Bakemono
Seijun and Water Hazard, who was now known as Ben Tennyson, who was a human all along, was sitting at the table in the center of the room, between the shoji and the window. It was provided by the Lord to them. The room was fairly big enough for her to move around. There was a cabinet where their beds and blankets, were placed and two lamps for each of them. The other was currently at the table used by Water Hazard while the other one was hanging on the wall.
She moved at the window to take a good look at the town below them. She saw that even during this late at night, the people were still busy on their works. All seemed still to be in their fullest, unlike her, who was tired both physically and mentally. The lack of rest and thinking too much at the same time both struck her hard. After looking out the window, she decided to sit at the opposite side of the table and stared at Water Hazard, who was clearly busy at writing things he would like to show after introducing the concept of 'Say-i-yans? (Science)'. She was not really familiar with that word nor the term, but according to him, this 'say-i-yans' holds fundamentals about how the law of the universe works; a law that was different from magic as it focused more on the physical aspects of it instead of the mystical part.
That was the summary of it from what she understood, and did not choose to go deeper into. It was not her forte, so she could care less about it. That, however, was the opposite to the Lord, as he seemed interested after Water Hazard, or Ben, shared his knowledge about it.
Seijun felt an awkward silence between him and her. As much as she wanted to talk to Water Hazard, the words she wished to say cannot come up out of her mouth. She didn't know the reason why, she simply just can't. Despite that, she tried, even if it was hard.
"Uh, Water Hazard? Ben? Which should I call you?" Seijun started to converse.
"Call me Water Hazard while I'm still in my form, and yeah?" Water Hazard answered while his attention was still on his list.
"Uhm, are you really not a monster? I mean an alien?" Seijun mentally slapped herself after asking him a question that she was not meant to ask.
"Yes. If you wonder how, it's because of the device that I have." The same answer came from him after she remembered Lord Yuuma asking the same question to him. "I can't really go into full details as it will take us like a day. Let's just say it allows me to tap into different alien forms to gain access to their abilities."
"A device that allows the user to transform into different beings. I understand now." Water Hazard nodded at her before focusing on what he was doing.
"This is harder than I thought. Need a bigger brain with this." He complained while tapping the table rather aggressively.
Seijun thought about what he meant by that.
"Is there something that matters?"
"Yeah, I don't really know what to show them because most of these things I wrote will take a hundred years to figure out." Water whined.
"Is it really that hard for us to figure it out?" Seijun questioned, trying to read what's on his list. However, it was not written in their native language. The texts were just too different to the usual Zipanguese texts, so she could not read it.
"Yep. Without the basics, you wouldn't understand any of this." He explained briefly, before standing up and looking around.
"What?" She asked as she looked up at him.
"Do they have any thick blankets here?"
"It's in the cabinet right there." Seijun pointed to the left.
"Thanks!" Water Hazard pulled the blanket to cover himself with it. Seijun wondered why he was doing it. Her answer came when the blanket shrank down after there was a brief flash of emerald light inside. The true form of Water Hazard showed itself as he crawled out of the blanket, appearing to be the same young boy who appeared in front of his majesty himself. His attire was very different to the usual attire they have; it was not even similar to the west's. He was wearing a black shirt and a green jacket that had two white stripes on the right sleeve and one on the left chest with a number '10' on it, he wore blue pants and blank and white shoes.
He let out a tired breath before speaking.
"I'm juiced out again. Call me Ben, by the way." Ben told her as he examined his device on his wrist.
"So, that is the source of your power!" Seijun exclaimed, albeit quietly.
"Duh, I already said earlier. The Omnitrix holds many forms that I can transform into." Ben said to her.
"My bad." Seijun apologized, though in a light way. She stared at him and noticed something. "Ben?"
"Yeah?"
"How old are you exactly? You look too young."
"I'm 16." Ben answered.
"Too young, indeed." It was what she could only say.
"Why? What do you expect me to look like? An old man?" Ben joked.
"Frankly, yes. The way you talk and act sometimes is really… maybe not that far, but a little bit ahead of your age." Seijun answered honestly after she remembered when he also revealed that every one of those so-called monsters the warriors had encountered were also him, even the vampire one. "But I guess it's normal since we have warriors here who are still in their youth. Ah, I am sorry if I talk too much. You are probably annoyed of me asking you too many questions."
"Nope, not all." Ben assured. "I actually like that you are being open now. And speaking of being open now, why the sudden change?"
"I don't know." Seijun scratched her cheek while staring up. "Wait, don't you have things to do first?"
"Nah, see this?" Ben showed her the Omnitrix. "It's still red; it means it's still recharging. It will show you if it's fully recharged when it becomes green. Life-Form Lock consumes a lot."
"Oh, I see. Anyways, is it really, okay? Am I being a nuisance?" She tried to reassure again.
"No, not really. I am actually glad 'cuz sometimes it's boring and hard without anyone to talk to while trying to keep a secret." Ben stretched for a bit and put his hands over the back of his head. He leaned forward and placed his right hand over the table to support his head. "We at least have an hour of free chat, so go on, ask anything since it's not like I can hide anything anymore anyway.
She was not sure she would continue, as she felt his kindness and generosity was a bit much, but he was open and willing to tell anything to her. She thought perhaps this could help her conflicting feelings about whether helping them or not somehow. Then she asked herself, why she felt dread after hearing the warning from the soothsayer. The lady did not even proceed to be specific on what was going to happen in the future. It was all vague warnings of impending trials and dangers that, this boy, this hero, Ben Tennyson, would face. Men, mamono and otherwise, did that mean that he would not only be facing two factions but more? Then, if so, what were they? Who were they? Maybe it was the reason why she felt fear after hearing it. Not only will he face humans and mamonos, but also something else. Perhaps the gods themselves? No, that was impossible. Only a few powerful figures can face against gods, not unless you were a god like themselves. She doubted that this boy had form to fight against a divine figure.
Hero, that was what the soothsayer referred to him as. Even the boy himself said so. In his world, he was a hero. A hero with firm beliefs and spirit, willing to risk himself just to save anyone… unlike the heroes of the Order, with the exception of the Demon Lord's husband and those who sided with the mamono kind. The stories he had shared with her were inspiring that she cannot deny. However, in spite of all it, it will be just a story, nothing more, nothing less, not unless she saw them with her own eyes, personally. It was not like she did not trust him; she was just having a fair share of her own skepticism, that's all.
XXX
(With the Warriors…)
The groups were inside one of the restaurants of the town to relax and cool off from duty they were given to them. The inside was filled with many people talking and sharing some life stories with their friends. Geishas, composed of both humans and mamonos, were serving their hosts and performing dance and music to entertain them. Many mamonos and humans were spending time with each other in this restaurant. It was a good way for them to wind down after all they had been through, a good way to prepare oneself for a new day tomorrow.
"Finally, I can slack off and enjoy again!" Akko amused after jugging a whole cup of liquor in a single go. "It's been a while since I've drink."
"Like for a day?" Suzako asked sarcastically and took a sip of her tea.
"Yeah. Why don't you just take some instead of always drinking tea?" Akko tried to persuade her.
"I love my life healthy." Suzako simply said.
"You're boring as always."
"Kohana-san, what do you think of the boy?" One of the Kamaitachi, Shigo, asked.
"I do not know." Kohana answered while she was cutting her meat with a knife. "I don't know what to say."
"It's natural. I mean, who would've thought that all of those foes we fought were all him all along." Akko said. "And, we all damn fell for it."
"Indeed, it was unexpected. Though I think it was all foreshadowed to us already. We just did not evaluate everything else thoroughly. The mana was the clear sign for us, and yet we failed to realize it." Suzako shared what she thought.
"But the question is, how does one simply turn into a being without any mana? Clearly, there is some anomalies in play here." Aisa pointed out. "You cannot just turn into something lifeless that easily. It is like playing with death."
"Maybe it's just how that ghost and vampire are?" Akui spoke. "After all, we do not fully understand this world and the 'alleged' other worlds out there."
"Akui is right." Onashi decided to talk. "None of us fully understands everything yet, and I doubt we will ever achieve that level of knowledge. Only the gods know, unlike us mortals, whose comprehensions are limited only to this reality."
"Yes, but the creature was our way in understanding more about the basic fundamentals of the universe of how things work around us. Did he not mention that their civilization was advanced enough to not rely on any magics and sorcery?" Suzako recalled the previous conversation the boy and Lord Yuuma had. "For me, it is very interesting to think about. Technologies that do not rely on magics? That is really amazing."
"Like one of those machines have Kohana shared with us about the use of steam for machinery?" Akko remembered. "I also heard about guns that, well, they use magic as an ammunition to shoot instead of your typical bow and arrow."
"Automatons are the best example I could think of as an advancement in technology, machines powered by magic. But they are quite rare these days and are considered ancient relics of the past by some people." Suzako realized something. "Could it be that the boy was a part of an old advanced civilization that we all thought was lost and forgotten?"
"Don't think so." Akko did not agree with her. "He said it already, he came from another world and transported to us by a pod? I think that was what he called to his ride?"
"Well, he might be lying."
"The report told us the mummy was first seen on the port of that town. This is a good alibi. If the report was not enough, we could send the Kamaitachi back there to talk with Yusa again." Kohana told them.
"But isn't Yusa close to him? I doubt she will ever share anything about him to us." Aisa thought.
"If she was indeed close to him, she probably already knew of his secrets, like us."
"And if so, then asking more questions about the creature would be unnecessary."
"She might know more than us. None of us truly trust the creature, and he knows well that we won't hesitate to take him down. The likeness of sentiment isn't that far; we do not trust him, and he, possibly, does not trust us either." Akui thought it through, playing with projection to predict the creature's plan.
"Really, guys? Why are you all still cynical about him? Is revealing to us his true self not enough?" Akko tried to defend the boy.
"We are not being cynical, Akko. We are just being careful." Suzako clarified to her. "The boy possessed countless forms that could counter any of us, and he did not specify how many he had."
"Really? Yuuma-Sama seems rather more open compared to you guys. Even if Yuuma-sama's very skeptical of the creature, he still gave him the benefit of the doubt." Akko rebutted. "Like come on, guys. He is just a boy. He helped us many times before. Are we just going to forget that?"
The last statement did sway the skepticism they had for the creature a little bit.
"Regardless, we must stay cautious." Akui still insisted. "Now that you mention about Yuuma-sama. Didn't you two have a personal talk with Yuuma-sama, Onashi Kohana? What does Yuuma-sama think of the boy, and his reasons in accepting the agreement with the boy?"
"We are not certain ourselves…" Onashi said them.
(Earlier…)
Most of the warriors were in silence during the revelation of the boy's tales and origins. The amount of living beings beyond the voids, various factions and organizations of aliens, technologies that allow them to make things possible, and many more. Evidently, the prove of such advancement of their technologies was on the boy's wrist. A device that allowed him to tap into the power of different creatures, built by one of the smartest beings in his galaxy.
Shape-shifting powers were not that unheard of in this world of theirs; however, tapping into another creature's ability was something else entirely. All them of them knew how powerful a person would be if they could turn into a different creature that had an ability effective in a situation they found themselves in.
They knew how deadly it was if it were to fall into the wrong hands. They knew it well because they experienced its power firsthand.
After all the revelations and the origin of the boy's powers, there was something strange they found in the boy's attitude. Most of them thought if he was stupid or he was just being a youth who knew nothing about the threats posed by what he revealed. The boy, Ben Tennyson, simply revealed all about himself and his powers without a slight hesitation. This was the bargain he used to gain the trust of the Lord, the Daimyo. And yet, after all those he shared to the Daimyo; their lord still refused.
"Pardon, young Ben, but I cannot simply grant what you want." Lord Yuuma apologized to him. "I can see your sincerity to help, but I just cannot allow you to."
Most of them felt a little pity when they saw the expression of the boy. To them, he seemed really genuine about helping them, but they were just being careful.
Seijun, especially, felt really bad for him after being denied, but what could she do? She was just an Ushi-Oni, one of the strongest mamono there was in Zipangu. Strongest maybe, but in a situation like this she was useless.
"I understand, your majesty." Ben felt defeated, but he still tried. "Is there really no chance for me to have permission to your library?"
"I am sorry, young Ben." Lord Yuuma apologized again and shook his head. "I thank you for being honest with us, but what you are asking for is too much. Words are not enough for assurance."
"I already expected this to happen, then how about we exchange knowledge?" Their Daimyo raised an eyebrow at him, seemingly interested.
"Exchange knowledge, you say?"
"It's simple. I give you what I know and you give me what I want. I will provide ideas that could help your people, like creating lighting around the town without the use of fire or magic." Ben suggested to him.
"A proposal I see..." The Daimyo thought for a moment before nodding. "I will give you access to the library if you will provide me with this knowledge of yours to us. However, I must see the demonstrations. Only then will I decide if you are allowed or not."
"Nice, so we have a deal then, your majesty?"
"Yes, we have, young Ben. However, I am curious." The Daimyo folded his arms and thought about the offer. "There will definitely be a limit on this, is it?"
"Of course, your majesty. Providing you with so much will create an imbalance of power." The warriors saw the relief expression of their Daimyo. They assumed that he knew what kind of conflict it would cause and was thoroughly thoughtful about this kind of offer from a stranger, as they expected of him. There was nothing wrong with the boy's offer to their Daimyo; however, it would cause jealousy and envy to some people, especially with those who had power.
The discussion about the proposal continued.
(After The Meeting…)
Their Daimyo ordered the guards to escort the changeling covered in robe and the Ushi-Oni into their dedicated quarter provided to them by him. The Daimyo also ordered the warriors to leave after their meeting. But before fully dismissing them, they were told to not disclose this, as they knew the uproar it would cause if the words of the boy turning into monsters, or aliens as the boy referred to them, came into public. Many assumptions will rise from this, and along with those assumptions were the unhealthy rumors that might create misinformation, therefore leading to chaos and fear for those without the right knowledge about the boy. Even despite informing the public, there was no certainty that it would end well. The warriors had well known about it during the execution of their mission as it was brought up a lot during their discussion about the creatures.
The warriors left the room except for Kohana and Onashi who wished to stay to further discuss about the changeling.
"Yuuma-sama, I am asking you this again. Is it all right to trust him?" Onashi questioned.
"No." The Daimyo shook his head.
"Then why did you agree to his offer, Yuuma-sama? He could be deceiving us."
"I know the possibility, Onashi. However, has it hurt someone during your mission?"
"No, Yuuma-sama." Kohana answered his questions. "He hasn't hurt anyone. The only case I remember was about the child, but that was unintentional, as he meant to save him from corruption."
The Daimyo was intrigued by this news.
"How did he save this child?"
"During the corruption process, the boy assumed the form of a vampire and sucked the life of the child to cleanse his system of corruption." Lord Yuuma was fascinated after hearing this and was curious to learn more.
"Is that all?"
"No, Yuuma-sama. It does not end there." Kohana said. "After he saved the child, the youngling fell into a deep coma for a week and we did not know what to do at that time. But a week after the child fell into a deep coma, a being resembling closely to automatons visited the boy and cured him. We also have an assumption that the strange automaton was his other form, as it had a vastly different appearance compared to the usual ones."
"Fascinating." The Daimyo said after hearing about the deeds of the creature; however, there was more. "But who caused the said corruption to the child?"
"The Ushi-Oni you interacted with earlier was the one, Yuuma-sama. It was Atagi Seijun."
"Should we apprehend her?" Onashi asked.
"No, let her be, for I believe this will cause the ire of young Ben. You all know how close they are, I fear that the boy will not hesitate to fight us if it means saving his friend. None of us know what he is truly capable of, the number of forms he had and the potential power he still hides from us." It was true. The boy refused to specify the exact number of forms he had. The boy instead said 'just enough'. If the boy truly holds numerous forms, then they were facing with uncertainty that they cannot possibly win. Not to mention the various powers and abilities each forms could possibly have. "This is… interesting, truly."
"What is it, Yuuma-sama?" Both of the warriors were curious.
"From what I can see, the Ushi-Oni seem tamed. Not that it is unusual, but the way she behaved with the boy tells something else entirely. Has he done something to change her this way? I may not have been blessed with such foresight, but I can clearly see well the regrets from the eyes of that Ushi-Oni." Being old seemed to have perks of its own, since it granted the elders and veteran warriors like the Daimyo such foresight of their own through wisdom. The two warriors then saw something that was rare to see on the Daimyo, his smile.
"Yuuma-sama?" Onashi was confused.
"The boy just reminded me of the old days." He said after remembering his past. "About the boy himself, it appears that he is genuine in his desire to help people. But without any knowledge, he is being hindered, unable to do anything. While I do still have my own fear and doubt, there is nothing wrong with giving the boy a chance. After all, he helped you during your troubles based on Kohana's account. Anyhow, I think it is enough for today. Tell those warriors who took part in this mission to take a week's rest."
"As you wish, Yuuma-sama." The two bowed at the Daimyo.
"You two may now leave." The warriors then left the room as told.
(Present…)
"I mean, Yuuma-sama is right, though. Ben helped us." Akko pointed to them. "It's just fair to give him a chance. Besides, he's cute."
"Calling the by his name, huh." Aisa commented.
"Why? It's his name anyway."
"Is that really the reason why you are siding with the boy or is it because of his face?" Suzako questioned suspiciously.
"Both." Akko answered without a care of their judgement towards her.
"Why did I even bother…" Suzako resisted the urge to facepalm.
"Actually, I'm surprised that Yuuma-sama is not… you know, surprised at all."
"I do believe that Yuuma-sama is as surprised as us. I am fairly sure of it." Aisa disagreed with the Red Oni. "He is simply keeping his composure and judgement as he knows better on what to do in this situation than us."
"After all, Zipangu is known for its mamono-friendly state even before the rise of the current Demon Lord." Kohana supported this. "It has been like this in the past; it will be like this, and remain the same in the future as it should be."
All of them agreed with Kohana's statement.
"Anyhow, there is no other way but to see this through and wait for the result. That is what we can do. For now, all of you can take a rest, train, meditate, or do your hobbies. It is all up to you how you will spend the rest of the week. It is given to us by Yuuma-sama, so spend your free time wisely. Also, do not forget the reports." Kohana informed.
"Nice, I can totally break not only for a day but for a week!" Akko said.
"Like through drinking." Suzako quipped.
"Hey, cut me of some slacks. It's my only way of relaxing." Akko rebutted.
While all of them resumed eating, Onashi, meanwhile, was in deep thought about this. She wondered how the people on higher positions would react to this, the Shogun and Imperial Family. The thought deeply made her worry. She looked at Kohana, who barely touched her food; she assumed that the Kunoichi had the same thoughts as hers. Shaking her head, Onashi removed those thoughts for now to relax and ease her mind.
XXX
(Back with Ben and Seijun…)
"Wow, that is a lot." Seijun cannot express the feeling she was having right due to the overwhelming. "I never knew there was a powerful god like the Diagon. If that demon ever comes into this world, gods, it will surely fall into chaos and despair. Mamonos may be immune to its influence due to the Demon Lord's power already coursing through us. I cannot say the same for the humans. The power needed to turn them into these Esoterica in an instant is unimaginable. War will surely break out between two demon lords. The Gods might even interfere, if that ever happens."
"It took a lot of us to defeat him and it was really hard. We lost some people during that catastrophe." Ben said solemnly.
"Where do you have the guts to take someone like that? I couldn't even imagine myself being involved in such conflict." Seijun said, terrified of the thought of encountering the demon god and its power. "You know, why didn't you tell them about it and those other things that happened in your world?"
"About the Diagon and other crazy stuffs? I don't think it's important anymore since it's all settled now. Plus, I want to give them a good impression, not scare them." Ben explained.
"You have a good point." Seijun agreed. "I just realized."
"What?"
"Are you not afraid of telling too much? Like you even revealed the source of your power. I know being honest is good, but damn, you are being way too honest for your own good, you know? You should be careful. Your enemies might exploit this weakness of yours." Seijun told her sternly.
"I know, I know. I'm gonna take it as an advisement, ma'am." Ben jokingly said while playfully giving her a salute, much to the Ushi-Oni's mild irritation. "Honestly, I'll be lying if I say I'm not scared. I'm alone here with no one to truly rely on. My friends and allies are far, and they probably don't know where I am right now. But, don't worry. I know how to take care of myself."
Ben let out a chuckle to lighten up the mood when he felt the it was getting depressing, but Seijun sensed otherwise. The boy in front of him may hide his emotion through a smile and jolly act; but he cannot hide what's within his heart, and that was sadness. Sadness that came from his voice when he was talking about being alone. This made her empathize more with him as they were somewhat in the same place right now. Just like him, she was alone in the forest with no companions to ask for help, to share your happiness and frustration. She had grown too used to it that it didn't affect her anymore, but boy before her was different.
She bit her lips, resolving herself as she tried to reach for his hand to tell him it's okay, to tell him she was here for him. However, she pulled her hand quickly as a thought came to her mind. Instead of expressing her assurance through touch and words, she simply chose the latter.
"You're not alone, Ben. Remember, I am here." She said softly to him.
"Thanks." The boy gave her a warm smile that made her heart fluttered while her eyes went wide a little and for her cheeks to blush. She resisted the urge to look way to not look weird and made him worry. "I appreciate it."
The boy turned around to pick up the thick blanket behind him, while Seijun on the other hand…
'What the hell was that?!' She thought and grabbed her cheeks to cover it. 'Focus Seijun!'
Ben covered himself with a blanket.
"You know, it's getting late now. I think you should sleep." Seijun frowned at this, as she knew the boy will spend another night without a sleep again.
"What about you? You need it more than I."
"I could manage." Ben paused for moment. He looked at her then back to his Omnitrix.
"What?" Seijun asked.
"I want to try something." He said to her whilst pointing the device at her. "Omnitrix, initiate Life-Form scan."
User Command: Acknowledged…
A familiar feminine voice spoke again.
Life-Form Scan: Activated
"Eek!" Seijun flinched in surprise after the device suddenly shot a yellow light towards her, moving up and down for a second before disappearing.
Life-Form Scan: Failed due to unknown anomaly…
She blinked multiple times before looking at the boy, confused.
"Weird…" Ben said.
"Ben? What was that?" Seijun asked.
"I tried scanning you to add your species DNA into the Omnitrix's data catalogue, but I looks like it can't." Ben explained.
"What?" Seijun was confused. "And why?"
"I'm gonna explain later, for now I need to focus." Ben hid himself under to transform into the alien he wanted without alarming the guards once the Omnitrix turned green again.
There was a brief flash of emerald light under the thick blanket as he it rose from the floor and slid back onto the floor. It revealed, what Seijun could describe, a giant crab with a large head that had a slit in the middle of it. It wore a silver and black neck brace where the Omnitrix was attached.
"Brainstorm…!" Ben tried to not yell the name of his form.
"A crab?" Seijun thought.
"That was a close one. Better not alert the royal's guard, lest we would experience a rather unpleasant night, further delaying our already wasted time."
"Huh?" It was what Seijun could only utter after witnessing the drastic change of attitude and way of speech of her companion.
"Pardon, for such untypical way speech of mine, Seijun. Think less about it and just focus on your well-being instead. Sleep now, for we have a long day tomorrow."
"Uh, right. I'm gonna sleep now." Seijun went to her bed, still dumbfounded.
Seijun lay on the bed after picking up her blanket from the cabinet. Before closing her eyes, she took a glimpse of her companion working on his projects again. She closed her eyes, letting herself fall into sleep.
XXX
(The Next Morning…)
Onashi woke up early at dawn while her subordinates were still sleeping to practice in her dojo. She wore her casual attire and brought a sword along with her. Daunting thoughts still lingered and filled her mind, so she decided to vent and ease them through practice. She warmed up through practicing her Iaido to enhance her fluidity and reflexes. Efficient in motion was one of the key parts of being a warrior; not only did it save energy from unnecessary movements; it can also prevent a warrior from sustaining injuries as it maintained the high state of awareness that was important in their duty.
Enemies can be unpredictable sometimes, and so learning this technique was a detrimental part of their training during their younger days.
The dojo was quiet and empty, good. She can train without anyone except on her own. Grabbing ahold of the sword and scabbard firmly, Onashi pulled her sword to unlock it from its scabbard with her thumb. She kneeled down before rushing an imaginary enemy in front of her. She drew the sword and swung it with great speed and strength. A sudden rush of whooshing sound quickly followed as if she was cutting the air.
She spun her sword before flicking it to the side and returning it back to its scabbard. Standing straight while still holding her weapon, she leaned slightly while her right feet stomped forward to gain balance and momentum. She drew her weapon to the right before pulling it back and pausing in a stabbing pose.
Onashi swung her to the right and wiped the blade afterward. She sheathed the sword again, and returned to her neutral, both hands still holding her weapons. She moved forward and drew it again, and slashed her sword downward and upward as she moved to steps away from her previous position before assuming a defensive pose.
She retreated back to prepare for another strike. Sharp whooshing sounds filled the quiet dojo as Onashi continued on with her training.
"Looks like someone is being busy." A voice spoke behind her.
"Matsuko-nee." She turned around to see another Ochimusha like her, clad in light samurai armor. She flicked her sword again and returned it to its scabbard.
"Long time no see, Onashi. It has been a month since our last meeting, and I forgot to ask you about your health yesterday due to your duty." Matsuko approached and hugged her, to which Onashi gladly returned. "I miss you sister."
"I miss you too, Matsuko-nee." Onashi said, hugging her tightly.
"How is my little sister?" She asked as she caressed her cheeks.
"I am fine Matsuko-nee. There are problems as always, but there is nothing I can handle." Her elder sister was glad to hear this.
"Good. By the way, I have a question?"
"What is it?"
"Who is that tall person you escorted to Yuuma-sama? I sense great mana from that person. Judging by that person's physiques, I would assume he is a male, is he not?" Her sister confirmed this by nodding. "Tell me, is he a hero?"
"Well, maybe? A very young one at that." Onashi's sister grinned at her.
"My, Onashi, it seems fate has provided with you the right person." She teased her. "You have been hit by a windfall."
"What do you mean?" Onashi was confused, but her sister gave her a playful grin. Her eyes widened at the realization. "No, he is not!"
Her sister just lightheartedly laughed at her while her sister simply looked away embarrassed.
"I was just kidding, sister. Have you not eaten yet?"
"No, but I was planning to after my training."
"Why do you not take a rest from training and let us eat." Matsuko offered. "There is a ramen shop open right now."
"A shop open at this early?"
"Yes, now let us go. It is my treat."
"Alright then."
Onashi's sister led her towards the said ramen shop. At this time, townsfolk were just starting to wake up to do their own business in the morning. She saw some warriors, both humans and mamono, taking a tea together at a tea shop; kids helping some of their parents while others were playing with each other.
"Ah, I really love the breeze of the morning. It is not hot nor cold. Just enough for my liking."
"I feel the same, Matsuko-nee. It is why I prefer to train at dawn before the sun rises."
"Is that so."
Out of nowhere, the siblings heard a voice calling Onashi. Both of them looked behind and saw it was Akko who was calling at them.
"Finally found- Oh good morning, Matsuko-san." Akko greeted Onashi's sister.
"Good morning to you too, Akko. What are you doing here anyway?"
"Just want to give this to her." Onashi accepted the note from Akko. She read the title written on the front page.
"Cooking guide?" Onashi raised a brow before looking at Akko.
XXX
(With Ben and Seijun…)
The two were currently at the riverside between two mountains, a kilometer away in the east of the town. Brought along with them were the materials they had purchased from the stores. At first, they thought they couldn't buy any materials since it was still early in the morning. Fortunately, some stores close early at night to open early in the morning.
"Are you sure you want to help? You know, you could just stay in the quarter." Ben spoke.
"Of course, it will also be boring just staying there." Seijun answered.
"Okay, it's up to you." Ben pulled a rather large piece of rolled paper from one of their bags in the cart that they had also purchased.
Seijun helped him by placing down a large board for the paper.
Ben unrolled paper, revealing it to be a blueprint for a small hydroelectric power plant. It was one of the first projects he thought about and wrote last night. But before building the power plant, Ben decided to create a small and simple light bulb as an example of the concept of electrical energy. Creating one was not a hard task since he had aliens he could use; the only problem was he had no source of power or mediums that could light up a bulb. But of course, thanks to Brainstorm last night, he had few alternatives now, even though there were still issues like creating a compact power source.
"What are you going to do once you have the information you want, Ben?" Seijun asked suddenly.
"I'm going to Lescatie after." Ben answered.
"Going far west, are we, I see…" Seijun folded her arms.
"Why have you asked by the way? You backing down?" Ben teased jokingly.
"Me? Backing down now? Nah. I would feel bad letting a kid alone." Seijun teased back at him.
"How old are you anyway?"
"I'm 27 years old right now."
"27? And you're still-"
"Pupupahhh." Seijun cut his line off. "Don't finish it. It's rude to tell that to your elders."
"Fine, yeah. Whatever." Both of them chuckled.
"Damn, it's been a while since I felt like this." Seijun said.
"Feel what? Joy?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Let's not talk about it. I don't want to ruin the mood." Seijun told him.
"Okay, okay. I will not try to pry more into private matters."
He activated his Omnitrix and started searching for the alien he wanted to use.
"Is it a good idea to transform here? In broad daylight?" Seijun questioned.
"I don't see anyone here, so I think it's fine."
Seijun watched him and decided to come closer. She stared at the various forms the Omnitrix had while Ben was busy switching. Out of nowhere, an idea came to her mind. She tried to touch it when her hand simply phased through.
"It's like air. What is it?" She wondered,
"It's a hologram; you cannot touch it." He picked the alien he wanted, then pressed his Omnitrix.
Seijun covered her eyes from the bright light. She saw the boy transformed into a ten-foot-tall monster, or alien as he called them. It had a yellow robotic-like body and a helmet quite similar to the helmet that the humans use in the west. Its ears were sticking out on the top side of its head. It had a gray tail and a rather large pair of arms with a spring like mechanism inside and odd metal rods sticking out of its elbows. It also had claws on its hands and feet.
"Armodrillo!" Ben yelled the name of his form.
"Whoa!" Seijun was awestruck at the sight. "Incredible!"
"I know right?" Ben was happy with the compliment.
"So, what can this one do?" Seijun asked as she examined the look of the aliens right before her eyes.
"I can dig and move quietly underground."
"So, it's a subterranean creature." Seijun concluded.
"Yep. Now you wait here or if you want to help, you can cut down some trees while I'll try to find some minerals in these mountains. Hopefully, there are." Armodrillo said as he pumped his jackhammer-like arms.
"'Kay~. I'd rather cut down some trees than wait." Seijun stretched her arms and cracked her neck. "Time to work."
The two then proceeded to do their own task for the rest of the day.
XXX
To be continued…