Signal Fire at the Water’s Edge

by Reki Kawahara

  “Nngh…” His spine snapping to attention, Haruyuki finally grasped the reason for Ms. Hotta’s meaningful smiles. On Thursday the week before last, when Haruyuki had collapsed after overexerting himself in gym class, he had been brought to the nurse’s office, and Ms. Hotta knew that Kuroyukihime, the student council vice president, had accompanied him—and not only that, she had even signed Kuroyukihime’s trumped-up health aide confirmation.

  He restrained himself from stammering “S-s-s-s-secret, please” and replied, “N-no, it’s not a problem.”

  “All right, then.” The health teacher smiled once more. “We’ll see you later.”

  The instant Haruyuki stepped out into the hallway, the text mail icon flashed in his field of view. Pressing it, he saw that the sender was not Fuko but Kuroyukihime, and he unconsciously looked around, but of course, she wasn’t there. He opened the mail to see just the sentence, WE’RE WAITING IN THE STUDENT COUNCIL OFFICE, but it didn’t say how the discussion had gone amongst the Legion members, notably with Niko and Pard added in.

  To be honest, Haruyuki didn’t think everyone would immediately agree to his resolution to take on the challenge of destroying the ISS kit main body right then and there. After all, there was a fearsome guardian, the Legend-class Enemy Archangel Metatron, protecting the Tokyo Midtown Tower in the Unlimited Neutral Field where the main kit body was hidden. He knew an attack strategy was supposed to be seriously debated at an upcoming meeting of the Seven Kings. Going up against the strongest being in the Accelerated World—excluding the Four Gods—with fewer than ten people went beyond difficult and into reckless.

  The Haruyuki of before would have no doubt brooded over taking on Metatron all alone if he got opposition. But now, not even a spark of that idea popped into his head. Neither Rin nor Ash would be the slightest bit happy to see Haruyuki end up in Unlimited EK in a suicide attack. This was a battle not for fighting, but for rescue. It was different from the time when he was fused with the Armor and ran off seeking death.

  So if they say no, I’ll beg them with all the words and feelings I have, until I get them to understand that while it might be a reckless plan, I think it’s definitely not impossible.

  Resolving this in his mind, Haruyuki trotted down the busy central hallway and went into the first school building.

  The door of the student council office on the western edge of the first floor was locked, but when he approached, it automatically unlocked for him. He took a deep breath and then pushed the sliding door open. The instant he stepped inside and pulled it shut behind him—

  “Yer late, Crow!” Niko yelled with real force, leaning back on the sofa set with her legs crossed.

  The other seven—Kuroyukihime, Fuko, Utai, Akira, Takumu, Chiyuri, and Pard—all lifted their heads to look at Haruyuki at once.

  Even though he had only just so firmly readied himself, when he saw his comrades, he couldn’t get the first words out. He stood stock-still next to the door and simply clenched his hands together tightly.

  Kuroyukihime, sitting directly across from Niko, stood up and smiled gently but forcefully. “What are you standing there for, Haruyuki? We don’t have much time, do we? Hurry and sit. We’ve finished getting everything ready.”

  The moment he heard the swordmaster’s voice, all the words he had arranged in his mind scattered and flew off, so that Haruyuki could only shout, “Okay!!”

  Ten minutes in real time. Seven days in the Accelerated World.

  That was the activation time Kuroyukihime set for the forced disconnect safety—in other words, the maximum time they could spend on the mission. The reason was, apparently, that they could only monopolize the student council office, which was the sole safe place for all eight of them to dive, from twelve fifteen to twelve thirty. The first five minutes would be given to a briefing in the real world, and the next ten were for the actual mission.

  “Sorry, Haruyuki,” Kuroyukihime said. “In the middle of the festival, the only time this room is empty is when the student council is out for lunch.”

  Haruyuki hurriedly rose up from the sofa, waving his hands back and forth. “No, seven days should be more than enough. I mean, the target time for the mission to rescue me and Shinomiya from the Castle was just two hours, so.”

  “Right, right! And even that time, we were so tired of waiting, we practically turned to butter,” Chiyuri chirped from immediately to Haruyuki’s right. “So with seven days, we’ll end up being cheese!”

  “Chii, even if you let butter sit, it doesn’t turn into cheese,” Takumu, farther down the sofa, pointed out, overly serious. “And to begin with, to turn into butter, it’s not when it sits for a long time, it’s when it’s spun at high speeds.”

  “I wanna spin that Radio round really good, then! Although, even if he did turn into butter, I’d say a big ‘no thanks’ to eating that,” Niko said, sounding profoundly disgusted, her hands clasped behind her head—and then all of them erupted in cheerful laughter.

  Once that had subsided, Fuko, directly across from Haruyuki, composed herself and said, “I also think that is plenty of time, but there is one serious problem in carrying out this mission. Because the main body of the ISS kits is conjectured to be in the Tokyo Midtown Tower of the Unlimited Neutral Field, we will, naturally, have to dive up.”

  “Oh…!” Haruyuki cried out unconsciously. If he was going to propose an immediate attack on Midtown Tower, then that was the thing he should have thought of first and foremost. Of the eight people there, one Burst Linker could not dive into the Unlimited Neutral Field, because of her level and one other specific issue.

  Haruyuki turned his eyes momentarily on Akira Himi—Aqua Current, level-one and still in an Unlimited EK state at the Castle—sitting next to Fuko and quickly dropped his gaze down to the table. “I-I’m sorry, Curren…My head was just full of the ISS kit thing…”

  “No need to apologize,” Akira said calmly, and she silently looked at each of them in turn as she continued. “Don’t worry about me. Go and take care of what needs to be taken care of now. Although it’s regrettable that I can’t help with this important mission, I can at least pray with all my heart for your victory.”

  “…Curren…,” Kuroyukihime murmured, biting her lip.

  Breaking the heavy silence was, unexpectedly, Pard, who was seated to Akira’s right. The words she spoke were also a surprise to Haruyuki: “That choice isn’t very like you, Aki.”

  “…”

  Akira silently turned her gaze to her side, and Pard stared right back at her. There wasn’t any direct point of contact between them, and yet Haruyuki was made once again aware of how they so closely resembled each other somehow.

  “Water is water precisely because it continues to flow. Stagnating doesn’t suit you, Aki.”

  “…So then are you telling me to do something, Myah?” Akira asked quietly in response.

  Pard, still with her usual calm look on her face, proposed something that no one else had even considered. “You can just escape from the Unlimited EK right now and join in the Metatron mission. With seven days, executing both missions is plenty possible. And with this group, we have enough firepower, too.”

  “B-but…” Kuroyukihime hesitated. That was only for an instant, however, and then the Black King got a decisive look on her face.

  She turned to Niko, sitting directly on the other side of the low table between them. “…That work, Red King? To be honest, Leopard’s proposal is the best thing we could ask for. Because our chances of success are far greater that way than if we were to carry out a rescue mission with just the members of Nega Nebulus. But the fact that it is a difficult mission is unchanged. This would mean that senior Promi member Blood Leopard and Promi’s leader—you yourself, Scarlet Rain—would be running the risk of dying in Seiryu’s fierce attack, and not just once. There’s also a good chance of being hit with the special attack Level Drain…or, in the worst-case scenario, ending up in Unlimited EK, just like Curren…” />
  Even after Kuroyukihime had closed her mouth, Niko said nothing for a while; she sat with her back leaned against the sofa, her legs crossed and body still. But after a few seconds, she nodded, making the hair tied up on either side of her head bob up and down. “Well, this time, at least, I can’t be the only one saying no. At any rate, it was exactly for this that Pard has sealed away leveling up until today, after all.”

  “Huh? Wh-what does that mean…?!” Haruyuki cried out in great surprise. It was true; he’d always found it strange that Pard, supposedly an old hand, was at level six, only one above himself, Takumu, and Chiyuri. When he’d asked Niko about it before, although she’d dodged the question, he remembered her mentioning something about it being connected to her longtime rival, Sky Raker. If the reason was in fact not about Raker, but instead Aqua Current, then that meant Pard and Curren had some kind of close relationship beyond rivalry.

  “Oh…No way…But, mmm-mmm, right…So that’s it,” Chiyuri said, coming to an understanding on her own.

  Unable to stand it, Haruyuki asked in a small voice, “H-hey, so what’s it?”

  “Not telling. I’m sure you’ll find out once the mission’s over.”

  Haruyuki had learned from experience that when his clear-faced childhood friend refused to tell him something, it was pointless to keep pestering her. He was forced to withdraw, and instead, Kuroyukihime spoke again.

  “We have one minute, thirty seconds before the start of the dive. We have to decide on an action plan. Rain. And Leopard. We gratefully accept your offer to help with the mission to rescue Aqua Current…Curren, that’s all right, yes?”

  Questioned by the Legion Master, Akira was hanging her head as if still struggling. But when she lifted her face a second later, she nodded with a serious look. “Actually, this was a request I should have made. I’ve spent two and a half years circulating in a closed circle…I’m very happy right now that the time has come that I, too, can start to flow forward, aiming for the distance once more. All of you, please, lend me your strength.” Akira bowed her head deeply.

  Utai, sitting to the left of Fuko, who had maintained her silence until then, quickly moved her fingers in the air. UI> REN, THIS WILL ABSOLUTELY, DEFINITELY BE OKAY. EVERYTHING WILL GO WELL. BECAUSE WE HAVE WITH US A BIRD WHO BRINGS HAPPINESS!

  …Ha-ha, she means Hoo, huh? Haruyuki nodded his agreement.

  “So then, before the mission starts, we’ll have to paint Haru’s avatar blue, right!” Chiyuri said forcefully.

  “H-huh?! Me?!”

  “That would also have the effect of increasing his camouflage while flying, hmm?” At this overly serious comment from Takumu, everyone except Haruyuki laughed together again.

  After stopping briefly in the normal duel field to discuss the details of Aqua Current’s rescue, right on schedule at 12:20 PM, they shouted “Unlimited Burst!” in unison.

  Back in the Unlimited Neutral Field after an absence of four days, Haruyuki landed in the fondly familiar Century End stage. The grounds of Umesato Junior High were riddled with cracks, and flames flickered and danced up from rusted oil drums. Haruyuki stared in turn at each of the colors in the duel avatar rainbow lined up and against this light.

  The Black King, World End, Black Lotus.

  Deputy of Nega Nebulus, the wind of the Four Elements, Strong Arm Sky Raker.

  The fire of the Four Elements, shrine maiden of the conflagration, Ardor Maiden.

  Nega Nebulus member, the Watch Witch, Lime Bell.

  Also a Nega Nebulus member, Cyan Pile.

  The Red King, the Immobile Fortress, Scarlet Rain.

  Prominence deputy, one of the Triplex, nicknamed Bloody Kitty, Blood Leopard.

  It was only natural, but the figure of the water of the Four Elements, Aqua Current, was not there. She would be diving a little after the rest of them, three hours of time on this side later. Her nickname of The One would be gone that day, because in order to dive into the Unlimited Neutral Field once more, she would be spending her accumulated Burst Points to bring her level up to four.

  Feeling like he should again say a word of thanks to his comrades, who had agreed to this mission to save Ash Roller and Rin Kusakabe, Haruyuki stood a little taller and bowed his head deeply to the seven before him. “…Thank you so much. I know we’re in the middle of the festival, but you’ve all joined in without saying a word…Especially Rain and Pard. You don’t even have real stakes with Ash—”

  “Hold up there. I wanna double-check something before we get to that,” Niko interjected, the antennae on either side of her head bobbing up and down. “Is that girl with the totally weak aura seriously the real of Ash Roller from GW?”

  “Y-yeah. The situation’s a little complicated. I guess you could say she has a different personality in the Accelerated World.”

  “There’s peeps who’ll change personalities during the duel, but, like, that is seriously too much of a change!”

  She was more than right to think this, but Haruyuki wasn’t sure how much of the situation with Rin and Rinta he should share.

  “But,” Pard said, “she totally knew all the old types of motorcycles.”

  “Oh yeah, you did that whole naming thing in Crow’s class display. You think you could be buds?”

  The question was primarily for the leopard, and she nodded without hesitation. “Y. Already buds.”

  “So then we got stakes, too. Which is, like, Crow, once the mission starts, don’t be holding back with me and Pard for whatever!”

  “Rain…Pard…” Haruyuki’s heart was full, and it was all he could do to simply say their names.

  But Fuko slid forward silently on her wheelchair and stood up to bow deeply. “I would also add my thanks. Thank you, Red King…and you, Leopard.”

  It seemed that not only did Niko and Pard already know that Rin was Ash Roller in the real but also even knew that her parent was Sky Raker.

  “NP.” Nodding in return, Pard spoke at unusual length. “The bond of parent and child’s just as important for me as the bond with Master or with my rivals.”

  Hearing this, Haruyuki suddenly had a thought. The Master Pard mentioned was, of course, Niko, and the rival meant Raker, against whom she had sharpened her sword in duels in the past. So then, who exactly was the parent?

  Raker bowed her head once more to the two members of the Red Legion and then turned her whole body toward Haruyuki. “Corvus. I have to say my thanks to you as well. Thank you for deciding to fight for those two.”

  “N-no! Rin and Ash are my friends. They’re important to me.” After shaking his head any number of times, Haruyuki took a deep breath and added, “Please save those words for the time when we defeat Metatron, invade Midtown Tower, and are done smashing the ISS kit main body!”

  “Mmm, well said, Crow!” This clear voice was, of course, Kuroyukihime’s. She also advanced to stand beside Haruyuki and brought the sword of her right hand sharply through the air. “I will not deny that due to the suddenness of this mission, we are lacking in both advance preparation and attack personnel. However, that is precisely why we can see our chance for victory. Because, given how the suspicion that Quad Eyes is a member of the Acceleration Research Society does nothing but deepen, we can assume that she would leak to them any information from upcoming meetings of the Seven Kings. Even the Acceleration Research Society can’t anticipate us daring to attack Midtown Tower at this time. In other words…”

  She stopped here and turned the tip of her sword toward the southeast.

  “…our adversary is only one: Metatron. If we can eliminate that Legend-class Enemy, our swords will reach the ISS kit main body!”

  Fyoo! Bringing her sword down to slice through the air, Kuroyukihime turned her body slightly and, this time, pointed due east with the sword of her left hand.

  “In executing this mission, the abilities and intelligence of the Four Elements’ Aqua Current will be a huge asset. Thus, we first bring Curren back from the nest of the God Seir
yu. Although this is an enemy more powerful than Metatron, there is no need to defeat it. If we all combine our power, I believe it will be possible to rescue her without collateral damage. We will be taking on the challenge of successive large-scale missions, but in order to smash the Society’s scheme and cut out the root of rot in the Accelerated World, I’m counting on all of you to fight hard!!”

  Haruyuki and the other members of Nega Nebulus all thrust their right hands up into the air at these bold words, while the two members of Prominence followed suit a second or two later and shouted, “Yeah!”

  Lowering his hand, Haruyuki returned to the line, burning with fighting spirit. There, Niko sidled up to him, standing tall as she whispered, “So, look, is it always like this with you guys before a mission?”

  “Huh? …Y-yeah, it’s basically like this.”

  “I-it is? Nah, it’s nothing…”

  He looked at Niko as she crossed her arms, and he cocked his head to one side before a sudden thought struck him. “That reminds me. Don’t the trains run in the Century End stage?”

  “N. Most of the tracks are destroyed,” Pard responded from behind Niko. She asked why with her eyes, so he explained, scratching at one side of his helmet.

  “Oh, it’s just kinda far to Marunouchi, where the east gate of the Castle is, so I was just wondering how we’d move. It’ll take a while if we walk, so…”

  The instant she heard this, Niko’s eye lenses flashed. Just as a bad feeling came over him, the small, crimson-red avatar hugged him. “Big brother! This time for sure, you gotta fly with just me in your arms! I mean, I’m the special guest and all!”

  “N-no, that’s, um…”

  “Whoa, hey, Red! You just said we shouldn’t give you special treatment!”

  When Kuroyukihime’s scary voice suddenly echoed from directly behind him, Haruyuki could do nothing but freeze.

  “And exactly what are you going to do, flying ahead with Crow when there are so few of us to begin with?!”

  “That’s that, then. We’ll just have to get big brother to carry all of us this time!”