Prologue

Two months passed since the decisive battle in the boardroom of the Occidental College came to a close. Ame and Ina won their compromise and were able to finish the rest of the Spring semester without too much incident. Now, as the first day of Summer break was dawning, the once frantic battlefield of the campus was still fast asleep.

A well-dressed young lady, clad in a fashionable orange-brown traveling coat and a hat adorned with a pretty green feather, was sitting on the ledge of the flat, poured-concrete rooftop of the main Occidental College dormitory. From where she sat, the lady had the full view of the quadrangle garden and the willow tree at the heart of it. Then, beside her, a murder of a dozen or so crows cawed and pecked peacefully at breadcrumbs that the young lady was scattering from time to time.

From that comfortable perch, the young lady thumbed leisurely through the morning newspaper. Her eyes were fixed on the front page and its headline printed in large, bold font:

' Great Phoenix Expedition Begins To-Day! '

There was a send-off message from Queen Victoria under the headline, as well as photographs of the two expeditions: O. Lowry versus A. Watson. The lady regarded the Watson expedition which showed the proud Amelia and the timid Ina'nis standing shoulder to shoulder. Seeing those two girls brought a smile to the odd lady's lips.

All of the sudden, the murder of crows that had flocked around her on the rooftop dispersed in a panic. Black feathers floated down around the young lady, but she kept her eyes on the newspaper in her hands.

Then, the sound of unnaturally light footsteps coming from behind her reached her ears.

The young lady didn't need to turn around to make her assessment. Instead, she just ran a hand through her long locks of orange hair and green accents and called out the presence behind her.

"You reapers never learn, huh?"

There was no response, but the shadow of the 'reaper' loomed over the orange-haired lady. Then, the shadow drew closer.

The lady scoffed and threw her newspaper behind her as she turned around. She then watched as the blade of a scythe tore the newspaper cleanly in half, missing Amelia's arm in the picture by a millimeter. The torn papers fell down to the ground and revealed the black-hooded figure that wielded the scythe.

The reaper followed through its attack and charged at the lady once more. However, the lady clenched her left fist and summoned a shield with a flash of orange light. The shield easily blocked the blade of the scythe, robbing the reaper of its momentum. Then, the lady reached for the belt of her jacket and pulled on it.

Her belt turned into an orange-colored broadsword that sang as it swung through the air. With broadsword in hand, the lady closed the gap between them and slashed at the reaper.

Threatened, the reaper hopped back to dodge the attack but the slash cast a gust of wind that blew off its black hood. Long locks of straight, pink hair adorned with a black tiara of obsidian flowed out from where the hood once was.

"I had a feeling it was you, Calli!" The orange-haired warrior exclaimed as she and the reaper squared off, "That speed… that tenacity! Ist wunderbar !"

"My name's Calliope Mori, you dumb bird!" The reaper named 'Calli' growled. She adjusted her grip on her scythe and warned, "Now then, Kiara Takanashi… excuse my rudeness, but could you please DIE!?"

Despite Calli's harsh words, the lady named 'Kiara' didn't flinch at all. Kiara simply rested the flat of her blade on her shoulder and mused,

"It's just you today, Calli? Your master isn't with you? Your classmates?"

"Don't change the subject!" Calli roared back.

Infuriated, Calli dashed towards Kiara and swung her scythe again. Her scythe, however, was met by Kiara's broadsword and they were locked in an uneasy stalemate. They tested each other's strength and looked each other in the eye. Calli's rose-colored eyes bore into Kiara with a glare that could pierce souls. Kiara, on the other hand, observed her opponent calmly - if not playfully - with her bright pink.

As the ladies tried to overpower each other, Kiara chuckled.

"You reapers aren't the only ones looking for me, you know. That detective and her friend seem pretty interesting, don't you think? Maybe I should reveal myself to them."

"You can reveal yourself to them alright…" Calli growled and bared her teeth, "But you'll be a corpse by the time that you do. I'm going to be the one that kills you - once and for all!"

Calli shored up every ounce of strength that she could muster and finally managed to shove Kiara away and stagger her. Then, Calli aimed the butt of her scythe handle and thrust it into Kiara's stomach.

The swordswoman reacted quickly and blocked the thrust with her shield, but the powerful blow sent her flying backwards. As she flew weightlessly in the sky for a brief moment, her eyes saw Calli gripping her scythe with both hands and then holding it far behind her. She saw the reaper bend her knees and the ground seemed to shake beneath her feet.

This was it, Kiara thought.

A coup de grâce.

A killing blow.

As if!

Kiara adjusted herself mid-air and spread out her arms. Wings of orange and green feathers sprouted from behind her back and she glided away from the deadly scythe in the nick of time. Despite this, the scythe managed to cut through the fabric of the front pocket of her traveling coat. The contents of her pocket spilled out onto the rooftop floor, but Kiara didn't bother to retrieve them.

The bird-lady flapped her wings and hovered over her opponent.

"I'm sorry, Calli, but I can't die just yet." Kiara apologized, "There's still something that I've got to do, no matter what."

"Wait a sec! Get back down here!" Calli cursed her opponent, "I'm not done with you - fight me fair and square!"

"Feel free to chase me again then, Calli~!" Kiara taunted. She flapped her wings again and flew gracefully out of the scene, "Until the next time we meet! Auf Wiedersehen! "

"Damn it!" Calli clicked her tongue and swung her scythe in frustration. All she could do was watch the bird-lady fly southbound, carried by the early Summer breeze.

Her frustrated rose eyes then fell down to the spilled contents of Kiara's pocket. There was a handful of British twopence coins and a mess of orange and green feathers left behind. However, what caught Calli's attention was a peculiar envelope with a broken blue triangle-shaped seal.

Calli picked up the letter and read it out loud.

' An opportunity of a lifetime… Holomyth ?'

Calli furrowed her brow and spat.

"What sort of garbage is this?"

AlterMyth

The Journey Begins

Ninth Scene - Full English Breakfast

Later that morning, at the English Maiden cafe, Ame and Ina sat at a window side table. The sun shone brightly through the glass and illuminated the posh decor of the small cafe, but neither Ame nor Ina could enjoy the view. Even though the aspiring detective had already fully recovered from her ordeal, she had rings under her eyes and had disheveled hair under her hat.

"Ughhh, that noise a while ago…" Ame complained with a whimper, "Were people doing construction work that early in the morning!?"

Ina, who was wearing a white, broad-brimmed traveling hat, couldn't hide her tired eyes either.

"I don't know…" Ina answered just as flatly as Ame, "Maybe a couple was having a quarrel or something…"

"A couple?" Ame asked with a raised eyebrow, "In an all-girls school dorm?"

"W-well…" Ina sank into her seat and hid her blushing cheeks. She then whispered as she fidgeted nervously, "Hey… you never know."

Ame, however, simply shrugged and leaned back into her chair as well. When she did, she suddenly hiccupped and startled Ina.

"Oh dear…" Ame groaned, "The hiccups haven't gone away, huh?"

"I-I followed your recipe for the concoction to the letter, Ame…" Ina reminded, "Are you going to be okay?"

"I'll live." Ame bluntly reassured, "I've been through worse."

Moments later, their waiter served them their food: two servings of an assortment of breakfast foods. Their drinks followed soon after: a cup of Earl Grey for Ame and a cup of strong coffee for Ina. The dark-haired girl perked up immediately as she eyed the mountain of food before her. Seeing Ina so excited brought Ame back to the land of the living too.

"That's the Full English Breakfast, Ina." Ame introduced with a smile. She then sat upright and equipped her utensils to point at her plate, "We've got bacon, eggs, sausages, beans, toast and… well… blood pudding."

Ame stopped herself as she hesitated for a moment and considered her words. She picked up a slice of blood pudding with her fork and explained,

"I don't know what people in the Far East think about blood pudding, but it's actually pretty good if you give it a try, and…"

When Ame's eyes wandered to Ina, however, she saw that Ina had already cleaned off all the blood pudding from her plate and had a piece of blood pudding still in her mouth. Ina ate that last piece of blood pudding and tilted her head to ask,

"I-is something wrong, Ame?"

"Oh, n-nothing. Don't mind me!" Ame laughed uncomfortably and changed the subject, "Anyways, let's eat!"

The girls proceeded to leisurely pick away at their Full English Breakfasts, taking breaks to chat or sip on their drinks. They eventually cleaned off their plates and leaned into their chairs again with their cups in hand.

"This is a truly wonderful cafe, Ame." Ina praised as her purple eyes seemed to shine like stars, "The food is great. The coffee is delicious. The ambiance is wonderful too! And the name? English Maiden. EnMa. It has a ring to it. How did you find this place?"

"I sort of discovered this place by accident." Ame started with a sip of tea. She dug into the pocket of her tan coat, pulled out a peculiar envelope with a broken blue, triangle-shaped seal and then showed it to Ina, "I was supposed to have an important meeting with somebody in this cafe specifically. The meeting fell through, but at least I have my new favorite hole-in-the-wall!"

Ame then handed the letter to Ina and asked,

"While we're on the subject, you wouldn't happen to have gotten one of these, would you? Or maybe - do you know someone else who had it?"

Ina took the letter, but she didn't take long to answer.

"Sadly, I have not seen a letter like this in my life." Ina explained as she handed the letter back to Ame, "My father received a blue-sealed letter from the Governor General of the Dominion once, but not in the shape of a triangle like that."

"Is that so…?" Ame hummed. She took the letter from Ina and pocketed it once more, "I guess it was a scam letter after all."

Ame paused for a moment before she turned to Ina once more.

"By the way, I've been meaning to ask you, Ina." Ame started curiously, "You were reading about Phoenixes when we first met, right? What got you so interested in them? You practically gave Mr. Lowry a lecture in the boardroom about them when we made the deal."

Ina panicked for a short while, seemingly blindsided by Ame's question. She hid behind her cup of coffee and watched Ame closely for some reason. Then, when Ame gave her a puzzled expression, Ina sighed and started to piece together her answer.

"W-well, you see… how do I put it into words?" Ina spoke, slowly lowering her cup onto the saucer, "You see, in the Far East, there are many myths. Let's see…"

Ina then started counting with her fingers as she continued,

"There are these horned creatures called 'oni' who can either be really ugly or really pretty deities. Humu humu. There are deities for various festivals throughout the Far East - especially summer festivals. The Matsuri . Some places even have myths and traditions about the moon!"

"Whoa… really!?" Ame gasped, "That's a lot of myths! I didn't know you guys had so many."

"I can go on and on about myths from the Far East, hehe, but we would be stuck in this cafe for a while if I ramble on." Ina chuckled and then smiled, "Ever since my family moved to the West, I wanted to see the myths here. The great magician Merlin. The fairy tales from all over Europe."

Ina then beamed at Ame and cheered, "But the one that caught my eye was the Phoenix! I read about Phoenixes whenever I can because they are truly interesting creatures. The cycle of death and rebirth - such a curious thing!"

"Hopefully we can find that Phoenix during our expedition, Ina." Ame answered with a smile, "Then, when our job is done, I want you to tell me all about the myths from the Far East. Heck, I want you to take me there too!"

Hearing this made Ina's face flush red. Her smile then grew warmer as she answered,

"Of course! I'd be happy to travel with you again after this, Ame."

"Same here, Ina. Same here."

As the two girls sat comfortably in silence, the bells of Big Ben rang in the distance to mark the turn of the hour. It told them that it was already ten o'clock.

Ina heaved a sigh and then asked,

"Shall we get going then, Ame? The train to Portsmouth leaves in two hours."

Ame hummed, but she eventually shook her head. She then grinned at Ina and corrected, "We just have to make a quick stop somewhere first, hehe~!"

Tenth Scene - Parting Gift

The girls paid for their breakfast and drinks and then walked to the nearby branch of a big British bank. They stepped into the opulent lobby of the bank and stood in line to wait behind twenty other people for their turn to speak with the tellers. On their way to the front counters, the girls passed by a large, standing bronze globe.

Ame laid a hand on the globe and gave it a spin.

"We've got quite a journey ahead of us, Ina." Ame started as she watched the spinning globe, "According to those books of yours, Phoenixes were sighted about fifty years ago in Bordeaux, Lisbon, Gibraltar and Vienna. If we're gonna follow that itinerary, we're gonna need travelers checks. We're working on a shoestring budget, but we're still gonna need to feed ourselves - and we can't really eat British banknotes."

"Ah yes… humu humu." Ina hummed in agreement, "I guess I have gotten used to using Pounds when I was growing up in Ottawa. I haven't been to the Far East in a while too, so it didn't cross my mind until now."

"Uncle Watson and Sherlock Holmes are pretty well traveled, so I pick up a few tips and tricks from them, hehe." Ame grinned. She then laid her hand on the globe again to stop it and pointed at Bordeaux, "Oh, and Uncle Watson told me to present my pocket watch to a certain watchmaker in France to have it fixed. That's where it was originally made, after all."

Ina lowered her head and apologized somberly, "I'm sorry that I couldn't fix your watch, Ame. I did my best, but I just don't have the tools or experience…"

Ame brought out her pocket watch and showed it to Ina with a warm smile.

"Nah, I appreciate it, Ina. You cleaned all the dirt that got into it and you even repaired the chain! The watch isn't running right now and the crack on the glass is still there, but at least I can wear it again!"

"You think so?" Ina perked up once more, "You're too nice, Ame."

Ame grinned at Ina and then hiccupped. The two girls chuckled and carried on chatting as they waited for their turn. They eventually got their checkbooks processed and got their accounts in order. However, just as they were about to go on their merry way, Ame's teller called her attention.

"Miss Watson! Before you leave - I have just been informed that a deposit was made into your safe deposit box by courier, courtesy of a Mr. Sherlock Holmes."

"From Sherlock!?" Ame gasped with unfettered excitement, "Let me see it!"

The teller nodded and asked Ame to follow him into the bank's underground safe deposit box vault. Ame was given the key to her box and the teller excused himself to give her privacy.

Once she was alone, Ame opened her safe deposit box and retrieved a handsome mahogany box that looked like it was meant for jewelry. There was a small note nestled above the box too.

Ame took the note and read it out loud.

...

Dear Amelia,

Your uncle told me about what happened with the Lowrys. I am sending you something to help you in your journey. Best of luck in the expedition. Don't spend it all in one place.

Holmes

...

"Don't spend it all in one place…!?" Ame's excitement rose even higher, "What in the world could it be?"

Money?

Jewelry?

Another valuable trinket from Sherlock's latest adventure?

Ame pocketed the note and proceeded to open the mahogany box. Then, her sky blue eyes shone bright.

"Ohohoho~!" Ame mused. She eyed the contents of the mahogany box and licked her lips as she spoke, "I've always wanted one of these!"

Inside the box, there was a beautiful Webley six-shooter revolver. The gun was accompanied by two leather cartridge cases with twelve rounds of ammunition each, a bandolier and a holster that were perfect fits for Ame's size.

Ame picked up the revolver, accustomed herself to its weight and looked down the iron sights for good measure. Then, she noticed a second note tucked beneath where the revolver once was.

The note read,

' Don't tell your uncle. I don't want to deal with that when I come home. '

Ame snickered and mused, "I wouldn't want to deal with that either, Sherlock. No, sir."

With that, Ame took the cartridge cases, wore the bandolier and holster and then kept the revolver by her hip. She then wore her tan jacket over it to cover it all.

A broad smile formed on Ame's lips as she whispered to herself,

"Let's freaking go!"

Eleventh Scene - The Lowry Expedition

It was half past eleven by the time Ame and Ina arrived at the London-Waterloo train station by horse carriage. When the girls stepped out of the carriage, they saw the train that would take them to Portsmouth harbor parked by the South Rail platform: a majestic Victorian Railways E-class steam locomotive leading eight train cars.

Ame paid their chauffeur and then tossed a three-pence coin to a porter to transfer their luggage from the carriage to the train. So, as the porter got to work, Ame and Ina paid for their tickets and they went to the South Rail platform to get ready to board.

When they did, however, they found a large group of people already gathered there. Passengers, staff of the railyard and bypassers alike were gathering at the platform around an entourage of people with great fanfare.

Naturally, Ame and Ina were drawn into the crowd too - wondering what it was all about.

The two girls waded through the sea of people and eventually broke through. They found that the crowd was gathering around none other than Ophelia Lowry and the remarkably large entourage of her expedition. The spoiled brat was accompanied by her two friends, the lithe and the brawny bullies. Each of those girls had their own personal attendants behind them and a mountain of luggage that the poor porters of the railyard were rushing to load onto the train.

Finally, six rough-looking men - pairs of Scottish highlanders, German mercenaries and American cowboys - wielded the latest military issue Lee-Enfield "Emily" rifles and stood guard around Lowry and her crew.

It was practically a private army!

Seeing that army rattled Ame and robbed her of whatever confidence she had earlier that day. Despite this, Ame couldn't say a word. Her agreement with Mr. Lowry and the board was that the Watson expedition wouldn't get substantial funding from the Occidental College - but the Lowry expedition wasn't restricted by that rule. That meant that Ophelia's checkbook was going to be infinitely more powerful than hers.

As Ame was grumbling about her disadvantage, Ophelia noticed her and Ina standing among the crowd. The rich girl scoffed, broke rank from her posse and began marching towards them.

"Oh my, if it isn't the little gremlin and her Oriental servant." Ophelia stopped in front of them and folded her arms, "Are the two of you ready to lose again?"

"All the money in the world can't buy the Phoenix, Lowry." Ame rebutted and tried to stand tall before her old neighbor, "I… I think Ina and I are going to catalogue the Phoenix long before you and your circus! Easy!"

"Is that so?" Ophelia looked Ame in the eye and countered coldly, "For an aspiring detective, you are an incredibly poor liar. You're shaking in your boots… 'neighbor'."

Ame twisted her lips, but she couldn't talk back to Ophelia.

"You should have just apologized back then, Watson. You dug this grave for yourself and my daddy and I called your bluff. No holds barred. So, I hope you're prepared so see things through to the end." Ophelia threatened with a frigid voice. She then saw the train ticket in Ame's hand and remarked, "Good luck catching the Phoenix from the third-class coach!"

Ophelia didn't wait for Ame to answer her. She turned around and went back to her posse to board the first-class cars of the train. Ame bit her lip and grumbled. Then the crowd that had gathered earlier started to disperse.

Ina laid a hand on Ame's shoulder and urged,

"Come on, Ame. Let's go. The train is about to leave."

Ame snorted and then let Ina guide her to the third-class passenger cars. However, the shadow of frustration remained hanging over Ame's eyes.

Twelfth Scene - On The Rocks

With the powerful blow of its whistle, the E-class locomotive began its journey to Portsmouth, one of England's primary harbors and the home of the Royal Navy. Ame and Ina sat together on upholstered seats in a cramped common cabin that they shared with thirty other people.

Ina was thumbing through her tomes about the Gallus Herodotus Phoenix, but she couldn't quite concentrate on the pages. Instead, her nervous eyes stole glances of her normally talkative, golden-haired companion sitting beside her with unusual silence. An hour had already passed since they left London, but Ame was like a rock and was starting to make Ina worry.

The clerk closed her book and wanted to say something to ease Ame's worries, but the words never came to her. She was quite worried about their chances of defeating the Lowry Expedition too, after all.

Before Ina could say anything, Ame suddenly stood up from her seat and broke her silence.

"I'm going to the bar car." Ame spoke with a blank expression, "I think I need a drink - a stiff one. Maybe two. Wanna come?"

"S-sorry." Ina timidly shook her head, "I'm not good with alcohol…"

"Is that so?" Ame replied flatly, "I'll be back in an hour or two."

"T-take care…" Ina bid her companion goodbye.

Ame tipped her hat to Ina and then went off on her own.

With shadows still hovering over her eyes, Ame crossed through the third-class cars of the train and dug into the pockets of her traveling coat to pull out a threepence coin. She flipped the coin aimlessly as she walked and wondered how much she should drink that afternoon - or if she was even going to drink at all.

Eventually, she reached the bar car - the cabin that separated the first and third class sections. When she got there, however, she saw the backs of four of Ophelia's private army already seated at the bar - both Germans, one of the Scots and one of the Americans. The large men were incredibly rowdy and were downing alcohol to their hearts' content. Their presence made Ame lose her appetite for a stiff drink.

However, in the midst of those men was a small young woman in a worn blue traveling coat and a wide-brimmed hat. That young woman was gregarious and actively taunted the large men for drinking slowly. Ame watched the surreal scene from the corner of the room and saw it evolve into a chaotic drinking contest - with the loser paying everyone's tabs.

London Gin.

Kentucky Bourbon.

French Champagne.

One drink after another.

The bodyguards and the young lady practically threatened to empty the shelves of the bar car. Ten minutes later, the bodyguards relented and surrendered to the young lady.

"Oh Lordy!" The American bodyguard remarked, "The girl drinks like a fish!"

One by one, the guards got up from the barstools, dropped handfuls of threepence coins in front of the young lady and returned to the first-class cars. The young lady, on the other hand, pushed the coins over to the troubled bartender and then ordered yet another pint of English pale ale.

Ame, absolutely astounded by the scene, accidentally dropped the threepence coin that she had been aimlessly flipping. The dropped coin rolled over to the side of the young woman's seat. The young woman looked down to the coin on the floor and then over to Ame, finally revealing her face.

It was a young lady who, for some reason, had a head of white hair with blue accents and ornaments that looked oddly like sharks. Her bright blue eyes, however, were unfocused and her cheeks were flushed beet red. She was definitely a human being - and yet, she reminded Ame of the friendly blue shark that she often saw in her dreams!

The white-haired drunkard glanced at Ame for a moment and wondered if it was another challenger. However, when she got a good look at Ame, only a single noise escaped her lips.

"A…!"

She then lost her balance and fell off the barstool. Ame, however, rushed over to the bar and caught the drunkard before she could fall.

Then, the drunkard blacked out safely in Ame's arms.

To Be Continued