Misaka Imouto had arrived at a train switchyard.
Similar to a transit bus garage, it was a place where many trains were serviced and where they were kept after the last train ran. An area about the size of a school's grounds was covered in the same gravel as a train track and over 10 rails were lined up next to each other. Lined up at the end of the tracks were garages with large shutters over them making them look like rental storage areas at a port. Surrounding the entire switchyard were large numbers of metal containers used on freight trains. The containers were piled up like building blocks and they rivaled three story buildings in height. The disorderly piles made the area around the switchyard seem like a three-dimensional maze. The containers were like mountains and the switchyard itself was like the basin between the mountains.
The switchyard was not a popular place.
As all students had to be back from school by the time the last train left, the switchyard was quickly abandoned. The electric lights used for work were turned off and there were no houses nearby so that left no illumination. Even though 2.3 million people lived in that city, that area was wrapped in such darkness that the usually invisible stars were visible in the night sky.
Standing in the middle of that vacant darkness was Academy City's strongest esper, Accelerator.
His form seemed to be one with the surrounding darkness, so Misaka Imouto felt like she was being thrown into a giant organ belonging to Accelerator by entering that switchyard.
The white boy smiled in the black darkness.
His eerie whiteness gave her the feeling that her eyeballs had been thrown into boiling water.
"So it's 8:25… I take it you're the next doll to be targeted in the experiment?"
Accelerator's voice sounded like a white darkness spewing forth from that smile that split across his face.
But Misaka Imouto's expression did not change even slightly.
"Yes, Misaka is Serial Number 10032, responds Misaka. However, shouldn't you check using the passcode to ensure that Misaka is part of the experiment? suggests Misaka."
"…Tch. You're fucking insane," Accelerator spat out. "Well, I may have no right to say this as someone forcing you to take part in this experiment to make me stronger, but you sure are calm. Don't you feel anything about this situation?"
"It is difficult to understand what you mean when you use vague terms such as 'anything', replies Misaka. The experiment begins in 3 minutes and 20 seconds. Are you prepared? asks Misaka to make sure."
Accelerator's eyes narrowed. He chewed on something in his mouth with a look like he was fed up with something. It was like he was chewing on a piece of gum that had lost its sweetness.
"? Are you eating something? asks Misaka."
"Yeah, a finger," Accelerator said casually as he spat the object in his mouth out to the side.
The piece of meat was all chewed up and had saliva all over it, but the general shape of a girl's narrow fingertip could just barely still be seen.
"Since I had the chance, I thought I'd borrow it, but human flesh isn't all that great. I'd heard that fingers didn't have much fat and that it tasted a bit sour, but it's not even that. You bite into it and you can feel all these narrow bundles being torn apart. It's fucking horrible. I guess we just didn't evolve to be eaten like pigs or cows."
Accelerator wiped his lips with his arm as if to wipe away the flavor in his mouth.
But Misaka Imouto's expression did not change even slightly upon hearing that.
"Normally, pork or beef has the blood removed and the flavor improved with salt and other spices, advises Misaka. Is the distinction between raw meat and cooked meat due to the changes in the proteins created by heating bringing an error into your testing? asks Misaka giving her view on the situation."
"Is that so?" said Accelerator sounding fed up with the entire thing.
Misaka Imouto did not understand why Accelerator had asked that question. It was true that she had been shocked upon seeing him in front of the used bookstore, but that had been because of the black cat at her feet. She was only afraid of having an unrelated life taken by the experiment.
"Dammit, after 10,000 times, this is getting really fucking old. I was hoping to kill some time, but no. There's just no having a conversation with any of you," Accelerator said leisurely. "I can't understand why you would throw away your lives like that. To me, my own life takes top priority and I think of my own body as the best. That's why there's no limit to the amount of power I want and that's why I can just laugh scornfully as I kill hundreds, thousands, and tens of thousands of you."
"There are parts of what you said that Misaka does not understand, replies Misaka. You are already Academy City's strongest Level 5, are you not? If you are already at a point where no one else can reach you, there should be no need to head even higher, predicts Misaka."
"The strongest, hm?" Accelerator sounded bored as he responded. "Strongest? Strongest!? Strongest!!? True enough. I am the strongest esper in this city and therefore the strongest esper in the entire world. But," Accelerator sounded bored from the very depths of his heart, "in the end, I am only the strongest. How does everyone else know that I'm the strongest esper in Academy City? It's because they've fought me and lost. In other words, my strength is only at the level where they try to pick a fight with me because it sounds like fun."
His red eyes completely changed to those of a pleasant smile.
"That's not enough. That's nowhere near enough. Level 5 – strongest – is boring. I'm after something beyond that. I want absolute strength that makes the thought of taking me on sound like a fucking joke and doesn't even allow anyone to even think about fighting me. I yearn for that invincibility known as Level 6."
As that boy spoke of his own dream, he slowly stretched his hands out horizontally to both sides.
The right hand of suffering and the left hand of poison.
The boy smiled with his hands held out horizontally. Both were like poisonous snakes that could kill with just a touch.
He looked like a cross emitting darkness.
"So are you ready? It's time to die, you overproduced failure."
The white boy smiled mockingly, but Misaka Imouto's expression did not change even slightly.
She merely spoke unconcernedly like a doll with a clock in it.
"8:29 PM and 45 seconds, 46 seconds, 47 seconds…Experiment #10032 will begin shortly. Test Subject Accelerator, please wait at the designated spot, informs Misaka."
And the unavoidable experiment began at 8:30 PM.