Chapter 18: BEAUTY
Stretching her arms she sighed. Finally, that skanky looking teacher is out of the room. She can breathe normally now. And not just her, everyone is.
"Is she really a teacher?" she heard Megan.
"But you know," she heard Clark chuckle. "She sure has a nasty behavior."
"Did you see what's under her skirt when she bent down to get the book she clumsily dropped?" Logan asked Carl.
Seri could not bear to hear them talk about it. Boys will be boys. Putting on her head phones, Seri puts the volume high and she escaped from reality. While Antoine talked with Ryun and Ichiro about something.
"I could not believe we are having this kind of teacher," Ichiro disgustedly said.
"She's out of place," Antoine heaves a sigh. "Such a pity she won't earn her students respect by that."
"I thought teacher Zhou does not want this class to have a visiting instructor," Ryun recalled. "To note that this class has the A class students."
"Now that you mentioned it," Ichiro suspiciously stared at the board as if Miss Nina is still there.
"What could be the reason we are having a VI?" Antoine frowned. "And someone like that too."
"That my friend is a big question," Ryun replied. "Want to find out?"
"What are suggesting?" Antoine nervously asked.
"Ichiro will take care of it," Ryun turned to the lad who is now preparing to leave.
"Me again," Ichiro smiled. "Then I'll be taking my leave."
"Be careful," Ryun reminded him.
"I will," Ichiro assured him.
"Anyways," Ryun noticed Seri is gone. "Where did Seri go?"
"Oh," Antoine remembered she's here for a mission. "Must have left ahead."
"Without you?" Ryun frowned. "Did you fight or something?"
"I must have upset her earlier," Antoine lied.
"You keep doing that she might run away again," Ryun worriedly told him.
"No she won't this time," Antoine confidently replied. "Because she can't bear the punishment later if she does."
"I see," Ryun smiled.
"Well," Antoine stood up. "I'll go ahead. See you tomorrow!"
"Yeah," Ryun nodded and prepared to leave.
Wearing that black suit, she stayed hidden up in the corner of the rooftop. Those blue eyes are watching the view from afar. She sees Antoine exiting the building with the other students.
"One hour before it becomes completely empty," Seri set the timer.
"Miss," Sai is on the other line.
"Good!" Seri is happy to hear Sai's voice. "You're in!"
"Ah yes of course," Sai replied. "So what can I do for you?"
"Stay on standby," Seri instructed him. "And wait for me to call you."
"What?" Sai disappointedly replied. "Why?"
"I need you to be my eyes where I cannot see," Seri told him.
"Okay," Sai snorted. "But what if you get hurt out there?"
"No I won't," Seri assured him. "Mirana is close by. So if the situation is out of my control you know who to send."
"Okay," Sai sadly replied. "Then I am on watch duty."
"Sai," Seri understood him but she can't have him out. "Did you look at the thing I asked you about?"
"Yes," Sai opened the files on his monitor. "That was definitely another AI built for one purpose. To cause havoc in school by frightening the students or worse harm them."
"I see," Seri took note of it.
"Miss," Sai worriedly said. "You should have me out! That AI is making me worry of you!"
"I'll be fine," Seri confidently replied. "Now, how about feeding me info about that AI? My throat still has the scars from earlier."
"Its hands has poisons," Sai elaborates. "Lucky you are immune to most poisons."
"Ah," Seri nodded recalling that feeling on her throat. "What else?"
"This AI is really fast," Sai continued. "Very nimble and strong. If I were to assess your situation if you fight that thing you cannot win against this one alone."
"Okay," Seri understood what Sai means. "Thank you very much."
The last one to leave the building was Ryun.
"What is he doing out so late?" Seri frowned.
"Who?" Sai asked.
"Young master Ryun," Seri replied.
"Oh," Sai had him on one of the monitors. "Does he stay late often?"
"No," Seri shook her head. "He comes home at 6pm unless there is something important to do."
"Then he must have something important," Sai thought.
"I wonder what it is," Seri is guessing.
"Keep your nose out of him," Sai reminds her. "Your mission is your priority."
"Yeah-yeah," Seri nodded. "But he doesn't normally stay late…"
"There you go again," Sai scolds her. "Are you his mother now?"
"Hey," Seri blushed.
"Remember," Sai told her. "You are Seri and not Rose. At present I am Rose and you are back to being Seri. I am his maid you are his classmate."
"I know that," Seri sighed.
"What?" Sai frowned. "You missed being his maid? Or do you miss him because you are falling for him?"
"What?" Seri shockingly replied. "No!"
"Really?" Sai scrutinized. "Because you sound different now."
"Sai," Seri changes the subject. "Can we focus on the mission please?"
"Are you escaping me?" Sai scolds her.
"No!" Seri replied. "I mean I am seeing hostile 1 entering the south wing of the building."
"Oh?" Sai immediately becomes somber. His eyes watching the monitors and traced the person entering the building. "Beauty is meeting up with our ninja."
"Beauty?" Seri frowned. "Ninja?"
"The AI enemy is the ninja," Sai explained. "Beauty is a beautiful and sexy teacher."
"Teacher?" Seri frowned.
"She's wearing a cute pink uniform," Sai replied. "She's really close to ninja."
"Miss Nina?" Seri could only think of one person.
"You know the teacher?" Sai asked.
"Yes," Seri nodded. "Our VI."
"Ah," Sai understood. "But what is she doing with the ninja? Let us take a closer look."
"I am heading to the building," Seri told him. "Is it clear to go Sai?"
"Affirmative," Sai replied.
Quiet. She flew down like a flying lemur with the help of her suit. And landed on the third floor.
"You're way too close!" Sai worriedly said.
"Shh," Seri replied and climbed up on the ceiling like a lizard sticking her entire bod on the wall.
"Is something the matter?" beauty asked ninja.
"No," ninja replied and stealthily leaves the room. "I'll go watch outside."
'This is the records office,' Seri reads the words on top of the door. 'Records Office'.
'What is a VI doing here?' Seri frowned asking Sai in a whisper.
'I am looking into it Miss,' Sai replied softly.
Meanwhile, Ichiro with Hugo have come across the ninja at the second floor of the martial building.
"Is he the one you were talking about?" Hugo asked Ichiro.
"Yes," Ichiro nodded. "Careful with his hands."
"Yep," Hugo nodded. "They're toxic and poisonous."
Heavy breathing, the AI attacked them quickly without hesitation. So fast that it took the two of them a bit to find where he went.
Swoosh! In a blink of an eye he went right behind them. Open hands ready to strangle them.
Nervous. Ryun's words echoed in their heads and they awoke. Escaping the deadly poison, each run on opposite direction to confuse the enemy.
"Have you seen him?" Hugo had hid himself inside the faculty office.
"No," Ichiro is in the lab room.
"Any idea where he is Ao?" Hugo asked.
"Wait a bit," Ao replied. "He's really fast that I find it difficult… wait, I see him!"
"Where?" Ichiro and Hugo chorused.
"Heading to the lab," Ao replied. "Stay where you are sir Ichiro. He's standing outside the glass checking."
Reading the heat signatures in the area, ninja found his target. His fists closed and ready to punch the wall where Ichiro is.
"Move away sir Ichiro!" Ao cried.
Alarmed, Ichiro crawled away to his right same time with the impact.
Cracking sound. Seri nervously listened.
"What was that?" Seri asked Sai.
"Sir Ichiro has met the ninja," Sai replied.
"What is Ichiro doing here at this hour?" Seri frowned.
"Who knows?" Sai replied. "Anyways, heads up, beauty is coming your way."
Seri had managed to enter the records office unnoticed. Hiding behind one of the shelves she keeps beauty close.
"Become invisible!" Sai shouted.
"Don't shout!" Seri mumbled.
"Sorry," Sai apologized.
"Huh?" beauty heard something. She stopped halfway to check.
The room is empty except for her.
"Move back," Sai nervously said.
Seri quietly moved backwards seeing beauty coming forward. Her heart pounded hard inside her chest.
"Move to your left," Sai instructed her. "You'll bump onto a box!"
'Yes,' Seri said in her mind.
Keeping her mouth shut and her breathing still, she remained quiet.
"Head to your left!" Sai exclaimed hurting Seri's ear again.
'I am really going to punish you once I get a hold of you!' Seri thought after Sai said it.
"Sorry," Sai apologized.
Moving to her left she found an escape and run for it. Beauty has become suspicious.
"Ninja is still busy," Sai told her. "But do not push your luck. Beauty has called for him so leave at
once!"
'I am moving out alright!' Seri went in the vent and headed north.
"Sai," Seri nervously called out. "Is someone in the vent?"
"Wait," Sai looked into it.
She took out her swords and prepared for the encounter. Someone is getting close and her heart is beating fast.
Sai has not given her an answer that she made up her mind. She pierced her sword forward seeing the silhouette coming forward.
"Whoa!" Ichiro exclaimed nervously avoiding getting stabbed.
"Ichiro?" Seri is surprised.
"Seri?" Ichiro is very surprised.
"It is Sir Ichiro," Sai told her.
"It is Miss Seri," Ao told him.
"She almost stabbed me to death," Ichiro firmly told Ao.
"I almost killed him!" Seri bit her lip regretful.
"What are you doing here?" Ichiro asked.
"Shouldn't I be the one asking you that?" Seri replied.
"I asked first," Ichiro told her.
"Hey," Sai called Seri. "Heads up, ninja is in the room. You better get out of there. He can see you with your heat signatures."
"Okay," Seri nodded.
"What?" Ichiro frowned.
"Time to go," Seri crawled fast passing Ichiro. "That thing knows where we are."
"What?" Ichiro frowned.
"You go too sir Ichiro," Ao told him. "She's right. That guy is on your tail."
"You've got to be kidding me!" Ichiro nervously crawled behind Seri.
"By the way," Seri told Ichiro. "Looks like Miss Nina isn't really a teacher."
"What?" Ichiro is confused.
"She's with that thing and is looking for something in the records office," Seri told him. "I wonder what she is looking for."
"You were at the records office?" Ichiro asked.
"Yeah," Seri took a left following Sai's instructions.
"What were you doing there?" Ichiro doubts her.
"I saw teacher Nina so I went in to check," Seri replied.
"Hey," Ichiro goes back to his first question. "What are you doing her exactly?"
"Investigating," Seri replied.
"You shouldn't be telling him that!" Sai scolds her.
"Ah," Ichiro still don't trust her. "For what exactly?"
"That thing," Seri replied.
"Ichiro," Hugo is on the line. "Where are you?"
"In the vent brother," Ichiro replied. "With a classmate of mine."
"Classmate?" Hugo frowned.
"Yes," Ichiro nodded. "Anyway, create a distraction for us. Looks like we are hot on our tail."
"Where?" Hugo asked and quickly comes out to the hallways.
"Admin building," Ichiro replied.
"They are on the third floor," Ao told Hugo. "In the vents heading north."
"Our target?" Hugo asked.
"Hot on their tail," Ao replied. "This guy is going to destroy the building soon just to eliminate the mice."
"Okay," Hugo comes out of the martial building and heads to the admin building.
Beauty takes her time logging into the server of the school to search for the information she needs. However, the server is protected with a password and is in tight security. One wrong entry and it will trigger the alarm system.
"So easy," beauty smiled and used her device to solve it for her. In just a few minutes the server is on. Smiling she devoured every folder she could find.
"Where is it?" beauty angrily opened those one by one. However, she could not find it. "Damn!"
"What is wrong my dearie?" her comrade is on the line.
"The management is very clever," beauty replied. "I could not find the royals info in the server."
"I see," her comrade remained calm. "Why don't you look into every student's data then?"
"That would take years," beauty complained.
"Are you complaining now?" her comrade said firmly.
"No," beauty remembered something about him. "Sorry about that. I will look into it."
"Very good," her comrade said smiling.
"But I will need time," beauty told him.
"How much?" her comrade asked.
"A few days," beauty replied.
"I'll give you a week," her comrade firmly told her.
"That is more than enough," beauty lied. Deep inside she is worried she won't find them in a week's time.
Boom! An explosion is heard on the north part of the admin building.
"That robot!" beauty angrily gasped. "If he keeps on doing that then this building will shatter!"
Seri and Ichiro are running in opposite directions avoiding the gunfire.
Panting. They both find refuge inside the offices hiding behind the metal drawers and cabinets.
"Sai?" Seri called nervously.
"I am on it," Sai told her. "I am doing my best blocking her on every way."
Ninja kept on firing his gun. He never runs out of ammo. It pierces through the thick walls creating holes and cracks.
"This guy is mad!" Ichiro cried. "The entire building will collapse if he keeps that up!"
"I am on it!" Seri shouted at him. She gathered her strength and prepared for battle.
Running in stealth, she come close to ninja without being spotted. Bam! She kicked him hard and pinned him down flat on the floor.
Ting! Her sword comes out of the sheath and pierced him hard on the chest destroying the source of his power.
"Whoa!" Hugo gaped at the sight. "Tell me I am only seeing things!"
"No you aren't," Ichiro shook his head. He could not believe this girl just destroyed the AI in a blink of an eye.
"Why did you prolong the situation miss?" Sai angrily asked. "You could have finished the AI earlier without destroying the place!"
"Sorry," Seri smiled. "I was looking for an opening!"
"An opening?" Sai angrily shouted. "The entire building is destroyed!"
While she and Sai are arguing, beauty took the chance to escape. She run out of the room and sprinted for the stairs. Her heels created that tick-tock sound as she run down avoiding the debris that blocks the path. However, Ichiro spotted her and alerted Hugo who is nearby.
"Hey!" Ichiro sees beauty coming out. Running.
Bam! Daggers flew her way and pierced the door as a warning.
"Stop right there," Hugo comes at her with gun pointed at her head. "I won't hesitate to pull the trigger and your head will explode."
"Hmm," beauty turned around smiling ironically.
"What are you smiling at?" Hugo angrily asked.
Ichiro and Seri had stayed behind wearing a mask to cover their faces.
"Two of you sound familiar," beauty smiled. "I wonder who?"
"Shut up!" Hugo scowled. "On your knees!"
Smiling. Beauty dropped to her knees. Placed both her hands behind her head.
"Better," Hugo threw something at her. Three flying saucers that created a mirror cell trapping beauty inside. The walls are thick and indestructible. It also jam signals preventing beauty from communicating outside and vice versa.
Seri turned around with a sigh.
"This is a serious matter," Seri becomes weak. Her heart throbbing inside her.
"I am seeing we'll be having a big problem tomorrow," Ichiro sighed.
"This is the worst thing for me," Seri sobbed.
"Are you crying?" Ichiro surprisingly turned to her.
"My punishment will be worst from this," Seri dropped to her knees.
Ichiro paused thinking. Then a thought comes into his mind. He begins to understand why she is feeling that way.
"Relax," Ichiro tried to comfort her. "Everything will be fine once the sun rises."
"How can it be fine?" Seri cried. "The building is in a bad shape! If only I had destroyed that robot earlier!"
"Speaking of which," Ichiro curiously asked. "Why didn't you?"
"I was so curious to know what Miss Nina is up to," Seri replied with regret. "Now this happens."
"Ah," Ichiro understood. "Then you'll probably be in trouble with your boss. Am I right?"
Seri turned to him and saw embarrassment for her. It made her heart heavy and she cried.
"Oh dear me," Ichiro felt sorry for her.
"I already turned her over the authorities," Hugo told them.
"Good," Ichiro smiled.
"What's with her?" Hugo sees Seri crying.
"She's worried what will her boss say after this," Ichiro replied.
"Her boss?" Hugo frowned.
"She works for the Alliance," Ichiro explained. "Probably sent here to take care of the situation. But it turned out the outcome is worse."
After ten minutes. Seri receives a call from her supervisor. Biting her lip she wished she is dead rather than listen to all the criticism. Her ears wanted to run and hide but couldn't. Instead, she listened to her supervisor's angry voice and send the words out to her other ear. Pretending she isn't hearing all of it.
Standing still at the open field. Seri waited for her ride that will take her back to the Alliance. Ichiro who watched from across the field is feeling sorry for her. He could tell the weight of her punishment from her mien.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone