CHAPTER 33
The deadly dance between the cyclists and the missiles continued. The turrets fired, the bazookas fired back, Ayane swerved left and right, guns were blown up.
The active turrets were down to four when the bikers gave Yuka some bad news.
"We're out of ammunition! There were just too many of them!"
Yuka sighed. "Well… you know what to do. And don't worry, I'm joining you."
The cyclists formed a small shield for Ayane and her cargo.
Okay, girl, don't let it get to you. Focus on the peak! Ayane pressed on.
One of the Firearms Club members was blown to pieces.
Keep going... keep going...
Another missile narrowly missed Yuka and blew a hole in the dirt.
Then the other armed motorcyclist was blown away, leaving only Yuka.
NO! We're almost there! Ayane's heart sank.
The gun turrets now focused on the ATV and the trailer.
Screw it, I'm plowing ahead. If my trailer is destroyed, well... we all get to respawn and try again some other time. At least I tried to help.
Ayane could see the guns charging up out of the corner of her eye. She braced for impact.
She could hear the blasts from the turrets. She heard explosions.
But nothing hit her trailer.
She looked up. More kids had shown up on motorcycles, forming a rolling shield between the trailer and the turrets. She looked back and saw the smoldering remains of one of the riders.
The closest rider shouted at Ayane. "Go on, girl! The Daredevil Club is here to help!"
Ayane smiled at him and went full throttle. The motorcycle shield formation responded in kind.
Inside the trailer, the four occupants struggled to hold on tight amidst all the bumps, twists and turns.
"Is that thing gonna make it?" Kari asked.
"We made it as solid-state as we could!" Saki answered. "It could withstand a three-story drop onto the sidewalk, so this should be a breeze!"
They could hear more explosions from outside.
"I'm scared!" Sota gripped Kari tightly.
"I know things are scary right now, but the worst that can happen to us is we get blown up and get revived in some hospital!" Kari said.
"Yeah… we won't die… but that would be a major setback," Hana grumbled.
"Let's have faith that our friends can protect us!" Kari replied. "It shouldn't be that long now!"
"The summit is in sight!" Yuka shouted.
The motorcycle shield was down to five riders, but there was still one gun turret left between them and the peak. And it was larger than the others.
The turret fired three missiles simultaneously.
Ayane barely dodged the resulting blast. She looked back. Five empty motorcycles were sprawled along the fiery path.
"NO! They got Yuka! They got the others! I have no protection left!"
The gun was charged up and ready to fire again. Ayane braced for the worst.
From out of nowhere came a lightning-fast racing motorcycle. It zoomed past the trailer and went straight for the turret.
Hana looked out the window and gasped. Uchiro was on the motorbike, last grenade in hand, pin pulled.
"LEEEEEROYYYYYYJENNNNKIIIII—" he shouted as he let the grenade fly.
The turret fired its missiles, instantly connecting with its screaming target and blowing it up; and in turn, the grenade blew the turret up.
"UCHI-KUUUUUN!" Hana cried.
Ayane's eyes welled with tears of relief. We made it through. Thank you, brave soldier.
Kari comforted her hysterical sister the best she could. "He saved all of us. He saved our mission. And remember where we're at… he'll be waiting for us when we're done here."
The sun had started to set as the caravan stopped twelve meters short of the peak.
"That's as far as I can go! Watch your step!" Ayane called out as the trailer passengers emerged.
"Crap... I hope we can get a good enough transmission from where we're at now," Saki grumbled. "Kari, keep your eye on our battery."
"Battery is at eighty percent!" Kari shouted.
Ayane and Sota unhitched the ATV, slid out the trailer supports and locked them down. "Base is secured!" Sota said.
Kari climbed on the trailer roof and raised the transmitter into place. "Transmitter secured!"
"Looks like all the holoprojectors are functional," Saki replied. "Time to give it a go!"
The three siblings piled into the trailer and watched Saki twist knobs and punch buttons.
"I need one of you to stick the wires to your head again, just so we can confirm the calibration."
Sota rushed over and sat by the console. Saki attached the sensors and went back to the controls, telling him "Close your eyes, try to relax and think of Yuri."
Sota shut his eyes and assumed a meditational pose. A minute passed.
"Sector B has been pinpointed. Hopefully a surge of power directed at its general location can get a response," Saki reported.
A loud humming noise emanated from the transmitter, along with something that sounded like a helicopter. Sota ripped off the sensors and rejoined his sisters.
"Any sign of life?" Hana asked after a few minutes.
"No response, no acknowledgement," Saki replied.
Several more minutes passed. Saki grew frustrated.
"Battery at forty percent," Kari noted.
Saki stared dejectedly at the console. "It's no use. Forcing our way into that world won't work..."
Suddenly there was a beeping noise. A green light blinked rapidly and the screen was flooded with coding.
"We got in?" Kari asked excitedly.
"From the looks of it there was a surge of energy from Sector B, and thanks to that, their system became accessible. We just need to locate the highest concentration of energy activity..."
"You can do it! We almost have Yuri-san!" Sota cheered.
Another minute passed. A bunch of lights appeared in the middle of the trailer, coalescing into a holographic-like image of a room full of computer equipment and a girl dressed in a blue and while school uniform, purplish-red hair tied in a green bow, firing a machine gun.
"Now trying to secure her location... it's hazy... but we've located our subject, she's shooting a bunch of computers! That might have been what caused the surge! Okay, trying to concentrate the focus on her..."
Hana stared in shock. "Did she shoot someone? Yuri-san... no... please tell me you didn't..."
Saki furiously punched some buttons. "It's breaking up... we can't get through, the connection is too weak..."
The scene suddenly looked more blurry. A wave of glumness overcame the Nakamuras.
Suddenly the trailer lurched. The four were tossed around.
Saki panicked. "Nooo! We must be falling!"
The image disappeared. "We're losing the connection!" Hana cried.
"Battery at fifteen percent!"
The lurching went on for a minute and then stopped. Everyone in the trailer was still.
Suddenly the holographic image showed activity again. The image was still blurry, but it showed a carnage of broken monitors and smashed equipment.
A faint voice was heard outside. "You're not falling! You just got a boost!"
Kari looked outside and saw Ayane in the distance, jumping up and down and waving her arms. What she couldn't see was Sensei-tron, fresh off a helicopter ride, keeping a firm grip on the trailer with bulked-up arm attachments, holding it above his head as he crept up the last twelve meters of the mountain. His heels shot out long, bulky drills that bore deep into the mountainside, securing his climb to the top. The trailer was now two meters higher than the peak.
Hiro ran up to Ayane. "We did it!" he shouted to the trailer. "We finally hacked the defense system and disabled it!"
A rejuvenated Saki turned some dials and pressed some buttons. "Everybody stay still! I have her! Boosting power NOW!"
A brighter blob of light appeared in the middle of the trailer. A few seconds later the blob materialized into a crisp, realistic image of Yuri, exhausted and dejected, sitting on the floor.
Hana was the first to speak up. "Onee-chan?"
Yuri looked around, then focused on the three staring at her, shocked beyond belief. "Huh?..."
Hana struggled to get her words out. "Thank you… you've done enough."
Kari overcame her bewilderment and added "Sis… You don't have to suffer alone anymore."
Sota finally spoke up. "You've... worked so very hard, for a long time, Sis."
"I… ah..." Suddenly Yuri burst into tears. Then she vanished.
"DAMMIT! We lost the signal!" Saki poked furiously at the console.
"Can we reconnect?" Hana yelled.
Saki stared at the controls and sighed. "That's all the power we had. We're done."
"Confirmed... battery at zero," Kari announced.
Several awkward seconds passed. "Let's... go back then," Hana muttered.
"Set us down!" Saki called out of the window. "Okay, everyone, hold on to something!"
The four of them felt some shaking and then, a minute later, a thud on the floor.
Ayane, Ikuro and Hiro ran up to the trailer as the four emerged from the doorway.
"Wonderful timing, you guys, sheesh," Saki sarcastically remarked.
"Helicopter came courtesy of the Robotics Club," Ikuro said, "but we couldn't get close to the mountain until we knew it was safe!"
"Did you do it? Did you get to talk to Yuri?" Ayane excitedly asked the Nakamura siblings.
Sota was the first to speak up. "I... think so. I hope we got to her."
"I didn't know what to say," Hana added. "I didn't know what she had been through, she looked so worn out. But hopefully she saw us and recognized us."
"We had maybe twelve seconds of full contact," Saki reported. "They called out to her and it looked like she could hear them. But then she got overwhelmed with emotion and that's when we lost power. We couldn't give her any instructions or anything."
"That's perfectly fine." Hiro smiled and rested his hands on both Saki's and Hana's shoulders. "The important thing is... we succeeded in breaking through to Sector B. We should be able to build on this effort. We just have to talk to the right people in that world, give them the schematics to build the equipment they need, and then we'll finally get the network secured on their end. Great work, everyone! You're welcome to join the Electronics Club anytime!"
He turned to face Ayane and Ikuro, who were reconnecting the trailer to the ATV. "That goes for you two as well!"
Ayane climbed up on the ATV. "I appreciate that, but electronics aren't my thing. Your secret's safe with me, though!"
"I'm busy helming the Journalism Club, but I'll keep it in mind!" Ikuro replied. "If my brother's in that other sector, I might be interested!"
Sota clung to Kari as she walked over to the trailer. "We did get to her... right?"
"I'm… sure we did." Kari stared off into the distance, secretly unsure of her statement.
Meanwhile Hana glanced at her phone and then ran to the helicopter, which was resting on a rocky clearing several meters away.
She was surprised to see who was piloting it. "Keira?"
Keira looked back from the cockpit and stared curiously. "What are you doing out here, little girl?... oh wait, is that YOU, Hana?"
"Yes, Keira-sama! It's a long story… anyway, can you please fly me somewhere real quick?"