Chapter 9: For Wish And Want

The howling winds of the sandstorm outside made it difficult for anyone who wasn't used to the climate to see more than a few meters in front of them. Fortunately for the drivers of the armored utility vehicle, not only was it sealed up tight, but a pair of powerful thermal imaging lights on its hood kept them on track towards their destination, a massive compound carved into a cliff face. A series of metal barricades and fences had been erected, and several towers with robot guards armed with a variety of rifles and other weaponry could be seen overlooking the compound's perimeter. As the convoy pulled in, the driver spoke to his co-pilot as they both exited the vehicle and began making their rounds.

"You see the game last night, bud?" asked the driver, his metallic frame covered in an olive camouflage pattern, with his display visor showing an upside down triangle rather than any emotions. "We're going to kill them this year."

"Yeah, yeah, keep telling yourself that," the co-pilot returned the sentiment. He was also a robot of a similar type, and although his newer model frame meant his design was more streamlined and less blocky, with a beige pattern instead of his partner's olive green one. "I don't get why you care so much about a bunch of kids playing baseball. Millennium is a science school. Those bunch of nerds can't possibly match up against those muscle freaks at Shanhaijing. Dunno why you expected the Hawks to stand a chance."

"I don't get why YOU care so much about that," the driver retorted. "You know I'm the biggest fan of the Millennium Metal Hawks. I've seen every one of their games for the past five years."

"Five years is nothing. Try ten, and then we'll talk."

"Ten years of being a fan doesn't automatically make you a fan."

"Yeah, well, ten years of being a fan doesn't mean a damn thing if the team ends up losing, and losing the playoff spot for the ninth year in a row."

"The Hawks are not going to place last again this year," the driver stated resolutely.

"That's the spirit, brother," droned the co-pilot. If he could display an animation of eye-rolling like the civilian models could, he would have. "Just don't go around beating yourself up when you lose 20,000 credits betting for them when they do."

"I don't know how, but I just know the Millennium Hawks are going to win," the driver insisted. "And if you're such a big fan, why don't you come with me to one of the games? You'll be a believer then."

"Pass," the co-pilot snidely replied. "I prefer going on dates with the ladies. Not wasting a day off watching a bunch of kids play pretend."

"WHAT ladies?" the driver retorted, clearly offended. "Are you seriously still trying to pine for that teacher at Shanhaijing, you creep? I don't think a former student like her would care for someone that's not even the same species!"

"Shut up! I can dream, can't I? Besides, what would you know about her? You haven't even seen her yet."

"Oh, trust me, she's hot," the driver answered. "So, she's way out of your league. If anything, I've got a better shot than you do. She'd probably like someone more experienced and worldly, not some creepy pervert."

"Well, I bet she'd rather date someone who'd actually give her a chance. And don't even try to lie that you'd give her a chance, brother. She's out of YOUR league too."

The driver let out a mechanical groan. "You are so full of it, bud. A part of me wishes she'd come over here and shut that dirty mouth of yours."

"She'd sooner take your parts for scrap," the driver's coworker interjected. "And what do you mean, a part of you?"

"Look, I just want some action for once in our lives, alright? Every single day we come to this top-secret base in the middle of nowhere in some dying district, just because the Director is delusional enough to think we can dig for some ancient superweapon down here. I'm starting to think it's a waste of time, and it's just a giant money pit for the company. No action, the boss sucks, and..."

Just then, a violent, sudden rumbling began to shake the ground as a series of cracks rapidly spread along the cliff wall and towards the base. The driver and his passenger quickly rushed to the front entrance as the rumbling grew in intensity, causing several pieces of equipment on a nearby table to fall onto the floor. A giant, mechanical snake lined with glowing orange stripes burst out of the sand, its roar blaring through the desert daylight as it smashed and destroyed a watchtower and one of the gates from its entry. The remaining towers unloaded a manner of explosives and gunfire on the beast, but nothing seemed to be able to even dent the monstrosity. It roared and spewed a gigantic laser from its mouth that turned the bases of the watchtowers into dust, sending them and their occupants tumbling to the floor. The two guards fruitlessly unloaded their small arms onto the snake, which did little but draw its attention as it began training another laser onto them.

"This the action you wanted, you dick?" berated the passenger. "I swear if my cloud backups fail, I will haunt you until the end of days-"

He didn't get to finish his sentence, as the laser turned his and his friend's frames into dust.

"...Oh yeah, right there. You're hitting the spot."

It was early in the morning, as less than six hours had passed since I had cleaned the clocks of the Helmet Gangsters. Daybreak was barely a few minutes ago, and it would be some time before sunrise, which was the time I had agreed to meet with the Abydos students. While I had come somewhat ahead of time to be punctual and show Hoshino some courtesy, I had forgotten a very important detail and was now paying the price for my mistake: Hoshino was more than eager to play up her old man persona to secure a back massage from me.

"No, no, you're doing it all wrong now!" she chided me. "You can't just stop right in the middle of a session! That's just rude, Sensei! You treat your grandparents like that too?"

"No, it's not that. It's just... ugh, why do I even have to do this?"

"Because I'm an old man and your back massage is the only thing standing between me and a very sore back, obviously. Those kids were heavy, and you just left them all over the school for me to pick up!"

"You're younger than me, Hoshino," I sighed. I might be an intergalactic traveler, but I had never met a kid with the personality of an old man. Qingque might be the closest example, considering that by the standards of long-lived species, she'd be around my and March's age, but she seemed to spend every waking second figuring out how to dodge work so she can play some Celestial Jade at a parlor table. The thing though was that Qingque was still an adult regardless of the standards you imposed on her. Hoshino was, no matter how you sliced it, a teenager who had a very similar personality, including the part where she was one of the few people who could effortlessly talk circles around me.

"Not in soul," she replied, a bit more seriously. "Now, where were we?"

I groaned again, before getting back to giving Hoshino her massage, digging deep into her shoulders as I loosened the knots around that area. "Heh heh, nice, I was right about you! When I get my juniors to do this, I usually can't feel a thing. And they're far from unfit. Especially not Shiroko." Was she using this as an excuse to gauge my strength? Maybe I'm overthinking it. Just because she doesn't trust me doesn't mean everything she does is for the sake of a scheme. "Ah, that put some pep back in my step! Think you added a few years back to my life, Sensei!"

"Don't joke about that, Hoshino," I chuckled.

"Why not? You're not going to live forever, so why can't we enjoy our fleeting moments together?" She suddenly became somber. "After all, no one lives forever..."

"Are you alright, Hoshino?" I asked worriedly. It didn't take my Clockwork ability to see there was serious sorrow hiding behind her facade.

Hoshino perked right up again as if nothing happened. "Ah, sorry, just yammering, that's all. Why don't you tell me about yourself? The Galactic Educator is what's hip with all the kids today. What's the story of the heroine that's taken Kivotos by storm?"

I laughed heartedly, getting a kick out of Hoshino stroking my ego. "You're giving me too much credit. It's not like Kivotos is going to build a statue of me when I'm gone."

"Oh, I highly doubt that, Sensei," Hoshino responded mockingly. "You're a haloless hero that came from the stars to save us from the evil oppressors, and now you're going to bring peace and order to Abydos!"

"Hey, come on. There's plenty of other haloless people around here. What about those robots and animal people?"

Hoshino stared at me like I was crazy, all levity in her expression gone, as she tilted her head and gave me an inquisitive look. "I didn't say that, Sensei. I said you were a haloless."

"But..." I paused before continuing. "You just said I was a haloless just now too."

Hoshino continued to stare at me, with concern creeping into her expression. "I didn't, Sensei."

I began to worry that something was wrong with my brain. Hoshino had no reason to gaslight me, and I realized that Arona had used that word in an odd manner a couple days ago as well. After all, why would it matter to the students if March had a halo or not, if only I could see them? I clenched my teeth as I put the pieces together and concluded Silver Wolf was, once again, having a bit too much fun at my expense. I should get some answers out from her sooner rather than later.

"Hey, Sensei," Hoshino grinned mischievously. "If you don't want me telling my juniors their savior is a crazy person, how about you massage my feet until they get here?"

I rolled my eyes. "They probably think I'm crazy already, considering I turned them down their help and said I'd handle it myself. So, what if I'm hearing things?"

"It doesn't mean you don't need to make a good first impression in-person," she responded. She took off her shoes and placed her feet on the table, the socks covering her soles considerably worn and stained with sand. I could tell that the past week had been hard on her. "Come on, don't keep a lady waiting."

"I thought you were an old man," I rebuked.

"I am an old man in the soul, young one," she retorted. "And I don't appreciate being kept waiting."

"This is ridiculous and stupid. I refuse."

"Hey, I get my juniors to do it all the time." At this point, I was pretty sure respect for seniority was the only thing keeping Ayane from tossing Hoshino out a window as retribution for her antics. "If you ease my pain, I promise I won't tell them about what happened in the security room!"

I sighed, defeated, and began massaging her feet. Hoshino preened like a dog who had just discovered a new toy as we waited away the minutes waiting for the rest of the Abydos students to arrive. I gained newfound appreciation for Rin as unlike her contemporary at Abydos' student council, Rin was rather agreeable and easy to work with despite her position as GSC Vice President. They eventually did show up, shuffling into the room in neat orderly fashion as their standard uniforms consisting of a white dress shirt, navy blue blazer, and black pleated skirt were complemented by shoes and long socks of their choice. The one with short black hair in a bob cut matched alongside her pointed elf-like ears and thick, red-rimmed glasses was Okusora Ayane, and she gave a friendly and courteous wave as she calmly sat down and shuffled some papers. The one with ink blue cat ears with somewhat lighter in hue long twintails as well as a earpiece which looked similar to the one I was currently wearing to communicate with Arona was Kuromi Serika, and upon taking a look at the sight of myself continuing to give Hoshino a foot massage, rolled her eyes and dropped her head with a resounding thud onto the table out of both exhaustion and exasperation. The one with silver shoulder-length hair as well as ears resembling that of a wolf's was Sunaookami Shiroko, who despite her outwardly stoic demeanor, was clearly anxious about something, quickly taking a seat and drumming her lime gloved fingers on her thighs.

"Morning, Sensei!" Ayane greeted, her voice as bright and cheery as her smile. It was a remarkable thing to see, considering everything that had happened to them. Making the best of a terrible situation was always something I admired the Belobog residents for, and it looks like it'll be no different for the Abydos students as well. "I hope Senpai's not being too much of a bother."

"Oh, no, she's not a bother at all," I lied as naturally as I breathed. "I think the two of us are destined to do this forever."

"You mean, massaging her feet?" Serika rolled her eyes. "Please tell me you're joking. I don't know why you haven't pushed her off the Sanctum Tower yet, Sensei. If it was me, I'd have done it by now."

"Hehe, give me a break, Serika," Hoshino droned drowsily. "I'm too cute to die."

"Says the old man," Serika retorted.

"Nothing says I can't be an old man at heart and a young lady in soul!"

"Uh huh, sure."

"We're getting off topic, everyone," Ayane scolded, a hint of growing impatience in her tone. "I'm sure Sensei is a very busy person, and it would be impolite to keep her any longer than necessary." She glanced over at me, still hard at work rubbing Hoshino's feet, and raised an eyebrow. "Right, Sensei?"

"Right," I affirmed. I finally pulled away from Hoshino, the latter letting out a small, disappointed whine, before taking a seat and clearing my throat. "The GSC's files said the school has five students, but there's only four of you present today. Where is Nonomi?"

Ayane's expression turned visibly worried as she began. "We haven't seen her since we split up after the attack on the school." Shiroko shifted a bit in her seat as Ayane continued. "I think Hoshino went out to look for her last night, but evidently Hoshino couldn't track her down either."

Hoshino nodded, wearing a rare serious and grim expression, and said nothing further as Ayane continued.

"It's worrying, but Nonomi can handle herself. I'm sure she's just holed up somewhere for the time being. We'll pass along everything we discuss with you today to her when she's available." She paused, before returning to a calm state of mind and getting back onto her agenda at hand. "Oh, that's right, we haven't properly introduced ourselves."

"No need," I replied. "I've read all your files. The sooner we can get started on finding a solution to your problem, the better."

"Alright, straight to business then." She passed me a sheet of paperwork that listed each student's names on it, excluding the currently absent Izayoi Nonomi and for whatever reason, Hoshino's name. Hoshino took the sheet from me, signing her name on it, before passing it back to me. The paperwork was for the official formation of a club called the Foreclosure Task Force, with empty signature slots for the name of the Advisor officiating the formation as well as overseeing the club in the future. I signed it before scanning it with my phone and sent the file to Kayoko for her to process when she wakes up, and dematerialized the paper into my inventory, eliciting some interest from the students.

"Wow, that's a neat party trick, Sensei," Hoshino purred as she stretched her arms and yawned loudly.

The realization hit me like a freight train, as I had completely forgotten about one of the things I had to do in order to help Abydos. Luckily, I did bring the specific items with me. "Sort of." Getting up from my seat, I walked to a part of the room with free space and spawned three large ammo crates stacked on top of each other. This should be enough to last the Abydos students for a while by themselves. The ammo Hoshino had looted from the Helmet Gangsters last night was nowhere to be seen, likely in a proper storage room for the munitions.

"Whoa! Did you just... make those?" Serika asked in astonishment. "Is that one of your superpowers or something?"

I grinned as I took the opportunity to mess with her a little. "I am the bone of my bat. Stellaron is my body and Trailblaze is my bl-"

Ayane shot me with a sharp, disapproving look, instantly shutting down my antics. "Sensei, please. Take this seriously."

I scratched the back of my head, chuckling. "Sorry. Force of habit." Serika's look of wonder shifted to outrage as she realized I was messing with her, but Shiroko's eyes lit up with a hint of fascination. She stood up from her seat and began opening one of the crates, peering inside at its contents, stuffing a few grenades into her pockets before sitting back down again, as I continued speaking. "I can dematerialize and store some things within myself and take them back out when I want to use them. I thought it was all over the news and Internet."

"Oh, um..." Serika turned away and began mumbling out an excuse, something the still silent Shiroko regarded with curiosity. "I just wasn't paying attention, that's all."

"Don't worry about it, Serika," I reassured, taking another opportunity to pester her. "I'm sure most kids would react similarly if they saw a real-life superhero."

Hoshino snorted. "I don't think having a baseball bat is a superpower, Sensei."

"You know anyone else that could take on an entire army of gun-toting thugs with just a bat, Hoshino? If that's not heroic, I don't know what is."

"Hey, I helped out too! That last one was giving you LOTS of trouble. I'm sure the others would love to hear about it-"

Ayane slammed the table with both open palms, getting everyone to snap back to attention. The look in her eyes betrayed that if I wasn't present, she would have let her rage boil over long ago and was restraining herself out of courtesy towards me. Annoying her further would be an easy and stupid way to fail at the first major task I've dedicated myself to as Sensei. "Please, focus on the matter at hand. Thank you for bringing us supplies, Sensei, this should be enough for us to defend against any further attacks against ourselves or the school. We'll make sure your efforts earlier don't go to waste. However, the Foreclosure Task Force was created to solve our bigger problem."

"The problem with the debt," I surmised.

Ayane nodded. "I was afraid you'd be unaware after our phone call yesterday. I'm glad I was worried about nothing." I felt a little guilty at the fact Ayane now thinks I'm more informed than I actually am, but it wouldn't do much good to correct her. "We're hoping you'd be able to assist us in getting rid of the debt, or at least lower the amount. The main point of this meeting was for us to bring you up to speed and pass ideas around on how to pay off our debt to Kaiser."

From an educated guess, I'd say if IPC credits and the Kivotos yen had an exchange rate, it'd be around two-to-one, though my basis for this ratio was rather shallow: food on Kivotos generally cost much less than medicine did, while in worlds taking IPC credits that exact opposite was true. If I were to abide by this theory, then I could buy nine sodas in Kivotos for the price of one soda in Belobog. Regardless, it was the best guess I had. And from this guess, even if it wasn't the most accurate, it was sadly rather easy for me to come to a rather obvious conclusion.

"How much is the debt?" I asked.

The rest of the group grimaced as Ayane seemed to choke out the number. "Around a billion yen."

My heart sank a little hearing that number, as I'd guess it'd be around 500 million IPC credits. I was, by all measures, someone who was rather well off; I got royalties from the sales of "Legend of the Galactic Baseballer" as well as the merchandise in the Radiant Feldspar, Herta pays me a handsome sum every time I ran a test of the Simulated Universe which occurred around twice per week, not to mention my cut of the profits after the Astral Express' overall share of Penacony was divided amongst its Crew. All the things I just listed were just my regular income, as I had quite literally dozens of other ways of making money. And I still would not come anywhere close to making a reasonable dent in the debt.

"I will be frank. No suggestion I could give you would be of any help. Paying off this debt is impossible, and this is entirely by design."

The mood in the room deflated. I wasn't going to sugarcoat the issue. This was something the Abydos students had already known, but were hoping that with my intervention, their chances of paying it off would increase. Now, it was a cruel truth they would have to accept.

Ayane sighed as the others looked on rather hopelessly. "We know, Sensei. We've been doing all we can to meet minimum monthly payments to keep Kaiser from repossessing the school, but that doesn't stop the interest from piling on. It wasn't that long ago that our debt was around 900 million yen instead of 1 billion."

It gives me no pleasure to do this and brought back memories of when I sided with Svarog over Clara regarding Pascal's ultimate fate. I had made her cry by doing so, but she relented and accepted my decision. As much as I hated myself for doing it, I would have hated myself a lot more if I willingly let Clara subject herself to that level of long-term torment for an outcome that was very likely to leave her emotionally scarred. In the end, Pascal was somehow able to imprint itself onto other units after its decommissioning, but without the defects that would have made Clara's life a living hell.

After some silence, Ayane continued. "Sensei, what did you mean by us not being able to pay it back being by design?"

I began explaining, visible anger and outrage seeping through my expression, which seemed to startle Hoshino a little. "So, you didn't know? Kaiser are the ones who hired the Helmet Gangsters to attack your school."

The Abydos students present reacted with visible shock: Shiroko's eyes widened, Serika's head snapped upwards and she was back in a proper sitting posture, and Ayane was visibly baffled by my declaration. Only Hoshino didn't show any surprise at all, which made sense as she overheard me bluff the driver yesterday.

"W-What?! Do you have any proof, Sensei?" Ayane stammered.

"I do," I confirmed. "I have testimony from other students that Kaiser specifically hired them to assist in the takeover. The debt collector who comes to receive your cash came just one minute after midnight yesterday, which I believe was the deadline for your latest payment. I also pretended to be a Helmet Gangster to get information out of him, and he confessed that Kaiser hired them to occupy your school. Kaiser were never after your money. They were always after the school itself."

"Then... they were planning this all along, weren't they?" Ayane deduced, her face darkening as her anger and fury began to grow. "They've been using the money we gave them to fund the attacks on us." The exploitation of children was a level of depravity that was uncommon in my experiences, and deeply disgusted me whenever I had encountered such a thing. Just the thought of it made me want to turn the debt collector's words against him and wipe Kaiser off the map with extreme prejudice.

Before I could stew in my outrage, Ayane's laptop began playing a ringtone, and she immediately stood up and turned the screen around to face the rest of the table. On it was a video call notification from the presently missing Izayoi Nonomi. The others fell into a hushed silence as the feed of a well-endowed motherly-looking girl with pale blonde hair and green eyes filled the laptop screen. Her forced smile and seemingly cheerful demeanor failed to mask her obvious sorrow, and the black-and-white business suit and tie she wore was more fitting for a funeral service than an office.

"Hi, everyone!" she greeted. "I'm sorry if I made you worry. Especially you, Hoshino! You left my phone with dozens of missed call notifications. Everyone, I've come to make an announcement-"

"Nonomi, no!" Hoshino yelled in panic as tears began to fill her eyes. "Please, you don't have to do this! I promised you we would-"

"It's already done, Hoshino. I'm sorry. I wanted to run away from it all. I wish our happy school days could have lasted forever. But I already knew the truth; I can't run away from my role in life forever. I'm so sorry for everything, Hoshino. You've fought so hard to keep my impossible dream alive. The least I could do is, when I go back to what I always had to do, to make sure to fulfill yours."

While Serika and Ayane were too taken aback by the turn of events to do anything, Shiroko got up from her seat and briskly walked over to Hoshino, hugging her tightly from behind in an attempt to comfort her. Shiroko's anxiousness had seemingly evaporated, which made me suspect she knew about this for some time and kept to herself. The sight of it made Nonomi laugh, a mix of pride and bitterness layered within that simple action.

"Shiroko, you've gotten so big and strong since we found you!" The choice of words made me take pause, but I brushed it off as Nonomi continued. "Ayane, Serika, the two of you have grown into fine young ladies, and the best friends a girl could ever have! Hoshino... please, don't blame yourself. You tried your hardest, and for that, I can't thank you enough."

"But, why? You could have just paid off the debt without going back! There was no reason to-"

"And risk my family running Abydos into the ground again, like what happened with the Trans-District Railroad? This way, I can convince my family to let me run our renewed Abydos ventures. It was the only way to keep the school safe." She paused before continuing. "I'm sure you already know, Shiroko. You really should stop digging through other people's bags! Stealing is wrong, after all." Shiroko said nothing and maintained a neutral expression. "But everyone, I've decided to go back to my family and become an executive of the Saint Nephthys Group."

While the revelation sent shockwaves throughout the Abydos students, I was completely clueless as to who or what they were, and with Arona currently asleep I had zero way of discreetly getting information about them at the moment. I simply sat there, watching the scene unfold with zero understanding of the situation. As if on cue, Nonomi finally called attention to my presence.

"Sensei, I can't thank you enough for helping my friends take back our school. Please, don't worry about us anymore. I'm sure you rushed over here as soon as you could have. The debt is gone now, and I will be in charge of bringing prosperity back to Abydos."

I shook my head. "The fact it ever got to this point is a travesty. I will bring justice to those who oppressed you for what they have done. And..." I paused, letting a smug smile seep onto my visage. "I know a thing or two about bringing a dead district back to life and beating a megacorporation at their own game."

Nonomi laughed. "Is that a challenge, Stelle-sensei? There's no one in Saint Nephthys that doesn't know your name. Not after the ruckus you caused on one of our trains."

So Highlander IS Saint Nephthys, or at least a part of it? Looks like I got on her family's bad side much faster than I would have liked. Though, Nonomi's personality and backstory reminded me quite a bit of Asta; unlike Asta, Nonomi sadly wasn't able a prestigious position so highly regarded that it kept her family off her back. Getting on her family's bad side probably scored me favorability points with Nonomi if anything.

"Maybe," I grinned. "But my top priority is getting Abydos back on its feet. I would jump at any chance I could to help you, Nonomi."

An unknown girl's voice came in from offscreen, one that was oddly familiar to me. "Miss Izayoi, our meeting with the Kaiser Corporation representatives will be happening shortly. Please wrap up your personal business immediately."

Nonomi looked at the screen, her composure cracking for just a split second. "I might not be an Abydos student anymore, but we will always be friends. I promise we'll see each other again."

The call ended, and Hoshino finally let it all out as her wailing seemed to pierce the heavens, her eyes bloodshot, her sand-stained sleeves covered in tears. "How could I let this HAPPEN?" Hoshino continued to sob as she repeatedly pounded the table with her fist, nearly splitting it into two. "She would have been happier if she stayed! Why couldn't I convince her to STAY? Why... WHYYYYY?"

Serika and Ayane looked at each other, unsure of what to do, as Shiroko was visibly struggling to keep Hoshino confined.

"It's not your fault," Shiroko whispered as she held back her tears. "We all knew this was a possibility when the three of us first formed the Foreclosure Task Force. None of us wanted it, but we had no choice."

"We didn't have a choice then," Hoshino retorted, her sobs subsiding and her rage replacing the sorrow. "We have one now. And if she won't fight for her happiness, I'll FIGHT FOR HER. If her family won't treat her right, then they'll learn to FEAR ME." She broke free of Shiroko's grasp with one swing of her arms and bolted for the door, only for both myself and Shiroko to tackle her simultaneously, pinning her to the floor. Hoshino effortlessly threw Shiroko off, forcing me to use my full strength to keep her still. "Damn it! Let me go, Sensei! Let me go! Please..." She sobbed quietly, no longer struggling as the weight of the world came crashing down on her. "I... I can't decide. It's too much..." I got up, and Hoshino lay on the floor as she continued to cry. "An Abydos free from debt... just like we wanted. Right, Nonomi?"

Suddenly, the ground began experiencing tremors, and Ayane informed me those were usually the foreshocks before a larger earthquake. Assuring me they'd be fine for the time being, she sent me away, ostensibly for my safety. I obliged, as the Abydos students needed some time alone after everything that had happened recently. I walked out the door and towards the Space Anchor with a determined, piercing gaze; vehemently swearing to bring Kaiser to justice for how they had destroyed the lives of the Abydos students. The IPC at least cared about their reputation. Kaiser was an entirely different beast, committing wanton and targeted acts of cruelty against children with complete impunity. No more. I won't stop my newfound crusade against them. Not until everything burns to ashes.

-Displaying most recent conversation history-

Stelle: So anyway, that's what happened today.

Silver Wolf: Interesting. Things aren't going as I thought.

Stelle: How so?

Silver Wolf: I'm not quite sure. I'd say you're the hidden element. Elio did say you were the only one who could defy fate, but I wasn't sure what Elio meant by that. My only guess would be your presence alone is changing the timeline of everything.

Stelle: You think it's my fault Abydos is doing so badly?

Silver Wolf: Don't be ridiculous. Though, it wouldn't be a challenge for you if things were going as originally intended. Consider it a difficulty tweak.

Stelle: Placing that memetic virus in my mind wasn't already one?

Silver Wolf: Relax, why do you always have to overreact? It wasn't a memetic virus; it was a perception blocker. I read some files from members of the Genius Society, and figured I may as well take my own crack at it. Didn't think it would work so well.

Stelle: Let me guess, you placed one on Arona too.

Silver Wolf: Everything is code at the end of the day. As far as she knows, you and I aren't having any conversations. Our texts and phone calls are invisible to her. I haven't figured out the kinks of how to deal with her if we meet in person though.

Stelle: But why something like people referring to me and March as aliens?

Silver Wolf: Because you'd hold back less, and that wouldn't be as fun. Though I gotta be honest, you literally call yourself the Galactic Educator. The irony was too rich for me to pass up.

Stelle: Yeah, well, now that I've been called it enough times, it doesn't feel as cool or funny. Either way, it might be unavoidable for us to bring Kivotos into the galaxy's fold as a whole, since they're vaguely aware of our origins. That, and the IPC watches every move the Astral Express makes, uncharted territory or not. They'll find us eventually, especially after what happened on Jarilo-VI.

Silver Wolf: Mm-hmm. And then you'll have a choice to make.

Stelle: What's that supposed to mean?

Silver Wolf: We're the same, you and I.

Stelle: I have no idea what you're talking about, but OK, I guess we're both gamers.

Silver Wolf: Unlike what March likes to think, we're both not so different.

Stelle: Duh. Can you drop the cryptic lectures?

Silver Wolf: I'll do you better, I'll give you an obvious hint. When you meet with Seminar, tell them one thing: "The Punk Lord sends her regards."

Stelle: Are you trying to get me killed? What did you do to them?

Silver Wolf: Well, it's the only lead you got. And frankly, as far as anything on Kivotos being an actual threat to your survival goes, you're unstoppable.

Silver Wolf: Oh, the dailies for Impact 3rd refreshed. Talk to you later, Stelle.

Silver Wolf: -Silver Wolf blowing bubblegum sticker-

-There are no more messages-

Immediately afterwards, my phone buzzed, alerting me to a series of texts sent by Yuuka.

-Displaying most recent conversation history-

Yuuka: Stelle, are you busy? Rio called the rest of Seminar into an emergency meeting. She wants to see you right this instant.

Stelle: What a demanding girl. I just finished up some business. I'll have the chopper prepared and be on my way.

Yuuka: Not so fast, she wants March here too. She didn't say why.

Stelle: I'm guessing it has something to do with where I'm from?

Yuuka: I wouldn't know. You'll have to ask her.

Stelle: I'll wait for March to wake up then and bring her. Oh, and pass along a message to Rio for me: "The Punk Lord sends her regards."

Author's Notes:

A shorter chapter focusing on the Abydos students and moving the plot along. Regular updates are still off the table for now.