Hydraheads

Chapter 6: Quisling

Naniwa did another running lap around the various empty waterfront apartment complexes. Her sports bra and pink leggings allowed her skin to feel the gentle evening breeze. She dashed on the abandoned sidewalk and across the lonely streets. No man nor beast was present.

Strangely enough, the street lights turned on by themselves as the sky lost its golden shimmer. There should be flocks of birds flying in the distance by now, but the girl was alone. Even the passing commuter train on the bridge was empty. Her only company was the reflection of the Hiroshima-3 skyline in the canal.

This world was a mirror image of the real one. Its buildings and features were the same as Naniwa's hometown, home country, and even home world. But there were no living things more complex than trees. Logically speaking, no animals and people meant fewer casualties in battle.

Naniwa slowed her pace to catch her breath. She gulped the cool air over and over again. She also stretched her body as she didn't want the awful experience of cramps.

While relaxing, the tomboyish girl looked up at the glorious kingdom of heaven. The strange world blurred behind her in a strange electric-blue glow. Her eyes reflected the omnipresent expanse of the Earth that hung upside down to dominate the sky.

Her mouth hung in awe. No matter how many times she observed the panorama, it never stopped amazing her. Her family trips to Manchukuo,

"I see that peace has weakened you!" disturbed a male voice on her right side, quoting a great Japanese athlete of the recent Olympics.

"Gah, aren't you supposed to be out there?!" exclaimed the annoyed Naniwa at Shikishima.

"The practice was canceled, and we're not ready to stop yet," replied the other heavy voice from her left.

"There are two of them now!" cried out Naniwa when realizing that Myoko was there too. She paced herself faster to leave them. "Leave me alone!"

"Leaving someone alone is allowing antisocial behavior, Naniwa-chan," teased Shikishima.

She screamed and made a sudden turn to a nearby alley. She slowed down into light steps and stopped by the nuclear bunker entrance. In front of her, the Kailashum pocket dimension mimicked the changes in the normal world. The sky reddened as if the sunset was coming. Building lights of the ghost city turned on by themselves.

The two athletes were not that far behind, but still too far to catch her. Naniwa backflipped to get up and pressed the big red button. The thick outer door closed automatically and the cylindrical entrance spiraled down. Not even an atomic explosion could penetrate the fortification. For a moment, Naniwa was in darkness save for some emergency lights. But then she was out in the open again.

The girl took some time to calm herself. With short breaths, she crossed her legs and sat by her stuff that was already prepared before the exercise. She used the pink towel to wipe the drenching sweat while also gulping mineral water from the push bottle. She whooped in relief. "Antisocial my ass," she said grumpily. "The line between preventing subversion and being a public nuisance is as clear as the borders of Arasukan Prefecture!"

Her entrance platform moved down the screw-like tunnel into a massive spherical underground cave. In the middle of the green pasture were the Japanese-styled houses and a small lake with a pavilion in the middle. Stupas adorned the outer ring. A network of footpaths snaked out to the multiple openings in all directions. "Home sweet home," she muttered as she put the towel around her neck.

The platform arrived with a metallic sound. Naniwa went out to one of the houses. "I'm home!" she said playfully although there shouldn't be anyone there.