Chapter 109
The attire of those calling themselves 「Crusaders」 varies widely. Some are decked out in the formal vestments of Western clergy, while others are clad in mere rags. Still others are awkwardly clad in bulky bulletproof vests. They shout in unison, their cries in English, German, and various other languages echoing through the cockpit, translated by Apollyon’s automatic translation system.
「For our God!」
「No, there is no God. But to advance to heaven, to bring salvation to all!」
「Salvation is a lie, but first we must put an end to the conspiracy that covers the world! Through our righteous teachings, you shall gain enlightenment!」
At least get your ideology straight, you messy lot. But those cries alone suffice to reveal their true nature. This is why fanatics of various religions engage in terrorism like this. Over 10 of them secure the hall entrance, assault rifles gripped in their hands, laying down a hail of bullets. But the Space Presidents quickly take cover behind my mech’s legs. The armor of mass-produced Apollyons can easily deflect ordinary assault rifle rounds… or so it should, but the armor is starting to warp a bit. Uh-oh, are these some nasty bullets?
「Do something, you’re supposed to be guarding us!」
「This is unexpected, how can there be so many Espers! The advance intel was wrong!」
「As I thought, heretics, there are traitors within ‘SOD’! But we too have not told the full truth, taste the power of God!」
The man in priest’s robes says this as he lowers his assault rifle and takes out 3 stake-like objects. He hurls these stakes, still stained with clotted blood and splintered, in random directions without even aiming. They arc around my Apollyon and assail the Space Presidents. But their speed is slow, and one of the guards tries to forcibly deflect them with his shield, but instead the shield shatters and he loses his balance. It takes the other 3 guards kicking at full force to finally divert the stakes, but they change direction again and continue their attack.
It must be what they call psychokinesis. Seeing psychic powers for the first time is a bit awe-inspiring, but just watching won’t do. I think this as I raise and stomp my foot. All I did was step down, but under my foot are the stakes. Even bearing the full weight of Apollyon, making a crunching sound, they still writhe and wriggle. Impressive output to keep moving even when crushed, no wonder they’re confident enough to commit terrorism. Ah, I heard a snap. Confirming the stake’s death with his psychic power, the priest man screams.
「Partnerrrrr! What have you done! State your name!」
「I’m called Hiniru. Take that name with you to hell.」
Like hell I’d honestly introduce myself while being targeted. The Space President, taking cover behind my Apollyon again, shows a look of realization. But the other guys don’t seem to remember my voice, and apparently believe that self-introduction from the external speakers. Furthermore, hearing the cracking sounds from under Apollyon’s foot, they clench their fists so hard their hands bleed. His face turning pale, the priest man shouts with a changed expression.
「Hiniru! I will never forgive you, I swear by our creed that I will surely send you to hell! No problem, it’s also easy to manifest hell on earth, tearing off your nails is just the beginning!」
… Hiniru, I’m really sorry. The priest takes a new stake from his waist as the others surround the Space Presidents and me. Some of them discard their assault rifles and reach into their pockets.
「Wh-what should we do, Prophet! My Apollyon has been saying it’s low on energy and won’t get up!」
「I’ve got 1 minute max. These are just for show to begin with, so they shouldn’t have more than the minimum fuel.」 「How about you, Orange?」
「No, mine’s fully fueled up.」
Contrary to Kanata’s scream and Teo’s words, my fuel gauge shows MAX. Momiji probably filled it up, I think gratefully as I turn to face the 「Crusaders」. Did she foresee this far ahead? Ignoring the sound of Teo’s voice, I consider my next steps.
Option one is to fight them. But with psychic powers, it’s iffy whether I can win. To be blunt, 「Thunder」 earlier showed poor handling of powered suits. Well, not much time has passed since their release here, and I doubt they’ve been able to copy Kōmitsu Solutions’ assist systems. Even if they could, they wouldn’t leak the full version to mercenaries. Who knows how far it could spread and what could happen. Well, Kōmitsu Solutions does that kind of thing a lot though.
But these guys are likely Espers dating from after the 「Base Collapse」. In other words, they’re veterans in handling psychic powers. How much can I make up for the difference in skill? And above all, they’ll kill us without hesitation, or make an example of us. I don’t have that kind of resolve. There’s no justification for easily taking a life, even an abnormal one.
The other option is to run. Take advantage of Apollyon’s mobility and sprint at full speed, although in that case its flashy appearance will give it away. It would be very troubling if the others from 「Thunder」 came running too. And above all, if we stay holed up here, it’s clear that members out of contact will come running to this hall to check.
So there’s one more choice. While fiddling around based on memory, I discovered commands that Hiniru apparently used to use. My mission this time isn’t to rampage in a robot, but to survive this battle. The eyes of my mech glow red. When was the last time I saw this, Ver2.01?
《Automatic operation system activated. Command received: Incapacitate targets (non-lethal). Ejecting pilot.》
Momiji really prepared for everything. I forcibly stuff the lump of metal I gripped many times, hidden in the cockpit, into my cosplay pocket. The next moment, the back of the mech opens with a click and I descend to the ground as if sliding down a wire.
「Run!」
I shout this and flee towards the exit opposite the 「Crusaders」. The Space Presidents and the other members had ? floating over their heads, but seeing the mech I abandoned sweeping the earth with its long arms, its eyes still glowing red, they seemed to understand. The 「Crusaders」 try to shoot at me as I flee, but they find themselves physically and mentally unable to escape the unmanned, suicidal autonomous weapon.
「F-first we have to defeat this thing! You without power, aim for the joints!」
「Orange… came out of Hiniru? So Orange was Hiniru…?」
「Priest, drive the stakes into the computer! Don’t just stand there, hurry!」
Leaving them to begin battle, turning their gun barrels towards Apollyon, we exit through the door. Beyond lies another maze of corridors, but the vibrations cause powder to crumble and the lights to flicker irregularly. Teo, Kanata, and the Space Presidents who followed behind me just keep running down the path. Gunshots, sounds of destruction, and… some bizarre, earth-rending noises can be heard from all around. What the hell is going on. From behind, Space President who looks the very image of a gentleman, slightly out of breath, speaks to me through a translator.
But his words are not those of a comrade in escape, they’re colder, filled with impatience. His dark gaze pierces through me.
「This is a good opportunity. I’m going to kill you.」
In that instant, the figure of the guards vanish and surround me. Teo and Kanata protest desperately but Space President remains cool. A cold metal sensation spreads across the back of my head.
「Space President! Doing that won’t achieve anything! It’s thanks to this guy that we achieved a 7% clear rate!」
「That’s right, so why?」
「You don’t understand anything, the threat of this Esper. He’s threatening me right now.」
「?」
「In just these few hours, we ‘Reformists’ are essentially screwed. All that’s left for us now is unconditional surrender, or barely maintaining the pretense of parity. As she said, he’ll really finish everything by 2060, in a matter-of-fact way, like it’s just work. — But if the Prophet dies, it’s a different story. There’s a chance to turn it around.」
This guy is suddenly spouting something. Were there any elements of being screwed? I raise a question mark under my mask. But it seems to be true, Space President looks like he’s tasting the worst of his life all at once, like he bit a bitter bug. Teo seems to understand, and turns a look of shock towards me.
「I see, with just this one move, already…! But Space President, I’m cooperating with you to save the world. I’ve endured even shitty human experiments for that.」
「I appreciate your cooperation.」
「So if you stop that, I won’t forgive you, got it? For me, anything goes as long as it can save the world. All the more so if the deadline is sooner and the price is cheaper.」
Teo gets behind Space President. Faster than the guards can react, he restrains his neck from under the arm, and digs in his claws. Thin, sharp claws like those of a reptile, made of metal. Agitation spreads among them. Silence is born in the middle of the battlefield at the situation of mutually holding each other’s lives. More importantly, could you properly explain this talk about being screwed?
Super awkward. Space President who was acting cool is in the most embarrassing situation of being betrayed by an ally. But still, we have to find a compromise, so I say something nonsensical.
「Teo, it’s okay. — I’ve already finished taking aim.」
Hearing that, the Space President looks around and opens his eyes wide when he sees behind me. Huh, was there really something? As I’m thinking this, a voice comes from behind.
「As expected of you, Father, to see through it. Everyone, please don’t move either. I can pierce your heart faster than you can take cover. If your heart stops, it’s hard to revive you with prosthetic technology, isn’t it?」
「To avoid detection by sensors…!」
「That can be cancelled out with reverse waves. It was educational.」
The voice of a young child. Of course I recognize it, it’s Kana’s. Seeing that, the Space President makes a face like he was tricked, vexed. So taking advantage of that, I decided to say something I made up for real. The worst thing in this situation is to be shot dead by the 「Crusaders」 while we’re in-fighting. So what I should do is get along with this person. Love & peace. But only with people who seem like they could become allies.
「At this rate, we’ll all die together. This is no lie.」
「What’s the proof of that!」
「You can keep your gun pointed, let’s walk like this. Soon an expressway will dance in the sky and Flying Hiniru will pierce the heavens to boot. ‘Thunder’ will betray us and the ‘Crusaders’ will be barbecued. If you’re still pointing your gun at me by then, we’ll all be wiped out. If you shoot me and escape, you’ll surely end up barbecued together. Space President, nicely roasted, done. How’s that, a concrete prophecy, eh?」
It’s aaall a lie. But that outlandish story ironically lent it credibility. I hear the Space President and Kana gasp. Of course expressways don’t fly in the sky and the rest won’t happen. But I’m sure Momiji will do something about it. After staying silent for a while, the Space President quietly nodded.
「I’ll keep my gun pointed. Show me the power of that prophecy of yours.」
… Yep, do your best Momiji! You can probably hear everything through the comm device in my back teeth!
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