Chapter 13: Hunt For the Veiled Sekirei
*Shirou*
It was a rare day as of late that I found myself with time to sit at my desk for more than just writing after-action reports. After successfully delivering my message to Mikogami, Natsuo and I had been working in shifts to cover the department's needs. Immediately after the new rules went into effect, there was a (expected but fortunately brief) massive uptick in the number of offenders needing the personal attention of the Disciplinary Squad.
I'd like to say that after that uptick, things were calming down as the smarter Ashikabi got with the new program while the dumber ones…
Well, the dumber Ashikabi hadn't been a concern for long. Not after we got to them, anyway.
Unfortunately for us, however, while the number of infractions was coming down, they were being replaced by a semi-constant stream of late-night retrieval calls. It was good that the contestants were adapting to the new status quo, even if it meant more sleepless nights for us.
This morning there had only been one alert. Not a retrieval, merely one of the slower – or more determined/desperate – Ashikabi poking around the checkpoints to the city limits. Benitsubasa and Haihane had been dispatched to elucidate them on the state of the company's iron grip on the city. The two were already back at base; their mere shadow had been enough to send the group scurrying for cover.
The quiet morning may have meant less work for the girls' – something that they (sans Akitsu) were quite vocally complaining about – but I had a lot of material to catch up on. Case in point, I was using my (surprisingly) newfound time to read through more of the information on Sekirei that Minaka granted me access to. As Saber would say, 'ignorance is the enemy,' and I have been making many incorrect assumptions about the nature and capabilities of the Sekirei.
Mid Bio Informatics was sitting on a wealth of data about the alien species, though not all of it was practically useful. Most of it was research data involving tests from raising them, theories speculating on how the Sekirei performed their mysteries, not to mention the sheer amount of speculation on the psychic phenomena involved in the mating ritual. For obvious reasons, the last category had very little practical data.
No mention of magic, thankfully. Instead, the researchers referred to the abilities as 'powers', and their tests focused on the physical theories and applications as opposed to esoteric ones.
Today, I was not focusing on those physical applications, but one of the theoretical phenomena that only mated Sekirei were capable of: the Norito.
On the surface, it seemed like the Sekirei equivalent of a Noble Phantasm – the reason it caught my eye in the first place. Like a Noble Phantasm, it was a secret technique that required higher than average amounts of energy and/or specific conditions to be met, and it was unique to each Sekirei. Of course, since only Sekirei bonded to an Ashikabi could perform the technique, the research into it was scant beyond mere mentions of it.
Were Sekirei aware of their Norito and how it manifested before bonding with an Ashikabi? They had to have been for it to be even mentioned in the research, right? MBI only recently had two Ashikabi of their own, Natsuo and I. Most of the information about the Norito was documented by Dr. Asama, whoever that was, but he had a lot of unconfirmed ideas.
…and was the one researcher who did mention things uncomfortably close to spiritual and/or conceptual aspects that I was familiar with being aligned with the practice of magecraft.
"Junko, are there any notes about the Disciplinary Squad's Noritos?" I asked aloud. Maybe Natsuo was ahead of me in this aspect…
"Noritos?" Junko blinked, looking up from her terminal.
"No." Karasuba drawled from where she was sprawled over my stolen chair. The good ergonomic one I liked. "You only recently became Haihane and my Ashikabi, so there isn't anything on our end. Benitsubasa has been winged only slightly longer, but she's garbage at communication–"
"Hey!" Haihane rasped sharply, causing Karasuba to roll her eyes.
"–Fine, garbage at meaningful communication."
Haihane hesitated, looking to defend her friend, before shrugging and returning to practicing with the throwing knives brought up for more weapon testing. She was up to hitting the center 3/10 times from 15 paces now, and most of the rest still landed on the target. A primary weapon they would never be… but maybe a surprise backup weapon? Or she was very bored and playing with them until the customized tiger-claws finished being forged.
"Supposedly, if you trust Benitsubasa, it comes with a noticeable but temporary physical boost." Karasuba continued, being surprisingly helpful. "Not unlike an initial winging."
"Bonding to an Ashikabi comes with a stat boost?" Though my phrasing was crude… It made some sense. I had felt a draw on my mana when Karasuba kissed me and again with Haihane – though I had assumed that it was the creation of the magical pact between us. This was the first time I'd heard that winged Sekirei were stronger than unwinged ones.
"It's difficult to improve upon perfection." Karasuba stopped sharpening her sword to examine the edge. "But I do feel slightly stronger."
"I'm stronger too!" Haihane chirped. "And faster. Oh! Does this mean we get to practice Noritos too, Shirou-kun?"
"Yes." That was something to note, so I scribbled, 'Unlike a Noble Phantasm, the Norito may provide a limited all-around boost to the physical stats of the user' in the margin. If true, I… Well, we would need to test how long the Norito state lasted. I also made a note to see if that boost (if it existed) could be prolonged if the girls 'held' their not-Noble Phantasm. Or if that were even possible. "Using any weapon or tool without practice is more detrimental to the user than the enemy. Mastering the tools at our disposal is the first fundamental to winning every battle."
Reading further… huh. This may be an interesting dilemma I hadn't – couldn't – have thought of. Unlike Servants, whose nature as resurrected spirits necessitated close contact with their Masters to draw the mana needed to maintain their existence, Sekirei were alive. There was no (known) range limit to how far they could be separated from their Ashikabi.
In terms I was more familiar with (those being from the Grail War), on the tactical level, I could consider each Sekirei as possessing a high level 'Independent Action' ability – generally limited to the Assassin or Archer classes that preferred to fight away from their masters for varying periods of time.
Haihane cheered, and I watched as she tried to pull Akitsu into her revelry, but to mixed success. The Sekirei were very independent. Some, I sent a side-eyed glance towards Karasuba, were maybe a little too independent.
"You just thought something disparaging about me, didn't you?" Karasuba narrowed her eyes at me.
The tradeoff, I mused as I ignored the grey-haired crow, that Sekirei gained for having increased tactical flexibility came at the strategic cost of being unable to use their not-Noble Phantasm without their Ashikabi nearby. Without anything to base it on, I assumed it was to provide the extra influx of mana. I made a note to confirm this too, if possible. Regardless, this put Ashikabi on the frontlines of the fighting if they wanted to have access to Norito.
Another reason it had been a good idea to place a ban on targeting Ashikabi specifically. There was just no getting around the fact that the weak point of a strong Servant/Sekirei was the Master/Ashikabi. The existence of the Norito, however, did make ambush or assassination-style attacks riskier. Unless the initial attack eliminated the Sekirei or Ashikabi, a losing fight could always be turned around with something as simple as a kiss.
The more I thought about it, the worse it may be for Sekirei acting without their Ashikabi. Unless there was a total strength imbalance or power mismatch, any lone Sekirei was at a significant disadvantage – more so if the stat boost could be confirmed. Any fight not immediately decided could turn into an endurance match where the Sekirei without their partner would be eventually overpowered or, if they tried to flee, possibly rundown.
It completely countered how Natsuo and I were running the Disciplinary squad. Since my training period ended, not once had the whole team responded to any one situation. Hell, ever since we rotated to shifts, it wasn't even a guarantee that either Natsuo or I would accompany the girls when they went out.
Shit… I'd have to talk to Natsuo about that. The girls were strong: Akitsu was able to hold off a Norito from two Sekirei while fighting a (possibly) unempowered third on her own (though not entirely unscathed), and the mere rumor of Karasuba's presence caused other Sekirei to flee. Haihane and Benitsubasa, however, weren't nearly as strong as their compatriots, even when paired together. Our current operating philosophy was already vulnerable to attrition tactics and fighting multiple simultaneous opponents… the inability to leverage our own trump cards would have to be added to the list.
"Unless… Is it activated by a kiss specifically? Or is any type of DNA exchange viable…" I mused aloud. If it was the former, I'd bet it was a prana exchange, not just a kiss. Wait… the winging ritual was both DNA and prana encoded. "Then maybe a preserved source of DNA," granted, one infused with prana, "could be capable of remotely activating the Norito?"
I wrote that down. It would be difficult, but not impossible, to store prana-infused samples for the short time the prana took to dissipate.
Haihane let out a raspy gasp of excitement, leaping across the room and sliding to a stop next to where I was perched on my desk.
"Ahhh!" She flipped the lock of hair covering her face back and stuck her tongue out, mouth open wide, as she looked up at me from her kneeling crouch at my feet.
"Haihane…" Don't ask, Shirou. That way leads to madness. You know better. "What are you doing?"
Dammit Shirou.
"Hehehe… I'm showing you I swallowed it all and am ready for more." Her collar jingled as she giggled, nodded to herself – as if nothing she said was out of the ordinary – and stuck her tongue back out.
"Ah…" Akitsu looked up, thoughtful, and drifted over at her customary unhurried pace. She looked at Haihane, then at me, before leaning on Haihane with her chin on the kneeling Sekirei's head and opening her mouth (though not nearly as wide) with an "Ahhh" of her own.
…
I don't… what? I was missing something…
Though… looking at the two of them triggered a vague recollection of certain tantric rituals I was aware of – a branch of magic that did involve – Right! Ending that thought there! Was this something the little gremlin picked up from her shows? From her internet message boards? Or worse…
Yukari…
The blushing Junko's stifled giggles were not helping as she left me to deal with this.
"Haihane, you degenerate slut!" There was a clatter as Karauba rose abruptly, sending my good ergonomic chair (that in no way deserved such abuse) sliding, tipping, and crashing to the floor across the room. Her hands were white-knuckled over the hilt of her sword. "Have you no dignity?!"
Ah. Yukari.
"Shit!" Haihane wheezed, launching herself towards the door on the powerful legs granted to her by her species. Her unique, low, rasping laugh echoed in her wake. "Cheese it, 'kitsu-chan!"
"Ah…" Akitsu's gaze shifted from her rapidly fleeing compatriot to Karasuba, whose freshly polished sword shone with the light of impending death. "Ah!" She bolted.
"I'm going to spay you! Debased dog!" Karasuba gave chase. "Come back, you wanton excuse for a Sekirei!"
…
…
Whoever gave Haihane – or any of the Sekirei for that matter – unfettered access to the internet made a grave miscalculation.
"The girls seem lively today." Junko, the traitor, said while failing to stifle her giggles behind her hand. I took a moment – and a deep breath – to enjoy the silence in the wake of the chaos that suddenly became not-my-problem. Instead, I focused on erasing the last few moments – and the mental image I knew would stick for a while – from my memory. It was safer that way, lest I run into more Haihane-induced cognitohazards.
"As long as no one dies," I responded, picking up my rightful and supportive throne. If that happened, then it suddenly became my problem again. The 'scent' of honey was still strong in the air, despite being unable to hear the pitter-patter of bloody murder, so the girls couldn't have broken their containment on this floor yet.
"Still unsure if Haihane is a good or bad influence on Akitsu," I said as Junko handed me another stack of files. More reports on the movements of the Ashikabi? It seemed I wasn't the only Ashikabi looking into experiments with Norito (Noritos?). "Or vice versa, for that matter."
Having someone as outspoken and vivacious as Haihane was working to draw Akitsu out of her taciturn shell. On the other hand, having a faithful companion made Haihane… bold.
Damn her, I thought without heat. It was hard to keep my lips from quirking up in amusement. Doable, but hard. "I'd say I need to take a firmer hand with her, but she'd probably like that sort of thing."
"She really would." Junko laughed without pity. "Karasuba came to your rescue though, right?"
Hah! Karasuba? Rescuing me? That would be the day.
"Please." I sent her a sullen look, to which she did not look at all repentant. "She'd be more likely to turn her blade on me."
"Hmm, that's probably true," She agreed with a smile. "Still, no one's dead yet. Must be a good day."
"Yeah…" I leaned back, enjoying the reprieve. "It has been a pretty good day."
"Not any more folks, we got a live one," Natsuo called out as he walked in, trailed by Benitsubasa and holding a fresh case file. "Where are the girls?"
"I'm here, Natsuo-kun!" Benitsubasa chirped at his side.
"Of course you are." Natsuo smiled indulgently but also dismissively at her. She had followed him in, after all.
"Playing with each other/Trying to kill each other." Junko and I spoke over one another. We were both right. I took the file from him and passed the copy on to Junko. My tentative smile was replaced with a thoughtful frown as I read.
"A Sekirei concealing their identity?" I asked. The report was scarce on details as there were no satellite or street camera feeds of the assaults – nor of the perpetrator entering or leaving the area. The only description we had to go on was from the Ashikabis – make that former-Ashikabis – statements that they were held hostage until their Sekirei was forced to deactivate. "That's certainly a concern."
This was exactly the type of 'assassination' style of attack I was just thinking about being difficult to pull off.
No injuries were sustained by the Ashikabi, I read onwards, and few to no injuries were sustained by the recovered Sekirie. The Sekirei – and it had to be since a deactivation chant was used in two instances – didn't announce their name or number. Nor did they stay with the defeated Sekirei's bodies to secure them for retrieval. That broke many, if not all, the unspoken rules of conduct that had cropped up amongst the Sekirei.
"Introductions are one-part chivalric code and one-part pre-fight banter," Junko said. She must have hit the same section I had. "To blatantly disregard that and to leave the fallen alone before we can get them…"
"I don't like it." Neither the precedent nor the security risk involved. An unprotected Sekirei was valuable. You could do a lot of things – learn a lot of things – with a corpse. "That said, I don't see how this is in our purview without a rule being broken. Is this a situation brief or a target brief?"
A situation brief would mean we were watching the case for escalations in behavior and, if necessary, making non-aggressive (or semi-aggressive) contact with the potential offender to deliver a warning. Most of my cases thus far have been situation briefs. I liked being proactive.
"A situation for now," Natsuo answered, "but keep reading. This case is fluid and changing rapidly."
That didn't sound good… Ah. I see. This was the third such attack this week alone, with increasing frequency between attacks. The latest cases also differed slightly – to the point of involving multiple assailants attempting to assault (unsuccessfully) both Sekirei and Ashikabi. There was the possibility listed in the report that this could be a second group acting as copycats, but either way, it was a significant escalation.
"Unfortunately, without satellite or camera feeds and with the inability of the victims to describe their assailants past 'cloaked in white or black veils and rags from head to toe,' we're on the backfoot here." Natsuo continued. "That leaves good old-fashioned investigative work and patrol beats. When will the others return?"
"They just ran out." The building wasn't shaking, nor did I hear any screaming, so… "They should be back once they get it out of their system." Karasuba would get bored eventually, and the ever-dutiful Akitsu wouldn't let them linger out of sight of me for long. "I did want to bring something up and this brief only reinforces the idea. We need to stop sending anyone out on solo patrols. Especially if one or more Ashikabi are targeting lone Sekirei or Sekirei and Ashikabi pairs."
"That would limit our responses, but I find myself thinking the same thing." The other Ashikabi agreed. "We'll need to coordinate further with Security to cover the gaps."
"Minaka has been pushing for that," I added. "I can speak with him about a timetable for that project."
"Yes. In the meantime, Junko-san, will you coordinate with Operations to pull the geotag logs?"
"Yessir!" Junko mock saluted. "I'll run down the request now. Is this expedited?"
"No… not yet. For now, we are on a watch-and-wait directive. That said, if there is any escalation, we are gloves off."
"What if we encounter this…" I searched for the word I wanted to use. The perpetrator was smart enough and motivated enough to work within the letter of the rules to violate the spirit. If it wasn't for their actions containing the potential to spill into more or worse violence, I would almost be impressed. I settled for being mildly annoyed. "Veiled Sekirei?"
"If they maintain a non-violent stance and don't escalate their attacks on Ashikabi…" That was the crux of the matter. "Deliver a verbal warning to watch their conduct. We've done that for fringe cases before. If they do escalate or attack us, however…"
"Then it's up to us dogs to sniff them out," I finished his statement. "And hunt them down."
*Minato*
"Thank you for tea, Miya-san." Miya and I were sitting on the veranda while she guided Musubi, Shiina, and little Kusano-chan through afternoon stretching. I was… well, failing at not staring at Musubi, but I was trying. She made it hard since she kept waving for my attention halfway through the stretches.
"Thank you, Miya-san!" Yukari echoed my statement from where she was lounging supine on a nearby couch. She didn't have tea but had stolen her share of the sweets and finger snacks.
"You're welcome, Minato. Yukari." Miya said, blowing the steam off her tea.
"Matsu-tan wants a snack." Matsu poked my side, not bothering to look up from her tablet. Or rather, since she was using my lap as a pillow and staring up at her tablet, I should say she didn't look away from the device. "Ah!"
"Matsu." Miya chided. "If you want to eat, you need to sit up."
"But Minato-kun wants to hand-feed me, right Minato-kun?"
I stopped breaking off a small piece of biscuit as Miya's eyes swung my way. "Matsu, if you want food, you'll have to sit up." I echoed the landlady under her (now approving) stare.
"Minato-kun doesn't like me anymore…" Matsu pouted, giving me upside-down puppy-dog eyes.
An amused snort and giggle (thankfully) provided a distraction.
"Yukari, what are you giggling about?" I deflected, as much to look away from the startlingly effective tug on my heartstrings as it was to redirect Miya's attention off me. That I popped the small morsel in the redhead's mouth when I got the chance, well… her happy grin was worth it (so long as Miya didn't notice).
"I'm texting Haihane-chan." I could hear Yukari's thumbs playing a staccato beat across the keypad.
"Haihane?" Was that one of her friends from school? I hadn't heard the name before. Matsu stilled and looked over in the vague direction of the couch. "Who is that?"
"She's one of Shirou's other Sekirei," Yukari answered, blowing that theory out of the water. I didn't know he had any Sekirei other than Karasuba (the Sekirei that tried to kill him) and Akitsu (the one that prevented anyone from trying to rescue him from said attempted murder). "That's right, you were at work when Shirou came by with her and Akitsu to help Shiina and I move my stuff out of my room. She's funny, and we have the same taste in shows. We've messaged each other before, too! Though I didn't know it was her username at the time. I still maintain her ships on Magical Scythe Princess Glow Up are crack AF."
"Okay…" I pretended to follow that.
"What site? I'll send you my username, too." Matsu chimed in. I put a hand over her mouth to stop the spread of that horror. She started licking my palm.
…and moaning. Ugh, I took my hand away with a grimace.
"I'll send you a text after this. Haihane's trying to seduce my brother, and I'm helping." Oh no. I felt the pit drop out of my stomach. This was… well, going to end horribly, but better Shirou than me. He had years of Yukari's attention to make up for that I would gladly pass over.
"What!" Tuskiumi screeched as she rounded the corner. "W-who is doing what now?"
"Way to play it cool, Tsu-chan." Uzume drawled. The two were laden down with bags – mostly from clothing stores, I saw – that they dropped at the entrance.
"Other brother. Your secret's safe." Yukari answered flippantly. Secret? What secret? "Back on topic: Miya-san, you were married, right? Did you ever 'Naked Apron' your husband? Does that work?"
"Ara?" Miya froze, blinking as she tried to parse the question. Her hand holding the teacup went slightly slack but thankfully didn't spill.
"Oh!" Matsu bolted upright, almost headbutting me. "I've heard of that!" The… well, unrepentantly lascivious redhead ran over and jumped the back of the couch – something very much against the rules – and plopped next to Yukari, who shifted to show her the phone screen.
"Yeah, so I think Minato missed it, but I tried to guide Akitsu through something similar and–" Yukari started to explain.
"Oh? I've been thinking of trying it on–" Matsu gushed.
"W-what kind of t-technique is that!?" Tsukiumi turned red.
"Y'know… I have some things that might work for that." Uzumi mused. "I'll show you later Tsu-chan."
"I don't know what this thing is." It must have been a mirage, but I swore I saw a horrible oni creep over Miya's shoulders as she spoke aloud, interrupting the conversation. "But need I remind certain individuals about the rules of the house?"
"No, Miya-sama!" The girls all responded in unison. Miya nodded in satisfaction.
"Yukari." I sighed, thankful to be spared Miya's wroth. "I think you should stay out of this one. Or did you forget how upset Shirou was last time?"
"Well, yeah." She snorted, going back to texting. "But I'm ignoring that."
"Why?" No, seriously, why? Was it just to purposefully antagonize him? Was it a younger sister thing? Actually… thinking back to, well… everything, it had to be a little sister thing. Or a Yukari thing. Not that there was much of a difference.
"Because I love him and want the best for him, duh." She rolled her eyes, shaking her head in disappointment like I was the one not making any sense. "Minato, you of all people should know that good sisters ignore their brothers when said brothers are too busy being idiots to know what's good for them. That's why God invented little sisters…"
"I…" No, Minato. Don't engage. I sighed, taking the better part of valor, and washed my hands of it. Sorry, Shirou, but it was better you than me on this front. "For the record, I think this is a horrible idea and will backfire spectacularly on you."
"Nah, Haihane is collaborating with Akitsu too. We got this on lock." Yukari ignored me. "Oh, speak of the devil." She said as the phone in her hand started ringing. "Sup bro!"
Shirou was calling? Tsuikumi scowled, but I couldn't help but notice how she and everyone else quieted down to pay attention.
"Yeah. We're both here. Kay, putting you on speaker."
"Minato. Yukari." The eldest Sahashi sibling spoke. "Can you both hear me?"
"Loud and clear/Hello, Shirou. We can hear you." Yukari and I both replied.
"Good. I'm not sure I'm allowed to do this, but I have an update about the Sekirei Plan you both need to hear." Shirou started ominously. "This is especially important for you, Yukari; I know you've been sneaking out at night to fight other Ashikabi." He ignored our sister's indignant squawk of betrayal – and I noticed Miya-san's eyes narrow at another violation of the rules. "This isn't a warning about your violent tendencies yet, but try to reign it in."
"You're no fun," Yukari mumbled.
"Noted. Be that as it may, I do have something important to say. For the time being, I don't want either of you going out at night." He continued. "If, for some reason, you absolutely have to, go out together and in force with all of your Sekirei."
"Tyranny!" Yukari cried. "You're not Mom. You can't ground us."
In force? This… was different from his usual warnings about going out on our own. Something bigger must be up.
"You're right. Let me call Takami and tell her about your late-night outings."
"Tattletale!" Yukari roared. "You would violate the sibling code!"
"I was raised an only child." Shirou shot back. "How could I know any better?"
"What's happening?" I interrupted their squabbling. Really, Shirou, you were supposed to be the oldest and (arguably) most mature…
Still, if Shirou was taking the time out to grant us a warning about something… well, it may have taken getting cornered by Seo while looking for Kusano to fully understand that Shirou was right in pointing out I was in danger on my own. Having Musubi and Matsu as backup when looking for Tsukiumi had proven to be the correct decision and a lesson that we could accomplish more when we worked together.
Granted, I was right when I said normal people wouldn't go after Ashikabi (Seo and the twins went after MBI instead, and Yukari was hardly normal) – especially with the new set of rules explicitly forbidding it. If Shirou was telling us to be even more vigilant… someone must be acting as he had been anticipating.
For some reason, I felt my hands curl into fists.
"You might start seeing the details on the message boards soon," He started, and Matsu immediately began silently pulling up tabs on her tablet, "but I have more coherent details for you both. There's at least one Sekirei out there that is targeting Ashikabi while they're out at night. So far, they've managed to take three Ashikabi hostage and force their Sekirei to surrender."
"Coward!" Tsukiumi seethed.
"That's cheating!" Musubi frowned. The group stretching must have finished up or they came over attracted by the commotion.
"If the Ashikabi isn't hurt, it's not exactly against the rules…" Matsu hedged. "Still, I can't imagine being forced to surrender or Minato-kun being harmed. Musubi, we need to keep an extra eye on our boy!"
"Right!" Musubi's excited fist pump filled me with a warm feeling of dread. I purposefully didn't look over to where I knew Miya-san would be staring intently at me.
"So, who is it? We're calling in the group to beat them down, Sahashi-family style, right?" Yukari's grin was on the scarily anticipatory end of menacing.
"You know, hiding her identity kinda seems smart just to avoid this kind of reprisal…" I heard Uzume mutter.
"No." Shirou instantly shot Yukari down. "As of right now, the identity of the Sekirei are unknown and have been temporarily designated as 'the Veiled Sekirei' based on limited firsthand accounts. Listen, you two, these Sekirei are either smart enough or are being actively aided in avoiding all surveillance during the attacks. Worse, they've been able to conceal the nature of their powers to prevent being identified that way as well."
"Shirou-san," Shiina said, coming to stand near Yukari. "You're a member of the Disciplinary Squad." I wasn't sure whose gasp it was or if it was only one person. I did, however, ignore Yukari's use of finger quotes over 'disciplinary'. "Did the victor of these battles not identify themselves upon your arrival?"
I'd only been a part of one real Sekirei battle, that being the one where Shirou… well, the one he ended. None of the Sekirei would leave that poor girl's body until MBI had come to pack her up.
"Shirou might not be able to answer that." I found myself saying. If Mid Bio Informatics was anything like the hospital Mom worked at, then calling us just to give us the information he was could be skirting the rules. "We shouldn't press for confidential information just because we're family."
"Ugh, you would take that side." I also ignored Yukari's rote complaint. "You always take Mom's side too."
I did not! Just because Mom happened to be right most of the time…
"I can answer that. Even if I couldn't, I would prefer you were aware. The Sekirei – or as of recently Sekirei, plural – involved haven't stayed with the defeated Sekirei's body."
"Fiends!" Takami looked furious.
"But that's wrong!" Echoed Musubi. It was… I think it was the first time I'd seen her upset. Truly upset. I could hear the leather of her gloves crunch under her grip as she balled her fists in indignation.
"Hold on. Did you say Sekirei plural?" Uzume spoke up hesitantly.
"Indeed. At first, it may have been only one – or possibly multiple Sekirei wearing the same outfit, only being seen one at a time – but that has been updated to multiple Sekirei dressed in either all-white or all-black ambushing Ashikabi at night. Worse, the severity of the attacks has escalated to actively attempting to harm both Sekirei and Ashikabi alike. I want you both to stay home until we either get more information or deal with the culprits."
"Of course." Could I… If my being in trouble caused Musubi pain. Or Matsu, for that matter. Or made Kusano cry. "We'll keep our heads down."
"Fine," Yukari grumbled. "I'll let you play the overprotective older brother card this one time."
"Good. I have to go, but I'll call again if I have anything more." The dial tone sounded, and Yukari ended the call.
"So, even someone as despicable as him finds this degenerate repulsive." Tsukiumi's statement broke the burgeoning silence. "Good."
"Watch it, you soggy tart." Yukari snapped, taking the blond aback. "That's my brother you're talking about."
"Hey!" Tsukiumi sniffed, her cheeks slightly red. "I am merely agreeing with him!" She raised her shoulders like a cat with its hackles raised. "Who would defend a cowardly reprobate who attacks from ambush because they're too weak to stand on their own? How contemptible."
"Girls." I stood, putting myself between them. "I think we're on the same side, aren't we? Tsukiumi, I know you don't have the greatest opinion of Shirou, but he is our brother." The blond huffed and crossed her arms, looking away from me. I could see her cheeks puff out and redden as she struggled to withhold whatever vitriol she wanted to throw my way, too. "Yukari, don't antagonize her either."
"I was taking his side! However… you may have a point." Tsuikiumi exhaled. "I shall be the bigger person and endeavor to watch my words more carefully. Even if they are true."
"Tsukiumi." I reiterated over Yukari's barked, "Hey!"
"Ugh, fine." Yukari groused and shook it off. "Anyway, what time are we heading out tonight?"
Heading out? Yukari…
"Ohoh? Perhaps I've misjudged you, if only slightly." Tsukiumi glanced at my sister with something approaching acknowledgment. "Maybe you aren't as lacking in character as I thought."
"You want to go?" Yukari growled. Shiina immediately grabbed her arms to hold her back as Uzume did the same to Tsukiumi.
"Catfight!" Matsu clicked open the camera on her tablet and started filming vertically.
"Yay!" Musubi clapped. "I call next!"
"No fighting!" Miya-san and I called out simultaneously, though the angry aura in the shape of a bloodthirsty demon hanging over her did more to settle the group than either of our words.
"Did any of you just listen to Shirou when he said to sit tight?" I asked. Sometimes, I swore I was the only reasonable sibling. Actually, as I looked around, the group of Sekirei staring at me like I was the weird one; maybe I was the only reasonable person in Izumo (Kagari-san and Miya-san excluded).
"Minato…" Yukari affixed me with a stare as if she were talking to a young, particularly slow-witted child. "Our brother, who works for the Sekirei Plan, is telling us before anyone else about a potential rule breaker he is hunting. Do you honestly think he was telling us all that, preparing us for what to expect and telling us to move in a group, so that we wouldn't help him?"
"Yes?" I don't know why I phrased it as a question. That was exactly what just happened. We were all in the room.
"This is why I'm the smart sibling." Yukari shook her head. Worse, the other girls sagely nodded along with her.
"Minato, there is a time for caution, but letting yourself slide into indecision or apathy is unbecoming of you." Tsukiumi chimed in, frowning. "I thought that you would agree with the need to bring such a blackguard to justice. Or mayhaps I was mistaken about you as well?"
Ugh, I sighed. Her further negative judgment was oddly painful. Still, I recognized a losing fight when it dogpiled me. The girls were too set on gearing up for violence to control at this point. I'd just have to try and direct them somewhere safe.
"Tsukiumi? You're going to help us fight, too?" Musubi grabbed the other Sekirei's hands. I'd say she was coming to my rescue… but that wasn't the case.
"W-well, yes." Tsukiumi gently pulled herself from the excitable girl's grasp. "As a single digit and strongest Sekirei, it is my duty to be an example to others."
"Right. That all sounds fun, but I'm going to leave that to you all and the 'strongest Sekirei' here." Uzume chimed in, gathering her bags to leave.
"Surely you jest?" Tsukiumi rounded on her friend. "Uzume-chan, you mustn't stand idly by! Come with me, and we'll punish this ne'er-do-well." Tsukiumi begged and grabbed the brown-haired Sekirei's hands much the same way Musubi had grabbed hers. "It will be a rousing adventure!"
"Oh! With so many of us, it will be like a stakeout!" Yukari jumped the couch – still against the rules – to land next to the gaggle of Sekirei, forming their horrible, terrible plan.
"With all of us together, there's nothing to worry about!" Musubi formed up behind Tsukiumi and reached around her to grab Uzume's hands as well. I knew from personal experience there was no escaping her bear-strong grasp.
"Yeah, Uzume." Matsu chimed in. "If you're with us, who knows what we might find."
"Fine! Fine, alright!" Uzume gave up under the group's cajoling. "Fine, let me put my stuff away and call my Ashikabi."
"Hah! Victory." Tsukiumi crowed, letting go and grabbing her bags. "Then let us plan and set off tonight!"
Tonight? I sighed. I'd have to come up with a plan around their plan, so things didn't devolve into too much chaos… and so no one got hurt.
*Shirou*
"Minaka is expecting you." I barely got through the doors before his secretary buzzed me into his office. Fifty-fifty odds on it being because Minaka and I had been meeting one-on-one to discuss the (successfully executed) plan for Mikogami or because she was reprimanded the last time she tried to stop me. From her glower when she thought I wasn't looking, however, I may have had my answer.
"Thank you, Kaede-san." I thanked her anyway, as I had every time. Akitsu followed in my wake even as Haihane skipped (well, more like slunk) ahead through the doors.
"Hello, Shirou-kun." Minaka was bent over his expensive desk, appearing to be doing actual work. "Hello, girls. I'll be with you in just a moment."
"Heya, professor!" Haihane waved and perched on the back of one of the two chairs facing the desk. Akitsu remained silent, as was her wont.
"Haihane, sit." I lightly pushed her into the chair properly. She opened her mouth – no doubt for some comment to slip forth but stopped at my warning glance. In front of Junko or in private was fine, but she should be somewhat professional in front of the CEO.
Hypocrisy, thy name was Emiya.
"Karasuba-kun not joining us?" Minaka finally asked after finishing up the file he was working on.
"She's prowling around somewhere." She didn't hide her disdain for the minutia that came with dealing with the squad. Though she was the captain, she was more than willing to let Natsuo and I carry the administrative weight. "You said you had something for me?"
"Yes." He passed over a stack of papers and leaned back with a grin. "I've taken the liberty of assigning personnel to you as part of the integration project between the Disciplinary Squad and Security."
Ah. So, I was being assigned my own execution squad. How delightful. Still, if I ignored the dangling threat of being shot in the back at Minaka's whim – something told me that not cooperating with MBI's internal mercenary force would only exacerbate – they could be a useful force multiplier to shore up the weakness of only having four Sekirei trying to govern the almost 100 others yet remaining.
Plus, it might be novel to be on this side of the gunfire for once.
…just so long as it was directed where it should be.
"I'm assuming these are their files. This seems like a task that could have been passed on to Junko to deliver instead of calling me up."
"Yes." Minaka acknowledged with a smile. "But I found myself missing our chats."
My eye twitched. I shouldn't have saved his chair from Haihane's treatment of it.
"Ah, I recognize that look. You're in a mood." He nodded to himself. "You clearly get that from your mother."
"Is there anything else, sir?" I didn't growl, but not for lack of wanting.
"Oh, not if you're going to go all Takami-kun on me." The insane CEO waved me off. "But I'll give you the same advice I give her: learn to live a little."
"I'll take that under advisement, sir." And then take it into a back alley, stab it a few dozen times, and bury it in a shallow, unmarked grave.
"No, you won't." He groused, somehow seeing right through my inscrutable poker face. "Fine. The teams are waiting for you in training area 8-C."
My eye twitched again. That would have been good information to know much earlier.
"I'm adding another meeting to your calendar–" I let the closing door catch his words as I walked out. Haihane, at least, found amusement in the situation as she gave low, breathy chuckles.
"Hehehe… you know, I think he has a man crush on you." I stopped dead, unable to hide my abject horror – a timely Crack! of Hiahane's claws icing over was the only thing preventing the girl from almost disemboweling herself as she clutched her sides, laughing. "S-should we be… jealous?" She gasped out between laughing fits.
"I see I have been too lenient." I groused. "Thank you for volunteering for the overnight shift."
"What? But…" Her laughing stopped as she looked up at me in horror. "No. The bed will be cold and empty!"
"Should have thought of that beforehand." I felt no pity as I continued towards the elevator, already thinking of how nice it would be to wake up without her sprawled on top of me. Karasuba had staked a claim early for her side of the bed, though that didn't stop her from invading mine to hold me in her sleep. Akitsu usually found herself on my other side, though she kept her distance bodily, she always ended up clutching my hand.
"Shirou-kun? Shirou-kun! 'Kitsu-chan, help me out?" Haihane pleaded. Haihane slept like the dead, choosing to fill any empty space or, when there was none available, drape herself across all three of us. As the earliest riser (and someone who kept trying and failing to sleep alone), it meant mornings were a rough affair getting out of bed.
"Ah… I shall keep your spot." Akitsu ruthlessly shut the smaller woman down.
"Kitsu-chan!" Haihane gasped exaggeratedly. "Perfidy! Betrayal!"
Her giggles echoed as the elevator descended, taking us several stories below.
Minaka, in his wild delusions of… whatever he was on about, had fashioned parts of the corporate headquarters to reflect his twisted mindset. As such, there were parts of the building that clearly followed the rules of what an office building suitable for admin work and lab space for making pharmaceuticals should look like and contain. There were also, however, parts like the clocktower and the motor pool that followed drastically different rules.
Case in point, training area 8-C was in the middle of being converted into a temporary urban combat theater. Temporary walls sectioned it off the area to reflect the corridors and rooms of an apartment building on one side, separated from a small firing range and racks of training equipment.
I didn't see Campbell at her normal station (preventing Natsuo from collecting more rounds I never saw him fire), though the motor pool was a flurry of activity. The chaos was more directed and rote than the last time I came down. The same could not be said for the comparatively empty area 8-C.
The hair on the back of my neck stood on end as we approached. I couldn't sense anything amiss… I didn't hear or see anything that particularly spoke of a threat… but I didn't have any good memories associated with being in apartment blocks full of mercenaries waiting for me. That this was yet another execution squad wasn't helping. My (rather appropriate, I thought) paranoia was only slightly mollified by the sound of unhushed voices coming from the open space near the firing range.
"I hear we're being reassigned." I heard one of the voices say. Male. Young. I slowed my pace, recognizing the question as the start of bitch-fest from my time with the Enforcers. Rookies were all the same, it seemed. "Sergeant, you know anything about this?"
"All I can tell you is that we're on special assignment for the foreseeable future." An older man responded, though I would have to confirm whether he was the sergeant later. "All you need to know is that our orders are coming from the top."
"Reassigned?" A third voice. Female. "To whom?"
"I heard scuttlebutt about the DS looking for grunts." Another voice chimed in. "Wager they need someone who knows what they're doing?"
"The DS? You mean we're working with those lab freaks?" The first voice again. I would remember that.
"Fuuuuck. Sarge, you didn't say there'd be a suit in charge."
"Two. The DS has two suits, ain't that right, Campbell?" Campbell? Huh. Interesting. I tapped Haihane's hip twice and she silently leapt away. Ironic that the loudest of my Sekirei was also the stealthiest. "I've seen one down here quite often."
"There's two now." It wasn't Campbell who confirmed it, however. "Though I heard one's a nepotism hire." There was a collective of groans and curses on that one. I… couldn't exactly deny that point since Mom – Takami could be considered one of the founding members of the company and was the head of an entire division.
"That ain't so bad." Another female voice, also not Campbell's. "Nepotism duties are easy. Bet we won't even have to leave base. I for one, don't mind babysitting a couple of civvies – especially not rich and attractive ones."
I… should have revealed myself before I had to hear that one. The dip in temperature behind me merely confirmed that errant thought.
"That might work for you, Beth, but I don't want some armchair pansy nepo-baby calling the shots. You agree with me, right Yusuf?"
"I must say that I agree with you." I chose that moment to step out of the mock apartments and into sight of the group. There was a brief shuffle – some straightening, some cursing, a man and a woman both fist bumping – as they aligned themselves to take a better look at me and my companion. "For what it's worth, I think of myself more as a consultant than a shot-caller unless the need arises. I don't know you all, or how you work together, or much about the tactics and procedures MBI has you running. But you do."
"Hiroto-san has an idea of how to make our departments more interlinked, something that I might not have much experience in, but can see the rationale for." I paused, looking around the assembled mercenaries. "I'm sure you can all see the reason for increased knowledge and cooperation only working in our favor. For that purpose, my main goal will be to guide you in how to deal with Sekirei and similar threats you might not have experience fighting."
"With all due respect, what's so hard about 'shoot till they stop moving'?" It was the first voice. Perfect.
"Jenkins!" Barked who I was assuming to be the Sargent. "Stow it!"
"That's alright." I raised my hand. One of them speaking up worked for me. I'd a similar experience when I first joined the Enforcers – those who considered me lesser because I was from Japan or because they considered me Rin's pet. "I'm not one to stand on ceremony. If you've something to say, I'd rather hear it." That way it was less likely I'd be blindsided. "To the point, however, would you allow me a demonstration? Is your sidearm live ammo or Sekirei tranqs?"
"Live…" That worked.
"Right. See that target there?" I pointed to one of the closer targets, roughly 20 meters away. "When I tell you, I want you to draw and try to hit that target."
"There's no try about it." I heard the mutter, followed by a delayed "sir". A few of the other mercs started divvying ear protection as my 'volunteer' took position.
"Akitsu." I didn't need to look at her to feel her perk up. "Protect that target as if it were me."
"Ah…" Akitsu widened her stance and jutted out her chest, the red Mantle fluttering as the temperature around her dropped. "Understood."
She was ready. "Good. You may fire when ready."
CRACK!
The man's fingers had barely touched his gun to draw when hoarfrost exploded across the ground.
CRACK-Bang! Bang! Bang!
A wall of ice met the first bullet – not thick enough to stop it, but enough to steal its momentum and knock it off course. It fell just short of the target in a spray of ice fragments. The second shot cracked the wall, penetrating deep even as more and more ice flowed over itself. Growing. Thickening. It didn't make it to the other side. The last shot was stopped dead in its tracks as Akitsu's power kept creeping and thickening in opaque waves of intersecting walls until the target was completely blocked from sight.
"Wow. What now?" Haihane rasped from inside the loose circle of observers. Hands momentarily went to service weapons as they jumped – no, reacted – but way too late. "Tag. Tag-tag-tag." The closest ones to her froze as her claws tapped their headgear. Not one got to their weapon, nor were they able to move more than a step away before being tagged.
The ones furthest away – including my unlucky volunteer – found themselves distracted by the real threat as spears of ice erupted from the floor surrounding them. They (figuratively) froze as the attack hemmed them together but didn't harm anyone.
"Congratulations," I announced, drawing their attention back to me. A small gesture to Akitsu had her conjured ice shatter and fade to nothing in a casual affront to thermodynamics. "You were unable to disable the Ashikabi, got distracted by the only threat presented, and were taken out by the other Sekirei."
Haihane carefully extracted herself from the group and shuffled over to me. "I'm a clever girl!" She rasped as I patted her head.
"Thank you for demonstrating." I nodded to my slightly fuming volunteer. "I'm sure you all noticed from this exercise that Sekirei have a much faster reaction time than us humans." This was only slightly true. Their base was faster than ours, but there were ways to bridge the gaps. "One-on-one, or as you've just experienced, if a Sekirei can close the gap, it will be almost impossible to take them down."
"Hiroto-san hasn't exactly given me guidance on how he wants our groups to cooperate. I can only speak from my own experience, but in the Disciplinary Squad, we don't usually have the luxury of backup or armed support. We don't operate from a secure emplacement; we go to where the problem is. Any mission that we undertake will have at least one Ashikabi on the scene. While it's true that most Ashikabi only have one Sekirei, many have two or three. Some have five or more. For those of you keeping track, the entirety of the DS consists of only four."
"Unfortunately, this may mean that we as a team or any of you may find yourselves in the position of facing down Sekirei in combat. For that, we'll need to come up with effective ways to cover each other and come back alive. I've never done anything like this before, so I'll be crowdsourcing ideas. Anything you think can help us, exercises we can practice. We have the area, so we can also train with teams with and against Sekirei backup, strategies… I'll be learning as much as lending my own knowledge. Are there any questions, statements, or concerns before we begin?"
"Sir, no sir!" The cry was startling as the mercs saluted. Ice-breaker complete, pun not intended, I set about proper introductions to the team.
*Tsukiumi*
Ugh! Where was that ridiculous man? I stood waiting on the porch, tap, tap, tapping my foot with mounting impatience. How long did it take for a human to get ready?
"If you frown any harder, you'll get wrinkles, Tsu-chan," Uzume whispered in my ear, ducking away with a laugh as I chased her off with a spray of water.
"I will not!" I sent another stream at her – something she gracefully, playfully hopped over – before recrossing my arms. Minato was taking too long. At this rate, it would be better if Uzume-chan and I just left by ourselves. "And I was not frowning!"
"You were!" Musubi didn't share Uzume's tact in letting my statement go. "You were all–" And she crossed her arms, matching my tapping foot with an exaggerated face. "Oh, wait…" She took one of her fingers and used it to tug down the skin of her forehead. "Like this: grrrrr."
I was not as gentle with the torrent I sent her way, though she dispersed it with one of her ludicrous bear-strong punches. Hmph, I sniffed. At least the display showed Musubi would be strong enough to keep up with Uzume-chan and I.
"Minato! Get your ass in gear, we're waiting for you!" Yukari shouted.
"Yukari, people are trying to go to bed." Minato poked his head out of the back door, the red-headed Matsu in tow. If she was why he was taking so long… I grit my teeth, barely refraining from chewing on my thumbnail. "Please try to be more understanding."
"I'll be understanding if you hurry up."
"Almost ready." Minato turned away from her, back to his, ugh, other-other Sekirei. "Are you sure you won't come with us, Matsu?"
"I really shouldn't leave the Izumo, being a fugitive from MBI and all." Matsu shook her head. "Plus, you know my strengths lie in ranged observation and intelligence gathering, not fighting on the frontlines. I'll do my best to keep an eye on you all from here but…"
"Kagari is still feeling ill?" Minato's face pinched in concern. It was cute – thoughtful! It was thoughtful of him to be so worried about all of the Izumo's tenants. The other male had been too sick to leave his room since my unfortunate run-in with him. I hoped my accidentally dousing him hadn't exacerbated his illness but hadn't had the opportunity to look in on him since.
"Yeah. I'm making some medicine for him." Matsu said sadly. "And Miya-san is helping take care of him."
"Right." Minato nodded. "Though I'd feel better with you looking for us, please do your best to help nurse Kagari back to health."
"If Matsu-tan does a good job, would Minato-kun want to play doctor~" The serious expression fled from the red-headed deviant's face as she leered at her Ashikabi.
"Ew, gross." Yukari thankfully shoved Minato away from the grasping Sekirei (and a surreptitious stream of water when Minato's back was turned sent the gremlin fleeing into the house). "This is much less cool when I have to see it."
"Why am I getting pushed?" Minato complained, letting himself get shuffled into the group by his sister and Kusano, the diminutive blond menace, that clutched at his pant legs.
"Because it's the easiest way of getting this show on the road." Yukari didn't stop shoving him forward, even when Musubi grabbed his hand to pull him with her too.
"Not to be the voice of reason here or anything, but is there a plan here?" Uzume spoke up as we left the yard and leaped towards the city. "Or are we wandering at random?"
"Matsu did some digging into what Shirou said," Minato responded. "Most of the attacks happened in alleys on the way back into the city proper from the parks. If we look for people around there, it might lead us to our first clue."
"Plus, if we see any other creeps, we can roll up and crush them!" Yukari cheered, dragging a groan from her Sekirei.
"Right. Wander around at random it is." Uzume deadpanned, shrugging her shoulders with a shake of her head. "Why did I give up my night for this again?"
"Because you are my supportive and best friend." I poked her, earning a small smile. "Plus, had you not, I would enlist Musubi to prevent you from getting any alone time until you came out with me."
"You wouldn't…" She glared at me.
"Oh ho? It sounds to me like someone is volunteering to be Musubi's morning sparring partner." I grinned. "Musubi!" I called to the other girl before Uzume slapped a (delicate) hand over my mouth.
"You're scary and I hate you." Uzume groused and I reveled in my victory.
"What's up Tsukiumi?" Musubi called back, hearing my call.
"Whoever finds the Veiled Sekirei first gets to fight first!" I called out, letting Uzume off the hook.
"What did I do to deserve this…" Uzume muttered as I linked my arm with hers to pull her along.
"Whatever it was must have been grand." I beamed. "For I am a treasure."
The flight from Miya's suburb to the city proper was quick with the lot of us being able to travel via rooftops and more than enough hands to carry Minato, Yukari, and Kusano along. As we neared the location of the park, however, Minato raised a hand to flag our loose formation back together on a nearby rooftop.
"Matsu's heading offline for a minute, but she confirms multiple Sekirei up ahead," Minato warned. Multiple? So then were we in luck in hunting down the miscreants? "We should hit the ground level and search from there."
"And give up the height advantage?" I balked. Why would we willingly give up the tactical advantage for other Sekirei to dive onto us? "How do we even know there are Sekirei around us? That lascivious lout isn't even with us."
"Oh! She used the skylight!" Musubi chirped. Skylight? Did she… did she mean the sun? I thought Matsu's power had something to do with electronics and not being able to withstand direct sunlight without bursting into flames.
"You're thinking of vampires, Tsukiumi." I blushed as Minato gently corrected me. I hadn't realized I'd spoken aloud.
"I mean the skylight!" Musubi continued, undaunted. "It was red and burny. She used it to find me and blow up the groceries I was carrying and my clothes before she became Minato-kun's Sekirei."
"Red and burny… wait, are you saying MBI has an orbital laser cannon?" Yukari squealed. "Do you think Shirou gets to fire it? Oh! Do you think I could fire it?!"
"No!" Shiina, Minato, Uzume-chan, and I all yelled at once.
"Pooh." Yukari pouted. "None of you are any fun."
"MBI doesn't have an orbital laser cannon." Minato rebutted. "I'm pretty sure that would break all kinds of international treaties. They do, however, have observational satellites that fly over the city. Matsu is looking through those to keep tabs on us. If I were a betting man, I'd say that's the same system that the culprit we're hunting is using to go undetected."
"You're saying if we can be seen by our ally, we can also be seen by the enemy?" The sole male Sekirei of the group spoke up from behind Yukari. "So, using the rooftops as a vantage would actually be to our disadvantage."
"Ugh." I bit my thumbnail, briefly, in consternation. "This subterfuge nonsense is aggravating. The enemy should have the decency to show themselves if we announce our presence in challenge."
"There, there, Tsu-chan." Uzume patted my back. "Just think of it as her being unwilling to face you in a fight – oh, and hangers-on of course."
"Of course…" I sighed, but her comment did buoy my spirit slightly.
"Right." Minato and Shiina continued their side conversation. "If we want to get the drop on this rogue Sekirei, we're going to have to avoid being seen as well. We're a large group so we–"
"Should split up to cover more ground!" Yukari interrupted, finalizing the plan. "You're much smarter than people give you credit for brother."
Hmm, with so many of us, we would be able to search a wider area and wouldn't interfere with each other when it comes to fighting. It was a perfect plan.
"What? No!" Minato yelped. "This Sekirei is hunting people on their own–"
"Then splitting up will also lure them to us," I concluded, feeling pride in my summation that the boy was as clever as he was handsome. Not that I thought he was handsome! "Uzume-chan, we can look over this way!" I pointed, stepping away abruptly. These spring nights have gotten warm.
"We'll split this way then. Oh, wait. Everyone should link calls so we can keep in touch." Yukari spoke up, drawing her phone. "This would be so much cooler with radios or walkie-talkies. We should have bullied Shirou into getting us some."
"No, splitting up is a terrible idea, we should–" Minato's words were covered by Musubi pulling him into a hug.
"My Ashikabi is so smart!" My eyebrow twitched as the girl proceeded to almost smother him.
"That isn't appropriate behavior for being in public!" A jet of water split them up, though the water I used took longer than normal to disperse back into the air. The ambient humidity was rising. "Minato! Behave yourself!"
"Yeah, brother, behave yourself." Yukari sing-songed, her voice seeming to echo as she and Shiina dropped off the rooftop and into the alleyways.
"Why…" Minato asked no one in particular, letting Musubi pull him after his sister.
"Aren't we supposed to split up?" Uzume asked me as she followed at my heels as I dropped after them.
"Of course!" I sniffed. "But that hardly means we cannot keep an eye on them." A late spring mist was creeping over the tops of the alleyway. After a rather dry winter, it was refreshing to feel the moisture in the air – even if it turned the air sluggish.
"Uh-huh." Uzume drawled and I glared at her. "I'm suuuure that's the reason. Wait… Tsu-chan, is this you?"
"Is what me?" I replied, somewhat sharply. "And do not think I'll let you get away with questioning my motives, Uzume-chan!"
"The mist…" Uzume trailed off, looking around. Huh, I could barely see Minato, Kusano, and Musubi and only the impression of Yukari and Shiina. "Hey, guys?" The others didn't respond as the growing moisture ate up the sound. "Dudes!"
"What is it?" Minato and the girls flanking him stopped. "Weird, is the mist getting thicker?
"Guys! We can't see anything, what's happening?" Yukari and Shiina doubled back, popping out of the mist.
"I think we're under attack," Uzume said, just as the ground rumbled, sending us all staggering as walls of earth rose at either end of the alley and boxed us in.
High-pitched laughter rang out around us, audible only after the ground stopped moving.
"So you are!" A young, but well-enunciated voice proclaimed once they were done laughing. "I've caught you now, Veiled Sekirei! Your onslaught shall go no further, for a challenger approaches!"
"Shit…" Uzume cursed, slumping her shoulders but not looking too concerned. Reasonable, as she was Number 10 and I was Number 09. It would take at least the likes of another single digit to challenge either of us alone. "This idiot."
The mist began to part, revealing several Sekirei perched under an overhang protecting them from being observed from overhead yet still allowing them to maintain the altitude advantage. Well played. It wouldn't help them, of course, but well played indeed.
"Did you say Veiled Sekirei?" Minato called out.
"Hah! So, you admit your identity!" The small boy in the center of the formation of Sekirei cried. He certainly had the numbers advantage on our group, despite being a lone Ashikabi to our two (or three counting Uzume-chan's absent partner). "I knew I'd like this event. There's a reward for putting an end to your misdeeds and I intend to–"
"It's you!" Yukari interrupted the monologue, pointing up at the enemy Ashikabi. "The creepy guy that was perving on Shiina-kun!"
"I was not perving on anyone!" The Ashikabi yelled back. "Wait… you're the loudmouth that took the rare type from me! Thief! Oh?" He looked around our group. "And the Green Girl? You're the group that stole her away too? And I see one of the last remaining single digits is with you too..."
I shuddered as he focused on me with his greedy little eyes. Unpleasant little human!
"What do you mean stole?" Minato pulled Kusano behind him, the roots of the plant in her arm growing and waving dangerously in agitation. "Are you one of the Ashikabi that tried to grab her?"
"Are you the one attacking people?" Yukari accused him. "I bet you're upset 'cause you're short and no one likes you, so you try to steal their Sekirei. What are you, the discount-bin Team Rocket?"
"Shut up hag!" One of the Sekirei yelled at her.
"Our master is wonderful!" Another chimed in. "Many people like him!"
"Loudmouth? Hag?" Yukari bristled. "Oh, it is so on. Get your scrawny ass down here, boy! We're fighting!"
"Master, a word." The tallest of the Sekirei calmly bent down to whisper in his Ashikabi's ear. At no point did he let his eyes wander off our group or let his guard down. He… was one to watch.
"They are?" His Ashikabi looked back at us, squinting. No… at Minato and Yukari. "You there, Ashikabi. Would you happen to be Minato and Yukari Sahashi?"
What? How did he…
Minato blinked, mirroring my surprise, but Yukari merely squared up her stance.
"So, what of it?" She yelled, rolling back her sleeves. "Are you stalking me? Did I beat you up for lunch money in grade school or something?"
"I see. We're withdrawing then." The Ashikabi spoke, almost too low to hear. To Yukari, he yelled out "You're lucky I don't have time to deal with the likes of you. I have a reward to earn." He turned to me with a smarmy smile and held out a hand in a parody of a dance request. "Number 07, I implore you to follow and join our team."
I balked in revulsion.
The female Sekirei at his side gathered her arms up around her head and I could feel the moisture in the air call to her summons. So, she was the source of the mist? That two-bit harlot hanging out of her dress had nothing on my majestic control over the element, however. As she brought her hands down, a fresh wave of mist billowed out concealing the groups' movements as they fled the scene.
It was child's play to flex my power just enough to clear the mist entirely before it blew across the street to us.
"Don't run!" Yukari yelled, giving chase. Shiina yelped and ran after her.
"Guys! Maybe don't run after the numerically superior force?" Minato called after them.
"But Minato-kun!" Musubi began pulling him along. "I wanna fight too! If we don't hurry, then – huh? Who is that?"
On the one hand… it would be nice to wipe that disgusting expression off that pervert's face. I did get dressed up to flaunt my power and it would be a waste if I didn't get to show off a little.
A ping alerted me to Uzume-chan checking her phone. Right, it was just about time for her to call her Ashikabi, wasn't it? Sometimes Uzume would even sneak out at night afterward…
"What a waste of time that was…" Uzume muttered, checking the faceplate. My eyes widened as I accidentally caught sight of the notification.
Asshole: I gave you an order.
Asshole: You know the consequences for disobedience.
"Fuck." She muttered. "I need to go call my Ashikabi."
"Sure Uzume-chan." I pretended not to see anything as she turned to face me. Why would her Ashikabi be under 'Asshole'? Unless… I felt my fingers curl into fists. "Your Ashikabi is important to you. You know I always support you." I lied, letting her leap away.
"Wait! We don't want to fight!" Huh? I let the new voices distract me from the unwelcome question that was Uzume and her oft-forgotten (by me) Ashikabi. I needed to think about this… if my best friend needed help…
…or even wanted any. I turned back to where Minato was holding back (or at least attempting to) the writhing mass of roots and vines that were arcing above a cowering man and woman. What was all this then?
*Natsuo*
"Sir, this way." The Security officer waved him through the temporary barricades put up to stop traffic and pedestrians. "We've managed to secure the area, but we lost track of the target. Sir, tranquilizer rounds were ineffective."
Overhead, three MBI helicopters circled, both to control the airspace so that nosey cameras and Sekirei didn't get too close and partially to provide air support and make sure no one and/or nothing else did either.
"I see. How many victims?" I asked as they led me over to the center of the intersection. APCs had already formed up to redirect the early morning rush hour traffic and it would only get worse the longer we stayed here. The area was a mess.
"Four, sir." The mercenary answered. The bodies were covered for now, awaiting inspection before the retrieval teams packed up the subjects. There was a lot of blood, the air currents from the circling vehicles sending ripples across the surface of the pool. "One of the targets tried to get away with one of the Sekirei bodies, but we managed to recover it. A full examination is pending, but on-scene responders are reporting probable cause of death to be massive hemorrhaging and exsanguination."
Well, there was certainly enough blood for it. I'd need new shoes.
"This is hardly ideal," I muttered, pulling out my phone. It answered on the second ring. "Shirou. Sorry to break up your morning. There's been an escalation." I had to yell over the whirling air. The first body was in an awful state. Her – no, its face stuck in a rictus of fear and agony. "Four confirmed. All fatalities." I paused at his silence, taking the moment to examine the corpse.
Fingers were scabbed over, nails chipped and missing. The arms were pockmarked with scrapes, abrasions, and bruises. It fought back until the end. One arm was bent unnaturally, and deep gouges stained its clothes crimson.
On a whim, I tilted the neck, revealing a jagged hole bitten into the flesh. The body was still fresh enough for a weak dribble of blood to trickle from the ruined meat and tubes.
Ah. Curses. A Number 109. Minaka would need to know.
"Get to headquarters ASAP." I straightened, drawing my other sidearm from its hidden back holster. The briefing for this one would be tedious. "We are all hands on deck as of this moment. Gloves off Emiya. Eliminate with extreme prejudice."
I hung up the phone.
The oversized receiver bucked against my arm as the first shot rang out. The corpse's head burst like a disgusting watermelon. Then the next. The next. And then the last.
*End*
Buckle up folks, we're going places now! I hope you all enjoy the chapter. A huge shout out and thanks to ParadoxicalThought, HibernaLupus, and OctZ.