Strengthening Resolve

The return of Haruo improved the overall mood of the group. Tensions still ran high with the uncertainty focused around Ayumi along with the pressure from Omega. But it started to feel like the group was together again. They had a more focused goal than before. The goal still seemed difficult with some impossible odds against them. If Ayumi proved to be the real Eudokia, getting Yuki back wouldn’t be an easy course.

All of the concerns wouldn’t slow them down. Yuki all meant something to each of them. They couldn’t let the fears or uncertainties of the future weigh them down.

Their scheduled stop came with the need for Nerine to rest from using her powers all day. It took a little bit of effort to find a safe location. Even safe was actually relative, since all they managed to get was a cliff with some rocky overgrowth and a river nearby. Nothing for good protection or hiding. They were very exposed, but nothing came to them for a while.

It was evening with only the moon keeping things lit. Yet Yumi could still see the strange thin shape in the distance. Simonides informed her that it was the Omega Spire, the tallest building in the Capital and the easiest landmark to find. The fact that they could see it meant the Capital was close. ‘Tomorrow we’ll be at the Capital’s doors. So close to the lion’s den. How hard will the fighting be?’

Everyone spread out into their own groups. The two Atlanteans naturally kept to themselves, still not feeling like part of the group. Chiharu disappeared to take the first watch along with Saki. Haruo and Seiji both appeared actually to be asleep neither seemed to be overly concerned about the dangers. Her brother isolated himself, something that subconsciously relieved her mind. While Fumiko seemed dull again, distracted by something.

Yumi received an internal nudge. She stepped forward with some reluctance. It needed to happen. Her approach was hardly quiet, but it wasn’t something she tried to do. It had to be apparent. The slightest hint of hesitation would ruin it for her. “Fumiko,” she started, standing immediately behind her. The two women had only a few centimeters between them. “I need your head on straight tomorrow. In the past, we’ve been able to get by, but they’ll be throwing everything at us tomorrow. I need to know you can fight.”

A bit of a shake went through Fumiko’s body. It was clear her words triggered a reaction out of her. She held in the desire to act out.

The knife was already inserted. It woke her up, but she had to keep her focused. She had to twist it. “You’re not the only one that’s killed someone. They’re out for our lives. Killing is going to be the only way to stay alive here. This isn’t going to be a happily ever after ending. We’re going to get dirty, if you want to protect something you’re going to need to be willing to do it.” Yumi clenched her fists up.

Fumiko tilted her head back around to glare at Yumi. “Don’t concern yourself on my account. The day will come when all actions receive their consequences. I just hope I’m able to be there when it all comes back on you.” The conversation was over. Fumiko walked away.

Yumi turned away. A minute later, she was able to walk in her own direction. Once alone, she collapsed to the ground slamming her fists into the earth. ‘Why’d it have to turn out like this!?’

‘You motivated her. It was necessary to get her back to fighting. She falls back into depression too easily.’

‘She was distraught over killing all of those soldiers! She can’t control her power! It’s reasonable to be afraid!’

‘Reasonable, when you’re not in a war setting.’

‘We’re just teenagers! Not soldiers!’

‘You need to be soldiers if you plan to survive this. Those out there won’t all act so mercifully. If someone is unable to function it’s only a liability for the group.’

‘Things aren’t just numbers and logic. People have emotions, hearts! They need time to deal!

‘Your enemy isn’t giving you that luxury. You need her power for tomorrow. This is the most efficient way for the results you need.’

‘But it isn’t the best way!’

‘Then think of another way.’

Yumi hesitated. It wasn’t the first argument she had with her new voice in her mind. Unlike the other one that she no longer heard, which supported her even if it seemed aggressive, the new voice only seemed to worsen matters for her. It was right, but not right.

‘The reason you did what you did was because you don’t have another plan. If you can’t think up an alternative means to reach your goal then don’t criticize the ones presented to you.’

‘This isn’t right!’

‘Then become stronger and find another way. If you don’t want to rely on my opinions then become strong enough to make your own. Until then all you’re doing is just pretending.’

Chapter 232 – Strengthening Resolve

Staggering a little, Fumiko’s emotions still ran high after her confrontation with Yumi. It made it difficult for her to focus on where she walked. She also was not paying too much attention to where she walked. The further away from Yumi the better at the moment. She would deal with where she ended up later. “Damn her! She doesn’t know what she’s talking about! She doesn’t know what it’s like—“ Fumiko tripped over something and fell on her face. “Damn it!”

“Fumiko?” checked Yori, who she ended up falling on. He helped her to get back on her feet. “You alright?”

Fumiko batted away his hand, annoyed with everything. “Fine!” She started to stomp away, but Yori grabbed her wrist. “What?!”

The reaction turned him a little blue, but it worried him. “What happened? Something’s wrong.”

“Nothing happened! Let go!”

“No. It’s not that hard to tell. I’m willing to listen.”

She stared down at him for a moment. “There’s not much point talking to you about it. Not with your complex.” Fumiko ripped her hand free from his grasp. However, she only got a few steps away before Yori blocked her path. “I’ve got nothing to talk to you about!”

Yori narrowed his eyes a little, figuring out a few things. “It’s about my sister.” He received no response from Fumiko, but the look in her eyes told him enough. “You’ve got nothing to talk to me about? Try me.”

Some reluctance still prevented her from accepting him. “Right, because you’re not going to side with her on everything.”

Crossing his arms, he didn’t plan on leaving her alone after this. “Like I said, try me.”

Fumiko stepped back to where Yori had been. She was still not sure about talking to him about it, but he had been one of the few in the past that was easier to talk to, when things were different. So much had changed since Yori was away. She sat down waiting on him.

The atmosphere became a little stifled for him. He could see her already judging how he acted and what he would say. Her continued silence only made it more difficult to get things started. “I’m guessing this has to do with Yumi and the way she’s been acting recently,” he opened. Yori didn’t know where it began, but he noticed the odd rift between the two on the truck. He hoped this would air out the grievances.

“That’s putting it lightly.”

“What did she do?”

Thinking back to the start of it, Fumiko suddenly clammed up. “It was a private matter.”

‘That’s not explaining things.’ He felt things become significantly more challenging. It also made him even more curious as to what his sister said or did to Fumiko. He could feel the intensity of the emotions coming off Fumiko when he confronted her. Yori wondered if she would not have punched him. “Can you explain in a way that doesn’t compromise yourself?”

Fumiko glared at him again. The classic metaphor of daggers for eyes couldn’t do the look justice. Yet she did agree to talk to him. “It started back when we found Saki.”

Recalling it, Yori tried to piece together everything that might have happened between the two. “Chiharu and Seiji were fighting, I remember. I remember the two Atlanteans discussing who they could be fighting and then…” He remembered Fumiko taking action, but no reason why. It came back to him that he saw his sister with her. “Yumi said something to you then, before you helped out.”

“Yes…” she said as though she had more to say, but refused.

‘This is going to be like pulling teeth.’ Yori struggled with the words he needed to keep things safe. It required more awkward silences than he would have wished. Anything less he felt would have sent Fumiko away. “It was something she said then. She was vague about what she said when we asked. If she said something, it had to have been a plan.”

“There was no plan.”

“Then what? Did she insult you?” He didn’t like having to guess, but it would make a little more sense with how angry Fumiko was recently.

“No.” Fumiko fumed on her emotions thinking about what she said. It whispered in her ears adding fuel. “Your sister’s a manipulative bitch!”

“I don’t understand, what do you mean?!” He reacted quickly taken back.

“Your sister took advantage of me so that I would kill those two! She made me murder them! Your sister is a murder, a cold blooded killer!”

Yori leaned back not really expecting to hear that from Fumiko. He couldn’t say anything for a minute from the shock. It still didn’t make a lot of sense. “I-I…Yumi’s…shy and…introverted…” Each word was a struggle for him. He thought back to his sister he saw recently and compared her to the one he remembered.

“I knew this was pointless!” Fumiko started to stand up, but Yori grabbed her hand.

“Wait!” It happened so fast. He didn’t know when it happened. He was gone for only a short time. “She’s different from how she used to be.” The words seemed to be enough to at least stop Fumiko. “Ever since I woke in the middle of that battle, I’ve been asking myself where the little sister I remember went. She’s changed so much. I’m not sure what’s happened to her!”

Fumiko measured out his words and his face. He seemed to be almost desperate. He didn’t understand it anymore than her. “She’s been trying to shoulder everything since you were captured. But I can’t forgive her for the way she’s acting now!”

“I don’t know what she said to you, but there has to be a reason for it!” He searched for anything. It felt like everything was slipping away. He just wanted to hold on to his memories. The sister he knew seemed lost forever, replaced with some calculating women he did not recognize. “Maybe it’s that persona!” He just remembered.

Confused, Fumiko’s face narrowed at his excuses. “Making up excuses for your sister now? She doesn’t get a free pass! Not after what she said!”

“No! During the fight with the South Gate soldiers, don’t you remember what happened to Yumi?”

She tried to think back to what happened, but her memory was hazy. Everything stopped for her after her power went out of control. “The last part of it is a blur.” After killing so many of them, she didn’t feel like talking to anyone. She never found out what happened. She didn’t know how it ended, just simply accepted the fact. Her mind didn’t really pay attention to any of the details.

“You don’t remember us talking to some second personality inside Yumi?”

“What are you talking about? Second personality? You’re not making any sense.”

“I think it took over Yumi during the fight so we could win. She wasn’t acting like herself. Saying things that she would never say.”

“What? Are you saying that this second personality controls Yumi?”

It was a struggle for him to keep things sounding sane. He could not explain what was happening to his sister. Things were beyond his control. “It’s possible. We don’t know what he did to her when he changed her.” Yori’s eyes went a little wide-eyed, becoming fueled by the idea. “You all have powers that shouldn’t be possible. Not to mention he screwed around with your bodies making you faster, stronger and even more resistant to injury. We don’t know what else he screwed around with.”

Fumiko backed away a little from Yori’s crazed rant. It seemed too illogical. “I can’t, won’t forgive her. There are some lines you don’t cross. If you think she’s been controlled, you figure it out.” She stood up done with him. “You won’t get any help from me. I’ll make sure to fight, but it won’t be because she told me to do so.” Fumiko left promptly at the end of her declaration.

Alone, Yori tried to make sense of everything. “What’s going on? My sister…I have to protect her! I have to do something!”

Across the camp, Chiharu appeared out of the shadows next to Seiji. She looked down at him for a moment. A sharp kick from her woke him up. Hardening her expression, she spoke, “We’ve got company.”

“Huh? The hell’s the matter with you?” Seiji rubbed his ribs from where she hit him. “There are better ways to wake someone up!”

“You’re awake. Does it matter now?”

“Brat…” The rest of it finally caught up to him. He jumped to his feet looking around. “Where are they?” His fists rubbed together looking ready for a fight.

Chiharu’s face went flat a little at the sight of his eagerness to fight. “Help with waking the others up. We’re not here to fight.” She stared a little longer at him. A different thought came to her. “Save your need to restore your lost honor from the last fight for later when it actually matters.”

Seiji tilted down to look at her. Some confusion spread over his face. “What? Someone needs to keep them off our backs while you prepare to leave.”

“Leave that to someone faster then, she’s already intercepting them.”

“Saki is?!” The ground suddenly rumbled as though to answer his question. He turned in the direction. Another echo came from the unknown. Something about it felt wrong to him. “I can’t keep letting her do everything!” Seiji charged off after Saki, following the vibrations.

Chiharu’s voice disappeared from his mind, even though she shouted at him. He no longer cared about it. The only thing on his mind was Saki. In his gut, he knew something didn’t sit right. It didn’t make sense, but he had to see.

Each of the quakes brought him closer until he was on top of it almost. He could see her in the distance along with someone else. “Saki!” Seiji didn’t have a chance to say anything else. He watched as she fell over covered in blood, her body littered with wounds.

His fists tightened up. He ground his teeth, his anger came up to the surface. Seiji charged into the battle without a second thought. “You bastard, what did you do to Saki?” Something stopped his fist. A metallic sound rang out. His eyes focused upward. The atmosphere felt very familiar to him. Seiji’s eyes widened when he saw their face. “You bastard! It’s you!”

Cosmas grinned with delight beaming from his eyes. One of his prey appeared before him. “The muscle bound idiot. This is my lucky night! Tonight, you will have the pleasure of dying!” His lips grew wider as it became a wicked smirk.