Vol.3 Ch.5: Duality of Self and Desire ②

Clash!

The Guardian, the alternate persona within Yuko, had just leapt off the ground and swung her hand like a claw toward Kanna. Reacting on instinct, Kanna lifted her staff up in front of her and blocked the swiping attack.

A metallic zzzssst sound emanated from the grinding of The Guardian’s attack pushing up against Kanna’s staff. Upon closer inspection, Kanna realized that a type of pressure inverting in on itself had somewhat ‘coated’ The Guardian’s fingers.

Th-this is… gravity magic! What a unique… application…!

Kanna had realized that The Guardian had inverted the flow of gravity around her fingertips, turning them into an unstable space that distorted the weight and density of anything it came into contact with. Rather, the contradictory pressure was so intense that it’d ‘break apart’ those things. Sure enough, this was a powerful ‘claw’ she was being attacked with, a frightening usage of the gravity manipulation that came with The Guardian’s dark magic.

“Hah!”

Kanna pushed the ‘claw’ aside and jumped high into the air, leaping backward to put some distance between herself and The Guardian. If she had continued to hold her ground, the attack would’ve eventually broken through her staff, which would put her at a serious disadvantage.

How could I have let the situation come to this…? I never expected I would find myself clashing with The Guardian again! This is bad… And I know my earlier strike could not have finished off that vampire over there either. I cannot divide my attention now, and yet…!

Kanna stood in place, glancing back and forth between The Guardian, still positioned to attack, and Eli, who was lying on her back on the ground.

“Unreal…”

In the midst of all this stood Tanabe Murakami, who was still grappling with the bizarre reality unfolding before him.

“Ah! That’s right, Eli!” Tanabe quickly turned and rushed to Eli’s side. He was so caught off guard by The Guardian’s assault, and the clash he’d just witnessed between the two girls, that he briefly blanked on the girl laying on the ground behind him.

“Murakami, do not approach he carelessly!” Kanna shouted after seeing him approach Eli. However…

Clang!

The Guardian had come in again, trying another swing with her gravity-inverted ‘claw’. Kanna had just barely managed to knock her away by the wrist using her staff, before following it up with an ice spell.

Kanna’s staff glowed, and the air began to swirl around The Guardian’s hand, until huge amounts of moisture in the air concentrated around The Guardian’s hand and froze it solid.

“Hmm…” The Guardian glanced down at their frozen palm, before…

Krack!

The ice surrounding The Guardian’s fist shattered in an instant. Kanna gritted her teeth in frustration.

Of course… It is to be expected that the ice would not hold amidst that distorted gravity…!

A part of Kanna already knew such a technique wouldn’t hold, but with little time to think and plan, she figured anything would be worth trying.

Meanwhile, Tanabe had knelt down next to Eli and gently lifted her up by the back, ignoring Kanna’s earlier warning.

“Eli, stay with me!” Tanabe spoke with worry, taking care to look over Eli closely.

Naturally, she was bleeding from the forehead. A notable gash had formed where the now-melted ice had struck her, and a mixture of blood and water had dripped down across her face. Regarding her expression, Tanabe could see that Eli’s eyes were firmly shut tight, her brow furrowed and twitching. To Tanabe’s surprised, Eli didn’t seem to have lost consciousness at all, but was merely enduring the pain.

“Eli…! Ah, right, I’ll stop the bleeding…!” Tanabe briefly glanced around, before deciding to take off his green necktie and tie it around Eli’s forehead in an attempt to stop the bleeding.

While this was going on, the clash between Kanna and The Guardian continued.

“Haah…! Haah…!”

Kanna hurriedly dodged each of the fierce swings coming her way. She knew that if any of The Guardian’s gravity-inverted swipes hit her bare skin, she’d be in for a serious injury. She wasn’t even left with an opening long enough to don her magic armor, so she was particularly exposed.

This is not good. I know from experience that I cannot win this fight…! Murakami is likely in danger as well. I must end this fight quickly…! But how…?

Kanna had difficulty planning what to do in the midst of defending herself, but she knew her time was running out and she had to act sooner than later.

Right, I acted so quickly before that this Guardian may not have even realized what was about to happen to Yuko…! But, can I even reason with this alter ego…?

Kanna still had no clues to understanding what exactly this ‘guardian’ residing in Yuko Maeda’s mind even is. It’s been the biggest mystery lingering over her for the past couple of months. Despite this, she knew her only option was to try and reason with The Guardian and end the battle as soon as possible.

“Listen! I was protecting… Yuko Maeda! You must… believe me!” Kanna desperately shouted in between dodges.

At this, The Guardian paused following a swing, and glanced towards Kanna’s face.

“The last time we spoke… do you remember?” Kanna asked, hesitantly. “You said you wished to protect Yuko Maeda. That is my goal as well! We should not be fighting!”

Slowly, The Guardian stood up straight, glaring at Kanna.

“The terror of death…”

“Wh-what…?” Kanna asked, confused by the words.

“When the terror of death is felt, I emerge. This body, this… Yuko. She felt the terror of death, when seeing harm come to the one precious to her.” The Guardian glanced back toward Eli.

“Listen, Yuko Maeda was about to be attacked by that vampire!” Kanna began attempting to explain. “I struck before harm came to her, but I believe she misunderstood my intent and believed I had begun to attack indiscriminately, but that is not the case…!”

“… Why should I believe you?” The Guardian glared. “After all, you have attacked before.”

“I…” Kanna was at a loss for words.

After all, it was true. Kanna’s own misunderstanding had led her to attack Yuko in the past. From the perspective of The Guardian, Kanna was on thin ice as far as trust went.

“I have shown you mercy once before…” The Guardian lifted her fist, before extending her fingers. Space distorted around her fingertips, and once more she bared her ‘claws’.

“… So, no longer. I will eliminate this body’s greatest threat immediately.”

With those cold words, The Guardian moved to attack. For Kanna, a sense of dread washed over her whole body, causing her to freeze up. Unable to react in time, Kanna came face-to-face with The Guardian’s swift movements.

Ah… Could this be… my end…?

Plunged into despair, Kanna braced herself as the merciless ‘claw’ swung her way, until…!

…

“You… stopped…?”

Kanna, feeling as though she could breathe again, was taken aback as the Guardian’s fingers had halted mere inches away from her neck.

Because, unbeknownst to her, another struggle was unfolding inside of Yuko Maeda…

---

Deep within the subconscious of Yuko Maeda, two people stood. Both looked like the same person: Yuko Maeda. However, one wore a cold expression that gave the impression of being a different person. The other, gentle-looking Yuko Maeda had taken hold of the raised wrist of that cold Yuko Maeda. That was the state of the pair who stood in this empty, black space.

“What… is this…?” asked The Guardian, the ‘cold Yuko’ whose wrist was being held back.

“Please, don’t hurt Kanna… In the moment I was scared, but… but… I want to believe in her!” the gentle Yuko shouted, nearly in tears.

“But how… are you here?” asked The Guardian.

Up until now, whenever the alternate personality dubbed ‘The Guardian’ had taken control of the body, the usual Yuko Maeda’s personality would enter a state similar to sleep and become inactive. But right now, it was as if Yuko Maeda was awake and aware despite The Guardian being the one in control of the body.

“I’m not sure, but… Ever since experiencing that dream phenomenon in Central, I think I’ve learned how to stay ‘awake’…” Yuko explained.

“Ah, that time when…” The Guardian thought back.

During their stay at the hospital in Central, The Guardian had taken control of the body and dealt with that strange being in a certain girl’s hospital room. At the exact same time, Yuko was confronting that girl in a world of interlinked dreams created by the same girl.

Sure enough, that was a situation where both personalities were ‘awake’ at the same time.

“So even without those dreams, you’ve learned how to ‘exist’ in a space like this within our own subconscious… I see.” It seems The Guardian had made sense of the situation.

“So please… Don’t kill Kanna…!” Yuko pleaded.

“I cannot risk such a dangerous individual staying near you… For our safety, I…” The Guardian explained, but then Yuko gripped their wrist even harder.

“Please don’t! This is all my fault…!” Yuko cried, falling to her knees as she feebly gripped at The Guardian’s wrist.

“I heard what she said… Kanna… was just trying to protect me…” Yuko muttered.

“… Do not be deceived by an enemy’s wor-”

“Kanna’s not our enemy!” Yuko sharply interjected. “I know… Back then… I started to realize it, but I kept trying to fool myself…!”

“…” The Guardian listened to Yuko silently.

“All along… I had a feeling Eli wasn’t normal. Nothing was making sense, and I think… I think I’d started to feel a strange sensation from her as well. But I… I didn’t want to believe that. I wanted the happiness the three of us found to continue!”

The time Yuko had spent together with Tanabe and Eli flashed through her mind. It was almost like a dream come true. Even more than Eli, getting to share such precious time with Tanabe, a boy she’d always looked up to and felt a strong infatuation for, made those memories a precious thing for her. Of course, she also grew more and more attached to Eli herself as well. But more than anything, she didn’t want those memories to become tainted.

The reason she avoided the more direct avenues to the solution of ‘helping a lost girl’, such as contacting the student council, was partly because Eli didn’t like the idea, true. But she never tried to push the idea any further because she didn’t want to get any extra help either. She soon grew to desire that the sweet ‘familia’ the three of them had formed be allowed to continue as long as possible. She knew that if someone like Kanna, who seemed to always have all the answers, got involved with the situation, then those days would come to an end even more quickly.

But deep down, she knew. She knew something wasn’t quite right about Eli. But she’d thoroughly convinced herself she was just a simple ‘lost girl’. One she could continue to care for along with the boy she liked.

Yuko’s earnest desire to help her was true, but at the same time her own selfish desire underlined her actions just as strongly. But in the end, Yuko couldn’t run away from what she knew she had to do.

As much as Yuko cared for Eli and the bond they’d cultivated together with Tanabe, she could never sacrifice Kanna for the sake of it.

And so, she gripped the wrist of The Guardian, trying to stop this outburst, and return to carrying all of these feelings on her own.

“So please, Guardian, or whatever you are… Let’s stop this.” Yuko pleaded. “That ‘terror of death’… I realized. I felt her breath on my neck. But subconsciously, I refused to believe it! Even now, I don’t want to believe Eli could betray me or try to hurt me. I don’t want Kanna to be right about this. But I also know I can’t ignore her either!”

In the midst of the black void known as Yuko’s subconscious, teardrops fell into the darkness as she tightly gripped the hand of her alter ego, begging her to spare Kanna.

“… I understand.”

Those were the only words given in response to Yuko’s pleas.

---

“You… stopped…?” Kanna asked with a quivering voice.

“It appears… the one Yuko chose is you.” The Guardian lowered her arm.

“She chose…?” Kanna stood confused as she watched The Guardian turn around and face Tanabe and Eli.

Tanabe, who’d stopped focusing on the two girls and was caring for Eli, had set her down using his bag as a pillow for her. The wound on her forehead didn’t seem to be as bad as it looked, and the bleeding seemingly stopped shortly after he’d used the necktie to cover the wound.

“There you go…” Tanabe muttered, as if putting Eli to sleep.

From there, he stood and turned back, only to see both girls looking his way.

“Ah… You two… What happened?” he asked, still struggling to keep up.

“Well, it seems we have resolved a misunderstanding.” Kanna explained solemnly, though still confused. “Once again, I deeply apologize for dragging you in to such a messy situation, Murakami.”

“Forget about me for now, what about Eli?” Tanabe got to the heart of the issue.

“You did not notice, but she nearly attacked Yuko before. Rather, she nearly bit into her neck.” Kanna explained. “There is too much uncertainty, so we must at least establish whether her amnesia is true or not.”

“I-I see… I can’t believe it, honestly…” Tanabe solemnly looked down at Eli.

“Nngh…!” Eli suddenly grunted.

“E-Eli…?!” Tanabe blinked in surprise. Worried, he knelt down, only to be confused by what he saw.

Tanabe wasn’t quite sure how to explain it, but it was as though Eli has become more firmly planted to the ground, as though her weight had increased. He turned back to the two girls, only to see that ‘Yuko’ had her hand reached out.

“Ah…! Do not be alarmed, it seems she’s simply pinning her to the ground with gravity magic.” Kanna noticed what was going on, and opted to explain for Tanabe.

“M-Maeda can really do something like that…?” Tanabe was in awe, but also a bit frightened.

“Ah, well, it is a rather long story. But to simplify matters, let me just inform you that this is not the Yuko Maeda you know, but rather an alternate personality.” Kanna awkwardly tried to explain for him.

“R-right…” Tanabe was about ready to give up, with all of the absurd information coming his way.

“Anyway, to business.” Kanna gave both The Guardian and Tanabe a nod before slowly approaching Eli and kneeling down by her side.

“Vampire girl Eli, I do not know how you ended up here, but I understand your memory has been lost.” Kanna began speaking to her slowly. “May I ask you to confirm this for me?”

Slowly, one of Eli’s eyes opened, glancing towards Kanna.

“Can you speak?” Kanna asked as gently as she could.

After a brief moment of silence passed with both Eli and Kanna staring at one another, Eli’s lips slowly began to part.

And then, she spoke…

“Magic Zone… Vermillion Sea…”

“…!”

Crash!

It happened in an instant. The dark starlit sky of the Ice Planet Magic Zone had shattered to pieces, being replaced by a crimson red sky, with a shining golden moon.

“She overlaid- Ah…!”

Splash!

The ground beneath everyone’s feet had vanished, instead being replaced by a massive body of water. Naturally all three of them, Kanna, Tanabe, and The Guardian, were all caught off guard and fell straight into the water.

“Blaugh…! W-what the hell?!” Tanabe shouted after spitting out some water as he splashed around in a panic.

“Nhnn…!”

The sudden fall had caused The Guardian to lose a grip on her magic, and the gravity bind holding down Eli had been dispelled.

“Damn…!” Kanna shouted after finally getting her bearings and keeping herself afloat. “I did not expect her to have enough mana to overlay her Magic Zone over mine…!”

Kanna swiftly swung her head to and fro to get a grasp on their surroundings.

“Both of you, there seems to be some land to stand on over that way! Follow me!” after taking Tanabe by the hand, and confirming The Guardian was following them both, Kanna swam over to what seemed to be a type of platform or artificial island.

The trio slowly pulled themselves out of the water, only to be greeted by what could only be described as a small rose garden. The rose bushes looped around on the circular platform and in the center was a fountain.

“Ugh… Wh-what happened?” Tanabe spoke between coughs. “A-and what the heck was in that water? I think I tasted blood or something…”

“You very well may have…” Kanna grimaced, staring at the fountain at the center of the island.

Unlike the crimson sea surrounding them, the liquid pouring from the fountain appeared to be pure blood. Upon closer inspection, the trio noticed the fountain contained small crevices extending from it in four directions and continued across the floor and back into the sea. It appeared the purpose of the fountain was to feed the blood flowing within it into the sea.

“Quite the twisted Magic Zone this is, as expected of a vampire…” Kanna’s fist clenched in frustration, before she quickly snapped back to her senses. “Wait…! Where did the vampire girl go?!”

“Ah, right…! Eli…!” Tanabe exclaimed, following Kanna’s lead and glancing around the area.

“… There!” The Guardian spoke pointing up towards the moon in the blood-red sky. Kanna and Tanabe swiftly turned their heads to look in the same direction.

There they saw a girl hovering in the air. She wore the familiar middle school uniform borrowed from Yuko, but large, black wings extended from her lower back, tearing the fabric just a bit. Her long blond hair billowed in the wind, and her eyes glowed a sinister crimson. It was Eli.

“Eli…!” shouted Tanabe with a mixture of concern and confusion.

“Tell me…!” Kanna demanded. “Was your amnesia merely a rouse?! What exactly do you think you are doing, vampire?!”

“…” Eli’s eyes narrowed at Kanna’s words, and after taking a moment to think, she began to speak. “It was no farce. I have only just now remembered who I am.”

Eli’s once timid childlike speech mannerisms were gone. Instead she spoke with a refined dignity that sounded like what one might expect of royalty.

“Eli… so you got your memories back? That’s great…!” Tanabe tried to respond in earnest, but Kanna reached her arm over to block him from approaching Eli.

“Do not refer to me by that name…” Eli responded sharply, before untying Tanabe’s green necktie that was still around her forehead.

“Huh…?” Tanabe blinked.

“My name is Elisia Kahlventine. Please forget that embarrassing shell of a girl you once called ‘Eli’.” she answered sternly with a grimace. From her hand, she let loose Tanabe’s tied, which slowly fluttered down to where he stood.

“B-but…” Tanabe muttered as he desperately reached out to grab the tie.

“Murakami, please stay back for now. This could get dangerous.” Kanna spoke, stepping forward as if to shield him after he grabbed ahold of the tie.

The Guardian merely stood to the side, silently watching the events play out. Deep inside, Yuko’s consciousness was also ‘awake’ and viewing what was occurring as well.

“What exactly are you planning, vampire?” Kanna asked with an agitated voice. “How did you get here, and what is your goal?!”

“… I see no reason I should tell you anything, vampire hunter.” Elisia glared coldly at Kanna.

“… Suit yourself.” Kanna gritted her teeth. “What about the students who suffered anemia? You sucked their blood, correct?”

“… It appears so.” Elisia stated, as she looked over herself. “I still remember bits and pieces of when I was in that amnesiac state… It seems when lost and alone, I had given in to my hunger and bitten a few humans who’d been nearby on instinct.”

“I figured as much.” Kanna nodded, basically expecting that to be the case.

“Regardless, cease your fruitless interrogation, hunter.” Elisia spoke as she stared Kanna down. “I shall depart now. I see no reason to waste any further energy on you lot.”

With that, Elisia turned her back, fully intent on ignoring the group and going on her way.

“Hold on-!” Kanna reached out in an attempt to stop her, but then…

“Eli! Please don’t go…!!!”

A tearful scream pierced through the conversation. Kanna and Tanabe flinched before turning to the side, startled by the loud voice beside them.

And there, with tears streaming from her eyes was, not The Guardian, but Yuko Maeda.

“Eli, please don’t leave…! We… we’re your familia, right?” Yuko cried out, her voice cracking from her teary-eyed state.

“Familia…” Kanna muttered, giving Yuko a sad look.

Up in the air, Elisia turned back toward the group and stared at Yuko, the girl who was earnestly calling for her. As those teary eyes met her own, Elisia’s stern expression wavered, if only for a moment.

“I am not ‘Eli’. Please, forget about her, human.”

“I won’t…!” Yuko shouted, lifting up her arm.

“Amnesia or not, that was still you! A part of you, at least…! I’m sure of it!” Yuko reached her palm out toward Elisia, as if begging her to take her hand. “So please, take my hand!”

“You’re mistaken. I am not…” Elisia glanced away, struggling to even look at Yuko’s earnest expression.

“I don’t care!” Yuko shouted. “So what if I didn’t know the real you?! That didn’t change the fact that we shared those precious moments together, right?”

Elisia answered Yuko’s words with silence.

Standing at Yuko’s side, Kanna could only look down solemnly, as Tanabe glanced back and forth between Yuko and Elisia, hoping for something to work out. Hoping that the bond the three of them shared had meant something.

“If you couldn’t tell, I’m also someone who… I guess has multiple sides to myself.” Yuko admitted, placing a hand to her chest. “I want to learn more about you, Eli… No, Elisia! Please, let me get to know you! Because even if it wasn’t the ‘real’ you, I know that what we shared was real. It was real love, like a family, I’m sure of it!”

Much like most students of Starlight Academy, Yuko was a girl who never really knew her birth family. But for these fleeting few days, together with Tanabe and Eli, she had found herself feeling that maybe she could understand what it meant to be ‘family’.

“So please… Don’t leave, Elisia!” Yuko once more reached out her hand. “Come with me, and we can be a true familia, like you said…!”

“… Kh!” Elisia closed her eyes, her brow furrowed in frustration.

“Don’t speak to me about a familia when you don’t even know what you’re talking about, human!” Elisia shouted, clearly upset.

“H-Huh…?” Yuko whimpered, taken aback by the outburst.

“I mean…. Ngh…!” Elisia glanced back at Yuko one last time; taking a moment to firmly look her in the eyes. “… I’m done here. Goodbye.”

With a quick snap of her fingers, the Magic Zone Vermillion Sea was dispelled. The crimson sky cracked, and then shattered; dissolving away as if it had never been there at all. What remained was the stone pathway of Rigel Park and the numerous trees lining both sides of the streetlight-lit path late at night.

“W-we’re back…” Tanabe muttered, scanning his surroundings.

The tops of the trees wavered, blown but the wind of Elisia, who’d already soared away the moment the Magic Zone dispelled. After everything was said and done, she had escaped.

Yuko fell to her knees and looked down at the ground in defeat.

“Eli… I’m sorry…” Yuko meekly whispered, holding back any further tears.

Kanna approached Yuko and knelt by her side, placing a hand on her back. Tanabe came over and did the same thing. In the end, both could tell how difficult this turn of events was for Yuko, and they each felt the need to comfort her.

Despite this, neither could find any words to say in this moment.

After all, this night marked the end of Yuko, Tanabe, and Eli’s ‘familia’.

[Chapter 5 END]