Part 1
(November 10 – Oahu – Main Road – From a camera in a public bus)
Kamijou, Mikoto, and Birdway were riding in a large bus.
Hamazura, Misaka Worst, and Kuroyoru had gone elsewhere. Kamijou's group and Accelerator's group were attempting to prevent the Trigger from being taken from Oahu, and Hamazura's group was setting up a defensive line near Kilauea just in case.
"So they're going to kill 500,000 people by causing an artificial eruption in Kilauea…"
"…Nnn," groaned Mikoto.
"Do you have a question," asked Birdway as she stared out the window.
"I know these terrorists are planning something monstrous." Mikoto did not have a proper understanding of Gremlin or magic, so that was how she interpreted it. "But didn't you all say that the Senate, the House of Representatives, and all sorts of other government workers were being controlled in order to gather information on the Trigger? Well, I guess they must have someone like our #5…"
"She can most likely control quite a few people at once. What's your point?"
"Doesn't that seem a little indirect? Maybe I'm wrong, but if these people have the power to control a majority of the US Congress, couldn't they change the state of the country without resorting to violence?"
"Yes, if this was just an issue about America," Birdway responded. "But Gremlin is an enemy on an even greater scale. If you look beyond the United States, what they gain from this becomes clear."
"What are you talking about, little girl?"
"Pay attention now. The Trigger itself was developed in American research facilities and the incident itself is making use of a portion of America's Congress, military, police, intelligence agencies, and other government organizations. If a large scale terror attack is carried out in which Kilauea is artificially set off, the people's anger will not be aimed solely at the terrorists. It is quite likely that they will be quite upset with how useless the American government is."
"…"
"Also, Hawaii has many times more foreign tourists than local residents. Most of the victims in this incident would be tourists, so it would no longer be a purely national issue. Many nations, many governments, and many politicians would thoroughly investigate the events leading up to the eruption and America would be harshly blamed for the truth those investigations uncovered. And every country is in need of money after the war. …But America of course does not have the money it would take to meet the inevitable demands for reparations they would receive. The chaos would continue on."
"So they're trying to damage the entire science side," spat out Kamijou.
"And all they're doing is creating an impetus. Once Kilauea erupts, the countries of the science side will start fighting amongst themselves on their own, effectively driving a wedge into the gears of the science side," Birdway continued.
"…Even if Academy City is at the center of technological development, it is America that keeps the world economy running. If America is struck down, the economy will stagnate. And then…"
"The cycle of unemployment, poverty, and hunger would spread explosively. And despite being at the center of it all, America would be less affected than the more distant emerging nations. Once those surrounding nations learn they are suffering more than the ones that caused it all, their anger will swell up even further. That will complete the downward spiral."
"So there's even a danger of terrorism and riots completely unrelated to Gremlin spreading throughout the world? If that happens, everyone will be too busy dealing with that to pursue the traces of Gremlin."
"Exactly," Birdway agreed. "They are having America drive cracks into itself using its own power. That is what is important here. That is why they are going out of their way to use such an indirect method." Birdway grinned. "And this also applies pressure to the other developed nations that support the science side."
"What do you mean…?"
"When a new enemy appears, normal nations respond by developing more powerful equipment and deploying it. However, this plan involves crushing America using its own device. That means the more a nation augments its military might, the greater the risk. If they want to reduce the risk, they have no choice but to get rid of the very equipment that is supposed to protect them."
"You mean…?"
"If this plan succeeds and America is utterly destroyed, the other developed nations will come to a standstill. Politicians are human too. After seeing someone fail miserably before their eyes, they will want to avoid doing the same thing."
"But they can't fight if they don't prepare military might!"
"That may be what common sense says, but they will not want to bring all the risk onto themselves. That is simply how politicians think. As such, no one will do anything and nothing will change. A standstill, stagnation, a political vacuum, and obstruction of economic activity…all of that may be their goal or their goal may be to freely strut through the vulnerable world that it creates in order to spread even more destruction. I may not be sure of their overall goal, but at the very least this will bring the world into a state that is much more convenient for a group like Gremlin that hates the postwar focus on the science side."
Causing five hundred thousand victims and crushing America was nothing more than an impetus for Gremlin.
That way of thinking made Kamijou Touma silently but strongly clench his right fist.
Part 2
(November 10 – Oahu – From the in-vehicle camera of an electronic cart)
Roberto Katze drove the electronic cart with one hand while operating the stereo with the other. Accelerator thought he was looking for a radio news program to get information from, but the radio instead started playing trance music that was rumored to have more to do with the explosive increase of small animals than the waxing and waning of the moon.
"…What the hell are you doing?"
"Trying to relax. Roseline is always bugging me about it. …To be honest, I'm surprised at how much of a burden has been lifted from my shoulders just by finding someone I can be absolutely sure isn't being controlled."
"Do you know where this Trigger is?" asked Accelerator while the electronic cart shook.
"It was primarily developed by the marines because they are sometimes deployed for disaster relief."
"I know the Hawaiian Islands are the cornerstone of the US's defensive line in the Pacific, but how many bases are there here?"
"If you count navy, air force, and marine bases, there are 52. …It's even more if you add in the training areas."
"…Isn't that a bit much?"
"There was a rush to build as many as possible in order to deal with World War III. The war ended much sooner than anyone expected, but money given to a project can't be taken back…or rather, won't be given up. A lot of meaningless construction is still going on."
Accelerator clicked his tongue.
The president grinned and said, "Almost half of the 52 I mentioned are currently being constructed. But parts of those are already functioning, so we can't just eliminate them from being possibilities."
"Then where are we headed?"
"Not even I am reckless enough to just try a blind search. By using my presidential authority on the network, I can gather a certain amount of information on my own."
"Just get to the point."
"We are headed to the largest collection of American military facilities in Hawaii…and therefore the entire Pacific Ocean. I have a feeling even a Japanese boy like you will have at least heard of it."
"Don't make me repeat myself. Just tell me already."
"Pearl Harbor."
Part 3
(November 10 – Oahu – Near Pearl Harbor's Third Marine Base – From a traffic surveillance camera on a traffic light)
Nothing but chain-link fence continued for kilometers.
Kamijou Touma, Misaka Mikoto, and Leivinia Birdway met up with Roberto Katze and Accelerator near that fence.
When Mikoto saw Accelerator, an expression of shock appeared on her face as if she had remembered some bloody trauma, but they did not have time to worry about that kind of thing.
"The Trigger is likely within that fence," said the president as he pointed toward the base with his thumb. "But as you know, even if we do not have the most advanced technology, this is a base of the marines who lead the world when it comes to pure firepower. If we just tried to climb the fence and get through on guts alone, we'd definitely be shot to pieces."
"…You're the president, aren't you? Can't you just give an order to get us in?" asked Kamijou in confusion, but the president only gave an exaggerated shrug.
"A presidential order isn't as convenient in reality as it is in movies. There are a lot of organizations between me and the individual soldiers here and my order may not make it through those organizations if they are being controlled by a third party."
Birdway said, "Saronia A. Irivika, the one controlling people, is attempting to obtain the Trigger, so there is no guarantee the people here in the base would obey the order even if it got here."
"…"
Accelerator and Misaka Mikoto exchanged a wordless glance.
The two of them could force their way into a base that was filled with normal firearms. However…
"Forcing our way in wouldn't be the best plan," Birdway cut in. "This is a large base, so there is no guarantee we will find the Trigger quickly. Continuing the fight the entire time would be difficult and reinforcements would eventually arrive from the other bases. I'm not saying we couldn't win, but I'd rather not turn this place into a sea of flames. …If a bunch of explosions turned the facility into a pile of rubble, we would have no way of knowing if the Trigger had been here or not."
"So to be absolutely sure, we need to confirm the existence of the Trigger here before destroying it," Kamijou muttered. "But I doubt the security here is lax enough that we can just sneak in."
Roberto lightly caressed the surface of the attaché case he was holding.
"This base is one of the ones undergoing rushed construction to expand its functionality. That means construction workers are constantly going in and out. It may be easier to slip into than a completely finished base," he replied.
"…I have a question. Does that create enough of an opening that Asian teenagers walking around won't seem suspicious?" asked Kamijou.
The president's expression grew bitter.
Birdway lightly crossed her arms and said, "I could gather a group of white men using my subordinates, but I want as few magicians as possible here since Saronia is involved. It's possible she would notice if that much magic power was gathered here."
"Then what do we do?"
"I never said I didn't have an idea."
"You know how we can sneak into that marine base?"
"No," Birdway said as she shook her head. "I know a way we can walk right in through the main entrance."
Part 4
(November 10 – Oahu – Diamond Marine Harbor – From a tide level monitoring camera)
Hamazura Shiage, Misaka Worst, and Kuroyoru Umidori came to a private yacht harbor in Oahu. It was called a yacht harbor, but it primarily held small ships that used gas engine-powered propellers, had air-conditioned bedrooms, simple kitchens, and shower rooms, and were almost on the level of a villa when it came to facilities and price.
"I can pick the lock," said Hamazura as he casually removed some wires wrapped around a pillar of the wharf. "But I have no idea how to control a boat. Have either of you ever done it?"
"Misaka has had all that imputed in her by the Testament, but it's such a pain. Really, you'll be fine. There are no obstacles in the sea, so you'll be fine even if you're a little reckless. Just make sure to learn from your mistakes."
"You just don't want to do anything, do you?"
"Ohh? If Misaka has to focus on the ship, her restraint of Kuroyoru-chan may not be entirely effective. Will the End of the Century Emperor be okay then, nyahh?"
"One day, I'm gonna rip you two into eight fucking pieces!! You heard me, eight!! Not seven or nine!! I'll rip you into eight pieces like a pizza!! Grrrr!!!!!!" cut in Kuroyoru.
"Noooooo!! It's like you've provoked a trained military dog!!"
"Hurry up and pick the lock, so Misaka can get into the air conditioning. If you don't, Misaka will let her rape you."
While trembling, Hamazura stuck the wires into the keyhole on the ship's hatch.
He looked around and said, "The lock itself is outside tech, so picking it is easy enough, but I'm afraid of someone seeing me. Especially since everyone here supposedly has a gun."
Misaka Worst patted Kuroyoru on the top of the head and said, "Don't worry. Don't worry. Kuroyoru-chan will keep watch for you."
"Why the hell would I do—!?"
"If we add on your cat ear part, you gain a large increase in information gathering ability, right?"
"Fgh!? Wh-why do you have that accessory part…!?"
"Heh heh heh. Resist if you like, but can you prevent the cat ear connection when you can't use your arms, nyahh? Now, it's about time you became the cute, cute black cat assassin-chan, don't you think?"
"Uuh…"
Kuroyoru tried to step back, but she was at the end of the wharf and had nowhere left to flee. Misaka Worst did not especially care about changing Kuroyoru's appearance, but she approached the cyborg girl with the cat ear part in hand because she wanted to destroy her atmosphere of darkness.
Feeling cornered, Kuroyoru let out a sob. And then…
"Waaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!! Why? Why does this kind of thing always have to happen to meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!?"
"Wah!?" shouted Misaka Worst in surprise as she took a small step back.
Kuroyoru may have been a Level 4 with the power of Bomber Lance, she may have had a portion of Accelerator's thoughts implanted in her during the Dark May Project, and she may have led the new generation of darkness that were the Freshmen, but she was still fundamentally a twelve-year-old girl.
She had a strong resistance to simple relationships that were nothing but kill or be killed.
However, she was not used to insults of that sort. She simply did not have enough experience with such situations to adlib her way through them.
As Kuroyoru cried and large tears fell from her eyes, Misaka Worst averted her gaze and looked to Hamazura for help. However, Hamazura only looked at Misaka Worst with an expression that said, "Ah, you made her cry…"
Having lost her mental escape route, Misaka Worst thought for a bit.
Finally, she said, "But it hasn't even been a full year since this Misaka was created and it's only fair to forgive the youngest one if she's a little selfish."
"How can you say that so easily, you villain!?"
With all three of them shouting, they boarded the high class yacht which soon left the harbor.