"I said I was sorry for the last time." I could only sigh when my words only got a huff. Looking at the spiky halo, I see it is a fierce red instead of its usual orange. "Come on, Little Star, don't be like this." She doesn't even respond to that remark. Well, I guess I have no choice. "And here I thought you wanted this strawberry milk." I watched her halo turn into an exclamation mark, so I knew she wavered even though she didn't turn. "I even bought two so we could drink them together." Her halo kept swapping between a heart and the angry spikes from earlier. I walk over to where she's sitting and place one carton next to her. She doesn't move until I sit next to her in another chair. "Can you please forgive me, Little Star?" I watch her hand take the carton.
"Why should I? You said I wouldn't be alone again, then you left me alone for three days. You even got badly hurt." I can't argue with her; she's entirely correct.
"You're right, so what would you like me to do then? I would like you to forgive me after all." She finally looks at me.
"I don't want you to leave me in Schale again. If I were with you, maybe I could've prevented you from getting hurt." I gently rub her hair.
"I don't think you could've prevented the wounds. Besides, I'd rather you not see some horrible things out there." She turns to me with a pout on her face.
"I've seen plenty of people fighting." I can only sigh at her words.
"People died, Little Star." She is silent for a moment, looking at me with fear and sadness in her eyes. "You're used to people scuffling, not fighting. In a fight, people die, and let's just say a lot of people died." The silence was deafening.
"Why would they kill them?" Oh, this sweet summer child.
"That's what happens sometimes in conflicts. I'm not saying it's right, but it happens." Her mood is rather dour now. "Hey, look at the small bright side of it; at least I got back safely and Serika, right."
"Yeah! At least both of you are ok." While there was sadness in her voice still, at least she looked a little brighter. "So, will you promise to take me with you from now on?" She held a pinky out.
"Sure, I promise." I wrap my pinky around hers.
"Good! Our promise is made, meaning you can't back out S.Sensei." I ruffle her hair after she speaks. Honestly, this little one is something else.
"You're right I can't. So besides that, do you want to do anything? I still have five minutes until my break ends." Her eyes sparkle as her halo turns into a heart.
"You'll stay with me until your break ends!" I nod my head at her words of excitement. Suddenly, a whiteboard appeared in front of us both. On it is a childish drawing of each Abydos girl with the heart symbol again. Then, each heart number spins like a lottery machine; Kitty Cat is at a four, Little Jackal is at a three, Ayane and Nonomi are both one, and finally, Pinky is at zero. "As you can see, your students have even more trust in you now! Especially Serika!" Little Star taps the whiteboard with a ruler. Then, it moves on over to Pinky precisely. "Although you and Hoshino have a very rocky relationship. She fell to minus one earlier, then shot up to zero after yesterday." I watched her spin the whiteboard around; this time, it showed how I felt about them. "Your relationship towards all students, however, is a big fat zero!" Based on her voice, she wasn't happy about how I felt towards them.
"Well, yeah, I'm supposed to be their teacher, not their friend." I watched her frown deepen.
"I get that! But you can at least like them a little!" I mull it over a little
"Nope, I'm gonna remain indifferent towards them." I notice her halo go back to orange spikes again.
"You know the actual Sensei wouldn't say that." Was that the best she could say?
"Good thing I'm not them then." She looked surprised at what I said. "Think about it: if those girls get too attached to me, they may not want the actual teacher. Even if they accept them, there could be a lot of growing pains, you know." She looked away from me with a pout on her face.
"It's not fair you made a good point." I roll my eyes at her comment. Honestly, was she expecting a half-assed explanation?
"Yes, yes, I'm truly evil." I take a sip from the bottle of strawberry milk I bought for myself. It's cold, but that's about it; wonder how good it tastes. It's honestly a crying shame. I was even told it was the best on the market. At least Little Star can taste it. "So, how is the strawberry milk?"
"It's amazing! It's sweet, creamy, and tasty!" It's good to know she likes it. At least one of us can enjoy the flavor. I look over to the clock in the room and notice I have a minute left. Standing up, I stretch and shake a little to loosen up fully.
"Well, it's time I head out, Little Star."
"Rember what you promised!"
"I do." As I say that, I feel the world shift. I find myself sitting in a bean bag chair in the Schale breakroom. I pick up the Shittim chest, shoving it into my inner coat pocket. Now that I think about it, I should get a case for the chest if I'm taking with me everywhere. Walking out of the room, I notice the cafe across the hall. Why Schale has a cafe is beyond me. Walking back toward the office, I pass by several other rooms. Each one is blank; they probably were meant to be rooms filled with whatever was needed. Exiting back into the lobby, I decided to take the stairs to visit my lovely three stooges cause, for some reason, the elevator skips their floor. I need to get someone out here to look at that. Quickly making my way to the file maintenance floor, I knocked on the door. I hear slight clattering and bickering before Widget opens the door.
"Hey...boss...man." Looking her over, I saw that she was wearing a green and tan business skirt with a blouse and black stockings.
"Hey, Widget, how's it going? You don't need to say just give me a thumbs up or down." She shoots me a sideways thumb. "One of those days huh."
Nodding her head, she moves over some, letting me inside their department of Schale. It's not a mess, but it's getting there with all the papers they keep getting from me. I see Digit across the way, organizing a filing cabinet, and Giggit across from her, typing away on a computer.
"I told you, file 28-B, not file 28-F!" Giggit screamed at Digit.
"Fuck you!" Wow, Digit, you got some lungs I felt that fuck you from over here.
"What did you say to me?" I watched Digit shrink when Giggit's question left her mouth. Stepping behind Giggit, I tap her shoulder. "For fuck sake, Widget wh-" Giggit stops speaking when she faces me. "Hey, boss man." Backing up a little ways away from me, I can see her whole appearance. She wore a complete green and tan business suit with heels, and she wore the Schale Badge along with it.
"Hahaha!" Digit began laughing, most likely because Giggit had almost cursed at me. Digit was wearing a business blouse and dress pants. Her badge was attached to her belt buckle.
"So, Giggit, how's life?" She wears a defeated expression while exhaling sharply.
"Horrible, you're to blame for it too." When I smirked at her words, she scowled. "That ain't something to be proud of, you know."
"Oh? I never said I was proud." Watching her bring her hands up in a strangling motion was funny. "Besides your misery, Giggit, how's our English lacking twins." I look toward the Auburn sisters. Both seemed to be looking for file 28-B.
"Well, they're progressing at different rates. Digit is doing alright, it's Widget I'm worried about." I can only really nod my head. The two sisters across from us seemed to have dumped a load of documents on a table.
"Yeah, based on her file, she wasn't the best at learning new languages." Widget, despite having excellent grades in Math and Science fields, sucked at pretty much everything else.
"Wow, you dug your noise deep to discover our old school grades, huh?" Giggit gave a horse laugh.
"Yup, all three of you went to Notice High School. On the border between Millennium and Abydos. I also know you were a straight-A student, Giggit." She nodded her head at my last remark. "I also know Digit was average, so the only one struggling was Widget. But she was getting tutoring for the classes she was struggling for. So I'm still trying to figure out why you three dropped out." It just doesn't make sense to me. Notice had good facilities, and the student council there was good enough. Hell, all three of them were a part of a club.
"Look, I understand you're curious about that, but how about we not get into specifics for now." I look at Giggit and notice her usual gruff expression is replaced with mild embarrassment.
"Alright, I won't pry; it's none of my business anyway." I guess now is as good a time as any to leave them.
I leave the room and proceed up a couple more floors until I stop outside a room labeled Security Division. Well, I sloppily slapped that label onto it. Knocking once, I don't hear anything at all. So I knocked a bit louder than before but got no response. Well, she left me no choice in the matter. I turn the door handle, breaking both the lock and knob and forcing my way inside.
"Ahhhh, I haven't done anything wrong!" The antlered girl backed up from the door, panicking. "Please don't break my ribs again!" I can only roll my eyes at her fear.
"Calm down if I wanted to break your ribs again, I would've already done it." When I stepped forward, she stepped back. Causing my eye to twitch in annoyance. "What is with you?"
"What's with me?! You kidnapped me from my crew, threatened to kill me if I didn't come to Schale, then had your three rapid mutts put this on me." She held her arms out. She wore a buttle-proof tactical vest over a forest green dress shirt and tan cargo pants like me. Finally, her face was covered by a sand-colored ballistic mask, her visor tinted sage green.
"The ballistic mask looks pretty cool though." She rubs the back of her head after my comment.
"Well...I mean, of course, it would." She looks in a nearby mirror, admiring the mask. "Hang on, don't try to distract me with this cool mask you had them put on me!" Damn, I was hoping I could calm her that way; well, bribery is next.
"Look, Yochi, I pay my workers well. So, of course, I'll pay you well too, and think about it, you could even get your girls great pay." I watch her stand stock still.
"Why the hell should I believe you?" I can't see your face, young lady, but your body language tells me you're curious.
"How about this? You talk to my favorite three stooges and see what they say. I'll even give you a good amount of pay to support your girls." I can feel her will wavering. "Just think it over, alright, and finally, you can't leave Schale for long. If you do, I'll hunt you down and bring you back, got it." She rapidly nodded her head, hazelnut hair rapidly rocking forward and back. Leaving the room, I finish making my way up the staircase and reach the final floor. Going through the familiar hallway, I opened the main office door and sat at the main desk.
Breathing deeply, I let my body sink into the chair. The air is still quaint and lonely. I'll be alone when trying to leave this city as well. 'You have me.' I don't count parasites, Pandora. I turn the computer on and punch in my password. Of course, I've got an ungodly number of emails from the GSC, which I'll promptly ignore since most don't ascertain to me. I have other emails, some from smaller schools asking for advice and citizens asking for help. Finally, I noticed that the Momo talk app Little Star put on the computer had a couple of notifications. Clicking on it, I see one from each of the Abydos girl bar Pinky; I decide to click on Kitty Cat's first.
Substitute!
Substituuuuute!
I know a guy like you isn't busy right now!
Excuse you?
You said you'd help us since it's part of your job right? Well I need some help with a part-time job. So I'm sure its cool with you!
So I'll see you soon!
Sure, I'll magically know where to go.
...
Sunder Street 7800.
Be there in the next hour!
That's three hours away from Schale!
I can only growl as I shut off the computer. That stupid girl, something like that, needs a better heads up. I should just leave her to her fate of being alone. I grumble as I feel a familiar glow near my face.
[You should help her]
"Of course you want me to help her."
[You said you'd come to help them if they ever hollered.]
"Yeah, I know. I'm moving."
I quickly shoot up from my desk and sprint towards the stairway. Quickly rocketing down the stairs, I stop at the File department and barge in.
"Giggit! I need you to sort through the emails and paperwork I got from the GSC. Something important came up that I have to handle. I want those emails and papers sorted by most critical to least critical!" She seems startled by my sudden appearance before nodding rapidly. I don't wait for her to speak before barreling back down the stairs and through the lobby. I sprint outside, passing by two girls I haven't seen before, who are waiting right at Schale's entrance.
"Hold on, wait, we wanted to ask you some questions!"
I hear one of the girls shout after me as I sprint down the sidewalk. The questions are stupid anyway, I bet. I dash down Center Street, then make a hard left on Richards Road. As I continued my mad dash down the road, I saw the main route blocked by construction. Taking a secondary path would add time, so my only option is to go through it. I bolt past two construction workers while hopping over.
"What just blew past us?!"
"I think it was a guy!"
I speed through the construction site, avoiding potholes and weaving past the workers and vehicles they have. I make it to the other side. Following the straightaway, I ran over some poor guy in a suit who turned the corner at the worst time. "Sorry." That is all I shout as I continue on my way. I turn right down to Koda's Corner, moving past multiple eateries. I see Magenta and Mochi's shop coming up. "Hi, M and M." I see both their expressions look surprised than happy.
"Good to see you, little Vagues!"
"Vagues, my friend, it's good to see you safe! But do slow down some!"
I barely make out their voices while blitzing past them. Just one more kilometer and I'm at where we're supposed to meet. I was sprinting through a bizarre now; all sorts of nicks and nacks were around. Sliding past an open stand shop, I reach the meeting point where Kitty Cat is already waiting for me. Skidding to a halt, I stop as our faces are about to touch.
"What the hell? I just texted you a minute ago how are you here already?!" Her expression is utter disbelief.
"I sprinted! Also, a heads-up in advance would be good next time!" She backs up and pulls her phone out when I glare at her.
"Oops, I might've forgotten to put the four in my last text to you." My eye twitches as she sheepishly avoids my gaze. "Well, since you're here, how about we get started early." She seemed happy enough with the outcome. I can't say I feel the same in any capacity. I also swear I heard her grumble about other people not showing up.
"Will the person who hired you even let us start early? Usually, employers hate paying overtime." She seems a bit disgruntled at my words.
"I'll have you know every good part-timer knows to show up early." I raise my brow as if to say she didn't answer my question. "I'm also sure they'll let us start early." This girl, I can't believe her in the slightest.
"And if they don't, what will we do in the meantime?" She looks a little nervous before speaking.
"Well, we could explore the area a little. I've never been in this part of Kivotos that much, so it could help me later." Sound reasoning I can't argue with; it might be a good idea if I look around, too. Could find some interesting nick and nacks that I'll fancy.
"Well, go ask them if you can start early I'll wait right here." She doesn't move; instead, she looks at me. "What is something on my face?" I could've sworn I wiped down my face this morning.
"No, it's just...it may be a good idea you come with me. I didn't tell them someone like you would be helping me." I can only stare at her blankly until I notice the minor flicking of her ears. I also noticed her legs are entirely covered.
"Alright, lead, and I'll follow." She nods her head while moving forward. I guess this is to be expected hard to shake off what happened to her. Walking through the dense crowds with her, I noticed she occasionally scanned the area. "Anything catching your eye in the stalls?" My question seems to break her scanning focus.
"Nothing much, just random nicks and nacks that wouldn't do much for me." She frowns some.
"Hmm, well, we can't always find what we desire sometimes." She sighs after hearing my words.
"I'm not sure if you're poking fun at me or being sincere. Especially since your face and voice don't change at all." I raise a brow at her. "Except when you do that or wear your shit-eating grin."
"I was being sincere this time." She huffs at my response. Well, so much for being sincere.
Passing a couple more stalls, I notice a man in a weapons stall. He had a massive Gatling gun sitting in his shop. I'd wager it's about my height, perhaps a little smaller. Bet it weighs a good bit, too; it's sitting on a well-constructed stand. Though there is dust on the weapon, it's obvious it hasn't been moved in ages, or the shopkeeper just gave up dusting it.
"Hey, what are you staring at." Looking back at Kitty Cat, she seemed slightly annoyed. I point over to a weapons stall. "Why, you don't seem the type to carry around a gun." She mumbled something else I decided to ignore.
"I'm curious more than anything. Wonder if that massive Gatling gun they got works. So, how about a quick stop? Surely, it couldn't hurt." She looks at me momentarily before looking at a separate stall not far from us.
"I... I guess we can make a quick stop. But quick, got it!" I chuckled at her response, which caused her to slap my arm. Walking toward the weapon stall, a crow person greeted us.
"Wellllcome to my humble weapons stall! Here, you can find all sorts of old-age equipment!" He outstretched a massive wing showcasing all sorts of weapons. I could hear Kitty Cat mumble something along the lines of ancient equipment. "So what will it be, my fine gent? Maybe a pistol, perhaps a rifle? Although now that I look at you, you've got the air of a professional. Maybe you'd want a multi-tool, hmmm." I hear Kitty Cat chuckle at his statement.
"None of those, friend; I was interested in the massive Gatling gun behind you." He looked at me quizzically, his avian eyes shining.
"My gent you don't look like a collector; why are you interested in such worthless hardware?" I looked at him in surprise when he called it worthless. "Ah, apologies, I should've known based on your appearance. Forgive me, my foreign gent; your kind don't come into Kivotos often." Fair enough. "To avoid further problems, that weapon is a discontinued model from Kaiser. While it is a stunning piece of equipment, production has stopped due to costs. To make it worse, the model mech it was made for is no longer in production."
"Mind if I inspect it anyway?" He ushered me around with his wing.
I walk around the stall, getting close enough to examine the massive weapon. There's a hole that could connect the weapon to a mech. It has six barrels and an enormous slot where the drum mag would fit. A sudden thought comes to mind.
Could I use this thing?
'It would be entirely possible. You simply need to insert your arm.' I don't think that's how that works, Pandora. 'For anyone else, you would be correct. However, it's possible thanks to your biology and my assistance.' If you say so.
I insert my arm into the hole where the mech arm is usually attached, stopping at my elbow. I ignore both the shopkeeper and Kitty Cat. I feel something strange inside the weapon like it is getting unbelievably hot. My arm also has slight stinging pain, but soon, it stops. 'Merge successful. The weapon has been hijacked and now serves your needs.'
"Good gent, I doubt you can lift that weapon. It weighs at least four tons, and that's without the magazine." I ignored the shopkeeper and lifted the thing. Despite what he said, it felt as light as a feather. Raising it above my head I could see some rust on it, that it seemed to be it though.
"How much?" The shopkeeper and Kitty Cat could both only stare at me in surprise. "I asked how much." That seemed to allow the shopkeeper to snap out of his funk.
"Well, the going rate for collectors would be 735,856 yen. Although I haven't found anyone willing to take the piece, I'm willing to bargain and throw in the drum mag for free."
"No need, I'll pay in full with credits." He nodded his head, and I swear I heard him coo happily at my offer to pay in full with credits. I bring up seven thousand and eight hundred credits, handing it to the clerk.
"Wait, right there, I'll bring out the drum!" He sounded elated to be rid of the piece finally. After a couple of minutes of waiting in silence with Kitty Cat, the shopkeeper came back around. I can see why he said the drum would add weight; the thing was massive. "You may have to put it on, my gent. It's too heavy for an old bird like me to lift." Nodding at him, I reach down on the palette he brought from the stall. Grabbing the massive thing, I insert it into the weapon.
'Ammo casing has been added, calibrating round production to match the weapon.' Pandora, what are you saying? 'Calibration complete. Please bear with the pain.' Whaaaaahhhh.
I grit my teeth hard to avoid screaming out loud. It feels like something is grinding my arm inside the weapon. Once the pain subsides, I think a little bit more weight is on my arm, but I can't tell.
'Ammo synthesis complete, remaining S.I at 98% and G.S.I at 89%. Both are still at acceptable levels.'
"Are you okay?" Turning, I see the concern on Kitty Cat's face.
"Yeah, just bit my tongue like an idiot." Kitty Cat looked at me like I was stupid while the shopkeeper chuckled quietly to themself.
"I knew you were a pathetic adult, but so pathetic to bite your tongue without eating anything is low." I smirked at her, causing her expression to change to surprise.
"Well, I gotta make you feel better about yourself somehow." She scowled after I said that.
"I don't need you to make a fool of yourself so I can feel better about myself!" Her ears were at attention; I swear she had her claws out. Looking away from her, I nod at the shopkeeper.
"Thank you for the weapon, kind sir." He cracks what I can only assume is a smile.
"Of course, thank you for finally allowing me to be rid of that weapon. Tata now." He waved us off with his wing as we continued our walk to the original destination. I had to put the Gatling gun on my shoulder so that it wouldn't drag on the ground. I'd like to sling it on my back, but I have nothing to attach it to.
'Allow me, relax your arm along with your back muscles, and I'll do the rest.' This better not hurt. 'It will not, though you'll feel strange movement.' True to what Pandora said, I feel the muscle on my shoulder kind of spasm, shift, and scrunch until it eventually stops. 'You can let go now.' I let go of it, reorienting my arm to my side, Gatling gun free.
"Your jacket has straps to hold things?" I look at Kitty Cat while raising a brow. "Don't look at me like it was obvious!" She seems to have mistaken the intention of my gaze. "Anyways, the stand is right there lets talk to the clerk!" She speeds up her steps as we near the clerk; I blank my mind to get through whatever chatter is about to happen.
After about thirty minutes of blanking, I find myself sitting behind the stall with Kitty Cat in front of me. She seemed to be checking over the number of fliers she had and the leggings she was now wearing. Turning toward me, she smiles a little, then coughs in her fist before starting.
"Remember you're to watch the stall while I pass out fliers. Also, please have more fliers ready for when I get back." She seemed dead serious and a little anxious.
"Don't worry. I can easily watch over the stall and have fliers ready to go." I give her a thumbs-up, which she returns.
"Good! Now then." She picks up a bundle of fliers and looks out toward the crowd. At first, I believed she was surveying where to set up, but ten minutes had passed us by.
"Sooo you gonna go set up?" She snaps out of the funk she was in.
"Yeah! Just trying to figure out where to set up is all." I don't call her out on her blatant lie, but I'm sure she didn't even convince herself with those words.
"How about over there?" I point toward a fountain a little ways away. "Not too far away, and if anyone walks through there, they may not spot the stall due to the crowds." Really, the area was pretty sparsely walked through from what I could tell, but anything to get her to do the job she needed to do. "And I'm within earshot. So you can holler if you need me." I see her think it over before nodding her head.
"Yeah, I guess that's a good spot." That is all she says after judging the distance from the stall. I can tell she doesn't want to go but she resolved herself anyway. "Well...I'll be right back, so keep an eye on things!" I wave her off as she walks away. Once she was a decent bit away, she looked back toward me, which prompted me to wave at her.
Eventually, she finished the small trot to the fountain and set up. I can already tell this isn't going anywhere.
(Three hours later)
Spotting Kitty Cat coming back toward me, I ready a bundle. Giving her the bundle, I watched her walk back toward the fountain. No matter how I look at it, she won't be finishing before this stall closes.
[She won't finish.]
"Yeah, no shit."
[Well, help her!]
"It's obvious why she has to move to other areas to get done. But she doesn't have the will to."
[I know, but there has to be something you can do!]
"I can't leave the stall; I would if I could. Sadly, some opportunistic people will steal stuff if they see it vacant. I know I would."
[Not everyone is like you!]
"I know, but those people still exist." The text box didn't respond, which means it understood what I was saying.
(Two Hours later.)
"Where did all these people come from?" Kitty Cat panted out.
"Well, it's a rush hour since everyone is getting out of work." Honestly, she may get lucky and finish all these fliers. Maybe it's a good thing we started pretty early. "Are you holding up well?"
"Of course I am! It's just a lot of people, that's all." I wish you were more honest, Kitty Cat.
"Well, just know I'm over here if you need me." She scoffed a little.
"I'll have you know I'm more than capable of handing out fliers!" I raise a brow at her.
"Then why did you text me for help?" She left me in a huff after that comment.
Watching her walk away, I can only sigh. I wonder why the other girls couldn't come and help her. Or perhaps it's because she was to embarrassed to admit wanting help. 'It's a possibility of both, most likely.' Yeah, it could be; they all need to work. I doubt Kitty Cat can rake in that much money for their debt on her own. Plus, her personality isn't the type to admit their feelings openly. 'Shall we discuss possibly jobs they all do?' Why not could pass the time. 'Let us start with Miss Okusora.' Ah, yes, she would be the easiest to start with; she feels like someone who would be the glue to hold a workplace together—poor girl.
(Three hours later)
Pinky would be useless no matter what job you give her. 'I quite agree; in her current state, she holds no value.'
I spotted Kitty Cat trotting back towards me. A smile graced her face, albeit a bit winded. Once she reached me, opening the bag, I handed her when it was down to two bundles. It was empty.
"Look! I finished two hours early!" I think I noticed her halo brighten up a little after she spoke.
"Yes, you did. Quite impressive." I gave her a thumbs-up. However, I'm wondering what the pay is. "So I've been meaning to ask. What's the pay exactly?" She frowns when I ask.
"Were you not listening earlier? It's one yen per flier, meaning five hundred yen per bundle." She smiled. "And I managed to finish all forty bundles. So you ready to get paid?" Wait, what? Before I could ask further, she decided to talk to the owner. I can only sit there dumbfounded for a bit; being paid to sit at a stall doesn't sit right with me.
Taking my phone out, I checked the time: 7:52 p.m. Most of the other things I had to do today will be put on hold for tomorrow. However, I could still do that patrol of Abydos tonight. Kitty Cat reenters my view fully. She held out some yen toward me.
"The pay split is ten thousand for both of us." I got up and walked right past her. I even ignored her little spurt of anger. Even when she walked beside me to make me try to take the money, I ignored her. "You're supposed to accept cash after working, you know!" I looked at the signs while walking. I had to make sure I didn't make a wrong turn to the bus stop. "Are you even listening to me!" I finally look at her as we make it to a bridge.
"I am." Her frown turns to a scowl after I speak.
"If you've been listening to me, take your share!" She holds out the amount again, causing me to sigh.
"No." Based on her face, she's not happy with that answer.
"You earned your cut fair and square! You deserve to get paid!"
"That amount means nothing to me; I've already made thirty times that amount from my hourly wage from Schale." She seems stunned at that, so I should continue pressing. "Secondly, it wouldn't sit right with me to take your hard-earned pay from you. Especially since I know you need it more than me, and if not you, your school does." She looks away from me after I finish speaking.
"Well, it wouldn't sit right with me if you didn't get anything. You worked too, after all." Ah I see
"Don't worry, Kitty Cat. I have already been compensated from my actual job. So you don't need to worry about splitting the pay." We're silent for a little while before she speaks again.
"Well, if you're going to be stubborn about not taking the pay, then at least let me say thanks for coming to help me as quickly as you did." I nodded my head at her
"Thanks ain't needed either; I said if any of you hollered, I'd come to help you, right." She smiled a little when I said that.
We walked a bit further until we reached the bus stop. Kitty Cat sat while I stood there to review my texts. Giggit texted me a lot of things, mainly dates, about what assignments needed to be completed first, along with a detailed route to patrol in Abydos. Then, something about a set of urgent tasks that needed to be done tomorrow. My time will be allocated to those tasks first tomorrow. Hopefully, no one calls Schale to request help. When the bus arrived, we both hopped on, sitting in seats across from each other. That's when Kitty Cat decided to speak again.
"Hey, Substitute, why are you taking the bus to Abydos?" I look over at her.
"The GSC wants me to do a patrol out there so might as well do it now you know." That seems to satisfy her just fine. "I've been meaning to ask though, where was the rest of the FTF? I doubt I was your first choice." She sighed a little.
"You were my first choice. If the rest of the Task Force knew the money I made from part-time jobs was going into the debt they would refuse it." I guess they don't want her using money she made by herself. Probably means they only want to use the money they all make together.
The bus eventually reached our destination. Getting off we're in the Abydos residential area. Stepping out, I look towards where I need to go. First I got another thing to take care of.
"Would you like me to walk you the rest of the way home?" She considers it for a moment before speaking.
"Sure, I guess the company would be appreciated." You could've just said you don't want to walk alone at night.
"Alright, lead us on."
The walk through the small neighborhood was quaint. In all honesty, there was nothing all that bad; it seemed like the perfect place to start a family. Walking a bit further in, I noticed a small little house we began to approach. Here, I thought she lived in a dorm or something, not an actual house.
"Well, this is my stop." She turns to face me, again taking out the money from her job. "Last chance to take the money."
"Or what? You'll be angry with me?" She nods her head. "Now, I definitely won't take it just to see you mad." Her little scowl came back again.
"I don't know why I even bothered you, jerk." She walked towards her door.
"Have a nice night and pleasant dreams, Kitty Cat." She looks back at me before entering her home.
"Thanks; stay safe during your patrol tonight." I nod my head to her and leave.
(Abydos Central Plaza)
Man, tonight has been a drag. So far, nothing has happened, thankfully. But now I'm starting to realize how massive Abydos Central Plaza is. Look at the Shittim Chest I've made about twenty-three percent progress. I've already walked for about three hours. I know Abydos is big. I didn't think one section of it could be this big.
I've passed through a slew of streets and alleyways, which makes me wonder why alleyways were on the patrol route. I'd understand if they also led to some side streets. But half of these things are dead ends with nothing bar a homeless person or two.
Still, I'm happy I haven't run into any problems yet. I've passed by the occasional drunk person, but that's about it. Walking down another street, I pass by an alley and hear a faint noise. Looking down it, I see a familiar halo. Well, what could you be doing at this hour, Pinky? She was looking over a couple of wannabe thugs. Looking at the chest, I see that this alley was a part of the patrol route like every other alley. Walking down, I observe Pinky looking over the wannabe thugs she knocked out. Once I close the gap between the two of us a decent bit, she aims her shotgun at me. Sharp ears, given the fact she hadn't turned around yet.
"If you're going to aim that thing at me, at least use it." Upon hearing my voice, Pinky looks me in the eyes.
"What are you doing here?" Her tone is relatively neutral.
"Just enjoying the night air." When I walk forward, I see her flick the safety of her shotgun. "Are you planning to shoot me if I get closer?" When I step closer, her finger puts a little more pressure on the trigger
"Answer my question." I roll my eyes at her.
"I'm on patrol since you're so curious." I walk toward her again, not caring about her finger near the trigger. "Next time, have some killing intent if you threaten someone with a weapon." I stand right at the end of her shotgun barrel.
"I'll keep that in mind. Now then, tell me why you've decided to patrol Abydos." Her voice was laced with suspicion.
"Do you want the truth or a lie?" I move past her toward the exit of the alley.
"If I ask for the truth, will you give me the truth?"
"Of course, after all, you asked for it."
"What if I don't believe you?"
"No skin off my back."
"Then, if I ask you to lie to me?"
"You'll get what I think you'll want to hear."
Eventually, I'm out of the alleyway. Turning around, I saw Pinky following me.
"Give me the truth."
"I'm patrolling Abydos."
"Why?"
"Because the GSC Head of Defense wanted me to." I bring up the Shittim Chest and show her. "As of now, I'm only thirty-two percent done." After showing her, I began to walk again. However, I noticed that Pinky had decided to tag along.
"Why would the Head of the Defense want you to patrol the Abydos District?" Curiosity now also tinged her voice.
"Don't know. Maybe thugs have been coming from Abydos; maybe they want to scare Kaiser." I can feel a bit of interest, but not enough to eliminate the suspicion.
'You've shown her proof, yet she still chooses not to believe you.' Yeah, I've noticed Pandora.
"Regardless, it doesn't matter to me. I've been ordered to do it, so I'll do it." I wish the Head of Defense had made it one district in Abydos, but she made it two, which I had to patrol. Based on the time right now, I should be finished by 5:00 a.m. if I'm lucky. Knowing my luck, though, I doubt it will be that way. "Since I answered your question, Pinky, it's only fair that you answer mine." She doesn't acknowledge what I said, but I continue anyway. "I'm curious why you're out and about?" Silence is all I get; it's none of my business, so it's fair to stay quiet. While I'm curious, I'm not curious enough to give her shit for not telling me, if she wants to walk around beating up homeless people, who am I to judge.
Making it to an intersection marked forty percent of my patrol complete. So far, it's still good, only annoyance is I'm sharing company now. Any time I stop to observe the surrounding area I feel suspicion-laced eyes staring into my back. At first, I found it funny, but now I find it annoying. The only good thing happening right now is that Pinky is staying quiet and not pestering me with talking. From my scan, I saw a couple of closed shops and a single restaurant still open. I would drop in to get something to drink if I had any cash. I begin scanning, hoping to spot some loose change that could have fallen out of someone's pocket, but nothing. Looking at my map, I see that another alley is coming up.
As I approach, I see a couple of wannabe thugs; instead of teenage girls, they're some weird robots in baggy pants and pompadours. They also seem to have open shirts with bandages wrapping around their stomachs. I have no idea what the hell I'm looking at right now. They begin approaching us when they notice both of us making our way down the alleyway. I put my hand on the barrel of Pinky's shotgun when I noticed she went to raise it. She stared deep into my eyes but looked away from my glare directed back at her. Looking back towards the three weirdos, I noticed they had closed the distance. I tuned out what they were saying since it wasn't English. I can't be bothered to listen to other languages at the moment.
"Look, if you're going to talk, talk in English; neither of us can understand you lot." I know Pinky can, but I doubt she wants to talk to these guys.
"Man, that's pathetic you two can't even speak arabic buddy." The two goons behind the guy with a bat laughed. "Since I'm a sympathetic sort, I'll let it slide if you don't mind lending a guy some cash." He holds his hand out.
"Oh really? What did you waste your guy's cash on the ridiculous clothing and hair?" I heard Pinky snort a little. The three guys across from me seemed offended.
"Hey buddy, this stuff was expensive! Besides, I don't want to hear this from a guy who looks like a hobo!" Both of his cohorts agreed with him.
"It's bad when the guy who looks like a hobo would rather keep his clothes than trade with you." Their faces went from eyes to !?, which I guess means surprise. "Besides, you never answered my question before. What did you waste your money on?" They all seemed nervous to speak.
"Well...we did spend a lot of our money on this stuff." I can only sigh while staring in disappointment. "Then we tried to fight three girls over territory only to get our asses handed to us. They let us go once we handed over the cash we had left." Are you kidding me
"Well, you three need to reevaluate how you spend your cash from your jobs and perhaps drop fighting altogether." The three just sighed. Then, they walked off without a word; I guess they lost the will to try robbing us.
Walking out of the alleyway, I watch the three walk into a nearby bar at the left end of the street.
"That was sad." I can only nod in agreement with Pinky's words.
(Four hours later)
I finally finished my patrol route, which means it's back to Schale to do any paperwork I haven't finished. Looking toward Pinky, I noticed she had bags starting to form under her eyes.
"I can't say our time was enjoyable, but I'll at least say you should get home and rest. Don't want to be a corpse tomorrow during important discussions, right?" She grumbles a little under her breath. I don't blame her lack of response this time, given it's 5:47 in the morning. "So happy trails, and try to stay awake for your talks with your underclassmen. Don't want to be deadweight or bring horrible ideas to the table. Like hijacking a bus again, right." When I turn to leave, I hear her barely.
"I said to hijack a bus as a joke." I scoff and turn back towards her.
"Carefully with jokes like that, some people will interrupt them seriously. Especially if they don't know you." Her eyes narrowed.
"Yeah, you're right about that; maybe I should've said something else with someone like you there." I watch her load a single shell into her shotgun. "Something has been bugging me for a while." She racked the round.
"That is?" The air between us got very still, and I found myself reaching for the Gatling gun on my back.
"How did you know where Serika was? We all looked for her but couldn't find a trace." Her face was stoic. "Yet you found her easily; how?"
"It was a coincidence. I was sent to investigate individuals who set up shop in an old subway station. I found on a computer they had taken her captive." Her finger was nearing the safety of her shotgun. "Believe it or not, if Little Jackal hadn't made me promise to bring her back, I would've left her rot." The air got colder after I said my honest thoughts.
"You wouldn't have tried to save her?" The anger in Pinky's eyes was something.
"Of course, I wouldn't have saved her; that's left to her senior at school. Yet, I suppose the senior wouldn't have been up for the task. After all, she failed to find her for three days." A bright light was near my face again.
[What are you saying?!]
"You think I didn't try my hardest to find her?" The intensity in her eyes was at a level I didn't expect.
"You didn't; otherwise, you would've found out about those mercenaries moving around Abydos." Don't do what I think you want to do, Pinky.
"I can't patrol all of Abydos in one night." I smirk at her.
"I know you can't, but you proved you can do two districts simultaneously. But something tells me you're not as thorough as me."
"You get your kicks talking down to kids?" Oh.
"You're no child; you're nearly a young adult like me. One more year and you'll become just like me. Although I wouldn't say I'm a coward." Surprise flashes quickly in her eyes and disappears just as fast.
"You don't know me. How can you call me a coward?" I point at my eyes once she finishes.
"Your eyes. The eyes of a coward that tried to move forward yet couldn't. Not because external forces stopped them, but because they didn't want to." No matter how I look at you, Pinky, you sicken me. "So, like I said earlier, happy trails, and get some rest you look like you need it."
I don't bother to hear any more words from her; the mood is sour as is. Walking down into the train station, I take a seat and relax. I feel the bright light of the text box and decide to ignore it. I just don't care right now.
(Schale 6:58 a.m.)
It was nice to be back inside the Schale building. Looking over another piece of paperwork, I notice it's a registration form for any workers I hire. It was on top of the paperwork, which means Knife Ears wants this done before anything else. I put it aside since no one besides myself is in right now. Grabbing the following paper is the Abydos patrol sheet. Apparently, it's due this afternoon, so it's the top priority. I assumed it was due this morning, but I'll count my blessings.
Filling it out, I noticed once I reached the bottom that these patrols are supposed to be done weekly. This means I'll have to do another right before I'm dismissed from duty. What a drag! I set the paper aside after finishing it. I continued my rhythm, going through paper after paper. The text box interrupts me when I reach for the last two papers.
[You stepped out of line with Hoshino.]
I grab the following paper and begin jotting down on it.
[Are you even paying attention to me!]
I finished filling out this form. I go for another only to be blasted by an even brighter light.
[Listen!]
"You do that again, I'll kill you.
[Maybe listen to me, and I wouldn't!]
"Fine, speak your piece, then leave me be."
[You had no reason to say what you said to Hoshino.]
"Well, if you must—" Before I can finish my sentence, my phone rings. "We'll finish this talk later." The text box vanishes, allowing me to pick up my phone.
"Hello, Kivotos' biggest jackass speaking."
"Substitute! We need your help!" The voice of Kitty Cat pierces my ear.
"Damn, did you need to yell what's up?" I hear other voices for a second before she speaks.
"Yes, it's him. I'm getting there! Sorry for yelling, but Shiroko heard someone talking about coming to our school." I remained silent for a moment before speaking.
"Alright, what does this have to do with me?" Please tell me it's something I can do from here. I like to be able to do some work; I don't want more pile-up.
"We have papers to authorize a transfer, but we're wondering if you can help by doing a background check on them." I rub my forehead in annoyance.
"Sure, I suppose what's their first and last name?" I get on the computer and click on the tools icon.
"Well, we don't know since she isn't here yet and she hasn't sent a transfer paper." I face-plant into the keyboard.
"Then call me when she does Kitty Cat."
"Why can't you just come down here and see her yourself? After all, if you don't see her face, you may do a background check on the wrong person." I want to argue but don't have it in me.
"Fine, I'll come on down and see her. Gimme a couple of hours." I heard a couple of other voices sounding happy about this victory.
"Thanks! See you soon, Substitute."
She hangs up, leaving me to sit in silence. I begrudgingly get up and make my way to the elevator. Taking it down, I can only hope this girl is normal. Getting into the lobby, I spot my three stooges entering. I wave at them, causing them all to wave back.
"Gigget, I completed the work you put on my desk. Sadly, I have to go back out to Abydos, so if you could do the same thing again, I'd appreciate it." She looked dead inside.
"Ugh, alright, but I want a bonus if this keeps happening." That's reasonable.
"Sure, we can talk about it when I get back." She let out a grunt.
Exiting out, I begin my walk back to the train station and Abydos High. I can only hope the girl in question won't be a nuisance to talk to.
(Abydos Residential Area 10:27 am.)
Walking through the desert heat was something else; I'm sweating a little.
[About our talk earlier.]
"My mood just fixed itself; don't ruin it." The box just swapped spots.
[Don't think I'll just let that go!]
"I think you should."
[What reasonable person would let that go?]
"Someone who doesn't talk to hallucinations like you!"
[Seems like you're not a reasonable person then.]
"I...don't have a defense against that.
[Exactly! We're finishing this discussion, young man!]
"I'm not having this conversation with a hallucination of my mind! You should know why I said what I said."
[Well, I want to hear you say it!] My eyes narrow at the box. [What?]
"Nothing. I thought I saw someone I knew through you." The box vanished from my sight line, allowing me to see Abydos High more clearly. In front of the school was a gaggle of girls.
[That's gotta be at least thirty in total.]
"Yeah, I got a bad feeling." Scanning, I do notice one halo sticking out like a sore thumb. "Is that Haruka over there?" When I focus, I can tell that gloomy expression from anywhere. Though something is wrong, I'm unsure if the people around her noticed it. But she has the same weird corruption on her halo that the chest has. It must be my eyes. There is no way a bug on the chest is affecting her; definitely getting some sleep after today. Still, I should check on her.
Getting closer, I noticed that the other girls near Haruka each had a unique style. A short gremlin of a girl with a ponytail carrying a massive bag, One wearing a hoodie with what I think is a skull on it; she also has one small wing and her own bag. Finally, a horned girl who is not even wearing her coat correctly, though she's probably doing that cause it's hot out. Said girl is also the tallest of the bunch. All around the four of them was a bunch of girls in construction gear. I see the window open up from the second floor of Abydos High. Then no sooner multiple barrels point out of it.
[Isn't that Nonomi's minigun pointing out of the window?]
Oh no.