Slowly setting into the fort of the hills, evening slowly began to arrive in Atntis. A calm breeze passed through the clouds keeping the air from turning stagnant. The rest of the nd seemed to be carrying on as though the day was as normal as the day before. Even the smoke that hovered in the distance faded away. No reminders remained of the events from the night. Atntis moved on, but they couldn’t fet.

  Even if she acted assured and ready for their endeavor, underh it turned inting maelstrom. She felt a little unease by taking on the challenge of saving her brother alone. Yori was her brother, it should be expected that she would go. The addition of her friends traveling with her with the same goal ged everything. Knowing that anything she did affected everyoh her sent her past simply fretting and nervousness.

  The weight on Yumi’s body felt worse than she remembered. Her chest tightened and hammered ohrough her poundi. She didn’t even know if sweat covered her or the heat overwhelmed her. Between the moments when her mind wasn’t spinning with all of her fears, her legs ached refusing her. She never felt such pain before. Her success and strength didn’t mean so much previously.

  An anvil suddenly dropped on Yumi’s shoulder shattering her body and the delicately managed banbsp; She let out a yelp of surprise and turo find Fumiko’s hand on her shoulder. If the hand hadn’t beeing on her, Yumi would have colpsed to the ground as a puddle. Her rea took Fumiko a little back, givihe time to recover her breath. “I-I’m sorry! I-I was distracted…trating…”

  Fumiko gave her a small grin, “You looked a little tense.”

  “Wah! I-I…”

  “You don’t have to stress. We might have forced it upon you, but rotect ourselves. So don’t think you o bear everything alone. We’re all friends here.”

  Yumi felt a little relieved by Fumiko’s words. She looked around at Seiji and Chiharu behind them. The two kept silent for the eime since meeting Yumi. It didn’t take the strauition that Fumiko had to see that they didn’t look pleased.

  They were always at each other’s throats when a moment of calm came. The only thing keeping them in line urpose to their travel. Even with a purpose, both remained more than a healthy distance apart from each other of at least two meters. They looked to be trying to fnk Fumiko and Yumi with their position. The sight made Yumi giggle a little, fetting herself.

  Seeing the two in mute disagreement, Yumi returo her question from earlier. They seemed out of pd least likely to actually agree to be together. She looked over at Fumiko again. “You never did pletely answer my question. Those two don’t get along very well, but they came along. How e?”

  “Yeah…” Fumiko sighed thinking about it for a moment. She tilted her head back looking at the two of them. The events repyed quickly through her mind trying to sort it all out. “They’re like an older brother and younger sister sometimes, though I doubt you want to tell either of them that.”

  She gave Fumiko a quiod of agreement. “So what made them e?”

  “If you believe it, Chiharu was the first to speak up.” She thought about the se, still trying to sort out the reasons for herself. “Chiharu’s a difficult one. She’s very transparent most times, but there’s a hidden yer u all that she does a surprisingly good job of masking. I’m not sure if we’ll ever know her true reasons, but she is motivated despite her front of disi.”

  “I didn’t know…” Hearing the analysis from Fumiko made Yumi look back at Chiharu to see her in a different light. Yumi didn’t know what to think of her anymore. “So what happened?”

  Fumiko tilted her head back thinking about the se. “Well I guess we have some time to kill.”

  Chapter 127 – Intrusions

  “Yumi!” Saki turo face Yumi only to be bsted with wind. The force was enough to kick up dirt and make it difficult for her to see. She had to hold up her arms and squint her eyes. “Yumi!” Saki shouted through the cloud to no avail. Ohe wind calmed and she could see again, nothing remained. Yumi was gone. “Yumi!”

  “Where the hell’d she go?!” shouted Seiji looking around the area. He ran about the close proximity trying to figure out where she had gone. Even in the distance, he found no trace of her. “How she just up and disappear? She’s not supposed to have powers like that I thought!”

  Saki disappeared from sight as quickly as Yumi had. She left no words for the stunned and frustrated Seiji. Fumiko pulled herself out of the daze that surrounded her mind and forced herself to focus. All of the things happened so fast she didn’t have any choibsp; She o have her head on straight for everyone. Seiji came back to the group yelling and grinding his hands together with Saki’s disappearanbsp; “Calm down, Seiji. She probably just went to find Yumi and bring her babsp; She’s not leaving.”

  “I know that!”

  The volume of his voice made Fumiko lean a little. She felt unnerved by seeing him so close to her. Even though she had gotteo him in the group and called him a friend, she still felt a little uneasy with him. Uhe rest of the group, he had a very rough thug-like appearanbsp; His temper broke far too often and his strength made that even worse. She didn’t like it any more than seeing Chiharu baiting him. Keeping the tart seemed the best, but Fumiko had no trol over either. “You going to calm down then?”

  He gred at her, seeing the teetering look that struggled for unfling. It took him another moment, but realized that his presence created an imposing aura. Seiji backed off from Fumiko and parked himself a safe three meters away with his arms crossed. “…dammit…” he muttered quietly, other words came out, but none of them had any volume or intelligibility.

  Fumiko waited out the seds that turo minutes for Saki to return. She looked around at the group trying to pce everything and fully take ihing. Yuki remained unscious in the arms of Ayumi. The Atntean girl stayed quiet after all of the arguing, if only because she got exactly what she wanted. Chiharu and Haruo looked as distant and anti-social as they always did. She wished that she could do anything about the two of them, but other matters needed her. Saki retury handed. “Did you find her?”

  “No…I don’t know where she is. She’s just gone…” Saki hung her head down after she said her words as though they were the only thing keeping her moving. She dragged her feet over to Yuki’s side dropping down to her knees. “…sorry…Yuki…I’m sorry…”

  Staring at them was too much for Fumiko. She turned away looking over at the rest of the group. ‘Disappeared…she’s got to be out there…somewhere…’

  “Speaking of which,” spoke Fumiko, in the middle of her recolle of the events for Yumi. She leaned a little closer to Yumi as though she wao keep it a secret. “How did you mao evade Saki? She’s so fast I ’t imagine you being faster than her.”

  Yumi leaned back a little surprised by the sudden ge of subjebsp; Her face turned a bit red, feeling as though plimented for keeping out of Saki’s hold. The more that Fumiko leaned in with intense curiosity the more Yumi became embarrassed. She lifted up her hands to her face trying to divide them. “It wasn’t anything that special. Ho.”

  Fumiko narrowed one of her eyes, questioning her more with her gaze. “What did you do?”

  “I flew.”

  “Flew?”

  She nodded softly to Fumiko. “Yeah. I knew I couldn’t outrun Saki. I’ve seen her move. But she doesn’t think three dimensionally. So I just kept myself in the air until I was safe.”

  “Until you were safe? But wouldn’t we have seen you, even in the sky?”

  “I had some of the dust surroundio obscure me. Eventually, I found a tree and hid there until I knew Saki had returned.”

  “You knew when Saki returned?” Fumiko became increasingly more ied iory that Yumi told rather than her own. She leaned in further wanting more answers and making Yumi uneasy.

  Yumi tried to step away, but Fumiko flowed with her movement. “ell-what about you? hat happened after Saki came back?”

  “Huh?” The question made Fumiko stop for a moment. She realized that she fot the inal purpose of their talk. Once she remembered herself, she returo her old position inviting Yumi babsp; “Right! Suess I got side tracked. Well we waited until Yuki woke up, since we thought that any deade with him out would not be fair. We had to wait for a while, you really did a number on him, Yumi!”

  “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean—“

  “It’s okay, I’m just teasing you.” Fumiko waved her hand down to dismiss her previous ent. Her eyes turowards the back of their group to Seiji and Chiharu. The thought of them brought her focus babsp; “Anyway…”

  “Now that you’re awake, we go after her together!” Seiji decred, staring down at Yuki. His voice didn’t have any iion of making it a question. He stated it as a fact as though everyone already came to the same clusion.

  Ayumi leaned in around Yuki, still holding him from when Yumi gave him to her. She had a very protective look in her eyes, one only matched in iy by Saki. “She made her choibsp; You heard her! Yuki’s got to get to the Capital to put ao this! That was her wish!”

  Seiji stepped in, leaning down to her almost. “Don’t give me that crap! You’re not even ied in how Yumi felt! You’re just going along with what she said because it agrees with what you want!” He started to go for Ayumi to grab her once more, but a different hand from a new side stopped him.

  “If you’re so ed, why don’t you go with her,” remarked Chiharu in a ft tone. A brief test betweewo in Seiji trying to recim his wrist from Chiharu occurred with Chiharu holding out. Once Seiji saw that takirength lightly gave him no ground, he ripped free, nearly taking Chiharu with him. She sidestepped with the motion to nd oher side of Yuki with her body betweewo. “The rest of us go on without you. I imagi’ll be a more peaceful time with you gone.”

  “I’m not in the mood for your childish games, brat!” He took a firm step forward to stand inside her spad towered over her for extra measure. The stance did nothing to intimidate her, a point that weirely ignored by Seiji.

  The se quickly escated for everyone involved. It made Fumiko step back worried that their emotions and egos would keep them from the important issue. “Enough!” she yelled as loud as she could, but saw it ged nothing. She made further attempts, but they proved as fruitless as the first. ‘Should be small…shouldn’t o worry…’

  Her final answer came with her arm rising to meet the middle between them. Small tendrils of light whipped around her arm tying together at her wrist and turlow of fire. The fire burst from her hand in a long n that toasted everyone’s face a little.

  Everyone involved shut up immediately and turned with rusted necks to stare in disbelief at Fumiko. Stray burnt hairs flowed in the air as the embers faded. The slightly burned faces suddenly turned a little blue seeing the t presence of Fumiko before them all. “Enough fighting!” Once she released her yell, she calmed down feelier. “Now I see that no one here is going to be able to agree on us going as a group anywhere. So let’s take Chiharu’s suggestion—“

  “Now wait a—“ Seiji stopped himself just as he interrupted Fumiko. Her gre at him promptly shut him down and made him back a step away.

  “Let’s take Chiharu’s suggestion and take it a little further. The only way to make everyone happy is going to be splitting up into two teams.” She looked down at Yuki, who looked equally terrified despite not having said a single word. “Unfortunately, Yuki, you're not going to get a choi the matter. To satisfy Ayumi, yoing to o head to the Capital.”

  Yuki held his words while his mind ran through everything. His head tilted up towards everyone. “But who’s going to find Yumi? We don’t know where to find her.”

  His questiht a new sileo the group. Saki’s attempt failed, leaving them with no options to locate Yumi. However, an ued answer came from Chiharu. “I’ll be able to find her.”

  The certainty in Chiharu’s voice had them all curious, but Fumiko beat them to the question. “How will you be able to find her?”

  “I use my powers and skills in trag. Additionally, I have a general dire where she’s going.”

  Fumiko accepted her fidend moved on to the rest. “Chiharu is going to be in Yumi’s group. I’ll go as well. I assume that Ayumi is going to be with Yuki.” She didn’t need firmation from the look in Ayumi’s eyes. “Well then, what about everyone else? Who’s going with us?”

  “I’ll go too,” spoke Seiji. His voice had calmed down and he seemed in trol once more. He looked over at Saki almost gring again. “You’ll make sure he stays safe, right?”

  Saki gred back a little, looking like she took his question as an affront. “Of course, who do you think I am?”

  Yuki raised his hand up, interjeg between them. “Hey you two, I am right here. I’m not defenseless, you know. I take care of myself.”

  Saki and Seiji both leaogether to stare down at Yuki. “If no oches you, you’ll try to take everything on yourself and do something reckless!” Their unison voices made the others almost start to ugh a little. Yuki’s eyes flitted about being a little embarrassed with the situation. He had no response for them, as they both knew him too well.

  Fumiko looked over at Haruo, ever quiet aached. “What about you?” He stepped a little closer to the back of Yuki making his stance clear. “I see.” She looked over at the others feeling good about the solution. “So Chiharu, Seiji and myself will locate Yumi and rescue Yori. Once we’ve dohat we’ll do everything we to catch up to you.”

  Yuki stood up looking very serious. His eyes narrowed with his expression. “We’ll meet back outside of the Capital. Promise me!” He put out his hand with his open palm faced down jutting straight for them.

  “Definitely!” replied Seiji, spping his hand down on top of Yuki’s hand. He finished his respoh an eager grin.

  Fumiko added her hand to the ter along with Saki. They gave a firm and agreeing nod to Yuki binding their promise. The others left themselves out not ied in the childish notion of the promise. Seiji didn’t take no for an ansulled Chiharu, pining, to put her hand in. Saki followed up with Ayumi taking a card from Seiji’s book and dragged her forcibly. Yuki pulled Haruo along, only slightly relut.

  Yuki looked around at everyone, seeing them all as a group, his friends. “It’s a promise! Everyone es back safe and ut ao this!” He smiled to everyone, feeling the iious nature of Seiji’s enthusiasm. It slowly built around to the others with even Chiharu looking a little flushed and Haruo less stern than before.

  The clusion to the story made Yumi feel warm. She couldn’t help but smile a little herself as Fumiko finished. ‘Everyoogether…I’m gd!’ Yumi turo Fumiko wanting to say something to her, but suddenly fot her words. A stabbing pain ripped through her head making her scream aloud, startling everyone. ‘What’s…happening…’ The wave of pain passed as quickly as it came, but returned equally intense. She could no loand, the pain leaked through her muscles. Yumi colpsed to the ground uo trol the burning agony that coursed through her veins like fire.

  Her hands crawled over her head and pulled at her hair. The source of the pain remained in her mind. It felt like a barbed wire rammed through her eyes and stirred in her brain. She scratched at her head trying to relieve the suffering. It shifted around bumped coarsely through her and split her skull. Through all of the screaming of her void the yelling pain, she heard a voibsp; ‘Brother! Why are you in pain?!’