Episode 08 - ITEM
In the middle of the night, an illegal deal is broken up by four skilled and ruthless girls: the underworld enforcement team ITEM. As they wrap up the operation, their leader, Mugino (the 4th ranked Level 5), is contacted about a new mission: protect some research facilities from a mysterious electricity-wielding vandal.
The next day, ITEM is briefed on the particulars. Someone, believed to be an electromaster esper, has been destroying their client's research laboratories. ITEM is tasked with protecting two different facilities, either of which could be the next target. However, they are not to pay any attention to the work going on at these facilities, nor ask any questions about it. One of the team members, a blonde-haired girl named Frenda, volunteers to protect one of them by herself (with an eye on the "kill bonus"). Mugino gives the go-ahead, but cautions her not to get in over her head.
That night, Mikoto approaches one of the facilities, resolving to put a final stop to Project Level 6 Shift tonight. Easily evading the outer security, she scans the building and determines that the lab is on the top floor. Frenda, who is finishing off her preparations inside, gleefully detects Mikoto's arrival.
As Mikoto enters the lower level, an explosion causes part of the ceiling to collapse over top of her. Deflecting it, Mikoto realizes that someone has anticipated her arrival. Unseen for the moment, Frenda ignites a line of tape running across the wall, which burns rapidly like a fuse until it reaches several odd-looking dolls placed strategically around the room. Bombs hidden inside the dolls explode violently, prompting Mikoto to shield herself with pieces of metal from the collapsed ceiling. She looks around and sees a large number of the explosive dolls placed throughout the facility.
Continuing to shield herself, she rushes deeper into the building, but is almost caught off guard by some of the hidden explosives. She dodges using her electromagnetic ability, but is dismayed at having to use up so much of her power so quickly. She notices the tape fuses criss-crossing the walls and floor, and opts to follow them to their source; soon she spies Frenda, high up on a steel staircase. Frenda lures Mikoto up the stairs, and sets off more explosives to collapse it under her. She is shocked when Mikoto simply uses magnetism to prevent herself from falling. Frenda retreats as Mikoto pursues her deeper into the building.
Word of the attack reaches the other facility, where the scientists are frantically working to move everything out. The scientist in charge is informed that a visitor has arrived: Shinobu Nunotaba. He thanks her for coming, and says he'd appreciate her help with the move. Then he asks her to wait for a few minutes, and leaves the room.
Mikoto asks Frenda who she's working for, but Frenda says those details don't concern her. As Mikoto continues to easily fend off her attacks, Frenda begins get worried. She tries using a flash-bang grenade to blind Mikoto, only to discover that Mikoto can use EM fields to sense her surroundings. Next, Frenda smashes a small glass jar, releasing some sort of gas. She tells Mikoto the gas is highly incendiary, and that using electricity would blow them both up. When Mikoto is shocked that she'd put herself at risk like that, Frenda says that as someone who works in the city's underworld, she's used to life-and-death stakes. Then she charges in to attack hand-to-hand, forcing Mikoto back on her heels.
At the other facility, one of the scientists is worried that something could wrong, but the supervisor says he's brought in a patsy to take the blame if it does. He goes back into the room where Nunotaba was waiting... only to find it empty. At that moment, Nunotaba is climbing down an emergency ladder into the lower levels of the facility. She says to herself that any Sisters who are still undergoing adjustments will be the last to be moved... and internal security is weak right now with everything else going on.
Meanwhile, without her powers, Mikoto is on the defensive against Frenda's attacks. Frenda mocks her, saying she has plenty of experience killing espers. She adds that killing someone makes her feel like it was their destiny — that they were born purely for the purpose of being killed. This statement causes Mikoto to snap as she remembers how the Sisters are simply accepting their fate in the experiments. Screaming that she won't stand for it, Mikoto blocks Frenda and then counterattacks furiously. In the struggle, some of Frenda's incendiary devices fall to her feet and explode, forcing her to dodge frantically and leaving her off-balance. Seeing this, Mikoto realizes that her story about the explosive gas was just a bluff, and blasts Frenda with electricity.
With Frenda conscious but incapacitated, Mikoto demands to know who she works for. Terrified, Frenda tries to speak but realizes the electric shocks have caused her tongue to go numb. When she is unable to answer, Mikoto mistakes her silence for loyalty, and shows some grudging respect. At that instant, part of the wall nearby suddenly starts glowing with intense heat. Mikoto leaps out of of the way just as a powerful energy beam blasts through it and burns into the far wall.
Mugino steps through the smoldering hole and tells Frenda it looks like she arrived just in time...
Tropes
- Bad Ass Normal: Frenda has no esper or magic powers, but nonetheless manages to put up a serious fight against Mikoto.
- Clothing Damage: Mikoto's clothes are heavily torn by the end of the fight. On the other side, Frenda... loses her hat.
- Combat Pragmatist: Frenda uses traps, bombs, deception, and anything else it takes to win in a fight against an esper.
- Crazy-Prepared: Frenda prepares traps all over the facility in advance of Mikoto's arrival, carefully designed to be effective against electromasters note . She also has a lot of impromptu tricks hidden up her sleeves (or rather, her skirt).
- Cute and Psycho: Frenda could be a poster child for this trope.
- Jerkass: The scientist in charge of the S-Processor lab brought Nunotaba in with the intention of setting her up to take the blame if something went wrong. He even brags about this to his subordinate.
- Kick Chick: In unarmed combat, Frenda relies mostly on kicks.
- Oh, Crap!: Frenda has a minor one when she starts to suspect Mikoto might be a Level 5. Then she has a bigger one when she thinks Mikoto is about to fry her to a crisp.
- Rage Breaking Point: When Frenda suggests that Mikoto's destiny was to be born just to die at her hands, Mikoto finally loses her cool — screaming that she can't stand the Sisters being created for the sole purpose of being killed, and never protesting or trying to fight it. This is also a key moment of Character Development, because up until now Mikoto has been trying to convince herself that this is about stopping the misuse of her DNA map. Now, though, she's forced to admit that she's really doing this to save the Sisters... and by extension can no longer pretend that she doesn't see them as human beings.
- Stuff Blowing Up: Frenda's main schtick.
- The Cavalry: A villainous version when Mugino arrives to rescue Frenda.
- Trouser Space: Frenda appears to store various explosive devices under her skirt. How she manages to walk without clanking, let alone sit down, is anyone's guess.
- The Unreveal: We never find out exactly who hired ITEM. There's no indication it was Nokleben (who doesn't appear in this episode), and the various researchers don't seem to know much about them. It's clear that whoever their 'client' is, it must be somebody on, or connected to, the dark side of Academy City.
- Villain Episode: A borderline example: while Mikoto still has several point-of-view scenes, the bulk of the episode is told from Frenda's perspective.
- Verbal Tic: Frenda tends to incorporate the word kekkyoku note into most of her sentences. Mikoto mockingly uses it back at her when she turns the tables.
