Sorry for the long wait. Real life stuff got in the way. Anyway, I have the whole story planned now. I should see it through to the end. The current road map is 25 chapters.

The idea is to make alternating chapters between Sue and Itoh, showing their differing reactions to the situation, mindset, as well as the differences in their situation.

Seeing the curious robot heading off to face the Doctor, I couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief. Surely my part in this whole mess is over? "Shall we head back, Momorin?"
… I didn't like that look on her face. Not one bit. Nor the two guns she happened to be holding.

"Take this gun, Itoh. We need to follow him while the path he takes stays clear." With that, she unceremoniously tossed one to me and hopped on the rocket that had just returned to ground level.

I reluctantly followed, not wanting (unwilling?) to be alone given the current situation and honestly just wanting to get off the island more than anything else. Somehow, I found the energy to look at her and mutter "If we die, I'm blaming you." She had the gall to look amused, too. Despite that, it was obvious that she was worried. Knowing that we had no idea where Sue and Kazuma were or if they were even alive, I don't blame her. I was scared for them, too.

Progress through the cavern was slow and agonizing. It was the most physical activity I had put myself through since being changed into this - this form, and it showed. The monsters didn't help either. Creepy things…

"Can we slow down?" I asked the fifth time I fell flat on my face. It hurt, too. Stupid short legs tripping me up. At least Momorin looked to sympathize.

"I know you're not used to that new body, but we need to move. You know that." I couldn't help but rub my ears at that - they hurt. Even talking was unpleasant. Every word felt so loud, especially in a small cave like this.

"Must you talk so loudly?" I couldn't help but mutter. At that, she raised her eyebrows.

"I'm whispering." she stated bluntly.

"Don't whisper so loud then…" I muttered as we continued on, dutifully ignoring Momorin's less-quiet-than-she-thinks-they-are mutterings about Mimiga ears and how they work. After all, Mimiga anatomy is basically the last thing I want to think of right now.

Eventually, though, an exit from the cave came into view. In relief I practically jumped outside, only to immediately freeze in place.

It was so bright. I could hear far too much, too, and there were so many individual smells I definitely wouldn't be able to notice as a human. So much information, far too much, and it was overwhelming. How do the Mimiga deal with this? I could feel a headache coming along just from being exposed to it for a few seconds.

Eventually, though I felt a hand on my shoulder. Looking up, I saw Momorin looking at me in unmasked concern. Deciding to answer the unvoiced question, I muttered "I'll… be all right. It's just a lot to take in. Let's get to the helicopter and see if it still works."

Amazingly, it did. The amount of damage was very small, to the point of only needing minimal repairs. Momorin had just finished readying the chopper when Professor Booster appeared out of nowhere with an old woman. Literally, no less.
"… What? How?" Momorin was the one to voice the question for the both of us.

"Magic. Don't question it, Momorin. We'll have time to do that later. The Helicopter is in good condition from the looks of it?" after a wordless confirmation from Momorin, he continued. "Good. Ready it for take-off. Don't worry Momorin, we'll find Sue. Kazuma is going to escape on a sky dragon, I've talked to him from the lab before Jenka transported me here." That is good news, at least. We'll be able to leave this god-forsaken island soon.

Momorin's shoulders seemed to loosen a little at the confirmation of her son's safety. Only the fact that old woman, Jenka? Was with him stopped her from hugging him at the news.

After thanking the old woman for her help Booster and Momorin readied the Helicopter. And at that moment - pain.

The helicopter was loud. So much louder than anything I had ever experienced, and it hurt. Focusing on the seat ahead did little to stop it, and it's not like we had any earbuds that would work on a - a mimiga, I thought to myself witheringly.

So distracted I was that I didn't notice Kazuma and Sue coming over until Kazuma and Momorin started shouting at each other, presumably to be heard over the helicopter. I hadn't noticed that the island had apparently started falling, either.

"Kazuma! Sue! You're both alright!" Momorin looked ready to cry at that and I couldn't help but smile at the safe return of the brat that had been excited enough to blab on about the island for months before coming here … not that she would ever admit it.

"Mom! It's good to see you! the robot destroyed the core, we should find the robot and get out of here while we can!"

"It's too dangerous to land right now, and if the robot is on the island when it hits the ground he'll be destroyed regardless…" Momorin's frown was visible to all at what she said next. "I hate to do this, but we need to get away from the island. All of you come first."

Kazuma was about to give an affirmation when Sue's voice was heard above the noise of the helicopter. "Mom! Kazuma! Look at the island!"

Upon doing so, what Sue wanted to point out was obvious - that it had somehow stopped falling and instead was floating at its new elevation. Why it had stopped falling was beyond me, but given we had come to study the island, if it weren't for current conditions I'd probably be interested in finding out why. But honestly, I want nothing to do with the island anymore.

"We should land while we can," Kazuma replied, Momorin giving an affirmation.

The relief from the pain was short but sweet. When we left with Sue and Kazuma in tow, I couldn't help but feel relieved that we were going home. The ride, painful as it was, passed largely as a blur.

When we arrived at the Sakamoto residence, any attempts at holding up a strong front finally crumbled. Slowly stumbling over to the house entrance, I nearly immediately fell over and got caught by Sue.

It was kind of embarrassing, especially given how seemingly easily she had gotten used to the new form we both share. With a quickly uttered thanks, I made my way into the house. So what if I keep falling over? It's due to the fact these Mimiga feet are far too slow anyway… and yet the naturally fluid movement of Sue refused to leave my head. I'll ask her about it later. For now, I need to talk with Momorin…

Finding her in the lab was easy enough. "Momorin… Can I, uh…"

Momorin sent me a knowing look and sighed. "Yes, you can stay. I doubt you'll want to go out like that anyway. We'll discuss the terms of your staying over once you've rested. Now go get some sleep, you look like you've been through a hurricane and you're disrupting my work." Ahh, Momorin. Always the mother hen. Still, a bed sounded pretty good right now. Making my way to the guest room made the entire situation seem more real.

I'm home. I'm home, and the doctor can't do anything to us here. Trying to feel better about my current predicament, I got into bed. We'll turn me and Sue back into humans. We have to. Unwilling to think about what would happen otherwise, I effectively collapsed onto the bed and fell asleep nearly instantly.

Feel free to point out any spelling, grammar or pacing issues. I'll release the next few chapters soon.