Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

I’ve always been a weird girl, growing up. 

Oh, it’s nothing terrible. Mom and dad’s never made a big deal about it. “You grow up so fast!” Dad said, as if a girl suddenly asking about complex algebraic calculations wasn’t something to bat a glance at. “My baby’s a genius!” Mom would then add. And somehow it’d end up with me squealing as dad picked me up and swung me around.

I’d just smiled at them. Giggled and laughed as I joined in with their joys.

After all, it wasn’t like I could tell them I learnt them from my dreams.

I thought that was what they were for the longest time. Brief shocks of information I couldn’t help but remember every time I woke up. Most times it’d be something inane, like suddenly knowing how to bake a meat pie. I liked those dreams. They felt fluffy, but ultimately unimportant.

But sometimes, it’d be different. One day I woke up and suddenly knew university-level math. Another day I woke up and realized I knew how to surgically remove a bullet in real-time.

I didn’t like those dreams. They left me groggy and in pain whenever I woke. I began taking medication after I nearly fell down the stairs because of them.

I never told my parents about my dreams. They weren’t all that superstitious, but in a world where Academy City exists, everyone was a little stitious. I don’t want to bring them any trouble.

But we’re just a middle-class family, living in the outskirts of Kanazawa. Paying for all the medications I take almost daily was stretching what we had. Mom and dad never told me, but I knew. 

So,

“Aiko-chan?”

I rub my eyes as I yawn. I can’t believe I fell asleep—and now I know how to skip rocks. Hmm. “Sensei?” I groan. My back felt terrible. “Sorry.”

Sensei shook her head, smiling. “It’s fine.” Her smile dipped with concern. “Are you alright? Does your head hurt?”

“A little.” I admitted. “Nothing too bad.”

Sensei shook her head. “Tell me if you need more medicine, okay?” I nodded, and Sensei smiled as she turned her eyes back to the road. 

I dropped a palm over my eyes.

Sensei’s my aunt. When I asked my parents if I could come to Academy City to have an easier source for my medications-, well, dad picked me up and hugged me close, and mom kept apologizing for not having enough money, which prompted me to cry back and apologize about being born wrong and -

It was a mess.

After that, mom asked Sensei if I could live with her for some time. At least until I could enroll in one of the many schools in Academy City. Sensei agreed, though told us that I’d need to undergo the Power Curriculum Program to become an Esper. 

My parents easily agreed. I did too, though with more reluctance.

Because the night before, I had a long dream. Most of it was a mess of garbled information, blasted one after another in an incoherent stream. But I learnt enough.

Underground labs. The Kihara family line. The council boards. AIM Fields. Personal Reality.

The Beginning Child.

It was a little scary, to realize that the Academy City needed to use such methods to bring Espers to reality. But it made sense. The advancement of science has never been kind. 

“We’re here.”

I blink to find that we’ve stopped in front of a school. It’s…definitely impressive. It’s massive, far bigger than any school I’ve ever seen. And to know that Sakugawa Middle School was only a minor school compared to the big leagues?

Like, damn. Academy City’s scary.

“What do you think?”

“Big.” 

Sensei giggled. “That’s what everyone says when they first come here.” Her finger draped over the steering wheel. “The new year starts tomorrow. You can read the schedule in the booklet I gave.”

I nodded. “Noted. So, where next to?”

Sensei grinned. “Your dorm, obviously!”

“Right.” I stopped. “Didn’t you say that you have a meeting or something? Isn’t my dorm kinda far away?”

“I know.” Something in Sensei’s tone takes an almost malicious turn. “That’s why you’ll be walking there yourself!”

My eyes slowly bored into hers. “Don’t you dare.” I whispered. “Don’t.”

Sensei’s grin only grew. “I dare.”

“You piece of-!”

I was promptly kicked out of the car, and I watched in almost-awe as Sensei drove away. For a moment, I considered using my power to bring Sensei back, just to spite her. I managed to reign myself in after some time. It’d only make this day just that little more annoying.

I sighed. “Such misfortune.”

Despite my dreams, I’m still a middle schooler. I don't feel like one, most times. But I am.

So it felt offputting to suddenly realize that I have a monthly stipend, all because I was now an Esper. Sensei had explained that I’d find my monthly allowance in my dorm room. I did.

I just didn’t realize how much . 

And I’m only a Level 3! If I’m getting this much, then how much do the Level 4s earn? How about the Level 5s!?

God, just thinking about it was making me a little faint.

I shook my head.

It’s late afternoon now, and I still have things I need to buy for tomorrow. Notebooks, pencils, a backpack—the whole shtick. I think Sensei told me about a mall that’s nearby. The…Seventh Mist, if I remember.

I shrug. It’s as good of a place as any to start.

I pocket some of the money and I locked the door as I left.

…

I think I’m beginning to get it.

If there was one word I would use to describe Academy City, it’d be ‘big’. Everything here was big. The schools, the malls, the shopping districts. Hell, even the wind turbines peppered around the city towered over her like giant monoliths.

The Seventh Mist was not exempt from this. The mall was massive, and I have a feeling even dad would be heaving if he tried to walk all around the mall in a single go. And that man had the stamina of a bear. How mom managed to come up with that comparison was never explained to me.

It took me an hour to buy all the things I needed, and I spent another hour having an early dinner. The food was…fine? I mean, it was good . But my dreams have taught me how to cook a number of things, and there’s not many things that could compare to those home-cooked meals.

I’m walking home, now. A backpack filled with necessities for school slung over my shoulders.

It’d been a good day, despite the rocky morning. I’m still trying not to think of that mess, and Sensei’s unrepentant laughter still rang in the back of my head. The little tour around Academy City and finding my monthly stipend more than made up for-

My thoughts were cut short when I heard something from a nearby alley. A girl’s panicked cry, followed by what sounded like the cackle of an older man. I narrowed my eyes, and I walked over. 

I already had an idea on what was happening, and I couldn’t help the sigh as I saw what was happening.

A thug was threatening a girl, holding a knife up against her throat as he whispered something I couldn’t quite hear. The girl looked close to tears, clutching her flowery headband as she slowly backed up against the wall.

I sighed. “Oi.”

My voice stopped the two’s little act, and the thug’s eyes bulged as he turned to me. “Ha? Another little girl?” He giggled. “Oh man, today’s awesome!”

A small headache pulsed through my skull, and I groaned. The guy’s voice was grating as all hell. “Hey,” I reached into my pocket. “You part of that Skill-Out gang or something?”

A grin grew behind the mask the thug wore. “I am, little bi-!”

Before he could finish, I threw a marble at his face with all my strength. The thug blinked, and suddenly I was right in his face, smashing the heel of my shoe into his nose. The thug’s head smashed into the concrete, and then he slumped down unconscious.

I winced. My headache was getting worse. “Idiot.” I gave the girl a look. She seemed fine, if a little shaken. “You alright?”

“Ah-, yes!” She bowed. “Thank you for saving me!”

I smiled. “Yeah, yeah.” I gave her a wave as I turned. “Stay safe.”

I left quickly. And I let out a tired sigh as I nursed my forehead. Doing all the calculations needed for Quantum Link was always exhausting. But I suppose it was worth the cost. Who knows what could’ve happened to that girl if I didn’t intervene?

…god, this headache’s terrible, though. I guess I’ll just sleep when I get back.

Let’s hope tomorrow is better.

Chapter Text

My first week in Sakugawa Middle School came and went with little fanfare. A good thing, really. I was just another new addition to the steadily increasing roster of Espers to Academy City. 

And I’m…disappointed? This was Academy City. A city 30 years ahead of the world in science. I expected more when I stepped into the classroom.

I mean, I guess the topics being covered were far beyond the rest of the world. But I was honestly expecting that we’d be tackling graduate-level math during our class. We didn’t, obviously. That would be too much information for most.

The class about Espers was interesting, though. It gave me more context about the aimless concepts I’ve learnt from my dreams.

It was late afternoon. I sat on a bench, a half-empty cup of milkshake by my left. It’s a good day today, if a little boring. The dream I had was a pleasant one—and taught me how to sing in Hindi! I haven’t had a headache either, though I still took a painkiller this morning. Just in case.

It’s a good day.

It was a good day.

A sigh left my lips at the sudden commotion nearby. A mix of explosions and gunfire—likely another confrontation between Skill-Out and Anti-Skill. They’d been getting more common as of late. Or at least that was what I’d heard from my classmates.

I sat. Drank the cup empty. 

I sat.

…ah, whatever.

I threw the cup into the trash bin some distance away. It perfectly dropped in. I groaned as I stood up. I could already feel the beginning of a headache, and I haven’t even used Quantum Link yet.

I walked over to the conflict. It was chaos. Tens of thugs were flinging all sorts of powers at a few squads of armored adults. Which was odd, wasn’t it? I’m pretty sure those thugs were Skill-Outs, and yet there they were, using Esper powers that definitely looked higher than Level 0.

Mm. Thoughts for later.

There were a number of bikes strewn around the street. Bikes the thugs likely drove before they came across Skill-Out. One of them had driven into a bush. I snuck up to it and placed my hand on it. Then dragged a finger across the body. Then the exhaust. Then the wheels.

A mental map of the surroundings was painted in my head. A link cable formed between the bike and I, tangling together with the dozens of other cables coiled in my pocket.

I reach into my pocket. A marble is pulled out, cradled between my fingers. I give it a good roll, and with a hiss I throw the marble high into the air. It went unnoticed between all the chaos.

I took a breath. A lever in my mind clicked. And suddenly I was high in the air, winds rushing through my hair as I reached for another marble in my pocket. My arm reared back, and I threw the marble down.

One moment, the marble rushed down, inches from the street.

Another moment, the bike I linked with took the marble’s place, taking its momentum.

The next moment, I swapped places back with the marble I first threw, appearing back next to where the bike had been.

And then the streets went orange as the bike exploded. The thugs screamed in pain, burnt from the heat and bleeding from the shrapnel. The few thugs that’d escaped the blast stared at the sudden explosion, and then raised their arms in surrender when they realized they were outnumbered.

I left the scene before anyone could question me.

…

I gently nursed my forehead as I laid on my bed.

My head hurt. Using Quantum Link had always put an intense stress on my brain. A dull, throbbing ache not dissimilar to a ringing bell.

But it’s gotten better. A lot better. Gods, I still remembered when I first used Quantum Link. The sheer agony I felt almost convinced me to shatter my skull open to end the pain. I didn’t, thankfully. I fell unconscious before I could.

Sensei was still doing all she could to develop some sort of medicine to completely heal my headaches. Just in case the headaches would suddenly regain their severity.

How kind of her. I should really treat her one of these days. Maybe even bake her a meat pie? Mom and dad always loved them, so I’m sure Sensei would like them too. Hopefully. If she wasn’t a heathen.

I smile at the idea as I drift asleep.

…

When I next wake, it’s to the realization that it was night, and that I was suddenly an expert at texas barbeque.

I yawned. I felt surprisingly good, despite everything. Hungry, though.

It took me a moment to remember I haven’t eaten dinner. “Bugger.” I frowned, glancing at the window. It was dark outside. We might not have a strict curfew, but going out at night was generally a bad idea. Too many unsavory characters would come out. That was what Sensei told me, and I have no reason to doubt it.

I made my way to my fridge to see what I had.

Not much, unfortunately. I’ve yet to go buy my weekly groceries. As if this night could get any worse.

My stomach growled. I groaned.

No other option, then.

I left the apartment with some money in my pocket. Just enough for a quick meal in a nearby burger joint. 

The nights in Academy City are cold . Bitingly chilled despite the coming onset of summer in just a few months. The massive wind turbines constantly spinning didn’t help either. It was no wonder why my apartment room had no less than three different heaters prepared in advance. 

The streets were quiet, much unlike how they would be in daytime. The air of the city is different at night. Less welcoming. More sinister.

I made it to the burger joint, and soon enough I was sitting down with a burger and some fries. It was pretty good, though nothing worth writing about. The joint was quiet too—there were only three customers with me included. The man manning the cashier looked terribly bored as he watched the television.

I bit down a few fries as I watched the empty streets outside.

Skill-Out. I still didn’t know what to think of them. They were Level 0s that’d been cast to the outskirts of Academy City. Common thugs hopelessly jealous of other Espers. That was what she could find on the Data Base.

But the Skill-Outs she’d seen earlier were definitely not Level 0s. They were slinging fires and bits of metal and whatever at those Anti-Skill Personnel. And thinking back, the other Skill-Outs she’d seen on the news were certainly over Level 0s as well.

I took a bite from my burger and frowned.

If those thugs came after me directly, could I win? I could escape using Quantum Link—that was without question. And my dreams have taught me more than enough about fighting without it. But if over a dozen Level 3s ambushed me at the same time, could I come out unscathed?

No. I definitely wouldn’t. 

…I guess I should start exercising again, huh? I’ve gotten lazy ever since school started—homework and all. There was no better time to start than now.

 I threw the empty wrappers down the trash bin, and a bell jingled as I left the burger joint. I took a deep breath of the cold air. Braced myself for the incoming headache.

In a blink, I was gone.

The school bell rang, and I blinked awake.

I rubbed my eyes. I couldn’t believe I fell asleep during class. And now knew the basics of rock climbing. That was a nice trade, I guess.

I took a glance at the chalkboard. It was filled with the basics of algebraic matrices. Nothing too difficult then. Which was good. It didn’t seem like I missed too much after I dropped unconscious.

I yawned. Well, enough of that.

Time to go home!

Or at least I tried to.

As I’m walking to the school gates, I found myself stopped by a girl. She was another student of Sakugawa Middle—not a classmate of mine however. Though the flowery headband she wore seemed awfully familiar-

Ah.

“You’re that girl.” I said. “From the alley.”

“Ah-, yes!” The girl bowed. “Thank you for saving me! And-, um,” She cleared her throat. “I’m Kazari Uiharu, from Class 1-D!”

I nodded. “Himegawa Aiko. Class 1-B.” I frowned. “Do you need something?”

Uiharu smiled, and then pulled out a green armband from her pocket. “I’m a member of Judgment. Can I ask a few questions?”

I blinked. Remembered what happened yesterday. And groaned in defeat. I mean, I had no illusions that my actions from yesterday would’ve gone unnoticed, but to be called out already?

“About yesterday?” I asked. 

Uiharu seemed uncomfortable at the question. Her silence was more than enough.

I sighed. “Yeah, sure.” I smiled tiredly. “What do you want to know?”

Chapter Text

“So, what do you want to know?”

Uiharu flipped open a small notepad. “It’s-, um, I have a few questions about yesterday.”

We’ve since moved to a nearby family restaurant—getting interrogated in front of the school gates would be inconvenient for the both of us. That, and I was feeling somewhat thirsty. 

Joseph’s didn’t have the best food I’ve ever tasted, but it was at least better than the food served in the school cafeteria. And it was cheaper than the food court in Seventh Mist. I might have quite the monthly allowance now, but that’s no reason to splurge so early into the academic year.

I take a small sip of my milkshake. It’s a little too sweet for my liking. “I’m assuming the conflict between Skill-Out and Anti-Skill that happened a few streets down?”

Uiharu nodded, pen hovering over an empty page. “Yes. The conflict ended when a motorcycle suddenly crashed and exploded onto the street.” Uiharu stared at me. It was a surprisingly uncomfortable stare, despite how shy Uiharu seemed. “That was you, wasn’t it?”

I shrugged. “It was.” I admitted. 

I leaned back slightly, frowning as Uiharu began to write. I didn’t mind being discovered. It wasn’t like anyone could get much privacy in Academy City. Everything was noted down. Cameras tracked my every move. The only secrets that remained were those that were left unspoken.

That was what I’d seen in my dreams, at least. They haven’t failed me so far.

“What Level do you think those Skill-Outs were?”

I took another sip of my milkshake. “Level 2s, definitely.” I said, and then remembered some of the more destructive explosions that one aerokinetic caused. “And a few Level 3s, I guess.”

Uiharu stopped writing for a moment, staring down at nothing. “...I see.”

I raised an eyebrow. I had a feeling I knew what she was thinking of. I didn’t attempt to confirm my suspicion. For all intents and purposes, there wasn’t much I could provide. I was only a new student.

“Were you hurt?” Uiharu eventually asked.

I shook my head. “I’m fine.” I frowned. “I hope no one else got hurt.” And I then added with a wry smile, “Not considering those thugs, at least.”

Uiharu giggled. “No one was hurt too badly.”

I sighed in relief. That was good. Those Skill-Outs might be no better than thugs, but they were people still. No reason to turn into a murderer.

Uiharu had a few more questions after that. It was mostly inane things—what I did after, if anyone tried to come after me, if I saw anything else—those sorts of things. I answered them as best as I could, though my answers for what I did last night were vague at best. I was more focused on getting back to exercising my Esper powers.

The questioning ended eventually. We exchanged phone numbers, just in case I might have more information for her.

“Thank you for helping me!” Uiharu said, bowing deeply.

I shook my hand. “It’s fine. You’re the one helping to keep this city safe, after all.”

Uiharu smiled, and they shared a farewell as Uiharu went off. She was probably headed for a Judgement office or something. 

…Well,

All in all, that wasn’t too terrible an experience.

Later that evening, I was out having a late dinner at a nearby Benny’s when I caught sight of the recent news on the television.

It was another conflict involving the oddly high-Level thugs from Skill-Out. Just this time against a group of students working in Judgement. Unlike yesterday, this time the thugs were quickly losing. I wasn’t sure if the thugs were just weaker, or if most students working in Judgement were just that talented.

Hopefully it was the latter. It’d make me feel safer.

I finished the rest of my meal and left. I closed my eyes, diving into my mental map of district 7, and reached for a cable linked back to one of the marbles I’d left in my room. A mental lever flicked, and in a blink I suddenly appeared back in my room.

I winced at the sudden headache. The worst of it passed quickly enough, but an uncomfortable buzzing remained.

I leapt onto my bed, and I closed my eyes as I began to teleport all sorts of things around the district. The headache it gave was far from pleasant, but if I wanted to improve, then this was necessary.

Quantum Link was a type of Teleportation. But it was unique in its properties. Whereas other Teleportation-type powers were confined by distance and weight, I wasn’t. Or at least half of it wasn’t.

My teleportation needed me to mentally map the object and ‘form a link’ back to me. It was something related to Quantum Entanglement—where particles were linked in quantum states despite the distance between the two particles. The moment I’ve formed the link, I could teleport it as much as I wanted.

Or at least as much as I could handle before my headache knocked me out.

Quantum Link was confined by time and size. The bigger the object, the more time and effort I needed to form the link. Which was why I loved using marbles. They were small, cheap, smooth, and the spherical shape gave my brain an easier time.

Once the headache became almost unbearable, I forced my eyes open. My mental map of district 7 faded, and I took a minute to just lie on my bed.

I reached over to the bedside cabinet. I scoured through an assortment of bottled pills, and I drank down one of the stronger pills I’d been given. I sighed in relief as the headache began to fade.

I hadn’t made much progress since I began exercising my Esper powers. Then again, it’d only been a week since I started again.

I yawned. Mm. The uptake of serotonin from the meal was beginning to hit me.

I let my eyes drop close.

…

…

“A network?”

“Formed from thousands of clones, their brainwaves united.”

“That much information-”

“Their brains would be altered to visualize the quantum Phase. They do not need anything else.”

“That is-”

“We already have the perfect template, don’t we?”

“...I don’t condone this.”

“I don’t expect you to.”

…

…

I woke up.

I blinked. I-, don’t think I learnt anything new from that dream? Maybe a few ideas had been lodged into the back of my head. Something about clones? And something about visualizing a ‘quantum Phase’, if I wasn't wrong.

It was one of those stranger dreams, then. The ones that left me with more questions than anything else.

At least I didn’t have a headache. That was one upside.

I rolled over and flipped my phone open. It was almost midnight—a lot later than I was expecting. Unfortunate, considering I was starting to feel hungry, and I still hadn’t gone to buy groceries to stock my fridge. 

I pondered for a good second before I decided. It was dark out, and I didn’t feel like going to a restaurant. It was time to go to the Seventh Mist to buy some groceries. And sure, Sensei told me that it was dangerous to go exploring at night, but if I didn’t brave the outside now, then when would I?

And it wasn’t as if I was completely helpless, even if I couldn’t use Quantum Link. My dreams made sure of that.

With a mental flick, I swapped with a marble I dropped in an alley close to the mall. The sudden cold air sent a shiver up my arms. I quickly shook my hands to get rid of the chill. 

The walk to Seventh Mist was short and quiet. The mall was similarly quiet—most of the students that often frequented were already asleep. It was an odd experience, really. I’d never seen the mall this silent before.

Which was perfect. I could get my groceries without interruptions.

I didn’t buy anything overly auspicious. Rice, some packaged chicken and beef, a dozen eggs, some greens—the basics. I would’ve bought some of the rarer spices I needed for my beloved meat pies, but I’d have to get them at a specialty store.

I made sure I made as little trouble as I paid. The poor single cashier seemed like he was moments away from dropping unconscious.

Overall, the trip went well. And it would’ve taken only a moment for me to teleport back to my room.

If only.

Just as I was about to teleport, I heard someone scream. Or at least I assumed so. It was far away, and sounded more like a squeak more than anything. 

Still, this was Academy City. And from the horror stories Sensei had told me, the city’s jaws will open when night falls.

I should just go. Teleport back to my room, stuff my groceries into the fridge, and sleep until the next day comes. That was what I should do. That was what any logical student would do.

Logical.

Right.

A mental lever was flicked. The plastic bag I was carrying my groceries in disappeared, replaced by a small marble now cradled in my curled palm. Another flick, and suddenly the marble was gone, replaced by a black cap, with an unassuming medical mask tied over it.

A cap to cover my hair. A mask to cover some of my face.

I gave my cheeks a soft encouraging pat.

Let’s do this! It’s Aiko-chan’s first exploration into the deep, dangerous underbelly of the most futuristic city on the planet!

…I don’t feel any better.

I took a moment to calm down, and then I began walking.

Unsure of where to go, I decided to just scour every alleyway I came across. Most of them were empty, thankfully. Some of them were filled with junk. And some were crowded by a few robots that were cleaning said junk.

And then, just as I was contemplating giving up, I came across something. 

A small pool of red. The smell of iron. A collapsed man, wearing a lab coat, face pressed into the ground. A bullet hole punched through the left of his skull, leaking with fresh blood.

But before I could even move to grab my phone, I felt someone’s hand press into the back of my head, accompanied by something that eerily felt like the barrel of a gun of some kind.

“Eh~” A cheery drawl sounded behind me. “A witness~! Isn’t it too late for someone like you to be outside?”

…

Such misfortune.

Chapter Text

“Isn’t it too late for a student like you to be outside?”

I didn’t dare turn around. I didn’t dare to even breathe. I could feel my heart thumping against my ribcage. Could feel the quickly building panic layered beneath the numbness propagating through my body.

I could feel the small metallic barrel of some kind pressing into the back of my skull. A firearm without question, though one that was probably small enough to fit in their sleeves.

A single shot, and my head would be blown open.

“D-Did you do that?” I asked, cursing the small stutter I had.

A droll hum. “I did~. Just part of the job, you know?” The voice speaking to me was feminine. A female assassin, then? Or maybe just a man whose voice was like that of a teenage girl’s. Either worked—Academy City was a place full of surprises.

“A-Am I on the list too?”

Another hum. “Nope.” Followed by a chuckle as they pressed the barrel deeper into the back of my head. “But I don’t like leaving witnesses.”

The hand in my pocket lightly shivered. I tried to slowly breathe. Fill the silence with some noise aside from my own thumping heart. I grit my teeth. “A-A bargain, then?”

“Mm?”

I forced a grin onto my face. “I-I win, I’m free to leave. You win, I’m dead.” My fingers clenched. “How does that sound?”

A giggle. “Eh~? That sounds fun! Why don’t-”

Before they could finish, I threw a marble up. A mental lever flicked, and suddenly I was in the air, turned around to give me a good view of my enemy. It was a girl around my age, most of her features hidden by the dark. The only thing I could see was the glinting barrels beneath her sleeves, and the eerie yellows of her eyes.

The girl aimed her arm at me, and I teleported back down to the ground, letting a bullet soar just over my head. I swept a leg forward, my foot barely clipping her skirt as she jumped back.

She grinned widely. “You’re fun.” She shot a bullet. I barely managed to tilt my head to the left. “What’s your name?”

“If you win!” I threw a marble up. She aimed upwards in anticipation, and then blinked as I suddenly dove low, a jab aimed at her neck. She twisted back in a show of incredible flexibility, and I had only a moment to lean back as her heel swept up, missing my jaw by inches.

We leapt away from each other. My hand remained in my pocket, ready to pull out another marble. Her arm was aimed at me, the barrel in her sleeve glinting in the moonlight.

I took a slow breath. I could already feel the beginning of a headache creeping up on me. 

Two options left.

Teleport back home. Or defeat her in some way.

I took another breath. A mental map of 7th district was ready for me to use, and the former option was one I could do at any time.

But, for a reason I couldn’t quite explain, I wanted to defeat her. Needed to. She felt…familiar, in a way. Maybe she was someone I’d seen through my dreams? That happened sometimes.

No. Thoughts for later.

I ran forward. Swerved left as a bullet soared past my ear. She grinned as she fired more bullets from those rifles in her sleeves. I dodged them best I could, using my marbles to teleport around whenever I felt overwhelmed.

I leapt up. Readied a punch at her forehead. 

She hopped left. Aimed her rifle at my skull.

A blink later, I was behind her and sent a strike to her kidney. She somehow noticed, twisting and slamming a foot into my stomach before leaping back. She fired a couple bullets at me, and though in pain, I quickly teleported away before I could get hit.

I grit my teeth.

I just need one strike. Just one!

I moved around a few fired bullets as I continued trying to get a hit in. The girl was insanely agile, and every punch or kick I sent missed.

And then it happened.

A soft gunfire echoed, and pain shot through me as a bullet pierced through my left shoulder. I barely kept down a scream. It hurt. It hurt a lot. My vision blurred a little, the pain mired together with my building headache.

A gasp left me. Her grin grew.

I grit my teeth.

I pulled out as many marbles as I could and flung them all at her. She stared at them for a moment, eyes wide, and then she leveled her arms at me.

I braced for the incoming agony, and I blurred.

My form thinned as I began swapping with the marbles as quickly as I could. In a blink, I was up in the air, ready to kick. The next blink, I was crouched on the ground, fist raised towards the girl’s calf. Another blink, and I was behind the girl, ready to slam a fist into her back.

My head felt like it was burning. And all the movement wasn’t helping my bleeding shoulder. But I didn’t care. I kept teleporting.

And eventually, I did it. The girl wasn’t fast enough, and I managed to slam my fist into her kidney.

Except instead of hitting flesh, my fingers crashed into metal. The shock almost sent me reeling, and I only then realized that she was wearing body-armor beneath her clothes. She clearly saw my shock, and her grin grew malicious as she aimed her arm at my skull.

Then she froze when a grin broke out across my lips.

My grin grew, showing teeth. “Got you.”

My mental map of 7th district flared. A mental lever was flicked. And she gasped as we were suddenly teleported to the bottom of a deep river. She tried to swim up, but I held her legs down, a wide grin on my face as I held my breath.

Distance was no issue for Quantum Link, and I made use of that with abandon. I’ve left all sorts of linked objects around the 7th district. I could essentially teleport anywhere I wanted in the 7th district. I’d still have to deal with the incoming headache, but still.

I narrowed my eyes. I could see the barrels of her sleeve-hidden rifles filling with water. I kept holding my breath as long as I could, waiting until no more bubbles rose from the barrels.

The moment that happened, I grasped the cuff of her shirt. I teleported both of us to the river side, her back crashing into the gravel bed. And before she could recover, I began pummeling down on her.

Punch after punch. To her kidney, liver, neck, plexus. Followed the instructions of Krav Maga that’d been etched into my head by my dreams. My fists slammed into the metal of her bodysuit, but I did my best to ignore it. 

She tried to struggle, certainly. First tried aiming her rifles, only to find that they’d jammed. Then she tried to move away. But I pinned her down with both my knees.

Punch after punch. I could feel my hands beginning to bruise. I have no doubt that both my hands would be completely destroyed after this. I’d need to wrap them in bandages. Or go to a hospital. Both would require me to explain what happened tonight.

Her struggling began to slow. She might be wearing body armor, but I could tell that her insides were beginning to bruise too. 

It was the only motivation I needed to keep going. That if I kept going, I could do it. That I could face an assassin as dangerous as her and win .

So.

Punch.

After.

Punch.

And finally, she stopped struggling.

I stared at her. At the way her eyes followed mine, even if the rest of her body remained unmoving. Her yellow eyes were wide. In shock. In awe. It was a captivating expression, as if a drowning man had finally tasted air for the first time in days.

I coughed. “I…win.” I croaked out. I felt horrid. My hands were numb. My shoulder was in pain. And it felt like my head was about to split in two. 

She stared at me. “...you did.” She eventually said. Voice low and hoarse. Almost a whisper, like a prayer. “I lost.”

“So,” I coughed. Heaved. “I win.” I repeated. Tasted the word. It was almost as delicious as my meat pies. “What’s,” I coughed some more. I could taste some iron on my tongue. “Your name?”

She took a slow breath. “...Rakko.” She coughed. “Yumiya Rakko.”

Yumiya Rakko, was it?

…why, was that so familiar? Like a bare memory, hiding in the crevices of my brain. It-, she was-

“I-I want to be popular! A-An i-idol!”

“Ee~? An idol? That’s so cool!”

“C-Cool?”

“Yeah~! You’d be super cool up there! I just know it!”

“T-Thank you!”

“So~! What’s your name?”

“R-R-Rakko! Yumiya Rakko!”

“Eeeh~. I’ll call you-!”

“-Rachan?” 

Without me knowing, the name slipped past my lips. And I only had a moment to think before my headache turned agonizing. What was that ? A memory? Whose? I-, it’s definitely not mine. I’ve only been in Academy City for months at best. I’ve never met Rakko before. Definitely not as a child.

So why did it feel so real?

Rakko grew still. Eyes bearing into mine with an intensity that was both familiar and not. “You-” She moved slightly. Rose up to get a closer look at me. “You-, why-” She narrowed her eyes. “Why’re you calling me that?”

I pulled away, pressing a hand to my head. “I-, don’t-” I winced. I could barely think. “Have we-, met?”

The moment I said that, more information flushed into my head. Most of them were incoherent. A jumble of terms and ideas that I could barely comprehend through my worsening headache.

I winced. There was a name at the tip of my tongue. 

“Project-, Dolly?”

It was like the floodgates suddenly burst open.

Names. Concepts. Experiments. First-Prototype Clone. Level 5s? Consideration. Mental powers. Two possibilities. One chosen. Other left out. Level 5. Level 3. Control. Control. Control.

A pair of arms snaked around my shoulder, and I suddenly realized that Rakko had stood up. She held me close, eyes staring into mine. “You were there.” She accused. “We knew each other.” She added. My head flared in pain. Did we actually meet? Did we actually?

Her grip grew tight. “Why can’t I remember?” She hissed. “What did they do to us-?”

“Rachan.” The name slipped past my lips again. “My shoulder hurts.” 

She quickly let go, and then moved to hold me before I could collapse. “S-Sorry.” I tried to nod. I couldn’t quite manage—I instead whined as my headache grew even worse. “What’s wrong!?”

“Head, hurts.” I forced out. “Moved too, much.” I squeezed my eyes shut. “Need, medicine.”

She nodded frantically. “Where do you live?”

“I can, teleport-”

“Don’t.” She hissed. I flinched slightly, and she looked guilty as I did. “Sorry.” She sighed. “Just-, tell me?”

I stared at her for a moment. I didn’t know what was happening. Whether I actually did know her or not. But we just fought each other moments ago. Nearly killed each other. And now I was supposed to trust her?

But I did. I whispered my address in low, tired chaps.

The last thing I felt was the rushing winds before I fell unconscious.

Chapter Text

The first thing I felt was a terrible headache. The searing kind—the one that felt as if a thousand needles had been stabbed into my skull. I recognized it. It was the kind of headache I despised the most. I winced, trying to organize whatever new knowledge that’d been beamed into my brain.

Power Curriculum Program. Espers. AIM Fields. Generation. Disruption? Sound waves. Interruption of regular brain function. 

Capacity Down?

I whined. I was sure there was more bits of information floating around in my brain, but that was the best I could put together. Something about a device that blasts sound waves to weaken Espers—an audio-based weapon called Capacity Down. I understood the concept behind its function, and knew how to construct it myself.

It made me uncomfortable.

I shook my head. Enough of that.

I tried standing up, and winced at the sudden pain in my shoulder. There was a clean bandage wrapped around it. So were my hands, actually. I stared for a good moment, confused as to why I was even injured.

The realization came a second later, and another headache slammed into me.

I held my forehead and sighed. Right. That-, I fought Rakko. She shot me in the shoulder. I retaliated by pummeling her down, even if it meant bruising my hands.

Most of that night was lost in the agonizing headache I had to suffer, but it didn’t make the taste of victory any less sweeter.

And my reward shall be…!

A pill for my headache.

Ugh.

I reached over to my bedside cabinet. Grabbed one of my more potent headkillers, and swallowed it down. I sighed in relief as the headache began to dull away. Would’ve liked to use my most potent medication to just make the headache fade entirely, but my supply wasn’t infinite.

That, and it needed to be injected. I wasn’t a big fan of syringes.

Then a question struck me.

How did I get home? I was certain I fell unconscious before I could teleport back home, and the bandages around my shoulder and hands were not something I could apply in my sleep. Someone else had done them. Someone else had brought me back home. But who-?

The realization struck just as quickly.

I bolted up, uncaring of the flaring pain in my shoulder. It was Rakko. I’d asked Rakko to bring me home. I’d told Rakko my own address .

I took a deep breath. Calm, I told myself. Calm down. We might have fought—nearly killed each other even, but Rakko wasn’t an enemy. Or at least I was sure she wasn’t. We reached an accord of some kind at the end. 

I hissed out a slow breath. Calm.

Looking around, I found my phone and flipped it open. And winced. May 9th, it read. Which meant I’d been asleep for about 3 days. Gods. No wonder my throat felt horrid—I hadn’t drank any water in days.

I took a bottle of water from the fridge and drank it. And as I drank, I noticed a small pile of papers on my dinner table. I went over to see what it was, and blinked when I realized that it was homework. Likely those I’d missed because I was bedridden for the past few days.

And there was a sticky note as well. Hmm.

I reached down and plucked it.

Hey, Aiko-chan. Hope you’ll wake up soon. Sorry for shooting you last night. I hope we can still be friends? Call me whenever you’re ready!

From, Racchan~

On the bottom of the note was a phone number. I stared at it for a good moment. Should I call her back? I didn’t quite know what her job was, but I’d assumed she was an assassin of some kind. Would I be interrupting her work or something?

I glanced at the window. Sunlight was peering through the window blinds. It seemed like it was still day.

…Ah, sure. Might as well get this over with.

I flipped open my phone. Jabbed down the phone number. Nibbled at my nails as the phone continued to buzz away. I could feel the phantoms of that night raking across my back. Both the pain from the impromptu battle and the agony of that odd burst of dreams. Or were they memories?

I didn’t know. I couldn’t remember ever being in such a project. I didn’t remember meeting Rakko while I was young.

But this was Academy City. The human body and mind was not sacred. Hell, one of the Level 5s has the power to control the mind to an uncomfortably incredible degree.

Could I really believe my own mind? At what point could I divide my prophetic dreams from genuine memories I’ve somehow lost? No-, more than that, who did all these dreams belong to? Were they mine? Or someone else’s? Or even something else entirely?

And for a moment, there was this grasping in my chest. A feeling of terror unlike anything I’d ever felt before. Beyond even the cruel and horrific things my dreams had shown me until this-

“Hello~? Who’s this?”

I shuddered. Swallowed down my doubts for a moment. “It’s Aiko.” I said slowly. “From a few nights back.”

“Aiko-chan! You’re awake~!” I could almost picture the wide smile on Rakko’s face as she spoke. “Ah-, um, s-sorry about hurting you! W-We’re still friends, right!?”

I huffed. “It’s fine, Rachan. We didn’t know each other back then.” She smiled. “And we’re still friends. Don’t worry.”

“Yay~!” Rakko cheered. “Hey, hey. Do you wanna go and meet up somewhere?”

I took a glance at my bandaged shoulder. “My shoulder still hurts, so probably not.” I hummed. “How about you take a visit to my place? It’s not like I have anything to do for the rest of the day.”

“Eeh~!? Visit Aiko-chan’s place? I wanna~” I could hear some shuffling through the call. It sounded like Rakko had suddenly taken into a sprint. “I’ll be there soon!”

“I’ll be waiting.” I said as the call clicked off. And I sighed tiredly as I flopped back onto my bed.

…

I suppose it didn’t matter, for now. 

Where my prophetic dreams came from, how I somehow knew about Rakko and Project Dolly—they weren’t questions I could answer at the moment. Worrying myself about them would only lead me in circles. At least until I had some concrete lead I could follow.

All I knew was that I’d started having these dreams from very young. That was something I could at least believe in.

…anyway, I’m tired, and bored. I wonder if there was anything new online?

“So good~!”

I smiled as Rakko took another bite of her burger. It was a last-minute decision. I’d been scrolling through the net when I realized that I hadn’t eaten. I didn’t have much in my fridge, but I could whisk up a thing or two. I decided on a burger—since that was the easiest thing I could make. I was still injured and all.

I then made another one for Rakko, just in case she hadn’t eaten.

She had already. But she ate the burger still, and I was glad to see her enjoy it so much. It was mom’s home recipe, after all.

My smile turned wry as I began eating my own burger. I could tell she had questions for me. Her eyes glanced at me whenever she thought I wasn’t looking. She looked…shy, as insane as that sounded. There was none of that manic confidence I saw that night. I could almost convince myself that she was just a normal girl.

Then again, I had questions as well. Like why she was still wearing her armor, even though it was broad daylight. Or whether those rifles hidden in her sleeves were working again after the river bath I gave it.

But those were questions reserved for a different time. Right now, they were just ‘friends catching up’. No more, no less.

“So, what school do you go to?” I asked.

Rakko paused for a moment. “Shidarezakura.”

I blinked. That was a private academy, if I remembered right. A girls-only school in School Garden. A place for all the ‘ojou-samas’ as the net liked to call it, and where Tokiwadai Academy was.

Damn. What a stacked place.

“That’s cool.” I took a bite of my burger. “That’s where all the rich girls go, isn’t it? The cafeteria probably serves some actual good food.” I sighed, once again reminded of how painfully average the food in my school’s cafeteria was. 

She frowned, eyes turning dark. “Is Sakugawa that bad?”

A chill crept up my spine for some reason. “No, no, it’s fine. I’m just nitpicking.” I leaned back with a sigh. “Not to sound pretentious, but Sakugawa’s just a bit…basic, I guess.” I frowned. “Not like I had a choice. It was just the one I got admitted into.”

Rakko’s smile quickly returned. “Then maybe you can come to Shidarezakura next year!”

I shrugged, smiling. “Maybe. If I do good enough in school.”

“Mm!”

After we both finished our food, Rakko helped me wash the dirty plates. It was odd. To have someone help me clean my plates after doing it myself for so long. I’d lived with Sensei for a bit, but Sensei was a complete slob, more focused on her research than actually living.

I was grateful nonetheless. My shoulder was still injured, and I’d rather not aggravate it any further. 

Before long, evening fell, Rakko’s ‘curfew’ was approaching, and the cheery girl bid me farewell with a hug. 

And off she went. Likely not actually returning to her dorm, but I didn’t dare ask her what her job was. At least not so early into our ‘reunion’.

I sighed, simultaneously at ease and not. 

In the end, I knew little about Academy City’s underbelly. It was a black box I just couldn’t look into—an infinite expanse of both progress, and the cruelties people took to achieve said progress.

And I couldn’t help but feel like this was the beginning of my slip into that darkness.

I took a breath, and two words involuntarily slipped past my lips.

“Such misfortune.”

Chapter Text

Seven bullets. Seven shots. One hole, punctured through the skull of the target.

I took a small breath, my shoulders lowering as I watched the smoke rise from the barrel of my handgun.

And then everyone around me began to clap, and I only realized that there were other people around me. I winced, my cheeks glowing red. 

“Eeh~, you’re amazing, Aiko-chan!” Rakko said, and I could only laugh as she grabbed me and swung me around. It almost reminded me of how my dad liked to swing me around when I was younger.

I didn’t mind it, though. The distraction was appreciated.

I didn’t like using guns. Or rifles. Or any kind of firearm, really. They made me feel queasy, knowing that I could effectively end someone’s life with a single shot to the head—something I could do without much effort.

I suppose it was a discomfort born from the way I gained this level of skill. It was one of the harsher dreams I had when I first entered Academy City. Barely a week after I began my Power Curriculum Program, I had a dream. Or-, well, I suppose a nightmare would be more fitting.

A series of dreams. Each teaching me to use all manner of guns. All done through the killing of thousands of people.

Even now, I could still feel the blood splashing onto my cheeks. The faded smell of spent gunpowder. The screams of pain. The wide-eyed corpses, piled over one another-

I took a deep breath. 

Not right now.

“Rachan.”

“Hmm?” Rakko drawled, a proud smile lifting her lips. “What’s up, Aiko-chan?”

I narrowed my eyes. “Let me down.” I hissed, my cheeks red. “We’re in public.”

“Nope!”

I groaned, slumping in defeat. This wasn’t a rarity. Rakko was a shy girl, but she was always cheery whenever we were together. It was like a switch in her head was flipped the moment I came into the picture.

Someone coughed, and both of us froze as the owner of the shooting range approached. He was a grizzled old man, though his large stature could’ve easily fooled me into thinking he was much younger. “You girls done?” He asked, voice gruff. Rakko giggled as she freed me, and I sighed in relief.

“Sorry for all the noise, sir.”

He waved his hand. “I don’t mind. That display of yours was impressive.” He jabbed his thumb at a nearby rack, filled with all sorts of firearms. “Wanna give the others a try?”

A chill crept up my back. Another firearm. More burnt gunpowder. 

It was foolish. After all, what made firearms special? I could as easily crush someone underneath a car. Could teleport them into the ocean to drown. If I chose to, I could as easily kill thousands of people using my Esper powers.

It didn’t make the thought of handling another firearm any more comfortable.

For a moment, I contemplated not accepting the offer. I’d only come here because Rakko insisted we did. I didn’t want anything to do with them.

I glanced at Rakko. She was staring at me. Her eyes were practically begging me to give the other firearms a try. 

…Ah, fine.

“Sure.” I said, hoping I sounded confident enough. 

…

When the sun began to set, we stopped by a nearby Joseph’s for a quick dinner. A nice meal to end our little hangout.  I agreed easily enough, and was silently grateful I could finally escape from that shooting range. Because if my hands had to hold one more firearm, I-, I-!

I don’t know, really. I’m doing my best not to think about it.

On the other side of the table, Rakko was beaming as she ate her dinner. She’d been cheery ever since we first met up, and that cheer had only grown as the day went on. It was infectious really. I couldn’t help but smile slightly as I watched her—I was glad at least one of us had fun today.

I took a sip of my milkshake. 

Well, I was exaggerating slightly. As uncomfortable as I was in that shooting range, I enjoyed it. Competing against Rakko as we tried to see who could shoot down more targets, testing out some of the newer firearms only Academy City had—it was fun.

It was fun. 

Fun.

How odd. I couldn’t remember—how long had it been since I had some genuine fun? When my life wasn’t about tests or improving my Esper powers or medications? I used to play baseball with my dad, and mom liked dragging me to sing some karaoke when I was younger. When was the last time I did any of that?

…Hmm. I guess I’d just been preoccupied. 

“Rachan.”

Rakko stopped eating for a moment. “Hmm? What’s up, Aiko-chan?”

I took a sip of my milkshake. “Wanna go to karaoke tomorrow?”

Rakko looked down for a moment. “Sorry. I’m busy tomorrow.” She smiled. It didn’t meet her eyes. “My boss gave me some work to do.”

For another moment, I felt the temptation to ask what exactly Rakko’s job was. I held myself back from asking, knowing that the answer wouldn’t be a pleasant one. “Ah, that’s fine. How about the day after?” I offered, idly spinning my straw. “That work?”

Rakko’s smile became genuine after that. “Sure!”

I smiled back. 

Late at night, I woke up knowing how to polish a knife, and the sudden urge to eat a burger.

An easy fix. I was a teleporter, and in a blink I was suddenly outside the nearest Macronall’s to my apartment. The blinking signs greeted me, adorned by those familiar squashed golden arches.

I stared at the sign for a good moment, unsure why I felt so strangely amused. I shook my head and went in.

To find the whole place littered by downed thugs, their bodies covered in deep bruises and their weapons scattered about. The workers were shivering, curling slightly as if to hide behind the counter. 

The only one standing was a man with wavy red hair. He hummed as he read the menu, as if he didn’t just down over two dozen men in a local burger joint.

It was almost comical, and I couldn’t help but smile wryly.

Academy City, everyone. 

“So,” I began casually, stepping around the downed thugs. “Are you about to order, or…?”

The man blinked at me. “Ah, you can order first.” 

“Cool.” I walked up to the terrified workers. They looked like they were seconds away from passing out. “I’ll take a Number 2.” I said, and then added, “And a chocolate milkshake.”

“W-W-Will that be all…?”

I did my best to hold back a laugh. Laughing at their fear would be in really poor taste. “Yes.” I pulled out my student card. “I’ll have it to-go.”

I made my payment and sat down by one of the tables. The man finally went up and made his order. The workers were as white as a sheet as he spoke, and I had to grit my teeth to stop myself from laughing.

After, as the man looked around to find a place to sit, I gestured at the seat opposite of mine. He smiled and sat down. “Thanks.”

I shrugged. “It’s fine. So,” I smiled wryly. “How’d that happen?”

The man huffed. “Was just about to order when they jumped me.” He grinned. “Thought they could take me just because they haven’t seen me in a while. Dumbasses.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Is that so?” I suppose he was a retired Skill-Out member? Though I doubt so many thugs would jump a random member just because he left. A retired leader of a gang, maybe? 

Well, whatever. He seemed to be fine.

A bell rang, and the number of my order flashed on the monitor hung over the cashier. “My order’s here.” I stretched as I stood. “Need any help moving all those thugs?”

He shook his head. “Nah, no need. I can throw them out myself.”

I shrugged. “Alright.” I went over to the counter and took my bagged order, and I waved at the man as I left. “Have a good night.”

The man smiled. “Good night!”

The glass doors slid close behind me, and I chuckled. “What a funny guy.” I whispered. 

A blink later, I was gone.

Chapter Text

“We really need to stop meeting like this, Uiharu-san.”

The girl with the flowery headband giggled weakly. “It’s not like I’m trying, Himegawa-san.” She winced as she cupped her shoulder. “I was just walking when those m-men attacked me.”

I stared at the green band around her arm. “That Judgement band you’re wearing probably has something to do with it.” I raised an eyebrow. “Can’t you, like, hide it or something? You’re just trying to get targeted by wearing that everywhere.”

“I-It’s the rule!” Uiharu huffed, pouting. “All Judgement members must show their affiliation at all times!”

I said nothing in return, both baffled and amused.

My worry was genuine, however. I’d met the girl being accosted by some thug in alleyways over a dozen times now. And I’d always drop in to save her, teleporting in and smashing the damned thugs’ heads into the ground. The fact that she’d never sustained any major injuries was a miracle.

Though one time I found her too late, and I had the pleasure of seeing Uiharu smash her foot into a thug’s crotch. Hearing him whimper in pain as Uiharu stood over him nearly made me laugh.

I walked over and gave the half-conscious thug a kick to the head. “Should just teleport you bastards into a ditch.” I hissed half-jokingly. I cleared my throat as I turned to her. “You alright? Your shoulder isn’t too hurt, is it?”

Uiharu smiled. “I’m okay! I can get it wrapped when I get back.”

“I’ll walk you there.”

“T-There’s no need-”

“Uiharu-san.” I began. She froze as my stare bored into her. “How many times have you been attacked, again? I know you’re competent, but you’re hurt.” I smiled. “Let me walk you back. It’s the least I can do.”

Uiharu sighed. “I-I guess I won’t mind.”

Giving her a smile, we stepped out of the alley and began walking towards the Judgement branch office that Uiharu worked in—the 177th branch, if I remembered right. 

We talked a little as we walked, mostly about schoolwork and the upcoming summer break. 

And during it all, I wondered.

Uiharu seemed fine, but she was always busy. She’d always be working on something. Every time I saw her during recess, her eyes would be tied to that laptop she always carried. And though she said otherwise, I knew the many meetings she had with those thugs were ones she herself initiated.

I knew she was a part of Judgement, but was their work always this hectic? 

I had a feeling it wasn’t, but the recent increase in strangely high-leveled Skill-Out thugs likely had something to do with it.

“We’re here.” I said, staring at the seemingly ordinary building we’ve stopped at. No one would’ve known that this was a Judgement office if not for the little Judgement recruitment sign placed next to a set of stairs.

“Ah-, yes!” She bowed. “Thank you, Himegawa-san!”

I waved my hand. “It’s fine.” I smiled. “Stay safe, yeah?”

Uiharu nodded, and with a wave she climbed up the stairs to her office. I watched her go for a moment, before a sigh left me. 

There was a strange sense of foreboding in me. It felt like my chest was being pressed down by something—as if I was slowly approaching some deadline I didn’t know of. It was an uncomfortable feeling.

“It’s probably nothing.” I whispered, even if I didn’t quite believe it.

I took a deep breath, and with a deeply uncomfortable feeling in my chest, I teleported away.

…

It was a few hours before midnight when I found myself bent over my sink, palm pressed desperately over my lips as I did all I could to stop myself from vomiting.

I’d fallen asleep when I came back from school, and I woke up to an avalanche of disgust and terror unlike anything I’d ever felt before. It was a visceral sort of feeling, and I had barely a moment before I rushed to my sink.

Overdosage. Abnormal synapses in the cerebral cortex. Harvesting bodily secretion. Refining. Body Crystal. Patients. Alive. Dead. Children. Necromancer. Corpses. Ashes. Corpses. Ashes.

This was not the first time she’d felt this horrid. It was not the first time my dreams showed the underbelly of Academy City. It would be the last.

And as I loomed over my sink, skin pale and cheeks wet with sweat, I couldn’t help but hate. Hate just how demented this seemingly bright city could be. Hate what people would do in pursuit of knowledge. Hate that I was the one receiving these damned dreams.

After minutes of hearing my own heartbeat, I slowly pulled my hand away. I felt terrible still, and I’d no doubt feel terrible for the next couple days. But at least the urge to curl in on myself and vomit had receded somewhat.

I sighed. 

I reached for my bedside desk and took a pill. I swallowed it down, taking a deep breath as I felt my headache slowly recede. 

The air in my room was stifling, and what I saw from that dream still hung in the back of my mind. Of those rooms bathed in darkness, illuminated only by the eerie translucent greens of the tubes those scientists placed those children into. 

I needed to get out.

With a mental flick, my mental map of 7th district flared. Suddenly, I was outside. The night winds blew past me as I stood atop the roof of one of the tallest buildings in the district. The streets were miniscule from where I stood, and the night lights and blinking cars looked more like tiny specks of light.

I took a deep breath.

I liked it up here. A place where I couldn’t be bothered; a place only for me. I knew it wasn’t, of course. Anyone who could teleport or fly could get up here if they tried, but there were only a few Espers who could do that. For all intents and purposes, this little vantage point was mine.

I sat down, letting my legs dangle off the edge. I’d been apprehensive when I first did this, but my fear of heights quickly went away the more I used Quantum Link. After all, what was height to a teleporter?

And I just stayed there for a good hour. Sitting and pondering over the mundane. Summer break was soon to arrive, and I still had no idea what to do. I could visit my family, but doing all the paperwork to attempt to leave was a hassle I didn’t want to do. I could maybe join a club or something, but I hadn’t come across one I was taken with.

Maybe join Judgement?

Yeah, no. I liked to think of myself as a lawful citizen, but that was too far.

Maybe I could ask Rakko if she wanted to-, no. She said that she’d be busy over the summer break. Something about an ‘influx of requests from her boss’. That was a no-go.

…Well, I suppose I’d give it more thought once summer came.

“Uiharu-san.” I began slowly. “You really are just trying to get yourself in trouble, huh?”

The girl giggled weakly, eyes roaming over the half dozen thugs I’d just downed. “I-I’m not.” She said, wringing her hands together. “It’s-, um, I’m just really unlucky!”

I sighed harshly and she flinched. I knew she was lying by this point, and she knew that I knew. I glared at the Skill-Out thugs I downed a moment ago, and then turned my glare at her. She froze as I came close, and she did little to defend as I lightly chopped her head.

“Idiot.” I frowned. “If you’re trying to get extra info from these lowlives while going to your office, don’t do it alone. It might still be daytime, but with how confident these bastards are these days, the alleyways are more dangerous than ever.”

Uiharu squirmed slightly. “B-But everyone’s already so busy, and I don’t want to bother Shirai-san too much…”

An odd headache flared at the name she uttered, but it passed just as quickly. “Doesn’t excuse being careless.” I frowned. “You can always carry a weapon or something. Like a baton,” I winced in discomfort. “Or maybe even a gun. I don’t know, is there some standard equipment all Judgement members are allowed to use?”

“...maybe.” Was all she said, though she looked uncomfortable at the idea of using weapons of any kind.

I sighed. “Ah, fine.” Uiharu blinked as I smiled. “Look, if you really want to continue doing this, then I’ll at least walk with you to your office after school ends.”

“E-Eh!?” Uiharu’s eyes went wide. “Is that okay?”

I shrugged. “Not like I have much to do these days.” I glanced at the unconscious thugs. “And I don’t mind the exercise.”

Uiharu stared, and then smiled. “I’ll look forward to it!”

I smiled back.

…

…

“Ah, by the way,” I pointed at all the unconscious thugs. “What should we do about these guys?”

Uiharu shrugged. “Don’t worry.” She pulled out her phone and gave it a wave. “I’ve already called Anti-Skill. They should be here soon.”

“Cool.” I turned around. “Anyway, let’s go.”

“Let’s!”

Chapter Text

I wasn’t one to judge, but-

“Hey! Polka dots today, huh?”

“RUIKO!”

I couldn’t help but smile wryly as Uiharu pounded her small fists into her skirt-flipping friend. This wasn’t the first time I’d seen this scene, and I was certain this wouldn’t be the last. 

Saten Ruiko. Dear friend of Uiharu Kazari, and a serial skirt-flipper. I had the fortune of meeting her once I started walking Uiharu to her Judgement office to stop her from getting injured. An introduction that, of course, began with the taller girl flipping Uiharu’s skirt to see her underwear.

“Is flipping skirts that much fun?” I asked.

Saten turned to me, grinning. “Wanna try?”

I chuckled weakly. And took a few steps back. “No thanks.” I turned to the still red-faced Uiharu. “Ready to go?”

Uiharu blinked. “Eh?” She cleared her throat, her cheeks still red. “Y-Yes. Let’s go.”

I nodded, and then glanced at Saten. “Wanna come? Or are you still busy with homework?”

Saten slumped. “There’s just too many…” She whined. She stopped for a moment, and then turned a glare back at me. “Wait, how about you?”

“I’ve already finished them.” I said. And raised an eyebrow at Saten’s open jaw. “What? I mean, it was a lot, but they gave it almost a week ago.” I shrugged. “And they’re not that hard.” I turned to the shorter girl. “How about you? Are you done?”

Uiharu nodded. “Of course! They weren’t too bad.”

Saten shriveled up. “Monsters. Both of you.” She sighed. “I’m afraid I’m not a genius like you two.”

I smiled wryly. “I think you’re just lazy.”

Saten pressed a hand into her chest in faux pain. “How mean!”

I huffed as I flipped open my phone. “We should probably go.”

Uiharu nodded, and Saten gave us a bright smile as she winked. “Alright. Stay safe, you two!”

We bid Saten farewell as we walked past the school gates.

…

The warehouse rang with a loud crunch as the Skill-Out thug crashed into a stack of crates. Silence fell for a moment, and then the rest of the crates fell onto the thug. He didn’t get back up.

“So,” I turned to meet the other thugs, my lips quirked to a chilling smile. “Who’s next?”

They screamed as they rushed towards me. I huffed in return, and I moved as the air was set alight with fires and winds.

It was late afternoon, and I was at the southern edge of the 7th district. I was inside a run-down warehouse, where a small group of Skill-Out thugs had made their home. I came here due to Uiharu’s request, and I attempted to ask them about their recent and sudden increase in Level. They reacted rather violently to my questioning.

This was not the first time my negotiations with thugs had fallen through, and since Judgement was still swamped with work, I doubt it’d be the last.

…though I’d be lying if I took up Uiharu’s offer to ask around just to help her out. 

Skill-Out might be a gang filled with thugs, but they provided a good environment for me to let loose. A place where I could make use of some of my more esoteric skills, so to say. If it resulted in a few dozen people being sent crashing into the ground?

Well, who's asking, really?

I bent below a wave of wind, and I smiled at the thug’s surprise as I slammed my fist into his chin. He staggered back in pain, and I followed it with a kick to his neck. He crashed into the ground. I leapt to the left, seconds before another thug came rushing through, his body bursting with arcs of electricity.

This group I was assaulting had just below a dozen members, and all of them were unnaturally powerful for mere Level 0s. It was clear they’d used whatever it was that could increase an Esper’s powers. And as always, they became immediately hostile the moment I asked them about it.

Pity. Things could’ve proceeded peacefully if they did.

Of course, I could bring all these thugs down without effort using my Esper ability. But I was saving Quantum Link for emergencies only. Most of my confrontations with Skill-Out was to physically grow stronger, and to make more use of the decades-long manual of Krav Maga that’d been seared into my synapses.

I let a burst of fire sail past my ear, and a thug screamed in pain as I smashed my fist into his chest. And as he fell, I spun and slammed my elbow to the back of his neck. He fell face-first into the ground, unconscious.

I suddenly caught the smell of ozone, and I ducked in time to let an arm clad with electricity sail over my head. I watched the thug run past me, saw the way his electricity arced across his body, and moved.

I lunged at him, and the thug’s fist came my way. I slammed my foot to kill my movement, my ears filled with buzzing as his fist moved past my ear. I took a breath, and smashed my fist to his chest. Then my foot to his right thigh. Then my elbow to his head as he collapsed.

I winced as I gently shook my wrist. That really hurt, even if I’d hit the thug at places where his electricity was the weakest. His hair and his pockets were insulators, though not enough to stop his electricity from hurting.

I took a breath as I looked around. Half of the group was down, and the remaining thugs shivered as my gaze roamed over them. I sighed. “Anyone willing to back down?”

“N-Never!” One of them said, and I rewarded his voice with a punch straight to the face. He collapsed onto the floor like a pile of bricks.

Gently rolling my shoulder, I gave the rest of the thugs a wry smile. “Well, I guess that’s your answer.” I drawled. They tensed as I clenched my fist. “I hope you all have some insurance.” I narrowed my eyes. “You’ll need it.”

Without stopping, I rushed them all down. It didn’t matter what their boosted Esper powers were. Aero Hand, Pyrokinesis, Frictional Coefficient Control, Telekinesis—it didn’t matter. It was clear that they were unused to their strengthened Esper abilities, and I didn’t need to use Quantum Link even once.

I caught the last conscious Skill-Out thug before he could plant his face into the ground. He was only barely hanging on—having taken an elbow to the gut and a heel to the back of his skull. 

“So,” I leaned closer, eyes boring into his. “Finally ready to answer some questions?”

He bared his teeth at me. It didn’t look all that threatening, with how hurt he was. “Like I’d ever give the Level Upper to a bitch like you.”

I sighed, and then blinked. That name he just dropped-, it felt awfully familiar. But why? 

I smashed his face into the ground, and I winced as I held my forehead. There was a buzzing in my head, followed by a storm of information I could barely parse through. The most I could gather about it was that it had something to with…sound? Why sound? Wasn’t this ‘Level Upper’ a drug?

No-, this wasn’t working. The deeper I tried to dig, the worse my headache got. But still. The fact that I even got a name was a success. That’s more I could say compared to all my previous attempts.

…I think I’ll go home first. I need to take some medicine. I’ll just tell Uiharu tomorrow.

With a mental flick, the world blurred, and I disappeared into thin air.

“Level Upper.”

I nodded. “That’s the name of the thing that began all this fiasco.” I sighed. “Couldn’t get much more because of…reasons, but yeah.” I shrugged. “Not sure how helpful it’ll be, though.”

“No, no! That’s perfect, Himegawa-san!” Uiharu smiled. “Just having the name is enough. I can start searching and-, um-”

I smiled wryly. “You mean hacking.”

Uiharu quickly shook her head. “Of course not! That’s illegal!”

I raised an eyebrow. “Sure.” I said, definitely not convinced.

Uiharu pouted at my disbelief and turned away with a huff. I laughed slightly as we continued walking towards Uiharu’s Judgement office.

Once again, Saten wasn’t able to join us. Not because of her homework—though it seemed she still had quite the backlog—but because her homeroom teacher had asked her to stay behind after class. I didn’t quite know the reason, but Uiharu giggled when I asked.

Before long, the familiar Judgement office came to view. The recruitment sign was still placed next to the set of stairs. I frowned. “Are you still understaffed?”

Uiharu sighed. “Himegawa-san.” She turned a menacing gaze my way. Or at least she attempted to. It only made her look cute. “Judgement is always in need of more help.”

I thought of all the chaos I’d seen in just one month, of all the Skill-Out thugs I’d seen at the borders of the many school districts, and I laughed weakly. “I can see that.” I said. “This place is a mess.”

Uiharu giggled. “But it’s our mess.”

I shrugged in agreement.

We talked a little more after that, and then Uiharu bid me farewell as she went into her office. I watched her go, and again I felt that deeply unsettling feeling in my chest. Something between anticipation and terror.

I closed my eyes. Took a deep breath.

The Level Upper. The rising conflicts between Skill-Out and the rest of Academy City. It felt like things were accelerating towards some climax I couldn’t see.

I took a deep breath. Opened my eyes.

…I could only hope that Academy City wouldn’t just blow up in the next month or something.

Chapter Text

“It’s fine. A bit boring, actually.” I said, a phone sandwiched between my ear and my shoulder. “I’m considering transferring to another school next year. Maybe. I still don’t know.”

My mom laughed. “My little genius.” She said. I couldn’t help but smile at how proud she sounded. “Any friends? Maybe more?”

I rolled my eyes. “Just a few.” And I didn’t really feel the need to make more. Rakko, Uiharu, Saten—just thinking of budgeting my time between all three of them was making my head spin. At least Uiharu and Saten were my classmates. Made it easier for me to spend time with them, even if we were from different classes.

My mom went quiet for some time, before she asked, “How are you? Are you…okay?”

I sighed. “I’m still getting headaches.” I admitted slowly. “It’s better than before, and I have medicine if it gets worse.” I shrugged. “I’m fine though. A little tired maybe.” I said, as if I hadn’t just returned home from beating nearly two dozen men into the ground.

“That’s good!” Then, quieter, she added, “That’s really good.”

I stopped chopping. “It’s not your fault.” I stared down at the knife I’m holding. Sighed. “I-, Academy City’s not the worst place in the world.” I said, as if this city wasn’t built on the corpses of children. 

Neither of us spoke for some time, and I returned to chopping up a few vegetables for my dinner. Homemade curry, made with yesterday’s flavorings. I had some leftovers from the day before—I’d invited Uiharu and Saten for some dinner. It wasn’t like I had anything better to do.

“Maybe we’ll visit soon.” My mom eventually said, hopeful but uncertain. 

I shook my head. “After the summer? It’ll be a lot easier to enter Academy City once Daihaisei starts.”

“Good idea!”

I smiled, unsure why my chest felt so heavy at the prospect.

…

When night fell, I appeared atop a familiar roof. The city lived beneath me—a canvas of blinking lights and the whistling winds.

I sat down, legs dangling off the edge. 

I was tired in a way I hadn’t felt in years. A nearly-daily conflict with Skill-Out thugs, done over weeks. It had some purpose, at first. Once I’d gotten the name from them, it’d lost some of its charm. The only reason I returned to those suspicious alleyways was for practice, and even that had lost its charm.

And without those routine conflicts with those thugs, what else did I have?

Uiharu was in full-force in combing through the city’s Database to find more about Level Upper, Saten was busy with her schoolwork, and Rakko was busy with whatever it was she did. I’d finished most of my homework for the summer. I had no hospital visits I needed to do anytime soon.

I was, once again, without purpose. Left with nothing but to wait. 

I closed my eyes. After I started getting bored, I began using Quantum Link in my fights against Skill-Out. It made the first few bouts somewhat interesting, but using my Esper ability makes my battles insultingly easy. Those thugs, even bolstered by Level Upper, just weren’t strong enough.

…Well, and the more I used Quantum Link, the more frustrated I became.

Some days back, during a fight against Skill-Out, a thought came to my head. Quantum Link relied on my ‘link’ between objects I’ve linked with. But that ‘link’ was just a concept I made in my head—an exaggeration of the quantum entanglement between two particles.

Except all particles were linked via quantum entanglement. And wouldn’t that mean that I would be able to swap with every object?

The moment I thought that, something in me shifted. My Personal Reality changed, and a wall I hadn’t noticed suddenly became glaringly obvious. In my head, I knew I could swap with everything—ignore my need to first ‘link’ an object to me, but I’d hit that wall every time I tried. 

It was almost insulting. It was like my head knew what to do, but my body just wasn’t able to keep up.

…

…

I clicked my tongue. “I guess I’m not sleeping tonight.”

A mental lever was flicked, and I vanished into thin air.

“So,” I gave Saten a poke on the cheek. “How’d this happen?”

Uiharu huffed, turning away to try and hide the red on her cheeks. “It’s her fault for trying to flip my skirt up again.”

Saten grumbled, face pressed into the floor.

I snickered. “Yeah, that’s your own fault, Saten-san.” I said, and I backed away before Saten could grab onto my leg. I smiled wryly. “Maybe try flipping someone else’s skirt? Change up your targets or something.”

Saten groaned weakly.

I huffed. “By the way,” I frowned. “Is it fine for me to be here? I’m not a member of Judgement and all.”

Uiharu smiled. “It’s fine. There’s no rules against it.”

I hummed as I sat down on one of the couches. Saten still laid on the floor, fingers twitching in pain. I stifled another laugh as I glanced at the wide windows. “So, who actually works here?” I asked. “I mean, I’ve met your senpai already, and you mentioned this Shirai-san, but there has to be more, right?”

Uiharu turned and stared at me, gaze empty. 

“...seriously?”

Uiharu only laughed as she returned to her computer.

And suddenly I’m very glad that this city had yet to implode on itself. Between Skill-Out, terrorists, immoral scientists, and Espers with the power to rival nuclear bombs—it’s a genuine miracle that Anti-Skill and Judgement were able to keep this powdered keg of a city from igniting.

“And no one’s signing up?”

“Nope!” Uiharu sounded entirely too cheery for such a damning answer. “Everyone’s too busy with school.”

She’d made it into a joke, but it wasn’t much of a joke, was it? That the only thing holding this city back from complete anarchy was the work of a few severely overworked individuals. And all done without monetary incentives.

That unsettling feeling came back. 

“No one’s tried to settle everything?” I asked. “Bring down all the troublemakers for good?”

“Nope.” Uiharu swirled her chair to face me. “There’s just too many of them.” She smiled, tired and helpless but unrelenting. “We take it day by day.”

The rest of Uiharu’s words went unheard by my ears. I could feel or hear little else but my heart hammering against my chest. The unsettling, squirming feeling churned through my gut. As if the blood in my veins sorely wished to burrow past my muscles and skins and out to the open air.

A cradle of blood. A reversed world. The windowless building. The imaginary. A temple. The World. The Fool. The Oathbreaker. The Archetype. He who wields the power of God. A jail. A remote. A Grand Testament. White hair. Redredredredredredred-

“Himegawa-san?”

“Yes?”

Uiharu’s eyes were crinkled in worry. “Are you okay?”

I stared at her. At her wide doe eyes. At the flowers in her headband. “I’m fine.” I said softly. I could scarcely breathe. “I think I forgot to take my medicine this morning.”

“Do you need me to get it for you?”

I smiled. “No need.” I walked over and collapsed onto the couch. “I’m just-, I’m gonna rest for a bit. That okay?”

I didn’t hear her answer—I was too taken with trying to stamp down the horrendous headache I suddenly got. It’s one of the worst ones I’ve had, and I have a feeling I’ll be out of it for the rest of today. 

I took a deep breath. Most of that experience had given me little else aside from titles, though I at least recognized the windowless building in the center of Academy City. That, and something about a…district that does and doesn’t exist? What did that even mean?

…I’ll save the pondering for later. My headache was only getting worse.

With a tired sigh, I let my eyes close, and I felt myself drift off to a dreamless sleep.

…

When I woke up, it was to realize I suddenly knew basic calligraphy, and to find Saten looming over me. With the latter holding a marker in her hand and a cheeky grin on her face.

I stared at them in complete disappointment, and Saten weakly laughed as she pulled the marker away. “...It was a joke?”

I stared some more and discreetly reached for a marble from my pocket. And then in the span of a blink, a sticky note appeared in my hand and I slapped it on Saten’s face. The very clear ‘Dum’ written with bright red clearly showed what I thought about this person before me.

I ignored Saten’s exaggerated whining as I looked out the window. Orange had washed over the skies. And Uiharu was still by the computer, eyes plastered on the screen as her fingers burnt across the keyboard.

How terrifying.

“You’re still working?”

Uiharu spun around and blinked. “You’re awake? Are you okay?”

I huffed. “I’m fine. Though I think I should be asking you that.” I raised an eyebrow. “Please don’t tell me you’ve been working the entire time.”

“She was!” Saten suddenly ran up next to me, the sticky note still stuck to her face. “She was worried about waking you up and decided to stay here.” She grinned. “It was so cute!”

“I-I wasn’t-! S-Stop embarrassing me!” Uiharu growled as she began beating her fists into Saten’s chest. Or I assumed she growled. It sounded more like a whine more than anything.

I held back a laugh. “Alright, calm down.” I waved at the window. “It’s getting late. Wanna eat some dinner. It’ll be my treat.”

“Yes please!” Saten grinned, her grin ever bright.

“I-If you don’t mind.” Uiharu added, cheeks still red.

“Alright then.” I smiled. “Let’s go.”

Chapter Text

There weren’t many things Rakko wanted. She was satisfied with her life, in a way. She would never become popular—she was too shy for that. She would never become a Level 5 like those scientists promised—she was just a Level 0. She would die in Academy City—that was just how this city was.

But she was satisfied. She was a sniper, and Kakine paid her good for it. That was enough. She was sure it was.

Then came Himegawa Aiko.

Rakko remembered it still. That meeting in that alleyway, shadows cast beneath moonlight, the scent of blood mingling with the wind. The way Aiko trembled, much like a cornered animal, until the sleeping predator hiding beneath sprung for her neck. It was glorious.

Rakko lost that night. Her first defeat in years. But she didn’t feel disappointed. Far from it. She was mystified by the girl that pressed her down, at the manic gaze in her eyes and the ferocity in her strikes.

And then Aiko called her Racchan. Spoke of Rakko and Dolly with pained affection before she collapsed. And Rakko remembered-, she remembered-

Rakko winced, her eyes trailing to the painkillers on her desk before she pried her gaze back to her homework. The headaches had been getting more frequent lately, and they grew more intense the more she tried to remember how her time in the Clone Dolly workshop came to an end.

There was something there. Someone who used to call her Racchan. But she just couldn’t remember. Like someone had reached into her brain and ripped out a part of her life.

It was a possibility. This was Academy City.

Aiko kindly offered some of her painkillers when she heard of her headaches. She wanted to deny it—these painkillers were Aiko’s, and Rakko didn’t want anyone tracing it back to her if they were ever discovered—but Aiko was persistent. Rakko accepted in the end, mostly because Aiko pulled her into a hug and called her a friend.

Friends. Without hesitation, Aiko had called her a friend. 

Rakko couldn’t be happier. Because she finally had a friend. Someone who wasn’t like those girls from her school, who were no better than unknowing cattle to this city. Someone who could fight against her and win.

She smiled, laying her head on the desk. Ah, how she wished she could spend her summer with Aiko-chan. But she already had an agreement with Kakine, and she wasn’t one to back out from a contract. She’d at least try and complete her mission as quickly as she could. Hopefully she’d have some time left to spare after that.

She idly waved her hand around. Felt the smooth timber of her desk glide beneath her palm. Watched the shadows grow as she brought her hand under the orange of her lamplight. Watched the way the light bounced from her skin. Stared at the glisten of her fingernails.

Light. Shadows. Bounce. Grow. Shrink. 

Change.

Rakko groaned. Another headache. She’d always found light fascinating, and she often found herself staring into sources of light for too long if she didn’t hold herself back. Maybe it had something to do with her Esper ability? She was a Wave Conductor like her sister—she just wasn’t able to use it for much, if at all.

It was something she could ponder over at a later date.

For now, she had her summer homework to finish. It wasn’t as if she’d have any time for schoolwork the moment she began her mission.

Uiharu was half-tempted to rip her headband from her head and throw it out the apartment window. She didn’t, of course. Her monthly stipend wouldn’t survive her breaking the window for something so inane.

She’d spent what felt like years trying to learn more about the Level Upper, but she’d found nothing. Academy City’s database told her nothing about the Level Upper aside the confirmation that it was real. Which either meant that the information had been stored in a drive separate to Academy City’s database, or it’d been written down on paper. Neither option made her feel any better.

Still, at least she had a lead. Level Upper. Increases the Level of an Esper, some more than others. And for one reason or another, it’d been given to Skill-Out. 

Was it stolen? Did the Skill-Out members take it from some lab and used it for themselves? Or was it given out on purpose? She wouldn’t be surprised if the latter came true. It was no secret to her that Skill-Out mainly existed as ‘frontline test subjects’, as Konori-senpai liked to call them.

…

…

“Mou, I can’t do this…”

Uiharu slumped back, finally freeing her fingers from her laptop after hours of constant movement. She cupped her cheeks, and she smiled as she basked in the gentle warmth of her Thermal Hand. Her Esper ability was far from special, but she didn’t mind. Being able to keep her coffee warm long into the night was a superpower on its own.

She closed her eyes. For the fifth time today she contemplated asking Shirai for help. And for the fifth time she decided not to. Uiharu knew her fellow Judgement member was too busy dealing with the increasing rate of crime. Shirai didn’t need even more stress, especially not now.

Maybe Himegawa could help? But Himegawa was a civilian, even if she’d helped find Level Upper’s name. That was already skirting the law, and she didn’t want Himegawa to be in any more trouble.

Ah, if only Himegawa joined Judgement, then it wouldn’t be an issue.

If only.

Oddly, her hand began itching. 

Doing her best to ignore it, Uiharu reached for her cup of coffee, and to her horror, found it empty. She was pretty sure she’d refilled it earlier. Or had that been an hour before?

Shrugging, she grabbed the cup and went to refill it.

“Ah, you are…”

Kurozuma blinked at the girl that’d stopped him. He stared for a good moment, confused as to why she felt so familiar-

His eyes went wide. “You’re that girl from Macronall’s!” He smiled. “Nice to meet you again. How’re you doing?”

“Bored, mostly.” The girl shrugged. 

He raised an eyebrow. “Don’t you have school? Or homework?”

She smiled wryly. “Finished them.”

He returned a grin. “Oh, what a good student! Well, it’s good to hear you’re not flunkin’ on purpose.” He grabbed a few cartons of Musashino Milk and dropped them into his basket. “So, grabbing groceries for the week?” And then he grabbed a few more cartons. And then a few more.

She stared at him. “I am.” Her stare became a little more concerned as he filled every inch of the basket with Musashino Milk. “Isn’t that-, how-, seriously?”

He laughed. “Nah, this ain’t enough. Would’ve grabbed more, but,” He gently shook his basket. “This poor guy’s already full.”

“...can you even afford all that?”

He grinned. “Don’t worry. I can.”

She smiled wryly. “Well, I-, guess that isn’t the weirdest thing I’ve seen.” She shook her head. “Anyway, how about you? I hope everything’s been well for you?”

He smiled. “Life’s been good. Slow, but good.” He said, as if he didn’t just pummel a few thugs from another Skill-Out gang some hours before. 

She huffed. “I wish I could say the same.”

He frowned. “What do you mean?”

She stared at him for a moment. Seemed to contemplate something in her head as she turned her gaze away. After a good minute of silence, she sighed. “It’s-, complicated.” She began. “Have you met Skill-Out recently?” He nodded, and she hummed. “Noticed how most of them have powers now?”

He blinked. Thought back to the thugs he met before. “...you’re not wrong.” He said, remembering the sudden blast of wind that zoomed past his shoulder. Nothing too difficult—a bullet was faster.

“It’s not natural.”

“Not natural?”

She shrugged. “I can’t say much more, but there’s some sort of weird thing those thugs are using that’s increasing their Level.” She turned back to him, gaze bright and intense. “If you find it, don’t use it. Ever.”

“As if I would.” He scoffed. “Power never comes for free in this city. A thing like that? Probably a drug or something.”

She nodded. “Good.” She turned back to the display, staring at the milk section. She cleared her throat. “Does it taste that good?”

“Damn good.”

She huffed, and placed a couple Musashino Milk cartons into her own basket. “I’ll take your word for it, mister.”

He smiled. It was nice to see another potential Musashino connoisseur. But just as he was about to walk to the counter, he realized something. “By the way, what’s your name, girl?”

She hummed. “Himegawa Aiko.”

Aiko, was it? Nice to finally have a name for the girl. She seemed interesting enough, and considering she knew about the whole Skill-Out issue, she probably kicked ass too. “Himegawa, huh.” He grinned. “I’m Kurozuma Wataru.”

She nodded. “Nice to meet you, Kurozuma-san.”

He winked. “Same to you.”

She smiled.

He had nothing better to do that day, so he followed along as she continued her shopping. And as he did, he considered what she told him. A drug of some kind that could increase an Esper’s Level—no wonder Skill-Out was so taken by it. 

He narrowed his eyes.

Maybe he should pay Hebitani a visit soon.

Chapter Text

The city was getting more dangerous.

Academy City had never been the safest place on the planet, but the recent surge in crime couldn't be overlooked. Skill-Out thugs, robberies, and the recent bombings of multiple public areas—the whole lot.

But there was something different today. Or at least I felt like something was different. I’d dreamt something when I slept, and I woke up with the odd urge of heading to the nearby Green Mart to do…something. I wasn’t sure what it was, but there was something in me that urged me to head there.

So here I was, blankly staring at a shelf filled with old magazines. I didn’t know what I wanted to buy—I hardly went to convenience stores like this. So I found myself frozen instead, trying to pretend that I was browsing the magazines and not standing idly in the middle of the store.

It wasn’t quite working. I’ve been here for almost an hour, and the cashier was giving me an odd look every now and then.

I smiled wryly as I grabbed another magazine.

There was just over a week before summer break, and I still had no idea what I wanted to do. I just had no idea what I could even do in the first place. I wasn’t old enough to work part-time, and I still didn’t feel like joining Judgement. What else could I even do?

I sighed as I placed the magazine back. I’ll give it some more time. 

Just then, a group of Judgement officers came in. I didn’t recognize any of them—they probably came from a different branch. They seemed normal enough, and I was about to turn back to take another magazine when a boy came in. He looked sketchy as hell, with his unkempt hair and offputting grin.

There was something about him. Something wrong. The moment he entered my mental map, I could just feel that there was something off about him. His figure in my head didn’t look right. It almost looked like there were multiple people standing where he was, all congealed together like some sort of frankenstein’s monster.

I rubbed my head. My head was starting to hurt again.

By the time the headache fled, the boy was long gone. But the unsettling feeling had only grown, worming and squirming in my stomach.

…No. I couldn’t ignore this.

I parted from the magazine shelf and began looking around. I didn’t know what I was looking for, but I knew there had to be something. Shelf by shelf, row by row. There had to be something. Something that didn’t quite fit with the clean, hypermodern aesthetic of this store.

And then I felt it. Something had suddenly appeared in my mental map. A sudden movement.

I closed my eyes and focused. My mental map came into being, and I zoomed down into the store. Every shelf became visible in my head, each object drawn by a glowing outline and nothing more. My mental map updated nearly every second, but I still didn’t find anything unordinary. Nothing was moving.

But I could still feel it. Something was moving. Swirling. Crushing.

Crushing?

“Excuse me?” I blinked. The world faded back into view, and I found one of the Judgement members next to me, her eyes creased in worry. “Are you okay?”

I took a breath. “There’s something wrong.”

She stilled, and then her eyes narrowed. “Something wrong?”

I nodded slowly. “I can…feel something moving. Gathering together to crush. I just-”

“Crush?” The Judgement member repeated, sounding panicked. “Are you sensing a gravitron-!?”

Whatever else she said was lost on me; my mind immediately latched onto that word. Gravitron. A type of elementary particle that governed gravitational forces. 

A particle.

Similar to what happened a few weeks ago, I felt something inside me shift. A new possibility was considered, and my Personal Reality molded itself to include the new possible outcome. And feeling it, I braced myself just in time for the mother of all headaches to slam into me. 

I dropped to my knee, and through the buzzing in my ear I heard the Judgement member’s worried cries. I ignored her, and forced my mental map to the forefront of my mind.

Shelves. Products. People. Outlined. It was the same mental map as before, but I could feel that there was something more. Something deeper. There were millions of tiny objects in each cubic centimeter, and billions more inside each of those tiny globules.

I could zoom more. Look further. Zoom and zoom and zoom until the unknowable becomes mundane. 

Except my brain begged me to stop. Told me that I’d basically be putting myself through hell for trying.

Sadly, I was no stranger to pain. Every moment of life had been painful, of feeling like my brain was seconds away from exploding in a shower of blood and brain matter. What’s a little bit more pain?

And besides, doesn’t the pain make it more fun? Or maybe I was just losing my marbles.

With a breath, my mental map blurred as I zoomed towards the microscopic. Information flooded into my head—crashing into me like a massive tidal wave. Tiny specks of dust came into view. Then bacteria that were stuck to the shelves. Then the airborne viruses. Then molecules. Then atoms.

Then I gasped as every particle in the store came into view. It was incredible. Everywhere I looked I could see something. Titular particles outlined in translucent glows, burning like miniature stars. I was also fairly sure I had a terrible nosebleed—or at least I hoped so. I could see droplets falling from my chin in my mental map, and it’d be weird if it wasn’t blood.

And I saw it. An irregular movement of particles, swirling towards a singular point in space-time. They were gravitrons, I soon realized. In several seconds they’d reach critical mass, and the energy would be enough to cause a large explosion.

A decision was made. Synapses blinked to life in my brain. Electrical signals ran down my spine, then to my calves. My muscles bulged. Blood pumped-

My eyes shot open, and I moved.

The second row of shelves from the left wall. The very last shelf of the row. I kicked to a stop and reached down to grab a seemingly normal aluminum can. But my brain knew better. The gravitrons were still gathering into it, crushing the foil inside the can—aluminum I assume—into a small orb. 

I spun on my heel, and with all my strength I aimed at the window and threw.

The cashier shrieked when the can smashed through the window. I ignored it as I watched the can soar into the air. One second passed. Then two. Then three.

And then the aluminum can shriveled into nothingness, before a large explosion rang across the air. Everyone shouted as the other windows shattered, sending shards of glass flying. The world trembled for a good few seconds, followed by a stilted silence. There was static in my ear, and blood continued to pour down my chin. I barely noticed.

I stared, and stared. The explosion had done little to no damage. Only the windows had shattered. No one was hurt.

I smiled tiredly. “Thank god.”

I fell unconscious not long after.

I woke up and found myself in a hospital bed. That, and how I suddenly knew how to knit a sweater.

I blinked. Blinked again.

I felt off. Not in a bad way. It’s just-, my head felt too clear. The usual dull haze I felt whenever I woke up was gone, replaced by this almost-painful lucidity. An effect of my Personal Reality changing? But I didn’t feel anything different the first time around.

Was it because I managed to Actualize the new paradigm added to my Personal Reality? 

As theories bounced in my head, the door opened. A frog-faced doctor stepped inside, his smile kind. “It’s good to see you awake, Himegawa-san.”

I narrowed my eyes. Something about him was familiar. “Who are you?”

He hummed. “Most call me Heaven Canceller. But call me whatever you will.” He shook his head. “Are you well? Do you feel pain anywhere?”

I frowned. “I feel…fine? I mean,” I tilted my head. “My head hurts, but not as much as usual. A little sore, maybe.”

“Nothing more?” I shook my head, and he nodded. “That’s good. Those girls that brought you here were worried when you collapsed so suddenly.”

“Was anyone else hurt?”

“Only you.” He smiled. “And it’s thanks to you that they managed to catch the perpetrator of the recent bombings.”

I nodded. “Good.” I freed the breath I’d been holding. “That’s good.”

I knew this wasn’t the end. The bombings had come to an end, but the Level Upper was still at-large. Crime was still at an uphill, and there was no telling when things would drop back to the previous faux-calm. But, for now,

I fell back into my pillow, a small smile on my lips. “That’s good.”