[Rail IC] Academy City III: Abusive Physics Never End!

[Anyr]

Moroe's limbs screamed in protest as she forced them to dodge yet another flurry. The extra time she'd won was gone, as was most of her strength. While most of her multitasking brain tried to think its way out of this death trap, a small portion devoted itself to the all important self recrimination necessary after all her failures.

"Stupid stupid stupid! What was I thinking, trying to play mind games with a living tank?!"

In truth, Moroe wasn't angry about having guessed wrong. With a fight like this, guesswork was all she had. The real mistake was how she'd felt about this one. In that brief period after sensing the creature's fear, it had really felt as if she knew it; As if she'd seen something fundamental which would give her the key to victory. Ha! As if. All she'd seen was a possibility. Unlike her colleagues, she didn't have the luxury of succumbing to delusions of grandeur. She wasn't a Level 5 like that lazy moron Katashi, who could have simply waved his hand and dispatched this creature without effort or strategy. In contrast, the best that Moroe's ability could manage was to make her enemy lose...their...appetite...

...Wait.

"What am I thinking? That's ridiculous. It'd never work. Not in a million years.

On the other hand, I am about 15 seconds away from death right now..."

With a mental shrug, Moroe activated her ability. After all, it's not as if she lost anything by trying this long shot. As she ducked, dodged and weaved past the creature's attacks, she used her insanely limited brand of telepathy to try and change its perception of her nutritional value. She continuously sent one, simple message into the part of its brain that determined such things: 'This is not food.'

In the meantime, the rest of Moroe focused on executing another plan, just in case 'operation million to one' happened to somehow fail. She tried her best to reach the (now overturned) bag of devices which she'd used to enter this room in the first place. Once she managed to grab one of the acid packs scattered on the floor, she'd try to slide beneath the behemoth and attach the weapon to its underbelly. If, that is, her amazing Esper powers hadn't already won the day by then...

[AnimeKid]

Natsume Renbu Nodded her consent to being escorted home. Tobio and Shougo would find no further trouble as she and then Tobio reached their homes. Letting Shougo get back to his house though at a slightly later time. When he reached his home Tobio deciding that he would start practicing again for the System Scan. Trancing once more he proceeded to practice his powers.

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

To Shougos' relief, nothing more happened that night. Dealing with one band of armed ruffians was more than enough excitement for him, and he longed to be away from the noise and violence that seemed to have become a core part of Academy City as of late.

Waving Tobio goodbye, Shougo made his way back home, travelling quickly via means of his psychic power. When he got home, he was greeted by his mother-And a certain Judgement officer he had seen before, although...Although he was not sure where from. Regardless, Shougo was not pleased by these turn of events.

"Ah...Good evening, Judgement-san. What brings you to our home?"

[Duos]

The massive monster chasing Moroe is all fangs and fury, the product of genetic experimentation and brainwave transfer designed to produce literal biological weapons, and she is, alas, simply a small girl with training meant for people older and larger than she is. So her decision to attempt to level the playing field with explosives and weapons-grade acid is fairly reasonable; after all, it is as they say: There are no personal problems that cannot be solved with the proper application of high explosives.

She scrambles to reach her sack of tricks, frantically weaving and dodging the beast's razor sharp talons, thinking distinctly un-foodlike thoughts at the creature as it strives to reduce her to a red smear on the dark concrete floor. With one deft roll, she brings herself into grabbing distance, and as her fingers close on her target, wrapping firmly around the acid-fueled demolition device, she is suddenly slammed forward into the ground with bone-rattling force as the creature finally catches her and lands a solid blow, claws tearing through ballistic armor as though it were tissue paper as they wrap firmly around her torso.

Her head rams into the hard concrete as she is shoved roughly to the ground, and she is sure she can hear her brain vibrating insider her skull, bright lights flashing in front of her eyes. The weight crushing her down, nearly breaking her ribs, was far more disconcerting, however- it meant that the beast had finally caught her, and now had her pinned beneath one of its dangerously sharp paws. Worse, she couldn't wiggle her arms free, and she needed to get that bomb onto the creature's hide; to HURT it, at least, before it turned her into an hors d'oeuvre. The creature leans forward, eclipsing the faint light that suffuses the room, and a low, rumbling growl escapes its maw as it leans down to begin feeding.

The monster is pleased with itself. The food had been difficult to catch; and it was infuriatingly difficult to keep pinned as it squirmed underneath it's substantial weight. All the more reason to enjoy this meal, it decides; the hunt had been...amusing. The creature licks a smear of blood from its free claw, sampling the flavor of its catch, and blinks.

Looks like food, smells like food, tastes like not-food?

It tilts its head and glowers at its prey, studying Moroe's wide-eyed face. It leans close, hot, rank breath washing over the girl trapped beneath it's talon'd paw, and licks her face experimentally as the girl's features screw into a ball, trying not to breathe as she's doused in ropy, foul monster saliva.

Definitely not-food.

The monster lets loose a frustrated, low-rumbling roar as it releases Moroe and turns its attention elsewhere. Moroe, for her part, is frozen for a second or two with disbelief before she slowly moves her hands up to wipe her face clear of the monster's slime. She holds her breath as the creature snuffles through her backpack before finding a high-calorie MRE, the shiny packaging vanishing into the creature's maw in one gulp as it consumes its consolation prize before sulking off into the dim light of the room, barbed tail flicking irritably black and forth as it disappears into the gloom.

The only sound to be heard is Moroe's shaky but level breathing and the faint hum of far-off machinery.

[Atrum-Persavor]

Ren nods slightly, then pulls out his disc, his phone and a small screen projector from his jacket, turning the projector on.

"What brings me here... I came to deliver this."

A video of Daisuke Ashikaga entering Shougo's house, then retreating quickly, shot from the dojo roof is projected on the screen.

"The disc contains a copy of that video. There's already been a criminal report lodged against him. Enjoy your evidence, like I promised."

Ren scoops up the projector and his phone, placing them back in his jacket pockets, leaving the disc on the table.

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

Shougos' face twisted as he watched the video, his eyes glancing upwards at the ceiling to check for any hidden cameras. Was he being watched? In his own home? As much as he enjoyed the sight of Daisuke fleeing with his tail between his legs, he did not particularly like the thought of Judgement watching his every move at home. When had his mother agreed to allow them to install cameras in his home, and why? Furthermore, why were they suddenly showing such interest in him?

The only rational explanation that Shougo came up with was that something big had happened during the three days which he could not remember; something which warranted (unwanted) Judgement attention.

Raising a wary eye to Ren, Shougo murmured a brief thanks and expressed relief that his grievances had been heard. In truth, though, Ren had told him nothing that Shougo did not already know, but Shougo did not want him to linger any longer than he absolutely had to.

[Atrum-Persavor]

"...Funny, you talked different a few days back. Where's the girl?"

Ren looks at Shougo quizzically, casually adjusting his left sleeve with his right hand.

"And didn't I tell you where the cameras were? Front door and Dojo entrance. Are you feeling okay? It seems like you got beaten up worse than I thought."

[Anyr]

It took an embarrassingly long time for Moroe to recover her wits. The conditioning and training that Academy City had instilled in her could only do so much in the face of an experience like this. Being inches from the jaws of that beast was terrifying enough in itself, but for someone with her deep-seated aversion to the closeness of others, it was among the most horrible experiences of her life. A few days ago she'd been driven into hyperventilation by a mass of fellow students crowding around and restraining her. Right now, she counted herself lucky that she was still breathing at all.

Eventually she managed to rise, on legs that protested every movement. Only her sense of duty kept her moving now. There was a mission to complete, a captive to save, and a debt to repay. Moroe wearily gathered her scattered equipment into its bag and hoisted it over her shoulder; Then she walked as rapidly as she could manage towards the door which hopefully lead towards her destination.

Hajime had been temporarily forgotten; Perhaps that was an attempt by her brain to stop her from getting sidetracked. No doubt the conversation they'd have had would have wasted valuable time. Better to shut out all distractions. Just focus on the mission. If she did that, then maybe the memory of those horrendous jaws would fade away...

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

"Girl?"

Oh. That's right. He must mean Ishimaru Moroe; the girl whom he had apparently met over the last few days. And it must have been as he had feared-He had met this Judgement agent over the past few days, eventually culminating in him installing cameras in his house. For the life of him, though, he could not imagine what could have brought him to allow that decision. The very thought of it rankled his nerves; the sanctity and freedom of home was something his father valued highly, and it was a value passed down perhaps even more strongly onto his son.

Still, he would rather that this nosy Judgement agent not hear any of it. They poked their noses into peoples' business more than was healthy already, and rarely did anything when people were actually in danger unless there was publicity to be gained from it.

"Ah. You mean Ishimaru Moroe-san, yes? She is not here. Why do you ask? And my apologies. I was merely...Ah...Remembering where you placed them."

Well. No. That was untrue, he thought, wincing to himself. He and Tobio did come to the aid of Natsume Renbu-Someone who really was in need. Maybe he was wrong. Perhaps Judgement did do some good work.

He still wanted Shirogane Ren out of his house, though. He could not shake the feeling that he had met him before, and not on the most cordial of terms...

[Terry576]

Hajime's utter helplessness and inability to move vanished with the monstrosity - he let out an involuntary gasp as his muscles twitched and nerves shivered with delight as they came back into use.

He had been locked to the ground, unable to do anything but watch. It would never happen again.

"Master, I... I am sorry. I do not know why I could not aid you, and I beg for your forgiveness in my complacency. You were nearly killed because of me."

[Anyr]

Moroe looked back in surprise. Her eyes had trouble focusing on Hajime, as if they were peering through a pane of frosted glass. After a second, she turned away and started walking again. All she could spare for him in these trying circumstances were two words of inquiry.

"What happened?"

[Lady Serpentine]

"Yes, I'm sure. What's the point of having friends with all kinds of tech skills if you don't use them? Besides, you're not the only one it'll be fun for," Ryuu replies, grinning at Ina, and hopping to her feet. "As for when we leave, it's not like I've got any other plans for the night, so we can head out now, if you like. Give you a chance to get used to my place, and let people get to know you where I hang out. My name'll get you in - er, once I give it to you anyway... - but only if they actually know you're a friend of mine."

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

Ina bit her lip, then immediately countered Ryuus' grin with an even fiercer one of her own.

"Alright, sounds like a plan! I'll get packing now, yeah? ...And...Ryuu isn't your real name?"

[Lady Serpentine]

Ryuu shook her head, seeming slightly nervous, as not everyone takes finding out one of their friends didn't trust them with their real name.

"No. Though it's not exactly an alias, either, since it is an actual nickname... My real name is Shiryō Kasai.

And yeah, packing now would probably be good. You want some help?"

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

Inas' lips twisted as she sounded out Ryuus' real name.

"Shiryu...Kasai. Nice name, yeah. Graceful. Not like mine, teehee."

She turned and pulled out a battered briefcase from a wardrobe.

"I should be okay, yeah...A couple weeks won't need that much stuff, right? Although if you could help me choose good clothes, yeah..."

[Lady Serpentine]

"Thanks. Though don't knock your name too much. I think it sounds pretty nice too," Kasai replied, smiling at her. "And I'm fine with helping you pick out good stuff. But how much you need for two weeks depends on how many times you want to do laundry, and whether you want to have a lot of choice in what you'll be wearing out of school. Speaking of which, do you know what size uniform I should get for you? As I'm sure you've noticed, Tokiwadai is a bit picky about that..."

[Duos]

The door that Moroe and Hajime found in the dim light of the cavernous room could barely be called as such; it was more like a slightly more mobile portion of wall. A large, circular, meter-think steel disc was interrupted only by a bulky quartz viewport bolted firmly near the center. Off to the left, a keypad, recessed about a foot into the wall, glowed softly. There would, to their fortune, be no stymied exit here: the combination was scribbled on a scrap of paper taped to the wall near the door, ostensibly to facilitate quick egress on the off chance that the beast trapped in the room ever got loose. With a quiet thoom, the door retracted slightly, and rolled out of the way, allowing the two youngsters access to a deserted, starkly light corridor as the steel plug rolled back into position and locked with the sound of steel scraping slowly into place.

The building was, for the most part, quite empty. Yori's evacuation order had been carried out immediately and swiftly, and the only sounds were the faint hum of electric lights and the occasional far off footstep. The corridors stretched on, seemingly endlessly, and the girl and boy passed locked door after locked door, each labeled as some sort of lab or office, until the two came to an intersection, placards and signs on the walls plainly stating where everything nearby was supposed to be.

THERMAL CONTAINMENT UNIT
SURGICAL WING
CHEMICAL STORAGE
PRODUCTION UNIT TEST RANGE
<==

FARADAY CONTAINMENT CAGE
CARGO BAY & SHIPPING
BARRACKS
BREAK ROOM

/\
||
||

PSYSHIELDED CONTAINMENT UNIT
HOSPITAL WING
SECURITY OFFICE
ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES
==>

[Anyr]

The lack of obstacles brought Moroe no comfort. Her sense of disquiet only grew as she walked through empty corridor after empty corridor. Though she wouldn't have gone so far as to prefer a greeting by armed soldiers, it would at least have been familiar. The distant footsteps she occasionally heard were almost a blessing. But aside from them, she could detect no potential danger anywhere within sight or sound. There were no gigantic beasts waiting to drop from these ceilings (a fact which she verified more often than was necessary).

For now, the only problem facing Moroe and her companion was that of basic navigation. Since they had no information on this building, they were forced to wander blindly, searching for a sign that would lead them in the right direction. When at last they found it, Moroe was relieved. Her aching feet couldn't have taken much more aimless walking. She ran a finger along each line of the various signs, until it came to rest on a likely candidate.

"'Psyshielded containment unit'? That sounds promising."

Not only that, but it was also in the same direction as the hospital wing. Even though there didn't seem to be many people around for Shiki to treat, that still struck Moroe as being a good second choice.

[Duos]

As they creep down the hallway, looking for a sign that they had reached their destination, Moroe is gripped with a distinct feeling of unease. The place was nearly deserted, but there was an omnipresent feeling of being under a microscope, like they were being watched. The constant mechanical humming of the harsh florescent lighting certainly didn't help. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of walking, one of the signs catches Moroe's eye:

PSYSHIELDED CONTAINMENT UNIT
DANGER
FOLLOW ALL CONTAINMENT PROTOCOLS

Underneath the sign was a pocket with a small booklet labeled PSYCONTAINMENT PROTOCOL. The door it hung from had a curious blue sheen to it, no doubt constructed of some psionic damping alloy, and there was a small observation window set into the wall nearby that gave a strange, distorted view into the room, as though viewed through a soap bubble. A steel slab was suspended from the wall, with a few sheets and a pillow messily thrown onto it, forming a bunk, and three spools of industrial titanium cable were stacked against the wall nearby. A folding table sat in the center of the room, a deck of playing cards splayed out on it, a game of what appeared to be solitaire half-finished.

Movement catches Moroe's eye as she squints through the glass, and she notices a lumped up sheet, cocooned around a figure rocking back and forth in the corner.

[Anyr]

So, there was indeed a prisoner here. Moroe peered warily at the chamber's inhabitant, trying to determine whether it was Shiki. While anxious to complete her mission, she had no desire to open the locks and release every prisoner in this place. Being imprisoned by villains didn't automatically make you a hero. In all probability, some of the people trapped here deserved to be confined.

Moroe knocked experimentally on the glass. Should that fail, she would start looking around for some sort of intercom system. With so many precautions in place, she assumed that there was a way for the wardens to address their captives without joining them inside.

[Duos]

Moroe's hesitant rapping on the glass does, in fact, provoke a response: the person sitting on the ground stops rocking, and after a second's pause, dives underneath the bed, still wrapped in their protective blanket cocoon. It is clear, however, as they huddle underneath the bed and Moroe gets a slightly better look at them, that whoever this person is, they are not Shiki: they are far to large to be the diminutive girl.

As she turns away, Moroe does spot a flat grille underneath the observation window, flanked by a dull grey button and an audio jack. A small red light blinks lazily underneath the button.

[Anyr]

Moroe allowed herself a disappointed sigh. Ah well, time to try option two. She turned away without hesitation, and walked off towards the Hospital Wing. Any curiosity she had about the blanketed prisoner was quickly suppressed. All that mattered was that they weren't an objective, a threat or an acceptable risk.

[AnimeKid]

Friday

Tobio woke up from his trance to the sound of his alarm clock blaring. Standing up from his sitting position he pooped his neck and stretched to welcome a new day. With the System Scan coming up next week he might be training at the Judgement Training Center after school. First off though he needed to get through the school day, preferably without Jirou making his life miserable.

Half an hour later Tobio is skating down the road to Onizuka with a piece of toast spread with apple butter in his mouth. At the very least he could look forward to his after school activities. He might get to see Mei today.
__________________________________________________ _______________

Crocell's morning to his surprise is very good. When he came to Azabu it turned out the teacher in charge of detentions had left early yesterday due to family issues and wouldn't be back until midway though next week. While other teachers could have taken over the position temporarily since the period he would be gone was so short they decided to post pone detentions. That gave Crocell until next week to perform enough 'community service' to clear his record.

With that in mind he heads off to his classes with the usual draconian teachers. He sighed as he thought of the adrenaline rush from yesterday from the race with Kin and Krystal while sparsely taking notes.
__________________________________________________ _____________

Ryuji left home with the usual hug and kiss from his mother. Luckily Ryuji managed to patch himself up enough from his fight yesterday that his mother didn't realize that he got hurt. She tended to get a little stir crazy when he got hurt. As he headed towards Azabu he thought about how that Sukeban had accosted him and his lady friends.

It was not a pleasant thing. However he had to wonder, how often did things like that actually happen in Academy City. And how much worse could they get. It was something that he couldn't help but ponder throughout his classes

[Mina Kobold]

Friday

On the same road that Tobio skates down, Nakamura Yua is half-running to get to school. Having taken a bit too long with eating, only finishing due to parental orders.
Hurrying towards Onizuka at a mostly safe pace. Dodging passers-by and apologising, despite their apparent ignorance of Yua's presence, Yua spots the school-building coming into sight.

Thus the onizuka "Ghost" is distracted from noticing Tobio. Usually this would be no problem for a student with blue-dyed hair, but Yua unfortunately lived up to the invisible nickname. Being almost unnoticeable unless one was looking for the young Onizuka student.

___________________________________________

Katsu, as usual, has a great morning. Making a surprisingly healthy breakfast, the superfast Esper is soon on way to Azabu. Avoiding the direct route and instead using a route of adventure, through parks and along rooftops.

The early classes proves a bit more slow-paced, but therein might lie the beginning of more adventure!

[KerfuffleMach2]

[Friday]

Krystal yawns and stretches as she wakes up. This is followed by her swinging her arm to her nightstand to turn off the alarm. She swings herself out of bed and grabs her stuff for her morning routine. Toothbrush, toothpaste, towel, soap, shampoo, etc.

Once cleaned and changed, she starts making her way to her first class. She's eager to meet with Kin again and discuss some ideas she had last night after their little adventure.

[Anyr]

The inhabitants of Tokiwadai filtered into school right on schedule. Contrary to the views of certain nonconformists, the procession wasn't a dreary one; Though orderly, it contained plenty of smiling faces and sounds of mirth. The school may have had more rules and regulations than its poorer counterparts in other districts, but that didn't stop most of the students from enjoying themselves. After all, the curriculum was comprehensive, the facilities excellent and the opportunities plentiful. Wasn't all that worth a little conformity?

Of course, it was hard to remember logic like that when listening to an incredibly long lecture on the principles of AIM diffusion, especially when you'd spent the previous evening soaring across rooftops. Even under normal circumstances, Miura Kin would have found this class hard to stomach; Today it was nothing short of torture. She wondered if Krystal was having similar problems. It was so hard to tell from all the way at the back of the room. She could just picture the surprise on her friend's face when she found a stranger sitting in the chair to her right. Those teachers had a lot of nerve separating the two of them like this. Now they'd no longer have each other's support during these soul crushing lessons; Well, soul crushing for Kin, at least. For all she knew, Krystal's soul might be doing just fine...

[KerfuffleMach2]

Friday

Krystal was a little upset at not sharing class with Kin anymore. But, then she'd remind herself that once school was over, she could hang out with her for the rest of the day. Which was a good thing.

And while Krystal still enjoyed learning, she did start finding herself becoming distracted. Not as bad as Kin probably was, but it was enough. Her head kept bringing in thoughts and ideas for the pairs future plans. And in getting distracted and daydreaming, Krystal found her head filling with a different noise. The closest radio station. When that happened, she'd have to shake her head to clear it and focus on the schoolwork again. Which, needless to say, the teachers noticed. However, it being the first day she's acted like this, they didn't think too much of it. Even they've had days like that.

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

((OOC: Whoops, sorry, I've been quite busy the past few days. Shall I assume that Ina gave Kasai her size and went over to her place?))

Ina yawned as she sat up in bed, reaching for her alarm clock before remembering that she was no longer at home, but at Ryuu-No, Kasais' place. Her heart raced with excitement as she caught sight of the Tokiwadai uniform that was no doubt sitting on the desk in front of her, her mind already imagining herself in it. And amidst all the finery that was Ryuus' apartment, too!

Oh, how terribly exciting it all was! She would no doubt be punished severely if she were found out. But that was all part of the fun, wasn't it?

Inas' memory wandered back to the night before, where she had gaped in awe at the huge number of truly exquisite paintings that hung on every wall. Such talent! Ina was jealous. Unlike her, Ryuu appeared able to create real art with a touch.

Ah, but enough reminiscing. It was time to get up!

Energetically leaping out of bed, she headed to the bathroom to wash up before preparing breakfast for her most gracious host (and her new bestest friend ever-Even better than Hanako, Ina decided). That is, of course, if Ryuu was not already awake.

__________________________________________________ _______________

Shougos' day certainly did not start well. Firstly, he began by waking up too late, having returned home sometime past midnight last night. Secondly, upon realising that he had flecks of blood on his otherwise-pristine uniform, courtesy of a life-or-death brawl he had taken part in, he had then begun a frenzied attempt to clean it off; an attempt which met with some success, for his shirt was now a fraction of a shade pinker. Thirdly, he had not had time to eat his breakfast before he rushed off to school. His stomach rumbled in protest, but Shougo ignored it. He could eat later. Fourthly, he had missed the train to school, and would have had to get there on foot if he wanted to be on time.

Pressed for time, Shougo decided to employ the use of his psychic powers to reach school faster, noting the fact that using it had become noticeably easier than it had been the night before as he leapt from rooftop to rooftop with clearly superhuman agility, still blinking away the weariness from last nights' escapade. He wondered why it had suddenly become so easy; surely, if he was capable of this, wouldn't he have breached the Level One barrier a long time ago?

Well,he surmised, it's not as though I'm complaining-

Lost in thought as he dashed across the top of row of shops, Shougo unwittingly collided with another Esper who was capable of moving at incredible speeds; one who was quite probably his polar opposite in terms of personality.

Yamamoto Katsu.

[Anyr]

Kin tried her best to learn something from the lecture. She failed miserably. Her brain felt like it was already filled to bursting with far more important information; There was simply no more room in it for AIM diffusion theory. When the ordeal finally ended, she could barely remember anything that had been said in it. She left the room at a sedate, teacher-pleasing pace, while fighting the urge to flee at breakneck speed. After only one class, her spirit was already in desperate need of a recharge; Luckily, she knew someone who could provide one...

[AnimeKid]

Tobio's classes were flecked with the usual whispers from his classmates. Especially now that the Rumor mill about him and Mei had finally reached full swing. Classes passed one after another as he endured the whispers, the cat calls, and the jeers about how he was too nervous to even hold a girls hand let alone date one.

By the time lunch rolled around Tobio was reaching the end of his rope from all of the words that reached his ears. Going up to the roof to eat with Shougo and away from other people.
__________________________________________________ _____________

Crocell meanwhile had exited his first class to move on too his next. The mundane day was not improving. By the time class was over he couldn't wait for lunch. Deciding to hang out with his new friends as usual once lunch came around he decided to hang a small ways away from the gates of Tokiwadai to wait for them.