Well, this chapter is the last one that I write on Turkey, this year at least. Normally, I would have done more but food poisoning did me really bad a few nights before. It caused our schedule to delay.

But I could go home and write during the flight and at the pool.

Started at the pool, continued during the flight, and finished at home.

This chapter is going to be a rocky one, I can assure you that to all of you.

There were no guest reviews and not much else to add so let's go!

Started on 09/03/2023

Ended on 11/03/2023

Openings song. Five Finger Death Punch. When the seasons change.


"Talking"

'Thinking'

[Telepathic conversation]

[Phone call]


The day when the tournament was about to start, Madoka noticed one particular thing among them. Kanzashi hadn't shown up at all for the check-up or she wasn't at the place either.

The whole speech was about to begin and yet, Madoka didn't find her.

The youngest Orimura wasn't the only one who was picking up her fidgetiness. Ichika could feel that as well.

[Madoka, what is going on? You're like a squirrel on caffeine.]

[Sorry, Ichi-nii. I'm looking for Kanzashi. Can't find her anywhere. And she was a no-show last night.]

Ichika relaxed a bit more.

[Sneak out. You can do that. And go look for her, baby sis. I'll relay when it's important.]

Madoka had learned many things and sneakiness was something that she had gotten from a young age.

When the full attention came to Tatenashi, Madoka managed to get out without an issue. The only ones who noticed her leaving were Ichika and Chifuyu.

The older sister was about to call her out but found that Ichika's look made her stop. She signaled a small thumbs-up. She could ask (and in case punish) them later.

Madoka began to run around the school, looking for Kanzashi. The class was out so maybe in her room or something.

Just great. Madoka hadn't bothered asking for her room number. So hopefully, Kanzashi was out there somewhere.

While she ran off, the opening was about to begin.

Behind her, the virtual board showed the subject of the event. "Tag match tournament. Opening ceremony."

Tatenashi began to talk.

"Good day, everyone. Today, we'll be having a tag match tournament, for those with the Personal Units!"

The classes had gathered and stood there in perfect silence, watching the Student Council President talk.

Ichika found that it could do with less grandeur.

"For those who are participating, this is a great chance to showcase the results of their daily training! And for those without a Personal IS, I think you can learn a lot from spectating these matches. So pay attention!"

Kanzashi could hear the voice of her older sister. Despite the one-year age difference, she could feel the gap between the two gettings wider and wider.

And now, when she thought, Kanzashi finally found her hero, it turned out that Madoka just did her sister's bidding.

Like always, she did.

In her mind, it was always the same. She would always stay behind. She would always stay incompetent.

"I'll never be able to beat her. There is just no way. Anyway, I should get going. I can go and tell Madoka that we are no longer partners."

In the hall, Tatenashi was just about to finish her speech.

"Well then, I hope this turns out to be a rewarding experience for everyone! And with that, the opening ceremonies are over!"

Madoka was running around the school, looking for Kanzashi while Ichika kept streaming the information to his sister.

"Well, enough on the boring stuff! This is what you've been waiting for: the match schedule!"

It opened up and it showed the fighters in it.

[Ichika Orimura and Mattheus Adjzof vs Airis Luxembourg and Djbril Emulail.]

None of the male pilots were surprised about that one. They knew it was done to avoid issues.

The second lineup was more surprising.

[Tatenashi Sarashiki and Houki Shinonono vs Kanzashi Sarashiki and Madoka Orimura]

That would be a surprising match.

The third match wasn't exactly one surprise.

[Laura Bodewig and Charlotte Dunois vs Lingyin Huang and Cecilia Alcott.]

The remaining party that remained open was one of Forte Sapphire and Daryl Casey. They were to fight the victors of the match between the first fighters.

Houki was a bit relieved that her first match wasn't Ichika at least. She knew her lover wouldn't hold back in that fight.

Madoka began to run around and shout for her. "Kanzashi!"

Before she could even think of something else, the youngest Orimura felt tremors going off and the ground shaking.

Then notices came up.

[Emergency alert!] [Emergency alert!] [Emergency alert!] [Emergency alert!] [Emergency alert!] [Emergency alert!] [Emergency alert!] [Emergency alert!] [Emergency alert!] [Emergency alert!]

"Oh, great! That is just terrific!"

The little sister made the note that their security had to get an update from Joel.

Then the voice of Maya echoed over the intercom.

"Orimura-sensei, we're being attacked!" on the screens, they could see several golems appear. They were more advanced than the last ones.

"How many do we have to deal with?"

"Five! They've appeared at the pit of each arena. The students with a Personal IS who were on standby are being attacked."

Chifuyu couldn't allow it to slip but curse the fact that Madoka was gone.

"Damn it. This is too soon."

Then Chifuyu made the order.

"Teachers, prioritize evacuating the students! Combat instructors, prepare to charge in!"

"Yes!" Maya replied.

Chifuyu knew this was only the start. But this wouldn't end as their foes had hoped.

'Don't think you have won just yet. We're just getting started.'

Scene skip

Madoka had just gotten to the arena where she saw the Golem landing in the middle of the arena. She could hear the screams of Kanzashi who has activated her own unit. She was horrified by the mechanical monster in front of her.

It was clear that she hadn't foreseen the Golem to be in front of her. So Kanzashi closed her eyes, waiting for the inevitable end to come.

"Oh, I don't think so." Before she could even understand what happened, a cold voice said and despite the screeching of metal, she could hear that.

Opening her eyes, she found that Madoka had stopped the unit's claw with her sword.

"Madoka!"

Madoka would have many words with Kanzashi but those would have to wait. She decided that now, she would vent her anger on this rust can. Knowing damn well, that she couldn't wipe out the unit immediately, she held back the unit but found that its power was more than she had imagined and her grip wasn't excellent.

"Kanzashi. Use your rocket launcher on this!" Madoka couldn't afford to look back at her.

"What?!" The shout came down a little bit too loud to her liking.

"You heard me. There is no hero! No one to help you! Do you want to live? Fight back!" Madoka shouted while Kanzashi heard the desperation in her voice.

She understood and made her unit around her.

"Typhoon!" Her sleek unit was developed around her. The rocket launcher looked more than ready for this one.

"Aim from the side and tell me when you do so. I don't want to be in the blast!" Madoka hoped this unit would be too focused on her and only noticed Kanzashi when it was too late.

Kanzashi did what she was ordered to do and flew to the side.

"Okay, I'm ready!" When she pulled the trigger on the launcher, molten hot metal made its way to the thing.

"Get out!" Madoka followed up on the order and kicked the unit off. Luckily for her, the rockets were guided so they hit their foe dead on.

"Awesome!"

Madoka scoffed when she heard that voice.

"Don't count it out just yet! This fight isn't over!" Developing her Star Breaker, Madoka aimed at the smoke. She wouldn't give the Golem time to react as she fired several rounds at it. The bullets were just bouncing off from it.

"Scatter! We're better from long range." Madoka shouted and Kanzashi followed the orders. The younger Sarashiki understood where Madoka was coming from and so she listened to her companion.

Her rockets came from further through while Madoka fired her Star Breaker. They kept in mind from what direction their partner came and so Madoka would take a higher altitude. There was a thrill to be in the sky.

Scene skip

They weren't the only fighters against those monsters.

Chasseur barked several times as the gun showed off its capability in the field. It filled its role perfectly as an anti-tank rifle.

For whatever reason, they had already ended up at the arena where they were supposed to fight. Mattheus was glad though that Djbril knew her position as a close-quarters fighter. And how much he disliked the Knight, there was no denying the fact she was a capable and strong fighter.

The sword clashed against the metal and when she heard, "move!" she did so without worrying.

Mattheus pulled back the bolt and looked over at Ichika. It appeared that his partner was getting anxious. The sounds from the battle on Tatenashi and Houki weren't exactly hopeful.

The Hunter sighed and then made a decision.

"Ichika, go to Houki!"

"But!" Ichika protested.

"We got this! You're too worried about her! Fly to her! Help her!" Mattheus' tone left little for argument and well, the older man was right. Ichika owed Mattheus a big favor for this one.

With a nod, Mattheus hoped that this Knight status was more than for show.

Airis was standing back, afraid of the battles ahead. From what he guessed, her unit was more meant for long-range as well. Instead of helping him out by sending out her drones or firing her guns, the princess of Luxembourg was a sniveling, crying, and blubbering brat.

The Golem had landed close enough to her, causing a huge amount of collateral damage. It would have destroyed her, were it not for Ichika's quick shooting.

Mattheus looked over to the princess was shaking and clearly not a real person that could help them.

[Brother, forget about her! She's too much of a chicken to fight now!] Joel shouted through the intercom. The boy had gotten himself further away.

Mattheus thanked the boy that he could work over the fights in this.

It appeared that Airis, despite all her boasting, wasn't used to the rigors of a real battle.

The Hunter didn't have time to worry about her. Clearly, Djbril did know her abilities in the fight.

The sword and shield were electrified. That could open the window.

[Emulail! How are you holding up?]

[Just fine. Where's the princess?]

Mattheus opened fire and shot with the unit.

[Well, she isn't going to help us. So it comes down to us. Go on, my unit is better for longer distances. I'll cover you and you attack. Switch up and I'll be sure to keep you in mind!]

Djbril opened her mouth to shout back while she sent zaps onto the unit.

[Who are you to order me?] The Knight knew that she was much better suited for fighting and that her prowess would be right in place.

[You want to make a petition? It ain't the goddamn time! Asides from that, your brat of a runt has collapsed and we're the only fighters here. Now, are you going to listen to me? Or do you want me to come to you?]

The tone in his voice was one that made it clear he was in charge of this fight.

No one barked back against the guy who knew how to handle a fight and who didn't leave room open for an argument.

Scene skip

While there were five units that landed, the four Representatives of China, the UK, France, and Germany would argue they were the luckiest ones. Four of them, against one of these beasts? The odds were in their favor.

Laura had taken up the command for this operation and while usually, there would be a protest, this wasn't the perfect time for that nagging.

"Cecilia, fire from the left flank. Charlotte, cover her!"

The British bombshell did what she was ordered to do and fired from above while the machine gun of the French pilot followed up with that and made sure that the unit was occupied with that. Laura wouldn't deny it.

Charlotte looked just the tiniest bit attractive like that when she was fighting like that. The guns that barked, the skin that clung to her body.

Fuck. This wasn't the time to think about how sexy her partner looked. Luckily for Laura, it was only for a few seconds.

"Rin, you and I are going around the Golem. Follow me!" Rin did so and while avoiding the deadly hail of bullets, she followed Laura's stead.

"What are we going to do?"

"I doubt my AIC would work on this. I'm going to trap it with my daggers. You use your cannon on it when I have it secured." Laura shouted back at her. Rin knew this was a simple strategy but it would be for the best.

Given the inexperience of her own fighters and the fact that Laura wasn't too sure about their abilities, she couldn't exactly expect miracles from her team.

So she didn't and just did the same thing as before.

When she and Rin had reached their place, she relayed the order to Cecilia and Charlotte.

[Cecilia, Charlotte! On my command, you stop your fire. One of your bullets can knock my daggers off!]

The German waited until she was sure she got the command.

[Understood, Laura!] Charlotte was the first to speak.

[As you wish.] Cecilia was next.

Laura had to aim those daggers as well.

[Stop.] pausing for a few seconds, the Black Hare pilot calculated her throw.

[Now!] As soon as the shout came over, Cecilia and Charlotte halted which stopped the Golem. It looked up after them but before it could seek retribution, it found itself impaled by Laura's daggers.

"Rin, now!" The Chinese fired her cannon which fired an invisible ball of heat in the right direction. It made a massive earthquake but it wouldn't be enough for that thing.

Laura waited just to be sure and then she saw the smoke was clearing up.

"Sheisse! It's not even hurt! Scatter!" Charlotte moved away while she used her own machine guns on this Golem while Cecilia hung back a bit.

Laura followed up with her own canon fire while Rin moved asides.

"How tough is that thing?" The Chinese girl shouted while she looked it over.

"Does not matter. It will go down somehow!" Charlotte admitted that Laura knew how to motivate. Maybe after this, she should talk to her.

Scene skip

Houki had hoped/thought this day would be very different than how it started. Yet, when she found herself being barraged by that unit, it wasn't exactly looking up to be a great day.

Scratch that, it was a really bad day. The fact that she was with the Student Council President didn't make it better. They had gotten to the arena where they were supposed to meet up with Kanzashi and Madoka. Yet before they could have gotten there, they found themselves under the attack of one of those Golems.

Houki had been in a supportive role as she was standing behind Tatenashi. She had been boosting up the shield of her squadmate but they were trapped underneath the barrage of guns.

"Houki-chan! Try to boost me!"

"Been doing that! We're trapped under here!" Houki wished that she had someone to get this thing off her. She would give an arm and a leg if someone could help them out.

"Houki!" She should have wished that sooner as she heard the voice of her beloved boyfriend.

Looking up, Ichika had seen the danger that his girlfriend and Tatenashi were in.

So playing the role of the Knight in Shining Armor, Ichika activated his Reiraku Byakuya that smashed through right at the Golem. As it was spewing bullets toward Houki and Tatenashi, it hadn't noticed Ichika until it was too late.

Ichika realized that there was more that he could do. Shoving his Intetsu into the hilt of Yukihira, the swords grew which caused Ichika to hold them with two hands instead of one but he could handle this. If he had to believe his future brother-in-law, this weapon was very powerful.

"Ichika!" Oh, how he wanted to hug Houki and make sure she was fine.

But for now, the fact she could stand was enough confirmation.

"Sarashiki-senpai. You provide us with cover fire! Houki!"

Ichika opened his hand to his girlfriend and asked her to climb aboard.

"Do you mind if you help me out? My machine is losing energy." The Maiden nodded and so she climbed onto Ichika. Her own special power was pumping power into Ichika. Before she could, there was a laugh coming from her.

"What?" Ichika asked as he got his unit back up to fly.

"We couldn't fight together. And yet, we do now." The Knight admitted she was right but he hoped they could have done this in a different way.

His energy came through and Ichika smiled. When Tatenashi was peppering the Golem with small shots, from an excellent angle, Ichika had the perfect way to come closer.

Maybe his first thought of her had to be redone. She was knowing her stuff well enough so that Ichika could sneak in closer while the Golem tried to hold back.

[Ichika-kun! Now!]

[Thanks!] Ichika hacked one arm off and then flew in a summersault back. Houki used the momentum to fly through with her own blades. While the damage couldn't compare, it was the distraction that Tatenashi needed.

The fire rang again to it while Ichika shut down his Reiraku Byakuya temporarily. Houki had joined him up in the sky.

Looking over at her boyfriend, Houki had her own hand close to him.

"Ichika." The Knight looked at his Maiden.

"Same as always?" He had to ask how she knew the line that he so often spoke with his sister.

"You know the pattern?" Ichika wanted to be sure. They made it look easy but there was a calculation on their part that had to go.

"I'll let you first," Houki answered and Ichika took that as good enough. Nodding to her, Houki wished that he could kiss her.

But they knew that it was a warzone. If they didn't stop this now, they would never have the chance.

So Ichika began to fly while he and Houki crossed each other, the speed they used was higher and higher.

Tatenashi wasn't informed but the second year had seen what Houki and Ichika were doing. It wasn't hard to guess and so she allowed the juniors to take the front. Ichika opened the belly of the until while Houki took care of the head.

Despite the damage, the damn thing was still moving.

They dropped back and let Tatenashi cover them.

"Fuck! That thing is tough!" Ichika really didn't need the turn-on from Houki but he knew where it came from.

"Then let's show we are tougher!"

Scene skip

Djbril raced around the unit while Mattheus kept in mind how she flew.

[Joel, anything from your end?]

[Been working on this for a bit. Can't patch into the damned machine. How are you holding up?]

The Hunter knew exactly how to time her shots. It wasn't too hard to get into fighting with a woman like Djbril.

[Adjzof. Where is the princess?]

Mattheus really got annoyed by her commands of her. Then again, Djbril did fight with him which was more than he could say from Airis.

[Not a fucking clue! The last time, I saw her, she was sucking her thumb while shitting herself. We got bigger things to worry about!]

Djbril wanted to shout back at the way that Mattheus talked about her mistress.

[Do not talk about the princess like that. She is.]

[Sucking her thumb while shitting herself! Mattheus wasn't joking. Fuck, she reeks.] The voice of Joel was the clarity that Mattheus wished for.

His boy was doing his best but also made sure that things would work well.

[I dragged her out of the fire line! Then again, maybe for the best. If she got hurt, we'd be neck-deep in trouble! Mattheus, that unit. I can't really find anything on it! From what I see, it's too much focused on Djbril.]

Mattheus smiled as he leaned back while his rifle barked another round.

[Joel! Can I pick you up? While we chip away, I'd like this to be over with!]

The boy sighed when he heard that.

[Sorry, big brother. If you do that, Djbril might get into a hairy situation]

As if on cue, Djbril got smacked away by a sword which made Mattheus use his rifle on to the 'face' of the robot. When his rifle again fired a hot round, it stopped their foe for long enough.

[Oh, just great! What are we going to do now?]

Mattheus couldn't get too close as his strength lay on the rifle.

[I'm trying if I can patch in and fire White Death from your shoulder. Not a big promise though. Anything else, you'd like me to do?]

Luckily for Mattheus, Djbril got back in the sky before they could do more.

[Continue to shit out the Princess for me, would you please?]

Joel smirked as he turned to see her, babying and sucking her thumb. He had dragged her back out of the destroyed corridor. It was better for all that Airis Luxembourg wasn't suck in that place.

Shaking his head, Joel vowed he would never allow himself to turn into a brat like her.

[We can do that, Mattheus, when we are done. In the meantime, want me to hack into your cannon?]

The cheeky tone of Joel's question really made Mattheus lose himself for a bit.

[Do you need to fucking ask!]

Scene skip

Kanzashi and Madoka used hit-and-run tactics which the Golem wasn't used to at all. Their shots rang over the place while they calculated their perfect timing. While it was a tedious show of gunfire, it hinged on Kanzashi who knew exactly how to make this count.

Her rockets landed on the unit while Madoka kept it distracted.

[Is it me or aren't we doing anything to this thing?]

[That is just you. We are making a dent. It's not as reactive as before!] Madoka shouted back at her partner.

She admitted that she found that Kanzashi was doing an admirable job in the fight. With the jitters gone, the woman knew exactly how she had to fight.

It would have gone faster if they had a close-range fighter like Ichika or if she could rely on a person like Mattheus who used guns like hers.

But in this, she couldn't rely on Kanzashi to bail her out if she needed that. So Madoka would use the long distance.

[Even so. We should find another way to damage it!] Kanzashi complained while she avoided the aimed rockets, coming her way.

[You got any ideas? Because I can't think of anything!] Madoka said as she fired to get the unit to look back at her.

[You can use your Odoru Kage. It's the same as your brother's attack. That should make a dent in it.]

Madoka scoffed when she heard that retarded idea.

[Oh, right. Let me use my special trick that eats my energy points. And without a good fallback! Sure!] Madoka avoided another barrage.

[What's that supposed to mean?] Kanzashi was affronted by the way Madoka talked to her. Especially by the way how they were fighting. The bluenette thought she was doing very well.

[Did you ever watch a match of mine and Ichi-nii? We carry each other and he's the backup that I have in case I am stuck. I'm not going to throw the dice and get snake eyes!]

Madoka took a second longer to aim and got the bullet right at the chest of the unit. Those sparks were reassuring for her. It was robot talk for "you're doing really great"

[Oh, my God. Is this really the best that the little sister of Chifuyu Orimura has to offer?]

Madoka was often told that she knew how to keep her temper under control. It was something that she had enough time and energy to practice for.

[Don't! Compare! Me! To! My! Sister!] For every word, Madoka fired her gun. The look she sent Kanzashi's way was enough to make her shiver.

The younger Sarashiki knew that was something she better didn't talk about again.

'Well, didn't think you and I shared that.'

[I saw sparks. Aim at that.]

Knowing better than to talk back to her partner, Kanzashi did just that.

Madoka realized they had to damage it more on lower points. Given the fact that she could be a bit more on the leisure on her trigger finger, and more on her aim, she could target the weak points.

[I'll focus on the joints. Can you direct your rockets to the exact spots?]

It wasn't the same friendly tone that Madoka used. It was just pure professionalism. Kanzashi began to think she made an egregious mistake by that shout.

[I'll try.]

Madoka wanted to keep her cool on this and that is what she did. Her own outburst proved one thing to Madoka.

'Got a long way to go before I can measure up to you, Chifuyu-nee.'

Scene skip

Cecilia prided herself to be a sharp woman. One had to be if you aspired to be a sniper. Yet, she found that something was going on between two of her teammates

She didn't know what exactly but when Charlotte and Laura spoke to each other, there was a hint of more vigor, more agreeance between the other. But she didn't have time to worry about that one. Not if they wanted to stay alive. Her sniper rifle fired bullets at Laura's command.

They did agree that it was better to have more firepower coming their way.

[Cecilia! Cover Rin! Go ahead, girl!]

Following her command, Shenlong's pilot carried out the order from Laura who flew under fire as she got closer. Her combined spear was tearing through the damaged unit like it was made out of tissue paper.

The fire before that has done wonders on it.

[My turn! Charlotte, cover me!]

[With pleasure!] Charlotte announced. Laura wondered if she got a bit fruity by using a shotgun but she knew that her partner would be using slugs instead shells.

Her daggers made short work of the frays and when her daggers pulled back the Golem, she looked up to the Brit.

"Cecilia! Weak spot!" Cecilia had kept her mark on and fired the gun which caused sparks to fly over from her end.

But neither Charlotte nor Rin was ready to wait for that one to end. So they emptied their guns which caused even more destruction.

"Boom." Laura simply muttered as the unit exploded.

The fact that she got a big hug from Charlotte afterward made her smile just a bit more.

Scene skip

Ichika and Houki raced together at a higher speed again. They had also figured out where they had to aim. Working well together, Tatenashi could see how they fought.

What she could also see was the teamwork that Ichika and Houki employed. Humility wasn't something that rang familiar with the older Sarashiki but she knew better than to act. When Ichika slammed his sword into the Golem, one left blow would have caused a human pilot to lose her head. Leaning back, Houki took that spot to smash into the machine.

When they pulled back, Tatenashi opened fire again.

Finally, they saw sparks.

[Ichika-kun. If I were you, I'd use your Reiraku Byakuya for the last time. Don't worry if you run out. I and Houki-chan will finish the job.]

Ichika was going to protest but when he saw Houki's face, he understood that he could trust the judgment.

"Alright! Houki, stand back!"

With a nod, Houki sent off Ichika who used his full speed. It was too much that even the unit couldn't keep track of it. Tatenashi would follow up with a barrage if needed. Something told her though that Ichika would defeat that thing.

Ichika got close enough and his light blinded all those around him. The blade cut the unit in half and there was an explosion that followed soon after that rumbled through the arena.

From out of the smoke, Ichika flew up.

[We did it!] He shouted through the intercom.

[Ichika!] Houki shouted as she flew right at him. Their machines clashed against each other and Tatenashi guessed their teeth did as well. Not that she blamed the two. A kiss just showed how much the two loved each other.

'Dang, I never had a chance, did I?'

Scene skip

Djbril admitted one thing about Mattheus Adjzof. That despite his rough manners, her way of talking and acting, his regular behavior, and his despisal for her mistress, the Hunter was an excellent pilot.

[Switch up a bit.] He knew how to handle his rifle well and also kept in mind how she fought. He accompanied her in her fight and when he fired a bullet, he kept her in mind. And while his rifle was powerful, he kept in mind where she was and so, it was up to him when he fired his shot.

[You good?]

He asked while he got confirmation from her.

[Yes. Although I wish that we get more support.] Mattheus barked a laugh when he heard that complaint.

[Good luck with that. Any wonder why I barely got any respect towards them? Speaking of? Joel, how are things are your end?]

The punk heard the same things from Mattheus and smirked.

[Well, the runt is no longer shitting her pants and I have been able to get into the system. Asides from that, things are fine here. In an odd way, they're rather pleasant.]

Mattheus knew that Joel was nearly there when he said that. The boy was joking around. That was a good sign. Especially if it wasn't gallows humor.

[Great to hear, Joel.]

[I can be ready to fire the gun in two minutes, Mattheus. I am running all codes. Just a heads-up. This is going to be a major pain to deal with. Your canon isn't that used to all the heavy recoil and it might give you huge recoil. So just know that.]

Mattheus much rather was just done on this fight.

[Doesn't matter. Alright, Joel. When you're ready.]

The boy didn't answer but he knew he was close.

[How is the princess doing?]

[We can look at them later. Emulail. Joel is going to get my BFG ready. When I say so, get out of the way.]

Djbril looked up to see Mattheus getting ready, further from the battle. Joel was just done and from afar, he activated White Death.

The Knight's eyes bulged out of her skull when she saw Mattheus. From the giant muzzle, a bullet, the size of a cannonball, was aimed right at the golem.

[Aiming through, the screen shows it right. Recalibrating the controls, reinstalling the order, working on the]

[Joel, anytime, fucking now!]

[Ah, easy. Here we go.] Joel didn't joke when the recoil would fling him back. This cannon was really not suited for a light unit like his own.

It flung him back several times over the top and even on the roof of the arena but it did the trick of destroying that Golem.

Djbril's mouth had landed open when she witnessed the power that Mattheus had. Luckily for the Hunter, the cannon was shut down pretty quickly. When the gates of the arena opened up, Mattheus flew back first and Djbril went right after him.

They found their respective proteges coming out. Or rather said, Joel went to greet Mattheus while Airis was still in somewhat of a shock. The boy didn't lie when she had defecated herself. Mattheus knelt down and grabbed the boy.

"You'll never walk alone. You always got me." Mattheus whispered in his ears and when he saw Natasha, the bombshell shook her head.

"Sorry, Adjzof. I was assigned to patrol others. Besides, it looked like you handled it just fine."

The Hunter walked up to her. They had agreed to keep it professional before others.

"This time, we did, Fairs-sensei. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to unwind a bit."

The woman shook her head. "Not at all. You have earned that."

He didn't even look at the teachers and watched Airis Luxembourg on the ground, crying and blubbering from the things she had seen.

"And you would be the one who made me regret my actions. Pathetic."

Scene skip

The more joints Madoka hit, the easier it became to destroy the unit. Kanzashi followed that up with more gunshots and then finally, the unit came crashing down. It was pretty battered but if the girls were honest, they were so as well.

Kanzashi shouldn't have thought it was over though.

When Madoka was sure the danger had passed, she had flown right to her partner. The girl wondered if she would be the one that gave her a kiss like a hero or carry her down.

The vicious fist that made her spiral and wreck into the ground shook those thoughts from her. Madoka had however aimed for her to be pretty far from the unit.

"What was that for?!" Kanzashi crawled back up from that place but she was still a bit stuck. Despite the shield, she could feel that blow from Madoka. The youngest Orimura had shut down her unit and stood before her. Fearless and proud, like the sister of Chifuyu Orimura would be.

Her eyes were now flaming and the cold fury that she had witnessed from her sister came flowing through.

"You and I need to have a talk. For starters. Why didn't you show up for the last check-up?"

If Kanzashi wanted to face her teammate, then maybe showing that she could face Madoka without the Typhoon would be a start. But it would be incredibly stupid though.

Still, Kanzashi showed that she wasn't afraid.

"I heard you talking to that boy. Pearce. You said that you only did that because my sister asked me to do that. So you did that favor for her. Like everyone does her bidding."

Madoka didn't know why but in one instance, she had slapped Kanzashi's face which made her head spin.

"If you thought that I did her bidding, just because she asked me, then you got another thing coming. I was going to say no to her as she pissed me off. But because Chifuyu-nee asked it of me, I said yes to it. Plus, I couldn't use my older brother so I would have to look for someone else."

Feeling her burning cheek, Kanzashi continued to glare at Madoka who stood, proudly and defiant before her.

"So not my sister but your own? Oh, I wished that you could have taken more from her." Kanzashi felt her shirt being grabbed by Madoka and her back pressed against the wall.

"Repeat that again, will ya? I think that I already figured a few things out."

Madoka let Kanzashi go but continued to glare at her.

"You hate being compared to your sister. It doesn't matter what you do, you'll always be seen as her little sister. You'll always feel like she is someone you can't catch up to." Kanzashi admitted that it was not what she expected Madoka to say.

"How do you?"

"You said it yourself. There in the sky. Why do you think I'm so angry? Here is the thing though. I don't care if some see me as Chifuyu Orimura's little sister. Neither does Ichi-nii. Because that is one truth we will never escape. We are her siblings. But that doesn't make me who I am. You want to show who you are. Fight, live, and die for yourself."

Kanzashi looked at Madoka who crossed her arms.

"You know how I will stop it? I'll become the next Brunhilde. I'll show the world that I will win my own way. If you can't beat your sister in power, beat her in something else. Carve your name out for your own.

Madoka took a deep breath and watched how Kanzashi began to relax as well.

"I'll give you a big tip. If you want ever, to get over this, do not hate your sister. I have done so and I hated myself for it. But I learned better. So did she. Talking between us and showing that there is more, helped us. So do the same. Talk to her. It's better to overcommunicate than under-communicate."

Pointing a thumb at herself, Madoka smiled when she thought back on it.

"I can fix my own mistakes and fight my own battles. And if I got too much to handle, I got my big brother and big sister to help me out. It's not weak to ask for help. So make that out for yourself."

Placing her right on Kanzashi's shoulder, she cupped her chin with her left hand.

"If you go talk to your sister, you might find something out about yourself. And about her. Not all is like it is in your head. You need to do this now. You can't say that when it's too late. One thing you have to keep in mind. You are your own person. Nothing can change that"

When she heard the shout of a worried boyfriend, she looked up to the gate where Dan had waved at her. The guy had managed to get out with the teachers who came to look at the unit.

"And if you'd excuse me, I got someone who is worried for me." Activating her unit, Madoka got up and raced to the gate where her boyfriend waited.

Madoka reactivated the unit and ran up to Dan. Their kiss was one of pure relief and gratitude. And with that said and done, Madoka knew she was happy to have her boyfriend around.

When their lips disconnected, she felt his arms crushing her head while small shakes and sobs came out of his mouth. There wasn't a part of her that blamed her boyfriend for nearly breaking down.

While Madoka had seen her share of fights, Dan didn't hadn't seen this much.

So she whispered sweet nothings in his ears while she comforted her boyfriend

Meanwhile, Kanzashi slumped down on her knees when she thought about the words that came from Madoka. The woman was right. Maybe she should talk to her sister

Scene skip

"It's the same as before." Joel had been sitting back with the tech units on the drones. There wasn't much to be found back though on the machines. They were autonomous units that weren't exactly programmed to have information leading back to the source.

From the five attackers, only two cores remained in somewhat of a decent way to look at.

What was downloaded on them was destroyed by the fighters. Not that anyone could blame those Pilots.

"AI units, made by the same ones as before. Can I shoot the elephant in the room and say that it was Phantom Task?" Chifuyu had heard that name before and she couldn't blame Joel for speaking that name.

"You are sure about that, Pearce?" The young boy nodded and just looked over it.

"Yep. Stronger than before. And if you're wondering why security was jacked, it was due to a sleeper program, taking it slowly down until now. We gotta watch out for that. That asides, those who made this, were nothing short of a genius."

Joel really disliked that news. Whoever had made those units and gotten into them was a genius.

'I have to call in auntie. I can't do this alone.'

"That is just great." Chifuyu dragged a hand over her face while she sighed.

"Look at the bright side, Orimura-sensei. There were multiple units this time and better equipped than last time. Yet, we suffered no casualties. It's proof things are paying off."

Joel popped out his back as he felt the fatigue hitting him.

"Now, if you'll excuse me. I'm going to find a place to crash. Something tells me that someone else has plans already." He would find a tied sock to the door and that was enough for him to know he couldn't exactly go in. Plus, sleeping in Natasha's room wouldn't work either.

That meant crashing in the tech bay. There were worse fates. He had a fleeting suspicion Dan had done the same.

The rooms of the twins weren't occupied by their lovers tonight.

Chifuyu looked back at Maya. "Notify the government that all five cores were destroyed. I'll let Pearce look them over."

"That can be dangerous for the school!" The colleague of the Brunhilde protested to which Chifuyu shrugged.

"Oi, oi. I can handle that just fine. And well, I have Pearce to help us out."

Scene skip

Kanzashi was walking to the room of her older sister. The words of Madoka had been haunting her for the entire day.

When the checkups had been done, the breach had been lifted and everything had settled down, the bluenette knew it was now the time to talk to her older sister.

The only problem was this. What would they talk about? What would Kanzashi tell her older sister?

There were many things that she could, of course, accuse her sister of but there was something that spooked her heart about what Madoka and what she had been told about her sister.

When the door opened of her sister's room, Kanzashi was halted by the surprise of it though.

"Onee-chan!"

"Kanzashi-chan?" Tatenashi was surprised that her little sister showed up in front of her door. It was there, where Kanzashi saw her older sister that she broke down in tears.

Her arms flung around her older sister while she hugged Tatenashi. It was there where the dam broke for Tatenashi also broke.

For the first in many, many years, Tatenashi and Kanzashi Sarashiki let their emotions take over. It was Kanzashi who recovered first.

"Well, onee-chan. I'm sorry. For the way, I have been acting. I'm a terrible little sister." When cupping her face, Tatenashi whipped away the tears on Kanzashi's face.

"No, you aren't. Kanzashi, you're my precious little sister. My very strong sister." That did enough for Kanzashi to break down again while Tatenashi scooped her up and shut the door.

They were in need of some privacy and the room would be perfect.

Scene skip

Mattheus had hoped that he could stay in his room for a bit but there was something that had been eating him.

Joel had told him of the five cores that were recovered. His was completely destroyed, just like the ones that the teams of Ichika and Madoka fought.

The ones that Charlotte, Laura, Rin, and Cecilia had recovered were battered but salvageable.

The last one, from Daryl and Forte, was where he got worried. It was like they knew just where to hit the thing without damaging it.

There was no such thing as too much coincidence. So it came to Mattheus to find out what was going on.

His punk had been feeding him more information about those two. There were things that weren't adding up with Daryl and he was going to find that out.

It was still early in the morning when he found her. Daryl was a third year and from what he heard, she had turned 18. Perfect.

How Mattheus would never know but he found her walking outside. She was alone and with no one around her, it was almost too easy.

"Oh, Adjzof-kun. Good morning."

The Hunter's eyes flattened and he could feel his instincts telling him what was going on.

"Daryl."

"Oh, no respect for your seniors?"

The joke wasn't fun when a gun was pushed underneath her nose.

"Cut the crap. I'm going to give you one warning. I have no idea what you are trying to pull but if I find you anywhere near a mess like this, believe me when you are going to have an accident."

Dissolving his handgun, Mattheus kept watching her while he walked away. It might have been stupid but this Hunter would put fear into his prey. And to make sure that she knew of that fear, he would keep her guarded. That was a given.


Shorter chapter this time, I know. But it can go for this one for a change.

We also decided to name Madoka's powerup a bit differently. Odoru Kage came from Jay so I'm glad to use that suggestion.

Asides from that, this went down fast. I got my computer back and I'm sicking out from the things I got from Turkey.

There was a fast thing done here and well, things have worked out for us. Four chapters in the last few weeks.

I knew that holiday would do well for me.

Saluut.