Mari struggled with her homework, her overworked brain protesting the calculations and equations. "You're almost there. Just a few more months and–" Her thoughts were suddenly cut off by her father's voice calling up from downstairs.

"Mari! Phone call!" Mari pushed her work away, chuckling at what she was sure was going to be an excited call from Su, filled with squeals and shrieks about her new book. The girl had probably found a drawing that proved the truth behind the characters or some detail in the story they had previously not known.

"Hello?" The voice on the other end wasn't Su's, but the girl's mother.

"Hello? Mari? Have you seen Su?" The woman's voice was bordering on frantic as she spoke on the other end of the line.

"Uh, no. I haven't seen her since school got out."

"She wasn't at school when I got there. Her bag was sitting on the sidewalk out front. You're sure she's not with you? I won't be mad! Did you drop her off somewhere, maybe?"

"No. I'm sorry. If I hear anything I'll let you know, ok?"

"Ok. Thank you, Mari." Mari did her best to calm the nervous woman, anxiety growing in her own chest as she hung up the phone. Su would never leave her bag behind on the sidewalk. Especially not if... No. Mari shook her head at the ridiculous thought, snorting to herself. You're getting as bad as Su with these thoughts. A sudden, sharp groan cut through her thoughts, Mari twisting in her chair to find the source of the sound. It came again, a muted moan of pain, followed by a soft curse. "Hello?"

Mae?

"Su?!" Mari threw open her closet doors, looked under her bed, even flipped up the duvet. The voice was here, but the girl wasn't. "Where are you? Your mother is going crazy looking for you."

Oh god. The voice came again as Mari spun in place, blinking, convinced her mind was playing tricks on her. You are never going to believe this.

Su cowered in a small alleyway, watching the strange people move through the streets as her friend's voice echoed through her head.

Believe what? Su, your mom is looking for you, she's really worried. Where are you?

"Mae, I... think I'm in Konan."

Oh, you have got to be kidding me! Was this what that whole thing at school was about? So you could play a joke on me? Su could hear the edge of tension in her friend's voice, wincing under the accusation. Very funny, you got me. Now come out!

"Mari, I'm not joking!" Su pressed, her voice growing watery with tears. A few passers-by peered into the alley at her outburst, looking for the source before shaking their heads and walking away again.

No... no way. There is no way! Mari sputtered in her mind. It was just a book! Even as she objected, Mari's mind flooded with images of the strange city. How are you in my head?

"I dunno. Maybe it's like Miaka and Yui's uniforms? Something is keeping us connected." Su offered quietly. Worlds away, Mari looked down at herself, wondering what could be linking them together. Her hands rummaged through pockets and over her clothing until her fingertips rested on the string of glass beads around her neck. The odd twin in the set Su had made them both. Small mirrors of the ones their favorite characters in the story had worn, a private joke between the two girls. Su heard Mari's realization in the garbled chaos of her friend's mind, clutching to her own necklace. "I made them together... with the same beads. The same thread."

This... this is impossible. This can't be happening!

"I was going to wait until I got home." Su whispered. "Mom was late, and I got bored. I didn't think anything of it, just flipped it open to the middle. But then there was a flash of light. I thought someone had hit me on the head or something, and then I woke up here." There was a pause as Su sought for the right words. "Mari, I'm scared." She couldn't bite back the tears anymore as she looked out onto the alien landscape. The city was so strange but so familiar at the same time, teeming with people and intricate details she never had imagined. Trying to tempt her out of safety with the spark of beauty and adventure.

Are you safe for now? Mari's voice was tinged with worry.

"I'm in an alley." She could hear Mari snort her surprise.

Get out of the alley. Find a cop or, I dunno, a guard? Someone important looking. Ask for help and sit tight.

"What are you going to do?" Su sniffled, choking back the tears falling down her face. She scrubbed them away with the sleeve of her shirt, looking at the familiar garment and realizing how strange she would look when she stepped out of her protective shadows.

Do you still have the book?

"No. I think I dropped it on the sidewalk in front of the school." Su retraced what she could remember. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure I did." Mari heaved a sigh, the sound rattling through her head.

Stay safe. I'll figure out something. Just wait for me, ok?

"Hurry!"

"Where are you going?" Mari's mother called to her as she raced down the stairs, grabbing her keys from the bowl by the door and she yanked it open. Mari stilled, telling the first lie that came to her.

"I, uh, left a book I need at school." she explained with a shrug.

"Isn't the school closed for the day?"

"I had a friend grab it for me. I'm just going to go pick it up. I shouldn't be long." This seemed enough to placate her mother, and the woman turned back to the television.

"Be home in time for dinner."

"Right." Mari ran out the door, trying her best not to slam it behind her as she ran for her car, keying the engine to life as she raced for the school. Su's thoughts chattered through her mind as she drove; little disjointed things fluttering through the back of Mae's panicked brain. Su's fear as she stepped out of her safe hiding space. As the people looked at her. Discomfort at feeling out-of-place. Her insecurity as she realized she had no idea who would be right to ask for help. "The ones with armor. Look for a seal or something. Something to denote their ranks. If you are actually in Konan, it should be a phoenix." Mari suggested, almost chuckling at the ridiculous nature of the statement. Giving advice to a girl lost in feudal China, just your average Wednesday.

Right. Su's thoughts ordered themselves somewhat . I can see a really big building in the center of the city. I think it might be the palace.

"Then try near there. There should be someone around that area. Just be careful." The chatter resumed, arranging itself into something that was almost a chant as Su assured herself over and over that she could do this. That there was nothing to be afraid of. That her friend was coming to help her. Mari pulled her car into the parking lot, having a enough presence of mind to actually park it in a marked spot before jumping out, the engine still running. She scoured the sidewalk, looking for any clue on the bare pavement. "Where were you sitting?"

What?

"On the sidewalk? Where were you sitting?"

On the end, near the bushes. Mari took off running, sliding to a stop at the large row of bushes that blocked the school from the view of the road, finding the sidewalk empty here as well. She fell to her stomach, peering into the shadows under the greenery in the dying light. Her hand stretched out, groping blindly until it landed on something that didn't feel like dirt or roots.

"Got it!" She dusted off the cover, tucking it under her arm as she returned to her car, closing the door and flipping on the light as the day fell away into night. "Now what?"

I just opened it to the middle.

"I can't believe I'm doing this." Mari sighed, placing the book against the steering wheel as she opened the book to the first page. "The Universe Ruled by Multiple Gods. Well, that's useless." Mari flipped the page, eyes scanning the next page for a clue, a hint, a flash of light. Anything that would help her find Su. She read the words aloud, tracing them with her finger as they left her lips. "This story is about a woman who reached her dreams by coming to collect all the stars of the Beast God. She gained the powers of a god, and was gifted all that she desired. The tome before you is a spell in itself. The one who reads it will join the woman in the story, blessed with the powers of a true warrior of the Beast God, and given a wish. And the story begins with the turning of the first page. Huh, that's not how I remember it." Mari sighed, waiting for something, anything, to happen. She licked a finger tip, turning the page to read the next one, hoping that this one would have an answer for her instead. She was halfway through the first paragraph when a blue light flashed in her eyes, blinding her as the world went dark.