A Space Oddity

by J. J. Pavlov

  There's no point in coming up with theories on my own, though. Senka is always open with me, but this topic seems to be a touchy one, so I'll give her time until she decides to tell me on her own.

  "So, I guess I'll get going?" Senka slides off my lap and walks through the room toward the door. Then she turns around as if having thought of something else just now. "Are you going to just stay here and wait for me to do the entire job?"

  "Oh, you want me to come with you in bodysuit form?" I turn my right forearm into tentacles and wiggle them suggestively. The doll girl looks at me with an unamused expression, but I notice that both Daica and Hestia are staring at that display with similar degrees of fascination.

  "No, but you could prepare yourself just in case." Her eyes make it clear that she isn't referring to herself getting caught, but something else. That Asoko is dead, or maybe even that Kamii has been executed. I don't know what I'd do if those were to come true, but I'm sure it involves razing the academy to the ground.

  "Keep in touch." I stand up from my chair and point at my temple. The doll girl nods, turns away, and opens the door before walking out on her own. I look at Daica and Hestia, whose expressions have returned to the serious ones they had before I showed them the possibilities of my body. "Let's prepare dinner while waiting."

  Senka has a very particular set of skills, one acquired over a very long career. Skills that make her a nightmare for people who want to keep secrets or protect an important person.

  She can move without making a sound and blend into the shadows to a supernatural degree, which defies the understanding of people in this world. It's one of several unique abilities that make her the perfect infiltrator.

  She silently makes her way through the night like a living shadow. Sprinting across the rooftops of Kongenssoevn, she weaves back and forth on both sides of the slanted roofs to avoid the occasional citizen opening a window across the street. The only living beings that detect her presence are animals; cats and birds watch her passing by without getting startled. They can instinctively tell that she's a beast without any intention to harm them.

  The bridge leading up to the citadel is too open and brightly lit with lamp crystals, so there are no shadows for her to exploit. Instead, she climbs along its side, her hands and feet adhering to the smooth stone without the aid of tools.

  Once inside the walls, it's much easier for her to move about. Only the main path leading toward the academy is illuminated, steeping the world around it in even deeper darkness by comparison. Running across the grass quickly, she makes her way to the closed main door. It's never locked as plenty of students come and go during the night, but opening it would cause the hinges to creak.

  Instead, the doll girl begins to inspect the windows from below while pacing along the building front. She can see in the dark, not by default but by enhancing her eyes with a strange power. Within moments, she spots one left slightly ajar by a careless professor. Scaling the wall in large bounds, she reaches it and slowly pushes it open. It may be a detour compared to entering on the ground level, but it's best to minimize risk.

  She quickly sneaks through the classroom and moves toward the door leading out into the corridor but stops right before opening it. Footsteps approach her location from outside, so she hops up onto the ledge of the doorframe and keeps completely still. They soon pass, meaning that the person on the other side was only patrolling rather than coming in this direction because they noticed something.

  Once the footsteps grow inaudible even to Senka's enhanced hearing abilities, she slowly opens the door and peeks outside. The hallways of the academy are kept dark during the night, although there are plenty of lamp crystals that could be used to illuminate them. If somebody were to shout the incantation, the entire school building would light up, but it's part of the rules not to do that - especially not as a prank.

  Her journey to the stairwell leading into the bowels of the island the citadel is built on passes uneventfully. Throughout, she didn't even encounter a single person and had no need to hide. It has been nearly two months since Makoto was banished, and Kamii expelled, so normalcy had plenty of time to settle back in.

  When she reaches the vault door, she stops and thinks. The first time they opened it, the professors came almost right away. Back then, it didn't look like they were there to find whoever broke into the basement. Makoto thought it might have just been a secret meeting with somebody coming through the transportation circle.

  However, it happened again the second time when she went to Arkaim. Only that time, the professors immediately knew who did it.

  There were several possibilities as to how they found out. A silent alarm can't be ruled out, but it wouldn't explain why the professors didn't look alarmed at all the first time. Speculating needlessly won't result in any answers, so for now, she can only get Asoko out and think about this later.

  Placing her palm on the cold metal of the vault door, she extends her consciousness into it to see the lock. Having experience with it before, she makes the mechanism come to life immediately and opens the lock. Slipping inside and leaving the door slightly ajar, Senka runs straight toward the pile of furniture used to camouflage the old stone staircase leading into the transportation room.

  "Asoko?" Once inside the hollow mockup pile, she feels safe enough to call out to Makoto's other half. However, her voice echoing into the depths is the only sound in the otherwise silent darkness. The putrid smell of undeath reaches her nose, and she wrinkles it. Taking several steps at once, she descends the short staircase and enters the large circular hall at the center of which lies the transportation circle.

  When she looks around, she finds that one of the grates covering the tunnels that lead out of this room was bent from the other side, with some bars even ripped off from the sheer force that must have crashed through them. There are no undead bodies around, but their lingering smell is strong enough to understand that there must have been some in here recently. The signs of battle are also evident, with scorch marks on the ground and arrows stuck in the walls. It seems that the academy didn't have time to clean up everything yet.

  "Asoko?" Once again, Senka calls out to Makoto's split half.

  "Senka?" A large piece of debris suddenly transforms into a dark-skinned and black-haired version of Makoto. Even though it has been over half a day since she was accidentally sent here, she hasn't tried to find her own way out of this place yet. "Oh yeah, you really do have a cute design."

  "Yeah, you're Makoto's split half alright." Shaking her head at the lack of urgency in her opposite's expression, she remarks with a sigh. "It's good that you didn't try to leave on your own."

  "My other half told me that she fought in this place against the professors and was teleported to the desert." Asoko begins to explain why she waited all this time. "When separated, always stay in place instead of wandering off. In case she came here, and I moved, she could be forced into a battle against the professors again."

  "How long would you have waited?" Tilting her head with an eyebrow raised, Senka wonders.

  "Considering this is underground, I don't have a good grasp on time. But I guess until the smell of decay would have started to resemble that of food to me." The other Makoto shudders at the thought. "Though at that time, I would have gone that way."

  She points at the tunnel with the broken grate. The only other way would have been to go up into the academy building. But there, she would risk running into professors who all want a piece of her due to her likeness to the person that killed several of them two months ago.

  "Well, I'm here now." Stating with a shrug, the doll girl looks around to take in the situation. The academy mostly cleaned this place up, but since it's underground, there's no way to air it out properly. But they haven't taken care of the debris and all remnants of the battle yet, so it means they will come again. The grate needs to be repaired as well.

  In either case, Kamii, Rolan, and the rest of the party were caught in here.
That means the academy is monitoring this place in one way or another. The theory of a silent alarm is looking quite likely, so they need to get out as quickly as possible.

  "We need to leave. Can you transform into something small?" Even though Makoto told her that Asoko could turn into a bodysuit as well, she would prefer not to wear living clothes if she can help it.

  "I never tried it, but I know my other half can do it." Scratching her chin in a thoughtful gesture, the split half looks down at the doll girl. Then she extends an arm toward her and turns it into blood-red tentacles rather than the black ones Makoto has. They splay out into even smaller tendrils and cling to Senka's arm before her entire mass moves through that connection to spread across her skin.

  "Of course, it's the same." Rolling her eyes, she endures the procedure with a less than amused expression. "Why do you feel so sticky, though?"

  "Sorry, first time doing this." Asoko's voice comes from her chest area, which bulges up into two beautiful mounds. The doll girl lifts her neckline to look inside. There, two gatherings of tentacle mass sit right on top of her nonexistent breasts, and a pair of googly eyes peer up at her in surprise.

  "And what are you doing there, hm?" Senka's expression doesn't betray her thoughts, but she's about to stick her hand in her shirt and rip the reddish creature off herself.

  "Enjoying the view of the Great Plains- I'm kidding! I'm not done yet!" The formless mass tries to crack a joke, but when the doll girl's eye twitches in anger, she quickly straightens herself out. Asoko continues to distribute herself across Senka's body until it's all flattened out underneath her clothes. Then she adds in a pouting voice that doesn't have a perceivable origin. "Thought I'd give you a glimpse of what is never meant to be."

  "Ahn?!" With blue eyes wide open and an angry voice, Senka challenges that tactless statement while glaring down into her cleavage even though the eyes have already disappeared from there.

  "Nothing." A whimper is all the response she gets.

  "In either case, stay quiet until we're out of here." Returning the conversation to the serious situation at hand, the doll girl checks her body to see whether or not Asoko made any mistakes and has parts sticking out. Once satisfied, she glances around the transportation hall one last time before making her way out of the vault.

  She decides that taking the route she came in through would be the best, as she already scouted out all the hiding places along the way. In case somebody patrols there, she can blend into the shadows until they pass.

  As she walks through the corridor from pillar to pillar to avoid the moonlight falling in through the large windows, Asoko clings onto her skin without making a sound. Even though she likes to be playful at the most inappropriate times - according to Makoto - she understands not to mess around right now.

  They reach the door to the classroom without incident, and Senka motions to open it when something hits her from the side and pushes her down onto her stomach. A knee comes down on her right arm and pins it to the ground while a hand grabs her left and forces it around onto her back, putting her in a police lock.

  "Oya? Aren't you Miss Marcott's doll?" The voice belongs to the dorm mother of the academy, Mistress Ninlil, and it doesn't sound surprised at all that Senka is moving about on her own. "What brings you to the academy?"

  How did she find her? The reason why the doll girl can avoid detection is that she lacks any sort of presence. When she focuses her mind on it, she will blend into the background in all but actual appearance, causing people to ignore her existence. As long as she makes no sound, she is as good as invisible.

  Then she realizes that even though Asoko is underneath her clothes, she doesn't have that ability. Maybe that's what gave away her presence.

  From the corner of her eyes, she sees Ninlil's cat ears twitch and realizes that the explanation may be much more straightforward. Even though she possesses intelligence and is of an indefinite age, which even Grand Master Thorvald regards with respect, she's still attuned with her primal nature. She sniffs the air around the doll girl and sneezes cutely.

  "You smell of decay. Did you come through the Lost Tombs and into the transportation room?" The dorm mother asks with a raised eyebrow. At these words, Senka suppresses the urge to snap open her jaw. She never considered that the stench from the corpses would cling to her clothes and that the catgirl's nose would pick it up.

  "Yeah, you should really air that place out." She presses out this snarky remark through her clenched teeth. The catgirl is kneeling on her back and keeping her down on the ground quite forcefully, but then the pressure suddenly disappears.

  "So, you do speak." Ninlil scoffs before getting up and pulling the doll girl onto her feet. They're both the same height, but the former possesses disproportionate strength in her tiny body. "You'll come with me and tell me everything."

  "Sorry, but I really have to go." With these words, Senka's shoulder pops out of its socket with an audible sound. Walking up the door and flipping over Ninlil while the latter still grips her wrists, she tries to smash a knee into the back of the cat girl's head. The motion causes her other arm to dislocate as well.

  But the latter lets go and avoids the attack with a nimble sidestep. Although she could have used that opening to attack, her eyes tell Senka that this was a wholly unexpected move. Using that time to swing up one of her dislocated arms and drop down her sleeve, she bites a piece off the Asoko suit.

  "I'm speaking into your mind right now; answer by thinking your words. Don't show yourself." Senka immediately establishes the telepathic connection with Asoko. She has to praise her for not screaming out loud in surprise from getting a part of her body bitten off so suddenly, but Makoto may have already told her about that unique ability. "They don't know what I'm here for, but if you show up, they will try everything to kill you."

  "What are you doing?" With an eyebrow raised, the dorm mother looks at the doll girl with a concerned expression. In the next moment, Senka pulls on her arm with her teeth and then pushes on it, popping it right back into her shoulder. It causes the cat girl to stare at her in apprehension, which is further deepened by the other shoulder getting popped back in right after.

  "I'm used to it." Senka shrugs while lifting her arms. "I assume you're the only one who knows I'm here right now? Let's not make a scene, alright?"

  "You are not going anywhere." Lowering her stance like a cat ready to pounce, the dorm mother states in a matter of fact tone. Then her ears twitch, and she straightens her back again. "It would appear that we don't need to fight."

  "I agree." With these words, the doll girl reaches behind herself to open the door to the classroom while keeping her eyes on Ninlil. Then she realizes the real reason why the catgirl has left her fighting stance. From the right side of the hallway, a tall figure rounds the corner, wearing what appears to be a purple silken pajama and satin slippers. A crystal-encrusted wand reflects the moonlight falling in through the windows.

  "I messed up." With a wry smile, Senka reports to Makoto through her mind before gravity causes her knees to buckle and smashes her head into the ground.

  Chapter 73 - Angular Momentum

  "What happened?!" I shout in my mind but get no response. Senka's last transmission said that she messed up, and she hasn't answered since. Don't tell me she...

  "What is it, Chloe?" Hestia asks me with a concerned expression. I must have made a scary face just now.

  "Senka was caught." That's all I'm willing to admit, more to myself than to my companions. I won't allow a single thought of the possibility that something worse has happened enter my mind. Well, the fact that I just thought this means it did, but I banish it and look at the angel girl while standing up. "I'm going to break them out."

  "I'm coming with you." Daica jumps up from her chair and speaks without a stutter. She must be feeling left out after everything that happened, but I can tell that she also wants to go and help Senka.

  "Can you fight?" But I have to ask this question to
which I already know the answer.

  "N-no..." Lowering her head, her stutter begins again. "B-but I can't s-sit by when Senka has been c-captured."

  "I understand." I bridge the distance between us and close my arms around the big dark elf. On my way back here from the Khurut Sultanate, my thoughts were almost entirely focused on Kamii. But that doesn't mean I don't I love her just as much. It was only because the little dark elf was in the clutches of the academy the last time I saw her, while I knew that Daica was safe in her store. "But I can't risk you getting hurt in battle. You don't know any magic, and our opponents will be masters whom even I had trouble against."

  With the dragon template, I should have a much better chance against them now, but being forced into fighting them again isn't the best situation. But this time, we won't be fighting anywhere near the transportation hall, so it will come down to a battle of endurance, something I excel in.

  "I-I can help in another way." Daica looks up into my eyes with a determined expression. Does this have something to do with the Nomads of Ogin? Could she be mobilizing an army of dark elves to come to my aid? I remember Adano and his family and think about their combat capabilities. They weren't that great.

  "Do tell." But I keep my mind open to whatever her suggestion may be. Anything at all is better than nothing.

  So it was decided that Hestia would take to the skies and come from above. At the same time, I would turn into a bodysuit for Daica and enter the citadel through the front gate using her connections. Over the past month, she had been supplying the academy with rare materials used in alchemy in preparation for a day when that connection could become useful. She even had the foresight to go at different times during both the day and the night so that she could eventually show up at any time, and they would grant her entry. After all, the academy was relatively active at night too.