=====
Fred Herriotfherriot@yahoo.com**** **** ****"Fanfiction IS Real Life!"**** **** ****
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-- File: IllFLC-2.txt
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Megatokyo, Toshima Ward, east of Ikebukuro JR Station, 21 June
2031, twenty minutes after midnight...
"Chikage?"
A moan escapes the dozing teenage girl on the bed, then her
eyes flutter as she glances around the vast circular space that is
now her bedroom. Slowly sitting up, the girl stretches herself,
then closes her eyes as a non-voice deep in her head makes its
first proper report. Grunting as slight jolts of discomfort rock
through her body, she slides the covers away, allowing herself to
stand. Engaging in another stretch, she immediately sweeps into a
tai chi chuan form. Even draped in the cumbersome black-and-white
nightgown provided by her grandfather, Chikage Hirosaki finds it
very easy to make her body move to her command. Well, this was a
welcome change from drawing on the Spiral's reserve of life chi to
create an astral form for her to use whenever she was training.
Finishing her form, she takes note of the young-looking woman
standing by the stairs leading to Chikage's reception room/study.
Recognizing the grandmistress of Saikoo Jinseijitsu Ninjitsu-ryuu
immediately, Chikage stands to attention, then bows. "Negako."
"The bridge to Sanctuary will be open in fifteen minutes,"
Negako announces, then heads downstairs.
Chikage nods, then slips off her nightgown, revealing a sports
bra and cotton panties. Laying beside her bed are clothes her late
namesake would find "hip" for a would-be goth. A white button
shirt. Grey tartan vest. Ankle-length grey skirt. Black blazer.
Red tie with a white Gothic cross. A hooded white cape decorated
with stylized red-and-white crosses. Nodding, Chikage quickly
slips on her clothes, then puts on knee-length socks and boots
before heading downstairs. Negako stands by the elevator which
would take them to the ground floor 1800 metres down.
Wordlessly, they board a car. The car descends on magnetic
guide-lines, dropping past the various residence levels reserved
for clerics who worked at the Spiral. At the 1500 metre mark, it
slips into a vast tube cored by a central pillar, surrounded on all
sides by crystal walls. Beyond the walls, metal ribs extend from
the Spiral's main tower to the four crystal tubes grown to wrap
around the tower (hence this building's name). The tubes pulse
with eerie light. That light marked the Spiral's reservoir of chi,
the combined life force of four million people and a million
boomers who have died since a day in February six years ago.
In a minute, the car stops at the main reception gallery.
Stepping out, they walk past small grottoes filled with butsudans
(Buddhist family memorials), kamidanas (Shinto house god shrines),
plus family shrines and other personal memorials spanning two dozen
separate faiths. Chikage pays them no attention; the maintenance
of these shrines were the responsibility of those who brought them
here. Another minute's walk has the two women beyond two rows of
glowing crystalline arches surrounding the Spiral's foundation.
Once clear of the Spiral, Negako taps a microphone on her gi.
"This is Negako. Chikage is ready. Beam us to Aomori, Ifvibaner."
"Um...sorry, Negako, but the childe's grandfather states that
the test begins now," the voice of one of the two alien-born Senior
Matriarchs of Special Projects warns. "She knows what I mean."
"Hai, I do," Chikage nods, then raises her hands.
"***SPIRITUS DRACONIS!!!!***"
The Spiral seems to catch on fire as chi erupts from the tips
of the four main crystalline spires. Flowing together into a
single mass over five hundred metres long, it transforms into a
beautiful Oriental dragon. As the spirit dragon descends to the
ground, Chikage levitates, landing daintily on the neck.
"Aomori!" the magi calls out.
The dragon cants its head northward...
* * *
East of the Spiral, a moment later...
"Whoo, that sure hit the spot...!"
Priss Asagiri grunts as she lowers the can of Asashi Ichiban,
wiping her lips. Quiet concert at Hot Legs tonight. Even better,
there had been no emergency call from Sylia concerning some stupid
thing Genom might have done. Besides, the night was cool, with a
fresh breeze blowing in off the Pacific. Yeah, it'd be...
Her eyes turn west. From her vantage point, the Spiral looks
as almost all living in Megatokyo normally saw it: an incomplete
tower covered in rotting scaffolding, all construction stopped at
440 metres above ground level. Just to the north of that stump, a
burst of light flares in mid-air a kilometre above ground. That
burst morphs into a snake-like object which slithers its way up and
north. Given the distance involved, the Sabres' heavy weapons
expert can't see the young girl riding that object's back.
"What the fuck is THAT...?!" Priss gapes, jaw knocked askew as
the glowing...shit, was that a DRAGON?!...whatever-it-was vanishes
into the northern night, then she glances warily at the empty can
of beer in her hand. Without a second's thought, she tosses it
into a nearby waste bin, then mounts her motorcycle.
"Better ask Sylia about hallucinogenic drugs!" she mutters...
* * *
"Illusions - For The Love of a Child"
a fanfic of the Bubblegum Crisis - Megatokyo 2030-2032
by Fred Herriot
fherriot@yahoo.com
**** **** ****
Edited by E.B. Kushnir <kush1@iaw.on.ca>
C&C by Robert Geiger <robertgeiger@prodigy.net> and Shawn Hagen
<hagen@brant.net>
**** **** ****
Based on situations from "Bubblegum Crisis," created by ARTMIC and
Youmex; "Urusei Yatsura," created by Rumiko Takahashi; "Tokimeki
Memorial," created by Konami; "Sister Princess: Onii-chan Daisuki"
and "Seraphim Call," created by Mediaworks; the "Little Lovers"
series, created by NTT Shuppan; "Kita-e. White Illumination,"
created by Hudson Soft; and "Wish Tale," created by Videosystem.
**** **** ****
This story is also based on my UY fanfic series "The Senior Year"
(co-created by Mike Smith) and "The Ishinomaki Years," as well as
the BGC fanfic series "No Armour Against Fate" by Shawn Hagen
**** **** ****
PART TWO - THE POWER OF KAWAII
The Kyoto Toratotaka Annex, 21 June 2031, dawn...
A content moan escapes the young teenager sleeping in one of
the guest bedrooms located at the north end of the ring arches.
Taking a deep breath, Aya Tougetsu sits up, then reaches over to
draw the curtain away. Looking outside, she sees the beautiful
ancient capital of Japan lying ten kilometres north, sitting in the
fertile valley of the Yodo-gawa (Yodo River). The Annex sat on the
south shore of the Uji-gawa, a branch of the Yodo, downriver from
Byoodou-in (Byoodou Shrine) near Uji train station. Already,
people were out for an early morning jog along the riverbank as
small clumps of monks from Byoodou knelt beside the river under the
shade of sakura trees to carry out their early morning devotions.
"Kirei (Beautiful)..." she whispers.
"Aya?"
Aya looks over her shoulder. "Oba-chan!" she grins, bounding
out of bed to embrace the CMCO with a backbreaking hug.
Mei gasps, grateful that MT series 33-Ms had duranium-strength
bones due to the hectic (and hazardous) jobs they performed in the
world of urban trauma rescue. She then stares at the blue-eyed
girl with the green hair. Mei's eyes tear. Well, why the hell
not?! Mei Ijuuin helped create this kawaii girl now embracing her,
not to mention the seven others in neighbouring rooms here at the
Annex and an eighth now in Sanctuary enduring a "final exam" being
thrown by those sentients who once trained Ryuuji Hirosaki.
"Ohayo, Aya-chan. Welcome to the world," Mei goes to her
tiptoes to gently kiss Aya's forehead (Aya was seven centimetres
taller than Mei), then she beckons the newly-woken Sexaroid with
her. "C'mon, the others should be getting up now."
"Hai," Aya nods, reaching over to slip on a housecoat over her
pyjamas, then after slipping her feet into comforters, follows Mei
out of the bedroom. "Where's Kaa-san right now?"
"Probably still asleep in Osaka. It IS about five-thirty
right now," Mei clicks her tongue. "Don't worry. We'll make DAMN
sure she gets here tonight so you can meet her."
"Arigatou!" Aya smiles, then follows Mei into another bedroom,
this one containing a girl with wavy brown hair cut short at her
neck and brown eyes, she now up. "Ohayo, Kurumi-chan!!"
"Eh...oh, Aya-chan, Mei-obachan, ohayo!" Kurumi Matsuura nods,
then the process begins anew with another round of hugs...
* * *
Megatokyo, Genom Tower, early morning...
"Johnson-san?"
Samantha looks up from her notes, then tries not to groan.
"Ohayo, Takeo-san. What brings you down to my office today?" she
waves Manabe Takeo inside as she turns back to the readouts from
another evaluation project being run by SPD.
Manabe tries not to react at her show of rudeness. He knew
how much the woman despised him. Besides, Samantha Johnson was a
Board member, something Manabe couldn't hope to be for some time
yet. Unless luck somehow shone his way. For that to happen inside
Genom, Mason once told him, one made his own luck. As to how he'd
do that, much less who'd he target, that was up for debate. As one
famous SpecWar (special warfare) expert asserted, when dealing with
a sky full of targets, the big question was what to shoot first.
"Well, Mason-sama was a little miffed when he found out that
a whole slew of people got invited to that little shing-ding down
in Kyoto. You know, the one for Ijuuin's baby Sexaroids," Manabe
snorts. "Hell, waste of time if you ask me. They'll probably get
recalled and sent into space once the Diet finds out about 'em."
"The Diet already KNOWS about them," Samantha doesn't look up
from her notes. "Further, sometime this week, they'll undergo a
citizenship test administered by the Canadian consulate in Osaka,
so once they're given permanent resident visas, that'll solve that.
Besides, they don't have the 33-C heart in them, so they can't be
put on a restricted list." She looks up, lightly smiling. "By the
way, if Mason was hoping to be included in my party, tell him I've
already filled all the spaces and confirmed same with Ijuuin-kachou
(Matriarch Ijuuin). Now, is there anything else, Takeo-san?"
Manabe jolts, then crosses his arms. "You were given twenty
spaces in your party, or so I've heard. Who's going?"
"Myself, Kanako-san, all the Mark Two scientists active in the
project and the Mark Twos themselves," Samantha replies.
"What?!!"
"Oh, come now, you don't think, after ALL the crap your boss
heaped on Saotome-hakase last year, that people in T'n'T're going
to say 'All is forgiven?' Be serious," Samantha sneers, then her
lips curl into a delighted smile. "Besides, as of two days ago, I
no longer respond to Mason. I respond directly to the Chairman.
So unless the Chairman is willing to include Mason in HIS party,
don't bother me about the reception, much less anything else."
Manabe blinks, then pales. "Since when...?!"
"Since the Chairman finally decided it was time for Mason to
get his act in gear and stop pretending he's king-shit in this
Tower," Samantha slowly rises. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got
a lot of work to do today and I've no time to horse around with a
stupid little marionette like you. Iko (Go)!"
She indicates the door. Manabe shudders indignantly, then
jolts on feeling a strange gust of air fall on his back. He turns
to see Ryooko Hayami, a raven-haired, brown-eyed tomboy, standing
behind him. How the FUCK did this thing get here so fast?
Before he could utter a word, a hand lands on his shoulder,
Ryooko staring intently into his eyes. "I believe Samantha-obasama
just asked you to leave, Takeo-san," the Mark Two evenly announces.
Before the startled R&D executive could utter a word in response,
Ryooko tilts herself to one side, gently shoving Manabe on his way
before slamming the door shut behind him. "Aho (Jerk)!" she spits
out before relaxing, staring concernedly at Samantha. "Daijoubu
desu ka (Are you okay), Samantha-obasama?" she inquires.
"I expect Mason to come to me directly about you manhandling
Takeo like that, Ryooko-chan," Samantha clicks her tongue.
Truthfully, she suspected Brian Mason wouldn't bother himself
with such a trivial incident, even if it involved a favoured
protegee. Still, she had to be careful. Despite the hatred she
felt for Mason, she didn't ONCE allow herself to become complacent
around him. Mason had many ways of striking at Samantha, directly
and indirectly. She knew what Mason had done to others who crossed
him, people like Kate Madigan's superior Iwao Sumeragi. Thinking
of Iwao, Samantha shudders. Worse, Mason could resort to methods
that didn't always lead to death, though they were ugly enough to
make the victim feel that death was benign in comparison.
"He didn't have to barge in here and take away your time just
for himself, Oba-sama," Ryooko returns, then sits down across from
the chief of SPD. "Why's Takeo-san like that, anyway? The man
clearly has no imagination to speak of; at least that's the way
Okaa-sama and Otou-sama speak of him! How'd he get so far up in
the company in the first place?" she crosses her arms.
"How much have Yuuji and Fumio told you?" Samantha asks.
Ryooko shrugs, lightly smiling. "They need someone to talk to
about what they've been through before they came to work for you,
Oba-sama. I listen to them. Isn't that the right thing to do?"
"Hai, but it can be a dangerous thing to do, too," Samantha
holds up a finger. Still, there was no real concern since Ryooko
was versed in keeping things confidential. "Ryooko-chan, people
like Takeo are no better than marionettes. But in this place,
that's dangerous since all it needs is a master manipulator like
Mason to pull their strings. Guess what happens next?"
"People get hurt," Ryooko finishes.
"Right. I'll bet right now that the instant Mason finds out
I'm no longer directly under his control, he's going to freak right
out, then think of any way possible to put me back under his thumb.
That's..." Samantha pauses, then shrugs. "That's what makes life
in this company very exciting, especially at my level."
"He's a danger to you, then," Ryooko concludes.
The chief of SPD blinks, then rises, walking over to kneel
beside the Mark Two Sexaroid. "Ryooko, don't think about it."
"Demo (But)...!"
"Don't!" Samantha repeats. "Ryooko, this isn't Canada. You
have NO rights to speak of here, okay? You try to take matters
into your own hands and all that'll happen is that you'll end up
VERY dead. Atop that, some people in this place wouldn't be the
LEAST bit adverse in attacking your parents in retaliation. At
least, I wouldn't put it past Takeo and Mason. Got me?!"
"I..." Ryooko shudders, then bows her head. "Sumimasen. I
know..." her voice trails off, then frustrated tears stream from
her eyes, hands clenching. "I've heard about the way Okaa-sama and
Otou-sama were treated by their former superiors here. It angers
me, seeing the pain in their eyes when they think of those times,
Oba-sama. It also angers me when I see others not treating you
with the respect YOU deserve. That hurts me, too. My parents gave
me life. You give me purpose, Oba-sama. That's what I respect.
You can't ask me to respect someone like Takeo, Oba-sama."
"I'm not asking you to do that, Ryooko-chan," Samantha's voice
lowers to its most soothing level. "But I'm warning you that you
are severely handicapped when it comes to the games in this place.
You're not, perhaps never will be, in a position to decide anything
about other people's fate inside Genom. You are an INSTRUMENT of
policy, answerable to me and to Quincy-shachou. Yes, in my eyes,
you've got every right to feel the way you do, but you can't ever
hope to ACT on those feelings and get away with it." She reaches
up to squeeze Ryooko's shoulder. "Look, you leave idiots like
Takeo to me and Kanako-san, okay? Don't worry about it."
"You can't ask me to fully stop worrying about it, Oba-sama."
They gaze into the other's eyes, then Samantha nods, leaning
over to kiss the Sexaroid's cheek. That was Ryooko's love for the
others in the Mark Two Project speaking right now. No doubt, she
did understand what Samantha warned about. "Well, in a way, I'm
glad you do worry about it," she sighs. "Look, let's go down and
get the others up. You're going to have a full day on your feet."
Ryooko blinks, her eyes widening at Samantha's announcement,
then she beams. Like her sisters, she HATED cryostasis. "Hontou
desu ka (You mean it)?!" she bolts up, her body shaking excitedly.
"Hai, hontou yo (I mean it)! Iku yo (Let's go)!"
"Hai!!"
* * *
Toshima...
"Welcome home, my granddaughter."
"It is good to be home, Ojii-sama," Chikage bows her head as
she kneels before Ryuuji in the elder's meditation room near the
tip of the Spiral. Adjusting her cape, she looks relaxed, yet
there was also an aura of alertness about her. The poise a true
magi, a wise person, of the Spiral should take, Ryuuji muses.
"And how was Sanctuary?" he asks.
Chikage's lips twitch into a faint smile. "Our most honoured
teachers didn't give me much of a chance to take in all the sights,
but I confess that it is a nice place to visit. I wouldn't want to
live there, though. The stench of the mass suicide of the Questors
who created the place is still quite," a pause, "...prevailing."
"I see," the Grand Magi nods, then sighs. "Well, you have
some time now to relax before tonight's reception in Kyoto."
"Will Otou-san and Okaa-san be there?" Chikage asks, the tone
of her voice indicating she suspected what the answer might be.
"Doubtful, but the invitation is out to them," Ryuuji snorts,
then he makes a dismissive wave with his hand. "Feh!! Don't worry
about them, Chikage. You've got more important things to consider
than trying to be a 'normal' child for those two."
"Hai, wakarimasu (I understand)," Chikage nods, then her smile
turns sarcastic. "Perhaps I should go to Harry-anikun's dimension
and ask how he fared dealing with the Dursleys?"
Both laugh...
* * *
Genom Tower...
"Oooh, I'm so glad we can do this!!"
Matilda grunts as she stretches herself, then slides into a
warm-up exercise her father taught her (Trent was a black-belt in
ju-jitsu). The other Mark Twos were also up, stretching themselves
as they work the kinks from their various joints. "A whole day to
spend out of that tube!" Rina Koizumi buttons her shirt, then slips
on a skirt. "What'll we do, minna?" she gazes on the others.
"Well, we can't stray too far from the Tower since Oba-san
wants us ready to go to Kyoto by five o'clock tonight," Mika warns,
slipping on a pair of oval reading glasses. Her namesake had been
nearsighted, though Mika had been built with perfect vision. The
glasses, atop adding another layer of familiarity to her parents
Ichidou and Mayu, served as a perfect disguise. After all, what
sort of boomer would wear glasses? "Let's see if we can get one of
the others to act as a guide and we'll tour the city!"
"Sounds like a plan!" Kiki nods, slipping a hairband her
mother knitted for her into her blonde locks...
* * *
The Spiral, a half-hour later...
"It's so dead here, isn't it?"
"Hai, it is, but it is to be expected," Patrick Kanzaki, the
Anglican Church's senior cleric in Megatokyo, nods. He and Chikage
now stand on the manicured lawn surrounding the Spiral. Despite
the care given to what lifeforms actually lived in this place, the
visual dullness of the area around the great tower left much to be
desired. "Because so few are trusted with the secret of this place
and we worry much about those forces who would oppose our purpose
here, we have no chance to deal with the mundane problems."
"Perhaps that needs to be corrected," Chikage muses, then she
feels the lawn, her mind's eye sensing the intricate chi matrices
connecting every blade of grass, every microscopic animal, even the
few rodents, that managed to make a home here. "In fact, it will
be corrected. I'll ask someone to provide seeds to grow roses."
"Roses?!" Patrick gazes at the Sexaroid magi, then he nods
appreciatively. "Yes, that would be a decided improvement in this
place, Chikage-san. In fact, if you're going to start a rose
garden here, I might decide to plant something here, too."
Chikage gazes at the taller man, then a knowing smile crosses
her face. Ryuuji had been thorough in briefing his granddaughter
about all those who regularly did business here. "Perhaps some
inspiration towards seeking someone to share your life and heart,
Ani-kun (Big Brother)?" her eyebrow arches knowingly.
The priest gaks, then stammers, "Chikage-san!!"
"Chikage!!! There you ar-...SUGOI (WOW)!!!"
Chikage blinks, then glances over her shoulder as the Ijuuin
sisters shepherd in eight of her CC sisters, all dressed in casual
civilians. Unlike Rei or Mei, who both have seen the Spiral as it
truly is, the other Sexaroids are frozen, eyes turning up and up
and UP to gaze on the summit 2000 metres overhead.
Nodding to Patrick, the magi walks over to join the others.
"I trust you like my home, Shirayuki?"
Shirayuki Osamu, second of the CCs to achieve self-awareness,
is a petite girl with lavender hair and mauve eyes. Managing to
tear her eyes away from the Spiral's summit to stare at Chikage,
she points up. "We didn't see THIS outside, Chikage!"
"As you're all aware, you're not supposed to," Chikage smiles
lightly, then turns to Rei. "I assume you brought them all here
for a reason, Rei-mama. Is there something the matter?"
"No, not really something wrong, but since they might have
want to come visit you at your home, Mei and I felt it was only
right to ensure they understood what your home is all about," Rei
chuckles. "Besides, we need to give the others the chance to deal
with some personal matters before tonight's reception."
"Ah, *that* problem. Soo desu ka (I see)," Chikage nods, then
turns to Kurumi Matsuura. As the person with the "oh-one" body,
Kurumi was seen as the "elder sister" among the Child Companions.
"I assume our basic plan is to go somewhere where we will find many
people at our emotional level, then take our pick of what might be
available. May I recommend the Harajuku shopping district?"
"That's pretty close to the Fault, you know," Mei warns.
"We never visited that part of the city before the quake,
Mei," Rei chuckles. Being daughters of the "economic aristocracy,"
the Ijuuin sisters never frequented parts of Tokyo where their more
"common" schoolmates might desire to go. "Besides, even if it is
near the Fault, it's still the 'cute capital' of Megatokyo these
days. There should be loads of teenagers there for the girls."
"Well, it should be an interesting place to explore anyway,"
Marie Susumu hums, adjusting the glasses over her eyes. Like some
first, second and fourth generation 33-S's, she'd been constructed
with defective eyesight to properly conform with what the original
Marie was like. "I hope there's a bookstore there, at least."
"I hope there's a music store, too," Ayu Kawahara adds. The
template to the brown-haired, brown-eyed tomboy had been quite the
music lover, her tastes spanning the genres. Her parents, Yutaka
and Tomoko, recently purchased a massive home entertainment system
for their child, it now ready to go in their family home in Chiba.
"There should be enough of everything there, but we won't be
able to take in such delights just standing here, minna."
The others jolt, eyes falling on Chikage, who has a knowing
smile on her face. Everyone then laughs...
* * *
Harajuku, north of the Fault, an hour later...
"Sugoi!! This is incredible!"
Sayako chuckles. "I knew you'd love this place," she squeezes
Kiki's hand as she leads the Mark Twos through the central part of
the shopping district east of the Meiji Shrine.
When Second Kantou struck Tokyo, this part of the city had
been totally destroyed; the quake's epicentre had been to the west
of here. Despite the fact that the Fault was located only three
hundred metres to the south, Harajuku had been rebuilt and restored
to its pre-Second Kantou status as a "trendy" shopping area.
The "cute capital" of Japan, indeed.
To ensure "degenerates" who might swarm up from the Fault or
Paradise Loop wouldn't bring harm to customers, the local chamber
of commerce invested heavily in public security. Guard boomers are
everywhere, keeping a sharp eye out for any sort of disturbance.
However, to project a "pleasant" atmosphere, most of those boomers
are disguised as performers or vendors. If they are undisguised,
they are coloured in pinks, whites and other colours to reduce the
intimidating feeling they'd project on some people.
"Look at all that stuff!" Matilda points at one shop, selling
everything imaginable though it was emblazoned with a kitty motif.
"Look at all the people here!" Asuka glances around. Few
adults who didn't seem to be staff here were in sight. Most of the
visitors were either junior high or high school students.
"Why do people come here, Mama?" Kiki gazes on Sayako.
The scientist shrugs. "Well, life in general for people like
me isn't always pleasant, Kiki," she breathes out, then points to
the shop Matilda had seen. "Places like this sell things that help
us better deal with the unpleasant aspects of our lives."
Taking that in, the Mark Twos walk over to gaze through the
window at what was being sold, Sayako following. "But there seems
to be little utility in such things, Oba-san," Mika notes, lowering
her voice as she looks on Sayako. "Why waste the money?"
"Some people, especially those who'd been your emotional
peers, don't see this as a waste," Sayako grins...
* * *
Elsewhere...
Walking up from the south end of Harajuku's main shopping area
is a middle-aged woman, dressed casually. Glancing to both sides
of her, she quickly detects the garishly-painted C-class boomers
acting as "open" security. Most are now being swarmed by packs of
tourists as they gaggle to take pictures with the cyberdroids.
Disgust fills her as she watches those poor innocents in the
company of these mechanical monsters. "They're quite harmless,"
the director of the Harajuku chamber of commerce had once asserted
on NHK. Harmless, eh? Such a pity, the woman sighs.
These poor people had to see what these things really were.
She slips her hand into her purse, feeling the solid weight of
the air-pistol given to her by a friend in Kyushu. The great thing
about pneumonic-driven weapons was the silence when fired. Without
gunpowder to propel the bullets, air-pistols made no noise save for
the hammer hitting the firing cap. That was dulled by a felt hood
over the hammer stud. Further, to overcome the sub-sonic speeds
the bullet travelled (even the best air-pistols could not send
something downrange faster than 800 kilometres per hour), the sharp
tip of the darts loaded with Baal were specially reinforced to
penetrate the outer armour of a C-class boomer. Once that was
compromised, the attack was done; the drug would do the rest.
Now, what should she shoot at...?
* * *
North end of Harajuku...
"Harajuku ahoy!!!"
Everyone gives Kurumi concerned looks as nine CC series 33-S's
disembark from a van provided to the Ijuuin sisters by the Nerima
Tower staff. As soon as everyone is off, Rei waves to the driver,
who directs the van away. "You okay there, Kurumi?" Aya wonders.
"I'm cool! I just got the urge to say that!!" Kurumi shrugs.
Rei and Mei exchange a look. "Ah...so!" the other CCs save
Chikage chime, sweatdrops pouring down their hair.
"Be careful about those types of urges, girls," Mei gently
scolds. "Remember, fall back on the memories you got from your
parents in case you get into a situation you might not understand.
Not even all the programming in the world can cover every situation
you run into. Remember that!" she wags her finger at them.
"Hai, Aunt Mei!!" the others drawl.
Rei sighs, taking a scan around the shopping area with her MFS
system. "Damn, I can't believe the number of boomers here."
Mei blinks, then her eyes narrow as she does her own MFS scan.
"Quite a lot," she nods, then stares intently at the CCs. "Oh, one
other thing! DON'T use the Effect unless it's for self-defence,
okay?! We don't need someone landing us with a lawsuit because you
messed around with a security boomer's programming."
"Oba-sama, the Effect only makes boomers behave themselves and
stops them from hurting us or anyone around us!" Shirayuki moans.
"True, but there're some people who really wouldn't care
either which way," Mei rolls her eyes understandingly. "Give 'em
a damned excuse and you'll never be rid of them!"
"Hai," the others nod...
* * *
Time seems to drift as two groups of Sexaroid teenagers begin
to make their way through Harajuku, always under the watchful eye
of the three adults who had a hand in their creation.
The Mark Twos stay close to the centre, remaining together as
they watch other teenagers, especially teen girls, romp through the
various stores and kiosks. Observing this, Sayako is unsure as to
how to react. Yes, they were acting human, as well as could be
expected given their lack of real experience interacting with
normal people. That was a good thing. But they didn't seem to
want to strike out on their own. That was quite worrisome. If one
of the Mark Twos couldn't operate on her own even in a non-combat
environment, her overall effectiveness as a special operations
fighter for Genom would be questionable. Couldn't they fall back
on the memories their parents bestowed them? Or were the combat
elements of their minds keeping them tense, on the lookout for
battle situations? If that was true, what could be done?
At the north end of Harajuku, the CCs scatter, tracking down
whatever specific point of interest catches their attention as soon
as they are clear of Rei's and Mei's immediate company (the Annex
Matriarch and her sister can still track them via MFS).
Chikage Hirosaki, who actually dealt with her "itch" while she
was in Sanctuary, relaxes under a sakura tree, drawing out a large
mystical tome from her grandfather's collection to read. While her
sisters were unconsciously using their pheromones to attract the
attention of others, the magi does the exact opposite. Not that
she wouldn't refuse the honest approach of a would-be lover, but
the tome in her hands was over a thousand years old and written in
a variation of Sanskrit. What might someone conclude if they saw
something like THAT in the hands of a junior high school student?
As expected, a bookstore near the food court finds itself
graced with Marie Susumu's presence, she scanning the many novels
available. Two young girls looking for school textbooks soon shift
to the customer's reading area at the back, both sitting close to
Marie. While trying to scan the textbooks for class assignments,
they soon find themselves, for reasons they can't understand,
glancing frequently at the blue-eyed girl with her raven hair in a
long braid. Marie remains oblivious to their interest.
Spotting a music CD shop, Ayu Kawahara heads in, soon donning
headphones as she proceeds to sample everything there. When a
helpful sales clerk (an organic, herself just graduated from high
school) comes up to ask if she could be of assistance, Ayu quickly
finds herself a new friend by which she can compare various albums.
When Ayu makes a comment about how much pop music has changed in
the last five years alone, the sales clerk, Eriko Hiyoshi, jokingly
wonders where she's been all this time. "Hiyoshi-san, you wouldn't
BEGIN to believe me if I told you," is Ayu's cryptic response.
A bakery attracts Shirayuki Osamu's attention, she willing to
do various taste-tests on the wares there, then as soon as she has
her fill, starts questioning the bakers and chefs about recipes.
Her knowledge of cooking soon inspires the bakery's owner to ask
her if she would be willing to put her skills to the test. "It's
been a while," Shirayuki warns, though she does agree. Her first
serious attempt at baking, making sweets shaped like flamingoes,
has the baking staff and the customers begging for seconds.
Kurumi Matsuura finds a video game store. Discovering the
current run of action-adventure games, she is allowed to try some
out. Other kids who frequented this place, at first wondering who
this upstart Kansai girl was, quickly find themselves in heated
competition with Kurumi. Even with her abilities, Kurumi finds the
games challenging. "Like navigating your ghost through the LoopNet
on a very busy day," she mutters to no one in particular.
Aya Tougetsu raids a stuffed animal store for teddy bears,
kitties and other things to grace her bedroom. Three girls who
were out to do the same quickly take in what Aya has purchased,
then without hesitation, buy the very same things. The store owner
soon finds himself falling to his knees in tearful thanks for
bringing the nice green-haired girl from Osaka in that day. With
the way the tastes of teenagers could change at the proverbial snap
of a finger, he feared being forced to discount those items!
Sayuri Hyuga, a would-be Hiroshima native whose mother is the
just-retired Station Matriarch for Chuugoku District, discovers a
bumper-cart kiosk. Without having ever touched the controls of
such a vehicle, she puts herself to the test. After some jerky
collisions with other cars, she finds herself being offered some
driving lessons by a small flock of smiling boys and girls.
Yuuko Sakuramachi finds a young ladies boutique. Thanks to
money set aside by her parents through Rei, she immediately begins
to try on the latest in swimsuits and casual wear. Modelling them
in front of a mirror near the front of the store, she soon attracts
the attention of many boys, all of whom drool shamelessly at the
sight of the lovely girl. When a flustered store owner apologizes
for putting Yuuko through such embarrassment, she waves him off
with, "I don't mind their looking. If they *touch,* however...!"
The last of the CCs is Hayaka Sakyou, a would-be native of
Sendai. Her parents once worked for Toranoseishin Finances, one of
the two companies which came together to create Toratotaka in 2002.
A girl with long raven hair, she has as cool a demeanour as
Chikage. She is more mature-looking, easily earning the interest
of some high school boys and girls. The place she spends time in
is a video game parlour near where Kurumi now was. Seeing some
people go at it on a DDR machine, Hayaka decides to give it a try.
As soon as she gets into the swing of it, she quickly attracts the
attention of many students. Keeping the needs of the parlour's
owners in mind, she challenges anyone to strut their stuff.
Many do.
* * *
Lunchtime comes.
The Mark Twos lunch together with Sayako in the food court,
very close to where Marie is. Despite the almost all-organic
construction which went into Kiki and her sisters, the MBW booster
unit, atop the biomechanical parts in other parts of their bodies,
attracts the attention of Marie's magnetic field scan system.
After making her purchase, the would-be Hakodate native slips into
the food court. A quick pass through the Italian kiosk later,
Marie sits near the Mark Twos. As she reads the first of ten
novels piled beside her tray, she cants her ears to listen to the
muted conversation between the six girls and their guide.
"...picture vending machine was really strange," Kiki sighs.
"You can get all sorts of pictures taken and put on stickers just
so you can decorate your books with them."
"Well, girls do that as a way to remind themselves of their
best friends," Sayako sips her cola.
"Would girls do that with a boy, Oba-san?" Mika asks.
"Only if they were emotionally close, Mika," Sayako shakes her
head. "You wouldn't do that with a near-stranger."
"Thank God for that!" Matilda exclaims. "The way some of
those guys there were looking at me...!!" she growls, then bites
hard into her Reuben sandwich. "Perverts!"
"I told you to keep your pheromones under control, Matty,"
Sayako scolds, wagging a finger. "If you don't control them,
people will take close interest in you...and since they are nearly
equivalent to you emotionally, it will be sexual."
"Mama?"
"What is it, Kiki?"
"What happens if we *want* to have sex with someone?"
Sayako nearly chokes on her food, then coughs to clear her
throat before staring wide-eyed at Kiki. She then breathes out.
Even if she didn't WANT her daughter to loose her innocence THAT
way, Kiki did have a legitimate question. "It depends."
"On what?" Kiki prods.
"W-well," Sayako stammers, then sighs. "Personally, I hope
you...never have to go through that. Er...at least, go through
what Matty went through when she was first woken, I mean..."
The Mark Twos wince, glancing at Matilda. They all knew what
she endured the day she was born. Nearby, Marie closes her eyes in
mute sympathy, having dissected what Sayako had said, drawing the
right conclusions. "Are you saying it's bad, Oba-ya?" Rina asks.
The scientist blinks, then shakes her head. "No, no, Rina,
it's not bad at all. But...well, sex has its place. Believe it or
not, compared to a person's desire for honest, long-term intimacy,
sex is actually quite easy. It's a physical desire most of all."
"Will we have that need?" Asuka wonders.
"Not," she pauses, "...like Mark 97-fitted Sexaroids or the
Cyber-Nurses," Sayako shakes her head. "They all suffer a frequent
imbalance in their bodies' hormone levels, specifically oestrogen.
In his Sexaroid design, Saotome-hakase didn't put in an oestrogen
suppressant because, over time, the constant blockage of oestrogen
would unleash permanent damage on the brain. Oestrogen, just like
every other type of hormone, has its function. He felt it wasn't
worth tinkering around with that." A pause, then, "In your case,
what we did was re-channel the oestrogen flow so it could work in
conjunction with the MBW system. A sort of natural augmentation.
In the end, we believe it'll save wear and tear on your brain."
"Oh," the younger girls nod...
* * *
*Lucky girls!* Marie hums, having overheard that as she scans
her book. Personally, she would gladly wish the "itch" to go away
and leave her be for the rest of her life. She doubted that her
parents would truly enjoy the idea of their child going crazy and
pillowing every boy and girl who crossed her path. Who would want
to deal with the social fallout of something like that?! Still...
"Excuse me?"
Marie blinks, then turns quizzically to see two girls gazing
at her. She blinks again, then her eyes widen as recognition
dawns. These were the two girls who had been sitting near her back
at the bookshop. They have their schoolbooks with them. "Yes?"
"May we join you?" one, an impish girl with black hair, drawn
up with a ribbon, and dark eyes, blushes embarrassingly.
Marie blinks, then feels a lump form in her throat, she
sensing what these girls might ultimately have in mind.
*Oh, dear...!*
* * *
Nearby...
"How do things look now?"
Chikage hums, flipping a page in her text, then she sighs as
her mind reaches out. Like the Kuromoroboshi and the Guardsmen,
the magi didn't have to be dependent on the MFS system to locate
her sisters. "It appears Marie has discovered what not keeping
conscious control over her pheromones may lead to."
"How so?" Rei sips her bottle of cider.
"There're two girls she encountered in the bookstore who've
decided to renew acquaintances," Chikage smirks, then her eyebrow
arches. "Oh, dear. I think Hayaka is off to find a secluded place
with a boy she met on the DDR. Perhaps it would've been better to
seek out some willing Cyber-Nurses and bring them to the Spiral or
some other place to allow the others to see to their needs."
"True, there are always many solutions to any given problem,
but sooner or later the others, even you, will have to interact
with society at large. I'd rather allow the girls the chance to
deal with it head-on in lieu of shielding themselves from it."
Chikage blinks, then nods. "Hai, Mama, you are correct about
that. The fastest way to learn how to swim is to dive right into
the deep end...but you can drown that way, too."
"Life's full of risk, Chikage. What of the others?"
The magi pauses to scan again. "I believe Kurumi, Aya and
Sayuri are alright for now. Yuuko just met a boy who had been
ogling her while she was trying on clothes. She just has to
extract him from potential rivals. Shirayuki might have to deal
with her problem sometime soon. And Ayu is waiting for her new
friend from the record store to get off work so they can be alone.
No doubt, that will develop into a long-term friendship."
"Sounds good. Better be careful there, Chikage."
"Oh, how so?"
"They'll start barbing you about missing out on the fun."
The younger woman blinks, then her eyebrow arches. "I have my
own ways of dealing with my needs, Mama. I'll be fine."
Rei gazes at her. "How did you deal with it in Sanctuary?"
Chikage's smile is cryptic. "I'd rather not comment..."
* * *
Later...
There!
The woman sneers, gazing intently on a pair of beautiful girls
serving ice cream to several elementary school girls. The two were
33-Cs, though no doubt programmed to act as human as possible. If
the customers had noticed, they didn't seem to care. What madness!
They HAD to care! At least, their PARENTS had to care!
Didn't they realize what sort of harm those two monsters could
unleash if the circumstances were right?
Well, then.
A demonstration was clearly called for.
* * *
Kiki sighs, walking along one of the arcades as she watches
other shoppers. Suddenly, her hearing picks up one boy's loud
assertion: "Man, she was radical!!! She got to Level Fifteen!!"
Kiki pauses, then glances around before locking in on the
speaker: a freckled sixth-grade elementary student who had just
stepped out of a video game store. Wondering what that was all
about, the blonde Mark Two walks over, then noting the crowd inside
the store, steps inside to get a closer look. As she passes the
threshold of the door, her nose suddenly flares as a fruity scent
assaults her olfactory nerves. *Cherry,* her mind announces. At
the same time, her housekeeping computer announces the presence of
an excessive amount of pheromones. Too much even accounting for
the crowd of people already in the store. Where...?
*BOOP!!*
"Ah, man, Nee-chan, you lost!!!"
Kiki glances over, then her eyes lock on a girl about her age
sitting cross-legged in front of a large monitor, a game control in
hand. The girl was now looking her way. Their eyes lock...
* * *
*Oh, ye GODS!! I am in LOVE!!!*
Kurumi feels her cheeks suddenly redden as the strange boomer
that just walked in comes into visual range. A teenage girl, built
to be about fifteen. Honey-blonde hair to the middle of her back,
combed straight, held down with a hand-knit hairband. Stormy grey
eyes in a pyxie-cute face touched with a tiny nose and lips begging
to be given long, wet kisses. Casual slacks and a white shirt,
both discretely covering a body Kurumi just HAD to see more of.
Who was she?
What MODEL was she?! Kurumi couldn't make a match between
what she was now sensing and what was programmed into her MFS
"Warbook" catalog database on all know boomer models.
"Onee-chan...?"
Kurumi jolts, then notices her latest opponent, a bright lad
in third year of elementary school, gazing worriedly at her. "Ah!"
she blushes, then laughs. "Gomen, gomen ne!" she glances at her
watch, then gasps. "Oh, shoot, I gotta get something to eat!"
"I can order something," the video game store owner offers.
The elder sister of the Child Companions shakes her head.
"Ah, iie, Oji-chan! Genki ne (It's okay)!!" she rises, handing the
control to another boy, then she bows her thanks. "'Sides, I gotta
get back home before my parents kill me! You know how moms are!!"
The others in the shop nod understandingly as Kurumi picks up
her purchases, then heads to leave. Passing Kiki, Kurumi passes
her an inviting wink, then heads out. Kiki remains still for a
moment, then realizing that the excess pheromones, much less the
cherry scent, came from that girl, moves to follow...
* * *
"Oh, dear..."
"What is it?"
"It appears the Mark Two Sexaroids are here as well," Chikage
sighs, sipping a can of ice tea.
Rei blinks. "The Mark Twos?! Who's with them?!"
"Sayako Sheffield; she's now down at the food court," Chikage
calmly reports, sipping a can of cola. "Kurumi met Kiki Sheffield
at the video store just now. By what I sense, Asuka Sendou will
soon encounter Aya and Ryooko Hayami might soon challenge Sayuri in
a game of bumper cars. I wonder how that will turn out..."
* * *
Minutes later, the bumper car kiosk...
"Oi!! Watch where you're going, baka!!!"
Sayuri jolts, then looks over to see a black-haired tomboy by
the queue for the bumper cars, she having accidentally bumped a guy
she tried to walk around so she could get a better view...
*Wait! What IS she?!* Sayuri's eyes narrow as her MFS sounds
the alarm, then she guides the bumper car towards the area where
drivers were to disembark. Stopping the car, she stands, brushing
her skirt off, then she steps out. "I'm done, Oji-san!!"
Eyes lock on her, then the elderly kiosk owner nods. "Sure
you don't want to try again, Sayuri-san?" Everyone there had been
VERY quick to learn the name of the nice girl from Hiroshima.
"Iie, no sense hogging the fun away from the others," Sayuri
shudders delightedly, causing a dozen boys to shamelessly drool
from the gentle shift of her shoulders and a 24-carat smile.
Suddenly, the smile disappears as Sayuri's eyes lock on the
man who had yelled at Ryooko Hayami. He doesn't notice at first,
he still glaring the younger woman down. When he does, he feels
his heart chill as Sayuri's sapphire eyes seem to bore into his
heart. "I think you owe my friend an apology," Sayuri notes.
Ryooko blinks, the scent of cherry emanating from Sayuri
nearly drowning out her housekeeping computer's warning about a
massive amount of pheromones emanating from the strange girl, then
she notices the boy gazing back at her. His angry sneer had
vanished, replaced by an apologetic look. "Sumimasen," he bows.
"I didn't mean to shout at you like that, miss."
"I..." Ryooko nearly blanks out, then her own cheeks flame as
she returns his bow. "Iie, it's my fault. I should've watched
where I was going," she flusters, then gazes at Sayuri.
Fortunately for the Mark Two, the other Sexaroid is very quick
on the uptake. "C'mon, let's go get some cotton candy," Sayuri
reaches over to gently grasp Ryooko's hand, then she directs the
latter away from the bumper cart kiosk.
"Er...okay!" Ryooko shakily nods. Who WAS this girl?!
* * *
"Don't you think you got enough there, Aya?!"
Aya flusters, then chuckles, scratching the back of her head
as she puts the last of her purchases into the cargo area of the
van. "No, I think I might have to make one more trip, Oba-chan,"
she winks, then stretches herself. "This has been a good day."
Mei nods, then tenses slightly, the non-voice in her head
giving her a warning. "You better do something soon, Aya."
Aya gazes at her, then her cheeks flame before she calms
herself. "Hai, you're right about that. I'll be back."
Giving the CMCO a jaunty wave, Aya heads back into the bazaar.
Mei watches her go, then clicks her tongue. "Have fun."
Aya heads down the concourse. Reaching out with her MFS, she
is quick to detect her sisters, the Ijuuins, the many other boomers
presently working in Harajuku...and six others. Slowing down, she
blinks as her housekeeping computer reports her warbook's failure
in providing a definite reference match for those six. One of
which was now to her right at about ten metres. Curiosity getting
the better of her, Aya shifts direction, heading to a violin store.
Standing at the window gazing at several beautiful models is
what appears to be a girl of sixteen. Long, wavy brown hair to
mid-back. Burning chestnut eyes in a face which radiated pure
innocence. She is dressed in plain slacks and a button shirt.
Giving her a closer inspection with the MFS, Aya notes this other
girl's biomechanics were either in her head or in strategic muscle
groups throughout her body. Atop that, there seemed to be a gentle
cloak of pheromones around her. Far too much for an organic, but
unscented like a Cyber-Nurse's. There was no Mark 97 brain in this
girl, however, so she couldn't be a 33-M. What was she?
Her eyes then turn to what the other was gazing on. Peering
closely, Aya notices that the violin was an English-built replica
of a Stradivarius original, about a century old. *Pricy little
thing, isn't it?* Aya whistles on seeing the value, then gazes back
at the girl. The yearning was there, she hums, then deciding to
take a chance (not that her body was giving her much of a choice!),
Aya walks up, standing beside the stranger. "Do you play?"
Asuka jolts, then spins right, stunned to see a girl roughly
her height standing right beside her. Cursing herself for not
being so attentive to her surroundings, she looks away from the
other's deep sapphire gaze, then focuses on the violin. "Er...I,"
she blinks, then shakes her head. "Iie. Not really."
Aya slightly cants her head. "Would you like to learn how?"
"I..." Asuka blinks, then slowly nods. "H-hai."
"But you can't do it now for some reason or another, right?"
"Er...hai," Asuka nods, then tenses slightly as her nose and
housekeeping computer detects something in the air around the other
girl. An eyebrow arches as she stares at Aya. "Pardon me if this
sounds rude, but do your pheromones always smell like cherries?"
Aya jolts, then a smirk crosses her face before peals of
laughter escape her. Asuka stares blankly at her, then her own
face breaks out in a grin. Soon, both are laughing their hearts
out. Finally, Aya reaches over to gently grasp Asuka's hand. "Oh,
gomen, gomen," Aya covers her mouth, then turns back to gaze on the
violin. "It's a coding scent in my pheromones meant to tell other
33-S's and 33-Ms what I am. Cherry's meant for C-Class Sexaroids."
Asuka blinks, then nods. "Oh, you're one of the CC series
girls Oba-chan, Otou-chan and Okaa-chan told us about. We were
supposed to meet you later tonight down at the Kyoto Annex before
you were to be turned over to your new parents." Quickly deciding
that it was safe to reveal this, she points to herself, adding,
"I'm one of the Mark Two 33-S's Genom is creating now."
Aya's eyes widen in recognition. "Oh, yeah, Rei-mama told me
about you guys. You bumped into Chikage some days ago in Ookawa."
"How did...?!" the other's jaw drops. "Who's Chikage?!"
"Chikage Hirosaki, one of my sisters," Aya shrugs. "She told
us about that when we came down here. She sent her astral self to
help you guys out with those bakayaro Baal dealers there."
"'Astral...?'" Asuka's mind whirls, then she gapes as it all
finally clicks into place. "She's the Angel?!"
Aya stares quizzically at her, then snorts. "You called her
that because of the wings she can grow in that form, eh?! Nice!"
Asuka stares incredulously at the other Sexaroid. Aya seemed
to be acting as if having one of her sisters project her...*What on
Earth IS an 'astral form,' anyway?!* she mentally demands...was the
most normal thing in the world to do! "You mean you don't...?!"
"Find it impossible to believe?" Aya winks. "Believe it or
not, when you're affiliated with Toratotaka, what Chikage can do is
TAME compared to some of the other things I've heard of."
"Eh?!"
"Well, it's like this...!"
* * *
Elsewhere...
"Gomen nasai, minna-sama. Yuka-san and I've got to go rest up
for a little while. We'll be right back as soon as we can, okay?!"
Moaned "Awww"s escape from the small crowd around them as Miku
and Yuka, the 33-Cs working as ice cream vendors near the southern
end of the concourse, pull away from their kiosk. Waving to the
children as the crowd starts to disperse, they head into an alley,
then make a right turn. Located there, well-hidden from casual
glances by passers-by, are two recharge centres for humanoid
boomers; units like this were scattered throughout Harajuku.
They step into the booths, then reach behind their backs to
untuck their shirts. Baring the small of their backs, they step
back, allowing a conduit probe to hook right into a power plug
affixed to their backbones. Once they are in, the girls' arms drop
to their sides, then their heads droop as their on-board systems
are shut down for the fifteen-minute recharging process.
Unnoticed by the "sleeping" 33-Cs, a woman walks into the
alley. Glancing around, she smiles. "Perfect..."
* * *
A minute later, the woman exits from the alley, her hand still
gripping the air-pistol now inside her purse. Because of its
recent appearance on the street, she doubted the razordolls would
know to look for Baal poisoning inside their bodies. Once the drug
began its work when they reactivated themselves, the 33-Cs would
start to relax. They'd still do their duties, but it would be as
if they wanted to quit and go get some sleep (or whatever boomers
called their equivalent of sleep). However, unlike in organics,
Baal's effects would wear off quickly. For these two razordolls,
the real fun would no doubt start within an hour of waking up.
She could wait...
* * *
Chikage looks up from her book, her eyebrow arching.
What was that?
Some sort of profound disturbance in the mana of two people
close by. Closing her book and slipping it under her cape, the
magi rises, scanning around as she better focuses her senses...
"Oi!! It's you!!"
Chikage jolts, then gasps as someone flies into her, swamping
her with a bone-crushing hug. Warm lips rain a shower of kisses
all over her face, then the magi pulls back enough to see who was
giving her such a friendly greeting. "Matilda?!!" she gapes.
Matilda yelps joyfully as she nearly squeezes all the air out
of Chikage's lungs. Standing near the exuberant blonde, Mika and
Rina are slack-jawed in amazement. Even if she hadn't been on the
Ookawa mission, Rina (and Ryooko) had been fully briefed on what
their sisters had done. "It IS you!" Mika exclaims, then looks
over her shoulder, quickly finding who she wanted to speak to.
"Oba-san!!! Chotto (Come here)!! Look who we found!!!"
Sayako's head turns, then she comes through the crowd before
her eyes fall on the poor girl Matilda was nearly squeezing to
death. Stopping, the scientist's jaw drops before she slowly
approaches, giving Chikage a very appraising glance as Matilda
finally relents her embrace. "I don't believe this..."
"Sheffield-hakase?!"
Sayako blinks, then turns before a delighted grin crosses her
face. "Ijuuin-hakase!" she bows respectfully as Rei walks up, two
cans of cider in hand, then Sayako waves to Chikage, her eyebrow
arching. "I assume this is actually one of your girls."
"Hai, she is," Rei nods, then glances at the three Mark Twos.
"As I assume these are three of your girls. Yoroshiku (Pleased to
meet you), minna-chan. Enjoying a day on the town?"
"Um...h-hai, Ijuuin-hakase!" Mika stammers, then catching
herself, bows respectfully. "Yoroshiku onegaishimasu!"
Introductions follow, then everyone relaxes as Rei hands one
of the cider cans to Chikage. Matilda gets herself and her sisters
some ice tea from a vending machine, then after giving Rina and
Mika their cans, sits beside the magi. Before she opens it, the
Mark Two pauses, then setting the can aside, spins around. Snaring
Chikage's cheeks with her hands, Matilda drowns her with a kiss.
"Matty!!!" Sayako cries.
Matilda gazes innocently at Kiki's mother. "I'm just saying
'thank you' to her, Auntie!!" she cutely pouts.
"For what, Matilda-chan?" Rei asks.
"For coming down and helping us when we went to Ookawa to deal
with some bakayaro Baal dealers," Matilda impishly shrugs.
The Annex Matriarch blinks, then stares at Chikage. "You mean
YOU were the one who went down and helped out?!"
Chikage is non-plussed. "It was part of a training exercise
Ojii-sama dictated for me, learning how to project my astral form
from my body and still be able to use my offensive skills," she
shrugs. "Since Matilda, Mika, Akiko and Asuka are sisters in a
way, I felt it was only prudent under the First Code to render what
assistance I could given the surprising presence of the three 48s
and the 55-C those dealers had as extra security."
"Oh," Rei nods understandingly, then sips her drink.
"I take it you passed that test, then," Sayako hums.
"Hai, though Ojii-sama stated I needed to reform my technique
some, but that comes with experience," Chikage nods. "It is the
same as your own daughter learning how to better fight in combat,
Aunt Sayako. I assume that mission in Ookawa was the first in
which several of the Mark Twos worked together as one team."
Sayako's mind whirls. *She...she called me 'Aunt?!'* the
scientist nearly passes out, then she quickly recovers, coughing to
clear her throat. "Y-yes, you're right. And like you, our girls
need to refine their technique some more." Her eyes then fall on
Matilda and Mika, eyebrow arching. "Like hesitating in taking a
shot, girls. That could've easily gotten you killed that night!"
"Oba-san, what would YOU'VE done if you saw Chikage-san that
night, with the way she appeared?!" Mika protests.
Sayako balks. "Ah...well...!"
"You did use almost all the basic personality coding which
went into the other 33-S's in your girls, Sheffield-hakase," Rei
muses. "With that comes a desire to explore new and interesting
things. Don't panic about it, though. The ability to control that
desire comes with experience and patience; it can't be programmed.
That's part of the overall testing process with these girls, isn't
it? Learning what they're fully capable of doing before you think
of putting the Mark Two 33-S design onto the open market."
Sayako blinks, then nods. "Hai, but...well, fortunately,
we're not going to sell the Mark Twos on open market."
"You're not?" Rei blinks surprisedly.
"Iie. After all, Toratotaka wouldn't think of putting either
the KM or GM design on open market, ne?"
"Of course not."
"Well, it's the same in this case," Sayako smiles. "Besides,
the Bu-48 design can do almost everything a Mark Two 33-S can do,
plus the 48s have had two years to build a solid reputation as a
dependable SpecWar (Special Warfare) combat unit. With the way Sam
explained everything to me when the decision came down, the SpecWar
market's already covered, so why oversupply it? We can build 48s
that are just as youthful-looking as the girls here, so the same
sort of psychological effect in battle a Mark Two 33-S could
potentially unleash can be reproduced."
"So what will the Mark Twos do, then?" Rei asks.
"Oh, all sorts of things, I guess," Sayako smiles knowingly.
The Annex Matriarch quickly realizes what the Genom scientist
alludes to. No doubt, Samantha Johnson had been inspired greatly
by news of the Kuromoroboshi, then when the Mark Two 33-S Project
came under her control, decided to create a similar capability for
Genom. From what Rei knew of the Mark Twos' overall capabilities,
it COULD happen if they didn't overextend themselves and if the
project didn't fall apart due to corporate infighting. Remembering
what she knew of Sayako's friend, Rei then nods. Yes, the Mark Two
Project would succeed, barring unforseen complications. Samantha
Johnson was just too good an executive to screw that up.
"I guess so," Rei clicks her tongue, then glances around. "So
where are the others? I heard you have six up now."
"Oh, Ryooko, Kiki and Asuka went off on their own," Matilda
answers, drinking down the rest of her ice tea. "I guess they just
wanted a chance to explore on their own."
"They're getting much more than that, Matilda."
Eyes turn quizzically to Chikage, who has drawn out another
mystical tome, this one written in Attic Greek, to read. The magi
has a strange, knowing smile on her face...
* * *
Near the video game store, ninety minutes later...
"These songs were written back in the nineteen-seventies?!"
Kiki stares at the computer module containing five hundred
recordings from the heyday of disco, boy bands and soul. She and
Kurumi are in a private room in Harajuku's local multi-media
entertainment centre. The MMEC is an expansion of the karaoke room
concept mixed with a private video theatre and computer game room.
Since customers didn't want to put up to any noise from other rooms
penetrating walls and floors/ceilings, MMECs were constructed with
the best sound-proofing available on the civil engineering market.
Of course, with such sound-proofing, MMECs readily also served
another function, one the owner gladly turned a blind eye to.
Witness the fact that both 33-S's are now only in panties.
"Hai. My other-self always loved old music," Kurumi rises,
walking over to gently embrace Kiki from behind, she ducking in to
kiss the Mark Two's cheek close to her ear.
Kiki purrs, then gazes at Kurumi. "Arigatou, Kurumi-chan.
That was a very nice experience. All of it."
"No. Thank *you,* Kiki-chan," Kurumi cups the other's chin as
they gaze into the other's eyes. "I know your mom might flip out
when she finds out about this. I hope I won't get you into any
sort of trouble when you go back to the Tower tonight."
"I...iie, I doubt it," Kiki sets the computer module aside as
she and Kurumi shift back to the couch. To ensure the staff didn't
have to clean up too much, Kurumi had laid out beach towels on the
upholstery before getting down and funky with Kiki. "Mama strikes
me as a little," she pauses to look for the word, then smiles,
"...old-fashioned, I guess that's what you'd call it, ne?"
"Nah, she's just being a mom," Kurumi shakes her head, then
reaches over to draw Kiki into a one-armed embrace. "Okaa-chan was
like that with my other-self and Yui's other-self, but Rei-mama was
pretty exact when she explained to Okaa-chan and Otou-chan what'd
happen to me. When I 'woke up' and talked to my parents for the
first time, Okaa-chan told me when the 'itch' first hit, to find a
nice person to do it with." She leans over to gently kiss Kiki's
lips. "I'm glad I found that nice person to do it with."
Kiki's cheeks flame. "Arigatou," she lowers her eyes, then
leans into Kurumi before a knock is heard at the door. "Eh?!"
Kurumi concentrates, then relaxes, standing up to head to the
doorway. Opening it a fraction as she ducks behind the door, she
looks out. "What is it, Marie?" she asks.
"Gomen nasai, Kurumi, but Rei-mama and Sayako-obasama wants to
get everyone back together again so we can head out and prepare for
tonight's reception," Marie is non-plussed at Kurumi's show of
modesty. "Everyone's to be by the van in half an hour."
"Right, right, thanks," Kurumi nods, then closes the door as
Marie heads off before turning back to Kiki. "Well, all good
things must come to an end, I guess," she stretches herself.
"No, not coming to an end. Just interrupted for a period of
time yet to be determined," Kiki winks, rising to dress.
"Let's hope it's short," Kurumi winks back.
"Hai..."
* * *
Thirty minutes later...
"Well, I see you've gained a new friend too, Sayuri."
Sayuri and Ryooko blush, holding hands as they stop before the
Ijuuin sisters and Sayako Sheffield. "And what a friend," Sayuri
asserts, then raises Ryooko's hand to courtly kiss it.
"Sayuri!!" Ryooko flusters, then she curtseys in return.
"Oh, don't tell me..." Sayako shudders, eyes rolling.
Sayuri blinks, then respectfully bows to the Genom scientist.
"Sayako-obachan, I swear to you and Ryooko-chan's parents, by the
Codes, my solemn word of honour that I did not and will not force
myself over her, either today or any day in the future."
Sayako jolts, then feels her eyes sting. Wiping them down,
she nods understandingly, then gazes at Ryooko. The Mark Two gives
her a pleasant nod, then reaches over to squeeze Sayuri's hand.
Seeing this, Sayako relaxes, then turns to Rei. "Well, I think
it's best we all get to where we belong so we won't be late for
tonight's reception, ne?" Sayako then smiles.
"Agreed..." Rei rises to leave.
A scream reaches them from the south. Chikage jolts, then her
eyes narrow as she scans the area before muttering, "Damn!!"
"What the hell was that?!!" Mei demands.
"Boomer rampage!" Chikage stows her book, then bounds into the
air, levitating herself to investigate.
The others watch her, slack-jawed, then Matilda tenses, racing
after her. "Oi, Chikage, chotto matte yo (wait up)!!!"
"Matty, come back here...oh, hell!!" Kiki snaps, then waves
the other Mark Twos and CCs with her. "Minna, iku yo (let's go)!!"
The teenagers race off. "Wait!!" Rei calls out, then cursing,
waves Mei and Sayako with her. "C'mon!!!"
They take off in pursuit...
* * *
Chikage soars over the crowd, noting they were scattering from
an ice cream kiosk. A closer look reveals two young women jerking
madly as they lash out at anyone within range. The vibro-claws at
the tips of their fingers tells the magi everything. "Damn!" she
lands some distance away, then twirling her cape off, she infuses
it with chi, then sends it flying at the incensed boomers.
The cape snares one girl around the head, blinding her as it
yanks her towards her friend. The other end blinds the other girl,
then the cape slams their heads together hard. Both collapse as
the cape flies back to Chikage. Matilda arrives, then seeing two
very young girls cowering near the overturned kiosk, kicks in her
MBW booster to get them clear. By then, one of the 33-Cs has
recovered. Looking around with a deranged glint in her eyes, she
sees Matilda making the dive for the young girls. Screaming, she
moves to skewer the Mark Two in the throat, then a foot slams into
her face. The vendor is sent flying back thanks to Chikage's
roundhouse kick, then the magi leaps up, sending a crescent kick
into the other vendor to keep her clear of Matilda. Of course, by
then, the Mark Two has gotten the kids to safety.
Chikage moves back, taking a ready stance as she cups her
hands together before her face, the fingers curled akin to her
drawing a sword. As the incensed 33-Cs regain their footing, the
magi concentrates. "***ANIME GLADIUM!!!!***" she bellows, her chi
creating a burning longsword out of thin air, then she takes a
ready stance, one hand holding the soulsword, the other free.
Watching this from a secluded corner, the woman who had shot
the two razordoll vendors with the doctored Baal is stunned. Who
WAS that, anyway?! Some sort of martial arts mistress, like the
lunatics that had haunted Nerima for decades before Second Kantou?
What was that in her hand? Or was she...? Was that...?
A boomer?!
Growling, she yanks out her air pistol, cocking it to chamber
a new round. However, doing so in close proximity to someone like
Chikage Hirosaki is akin to shouting, "OI, I'M HERE!!! I'M THE ONE
WHO STARTED THIS!!" The magi tenses, her eyes turning to gaze on
the woman, who was now moving to get a clear shot at her.
Well, no sense in obliging her.
Chikage springs into the air, becoming a black-and-purple blur
as she drops down behind the woman. Before the shooter could sense
the danger, Chikage's fingertips hit shiatsu points on the head and
back. The shooter drops to the ground, unconscious. Noting she
was no longer a threat, Chikage lunges back into the open.
By then, the other CCs and Mark Twos are on the scene, having
fought through the crowds to assist Chikage and Matilda. Also now
coming onto the scene is one of the Harajuku security supervisors,
pondering what the hell he was going to report to his superiors in
the chamber of commerce when this mess was all said and done. The
success of the boomer security force here in Harajuku was something
he was justifiably proud of. To have all that called into question
could lead to all sorts of consequences, none career-enhancing.
"What the hell's wrong with them?!" Ayu demands, staring at
the two 33-Cs, both of whom were turning their fury and vibro-claws
on the ice cream kiosk they worked at.
"Maybe we can...?" Shirayuki begins.
"Remain there, minna!!"
Eyes turn to Chikage as she pulls up her soulsword, her eyes
now focusing on the burning chi blade. A soulsword normally was a
golden shade since this weapon was the ultimate expression of one's
overall chi force. But, in times when the soulsword's most fatal
offensive ability wasn't truly needed, the type of chi used to fuel
it could be altered to better suit the combat situation.
Fortunately, Chikage had been so trained.
The gold melts into a deep red shade as Chikage draws on the
chi elements powering her special anti-boomer defence system. With
that, she side-steps around to poise herself behind the incensed
ice cream vendors. They tense, sensing something. Chikage raises
her blade, then in a lunging side-cut, sends the soulsword through
their bodies at chest-level. Both 33-Cs jolt, then drop, their
vibro-claws fading as blessed unconsciousness takes them. Chikage
pulls back, then sensing no additional danger, relaxes.
"Chikage...?" Kurumi wonders.
Dispersing the soulsword, Chikage glances at the small crowd
that had started to assemble near the battle scene, then her eyes
lock on the security supervisor. Drawing her cape around her, the
magi walks over, then indicates the unconscious woman off to the
side. "I recommend you call AD Police immediately. You'll find an
air-pistol among that woman's personal effects. The darts in the
pistol are loaded with a special form of Baal which makes boomers
go insane. She's the ultimate culprit behind all this."
He blinks, blinks again as the news sinks in, then he asks,
"How did you...gods, who ARE you, anyway?!"
"I can explain that."
He turns, then sees a Toratotaka ID card being displayed to
him. Reading the name, he then focuses on Rei Ijuuin's face.
"Ijuuin...?!" he whispers as the name comes back to him, then he
bows respectfully. "Gomen nasai, Ijuuin-hakase. I assume she is
actually some Cyber-Nurse variation," he indicates Chikage.
"Close," Rei chuckles. "Still, I suggest you call ADP right
away. Ask for Daley Wong, please. And I'd have that woman there,"
she nods towards the person Chikage rendered unconscious, "...put
into custody right away, not to mention have that pistol examined."
"Hai, Ijuuin-hakase..."
* * *
A half-hour later...
"So she intended to start up a boomer rampage with these two
33-Cs here, then sit back as a whole slew of kids were chopped into
ribbons?" Daley Wong growls, then shakes his head. "Nice!"
"That's what it looks like, Wong-keibuho (Lieutenant Wong),"
the ADP technician looks up from examining one of the ice cream
vendors. Once Chikage's soulsword had its way with them, the two
33-Cs had been shut down for examination and pending disposition.
The other 33-C was laid out beside her. "Geez, I don't know what
that girl did to these two, but it sure worked. The Baal is still
in their circulatory systems, but it's broken down enough that once
the systems're flushed and filled with new bio-fluid, they'll be
back on their feet and operating at peak performance."
"True. Okay, get these two down to the station and have the
forensics boys give them another look-over," Daley orders.
"Hai, Wong-keibuho, right away."
The tactical troop commander heads away from the ADP mobile
forensics lab van to where a crowd was now gathered around Chikage
Hirosaki, Rei Ijuuin standing protectively close to her. Jeena
Malso was taking the magi's statement. Also nearby is the security
supervisor who had called ADP in, Wataru Hoshino. He was gladly
singing Chikage's praises to any officer willing to listen.
"So you saw this woman draw the pistol out and aim it towards
you," Jeena recaps. "You moved to render her unconscious without
leaving any permanent physical harm, then disabled the boomers."
"Exactly, Malso-keibuho," Chikage nods.
"Who got the two kids out of the way?" Leon McNichol, standing
near Jeena asks, indicating the young girls Matilda saved. They
were drowning their fear and sorrow in two giant ice cream sundaes
Shirayuki Osamu had whipped up for them. Also there are the girls'
parents, they having been called in by Mei Ijuuin.
"It's best we leave that question be for now, Leon-san," Rei
whispers. "I'll ask Megumi to explain it to you sometime later."
"Something bad?" Leon's eyebrow arches.
"No, but if some idiot at Station One raises an objection to
this, it could cause problems in the future," Rei winks.
Leon considers that, then nods. "Hai, gotcha."
By then, Wataru has made his way over to the ADP officers.
"Gomen, Keibuho-san (Lieutenant), but I hope you're not actually
thinking of charging Chikage-san with any crime, are you?"
"I..." Leon blinks, then laughs, waving his hands in an "It's
alright" gesture. "Oh, hell, of course not! No one got hurt, we
got the real guilty party in custody and she's already confessed to
what she did. Don't worry about it at all, Hoshino-san. As soon
as our people confirm the Baal in your 33-Cs there is cleansed from
their systems, we'll get them back to you soon enough, alright?"
"Fair enough," Wataru then turns to Rei. "Ijuuin-hakase, may
I speak with you in private for a moment?"
"Certainly," Rei nods. "Excuse me, please."
They head off. Chikage sighs, then turns to Jeena. "Do you
believe the case you have against that woman will be compromised
because I am a Thirty-three-Es, Malso-keibuho?"
"Nah, don't worry about it, kid," Jeena grins. "As soon as
she recovered from your little knock-out touch and learned she was
under arrest, she confessed flat out to the crime. Hell, she was
practically bragging about it if you ask me." A pause, then,
"There might be a problem since the medics think that she might've
pumped herself up with Baal before coming out here today to do her
thing, but I don't see it happening. Something about her..."
The magi nods. "Hai, her fanaticism is quite obvious to those
who can see," she rolls her eyes. "What of Miku and Yuka?"
"Those razordolls you put down? Relax, kid. They won't get
destroyed since it's damned obvious what started it."
Daley sighs. "If only all our cases were like that."
"Got that right," Jeena grunts.
Complaints and lawsuits by citizens who've watched expensive
boomers destroyed by overzealous ADP officers had grown so bad, the
Interior Ministry had been forced to issue new guidelines last year
towards the disposition of boomers captured intact. While veterans
complained that the "idiots upstairs" were potentially ruining good
investigations if a boomer was let go back to its owner without a
proper examination of its programming, there was a positive aspect
to those changes. Daley smiles. Those new regulations had, in a
way, come to serve Toratotaka in one case concerning a rogue 33-S
who had once been the companion of a USSD intelligence officer.
By then, Rei has parted from Wataru, the Annex Matriarch now
coming back to rejoin the ADP officers. "What'd he want to talk to
you about, Rei?" Daley wonders, crossing his arms.
"Hoshino-san was concerned about the adverse publicity this
incident will have on tourists who'd want to shop in Harajuku," Rei
sighs. "I told him it would be best for all involved that the
local chamber of commerce come clean about what happened to the
press. I might have to speak to Megumi and Saki about this to make
sure they go along with it. Placing the blame on a deranged woman
wanting to start up a boomer rampage for whatever insane reason
would shift the onus of guilt away from the boomers themselves.
It'll reassure the public. There might be a slight dip in overall
numbers over the very short term, but it'll recover fast enough."
"There hasn't been any report of Baal being used to provoke
boomer rampages before," Jeena warns.
"First time for everything, Jeena-san," Rei notes.
The investigations officer blinks, then nods. "Yeah..."
* * *
To be continued...
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