Chapter 3 - Another Day

Chapter Three: Another Day


The next morning came with little fanfare, save for a single sliver of sunlight lying itself across my face in the most perfect fashion. No matter how I tried to get it out of my face... it just seemed to want to sit over my eyes. “Ugh!” I finally growled, standing out of bed and rubbing my face, the sliver of light fleeing at my sight. “I'm up you bastard...” I growled to the sun, which seemed to laugh at me. Pressing a cold palm to my eyes, I stretched, loosening my muscles for the day. Bypassing the vanity mirror, I quickly redressed into my uniform, feeling less exposed. I hated looking at myself without anything on... it just... disgusts me.

A knock came to my door a few moments later, my heavy boots crushing the carpet below them as I moved, opening the door a little. “Yes?” I muttered stiffly, the bright face of Rikka smiling back at me. “Oh. Good morning.”

“And a good morning to you, too, Tachyon!” She held up a tray. “Breakfast?” I stifled a laugh and opened the door again, letting her in. “I also wanted to thank you for bailing my bacon out of the fire yesterday...”

“I take it you didn't have permission to leave base, did you?” She laughed at this as the door closed.

“Haaaaah... no. Not at all. I just... I wanted to spend more time with you, so I thought... you know, no harm no foul? We've not had a deployment in three weeks, and even if we did, Commander Ishikawa has seven other soldiers she can field... I'm kind of... extra, you know? Besides, I'm not very good at my job, so I wouldn't be missed.” I shook my head as we both sat at the small table by the wall.

“I don't think so.” I muttered. “I don't believe in someone who's expendable. We're soldiers, not cannon fodder. That's what seperates us from the Y. We care about the lives of those we send into battle.” She opened the boxes and set one in front of me. “...and I see you've out-done yourself again.” She laughed.

“My specialty is a pleasing taste. Enjoy.” We started eating, but as we did, I would see her eyes gaze down at my arms. “Tachyon...?” She muttered after a moment. “...why do you always wear those gloves?” I motioned to her own arm, covered in a elbow-length white glove.

“Same reason you do.” I muttered. “Uniform.” She scrunched her nose up at me.

“That's crap and you know it. You never take yours off. I wouldn't be surprised if you sleep with them on. Why?” I shrugged again.

“What's the big deal?”

“I just think it's... interesting. Like you're hiding something.” I shook my head.

“Nope.” She puffed her cheeks up again, but decided to drop it.

“Well fine... but I'll find out.” Another few moments passed before she spoke again. “Do you have any family? I mean... aside your dad you mentioned.”

“Nope.” I repeated. “Mom died a few years ago. No siblings.” She frowned.

“I'm sorry.”

“It happened. I'm sure if you dig deep enough, most people these days have a tragic or unfortunate backstory.” She nodded to this.

“Yeah, I suppose you're right... but that doesn't make it any less tragic.” I shrugged.

“I guess.”

“You don't... think about her every now and then?” I paused mid bite, thinking. When was the last time I thought about my mother...?

“...no...” I responded with no small measure of uncertainty in my voice. She looked at me a bit like a kicked puppy, her head tilting to the side.

“...really?”

“I... try not to think about my past too much. And I'd appreciate it if no one else thought about my past too much.” She seemed to get the jist of my words, and nodded.

“Okay.” She nodded gently to me. “So!” She cheered up. “What do you do for fun?”

“Sleep.” I responded rather coldly. “...I mean, I don't get out much, so what else is there to do?” There came the sound of hands hitting wooden table hard, causing me to look up.

“You don't go out?”

“No?” It was more of a question... like what did she expect?

“Even Commander Ishikawa lets us go out sometimes... okay! Clear your schedule today, Tachyon!” I squinted at her, trying to figure out her angle.

“...why...?”

“Because you and I... are going out today!” I blinked at her, trying to figure out what was going through her head.

“Pass.” I responded, shaking my head. I didn't feel like exposing myself anymore today then I did any other day.

“Nnnope.” She shook her own head. “You don't get a choice. C'mon! We're gonna have some fun, you and I!” I chuckled a little.

“Do you think your Commander is going to let you out after yesterday's shenanigans?” She looked at me like someone's who's been gravely insulted, her cheeks puffing up like a little squirrel.

“Well!” She stated firmly, standing. “We'll just find out, won't we?” She walked over to the phone by my bedside table – used for inter-base communication – picked up the receiver and deftly dialed a well-memorized number before putting the receiver to her ear and waiting. After a moment, her cheery demeanor returned. “Good morning, Commander, it's Rikka.” A pause as she nodded. “Yes, Commander. Look... I know I kind of did a no-no yesterday... but I was wondering if I might be able to head out for a bit this morning?” She curled the cord of the phone around her finger as she spoke. “Uhm... y-yes, ma'am... it – uh – is with Tachyon.” She lowered her voice, hoping I wouldn't hear. Unfortunately for her, I have good hearing. “No, ma'am, nothing too crazy. Probably just hit up a restaruant or something.” After a moment she frowned. “And you know how I feel about those 'balanced, nutritional diets'! They taste like cardboard and smell worse. C'mon, Commander! One outing at somewhere else won't kill me! And – and!” She added in. “-and, I promise to do double my training when I get back! Promise!” A nod. “Promise!” Her smile grew bigger as she laughed. “Thank you, Commander! Yes, ma'am! Yes, ma'am, I will! Uh-huh! 'Kay bye!” She hung up and looked at me with a distinctively victorious smirk.

“You're a smooth-talker, I'll give you that. But the answer's still no.”

“C'mon, you're really gonna turn me down after I went through all that?”

“Yep.” She fluttered over to me and picked up my hand, pulling me out of my seat. “H-hey-!” I managed to catch myself before I fell, glaring at her. “Careful!”

“C'mon! Let's go have some fun! The Company's having a fair in the park! We'll go play some games, see some sights!” She pulled again. She was strong – every soldier here was, by either nature or science – but she was nothing compared to me.

“You are aware I could break you like a twig if the mood hit me.”

“But it hasn't, and won't, right?” She smiled at me. “C'mon... don't make a lady beg.” I sighed heavily, shaking my head.

“You're fuckin' persistent.” She beamed at this.

“My best trait!” She swung in place, her hands still on my arm. “Sooooooo...?” I sighed again, cracking a smile.

“...alright, fine.” I finally caved, causing her to shout in glee.

“Yaaaay! Ahahaha! You'll have the time of your life, I promise you!” She let go of my hand. “Okay, I'm gonna go get ready! Put something on that's a bit less soldier-y and I'll meet you in the motor pool in twenty minutes!”

“Can I have a shower? I just woke up...”

“Thirty minutes, then!” I nodded to this, causing her to giggle in glee and tear out of my room in a rush. Heh... she was kind of cute when she was like that... Closing the door behind her (because she neglected in her rush) I turned back towards the inside of my room, heavily considering just... slipping back to bed and being done with it... but something told me a little fresh air would do me good. Shrugging and disrobing, I shuffled into the bathroom for a shower, after which I redressed in something a little more civilian – a long-sleeved shirt and a pair of denim jeans – before redonning my gloves and boots, leaving towards the motorpool on the first floor.

I will freely admit it felt good to wear something other then my uniform for a change, walking the halls of the base and seeing the city out it's windows. Beyond the skyscrapers, I could see fragments of the wall which surrounded the city... and beyond that wall – even though I couldn't see them – I knew the Y gathered strength. But... I suppose rest is just as important as my job is. After all, a tired soldier is a dead soldier.

The elevator opened with a cheery ding, revealing the dull din of the motorpool and the light conversations of a few of the mechanics on duty bouncing off the concrete walls. Some gave me polite nods as I passed, while others just stepped out of my way. Waiting by one of the vehicles – a sporty little sedan that looked more at home in some pre-war film – was Rikka wearing a rather simple red and white sundress with a wide-brim hat on her head; a white purse slung about her shoulders. The lacy fringes of the dress played about her shins as they danced about a pair of well-worn – but no less matching – combat boots. Heh... she made 'cute but deadly' actually a thing. “Haaai!” She waved to me when she saw me. “Mmm... I mean, I would have prefered no gauntlets but... one thing at a time, I suppose.” She frowned. “Why do you always wear them, anyway?” We've been over this...

“Have to be prepared. Y could attack at a moment's notice.” I responded simply, causing her to give me a raspberry.

“Boo! That can't happen, not while we're out!” I crossed my arms.

“Oh?” Snappin a hand out, I took her purse off her shoulder and opened it, pulling out the pistol she had stored there. She looked at it dumbfounded and rubbed the back of her head nervously.

“Oo-okay so... it... never hurts to be prepared...?” She responded uneasily as I replaced the gun and handed her purse back to her.

“Uh-huh.” She perked up.

“So! Do you want to drive?”

“Can't.” I responded. “Homura won't let me.” Rikka gave another raspberry.

“Boo! Why not? I thought all Command Soldiers could?”

“Not a Command Soldier. Just... me.” She blinked.

“Huh... with how you work, I would have thought you'd be a Command-Level... funny. Anyway, I don't mind driving!” She laughed. “Just means I'll have to think of other things to make today fun for you.” I raised an eyebrow. What was she planning on doing? I shook the thought out of my head and hauled myself into the passenger's seat as Rikka trotted about and sat in the driver's. “So! Is this your first time off-base? That wasn't for a job?”

“Pretty much.” I shrugged. “Homura doesn't let me out all that much.”

“Yeah... I know. I think it's sad.” I huffed a little.

“'You know'? What have you been doing? Reading my dossier?” She fell silent. “...you have...”

“I mean! It's... public information!”

“Public to the Organization, not the public.”

“Same thing!” She responded. “I thought... no one would mind if I looked up someone I was interested in...” She shrugged. “So I opened up your file.”

“My whole file?!”

“Your... whole file...” Shit... she knew everything I've done over the last three years... which admittedly isn't anything to be embarrassed about... but it was something I was concerned with. I didn't like people knowing the particulars of my missions. Hell, most of what was on those records were already censored. I wasn't an official member of the Organization – a 'shadow cell' Homura had called it – that was supposed to be an 'ace in the hole' in case of some kind of gross failure by the Council or Organization. Because of this, there was no record of my missions, save for what I reported, and those reports were always vague. “I just-!” She started. “I... find it interesting that you operate alone! Other soldiers can't do what you do. And to dive head-first into a Y-Hive? That's... that's something, let me tell you.” She laughed nervously. “...if Commander Ishikawa told us we were doing that, I'd think she was crazy.” She flicked a look over her shoulder to merge into traffic. “...how do you do it? Knowing that it could kill you?” I laughed openly at this.

“You're fuckin' hilarious, you know? Me? Be killed by filthy Y? That's a laugh...”

“You could! They could kill you just as easily as any of us!” She had honestly no clue how wrong she was. This wasn't arrogance talking... this wasn't the dillusion of a soldier with a deathwish, either... the Y were legitimately of no concern to me. Their fight against me was akin to a man struggling against a god of his own creation. I shook my head. “...anyway. You've got me at a serious disadvantage, and I don't think I like it...”

“Command Soldier Rikka; Serial Number 0-032F. Five combat deployments and eighteen confirmed kills.” Eighteen kills was quite an impressive number, given everything. Of course, my own where much higher... but given the ability gap of the two of us, I didn't shirk at her accomplishments.

“Eighteen... good number.”

“Pah. Eighteen's nothin'. This other girl on our team – Mishka? - has eighty five.” She shrugged. “...I guess melee soldiers have all the fun.” I couldn't help but agree to that.

“I wouldn't say more fun, more then they've got more of a burden on their shoulders.” She scoffed at this.

“How so?”

“Would you do it?” I asked. “Would you put yourself in a doorway and let the Y swarm you? And it's just you... two people behind you... and a sword. Would you do it? Could you do it?” Rikka paled at the thought.

“...I couldn't.” I nodded.

“You have your limits. Mishka's just got a higher tolerance for bullshit then you do.” I shook my head. “If I wasn't... me... I couldn't do it either.”

It was a crazy, effective plan that came out of the main branch. Some hot-shot up-and-coming Commander got it in his head to barricade his soldiers into a hospital room to create a choke-hold for the Y. Most of the strength of the Y come from their numbers. There's usually a six-to-one advantage on their side... so the thought was if we could minimize their advantage we could put ourselves on even footing with them. So you put one soldier in a doorway – preferably a melee soldier – and then back her up with two close-ranged ranged units – in the case of most units a High-Powered pistol and shotgun – and as they try to squeeze through the door, you cut them down. It's... insane. It's the stupidest thing I've ever heard... but I'll be damned if it isn't the single most effective strategy we've discovered against them. It didn't take long for it to be adapted as Standard Operating Procedure for the entire Organization.

“...I guess you're right.” She answered with a listless tone, her eyes focused on the road. Perception was everything. Most would gawk at what I do, call me crazy or a fool but... to me? To me it's just another day on the job. She sprung back with some light conversation (namely the state of the city and my opinions of it) as we weaved our way through the light morning traffic. She didn't stay in a rut for long, her smile slowly returning to her face as our conversation turned to more standard fare. “...hard to believe just ten years ago, we were all wondering if we would survive...” She muttered randomly. “...just... ten years, and we've already beat extinction-”

“We haven't beat it yet. It's true we're better off then we were forty years ago – or hell, even ten, like you said – but we've not beat extinction yet. So long as a single Y draws breath, we're endangered.” She nodded, grunting in agreeance.

“You're right... I know but... looking at it? How far we've come? It's difficult not to be proud.” I nodded.

“Of course. We've come far... but we mustn't let how far we've come... overshadow how far we have yet to go.” Forty years ago, we avoided extinction. The Third World War the world has been dreading for a hundred years finally came to pass, and with it we almost blew ourselves to extinction. It was nuclear weapons that ended the second world war, and it was nuclear weapons that dominated the Third. I understand many places of the world are worse off – America, for example, and Europe – but that shouldn't let you believe everywhere isn't bad. Japan... well, hell... we only survived because someone got it in their head that forty years ago was a grand time to experiment with self-contained cities... and damn glad we all are they did. Those same self-contained cities were what prevented the entire Japanese archipelago from becoming a charred strip of land.

We've been getting lucky. We've been getting lucky for the past forty years, and everyone knows it. One slip up, one errant fuck up on our part and we go the way of the dinosaurs. End of story, the Y win. So yes... we're cautious... for good reason.

Our conversation carried us straight to Atlas Park in the western end of the city; the whole place alight with the trappings and audio of a fair. A large ferris wheel dominated the skyline and a few rows of tents had been set up to provide food, entertainment and other offerings standard to what you might find in a fair from before the war. The Company does it's best to ease the citizenry – provide a pre-war life with whatever they can – but it's not easy to forget that we could all wake up tomorrow and be dead... but they do a decent job making sure not to broadcast that. Rikka parked in one of the few empty spaces left and practically threw herself out of the car. “Okay!” She smiled brightly. “No more talk of work, or of the Y. Today! Today, we enjoy ourselves.” I was slower on the exiting of the vehicle, but I was no less happy to table the work talk. I was getting tired of dwelling on it, anyway.

“Before we go anywhere-” I addressed her, turning a gauntleted finger towards the Ferris Wheel. “-you're out of your fucking mind if you think you can get me on that thing.” She erupted into a guffaw, her hands falling on my shoulders softly.

“Aww, don't worry, Tachyon. I'm not going on it. Scared of heights.” I was too, but I wasn't about to admit it. She wrapped her hands around my arm and pulled me towards the front. “C'mon c'mon! Let's go.”

“I'm going... stop your pulling.”

“Nope! If I stop pulling, you'll slide back towards base, and I'll lose my chance to spend the day with you.” I had this mental image of her letting go of me, and my feet just... sliding across the ground to lead me back to base... and yeah, I'll admit it brought a smile to my face.

“Heh.” I chuckled slightly. She pulled me along towards the front, where a plastic-faced woman was giving the same rehearsed, canned greeting to everyone.

“Welcome to Central City Fair. Enjoy your time.” Her smile was so fake, even my face hurt from looking at it.

“Uh-!” A voice called to our side, drawing our attention towards another woman who was at the head of a long line of people waiting to get in. “I'm sorry, but... you'll have to wait at the back of the line, like everyone e-” She paused as she looked at us. “...hey, I recognize you...” She muttered, looking at me. “You're... Tachyon, right?”

“...maybe...?” I muttered. “Why do you want to know?” She motioned to Rikka.

“And this lady, is she also with your Organization?” I nodded.

“Yes.” The woman bowed to us.

“Terribly sorry about that. Please, go right on ahead. It's always nice when our valiant protectors come out for some fresh air once in a while.” Her smile... now hers was genuine, I could tell. “Please! Enjoy your stay!” Rikka beamed at this.

“Thank you!” She smiled brightly, pulling me along. “Come come, let's not waste anymore time.” We were dragged through the entrance next to the plastic-faced woman (who of course gave us the same canned greeting) and we were let out into the fair proper.

The fairgrounds were littered with dozens of plastic cups and paper plates flowing out of overstuffed trashcans, and no shortage of accidentally dropped food crushed beneath a wave of footsteps from careless fairgoers. “...waste of food...” I mused, kicking a renegade hotdog to the side. Rikka nodded to this.

“Yeah... but I mean like... accidents happen, right?” I scoffed.

“Some of this I'll gladly chock up to accidents. But this much? Nah, this is just waste.” Rikka didn't let her smile fade.

“It's just people having fun... let's not think too hard about it.” It was hard not to. People outside the city were starving or just barely getting by; and here we are, throwing perfectly good food onto the grass with the care the Y show our lives. I grunted something that sounded like a response and let my feet carry me wherever Rikka was leading us.

We passed by several tents – most were carnival games hastily set up for the guests – while some were of a more educational flare. Some had a few of the animals from the City Zoo on display, with several plaquards of facts and information about them. That was pretty standard for these kind of things; teach us about the things we've almost lost to redouble our efforts to see these same creatures flourish once more. I couldn't agree with keeping them caged up but... when you considered the Y use them for food too? I think a cage was a better place for them then in danger in the wild. Rikka seemed pretty enamored by the white tiger in display in one tent.

“Step right up, step right up!” A man called from behind us. “Test your strength! Get it to the yellow, win a small prize! Get it into the red, win a large prize! Get it into the black – well! You'll just have to find out, won't you!” The man laughed. Rikka pulled us over towards the man's tent. Standing beside him was a large barrel-like machine with a padded front; an circular display on the front showing green, yellow, red and black quarters; along with a red LCD display that showed a three-digit number. “How about you folks? Want to test your strength?” He motioned to me. “I bet you could get it into the yellow at least! C'mon, win the lady a prize?”

“C'mon, show him how it's done.” I montioned to the machine with my head.

“This expensive?” He blinked at my question.

“I mean.. probably? Why?” I shook my head.

“If you don't know, then it probably is. You don't want me touching it.” He smiled at that.

“What's wrong? Thinkin' you'll be embarrassed in front of your girlfriend? C'mon! No one's a chump in my book! Show 'er what you've got?”

“C'mon! Give it a hit.” Rikka encouraged.

“No, seriously. You don't want me hitting that.” I continued, taking a step back.

“C'moooon!” Rikka continued.

“You heard the lady! Step on up!” I sighed heavily.

“Alright.” I finally sighed defeated. “Just remember... you wanted this.” I stepped up to the machine and took a wide-footed stance by the padded front. I could have pulled my punch and probably not have damaged the machine but... he did ask for it. I threw a single straight punch at the machine, the padded front caving with the force of my fist and the small circular dial spinning wildly through the colors until it came to a forced stop at black – a full three hundred and sixty degree spin. The LCD monitor flashed 'Err' as the machine bucked backwards two feet from the impact and came to a rest, it's legs collapsing under the weight of it; smoke billowing out of the inner workings. Standing up straight, I rolled my neck stretched out my back. “So what do I win?” The man stood dumbfounded at the display, his jaw hanging open as he failed to grasp what he had just witnessed.

“D-uuuugh.... uh-uhm...” He shook his head. “...take your pick...?” I nodded to Rikka, who was grinning like a mad lad.

“You heard the man. What do you want?” She bounded over to the large stuffed white tiger – the only one in the tent – and pulled it off the rack “Happy? I've destroyed Company property.” Rikka laughed.

“Yes! Very happy!” She somehow managed to somehow get one arm around mine and pull me along; the other arm doing it's best to hold onto the stuffed tiger. “C'mon, let's see what else we can destroy.”

“Let's not. They're probably gonna bill us for that.”

“I mean, sure... but it's not like we couldn't afford it.” I rolled my eyes at that.

“Not the point. Homura already has a low-tolerance for my bullshit... she's gonna hit the roof when she gets the bill.”

“I'll tell her I goaded you into it.”

“...well, I mean you did...” She laughed, nudging me with her shoulder.

“Shut up! You know what I mean...” She snuggled into my shoulder, causing me to smirk to myself.

“Comfortable?”

“Mm!” She agreed without words. “You're super comfortable.”

We walked aimlessly around the carnival as Rikka goaded me more and more to destroy several other carnival games (thankfully only the punching machine was literally destroyed. The rest were just blown away by my prowess) winning her a few more small odds and ends in the process. None of them were particularly practical, so I had no real interest in them. By the time I had realized how long we had spent at the fair, it was already early evening, the sun starting to go down over the city skyline. “Mmmph...” Rikka muttered. “We should probably start heading back before Commander Ishikawa thinks I'm ditching training.”

“It wouldn't hurt.” I agreed as we started to turn back towards the car. People were starting to file out anyway and most of the games and rides were shutting down for the day. We shuffled off back towards the parking lot, the same tired woman from this morning wishing everyone a wonderful evening as they left; the sounds of the fair fading into the background as we reached the car.

“...I had a really good time today.” Rikka mused, still holding tight to my arm.

“That's good. It wouldn't do any good to not have fun when you blow off training.” She laughed.

“Stop it... I'm not and you know it.” We stopped before the car, Rikka turning to face me, a listless, loose smile on her lips. “...I had a really good time today... thank you Tachyon.” I nodded to her. “Can I...” She paused, then smiled and shook her head. “...no... I won't tip my hand yet.” She let go of my arm and stuffed the giant tiger I won for her into the back seat before bounding towards the driver's seat and dipping in. I followed suit and squeezed into the passenger's seat, pulling the seatbelt across my chest.

The trip back was filled with light chat, Rikka smiling and gushing about how I had destroyed the punching machine, and how she enjoyed her time out; how she never gets to go out much except for 'Organization-Mandated Team-Building Exercises'... which to my understanding were basically squad-wide group outings we sanctioned for each unit to build a good working relationship with each other. I didn't care much, I was never invited out to those... which didn't bother me, actually. I couldn't stand most people. Most.

-

We got back and parked, Rikka excusing herself to do her two hour training regimine before bed (an hour longer then what's she's supposed to do, as per her agreement with her Commander); telling me how much she enjoyed our outing today, and how she hoped to get another chance to spend time with me. I told her I didn't mind it – that it was nice to get off base once in a while – and how I'd actually enjoy seeing her again. Oh, I'd keep seeing her, alright. I had no problem with that... but that didn't mean I wasn't cautious. As nice as Rikka was... no one's okay with what I really am.

As Rikka left, I decided to check up on our 'guests' in Medical... just to make sure they were behaving. Taking another elevator up to Medical I cleared my head of today's events, putting my mind back into work mode. The elevator opened to a series of aides to Patricia scuttering about and doing this, that or the other thing; their voices all merging into one. At the center of the scuffle, I saw an unfamiliar silhouette seated in a chair, talking gently to some of the aides. I advanced cautiously to the unknown figure, eventually making out long silver hair and pointed ears – skin of a dark ashen – belonging to the figure. “What's going on here?” I spoke up, the unknown figure turning to face me with a smile. Her features were... vaguely familiar.
“Ah! Tachyon! Here to check up on our guests, are we?” Her voice... her voice I recognized.

“Doctor Brightstone?” I piqued an eyebrow, the woman nodding. “...the hell?” She got out of the chair and did a spin for me.

“You like?”

“I... I am confused... if that's what you mean.” One of her aides handed me a datapad.

“The good doctor spent all day yesterday researching those chemicals we mentioned... and late last night, got it into her head to inject herself with them.” I glared at her.

“Queen of Dumb Ideas, Patricia.” Patricia blew me off.

“Pbbbbth! Please! I feel fantastic! Colors pop! Sounds ring just a bit clearer! Hell, even your voice is a few octaves nicer.” I squinted at her.

“...I'm gonna pretend that was supposed to be a compliment.”

“Totally.” She agreed with a nod. Her hair – once short and a dark brown – had grown considerably in length – down to her mid-back – and was now a pure silver tone. Her skin – mentioned earlier – had darkened to almost charcoal and she had almost elven ears. “I like the Dark Elf approach myself... wish I could say it was intentional.” I shook my head at this.
“I know you said there were mutations but...” I struggled for words. “Does Homura know?”

“Ha.... hahahaha.... no...” She shook her head. “I mean, it's only a matter of time but-” The door to Medical opened and – as if saying her name summoned her – Commander Kawazoe appeared. “...well, I mean she will now.” Homura looked about at the commotion before her, worry on her face.

“...Patricia?” Patricia stepped forward, an awkward smile on her face.

“Commander! Fancy seeing you here! What – uh – what brings you to my neck of the woods today?” Homura blinked slowly.

“Let me guess...”

“Commander, I can explain-”

“-You explicitly ignored my orders to not test this thing until we understood it more?” I smirked as Homura struggled not to yell at the doctor.

“I think I'm a bad influence.” I muttered to myself, both Homura and Patricia glaring at me.

“Speaking of which, where the hell have you been all day Tachyon?”

“Fair.” I responded. “Rikka wanted to go to the fair.” Homura gave a frustrated grunt.

“...is that why I got a bill from the Company for a punching machine?” I shrugged.

“I was goaded. In my defense, I tried to decline several times.”

“Ugh you're both impossible! Patricia, keep me updated and informed of any side effects. Tachyon...” She deflated. “...try not to destroy anything else today...” I nodded to this.

“Wasn't any plan to do so, Commander. If you need me, you know where I sleep.” I started off back towards my quarters.

