Also on the side, the girlish squeal of a 100% adult male rang out from the back seat, firmly stuck in place because of his students' deathly strong grips.
Contact was cut. It didn't even take fifteen minutes, and that greatly unsettled the remaining members holed up in the base hidden deep in the alleyways connecting to the main streets. The recent sandstorm and increasing frequency of leveled buildings had caused seeds of worries, so the gang was actually in a bit of a pinch until their fearless leader made a deal with a sponsor out of nowhere.
Well, it wasn't like that mattered much. The important thing was to find a new place to settle in so they could resume their typical activities. And by activities, it was…
"Hi-hiiieeee! The leader got defeated! What do we do, now!?"
"How the hell should I know! Come on, who's taking charge now!?"
"Not me!" "Definitely not me!" "No way in hell would I want that, so bothersome!"
The last one received a group beating because she was too direct. Her shrieks of agony calmed down the rest of the gang, but frustration and stresses remained, the reason being that defeated members buzzed back to the base one after another, filling the space and forcing people to be in closer proximity to each other. The delinquent staring in from the gate scoffed, realizing it was about time to bail out. Being a gangster was always tedious and difficult, but going back to a boring life full of annoying rules she could hardly put up with?
Hell to the no. Better find a greener pasture and hunt for some easy-pickings. That said, there was one thing she could do… maybe she could glean some information from the advance party and sell it to that so-called "sponsor" of the gang. Judging by the supplies and gears lent to them, they were pretty high-end so it must be a syndicate, a family, or maybe a company. The kind of guy who'd have the power to do that around this part would be… yeah, those thin cans must be them.
"W-wait! Where are you going?"
"Aah? Gonna take a breather. All the yapping hurts my ears." It was a bit of a fortunate streak that she was in a helmeted gang. This way, she didn't have to worry rolling out her tongue and make some snide glare without getting found out. The delinquent picked up her gun and strode outside. "Damn losers. All of them, each and every one of them…"
Well, what else she was to do, now? Since the windfall turned to be a false alarm, maybe she could scout out some more and… what was that sound? Screeching tires?
The girl lifted her gaze and stared at a four-way junction up ahead. In this sorry excuse of a school district, barely any store opened with fewer rare goods to rob. Honestly, she was starting to wonder why it took her so long to think of a reason as to why it was sooo dumb to overthrow the ruling body of a deserted school district like Abydos. Whatever, no longer her concern and—there was another screeching noise.
What… "The hell—"
Before she could load up her gun, a giant box slid into view from around the corner, olive green frame of a truck with clouds of sand trailing behind it. What turned to be an antiquated military humvee roared out, and the delinquent saw a glasses nerd spinning the steering wheel while a scaredy cat clutched at the seatbelt as if staking her whole life on it. In the back seat, a black-haired tall person crashed up and down and left and right along with a pink shorty and a buxom blonde. It reminded the helmeted gangster of a side-facing washing machine in a cycle, if only said washing machine wasn't rapidly approaching her way past the speed limits!
"Target sighted…! Firing!"
And from the top of the vehicle, a dog-eared girl set her sight forward, her assault rifle pointing at—me!?
"Yeowch! Why you! S-stop that, you little—"
"Target survived! Option B, let's go!" And then hovering above the target mark-shaped halo was a rectangular white box pinned with tube-like slots. It buzzed as sparkles, smokes, and embers scattered before six micro-missiles flew right away! "Overriding the multi-lock targeting system, here we go! Supporting fire… launch!
The delinquent girl gasped. It wasn't ordinary missiles that launched out of that box-shaped custom drone. Those tubes flew in a radial manner, covering the sky from the side before rocketing down at her all at once. They were guided missiles, but weren't the numbers a bit much…!?
"Wait, please stop…!"
Before she could finish her sentence, the six micro missiles struck her and exploded. As her body flew up and high into the sky due to the barrage of explosions, she could only see blue before crashing down into a bunch of prickly foliage of a tree. What was left of her consciousness dissipated into a restless, painful slumber.
Shortly afterwards, a dilapidated warehouse collapsed, its inhabitants fleeing like ants escaping from their flooded anthill, and the remaining opposition who dared to stay gunned down with absolute impunity. Without their leader, their main force, as well as a lack of back-up plans, the supporting force left behind at the base could do nothing against the onslaught of five very enthusiastic Abydos school girls.
On that day, the Kata-Kata Helmeted Gang was all but entirely annihilated. It'd likely take them more than a few months to reform themselves back to their former glory.
"It's a perfect victory, yay~…!"
" " " "We did it~…!" " " "
Five girls raised their hands together. As they clapped together for a victory cheer, the clubroom atmosphere quickly shifted into exuberant excitement. Although… Vash could only attribute that to the swift decapitation strike on the Kata-Kata Helmeted Gang, but then there was the looted combat supplies he had been too powerless to stop…
Maybe I should just take whatever that comes close to what I want. It was good that nobody was heavily injured. No losses of life was the best kind of outcome, even though the way to mediate problems ended up going back to good ole fisticuffs. Wasn't that good enough already, by his book? I feel like I'm getting a bit too greedy ever since I came to this city.
Well, there was no point in mulling about on his lonesome. Picking up a box of spare parts for firearms, he browsed the stolen goods one by one, coping a feel on the structural refinement and advancement to gun smithing in this wondrous city. The handguns and assault rifles were all a definite improvement, but they still followed the same principles in mechanism and purposes. Then he stumbled upon the sniper rifles, tomahawks, buck shot shells, and… huh, now that was quite something else.
"What's this? Sensei, you sure don't look so happy."
"Hmm? Oh, hey. Already done with the celebrations, Hoshino?"
The pink-haired girl plopped down on a stool near him. "Yeap~. I'm not young anymore, so just showing my face here and there should be good enough."
"Sounds more like an excuse to skip work and have a nap, to me."
"Mgh. You sure don't hold back, there." The girl tilted her head. As she waved her legs back and forth, she craned her head further, gazing long and hard at the smooth gun barrel part he held in his hand. "Isn't that the stuff Shiroko-chan secretly pilfered from the base, there?"
"Yeah. Looks pretty good, and seems to be packed with quite a material and design to it for a high-powered penetrative shot." Vash stared into the barrel, seeing the winding spiral marks grafted in the inner tube. "All the stuff I'm familiar with are way more crude and simpler than this, but even I can tell this thing is rare as all hell."
"Ohho. Guess they can be sold for some pretty pennies, then. Nobody uses sniper rifle among us five."
"I can see that. Nonomi uses a minigun, Ayane a handgun, then there's you with the portable riot shield and shotgun. Shiroko and Serika are probably the only ones who use something a bit closer to mundane stuff. Those are pretty good all-rounder, but Shiroko's got a mod to her AR for precise firing."
Vash frowned. He placed the gun barrel aside and picked other random parts. Springs, screws, the occasional bombs, smokescreens… and flashbangs. Honestly, it was a pretty haphazard collection if you didn't know where to look for. However, his discerning eyes had already pinned down the hidden truth. Without missing a beat, he laid bare the conclusion he had reached to.
"Yeap, go figures. These are high-end parts." The dark-haired man put back the rifle into the wooden crate. "No common rabble could gather enough money to outfit their members with something like these. Guess the Kata-Kata Helmet Gang worked together with another, bigger gang… or they have a hidden sponsor."
"...huh, that's actually kind of worrying. And you sure sound mighty knowledgeable about gun mechanics, sensei."
"It's part of my profession… well, was a part of my profession. I was a tradesman, a journeyman, and so on." Vash smiled wryly. "Wish I have other life skills, though. Knowing the ins and outs of firework won't save me from paperwork, after all."
"Aww. You really like turning things down the dour south. Adults are no fun. Can't we just leave it for later, sensei? Tis a time for celebration, y'know?"
Hmm, what to do, what to do? He still had no idea what he must do here. He was curious about the mysteries surrounding Abydos, then there was that delinquent gang. The desert was a shocker, too. No way in hell that didn't dig up bad memories, but patches of greenery still survived in this school district. Surely something could be done. If he had his way, however, he'd more than likely venture out on his own. But I'm a teacher now, and a teacher have their own responsibility and duty to fulfill.
He wondered if he was making an excuse to delay things. However, Vash found himself having no negative feeling about the idea of doing his job.
If anything, wasn't it all the better for him? He wanted to try his hand on teaching, and it just so happened that there were students in this school district. Luckily, he didn't need to teach a class composed of over 30 students, so that'd mean he could practice what he had learned from the technical books he had trawled through.
As they said, practice made perfect. And So Vash set aside the box to dust his hands free from dirt and grime. He smiled widely only to direct that to the pinkhead.
"Sure thing, Hoshino. Just don't try escaping from the party to steal some nap time."
"Ugeh. How did you… mgh, sensei's got a sharp tool in his shed, huh."
"I'm about ten times older and more experienced than you," Vash harrumphed. "Don't think you can weasel your way out of responsibility. Go for it, eldest of the bunches!"
"Wow, so this is what they call seniority abuse…"
Though voicing out such complaint, the girl whose hair almost completely covered her back side walked back to her friends. Serika did not waste her time to pull her senior into the conversation, and before long, it felt as if Vash had become nothing more than a mere passer by. Well, that wasn't exactly the wrong label for somebody like him. Not to mention after everything that happened, these diligent girls naturally deserved a break.
To laugh, celebrate, and forget even if it's temporarily… wait, the last one is only for when alcohol is involved.
Vash somehow had a feeling that he needed to reassess his perspective. While he wasn't unaccustomed to playing along children's whims, he actually had never once lived surrounded by children all the time. Sure, he was as old as fossil by human standard, but a child was a child and an adult was an adult. Giving proper respect where it was due was simply basic decency. It might be an avenue worthy of research since he was now in the position to teach others; wouldn't do if his words ended up falling on deaf ears. Even more so if something as serious as the previous incidents were to repeat…
Man, I sure have a lot of tasks in my to-do list.
If the others were here, they'd have picked at him for being a nosy, thoughtless guy who should have known better about what he could and must do. Unfortunately for them, it was perfectly within his character to bumble his way through everything. Whether the result turned to be for the better or not… well, you would never know if you didn't even bother trying, right? After all…
"The ticket is still blank." Vash leaned back, patting at his chest where a certain smart tablet resided in his inner coat pocket.
The pair of odd-eyes blinked. The sky was a dawning blaze of sunset. At the intersection devoid of cars or people, a girl waved at her close neighbor who doubled as her junior.
"Bye, Shiroko-senpai! See you tomorrow!"
"Nn. See you tomorrow, Serika." The ashen-haired girl dipped her head. "Don't be late."
"Not my fault Hoshino-senpai is so difficult to wake up! You go tell her, senpai!"
Hmm, that's a tall hurdle to overcome… "Is it okay if it's a bit loud?"
"No drone explosives!"
Serika's arms drawing an X sign in the air made Shiroko deflate. Even though it was a fairly effective method she had come up on her own…
"Got it. I'll drag her out of bed." Then air her out in the sun for daily Vitamin D intake.
With that promise neatly tucked away in her mind, the second-year student walked off to her own home. Situated a fair distance away from the school, the apartment she lived in was one with road access to every sector of the autonomous school district. Bringing her trusted bike together with her, Shiroko climbed the stairs until she finally reached her floor; at which point the sky had grown fairly dark.
From the open corridor, her scarf flapped and fluttered. In the distant horizon, a thin red line separated the sky and the earth, and the last lights of the day perished with the passing of time. Little by little, like the falling sand of hourglass.
A slight chill blew by. The girl unhurriedly unlocked the door to her apartment and entered, her bicycle rolled into the stand with one smooth motion. Rolling her shoulder once, she let out a sigh as the door closed behind her. As she gazed at the dark and narrow hallway before her, she felt a bit at home, though it was tranquil and without the familiar bustling often happening at the clubroom. A bit of a lonely place, but it was nothing she hadn't been able to handle so far.
Tugging at her scarf, the ashen-haired girl paused. A slight frown marred her typically listless mood. "Nn… I guess I should go to the laundry this weekend."
She had exerted effort in more ways than one, and it was because so many surprises kept on happening one after another. It didn't feel quite as real, but the weight she had carried all the way to her school was real. The thoughts and memories occupied her even as she stepped into the apartment, scarf hung on cloth hanger while her assault rifle clicked in place at the gun rack on the wall.
"That was… a teacher." Though he was thin and tall, the distribution of bodymass seemed to heavily focus on the upper body muscles and thighs. It felt a bit rude for her to assess the musculature of the person who had come over to help her school out while he was unconscious, but admittedly, she was a tad curious about the difference between her and an adult. That being said… "Hm. What an odd stature. What sort of training regiment did he go through?"
The man with an easy smile hid an extremely refined build of a warrior… no, a gunslinger behind the confine of his fluffy attire. A strong core akin to the bark of an old tree, broad and firm shoulders to serve as stable foundation, and taut layers of arm muscles to support precise, rapid shooting. She could also recognize the trace scent of gunpowder near his sun glasses and earring, but his left arm oddly emitted a greater waft of it. Could it be a hidden weapon…?
"Nn. But he never once shot it." Even though here was Kivotos. Even though here was the long-forgotten, dilapidated school district rift with outlaws. "Is he that confident…?"
He probably was. Instead of panicking, he had stealthily maneuvered through high-risk battle zone and sabotaged the enemy by taking away their supply box. Not even her nor her senior had managed to notice him, which meant the teacher was more than he had let on. In a way, Shiroko felt like she could never correctly guess what action the adult would take; a fascinating sight to behold.
He also said he'd come over again tomorrow. Something about fulfilling the request which ought to have already ended. That was yet another surprising news to the Task Force, but before anybody could solidify their thoughts, he had already scampered away from the school grounds… once again, with absolutely no notice until he was almost completely out of sight.
"He's like a passing by storm." It might be an odd label to tack on a person, but even an upset Ayane could hardly strike a similar level of impression. "Nn. Looks like we're going to have busy days waiting ahead."
The girl took off her shoes, socks, and necktie. After hanging away her blazer, she paused in front of the full-length mirror at the corner of her room. Well, she had another set so she supposed she could put away her skirts; the gunfight earlier had made her sweaty and dirty. Her skin felt a bit sticky, and her ears twitched in need for a thorough scratch with shampoo and hot water.
Oh, but I haven't eaten dinner yet… Looking at the wall clock, it didn't look like she'd be able to cook if she were to go out for a bath. The only public bath house that still operated in this district was not the type to stay open late into the evening. It was also a fair distance away from her apartment. Shower it is, then.
Schale's visitation, acquisition of the supplies and ammo which had never happened even after repeated appeal to GSC, then crushing the pests who had been a constant annoyance to her dear school. It was doubtful for the outlaws to resume their activity in Abydos for the foreseeable future, but even if they did, the Task Force would just crush them again and confiscate whatever remained of their possession.
Precisely like what the teacher of Schale had practiced in the field. It's not robbery if it's for the sake of preventing future troubles—
Shiroko closed her eyes in thought, feeling somewhat proud and profound. A figment of her imagination shaped like a certain pink-haired girl waved her hand back and forth in vehement rejection, but the image vanished like foam in the sea. Her senior lived in her own house several blocks away from her apartment. The real person wasn't here to correct her, so there was nothing to worry about.
"Nn. I guess I should do some homework first…" After that… right, what's the schedule for the following week? "My part-time shift isn't until the day after. Tomorrow is Serika's turn, so… oh right. Gotta do some supplemental lessons to make up for today."
Switching the lights on, the second-year highschool student of the Abydos Independent School decided to spend her evening at her leisure. There were many issues she had to deal with, from the school's debt, delinquent and outlaw troubles, the desertification of the district, and so much more. However, Sunaookami Shiroko had a feeling. Yes, she had a hunch that things were going to get rowdy, rushed, but also better. Trusting in that instinct of hers had never failed her, so…
I guess I can turn in early, too. It had been a while since she last looked forward to what tomorrow would bring.
A/N: I am back from weeks-long family obligations. You really can't help but feel how precious your free time is until you lost it, huh.