As the teachers deal with the Limiter Eater and her clutch of unconscious boys, Shion Nayfield approaches me. As soon as we’re out of earshot, she cackles delightedly.

  “HA! Girls? You have NO. IDEA. How many people, myself included, have wanted to take Miyabi down a peg or several, for the LONGEST TIME. You must’ve finally had enough of her BS, yeah?”

  I nod. “It was quite satisfying to shut her nonsense down, though I suspect that this isn’t the st I’ll see of her. She doesn’t seem the type to give up easily, and, now I’ve personally humiliated her, she’ll take any chance she can….”

  The third-year nods. “You’re right. She won’t rest until she’s put you ‘in your pce’. Luckily, the fact that she’s actively been sabotaging your training will not win her much support. Most third years actually WANT their undercssmen to become capable and skilled Pandora, after all. Plus, demonstrating your skills might win YOU some influence. A prodigy, capable of performing a Double Accel in her first year, as well as having a background in kenjutsu, is exactly the kind of Pandora I’d want on MY side!”

  Rana butts in, “So, Miss Nayfield, what training is it you will be having us doing?”

  Shion smiles, nodding at Rana’s Shinen, the gauntlets and boots glinting in the electric mplight. “I’ll be training YOU directly, Ms. Linchen. Our Volt Weapons are very simir, so I believe I can correct the damage Miyabi has done. I understand you have martial arts training, yes?”

  Rana’s face lights up. “That’s true, yes! I am gd to be learning from you!”

  I ask, “You said you could train us in tandem with your original group. What are the others like?”

  Shion smiles. “Well, we have Pandora Bradley; I think you know each other. The other girl is Kaho Hiiragi.”

  I nod. “I know both of them. We should be able to join in without too much difficulty. Plus, I can actually get some training done without having to hide my skills from my instructor.”

  Shion snickers in approval. “Don’t worry about showing how good you are, Ms. Shimizu, I’m invested in making you the best you can be. And, now that I know you can beat a third-year, I don’t have to hold back so much! Anyway, you two should get some sleep. See you in the morning, and I’ll find you at breakfast! Goodnight!”

  Rana and I bid our new instructor goodnight, and make our way back to our tent, where we get pounced on by Annabelle and Rinslet, filling them in on what happened at dinner. The two girls freak out a little, but calm down when they realize that Miyabi’s in the Brig and can’t really do anything for now. I can’t help but yawn a little. All the adrenaline is starting to leave my system, and I settle down, as the other three girls do the same. “Night, dies…”

  “Night!”

  “G-goodnight…”

  “Be resting well, everyone...”

  The next morning, I wake early and head for breakfast, a traditional Japanese meal, waiting for Shion-senpai to arrive, sipping from a tumbler of green tea. The mountain air is quite cold at this hour, and I find myself relishing the warmth of my drink. Shion arrives not twenty minutes ter, Dora in tow, and Kaho barely five minutes after them. I smile and greet each of them, filling my tumbler again and sitting with them while they eat. Rana shows up for breakfast, eating quickly, as Shion expins the situation to her trainees.

  Luckily, there’s no issues, and the next two days are stress-free, Rana and I training and improving right alongside Kaho and Dora, under the watchful eyes of Shion Nayfield. The teachers observe from a distance throughout the day, stepping in to assist when they spot a fw, or to send people to the nurse when the inevitable accidents happen. Though we heal faster than normal humans thanks to our Stigmata, medical care still helps a whole lot.

  Dora, true to her earlier words in the bath, does end up facepnting a lot, but, with a little guidance from Shion-senpai, I manage to get her to stay upright nine times out of ten when it comes to the sudden deceleration. She’s got talent, she’s just inexperienced. Plus, she doesn’t have the same background in martial arts that Rana and I possess, so it’s only natural she’d struggle a little.

  The final day of the training camp opens on bright sunlight, and the clear sky really adds a picturesque feeling to the routines we’ve been running through. Shion-senpai’s even allowed me to work on the Double Accel, so as not to make it a fluke or a fwed skill. She’s definitely a good instructor, picking up on slight issues with my technique that I hadn’t noticed, correcting me gently but firmly, much like my grandfather. The two of them would get along, I think. She’s serious, but with a clear sense of humour and a kind heart, much like him.

  Today, we stop at noon, packing up and preparing to embark the academy aircraft that brought us here, when I stop. The air feels… wrong, charged by some kind of energy, like the static build-up before a thunderstorm. The clouds seem to be billowing and warping somehow, and I point. “Look, I think something’s happening-!”

  Suddenly, with a sound-barrier-shattering

  KRAKOOM!

  There’s something there. A tall, vaguely-humanoid shape, all curved lines and angles. Strange lic and white tints colour the form, and eerie wailing music seems to accompany it.

  Looking around, I can see three more. Ms. Yu-Mi screams, “S-TYPE NOVA ATTACK! THIRD-YEARS, TO YOUR STATIONS!”

  Shion darts out, her Limiter breaking from the crowd to join her, as does Arnett and her partner, Creo Brand, and a few others. I even spot Ticy Phenyl, the student council Vice-president, out there.

  Dr. Elise adds, “Any second-years who feel up to it, join your seniors! All others, get the first-years out of here!”

  Chihaya appears out of nowhere, reaching for my hand, but I stop her gently. “Chi-chan… I want to help. I can’t just run. My grandfather would be disappointed in me if I fled like a coward…”

  She smiles softly. “I know, but you can’t win a fight like this, not on your own.”

  I open my mouth to protest, before she adds, “Which is why I’m going to help. They DID call for second-years, so I can help. I would rather you acted as my Limiter, but please defend yourself if you need to. Does that work for you, Akari?”

  I nod, smiling. Geez, Chihaya’s the best!

  Turning, my Pandora leads me out of the crowd of panicking first-years and those second-year students trying to rein them in, lining up with those of us tapped to defend the camp. Ms. Yu-Mi starts to protest, but when Chihaya expins, she subsides. We can’t turn down any willing hands, her expression seems to say.

  The battle lines are drawn, with the third-years on the outside, the first line of defence. The second-years behind them, acting as support and reinforcement. The teachers in the centre, acting as the camp’s special-forces, taking the fight to the Nova wherever the line falters, while the evacuation goes ahead. They’ll also act as the rearguard, allowing the rest of us to retreat once everyone else is safe.

  As the huge S-type Nova start approaching, I can see the flexing, ribbon-like ‘limbs’ they primarily use for offence, like wide, ft bdes of otherworldly metal. They’ve been recorded as able to smash clean through reinforced concrete and shear through entire warships like paper. I shudder to think about what a direct hit would do to a normal human…

  But I’m NOT a normal human. I’m a Pandora, AND a Limiter. I have to work twice as hard to improve, but I know I can do it! Taking up my position with the Limiters of the Second-year Pandora, I note a couple of funny looks, but Morrison steps up beside me. “Hey, Akari. Good to have you on-board for this. I trust you know what to do?”

  I nod. “When the command is given, I activate the Ereinbar Set and focus on maintaining my Freezing field to allow Chihaya-senpai to do her job. I must not lose focus, and keep it up for as long as I can. Correct?”

  Morrison grins. “Perfect. A textbook answer! You’ll do fine, Akari.”

  A slim boy with unruly reddish-blonde spiked hair approaches. “Hey, Morrison, what’s this girl doing here?”

  Morrison elbows him. “This is Akari. She’s actually a special case, you’ll see. But she has just as much right to be here as any of us. Her Pandora asked her to keep out of the front line if possible while still letting her help.”

  The elbowed boy winces, before nodding. “The name’s Abel Rotomaster. I’m Ticy’s Limiter.”

  I nod in understanding. “I know her. I fought against her combat-data hologram a few days before the training camp started. She’s very skilled, although I suspect that data may be a bit out-of-date.”

  Abel’s eyes widened. “Wait…YOU’RE the one she was raving about?! Oh, then I apologize wholeheartedly for my remarks! If anything, you’ve got more reason to be here than I do!”

  Giggling, I shake my head. “Don’t worry, I’d be the same if a boy approached me and said he was a Pandora. Just because it sounds impusible, doesn’t mean it might never happen! Anyway, we should probably pay attention, I think the fighting’s about to start in earnest…”

  Sure enough, the wailing song of the Nova is louder now, and the sounds of bdes and explosions ring out, almost enough to match it. Shouts, cries of pain, and barked orders fill the spaces between, with the ever-present intonation rising above it all.

  I can see Chihaya in front of me, tensing, and raise my hand towards her, bracing it with my other arm. I’m ready.

  Miyabi’s even out there, since her attitude problems aren’t that important right now and we need every combat-capable Pandora we have. Her knives are darting and fshing, and, despite my personal dislike of her, she IS holding her own against one of the Nova, with support from Arnett. Morrison’s already sweating, his arms up and directed at his Pandora. Suddenly, two bsts ring out from a whistle, and I spot two other first-years, Dora Bradley, and a Limiter with dark blue-bck hair. It’s Kazuya! He’s probably backing up the Untouchable Queen.

  Dora’s Volt Weapon, an absolutely huge warhammer, swings up, and she brings it down, using her whole body, massive boobs included, as a counterbance, pinning a Nova’s bde-whip-arm thing down. Satellizer dashes across, severing the end with her own Volt Weapon, a strange bde with the grip built into the length rather than at one end like a sword.

  I return my gaze to my Pandora’s back, Chihaya’s ginger locks cascading down her shoulders. When she crouches and manifests her Gungnir, I take a deep breath. Another whistlebst, sustained and shrill, and every second-year leaps forward in different directions, picking their targets and engaging with zeal.

  My voice rings out, along with every Limiter around me.

  “FREEZING FIELD! GO!”

  The tesselted hexagonal pattern rolls out from the assembled Limiters, expanding to envelop our Pandoras, before… “ACTIVATE EREINBAR SET!”

  The connection between Pandora and Limiter established, we put our trust in our partners and stand firm, resolute and unyielding. I deploy my Volt Weapon, stepping a few paces forwards, as I spot the nearest Nova sh out towards my group. “Shimizu-style sword arts: Tidal Surge!”

  My Odin flickers out, the speed of an Accel Turn combined with a reversed Waterfall, the length of my katana meeting the Nova’s tendril head-on, sending the shining ribbon of metal careening up and over the heads of my fellow Limiters, embedding itself somewhere a few metres behind us.

  Morrison nods gratefully as Abel gasps in shock at the near-miss, while a couple of Limiters start in surprise. I snap, “Focus! I’ll keep us from getting hit as much as I can!”