On the train to an unknown destination, a woman stood alone. The adult looked like she had seen better days with unkempt shoulder-length blond hair that did not show signs of washing for a long time. Scars ranging from gunshot wounds to darkened burns, cuts, and bruises marred her face and body in the exposed parts of her damaged combat gear. The woman's light green eyes gazed out the window of the moving vehicle and eyed the peaceful serenity of the environment outside with suspicion. It was as if she had never seen such a sight in her life, and she expected everything to vanish in an instant. Realizing that nothing was changing, the woman looked downward at the pistol holstered on her leg. The firearm she pulled out of the case strapped to her had been a revolver, and she pushed the cylinder out to check for bullets in the chamber.
"Not the afterlife I was expecting." The woman muttered and huffed in annoyance when she realized the weapon was empty. "I hoped to shoot myself and see where I headed next."
The woman holstered the gun and proceeded forward into the next train cart. A trail of blood was the only noticeable difference between the two carts. Another person was on this train, and they seemed to be in a worse position than she was. The blond followed the red stain into the next area and saw the back of a young teen. What immediately caught the woman's eye was the halo above the girl's head, and she was the one who left the mess on the ground. If not for the bloodstains on the girl's uniform, the blonde would have thought the girl was a normal school student, barring the floating object above her. The halo girl was dragging herself slowly, but she seemed unbalanced, so the woman moved up just in time to catch the student before she could fall forward onto the ground. A gasp escaped the young girl's lips before she turned to see who stopped her fall, and blue eyes met green.
"It looks like you've been through hell." The woman spoke nonchalantly to the girl.
"You are..." The girl seemed at a loss for words.
"Not who you expected?" The woman attempted to finish the girl's statement. "At least I'm not the person who hurt you. Come on, let's sit down."
No disagreement came from the young girl, and the woman moved to help sit down on a seat. The schoolgirl adjusted herself to maintain a proper sitting posture despite her bloodied state. As for the blond woman, she sat herself in the seat on the opposite side of the train. There were a lot of unspoken thoughts going through both their heads about the individuals in front of them. If this was the afterlife, then they represented different feelings through the expressions on their faces. The young girl's eyes and the tears welling in her eyes spoke of heavy regrets and mistakes that could never be truly fixed. Meanwhile, the woman remained steadfast with her own unknown guilt and the troubles of a life left behind. The woman pulled out her revolver again and started to spin the handgun with her finger before she spoke.
"I don't know your history, and I don't know how long we have in...whatever this place is." The woman started. "But it doesn't take a genius to tell that you've made choices that cost people their lives."
"You would be right." The young girl responded with a resigned sigh as she looked downward. "There was someone I should have listened to. A person who could have stopped all the troubles I failed to solve. They were...my Sensei."
"Sensei, huh? They sound like a pretty amazing person."
"They truly were. I thought I could see them here in this place where I could break the chains of fate, but I guess I wasted my second chance. I'm sorry, Sensei. I should have listened to you."
Tears fell from the young girl's hidden face as her apology echoed uselessly to the person who was not here. The sins of the girl's mistakes would be something she would have to live with. There were no comforting words that the woman could give because the adult herself was not in any better situation than the girl was. Yet there was no denying that some sort of purpose beyond the both of them was given to the woman to be here. It was clear to the woman, at least, that she was the anomaly here and that maybe this 'Sensei' of this mysterious girl had been meant to meet her here. The best the woman could theorize is that this place is a realm between life and death where a person can make different choices. A 'second chance' that the schoolgirl managed to say before becoming a quiet sobbing mess.
"Hey, kid." The blond adult holstered her pistol as the girl looked back up to show her tear-filled eyes. "I'm in no position to judge you for the sins of your past. I don't even know why I'm here. Last I recalled, life ends at death. I'm pretty sure you could see that from all my wounds."
The train started to slow, and the clear skies around them were blurred out by a blinding light. It seemed to the woman that a new journey was beginning. The nearby doors opened up, and that signaled to the blonde that this was her stop, seeing as how the girl refused to move from her seat. Wherever this next destination was, the woman had a goal, and it seemed to be finding this 'Sensei' so that this girl's grief could be quelled. The woman would try and find this 'Sensei' and make things right, if only so that the woman could add a good deed to counteract the list of her own sins.
"It seems to me I'm the anomaly here, and to correct that issue, I'll find 'Sensei' for you." The woman told the girl and approached the blinding open doorway. "I can't make any promises that I'll do things right or even complete this goal. But something brought us together, and this seems like the next best thing for me to do."
"Thank you..." Gratitude dripped from the schoolgirl's voice. "Your new journey will be different from what I wanted for Sensei, but I believe that will not stop you."
"You think we'll meet again after this?" The woman glanced back at the teen. "I didn't get your name."
"I don't think we will. You may not even remember this conversation at all once you step through those doors." The schoolgirl shook her head sadly. "But my name is..."
A name was spoken, and the woman acknowledged that's the girl she's ultimately working for. It felt weird working for someone younger than her, but the woman had stranger things happen in her old world than in the new one she was about to set forth into. All the woman hoped was that the people of her past would not be involved in any capacity in her new mission. Realizing that the woman had not even introduced herself next, the blond adult looked back at the doorway.
"My name's Ilda. Be seein' ya, kid."
Light blinded Ilda's vision for only a second when she stepped through the doorway. Ilda's mind focused on her new surroundings, and it seemed she went from a train to a bus. What alarmed Ilda was the sound of gunfire to her right, which prompted her to crouch down low. Ilda peeked out the window, but she kept her head down to survey what was happening outside. The bus was parked at a stop, and it seemed bandits were in the middle of robbing people at gunpoint. It seemed more apt to call the bandits 'Helmet Gangsters' as they all wore biker helmets and pretty much the same school uniforms. No matter the world, criminals were always an inevitable part of life. The difference here for Ilda was that robbers sported halo above their heads, much like her employer on the train.
There has got to be a reason for the halo above their heads. Ilda thought to herself before looking at the people being robbed. Huh... It seems the halo is exclusive to girls and not to a bunch of animal people and robots.
Various animals and humanoid robots wore clothes like any other person. That would take some getting used to if Ilda were a normal human. What was of interest to Ilda was that there were passed-out students on the floor who looked injured and were not bleeding out. There were spent casings on the floor, so they had clearly been attacked by the helmet bandits. In her old world, a normal human would be bleeding out on the floor from that many bullets on the ground. The halo had to give the schoolgirls some sort of shielding to prevent them from being filled with holes. Ilda simply chalked it up to magical powers at play, but that also meant murder was more unlikely for the students, at least. None of the robots or animal civilians seemed injured, so they had not attempted to resist the robbery.
"If you don't want to end up in a world of pain like those idiots, then hand over your stuff!" One of the criminals shouted. "Put them on the ground in a pile! No funny business!"
"Did anyone check inside the bus yet?"
That was the question that sent Ilda back into alert status. She began to look around and noticed a tool bag that might have belonged to one of the people outside. Although Ilda could have used the revolver on her, there was a better alternative. Ilda pulled out a straight pipe wrench from inside the bag and gripped it tightly before quickly looking back outside. One bandit was approaching the doorway into the bus, which meant this was Ilda's first combat encounter in a new world. If these lowlifes were anything like the ones back at home, Ilda would have no difficulties against a single thug. Luckily, visibility in the bus was poor with no lights on, so Ilda at least had some measure of stealth for an ambush. Ilda pressed up against the back of a seat and waited quietly as she heard the sounds of footsteps entering the bus. From the way the footsteps sounded, the bandit was too relaxed and not tense at all.
Big mistake.
When Ilda felt the thug was close enough, she took action and leaped out from cover to attack. In one smooth motion, Ilda managed to strike the delinquent in the gut with the wrench while grabbing the barrel of the girl's rifle and pushing it upward. The bandit did not even try to hold onto their weapon as they bent forward and clutched their stomach. Ilda dropped the wrench and rifle to grab the thug by the back of their shirt and throw them out the window. That was going to cause a commotion outside, which was exactly what Ilda wanted. Ilda picked up the firearm, took aim through a window, and fired at the hostiles outside. It did not take long before Ilda started receiving bullet fire in return, but their accuracy was so awful that Ilda was able to move and fire from other angles inside the bus. Some bullets managed to hit Ilda's weapon, but the gun did what it was supposed to do.
It's time to meet the locals. I hope that's a good impression.
"No matter the place, there's always lowlife." Ilda said this upon exiting the bus and seeing all the immediate threats were down. She did notice their halos were gone, like the other knocked-out students. "Some things never change."
The stares Ilda received from the people she saved had mixed reactions. Their general looks ranged from uncertainty to bewilderment. Ilda looked down at herself to see that she still carried the wounds from her previous life and damaged combat gear. She could not tell if the stare was because of her appearance or that she did not have a halo like the students. This was a new world, so there were bound to be some cultural differences. Ilda was certain she had already established herself as an outsider or tourist in the eyes of these citizens. Warm reception or not, someone had to break the ice in this situation, and it certainly was not going to be the crowd.
"Hi there." Ilda spoke, hoping there was no language barrier between them. "You guys should get your stuff back and find somewhere safe to be."
"Uh, right! Thank you so much!" One of the dogs spoke back, confirming there was no difference in speech. It was also incredibly weird having a dog bow to Ilda like a person.
Ilda watched as people started moving around to grab their belongings from piles and bags. From just this observation, Ilda could tell that society here seemed a lot more unified and considerate of each other. Students and citizens alike were helping each other find their possessions, which was a rarity back in Ilda's own world even during civilized times. Ilda took the time to make items her own by swapping the damaged rifle with a new one from one of the bandits, as well as taking the ammunition for her own pouches. A phone stuck out of a gangster's pocket, and Ilda saw an opportunity to gain more information on this new world she was in. After grabbing the device, Ilda stood back up and turned around to see a student looking at her. The schoolgirl flinched at Ilda's gaze, but Ilda's eyes drifted to the first aid kit the student had in her hand.
"M-Miss, you look hurt p-pretty bad." The student seemingly offered to aid Ilda. "I can take you to a hospital around here too."
"These old injuries?" Ilda looked at the scars of her old past before shrugging. "Don't worry about them. You mind telling me where I am?"
"Eh?" The schoolgirl blinked rapidly at what Ilda said. "You don't know where you are? You're in Kivotos, Miss."
Kivotos isn't any city or place where I'm from. So that seals it... I really am in a whole other world.
"I didn't have a particular place where I was going." Ilda told the student. "I just ended up here. Anyway, you should get going. There's no telling when the rest of these lowlifes will wake up."
"O-oh... Okay. Be careful, Miss." The student bowed, and Ilda ignored the uncomfortable feeling that came from it. "Thank you for helping us. Stay safe."
The last of the students and civilians were gone, leaving Ilda alone with the unconscious bodies of criminals. Ilda took this time to access the web on her newly acquired phone and read up on current events. The internet was a communication network that died a long time ago in her old world due to life-changing events for those who remained. Ilda knew enough to navigate sites and found out a very important piece of information. Kivotos was a place comprised of hundreds and even thousands of schools. It explained why there were so many students, but that did not answer why all of them were armed with weapons. Ilda would just leave that as cultural differences because contemplating the reason why kids were armed with weapons was nonsense she did not need to think about. Not that Ilda was any less guilty of being armed when she was a child, but her past was a story she would rather not remember now.
From what I'm looking at, the main government body of Kivotos belongs to the 'General Student Council'. They have, well, had access to something called 'Sanctum Tower'.
Ilda looked up from the phone and towards the direction of a city. The giant building in what looked to be the center of Kivotos likely had to be the Sanctum Tower the news article was referring to. Kivotos seemed to be in a state of chaos and at risk of total anarchy because someone high up the political chain went missing. They were the only ones with permission to use Sanctum Tower, which kept the various infrastructures of Kivotos running. Curious about who this lone individual was that caused so much chaos by disappearing, Ilda looked up the missing person. The General Student Council President was none other than the girl Ilda had met on that train ride between life and death. Ilda remembered the girl as clearly as the sight of the giant halo in the sky. It seemed whatever was supposed to make Ilda forget their conversation did not work.
It looks like my immediate objective is to restore order to Kivotos before I go looking for this Sensei of yours, Pres. Ilda stored away the phone to look up more information later.
The 'General Student Council President' had a name, but Pres sounded easier to say than that whole title. Ilda could use the girl's real name, but she would rather not speak the full name of a dead girl. Ilda began jogging towards Kivotos with her sights set on Sanctum Tower since that would most likely be where all the action was happening. As she continued running at a steady pace, Ilda's mind drifted to Pres. When Ilda shot the lowlives in their heads, she had been expecting the bullets to go through their headgear and skulls. It was a cleaner fight than any battles Ilda fought in her own world. That just made Ilda wonder what kind of damage Pres took to get damaged to the point of bleeding.
What a joke this all is! Here I am trying to be a hero and save a city full of kids with guns. If my team or leader could see me now, they would put a bullet in my head for this. They would probably try to kill everyone else after.
As long as Ilda never saw her people again, this was a new lease on life. It was an unwanted second chance, but Ilda would see it through to the very end.
"Wake up, girls! More bad guys are incoming!"
Tzidkiya Masako of Valkyrie Police rallied her fellow officers as they took defensive positions at a street barricade. A cop's duty is to uphold order and the law, but neither of those obligations was being fulfilled. Masako had been placed on guard duty on the street to Vice President Nanagami Rin's building instead. Sanctum Tower was where Masako wanted to be, as that is where most of the fighting would be happening. It was not like there was nothing happening here, as there were several delinquents looking to pick a fight with Nanagami, who basically became Acting President. However, ammo was becoming a growing issue, and they had to start scavenging the criminals they apprehended. Masako looked down at her pouches and saw only two full magazines left for her submachine gun.
"Get the hell out of our way, cops!" One of the delinquents shouted while firing a hail of bullets towards Masako and her fellow cops in cover. "We just want to talk with the new president!"
"If you just wanted to talk, you wouldn't need guns!" Masako retorted and popped out from cover to suppress the shooter.
"That's how we talk to people who ruin our lives!"
"You did that yourself, idiots!"
Instead of a response, the criminals increased their volley of fire. Masako could barely peek her head out of cover unless she was willing to get nailed in the head. Some of her fellow officers were foolish enough to try and return fire instead of waiting for them to reload. Two cops were struck in the face and shoulder before passing out on the floor. A grenade landed next to Masako, who could only inwardly curse before the explosion that followed sent her flying back. However, Masako defied calling it quits and passing out from her injury. Masako recovered and charged back into the defensive line to return fire. One of the criminals was holding a grenade and pulled the pin out.
Not again! I will not let you!
Masako saw a bullet behind the enemy lines hit the thrower's hand, and the grenade dropped on the ground. A burst of automatic fire attacked the other delinquents before the explosion from the grenade tossed the other thugs around. Masako did not know anything about receiving reinforcements from that direction, so it was likely a lone shooter from Valkyrie that got separated from her unit. Whoever they were, Masako would treat them later to a snack for their timely help. Masako looked back to her allies, and some picked up their injured teammates to carry them off to Nanagami's building, where a temporary treatment center was in the main lobby. General Student Council security still did not allow them further into the building, but they were lenient enough to allow Masako's officers to have a place for their injured. Masako hopped over the barricade and motioned for the other able cops to follow behind her and secure the downed delinquents. When they reached the broken enemy position, the person Masako saw was not a student but an adult without a halo.
Are all adults this tall? I wonder if I'll be that tall when I get old. Wait, never mind that! She's super injured!
"Hold on now, gals!" Masako quickly waved to her officers to lower their weapons. "Show a little courtesy to the one who saved our butts, eh?"
"Ah, right. That was kind of rude." One of the officers laughed sheepishly and lowered her weapon. "Thanks for the assist, Miss."
"Sorry about that, lady. We're in a bad way." Masako apologized on behalf of everyone. "Though I guess we're well off compared to how you're looking."
"I'm fine." The mysterious woman refused the offer for treatment. "I'm new to Kivotos, but I'm guessing you all are law enforcement?"
"You would be right." Masako nodded her head before looking at the students under her command. "All right, everyone, start tying down these goons and let them sulk in a corner."
The other officers began restraining the unconscious thugs, and Masako beckoned the woman to follow her lead. This tourist picked the worst time to visit the academy city of Kivotos, but maybe this was a sign of good fortune. Adults in Kivotos were a rarity, especially ones that were not robots or animal citizens. Although the woman claimed she did not need treatment, an adult would certainly be news that could bring Vice President Nanagami out of her office. The last time Nanagami made an announcement, she said that the General Student Council was working on a solution, but there have been no answers from the group since. Masako looked over at the woman, and the adult immediately noticed her staring.
"So, where are you taking me?" The woman asked, and Masako felt herself tense up from the woman's gaze. "I hope I'm not being detained for helping you out."
"Huh!? No way!" Masako exclaimed, shocked that the woman would even suggest such a thing. "I'd be a moron if I did that. It's just that you're kind of an uncommon sight around Kivotos. An adult with no halo and injuries on you that only a dead person would have. If Chief Kanna were here, she would want me to escort you to Vice President Nanagami."
Masako and the mystery adult reached the main doors of Nanagami's office building. Security staff at the desk noticed Masako, and the doors slid open. The medic in her unit had fallen asleep with the rest of the injured, who were all bandaged up and snoozing on chairs and tables made into improvised beds. It would not beat the comfort of an actual bed, but Masako still did not receive and call back from dispatch on transports. The doors closed behind them quickly, and the woman reacted swiftly by putting her gun into a low-ready position. Masako had been confused by the woman's reaction until she started to realize from the adult's perspective that it must have felt like a trap.
"Ah, don't worry! Once you meet Vice President Nanagami, you're free to leave." Masako holstered her weapon and held her hands up to show that nothing sinister was afoot. "By the way, I never got your name. I'm Tzidkiya Masako."
"Ilda." The woman introduced herself before lowering her weapon. "Go ahead then."
"Hey, Masako. Where did you find this person?" The security guard asked when Masako approached the table. "I've never seen them around before."
"Believe it or not, she actually showed up just in time to help us out." Masako answered before pointing at the phone. "Can you call Vice President Nanagami? I think this counts as an urgent matter."
"Fair enough." The GSC security staff picked up the desk phone and held it to her ear while dialing in a number. "Hello? Vice President, I have Masako here who wants to speak to you about something important. Yes, I'll put her on."
The security guard held out the phone to Masako, who had been stunned. A part of her had been hoping that the guard would just tell Nanagami the information. Masako let out a sigh to calm her nerves as she hoped to avoid talking to the Vice President. It was not like Masako disliked Nanagami, but her being a bureaucrat made her an uncomfortable person to talk to. Masako grabbed the phone and held it to her ear before speaking after regaining her courage.
"This is Masako. Listen, I just want to say I'm grateful you allowed our injured to stay in your building until we can get them a ride out of here." Masako spoke words, but they were completely off-topic. "We're running low on able bodies and ammunition to defend both streets-"
"I'm aware of your situation, Tzidkiya." Rin's voice cut through to stop the topic. "There is help on the way, but they never specified a time. Is that the important thing you have to say?"
Ack, damn it. I ran my mouth on a different subject! Masako felt her cheeks burn red from embarrassment.
"Hand me that."
Masako almost let out a yelp at the sound of Ilda's voice so close. The woman had last been at the doors, and then she was suddenly at the desk area with Masako. Either she had been too focused on the call or Ilda muted her presence to sneak up on her. Ilda did not do it intentionally since she remained unfazed by Masako's reaction. Masako's brain started turning again when she realized Ilda had asked for the phone. The woman took the phone once it was offered and looked up at something. Masako followed Ilda's line of sight to a camera overlooking the lobby area.
"You're Vice President Nanagami, right? My name is Ilda, and I'm a visitor from outside of Kivotos." Ilda spoke quickly and concisely on the phone. "Your city is falling apart, and I would like to offer my help in solving this crisis Kivotos is in. You have a camera overlooking the lobby. You should check it so you can see who you're talking to."
Something was being said by Nanagami, but Masako would never know what she said. One of the elevator doors opened up. It looked like Ilda would be having a personal meeting in person with the Vice President. The woman handed the phone back to the security guard before turning to Masako. One thing about Ilda was that the way she looked into someone's eyes could be really intense. It almost felt like she was seeing all your secrets just by staring.
"See you later, Tzidkiya."
"A-ah...Yeah! Good luck with Nanagami, Miss Ilda!"
Ilda walked to the elevator and disappeared from view once the doors closed. Masako hoped that things would work out between Nanagami and Ilda on whatever they were going to talk about. Ilda seemed like a person of focus who moved to get things done no matter what. It certainly explained all the injuries on her body and how she is completely unbothered by them. That only made Masako feel bad for whoever did those things to her, as they were possibly worse than Ilda was. Masako did not have any more time to think about Ilda as her radio crackled back to life.
"Another group is approaching us! We could really use you right now!" One of her rookies reported.
Masako believed that Ilda would be the one to help get Kivotos back on their feet. But that did not mean Valkyrie was slouching around doing nothing.
"Copy that; I'm on my way!"
Just as Ilda had her own part to play, Masako had hers.
Hello there, Blue Archive readers! This is 4K0T4K submitting this story for the readers on FF.
To stop any misunderstanding, I am indeed KTKompa from that other site as well.
For those who don't know, this story is an original character insert request story. I was asked to write this story of their character under the premise that they are not allowed the destined 'Sensei' role.
For those who do know, you'll notice things are different, yet not at the same time. It would be so much easier to just copy and paste what's on the other site to this one, yeah?
Well, I wanted to give a little incentive to FF readers and others reading the original version.
Just to mix things up a little.
The requester also agreed to this, but the original story on the other site takes priority over this rendition.
So, while this story may not stand out compared to other well-known Fics, it is still a story worth sharing.
It's just that this version will take a bit longer.
I hope you all enjoy.