Misaka Mikoto looked above while standing atop a snowy plain.
It seemed the giant fortress that spiky-haired boy was on was rising even further. She had come all the way to Russia, but she now had no way to meet up with him.
(…Ahh!! I can't just be left out after coming this far!! I need to think of a way to get up there!!)
It seemed clear to her that the spiky-haired boy was at the center of that giant disturbance known as World War III. Part of her was amazed at the difference in the scale of the things that idiot was involved in, but she would drag him down to a safe place before lecturing him.
The Sister next to her then spoke up.
"What is that frog strap sticking out of your jacket's pocket? asks Misaka brimming with curiosity."
"Ahn? It's Gekota. I got it from a cell phone campaign I dragged that idiot to on September 30th."
"…With #10032's necklace and that strap, it really seems like the Academy City group has an advantage, says Misaka hinting at her need to reformulate her strategy. Long distance is tough."
"Um, strategy?"
Mikoto blinked repeatedly, but the Sister holding a Russian assault rifle like it was a stuffed animal did not explain further.
She instead looked up toward the fortress.
"It seems you want to somehow assist him, says Misaka as she suggests a topic of discussion."
"…Well, I do, but the problem is how to get up there. It looks like it's up to about 5000 meters now. I just can't get that high with my magnetism."
"Would it be possible to prepare a number of relay points in the air and then raise your altitude in steps? asks Misaka putting forth a random idea."
"How?" Mikoto asked and the Sister looked around the area.
She then pointed toward a half-destroyed Russian short-range missile launcher vehicle.
"First fire that missile."
"I'd die," Mikoto responded immediately. "But a normal military helicopter probably wouldn't get me all the way up there. They aren't airtight and it looks like that fortress is still rising. If I'm really going to go, I guess I'll need an airplane."
"(…This could be my big chance to blast away my long distance handicap by gallantly appearing just when his situation seems impossible, says Misaka as she chuckles and begins leaking horrible delusions into the network.)"
"Hey, I can hear everything you're saying," said Misaka in exasperation, but the Sister's head suddenly shot up.
She started to focus on her headset radio.
"Misaka has intercepted a Russian transmission, reports Misaka. The encryption is different from the usual one for their vehicles. Someone named Nikolai Tolstoy is mentioned quite a few times, but this is probably a transmission from an independent unit, conjectures Misaka."
"?"
"It seems a large scale attack from the surface is going to be carried out against the floating fortress in the sky, says Misaka summarizing the contents."
"Hmm. That isn't good. That sounds like that idiot could get wrapped up in it."
She honestly did not care what happened to the strange fortress, but she didn't want an acquaintance to be blown up along with it. Finding a way to reach the fortress was important, but she had to stop the attack on it from the surface first.
"So what kind of weapon are they going to be using? They were at least firing short-range surface-to-air missiles before, but I doubt those would do anything to that thing."
"Nu-AD1967."
"What is that?"
"That is the American name for it, says Misaka continuing her explanation. It seems it is called an Opasnosti here, says Misaka as she listens carefully to the transmission."
"But what is it?"
"It is a former Soviet Union strategic nuclear warhead, reports Misaka."