Chapter 9 - Soaring Relations

Soaring Relations
"She doesn't want to talk to you," reported Ritsu. The four of them were in the living room in Naluri's apartment. Naluri didn't expect to be back so soon and was casually taking a drink on the couch. Sasaki was standing by and looking out the window at the night sky. Santiago was sitting at the dining table. On his request, Naluri had supplied a long cable, with Sasaki's and Santiago's wrist tied at each end, bypassing the need for direct contact to keep the Barrier round Santiago.

"Why?" asked Sasaki, surprised. She had expected that Haruhi would jump at talking to a divine acquaintance.

"She's concerned about global affairs at the moment," explained Ritsu, annoyed to be acting as the messenger. She took a seat at the same table as Santiago. "Yamaha and Gensokyo just formed an alliance."

Naluri spluttered her drink in astonishment and coughed. "They allied?", she grinned, wiping her mouth, "Haruhi ought to be concerned."

Ritsu glared at Naluri with agitation, "The Empress is more than capable of taking them both on. It's what they're doing to each other she's concerned about."

Santiago caught on quickly, "Backstabbing..." Sasaki just bowed her head, completely speechless.

Rin was standing on the perimeter of The Nine Mile Point Nuclear Generating Station, looking over Lake Ontario, in the state of New York, the sun setting in the west. To the right was the James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Plant. Across the lake in Canadian territory, the Darlington and Pickering Nuclear Generating Stations could be seen by the lakeside.

Marisa flew down on her broom to land next to Rin, "Ah," she sighed with a smile, "Am I too late?"

"Just a bit," answered Rin, rather lazily.

"How are the preparations?"

"Due to unforeseen circumstances, we had to shorten the time," explained Rin, folding her arms, "The anti-toxin ambulances won't get here in time but we've evacuated the immediate area so everyone should be fine."

"Hmm, that's good I guess," nodded Marisa, looking over the lake with Rin.

"You could probably clean up all the radiation immediately if you fired Okuu in this direction," suggested Rin.

Marisa sniggered, "Oh, I see how it is. Hmm, I guess I could give the order for the Temple to point this way." There was silence as Rin watched Marisa do absolutely nothing.

"Who's driving the car?" urgently asked Alice, driving the Ecto-1 towards KC's house, on the other side of the nearby Lake Ontario, regularly looking in the rear view mirror at the black car chasing them.

Both Ilse and Cirno were looking out the back window. "I can't see a driver," announced Cirno.

Black sat cross-legged on the deck of the Akagi that had made its way back behind the deactivated Sonic Amps in the Atlantic. Back in her original form, she was feeling stressed. It couldn't be good when Vocaloids panic, both Gold and Matagi were voicing their own concerns about their uninformed orders and then there was also the issue of leaving the Thunder Child in Gensokyo territory. Her earpiece began ringing.

She put a finger to her ear, "Rin, wh-"

"It's Teto," corrected Teto, over the earpiece, "I'd appreciate it if you could redirect the Akagi to Florida."

"Florida? Rin just told us to get out of Gensokyo." Black turned back to look at the bridge tower. Minna in the bridge gave a thumbs up to indicate she had received the order to change direction.

"She meant out of Gensokyo's portion of the Atlantic."

"By the way," interjected Black, "Why are we suddenly receiving orders from the Guard rather than the Law?"

"The Stray Posse are a little busy up north. UTAU are in the south and we're expecting a lot of resistance."

"... Wait..." paused Black, deep in thought, "No, you aren't..." It hit her with shock. "We're taking over America... Is this the right thing to do...? Is that the Meltdown Directive?"

"Not quite. This is our biggest chance. Problem is Gensokyo is planning an attack with the Temple of Gaia. They've got Okuu loaded in the cannon to-" Suddenly there was a deafening boom from the dark sky, fading away into the east.

"... Wasn't that her?" commented Black, looking across the sky so any clue as to its origin.

"... Rin's not going to be happy."

Rin instantly received Teto's transmission. She was not happy, "You didn't redivert Okuu," she noted to Marisa.

"Hmm?" hummed Marisa, "Do I have a reason to?"

"She won't make it through the Sonic Barrier. Your Fission Strategy won't succeed."

"You think?"

Black covered her ears as the nearby Sonic Amps screeched once before fading, indicating the reactivation of the Atlantic Sonic Barrier.

However, the Sonic Amps on the African Yamaha-Gensokyo border did not screech, instead releasing heavy amounts of smoke. Alice Margatroid began flying back to the Forest of Magic, her fingers in her ears as a boom echoed through the sky above. Yamaha was right to fear dolls, Alice's dolls successfully bypassing all the security and sabotaging all Amps on the border.

"What are you even doing here?" threatened Rin, as her expectations of Marisa were ripped apart, "Do you know what we're doing?"

"Yeah, it was my objective to stop you with your plan but since I'm far too late, I'm going to stay here a while."

Rin glared, not believing what she was hearing, "What...?"

The black capsule smashed through the walls of the cold fusion plant in north Africa, partially embedding in the ground. It split open into two parts as Reimu flew in through the fallen walls and holes.

"How was your trip?" asked Reimu with a smile, pulling Okuu to her feet.

"Bumpy to say the least," replied Okuu with a snort, "Make sure Yukari is concious next time."

"We don't need to worry about the Thunder Child," responded Reimu, patting Okuu on the back, "Anyway, your incoming trip got us past all security. The core's all yours. Let's get this Fission Strategy over with." They looked at the large metallic doughnut shaped tube in front of them.

Okuu nodded, "I'll give you the signal." Reimu flew back out. Taking a deep breath, Okuu smashed open the tube with her cannon arm, glowing gas and plasma from the hollow innards rushing out into her face. However, to her this was not dangerous and she took another deep breath, the products of nuclear fusion filling her lungs. She smiled with satisfaction before pointing her arm cannon in the clockwise direction inside the tube. And she fired.

The overloading of energy at the fusion plant backfired power across the Yamaha's entire African powergrid, shutting down all power plants, plunging the whole domain into darkness. Light returned when a luminous rainbow coloured barrier was formed round the African continent.

Rin received Luka's report about Yamaha's loss of Africa. "Okay, look Marisa," she resigned, showing panic, "You got Africa, alright. Seriously, leave now. Even if you were ordered to stay."

"This is my decision," responded Marisa, her smile fading, "No one, not even Reimu, knows I'm here."

"What?! You want to die?" spat Rin, grabbing Marisa's collar. She tried to lift Marisa off the ground but Marisa was somehow using her power to keep her feet on the ground.

Marisa grabbed Rin's collar, "No," she scowled back, "I want you stupid machines to realise when too much efficiency is plain too much. I want you stupid machines to realise that your ideals go too far." Marisa brought Rin's face to hers. "I want the world to know what it's like to break The Unwritten Law." All four nuclear fusion reactors round the Lake exploded simultaneously, producing four large mushroom clouds, radiation spreading rapidly throughout the area. As the two of them were covered by smoke, Rin could hear Marisa murmur, "Sasaki..."

Alice violently swerved to the left as the sky ahead turned bright orange, four huge mushroom clouds rising in the distance. "What the-!" However, the top heavy Ecto-1 just continued skidding towards the clouds, off the road before coming to a stop in a parkway with a low wall in front. The black car copied the Ecto-1's action, skidding and lining up with the white car but stopped on the pavement. The two doors of the black car facing the Ecto-1 sprang open, revealing no occupants, obviously inviting the three to jump in.

"We do not have a choice," called Ilse, undoing her seatbelt. Alice and Cirno opened their respective doors and leaped into the black car, the contents of Cirno's bag falling on the floor, followed by Ilse. The car, shut its doors automatically and raced off in the opposite direction, without anyone touching the controls.

"Who's controlling?" demanded Alice, talking to the dashboard.

"I am Knight Industries Three Thousand," stated a male voice, coming from the car's speakers, "Also known as KITT. I must thank you for freeing me from my prison."

"You are an AI?" questioned Ilse, with curiosity. She was no fan of AI but was prepared to make exceptions at times.

"Yes," KITT simply replied.

Cirno was scrambling on the floor of the backseat, picking up all her coloured pens, watermelon designed pencil case and black A4 notebook. She flipped through the yet unused notebook, sighing with relief that Alice had managed to keep the entire backpack dry that evening. Then she picked up her phone, still on speakerphone with KC but was buzzing instead. "Didn't Ælious and KC live on the other side of the lake?" she asked, unsure.

Alice looked out the side window at the clouds in fear, "I have no idea... What happened here, KITT?"

"I don't know, myself," the car answered, "I am aware that all electrical power in the immediate area has gone down." Suddenly KITT was passed by several light brown vehicles bearing the Red Cross going the opposite direction.

"What are they doing?" asked Ilse, both scared and confused.

"Anti-toxin Ambulances," explained KITT, "They are immune to and can clear any nuclear, biological and chemical radiation, on land and in water. As far as I was aware, they belonged to Yamaha."

"Yamaha?" repeated Cirno, with despair, holding her notebook and pen. She took a look out the window when she noticed enormous black objects travelling across the sky. "What are those things up there?"

Ilse and Alice cast their gazes upwards. "Those are Sonic Amps," realised Ilse, "Yamaha are using drop pods to create a new section of the Sonic Barrier. They're taking over the United States!"

"bzzt... bzzt... Hello?" called KC's voice through Cirno's phone as the mushroom clouds blurred and the sky darkened.

"KC!" called back Cirno, "Are the two of you okay?" She had the notebook on her lap, open on the first page.

"Yes, but the United States is being invaded by Yamaha," informed KC, "All missile defence systems and the complete New York powergrid seem to be offline, preventing Gensokyo from shooting the Sonic Amps down."

Konata suddenly appeared in Naluri's living room.

"You know," began Naluri, still on the couch, "I have a doorbell."

Konata ignored her. "What's the Empress doing?" asked Ritsu, with boredom.

"Busy with the Super Driver," thumbed up Konata, "Solace got the job done with the Thunder Child."

"Sweet," grinned Ritsu, giving her own thumbs up.

"Super Driver?" repeated Sasaki, requesting an explanation.

"It will bring the three kingdoms a little bit closer," smiled Konata.

Not yet notified of America's security failure, Reimu was happily flying back towards the Ivory Coast with Okuu, having gained Yamaha's strongest industrial continent. Without warning, she immediately lost conciousness and fell out of the sky.

"Wha-? Reimu!" cried Okuu, diving after her.

Sora leaned backwards and pointed her feet upwards, the rocket boots shooting her and Solace straight back down into the water with a loud splash in an attempt to cover the Super Driver. But it was too late. While underwater, she saw shining white objects floating above the water in the distance. She brought her head above water to see an uncountable number of floating warships approach, each deactivating their white noise generators and each with the name 'SOS Thunder Child' proudly displayed on the side.

"Flying Thunder Children...?" Sora felt her visibility fade.

Solace reached the surface of the water gasping for air just as the Thunder Children flew over her. Sora pulled Solace out the water with a single hand, making no attempt to cover the Super Driver, and flew to the now revealed Arsenal Gear. They landed on deck next to Lynette, Remilia and Flandre as well as RAY. They were smiling together in a friendly manner as though they'd been friends forever.

"Excellent job, Solace," communicated Haruhi psychically with delight, "You did brilliantly."

"... No problem..."

As Cirno tapped the first page with a pen, KC spoke up again, "The entire Hakurei Barrier just went down."

"What?!" cried Cirno.

"It's being transmitted all across Yamaha. The entire Barrier just came down. North High just annexed Gensokyo."

Silence filled the car.

Cirno held her pen at the top line of the page, "... Is everyone from Gensokyo gone?" she inquired weakly.

"There's the Pentagon and the Yakumos, Shikieiki and the Law and Hakugyokurou are still here in Yamaha but I can't say anything about the others."

"... Will Yamaha be invaded too?"

"... It's possible."

After a pause, Cirno wrote down 'Suzumiya Haruhi'.

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