[X] Look for your Ultimate lab, if it's even on this floor
[X] Invite Jeanne along
"Yet if Momoka's found her Lab, there could a chance ones for us are around here too," I was quick to observe. "Well, it's worth a look for them anyway, I don't know if we even have access to the whole school".
"Still, I see where you're coming from," Jeanne nodded then perked up, "Ah, no doubt mine will be packed to ze brim with escape ropes, sharpened rapiers, and explosives!" She had to grin and hold up her fists as she said that.
"Er, we'll see," I put on a smile as we headed off, then added, "I'll just be happy if my lab has an actual plane, even if it's just a Wright Brothers model. I mean, you know, if they gave Dejan a tank, then anything's possible I guess".
We'd already had somewhat of a decent look at the ground floor of the North building when we were looking for the Gym, so that left the South building to explore more fully. The North Building being where most of the actual classrooms were, the South building was reserved for dorms and other purposes, like that School Store I found. Getting a better look around (well, as much as was possible, given lighting that could charitably be called 'minimal'), we eventually found the other facilities there, including basics like restrooms, showers, and the other dorms, girls' and boys' on opposite sides of the building, but also a little café and even a cinema room.
The moment we approached the cinema's door, however, Columbird instantly popped up in the ticket booth and barked, "No ticket, no entry, no-one's weaseling in on my watch! Got that, sonny Jim?"
"Ah, w-we were just getting to know the layout of the dorms" I tried to tell him.
"Feh, don't play smart with me, I know just what young, disobedient whelps are like," Columbird grumbled before he flew up to me and perched down hard on my shoulder, his beak shoved right up near my face, "You are not here to slack off or go canoodling with some floozy, you are here to
learn, private! Learn how to kill that is, as if I haven't drilled that into that thick skull of yours enough!" He pointed a talon right near my eye as he said that.
Jeanne tensed. I could see from the corner of my eye that she was about to reach for her sword, yet her shaking palm had frozen, as if she knew what could happen if she tried to oppose Columbird so directly. Hell, even I strained to resist my ingrained urge to say 'Sir! Yes Sir!' from my time in the draft.
Columbird finally flew off me before Jeanne and said, "Look, probably le only reason zey set up zis movie room was so zey could force us to watch propaganda, even before le Occupation. I doubt we are missing out on much," she shrugged.
"Propaganda?!" Columbird had to shout back, "This studio contains nothing but the most glorious displays of AMERICAN culture, missy! We got Cowboys and <American Indians>, we got the Antebellum South, we got our boys bombing Jerry, we got examples of American school life that'll show ya how a real Academy is run!".
"
Like I said, propaganda" she said to me under her breath.
"Of course, had to throw out a whole bunch of <Japanese> crap to fit our stuff in. Some Peach Boy cartoon, your samurai hoo-hah, a weird-ass King Monke knockoff with slanted buildings," the bird kept rambling. Jeanne and I were at least able to slip away from Columbird as he kept talking.
Having covered all we could of the South building yet having found nothing of either of our labs, we did however spot what looked like a... Christian chapel, I think, perched out in the cave atop an upward slope.
As I still had Momoka's program tuned on, I heard her transmitted voce say "
Ah, coming up, we were quite lucky that Omura Simeon, the Ultimate Miracle-Worker, agreed to an interview with us. But first, a little song to remind us of mountain views, er, assuming we're not inside one right now".
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOjsmhs7qik
It was... a little hard for me to process what Momoka had just said. "Huh, I thought Omura hated the radio?" I mumbled.
Jeanne wavered a little while, but then said, "He likes to preach, does he not? He might have realised it is a way to talk at all of us without having to wait till we are all in ze one room. Also, what does she mean by 'we' or 'us'? Is she not ze only one running her station?"
"Guess it's just radio norms" I figured. I hoped that's all it was, as my head felt a slight twinge.
"Ooh," Jeanne then paused to run up and inspect the chapel, "I take it zis is Simeon's Lab, no? If he is with Momoka, perhaps we will have zis place all to ourselves to inspect!".
"W-wait a sec, isn't that...?" I tried to say, but Jeanne had already shimmied her way up a nearby pillar, leapt off it, and had managed to get into the chapel through a window. the door locked, I had to do the same, if with far less acrobatic ability.
Dropping down into Simeon's church and clutching my ankle as I did so, I glanced around while I simultaneously tried to work out how I was going to get back out. I could see several stained glass windows depicting Simeon in a variety of situations, like, um, being tied up shot with arrows, being fed to a lion, or being stranded on top of a pillar. At least the last one wouldn't be immediately fatal in real life.
As for Jeanne, she'd gone up to the organ at the end of the room, I could tell she was tempted to give it a press yet was withholding herself from doing so. Huh, resisting temptation, Simeon should at least appreciate that.
Instead, she picked up what I assumed was a Bible and opened it to a bookmark Simeon had left. I walked up to it, only to find it was in a language I couldn't recognise at all.
"Latin, I guess," Jeanne muttered, "Has Vs instead of Us, so that narrows it down".
"Wow, Omura knows Latin?" I asked.
"Either zat or he is learning, it would be required for such a 'glorious' position as Pope," she snarled. She then eyed the book closer and read the page Simeon had marked, "'Liber Iob'? Huh, Book of Job I take it".
"Uh, not familiar with the tale, I'm sorry" I said to her.
"It would line up with everyzing else here: Suffer for God," she said, then sighed. "Ugh, have we all not had enough of suffering?".
"I guess I can get where he's coming from," I said, trying to meet Simeon halfway, "After the war, it's hard honestly to not get suffering off your mind. I mean, most of Japan's still in ruins".
"Zat would be normal, like France is in no good state either. And yet," Jeanne then reached down and opened what I'd thought was a donation box, to instead show a chest filled with...
"T-torture implements?" I gasped, seeing the flails, nails, and chains.
"Zis goes beyond merely wartime suffering. Our boy fancies himself a flagellant, no?" Jeanne said, yet changed her tune a little with, "Well, at least none of zese are killing implements, unless you get creative and whatnot. I believe each of us were given a killing weapon in our dorms by Columbird, were we not?".
"Wait, we were?" I gasped, having to take a step back, "I-I don't remember seeing one, I certainly would if I did."
"Hmm, zen again, some were pretty unorthodox. Dejan was given a spanner for example" she said.
"Wait, so then what was the tank?" I had to ask.
"No less zan a mobile Laboratory, I figure" she said.
I remember Dejan wasn't the only student to have a weapon on him, like I'd seen one or two katana, Yoritsune had loads of stuff on him, and you could argue Etsuko's tails or paws counted as 'natural' weapons.
"Huh, I feel bad for Manami, she could've gotten a whole ship to herself had they been so gracious" I remarked.
It was then however the songs on Momoka's station ended, and I could hear her say, "
Hello and Good Day, Omura Simeon, Ultimate Miracle-worker. We are so grateful to have you with us! Hmm, would you be okay with elaborating on just what a 'miracle' is? It's not a familiar concept in Japan is all, we mostly assume a miracle means great luck".
Whew, good thing she didn't start off by asking about his aversion to the radio, that would've just started things on a sour note. Not that Simeon's response was that jovial.
Birdcoin! x1
"
Luck, I firmly believe, has nothing to do with it. I would even go as far to proclaim that 'luck' and 'coincidence' are imaginary concept, if not illusions that lead one away from God. Nothing that happens on Earth is by chance, but because God willed it to be. I can only hope to be as best a vessel of His will as I can," he spoke.
"Huh, by zat logic, can you not be only as good a vessel as He wills in ze first place?" Jeanne had to question.
"
Ah, I see. How... fascinating," Momoka said in return, handling Simeon's words as gracefully as she could. Guess I would've just stared and blinked if I was in her situation.
"
Oh, it appears we have a caller, the very first on our program!" she then exclaimed, as if she was smiling through the soundwaves. "Hello, you're on the Eleventh Hour."
"
Yeah hi there, Sakamoto Genpachi, ya might've heard of me around here," came his voice, Genpachi being the last person I thought would call into Momoka's program. "
Listen, I gotta ask our Mister Miracle here, what sorta crap are ya even spewing?".
I stood back and gritted my teeth on hearing that.
Genpachi, no, please don't agitate the others, that's the last thing we need...
"
The whole of God's truth, and nothing less" Simeon stated, at least keeping his composure.
"
Listen, I got that part. But do ya think about what yer even saying? That worldview of yours means no free will, no choice. And hey, believe whatever ya like, that ain't my business," Genpachi said that, despite his whole reason for calling in, "
But I gotta ask: Are ya honestly prepared to accept everything that worldview means? 'Cause I gotta tell ya, kid, it ain't pretty".
"
Look, um, perhaps it would be better if you two talked this out in person?" Momoka interjected at what may've been the right time.
"
Indeed," Simeon then said, that composure of his now showing cracks.
"
Heh, great to hear that, yer place or mine?" Genpachi laughed, before he finished by addressing Momoka with, "
Oh, just gotta say, your music bites. Then again, since you have Mr. 'No Free Will' on, only makes sense you don't know shit about the Jazz".
He hung up at just the right time. Momoka then resumed her talk with Simeon, while I turned to Jeanne and asked, "Okay, how we gonna get out of this Lab?"
"Allow me!" Jeanne then beamed as she grabbed that box of 'implements' and began dragging it over to that window.
"Wait, no! If we leave with that box over there, Omura will know someone's been in here" I gasped.
Jeanne then sighed, "You are right, much as it pains me to admit. Still, ah, look on le bright side! Zis it exciting, no? I have not had a real daring stealth mission... ever since I came here, really!" Her tone had picked up, even if in this case I wish it wouldn't have.
My instinct was to say something like
Come on, this is serious, but Jeanne did have a bit of a point. We could use a look on the bright side, after the war and now... this Killing Game.
"Yeah, guess this must be what your life's like. It's..." I began, then breathed out, "It's certainly not boring, I'll say that".
"See? I knew you'd come around!" Jeanne kept on smiling. "Oh right, le escape..."
Jeanne's Trust +1!
[ ] Hide in here till Simeon opens the door, then sneak out
[ ] Hoist Jeanne up to the window, then have her pull you up
[ ] Push the box over anyway. Even if Simeon figures out someone's been in here, he won't know it's you
[ ] Just come clean with Simeon that you're in here. It's his business to forgive, right?
[ ] Knock Simeon out as he enters, then run out
[ ] Write-in
