RE: [ic][STORY] February 2017 in Ottawa
03-27-2022, 08:43 PM (This post was last modified: 04-30-2022, 06:59 PM by robkelk.)
03-27-2022, 08:43 PM (This post was last modified: 04-30-2022, 06:59 PM by robkelk.)
Picking up from the end of post #11...
Highway 416, approaching Kemptville, ON, Canada
February 12, 2017
9:49 AM
Both vans were making the trip to Kemptville, following Haruka's car on the way home after Michiru's fourth rede.
Shiage was in the lead van - the one that they had just bought second-hand. They'd been driving for nearly three-quarters of an hour, on both city roads and highways, and Shiage was quite happy with the van's performance. For an automatic, of course.
So he was able to spare some attention for his girlfriend as he took the offramp into Kemptville, slipping into traffic just in front of a Greyhound bus that had just taken the Kemptville offramp from the other direction on the highway.
"So far, so good," he said casually.
"No," Rikou whispered in panic.
"What's wrong?"
"That bus. Meltdowner is on it."
Shiage was certain about two things about his girlfriend's power: that once she memorized another esper's AIM pattern, she could find that pattern again anywhere; and the pattern that Rikou knew best other than her own was Meltdowner's.
He didn't panic. He didn't have time to panic. He was almost at a traffic circle with roads leading off forward and into a big-box mall to the left, and a laneway to the right that went for a half-dozen yards then veered off behind some trees. He entered the circle, turned right, and took off like a bat out of Hell.
This did not go unnoticed.
"Where the Hell is he going?" Rob asked Mii from the driver's seat of the other van, in traffic behind the bus. He followed Shiage down the laneway.
Aboard the bus, one of the passengers on the bus said, "That van."
"I saw it, too," her travelling companion replied. "A super classic Hamazura move to ditch a tail."
"Who's he trying to lose? If it is him."
"If Takitsubo's with him, probably us. You did read those books."
Meltdowner glared at Kinuhata. "Don't remind me. I fucked up there, but so did she." Then she made a snap decision. "We're getting off the bus here," she announced as the bus pulled into the parking lot of the Tim Hortons in the strip mall.
As the two grabbed their bags, Rob caught up to Shiage and Rikou - they were stopped on a triangular patch of asphalt, just big enough for a road-salt truck to make a three-point turnaround, outside what appeared to be a city road-maintenance supply depot. Everyone got out of their respective vans. "What's going on?" asked Rob. "I don't think we're supposed to be here."
"Meltdowner's here."
Rob and Mii looked at each other. He spoke first: "Aw, no."
"I would have used stronger language," replied Mii.
"There are ladies present." Rob turned back to Shiage. "Do you think she spotted that sudden manoeuvre you made?"
"She's getting off the bus," Rikou replied.
Rob and Mii sighed, then said in unison, "She spotted you."
"What's Meltdowner doing here?" Mii added.
"Worry about that later," Rob replied as he pulled out his Blackberry Passport. "Right now, we need reinforcements. I'll connect to Haruka and Michiru's Good Neighbour System and leave an emergency message... fuck. Where the Hell is their Good Neighbour System?" he demanded angrily, no longer caring that there were ladies present. After a quick moment, he gave up looking for it. "I'll bet it's still in the goddamned boxes we gave it to them in just after Calabogie. I'm sending an emergency message to Blossom." He quickly typed out what he knew of the situation, included their GPS coordinates, and sent it to their home base as a priority 2 call for help.
What he forgot was that priority 2 calls for help go to all nodes in the Good Neighbour System.
Blossom Apartments, Ottawa, ON, Canada
9:55 AM Eastern Time
"Rob's in trouble," Kazari announced.
Two minutes later, five Sailor Senshi were holding each other's hands and being held tightly by five of their apartment-mates. While they could have gone on their own thanks to what Kuroko had been teaching them, it was safer to go as a group: "Sailor TELEPORT!"
Kazari watched them disappear.
Live Oaks Manor, Vicksburg, Mississippi, USA
8:55 AM Central Time
Jenny looked at the message and swore to herself. "All of the time machines we have parked here, and nobody can make it there in time because none of them work!"
"It hardly matters," Harold replied. Before she could protest, he added, "Considering the reports of the sheer magnitude of energies those people toss around, nobody here is strong enough to take part in their battle. Not even my wife."
"You're right. I'll send them a reply saying we're sorry that we can't help."
Club Lofts, Windsor, ON, Canada
9:55 AM Eastern Time
Mahoro's brooch started flashing. Squeezing it gently, she said, "What's wrong?"
"Trouble near Ottawa - a possible high-level esper battle," Hokaze's voice replied from the brooch. "I have coordinates."
Minawa looked up from the clean laundry that she was folding. "Can we get there in time to be able to help?"
Ryuga nodded. "I can use the Saint hardware that we have here to open a gateway to those coordinates, but either I'm the only one who goes through it or I send two people."
"Two allies are better than one," Slash replied.
Ryuga grimaced at the thought of missing out on a battle. "As much as I hate to say it, the cat's right."
Mahoro nodded. "Minawa, can I leave the rest of the housework here in your hands, please? Slash and I need to go help our friends."
Black Lagoon, somewhere in the Gulf of Thailand
9:55 PM Indochina Time
Dutch turned the alarm off, then turned to Rock. "Ignore it. We're not being paid to take part in that kind of shit."
"Not that we could anyway," muttered Rock as he went back to what he had been doing.
The Steeple, Philadelphia, PA, USA
9:55 AM Eastern Time
"We can't just ignore a call for help, father."
Gil looked Lotte straight in the eye. "This is an esper battle, not a mage battle. We've never seen an esper battle, much less taken part in one."
"All the more reason for us to go," replied Lotte's twin sister Aria. "We need the information."
Lindy nodded. "Agreed - we need to know what this world's forces are capable of. Amy, you and I will monitor the situation from here, and you'll get as many readings as you can. Chrono-kun -" She saw that he'd already transformed his clothing into his Barrier Jacket and was holding Durandal in staff form. "Good. Yuuno-kun..."
"Casting a long-range teleport now."
And a green glow formed around Aria, Lotte, Chrono, and Yuuno.
7 Henrietta Street, Dublin, Ireland
2:55 PM Greenwich Mean Time
"Look at how many people are saying they're going to help. We don't need to go."
"Lou's right. And we couldn't get there in time to help even if we wanted to fight. Or knew how." Meg picked up her guitar. "But we can practice playing not as perfectly as we usually do, for the victory party."
"Are you that sure they're going to win?" Anri asked.
"Considering how many people are going, I'd rather not think about the alternative."
Appartements Mont-Royal Sud, Montreal, QC, Canada
9:55 AM Eastern Time
"Volunteers only," Caster insisted as she started her spell. "This is a two-hundred-kilometre shunt to someplace I've never been before, not a quick hop down to Dieppe Park."
By the time she was ready to trigger the teleport, the volunteers were combat-ready.
Nova Scotia, Canada
10:56 AM Atlantic Time
"You're saying we have to just ignore a fight?"
Epsilon looked straight at Ranma. "Unless you can teleport, yes, that's exactly what I'm saying."
Ranma scowled. "I don't like backing down from a challenge."
"It isn't a challenge. As far as we're concerned, it's a news report." To himself, Epsilon added, I just hope nobody ends up dead.
Westwoods Apartments, San Antonio, TX, USA
8:56 AM Central Time
"You're in charge of the group."
Tenchi looked at Ben in disbelief. "I'm not ready."
Ryouko chuckled. "Sure you are."
Benjamin, though, sighed and put up a hand to forestall any further commentary.
"Tenchi, this is what you all have been preparing for. And more importantly, you will eventually come to be in a position of some importance. Seto will make absolutely certain of that."
With that statement, Tenchi cast a nervous glance in Noike's direction. The woman only nodded her head solemnly, causing Tenchi to gulp.
"Yeah, exactly," continued Benjamin. "Which is why it's important for you to become experienced sooner rather than later. Besides, Noike will be there as well. You don't need to worry about messing up because she has your back."
"But what about you?" asked Tenchi. "You're wearing your HEV Suit."
"I'm a strategic element. Not a tactical element. It's very hard for me to do 'non-lethal' with Gojira's Little Brother here." With that, Benjamin patted his right forearm with its cannon-shell reinforcing armor in standby mode. "But if it's needed? I can be there in seconds."
Tenchi sighed at that. "Do you ever get tired of being right all the time?"
"More than you can imagine, Tenchi. But at least its better than being wrong when it counts the most."
Noike laid a reassuring hand on Tenchi's shoulder. "We need to go, now."
"Yes," said Tenchi reluctantly. But when he spoke again, he sounded much more confident. "We need to help our friends. Washuu-chan?"
"Right, right," Washuu replied. "Opening a portal."
Ben watched the four of them leave, but felt that he should hedge his bets. He took out his phone, opened the Good Neighbor app, and fired off a message to Rob.
Rob. It's not that I doubt you or anything, but if you need me, I'm ready to roll at a moment's notice. We've already seen what my ability does to Espers, and that was with me barely even trying. (I still feel bad for accidentally nailing Kuroko back then.) I can shut them down faster than flies on stink, and whoever was on the receiving end will *wish* we'd just killed them instead.
Aria House, Venice Beach, CA, USA
6:57 AM Pacific Time
Shaoran placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder, gently and comfortingly. "There's no way we can get there in time to help."
Brent could think of one way - Fly there, taking however long was necessary, then Return to the battle - but he saw all of the "sending help" acknowledgement messages scrolling on the Good Neighbor System's display and thought that Rob probably had enough firepower heading his way already.
Douglass Gardens Apartments, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
9:57 AM Eastern Time
"Then it's agreed. If you would be kind enough, Guru Clef?"
He nodded, and a moment later, the Magic Knights were on their way.
Kemptville, ON, Canada
9:57 AM Eastern Time
"Do you need to do anything about that message?"
Haruka looked at her phone, then turned back to Leonard and shook her head. "I'm sure the others can take care of it." Then she saw that Michiru was finished speaking with her employer and heading back to them.
All Michiru said was "Let's go." Haruka and Leonard stood and left the coffee shop with her, going as far as the parking lot... where they met Awaki Musujime, and Uranus and Neptune teleported all four of them away.
Elsewhere in Kemptville, ON, Canada
9:55 AM Eastern Time
As Shiage drove the good van - the one that Rob had been driving - off the laneway to park it beside the fence around the road-maintenance depot, Rob piled snow onto the tire tracks, and then added some snow on top of the van once Shiage was out of it. The ladies who had accompanied them headed for whatever cover they could find - Mii behind a snowbank that lined the access lane, and Takitsubo and Frenda going a few steps into the woods to hide behind some trees.
Rob had barely had time to cover over everyone else's bootprints when there was a white glow, followed by the appearance of Sailor Moon, Sailor Venus, Sailor Mars, Sailor Mercury, Sailor Jupiter, Tuxedo Kamen, Niiko Misaka (carrying a very illegal H&K MP5K, and Rob wondered how she had managed to get it out of Blossom's armoury), Accelerator, Mimi Hanyu, and Railgun. "What's the situation?" asked Mikoto while getting a handful of steel washers out of her pocket.
Rob replied with one word: "Meltdowner."
As far as the Level 5 espers were concerned, nothing more needed to be said. Accelerator cut to the chase: "How soon until she gets here?"
"We're pretty sure she's on foot," Shiage replied, "but now she knows where to find us, thanks to that light show you made when you teleported in. Maybe five minutes if we're lucky," he added, doubting that they would be lucky.
"Right. Scatter and take cover." After a short moment, Mii added from behind her snowbank, "Too bad you didn't bring Kamijo with you."
Minako looked puzzled for a moment. "How did she know who we... Right. Mii Konori, The Girl With The X-Ray Eyes."
Rob didn't waste time sighing. "Less chatter, more hiding, Venus!" He wasn't following his own orders; instead he and Shiage headed over to the van that they hadn't yet hidden.
"We couldn't bring Kamijo," Mamoru answered Mii's comment as he jumped over a different snowbank. "His nullification effect also nullifies the Sailor Teleport."
As Mikoto electrically launched herself over the snowbank that Mii was hiding behind, she added, "So you'll just have to make do with us."
A minute later, the only people still visible were Rob, Shiage, and Niiko... and Niiko was headed for the gate to the road-maintenance depot.
She just barely managed to hide herself when Meltdowner and Saiai walked up the laneway from the other direction. As soon as they were close enough to identify the men standing beside the van, they stopped and Meltdowner shouted, "Hamazura, you asshole! Where are the other two?"
Before Shiage could answer, Rob held up a hand to stop him. He tried to draw her attention away from Shiage. "Excuse me, miss, but who are you?"
"None of your business! I'm talking to that asshole beside you!"
So much for that idea. Rob started forcing water vapour out of the air and into his hand while he whispered to Shiage, "May as well answer her."
"Yeah," he whispered back. Then he shouted, "They're hiding from you! Frenda doesn't want to end up dead!"
"You idiot! I wouldn't have killed her unless she told somebody ITEM's secrets! And I'm betting all three of you did just that when you got all cozy with Railgun! Where is that kid, anyway?"
(Behind cover, Mii put her hand on Mikoto's shoulder and quietly shook her head.)
Rob tried to defuse the situation, all-but-certain that his attempt was hopeless. "He didn't tell us anything we didn't already know!"
"Who the hell are you, anyway?" Meltdowner shouted back.
Rob noticed that they hadn't stopped walking towards him. He wasn't shouting any more; simply projecting his voice was sufficient. "Just somebody who offers people who are new to this place a safe place to stay and a chance at a new life."
"What, you're with Antiskill or whatever they call the cops here?"
Rob shook his head. "No, just a concerned citizen."
Meltdowner's companion chose that point to finally join the conversation. "That's too bad." Saiai said emotionlessly. "Now you're going to be a super dead citizen." She stepped to one side, grabbed a boulder sitting beside the laneway, picked it up, and threw it at the two men.
They ran in two directions... so the boulder only hit the van they had been standing beside.
Rob grimaced at the sound of breaking glass. "We just bought that!" Then he quickly forced the snow on the ground into a wall between them - which disintegrated under Meltdowner's simultaneous attack. "What'd'you know? I can actually block a Level 5 attack. Once."
"Once is all you'll get!"
"Once was all I needed," he replied as a lightning bolt hit Meltdowner from behind. "You're not the only Level 5 here."
She turned in pain and fury, sending what was left of her armoured clothing falling in pieces into the snow around her, shouting "Don't interfere, Railgun!"...
...only to discover Sailor Jupiter. "Sorry, wrong electrokinetic. And the people you're looking for are under our protection. If you attack them, we will punish you."
"Were you looking for me?" Mikoto asked from the top of the snowbank she had been hiding behind as she tossed a washer into the air.
Meltdowner shot a beam at the washer... and vapourized it. "Hah! Is that all you've got?"
She immediately regretted her boastful question as other people announced attacks from concealment.
"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!"
"Charm Buster!"
"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!"
"Mars Flame Sniper!"
"Moon Spiral Heart Attack!"
Rob simply sent an icicle knife flying at her left arm, while Mamoru threw one of his armor-piercing roses at her right arm, Niiko emptied a full clip of ammo in her direction, and Mikoto got off a fast lightning-bolt attack.
Meltdowner tossed one of her newly-made latticework silicon cards into the air in front of her, destroying it with her own shot - but the card turned her single shot into a wide-area barrage, taking out all of the inbound attacks and most of their cover, and hitting Sailor Venus's leg just above the knee.
Minako cried out in pain as she dropped to her remaining knee - even Senshi toughness couldn't defend against disintegration.
The Sailor Senshi immediately broke off their attacks and turned to Sailor Venus. Rob shouted at them as he mentally threw some of the remaining nearby snow at Meltdowner's face and started running across the battlefield. "Eyes on the attackers, people! Mercury, go look after Venus! Everyone else, keep fighting!"
Meanwhile, Saiai was looking for something else heavy to throw when she noticed a shadow in the nearby woods. She grabbed and threw an entire small tree - which bounced back to her, bouncing off her own shield and landing at her feet as she was knocked back. Then the person casting the shadow stepped out of concealment. "You must be the girl from the Dark May Project. Tch. I hate fighting myself."
"Accelerator. I think it'd be a super good thing if you don't fight." She didn't show it, but Saiai was frightened for the first time since she'd been dumped into the Metacontinuity.
Accelerator didn't bother being sardonic. "Can't do that. Like the ponytail girl said, those three are under our protection. But I'll make you a promise - when we win, I won't kill you or tear your arm off for daring to go up against me." He stamped his foot, and the gravel that was on the road to provide traction on the snow jumped into the air and toward Saiai - who ignored it.
Then there was a green glow between the two of them, which faded to reveal four people - two catgirls and two boys. The catgirl with the longer hair immediately jumped at Saiai - and bounced off of her. "She's got a skintight shield!"
"Do what you can, Lotte," the other catgirl shouted. "I'm busy!" As Aria said that, she jumped into the air to get out of the line of fire, hovered there, and cast a dimensional shift spell - nothing that would stop anyone from entering, but enough to prevent damaging attacks from leaving the area.
The boys didn't stand around to watch. The younger one headed straight for Sailor Venus while the black-clad one cried out, "Durandal!"
The staff in his hand replied, "Right, boss. Eternal Coffin." Then ice started forming below Meltdowner's feet - who jumped to one side and disintegrated the ice before it reached her.
"Where did you come from?" Meltdowner asked annoyedly as she put up another shield to disintegrate Railgun's lightning bolts at the same time. "Doesn't matter. You attacked me as soon as you got here without bothering to learn who's on whose side."
"We were briefed on the battle while we were transiting. I came from the local Administration Bureau base. My name is Chrono Harlaown. It isn't too late for you to surrender, Meltdowner."
"There's no way I'd trust that offer after you tried to kill me! 'Eternal' anything is usually pretty damned fatal. You can die now!"
"Layered Round Shield!" Chrono got his defence up just in time to block Meltdowner's disintegration ray, losing all but one of the layers. He decided to take to the sky... which threw off the aim of Meltdowner's counterattack. As he headed toward Aria's position, she launched a Stinger Snipe to cover his retreat.
By this point, the last of the newcomers had reached Sailors Venus and Mercury. He took one look at what was left of Venus's leg, grimaced, and knelt right beside her so that he could hold his hand close to the injury. "I'm Yuuno Scrya. I can help."
"Do it," Minako almost-yelled through gritted teeth.
As Yuuno started a Physical Heal spell, Mercury described exactly what the injury was. "Traumatic amputation above the knee, a clean sever. Part of the tissue is missing - there's no way to re-attach the limb."
"Unless we force her to regenerate the lost tissue," Yuuno replied. "I'm modifying my spell. Where's the leg?"
Before Ami could reach for Minako's severed limb, there was a crack of displaced air. "Sorry we're late."
Ami looked up for a brief moment. "Mahoro! Slash! Avoid the woman who's destroying every attack we send at her," she said as Meltdowner shot Aria's Stinger Snipe out of the air. "Your target's the girl who the albino's attacking." She gestured in Accelerator's general direction. "Sorry I can't help," she added as she turned back to Minako and Yuuno.
"You're busy," growled Slash. "We're going." He leapt at Saiai... and bounced. The only effect he had was to make her look away from Accelerator and Mahoro - who attacked her at the same time with no effect.
At the far end of Aria's pocket dimension, four people who had teleported in unnoticed decided that they now knew who was on whose side. "Two opponents, both powerful," the blonde woman commented.
"The one in the dress is a bigger threat than the one in the hooded jacket," replied the boy in the business suit. "I can see that much, but I can't affect them directly."
"They're espers, not mages," the brown-haired girl with the broom said.
The taller man boasted, "Esper or mage, they should have trouble living through my Reality Marble."
After a quick moment, the boy said, "It's worth a try. We'll do something about the girl in the hoodie while you hit the woman in the dress. Saber, please guard Archer. Honami, let's get airborne."
"I'm not used to having somebody watching my back when I do this. Thanks." Then he looked straight at Meltdowner and started speaking in Japanese. ｢Karada wa tsurugi de dekiteiru. Chishio wa tetsu de, kokoro wa garasu.｣
A ring of fire surrounded Meltdowner. Before she could do anything about it, Railgun, Sailor Jupiter, and Sailor Mars shot at her from three different directions, forcing her to deal with the immediate threats first.
｢Ikutabi no senjou wo koete fuhai, tada no ichido mo haisou wa naku, tada no ichido mo rikai sarenai.｣
Meltdowner suddenly found herself in the middle of a desert, with only some gears visible in the distance. Frowning, she muttered, "No. Not happening. I watched Hamazura play this game."
｢Kare no mono wa tsune ni hitori, tsurugi no oka de shouri ni you. Yue ni shougai ni imi wa naku. Sono karada wa kitto tsurugi de dekite ita!｣
Meltdowner raised both hands above her head just before the Unlimited Blade Works rained down on her.
Saber turned to Archer and asked, "Did it work?"
Archer ended his Reality Marble, to reveal Meltdowner... surrounded by swords, with a disintegration shield above her head.
The overall shock that it hadn't worked was broken by a shout from above: "President's Orders!"
Everyone looked up.
Itsuki Iba? When did he become a displacee? thought Rob. Then he shouted, "Everybody, do what he says! Trust me!"
Without acknowledging Rob's comment, and in a much more self-assured voice than he had used a moment ago, Itsuki started giving orders.
"TSAB enforcer! Remove the limiter from the redhead!"
"But -" Chrono started, only to be interrupted by Itsuki. "Now! TSAB Student! Cast your attack on the girl in the hoodie!"
"Charm Buster!"
It was the first attack to actually hit Saiai, who was dazed by it.
"Pillar!" Itsuki shouted to the group of Magic Knights who had just that second teleported in, to the surprise of everyone but Itsuki. "Jupiter! Shoot at the brown-haired girl standing on the snowbank!"
Railgun looked surprised. "At me?"
"Crimson Lightning!"
"Sparkling Wide Pressure!"
Then Mikoto realized what Itsuki's order to her was going to be, and she grinned one of Accelerator's grins. "Railgun! Hit the girl wearing the hoodie!"
She was right. Mikoto grabbed both girls' lightning out of the air just before it hit her, added it to her own electricity... and shifted her target from Meltdowner to Saiai.
It didn't matter how good Saiai Kinuhata's "Offense Armor" ability was - she was only a Level 4 esper and she had just been hit by an overpowered Level 5 area-effect attack while dazed. Her armour and nervous system both overloaded, and she collapsed.
After taking a brief moment to make sure she was unconscious, Accelerator grinned as he turned to Meltdowner. "Little Miss Bulletproof's down, and I didn't even have to kill her. Now it's your turn. And I didn't make any promises to you."
"Accelerator!" Itsuki shouted. "Wait for the right moment! Honami! Retreat in force!"
"You just try that! None of you have been able to hurt me yet!" Meltdowner cried out in defiance, as she ignored Umi's Icicle Blades and Honami throwing mistletoe darts at her.
Then the portal from San Antonio opened.
Rob also heard the ping of an incoming message, but didn't dare take the time to ignore Meltdowner and read it, since it looked like Itsuki was giving up command of the battlefield. The timing of the message suggested it was from Ben, and Rob was very worried that he might need to read it before Ben showed up and there was a repeat of the Ingram Park Mall Incident.
Blossom Apartments, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Same time
Hyoga couldn't help but feel - over her emphatic link with Rob - the intense worry that her beloved was feeling. Not being able to do anything else, she pushed it down the link to Mii and Ami, hoping she was doing the right thing.
Kemptville, ON, Canada
Same time
Ami faltered as she started to cast the Physical Heal spell Yuuno had just shown her.
"What's wrong?"
She pushed Rob's worry out of her mind. "Nothing that I can do anything about. Mina-chan, I'm starting that spell again."
On the other side of the combat, and behind the last remaining stub of a snowbank, Mii also felt Rob's worry. After seeing who was walking through the portal from Westwoods, she understood why ... and acting on a hunch, she checked the Good Neighbour app.
Meanwhile, Tenchi and Ryoko stepped forward to give Noike enough room to clear the portal before Washuu collapsed it from the other end.
Mikoto shot a full-power lightning bolt at Meltdowner, keeping her distracted and letting Ryoko know how powerful her opponent was. (Ryoko knew first-hand from the Halloween party just how powerful Railgun was.) Seeing Meltdowner absorb the blast in one of her shields, she told Tenchi, "That girl's strong." Then she noticed that Meltdowner was almost overflowing with energy - probably energy that had been shot at her during the battle. "And she's powered up."
Noike added, "If what I've read is accurate, she probably can't take much more."
Meltdowner agreed with her assessment - she was used to immediately using the energy she'd gained from disintegrating incoming attacks, and she'd be blocking so many attacks in so short a time that blocking even a snowball would have pushed her over the edge. She needed to attack somebody. Anybody.
She chose the young man who'd just stepped through the latest portal.
Tenchi reacted by instinct, forming a barrier with three Light Hawk Wings.
It held. Barely.
I need to think about my shields here, he thought as he walked toward Meltdowner. I can't just make something half-heartedly. If her attack bounces off my shield, somebody else could get hurt. His barrier broke after her second shot, and he immediately re-created it... with two Wings instead of three, saving the third to become his sword.
What Meltdowner saw was Tenchi creating a weapon out of part of his energy shield. She formed a shield of her own just before he swung his sword.
Meltdowner's shield shattered at Tenchi's first blow.
whatever his sword was made of, she couldn't disintegrate it. In desperation, she raised an arm to protect her face from the coming blow... which stopped at her chest instead of her head. He asked, "Will you surrender?"
She glared at him and tried to knee him in the groin.
He stepped back before she could make contact, and scowled. All he said was, "I don't want to hurt you. But if you're going to fight dirty, so will I."
"You were holding back? Damn it! Damn it damn it damn it! Damn you!" And just as suddenly as she had become angry, the emotions drained from her and she held up her hand in surrender. "And damn me. Why the hell am I doing this? Accelerator, Railgun and at least one of her clones, the god-damn Sailor Senshi who are just as real as I am, the damned Magic Knights who are also real, and whoever the rest of you are..." she waved one hand in the general direction of the rest of the group "... all to protect a couple of fuck-ups who cut and run from ITEM. Why?"
"Because everybody deserves a second chance," replied Mimi Hanyu as everybody else (other than Tenchi, Yuuno and Ami) stopped planning what they'd do next. "Even somebody like them. Or me."
"Somebody like you? Are you anything like me? How many people have you killed to get your own way?"
Mimi sighed. "Just one."
"I've lost count."
Rob nodded. "We know. And it doesn't matter, not here, not right now." Softening his tone, he continued, "Frenda told us that she was a part of the darkness of Academy City. We're a candle in the darkness. To quote Led Zeppelin, there's still time to change the road you're on."
She looked him straight in the eye. "Platitudes and cheesy lyrics don't mean a damned thing."
He nodded again. "But actions do. There's a place for you - all of you in ITEM - here in the light whenever you want to take it. We can hide you if we have to. We can give you medical care." They both glanced at Sailor Venus, who was still getting first aid from Sailor Mercury, Yuuna, and Washuu. (And Rob was surprised to see Ami was using the same healing magic that Yuuno was.) "We're already helping Ms. Takitsubo heal from the damage that the Body Crystal drug did to her, and helping her crest to Level 5 while she's healing."
"Level 5? Her?"
"If her power reaches level 5, she'll make the entire Power Development Curriculum moot. That's why she was drugged with Body Crystal."
As the implications of what he'd just said sank in, her anger returned... but it was a slow burn directed at the Academy City Board of Directors, instead of her usual hot temper. "Shit."
"And we might even be able to give you some ideas on how to use your powers in ways that work to your benefit instead of Academy City's, the way we have with Accelerator and Ms. Takitsubo. Will you at least think it over?"
After a moment, she answered, "Maybe." She wasn't sure she wanted help from somebody who'd make Accelerator even more powerful - but if she could become more powerful, it would be worth it. And he was right about the light; some of the things she'd done in the darkness weighed on her soul.
"You know where to find us. If you don't want to join us now, we'll get out of your way and let you leave... although I hope you'll forgive us if we don't turn our backs on you," he finished with a smile.
She smiled in return. "That's the first thing you've said since I met you that I actually understand." Then Meltdowner - Shizuri Mugino - frowned. "But I don't have any place to go. We're in the country illegally," she glanced at Saiai, who was beginning to regain consciousness, "we have no money, and we have no friends..."
"I'm willing to be your friend," replied Rob.
"After we fought? Sorry, but I don't believe in that 'befriending' crap."
Tenchi smiled. "I don't understand that, either. But you still need some place to stay. I'm sure we can find room for you at Westwoods at least for a while."
While Tenchi and Shizuri talked about accommodations, Rob finally too the time to read the message he'd received when Tenchi arrived... and Mii's replies to Ben's message. Rob quickly typed a reply of his own: "Fight's over, we can stand down to DEFCON 3. Tenchi's offering Meltdowner a room at Westwoods. Can you keep her until she isn't likely to kill Frenda in a rage, please? And we need a stretcher for Minako" he added while he overheard Ami all-but-order Minako to stay off her leg and let it heal properly.
Ben's reply "I'm on my way" reached Rob mere seconds before the portal opened.
Meltdowner watched as a man emerged from the portal and raised one of her elegant eyebrows at the sight that greeted her.
Not that it was a strange sight, mind. But rather at the presence that was being exuded. A sort of canniness that only those who could balance wariness against confidence possessed. She could tell already that he had started sizing up the situation before his foot even touched the ground this side of the portal.
She also had to admit that he had a good look to him. Not in the sense that he was nice to look at, but in how he presented himself - posture straight yet relaxed, moving easily with a martial artist's grace, long hair gathered into a tight bun at the back of his head, neatly trimmed mustache and beard, and some very functional looking no-nonsense armor - all sloping planes and curves designed to deflect blows rather than take them head-on, flexible where it needed to be, and shaded in charcoal-grays and matte black. Meltdowner wouldn't have been surprised if the armor had some kind of power assistance features. The only thing that puzzled her was the odd collection of additional plating around his right vambrace, which was not mirrored on the left one.
And then there was the weapon he carried. Some kind of warhammer? It was definitely one of the armor-piercing types, judging by the wickedly curved 'beak' it had. But she had to wonder why on earth it had a magazine box attached under the hammer head. After everything she'd seen today, she was ready to admit to a morbid curiosity to see the thing in action.
As he took everything in, there was a sudden pained expression in his face as he caught sight of the medical emergency in the background - the one that he had brought a stretcher for. His stance shifted slightly, as though he wanted to go and help... but something stayed him. It was evident that the woman who was hurt was, at the very lest, some kind of friend to this man.
She could relate to that. While she didn't really think of her subordinates as "friends" per se, she did care enough to be concerned for their well being. Enough to trigger the burning outrage at Frenda's seeming betrayal. The idea of seeing one of her subordinates in need, but herself unable to act, was definitely something she'd consider common ground with whoever this was.
Speaking of...
"Who is this man and why does he seem so important?"
Accelerator was close enough to answer, and he smiled as he prepared to do so. If there was one thing he'd readily admit as a common trait between himself and Benjamin, it was the schadenfreude they experience from watching someone metaphorically shit their pants once they realize how well and truly fucked they were.
"That's Benjamin Rhodes. The apartment manager from San Antonio. We call him the Plutonium Dragon."
"The what." said Meltdowner, turning a disbelieving look to Accelerator.
The other Level 5 Esper laughed. "I know. Sounds like some chunibiyou bullshit, right?" He then levelled a toothy grin at her. "But it's not. He can generate antimatter. Those armour plates you see on his arm? It's not armour. It's structural support to help him contain the matter-antimatter annihilation."
"No. There's no way," said Mugino in disbelief. But there was no way she could refute it. Accelerator could lie like a dog if he wanted to, but that was usually in the middle of a fight, and even then only on the rare occasion he actually needed to bluff - which few people ever called him on because there was very little the Level 5 couldn't do once his back was to the wall.
"Oh yes," said Accelerator, relishing the look on her face. "It's a matter annihilation pumped gamma-ray laser. Like Gojira's radioactive death breath, just with a different power source. And that's why he is able to get away with that stupid name. We call him Lil' Goji-kun to tease him about it. And for added fun, he can also pack it as a projectile instead. And you'll never know its coming unless he wants you to know. That fucker is a total nightmare to deal with."
Meltdowner eyed the man with a renewed perspective. If this was the case, then it was no wonder he was so calm. If he wanted to, he could have wasted every single one of them the moment he arrived. Except maybe Accelerator. But from the way he sounded, this Benjamin-character must have some kind of ace up his sleeve that would allow him to deal with even Accelerator as well.
That kind of capability demanded respect. But was he really worthy of it? Mugino wasn't going to wait around to find out - she didn't get to where she was at by being passive, after all.
She went right up to him and said, "I'm told that you're the man I need to talk to about a place to stay."
Benjamin turned to her, mildly surprised to have been confronted so suddenly like that. But he didn't stay confused for long.
"You must be Meltdowner, then," he said in a professional sounding tone. After passing the stretcher to Rob, he offered his hand to her, saying, "Benjamin Rhodes, Manager at Westwoods Apartments in San Antonio."
While Rob definitely wanted to listen to their conversation, and possibly take part, he was holding the stretcher that Minako desperately needed. A hero wouldn't waste time talking when somebody needed his help. He made his way over to the ad hoc trauma team. "I have a stretcher."
Ami sighed in relief as she finished the spell that Yuuno had taught her, the aquamarine glow fading from her hands. "Thank the gods. Mina, we're going to get you some place more comfortable."
"Thanks," replied Sailor Venus, no longer speaking through gritted teeth.
"But not for another minute or two," added Yuuno as he continued casting another Physical Heal spell on Sailor Venus, his hands glowing emerald green.
"Can you afford to pay attention to me right now?"
As Rob finished spreading the stretcher out beside Minako, he answered her reassuringly. "Everything's under control. Ben's here."
"Ben's come to save the day? I thought he was ex-Navy, not ex-Calvary. But he has to be calvary, doesn't he, since he rides to the rescue all the time."
Rob smiled. "It's 'Cavalry', not 'Calvary', unless you're talking about that place in Jerusalem."
"Just outside Jerusalem," Ami corrected.
Minako giggled. "You're getting to be as bad as me, Rob-oji."
Ami smiled, less at her friend's comment and more at how she had said it. It looked like Minako wasn't going to go into shock before they had a chance to get her home. Seeing that Yuuno's hands had stopped glowing, she announced, "Let's get you onto the stretcher. Rob, take her legs; I'll take her torso. Yuuno, be ready to slide the stretcher under her."
The three of them carried out the procedure as if they'd rehearsed it.
"Now," Rob asked Minako, "who's going to carry you home?"
"I will, but you won't," Ami replied. "Our heights are too different." She looked around and finally spotted Usagi. "Sailor Moon! I need your help over here!"
Considering how quickly she arrived, it was obvious that Usagi was waiting for Ami's call. "Does somebody here need a ride?" she asked with a concerned smile on her face.
"Hang on a minute; I'll check with Ben and make sure the fight really is over," Rob replied as he made room for Usagi at the foot of the stretcher. He made his way back to the other important conversation taking place on what was no longer a battlefield. As he did, he noticed Ben turning to Accelerator. "You're ranking me at Level 4?"
"Yeah, I am. And get over yourself. Until you can do more than just blow stuff up, you're nowhere near Level 5. Even if you can blow up a shopping mall in one shot."
Railgun felt the need to come to Ben's defence. "He can also do that Capacity Down thing."
"So he's a Dual Skill. That doesn't make him Level 5."
"Triple Skill," said Ben. "I'm a teleporter, too."
Meltdowner's entire thought process came to a screeching halt.
"You need a computer to do the math for you," Accelerator countered, heedless of the blank look on her face.
"True," allowed Benjamin, "but my teleport range is better than anyone in Academy City."
Meltdowner was, suffice to say, bewildered. Theoretical chatter about Dual Skills had been relatively common back in Academy City. But the idea of a Triple Skill was the sort of thing that was simply never brought up, and only because the idea was so outlandish that calling it a pipe dream was being too generous. And yet, here was a man who was laying claim three esper abilities, and also had his mental and physical faculties fully intact. Or at least seemed to. If he was crazy, it was a very subtle sort of crazy - the kind typically written off as eccentricity... at least, until they were mounting your head on their trophy wall.
But she somehow got the sense that while Benjamin might be at least a little on the batshit side of the mental health spectrum, he was harmless so long as he wasn't provoked. He was just so... Charming? No, though the way he handled Accelerator's sass was notable. Nice? Yes, he certainly was, but it was something more than that. There was just something about the man that made him seem...
....Trustworthy.
That nearly made Meltdowner start at the realization. Back in Academy City, she could literally count on one hand exactly how many people she felt she could fully trust and place her faith in, with fingers left over - there were so many hidden agendas that maintaining a healthy sense of paranoia was not only considered normal, but essential to one's continued survival in that sick and twisted place.
Meltdowner could smell a liar a mile away. Benjamin... He might be capable of lying, but only in the way Sun Tzu espoused - encouraging his enemy's arrogance and enticing them to attack in the one place where he could completely unmake them. Otherwise, this was the type of man who was brutally honest. You may not like the truth he has to tell you, but you could rest assured, it was very much the truth you need to hear and can only be disregarded at your own peril.
And then the last bit Benjamin said registered with her.
"Wait," called out Meltdowner. "How far can he go?"
"We haven't tried it yet," said Shirai, "but theoretically Cousin Ben can teleport to the Moon if he needs to." (At this, Meltdowner mouthed the words "Cousin Ben!?" in absolute astonishment.) "All he needs is a set of known coordinates. Though he can't do Move Point like Musujime can, but his Device can plot out multiple jumps in advance. In short, he can perform consecutive teleports faster than I can."
The more Meltdowner heard, the more she thought the entire world had gone insane. Accelerator and Railgun weren't at each other's throats? Accelerator was willing to talk instead of fight? Somebody she'd never met before had a Triple Skill, which Academy City was certain was impossible? Kuroko Shirai, who she personally knew was a Judgment officer who couldn't see the real world past her rule book, was admitting she wasn't the best, and treating Accelerator and this Benjamin person as friends - and they were letting her? Other people knew what ITEM was like and were still willing to protect deserters from the team out of the goodness of their hearts? At this point, she wouldn't be surprised if Hamazura, Level 0 that he was, demonstrated that he was able to defeat her in a one-on-one fight. "Masaki-san, Rhodes-san, I'll take you up on your offer. I have some serious thinking to do."
"I'll go with you," Saiai said weakly as she stood up. "I'm not leaving you super alone."
With the all-clear officially sounded by Rob and confirmed by Ben, people started heading home, teleporting, shunting, folding, or shifting back where they came from while saying things like "Give me a call tomorrow" or "Let's get together when there isn't an emergency" or "Great to meet you; come see us some time!" ... although nobody thought it wise to leave before Ben took Saiai and Mugino with him to San Antonio.
The Sailor Teleport was awkward, what with Sailor Venus's stretcher being carried by Sailor Mercury and Sailor Moon. But Ami wasn't willing to let Minako go home by van when a less stressful option was available.
Eventually the group left in Kemptville was made up of the people who had been in the vans to begin with, Mahoro, Slash, Itsuki, Honami, Saber, Archer, and the Magic Knights... at which point Hikaru finished a cellphone call. "Guru Clef won't be able to bring us back home for a few hours yet."
"And I'm not sure whether Caster can bring us back home," added Archer.
"We should have asked whether anybody needed a ride before Washuu-chan took off," Mii commented. "Too late now. when's the next train from Ottawa to Montreal?"
Rob checked the Via Rail website. "We just missed the late-morning train. The next one's at 2:20." He turned to the group from Montreal. "We will, of course, pay your way back in business class. it's the least we can do to thank you for helping us today. Although I'd be very interested in spending some time talking with you, I doubt I'll have time to do that today."
"Maybe tomorrow," suggested Saber.
Rob nodded. "Maybe tomorrow." He turned to the Magic Knights. "I'm sure you'd be more comfortable waiting some place where it's warm and Bob knows to the centimeter where to pick you up from, instead of out in the cold where people need to look for you, "
"We'd appreciate that, thank you," replied Fuu.
"Oh, dear," Mahoro commented while putting her own cellphone away. "The teleporter that Ryuga-san built to send us here was single-use. We can't go home until he rebuilds it."
"Or we could put you on a train as well," Rob offered.
"You can put mistress Mahoro on a train. I refuse to travel in a pet carrier."
"Then I'll stay until Ryuga-san and Hokaze-hakase can finish the repairs to the teleporter, too."
Rob smiled. "We'll find you some place to sleep for a few days." He turned to Shiage. "Now, how do we get everybody to Ottawa? We used to have enough seats in our vans..." Rob looked mournfully at the broken windshield of the new van. Then he continued, "... but that has to go to a window repair shop before it's roadworthy again. Are we the only residence that can't open a portal?"
"I don't see anyone here from Nova Scotia or Dublin," Archer pointed out.
Shiage looked at the damage to the second van. "I count fourteen people here, including the panther who won't ride in a pet carrier. You have eleven seats. You take everybody else. I'll take Rikou and Frenda, and drive this to a repair shop here, and say a car in front of me kicked up a rock. But I'll need a credit card."
Rob shook his head. "Give them the insurance policy number and tell them they'll get the deductible on delivery. I'll come back for you in a couple of hours with the card."
"Or we can do it that way."
As Rob moved the snow off of the larger van, he commented to Mii, "Well, today's been busy, and I have a load of paperwork ahead of me because of it. I'm looking forward to relaxing tomorrow."
Acknowledgements:
Lyrics from "She Ain't Pretty", performed by The Northern Pikes, written by Bryan Potvin, from the album Snow in June, © 1990 Virgin Records
Lyrics from "Lovers in a Dangerous Time", written and performed by Bruce Cockburn, from the album Stealing Fire, © 1984 True North Records
Lyrics from "Both Sides, Now", written and performed by Joni Mitchell, from the album Clouds, © 1969 Reprise Records (although no doubt Frenda is quoting one of the cover versions)
Lyrics from "Stairway to Heaven", performed by Led Zeppelin, written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, from the album Led Zeppelin IV, © 1971 Atlantic Records
The character of Jenny Everywhere is available for use by anyone, with only one condition. This paragraph must be included in any publication involving Jenny Everywhere, in order that others may use this property as they wish. All rights reversed.
Notes:
"Bridgehead is a local chain, and they do good coffee. I don't know what I'd do if they ever got bought out by one of the big chains."
Guess what happened in 2019...
Project Dark May
Details here.
the hostel they were staying at
Specifically, this one near Ryerson University. Pricey for a hostel, but it gives them the privacy they want without paying hotel prices.
"Hey, it's not like I like her that way, the way Shirai likes Railgun. I just thought that maybe we could have been friends, if she didn't know that I live in the darkness in Academy City."
Any implied reference to events in the canon A Certain Scientific Railgun T is purely intentional.
At this point, she wouldn't be surprised if Hamazura, Level 0 that he was, demonstrated that he was able to defeat her in a one-on-one fight.
According to canon, Shiage is capable of defeating Meltdowner... but that hadn't happened before ITEM was displaced into the Metacontinuity.[/b]
And that's - finally - the end of Mitsuko Kongo's introductory story ... but far from the end of the events taking place in February 2017 in Ottawa. We aren't even at Valentine's Day yet.
Highway 416, approaching Kemptville, ON, Canada
February 12, 2017
9:49 AM
Both vans were making the trip to Kemptville, following Haruka's car on the way home after Michiru's fourth rede.
Shiage was in the lead van - the one that they had just bought second-hand. They'd been driving for nearly three-quarters of an hour, on both city roads and highways, and Shiage was quite happy with the van's performance. For an automatic, of course.
So he was able to spare some attention for his girlfriend as he took the offramp into Kemptville, slipping into traffic just in front of a Greyhound bus that had just taken the Kemptville offramp from the other direction on the highway.
"So far, so good," he said casually.
"No," Rikou whispered in panic.
"What's wrong?"
"That bus. Meltdowner is on it."
Shiage was certain about two things about his girlfriend's power: that once she memorized another esper's AIM pattern, she could find that pattern again anywhere; and the pattern that Rikou knew best other than her own was Meltdowner's.
He didn't panic. He didn't have time to panic. He was almost at a traffic circle with roads leading off forward and into a big-box mall to the left, and a laneway to the right that went for a half-dozen yards then veered off behind some trees. He entered the circle, turned right, and took off like a bat out of Hell.
This did not go unnoticed.
"Where the Hell is he going?" Rob asked Mii from the driver's seat of the other van, in traffic behind the bus. He followed Shiage down the laneway.
Aboard the bus, one of the passengers on the bus said, "That van."
"I saw it, too," her travelling companion replied. "A super classic Hamazura move to ditch a tail."
"Who's he trying to lose? If it is him."
"If Takitsubo's with him, probably us. You did read those books."
Meltdowner glared at Kinuhata. "Don't remind me. I fucked up there, but so did she." Then she made a snap decision. "We're getting off the bus here," she announced as the bus pulled into the parking lot of the Tim Hortons in the strip mall.
As the two grabbed their bags, Rob caught up to Shiage and Rikou - they were stopped on a triangular patch of asphalt, just big enough for a road-salt truck to make a three-point turnaround, outside what appeared to be a city road-maintenance supply depot. Everyone got out of their respective vans. "What's going on?" asked Rob. "I don't think we're supposed to be here."
"Meltdowner's here."
Rob and Mii looked at each other. He spoke first: "Aw, no."
"I would have used stronger language," replied Mii.
"There are ladies present." Rob turned back to Shiage. "Do you think she spotted that sudden manoeuvre you made?"
"She's getting off the bus," Rikou replied.
Rob and Mii sighed, then said in unison, "She spotted you."
"What's Meltdowner doing here?" Mii added.
"Worry about that later," Rob replied as he pulled out his Blackberry Passport. "Right now, we need reinforcements. I'll connect to Haruka and Michiru's Good Neighbour System and leave an emergency message... fuck. Where the Hell is their Good Neighbour System?" he demanded angrily, no longer caring that there were ladies present. After a quick moment, he gave up looking for it. "I'll bet it's still in the goddamned boxes we gave it to them in just after Calabogie. I'm sending an emergency message to Blossom." He quickly typed out what he knew of the situation, included their GPS coordinates, and sent it to their home base as a priority 2 call for help.
What he forgot was that priority 2 calls for help go to all nodes in the Good Neighbour System.
Blossom Apartments, Ottawa, ON, Canada
9:55 AM Eastern Time
"Rob's in trouble," Kazari announced.
Two minutes later, five Sailor Senshi were holding each other's hands and being held tightly by five of their apartment-mates. While they could have gone on their own thanks to what Kuroko had been teaching them, it was safer to go as a group: "Sailor TELEPORT!"
Kazari watched them disappear.
Live Oaks Manor, Vicksburg, Mississippi, USA
8:55 AM Central Time
Jenny looked at the message and swore to herself. "All of the time machines we have parked here, and nobody can make it there in time because none of them work!"
"It hardly matters," Harold replied. Before she could protest, he added, "Considering the reports of the sheer magnitude of energies those people toss around, nobody here is strong enough to take part in their battle. Not even my wife."
"You're right. I'll send them a reply saying we're sorry that we can't help."
Club Lofts, Windsor, ON, Canada
9:55 AM Eastern Time
Mahoro's brooch started flashing. Squeezing it gently, she said, "What's wrong?"
"Trouble near Ottawa - a possible high-level esper battle," Hokaze's voice replied from the brooch. "I have coordinates."
Minawa looked up from the clean laundry that she was folding. "Can we get there in time to be able to help?"
Ryuga nodded. "I can use the Saint hardware that we have here to open a gateway to those coordinates, but either I'm the only one who goes through it or I send two people."
"Two allies are better than one," Slash replied.
Ryuga grimaced at the thought of missing out on a battle. "As much as I hate to say it, the cat's right."
Mahoro nodded. "Minawa, can I leave the rest of the housework here in your hands, please? Slash and I need to go help our friends."
Black Lagoon, somewhere in the Gulf of Thailand
9:55 PM Indochina Time
Dutch turned the alarm off, then turned to Rock. "Ignore it. We're not being paid to take part in that kind of shit."
"Not that we could anyway," muttered Rock as he went back to what he had been doing.
The Steeple, Philadelphia, PA, USA
9:55 AM Eastern Time
"We can't just ignore a call for help, father."
Gil looked Lotte straight in the eye. "This is an esper battle, not a mage battle. We've never seen an esper battle, much less taken part in one."
"All the more reason for us to go," replied Lotte's twin sister Aria. "We need the information."
Lindy nodded. "Agreed - we need to know what this world's forces are capable of. Amy, you and I will monitor the situation from here, and you'll get as many readings as you can. Chrono-kun -" She saw that he'd already transformed his clothing into his Barrier Jacket and was holding Durandal in staff form. "Good. Yuuno-kun..."
"Casting a long-range teleport now."
And a green glow formed around Aria, Lotte, Chrono, and Yuuno.
7 Henrietta Street, Dublin, Ireland
2:55 PM Greenwich Mean Time
"Look at how many people are saying they're going to help. We don't need to go."
"Lou's right. And we couldn't get there in time to help even if we wanted to fight. Or knew how." Meg picked up her guitar. "But we can practice playing not as perfectly as we usually do, for the victory party."
"Are you that sure they're going to win?" Anri asked.
"Considering how many people are going, I'd rather not think about the alternative."
Appartements Mont-Royal Sud, Montreal, QC, Canada
9:55 AM Eastern Time
"Volunteers only," Caster insisted as she started her spell. "This is a two-hundred-kilometre shunt to someplace I've never been before, not a quick hop down to Dieppe Park."
By the time she was ready to trigger the teleport, the volunteers were combat-ready.
Nova Scotia, Canada
10:56 AM Atlantic Time
"You're saying we have to just ignore a fight?"
Epsilon looked straight at Ranma. "Unless you can teleport, yes, that's exactly what I'm saying."
Ranma scowled. "I don't like backing down from a challenge."
"It isn't a challenge. As far as we're concerned, it's a news report." To himself, Epsilon added, I just hope nobody ends up dead.
Westwoods Apartments, San Antonio, TX, USA
8:56 AM Central Time
"You're in charge of the group."
Tenchi looked at Ben in disbelief. "I'm not ready."
Ryouko chuckled. "Sure you are."
Benjamin, though, sighed and put up a hand to forestall any further commentary.
"Tenchi, this is what you all have been preparing for. And more importantly, you will eventually come to be in a position of some importance. Seto will make absolutely certain of that."
With that statement, Tenchi cast a nervous glance in Noike's direction. The woman only nodded her head solemnly, causing Tenchi to gulp.
"Yeah, exactly," continued Benjamin. "Which is why it's important for you to become experienced sooner rather than later. Besides, Noike will be there as well. You don't need to worry about messing up because she has your back."
"But what about you?" asked Tenchi. "You're wearing your HEV Suit."
"I'm a strategic element. Not a tactical element. It's very hard for me to do 'non-lethal' with Gojira's Little Brother here." With that, Benjamin patted his right forearm with its cannon-shell reinforcing armor in standby mode. "But if it's needed? I can be there in seconds."
Tenchi sighed at that. "Do you ever get tired of being right all the time?"
"More than you can imagine, Tenchi. But at least its better than being wrong when it counts the most."
Noike laid a reassuring hand on Tenchi's shoulder. "We need to go, now."
"Yes," said Tenchi reluctantly. But when he spoke again, he sounded much more confident. "We need to help our friends. Washuu-chan?"
"Right, right," Washuu replied. "Opening a portal."
Ben watched the four of them leave, but felt that he should hedge his bets. He took out his phone, opened the Good Neighbor app, and fired off a message to Rob.
Rob. It's not that I doubt you or anything, but if you need me, I'm ready to roll at a moment's notice. We've already seen what my ability does to Espers, and that was with me barely even trying. (I still feel bad for accidentally nailing Kuroko back then.) I can shut them down faster than flies on stink, and whoever was on the receiving end will *wish* we'd just killed them instead.
Aria House, Venice Beach, CA, USA
6:57 AM Pacific Time
Shaoran placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder, gently and comfortingly. "There's no way we can get there in time to help."
Brent could think of one way - Fly there, taking however long was necessary, then Return to the battle - but he saw all of the "sending help" acknowledgement messages scrolling on the Good Neighbor System's display and thought that Rob probably had enough firepower heading his way already.
Douglass Gardens Apartments, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
9:57 AM Eastern Time
"Then it's agreed. If you would be kind enough, Guru Clef?"
He nodded, and a moment later, the Magic Knights were on their way.
Kemptville, ON, Canada
9:57 AM Eastern Time
"Do you need to do anything about that message?"
Haruka looked at her phone, then turned back to Leonard and shook her head. "I'm sure the others can take care of it." Then she saw that Michiru was finished speaking with her employer and heading back to them.
All Michiru said was "Let's go." Haruka and Leonard stood and left the coffee shop with her, going as far as the parking lot... where they met Awaki Musujime, and Uranus and Neptune teleported all four of them away.
Elsewhere in Kemptville, ON, Canada
9:55 AM Eastern Time
As Shiage drove the good van - the one that Rob had been driving - off the laneway to park it beside the fence around the road-maintenance depot, Rob piled snow onto the tire tracks, and then added some snow on top of the van once Shiage was out of it. The ladies who had accompanied them headed for whatever cover they could find - Mii behind a snowbank that lined the access lane, and Takitsubo and Frenda going a few steps into the woods to hide behind some trees.
Rob had barely had time to cover over everyone else's bootprints when there was a white glow, followed by the appearance of Sailor Moon, Sailor Venus, Sailor Mars, Sailor Mercury, Sailor Jupiter, Tuxedo Kamen, Niiko Misaka (carrying a very illegal H&K MP5K, and Rob wondered how she had managed to get it out of Blossom's armoury), Accelerator, Mimi Hanyu, and Railgun. "What's the situation?" asked Mikoto while getting a handful of steel washers out of her pocket.
Rob replied with one word: "Meltdowner."
As far as the Level 5 espers were concerned, nothing more needed to be said. Accelerator cut to the chase: "How soon until she gets here?"
"We're pretty sure she's on foot," Shiage replied, "but now she knows where to find us, thanks to that light show you made when you teleported in. Maybe five minutes if we're lucky," he added, doubting that they would be lucky.
"Right. Scatter and take cover." After a short moment, Mii added from behind her snowbank, "Too bad you didn't bring Kamijo with you."
Minako looked puzzled for a moment. "How did she know who we... Right. Mii Konori, The Girl With The X-Ray Eyes."
Rob didn't waste time sighing. "Less chatter, more hiding, Venus!" He wasn't following his own orders; instead he and Shiage headed over to the van that they hadn't yet hidden.
"We couldn't bring Kamijo," Mamoru answered Mii's comment as he jumped over a different snowbank. "His nullification effect also nullifies the Sailor Teleport."
As Mikoto electrically launched herself over the snowbank that Mii was hiding behind, she added, "So you'll just have to make do with us."
A minute later, the only people still visible were Rob, Shiage, and Niiko... and Niiko was headed for the gate to the road-maintenance depot.
She just barely managed to hide herself when Meltdowner and Saiai walked up the laneway from the other direction. As soon as they were close enough to identify the men standing beside the van, they stopped and Meltdowner shouted, "Hamazura, you asshole! Where are the other two?"
Before Shiage could answer, Rob held up a hand to stop him. He tried to draw her attention away from Shiage. "Excuse me, miss, but who are you?"
"None of your business! I'm talking to that asshole beside you!"
So much for that idea. Rob started forcing water vapour out of the air and into his hand while he whispered to Shiage, "May as well answer her."
"Yeah," he whispered back. Then he shouted, "They're hiding from you! Frenda doesn't want to end up dead!"
"You idiot! I wouldn't have killed her unless she told somebody ITEM's secrets! And I'm betting all three of you did just that when you got all cozy with Railgun! Where is that kid, anyway?"
(Behind cover, Mii put her hand on Mikoto's shoulder and quietly shook her head.)
Rob tried to defuse the situation, all-but-certain that his attempt was hopeless. "He didn't tell us anything we didn't already know!"
"Who the hell are you, anyway?" Meltdowner shouted back.
Rob noticed that they hadn't stopped walking towards him. He wasn't shouting any more; simply projecting his voice was sufficient. "Just somebody who offers people who are new to this place a safe place to stay and a chance at a new life."
"What, you're with Antiskill or whatever they call the cops here?"
Rob shook his head. "No, just a concerned citizen."
Meltdowner's companion chose that point to finally join the conversation. "That's too bad." Saiai said emotionlessly. "Now you're going to be a super dead citizen." She stepped to one side, grabbed a boulder sitting beside the laneway, picked it up, and threw it at the two men.
They ran in two directions... so the boulder only hit the van they had been standing beside.
Rob grimaced at the sound of breaking glass. "We just bought that!" Then he quickly forced the snow on the ground into a wall between them - which disintegrated under Meltdowner's simultaneous attack. "What'd'you know? I can actually block a Level 5 attack. Once."
"Once is all you'll get!"
"Once was all I needed," he replied as a lightning bolt hit Meltdowner from behind. "You're not the only Level 5 here."
She turned in pain and fury, sending what was left of her armoured clothing falling in pieces into the snow around her, shouting "Don't interfere, Railgun!"...
...only to discover Sailor Jupiter. "Sorry, wrong electrokinetic. And the people you're looking for are under our protection. If you attack them, we will punish you."
"Were you looking for me?" Mikoto asked from the top of the snowbank she had been hiding behind as she tossed a washer into the air.
Meltdowner shot a beam at the washer... and vapourized it. "Hah! Is that all you've got?"
She immediately regretted her boastful question as other people announced attacks from concealment.
"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!"
"Charm Buster!"
"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!"
"Mars Flame Sniper!"
"Moon Spiral Heart Attack!"
Rob simply sent an icicle knife flying at her left arm, while Mamoru threw one of his armor-piercing roses at her right arm, Niiko emptied a full clip of ammo in her direction, and Mikoto got off a fast lightning-bolt attack.
Meltdowner tossed one of her newly-made latticework silicon cards into the air in front of her, destroying it with her own shot - but the card turned her single shot into a wide-area barrage, taking out all of the inbound attacks and most of their cover, and hitting Sailor Venus's leg just above the knee.
Minako cried out in pain as she dropped to her remaining knee - even Senshi toughness couldn't defend against disintegration.
The Sailor Senshi immediately broke off their attacks and turned to Sailor Venus. Rob shouted at them as he mentally threw some of the remaining nearby snow at Meltdowner's face and started running across the battlefield. "Eyes on the attackers, people! Mercury, go look after Venus! Everyone else, keep fighting!"
Meanwhile, Saiai was looking for something else heavy to throw when she noticed a shadow in the nearby woods. She grabbed and threw an entire small tree - which bounced back to her, bouncing off her own shield and landing at her feet as she was knocked back. Then the person casting the shadow stepped out of concealment. "You must be the girl from the Dark May Project. Tch. I hate fighting myself."
"Accelerator. I think it'd be a super good thing if you don't fight." She didn't show it, but Saiai was frightened for the first time since she'd been dumped into the Metacontinuity.
Accelerator didn't bother being sardonic. "Can't do that. Like the ponytail girl said, those three are under our protection. But I'll make you a promise - when we win, I won't kill you or tear your arm off for daring to go up against me." He stamped his foot, and the gravel that was on the road to provide traction on the snow jumped into the air and toward Saiai - who ignored it.
Then there was a green glow between the two of them, which faded to reveal four people - two catgirls and two boys. The catgirl with the longer hair immediately jumped at Saiai - and bounced off of her. "She's got a skintight shield!"
"Do what you can, Lotte," the other catgirl shouted. "I'm busy!" As Aria said that, she jumped into the air to get out of the line of fire, hovered there, and cast a dimensional shift spell - nothing that would stop anyone from entering, but enough to prevent damaging attacks from leaving the area.
The boys didn't stand around to watch. The younger one headed straight for Sailor Venus while the black-clad one cried out, "Durandal!"
The staff in his hand replied, "Right, boss. Eternal Coffin." Then ice started forming below Meltdowner's feet - who jumped to one side and disintegrated the ice before it reached her.
"Where did you come from?" Meltdowner asked annoyedly as she put up another shield to disintegrate Railgun's lightning bolts at the same time. "Doesn't matter. You attacked me as soon as you got here without bothering to learn who's on whose side."
"We were briefed on the battle while we were transiting. I came from the local Administration Bureau base. My name is Chrono Harlaown. It isn't too late for you to surrender, Meltdowner."
"There's no way I'd trust that offer after you tried to kill me! 'Eternal' anything is usually pretty damned fatal. You can die now!"
"Layered Round Shield!" Chrono got his defence up just in time to block Meltdowner's disintegration ray, losing all but one of the layers. He decided to take to the sky... which threw off the aim of Meltdowner's counterattack. As he headed toward Aria's position, she launched a Stinger Snipe to cover his retreat.
By this point, the last of the newcomers had reached Sailors Venus and Mercury. He took one look at what was left of Venus's leg, grimaced, and knelt right beside her so that he could hold his hand close to the injury. "I'm Yuuno Scrya. I can help."
"Do it," Minako almost-yelled through gritted teeth.
As Yuuno started a Physical Heal spell, Mercury described exactly what the injury was. "Traumatic amputation above the knee, a clean sever. Part of the tissue is missing - there's no way to re-attach the limb."
"Unless we force her to regenerate the lost tissue," Yuuno replied. "I'm modifying my spell. Where's the leg?"
Before Ami could reach for Minako's severed limb, there was a crack of displaced air. "Sorry we're late."
Ami looked up for a brief moment. "Mahoro! Slash! Avoid the woman who's destroying every attack we send at her," she said as Meltdowner shot Aria's Stinger Snipe out of the air. "Your target's the girl who the albino's attacking." She gestured in Accelerator's general direction. "Sorry I can't help," she added as she turned back to Minako and Yuuno.
"You're busy," growled Slash. "We're going." He leapt at Saiai... and bounced. The only effect he had was to make her look away from Accelerator and Mahoro - who attacked her at the same time with no effect.
At the far end of Aria's pocket dimension, four people who had teleported in unnoticed decided that they now knew who was on whose side. "Two opponents, both powerful," the blonde woman commented.
"The one in the dress is a bigger threat than the one in the hooded jacket," replied the boy in the business suit. "I can see that much, but I can't affect them directly."
"They're espers, not mages," the brown-haired girl with the broom said.
The taller man boasted, "Esper or mage, they should have trouble living through my Reality Marble."
After a quick moment, the boy said, "It's worth a try. We'll do something about the girl in the hoodie while you hit the woman in the dress. Saber, please guard Archer. Honami, let's get airborne."
"I'm not used to having somebody watching my back when I do this. Thanks." Then he looked straight at Meltdowner and started speaking in Japanese. ｢Karada wa tsurugi de dekiteiru. Chishio wa tetsu de, kokoro wa garasu.｣
A ring of fire surrounded Meltdowner. Before she could do anything about it, Railgun, Sailor Jupiter, and Sailor Mars shot at her from three different directions, forcing her to deal with the immediate threats first.
｢Ikutabi no senjou wo koete fuhai, tada no ichido mo haisou wa naku, tada no ichido mo rikai sarenai.｣
Meltdowner suddenly found herself in the middle of a desert, with only some gears visible in the distance. Frowning, she muttered, "No. Not happening. I watched Hamazura play this game."
｢Kare no mono wa tsune ni hitori, tsurugi no oka de shouri ni you. Yue ni shougai ni imi wa naku. Sono karada wa kitto tsurugi de dekite ita!｣
Meltdowner raised both hands above her head just before the Unlimited Blade Works rained down on her.
Saber turned to Archer and asked, "Did it work?"
Archer ended his Reality Marble, to reveal Meltdowner... surrounded by swords, with a disintegration shield above her head.
The overall shock that it hadn't worked was broken by a shout from above: "President's Orders!"
Everyone looked up.
Itsuki Iba? When did he become a displacee? thought Rob. Then he shouted, "Everybody, do what he says! Trust me!"
Without acknowledging Rob's comment, and in a much more self-assured voice than he had used a moment ago, Itsuki started giving orders.
"TSAB enforcer! Remove the limiter from the redhead!"
"But -" Chrono started, only to be interrupted by Itsuki. "Now! TSAB Student! Cast your attack on the girl in the hoodie!"
"Charm Buster!"
It was the first attack to actually hit Saiai, who was dazed by it.
"Pillar!" Itsuki shouted to the group of Magic Knights who had just that second teleported in, to the surprise of everyone but Itsuki. "Jupiter! Shoot at the brown-haired girl standing on the snowbank!"
Railgun looked surprised. "At me?"
"Crimson Lightning!"
"Sparkling Wide Pressure!"
Then Mikoto realized what Itsuki's order to her was going to be, and she grinned one of Accelerator's grins. "Railgun! Hit the girl wearing the hoodie!"
She was right. Mikoto grabbed both girls' lightning out of the air just before it hit her, added it to her own electricity... and shifted her target from Meltdowner to Saiai.
It didn't matter how good Saiai Kinuhata's "Offense Armor" ability was - she was only a Level 4 esper and she had just been hit by an overpowered Level 5 area-effect attack while dazed. Her armour and nervous system both overloaded, and she collapsed.
After taking a brief moment to make sure she was unconscious, Accelerator grinned as he turned to Meltdowner. "Little Miss Bulletproof's down, and I didn't even have to kill her. Now it's your turn. And I didn't make any promises to you."
"Accelerator!" Itsuki shouted. "Wait for the right moment! Honami! Retreat in force!"
"You just try that! None of you have been able to hurt me yet!" Meltdowner cried out in defiance, as she ignored Umi's Icicle Blades and Honami throwing mistletoe darts at her.
Then the portal from San Antonio opened.
Rob also heard the ping of an incoming message, but didn't dare take the time to ignore Meltdowner and read it, since it looked like Itsuki was giving up command of the battlefield. The timing of the message suggested it was from Ben, and Rob was very worried that he might need to read it before Ben showed up and there was a repeat of the Ingram Park Mall Incident.
Blossom Apartments, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Same time
Hyoga couldn't help but feel - over her emphatic link with Rob - the intense worry that her beloved was feeling. Not being able to do anything else, she pushed it down the link to Mii and Ami, hoping she was doing the right thing.
Kemptville, ON, Canada
Same time
Ami faltered as she started to cast the Physical Heal spell Yuuno had just shown her.
"What's wrong?"
She pushed Rob's worry out of her mind. "Nothing that I can do anything about. Mina-chan, I'm starting that spell again."
On the other side of the combat, and behind the last remaining stub of a snowbank, Mii also felt Rob's worry. After seeing who was walking through the portal from Westwoods, she understood why ... and acting on a hunch, she checked the Good Neighbour app.
Meanwhile, Tenchi and Ryoko stepped forward to give Noike enough room to clear the portal before Washuu collapsed it from the other end.
Mikoto shot a full-power lightning bolt at Meltdowner, keeping her distracted and letting Ryoko know how powerful her opponent was. (Ryoko knew first-hand from the Halloween party just how powerful Railgun was.) Seeing Meltdowner absorb the blast in one of her shields, she told Tenchi, "That girl's strong." Then she noticed that Meltdowner was almost overflowing with energy - probably energy that had been shot at her during the battle. "And she's powered up."
Noike added, "If what I've read is accurate, she probably can't take much more."
Meltdowner agreed with her assessment - she was used to immediately using the energy she'd gained from disintegrating incoming attacks, and she'd be blocking so many attacks in so short a time that blocking even a snowball would have pushed her over the edge. She needed to attack somebody. Anybody.
She chose the young man who'd just stepped through the latest portal.
Tenchi reacted by instinct, forming a barrier with three Light Hawk Wings.
It held. Barely.
I need to think about my shields here, he thought as he walked toward Meltdowner. I can't just make something half-heartedly. If her attack bounces off my shield, somebody else could get hurt. His barrier broke after her second shot, and he immediately re-created it... with two Wings instead of three, saving the third to become his sword.
What Meltdowner saw was Tenchi creating a weapon out of part of his energy shield. She formed a shield of her own just before he swung his sword.
Meltdowner's shield shattered at Tenchi's first blow.
whatever his sword was made of, she couldn't disintegrate it. In desperation, she raised an arm to protect her face from the coming blow... which stopped at her chest instead of her head. He asked, "Will you surrender?"
She glared at him and tried to knee him in the groin.
He stepped back before she could make contact, and scowled. All he said was, "I don't want to hurt you. But if you're going to fight dirty, so will I."
"You were holding back? Damn it! Damn it damn it damn it! Damn you!" And just as suddenly as she had become angry, the emotions drained from her and she held up her hand in surrender. "And damn me. Why the hell am I doing this? Accelerator, Railgun and at least one of her clones, the god-damn Sailor Senshi who are just as real as I am, the damned Magic Knights who are also real, and whoever the rest of you are..." she waved one hand in the general direction of the rest of the group "... all to protect a couple of fuck-ups who cut and run from ITEM. Why?"
"Because everybody deserves a second chance," replied Mimi Hanyu as everybody else (other than Tenchi, Yuuno and Ami) stopped planning what they'd do next. "Even somebody like them. Or me."
"Somebody like you? Are you anything like me? How many people have you killed to get your own way?"
Mimi sighed. "Just one."
"I've lost count."
Rob nodded. "We know. And it doesn't matter, not here, not right now." Softening his tone, he continued, "Frenda told us that she was a part of the darkness of Academy City. We're a candle in the darkness. To quote Led Zeppelin, there's still time to change the road you're on."
She looked him straight in the eye. "Platitudes and cheesy lyrics don't mean a damned thing."
He nodded again. "But actions do. There's a place for you - all of you in ITEM - here in the light whenever you want to take it. We can hide you if we have to. We can give you medical care." They both glanced at Sailor Venus, who was still getting first aid from Sailor Mercury, Yuuna, and Washuu. (And Rob was surprised to see Ami was using the same healing magic that Yuuno was.) "We're already helping Ms. Takitsubo heal from the damage that the Body Crystal drug did to her, and helping her crest to Level 5 while she's healing."
"Level 5? Her?"
"If her power reaches level 5, she'll make the entire Power Development Curriculum moot. That's why she was drugged with Body Crystal."
As the implications of what he'd just said sank in, her anger returned... but it was a slow burn directed at the Academy City Board of Directors, instead of her usual hot temper. "Shit."
"And we might even be able to give you some ideas on how to use your powers in ways that work to your benefit instead of Academy City's, the way we have with Accelerator and Ms. Takitsubo. Will you at least think it over?"
After a moment, she answered, "Maybe." She wasn't sure she wanted help from somebody who'd make Accelerator even more powerful - but if she could become more powerful, it would be worth it. And he was right about the light; some of the things she'd done in the darkness weighed on her soul.
"You know where to find us. If you don't want to join us now, we'll get out of your way and let you leave... although I hope you'll forgive us if we don't turn our backs on you," he finished with a smile.
She smiled in return. "That's the first thing you've said since I met you that I actually understand." Then Meltdowner - Shizuri Mugino - frowned. "But I don't have any place to go. We're in the country illegally," she glanced at Saiai, who was beginning to regain consciousness, "we have no money, and we have no friends..."
"I'm willing to be your friend," replied Rob.
"After we fought? Sorry, but I don't believe in that 'befriending' crap."
Tenchi smiled. "I don't understand that, either. But you still need some place to stay. I'm sure we can find room for you at Westwoods at least for a while."
While Tenchi and Shizuri talked about accommodations, Rob finally too the time to read the message he'd received when Tenchi arrived... and Mii's replies to Ben's message. Rob quickly typed a reply of his own: "Fight's over, we can stand down to DEFCON 3. Tenchi's offering Meltdowner a room at Westwoods. Can you keep her until she isn't likely to kill Frenda in a rage, please? And we need a stretcher for Minako" he added while he overheard Ami all-but-order Minako to stay off her leg and let it heal properly.
Ben's reply "I'm on my way" reached Rob mere seconds before the portal opened.
Meltdowner watched as a man emerged from the portal and raised one of her elegant eyebrows at the sight that greeted her.
Not that it was a strange sight, mind. But rather at the presence that was being exuded. A sort of canniness that only those who could balance wariness against confidence possessed. She could tell already that he had started sizing up the situation before his foot even touched the ground this side of the portal.
She also had to admit that he had a good look to him. Not in the sense that he was nice to look at, but in how he presented himself - posture straight yet relaxed, moving easily with a martial artist's grace, long hair gathered into a tight bun at the back of his head, neatly trimmed mustache and beard, and some very functional looking no-nonsense armor - all sloping planes and curves designed to deflect blows rather than take them head-on, flexible where it needed to be, and shaded in charcoal-grays and matte black. Meltdowner wouldn't have been surprised if the armor had some kind of power assistance features. The only thing that puzzled her was the odd collection of additional plating around his right vambrace, which was not mirrored on the left one.
And then there was the weapon he carried. Some kind of warhammer? It was definitely one of the armor-piercing types, judging by the wickedly curved 'beak' it had. But she had to wonder why on earth it had a magazine box attached under the hammer head. After everything she'd seen today, she was ready to admit to a morbid curiosity to see the thing in action.
As he took everything in, there was a sudden pained expression in his face as he caught sight of the medical emergency in the background - the one that he had brought a stretcher for. His stance shifted slightly, as though he wanted to go and help... but something stayed him. It was evident that the woman who was hurt was, at the very lest, some kind of friend to this man.
She could relate to that. While she didn't really think of her subordinates as "friends" per se, she did care enough to be concerned for their well being. Enough to trigger the burning outrage at Frenda's seeming betrayal. The idea of seeing one of her subordinates in need, but herself unable to act, was definitely something she'd consider common ground with whoever this was.
Speaking of...
"Who is this man and why does he seem so important?"
Accelerator was close enough to answer, and he smiled as he prepared to do so. If there was one thing he'd readily admit as a common trait between himself and Benjamin, it was the schadenfreude they experience from watching someone metaphorically shit their pants once they realize how well and truly fucked they were.
"That's Benjamin Rhodes. The apartment manager from San Antonio. We call him the Plutonium Dragon."
"The what." said Meltdowner, turning a disbelieving look to Accelerator.
The other Level 5 Esper laughed. "I know. Sounds like some chunibiyou bullshit, right?" He then levelled a toothy grin at her. "But it's not. He can generate antimatter. Those armour plates you see on his arm? It's not armour. It's structural support to help him contain the matter-antimatter annihilation."
"No. There's no way," said Mugino in disbelief. But there was no way she could refute it. Accelerator could lie like a dog if he wanted to, but that was usually in the middle of a fight, and even then only on the rare occasion he actually needed to bluff - which few people ever called him on because there was very little the Level 5 couldn't do once his back was to the wall.
"Oh yes," said Accelerator, relishing the look on her face. "It's a matter annihilation pumped gamma-ray laser. Like Gojira's radioactive death breath, just with a different power source. And that's why he is able to get away with that stupid name. We call him Lil' Goji-kun to tease him about it. And for added fun, he can also pack it as a projectile instead. And you'll never know its coming unless he wants you to know. That fucker is a total nightmare to deal with."
Meltdowner eyed the man with a renewed perspective. If this was the case, then it was no wonder he was so calm. If he wanted to, he could have wasted every single one of them the moment he arrived. Except maybe Accelerator. But from the way he sounded, this Benjamin-character must have some kind of ace up his sleeve that would allow him to deal with even Accelerator as well.
That kind of capability demanded respect. But was he really worthy of it? Mugino wasn't going to wait around to find out - she didn't get to where she was at by being passive, after all.
She went right up to him and said, "I'm told that you're the man I need to talk to about a place to stay."
Benjamin turned to her, mildly surprised to have been confronted so suddenly like that. But he didn't stay confused for long.
"You must be Meltdowner, then," he said in a professional sounding tone. After passing the stretcher to Rob, he offered his hand to her, saying, "Benjamin Rhodes, Manager at Westwoods Apartments in San Antonio."
While Rob definitely wanted to listen to their conversation, and possibly take part, he was holding the stretcher that Minako desperately needed. A hero wouldn't waste time talking when somebody needed his help. He made his way over to the ad hoc trauma team. "I have a stretcher."
Ami sighed in relief as she finished the spell that Yuuno had taught her, the aquamarine glow fading from her hands. "Thank the gods. Mina, we're going to get you some place more comfortable."
"Thanks," replied Sailor Venus, no longer speaking through gritted teeth.
"But not for another minute or two," added Yuuno as he continued casting another Physical Heal spell on Sailor Venus, his hands glowing emerald green.
"Can you afford to pay attention to me right now?"
As Rob finished spreading the stretcher out beside Minako, he answered her reassuringly. "Everything's under control. Ben's here."
"Ben's come to save the day? I thought he was ex-Navy, not ex-Calvary. But he has to be calvary, doesn't he, since he rides to the rescue all the time."
Rob smiled. "It's 'Cavalry', not 'Calvary', unless you're talking about that place in Jerusalem."
"Just outside Jerusalem," Ami corrected.
Minako giggled. "You're getting to be as bad as me, Rob-oji."
Ami smiled, less at her friend's comment and more at how she had said it. It looked like Minako wasn't going to go into shock before they had a chance to get her home. Seeing that Yuuno's hands had stopped glowing, she announced, "Let's get you onto the stretcher. Rob, take her legs; I'll take her torso. Yuuno, be ready to slide the stretcher under her."
The three of them carried out the procedure as if they'd rehearsed it.
"Now," Rob asked Minako, "who's going to carry you home?"
"I will, but you won't," Ami replied. "Our heights are too different." She looked around and finally spotted Usagi. "Sailor Moon! I need your help over here!"
Considering how quickly she arrived, it was obvious that Usagi was waiting for Ami's call. "Does somebody here need a ride?" she asked with a concerned smile on her face.
"Hang on a minute; I'll check with Ben and make sure the fight really is over," Rob replied as he made room for Usagi at the foot of the stretcher. He made his way back to the other important conversation taking place on what was no longer a battlefield. As he did, he noticed Ben turning to Accelerator. "You're ranking me at Level 4?"
"Yeah, I am. And get over yourself. Until you can do more than just blow stuff up, you're nowhere near Level 5. Even if you can blow up a shopping mall in one shot."
Railgun felt the need to come to Ben's defence. "He can also do that Capacity Down thing."
"So he's a Dual Skill. That doesn't make him Level 5."
"Triple Skill," said Ben. "I'm a teleporter, too."
Meltdowner's entire thought process came to a screeching halt.
"You need a computer to do the math for you," Accelerator countered, heedless of the blank look on her face.
"True," allowed Benjamin, "but my teleport range is better than anyone in Academy City."
Meltdowner was, suffice to say, bewildered. Theoretical chatter about Dual Skills had been relatively common back in Academy City. But the idea of a Triple Skill was the sort of thing that was simply never brought up, and only because the idea was so outlandish that calling it a pipe dream was being too generous. And yet, here was a man who was laying claim three esper abilities, and also had his mental and physical faculties fully intact. Or at least seemed to. If he was crazy, it was a very subtle sort of crazy - the kind typically written off as eccentricity... at least, until they were mounting your head on their trophy wall.
But she somehow got the sense that while Benjamin might be at least a little on the batshit side of the mental health spectrum, he was harmless so long as he wasn't provoked. He was just so... Charming? No, though the way he handled Accelerator's sass was notable. Nice? Yes, he certainly was, but it was something more than that. There was just something about the man that made him seem...
....Trustworthy.
That nearly made Meltdowner start at the realization. Back in Academy City, she could literally count on one hand exactly how many people she felt she could fully trust and place her faith in, with fingers left over - there were so many hidden agendas that maintaining a healthy sense of paranoia was not only considered normal, but essential to one's continued survival in that sick and twisted place.
Meltdowner could smell a liar a mile away. Benjamin... He might be capable of lying, but only in the way Sun Tzu espoused - encouraging his enemy's arrogance and enticing them to attack in the one place where he could completely unmake them. Otherwise, this was the type of man who was brutally honest. You may not like the truth he has to tell you, but you could rest assured, it was very much the truth you need to hear and can only be disregarded at your own peril.
And then the last bit Benjamin said registered with her.
"Wait," called out Meltdowner. "How far can he go?"
"We haven't tried it yet," said Shirai, "but theoretically Cousin Ben can teleport to the Moon if he needs to." (At this, Meltdowner mouthed the words "Cousin Ben!?" in absolute astonishment.) "All he needs is a set of known coordinates. Though he can't do Move Point like Musujime can, but his Device can plot out multiple jumps in advance. In short, he can perform consecutive teleports faster than I can."
The more Meltdowner heard, the more she thought the entire world had gone insane. Accelerator and Railgun weren't at each other's throats? Accelerator was willing to talk instead of fight? Somebody she'd never met before had a Triple Skill, which Academy City was certain was impossible? Kuroko Shirai, who she personally knew was a Judgment officer who couldn't see the real world past her rule book, was admitting she wasn't the best, and treating Accelerator and this Benjamin person as friends - and they were letting her? Other people knew what ITEM was like and were still willing to protect deserters from the team out of the goodness of their hearts? At this point, she wouldn't be surprised if Hamazura, Level 0 that he was, demonstrated that he was able to defeat her in a one-on-one fight. "Masaki-san, Rhodes-san, I'll take you up on your offer. I have some serious thinking to do."
"I'll go with you," Saiai said weakly as she stood up. "I'm not leaving you super alone."
With the all-clear officially sounded by Rob and confirmed by Ben, people started heading home, teleporting, shunting, folding, or shifting back where they came from while saying things like "Give me a call tomorrow" or "Let's get together when there isn't an emergency" or "Great to meet you; come see us some time!" ... although nobody thought it wise to leave before Ben took Saiai and Mugino with him to San Antonio.
The Sailor Teleport was awkward, what with Sailor Venus's stretcher being carried by Sailor Mercury and Sailor Moon. But Ami wasn't willing to let Minako go home by van when a less stressful option was available.
Eventually the group left in Kemptville was made up of the people who had been in the vans to begin with, Mahoro, Slash, Itsuki, Honami, Saber, Archer, and the Magic Knights... at which point Hikaru finished a cellphone call. "Guru Clef won't be able to bring us back home for a few hours yet."
"And I'm not sure whether Caster can bring us back home," added Archer.
"We should have asked whether anybody needed a ride before Washuu-chan took off," Mii commented. "Too late now. when's the next train from Ottawa to Montreal?"
Rob checked the Via Rail website. "We just missed the late-morning train. The next one's at 2:20." He turned to the group from Montreal. "We will, of course, pay your way back in business class. it's the least we can do to thank you for helping us today. Although I'd be very interested in spending some time talking with you, I doubt I'll have time to do that today."
"Maybe tomorrow," suggested Saber.
Rob nodded. "Maybe tomorrow." He turned to the Magic Knights. "I'm sure you'd be more comfortable waiting some place where it's warm and Bob knows to the centimeter where to pick you up from, instead of out in the cold where people need to look for you, "
"We'd appreciate that, thank you," replied Fuu.
"Oh, dear," Mahoro commented while putting her own cellphone away. "The teleporter that Ryuga-san built to send us here was single-use. We can't go home until he rebuilds it."
"Or we could put you on a train as well," Rob offered.
"You can put mistress Mahoro on a train. I refuse to travel in a pet carrier."
"Then I'll stay until Ryuga-san and Hokaze-hakase can finish the repairs to the teleporter, too."
Rob smiled. "We'll find you some place to sleep for a few days." He turned to Shiage. "Now, how do we get everybody to Ottawa? We used to have enough seats in our vans..." Rob looked mournfully at the broken windshield of the new van. Then he continued, "... but that has to go to a window repair shop before it's roadworthy again. Are we the only residence that can't open a portal?"
"I don't see anyone here from Nova Scotia or Dublin," Archer pointed out.
Shiage looked at the damage to the second van. "I count fourteen people here, including the panther who won't ride in a pet carrier. You have eleven seats. You take everybody else. I'll take Rikou and Frenda, and drive this to a repair shop here, and say a car in front of me kicked up a rock. But I'll need a credit card."
Rob shook his head. "Give them the insurance policy number and tell them they'll get the deductible on delivery. I'll come back for you in a couple of hours with the card."
"Or we can do it that way."
As Rob moved the snow off of the larger van, he commented to Mii, "Well, today's been busy, and I have a load of paperwork ahead of me because of it. I'm looking forward to relaxing tomorrow."
Acknowledgements:
Lyrics from "She Ain't Pretty", performed by The Northern Pikes, written by Bryan Potvin, from the album Snow in June, © 1990 Virgin Records
Lyrics from "Lovers in a Dangerous Time", written and performed by Bruce Cockburn, from the album Stealing Fire, © 1984 True North Records
Lyrics from "Both Sides, Now", written and performed by Joni Mitchell, from the album Clouds, © 1969 Reprise Records (although no doubt Frenda is quoting one of the cover versions)
Lyrics from "Stairway to Heaven", performed by Led Zeppelin, written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, from the album Led Zeppelin IV, © 1971 Atlantic Records
The character of Jenny Everywhere is available for use by anyone, with only one condition. This paragraph must be included in any publication involving Jenny Everywhere, in order that others may use this property as they wish. All rights reversed.
Notes:
"Bridgehead is a local chain, and they do good coffee. I don't know what I'd do if they ever got bought out by one of the big chains."
Guess what happened in 2019...
Project Dark May
Details here.
the hostel they were staying at
Specifically, this one near Ryerson University. Pricey for a hostel, but it gives them the privacy they want without paying hotel prices.
"Hey, it's not like I like her that way, the way Shirai likes Railgun. I just thought that maybe we could have been friends, if she didn't know that I live in the darkness in Academy City."
Any implied reference to events in the canon A Certain Scientific Railgun T is purely intentional.
At this point, she wouldn't be surprised if Hamazura, Level 0 that he was, demonstrated that he was able to defeat her in a one-on-one fight.
According to canon, Shiage is capable of defeating Meltdowner... but that hadn't happened before ITEM was displaced into the Metacontinuity.[/b]
And that's - finally - the end of Mitsuko Kongo's introductory story ... but far from the end of the events taking place in February 2017 in Ottawa. We aren't even at Valentine's Day yet.
--
Rob Kelk
Sticks and stones can break your bones,
But words can break your heart.
- unknown
Forever neighbours, never neighbors
Government of Canada: How to immigrate to Canada
Rob Kelk
Sticks and stones can break your bones,
But words can break your heart.
- unknown
Forever neighbours, never neighbors
Government of Canada: How to immigrate to Canada