Volume 1, Ch. 2 – Ta Netjer

It was another hour before we reached the school building. I got the impression that Shiroko wanted to get here faster but was held back by my steady pace, judging by how she'd occasionally shoot a glance at me over her shoulder. But, still, we made it and I got my first real glimpse of Abydos in its current day incarnation.

It was barely holding together. That was my first impression of Abydos High School as my eyes scanned the tiny academy building. Sand piled up against the walls, stretched out into the fields, and coated every part of the building. It was a miracle the building was as intact as it was.

As the wolf-eared girl took me inside, I could see the amount of sand piling up inside the building as well. While it was clear someone was doing their best to keep it clean, it was a losing battle. Sand was leaking in from broken or cracked windows, building up in the corners, or thinly coating the floor of less traversed halls.

The two of us walked up the stairs quietly, broken only by the noise of her bicycle tyres and the sound of my boots on the linoleum floor. Eventually we came to a stop in front of a club room. A sign written onto a piece of paper declared it to be the "Foreclosure Task Force" Club Room. Without any fanfare, the silver haired girl slid the door open and stepped in. "Nn, I'm back."

"Welcome back, Shiro…" Whatever the speaker had to say trailed off as I ducked under the doorway and into the room.

Three other girls were in the room. The one I interrupted was possibly the only person I've met thus far who wore a standard uniform. Dark blue blazer properly buttoned up over a white shirt, black and grey tartan mini-skirt, and cyan tie. The only accessories of note were a pair of gloves and a knee wrap. She had tied her long black hairs up into two pigtails with cyan ribbons, along with two cat ears twitching in surprise. Red eyes with slit pupils regarded me with suspicion. Her magenta Halo was another crosshair made of two circles and four prongs, although the prongs in question were made of triangles rather than rectangles. A white and black automatic rifle laid on the table in front of her.

"Oh my, we haven't had a visitor in ages." The next to react to my entry was the girl with blonde hair which easily reached her waist, with a single lock of hair tied into a bun. Shocked green eyes tracked my entry into the room. Of everyone I've met thus far, she was the closest to what I recognized as a baseline human. She could have passed for someone from my crew's memories were it not for the lime-green three-pronged crosshair Halo above her head. And the gatling gun that was casually resting in her laps. She had the miniskirt and button up shirt common to Abydos students but had elected to wear a yellow button up sweater over it.

"True… but were we expecting anyone?" The final girl to react stared at me curiously with amber eyes from behind red glasses. The eyes along with the elven ears brought to mind another Student I knew, but the eyes and ears where the similarities ended. She had short cut hair styled into a bob along with a French braid, on top of which a butterfly hairpin laid. She wore the same uniform as Shiroko and the cat-eared girl, but the addition of a vest made the unbuttoned blazer much less informal. A red two circle crosshair Halo floated above her head, although the four oval prongs were overlaid on the inner circle. Notably, she did not seem to have a weapon on her person.

I knew who all these girls were. It wasn't hard when I could the student body with one hand. Still, far be it from me to be rude. "Pardon our intrusion," I answered formally with a deep bow, "Thank you for allowing us entry into your school. We are the advisor of Schale, Nelson, responding to a request for aid. It is a pleasure to finally meet you."

The three girls that were in the room reacted with varying levels of shock. They glanced at Shiroko, who simply affirmed my declaration with a curt nod.

"No way!" The glasses wearing girl said as she ran up to inspect me. "Are you?!" Anything else she had to say was lost as she spotted the Schale badge on my lanyard.

"You're with Schale? The Federal Investigation Club?!" Shouted the cat-eared girl, eyes glaring at me as she seemed to try to discern if I was telling the truth.

The blonde, however, simply clapped her hand in joy and smiled. "Wow! That means you got the letter Ayane wrote!"

I stepped back, hands waving as a placating and distancing measure as I answered, "Yes, it is my mission and duty to help you all." I paused as I looked about. Once again, the student body was small enough that I could count them on one hand. And last I checked; I had five fingers on my hand. "Is somebody missing? My information stated that there would be 5 of you."

All the Students looked about, gazing for the errant fifth member before the glasses wearing girl spoke. "Wait… where is Hoshino?"

"She's taking a nap in the next room. I'll go wake her up." The cat-eared girl said, before running out the door.

A moment later she returned, dragging behind her a pink haired girl. She had to be the smallest person I've seen thus far in Kivotos, with her hair trailing all the way to her knees. A single large cowlick was perched on top of her head. While she wore the miniskirt, button up shirt, and cyan tie that seemed to be common to Abydos, she had swapped the blazer for some sort of harness. Combined with the unbuttoned shirt and loose tie, she looked like she just rolled out of bed. Dragging behind her was a massive suitcase made of metal, along with a shotgun on a sling. As she was dragged into the room, her pale pink halo popped back into reality. Unlike her compatriots, it didn't seem to be any sort of crosshair. Rather, it reminded me of an open eye.

"Hoshino, wake up!"

The girl yawned as the cat-eared girl shook her violently. "Just five more minutes…" She murmured.

The glasses wearing girl joined her cat eared compatriot in trying to wake up the sleepy sprite. "Hoshino, the Sensei from Schale is here!"

"Ohhhh?" The girl drawled out. She opened a single eye, with a slow deliberate move that shouted at the momentous effort she was putting into waking up.

The orange eye that locked with mine was any but sleepy. A sharp intent laid behind it, a weight of explicit judgment and suspicion that went unsaid. Then she blinked and the look was gone. An easy smile crossed her face as she yawned again. "Nice to meet you, Sensei."

"Pleasure to meet you as well. Now that everyone is present, I was hoping we could be acquainted?"

No sooner had I said that did the pop and crack of gunfire echo out, distant but in our vicinity.

"Was that gunfire?!" The blonde shouted, running over to peer out the window.

The glasses-wearing girl was immediately glued to her table, reading off something. "There's a group approaching the school! It must be the Helmet Gang!"

"Those punks…" Shiroko growled out, "They have some nerve coming back for more."

"Bloody hell," I swore before sighing in resignation. Well, I suppose this did constitute a crisis. A pair of duffel bags appeared in my hands with a twist of my will, the girls giving various cries of surprise. I dumped them onto the table, the ammo within them spilling out onto the table. Another twist and I was now carrying a wooden box. A flick of the wrist and the top vanished, revealing a healthy supply of grenades.

"I suppose proper introductions will have to wait. May I have your names for now?"

"We already met, but Sunaōkami Shiroko." Shiroko answered as she loaded up on ammo.

"I'm Izayoi Nonomi!" The blonde replied with a proper bow. "It's nice to meet you!"

The cat-eared girl stared at me, the contents on the table, before another burst of gunfire jolted her into grabbing ammo. She paused to look at me before curtly introducing herself. "Kuromi Serika."

The pinkette yawned again, lazily shoveling shotgun shells into her bandoleers and ammo belts. "Takanashi Hoshino, Sensei" she said in-between grabbing handfuls of shells.

"I'm Okusora Ayane, Sensei!" The glasses-wearing girl finished off, sitting next to a computer. "I'll be navigating everyone from here! Stay on the back lines and provide support, Sensei!"

"Why the back?" I asked aloud as I looked over all of them with a beaming smile. The simple answer froze all activity in the room as they all turned to stare at me. "I shall be taking to the front as well."

A twist of my will and a series of equipment fell into place on my person. A holstered pistol on my right hip alongside a sword and scabbard. A belt of rifle clips wrapped around my waist while a pouch with six SMG magazines dropped over my shoulder to place itself on my left hip. Finally, my rifle fell in on my right shoulder and an SMG under my left arm.

Any normal Human would be hampered by the weight I was carrying. For me though? I barely felt the added load. If anything, the bulkiness of it was more of a problem than the weight. But my previous experiences with combat in Kivotos showed me that I was going to run out of ammo quickly.

Various cries of surprise and shock erupted throughout the room. All except for Hoshino, who stared at me with an evaluation look in her orange and blue eyes. Above the noise, Ayane managed to push herself to the front and stare at me with worried eyes. "Nelson-Sensei, you don't have a Halo! You could get seriously injured!"

I gently placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Now is not the time for concern. In desperate times, all must pull their weight." I paused before giving her and the rest of the girls a confident smile, "Besides, it is not in my blood to be safe in the back while I order those in the front."

"Nn… if you're sure," Shiroko finally assented, "just be careful."

"We'll do our best!" Nonomi said, cheerfully spinning up the gatling gun.

Serika harrumphed, looking away before she answered. "Don't think acting cool will work if you get hurt!"

Ayane just nervously nodded, apparently too cowed to say anything in response to my declaration.

But it was Hoshino I was wondering about. Even though I was smiling, I locked eyes with her. She held steady and firm, her own eyes gazing impassively for a second. Then she blinked and a lazy smile crossed her face again. "Well, if Sensei is going to be fighting, then lil' ol' me can't be shown up by someone even more senior!"

"Excellent." I said beaming confidently. "Because I have a plan for the offense. First, your force of four shall split into two lines of two…"

"Are you sure about this, Sensei?" Arona's voice crackled over my mental radio, concern clear even through the static distortion. "I can protect you with the Chest's shield, but if they brought anything big you might be in trouble."

'I am certain,' I thought back, voice firm and sure, 'They may be thugs and ruffians but they are Students nonetheless. I am beholden to my station to give them the opportunity to reflect and amend for their actions.'

Arona's response was noticeably less concerned and more amused, "Sensei, you've beaten up at least one thug every time you've tried this."

'And I believe I will continue to do so until they learn to be better.'

The sound of boots, laughter, and rowdy cheering drew me out of my mental conversation. Arona must have heard the same as I felt that link disconnect.

"Hey boss, we're finally going to stick it to them right!" I overheard an unfamiliar rough voice.

A chorus of laughter before another voice, although one much more authoritative, replied "Damn straight! They're all out of ammo! We'll finish 'em off, and then take over the school!"

More laughter followed by someone wildly firing their gun into the air. How uncouth. I know people were tougher here but someone could still be hurt or inconvenienced from a random falling bullet.

Then the group rounded the corner of the block, laughter and spirits high, only for the noisy group to slowly quiet as the scene before them soaked in. It was the final few streets that led to the front gate of Abydos. A straight shot between them and the building. Nothing to do but to march up the street and threaten the Students to declare victory.

So, I could not imagine the mental whiplash they must have felt when they turned the corner to see me waiting. Not just waiting, but lounging in a deckchair I had found in my stores. For all intents, I was completely relaxed. That is, if you ignored the massive amounts of firearms and ammunition I had strapped to my person. Judging by the way they all stopped, it had the intended effect of capturing their attention.

The Helmet Gangers looked at each other uncomfortably, before a student in a red uniform and gasmask stepped forward and spoke. "Uh, ma'am, could you get out of the way? We're doing something here"

"It is most regrettable, but I must decline." I answered as I rose from my chair. I watched as they tracked my ascent, and could see some of them lock up. I couldn't tell whether it was from fear or recognition, but it seems instinct had nudged some to understand that they were facing a threat. "Rather, I would like to propose that you leave instead."

While some of her black helmed companions seem to have caution in spades, this red helmed leader appeared to have traded fear for bravado. Faced with an unknown person with an unknown level of threat, she decided to double down. "Yeah! Don't you know who you're talking to? We're the Helmet Gang! We're not afraid of you!"

"Are you certain?" I asked as I ran my hand through my hair, flaring it aside for dramatic effect. I looked back at the group, and locked eyes with the ones in the back. "Your followers seem quite cowed. Perhaps you should reconsider this endeavour? If you reverse in full now, we could avoid any conflict. I certainly will not think less of you for it."

Red-helm bristled, annoyance clear even through the gas mask and helm. She stamped her foot angrily, before pointing dramatically at me in a seeming attempt to match my own drama. "Yeah?! Well, we just need to get past you! You can't stop all of us!"

Two quick bursts of pure transmission over my earpiece let me know it was time. I had given them enough outs and they were still committed. I could do nothing more for these thugs. So, I locked eyes with Red-helm, staring in as direct a line as I could with the lenses of her mask, and ended the conversation with a beaming smile.

"Why, who ever said I was alone?"

"I wish to give them the opportunity to surrender." That was Nelson-Sensei's only request. Shiroko didn't quite understand why. The Helmet Gang had been harassing her friends for so long and she didn't feel they deserved it.

"Everyone deserves a chance to prove themselves better. I do not pretend to understand your history with them, but they are students nonetheless. The duty of my station demands that I try."

Shiroko didn't know how to feel about that. On some level, the enigmatic Adult was right. People made mistakes and did dumb things all the time. Students especially. But the Helmet Gang still chose to make that same mistake time and time again. A part of her whispered that Nelson wouldn't even fight like she said she would, that she would hold her hand back against the Helmet Gang.

Her fears were laid to rest as soon as the Adult gave the call. The plan was simple and easy to execute. With Ayane able to track the Helmet Gang's movement through Abydos, all they needed to do was find out which avenue the gang would approach from. Then Nelson would distract them and buy time for the FTF, split into two pairs, to sneak up the side streets on either side and get behind them. A single burst on the radio to let her know they were in position, pinning the Helmet Gang in the middle between three overlapping fields of fire.

As soon as Nelson shouted the code phrase, Shiroko popped out of her cover behind the trunk of an abandoned car and immediately opened fire. Meanwhile, Hoshino mantled over the hood of the same car before firing with her shotgun as she approached. Across the street, Serika smashed one of the windows from her second-floor perch and began shooting at the group from above. Nonomi chose a much simpler approach, merely electing to fire through the walls to tear it down.

Panic immediately broke out throughout the Helmet Gang's ranks. Surprised cries of "What's happening!" and "I thought they ran out of ammo!" echoed throughout the group. With the most plentiful source of violence behind them, the red-helmeted leader made the only choice that seemed obvious. She fired a shot into the air and waved in the direction of where Nelson-Sensei was standing.

"Girls! We only have to take the school! Charge the adult!" The girl turned around and braced herself to run down the street, only to pause in confusion as she witnessed the sight of Nelson, all nearly two meters of her, already within arms reach of her.

"What the fu-" The curse was cut off as Nelson's fist met the girl's gas mask in a vicious left-handed backhand. Shiroko watched, time slowing down in her focus, as the back of the Adult's hand made contact with the gas mask. The lenses immediately cracked and shattered from the impact. Her eyes tracked the way the helmeted leader's head was knocked to the side from the impact, and the way her feet slowly left tarmac.

Then time resumed and the girl was sent flying into the air, bouncing off a storefront that was far in the sidewalk of the street next to the road. On impact the entire store shuddered and dislodged the sand gathering on various parts of it. As the dust settled, she could see the shattered concrete where the girl made impact with concrete. The girl herself was lying on the street, halo gone along with half the helm and gasmask.

The black-helmed members all looked at each other, frightened and confused. From her position on the floor, she could see Nelson turn her attention to the group. The Adult said something but Shiroko could not hear them. What wasn't lost, however, was the way her smile turned from beaming straight to frightening.

"Abydos!" She heard Nelson cry through her earpiece, watching as she unslung her SMG. "Close in and finish them off!" On that, Shiroko could agree. She ducked back behind the trunk and pulled her drone out of her bag. The rotors spun up with a whistling howl as it flew up to start its rocket run against the panicking group. Hoshino slid her shield off its sling, unfolding it as she increased the tempo of her fire in her charge forward. She could spot Serika's telltale blue flame as the catgirl's rifle fire suddenly increased. Nonomi braced herself, happily saturating the group with even more fire from her minigun.

The black helmed girls routed nearly instantly. There was no other outcome with their leader down, the sudden outburst of violence from around them, and the frightening smile in front of them. Some of them scattered for the side alleys, others tried to stand and fight, and one of them made the decision to rush Nelson.

The Adult unslung her SMG and, without unfolding the stock, dumped the entire magazine into the thug. Shiroko winced as nearly each of the thirty-two rounds found their mark. The thug managed another three steps forward before falling over in a tumble, rolling to a stop in front of the Adult. Nelson stared down at the thug lying by her boots, before gently rolling the unconscious thug out of the way with her foot. With the thug out of the way, she reloaded and lined herself to be parallel with Hoshino in advancing on what remained of the thugs.

Silence met us as Abydos and I stood in the middle of the avenue, looking for any signs of the Helmet Gang. When none was forthcoming, I nodded and slung the SMG back under my left arm. "We appear to be in the clear."

"Wow, I can't believe we won!" Hoshino said as she instantly relaxed, slumping over with a sleepy stretch. "I didn't think they'd run, the Helmet Gang seemed pretty determined."

"You shouldn't say that, Hoshino. Those thugs would have taken over the school had we lost." Ayane's scolding crackled over our earpieces; the disapproval almost visible through the audio link.

"Never fear, Ms. Okusora. I would never have allowed them past me."

That got all the Abydos Students' attention. After a moment, Shiroko nodded with a smile. "Nn, Nelson-Sensei gave us the edge we needed to turn the tide. We couldn't have done it without her."

"Nonsense," I said, waving off her misplaced praise, "I was merely the anvil upon which they broke themselves. It was your combined assault which scattered them."

"No," Shiroko replied, shaking her head. I was momentarily fascinated by the way her ears slightly flapped with the movement before she continued. "Experience was likely the deciding factor. It was amazing how you kept track of everyone even as you distracted them."

"Sheesh, Shiroko. You sound like you have a schoolgirl crush." Hoshino drawled as she gave her taller junior a congratulatory pat on the back, "Anyways can I go back to sleep now that it's over?"

"You shouldn't tease Shiroko like that, Hoshino! Besides, haven't you slept enough today?" Serika shouted, annoyance creeping into her tone.

"Someone got yelled at!" Nonomi said with a laugh, sitting on the hood of a ruined car.

Looking at the four of them fussing over and poking fun at each other reminded me of something. Faces and names lost to the mists of my jumbled memories. People that would prod and joke the same way once. A gulf laid where those memories were now.

"Sensei, are you OK?" The familiar crackle of Arona's radioed voice interrupted my musing. I could hear the concern even through the distortion. "You just got very still for a moment there."

I considered her question, giving it the thinking it needed. I did my best to try to express a warm feeling through the mental communication. 'Everything is quite alright, Arona. I did not mean to worry you.'

"Hmmm, if you say so…" Arona muttered in response. Anything else she had to add was cut as Abydos finished their byplay and turned their attention back to me again.

"Thanks again for your help, Sensei." I hear Ayane say over the radio. "Now that we're safe, we should formally introduce ourselves. We're the Abydos Foreclosure Task Force."

I hear the squeak of a chair being pushed back and the ruffling of cloth being pushed aside. I got the distinct sense Ayane may have just bowed despite being remote. "I'm Ayane, a first-year student. I'm the Task Force's secetary, and in charge of the records and operations."

I had a mental note open already, ready to remember the additional information. The GSC records were accurate on how was where, along with basic information, but things like club roles were frequently absent. It would serve me well to learn of them now.

"Serika is our treasurer and our other first year," Ayane continued.

The cat girl in question looked over to where I was and gave a casual wave. "Hey," Serika said half heartedly.

I waved back as Ayane continued to introduce the rest of her club, "Our second years are Shiroko, our field captain, and Nonomi."

"Thank you for your help, Sensei." Shiroko gave me a curt nod before looking to the side with a light blush. "Ignore what Hoshino said, okay?"

Nonomi gave me a cheerful wave as she spoke. "Hello Sensei!"

"Finally, Hoshino is our lone third year and President!" Ayane finished off, even as the pinkette yawned at the mention of her name.

"Nice to meet you, Sensei." Hoshino said with a sleepy one-eyed gaze.

"It is a pleasure to meet you all. Once again, I am Nelson, the advisor for the Federal Investigation Club Schale." I greeted the group before giving them a small bow, "I apologize on behalf of the General Student Council. You have done well to hold out for so long and it is an embarrassment that it has taken this long for anyone to provide aid."

The girls seemed stunned at my admission before Ayane quickly spoke up, "Nelson-Sensei, it's not your fault! It hasn't been a day and you've already managed to come through for us. Those thugs would have succeeded in taking over the school if not for you. We can't thank you enough."

All of the girls around me nodded in agreement as Ayane continued. "Even with what you've done today, you've helped us get closer to our goal."

"Your goal?"

"Yes, we want to bring Abydos back to its former glory." Ayane declared. I could hear the shuffling of cloth and hair to go with it, and I could imagine the bespectacled girl nodding her head confidently.

"Every single Student in the school is working together towards this goal!" Nonomi cheerfully added, before a hint of the cheer faded. "I mean, there's only the five of us at this school but still..."

"I don't blame everyone else for leaving with the state Abydos is in. That was before we had to deal with thugs like the Helmet Gang trying to take over the school," Shiroko added, her quiet voice barely carrying over the winds, "It's too difficult defending Abydos on our own, and embarrassing to see the state it's in, if I'm being honest..."

"If you hadn't come to help us, we would have been in real big trouble this time around." Ayane muttered, tone half joking and half serious.

"Seriously. I figured we were done for once we ran out of supplies." Hoshino admitted, a bitter smile on her face as she gazed at me. "That's some timing you had there, Sensei."

Their confessions cut deep for me. I wasn't in England anymore and the War was certainly long over. But the idea of a small school set adrift to fight a losing battle alone, with little chance of reinforcement or resupply; it was something that brought to mind too many painful memories.

But maybe this time, I would be able to tip the scales.

"… will drag out?" My attention snapped back to Ayane's musing. "We have plenty of other things to worry about besides the Helmet Gang."

Well, if the gang was such a consistent threat, then perhaps it was time to remove it.

"I have a plan." "An idea comes to mind." Hoshino and I said at the same time. We both paused immediately and looked at each other in shock. She cocked her head curiously and I waved my hand for her to continue. A single sleepy questioning eyebrow cocked up and was met by a slight shake of my head. Byplay completed; we turned our attention back to the rest of the Force only to find them watching our exchange with levels of amusement.

"I expected Sensei to have an idea." Serika admitted with a smirk, "But I didn't think Hoshino would come up with a plan!"

"I'm surprised too!" Ayane added.

Hoshino stared at the catgirl and Ayane's drone with a bemused frown. "Hey, I know I'm not the best but that kind of reaction hurts my feelings. I do my part too, you know."

"Perhaps you can explain to them your plan?" I added. "I suspect we may yet suggest similar things."

"At least someone believes in lil ol' me." Hoshino said dryly, before continuing in her usual drawl. "If history repeats itself, the Helmet Gang will attack in a few days." She opened both eyes fully, a flat smile visible on the edge of her lips. "So before then, why don't we go on the offensive for once? They're probably sulking and vulnerable after the last fight."

All the girls' expressions took on various levels of shocks. Shiroko schooled herself quickly into an approving nod, Nonomi looked concerned, and Serika was just surprised. What I didn't see, however, was fear or disinterest.

"You mean right now?!" Ayane asked. I could hear the surprise in her tone even over the ear piece.

"Yeah, right now." Hoshino answered with a nod and a smile. "With Sensei here, we have more than enough supplies to finish the job once and for all." She turned her sleepy gaze towards me, sharp eyes watching as she asked "What about your idea, Sensei?"

I smiled in response, "It seems we are of like mind. With the shock of such a sudden loss, their forces would be in disarray. My senior back home," and my mention of a senior seemed to draw smiles amongst the gathered girls, "was always one to chase the enemy to their very homes. It would do us well to imitate her."

My explicit support of Hoshino's plan seemed to revitalize everyone and break them off the melancholy from before.

"Great!" Hoshino said, her smile a bit more genuine, "If Sensei is giving us the green light, then let's hurry up and go!"

Shiroko pulled out her smartphone to check something, "The Helmet Gang's base is 30 kilometers from here. We have plenty of time if we leave now."

"Not quite yet," I interrupted, before motioning at all the unconscious thugs around us. "It would do us well to strip them of what supplies we can use and their communication equipment. We will wish to maintain the element of surprise so having the enemy be alerted by one of them waking would be inconvenient."

Shiroko paused at my words, before slowly turning to look at me. Her expression was unreadable as she asked "Are you saying we should rob them?"

"Oh no…" I heard Serika mutter from behind me. I could not guess why, but I may have just said something I should not have.

"Well," I started slowly, piecing together the best way to put it politely, "While I would not describe it as such, seizing abandoned materiel for use is a time-honoured tradition."

Shiroko did not smile at me. Her lips merely twitched upward at my answer. But the bright shine in her eye and the twitch of her canine ears betrayed her emotion. "Of course, Sensei. You're right. We're just taking abandoned stuff." And with that, the silver haired started to loot the unconscious thugs with gusto.

Hoshino walked up next to me as I watched the scene, mildly perturbed. I was quiet for a moment before I asked, "Is this something I should be concerned with?"

Hoshino shrugged and gave me a pat on my back. Given our height difference, she had to visibly stretch to reach the small of my back. "You'll get used to it."

I had to give Shiroko one credit though. She was very thorough and quick in stripping the girls of anything useful. I choose to file it away in my ever-growing list of things to worry about later. "Everyone else, please feel free to assist or rest. We leave in fifteen minutes."

Serika frowned, ears twitching in the wind. "And what are you going to do?"

I smiled in response. "I have a surprise to prepare."

Rabu was not having a good day. It started as a good day. Today was going to be the day they kicked out those losers in Abydos and completed their job. They were going to hit payday! It was going to be easy. So, she sent her second to secure the school. Abydos was out of supplies; they couldn't even fight back. It was supposed to be easy.

Then they lost contact with the attack party. Minutes turned to hours. She was about to get a second group sent out when the first party returned. Or at least, parts of them. And what a story they had to tell.

"Sorry, could you run that by me again?" Rabu asked the terrified girl before her.

The girl nodded panicky before speaking, her voice quaking in terror. "Abydos got supplies. And not only just supplies, they got some sort of psycho to help them! She's no student I've ever seen. She's super tall, has no halo, and is freakishly strong! She sent Haato flying with a single slap!"

Rabu nodded, partially to get the girl to continue, partially to figure out how screwed they were. From the sounds of it, they might be a bit more than out of their depths here.

"And that's not it!" The girl rambled on "She doesn't just beat people up! She shoots them! She dumps entire mags into people and then kicks them while they're down! Who does that?!"

OK, so this is definitely not good. Abydos hired some sort of psycho mercenary from outside of Kivotos somehow. She was sure her boss would have heard if some crazy giant was rampaging around Kivotos. She had to pretend she was in charge here though.

"OK, look, we're gonna need bigger guns from the sound of it. But right now?" Rabu paused, waving a hand at their base. Large walls made from ruined buses and cars reinforced with sheet metal formed a strong perimeter. A single heavy metal gate they stole from an abandoned mall guarded the only one way in and out. Nearly three dozen Helmet Gang members patrolled the area. "There's no way five people are going to get in here. They don't have anything that can break past these walls."

As she finished reassuring the panicking survivor, Megumi entered her command hut. Her other second paused at the sight of the terrified girl before walking over to whisper. "Boss, Abydos and some tall blonde just stopped a few blocks from the gate."

"What are they doing?"

"Nothing, they're just staring at the base. I don't think they know how to get in."

Rabu turned back to the terrified girl with a smirk. "See, nothing to worry abo-"

The roar of an explosion interrupted them, followed by the concussion of the shockwave rattling the building. Rabu was already on her feet, shotgun in hand, as she ran out the door of the hut. As she exited, she stopped immediately to gape at the sight. The main gate of the base had its center blown inward like if struck by a rocket launcher.

Then another fireball ripped into the car next to the gate. The detonation flipped the vehicle and shattered it but, more importantly, tore apart one of the supports for the gate. She could see the rest of the thugs around her panicking, rushing to take positions.

Before they could respond, the truck on the other side of the gate vanished as well. Another peal of thunder and the back half of the truck was torn apart along with the other gate support.

With both arms holding up their main gate gone; gravity demanded its toll. Slowly the large chunk of metal leaned back before toppling with a loud *THUD*. The collapse kicked up the sand, intermixing with the clouds formed from the explosion. For a brief moment, silence filled the area.

Then the sharp piercing screech of a whistle, and an unfamiliar feminine voice shouted. "Abydos, full ahead!" A shield wielding pinkette burst out of the sandstorm, followed by the tallest human Rabu had ever seen. Decked from head to toe with weapons and ammunition, and carrying a large blocky pistol in one hand. In the other was, of all things, an actual sword. An assault rifle wielding catgirl and wolfgirl followed behind them, and then a smiling blonde touting a minigun.

As the area around the gate descended into violence, Rabu turned to Megumi. "You're in charge now. I need to tell the boss." Before the second could protest, Rabu turned and ran for the backup exit. It was a bit cowardly but hey, somebody needed to get reinforcements and tell the others what happened. And above all, she had no desire to face off against some freakishly giant psycho with a sword today.

AN: The senior that Nelson references is HMS Warspite. Kancolle depicts her as this polite, even-keeled, and regal figure. Her combat lines somewhat hint at the truth, being notably aggressive. This is because, in real life, Warspite embodies 'stubborn defiance'. She served in some of the most notable Royal Navy operations in both World Wars and had a nasty habit of showing up unannounced to smack enemy ships when they thought they were safe. Warspite was possibly the most distinguished battleship in the Atlantic despite her age and constant damage. Her record is definitely one to be read, because some of it is quite interesting.

Anyways, that's enough simping for my 2nd favourite ship in real life and game. We finally get a glimpse at how Nelson looks from the opposing side. While the audience knows she has to dump entire magazines to actually knock out students; that is quite excessive from another students perspective. But, alas, this is how rumors begin and grow. Thanks again to my friend for beta reading and hearing me out.