36 - Graduation (1)

We run out the gym, through the double doors.

Alex: "What the hell is that thing!?"

Himacchi: "Does it matter!? It's big, it's ugly, and it wants to eat us!"

Saya: "… Terror. It's a Terror."

Me: "The enemies from your homeland!?"

Kaya: "Yes. Yes, I … remember now. I remember everything."

The Terror screeches. We cover our ears.

The entire building shakes, as we hear the sounds of destruction coming from the gym, behind us. The thrashing of tentacles. Splintering of wood. Claws tearing through the walls.

"Where the hell are we supposed to go?" cries Alex. "This thing's gonna tear the entire school apart, just to find us! Where can we even hide?!"

"We have to get outside," says Himacchi, panting. (I'm competely out of breath too, already. … Man, the original ASSS trio was never very good at P.E. …)

"Are you kidding!?" shouts Alex. "We'll have even less of a chance out there, with that thing!"

"… The basement," mutters Kaya.

I look at Kaya, confused. "What? There's no basement in the academy."

"Yes. … Yes, there is." Kaya turns to Saya. "You know what I'm talking about, right Onee-chan? … You remember it all too, don't you?"

I am so confused right now. "… Remember what?!" I exclaim.

But Saya doesn't seem to share my confusion. She nods to Kaya, and mutters, "… Yeah. I remember." Then, in a loud voice, to the whole group: "The basement! We have to get to the basement!"

Alex, incredulous: "This school has a basement!?"

Saya: "Yes—there's a secret entrance to it, in the library."

Alex, incredulous: "This school has a library!?"

Me: "Alex, please."

Himacchi: "… What's in the basement?"

But before either twin can answer, the section of the hallway directly behind us explodes in a burst of concrete and plaster.

I'm knocked down by the impact, and hit the ground hard.

I hack and cough. I can't see anything.

My ears are ringing.

"... Odd-kun?"

Amidst all the chaos, someone takes my hand.

A familiar voice: "Odd-kun? Come on, get up!"

Still coughing, I wave the dust in front of me away with my free hand.

I look up.

… Or, actually, I don't have to 'look up' at all, because the one helping me to my feet is—

"—Moeka-sensei!?"

"Are you okay, Odd-kun?"

"Y-yeah … I think so."

I look around me. Rubble and debris everywhere.

Nearby, Sunny is helping the Saya and Kaya to their feet.

Beside them, Himacchi is leaning against Alex, the latter supporting her.

Meanwhile, the Terror's tentacles whip around blindly in the hallway behind us, bringing down even more sections of the school.

"Come on," I say, once we're all on our feet. "We have to get to the library—NOW!"

*

We make it to the library, somehow.

Parallax Academy is collapsing all around us.

"So where's … this secret … entrance??" asks Himacchi, completely out of breath.

Saya and Kaya exchange uncertain looks.

"… I don't know," admits Saya.

The academy shakes, as the Terror smashes through yet another part of the building somewhere. The lights flicker.

"Moeka-sensei knows!" exclaims Moeka-sensei, as she guides us down the aisles. "Follow Moeka-sensei!"

So we do.

We end up stopping in front of an otherwise inconspicuous-looking bookshelf at the far end of a library.

"And it's …" Moeka-sensei pulls on one of the books on the shelf. "… THIS ONE!"

The bookshelves part, slowly revealing—

—a large cargo elevator behind them.

Alex, Himacchi and I are left speechless.

The twins, though? Not so much.

"Come on!" says Saya, gesturing for us to get in.

We file into the cargo elevator.

The original ASSS trio: Me, Himacchi, Alex.

Sunny and Moeka-sensei.

The two sisters.

The elevator doors close.

And then the elevator rumbles to life, and we start our descent.

*

Sunny smiles at me in the elevator.

"… You're remembering, aren't you, Odd-kun?"

He's no longer wearing the school caretaker uniform he usually wears.

… He's in an all-black high school outfit.

Which is strange, because that's not the standard Parallax Academy uniform.

"Remember?" I repeat. "I … I don't …"

But Alex interrupts. "Yes, I—I'm beginning to remember. The club room … Not the ASSS, but a different one. Shit, what was it called … IWC? (What the hell does that stand for?) … Hey, wait. Hold on." He arches an eyebrow. "Sunny, didn't you have some weird thing about elves?"

Sunny chuckles lightheartedly, and says, "Yes, yes—but that was the old me. I had a long, emotional discussion with Moeka, and she taught me about judging people by the content of their character, and not by the shape of their ears."

Alex: "Uh … huh. And you!" He points at Moeka-sensei. "You're not a teacher at all! I KNEW IT!"

Moeka …-sensei (?) sticks out a tongue and winks, then lightly taps herself on the side of her head. "E-he-he!"

I'm honesty not sure what they're talking about at all.

But I have to admit that I am getting a sense of … I don't know how to describe it—but it's like the feeling of almost recollecting something.

… Well, whatever.

The elevator slows to a stop.

The doors open.

We exit, into what appears to be a massive underground hangar.

And there, standing against the far wall, is—

*

"—a giant robot," I say, in disbelief. "That's an actual, real-life, giant robot standing in front of me."

"The Hoshi-no-ken," says Kaya. "Sword of the Stars."

"Firmament's Edge," nods Saya. "Armor built from the finest dwarven-crafted steel. Our most effective weapon against the Terrors."

"This … is what you two piloted back home?"

Saya and Kaya look at each other, and smile knowingly.

"Not exactly," says Saya, as she peels off her black graduation gown.

I look the other way, face red. "Wh-what are you doing!?"

"Huh?" says Saya. "Are you dumb?! Of course I'm wearing something under this!"

"… Oh. Oh, yeah." I turn around, expecting to see Saya in her school uniform—but she's in a skintight pink rubber suit.

Blood shoots from my nose. "That's so revealing! What the f—"

Saya sighs. "We don't have time for this, Odd-kun. Now listen to me."

She marches up to me, leans in close. "You're going to help me pilot this thing."

I blink. "… Come again?"

Saya looks over at Kaya.

The two sisters nod at each other.

They close their eyes—

—and my head is suddenly filled with excruciating pain, so sharp that it turns my vision white.

I fall to my knees, clutching my head, and scream.