Scenario: Exponential Invasion (IC)

[Ailucia]

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Remi continued her walk to her house after sending the address, hoping that Chie would wait for her to actually show up. She had to take the long way around to her house considering the hospital was along the route, but she wanted to be as far as she possibly could from that place right now. Well, it's not like Chie would just enter her house and knock on the door right?

Beep.

Her phone picked up a message. From her sister.

Remy wemy your friend is already here. Are you buying lewd toys for each other or something? I don't think this is very becoming of a girl your age!

"Shit." Remi said aloud, going from a leisurely walk to a dash over to her house. She was almost tempted to go into her cyberframe form to jump boost all the way over there. This was extremely bad. This was a situation that could trump even the hospital encounter. This was her older sister after all, she couldn't shut up about talking about whatever came to her mind during a conversation. She could be talking about that time at the beach, or the time they went to the amusement park, or even worse, the promise she made when she was younger. Eventually she reached the house, panting and covered in sweat herself from running the whole distance here, and she could see the light was on with two silhouettes in the living room area.

Oh no, am I too late?

The blonde girl ran towards the door, unlocking it quickly before slamming it wide open. It was a short speed walk to the living room where she saw two people sitting down with tea, with a third cup just for her. Remi Looked over to her smiling sister.

"What did you tell her?" Remi asked, almost like an interrogation.

"What ever do you mean Remy wemy~?" Becca said with a smile, almost unaware of what she's done. "I've just been telling your friend how cute you are is all!" That's when an idea hit the older sister's head. "Oh that's right, there was this super cute thing she did when she was younger and learned about promises!"

"No!" Remi ran over and covered her sister's mouth as she began to start the story. "Chie DOESN'T need to know about ANYTHING you've said." She began to yell out, obviously flustered.

After a few seconds, Becca overpowered her younger sister into a small lock. "Bweh!" Remi cried out, having a seriously different attitude and personality around her sister.

"Ara, that reminds me. It's awfully late outside, will you be spending the night with us?" Becca suggested. "I would feel bad sending you out after all the chaos I heard about tonight, and you can share Remi's bed. Our third room is currently unavailable sadly."

"No, why does she have to sleep with me?!" Remi protested.

"She's your friend, right?"

"But..." Remi couldn't really explain the situation, not without it seeming suspicious at the very least. She just gave a defeated nod to her elder sister, bracing herself for the night. Not to mention her healing.

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[Izurich]

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As predicted, the news, social medias, and internet articles were choke full of tonight's fiasco at the Hope Hospital. Akni rolled her eyes at the various assumptions and theories concocted by those news agencies in obvious attempts to draw in viewers despite all of them reporting basically the same incident. Fortunately, she was the only Valiant who had access to CDF Field Reports on the matter, much more reliable. All of them had one thing in common, the Valiants were believed to be the perpetrators, nothing surprising really, but damn it was irritating. So this was how Chiroptera-Man, the popular anti-hero character, felt, keeping the citizens safe yet hated and feared by the very people he protected.

If there was one thing she noticed from all those junk news were the glaring inaccuracies of the witness' descriptions, even those from the CDF personnel themselves. Was this... the disguise system Srade mentioned earlier? Damn, Akni was sure no one in Central City had such technology, this kind of technomagic shenanigan could only be done by a sentient alien spaceship.

Arriving back at her apartment, Akni took off her hoodie then put her pistol back at its stash behind the flatscreen TV. The redhead's eyes were narrowed and alert, turning left and right in search for any possible infiltrators in her home, an unsettling behavior coming from a schoolgirl, but standard procedure for a CDF Agent. "Ha..." The junior agent finally let out a small sigh, going into the kitchen to grab a glass of hot milk then relaxed on the couch for a few moments before she took off into the bathroom.

---

An hour passed, the young investigator prodigy found herself tucked inside her... office, yes, an office would be the correct term. It was located next to her bedroom and no, it wasn't filled with desks, plushies, and books common to a schoolgirl's study. This room had a secure CDF-issued Personal Console, one side of the wall reserved for pinning of various images displaying faces, locations, and lists with Central City map as their background, it also could be used for holographic projections. A sturdy safe containing sensitive data was placed on one end of the room along with various cabinets for documents and hard disks. The door was reinforced with steel plating and biometric lock, there were no windows, only artificial illumination from the ceiling provided light for the occupant. All in all, this chamber was the equivalent of a small bunker. In this place where Akni could exchange highly classified information and data safely with sophisticated encryption technology.

Right now, the redhead could be seen sitting on a wheeled office chair in front of her Personal Console, already logged onto her CDF account. On one corner of her screen was a black chat box with 'Senior Investigator Moretz' written in white at the top while the rest displayed various data, photos, and charts.

"...I see, thank you for your report, I assume you've included Ms. Reed in the recipient list, Akni?"

"Yes, Sir. I've got everything settled." Akni typed into the augmented reality keyboard. Not to be overly polite, but right now, Mr. Moretz was speaking as her superior, not father. If she wanted to have casual chat with him, she'd do so through her SmartView, not the Console.

"Tonight's event marked yet another case of these seemingly random terror attacks in Central City, done by an unknown group. This is unsettling. We are sorry, this shouldn't be your primary concern, but since you were near the location of the attack when it began..."

"It's alright, Sir, Ms. Reed had explained everything." Nevertheless, Akni could take it easier with her own father despite keeping up the polite conduct.

"Very well. Alright, next, I have to ask, are you in good condition? Able to continue your assignment tomorrow?"

"Yes, Sir, I confirm that my condition is stable and I'm able to continue my duty." Akni took a deep breath, receiving a gut feeling that her father would give her something important.

"Acknowledged, then I shall send documents containing newest updated data of Central Primary School students under suspicion of participating in illegal drug abuse and underage prostitution. These are classified information, for your eyes only" And Akni's superiors of course, but he didn't need to mention the obvious, "Sending it to you now. Open it once you receive it."

"Packet received, opening the documents now." Akni typed as she decrypted the zip file then extracted the contents.

"Open document titled 'CPS-S-DAP 5'."

"Opening." As Akni opened the particular file, rows of images containing photographs taken by CDF Drones and CCTVs were displayed to her.

"Those are photographs taken in a district where there had been multiple reported cases of prostitution and junkie parties, perhaps you will recognize one or two as students in the school."

"Hmmm..." Akni pursed her lips, she'd have to examine them one by one, not exactly an effortless task as the images were often blurry and had noises on the pixels. As she looked at the images, Akni typed, "Affirmative, thank you for your assistance, I sha|" Her cursor paused

"What.... the... fuck...?" was muttered from her lips.

On Akni's screen, beside the chatbox, an image stood in the centre, a noise-laden picture of a...

Picture

...teenaged girl with dull black hair, lightless dark brown eyes, and an expression she knew all too well. "......." Her slim androgynous face, even though the blur and noise, was unmistakable.

"Junior Agent Moretz, what is the matter? Please respond." The ping from her chatbox brought Akni out of her self-induced trance.

She deleted her previous message and typed in a new one. "Yes, I am here, just perusing the images."

"Affirmative, are you able to recognize one of those individuals?"

"..................."

"No, Sir, no one comes to mind. Junior Agent Akni Moretz, Signing Off."


[/fieldbox]

 

[Insomnant]

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There wasn't much Mita could say but to allow Ellen to rant. She settled into the girl's pocket and listened with a troubled brow and tiny winces and sorrowful nods. To be fair, she had not been given any choice in the situation either. She served Srade, though that did mean that she was more certain about what she was doing and why, and she found herself pitying these being of flesh and doubts. "This was just the first time, though! A-and think of all those people who would be dead, if it wasn't for a bunch of uncoordinated kids! That has to... be worth something..." The something the tech-fairy was referring to was certainly the worst part of the entire deal, but maybe she could inject a little perspective into things? That was hard to do, considering the situation, and Mita fell silent as Ellen cried, feeling overwhelmed with responsibility for her part in putting them in that position.

With no further contribution that could possibly make up for the horrors they'd encountered on their first night on the job, the green-haired minigirl went into a standby mode of sorts. She held her tongue and location when they got to Ellen's home, allowing the teen to deal with her family in her own way. It wasn't until taken out and put on the desk that she shook out her crystal-wings and nodded understandingly. "It has. I understand. I think things will get better, but from this point in time it- it's hard to see that. But you aren't alone, and we'll beat this, together!" To emphasize her point she fluttered up into the air, and zipped in to suddenly embrace Ellen's cheek with a surprisingly warm hug- radiating the girl's own body heat absorbed through her pocket. "How about tomorrow, we could- maybe, talk it over? Figure out tactics, or something! It'll be alright, you all were very brave and I believe in you!"


Yu-Ri received nothing in the way of an answer beside silence. The implication- should one be inferred- was that she herself was Srade's machine for extracting cyberware, along with the other girls, of course. She'd done that task effectively enough for her first time, now they had but to work out the kinks.

---

Every girl finished the night in their own way, attempting to regain some semblance of normalcy. They had each been touched by the night's events, however. For Akni the pesky static in her eyes never faded, and each blink bought but a second of peace. For Chie the haze was even worse, and joined by a white noise hiss that bothered her ears whenever all else had fallen silent. Yu-Ri had more blood on her hands than she'd likely ever imagined. Ellen had her uncertainty eating away at her from the inside. Remi had the distraction of family and cohort and the constant reminder that either of them could be taken from her in an instant to make true the doctor's shared vision from earlier that night.

At least they would all have some rest, should they be able to get to sleep.

---

PCHR!

The offline clock mode had just ticked to 1:05 AM when the shotgun went off. The quiet sounds of idling engines and furtive footsteps had come first, of course. Shadows moving by the windows, blurred by dust and darkness alike. Yu-Ri's apartment suite was swiftly surrounded. Then came the battering ram. The decorative oak was made to withstand the test of time, but not the pop quiz of an iron-tipped bludgeon. CRRNCH! The first strike came right after the explosion of lead pellets that shredded the locking mechanism. A long strip of wood shattered inward, but the door held. Chk-Shk! PCHR! The second shot did in the deadbolt and then: CRRNGKK! The door gave in with a mighty shudder, bursting open to let in a double column of CDF agents.

"GET DOWN ON THE GROUND!" The noise vibrated every window, directed from outside to the entire apartment building. "EVERYONE, ON THE GROUND! THIS IS A CDF RAID, RESISTANCE IS PUNISHABLE BY DEATH!"

Masked, armored men flooded into every room in pairs, sweeping corners with their short shotguns and submachine guns. Yu-Ri's parents swiftly met the ground at the behest of gloved hands. They remained there with barrels wedged against their heads, one on her father's temple, the other swiftly grinding a bruise into the back of her mother's neck.

Other agents continued moving until they found Yu-Ri's room. The time to act was minimal and the opportunity to reach out to the others denied. Somehow, her SmartView showed no service. No service, in the current year! It was inconceivable as a coincidence or accident. The noose was swiftly tightening.

But for everyone else, the night was quiet! At least, so far...[/hr][/hr]

 

[ERode]

The clock ticked up, each second a droplet of wasted time.

Yu-Ri could not sleep, her eyes still wide open, gazing up tirelessly at the darkened ceiling of her small room. She couldn't close her eyes, not while her brain was still so active, while those images were so vivid. A threadbare bed sheet draped over the unoccupied mattress, as she leaned back on a cheap reclining swivel chair. Tomorrow was going to be hard if she kept this up, but at the same time, the raven-haired girl didn't care. It was just one day of school. She could rec-

PCHR!

Hammerblows against wood broke open the suite's door, footsteps resounding outside and helicopters roared in from above. Shadowed forms rappelled from the aerial vehicles, black-armored CDF officers armed and ready to blast apart anyone that tried to escape from the outside. Yu-Ri started, her brain jacking up to lightning-fast pace, and she instinctively dropped to the wooden floor, hands placed on her head. In that moment, she realized that her Smartview had no service, her ability to communicate with anyone else silenced.

But then again, none of the others had any reason to come to her rescue, other than the threat of her naming some names.

Should she fight? Should she run? Or should she just submit?

Yu-Ri submitted.

CDF raids weren't uncommon in the slums, and she wasn't the only occupant of this suite. For now, she had to calm down and figure out the reason behind this raid. She had to stay rational and only pull out her life-changing trump at the very last moment.

But, for all of her words, her heart was still pounding violently against her ribs.

 

[Insomnant]

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With Yu-Ri remaining where she was the CDF soldiers were swift to find her, kicking open her door and pointing both weapons at her. "Down! Down on the ground!" one yelled at her, voice simultaneously muffled and amplified by the ballistic mask he was wearing. While the one who had yelled pushed her down by the shoulder, the other kept his weapon trained on her, and tilted his head almost imperceptibly. "Yeah, Bungee Four Actual? Bungee Four-Three- POI located. Securing now."

Addressing Yu-Ri, he spoke up louder, still sighting his weapon on her chest. "Yu-Ri Yun, you are coming with us. You are wanted for questioning in connection with a terrorist attack. Do not attempt to flee: resistance is punishable by death. If you have nothing to hide, you have no cause for concern." This speech was rattled off in nearly robotic monotone while the closer soldier grabbed her arms, to tug them behind her back so that a stiff plastic strip could be wrapped around wrists.

Two additional CDF agents appeared at her door, and filtered into her room with weapons directed at her, only dropping them when passing behind the man who'd spoken and swiftly aimed again once on the other side of him.

~~~

"Down! Down on the ground!"

But she was already on the ground. Despite herself, Yu-Ri couldn't help but manage a small, fleeting smile at that. A smile that was vapourized when the man went on to speak about connections to a terrorist attack. The hospital event? How did that even...her appearance was scrambled, and her SmartView probably has some sort of alien encryption thing on it when she shifted to her Cyberframe form. She narrowed her eyes in confusion, before one of the soldiers pulled her up by the arms, a plastic strip wrapping around them and binding them together.

In the far corner, she could hear her father groggily ask about what was going on, but she paid him no heed. Maybe the CDF officers ruined his workshop on the way in. That'd be nice.

Nodding once to confirm that she was willing to comply, the raven-haired girl waited, taking in deep, deep breaths. Her heart was still much too loud for her liking, but, if nothing else, she could rest easy in the fact that they weren't 100% certain of her involvement in it.

~~~

The CDF agents wasted no time in hauling her out into the street. By now groggy neighbors were peering out through parted curtains or cracked doors, spying on the drama going on in the building. Other soldiers were there to oversee the operation, one toting a hefty weapon that could only be a light machine gun while the vehicle occupying the street itself sported an even larger gun on top. They were not pulling any punches with this operation.

With a gruffness that could only come from military-style training, the men gripping her arms threw her onto the floor in the back of the transport, missing both rows of seats on either side with perfectly functional cushions and seatbelts and everything. Still no one said a word to her, as four other agents piled in, one pulling her upper arm to drag her more toward the middle of the cabin while the other three took up a spot on the benches lining the wall. The smell of dirt and musty cushions filled her nose, combined with the sweat of the soldiers dripping through their uniforms. They'd been active since the doctor's attack no doubt and the night wasn't over yet.

Even as the transport closed up still other infantrymen were swarming through her apartment, searching behind every door and in every cabinet and drawer for any sort of incriminating evidence. There'd be some cleanup to be had once this all calmed down.

The drive to their destination was mercifully short given the tension that crackled in the air. All four of her guards saw to her continued compliance with hawk-like vigilance and their weapons never left her direction. Given how many violent outbursts had spread through the city in the past week and a half, they were all just one sign of madness away from pulling the trigger and not letting go until their magazines were empty.

Luckily they made it to the Fusion Center without incident, and Yu-Ri was guided to her destination with terse insistence. A small cell awaited her, a dim room with a chair and table, a camera in the corner aimed at her. At least there wasn't a one-way reflective window on the wall, perhaps there wasn't enough room in the small office to afford an observation room.

She had to wait only ten minutes before the door opened, and a man stepped in- past middle age or else wizened by the stress of his post. His hair was short and by now the flecks of gray had overwhelmed the black, more salt than pepper on top and on his bristly mustache. "Yu-Ri Yun," he said, as if rolling the name around on his tongue to get a feel for it. "You're in a lot of trouble, young lady. Seems you've been wandering around in places you shouldn't have been. Do you have any explanation for yourself?" He stood on the opposite end of the table and his demeanor was almost one of disinterest, as if she'd already been declared guilty but he had magnanimously decided to give her a chance at redemption.

~~~


Ten minutes was a long time to be sitting alone, with only a single security camera as her companion. The trip to the Fusion Center had been tense, Yu-Ri staying as still as possible amidst the sweat-stained atmosphere, but now that she was alone, there was a different sort of tension in the air. What did they know, and how could they know of it? No, she was thinking too much. Yu-Ri began to take deep breaths once more, attempting and failing to manage her heart rate.

The pressure built up on her mind, threatening to make it pop, but she kept herself together for the time being. She needed more information. She needed to know what they knew.

She needed to get shit done once more.

Yu-Ri closed her eyes, and allowed those visceral images to carve themselves into her mind, tearing apart her present worries and thoughts. What was the worse they could do? Question her and then execute her? This was...everything was...fine.

Eventually, the thick, metal door opened, two guards peeking around the corner to make sure she didn't do anything funny as a middle-aged man, with wrinkles on his forehead and years of experience set in his dark eyes, approached. The investigator. His words offered no information, offered no explanation, and acted almost as if they already had the evidence.

But then why waste time?

Yu-Ri pursed her lips and allowed her fear and confusion to show, her feet tapping a nervous beat beneath the table. "I-I'm not really sure what you mean," she sputtered, "Is this about the attack on the hospital? Or the bank attack thing?"

She furrowed her brow, deep in fake thought. "Wait, does this have to do with Ellen?"

~~~

When she responded the investigator deigned to look her way, and his expression was... disapproving. Almost disappointed, really. "Don't play dumb with me," he responded fairly swiftly, his white brows furrowed together in annoyance. "Did you think you were brought here to beat around the bush?"

With a tired sigh, the experienced interrogator pinched the bridge of his nose for a long moment. "You know what this is about. At least have the courtesy of respecting my intelligence, by acknowledging it. What. Were. You. Doing?" he asked, leaning over the table with both hands planted on it and leveling her with a stare that could have drilled through solid diamond. From this close, the minty scent of toothpaste met Yu-Ri's nose- the investigator was not a man who appreciated having his schedule interrupted.

~~~

The investigator smelled like a man who just took a shower and brushed his teeth, all ready to go to bed and fuck like a dog. Yu-Ri suppressed the urge to grimace, and leaned back in response, as far as she could from his face. Those steely eyes were burning holes in her, but all this was just...pre-emptive work. This was still nothing. She still had something to fall-back on.

She tried to hold his glare, failed, and looked down at the stainless steel table instead, polished just enough that Yu-Ri could see a blurred reflection of herself. "I...I don't know," she finally managed to squeak out. "I was at a friend's house and we went out after dinner. Her parents told us to take the car, but, well, we wanted to go out and walk, you know?"

"Really, what is this about?"

~~~

Finally he was getting somewhere, and the investigator eased up on the intensity of his gaze, allowing Yu-Ri to provide something of a response. It wasn't all that he wanted, clearly, but it was a start. Standing up straight as a board he narrowed his eyes at her final question. "You know what this is about. The part after the walk. Keep talking. And don't try to get cute with me, we're far beyond that now." He took a step back and gave her the smallest nod possible, as indication to continue her story.

~~~

So he wanted a story? Well, sure, why fucking not? "We walked and all that," Yu-Ri continued, "and they met up with a couple of their other friends. First years, I think? Not really sure where we went in the end, but it was some high-end shopping place. Sorta got upset about that and, yeah…"

The girl trailed off for a moment. "I got mad and, well, walked back home. Took a bit, I guess."

~~~

The investigator allowed Yu-Ri to tell her tale but when she'd stopped it, he shook his head. "You know… this really doesn't bode well for you. How do you think this is going to end? I'll just buy your fictitious account that avoids the verifiable facts and let you go on your merry way?" Once again he sighed and his lips pursed in a frown of disappointment.

"Yu-Ri, Yu-Ri… I'm giving you this opportunity to explain yourself, to give me an out to clear you- You're making this very hard on me. Hard on yourself. Why don't we rewind… take a deep breath. And start again- with the truth." The way he gritted his teeth, the way he leaned on the table again, the hint of growing disgust in his eyes all spoke to a very real limit to his patience, and the pressing risk of running right up to- and past- that limit should their current course continue.

~~~

Avoids verifiable facts? The truth? A glimmer of irritation was mirrored on Yu-Ri's expression, as she did, in fact, take a long, deep breath. She did, in fact, have cards to play. And, so far, all he did was ask, ask, ask, as if he had real evidence.

"Ellen Irving and Chie Mont," she said, "Third years in Central City Primary School. I talked to them yesterday, because we all had high marks. I went to Ellen's home to study with them and for dinner. You can confirm it with her parents. I don't know what you're asking for, but that's all I have."

She sighed, deflated. Yu-Ri knew full-well how terrible that bit of solo time was in her story, but that was good too. She was going to hold out until they dropped their own cards. If she backtracked on her own story now, she might as well bend over and stretch her asshole open.

~~~

This was not the investigator's first day on the job. This was not the first uncooperative suspect he had dealt with. And this was not the interrogation where he would forget everything he'd learned over his life's work and suddenly go soft on this unhappy girl in front of him.

"Don't you worry, Yu-Ri," he said in an ice-cold tone, clasping his hands behind his back. "We will be confirming with Ellen's parents that you were there. And after they ask 'what is this all about' they will of course be informed that it is part of the investigation into the latest terrorist attacks. I'm sure you've heard of them, they're all over the news? How do you think Ellen, or her parents, will feel knowing you are being held in connection to them? Perhaps we should interview the rest of your classmates as well. For… character witnesses? Your teachers should likely be questioned too- and all of them deserve to know why, of course. That seems fair to me, wouldn't you say?" He spoke of all this in a hypothetical tone but with a certain undercurrent that told Yu-Ri that- not only had they done all this before, but they would indeed do it again if need be.

He gave her a moment to allow all this to sink in, the ramifications of having everyone in her life pressed for answers and then informed that she might even be responsible for the violence… somehow. Both of them knew it likely wasn't true, but then it didn't have to be. Just the accusation was likely enough to ruin her social standing. "Perhaps we could even get social media involved- post your picture and name and ask if anyone has any tips regarding your behavior! I can only imagine how much more helpful that would be, than sitting here. Wasting my time. Listening to you..."

One more stare. One more chance. His gaze flicked over to the door. He had a bed waiting for him, and a bratty teen lying to him here. Of the two, the former grew more appealing by the second.

~~~

Everyone, was it? Ellen's parents, was it? Her teachers? Her classmates? Her social media? Or the general public, asking about the behavior of one girl who looked like just about any other girl? The salt-haired investigator still had not played any cards. She still had no idea where the connection was coming from. But that was fine. That just meant that she knew nothing about anything.

Yu-Ri's right eye twitched. Her heart pounded. Her blood was rushing up her head. Her lips curled downwards, grimacing.

And finally, she exhaled deeply, resigned to that particular fate. "If that would help, go ahead."

She didn't mind anyway. Her classmates were just stepping stones and her fellow Valiants were merely useful. That's all there was.

~~~

The investigator watched her reaction in its entirety. Every bit of the evolving story played out in body language instead of words. His expression hardened as he read her behavior and expression and posture. And a look of understanding dawned on his face as he gave a single, slow nod. "You don't care." It wasn't a question, but a statement of fact. "You think you've got nothing to lose. Nobody out there gives a damn what happens to you, is that it?"

Without waiting for a response he walked over to the door. "That's good. Makes this much easier on us. No one will care if we keep you here." And then he left. And then Yu-Ri was alone.

~~~

The investigator left, and the pressure along with it. Yu-Ri flopped against the cold table, her cheek smushed against it. So, ultimately, despite their success that night, they were sloppy with the clean-up, and she was paying for the consequences, huh?

Face away from the camera, she managed an ironic half-smile. Looked like Farron's strategy of being super flashy had somehow helped her evade questioning after all. Looked like, from now on, they were going to have to make up stories to serve as alibis. Looked like, if she was going to continue with this, Yu-Ri was going to have to put in a little more effort.

But it looked like the investigator got one thing wrong.

Nobody out there gave a damn?

No.

She didn't give a damn about anybody out there.

Yu-Ri closed her eyes, and found it much too easy to fall into a light sleep.

 

[Izurich]

[fieldbox=, Red, solid]

The reinforced door slid open as a young girl emerged from the inside, her eyes unblinking and lips pursing tight. In silence, she dragged her feet towards her bedroom just next door, the previous door sliding back down then automatically locked itself with a beep. Just an hour ago, she went inside highly alert, but now... She was like one of those shambling zombies in old cheesy horror movies. Her mind trying to comprehend the awful truth she just received while her body moved on auto-pilot, before she knew it, she was already laying on her bed, wearing a white one-piece nightgown. The tiny spots in her vision were ignored, she had too much in her mind to worry about such things.

"Ha..." A disturbed sigh escaped her lips, a right hand raised to hold her forehead. The pixelated image of the black-haired teen's face perpetually plastered in her mind. Was she really...? Yes, she was definitely her, Yu-Ri Yun, upperclassman, Valiant Black, ...Underage Prostitute. "Pfft... Heh..." She chuckled wryly, shaking her head at the irony of it all. A whore, Srade chose a goddamned whore as one of her Valiants. Sure she couldn't exactly put the spaceship's mind on the same perspective as humans, but come on, Yu-Ri had enough troubles in her life, why her? From the photographs, any investigator worth their job would know the raven-haired was guilty, talking to shady older men in a red light district, for what purpose other than selling herself or drugs?

She knew the older girl was no good since the very first moment they encountered each other in the Teacher's Lounge, call her presumptuous, but Akni was recruited for a reason. One question remained however, why did she lie to her father? Her duty as an Investigator was to report any individuals matching the criterias of suspects in her assigned crime fields, Yu-Ri was definitely one, so... why? Perhaps Akni was so shocked by the revelation, she wasn't ready to answer? Perhaps it was the sense of comradeship as fellow Valiants, looking out for each other? Or perhaps Akni took... pity on the detached upperclasman? Whatever it was, one thing for sure, she'd pay closer attention to Yu-Ri from now on. Just because she let the girl off the hook tonight, didn't mean she'd continue doing so should circumstances changed. Unbeknownst to the redhead, the CDF got her work cut out for her, albeit for different accusations.

Closing her eyes, she tried to get some sleep. Tonight marked the day where her life changed abruptly, for better or worse.

---

Morning came slow and tedious due how restless she slept. The active girl woke up an hour earlier than usual, one of the rare chance she got to deactivate her alarm before it rang. "Uuurgh..." Rubbing her eyes, Akni sat up holding her head, suffering a headache much like a drunk in hangover. Exhaling, she took a minute to get her bearings before climbing off her bed, she couldn't sleep anymore even if she wanted so might as well brew some hot tea, try to relax, and plan her moves for the day.


[/fieldbox]

 

[Insomnant]

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The morning began with a bang at the door. Not with a battering ram or anything, that would be absurd, but with knuckles rapping on the door. Ellen's father answered and a terse but polite conversation ensued with an unfamiliar female speaker. After a few muffled back-and-forths the higher-pitched sound of her mother's voice became involved as well and the exchange traveled into the dining room.

The tone of the conversation grew a bit heated, and ended with a scuff of chairs as the footsteps move toward Ellen's room. She was also given the courtesy of a knock, several long seconds before a gruff-looking blonde CDF agent in a dark navy blue jacket and matching cap with black pants opened the door. Hovering closely behind her were her parents, her mother concerned and father unhappy, but they both acquiesced to this intrusion on their home.

"Ellen Irving? I'm Agent Hawkins and I have some questions for you. This will not take long. Please join us in the dining room as soon as you can." She retreated to the hall and her parents lingered, to give her sympathetic looks that likely contained a trace of encouragement to cooperate. One did not rise so high in a major company without being a 'team player' after all. But then she had a moment to compose herself, while the adults awaited her arrival.

Upon entering the dining room she was greeted by the assessing look of the female enforcement officer, her gray eyes cold and attentive as she took in the sight of Ellen. "We need to know your whereabouts and activities last night, after leaving here with your friends. Please be thorough, and honest; this is a very important matter."

~~~

The initial intrusion into Ellen's room caught her still in her pajamas, but awake. She groggily mumbled some sort of affirmative for her identification, when asked. Who else would she be anyway? "Be there once I get dressed," she said to the retreating officer. Her parents got a bit more courtesy, in that she at least waited for them to leave before closing the door on them and going about her morning business. She considered stalling a bit with taking careful care of her hair and otherwise dragging things out as long as possible, but it was only a few minutes before she arrived in the dining room, dressed in a school uniform and otherwise disheveled ,with hair that still needed a good brushing and any further styling efforts.

She took a seat, with a polite and much more composed "Good morning" for her parents and their unexpected guest. At least her own house was better than a hospital bed, but the question was still unexpected. Ellen did her best to hide any surprise at it under a mask of someone who simply isn't a morning person, but it probably wouldn't fool anyone actually good at their job. "Ah, last night? Yeah, I can tell you what happened." What she wanted to know, was why the hell was anyone even asking about it. They can't be that immediately obvious, can they? CDF wasn't the sort of organization to just appreciate the help, that's for certain.

"We left on foot, because it was a nice night and a walk would do us all some good. I think we got a ping from one of our underclassmen to go meet her somewhere, and we figured we'd have the time, so why not?" She shrugged. It wasn't really that far from the truth, even if it wasn't exactly the correct context either. "I think…" she hesitated, as much to avoid mentioning this in front of her parents as to anyone else. "I think we ended up meeting her pretty close to that clinic that got attacked last night. I guess the CDF presence was either worrying her or she just wanted to drag us out to go see or something. I didn't get too close to the buildings, so I didn't see much more than people going in and out…" And a little after that, they all left their separate ways. Nothing to it, really.

"That's what this is about, isn't it? You're still trying to catch whoever's doing all this stuff?"

~~~

The CDF agent listened to Ellen's story politely, allowing her to speak and giving her occasional nods to continue whenever she slowed or paused. The switch to less confident language made the woman tense slightly, hands grasping the edge of the table and brow knitting together a bit. And when the clinic came up, the agent spared a swift glance toward Ellen's parents, one that couldn't possibly be described as anything other than 'knowing.' On their part, the expressions of concern only deepened.

"Right," the female CDF officer confirmed with a slow nod of her head. "That's correct. And that's why this is so important. Please, try to think back, I need you to remember this as accurately as possible. What were your friends doing after getting to the clinic? Did you all stick together? Or if not, did you see which way they went?" She leaned in a bit and lowered her head, searching for Ellen's eyes to keep them from wandering. "I know it must have been chaotic, even scary, but please, try to remember."

~~~

Ellen took a while to think about her reply, which fortunately wasn't beyond the realm of plausibility. She had the feeling the officer expected it of her, anyway. "We stuck together for a while, but we eventually split up to go home." Seriously though, why were they bothering her with this crap? Did they have some sort of tracking set up on everyone already, and were rounding up everyone with even a whiff of being nearby? Or had they actually been spotted earlier. She hoped nobody else was dealing with this sort of fallout.

~~~

That answer didn't seem to appease the policewoman and she continued watching Ellen until it was clear that no further answers were coming. "And, did any of you go into the hospital? It's alright if you did, I'm not here to get you in trouble. We just need to know. Did you, or any of your friends, go inside the clinic last night?" The tension in the air was palpable, her parents seeming on edge about even letting the teen answer, though the non-accusatory manner in which the CDF agent asked likely helped delay that refusal.

~~~

"We didn't." It was a lie, but really, who would go into that mess if it was clear Civil Defense had an interest in it? Rubbernecking was one thing, but anything further was probably suicide. Between any actual terrorists and the CDF, neither side was particularly likely to care about a civilian casualty or two, as she personally knew all too well. And if the CDF were going to drag her in for lying to an officer, there was absolutely no reason for them to have even talked to her in the first place if they already knew what was going on. The alternative was being dragged in for transforming into some sort of magical girl and then entering the crime scene, which would probably be stretching credulity, even for them.

~~~

That answer earned a short shake of the head from the policewoman. "You sound very certain, Ellen. But see, we have good cause to believe that one of your friends was in Hope Hospital. Think back. Did Yu-Ri Yun enter the clinic at any point? Because somehow… she activated the fire alarm, on the top floor. You aren't trying to cover anything up now, are you?" There was a bit of an edge to that question, one that made her parents squirm. They clearly objected to the implication but also realized the severity of the matter at hand.

~~~

Ellen sighed. Of course they did. Maybe those Cyberframes did obscure how they looked, but they apparently didn't do anything to screen the broadcast of their identification. And something so unobtrusive as a fire alarm, or buying something, or interacting with possibly anything else would eventually leave that identity lying around somewhere inconvenient. That's a fine mess they'll have to get sorted out.

"Okay, fine...I really didn't want to say this," particularly in front of her parents, who got a worried glance of her own. "We...did go into the hospital. Curiosity got the better of us, and all that. There were," Ellen had to pause here to compose herself in a way that wasn't even an act, recalling the sights from the previous night. "There were some things that nobody our age should have to see. We panicked, and must have gotten separated when we ran away." She didn't want to get any more specific than that. And if they were going to blame a teenage girl for that sort of violence, they were really reaching for a scapegoat. And would be really embarrassed when the violence didn't stop. Not that it would do Yu-Ri any good.

~~~

Agent Hawkins listened to Ellen's revised story with that same serious expression and gave a single nod when the girl agreed to tell the truth. The revelation and reaction was about what she expected, and though there was still the question of how Yu-Ri had gotten to the top floor to pull the fire alarm instead of doing so on the ground floor- not to mention how soon after the violence had begun… but the policewoman seemed to sense that Ellen's parents would not stand for such questioning much longer.

Besides, she had all she needed. Standing up and giving a grateful nod to all three, her face indicated that she was withholding judgement about any of this, only gathering the information she'd been tasked to retrieve. "Thank you all for your cooperation. The CDF and Avance Physique stand together in building a better tomorrow, and every bit of help has a resounding impact," she assured the two adults in a meaningful tone. Then after brief farewells, she departed, leaving Ellen to continue her normal school readiness schedule… aside from the jittery tech-fairy buzzing about her room wanting to know what had happened!

 

[Atenthirtyone]

[BCOLOR=transparent]It was a rough night for Chie Mont as she tried to fall asleep. When she closed her eyes, it wasn't blissful darkness that would help her ease into slumber and rest. Her eyes, or rather her mind was blasted with a white static that showed up on ancient visual display when something went wrong with the connection. Furthermore, she couldn't hear anything but white noise. While, it wasn't exactly bothering her to fall asleep, it felt strange. Was this related to Chie's overuse of her Cyberframe? Or, perhaps it was that strange illusion that occurred when they were confronting the mad doctor. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]She woke up in a bed different than hers, the sheets were flowery and girly beyond belief. It definitely was not hers. And smaller. In fact, there was another person in the same bed. It was Valiant Yellow, erm… Remi. Yes, Remi. The younger girl apparently had also placed a pillow between the two of them as a divider. Chie giggled at the makeshift wall that was obviously placed there after Chie had fallen asleep. She carefully lifted the sheets that was covering the younger girl's face.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]It was a very peaceful face, without that signature frown, and obviously no tongue clicking sound. Remi's face wasn't cold at all, it was warm and kinda innocent and child-like. Chie inched closer to inspect Remi. She was mumbling to herself like a child, and was even drooling a little bit. It was absolutely adorable, and Chie couldn't stop herself from laughing. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Drool. Saliva. Right, Chie remembered last night, and it was definitely one of the more interesting nights she had in awhile. And it wasn't the Cyberframe and hunting down villains part. Well, maybe part of the Cyberframes. Apparently, one of Remi's modules was one that was capable of healing, surpassing even the most advanced and modern medical technologies that Central City had. And, the module or technique required Remi to use that cute little tongue to apply it to the patient's injured area - in this case, Chie's lower back. Chie laughed out loud, unable to control herself. She recalled the young girl being all shy and bothered about doing so after activating her Cyberframe. Chie even snorted a few times.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Then, Remi stirred in her sleep, and opened her eyes to Chie with one hand supporting her head, staring at her. With those eyes, a swirl of red and blue. They were drowsy for a second, before they were opened wide like a small rodent being caught by a predator.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]~[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Remi's night was a particularly rough one as well, with both her sister and mortal rival teaming up to make fun of her during the night. If that wasn't enough, she started to have multiple nightmares in her sleep. The first felt like a retelling of the fight just a few hours before, her being completely dominated by her opponent mentally as he messed with her mind, making her useless during the fight. But then even that nightmare was surpassed by something even worse, she found herself surrounded… surrounded by Chie's. They encircled her as they laughed and got closer and closer, Remi soon finding herself being squished by a valley of breasts and skin as they continued to get closer and closer to her. The laughing warped and distorted, turning to demonic snorts as well all around her, this nightmare continuing until she began to realize a sensation on her cheek. It felt like… a hand where a breast [/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]should[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent] be pressing against her. Realizing that she was actually in a dream, Remi promptly forced herself to wake up as she opened her eyes, Chie supporting her head with one hand as she stared right at the blonde girl. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Her still weak and sleepy arms tried their best to push away the enemy with no success. "W-What on EARTH are you doing?! Don't you get why I put a border in the first place you oaf?" Remi stammered out as she fidgeted in her upperclassman's hold, giving her the signature Remi glare with a red blush across her cheeks. "You reek like you were burnt as well as sweaty still, so go take a shower while you're here as well." She could still remember the night to a tee, as much as she didn't want to. Why couldn't she just be able to give people shots or dispense medicine pills, why did it have to be from her mouth of all places?! If her past crush ever found out about what had happened last night, Remi would probably be killed. Scratch that, if any of the many people who for some reason liked this oaf of an upperclassman found out about last night, it could be over for her.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]It was early morning, her sister was already gone by now and left her usual breakfast and money for lunch, this time for two. Remi didn't like not being able to see her sister in the mornings, but today was the one day that thought did not come across her face.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]~[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"You reek like you were burnt as well as sweaty still, so go take a shower while you're here as well."[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Ara ara. Are you offering to shower with me then? I mean, I am an injured patient after all~." replied Chie as she pretended to be all weak and tired. "Doctor Remi, please escort me to the shower… I'm sooo weak and can't stand on my own two legs. Or, is it Nurse Remi? Which is it? Either way, I'll need someone to scrub my back. It won't be good if I got an infection. I'm just so fatigued from last night~" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Chie smiled deviously and got even closer to the younger girl, whom at this point was struggling not to fall off the edge of her own bed. Her borrowed pajamas from Remi's older sister were loosely fitting, resulting in Chie's body to be revealed quite a bit. Chie hadn't bothered buttoning more than the middle two buttons of the blouse, as she cared little about modesty in front of a little underclassman. As a result, Chie had left her entire left shoulder exposed, as well as the top proportions of her breasts. The upperclassman caught Remi's eyes stare towards her exposed bust, and simply giggled hard at the young girl tried to avert her eyes. This little girl is so fun to play with. And so easy to toy with. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Well then, Nurse Remi~?"[/BCOLOR]

~

[BCOLOR=transparent]"If you still got an infection after my healing, I'm sorry to say you're probably dead." Remi coldly stated after pressing her hand against Chie's face as she tried to push at least her dumb face away. "Actually scratch that, I'm not sorry. Not at all." She stated as she stole another glance down at her upperclassman's well endowed-ness, pissing her off even more. She couldn't stand the fact that another girl could fit into her sister's clothing even better than she could herself.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Well then, Nurse Remi~?"[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Hey, I'm no nurse! Just go clean yourself before you stink up my house and more importantly, my sister's clothes." It then occurred to Remi that she wasn't sure if Chie even got a small tour of the house to even know where the bath could be. Also, Chie might actually be telling the truth and being hurt, the blonde girl couldn't really get a good read on her mortal enemy at the moment after all that has happened recently. "Well, I could escort you to the bath I guess... " Remi said with a slightly dejected tone, feeling only a tiniest bit bad that something wrong could be with Chie.[/BCOLOR]

~

[BCOLOR=transparent]The bathroom was about a third of the size of the one in Chie's apartment, but it served its purpose well enough. Chie guess that she should probably use words like, it was fairly comfortable, cozy, and compact. And it was definitely a bit cozy with the two of them in the shower together. They had turned on one of the shower heads, and it was dispensing blissful hot water that seemed to melt away Chie's discomfort. Well, along with a soapy sponge that was washing her back. Chie still felt a bit of a sting, and winced once or two as discreetly as she tried to hide her discomfort. However, she was pretty confident that the younger girl saw the reaction, and her washing motion became far softer and gentler afterwards.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]I guess this is why all of those adults enjoyed going to those places called 'soaplands', [/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]pondered Chie. There was something comforting and warm about being washed by another human being. It felt completely different than cleaning oneself or using one of those robots to do it. It just felt like your worries were scrubbed off along with dirty and sweat on one's skin. Well, besides the fact that those adults enjoyed younger girls for something else entirely. Chie turned her head, and saw Remi, who immediately averted her eyes.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Remi had wrapped a towel around her torso, as if she was trying to hide her body from Chie. The attempt at modesty only made Chie chuckle, which in turn caused Remi to blush red from not the hot water's heat, but embarrassment. Chie decided not to tease the younger girl anymore for the moment, and closed her eyes to relax. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Oh right, I should probably turn off Sleep Mode on my SmartView. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Sleep Mode was something that nearly all SmartView chips came with. It was a way for people to turn off their connections in the busy and distracting Internet. It was mandated by the Central City government after there were too many studies showed that people were staying up all night watching silly videos or playing roleplaying games instead of allowing their brains to fully rest. Chie had just mentally flicked her SmartView's normal mode functions on, when the priority message text warning appeared. Chie quickly opened the first message, it was sent only about twenty minutes ago.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Dear Ms. Chie Mont,[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent] I can terribly sorry to disturb you, but officers from the CDF just came by. They demanded that they wanted to speak to you, but I told them that you were out for the evening. I told them that you were probably either at your dear parents' manor, or something equally important. They then demanded to see your apartment, which I could not have refused. I guarantee that they did not disturb your living arrangements nor took anything from your apartment. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent] I have already contracted Mr. Mont, and I am sure he will file a complaint to these bruteish officers for trying to harass you. How dare they attempt to imply that you were part of any crime. Even if they only wanted to talk to you as a witness regarding something related, it was completely unnecessary for them to be so forceful. I will personally speak to our legal department to prevent such behavior in the future.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent] My humble apologies,[/BCOLOR]
[BCOLOR=transparent] Thomas Ando[/BCOLOR]
[BCOLOR=transparent] Golden Blossoms Apartment Manager"[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]The CDF had wanted to talk to Chie about something so urgently? And her parents ---- another priority message was just sent to her… two minutes ago![/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Chie,[/BCOLOR]

I have received Mr. Ando's message, and have contacted our family law firm to be on stand by for you. You can explain me the reasons for not being at home later. In person. For now, I will ensure that nothing negative will happen to you or the Mont name. I am sure you have the law firm's contact information, just give them a voice call as soon as any CDF attempts to talk to you.

Mother"

[BCOLOR=transparent]Chie sweated a bit, and it wasn't from the hot water. Mother. She balled her hands into closed fists. She would have to talk to mother, and probably likely tonight or the next day. Chie dreaded having to see her mother, as it always forced her to become that perfect little doll. She wasn't supposed to have to deal with mother until next week at dinner![/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Remi, I'm clean. So unless you want to service me like a soapland girl~, please move." answered Chie with a far colder toned that the younger girl could have ever hoped to copy.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Chie quickly dressed in her school uniform, which had apparently been cleaned by Becca. She also saw that breakfast had been prepared for both Remi and herself. And… money in some envelope. Chie laughed at the hilarity of the situation. Did Becca really think that the heiress of the Mont family needed lunch money for school? She just couldn't stop laughing, as she grabbed a piece of buttered toast with a napkin and headed out of the house. A house that one could actually call home.[/BCOLOR]

 

[R-9 Pilot]

[fieldbox=", #5fd4a3, solid"]

That little disruption out of the way, Ellen went back to her usual morning routine. Got to eat, brush her teeth, get her hair in order, all that stuff. Then she can finally get to school. During some of this, she did have the time to give Mita an overview of what had happened. "CDF wanted to know what we did last night, because someone linked herself to their crime scene," she summarized. "If we're lucky, they won't just assume she also did the whole thing, I didn't get anything like that from the interview, though." she shrugged as she brushed her hair. "Still, it's damn easy to forget just how pervasive the surveillance state here is. Buy something, everyone who cares to knows what it is and where you were when you did it. Touch anything tied into CDF's grid, they'll know the same thing." No more playing with alarms in the future. It was a good idea, for warning people of trouble, and if Yu-Ri would stick to that, she'd probably be let go without further suspicion.

"Anyway, we can worry about more of this when we're at school and can actually meet with the rest of the group." Mita has free reign to get comfortable in Ellen's backpack, as she walks in to school. Ellen sent out a little message to the rest of the girls on their makeshift team. "So, we still need to figure out some sort of club for an excuse to hang out. We should meet before classes and get things out of the way. I also really think we need to work on our teamwork."
[/fieldbox]

 

[Insomnant]

27092115582128148.1​

Like the doll she resembled, Mita did an excellent job of listening to Ellen spill what was troubling her. She nodded and frowned, and let out soft "Oh..."s in response to the very real problems laid out. "Srade didn't realize this was the case. She is not a collective of many small independent entities as is humanity. The intricacies and varieties of your interpersonal methods of interaction- well, we'll have to see what can be done to make it easier!" she chimed confidently, lifting and hovering over to settle into the backpack near the top so she could speak out of it, her upper two crystal-wings glowing slightly above the zipper.

"I do hope Yu-Ri is alright... She hasn't put on her Cyberframe, at least but... I'm worried about her. I- I don't... want to lecture you all in areas beyond my domain of expertise! But... if you are fighting each other, it seems to me that you cannot also fight the real threat..." Her voice got even quieter and a bit forlorn as she spoke, as if afraid she might step on Ellen's toes. Which was silly, because her minuscule weight meant she could jump up and down on one of Ellen's toes without hurting it.

---

The lights had never turned off. Luckily for Yu-Ri they'd been mercifully dim to begin with, but bound as she was and seated on a metal chair with no padding… Really the quietness was the only conducive factor toward getting any rest. That, and her own exhaustion.

But a mere six or so hours after she'd been left by herself in that cell, the door opened once more. It was the investigator, still looking fatigued- as if he'd somehow gotten even less sleep than Yu-Ri. Despite the shortness of his hair it still looked unkempt, as if he'd been resting in some awkward position somewhere- in a car or on a couch. As he walked into the room he set down a bottle of water in front of the dark-haired girl, thankfully with a straw in it so she could drink it.

"Good morning, princess," he began, stepping around the table. In his hands was something small, boxy. Like an old data stick or something. "This is the point where I'd ask if you've changed your tune, but I'm sure that would get me nowhere so I'll save myself the trouble." Holding up the box, he tapped on the screen with his thumb before holding it out for Yu-Ri to hear the sound it emitted.

"Not really sure where we went in the end, but it was some high-end shopping place." It was her own voice. Pause, then another tap on the screen and an unfamiliar older female: "Did Yu-Ri Yun enter the clinic at any point?" Followed by the recognizable sound of Ellen's reply: "We...did go into the hospital."

The investigator lowered the device, giving Yu-Ri a daring look. "Want to try to spin another lie or are you ready to come clean?"

~~~

Yu-Ri opened her eyes. She listened. She nodded.

And internally, she screamed.

For a minute or two, the raven-haired girl simply boiled on the inside, before just deciding to...let it go. What could she do from here? How could she improve upon Ellen's truth? What details could she still use? Despite the sleep she did get, her mind definitely wasn't as sharp as it was now. Should she talk about Lesedra and the Cyberframes? Or should she continue to operate under Srade's conditions of minimal outside interference? Wait, interference, did that even make sense?

She shook her head, clearing out nonsensical words, and took a sip of water.

The investigator's breath now smelled faintly of chamomile. How unexpected, that he was a tea person instead of a coffee person.

"There looked to be something going on. We decided to go in and see it. Curiosity and stupidity and boredom. Then, it turned out it was just a bad fucking idea."

"I ran up instead of out, and decided that the best way to do it was just to pull the fire alarm and get everyone out, one way or the other."

Yu-Ri closed her eyes.

"Then, there literally was fire, a streak or whatever, that hit the first floor. And...gun shots. And something really fast that was going down the stairs."

"We decided not to talk about it. But I suppose 'don't tell anyone' didn't apply to the CDF after all," she mused.

~~~

The investigator heard a tale that almost satisfied him. It was so close… Still, he appreciated the openness even if it came many hours too late. Walking around Yu-Ri he flipped open a spring-assisted blade... And proceeded to cut off the restraints around her wrists. They hardly seemed necessary at this point, though he pocketed the knife as soon as the plastic had snapped off. "Now see, that's what we would have thought. And I'm sure you think so as well, or else you wouldn't be telling me that. But there's still one thing that really bothers me. The first homicide came at 7:39 and 30 seconds. That's based on audio recordings from the hall. And the fire alarm, it was activated at 7:40… and 10 seconds. Are you telling me you made it to the top floor of Hope hospital- no, let me rephrase that. You wandered in, saw the violence, managed to run up seven flights of stairs… to pull the fire alarm. In 40 seconds. Instead of pulling the one on the first floor or- if you just had to go up for some reason, instead of out- the one on the second floor?"

"I'm sure you can see how this isn't adding up. Maybe you can fill in some of the numbers I'm missing. How, and why, did you go up seven flights of stairs that fast, to pull a fire alarm? And why wouldn't you just tell me this earlier. Unless you had something to do with this." That last sentence sounded more like an accusation or conclusion, than actual conjecture. This was clearly the root of the entire reason Yu-Ri had been brought in, though it would seem Ellen's statement and the fire alarm pull were all they really had on her.

~~~

Yu-Ri rubbed her now-freed wrists as she listened to his reveals once more. Her joints cracked and popped as she rolled her shoulders, now freed from that uncomfortable position of pinned behind her back. So it was the fire alarm after all. That really was stupid on her part, making the assumption that the RFID tag in her right palm was scrambled due to the Cyberframe transformation as well. They were so inexperienced with this unknown power, and she had already started assuming things about it. If she ever got out, there was definitely going to be a long chat with Srade after this.

The raven-haired girl nodded, confirming that she acknowledged all of his doubts, before speaking up once more.

"We wandered in early," she said, the tips of her fingers now massaging her neck, "And I, at least, reacted not to violence, but to appearance. Not every day you see a doctor with red, glowing eyes, an odd gait, and scalpels in his hand. The screams later on pretty much confirmed it."

"Going seven floors up though," she frowned, "that was stupid and unnecessary. I panicked, ran up too much, only thought of doing something to evacuate everyone else after a bit, and by then, I was on the top floor already. Seven flights in a minute...not that hard."

"And as for not telling you earlier? It was early in the morning, we had originally made a promise not to talk about any of this, and maybe I was feeling a little bit resentful about all this. But hey, I did have something to do with all this! I recognized something dangerous, panicked once the violence began, made the wrong decisions, and now I'm here!"

It was tempting. Too tempting to name-drop Farron as well, name her as the one that suggested the hospital venture the first place. Get rid of one person that Remi didn't trust and Yu-Ri didn't like. But she wasn't at that point yet. Right now, she was just…

Her dark eyes twitched. What state was she in anyways?

~~~

In spite of all his hard work, and how badly he needed a lead, the investigator knew that he had nothing. A pulled fire alarm suspiciously soon after the murders began was just not enough to go off. The description of the doctor might have been helpful, but the real moment of interest would have been after the seven flights of stairs up. Still, he had to ask.

"Alright, Yu-Ri. Just one more question, and then you're free to go- and stop by reception on the way out, they'll have a voucher for a new door." He took a moment to figure out how to word his question, lips pursed under his mustache thoughtfully. "Did you or any of your friends see what happened to the doctor? Or more specifically… what happened to his head?" With that final question he leveled an intensely analytical gaze at Yu-Ri to watch her reaction with finely-honed attentiveness.

~~~

The head of the doctor? Well, with such a grisly dismemberment, it was obvious that the CDF were going to be interested in chasing that as a lead. Furrowing her brow,Yu-Ri massaged the bridge of her nose, recalling once more the grisly, disgusting scene. Think and recall. How much time had passed? What times made sense? How much should she 'know'?

"The head..." the raven-haired girl shuddered, her mind's eye recalling every detail, every sensation. Goosebumps rose up her arms as Yu-Ri took in a deep breath. "While I was descending, there was another black streak going up the stairs. Really fast, definitely not something human. But it was definitely carrying something. I couldn't see it clearly, but...maybe it was carrying the head."

That should be enough.

~~~

There was nothing concrete of course, but Yu-Ri's reaction elicited suspicion on multiple levels from the investigator. His distrust remained hidden behind a skillfully maintained air of intense interest that did not change until after she was done talking. "Yes... maybe." He offered the slightest of shrugs and then gave a slight nod of his head. "Very well, you are free to go. See to it that you are more cooperative should the CDF need your assistance again in the future." The chastisement was spoken in a measured, neutral tone but with a weight to it that spoke of inevitability, rather than possibility.

But with that, Yu-Ri was free to leave. And as promised, the receptionist had a voucher for her as well as an apologetic smile and a wish to have a nice day. The slip of paper said it was for free services from a building repair company to see to the destruction wrought on her apartment. No doubt the same business that had seen to the damage to the bank yesterday.

 

[Ailucia]

[fieldbox=, yellow, solid]

Remi quietly took the insult from the upperclassmen, hearing the harsher tone in her voice and figuring something had to be wrong. Even rich and super popular girls had their problems, she figured as she moved to take a bath herself this time. The girl took her time, so that the two wouldn't have to go to school together and make people think they might be friends, that would cause lots of problems her way, she probably would be asked to start giving Chie other people's love letters or try to talk good about admirers.

The girl sighed, remembering what she had to do last night, and with two different girls no less. Is this going to make her a loose woman, or whatever those kind of people are called? Remi also wondered what her friend would think should they find out she more or less "kissed" Chie, and slept in the same room... and took a bath together. She clicked her tongue, feeling like she wasted lots of first times that should be with someone she liked instead with Chie of all people.

As she got out and got dressed Remi looked over to the clock, thirty minutes left until school would start. It was going to be a bit close, but Remi could jog her way over to school and make it in time. She grabbed her school bag, then caught a piece of buttered toast in her mouth as she dashed onwards to school, trying her best not to be late.

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[Atenthirtyone]

[fieldbox=, pink, solid]

Chie had arrived at school about a half hour earlier than the first class period. Unfortunately, that meant she was late for archery club's morning practice and had missed the majority of it. When she entered the club's space, she was greeted pleasantly by one of her upperclassmen.

"Well, well. It looks like Miss. Mont is finally here. Didn't think she needed to come to morning practice because she was the top scoring athlete of her age bracket."

Oh, Asuna Fox. One of the seniors in archery club. A mediocre archer who regularly tried to start trouble. A social butterfly, flirt, and the school's bicycle. Chie quickly ran over to the small group of seniors, who usually led the practices. Asuna was there, along with her cohorts. She bowed deeply and apologized. Chie had always found that being polite and apologetic had always irritated the human bike the most.

"My apologizes, Miss. Fox. I wasn't feeling too well last night, and struggled to get out of bed this morning. I had no intentions of skipping practice. However, I will model myself to be more hardworking and studious student like you, my senior classmate. I wou--"

The caveman whore's face got red, and started to shout. At this point, the whole archery club had stopped practicing, or rather stopped pretending to practice and the whole club were looking at the two of them. This was a common scene. Chie Mont, the heiress who was a model student in conflict with Asuna Fox, the school's biggest human reproduction fluids depository. Chie apparently had rubbed her the wrong way since she outscored her multiple times at the club. Well, maybe if she spent more time aiming her arrows than aiming her throat down some boy's --

"Oh, you little pompous bitch! I know that was an insult! Yo ---"

"Cease this foolishness at once, Asuna and Chie." said a calm and collected voice coming from the middle of the club's archery range. It was Cecilia Ward, the captain of the archery club. Unlike Asuna, Cecilia was a refined girl who actually deserved Chie's respect as her senior. She was the best scoring archer in the region, and placed in the top ten of her grade. Someone that earned Chie's respect. "Asuna, you haven't finished your last two sets. Go do it now, so you have time for a shower before classes begin. Chie, it's too late now for you. I expect you to get your running done during lunch. Message me when you start and finish. And you are making up your practice after school. Understood?"

Asuna looked like she was about to speak, but was barely able to hold her tongue. Maybe it was all of that practice she got from servicing every other boy that she could use to get favors. Both of them nodded to the club president's authoritative statement. Her final sentence was not a question, but rather a command.

The town bicycle hurriedly went back to her practice, while Chie left the archery club's room and headed to her classroom. She would have to communicate with the rest of the Valiants that she may not be able to attend any vigilante meetings in person. It was likely that at least Yu-Ri or Ellen would be in the classroom early.
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[R-9 Pilot]

[fieldbox=", #5fd4a3, solid"]

Ellen arrived at school fairly early, and spent some of her time loitering around the building's front entrance. She had hoped to encounter one of her fellow Valiants, but had no luck. The rest of the girls probably didn't have to wake up at the crack of dawn to speak to CDF spooks. She eventually stopped looking over at the underclassmen before she got too many funny looks over the attention she was paying them in the hop of spotting Farron or Remi, and instead moved on to the classroom.

It wasn't too long before Chie arrived, still before classes began. Ellen waved her over. "Hey, Chie. We need to get together to discuss things later. Looks like this morning was a bust, so lunch would be the next real opportunity." She really doubted anyone had major plans for lunch. But best to rope them in and force them into making those plans. she had at least one utterly stupid idea that was worth sharing, once she could drag everyone together.
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[Atenthirtyone]

[fieldbox=, pink, solid]

"Hey, Chie. We need to get together to discuss things later. Looks like this morning was a bust, so lunch would be the next real opportunity."

"Lunch? Like a lunch date? I didn't know you liked my princess carry that much. I'm flattered~" smiled Chie as she reached out to touch Ellen's cheek. Just as her fingers were about to make contact with the skin, she backed off. "Unfortunately, we will have re-schedule. You see... I need to make up for running practice for archery club. A certain little underclassman kept me up late all night, and I had trouble waking up."

Chie tilted her head and looked at her classmate's face for reactions.

"And no, we can't have the date this late afternoon either. I'll surely be forced to stay a bit late for the afternoon practice as well. Unless you want to wait for me~"
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[R-9 Pilot]

[fieldbox=", #5fd4a3, solid"]

Ellen was visibly unphased by Chie's flirtatious behavior. Whether she merely didn't show any reaction or actually didn't care, her face showed no sign of blushing or even strong emotion. Her cat-like ears twitched in annoyance. "That's not what it's about and you know it," she replied. "I don't swing that way, and I wouldn't call getting together with a group of friends a date, either."

Chie was part of a club already, wasn't she? Well, that would make any scheduling pretty difficult on her part, but it was just another problem to deal with when one suddenly starts living a double life. Things aren't just going to magically fall into place, as they were all coming to know all too well. Still, some things were also best not discussed online, where an easy record of communication would be left behind, so it was best to conduct their business in person as much as possible. Ellen sighed in mock frustration.

"If you've got your club punishments or whatever they throw at you when you're late, I won't stop you. Got to take care of your current club before worrying about starting a new one, but it'd be tough to work around. I forgot you were already in the archery club." She paused for a bit. "I'll see if the others can adapt to your schedule, but don't blame us if we decide to just go on without you." Leaving Chie without a say in things would be a little unfair, and perhaps more importantly, would leave the rest of them without a deciding vote if they couldn't agree on anything. Again.
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[Atenthirtyone]

[fieldbox=, pink, solid]

After seeing the lack of embarrassment from Ellen, Chie sighed and decided to stop playing around with Ellen. The fellow classmate was obviously more level headed than the two younger girls who were far more easily flustered and were far better playthings. No, Ellen was likely a girl and a Valiant that was an equal.

"Well, I could always just quit the archery club for our group's fun fun times. Seniors there are constantly trying to get me kicked anyway."

Asuna Fox. Chie's vision went red. For what felt like an eternity there, Chie felt the need to claw out that bitch's eyes and make it choke and gag on them. She wanted to see that whore choke and choke, and beg and apologize and...

And then, she was standing next to Ellen. Just talking in the hallway, like normal students. Chie had found herself sweating and breathing deeply, and frankly a bit confused. Sure, she hated the senior, but murder? Did she really want that in a fellow human being?

"My apologies. I must be not feeling well. Just message me about the new club you want me to join. You know new club. I'll be happy to join. I'll keep you girls informed on when my practice is finished."
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[ERode]

A voucher received and a smile reciprocated, Yu-Ri walked out of the building with a yawn. Her feet were still bare, and her pajamas, which basically consisted of clothing too thin to wear outdoors during this particular season, made the walk back home fairly uncomfortable. Dodging glass shards and puddles of oddly-colored liquid, she went up the stairs to her apartment once more, noted the still-busted door, and went in.

Almost anything of immediate use had been removed already. What scant food items the fridge once had was removed, as well as the wooden furniture and the light bulbs. Her own room too had been pillaged, mattress removed and cabinets strewn across the floor. She sighed at how almost all her clothing, outside of her school uniform, was gone, including her underwear. Of course, her parents weren't home. This was just to be expected when a suite in the slums had an already-broken door.

Yu-Ri sighed, changed into her uniform, washed her face, and then called the number on the back of the voucher she had received. A free door, courtesy of the ever-so-generous CDF. Yay.

With all that done, the raven-haired girl went off to school, stopping by a convenience store for a breakfast of grape juice.

---

Entering the classroom, Yu-Ri nodded once at Ellen and Chie, before finding her seat and flopping down. Her back still ached a little from her 'bed' last night, but she could deal with it for the time being. Class should be starting soon, and from there, she could just get into her routine of studying hard once more.

 

[Izurich]

[fieldbox=, Red, solid]

Some Earl Grey Tea really did wonders in washing away the heavy pressure from yesterday's events, the annoying static in her vision eased upon waking up, it'd go away with time, Akni guessed everyone needed a good night's sleep, even Techno-Magical Girls in Cyberframes. Putting the tea cup down on her dinner table, Akni continued enjoying her breakfast, the good ol' tried and true dish of bacons, toasts, and sunny side ups. Her SmartView was displaying morning news articles, see if there were anything about prostitution or drug abuse near the school, none so far, the trending topic was still the Hospital assault to no one's surprise.

Sitting up, the redhead went into her room, about to prepare for another day at school. She already took her bath and brushed her teeth before breakfast, so all that was left were her gadgets and... ah right, her hair. Sitting in front of a mirror, the young detective brushed her long red locks first, then made a ponytail at the side of her head, fastening it in place with a black ribbon while she held the other ribbon with her mouth. One side finished, she worked on the other ponytail, completing her signature twintailed look. Was there a particular reason? Well... her father's stories about her mother, particularly the part about her favorite hairstyle, may have played a part in Akni's disposition towards it.

"Right..." Just as she's about to get up, a ping came up in her SmartView, it was a message from the blonde cat-eared heiress, Ellen, "...Huh..." Hanging out after school, forming a club... she supposed it was necessary according to her, but... Akni wasn't really comfortable being in the same room with a certain black-haired gi-... wait, no, that's perfect! Yu-Ri could be her prime lead in exposing yet another chain in underage prostitution and illegal drug abuse, she just had to play her cards right.

"Sure, but I doubt we can meet before class as not everyone arrive at the same time, and even if we do, there's not enough time to discuss things. I propose we do it at lunch... or after class."

There, replied. This out of the way, Akni stretched her body then stepped out of the room, off to another wonderful day at Central City Primary School...

---

Her walk to the school proceeded without any noteworthy events, she arrived at school about ten minutes before the bell rang, went into her class, then sat at her usual spot. Remi still wasn't here, huh... was the girl going to be late? "Heh..." A mental chuckle came to her, barely a day ago, she wasn't even paying attention to the grumpy short blonde, but now they were Valiants, she became acutely aware of her, well... it wasn't like her business to poke around Remi's life... unless the girl was one of those kind, but nah... no way. Her train of thought was slightly interrupted as she felt someone starting at her from the side, "....Sigh..." her again, "Forgot to do your homework again, Natasha?"

"Aaaaah, yessss!" A high-pitched squeal came from the short-haired brunette classmate, her body bowing forward as she clasped her hand in a praying position, acting as if the redhead was a Goddess of some sort, "Please, o' smart and benevolent Sky Goddess, lend me your aid!"

Geez, the cringy pun, stop, make it stop! "...mmrk..." A visible twitch popped on her forehead as Akni tried her hardest not to smack the girl's silly head over, "Cut that out, you're embarassing the both of us." Natasha Tsarina, a nice girl, albeit rather naive and... shameless when it came to begging people to fix her screw-ups. It wasn't Akni dislike her, she was rather fond of the girl's friendly antics really, but puh-lease! She was her classmate, not Homework & Exam Answer Dispenser dammit! Fortunately for the bubbly brunette, Akni wasn't in the mood to deal with her shenanigans at the moment. "...Fine, but this is the last time, alright?"

"Yes, Sky Go-... I mean, Farron, the last time, definitely, absolutely, yep!"

Even a simpleton could know she was lying through her teeth, but whatever. Akni shrugged as she sent a message to Natasha's SmartView containing the answers, just to get her off her back. "There, sent, now shoo... You're bothering me." Akni grumbled, albeit with a tiny barely audible chuckle at the end.

"Thank you soooo very much~!" Natasha moved in-

"And no glomping." Akni quipped.

"Awww.... okay." Expression of gratitude through heartfelt glomping, rejected.

"Siiiiigh..." Time to study something she didn't need, endure it until lunch time where she'd meet with Ellen and hopefully the others as well.

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[Insomnant]

27092115582140849.0​

At least they had all made it to school. The morning after their first successful mission and their efforts had at least made a difference. Instead of hushed and frightened whispering about the latest round of intense violence, there was... confusion. Speculation raged rampant about what had happened, why had this time been different? Lorelei's dad's coworker had been at the hospital, he'd been interviewed most of the night by the CDF! Though... no one knew what it was exactly that he'd seen. Oh but Tyreste's neighbor across the street had been working in one of the attached buildings and he'd heard all about how the cops had swarmed the area and taken out the bad guy without even firing a shot.

Maybe this wasn't a big deal after all, some wondered. What if this was just your run-of-the-mill double homicide? But nobody knew for sure. The teachers were none too interested in speculation and class continued as per usual. Homework had to be turned in, lectures given, notes taken, new assignments handed out and then next class.

The midway break between the three morning classes and three afternoon classes allowed them a chance to finally get together and talk. For her part, Mita was getting anxious in Ellen's backpack, whispering to the cat-eared girl carrying her. "You should really have that strategy meeting, soon!" She stayed in the backpack at least but her frantic tone was almost loud enough to attract attention from others. She must have realized that because she quieted down for her next comment. "Probabilistic analysis indicates... you might need it shortly..."

 

[R-9 Pilot]

[fieldbox=", #5fd4a3, solid"]

Classes were the same grind as usual, for Ellen. Turn things in, pick up new work, pay attention, take meticulous notes on everything presented and said... Nothing new, no real break in routine. Which made it extremely easy to let her mind wander just a bit toward her whole second job, so to speak. The actual day's work kept her from completely spacing out or wallowing in anxiety, but it was still gnawing at the back of her mind. What was going to be next, could she even get everyone together, that sort of thing.

Lunch was usually a nice time for students to take a break, and socialize for a precious few minutes before classes picked back up again. Ellen had to excuse herself from her usual circle of friends to stand in front of Yu-Ri's desk. There wasn't too much reason to just go pinging around messages when someone was right there in the same room, or even the same building. Sometimes she wondered if she had an old soul, to go around actually speaking face to face in the modern era of near-psychic communication options.

"Hey, Yu-Ri," she began, already taking a fairly informal tone with her classmate. "Do you want to eat lunch with me?" She didn't bother going into details that might just make or juicer rumor, it was unusual enough for someone obviously rich to want to socialize with someone obviously not. And the black-haired girl already knew why Ellen wanted to talk to her anyway. They'd have to go collect their underclassmen soon, which would probably draw some attention. not that Ellen cared if people saw them all together. It wasn't so unusual as to set off any alarm bells.
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