"Cheers!" Nia raised her can of beer into the air.
"Cheers." Kyo raised his glass and clinked his drink with hers.
"Cheers…" Ryouko raised her own can of beer, albeit with much less enthusiasm. "I can't believe I'm back in your apartment already," she muttered quietly. And sharing an evening drink again, no less.
Kyo snorted. "It's the least I could do after disappearing on you after leaving nothing but an unresponsive phone."
"Cough, cough!" Nia slammed down a newly emptied can on the table. "Ahaha… well, all's well that ends well!" She chuckled sheepishly, cracking open another beer.
"I guess so,'" Kyo sighed, leisurely sipping his own drink. "But really, I can't believe we never accounted for the AST base only accepting communications from specific radio frequencies."
"What I find even more unbelievable is that Ex-Captain Kannazuki showed up to negotiate for Ratatoskr instead," Ryouko mused. How did he even end up working there?
"Does the fact that their commander is a twelve year old make it more believable?" Kyo said scathingly, sipping a strange greenish-grey concoction.
"...unfortunately, yes." Ryouko downed the rest of her beer, nodding gratefully as Nia immediately handed her another one. That guy was always such a perver- "Wait, Ratatoskr's commander is twelve years old?!"
"Uh… anyway!," Kyo rested his chin on his hands and smiled innocently. "How did the negotiations go after I left?"
"..." Ryouko gave him a look while popping the tab on her can. "Good news or bad news first?"
"Bad news, I gues-"
"Don't be such a downer!" Nia interrupted, lightly punching Kyo on the shoulder before turning to Ryouko with a wide grin. "Good news, good news!"
"...right." Ryouko smiled awkwardly. "The good news is that the AST will no longer be playing an active role in the elimination of Spirits."
"WOOO! This calls for a celebration! And drinks!" Nia cheered, raising her drink beer and chugging it all at once.
"What exactly do you think we're doing right now?" Kyo shook his head helplessly.
"Ahem," Ryouko coughed. "As for the bad news… well, let's just say that the AST won't be doing anything for the time being, least of all assisting Ratatoskr."
"So you're just on standby now?" Kyo frowned. Ryouko gulped. Uh oh.
"I tried arguing, believe me," she said quickly. "General Kiritani was just way too stubborn, and Kannazuki didn't exactly leave the most stellar impression when he left, so he wasn't all that much help, and-"
"Calm down, jeez." Kyo put his hands up. "Honestly, for a plan I came up with literally last night, it went quite well."
"And I didn't even have to make more than five revisions this time!" Nia patted Kyo on the head. "You're improving, my young patawan!"
"It's pada- actually, forget it." He shook his head with resignation, playing with the katana attached to his necklace. Ryouko frowned. Was that always part of his Astral Dress? Hm…
"Nia, I have a question. If you don't mind me asking, that is…" she began hesitantly.
"Eh? Go ahead, go ahead!" The Spirit gave her a beaming thumbs-up. "Should I send Kyo outside while we talk?"
"Uh, that's probably fine…" Ryouko said awkwardly. "So… why are you wearing different clothes?"
"Uh." Nia froze in place, her empty can clattering to the ground as Kyo doubled over in laughter.
"It's a genuine question!" Ryouko blushed. "None of the other Spirits I've seen have ever worn anything other than their Astral Dress, Kyo over here included!"
"The short answer… is that I… just don't have any clothes," Kyo answered between his laughter. "In fact, most of the Spirits don't own clothes."
Nia sniffled depressedly. "How the hell did I become the weird one for owning a few sweaters and pants?"
"Don't worry; you look great," Kyo chuckled, standing up to ruffle her hair.
"Urgh… no, I can't accept this!" She stood up, shaking off Kyo's hand before pointing at him dramatically. "You! We're gonna get you new clothes even if it kills you! And you!" She pointed at Ryouko, who jumped in her seat. "Ask him something! Surely there's something weird about him you can question him about?"
"Uh, in that case… what exactly have you been drinking?" Ryouko asked. "Is that some sort of special Spirit drink?"
Both Spirits immediately went quiet as they turned their gazes on Ryouko. "Uh… are you sure you want to know?" Nia asked with a strange expression.
"Er… sure…" What's with that reaction? Don't tell me it's something like a human flesh-
"It's boiled chicken, celery, and quinoa, blended up with a cup of milk," Kyo said flatly.
"..." Ryouko felt her stomach churn. "Oh." Somehow, that's worse.
"I warned you," Nia muttered, cracking open yet another can of beer.
"Mmhmm," Kyo agreed, pointing to a door on his left. "If you feel the need to throw up, the bathroom is over there."
"I… I'll be fine." Ryouko shivered, desperately trying to get the idea of what Kyo's drink might taste like out of her mind. I think I might have to avoid chicken for a few weeks. And milk. And the other two ingredients.
"If you say so." Kyo took another long draft of his "drink" while staring Ryouko dead in the eyes. "By the way, have you told the rest of your squad about your new arrangement yet?"
"I- urk, think the higher-ups sent an email," Ryouko answered whilst trying not to gag. "Why?"
"I just remembered that you have a very determined, very troubled girl who might not take these new orders very well," Kyo mused. "If I had to guess what would go through her head, it'd probably be something like this-"
——————I am the dividing line that shifts perspectives——————
"What?!" Origami felt as though her world was spinning. The familiar sight of her room morphed into an aggregation of vague colors as she struggled to re-read the message on her phone. "The AST is to cease all operations while upper management undergoes negotiations regarding a possible change in objective… all members are not to engage any Spirits in the meantime, and are to follow citizens to spacequake shelters?!"
But why? How? What kind of change in objective could an organization named the Anti-Spirit Team undergo if they're ordering us to cease the one thing we're literally named to do?! Origami grit her teeth and continued to read the email.
"Recently, we have re-established communication with the organization "Ratatoskr," which many of you may have considered as nothing but rumor. However, in recent years, they have managed to 'seal' the power of three Spirits via peaceful negotiation…"
CRACK-
Origami breathed heavily as she extracted her fist from the wreckage of what was once her table, ignoring the blood on her hand. It seems the AST can no longer help me avenge my parents. But if not them, then….
She kept on reading, her eyes widening as a certain word caught her eye. "The current sealed Spirits include [Princess], [Hermit], and… [Efreet]." She spat out the last name with venom in her voice. Efreet, the one who killed my parents. She's already been dealt with? No, they said she was "sealed." In that case…
"I'll finish the job." The girl vowed to herself, clenching a fist to her chest. CR-unit permissions probably won't be disabled until next Sunday. Neither will permissions for accessing the weaponry. If I act tomorrow, I can still scavenge enough supplies to kill [Efreet] for good.
——————I am the dividing line that shifts perspectives——————
"-or something like that," Kyo finished, shrugging casually.
"Origami would never-" Ryouko stopped mid-sentence. Actually, now that I think about it, she's never listened to me when it comes to fighting Spirits. She's always insisted on fighting for as long as possible, as much as possible…
"She totally would," Kyo insisted with a wry smile. "Especially since she thinks [Efreet] is the Spirit that killed her parents."
"Right…" Ryouko groaned. "I'll make sure all access permissions are frozen ASAP- wait, are you saying [Efreet] never killed her parents?"
"Mmhmm," Kyo nodded. "But I have no intention of wasting my time trying to convince her of it. Oh, by the way, make sure you don't drink yourself unconscious like last night; I have no desire to lend out my bed again."