"The armed car is coming in. Give it a support."
Reji stands up and sets his rifle. He sees a guy with a bazooka on the other side of the road.
"Run!"
Reji calls out and jumps to the side. Several seconds later, a metal ball of the bazooka shoots through the stairs to the subway.
Someone stands up around Reji's feet. He sees a helmet and a body under the shattered concrete.
Reji picks up his upper body and fires his rifle. The armed vehicle rolls in, and several Riot Police members jumps out. They immediately start shooting in a wide range of directions.
The Riot Police won the fight after 5 minutes.
There were five people in the Earthlight party. Two of them ran away, and the other three got captured. On the other hand, the Riot Police side has lost two members.
"Give me a poncho."
Morihara says. The Riot Police's work includes collecting dead bodies before leaving.
There are two helmets lying around the spot where the first explosion happened. One is almost indistinguishable. The other has a head of Takita. His great liver and kidney are found crashed in the supplementary reinforcing armor 10 meters away.
Morihara gathers the reserve trainees.
"The mission has finished. Thank you for your hard work. Those who survived this mission automatically becomes members of the Riot Police. Tomorrow you are moving from your dorm. That's all."
--- Okay. I see.
Reji thinks in his fuzzy head.
We are in the war. Earthlight and the Riot Police has been fighting for a long time.
Still, the dull head can't understand what it means by it.
*****
"Tel me what's in your mind."
Akari fixes her eyes on Junrock. Her eyes are rocked on him.
"You would be thinking I've told fake information."
"If not, why the hell did A-B-A-H-S come out? That was a perfect ambush."
"So, I told you that something was wrong at the beginning. You ignored it!"
"Shut up!"?
Junrock throws his body on a chair. The chair moves backward on the floor for a meter or so in the momentum before it hits the wall.
"Anyway! We've fallen for the trap. That's why Reji got taken away. Also, the armed vehicle of the Riot Police was there as the guard. This means that A-B-A-H-S and the Riot Police are helping each other with actively stepping in. This is emergency."
"I didn't give you fake information. I'm trying to help."
"Then, why did this happen!?"
Junrock throws a panel to Akari. It displays a document that says "MEMORY OF STEEL".
Akari opens her eyes wide.
"This is what my mum wrote! Why are you looking at a private thing like this? I didn't break into the research center to show you this!"?
"The reason doesn't matter."
Junrock sniggers.
"Can't you get away from A-B-A-H-S after all?"
"....I can't believe this. I didn't think you as such brainless group. The mission wasn't well-planed. Are you guys stupid?"?
"What did you say?"
Clare cannot sit by anymore and jumps in.
"That's enough. There is no use in arguing. Even after Reji's gone, we should keep on going as a party. The next mission has already started, right?"
"Yeah, that's right. The plan is going into the phase when we should stir things up for the UniverSoc preparation. We'll be given a detailed order soon."
Akari goes back to her seat and wears the psy-connect adapter.
"Akari?"
"Don't talk to me now. If you have time to do that sort of thing, you should think about yourself first. You might want to think again on what you're aiming for and what you need to do to achieve it. Strategies and tactics are different, you know?"
Clare puts a hand on Akari's shoulder and says with a calming voice.
"We aren't blaming you for what happened to Reji. Take it easy."
Akari looks up at her face.
"..... I know."
She murmurs.
"I think of you as a company."
To that, Akari says "I Know." again. She faces the device and starts psy-connect to get on with her work.
There is some unsettling feeling smoldering inside Akari's chest. Should I stay here? Am I truly a companion to them?
*****
"It's rare that you come for an inspection around this time of the year.
The driver talks to Sekiba.
"I know. I didn't imagine I'd be doing this kind of work as well. I don't know this is some sort of moral enhancement for the coming-up UniverSoc, but the Riot Police seems to love moving their bodies. I can't keep up with them. Ha!"
"That sounds rough, sir."
Sekiba turns his neck to relax his tensed shoulder at the spacious backseat of the company car. There are too many troubles.
Nakazato is completely annoyed. This can't be helped. I have to explain some day anyway. She might get upset even more. When I think of it, it seems okay to leave her angry like that for now.
Akari is still in the hand of Earthlight. This is an issue, but this might turn out well. It could mean she's protected. At least ASIT is preparing for the UniverSoc without Akari.
The UniverSoc is the matter. DS and the eight mass-production A-B-A-H-S will be presented there. This would definitely happen. If that's the case, how people accept them become important.
A-B-A-H-S isn't a weapon. In order not to let people recognize A-B-A-H-S as such, a harsh measure might be required.
The similar measure would be needed for Nakazato.
Akari cannot be Nakazato anymore.
Two guys come out when the car gets to the training center. One is thin, and the other has a well-built body. The former would be an official and the latter will be an Riot Police officer.
The driver opens the door, and the thin guy steps forward. Sekiba gets off the car and takes his hand.
"Thank you for coming all the way here. I know you're busy."
"Sorry if arranging my visit wasn't easy. I look forward to coming here!"?
"Please take a look at the enthusiasm attitude of the members. I'll get an assistant police inspector, Morihara to guide you around. This is Morihara."
"Yes, Sir! It's my pleasure to meet you."
Morihara walks ahead, and Sekiba follows. The speed of their walking is fast.
At the ground, the members are doing foundation training. With the order of Morihara, everyone lines up.
"This is Dr. Sekiba from Agency of Science, Industry and Technology for inspection. Today he will be watching your training and the skills you have acquired. Salute!"
Sekiba bows and steps forward. He isn't good at giving a speech like this, but this is a part of his job which evolves the Riot Police. They'll be helping him at UniverSoc. He looks at the police officers slowly and takes a breath.
"Please make yourself comfortable.
......
First, I'd like to ask you what the Force is. Is it physical strength? Is it economic power? Is it political power?
Let's take politics for example. To politics, negotiation and debate are the most important. They can be learned, educated and inherited. If it's possible to pass down, that's technology. Politics power is technology power in a broad sense.
In other words, the essence of the power is technology. Those who have the technology owns the world.
Still, the power comes with responsibilities. It is needless to say.
I'm MoSE.
MoSE has skills, which provide enormous authority. We are treated well in the society. However, this comes with tremendous responsibilities. These responsibilities don't stop at those on the service regulations. How to live as a MoSE is also judged.
How about you, by the way?
You don't have any skills in terms of science technology. The supplementary reinforcing armors that you use are the product of technology, but you are only on the receiving end of the benefits
that technology brings. Would it make you slaves of technology?
I don't think so. There is a skill that you can acquire. That's a skill to defense. The defensive skill can be learned by training and taking lessons. With that skill, you carry out your duty as a Riot Police officers.
I don't want you to forget this. Your duty is not to destroy or attack but to protect the nation and the people.
Acquiring the skills to defense yourself leads to protecting the public safety of the country. Everyday training will provide you the skills. Therefore, you have to work hard to get the ability and with that, keep the society safe.
I'll repeat myself. I'm MoSE. I have a duty that is imposed on me. That's fine. I'll take care of it. That's my purpose of living.
I'd like you to follow through your duty that is imposed upon you. That's your purpose of living.
That's it."
"Salute!"
Then, the members go back to their training.
Morihara walk around the area with Sekiba, explaining the training.
"This group has just been upgraded from trainees."
Sekiba walks around the group who has been doing push-ups. He notices a familiar face and lowers his body.
"Reji Kogure-kun. I didn't know you're here."
Reji picks up his face. His eyes aren't focused. It seems like he has forgotten Sekiba's face.
"We've met at a funeral. Do you remember?"?
Reji doesn't answer.
"I'm responsible for the development of A-B-A-H-S. Do you know A-B-A-H-S?"
"Yes, Sir" A-B-A-H-S helps the Riot Police to conduct missions."
"Do you know a girl, Akari Nakazato?"
Silence.
"Do you have a grudge against Akari Nakazato?"
There is silence again.
"Don't you feel resentment at A-B-A-H-S?"
"Resentment...?"
Reji's face clouds over. His eyes are still vacant, but Sekiba seems to have pointed out something significant...what is it?
"You're in the war. Against who? For what?"
Sekiba stands up. His eyes are fixated down on the lifeless face of Reji.
*****
The UniverSoc is coming up.
Agency of Science, Industry and Technology is devoting itself into the preparation. At the same time, its advertisement is becoming more intense every day. You can see the message "let's make the UniverSoc successful" everywhere in the city, and hear the theme and the slogan of the UniverSoc, "to the new era of humans".
Meanwhile, the activities of Earthlight are also becoming more noticeable. The event venue dome is strictly guarded, but their plan is to distract and mentally drain the Riot Police by attaching random places.
However, the Riot Police has already predicted that would happen. They have arranged enough number of officers in the right places. It seems like a perfectly balanced game.
When Earthlight makes a scene, the Riot Police would come along and scare them away. Lather, there will be other Cells acting up. That kind of small fight happens several times a day now.
Of course, that what people are told officially. In fact, several Riot Police officers have been killed and around the same number of Earthlight members have been captured. Here, the balance between the consumption and the supply is perfectly made. There is no luck of supply in misfits of the society who would join Earthlight.
A number of new trainees have joined the training facility and around the same number of members have disappeared. Before Reji knows, he has become a middle class member of the Riot Police.
The 3-3-Cell of Earthlight is also in the little war. Since they've lost Murase and Reji, they are acting more as a combat service support rather than fighting in the front line.
Junrock still has some doubt about Akari, but she has been working well in the cyber attack sector. Her skills are much needed in the current Earthlight situation. So, Junrock doesn't blame Akari any more except for the times when she makes complaint on the strategies after each fight.
Akari repeats this over and over.
"Use your brain. Are you stupid?"
Junrock doesn't think she understands the concept of an organization. Most of the things she says are right and convincing. The top managers are already aware of that. However, the organization doesn't always work according to the ideal theory. Not all the members have the brain to implement it. Akari doesn't seem to get this. This issue has been the cause of their argument.
Still orders from the people at the high level come regularly. Tonight isn't the exception.
"It seems like this time is going to be a big one."
Junrock says.
Sekiba also received the information that there have been a lot of cells gathering up. Although he hasn't been involved in the administration of UniverSoc, he is in the operation team of A-B-A-H-S as a countermeasure against Earthlight which disturbs the preparation for the event. Any activity of Earthlight is reported to Sekiba. Of course, he hasn't forgot about getting back Akari.
When he is reading through the information from top to bottom, voice from Nakazato comes in.
"I've heard 3-3-Cell is going to appear. Is that right?"
"Ha! The news travels fast."
"So, that's true. Is Akari going to be there?"
"I don't know that."
"I'll go."
"The Riot Police would be enough to calm down their activity. You don't have to risk yourself."
"I said I'll go."
"...You're stubborn. Do whatever you please then."
The connection gets cut before he gets any reply. Sekiba grabs back his mind to the reality.
.....Do whatever you please.
This isn't a lie. Things get too far for Nakazato to fix. If that's the case, the problem can be only solved by a very private communication between two, no, maybe three. They'll understand.
Sekiba goes into the inter-exchange channel and starts preparing for monitoring the fight.
Reji is deployed in the fourth team of the second troop in the fourth Riot Police with P.E.. His troop is in the defense fight on a national road. Morihara is the team leader, who receives orders from a section commander and gives directions to his team.
Earthlight has built a barricade that completely blocks a national road. The Riot Police with P.E. has also formed a barricade 50 meters away from theirs. The barricade of the Riot Police is made of 3 teams, 23 members in total. The front group is equipped with sub machine guns of Heckler & Koch. The supporting group have Colt M assault rifles. Earthlight seems to have prepared around the same number of people for the combat and the half the number of members are in the cyber attacking team at the back.
One of them gives warning shootings every several minutes and the other strikes back with several shootings. This has been going on for a long time. Earthlight is armed with stronger devices that have been modified without any limits, but the Riot Police with P.E. has a better defense force. The situation hasn't been progressed at all.
The section commander gives an order to Morihara.
Morihara selects four members including Reji.
"Go to their side and distract them. You can just threaten them. If we can knock down a part of them, they will scatter away. This is always the case."
The four of them go through between the buildings on the side of the road and enters a narrow path that goes along the national road. The supplementary reinforcing amour annoys them, but it doesn't much affect their mission. The more disturbing thing is the start point of the attach. If they try to go past or enter the building, they can get caught by the security sensor. The right of the civilians should be respected.
"Don't worry about it. I'll cut down the security sensors temporarily."
"Are we allowed to do that?"
"Earthlight is already jamming a lot. There wouldn't become an issue if we let people believe that the security sensor was affected by their jamming."
Reji's group checks the relative position and arrives at
the inner side of the Earthlight barricade.
"You have 10 seconds. Go."
Morihara gives an order.
They climb up the concrete wall that divides the 5-story building and the road, then jumps down to the parking lot. After dashing through between the two bicycles, they come out from a side of the building.
5%Hx$r0z$$$FHt$s$G$$$C$?CF4]$O!"
The members hold their H&K rifles and fire their usual flash grenade bullets for threat. The bullets fly away with their tails and explode above the Earthlight troop. The street immediately gets noisy.
Several members nearby notice Reji's group and hold their guns. Reji shoots them down. Of course, they are only stunned.
Three seconds left. They sprint through the building site and jump into a national road.
Earthlight fires their guns. One of the Reji's group members collapses. Reji fights back with his rifle, while twisting his body.
Threatening long-distance shooting fires from the barricade of the Riot Police. That's flash grenade again.
The members bob down for a moment to let the flash pass above them. Their rifle attack continues from a low position.
The front line of Earthlight goes back. However, they try to create a barricade again from the side of the road around 10 meters back from where they were. That's exactly in front of Reji's group.
Reji uses an passed out Earthlight member as a guard and fire his rifle at random. One of the Riot Police members gets blown off by a bullet from Earthlight.
Reji picks up his head to find a streak of white smoke above his head. That's a trace of a bazooka. His body curls up immediately.
Vibration of an explosion comes from behind. Reji raises his head a few seconds later. There is a guy from Earthlight looks down at Reji with his gun in his hand. The gun is pointed at Reji's head.
......I'm going to get shot!
Just when Reji thinks that, the guy's body get blown to the side.
There is a large black shade of someone's back.
"Are you...., A-B-A-H-S?"
As if he heard Reji's mumble, A-B-A-H-S slowly turns back.
Living with Memory of Steel (Part 2) Page 5
