Chapter 12: Giwaku; Suspicion
Mikan ran, and ran, and ran.
Stopping would inevitably mean she would get caught and dragged back to the capital of Nuru. After coming so far, she could not stop just because her lungs were not getting enough air and her legs were burning. After coming so far, she was not going to let everyone's efforts go to waste.
The constant sound of footsteps behind her kept her adrenaline going, reminding her that the predator was nearby. Then out of nowhere she was suddenly grabbed by the waist and hoisted high up into the trees.
"Wha-?!" She started but someone's hand clamped down on her mouth.
"Don't scream."
Mikan stared into Ruka's cool blue eyes and calmed down. He slowly let go while the soldier ran beneath them as he tried to find her.
"Where are we Ruka?" Mikan whispered as soon as the footsteps disappeared.
Ruka jerked his head to the top of the tree and there, sitting on a throne made of leaves, was a man.
Mikan looked to Ruka, then to the man dressed in an emerald green tunic. Turning around slowly to look at her surroundings, Mikan noted that she was at the top of a very tall tree as she could see the whole forest before her.
"We are in the presence…" Ruka began.
"… of the Terra element." The man sitting on the throne spoke.
Mikan immediately looked towards him and noted that he had brown hair, but a shade darker than hers. Also, what drew her in were his warm brown eyes. Whatever tension she was feeling was immediately lifted.
Realising she was in the presence of someone important, she walked forward slowly and curtsied.
The man let out a small laugh and waved his hand.
"No need for the formalities, Mikan-hime."
"How do you know me?" Mikan lifted her head.
"I know a great deal of things about you, and your sister." The man stated while resting his head on his hand.
Then it suddenly dawned on her that Sumire was still missing. Mikan whipped around and started drowning Ruka in questions.
"Where's Sumire? Is she safe? Was she caught? What about Natsume-san? Where is he? Did he get caught? How did you find the Terra element? Ruka? Ruka!"
The blonde-haired guard raised his hands in the air, trying to find a way to interrupt Mikan's fury of questions.
"Mikan-sama… Sumire-sama got caught…"
"Wha-?" Mikan began.
"Let the poor boy continue Mikan-hime." The terra element spoke, amused by the scene in front of him.
Realising that she was not giving Ruka a chance to explain, Mikan apologized and allowed Ruka to continue explaining.
"Sumire-hime got caught, but Natsume and one of the Terra guards went to save her. She'll be here soon."
Letting out a small sigh of relief, Mikan asked the burning question, "How did you find them?"
Ruka smiled, "We didn't, they came to us and then everything dawned on us. You see Mikan, we didn't see the connection, we 're now at the crown of the trees. When there is a crown, there'll be…"
"A throne." Mikan completed.
No wonder the darkened leaf veins stopped, they had reached the tallest tree but since they were on the ground, every tree looked tall and they could not distinguish its height.
"Just as you went off for a bath, a few of the Terra guards came down and brought Nasume and I up. We initially thought they were intruders, but I felt something warm within me, as if my Alice was telling me that the Terra Alice wielder is close by. The Terra element explained that all of our Alices can be grouped into the 4 elements. As long as your Alice has a connection with any of the 4 elements, it would resonate when its near one of the original Alice."
Mikan looked a little confused.
"You see, my Alice can control animals. I can speak to any animal living on the land, the air and the water."
"Oh…"
"Your sister has arrived." The Terra element interrupted their conversation, and in that moment, Sumire and Natsume appeared with a Terra guard escorting them.
"This is strange. This is very strange. Could Mikan ever run so fast?"
Those were the exact thoughts running through Yoichi's mind as he ran further into the forest. Something was amiss. Yoichi stopped as he heard someone screaming.
"Get off me! Let me go!"
It sounded like a woman's voice.
Yoichi then started running towards the sound but stopped a few feet away as he heard voices conversing with one another. Hiding behind a large tree trunk, he observed the scene taking place in front of him.
"Sumire-him, calm down." A raven-haired boy around his age was grabbing on to Sumire as she struggled but as soon as she looked at him, she immediately stopped.
"So Yome let Sumire-hime escape? Hold on, who's the guy? Could he be…"
Yoichi's thoughts were interrupted when a man dressed in a green tunic appeared from the trees.
"Hime… I'm a servant of the Terra element and pleased to make your acquaintance. I would continue this introduction, but you are in danger and we need to get you to safety, please follow me quickly."
"So Kuonji was right about the legend being true. I bet Mikan and Ruka are with the Terra element."
Staying behind the tree till the trio were hoisted up into the trees and gone from sight, Yoichi finally moved. This was big news. He finally confirmed that the legend was true and with his own eyes, he saw someone of the Terra clan.
Yoichi ran back to his horse and mounted it quickly, urging it to return back to camp as fast as he could. Upon entering their make-shift camp and securing his horse, Koko grabbed him from within their tent.
"Yoichi! What took you so long?" Koko whispered harshly.
"Why are you whispering senpai?" Yoichi spoke in his usual voice and received a smack on the head.
"SHHHHH! I'm hiding from Major Mihara!"
Yoichi raised an eyebrow, "Why…" he began in his normal voice but changed his mind halfway and started whispering, "nevermind why. Koko listen! Kuonji's on to something solid."
"What you mean solid?" Koko looked at his junior with a confused expression.
"The legend, it's true. Whatever we experienced at the front of the forest was just the icing on the cake. I saw a Terra clan member." Yoichi explained hurriedly.
"Woah you serious?" Koko saw a very serious Yoichi and took it for a confirmation, "ok you are. So now what?"
Yoichi answered after a long while of thinking. "We report this to Mihara." Moving to leave the tent, Koko immediately grabbed his arm.
"You know he's not going to like the fact that we didn't capture them." Koko stated the obvious.
"What else can we do? We've satisfied our curiosity, now we just need to do our duty as captains."
Koko stood at the open tent flap while letting Yoichi walk out.
"What is our duty Yoichi? Why did we join the army in the first place?" Koko murmured.
"That is for you to figure out senpai." Yoichi caught the gaze of Major Mihara and he placed a comforting hand on Koko's shoulder, "Let's go, we have a report to do."
Walking over to the Major clad in his shiny breastplate, both captains saluted and stood to attention.
"Well boys, give me some good news. General Kuonji has just sent the sissy doctor over." Mihara motioned to the blonde-haired doctor who was examining the injured soldiers. "He's to accompany us on our journey till we reach the harbor."
"The harbor sir?" Koko inquired.
"Yes captain. It seems that General Kuonji has specified we go to the harbor. That aside, report on your findings." Mihara moved to sit on a chair and looked up at the two captains.
"We found the princesses…" Yoichi started and Mihara's thin lips curled into a smile.
"… But we lost them." Koko ended with a gulp.
"Explain." Mihara's smile dropped and his voice laced with acidity.
"I let Sumire-hime go when being faced with a group of bandits that were following the army." Koko elaborated
"What do you mean 'let go' captain?"
"I released her cuffs sir."
"What were your orders?" Mihara spoke through his teeth.
"To capture the princesses without any harm. I believe sir that my course of action allowed the princess to be without harm. If I didn't let her go, she would have been taken hostage by the bandits or worst, killed. Letting her go so that she could run away or defend herself was the best course of action."
Mihara lunged from his seat and grabbed the young captain by his collar, hoisting him up such that his feet were no longer touching the ground.
"You think you're all that smart right captan Yome?"
Koko struggled to breathe but managed to choke out a reply. "No sir, but Sumire-hime is safe."
"Safe but not within OUR grasps!" Mihara spat. "You should NOT have let her go!"
"I could not take on 4 men and protect her at the same time!" Koko gasped for air within the tight grasp of the Major.
Yoichi stood near the two men and spoke calmly, "Major Mihara, you're going to suffocate Captain Yome if this continues, and we would lose our best tracker in this camp."
Mihara glared at the silver haired boy and threw Koko into the ground in disgust.
"Where's your sense of duty? You think being a captain is a game? Is that why you joined the army?!" Mihara's rage erupted and the whole camp went quiet in order to listen in on the conversation.
Clutching his neck and still being able to feel Mihara's fingers, Koko massaged it and took deep breaths of air.
"Isn't our duty to protect the weak? To uphold justice?" Koko glared at the man.
"Wrong boy. Your duty is to follow orders from your superiors."
Koko opened his mouth to rebut but Yoichi spoke up, "Despite all that, we found the Terra Kingdom, or rather, a point which they seem to appear and disappear."
Mihara's eyes widened in surprise, "so… it's true then. I knew General Kuonji wouldn't lead us on something which he didn't have proof of. Where are they then, Captain Hijiri?"
"They helped the princesses and disappeared, so I cannot pinpoint where they are exactly at this present moment." Yoichi stood fearlessly beside Koko while reporting.
After a long period of silence, Mihara spoke up, "Very well. I shall report this to Commander Goshima and await further instructions from him. In the meantime, both of you are confined to your tents as punishment. Food rations will be halved in punishment of your negligence and defiance for 3 days."
Walking towards another soldier, he exchanged a few words before being teleported back to the castle with the messenger.
"Are you all right Koko?" Yoichi asked while holding his body upright.
Narumi, seeing that Mihara had left with the messenger, turn to address the line of injured soldiers and asked them to wait as he attended to Koko.
"Let me see those bruises." The blonde-haired doctor moved Koko's hands away from his neck and inspected the bruising that was beginning to show some colour around Koko's neck. Pressing here and there, Narumi concluded that the injury was not serious, but he would have a sore neck for a few days. Walking back to his pouch, he took out a small vial and passed it on to Koko.
"Drink this after dinner. It would help lessen any swelling."
Koko took the vial with the yellow fluid from Narumi's out stretched hand but his arm was suddenly grabbed by Narumi's other hand.
Narumi looked urgently into Koko's eyes, "Is it true? Did you really see the Terra clan member?"
"Yes sir." Yoichi replied.
Narumi's eyes widened in fear. If the information is true, Mikan and Sumire were in a much greater danger. "Tell me about them, tell me everything."
Yoichi then described what he saw in detail to the doctor and as he finished, Narumi was in shock.
"So it's true, they exist. They were hiding till they were required."
"Required for what?" Koko asked.
"For darkness to be vanquished and balance restored." Narumi answered.
"What do you mean sir?" Yoichi's eyes lit up.
Narumi pulled both young men in and whispered, "Kuonji has been possessed and he welcomes it. He's going all out to stop Mikan and Sumire from collecting the stones."
Sumire arrived at the top of the tree and saw Mikan and Ruka sitting on an intricately designed chair. Looking to her right, she saw a man with brown hair sitting on a throne adorned with various kinds of leaves. He raised his hand and motioned to the two empty seats, asking them to sit.
She promptly took her seat while Natsume took his, beside Ruka's. Glancing to her sister for some form of hint, Mikan just shook her head.
"Welcome all. I trust you didn't take long to find Sumire-hime." The man spoke up.
Natsume shook his head, "no sir."
"Good. Now that everyone is here, I will begin the introductions. I am the vessel for the Terra element, Misaki." The older man nodded his head to the four sitting in front of him. "I hope your journey to find me was not… tedious."
Sumire's eyes bulged. Really? This was the man who held the Terra element?
"You seem surprise Sumire-hime. Were you expecting someone different?" Misaki regarded the younger princess.
"I don't mean to be rude sir, but I expected someone more… mystical. You strike me as ordinary." Sumire replied.
A loud laugher erupted from the man's throat. "I see the younger princess does have a humorous bone. The last time I heard, you were quite the solemn one, hiding within the palace."
"How…" Sumire began.
"How do I know you and what you do?" Misaki's eyes lit up with mischief. "You see princesses, you don't do a great deal in hiding that braid of yours." Misaki pointed to the small braid while ended with a golden bead.
"The Terra element knows all things regarding the earth. You are surrounded by many of my elements. Though, it is a dangerous thing to be travelling around with that braid exposed. You as their bodyguard should have placed more attention to this." The terra element regarded their blonde companion.
Ruka bowed his head, "I was careless, forgive me."
"It is not I, you should be seeking forgiveness from should something befall these two, but Izumi-san."
Silence enveloped the room as they remembered the death of a great person.
"Remorse aside, I have been monitoring your movements and it seems I have yet to meet you… Natsume."
Natsume looked up from his seat and stared straight into the man's eyes.
"You've done a great deal of hiding, though I must compliment you on your efforts. You've remained undetected for 5 years, living in that dessert of yours. It was difficult keeping tabs on you."
"And I would like it to remain that way." Natsume spoke.
Misaki grinned at the boy before regarding the two princesses. "Kami's sword, bring them to me."
Mikan and Sumire stood up from their seats and walked to the throne. Mikan pulled the Katana from her back while Sumire took hers from her boot.
"Unsheathe both."
Doing as they were instructed; the girls pulled their respective swords from its purple cloth. Almost immediately, a strong wind blew and everyone closed their eyes reflexively. The trees began to sway, leaves started to fly and a whole storm of petals were being blown around. Clutching tightly to the sword, both Mikan and Sumire used both hands to prevent it from flying.
Within all this flying debris, Natsume's back began to burn. Huddling over and trying to press the areas which burn, his efforts only manage to give him a small amount of comfort. He was glad that the wind had everyone confused while he writhed in pain, praying hard that it would go away. Feeling the wind starting to die down, Natsume removed his hands from his back and covered his face, to mimic what everyone else was doing. Gritting his teeth as the pain returned with full force, he blended in with everyone else.
Once everything died down, they opened their eyes and Misaki was standing.
"It seems that something different has happened this time round. The sword has split itself into two, but she dwells within you." Misaki stated while looking at Mikan.
Mikan looked at him in a confusion, who was the she the Terra element was referring to?
"Serina-san would have explained that you would need to collect the Alice stones from the four elements and from the forces of life and death, am I right?"
Both girls nodded.
Misaki closed his eyes and concentrated on his palm, feeling the warmth growing within his hand, he produced a small emerald green stone which he revealed to them after opening his palm.
Sumire reached out to take it but Misaki immediately closed his hand.
"Not so fast. It would be too easy for you if I just handed over my Alice. I need to know that you are worthy."
"I was able to draw the sword out from the stone, which should be a good enough indication." Mikan tried reasoning.
Misaki shook his head sadly, "That is not a good enough reason. In the past, many have tried to obtain the Terra's Alice stone. My predecessors have protected it from those inflicted with greed and revenge. They have protected it even from those carrying the blood of our mistress."
"What must we do?" Sumire asked.
"I will give you a test, to see if you are worthy of my Alice." Misaki started and returned to his throne.
"But?" Mikan caught on to the tone in which he was speaking in.
"But only one of you may take the test. The sword has chosen for you though and it is you, Sumire-hime who would be taking this test. Pass it and I will gladly hand over my Alice stone. Fail it and everyone shall not walk from here but remain as a part of the forest." Misaki indicated to the small flowers growing near his foot.
Fear grabbed Sumire's heart, "So everything lies with me. If I fail, we will all be turned into plants."
Mikan placed a hand on her sister's shoulder, "Do not fear Sumire. You have learnt enough from Ruka the past few days, your knowledge surpasses that of mine in terms of plants. Be confident."
Sumire reached out and touched Mikan's warm hand. She was right, she could do this.
"Very well. State the task." Sumire proclaimed.
Misaki smiled and motioned for one of his servants. The young man brought out a potted plant while held a seedling.
"You are to make this plant flower. In 2 days time, by sundown. If there is no flower, you fail. However, if you can make it flower, the stone is yours." Misaki held out his Alice stone and dropped it onto the leaf of the potted plant. The plant's leaves wrapped tightly around it and formed a bud.
Sumire looked at the bud which contained the stone, "What kind of plant would do that?"
"Of course I would not throw you into the sea and make you swim. Follow me." Misaki stood up and walked past everyone onto a tree branch. Disappearing into one of the tree trunks, the rest followed him and found themselves in a room full of books.
"This is the library. The books regarding the plant are on this shelf." Misaki pointed to the shelf which stretched from the roof to the floor. Staring bug eye at the sheer number of books, it was similar to finding a needle in a haystack. "You are not allowed to seek help from any of your companions and questions regarding the books will be answered by my librarian, Nonoko Ogasawara."
A girl their age with jet black hair emerged from the darkness and bowed slightly to them.
"If that is all, I suggest you get a good night's sleep. Your test will begin tomorrow morning. Nonoko, show the princess to her room."
Nonoko bowed once again and urged Sumire to follow her. As soon as Mikan, Ruka and Natsume attempted to follow them, guards appeared and barred their way.
"Not so fast. You three are to be quarantined away from Sumire-hime. Any interference and I would deem her an immediate failure. Kitsuneme here will show you to your rooms." The man who accompanied Natsume to rescue Sumire appeared from behind the large group of guards.
"This way please." Kitsuneme grunted.
Following the guard, the three were led to a room with three beds. Two were on one side while the other bed was separated by a thin curtain. Walking to their respective beds, they noted that clothes were provided for them.
"The bathroom is just outside this room on the right. If Mikan-hime is ready, she will have her bath first." Kitsuneme spoke to the princess and indicated to the door.
Grabbing the clothes from the bed and her katana, she hurried out of the door and into the bath where a few servant girls were waiting for her. Stripping her of her clothes, they poured lukewarm water over her body and began to scrub her clean. Then filling a tub with milky water, they explained that the water was medicated and would help any aches. Bowing low, the servant girls left her to soak in the tub.
Seeing Mikan leave the room and head to the bathroom, Misaki entered the bedroom and the door closed behind his group. Nodding, the four large men which followed Misaki into the room walked towards the two young men. Two of them grabbed Ruka's arm and prevented him from moving while the other two attempted to grab Natsume.
Dodging and attacking swiftly, he was able to knock the wind out of one of the guards, however, they were overpowering and Natsume was secured in a tight arm lock.
"Pull off his shirt." Misaki instructed and the winded guard tore off Natsume's shirt. Nodding once again, the guard holding on to Natsume changed his position and in turn, made Natsume move as if he were a piece of clay. Wincing in pain coming from his arm and his back, he struggled but the burly man did not move an inch.
Misaki's cool hand came into contact with Natsume's back and he flinched at the sudden difference in temperature.
"I thought so…" Misaki said to himself and touched a raw spot on Natsume's back. Pulling out a knife, he held it precariously over Natsume's back.
"NO!" Ruka struggled as he saw the scene happening before his eyes. Was the Terra element going to stab Natsume in the back?
Carefully pressing the tip of the knife into a sore spot, Natsume screamed out in pain but the guard stuffed a thick leather pad into his mouth.
"Hold him still." Misaki warned as he worked on Natsume's back.
To Natsume, it felt like he was being pressed against red hot coals wherever Misaki was touching and cutting. Biting hard into the leather pad to prevent himself from moving, he endured the torture. Misaki moved from one raw red spot to another, making a long incision at each spot. Sheathing his knife, he warned Natsume, "This is going to be hell, but bear with it."
Using a long pair of tweezers, he plunged it deep into the wound before pulling what he wanted out.
Ruka stared in horror at the gruesome sight. "Natsume! Natsume!" He called out as he watched his friend bite hard to fight the pain. "What are you doing?! Why are you torturing him?!"
"Shut the boy up, I can't concentrate." Misaki said coldly and a cloth was pressed into his mouth.
Watching the man cut his friend open and not being able to do anything was the worst feeling Ruka had to endure. He jerked, trying to break free but the grasp on him just tightened even more. Ruka finally stopped moving when he saw what was being drawn from Natsume's back.
"Is that..?!"
Misaki drew out the raven black feather from Natsume's back and dropped it into a bowl the guard was holding. Moving to the next incision, he did the same thing and Natsume tightened his muscles.
"Natsume, try to relax. You being all tense is making it harder for me to extract them from you." Misaki patted Natsume's back and he felt the boy try to relax. Moving quickly, Misaki was able to remove all 5 feathers and slap on a thick layer of a healing salve on him.
Looking to the guards, they released Ruka and he immediately pulled out the cloth from his mouth. Rushing over to Natsume's side, he saw his friend losing consciousness.
"He's losing consciousness!" Ruka exclaimed as Natsume lost his bite on the leather pad.
Misaki quickly wiped his hands and bent down to Natsume's level. "Natsume? Natsume! Come on snap out of it! You need to remain conscious otherwise the medication won't work! Just a few more minutes and you can drift off!" Misaki slapped Natsume's face lightly to keep him conscious.
Glancing over his shoulder to see the wounds quickly healing, Misaki reached into the pouch at his side and took out a vial of dark yellow salt. Popping the cap off with his teeth, Misaki waved the bottle under Natsume's nose and it seemed to do the trick as he took a deep breath, bringing back life to his eyes.
Not having the strength to fight anymore, Natsume allowed the guard to carry his full weight as his legs gave way. Everything was hurting and burning. He couldn't tell whether he was standing, sitting or lying down. All he could hear was someone faintly calling his name and someone lightly slapping him.
Then he heard someone say in a faint voice that it has healed, and he can lie down on the bed.
"Bed… that word never sounded so heavenly. Come to me…" Natsume's thoughts were in a jumble but he welcomed the softness of the bed he was placed on. Within seconds he succumbed to the darkness and slept.
"He's asleep Ruka. Leave him be." Misaki looked at a frantic Ruka and walked away.
Getting up from his crouched position, Ruka rushed towards the vessel with his arm raised but Misaki caught it squarely within his larger palm.
"Bastard!" Ruka spat.
"I had no choice." Misaki calmly explained.
"You could have told him! He would have consented!" Ruka argued, raging with anger.
"He wouldn't! More importantly he couldn't!" Misaki glared at the impertinent boy. "He doesn't even know when the pain would come, when they would start growing. But I can. And as soon as I felt another wave of pain coming, I acted!"
Ruka's entire body was shaking, "You almost killed him!"
"I saved your friend!" Misaki's voice boomed.
At this moment, Mikan who was fresh from the bath walked in on the two men fighting each other. Looking past them, she saw a bare backed Natsume unconscious on the bed. Alarm bells began ringing and Mikan drew her Katana and pointed it at the Terra element vessel.
"Stand down!" Misaki commanded as the guards attempted to rush forward.
"What's going on? Explain!" Mikan commanded while tightening her grip on the hilt of her katana.
"Just as your sister has her trials, Natsume has his. I just save his life. If I were any later, one of those feathers would have grown in the wrong way and punctured his lungs."
Mikan was confused, "Feathers?"
Ruka pushed the man away from him and straightened himself out. It was true that he saved Natsume, but there were better ways of doing so. Still angry, he grabbed the bowl with the raven black feathers and showed Mikan.
"Where were these from?" Mikan asked.
"His back." Ruka spoke through his teeth while indicating to Natsume's back where light pink skin is now growing over the once made incisions.
"Why…" Mikan began before being cut off by Misaki.
"He's a shinigami."
"A what?" Mikan and Ruka both answered.
"A shinigami, or rather, the vessel of one. A being that neither belongs to heaven or to hell. A being that is neither good nor evil. He didn't tell you this?" Misaki furrowed his brows together in confusion. "Why did he not tell them something so important despite her being close by."
"He didn't." Mikan flatly replied.
Pondering for a while, Misaki spoke, "it was his choice to tell you. For now, you have the knowledge that he is a shinigami. Here, this is the salve for his back. It needs to be reapplied every 3 hours for maximum healing. I will see all of you tomorrow morning for Sumire-hime's trials."
With that, Misaki left the room with his guards and closed the door gently.
"Did you know Ruka?" Mikan whispered while clutching the brown jar in her hands.
Ruka shook his head, "no… he never said anything. He never told me anything."
"Just like what happened 5 years ago."
Opening the map, Hotaru checked her route one too many times before rolling it up and tucking it into her sling bag.
"Are we near our destination?" Misaki looked at the purple eyed girl with hopeful eyes that their long and arduous journey was coming to an end.
Hotaru nodded.
"Great, otherwise I'd think this trip is messing with my senses. At least I know for sure that is the smell of the sea."
Pulling the packed tent onto her duckcyle, Hotaru got on and secured her helmet.
Misaki promptly sat behind her and checked the GPS device Hotaru had entrusted her with. Long had they passed the red dot which was where Mikan was supposedly located.
"We have a day of flying before we reach the harbor." Hotaru stated and started up her transportation device.
Elevating into the air, Hotaru floored the pedal and they zoomed off into the horizon, in the direction of the blue sea to find a certain pirate.
Hi everyone! Sorry for the delay in the uploading. I was busy over the weekends. Thank you for all the support given up to now. It's really encouraging for me! Thank you once again and stay safe everyone! Please leave a comment and a review!