"ohgod," Yukino gasped.
"What... happened, here?" Mai asked.
"Pistol wounds," Akira said grimly. "I think... that they were murdered before they woke up from... whatever procedure SEARRS was using." She stepped around the other HiME to take a closer look at the body on the first of the ward's beds, then went absolutely white. "S-sagisawa-sensei?" she whispered.
"Four bodies, six beds," Midori stayed in the door. "Two... Who's missing?"
"Chie's safe," Mai reminded her - she had turned away as soon as she realized what she was seeing and was leaning against the wall out in the corridor - which was as deserted as the rest of the compound. "Natsuki and Shizuru found her in time." But Mikoto isn't! something screamed inside her mind. She forced it back down into its box - there was nothing she could have done that she hadn't, and it was too late anyway.
"Haruka-chan." It was a whisper.
Akira knew quite well that she had not talent to speak of for people stuff - how Takumi tolerated her she'd never understand - and opted to let Yukino deal with the implications of her love's former presence and current absence, in favor of giving the room a closer examination. An older man, overweight - Natsuki's contact, Yamada. A girl who would have been about Yukino's height, with light brown hair - Mai's friend, Senou. Others she wasn't as familiar with.
Then some sliver of her mind so well-trained it could pass for instinct even in these circumstances rang for her attention. "All of the IVs are empty," she pointed out. "They didn't just shrug it off."
"So one of their people, and Haruka and Tate-ichi and the others." Midori shut her eyes and leaned her head against the doorframe for a split second, then shook her head and stood back up straight. "Okay, let's go."
Shizuru and Natsuki were waiting. "She managed to get away out of sight for a second," the latter reported grimly. "They're doing it, the full Festival."
Oh boy but there's a lot buried in this bit. Probably it'd be a lot better for being more spread out, but the lady Muse is hinting delicately that she'd rather move on to other things.
Don't worry, though - I was intending the upcoming events even well before she lost interest. I'm not just... well. ^_^
Ja, -n
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"Puripuri puripuri... Bang!"