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Unknown... the Story, part 18 |
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[Kai Note: So... Taronis died. Rem and Kai were near death, but the rest of the team found a nice uncomfortable cave to take refuge in and heal them safely. Kai and Kio had a weird fight. (Why? Because I wanted to make the scene less boring. stare ) The Mage has a mysterious master who ordered her to form her own team.]
Kai fumed inside the cave. Each footstep ground itself into the stone as if there was a disgusting bug she wanted to squish. Chastising words still wanting to lash off her tongue, they flew through her mind like a tempest. Her red aura pulsed intone with her racing heart. She was half way down the cave when some new retorts twisted themselves out of all the rampant thoughts in her mind. Her uncouth nature insisted that she tell them to Kio. She went to storm out the cave again, but after a couple feet another part of her consoled her out of it. She thought better of it & started walking away again. Hmm. No, she wanted to say it. She spun back around towards the mouth of the cave. Naw… she had said enough. Kai turned away from the entrance. She did that a few times more, pacing back and forth in the midst of her rage.
“Kai-chan… you’re mumbling to yourself.” A small voice came from her right.
Kai was on her way when back towards the mouth of the cave when she heard it. She looked down next to her to see Takara smiling back. She was laying on her side with her forearm crooked under her head for cushioning. Kai felt her rage melt away to irritation. Her shoulders slumped as she relaxed somewhat.
“Sorry, Taka-chan.”
Takara raised her head up & rested it in her hand. Her elbow was crooked up for support. “It’s ok. At least you’re still alive to do it.”
Kai bit the inside her cheek, feeling guilty about having her friend worried about her.
“I’m sorry.” She crouched down so that she wasn’t looming over her. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”
Taka shrugged. “I wasn’t asleep.”
“None of us are.” Said a third person.
Kai looked up to see Luichen sitting against the wall nearby at the opposite side. He looked alright. She could tell he got scuffed up pretty badly, but nothing too serious. Kai could see the glistening scars that were already nearly mended. Someone must have helped healed him.
Not far from him, sat Sotaru who looked like he was in the same condition. The ninja was trying to look like he was asleep with his arms cross out in front of him & his chin resting on his chest. Unfortunately, his tightened frame gave him away. Jack was leaning against the wall opposite of the entrance. He stared at the spot in front of him with a zoned-out expression. Behind Taka was Rem, who still looked like she was still asleep; & behind her was Zaira who was still facing the cave wall & drawing figure eights with her index finger.
Kai gave Luichen a half smile. “Glad you see you’re still in one piece.”
Luichen nodded politely. “Same, with you.”
“What were you & Kio arguing about?” Taka unexpectedly asked out of the blue.
Kai winced. “You heard that, huh?”
A snorted laugh from Sotaru drew her attention to him. He still hadn’t budged from his ‘sleep’. “If you two were any louder, the enemy would have been crawling all over this mountain side by now.”
Kai chuckled sheepishly and sat down at her place next to Taka. Takara stretched out her arm & rested her head back down, again.
“What are we going to do now?” Jack asked.
Kakairo shrugged and leaned back. Her glare could have bore a hole into the wall. “I guess wait for that mage to show her butt-ugly face again & skin her to the bone until she coughs up some answers.”
“We’ve been played like puppets.”
Taka, Luichen, Sotaru, Jack, & Kai jumped as Rem suddenly spoke. They all turned around to look at her. She was on her back & staring soullessly at the ceiling. Kai felt a lump come to her throat. She knew that look in Rem’s eyes. It meant that something was seriously eating her up inside, & she could damn well guess what that ‘something’ was.
“How long have you been awake?” Kai asked softly.
Rem kept her eyes glued to the ceiling. “Since you did.”
Ah… so she heard her’s & Zaira’s discussion. Kai saw Takara wall up next to her from the corner of her eyes. The cave went silent again.
“What do you mean, Rem?” Jack finally said. Thank God for someone who had the ability to be the Ice-Breaker.
Rem blinked away her stupor enough to talk. “Puppets. They’ve been playing us. Ever since the beginning when the mage attacked Takara it was just to get our attention.” She cocked her head up at a weird angle so that she would be facing up at Takara. “That’s why it was so easy for us to retrieve you back.”
Taka nodded slowly. Rem continued.
“& on the beach… they knew we worked better as a team. So they seperated us on purpose. They pitted me, Kai, Aergan, and Luichen against insurpasable odds to kill us.”
“Or wear us all down. Or both.” Zaira piped up. Everyone looked at her. The ninja had been silent all this time. She sat up & looked at them. “While you guys were battling on this dimension. We were attacked after the episode on the beach. It was pretty easy to deal with them, but it took its toll.”
Jack snorted. “Sez’ you.” The gash he received from the scrimish was now a pretty little scar.
Everyone went silent again. If that really was their opponent’s strategy, then it left them with little choices & little possibilities for retaliation. Pretty much it was like fighting a ninja in the shadows. They were all standing in one place together, not daring to separate because they knew it would lead to failure or death. But that left them to be easily picked off one by one. So, they were being forced to wait on pins and needles, in a corner, until they were randomly attacked, again. & hoping by that time that they would find some answers. It was a scary prospect: to die on the battlefield; or to fight to the point of exhaustion until they were too weak to continue & then be killed. The land was unknown to them so resources were slim to none. They had no idea where to turn nor where to start looking for the enemy. In other words, their chances of survival: zilch.
The sound of someone entering the cave made the group turn their heads to the opening. Aergan stooped his now 5-feet-tall self over a little & slowly walked in. He paused and blinked awkwardly at all the staring eyes.
“Um… what? Is there something on my face?”
Kai smirked at him. “Yeah. You might want to take that hideous mask off.”
“Haha… haha… hah… funny!” Sarcasm dripped from his mouth like drool. Aergan walked closer to her. “Glad to see your near-death experience had no effect on your sense of humor.”
Kai smiled apologetically up at him, something she rarely did. Aergan flipped something around in his hand & offered it to her. Kai leaned back her head as the object came a few inch from her nose. She blinked at the thing, not sure why he was shoving something in her face.
“I found it at the clearing.” He explained.
Kai narrowed her eyes, willing them to cooperate with her in the darkness. It was the handle of her wakizashi.
“Oh! Thanks.” She said as she took it from him. He nodded at her as she put it back in her sheathed. She was surprised she hadn’t noticed it was gone. In the few seconds that she realized it wasn’t there, it felt like a huge chunk of her hip was missing. But now that it was back in her grasps it felt good as new.
Zaira was staring at Aergan’s sword. “So… you went back to the…?”
Aergan nodded at her.
“Did you…?” Taka began to ask but she was cut off when Aergan shook his head.
Rem & Kai did not need an explanation. The group went solemn again. Aergan sat against the wall next to Takara.
“….I also think that the mage isn’t the Mastermind in this. Only a pawn.” Zaira said after a while.
Aergan perked up his head. “Hm? Where did that come from?”
They all waited as Zaira clued him in on what they were talking about.
“Ah…” he said after she was done. “That theory does make sense. So does the one about the mage. I think we’re dealing with someone far more greater than her.”
Which meant that was one more odd against them. Kai bit the inside of her cheek, again.
“I wonder what they’re planning…?” she muttered more to herself. It sent the rest of them into another deep contemplation. They stayed like that for a while. All wondered what was about to come, what might happen, what was being plotted against them right at this moment, what the future held for each of them, what they should be doing about it. Just acknowledging it made Kai’s brain throb. She rubbed the bridge of her nose, hoping that would still the sensation & stimulate some sort of inspirational idea. Though a growl of frustration crashed their trains of thoughts into reality. They all looked up. Luichen had jumped to his feet & was marching over to the entrance.
“Where are you going?” Jack called.
“Scouting. I can’t stand to wait here any longer.”
“You should rest a bit more.” Rem added.
Luichen made a restless noise from deep within his throat. “How can anyone sleep like this? I’d rather be out doing something than to rest up & wait for someone to attack us.”
He stole out of the cave. Sotaru got to his feet. “It is a good idea. We should try to find some water & food. I don’t know about everyone else but I’m starving.”
Kai nodded. Her stomach had been begging for some kind of nourishment ever since she woke up. She could feel it caving in on itself. Her mouth was parched, too. She felt like she had just crossed a desert & back without a drop of water.
“Ok. Let’s all go look for food & water. Then we’ll scout the area.”
“What about we split up?” offered Taka. “One group finds food. The other scouts.”
“It would save time and energy.” Agreed Jack.
Kai shook her head. “We shouldn’t split up. The more people there are the more safer we will be.”
“Kai’s right.” Rem piped in. She slowly sat up. “Besides, what time schedule are we on? It’s not like we have to be anywhere. And we’re all low on energy. If we all get food at the same time, then we all will be that much stronger.”
Kai nodded. Zaira opened her mouth to say something but right at that time Luichen walked in. He had a worried expression on his face.
“Kio’s gone.”
 onime · Sat Jul 14, 2007 @ 08:30am · 5 Comments |
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