Andou's Rebellion

Chapter 12: Step Too Far, Steps in the Right Direction

"Use their own against them!" yelled Andou as a battalion of riot dressed Escalator students poured out of the APCs. The Examination students charged forward, some throwing the seven bang grenades at the Escalators others tossing illuminators at their feet. The fire team opened up with CS shells until being tackled by gendarmes.

"Andou, I know you're there!" yelled Oshida as she was overcome by the light and sound levied onto her and her crew. "You won't escape me, Andou!"

"Fall back!" yelled Andou to her team who ran back down the route they had gone. She watched some of her peers try escaping the tank shed where sparks flew from the burning thermite, only to be caught by gendarmes. The Examination students ran into the street where a group of gendarmes turned the corner from the depot they had left from. A barrage of tear gas canisters rained down onto the fleeing girls as they made it into the halls of the service tunnel.

One of the girls at the rear grabbed onto the handle of the door at the top of the stairs and yelled, "Go! I'll hold them back!"

"No, we return as one!" said Andou.

"Better is it that I get caught and you go on to finish the fight without me," said the girl.

"No! No justice can be done at the expense of our own!" replied Andou.

"It's too late, they already managed to grab some of our own at the depot. Go on commander, lead the good fight," she said as the gendarmes began pounding the door she stood at. Andou looked back down the stairs to see most of her team were already ahead of her. She looked back to the door, but ran as the gendarmes managed to push through it.

A tear gas canister landed at the base of the stairs, shooting aerosol from the ends of it, but Andou kept running until at last making it to the hatch where one girl was waiting. She moved quickly down the hatch into the sewers and the group closed the door before running down the corridors to the sewer system.

"Miss Oshida," said the head of the gendarme. "We lost them."

"Damn it!" cursed Oshida. She looked over to the girls who'd been caught and growled. She turned to see the ruined tanks and was made even more upset. Her eyes turned back to the captured Examination students at which she walked to them and raised her baton. "What's she planning!" yelled Oshida.

"What, I don't know, what you..." started the girl.

"What is Andou planning!" yelled Oshida as she pushed back on the girls head with the tip of a truncheon. "Why did she have you all do this?"

"We were just fighting back! We will not let you roll over us with your tanks again!" cried the girl as she was pushed over onto her back.

"Oh yeah?" challenged Oshida. "We'll see about that. Who told Andou about the tunnels?"

"What do you mean?" asked the girl as Oshida pressed her truncheon into the head of the girl.

"Don't lie to me, we know you came in through them," said Oshida. "And we know you have our stolen documents!"

"I'm not lying! I just... I didn't know they were a secret, everyone knows there are service tunnels. And of course, there must be sewer tunnels, so I figured someone just knew. Andou lead us through them, we just followed," cried the girl.

"Get these girls inside the APC. Put them in the front. I want to teach them a lesson. I want them to see first hand as we roll through their streets, as we take over their side of the ship," said Oshida to the head of the gendarme. "Call up the other tanks, we're taking back the streets!" yelled Oshida. "Andou's gone too far this time: destroying our tanks, and no doubt she's behind my team gone missing in the sewers. I just hope they're alright."

Marie climbed out of her bath and walked to her room, laying down in her plush blankets, she sighed. She turned her head to the side and took her cell phone from her night stand. It was a pink phone with two charms on it. One for Oshida, one for Andou. Marie cradled it before opening it and looking through her phone book. She wanted to talk, but didn't know who to call. Marie dropped her arms and sighed, her chest rising and falling gently as she thought about the week past.

She just wanted Andou and Oshida to get along once more. She knew they would fight, but not to this extent. Marie raised her arm once more and scrolled through her phone book, reaching Andou's number. She pressed it and dialed her friend. The phone rang and rang but at last no answer came. For a moment Marie thought to just close her phone, until she decided to leave a voicemail.

She then looked through her phone book once more. Oshida? Marie was still upset at Oshida, but then again, if only Marie could talk her out of this. Marie dialed for Oshida, but again got no answer. She leaned back into her pillow and sighed as she left her message for her friend. "Oshida.... All I ask is you reconsider. I miss you. I miss Andou. I miss Sensha-dō. I know you feel you're in the right, but for once, don't do as I ask. Really think about this and do what is right. Not what you think is right, but what is truly right."

Marie sighed as she scrolled some more until coming to a contact she never would have felt a need to call at this hour. But she needed someone to talk to. She dialed the number she wanted and waited on the line until at last her call connected. It felt like hours waiting for the call to go through, but at last, someone had answered. "Hello?" stated a very tired voice on the other end. "Who's this?"

"Maho?" asked Marie. "This is Marie. From BC Freedom."

"Marie. Yes, I remember you. Why are you calling so late? Is everything alright?" asked Maho.

"Maho dear, what do you call so late for?" asked Shiho.

"I must ask a favor of you, mother. Will you meet me at the BC Freedom carrier. I will be there with some of my peers," answered Maho.

"BC Freedom, what on earth are you doing there?" asked her mother.

"I will explain when we pick you up. But for now, I must call up the other member of the Sensha-dō board. There is discipline to be given," stated Maho flatly.

"Disciplining slacking students is below my pay grade, child," answered Shiho.

"No, I don't need help with students. We have a head master to remove," replied Maho.