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Blue Archive: Clock Tower Trinity [OC-Insert] [Blue Archive/Nasu]

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A Fate OC's adventures in Kivotos! A Student's life of Guns, Charm, and Zeal!

Tags: Mob...
Chapter 1: Demons are a girl's best friend

Nihilo

Versed in the lewd.
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A Fate OC's adventures in Kivotos! A Student's life of Guns, Charm, and Zeal!

Tags: Mob appreciation, The JTF mobs are free, You can take them home, I have a whole squad living with me right now.

Co-Authored with KillerQueen. Beta'd by Boozeshlager aka ChefRustyDick



Chapter 1: Demons are a girl's best friend

Greetings, student. We regret to inform you that, during the recent group study project, your body was rendered unto a state in which you are no longer capable of taking classes in this Worldline.

Our investigation into the matter has led us to conclude that the on site faculty's negligence was the primary cause for the accident. This, combined with the binding nature of the agreement permitting your study at Clock Tower, has led us to our current course of action.

We have gathered as much of 'you' as we could, created a body native to the primary Worldline you have been entangled in, and arranged for your transfer to an affiliated Academy therein. As per your arrangements with Clock Tower, your housing and tuition at Trinity General Academy are fully paid through graduation. In addition, your Clock Tower credits will be counted towards your Trinity education.

While we were able to gather 95% of your existence into this crafted body, the remaining 5% was lost beyond recovery. As such, your memories of life before your arrival in your new Worldline may be incomplete. However, since you will be entirely unable to return to your previous Worldline, this should pose you little difficulty moving forward. We hope that you find prosperity in your new life and your new home.

Signed, Daybit Sem Void.


A blank, unfinished outline, sitting in a white, unfinished void, reads a letter. "Created a body," huh? Well, it certainly doesn't seem finished. But maybe that's on purpose? One's self image tends to affect these things.

"Who was I…?" She– ah, there's a bit of self trickling in. She's a she. She doesn't feel terribly attached to the designation, but she thinks she likes girls, so being one would be a win-win. As she comes to this understanding, her outline slowly takes on a feminine shape.

A memory trickles in, a stuffy classroom, her lips quirking wryly as she introduces herself to a fellow magus, the name tasting like a joke on her tongue. Kaika Fukajo. Blooming deep, dark affection.

Like a pulled string, more comes as she tugs. She's a magus, but only in the barest sense. A first generation magus, for one. Taken under someone's wing, someone she can't recall… not important.

For another, she's devoted herself to curses. Ideation, thoughts and feelings, grown so powerful they warp reality. They don't care for Thaumaturgical Foundations or Magic Circuits and in fact even the most mundane person can bring them into being with powerful enough feelings. Her only true magecraft is a set of tongs to handle this ideation, refine it under controlled conditions, give it purpose, because… because…

As Kaika remembers her magecraft, she can feel prana coursing through her Magic Circuits as they take form, running down her spine and limbs. The familiar sensation brings with it a surge of more memories.

…Because wild curses are unpredictable things, the monstrous older brother of actions taken in the heat of the moment. More than that, curses can take life to fulfill their purpose. Demons. Irrational creatures that perceive reality through a tinted, warped lens. Ethereal unless (until) they possess something or someone.

But should someone have strong mental discipline, shape their thoughts with Self-Hypnosis, an artificial demon can be created. Something that can be trusted with tasks more complex than sowing chaos.

There's more. Memories of a long haired man, the scent of soldering, gemstone chips and feather threads mingling with complex circuitry. A laptop and a smartphone, set to draw in and filter ideation. A demon, iterated for generations with a twin, to help shape and process it. The perfect glassware for the labwork that is demonology.

Kaika's body is almost finished. She's a schoolgirl in her mid to late teens. Her hair is short and purple. Her clothes are starting to form, along with her tools and talismans.

There's something missing, she remembers seeing demons outside digital containers and false-flesh made from ether clumps. How–

A cacophony of disjointed snippets. Ghostwriting homework late at night, gingerly testing an experimental mystic code, a towering stack of theses needing proofreading and peer-reviewing. Bitterness weighing down her shoulders and tongue, that her projects are being neglected, all to rack up enough favors to… to…

The moon, burning into her eyes, engraving glowing rings around her pupil. Lunatic Eyes, low grade Mystic Eyes capable of seeing ethereal entities if not forces such as mana or ideation themselves. Attainable through a complex (expensive) ritual. Indispensable for a demonologist.

The bitterness returns and with it a memory. A shove, such a simple thing, completely unexpected among magi. Straight into an anomaly. Only enough time to look over her shoulder and see a sneering face.

Tria Nuado Solmand.

She didn't even get to sic a dying curse on the bitch.

That's… that's enough reminiscing about school. Yes.

She… Kaika looks at herself. Her outline has filled. Her body is defined. Her face and hands are complete. Her Mystic Eyes are intact. All twenty of her Magic Circuits are there, just as freakishly long as always, completely intact. And her…halo? It's an odd thing, four chambers clenching and expanding in a complex dance to the tune of her heart.

As she considers her Halo, new feelings wash over Kaika. She had been partially entangled in a new Worldline, and this new body was made from that Worldline's material. She is now a native of this place. Her Origin is still Aním, she wouldn't be the same person if it wasn't, but it now expresses itself as a Mystic…whatever that means.

Kaika shakes her head, putting the thought aside for later. It's probably just some dimensional flotsam that got caught in. She'll have Sultore and Paimon give her a deep scan later.

As she looks at her surroundings once again, she sees that she is no longer naked in a blank void. Instead, she is sitting in a train car, wearing an unfamiliar school uniform. A sailor uniform…a knapsack…

A bolt of terror strikes through Kaika's heart for a moment. Her babies! Paimon, Sultore, Bosse! Did they get pulled apart with her too!? Were they left behind to either die by inches from a lack of ideation or get dissected by her colleagues!?

Her hand jumps to her neck, patting frantically. The old cord is still there, and so's Sultore's brooch. A core where the floating eyeball can sleep while not at work as her sensor suite. Petrichor fills her nostrils and the brooch radiates warmth. He's fine.

Next her hand drifts to the custom holster on her belt. Ozone and a digital eye peering at her from a smartphone screen, her lab assistant chirping out a greeting. Paimon is fine.

The brass bracelet is still there. She smells burning lilies, ethereal green fire trickling from the stud of bone that the shotgun shaped demon sleeps in as her grumpiest child, Bosse, reassures her he's fine.

She slumps bonelessly on her seat. She isn't alone. She isn't alone.

As the panic gives way to bone deep relief, Kaika can't help but start giggling, somewhat hysterically. She's… free now, isn't she? She has a new life, in a new body, and her friends are here, too! And she's in a new Worldline…what's it like? What kinds of sights and smells and flavors are there to experience?

She jumps to her feet, jitters too much to stay seated. The train is empty! Which normally would be deeply unsettling, but here and now it means she can run and scream as she pleases to let off energy. Frankly, the only reason she isn't making wild curses is her Keys (a grandiose name for her laptop and phone) greedily sucking up everything she emits.

With little warning, the screech of metal on metal sounds forth as the train decelerates rapidly. Kaika, having been running around the train car at the time, gets flung unceremoniously by cruel physics. She rolls ass over teakettle before coming to rest with her face on the floor and her bottom in the air.

It's a minor miracle she hasn't broken her nose. Actually, the only scrapes and bruises are on her pride.

"Attention, passengers. Communication with Sanctum Tower is lost. Until communication is restored, all public works are on standby. You may choose to remain on the train, or to disembark here. Highlander Railway Academy thanks you for your patience and understanding." Comes the PA after a moment.

"Wait, what? The whole city freezes if comms go down?" The magus asks, completely jarred out of her good mood by sheer confusion. Christ, that's a worse system than the CCT. Thankfully, it doesn't last. Because she runs a Structural Analysis on herself and has to laugh at what it reports. This body is SHOCKINGLY durable.

Looks like she won't have to bother Reinforcing herself anymore, beyond maybe her sensory organs and nerves. It's actually a blessing in disguise that the train's stopped, it means she can go on a run.

As Kaika makes a hasty exit from the train, she is stopped by a cute girl with a generic looking halo reminiscent of a scope and a handgun strapped under her arm. "Excuse me, miss! Are you sure you want to leave the train right now? Let's see…according to the register…you were disembarking at Trinity, right? That's a good distance away from here, and it looks like there's a lot of hoodlums causing trouble out there…"

These halos… is the supernatural an open secret here? At least they'd have a higher tolerance for the strange. Well, it isn't like she can't erase this girl's memories if she's wrong, so!

The eye slams open, the pupil contracts.

Fire races down her arm, five angular lines of turquoise tracing out the limb all the way to her fingertips. Power flows, and one of the studs on the brass bracelet on her wrist pops in a deluge of blue sludge, whirling around the carved fingerbone. Like a vacuum bag pulling taut, it contracts, leaving a sleek lever action shotgun sitting so comfortably in her hand she may as well have been born with him.

A flare of ghostly green fire, and the remaining layer of goop burns away like so much paper, revealing lovingly burnished brass and intricate reliefs glowing with an inner light. Spider lilies still in their bud, set against a snowscape.

…But, he used to be a deeper green? The ghostly, foglike wisps he's giving off are new, too. The effect almost looks like neon, or blacklight. It looks great, don't get her wrong, but–

Mimesises. Creatures of Terror, the other side of the Mystic. Beings of Emotion. Differences from demons…negligible to nonexistent. The same feeling that Kaika experienced when she considered her halo washes over her again, bringing with it new whispers.

Apparently it wasn't just a bit of flotsam. Ah, well, at least it's helping for now and none of her demons are screaming, especially Sultore, so it should be fine to wait until she's at the dorms.

For now, she pushes the thoughts aside, clears her throat and poses with her dear child.

"That's what I got Bosse here for!" Kaika says with a beaming grin even as she silently gauges the young woman's reaction.

The girl blinks, cocks her head to the side in mild confusion, and looks at her clipboard again. "Trinity…? Not Gehenna, or Hyakkiyako? Huh. The administrators must be taking the upcoming Eden Treaty more seriously than I thought."

Score!

She nods, puts the clipboard away, and gives the student an equally beaming customer service smile. "Well, if you're sure, then let me give you a map with directions to your destination! We at Highlander Railway Academy would like to welcome you to the Academy City of Kivotos! We wish you a safe journey, and hope you ride with us again!"

…It makes her feel slightly slimy to be on the receiving end of that. Even if she did harvest a bunch of retail workers for Bosse's ideation. Still, her good mood carries the day, making sure her smile remains on and very much genuine, "Thanks, otherwise I'd have had to beat some directions out of the delinquents."

Or climb to a rooftop to look around with Sultore. There is no way in hell a school named Trinity doesn't have a cathedral of some sort, and those stick out like a sore thumb.

With a grin and a wave, the magus snatches the offered map from the Railway Academy student's hand (with a free Structural Analysis of the woman when their fingers brush. Yep, just as durable, as she thought) and starts to run; away from the train, over the kiosk, and into the bright, sunny streets of a gorgeous city of bright whites and pale blues. There are halos everywhere. In the sky, on some of the buildings, and hovering over the slowly drifting zeppelins high above. Though not everything is bright and clean. The sounds of angry shouts and the staccato rhythm of gunfire echoes in the distance, and the smell of smoke and gunpowder taints the otherwise clean, fresh air.

Between the amazing sights all around her, the potential for danger around every corner, and the fact that she really needs to look over her map and brochure, Kaika quickly finds her attention split in multiple directions.

Reading the map tells her a great many things. Firstly, the distance she will have to walk from the city outskirts to the Trinity District is significant. Thirty minute bus ride significant. Ah, well, it just means she'll get a full body workout!

Secondly, the Academy City of Kivotos is BIG. Exact distances are hard to gauge in her distracted state, but it is at the very least big enough for one district near the outskirts to be facing destruction through desertification, another district to be built on an active Volcano, and the largest of the districts to be dominated by endless winter. Both her own district and the volcano…hey, that's Gehenna! The Trinity and Gehenna districts share the majority of the beach, nice!

The brochure helps to contextualize the information. While this "Red Winter" place had the most land, the most prestigious and powerful schools were a place called Millennium Science Academy, Gehenna, and her very own Trinity! And…oh. The term "demon" is in use here, as a primary person demographic studying at Gehenna. A quick glance at her Student ID tells Kaika that her own race is on the ledger as "Magus."

Guess she'll be calling her own demons "Mimesises" from now on? It sounds exactly like what magi would call them if given half a chance. Alas, her poor children, fallen prey to pompous language.

Still! Back on track! She sets Sultore loose to start scouting. A single eyeball encased in a globe of red 'flesh' drifts out of her brooch, trailing six tentacles that fade into yellow. Even if a delinquent has the right eyes to see him AND the consecrated ammo to do anything, he is still a target the size of a tennis ball a mile up in the air.

Kaika notices the same glow and wisps coming from Sultore as are coming from Bosse, but at this point she's expecting it. If her children are here with her, then they're made of this Worldline's materials now, too. She's just thankful that they're okay, and still work the same as before.

Sultore chimes in an instant, immediately spotting a group of potential hostiles about three blocks away. The five haloed high school girls are dressed in old fashioned japanese delinquent outfits. The styles are varied, but on closer inspection, there are common trends around weapon types. The two girls using SMGs have short skirts and ponytails, the lone rifle woman has a shorter haircut and long skirt, and the two blondes with machine guns are wearing pants and sarashi.

The group of Sukeban are on light alert, thoroughly distracted by the collection of purses they are rummaging through.

Kaika, for her own part, is very pleased with the answer to 'can I wall jump?'. It is exhilarating to pinball between buildings until she's at the roof, at which time it is child's play to hop around until she's got a delicious ambush set up.

Now, she just needs a minute to cook up something fun.



"Yahoo~ I'm here to rob you!" She chirrups as her feet slam into a machinegun wielder's head like a runaway train courtesy of a subtle curse to do with density. Her answer to people thinking they can push her around just because she's small and cute. Red and white marbles, easily overlooked, fall from Kaika's sleeves as she goes.

Momentum carries the pair into a nearby wall, Kaika's feet embedding the blonde's head a centimeter into the brickwork. The Sukeban is bruised, and knocked out cold.

That would've pulped a normal human's head four times over. She loves this world!

"What the - YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT, PUNK!" The thugs shake off their confusion with a cliche line, and immediately scramble into better positions. The two SMG users open fire on Kaika immediately, giving the rifle woman and the remaining MG user a chance to move into better engagement ranges.

"Showtime!" She calls as she jumps away from her first victim, dodging most of the bullets and shrugging off the rest. With a snap and a flash, the marbles at their feet erupt into pillars of bone and lashing masses of flayed muscle just as she programmed them, tripping the delinquents and forming a dome around them.

Fun fact, Lunatic Eyes, due to their connection with the night, confer exceptional low light vision. The tiny trickle of light making it through the small airhole at the top is more than enough for her to nail the remaining MG between the eyes with a bolt of green-edged black courtesy of Bosse.

After that it's a complete joke. She doesn't even need to make her grumpy child bloom. Just work the lever and leave delinquents with a formative experience. Sickness and exhaustion, just like the worst day in someone's retail career.

The rifle woman (leader, maybe?) groans in pain, physically unharmed yet unable to muster the strength to stand. "What…what even is this? Who the hell are you!?"

One of the SMG users whines. "I'm dizzy…my tummy hurts…"

"It's a miracle~" She sing songs with a toothy grin, doing a little curtsy as she introduces herself, Bosse hanging in the air to free her hand, "Kiaka Fukajo, pleasure to make your acquaintance. Now, cough out the cash. I'm going to treat myself to some unagi after this."

The rifle woman struggles to lift her prone body. Her elbows buckle, and she falls flat on her face again. "You won't get away with this, Kaika Fukajo! The Chicken Dinner Street Gang will never forget this humiliation!" She tries to sound tough, but her voice is muffled by its close proximity to the pavement.

The MG users are out cold. The SMG user who's still awake continues to whine. "I need to go to the bathroom…"

"Right, lemme just–" Bosse's stock melts away, leaving her free to swing the ethereal demon through the poor girl's head, ripping away the sickness curse. Of course, she flips the gun back around and gives her a point blank shot of exhaustion before she can even think about getting cute. "There you go. Can't have my mugging victims soiling themselves while I'm in the middle of fleecing them."

"As for you…" She says, skipping over to the fallen riflewoman, squatting next to her. With her feet fully on the ground, of course, she is no western spy, "If you are serious about that, give me your phone number. We can coordinate a rematch."

The rifle woman's eyes go wide, and her face goes red. "Don't…don't mess with me! Just because you have a cute face doesn't mean I'm going to fall for your charms!"

She then turns her gaze to the ground. "Besides, everyone knows that the SMG girls are cuter…damn it!"

"I, uh, I mean, uhm, that's–" Kaika segfaults, tripping over her own words before shaking her head hard enough to nearly dislodge her hairband, "That wasn't a pick up line. Even if a fight at midnight sounds romantic and you look pretty good and– I'm going to shut up now. Wallet, now."

Kaika leaves 53000 credits richer, but at what cost?


The next few hours for Kaika are a blur of activity. As she follows her map on a lazy, meandering path through the turmoil embroiled cityscape, she finds many fantastic sights. The Chicken Dinner Street Gang is only one of what turns out to be many roving delinquent gangs dressed in the Sukeban style. However, they are far from the only forces at play.

"NOBODY MESSES WITH THE HELMET GANG! CRUSH THEM ALL!"

Only slightly less prolific than the omnipresent Sukeban, are the Helmet Gang. Haloed Students wearing sailor outfits and biker helmets with cute yellow ribbons. The grunts wear black, and the officers wear red. Occasionally, there's a robot or two with them, painted black with yellow highlights and wearing the same black helmet as the grunts. What really surprises Kaika, though, are the tanks. Not only do the Helmet Gangsters have tanks, painted and ribboned in their signature style, but the streets of Kivotos seem to be built to accommodate them. Are…are tanks a common means of transportation here!?

"THIS BUSINESS IS UNDER THE PROTECTION OF KAISER SECURITY! STAND DOWN IMMEDIATELY, OR WE WILL OPEN FIRE!"

The more expensive looking buildings often have a mix of combat robots and students in tactical gear guarding them. They occasionally deploy tanks as well, but generally stick to the specific buildings and businesses that hired them. They don't spare a second's attention on anyone or anything else.

Which is good, because it means they don't give a damn as she sets up ambushes to fleece the delinquents. It is laughably easy to bounce between walls to get up on a rooftop, at which point she just has to box them in with Mercer disposable demons and shoot them like fish in a barrel. Honestly, the reason Enforcers are looked down on must be jealousy, this is a high and a half.

The only thing she steers clear of are the basements on tracks. She has, in theory, a way to deal with them. And besides, she'd rather not risk a tank shell to the face. It'd be a pain to actually get in and loot their wallets. Even if the idea of making a Mimesis to possess a tank is sorely tempting. Sadly, the paperwork says she'll be staying at the dorms, so she doubts there will be anywhere to keep a trophy that large.

Speaking of, she's glad that she has a backpack, because her wallet couldn't take any more money ten groups in.

That aside, Kivotos keeps delivering weirdness straight to her lap. Dogs, cats, and birds - all bipedal, fully clothed, and roughly four to five feet tall - cower behind locked doors. With them are robots with screens for faces, clearly not built for combat like the Kaiser models. A quick Structural Analysis as she parkours by tells Kaika that they, too, are unnaturally durable, but not to the same degree as people with a halo.

It's easy to tell when Kaika is on the home stretch, and not just because she has a map. The delinquent gangs, while still present, are much less prevalent. The buildings look nicer, with an architectural style that strongly reminds her of a fusion between the Church and Clock Tower. There's no sign of Kaiser anywhere. Instead…

"HALT! THIS IS THE JUSTICE TASK FORCE OF TRINITY ACADEMY! PRESENT YOUR STUDENT ID, OR YOU WILL BE DETAINED IMMEDIATELY!"

The forces suppressing the delinquents with ruthless efficiency, and protecting the townspeople fearlessly, can be described succinctly as absolutely adorable.

She wants to take them home and spoil them rotten.

Thankfully, by now she's vented all her steam and then some, so all she displays is a small pleasant smile and the ID on her offhand, "As great as I'm sure your hospitality is, I'm afraid I have some prior commitments with my dorm room."

One of the beret wearing first years takes the offered ID, while the rest keep their guns trained on Kaika. Which, hey, fair enough. She still has Bosse out. The first year wastes no time confirming the veracity of the ID, and gives her squad the 'all clear' sign.

"Right then, you're good. I'm having two of my squadmates escort you to your dorm."

The rest of the squad either lowers their guns, or turns around in a defensive holding pattern around them. "Nobody's seen a Magus before, and with all the craziness going on, we don't want any panicked students to mistake you for a trespasser."

"I do have the uniform, but I suppose the eyes make me look out of place enough they may think I looted it from someone." She replies with an easy roll of the shoulders.

"They're very pretty," The squad leader says with honest appreciation, making Kaika preen. "But you hit the nail on the head. The stories I could tell…but we can chat about it over tea later. For now, we have to get back on patrol, and to get you to your destination safely. Hantei, Kinben, you're up."

At the squad leader's word, two of the adorable First Years take up positions covering Kaika's flanks. "Yes, ma'am!"

"Aye aye, ma'am." Kaika says with a smile and a two finger salute, "I do so love a professional."

After the brief exchange, the two groups part ways. Afterwards, Kaika and her new escorts only have to travel for three blocks before they arrive at the main gate.

It hadn't really sunk in until now that she's going to a religious school. Poor Sultore has to retreat back into his brooch from how bright the old brickwork shines with faith. Thankfully, it is only that. Bright. Not burning. Not at all like a church back home, whose mere vicinity would be degrading her children.

Once she gets past that, the campus… honestly, it is to the Clocktower as Kivotos is to London. Shining blue and white, utterly immaculate, like an ideal made physical. There's none of the oppressiveness of the Mage Association, and she doesn't need supernatural senses to tell the ideation here is warm and welcoming.

She just keeps trading up, huh?

There's a lot she could say about it, but now that she's cooled back down, all she can manage is a, "Pleasant enough place. Which is the dorm building?"

"Right this way, past the Cathedral and the Library," Kinben answers. She and Hantei appear to be more relaxed now that the group is on campus grounds, but they haven't dropped their guard entirely.

"By the way, Kaika-senpai. How do you get your gun to glow and smoke like that? It's really pretty, and scary without being TOO scary." Kinben's tone is one of interest, as though she was asking a friend about their makeup.

"Oh, that's because Bosse isn't really a gun, just a gun-shaped demon." She replies on automatic, before catching herself, "Er, I think they're called Mimesises around here?"

"Huh. Mimesises…I've heard that word before…Hantei, wasn't that what the Sisterhood called those four armed things we fought in the ruins the other day?" Kinben asks, with a thoughtful look on her face.

"Yeah, that's right. The Sisterhood keeps their secrets close, but they did give us a bit of intel. How do you keep it under control, Kaika-senpai?" Hantei looks at Bosse with a raised eyebrow. "The ones we saw acted on instinct, and would have started shooting already."

"Oh, yeah, wild de- Mimesises are like that. It's like they're perpetually trapped in a heated moment, makes them irrational." Kaika starts explaining, "Of course, that ju–"

The sound of gunfire rings out from the nearby library building, cutting Kaika off mid sentence and sending the JTF students into high alert again immediately.

"..." For the first time since she got off the train, Kaika's smile vanishes. Her entire expression shutters into something more at home in a corpse, not allowing a single shred of emotion through. "Make way."

The building obliges, white brick parting like a curtain to let her blur through, fire racing down her nerves.

Kinben freezes up for a moment, confused and seemingly torn. "Wait! We're supposed to be…and how did you…"

Hantei, on the other hand, leaps into action immediately. "Oh, shut it, Kinben! You want to intervene, too! Kaika-senpai just simplified things!"

"R..right!" Kinben snaps out of it quickly, and joins Hantei and Kaika as they charge into the library with murderous intent.

The scene awaiting them is enough to make a bibliophile's blood run cold. A small handful of Sukeban, holding lit zippos, are keeping a librarian at gunpoint. "YOU HEARD ME!!! WAIVE THE LATE FEES OR WE'RE PAYING IN LEAD! OR DO YOU WANT US TO DROP THE LIGHTERS?"

"Boss? Don't you think we're going too far this time? We wouldn't have late fees in the first place if we didn't like the books…"

"Too late." Whispers the specter of death right behind them, the whole building seeming to suck in a breath as all lights go out, even the zippos. "Freikugel."

The only source of illumination is the glowing trail of the spectral bullet as it punches right through the chest of the rearmost Sukeban, the spark of blue jumping from heart to eye to brain to gut. Wheezes come out as muscles seize, the delinquents toppling like unstrung puppets.

By the time the lights come back on, they're all stuck in a barrel of bone, encased up to their necks in a massive clump of the material.

"They didn't damage anything, did they?" Kaika asks softly, wringing her hands and looking around trying to find the slightest evidence of a damaged book. She doesn't so much as spare a glance for the Sukeban maki roll.

"Umm…no, I don't think so…?" The mousy librarian girl answers, trembling. The look on her face says she wants to be anywhere but here right now. "May I ask who you are, miss…?"

"Kaika Fukajo." She introduces herself, internally screaming because oh god oh fuck the poor girl's afraid and she's dogshit at being comforting. Oh, wait! "Paimon, activate Solomon Protocol."

The phone slotted into her belt chimes in agreement.

"It's fine, Chie-san," Hantei reassures her classmate, as Kinben radios for cleanup. "Kaika-senpai's weapons are scary, but she's nice!"

By then, however, Kaika is in the throes of Self-Hypnosis.

The eye snaps open, the pupil contracts.

Ideation wells up, power shapes it, reality buckles.

Light pours from her phone, ether clumps form on her hand.

"I name you Dachi."

They meet.

"Wee~" The little floating octopus chirps, floating over to hug the librarian, its tentacles suddenly lengthening to accomplish its righteous mission. "Prrrrrrrrrrrr"

"Oh, that makes sense!" Hantei exclaims, snapping her fingers as the pieces fall into place in her mind. "You can safely use the Mimesises because you made it!"

Three seconds pass in silence. "Wait. You can MAKE Mimesises?"

Kaika blinks owlishly. "Yeah? That's what I was getting to. Wild ones are erratic, so make them under controlled conditions to get something reliable. It just takes gathering some ideation, er, thoughts and feelings, and refining them."

Chie nervously pokes the purring octopus clinging to her. When it reacts by snuggling and purring louder, the young girl begins to smile and laugh.

Success!

Kinben turns her attention away from her walkie talkie for a moment to watch the scene unfolding. "... Kaika-senpai? What emotions did you use just now, to make Dachi?"

"Erm, I- I used my desire to comfort her." She mumbles, looking anywhere but at Chie, cheeks burning.

Hantei and Kinben share a look and a nod. "Mimesis on site, non hostile. I repeat, non hostile. Situation Green."


The next half hour or so goes by in a blur. One of the older members of the JTF brings a small group to pick up the trapped delinquents. After assurance from Kaika that the bone would melt on its own after a couple of hours, it was decided that they would be placed in their cell as they were.

Hantei and Kinben escorted Kaika the rest of the way to her dorm room. Before parting ways, however, the pair express interest in meeting again, and possibly learning Cursecraft themselves. If Kaika is interested, of course. And that Chie would probably want to come too, she was absolutely smitten with Dachi.

It is only when she is inside her dorm room, checking over the Greater Key's files that it hits her.

"...Sister, I think I made friends."

The files labeled MA-F don't answer.
 
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There will be a chapter every other day until Chapter 7, at which point we will post a chapter every other saturday.
 
Hello, we meet again.
Took me a second with the unexpected change in pfp. Glad to have you here.

Thanks for mirroring this here, I don't frequent SV nearly as much as I do here.
No worries, man. Plus, at least here I know that the mods won't go crazy. The only downside is that I've noticed that comments here are scarcer on average.

Oh it lives. Was wondering what happened
The SB mods being unable to treat non-pornographic, non-detailed mentions of nudity maturely. Hell, not even that, just the MC having a bit of internal monologue about how magi treat sex where the most provocative words were "sexual fluids" and "physical intimacy" got flagged as badwrong.
 
It's good to see it over here, too. I've heard SV can be almost as auth-derp as SB sometimes so imo it's better to be safe than sorry.

Plus, BA has historically had issues with tourists coming in who can't divorce fictional characters from reality, calling players pedophiles and generally causing problems in the community. In a place like QQ you're protected from such antagonism, not so much on SB.
 
It's good to see it over here, too. I've heard SV can be almost as auth-derp as SB sometimes so imo it's better to be safe than sorry.

Plus, BA has historically had issues with tourists coming in who can't divorce fictional characters from reality, calling players pedophiles and generally causing problems in the community. In a place like QQ you're protected from such antagonism, not so much on SB.
I'm hoping it doesn't come to that, but yeah. Once bitten, twice shy.
 
If the forums don't work out, I hear Ao3 is also a good place to post.

Here to follow your story though I don't check on QQ as often.
It's also on SV if you'd rather.

As for Ao3, I'm pretty sure it requires an invite to get an account there, so no dice.
 
It's also on SV if you'd rather.

As for Ao3, I'm pretty sure it requires an invite to get an account there, so no dice.
Doesn't take much effort to get the invite to Ao3 honestly. Just time if you're willing to wait a while.
Send in a request and wait a few days, nothing else required aside from standard account making stuff.
At least that's how it was for me.
 
The SB mods being unable to treat non-pornographic, non-detailed mentions of nudity maturely. Hell, not even that, just the MC having a bit of internal monologue about how magi treat sex where the most provocative words were "sexual fluids" and "physical intimacy" got flagged as badwrong.
Oh seen that before. Check out"Isekai Go Home" here, it got the same treatment
 
Chapter 2: Diogenes of the pool, what is your wisdom?
Chapter 2: Diogenes of the pool, what is your wisdom?

"This is the Kronos Journalism Academy, reporting to you live from the S.C.H.A.L.E. Building! After yesterday's daring heroics…"

Kaika watches the morning news in her dorm room as she eats breakfast. Yesterday, she didn't have to wait for long before the Sanctum Tower came back online, and public works were restored. As it turned out, the reason that Sanctum Tower was a necessity for so many things was that those things were under the control of the General Student Council President. Who is now a missing person.

She'd keep watching, but there is only so much time until classes start. Apparently she somehow managed to fall asleep during the deep scan despite the complete lack of Bounded Fields keeping her safe. And nobody woke her up! Damn treacherous children, conspiring against her…

So, yeah, she has to… shit, she can't carve them into the floor without getting in trouble. Fuck it, she'll use curses to alter the grain of the wood. It'll be good training.

It all becomes a blur as Self-Hypnosis puts her in the zone. Ideation gathering. Mana gathering. Terror. Bad vibes. Tripwire. Notice me not.

The layers come together, from innermost to outermost. Nothing fancy, just the standard six plus her personal ideation siphon. She doesn't know anything really fancy when it comes to bounded fields, but–

Dun dun dun du du duuun dun.

She jolts up as the tripwire sends the first notes of the imperial march into her brain. She has visitors. Did she– fuck.

"Applepie!" She calls as she stomps on the matrix, hitting the emergency shut down and running to the door, "Terribly sorry about that!"

As Kaika opens the door and bows in apology, she startles Kinben and Hantei, who had already moved on to try another door. They were holding a box of what appeared to be fresh, hot donuts. "Kaika-senpai? So this was the right door after all…?"

"Phew, you didn't trigger more than the SEP, alright." The demonologist slumped in relief, "Sorry, I was setting up some basic defenses and you showed up before I had the exclusion list done."

"I…okay?" Kinben responds, confused. "We brought donuts for us to share? We've also been asked to show you around campus, and to take you to the administration office before class."

"Oh, good, saves me ideation." Mapping curses are expensive given how much ground they need to cover. "Come on in, make yourselves at home. Would you like a small crash course on Bounded Fields while I add you to the exclusion list?"

Her room is completely bare of personality at the moment, nothing but the (rather fancy) accouterments Trinity gave to all her students. Cream wallpaper, matching curtains and sheets, a few shelves, a desk, a kitchenette and some assorted furniture.

"Sure, sounds interesting!" Hantei answers, taking her shoes off at the door. "Oh, Vice President Hasumi-senpai is on the news again! And so is the new Sensei!"

Jesus Christ, what a woman. I want her to–

Kaika swiftly partitions off the section of her brain wallowing in the gutter and wolf whistling. Useful ideation, but she could do without the distraction. Haah, wonders of mental discipline.

"She's so pretty…" Kinben says, starry eyed. Hantei, on the other hand, pays close attention to her movements before sighing. "She's doing it again. That thing she does with her hands whenever she's thinking about her weight."

"Has anyone bothered telling her that muscle is denser than fat, so having an active lifestyle actually leaves you heavier?" Kaika says, adding another layer to the partition as that corner of her brain got louder.

"We've tried everything shy of telling her to her face," Hantei sighs. "Apparently, she was the slender, traditional beauty type last year, so it's just not connecting in her brain that she's got the body of a fertility goddess."

"HANTEI! You can't just say things like that about our senpai!" Kinben's face is a full tomato red blush.

"I'm not saying anything bad. Who DOESN'T dream of a lap pillow from Hasumi-senpai?"

"Guilty." Kaika chimes as she takes a donut, unable to help a low moan at the chocolate filling. Fuck yeah, this is the good stuff. She'll make them some potato hash later, if she can find the ingredients. Or maybe treat them to something? Her withered heart recoils at the idea of paying for other people's food, even if they are adorable and she's already all set to–

Oh, right! "So, Bounded Fields. If you've ever heard about magical protections on a building, that's pretty much it. You weave a network of magic energy through a structure to establish a boundary," She explains, a tiny bit of curse trickery making the mandalas crawling through the room like ivy visible as lines of ethereal blue, "And then add sigils as both a terminal and a signal booster," She points at the scrawl of runes on the wood grain, "Making the effect project outwards. What I have here is, in order: Notice me not, intruder alarm, paranoia, terror, mana gathering, ideation gathering."

She makes each layer glow brighter as she points them out. Hantei's eyes seem to light up brighter in sync with the display. "So cool…wait, this is the wood grain, isn't it? That's amazing, you didn't even carve anything up!"

"Yyyeah, I didn't think anyone would appreciate me carving up the flooring. Thankfully, curses are versatile like this." Kaika says, scratching the back of her head.

Kinben's eyes are equally sparkly, until a look of realization crosses her face. "Kaika-senpai…while everyone appreciates how considerate you're being, I have to ask. What happens when someone DOES trigger the trap all the way down to terror? Do they just have a panic attack in the hallway?"

"Yeah, it isn't the subtlest thing, but it is part of the basic six because if someone gets so deep in, it's a solid deterrent." Kaika says, not seeing the issue, "It's stan…dar… shit, fuck, I'm not in the Clocktower anymore. I actually don't want to give my colleagues a panic attack if they snoop around."

Hantei and Kinben share a look, but choose not to say anything.

"Uhhh, alright, let's see, dial down the throughput regulator, shift the mental interference to anxiety, add a recursive ideation latch and…" She mutters as the mandalas unravel and shift, growing more complex as toxic green light is worked into them. "Phew, alright, this should instead make people suddenly remember some other pressing business and make them anxious as all hell about taking care of it. This bit here is a failsafe that will make them think they left the water running at home if there's nothing legitimate to pull."

The two First Years watch in fascination as the wood grain lights up and shifts before their eyes to mutters of 'gotta adjust the terminal too'. At the end, they begin to clap in applause. "So pretty!"

"Clock Tower Academy must have been a crazy place if that was the norm. But I understand wanting to keep your room safe…oh! Is there a trap that turns someone's hair a funny color!?" Kinben asks.

She's just… she's just going to focus on the second half instead of traumatizing her with what she remembers of that viper pit, "I know an Alteration matrix that makes registered humans glow a certain color. It's just an introductory piece to teach students how to target specific souls. It should be simple enough to shift the effect to changing hair color."

"Yay! Cotton candy color!" Kinben giggles and cheers. "It looks complicated, but I'm looking forward to trying it!"

She glances idly at the clock, and her face pales. "Oh, no! We're out of time! We're going to be late to Kaika's meeting with the Administrators!"

The next few minutes are a blur of activity, as the three girls cram fried baked goods into their mouths in a decidedly unladylike fashion while getting their shoes back on. Soon after, the trio are running across the campus, Hantei taking the lead and Kinben holding the rear.

Miraculously, the trio reach their destination a few minutes early. Long enough to catch their breaths and chat a moment before the Administrators arrive.

"Hey, remember that Sensei who was with Hasumi and those other students? The one who supposedly helped them beat the Fox of Calamity?"

"Yeah? What about her? She's cute if a bit plain, and Hasumi-senpai looks like she might like her, but what else is there to say? We only know what we saw on tv."

"But Hantei, she's a Teacher! A real Teacher! And she can visit any Academy that she wants! What if she comes to Trinity? Don't you want to know what her classes are like?"

She has to wonder what the quality of the teachers around here is if they're kicking such a fuss about having a 'real' one possibly swing by. Hopefully it isn't as bad as that one guest lecture she got from Bram, she thought her soul would abandon ship and never return.




Kaika finds herself sitting across the table from a group of mechanical citizens in business suits. Standing next to them is a Student carrying a large box that couldn't be more obviously from the Mage Association if it tried. Nevermind how it makes her skin prickle with the magic energy wafting off of it, the real giveaway is that it's handmade. Kivotos clearly doesn't believe in artisanal goods from what she's seen so far.

"Welcome, miss Fukajo," One of the machine people says, his lack of a mouth no hindrance. "We are the Trinity Academy Administrative Board. We have received the package from your previous school, and understand that there may be significant differences between how this school is run compared to your previous one."

Eh, sure, but they are all changes for the better so far. She simply shrugs.

"One point that your previous instructors were concerned about was the difference in firearm culture. However, reports from the Justice Task Force imply that you've taken to it like a fish to water. Would you agree?"

She nods, face completely blank out of habit.

"The second point of utmost importance. Here in the Academy City of Kivotos, Schools are more than places of learning. They are political entities, not unlike small countries unto themselves. Student Councils are ruling bodies, and enforcer groups like the Justice Task Force are military forces. Hot wars between schools are rare now, but have been more common in the past."

But cold wars aren't. Right, she'll have to watch her back, but what's new?

"This leads to the third point. It is the students who hold the power, and the students who maintain the traditions of their respective Academies. As such, it only makes sense that the Students be the primary motivators in their education."

Wait wha–

"We in the Administration Board are not teachers, nor are the on site faculty. Teachers are, in fact, a rarity in the Academy City. Our job is to keep and maintain the Blu Rays and Tech Notes with your lessons on them, and to ensure that grading is carried out in a fair and accurate manner."

As he says this, the Administrator pulls out a set of simple textbooks of uniform design, and a set of disks in cardboard covers. Each is emblazoned with what Kaika has come to recognize as the Trinity logo, but apart from the colors, there is very little to tell one book or disk from another.



"While private tutors are available for a fee, we are unable to answer questions you may have about the material."

She already misses El Melloi's tutoring sessions. She never did get into his classroom, being in the Department of Curses and already taking a few lessons in the Department of Spiritual Evocation, but the man had helped her build her devices.

"Lastly, your lesson plan. The majority of your classes will be the standard Trinity curriculum. However, your previous school has sent us a package with the Blu Rays and Tech Notes required to finish your previous degree during your stay with us. For these classes, you will have a private tutor, paid for in full by Clock Tower Academy." As he says this, the box is finally brought forward. Inside are a set of Blu Rays and Tech Notes, in the same style and color as the Trinity ones, but with the Department of Curses' symbol.

Only experience keeps her expression blank, turning a sigh and slump of relief into a slightly more vigorous nod. She can't recall what her deal with the Clocktower was, other than a vague impression of having caught someone's eye, but it's got to be something above and beyond to get this sort of treatment.



Aesthetically speaking, the classroom is beautiful. The desks are comfortable. The windows are large, and the class is bright.

The lessons, however, are an exercise in patience. Once the materials are dropped off at the classroom, the Blu Ray goes in, the textbooks are opened, and everyone takes notes for twenty minutes.

After the video lesson concludes, the remaining ten minutes of class are spent in free study. The students who either feel comfortable about the material - or who simply don't care - spend the time gossiping. Those who are struggling with the material find a friend to study with, or suffer alone like the Sukeban in the corner.

She doesn't know how anyone can struggle with material that simple. Even just taking notes is overkill and she only bothers to have quick reference material for when the exams swing around.

She's so busy musing on this that she only realizes what she's doing when she's already tapping the Sukeban on the shoulder. Internally, she screams. Fucking bleeding heart sneaking up on her. It's all Sultore's fault, she let him roam around the classroom and he tipped her off to the poor girl's despair.

"Eh? Whadda you want, new girl? Are you picking a fight?" The Sukeban immediately goes on the defensive in surprise. Her eyes dart around at the other students, and to the machine gun case leaning against her desk.

"I was just going to offer help studying, but if you want a fight…" Kaika trails off, feeling Bosse stir on her bracelet in anticipation. As expected of a Mimesis made from retail worked ideation, he's vicious.

Several of the gossiping girls glance in the pair's direction, and giggle. The Sukeban blushes, and tries to bury her face in her textbook. "Just…just leave me alone, okay? You don't want to get mixed up with a thug like me. Besides, this is your first class here, right?"

The feelings radiating off of the Sukeban are small amounts of gratitude and hope, moderate amounts of despair and acceptance, and large amounts of shame. 'If she gets it after one class and I've been struggling for a week, I really AM that dumb…'

"Nah, it's actually a good move. It will make assholes basically wave a big neon sign over their heads." She says with a laugh, which only gets louder as the gossiping girls suddenly yelp. Almost as if they had gotten pinched, how mysterious.

"...Eh? What? But you-" The blonde thug stammers, thoroughly confused by what she just witnessed.

"Alright, let's start with the trophic chain and go from there into how the population balances and checks go. It's pretty simple…" She's learned her lesson when it comes to momentum, she grabs a nearby chair and doesn't waste a moment in helping the blonde.

The remaining ten minutes of class fly by. The deeply confused Sukeban leaves her encounter with Kaika with a far more thorough understanding of the material than she does of her present surroundings.

"...Eh?"



Two more classes went by, in much the same manner as the first. It was dull, dreadfully dull, but she powered through with the characteristic stubbornness of magi everywhere. However, lunch is here, and if Kaika's eyes do not betray her, it's going to be as filling for the heart as it is for the stomach.

"Thank you for saving me yesterday, Kaika-senpai! And for introducing me to Dachi!"

While Kaika had planned on going to a cafe for lunch, Hantei and Kinben waylayed her, insisting that she join them at the central fountain instead. She's very happy that she did; Chie was waiting for them there, and is now offering her what looks to be a very large homemade bento.

"Please, accept this token of my gratitude! And…and I hope that we can be…friends?"

"You just earned my friendship twice over." Kaika says, her stomach growling in agreement. She would protect this woman with her life. Hantei and Kinben share a look, and start giggling jovially.

"Ehehe~" Chie blushes happily, with a big silly grin on her face. Kaika can hear Dachi chirping happily from somewhere in Chie's massive knapsack. The ideation that the group is putting out must be a feast for the little guy.

Speaking of feasts, Chie went all out on this one. Kaika opens the bento and is greeted by the sight of tempura, takoyaki, and more!

"Correction, thrice over." The demonologist says hoarsely before digging in.

I'm in heaven~

"So, Kaika-senpai. How are your classes so far?" Kinben asks, as she and Hantei take a seat next to Kaika on the lip of the gigantic, three tiered fountain. The pair of enforcers pull out bentos of their own. They seem to have prioritized foods that can be eaten quickly, and put back away easily. Are they used to having their meals interrupted?

"They're making me miss even desert dry teachers like Prof Crough." She grouses in between bites, rapping her chopsticks against the rim of her bento in agitation, "Even the most curmudgeonly magus will happily debate you and expound on their field. They're passionate, instead of these droning blue rays."

"Wow, Clock Tower Academy had TEACHERS? Like, more than one of them?!?" Kinben's eyes sparkle brightly as she hangs on to every word coming out of Kaika's mouth.

Chie, meanwhile, sighs sadly. "I know what you mean, Kaika-senpai. The tone is supposed to be soothing, but with how slowly they speak, it really does come across as droning. I like the textbooks so much better. I can set my own pace, then."

Hantei looks at Chie in shock. "What? The Blu Rays are too slow for you? But they seem to go so fast…I can keep up, but only just!"

"Agreed on the books." At least those were passable. "But yea, the Clocktower is actually a university. Field experts give lessons in exchange for access to the facilities and resources."

"Woooow~" Kinben has a dreamy expression on her face imagining it.

Hantei, on the other hand, looks at Kaika in surprise. "You too, Kaika-senpai? Wait, what about you, Kinben? The material isn't slow for you too, is it?"

Kinben is broken from her reverie by Hantei's desperate pleading. She thinks for a moment, before opting to give her fellow enforcer a comforting pat on the head instead of answering her directly. "There, there~"

Hantei is not comforted. "KINBEEEEN!"

"Pft. Come on now, no shame in having a different learning style." Kaika says with a snort and a twirl of her chopsticks, "I do best with reading, since I can double check things and cross reference."

"Ara, ara~ Such wise words! Our new transfer student is such a wonderful senpai~!" A lazy, sing-song voice echoes from the fountain behind them. As the group turns around to look, they spot a girl with long, pink hair floating on her back in the fountain. She's wearing a one piece swim– no, no those are tan lines, she's wearing a string bikini and a smile.

Hantei and Kinben slam their bentos shut and jump into action immediately. "URAWA HANAKO! COVER YOURSELF AND EXIT THE FOUNTAIN IMMEDIATELY!"

"Oh my! Such bold kouhai we have~! Are you that curious? Do you want to see every angle of me that badly?" She's…Hanako's doing this on purpose, Sultore reports as Kaika coaxes it out. Not to seduce. Just to get a rise out of as many people as she possibly can.

Well, two can play at that game. "Lunch and a show, today's the gift that keeps on giving."

"Please don't encourage her, Kaika-senpai! AND YOU HEARD ME, HANAKO!" Hantei's face is an atomic red as she points her gun at the nudist in the public foundation. "If the one piece swimsuit wasn't okay, then why in Kivotos would THIS be?!?"

"Aww, no honorifics for me~? So sad… I just want people to be honest with themselves," Hanako teases, giving Kaika a conspiratorial wink. "Everyone just goes about their day, pretending not to feel these things. So many secrets. So many little lies…" Correction. The high school Diogenes in the public fountain. And that look in her eyes…she's not just talking about sexual repression, is she?

"But that's okay. I'm behaving, see? I've covered myself, and I'm getting out of the water!" And just like that, she's back to being a big tiddied troll. Hanako arranges her hair to cover her chest, stands up, and climbs out of the fountain. She makes no effort to cover any other part of herself, nor does she take particular care to keep her hair where she put it.

"Let me help!" Kaika chirruped with a grin, a brilliant red ribbon forming out of thin air and snaking around the pinkette, making the woman even more indecent for all that it technically covers the essentials. Ah, the power of lingerie.

"Aww…" Hanako looks at her ribbon clad body with conflicting feelings.

"Thank you, Kaika-senpai! This technically covers more!" Hantei is still in full enforcer mode, so her words come out clipped. But in all fairness, the incident isn't exactly resolved. "Now! The rest of your clothes! Put them on!"

"Ara? But I'm still soaking wet?"

"AND WHO'S FAULT IS THAT?!?"

"I mean, she's clothed, technically." Kaika chuckles, blowing Hanako a kiss, "A ribbon is cloth and it covers the essentials. It also isn't a swimsuit, so rules as written, she's golden."

Hanako snaps her fingers, and her eyes light up in mischief. "Oh! You're right, Kaika-san! Okay, then. Since I'm fully dressed, I'll be returning to class now~"

Hantei goes into a full sprint immediately in pursuit of Hanako. Kinben runs around the fountain to try to find Hanako's clothes. "Kaika-senpai, whyyyyyyy!?"

Poor Chie can't even speak through the stammering, the glow of her blushing face only overshadowed by the soft blue glow of Dachi covering her eyes.

"People like that are important to keep everyone from being too uptight." Kaika says, cheerfully omitting how the ribbon is going to melt in a couple of hours. She's sure Hanako will appreciate the surprise.
 
Chapter 3: Take me to the moon
Chapter 3: Take me to the moon

The soft red glow of sunset illuminates the hallways of Trinity Academy. Most of the Students have retired to their dorms, giving the campus a calm, empty feeling. A mechanical citizen with "Fredericks" on his nametag is leading Kaika to a private study room, to meet her tutor for the first time.

"Your tutor will join you at some point after lessons begin," the faculty member says, nervousness tinting his lightly autotuned voice. "He is adamant that only you ever see him while he is on campus."

Mr Fredericks glances at Kaika, as if hoping for a response of some kind. When all he sees is the mask of politeness that the young magus has spent years cultivating, he shudders visibly.

That tells her it isn't quite working as intended, but it is the only way she knows how to interact with nominal superiors… actual ones. Not colleagues with a superiority complex. Fucking snobs.

"I'm sorry to say it, but I'm unsure that we will be able to grade these lessons," Mr Fredericks continues, straightening his tie compulsively. "How they managed to encrypt segments of video feed on this medium is beyond me. And the parts we COULD see felt like we were watching 'The Loft,'" He says, a nervous chuckle indicating the attempt at breaking the ice with humor.

Kaika's polite laughter is as soulless as her shuttered expression. She feels sorry for the poor man, but she isn't going to risk overstepping her bounds.

The sounds of soulless and nervous laughter combined echo through the empty hallway, creating an eerie noise that serves only to enhance the tension. Mr Fredericks quickly stops, and increases his pace.

"If at any point you feel as though your tutor is taking undue advantage of the situation, please inform us immediately. We don't want these classes to have a negative impact on your experience here at Trinity, and we are ready to help you make adjustments as needed."

The clearly rattled citizen glances up at the room numbers. In one swift motion, he grabs a door handle, spins on his heels, and opens the door as he power walks away. "ThankyouIwishyouluckhaveagoodclassBYE"

"Goodbie, sir." She says placidly. She really should do something nice for the guy, but she doesn't know how without potentially making a target of herself. Maybe something anonymous?

Finding his office or home would be easy. Being an ideation specialist meant information was laughably easy to gather.

The room that Kaika steps into is small and windowless. There's a nice wooden table, two chairs, and a television set currently playing static. The lights are off, leaving the glow of the television as the room's only light source. As the door closes, and Kaika takes her seat, the static is replaced by the same symbol that Kaika had seen on the Blu Ray cases for her Clocktower class.

She wonders what curses the Department used to encrypt this. She definitely knows how she'd do it, a minor demon that analyzes incoming ideation to determine who is and isn't in the know.

Kaika isn't sure what she was expecting from these video lessons. But when what looks like handheld camcorder footage of an utterly baffled Professor Twich Crough appears, Kaika is sure this wasn't it.

"Professor El Melloi! What is the meaning of this?! I'm teaching a class right now!" Wait, what? The loudly dressed old man looks like he's alone! And…is Professor Waver recording this?!?

"That confounded contraption does WHAT? Wait, she's still alive? And you expect her to learn from a recording?! How's she supposed to ask questions? What context is she going to have if she can't hear her peers' questions? WHAT KIND OF LESSON IS THIS? I THOUGHT YOU WERE BETTER THAN THIS, WAVER!"

Ooh, he's MAD.

Thoughts and prayers, Professor Waver. Thoughts and prayers.

"FINE. If it settles accounts, then FINE!" Professor Crough grabs a piece of chalk, and starts scribbling on the blackboard like a man possessed. "But on ONE condition! Edit out what's required of you, but ONLY THAT! I DON'T WANT YOU TOUCHING MY LESSON!"

Oh. Oh, no. This is going to be a DELICIOUS disaster. She'd have to squirrel away the recording to let the Kinben and co enjoy.

Kaika can see why this had been compared to what she could only assume was this Worldline's version of "The Room." What follows is simultaneously the most interesting, and deranged, that she's ever seen the old curmudgeon. It's glorious.

Kaika isn't sure exactly when it happens. She never hears the door open, or sees another source of light. But some ways into the lesson, she notices out of the corner of her eye that she isn't alone in the room anymore.

Sitting in the chair next to her is a tall, wooden puppet. He is wearing a rumpled suit, and is bereft of shoes. He has two heads growing from a single neck. Both heads have flat faces, with stylized impressions of eyes carved into the wood. He makes no movement of any sort, simply starting at the screen as Crough howls.

Honestly, he barely makes it into the top ten of weirdest shit she's seen, and that's only because he's apparently qualified as a teacher.

The pair continue to sit in silence as the video plays. The only sounds other than the voice of the elderly magus are those of pencils running across paper as Kaika takes notes.

Eventually, the video comes to an end. The television shuts itself off, and the lights turn back on. The puppet is still in the room. In front of him is an open notebook, and a pencil. Kaika realizes at that moment that he had been taking notes on the lesson right alongside her.

"Hello. I am Maestro. You have questions, yes?" He has no visible mouth, yet he speaks without difficulty.

Okay, so they are doing it like that. "Call me Shin, then. What's your nature?"

"Perceptive. I am an outsider to this City. I am a seeker of Truth. And, possibly most importantly, I am an Artist." Maestro closes his notebook.

"I am not a Magus. The privilege to learn these lessons by your side is the payment that I receive as your tutor. However, I understand that what we do otherwise has a great deal in common."

Maybe, just maybe, she doesn't need to guard herself around him like she does the Administration. There's one very easy way to find out, "What is art to you?"

Her eyes are no longer dead, instead boring into her fellow Outsider with the full intensity of a curious magus.

Despite the unchanging nature of the carved, wooden "faces," Kaika can feel a similar intensity returned to her in kind. "...the exploration of the nature of things. Replication, reflection. Emotions, experiences. The Terror, and the Sublime."

The way he said Terror…

"Mimesises, and the Emotions that make them."

She doesn't need Sultore for this, that conviction resonates in her bones.

"Art is interaction," A tiny crack in her facade, an uptick of her lips. "Art is discovery," It widens, something shaking and feverish peering through, "Art is expression," Gone is the dispassionate tone, she speaks like a true believer preaching the word. "How we convey and inspire the deepest feelings and ideas."

She shudders, hugging herself, "You understand. You know the siren song of the muse, the maddened jitters, the feverish urges. You know what it is to rip open your heart and smear its darkness and light into the canvas."

He's like her. A true artist. A brother.

The sound of creaking wood echoes as Maestro trembles. "The despair when the muse is silent, eclipsed a hundredfold by the joy when she sings once again. The exhultation when your work is finally SEEN. The Kaleidoscope of EMOTION that a viewer can bring, their perspective expanding upon a piece beyond what its maker ever dared to dream!"

It's too much, she has to– she has to–

"Mother Moon and Father Sun," She prays feverishly, Sultore and Paimon leaping to help their enraptured mother, "Watch over your daughter as she wrings dreams from your light and paints them onto reality."

She doesn't need Self-Hypnosis, not here, not now. Not when she proves herself to her brother.

"This is a gift for a brother."

Wood and wind sound, singing glory glory glory.

"For a kindred spirit."

Strings of light dance, twirling like the stars themselves, weaving a tapestry of kinship.

"From your deepest sorrows to your highest joys, from your most ferocious rage to your most serene peace."

She dances with them, every motion sending ripples through the orchestra and the dancers, the world bending knee to the power of creation.

"Let this be the quill to your heart's ink, the boxwood to your mind's clay."

Power flows. Ideation wells up. Reality buckles.

"Let her be named Adestria, my helping hand, now and forever by your side."

Everything collapses into a single beautiful point, floating in the middle of the room. A shimmering wand of the purest bismuth, shimmering in every color of the rainbow. It shifts like quicksilver. One moment a brush, another a sgraffito, the next a chisel.

As the gift descends into the wooden doll's trembling, outstretched palms, he falls to his knees, likewise overcome.

"Such a splendid gift…alas…if only I could work the clay of creation as adroitly as you, my sister in spirit…"

A mixture of feelings radiate from Maestro. Wonder. Gratitude. A deep melancholy.

"I have no Circuits. I am forced to work slowly…coaxe out the shape over days…you will be made to wait for your gift…"

"There's… no shame in it… the muse works… at its own pace and…. no-one else's." She says, breathing heavy too. That… that was a rush like few she's ever had. The sheer joy of finding a kindred spirit at long last overcoming all her magus self-control. "I'm just… happy my youngest… will find purpose so… soon."





"Sister, today I met someone like me. Well and truly. I can't wait to introduce you."

The files, once more, don't reply. She still plays their song, letting it wash over her.





"... Kaika-senpai? Are you listening to me?"

The young magus is shaken from her daydreaming over the previous day's progress by the adorable pouting face of her friend and kouhai, Kinben. As an apology for her role in the Hanako incident, she has agreed to help walk the young enforcer through the process of making her first Bounded Field.

"Sorry, got lost in my thoughts for a moment. I finally found the key to finishing a year long project." She says with a giddy smile. Oh, she can't wait~! She's going to floor Maestro. "Aaanyways, let's get started. Structural Analysis first, need to know where your circuits are before I force them open."

"Wait, what? Circuits? Force?" Kinben babbles in confusion as Kaika's hand comes down to pat the adorable First Year's head. Her eyes dilate for a moment as information crashes into her, only to be ruthlessly cut down into manageable parts and processed. The wonders of a disciplined mind.

"Huh, that's funny." Kaika mutters. "Also, you need more ginger in your diet. Low on antioxidants and your stomach is a greasy meal away from mutiny."

"Don't…please don't tease me like that, Kaika-senpai! And what do you mean by 'Circuits'? I'm not a machine person!" Kinben whines adorably.

"Pffft. Here, let me show you." She says, a tiny curse letting her take off her shirt like she's a yakuza. She even turns around to show her the fancy turquoise patterns on her back, the band of impenetrable black around her torso receding just enough to expose it. Starting from the base of her skull, ten of her twenty circuits split off at the shoulders to run down her arms all the way to the fingertips, while the other ten split off at the hips to do the same with her legs and toes. "Magic Circuits are a spiritual tissue that allows for the processing of od, vital energy, and mana, the world's ambient energy, into magic energy, or prana as some call it."

"Ooh, pretty… but wait, do I really have something like that? I'm a Judgement Angel, not a Youkai or a Magus…" Kinben fidgets in place as she watches Kaika's circuits glow and thrum.

"The answer is kinda! It looks like they're tied to your halo, but there's enough roots in your brain for me to work with. It's about on par with five high quality circuits, which normally would leave you fairly below average in capacity but it's completely fine for what I'm teaching you. Anyone can do the basics and curses only ever need magic energy if you want to give them extra kick." For her own part, she is well above average. Her count may be average, but the freakish length of her circuits means they can process a fair bit of energy just by sheer surface area despite not being special in composition. "Now, for a regular magus I'd be feeding them either a bit of my blood or a decent amount of ether clumps, but that's because circuits tend to be around the torso and so putting some magic energy in the gut gets them going."

Magic energy (and vital energy, for that matter) lingered in bodily fluids. Even a fourth grade magus knew how to concentrate that up.

"For you, though, the quickest way is to hypnotize you." Well, either that or frenching her, but she doesn't think angels are nearly as cavalier about physical intimacy as magi. Back home sexual fluids were sold as mana potions by poorer magi, because blood opened you up to too much. Thankfully, she never needed to stoop that low. "I needed to, anyways, to set up your activation sequence. It's just a mental image and sometimes a couple of words that reflexively activate your circuits."

"That's…a lot to take in at once…" Kinben answers with a strained smile and a nervous laugh. "I'm very happy that we won't need to use blood, but the fact that you're going to be opening something that's inside my brain is a little scary… it doesn't hurt, right?"

"Sorry, I ramble." Kaika chuckles, shaking her head, "And don't worry, it'll burn a bit but that'll be on your scalp and skull if anything. Circuit ends don't hurt since that's not where the energy's being processed. Now, what do you want for your activation sequence? It should be something simple but that makes your brain twinge. Mine's an eye slamming open and the pupil turning into a pinprick."

Kinben sighs in relief, before bringing a finger to her chin in thought. "Hmm. So it's a mental image with meaning… got it. Putting a weight on a scale, bringing it to balance."

"Alright. Now, you'll feel a bit of pressure then heat. This is normal, just stay relaxed." Not that she needs a lack of resistance to do her work, but it's the difference between giving a docile dog a checkup and having to tie a hissing hellbeast to the table. Both were eminently doable, but one was much easier and cleaner.

There's no real fanfare to it, she just locks eyes with the girl, sends a thread of magic energy through the connection and she's in. Even doing this, she can't exactly see what's in her mind, just feel its general state and send orders. A bit like using a computer console in that way.

Now, slip in and prime the suggestion, grasp the bits of nervous system she'd seen through her Structural Analysis and–

While the form of Kinben's "circuits" isn't remotely the same, the function is, and Kaika is DEFINITELY feeding it. Kinben shudders as her halo flickers and takes on a new shape. Her hair glows, and takes on a blue tint to the underside. Small, black feathered wings sprout from her lower back, a mirror to Hasumi's.

"Wew, girl, you'd have some of the magi back home frothing at the mouth. I could probably write a whole thesis on this." Not her field, though. As is, though, all she cares is that a second Structural Analysis shows everything is in perfect working order. "Take it easy now, just get used to the feeling."

Kinben doesn't seem to be in any pain, but she is extremely disoriented. She shakes her head in an attempt to rid herself of her dizziness, and almost tips over. As Kaika catches her and redirects her to a nearby sofa, she sees Kinben's new wings reflexively ruffle, causing her feathers to puff up cutely. "Wow… that was a rush…"

"That's magic for you." Kaika laughs, idly stroking the feathers. She knows that wings are VERY high upkeep, maybe her friend will want some help grooming them? They're stupidly soft. "I'll teach you Structural Analysis once you're on even keel. That's about the most harmless trick I know, and it is fundamental for a reason."

"Okay…okay, I'll trust you…" Kinben murmurs, as she slumps into the soft cushions and stares at the ceiling. "The air on my skin feels different…and I'm seeing strange colors…my wings growing in is the least strange feeling I'm having…"

"Ah, you must be one of those with sharp magic senses. I both do and don't envy you. Here, let me just–" She hugs the poor girl, her circuits flaring to life as she does. She's been told that her magic energy at a rest is very soothing.

Kinben's face rests naturally against Kaika's modest chest as she relaxes into the hug. "... it's like a very loud cat, or a very smooth tank engine. Loud, but nice…"

A few minutes pass, with neither of the girls moving.

"Kaika-senpai? Do you usually go without a bra, or was this for the circuit demonstration?" Kinben asks her question plainly, too out of it to realize she would normally be flustered right now.

"Without. Bras are a pain to shop for." Especially when you're small like them, she doesn't need to add, "So I just developed a tiny curse that does the same for exactly no cost other than a minute of concentration every morning."

No chafing, no soaking sweat, no wires stabbing her between the fucking ribs.

She didn't remember swathes of her life, but by the Root she remembered siccing that decay curse on the shop.

"That makes sense… The smoke is sooo soft…" Yup, Kinben is completely out of it. "You have a really pretty glow, Kaika-senpai…I didn't see it before…is it a magic thing? Are the boobies or the glow prettier?"

"Tangible shadows, actually. Picked up the concept from a novel." She chuckles, "Hm, could just be you seeing the magic energy I'm cycling, could be you getting a glimpse of my soul, could be the lattices my devices cover me with to drain ideation."

Really, it is anyone's guess given the girl isn't human. For all Kaika knows, she's seeing the ideation wafting off of her and into the Lesser Key.

Also, now she's pondering which she should be prouder of, her chest or whatever energies she's emanating.

The pair remain on the couch for a few minutes longer before Kinben falls into a deep sleep. Kaika carefully carries her to her bed, tucks her in, and leaves. There's plenty of time to teach her later.




A week of carefree days go by. Classes come and go. Hantei and Chie notice the change in Kinben, and immediately go to Kaika for their own rituals.

Hantei ends up as Kinben's red mirror, but with a knack for Reinforcement rather than magical senses. Her disorientation was similar to Kinben's, though she tried to move around several times before fully recovering.

Chie, meanwhile, grows a set of wings on her back AND her head. She cleaves closer to the typical Magus experience of a splitting headache, with Kaika spending about an hour grooming her owl-like plumage as she recovers. Her talent isn't immediately obvious just yet.

Kaika's Clocktower lessons likewise continue. Not just Crough, but all of her old teachers got visits from Professor Waver. While their reactions varied, many of them took a similar approach as Crough did, refusing to let Waver engage in editing. She can't take the recordings with her to show them to her friends, but she has her phone recording the moment Professor Yvernecarisburdoa appears on the screen.

Magus politics never change, but at least Kaika now has the distance from it to laugh safely.

Maestro, as promised, sat ever by her side. Sometimes, he would ask Kaika to clarify an aspect of Magus culture that came up. Sometimes, Kaika would have a question about how a concept translated between Worldlines, and Maestro would work with her to find a bridge. It feels like the pair are both learning something new. That both of them are advancing their Art, one step at a time.

It's a Friday night. The last lesson of the week has ended, and Maestro closes his notebook with a soft thud. "Come, walk with me, Shin. I believe that your gift is ready."

She lets her excitement bleed into sparkles in and around her eyes as she springs to her feet. She's practically bouncing in place, overflowing with anticipation at what her brother in spirit had made for her. "With pleasure!"

Walking with Maestro is an odd experience. At times, he is at Kaika's side. Then, a street lamp will shine in the pair's direction, or a sparrow citizen who's had a few drinks too many will glance their way, and he seems to vanish. A moment of searching reveals Maestro to be several yards further down the path, past whatever obstacle he sought to avoid.

"You are blessed to have a body native to this city. My colleagues and I have no such protection. Our best defense is to remain unseen."

Kaika's heart bleeds. For an artist to be limited in where they can go and who they can interact with… no, she will find a solution for this. Already, her mind's eye fills with cloth like a hole cut into the night itself. A void ignored in favor of the stars.

"Do not worry yourself, my sister in spirit. There is pain, but there are also advantages. My colleagues and I are seekers of Truth. We wish to learn the true nature of the Sublime. Gathering secrets is easier when you, yourself, are a secret."

"...Very well." She relents after a moment, "Perhaps I will make a piece so we can at least walk together undisturbed. An umbrella, perhaps, but the question becomes the pattern. I had initially thought of the void between the stars, but perhaps the clouds hiding them away?"

"Hmm. Mist is also a potent metaphor…" Maestro adds. The discussion for the rest of the journey is one concerning art minutiae, and brainstorming several small projects. The pair leave the Trinity campus, and make their way to a disused park, before a taxi with the Kaiser logo arrives to pick them up. There doesn't appear to be a driver, but with mechanical citizens, that means little.

"A favor from a colleague. We are fine."

With that, the pair continue onwards. Away from the clean and inviting architecture, and into a sprawl of urban decay. Reminds her of some of her fieldtrips and assignments with the Department of Curses. Go to this or that slum, see what wild demon a crack addict has made, maybe harvest some ideation.

Kaika can FEEL their destination nearby as the pair disembark from the taxi. The weight of history, of purpose subverted and restored, then allowed to fester and ferment over a long period of disuse.

"Just as I gave you a brush, you gave me a canvas." The magus breathes, in quiet awe at the sheer density of ideation. Her senses for it aren't the best and yet she can feel it like a weighted blanket on her shoulders. This is the sort of site magi families would start feuds over.

"You understand perfectly," Maestro answers, his voice trembling lightly. "I did have to work to restore the building to a functional state. But for our Art, places with such history make deep, rich canvases."

As the pair turn the corner, Kaika's eyes land on a large building, with a flat rooftop and ancient looking brickwork. As Maestro said, there are signs that the building has received more care than the sprawl of urban decay around it, but not so much as to stick out like a sore thumb.

"These stones have stood atop one another since the days before the first Eden Treaty created the Trinity you know today. When the schools of Pater, Filius, and Sanctus, along with several others, were in the midst of a Hot War." The wooden doll runs a hand across the brickwork as the pair approach the front door. "This place was built to be a library. But it became a bunker, where Pater laid siege to Filius. Eventually, the rest of the ruined district was rebuilt, but… you know how durable your body is. You can imagine why brickwork from an age of Hot War would be DEEPLY upsetting to the people who live here, yes?"

Kaika has to think for a moment. It was a Hot War, so actual death had to have taken place. But what would it take to kill someone as durable as a student…? Her reptilian hindbrain is all too happy to hiss the answer into her ears.

You still need to breathe, don't you?

"Human pillars." Kaika says with a shiver. There were horrible, horrible things you could do with that sort of lingering thoughts. Inugami had nothing on what humans did to each other.

She knows what will be born here. The name sits like a stone on her tongue.

The wait will be agonizing, but there is an order to her magnum opus she has to follow. This is the Thirteenth.

"Indeed. Whether there are bodies in the walls or not is of little consequence. What matters is that people feared the possibility enough that they refused to tear the walls down. That once the Treaty was signed, and the building was once again a library, no one would visit it. It was allowed to fester, alongside the district around it."

Maestro turns, and gives Kaika a deep, showman's bow.

"I look forward to seeing what works you create upon this canvas. However, the time has come for me to exit the stage. I understand that, to a Magus, where one chooses to make their Workshop is a deeply private matter. So, if there is even the most remote of possibility that this place would suffice, my presence would be but a sour note in the song."

They may be siblings in spirit, but not even family is allowed in the Workshop.

She smiles. "Good night, Maestro."

"Good night, Shin."
 
Nice to see she's got a foreigner friend and one that shared her artistic passion at the that. Good to see she's not overly 'sane' as no self respecting magus ever is.
Yep. It is just the logical conclusion of having major talent for curses. It means you feel very strongly, which easily translates into an artist's mentality. This is also why Kaika calls her demons her children. (Well, that and her entire life prior to getting isekai'd being varying levels of social isolation and ostracism).

Trust me, if any try to start shit that way? They're the ones getting smashed here.

Wouldn't be the first nor the last either trying to pull that kind of crap.
Bless you. Of all three forums, there's a reason I love QQ the most. The main reason that I didn't upload here to start with is that unfortunately it also tends to be the one with the least amount of commenters in my experience.


Anyways, I got a little gem to share.

United_States_School_System_ba-stylenulla.top.png
 
Anyways, I got a little gem to share.

United_States_School_System_ba-stylenulla.top.png
Okay this? This is cool. Any particular reason for its creation? Will we see an OC school that is completely inconsistent in quality of education and constantly on fire? Will it have a meme tier high quality prefects/military? Is there a history of prank wars with red winter? Tell me more man!
 
Okay this? This is cool. Any particular reason for its creation? Will we see an OC school that is completely inconsistent in quality of education and constantly on fire? Will it have a meme tier high quality prefects/military? Is there a history of prank wars with red winter? Tell me more man!
Lmao. Sadly it is just a meme I found on discord. But we will take your ideas into consideration.
 
If it's discussions and comments you're looking for, you could move this to the nsfw section, but keep it sfw. Should be more readers there.

As for me, I like how the particulars of the magic system got expanded and splashed into Kivotos mystic system, from the previous read on sb before the nuke.
 
Okay this? This is cool. Any particular reason for its creation? Will we see an OC school that is completely inconsistent in quality of education and constantly on fire? Will it have a meme tier high quality prefects/military? Is there a history of prank wars with red winter? Tell me more man!

It's funny you should mention that. We had written the first chapter of this fic before the "Trick Trap Train" event released in JP. So when I needed a Highlander Railway Academy student for Kaika to interact with, I did an anime deep cut.

https://www.reddit.com/r/BlueArchive/s/JpOpuuxFXv

As it turns out? Highlander Railway is Blue Archive's Wild West USA. I look forward to seeing more of them. Then again, I also look forward to more Odyssey Maritime Academy, so we'll see what happens.
 
If it's discussions and comments you're looking for, you could move this to the nsfw section, but keep it sfw. Should be more readers there.

As for me, I like how the particulars of the magic system got expanded and splashed into Kivotos mystic system, from the previous read on sb before the nuke.
Feels a bit deceptive to do that, but I see your point. We'll ponder on it.

Also, glad to hear. Curses are real fun in that, unlike 99% of Nasu magecraft, you can transplant them in crossovers just fine because they don't rely on Thaumaturgical Foundations in the slightest. Plus, something that is literally fueled by thoughts and feelings has a lot of story potential.
 

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