COMA: Fragmented Reality

"First and Second platoon, you're heading for the west area of the city. Leave the east and south areas to the S.S.S agents."

"Yes, Kanbu Furuta!"

"Well then, commence deployment!"

Furuta-sensei started the deployment of our combat groups throughout the city in order to reinforce both the Sumeragi members, local policemen and SDF soldiers in Fukushima.

"Agents, our main role is to provide safe passage for civilians through the combat areas, so you don't need to constantly ask your Operators for permission to do things. But do keep in mind that we have to practice the maximum possible tolerance for the anarchist group members… They are officially just armed rioters, so shooting at them as if they are legitimate terrorists will be a questionable thing to do. Nevertheless, if you are harmed or to be harmed, you have the right to neutralize them… Am I clear?!"

"Yes, Commander Otonashi!"

Meanwhile, Branch Manager Otonashi gave a reminder to the other S.S.S agents before they boarded their vehicles to head to the city.

"You three, follow me inside for a moment. Your briefing is more complex."

Along with Furuta-sensei and Otonashi-san, Mana, Kai and I entered the S.S.S bunker which was less modern than the one in Old Tokyo.

"This is my office. Your briefing can be done here."

Otonashi-san tended to the blinds and turned on the noise makers to keep the details of our meeting as a secret. It was the same as Yurippe's protocol during meetings.

"You said that Director Nakamura sent you an update about the events in Fukushima while we are heading towards here… What is it about?"

"It's this, Furuta-dono."

"I-is this…?"

"Yes, an Astra energy scanner image of Fukushima city from the drone that Old Tokyo command sent to here. This is an image from two days ago when the unrest became larger…

Otonashi-san turned his computer screen around to show us an image of Fukushima city two days ago when we were called up to reinforce the city after the civil unrest gained more power.

The image showed small and almost undetectable specks of Astra energy that belongs to about 20 or below Psychics in the city.

"And this… is an image from before sunrise today."

"That-!"

"Yes, we think that except for the rebellion in the city, something more horrid is happening inside Fukushima that only people like you can solve."

Otonashi-san's words was something that I cannot deny. After all, the drone image showed that unlike the miniscule specks of Astra energy from only about a day ago, the amount of concentrated Astra energy in the city right now has…

"You three, prepare yourselves. We're entering the city immediately."

"""Yes, Sensei!"""

…already consumed the city whole.

"Halt! State your identities!"

"Ministry of Internal Defense. Special Security Service Agents."

"We're among the ones who was sent as reinforcements."

"A-ah! Pardon me, sirs! You can get through now."

At the highway leading to Fukushima, a heavily defended SDF checkpoint stopped us and asked for our identities. I and Mana showed our IDs and was allowed to get through.

"Darn… this place looks like the training ground after I use my flow state…"

"For once, I can agree with you, kid."

It was just at the outskirts, but the government and business buildings of Fukushima has been razed by the recent riots.

"We're nearing the combat area. We'll stop here and continue on foot."

"Aye."

"Should we get some guns too, boss?"

"Yeah. We have to minimize our Astra energy traces so it's better if you kids can fight back without using your powers… but only Ephraim can use a rifle."

"Eh?!"

"You shut your trap, Kai. I can't count how many times you almost killed me while trying to use a rifle. Stick with a handgun or I'll send you out there unarmed."

"Aww… That's no fair, boss."

Hearing that thing from Furuta-sensei reminded me of yesterday's accidents in the gun range with a certain someone.

"…"

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Nothing."

Still, it would be better not to remind her of that anymore… especially when we are in a battlefield.

"The nearest blotch of Astra energy is here…"

"Alright. Get to formation. We're breaking into this building."

After confirming that the building in front of us is the right place where one of the blotches of Astra energy in the scanner is located, us three lined up along the wall as Furuta-sensei kicked it down and threw a shock grenade inside.

*BAK-! BAK-! BAK-!*

"Ahhhh!!!"

"Make that thing stop!!!"

"Hands up!"

"Get away from the table!"

After the grenade stopped exploding and successfully stunned our enemies, we immediately entered and held the people inside on gunpoint.

"Woah, woah, woah! We're unarmed! Unarmed!"

"You cops won't shoot civilians, right?"

"…Sensei, these people are-"

"I know."

Black face masks, red shirts and graffiti cans on their tool belts. These are the reported Anarchists.

"Hey boss, that stuff in their table."

"Argh… You've gotta be kidding me."

"Hey, hey, hey! Hands off my stuff, buddy!"

"I said hands up!"

"Tch!"

Furuta-sensei approached their table and one of them began to react as if to keep him away, but I shouted back and pointed my gun at him to keep him in his place.

"…Ephraim, cuff them."

"Sensei?"

"Cuff them and call for S.S.S agents to take them away. This is an order."

"…Understood, sir."

I did as Furuta-sensei ordered and asked Kai and Mana to keep their guns pointed at them as I used cable ties to cuff their hands tightly to arrest them.

"…Is it what I think it is, boss?"

"Yeah. Without a doubt."

"Those are narcotics, right? Its street name is "Sorcerer Stone", isn't it?"

After calling the appropriate people and keeping them in one place, I looked at the rough and crystalline-looking stone on Furuta-sensei's hand and immediately recognized it as an illegal substance.

"A sick concoction of methamphetamine and Flakka. This drug made and broke rich people around the world before the war… And to see it in this place…"

"Woah! Why did you just toss this to me, boss?"

Furuta-sensei gave the still solid drug to Kai and approached one of the arrested anarchists, taking him by the collar.

"You. Why are you making drugs here?"

"Tch! I'm not telling you-"

*Ka-byak!*

"Ack-!"

"Kyaa!!!"

"A-Andou-kun-!"

"Again… Answer me. Why are you making drugs in here?"

"Pto! I told you already… I'm not telling you-!"

*Byak-!*

"H-hey! Stop that already!"

"L-Let go of Andou-kun, you bastard!"

"Not until I either break his face or he answers my question."

"H-hey, you two! You're supposed to be government people, right? Stop this guy from hurting him!"

"…"

"He's an innocent civilian! Isn't your job protecting innocent and powerless civilians like us?!"

"…Well, I don't know about that."

"H-huh?"

"Powerless, innocent and civilian… those three words surely does not describe you even in the slightest."

I spoke while Furuta-sensei continued to force the answers he needed from the guy who is still keeping his mouth shut.

"W-What? Y-you three… you can't be-"

"Fukushima city is in flames. Hundreds of people had their livelihoods destroyed. Children whose family members used to work for the government lost their loved ones. Security agents, policemen and soldiers are risking their lives to keep the civil unrest inside the city along with the damages it makes and even through all of that, people like you who are responsible for all of this still calls themselves powerless and innocent civilians that must be protected…"

"Eeek!"

"So, you three are model citizens… serving their country and maintaining its peace by burning down homes, stores and public buildings, and killing the people that works or lives in them."

I pointed my handgun on one of them which made the other two shake in fear.

"We can shoot you all down, place guns on your hands, report that this was a shoot-out after we had an encounter, and walk away from this place scot-free…"

*Click*

"P-p-p-please…! I-I-I'm sorry… I'm sorry…!"

"…"

"W-W-We did wrong things… so p-please… d-d-don't kill us…!"

I may have sounded as the evilest person in the world after I explained that I am willing to do all of that set-up to just finish their lives and continue on my job as if nothing happened, but that is the point of my act.

"A-Alright… I'll speak! I'll speak now! Just keep your guns down and don't shoot us!"

"You heard him, kid…"

"…Roger that, sir."

After he was scared enough due to my threat, he finally opened his mouth to confess everything that was happening here.

"T-The bigwigs… the rich ones who gave us money so we can start the riots… they told us that once we get to control large enough areas of the city, we have to earn money on our own."

"Bigwigs… what an odd name."

"I-it's just how our higher ups call them. They gave us materials and taught us to make these things which they buy immediately. We used to make them on small batches before the riots, but now that we have taken much of the city, we've been told to ramp up our production and earn more money to support the ones making a mess at the outskirts of the city."

"Boss, this tactic sounds familiar."

"Old Osaka. 2064. I will never forget that."

"Haah… same bastards, same tricks…"

Kai and Furuta-sensei spoke as if they have encountered something like this long before. The mention of Old Osaka gave me some clue as to what it is.

"Rai-kun, the agents are nearby. They'll handle these three and the collection of the evidence."

"Mm. Furuta-sensei, should we go ahead."

"…Yeah. The scanner is still going wild in here. Let's explore the building more. Leave those three and the drugs to the agents. You three, on me."

"Yes, sir!"

We opened the door leading to the main storage room of the building and found crates that once we opened, contained more drugs and the materials needed to make them, packaged for either delivery or for use.

*Kyiiii! PAK!*

"Crap!"

"Kai! What happened?!"

"Boss! The scanner overloaded here and popped its fuse… Darn, that surprised me…"

"Here? Ephraim, open this."

"Yes, sir."

I used a crowbar to undo the nails on the crate and once we opened it, it contained a lot of Styrofoam bits as cushioning for something inside that was fragile.

"An Astra energy emitter… why here?"

"Doesn't matter. This is the Miyazono corporation that we are talking about…"

As Mana took it out of the crate, we thought about why such a thing is present in here and Furuta-sensei said that it doesn't really matter because our enemy might just be doing whatever it wants to do. But I had something on my mind that was against his hypothesis.

"…Or it does."

"What do you mean, Rai?"

"This is a drug factory… quite away from the places which are still contested between the anarchists and the security officers… this drug trade with their bigwigs is their source of income but since we know that these bigwigs are the Miyazono corporation, it might mean that this emitter serves a purpose in this drug trade."

"Hmm…"

"Rai-kun's suspicion might be right. Think back on it, boss. Isn't that case we had in Old Osaka almost like a precedent for this one?"

"Wait… now that you said that…"

Finally, it seemed like something clicked in Furuta-sensei's head.

"Kai, has Kaede finished her research about that investigation mission you went with her last month?"

"That? Ah. She hasn't yet. But I heard that she made a breakthrough after she collected more data during last time's mission in Chiba."

"If my suspicion is correct, that means that this Astra energy emitter… that is in a drug laboratory like this…"

Furuta-sensei scooped up some of the finished drugs from a crate and placed it near the emitter and focused his Astra energy on his eyes which we did as well.

"I-It glows!"

"Then these drugs are-"

"Yeah… I am right."

Furuta-sensei put back the powder-like drug on the crate before taking the Astra energy emitter and defusing it.

"…these are narcotic enhancers for their Seed Psychics. They're using drugs to give their men some power-up."

After confirming that and seeing off the criminals and their items, we pushed further into the city while eluding the attention of the Anarchists who are setting up their presence in the area.

"There are still trapped civilians out here."

"Just mark them on your maps to inform the other agents. Our mission takes precedence, Ephraim."

"Yes, sir."

We marked some houses as places that the Agents have to get into to rescue the stranded civilians and by sunset, decided to rest.

"This building looks good enough. Let's stay here for the night."

"I wish it has running water."

"Our equipment needs some recharging. I wish it has electricity."

We rested for the night in a closed down and inconspicuous apartment building and in the morning, continued on our trail to the second nearest Astra energy blotch in our scanner map.

"This place looks like it is uninhabited."

"Alright, let's get inside."

"Got it."

"Roger."

The next building is an old post office branch that was covered with graffiti and had all of its windows broken. We crossed the street after their patrols have passed by and entered through its now destroyed back door.

"Oh no… Mana-chan, look away."

"Y-yeah…"

Inside the post office, we saw multiple mutilated bodies of its workers who must've been killed during the initial attacks and riots. One of these is the manager who had his body covered with graffiti markings of anarchy symbols or insults like "government dog" and "chauvinist pigs".

"…The scanner points here."

"Furuta-sensei. The metal door."

"I got it."

Furuta-sensei used his power to break the heavy metal door leading to the innermost room of the building and once we opened it, we found that the place has been used by our enemy.

"Documents with the Miyazono corporation's stationary paper… official orders and instructions from their higher ups."

"There are even laptops here that has their incomplete reports to their officers."

"…Jackpot."

While they are collecting the documents, I used my scanner to find the emitter and found it inside a cabinet where it is actively emitting Astra energy.

"Sensei."

"Got it. Let me diffuse it since it's active."

While Sensei is carefully disabling the machine, I walked outside to the office's main hall to look outside and after approaching the window, saw the destruction that is happening outside.

"…This reminds me of someplace familiar."

Well, that place I am remembering used to be my home after all… for eight years, I lived and grew there both physically and mentally. It might not be as chaotic as the one I am seeing right now, but I feel like this sight of buildings on fire, the constant sound of explosions, and the eerie dystopian look around the city… all of it was alike that place.

"Ain't this a sight, Ate Risa?"

Before I got more sentimental and remember all of those bittersweet memories, I narrowed my eyes and saw some young people driving recklessly on the road before haphazardly parking in front of the post office.

"Crap…"

I unlocked my gun and ran behind the post office's counter table to prepare if ever they are here to attack us.

"Buhahaha!!! We caught another dog!"

"Those top guys would surely like this new video, won't they?"

"P-P-Please! Please spare me!"

They kicked open the front door and dragged inside a woman whom from her uniform, I deduced to be a clerk from the city hall. She has wounds and bruises on her arms and legs and from her eyes, there was a certain sense of terror.

"Oi, oi! This government dog sure knows how to whimper, huh?"

"P-please! I am just a worker in the city hall! I-I don't want to die! I-I-I still have a family in my home and-"

"You have a family? Hey, hey! Did you hear that, folks?"

"M-my family is-"

"We know! They are next! Hahahaha!!!"

There were about nine of them inside, two were holding her up, three are pointing their phones near her to record their conversation and torturing and the other four are preparing the rope that will be used to hang her at the balcony of the main hall.

"W-W-Wait! P-P-Please… please don't hurt my family… they are… they are just children. They can't-"

"You shut up, bitch!"

"Guhak-!"

"We're damn sick of all of your rules and whatnots, you overaged fossils… We're done with all of your do's and don'ts! Our time has come! We will drag you down from your powerful positions and we will make a society that has no rules and no restrictions!"

"Yeah!"

"That's right!"

"You hear that, folks? That's our dream!"

They dragged her near the dangling rope and began to present themselves as if they are in a tv show.

"People of the world, both free and enslaved by the old order of things… I welcome you to another live show of our group who desires to change everything."

"Yoo!!!"

"Come on, people! Cheer us in the chat!"

As I felt that things are about to escalate, I took my radiophone and called Furuta-sensei and the others from the interior rooms.

"Sensei, multiple hostiles in the main hall. Requesting back up."

{"…Positive. We're just about to finish here. Link up with you on your mark."}

"Positive. Be here ASAP."

I continued to watch over the show as Furuta-sensei and the others are finishing with their tasks upstairs.

"We have finally taken this city in Japan and made our names known to everyone. Knowing the value they place on us, whom they desperately need to realize their goals and agendas, they will certainly not harm us… No, they wouldn't even dare to stop us!"

"And with that, we wish to convince you, our brethren! Don't follow them! They will only use you for their selfish goals and abandon you just as how they abandoned these people after we began our attack! Rebel against them! Remove them from power! Show them that they are nothing without us! Show them that we don't need their rules anymore to live our life as how we wish to live it!"

I peered into one of the phones they are using to record and found which website it was. With that, I pressed my earpiece to dial a direct call to Yusa-san, my Operator.

{"Operator Yusa, online. What is this about, Operative Chronia."}

"I need some help to bring down a streaming website in the web."

{"…Alright. I'm in. What website is it?"}

"Deep broadcaster organization… the site seems to be run by the anarchists themselves."

{"Okay. I am in the site. Proceeding to bring it down."}

"Thanks a lot, Yusa-san. Inform Yurippe and the others about this for me."

{I will, I promise. Cutting transmissions now."}

As soon as the line was cut, the same happened to the live streaming application in the phones that they are using.

"Hey! Something is going on here…"

"Server error?"

"Oh, come on! We're about to start this up!"

With their video streaming site hacked and destroyed by Yusa-san's quick action, the group talked about what to do next and after a moment, they decided to just continue with hanging the woman.

"Kick her down."

"N-No-!"

But we will not let that to happen.

"Hands up!"

"Don't you dare kick her down!"

"W-What?"

"Who the heck-?!"

From upstairs, Furuta-sensei and the other two pointed their guns towards them as I hopped over the front desk table and did the same up close.

"C-Cops-?!"

"Oi, oi! What the hell are these crooks doing here?! Didn't I tell you to lock this place down?!"

Some of them looked shaken as they raised their hands, but the more dominant-looking ones didn't flinch which made me threaten them more.

"All of you get down! On the ground! Now!"

"Screw you!"

"Shit-!"

*Bak!*

*Tak-! Tak-! Tak-!*

One of them drew out a handgun and shot it towards my position, but it only flew by me. However, my reactive firing didn't go the same way as his'.

"AAAAAHHH! Son of a-"

"K-Ken-kun!"

"You bastard! You shot him!"

"…"

He got hit by two of the three bullets that came out of my rifle's burst fire which hit him on the right shoulder.

"Mana, call for reinforcements. Tell them that there's a wounded hostile."

"Yes, sir!"

"Kai, tend to that woman. She's heavily wounded."

"Yes, boss!"

Furuta-sensei gave the two their orders before jumping down to the main hall and looking at the nine enemies we have in our custody right now.

"Young people… what a waste…"

"What did you say, old man?!"

"I meant what I said, you wretch. What? Want me to permanently stop you from saying anything, huh?"

"Agwah-!"

Furuta-sensei, being someone who generally doesn't like to be interrupted, took the disrespectful guy by his long hair, and placed the muzzle end of his pistol inside the guy's mouth.

"Sensei. This is just one warm pile of crap over the other..."

"I know. That's why my blood is also boiling… You! Stay down or I'll make sure you can't ever get up!"

"Kak-! O-O-Okay, okay!"

After letting go of the one he threatened, Furuta-sensei looked at them again and seemed to ponder about what I just said.

"Ephraim… I know already that you are mature enough mentally to understand this since you said that… but it really just is against my principle to send you three kids out there…"

"We appreciate your concern, Sensei. But we three already know that."

"…"

"Since we became Psychics, we accepted that we could die at any moment if it will help someone out and we can use these powers for something good."

"Ephraim…"

"Don't back down just because you feel bad for us. Mana, Kai and I all understood this side of yours after that thing happened in Chiba."

Furuta-sensei seemed to still be conflicted, but he nevertheless waved his head side to side and replied to my request.

"Alright… let's mop this mess and finish this tonight."

"Is that an order, sir?"

"…Yes. Treat it as one."

"Understood."