Element Gang: Axel and the Wonderbeasts, Book 1: Beast War

by Element Writer

What would happen if some humans chose to stay and fight the Wonderbeasts and managed to make peace with them? What if there was a resistance against Scarlemagne? Well, here is what that situation would like if that did happen.

3. Chapter 1: Tribe Boy meets Burrow Girl

Chapter 1: Tribe Boy meets Burrow Girl

Let me introduce myself. I am Axel Frank the 3rd, the great-great-great-great-great-great-grandson of the original Axel of who I'm named after. But my friends call me AF3 for short. If you're a Tribe member like me, you would probably be asking how the Frank family name still remains after two centuries. Well, let's just say that the female ancestors of my family tree were pretty good negotiators. I'm not exactly a normal kid. And it's not just the Fire Dragon parts of me like the red dragon tail with four gold tail spikes, the ability to breathe fire and sometimes smoke, the super-strength, the super speed, you know all of that. You see, I was born with this light blue skin and silver-ish blue hair patterned with black stripes outline with white. With how I got my hair all ruffled and at shoulder-length down my back, many of my people say I look like a tiger. Though they all say that I do take after my father, especially with the blue eyes. I know, it's weird and not biologically possible, but it's, like, the least weird thing in the world right now. The reason why I look like this… I'll save that for another time. Anyway, now that we got that introduction out of the way, I will tell you how my story began. It all started on the day I met a girl named Kipo. The day started like any other day, I was doing another salvaging job as a Scavenger. You see, being a mixture of modern and native culture of our ancestors and the ancestors before them (the human ones to be exact), the Tribe would send people out to collect materials or resources that we need for survival. That's the job of the Scavengers, my job. Of course, I don't much mind doing it, but what I really wanted was to join the Guardian Order and fight against Scarlemagne. Unfortunately, my family was against the idea of me doing it.

They said I was too young to be doing anything like that, that they would only let me join the Order when I'm 15. I did try to convince them otherwise, but they wouldn't have it. That's basically why I was stuck as a Scavenger. Though I wasn't alone, I still wish my family trusted me enough to take care of myself. Having to search for materials or gather food isn't really much of an exciting job, but it did have one perk. With the places I go to salvage, I come across all kinds of Wonderbeasts. Yeah, I like to find Wonderbeasts and where they commonly reside. It's a hobby of mine. Been doing it since I was little. Some of my people say I'm like my mother when I'm doing that. I had to guess it was true as that's what my father always told me. I wouldn't really know for sure as I didn't get to know my mother that much. I don't want to get too deep into that. It's a… sensitive subject in that area. Anyway, like I was saying, the day started like any other I knew before. My friends and I were out searching in Los Angeles, well what was left of it. Yeah, after two centuries, nature took back the land. There were large pools of water that were created from spouts coming out of old sewer pipes and vegetation covering the place, like the trees that sprang from old skyscrapers with only a few of these buildings still standing with the trees broken through parts of their roof and some parts of them broke away. To show you what this place was, it was part of what was Los Feliz, a neighborhood in Los Angeles. Here in the present time, we call what was once Los Angeles "Las Vistas", the Spanish word for "The Views". The reason we call it that is because, even though it isn't the same as it was centuries ago, the views are still breathtaking. One could enjoy it if there weren't so many Mega Mutants.

What is a Mega Mutant, you may ask? Well, this is a type of Wonderbeast that had mutated into a new stage, growing to frightening proportions. Also, for some strange reason, the Wonderbeasts who go through this have their mental capacity reverted back to the standard animal from centuries ago. It's some kind of birth defect in which the mutation process had been accelerated to where the mentality had become incompatible with the physical changes that occur. No one's quite sure what exactly causes such a thing to occur, only that a small percentage of Wonderbeast that are born experience in some time while they mature, whether it is either when they truly start maturing or a short time after. And it all started happening during the first Beast War. My Tribe has had a fair share of them, watching some of the young Wonderbeasts suffer from it. The hardest times when it happens is when it occurs with family members. When a Wonderbeast becomes a Mega Mutant, they have no show of who they once before or even memories of their life as a Wonderbeast. Plus they become too dangerous for anyone to be around. Though most of them are harmless and only a few (mostly the ones of predator species) are aggressive, their size makes it impossible for any human or even Wonderbeasts to be around them as, well… you get the point. And that makes it hard for Scavengers like me as one can easily crush someone if they're not careful. Even though they are pretty dangerous, I was always fascinated by Mega Mutants. Guess that something I got from my mother.

Anyway, before we get started with what we salvage, let me introduce you to my team. I'll start with the ones that I relate with the most. The guy with neck-length brown hair, golden eyes, and slightly dark brown skin is Gordy Triggs and the girl next to him with her silver eyes, golden blonde hair that goes down to her knees tied into a French braid, and fair brown skin is Kylo Labelle. Kylo is about the same height as Gordy, who is a bit shorter than me. Kylo haves a slender build to her structure and Gordy is the most muscular in the group (luckily, he isn't as muscular as it would be abnormal for a guy his age). These two are descendants of Basar and Tricha Blood with Gordy as the earth elemental of our time and Kylo as this generation's air elemental. Next, with short blue hair with violet highlights, pale blue eyes, and fair skin, we have Sora Mishou. He haves a slender and slim figure and is about the same height as me. Then, with dark red, shoulder-length hair, emerald eyes, and tan skin, it's Riku Misumi. He's slightly well-built with muscle and is the tallest out of all of us. Over with the girl with long, white hair with hot pink highlights going down to her waist, ruby-red eyes, and light skin is Hikari Kujou. She haves a slim and slender body structure and is the shortest out of us. The girl with the orange hair cut into a short bob with some bangs swept to the right while held with a daisy hairclip, aqua blue eyes, and pale skin is Hotaru Tsukikage. She's got a slender body type and is the second shortest of the group. After her, we have a girl with long, dirty blonde hair that goes down to her knees, hazel eyes, and light skin named Stella Hillard. She haves her hair tied up in twin pigtails, haves a slim and slender figure, and is just about the same height as me.

Alongside her, with elbow-length orange-red hair, sapphire blue eyes, and tan skin, is Musa Stewart. She wears dark gray glasses, haves a slender body structure, and is about the same height as Stella. Then, with short autumn brown hair cut into a bob, lime green eyes, and light Caucasian skin, we have Aurico Sloan. His body structure is a bit muscular like mine and he's nearly the same height as me. Another thing is that he's also a Fire Dragon like me, but his tail is white instead of red. And finally, with black hair spiked back in a way that looks like an icicle, baby blue eyes, and light skin is Brandon Tideus. He's got a slim body figure as is about as tall as Kylo and Gordy. Yeah, what I mean by "relate", I do mean relate. These guys are my cousins. I know it's crazy, but it's been over two hundred years, so of course, my family would grow a lot, especially while living and striving on the surface. Now for the rest. Here, with white, chin-length hair, maroon eyes, and skin almost as white as snow, we have Caldwell Verity, the descendant of Trustin Kelsch and the new ice elemental. He's about the same height as me and Sora with a slender, yet slightly muscular build. Next, with purple wavy hair with pastel blue highlights at waist length, bright yellow eyes, and tan skin, we have Thora Toivonen, the descendant of Meri Mock and the new lightning elemental. She's a little shorter than Gordy with a slim and slender figure. And finally, with light blue shoulder-length hair with sea green highlights, ocean blue eyes, and tan skin, we have Brook Gentile, the descendant of Jay Richey and the new water elemental. He haves somewhat of a scrawny build being nearly the same height as Thora.

After entering the area and walking the streets for a while, I looked around to see if we found the right spot to rendezvous at when we got enough material for the Tribe, pushing around these rusty, old shopping carts. As part of the work, we all wear Scavenger uniforms. What we wore were these handmade, black garbs made with a mixed style of military and ninja attire. For the military half, it haves a black, leather, sleeveless jumpsuit, a black chest vest, a stable belt, a quick tactical thigh bag, black combat boots, shoulder pads, and black military gloves. For the ninja half, it haves a ninja gi with a hood and a face mask. The parts that make the ninja half of the outfit along with the stable belt and the thigh bag have their own color, each for me and each member of my team. Mine was red, Gordy's was orange, Kylo's was green, Sora's was light blue, Riku's was red, Hikari's was orange, Hotaru's was purple, Stella's was pink, Musa's was magenta, Aurico's was pale blue, Brandon's was light green, Caldwell's was violet, Thora's was yellow, and Brook's was blue. They're not very stylish, but they do help blend in the shadows from either Scarlemagne's troops or a Mega Mutant.

"Okay. This looks like a good spot to meet up at." I said as me, Caldwell, and Sora parked the carts and we all circled up. "Now then, let's set up our teams." With that, I then went on to create groups for different tasks. "Gordy, you and Riku got the west."

"Got it!" Gordy said in compliance as Riku crossed his arms.

"Sora, you and Caldwell take the east." I spoke to the stealthy duo.

"On it, 3!" Sora said with a smile of determination, clenching a fist while Caldwell nodded.

"Hotaru, you, Kylo, and Stella will scavenge in the south." I spoke to my fellow genius.

"Affirmative." Hotaru said in compliance."

"Musa, Aurico, you're with me." I said to my two cousins. "We'll survey the north." I then looked to the remaining four of the group. "And Brook, you and Brandon stay here with Thora and Hikari and watch the carts."

"What?" Brook said, not really liking the idea. "But I've been ready to scavenge for a while now. Why do I have to stay?"

"Because you're the only one who actually haves long-range attack abilities." I said, pointing out he had a weapon that could fire projectiles as part of his elemental form. With that, I then moved on to the other reasons. "And it's too dangerous for Brandon to be left in one place, especially with anyone so close to him."

"He's right, you know!" Brandon said to Brook. "I am the great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandson of the original Murphy of Murphy's Law." Just when he said that, he slid to the left as a piece of a building fell from above and crashed where he was standing earlier.

After that moment, I shook off the shock and continued speaking to Brook.

"Also you're the only one I can trust right now to keep an eye on Thora and Hikari." Just when I said that, we both watched as the two wild ones of our group rode off on one of the carts, cheering out in enjoyment. Shrugging that off, I then went back to Brook. "Besides, I'm also gonna be looking for any Mega Mutants in the area. If you think that will be easier than watching those two and the carts, you're happy to switch with anybody going out."

Brook flinched in fear before he then said "Never mind. I'll stay here with the carts."

"Good." I smiled before I spoke to the other teams. "Okay, everyone! Let's gear up and move out!"

With that, me and the others who were going out scavenging then grabbed the gear from the carts: steel-cutting saws for the metal, pickaxes for clearing out debris, crowbars for prying into closed areas or locked containers (in some cases), and some rope in case we would need to do some climbing, all packed into this black satchel bags. We also grabbed some material cases (these big, metal, and easy-to-carry crates that had straps for use to wear on our backs). As for me, Musa, and Aurico walked away from everyone towards the north, Aurico then spoke to me.

"Still not gonna let me do scavenging on my own, are ya?" My cousin asked, not really sounding thrilled being on a team with me.

"Well, somebody haves to look out for you." I said before I gave him a glare. "Especially after you tricked us into bringing that 'special' magazine collection of yours."

"What? I'm 14." Aurico said, trying to defend himself. "It's natural."

"It's inappropriate!" I said to him. "I mean, seriously! The fact that you would even look at something like that… Ugh! I'm ashamed we share the same ancestry!"

"Come on, cuz. It's not that bad." He said to me.

"Yeah, try saying that to the girl who found your little collection." I said as I took out my silver Sony Walkman, putting on my headphones to listen to some music.

"Seriously? You still walking around with that fossil tech?" Aurico asked, talking about my Walkman.

"Hey, the music helps me get into the groove of this, okay?" I answered, searching for the right mixtape for this.

"I still can't believe you're still searching for Mega Mutants." Musa said, speaking with that tone that belongs to a surfer. "Seriously, dude! Why do you keep looking for something that can possibly kill you?"

"What? I like to study Wonderbeasts. Nothing wrong with that." I said before I found the right tape. "Besides, Musa, you never know. Some Mega Mutants might actually surprise you." With that, I then placed in the tape and played it, listening to a favorite of my ancestors: Hooked on a Feeling by Blue Swede. "Come on, let's get to work!"

(Chorus repeatedly saying "Ooga-Chaka! Ooga-Ooga!")

With hearing the beginning chorus, I gained a smile and soon began to put some pep in my step as I walked, doing some dancing and humming the song.

(I can't stop this feeling!)

(Deep inside of me!)

After getting a bit ahead and turning around, I saw my cousins just smile at me before I spun back around and kept on moving forward.

(Girl, you just don't realize,)

(What you do to me.)

With that, we set out to look for material that can prove essential to the Tribe. Most of what we find are pieces of metal like only drain pipes, broken down machines, or even just some spare change that had managed to survive to this day. Sometimes we would collect wood from trees for obvious reasons. That's basically what we end up gathering for the Tribe. Barely found any food, at least some that are still fresh from two centuries or edible and not poisonous.

(Chorus stops singing)

(When you hold me,)

(In your arms so tight,)

Speaking of spare change, I did manage to find a quarter lying on the ground.

(You let me know,)

Stopping and picking it up, I looked at it and I saw it was a classic American quarter with the side image of who I had to guess was George Washington on one side and what I guess eagles used to look like before they became Wonderbeasts.

(Everything's all right.)

After flipping it, I then put in my material case before I kept on walking.

(I-I-I-I-I-I'm!)

(Hooked on a feeling!)

For how this job usually went for me and my team, all of us had different experiences with scavenging that day.

(I'm high on believing!)

(That you're in love with me!)

After a few previous scavenging missions, I had come to know what to expect from the other teams, especially with who I put on them.

(Lips as sweet as candy,)

(Its taste is on my mind.)

With Gordy and Riku, they mostly searched the skyscrapers and often used ropes to help lower each other down to places that aren't easy to reach. Though I had to bet those two would get on each other nerves as usual. Even when they argue, they somehow manage to get some salvaging done.

(Girl, you got me thirsty,)

(For another cup of wine!)

With Sora and Caldwell, they went to the smaller buildings and raided them to see if there were any materials or items that could prove useful for the Tribe. Both of them would use ninja stealth just in case forces of Scarlemagne or some members of the outside Wonderbeast groups would come around and avoid being seen by them. Yeah, being Scavengers, we try to avoid confrontation like that.

(Got a bug from you, girl.)

(But I don't need no cure.)

With Hotaru, Kylo, and Stella, they would be searching the streets and look for anything that could be of some use. Thought I would suspect that they were having a bit of a hard time with Stella being a klutz and all.

(I'll just stay a victim,)

(If I can for sure.)

Now with us, we had quite the day there. Walking down the street, we managed to come across some flowers, my favorite kind: anemones. Cutting one down, I carried it as we continued searching for any that we could scavenge.

(All the good love,)

(When we're all alone.)

At one point, when we heard and felt a rumble, we took cover behind a wrecked car and watched as Mega Squirrel with eight tails passed right by us, revealing itself as the source of the rumble as it shook the ground with each step it took. Within minutes, the Mega Squirrel was gone and we continued on.

(Keep it up, girl.)

(Yeah, you turn me on.)

After walking for a while, we came across some sort of abandoned mall. Stella and Kylo would be all over the place as malls would often be the best place to find some clothes.

(I-I-I-I-I-I'm!)

We found some good stuff like a fake chicken the Tribe can use for forging material or decoration, what appeared to be martial artist gi, and a small handheld mirror protectively wrapped in tape.

(Hooked on a feeling!)

As we were searching, I found an old magazine and saw an image of a happy family taking a group photo.

(I'm high on believing!)

After I sighed in depression, I felt a hand on my shoulder and saw it was Musa trying to comfort me. With this, I then gave her a reassuring smile before tossing the magazine away and went back to searching.

(That you're in love with me!)

I then found a bunch of old car keys at an old vendor and threw them into my pack before I kept on going.

(All the good love,)

After we were done searching the mall and managing to find some stuff to salvage, we left and soon came across an abandoned movie theater.

(Chorus repeatedly saying "Ooga-Chaka! Ooga-Ooga!")

(When we're all alone.)

When I saw an old-looking movie poster of a man and a woman hold hands and putting their heads against one another, I decided that I could use a new poster for my room.

(Keep it up, girl.)

Smiling at this, I took out my crowbar and tore it off the wall. It was already damaged, so there was no point in having it hang around a place that no one goes to.

(Yeah, you turn me on.)

After rolling it up, I then got a feeling that I was being watched as looked to see my cousins giving me sly smiles of amusement.

(I-I-I-I-I-I'm!)

(Hooked on a feeling!)

Giving them a glare and growl of annoyance, I put the poster in my case and we kept on looking for materials.

(I'm high on believing!)

(That you're in love with me!)

At one point, we came across what used to be a mini-mart and began searching. We actually managed to find a few well-preserved kitchen utensils in there.

(I'm hooked on a feeling!)

After a little while of searching, I felt a tap on my shoulder and looked behind to see my cousins looking at the ceiling with fear, Musa pointing upwards.

(And I'm high on believing!)

(That you're in love with me!)

Looking up there, I was surprised to find a Mega Newt, an amphibian Mega Mutant with three heads and three pairs of legs. It was black with a red underbelly and had yellow eyes.

(I said I'm hooked on a feeling!)

With it looking down right at us with a growl, the three of us ran out of the mart with the Mega Mutant chasing us.

(And I'm high on believing!)

(That you're in love with me!)

(I'm hooked on a feeling!)

Luckily, after about an hour, we managed to escape it by hiding in an old canal.

"I think we lost it." Aurico said as we tried to catch our breath.

"Not going back there again." Musa said as I gave a sigh of relief.

"That's for sure. Although," I said as I pulled out my Wonderbeast journal, "at least we now know where the Mega Gecko lives now." Opening the book, I looked through all the sketches of the various Mega Mutants I encountered. Flipping the pages, I found the very same Mega we encountered not too long ago and added in a few more info on it. I then exclaimed to my cousins in a casual tone. "And the best part is we didn't die." After I closed the book, I looked to see Aurico and Musa giving me grim looks. "What?"

"Cuz, you gotta stop trying looking for those Mega Muties." Aurico said, using a word short for "Mutant". "We're lucky to get close calls without you having to try and add stuff to that book."

"I know, but I can't help it. I really like learning everything about Wonderbeasts. Besides…" I then felt the depression coming back as I held the journal close to me. "This journal belonged to my mother. It's all I have left of her."

"Sorry, 3." Aurico apologized to me. "I know that thing is important to you."

"We both do." Musa said as she and Aurico came over, the two trying to comfort me. "But you got to be more careful. We're all family and we don't want to lose any part of it."

"Fine. I'll try to be more careful." I said as I tried my best to smile. After a moment, the despair was replaced with optimism as I checked what we gathered by shaking my case a bit. "Okay, I think we got enough salvage for today. Let's head back."

"Great. Can't wait to get home." Aurico said as we started walking down the canal, following it until we got closer to where Brook, Brandon, and the girls were. "So you guys doing anything tomorrow?"

"Well, Stella and I are going to find Rabbecka and see how she and the babies are doing." I said to him.

"Oh, boy." Musa chuckled, feeling a little nervous about how that's going to be. "Stella will be all over those babies when she sees them."

"Don't worry. I'll make sure nothing bad happens during or after we check on Rabbecka." I assured her. "Afterwards, I'm gonna ask Gord and Cal to help me study another Mega Mutant." I then gained questioning looks from my cousins. "From a safe observer point." After they both turned their heads back to looking forward, I then spoke again. "After that, I don't really know. Why do you ask?"

"Well, I was hoping that… maybe… we could… find some of those mole people?" Aurico asked nervously, making me and Musa stop in our tracks.

"Seriously? This again?" Musa said as she and I groaned in annoyance and Aurico turned to us.

"Rico, you know we're not supposed to be looking for Burrows." I told my cousin, pointing out the problem with his plan. "Uncle Donnie would have our hides for doing that."

"Oh, come on, guys!" Aurico said to us, trying to convince us to go with his idea. "We get all this freedom to do whatever we want and all we do is get some old metal and firewood. Haven't you ever wondered what it's like to be down there in a Burrow?"

"Well, sure. But that doesn't mean I should go behind our people's backs and look for one." I told him. "Not to be rude, but I'm not exactly open to living underground. Plus, we know you only want to find a Burrow because you want to go on a girl hunt."

"That's not the only reason, cuz. Those people have been underground and no doubt struggling to survive while the rest of us sit up here on our asses and not do anything about it. Shouldn't we at least bring them up here to show them what it is all about?"

"It's not that simple." I then went on to telling him the reason why we couldn't go looking for a Burrow. "Look, I would love to bring Burrow people out from underground and back to the surface, but it isn't safe. What if Scarlemagne found us and followed us to one of the Burrows? We would be putting the safety of dozens at risk."

"I know, I know! It's just…" Aurico groaned out in frustration before he spoke again. "I'm tired of sitting around! All we ever do is salvage for junk and hide from everybody! I want to do something! I want to help!"

"Rico, I know you're frustrated that you can't do more, but there's not much we can do." I told him. "All we can do is wait until the time comes for when we can finally be able to help the way we want. Just be patient." After a moment, Aurico then took a deep breath and calmed down. With that, we then kept on walking down the canal. "Though I get you want something new. That's something I've wanted too. This Scavenger thing isn't really an interesting job. God, I wish something interesting would happen." Just when I said that last part, I stopped as the sound of rumbling hit my eardrums. "Hey, do you guys hear something?"

"Yeah. What is that?" Aurico said, hearing the sound too.

"What's what?" Musa asked as I tried to figure out where the sound was coming from.

"I hear something." I said before I started turning around. "It's coming from… behind us?"

When all turned to face the old sewer tunnel in this canal, we all felt it as a large rumbling came through.

"Guys, what's going on?" Musa said with worry. "Is it an earthquake?"

"No. Worse." I said before I saw a large flow of water coming in from the tunnels, knowing it was only one thing. "Flush flood! Fly, Rico!"

With that, me and Aurico then brought out our Fire Dragon wings and flew off with me grabbing Musa as the three of us managed to avoid the flood of water as it filled the canal. When the flood died down, we watched as the water drained out, revealing tons of boulders left behind by it. To explain what just happened, this is what we in the Tribe call a flush flood. It happens when an earthquake or something causing some sort of vibration causes large amounts of rocks to land in the water of the old sewers, causing a powerful wave of water to fill the tunnels and large spouts of water to shoot out from any exit points connected to said tunnels. We were lucky we avoid it or who knows what would've happened if we got caught.

"Phew! That was close." Aurico sighed in relief.

"Yeah." I said, surprised by this. "I know I made a wish but didn't expect something like that."

"Hey, guys, look!" Musa said, pointing down at the water and making us look down there.

"What the…?" I said before I then saw what she was seeing: someone, floating flat on their face in the water! "Holy crap! Somebody's down there!"

Aurico and I immediately flew down to the ground, where I gentle put Musa down to let her stand in the water, and the three of us ran over as fast as we could over to where this individual was. With the person in view, we saw that they were wearing this indigo jumpsuit with this purple four-leaf clover symbol containing a think black X on the back. They also had this spikey, pink-lavender hair with a fringe of it tied up in a ponytail.

"Is that dude okay?" Aurico said as I kneeled before the stranger, preparing to check on them to see if there were alive or not.

With that, I then turned the person over and we were all surprised to find that this spiky-haired fellow wasn't a fellow. My ocean blue eyes widened with shock and I nearly lost my oval-lens glasses when I saw it was a girl who looked around our age with pale purple skin. For some odd reason, I just stared at her face for a while and felt my cheeks get hot.

"Whoa! Who's the babe?" Aurico exclaimed, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Oh, my god! Is she alright?" Musa asked with worry before I put my head against the purple girl's chest and try to listen for her heart. After a moment of silence, I began to panic.

"She's not breathing!" I said, freaking out. "Oh, man! She must've taken in some water from the flood!"

"That's not good." Musa said, just as worried as I was.

"Wait, 3, didn't Miwa teach you CPR?" Aurico asked me.

"Yeah, but I've never done CPR before!" I told him, his question not really helping in this situation. "Oh, god! What if I can't do it? This is terrible!" It was in that moment Musa came over, grabbed me, pulled me up to her, and smacked me in the face.

"Axel, pull yourself together!" She told me as I rubbed my cheek. "We got no time to panic! A girl's life is at stake!"

"Thanks. I needed that." I said to her before calming myself and preparing to give CPR. "Okay, give me some space." After my cousin backed off a bit, I then leaned down to give the girl before me some air.

However, I couldn't help shake off the weird feeling I was having. I had never been this close to a girl's face before in my whole life, at least one I was not related to. It was almost like it was the most challenging thing I'd ever done. Pushing that feeling aside, I then went ahead and began giving her CPR. Placing one hand on her forehead and one under her chin, I slowly tilted her head back and slightly lifted her chin. After checking to make sure her airways were clear, I then pinched her nose and slightly opened her mouth before moving on. With that, I then covered her mouth with mine and breathed into the girl's mouth, removing my mouth from hers for a moment before putting it back over to give her some more air. After giving her two breaths and with her chest rising, I stopped and then placed the heel of one of my hands on the center of her chest and then placed the heel of my other hand on top of that hand and pushed hard and fast on her chest, giving her chest compressions by two inches deep. With each compression, I allowed her chest to return to normal before pushing back down. After giving her enough chest compressions, I then repeated my actions from beginning to end multiple times. It was only a minute of this before I saw the girl spit out water, backing away as she sat up and coughed before she took some deep breaths.

"Wait, that's CPR?" Aurico said, sounding surprised. "Man, I should've learned that trick years ago."

"Hey, are you okay, miss?" I asked the girl as she lifted her head up at me and groaned.

I then watched as she slowly opened her eyes, revealing to have magenta irises. After looking at me for a minute, she looked around and her eyes widen in shock as she gasped.

"I'm on the surface! I'm on the surface!" she said as she began to panic.

"Yeah, we're all on the surface, girl." Musa said as the girl continued to look around in panic.

"Miss, calm down. It's okay." I said before the girl looked up to the sky and screamed out in pain.

"Aaaah! The sun!" the girl yelled as she jumped forward, bumping me in the forehead and knocking me back into the water.

"3! Are you okay?" Musa said as she helped me out of the water.

"Ow! I'm fine." I said as I got to my feet, rubbing my head from the pain. "Man, what was that about?"

"Um… guys?" Aurico said as I stopped rubbing my head, Musa and I looking over and seeing our cousin looking down with surprise.

Looking down ourselves, we were shocked as well to find the girl lying in the water with her eye closed. Aurico poked her as Musa and I walked over.

"Wait. Seriously?" Musa asked as I kneeled down to inspect the girl, stopping Aurico's poking. "Did she just knock herself out?"

"Yep. She's out cold." I sighed.

"Hey, maybe I should try giving her CPR, in case…" Aurico suggested before I pushed him back into the water.

"Don't even think about it, Rico. Besides, look." I said as I motioned to the girl and showed she was breathing. "She's still breathing."

"Well, at least we know she's still alive." Musa said as I inspected her. "But where'd she come from?"

"My guess is she must've been in that sewer tunnel when the flood came in." I said to her, looking towards the tunnel which was blocked by a pile of rocks.

"What's a girl like her doing in a sewer tunnel?" Aurico asked as he got himself back to his feet.

"I have no idea, but we can't leave her here like this." I said before I then sighed as we had no other option. "We're gonna have to take her back with us."

"Wait, you want to bring this girl back to the Tribe?" Musa said to me in shock. "Why do you want to bring a complete stranger back home with us?"

"Because, not only had she caught in a flush flood, she might also have a head injury." I said, putting out a good point.

"Correction: she's a hot babe with a head injury, which makes it our civic duty…" Aurico said before Musa interrupted him.

"Shut it, Rico." She said before she turned back to me. "You could always do a medical check here in the ruins."

"With all the Mega Mutants running around? No way!" I said to her, showing her how that idea was a bad one. "Plus, if we leave her on her own, Scarlemagne might catch her or she might run into some trouble with the Wonderbeast groups out there, ones who aren't very fond of humans. The Tribe is the only place where she can be safe at the moment."

It was only a moment before Musa said "Fine. Let's take her back."

"Great." I said as I picked up the girl, carrying her what people called "bridal style", I think.

"Awesome!" Aurico exclaimed as we walked back to regroup with the others. I found out he noticed I was having a little trouble carrying the purple girl when he asked me that question. "Hey, cuz, you okay there?"

"Yeah… I'm fine." I told him as I tried to carry the girl. "It's just… um…"

"What? Is she too heavy for you?" Aurico chuckled before Musa came over and smacked him in the head. "Ow!"

"Rico, it's not nice to talk about a girl's weight like that." Musa said to him with a glare.

"What? I'm just asking." Aurico said to her. "I mean, look at her. That girl should be as light as a feather to 3."

"Yeah, but…" I said as I tried to keep the girl in my arms. "I don't mean to sound rude, but this girl is heavy as Hell."

"What? She's smaller than you and is as scrawny as Hell." Aurico said, surprised by this. "How can she be that heavy?"

"How should I know?" I told him as for this girl to be so heavy without any indication of such great weight didn't make any sense.

---

When we got back to the rendezvous point, everybody was back together as they filled two carts with metals and wood. Gordy was the one to notice us coming over and reveal our presence to the others.

"Yo, 3!" Gordy yelled out as he ran over to me, Musa, and Aurico with a smile. "We were wondering when you were coming back! What took ya?"

"It's a bit… of a long story." I said as I tried my best to hold onto the girl, who Gordy soon noticed with my struggle. "I'll explain on the way home. Just bring me that empty cart, quick!"

"What? Why?" Gordy asked me, confused by this.

"Just do it!" I told him.

"Okay, okay. Geez!" he said before he ran over and came back with the empty cart.

Putting her down gently, I placed the girl into the cart. After I did, I then decided to take a little breather as carrying this girl was pretty hard.

"Oh, thank God!" I said as I straightened myself, regaining my strength. "I thought my arms were gonna fall off."

When we started our way back to the Tribe, I explained everything that happened from when we got chased by the Mega Newt to where we encountered the girl.

"…and that's why we're now taking her back home with us." I said after I finished the explanation.

"So that girl was caught in a flush flood?" Gordy said as he and the others were surprised by this. "That's a Hell of a lot crazy!"

"What the hell was she doing in the sewers for?" Brook asked me.

"We have no idea." I said as I looked down at the girl who was still unconscious. "Before any of us could even ask, she just freaked out for some reason and accidentally bonked heads with me."

"Looks like that thick head of yours did come in handy for once." Riku said with an amused smile, knocking on my head a bit and making me glare at him.

I lost my glare when I looked back at the girl in concern and said "I still don't know why she freaked out like that. Hopefully, I can be able to talk to her when she wakes up."

"Well, I hope I can speak to her as well, darling." Kylo said as she came over, looking down at the girl. "Especially about how she acquired such a… unique attire." With how she said that, I would suspect that she was planning on getting this girl some new clothes to replace the jumpsuit which appeared to have seen better days.

"So how are you gonna tell Uncle Don or Miwa about this?" Hikari asked me, reminding me about our uncle and my sister.

"She does have a good point, dear cousin." Hotaru spoke up. "I don't believe my grandfather or your older sibling will be quite open to the idea of this unknown individual's presence in the Tribe, let alone receive any medical attention."

"Actually… I wasn't planning on telling them until after this girl is looked over for her health." I said, making the girls look at me with surprise. "Look, just hear me out. I got a good plan on how to get this girl in."

---

After explaining the whole plan, we finally left the city and got to the Tribe. Once we entered, Musa, Aurico, and I gave our material cases to Brook and Brandon to let them to take all we got from this day's salvage to the collection crew. Before they left, I managed to grab the anemone from my case. With that, even though I didn't want to do it, I plucked all the petals from the flower and put them over the girl, covering and hiding her in the cart. With the girl concealed, we then continued on into the Tribe and towards my house, being greeted by our people: creatures of all kinds, the mutated and the normal alike. It seemed like we were gonna pull it off until we froze to the one problem that we were trying to avoid. Right there, speaking with our neighbors, we saw… Miwa and Uncle Donnie! Just so you know what they look like, my big sis Miwa is a woman with an hourglass figure, Caucasian skin, brown eyes, and black hair. She wore a brown biker jacket with metal studs all over it, a pair of blue jeans, and blue heels. My Uncle Donnie is this big, robotic turtle on two legs with a glowing purple visor for his eyes and a thin, glowing, purple line for his mouth. With why he was a robot, it's a long story there. Anyway, with those two seeing us, we knew we were in a bad situation.

"Oh, no! They're coming over!" Aurico said, just as worried as I was.

"Oh, great. Now what do we do?" Riku whispered to me, angrily. "Uncle Donnie is gonna know something weird is going on when he looks into the cart!"

"I know, Riku!" I retorted to him in the same volume. "Just act natural!" as the relatives came over, I put on a friendly smile and spoke normally to them. "Hey, Uncle Donnie! Hey, sis! What's up?"

"Nothing much. We were just having a little talk with the Fangs." Uncle Donnie said, talking about our neighbors.

"So how was your day?" Miwa said with that friendly smile on her face.

"Oh, it was great." I said to her, trying to keep a straight face. "We got a lot of metal and wood of everybody and we found out where the Mega Newt resides at."

"Still updating Mom's journal, huh?" Miwa said, no doubt feeling good that I was being myself.

"Yep. You know me." I chuckled nervously.

"What's with all the flower petals?"

"Oh, these? I just thought I would give some new decorations for the house, you know?" I lost my smile when I noticed Uncle Donnie looking at the cart, specifically the pile of petals.

When I looked to the pile, I saw that some of it was slowly rising and falling constantly, no doubt that being caused by the girl's unconscious breathing. Just when I thought we were gonna get caught until…

"Hey, guys!" Sora said as he stepped in, getting Miwa's attention and diverting Uncle Donnie's gaze away from the cart. "I came up with a good joke and I want to see if it's funny or not. Mind listening to it?"

"Okay, sure." Uncle Donnie said, waiting for Sora to tell a joke.

"Okay, um… uh…" Sora said, trying to come up with a joke.

"Well, we better get going." I said as me and the others began walking away. "My team agreed to help me get these petals set up and they aren't gonna arrange themselves. Bye!"

With that, we rushed off and let my sister and uncle listen to my cousin's on-the-spot joke. Luckily, we managed to get to the house and hurried inside. It was easy to find for we only had a few houses in the Tribe, the majority of housing being tipis. Mine was white and had a metal roof. It was just a standard build for a house with a small garden in the back filled with well-taken care of produce like vegetables and some fruit. Though, mostly, it had bean pod vines. The interior of it was also pretty basic too with some ancient Native American culture in it. There was a kitchen, a living room, a dining room, a bathroom, and two bedrooms (one for me and one for my sister). With the living room, it had this old, gray legless couch, a small crate in front of the couch which was used as a coffee table, and a pair of different chairs. I was about to get the cart over to the couch when I saw two certain individuals sitting on it, said individuals looking at me and the others as we stood in front of the crate. These were friends of ours: the girl to the left with long, wavy, blonde hair that went down to her knees, cyan eyes, tan skin, and wearing a beige, shoulder-less tunic poncho with a black fishnet mesh top underneath, brown fingerless gloves, red shorts, and red shoes with the white toe was Aisha Delphine and the guy with teal hair that went down to his chin, sky blue eyes, fair skin, and wearing a beige, short-sleeve, zip-up hoodie with green lineage along the torso, a black shirt underneath, green cargo pants, and black sandals next to her was Nabu Corcus. For Aisha, she haves a slender build and is about as tall as Kylo. For Nabu, he haves a good body build and is about Caldwell's height.

"There you guys are!" Aisha said as she and Nadu got up from the couch and walked over to us.

"Aisha? Nabu?" I asked, confused about what they were doing in my house. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We've been waiting for ya to hear how the salvage went." Nabu answered me. "Now, did you find anything?"

"Oh, we found something alright." I said, not really how to tell them what happened.

"Hey, what's up with these petals?" Aisha asked, pointing to the rising and falling pile of petals in the cart.

In that moment, I looked with the others who all had worried looks (all except for Riku as he just glared at me) before I looked back at our friends. After a brief moment of thinking, I sighed as there no other way of sliding the truth past them.

"Okay, guys… don't, freak, out." I said before I start moving the petals aside and revealing the unconscious girl underneath, causing Aisha and Nabu to gasp in shock. With that, I then reached down, picked up the girl, and carried her like before over to the couch.

"Axel, who is that?" Aisha asked as I then put the girl gently on the couch.

"No idea." I told her. "We found her in the city."

"You mean you found this girl in the place where you were salvaging and brought her here without even knowing who she was?" Nabu asked me with a look of shock.

"Yeah, why?" I asked him.

"Are you crazy?"

After a moment, I then spoke with sarcasm. "Yeah, Nadu, I'm crazy. I'm looney, okay?"

"Why?"

"Why? Oh, I don't know." I then started motioning around for emphasis as I kept being sarcastic. "I wanted to redecorate a bit. A couple of throw pillows, a purple girl in a jumpsuit. What do you think?"

"Axel, what are you doing?" Miwa asked, spooking me as I saw her and Uncle Donnie standing there with my sister glaring down at me.

"Sorry, guys." Sora said with a look of shame. "They got past me."

"Nothing, Miwa!" I said to her, losing my sarcastic tone as I felt worry taking over. "We found this girl in the city ruins. She got flushed out of some old sewer tunnel. I had to bring her here."

Miwa's glare turned into a look of shock when I saw her turn her gaze to the girl.

"No way! It can't be!" Uncle Donnie said with surprise as he walked over and looked at the girl, no doubt doing an analysis with his visual scanner. "Pale pigment of the skin, showing no signs of sunlight exposure." He opened her mouth and looked into it. "Perfect and intact tooth enamel." He then gasped as he looked at the girl's clothes. "Clothing from the underground! I can't believe it!"

"What's up, Uncle Donnie?" I asked him.

"This child… She's a Burrow girl!" Uncle Donnie answered, shocking everyone except for Miwa for some reason.

Looking at that girl, I still couldn't believe it. A human from a Burrow… on the surface? Barely anyone ever sees a single Burrow human coming to the surface. My team and friends were all talking to each other as they couldn't believe it either. Aurico and Brook got over to the couch and looked down at the girl's face, Brook from the armrest and Aurico from the back of the couch.

"Seriously? She's from a Burrow?" Brook said with surprise.

"You see?" Aurico said to him. "I told you the girls down there were hot!"

"Uncle Don," Miwa said as she walked over kneeled in front of the couch, looking at the girl with concern, "how is she doing?"

"Let's see…" Uncle Donnie said, doing a medical check on the girl. "Steady breathing… Stable blood pressure… Normal heart rate… healthy brain function… Besides some slight brain trauma, she'll be alright. It's nothing too serious."

"Was there anyone else with her?" Miwa asked.

"No, it was just her by herself." I answered her.

After a brief moment of silence, we all looked to Brook and Aurico looking at Miwa with anticipation when Aurico spoke.

"Can we keep her?" Aurico asked.

Miwa thought for a moment, looking carefully at the girl on the couch before she then looked to me and the others and said "Bring fresh water, a fresh towel, a warm blanket, and a cold washcloth. Pillows!"

"Far out!" Aurico exclaimed in excitement as he and Brook ran off to get those things. I went with them to help bring in the blanket and pillows.

---

After those three boys left, I looked down at the little girl in question and the sight of her had triggered a jog in my memory. The pink hair, the purple skin… Just by the shock of it all, I only had one thought: Could it really be her?

I didn't have to wait long for the answers to come as I heard the girl groan before she opened her eyes, starting to wake up.

"What?" She said before she began to sit up. "What happened? Where am I?"

"Don't worry, you're safe." I said to her. "Everything will be all right."

"Oh, my head." She said to me as she rubbed her head. "I had the craziest dream."

"What was the dream?" Uncle Donnie said, making the young girl smile.

"You wouldn't believe it. But I dreamt that I was…" The girl then turned to him and was shocked to see his metal face. She screamed as she quickly backed away from him in fear, falling off the side of the couch.

"Whoa! Are you okay?" Uncle Donnie said as he went over to her, scaring the poor girl even more as she backed away to the wall.

"Uncle Donnie, stop!" I said to my uncle, trying to obtain a chance to calm the girl down. "You're making it worse!"

"Oh, no!" the girl said as we looked to see her on her feet and looking out the window. "It wasn't a dream! I really am on the surface!" It was only a moment until she screamed again and backed away, covering her eyes. "Aaah! The sun!" She cries out as she began to thrash around on the floor as if she was in pain. "I looked at the sun! Now I'll go blind!"

"Kipo! Calm down!" I said as I went over and grabbed a hold of her. "You're okay. Open your eyes."

After a moment, she then opens her hands and was surprised as she looked around.

"Hey… I can still see!" She said as she smiled at me.

"Of course." I said as I gave her a friendly smile. "You won't go blind from seeing the sun. Just a little blindsided, that's all."

"Wait!" She gasped in realization as she then got to her feet and began to panic. "I can't be here! I can't be here!"

"Kipo, wait!" I said as Kipo ran off, trying to stop the little girl from running headfirst into danger.

"Okay, I got the blanket and the pill—Ow!" Axel said as he came in before Kipo bumped into him head-on, causing them both to fall to the floor on their backs and Axel to drop the blanket and two pillows he was carrying.

"What's going on over here?" Aurico asked as he and Brook came in, my little cousin holding a washcloth.

"We heard screaming!" Brook said, holding a towel. The two looked to the floor and saw Axel and Kipo trying to get up.

Groaning in pain while getting up and rubbing their foreheads, the two kids looked and saw who they each bumped into. Upon seeing my little brother, Kipo screamed again as she quickly crawled backwards to the side of the couch.

"Who… What are you?" Kipo asked in fear while Aurico and Brook help Axel to his feet.

"I was wondering the same thing about you." Axel said as he stood straight and looked down at the girl, all while he continued to rub his forehead. "Minus the 'what' part. Ow! Geez! Getting bumped in the head twice in one day? That's gotta be like a new record or something."

"Wait…" Kipo said, looking at Axel with surprise. "Are you… a human?"

"Well, actually I'm a Fire Dragon." Axel told her. "But, genetically speaking, I am human, yes."

"Yeah, we're all human." Aurico said before pointing to Uncle Donnie. "Well, except for Uncle Donnie over there. Long story."

"What? Are you surprised?" Brook asked her.

"Well, yeah." Kipo answered him. "I just didn't think there'd be any humans left."

"And yet here we are." Axel retorted as he had fully recovered, no longer rubbing his head. "You're lucky we were around to find you after you washed up in the city."

"Wait," Kipo said with growing worry, "was there anyone else besides me?"

"Well, no." Axel told her. "Nobody else but you."

"I got to go find my dad!" Kipo said as she got back to her feet and was about to run off again.

"If you're planning on going to that old sewer tunnel you came out of, don't bother." Axel said, stopping her. "The flood blocked it with rocks. It'll take weeks to get it cleared. Besides, it's too dangerous to go in them. The old system that was used to make them is practically a maze. Unless you were given a map through them, you'll get lost in those tunnels. Also going into those tunnels means you'll have to deal with the flush floods. One flush flood is all it takes to either kill you or send you God-who-knows where. I'm sorry, but you can't get back to your Burrow right now."

Kipo sighed in sadness as she collapsed on the floor. Seeing this, I then went over to comfort her.

"Are you alright?" I asked as I kneeled down to her.

"Yeah, I'm just worried about my dad." Kipo answered, bring her knees close to her. "If he wasn't here with me then…"

"Hey, don't worry about that." I gave her a reassuring smile. "I bet your dad is okay. You'll see him again."

"Thank you." Kipo said to me with a gentle smile.

"Okay, now I gotta ask." Axel said as he walked over to us, speaking to Kipo. "Who are you?"

"Oh, I'm Kipo." She said, her introduction confirming my suspicion.

"Nice to meet you, Kipo." Axel said with a kind smile. "I'm Axel Frank the 3rd. But my friends call me 'AF3' for short." He then began introducing his friends, each of them greeting Kipo. "These are my friends: Nabu…"

"Hey." Nabu kindly waved.

"Aisha…"

"Hello." Aisha waved to Kipo with a smile.

"Caldwell…"

"Howdy." Caldwell greeted.

"Thora…"

"Hiya!" Thora brightly smiled.

"And Brook."

"Of course, I'm the last one to be introduced." Brook said to himself before he smiled at Kipo. "Hey."

He then moved on to our relatives. "You already met my Uncle Donatello there."

"Hey." Uncle Donnie said as he waved at Kipo.

"Over here we got my cousins: Gordy…"

"Sup!" Gordy simply but his hand up.

"Kylo…"

"How do you do?" Kylo gave Kipo a gracious bow.

"Stella…"

"Hey!" Stella waved.

"Musa…"

"What up, girl?" Musa friendly pointed at Kipo, giving her a bright smile.

"Brandon…"

"Hello!" Brandon waved, accidentally knocking over a vase in the house, causing it to smash on the floor. "Oops!"

"And finally…"

"We got this, cuz." Sora said, interrupting Axel before he then gave Kipo a Japanese greeting bow, fist in hand and all that. "I'm Sora."

"I'm Hikari! Heheh!" Hikari giggled.

"Hotaru." Hotaru raised her hand.

"I'm Riku." Riku said to her with his arms crossed.

"Oh, and that woman right beside you is my big sister Miwa." Axel said, motioning to me.

"Thank you for the introduction, little bro." I said to my little brother. "And I'm glad that you found her. I bet Mr. Oak is worried sick about her."

"Wait, you know my dad?" Kipo asked me with shock.

"Of course, and I already knew who you were, Kipo." I told her, keeping my smile. "I'm not surprised that you don't remember me. You were only a baby when we first met."

"Wait, sis, you know this girl?" Axel asked me as he motioned to Kipo, surprised by this.

"Yes. Dad and Mr. Oak were actually pretty good friends." I told him. "It's a long story. One that will have to wait for another towel. Brook, the towel." Brook then tossed the towel over to me and I caught it before I then gave it to Kipo. "Here. It'll help you dry off. You've obviously been through a lot today. Let us discuss this over dinner, okay?"

"Okay." She said to me before I then got up and headed towards the kitchen to prepare dinner.

---

A while after that shocking reveal from my sister, Miwa and Uncle Donnie headed into the kitchen and got to cooking dinner. Meanwhile, me, my team, our friends, and Kipo (after she managed to try herself off) sat at the table, the Burrow girl looking around at her surroundings and bowls set out for us on the piece of furniture. Ever since we sat down, there was nothing but silence until she spoke up.

"So… how long have you been living here?" Kipo questioned as I looked at her. "You know, on the surface?"

"We've always been here." I answered her. "Everybody around you has been on the surface all their lives."

"Yeah! Born and raised, baby!" Aurico said, kicking his feet on table.

"Rico, feet off the table." I told him, making my cousin grumble as he put his feet back on the floor and slouch with his arms crossed.

"Do you guys have any parents?" Kipo asked, making me and the others give looks of shock before my team and friends gave looks of pity.

"Most of us do." Nabu said as I looked down in sadness.

"What do you mean?" Kipo asked, confused by this.

"They mean me." I said to her. "My parents… aren't here anymore."

"Oh, when will they come back?" She asked.

"No, Kipo. They're gone." I repeated myself. "As in… they're never coming back."

"Oh." Kipo said as she caught on to what I meant. "I'm…I'm really sorry to hear that."

"Don't be. It's fine." I said as I tried my best to give her a smile before I patted the left side of my chest. "They're still with me in here."

"So it has been just you and your sister?"

"Well, we had an older brother, but…" I then got a few flashes of the day I lost my big brother, shivering in both fear and regret of what happened.

"His big bro took part of the Beast War." Gordy told her. "They lost him in one of the missions. 3 doesn't like talking about it."

"Axel, I'm so sorry." Kipo said to me with a look of guilt. "I didn't mean to…"

"It's okay, Kipo. I understand." I told her before my big sis came in with a big stew pot.

"Okay, dinner is ready!" Miwa asked brightly before she went on and, using a wooden spoon, poured some of the contents into the bowls, filling them. "Cooked to perfection!"

"Thank you." Kipo said before Miwa filled her own bowl. When I saw her looking into her bowl, I saw she was confused. "Uh… What is this?"

"It's called chili. It's a dish that was served before the wars." I told her as I took a spoonful as everyone else ate their chili. "It's not that bad. Try it."

After a moment, I then watched as Kipo hesitantly did so and slowly took a spoonful. When I saw her give a surprised expression, I gained a smile as I knew she liked it. "Wow." She then took another spoonful and savored the flavor. "Wow! This is really good."

"Told ya." I said to her smugly before my big sis spoke up.

"So, Kipo…" Miwa started as she got the purple girl's attention. "How did you end up flushed onto the surface? Last time I saw your dad, he was bent on keeping you down in a Burrow."

Kipo stopped eating and swallowed what was in her mouth before she began explaining, having a look of sadness on her.

"There was a Mute Quake." She simply said.

"Mute Quake?" Miwa asked as us Tribe members were actually confused by what she meant.

"What the hell is a Mute Quake?" Aurico asked.

"Rico, language!" Miwa scowled at our cousin for cursing in front of our guest.

"Oh, it's fine." Kipo said to us, dismissing that with a smile. "I've heard some curses before. You see, every once in a while, a Mega Mute walks above our Burrow."

"Mega Mute?" I said before I then got what she meant. "Oh, you mean a Mega Mutant. Those guys do like to move around."

Kipo then started talking rapidly, trying to get through her explanation as fast as she could. "Yeah, but today, a really big one passed right above it and then my dad threw me into the river and, the next thing I knew, I was on the surface. That's what happened." After that and we all had a moment to process that, Kipo then stood up from her seat. "Anyways, thanks for the meal. I'd like to stay, but I really need to get home and know everyone's okay." She then started walking off, intending to go outside.

"Kipo, hold on." I said as I stood up, stopping the girl in her tracks. "Do you even know how to get there?" I then walked my way over and stood in front of her. "Those tunnels run for miles. Your Burrow could be anywhere."

"Axel is right, Kipo." Miwa said as she walked over to us. "We have no idea how far that flood took you from there to the city and your dad didn't really say where that Burrow was."

"Plus, it's really dangerous out there if you don't know where you're going." Aurico said as he came over. "Especially with the Beast War going on."

"Then what am I supposed to do?" Kipo questioned. "I have to know."

"And you will. But first, you have to calm down for starters." Miwa instructed as she put a hand on Kipo's shoulder. "Kipo, I know that you're worried about your dad and your people, but looking for them won't matter unless you know where to look."

"Know where to look?" I then gave some thought before I snapped my fingers, figuring out the solution. "That's it! We might not know where the Burrow is, but I know someone who can find it!"

"Really?" Kipo smiled with joy.

"Yeah." I said before I scratched the back of my head nervously. "But we gotta find her first."

"Find her?" Aurico said before he figured out who I was talking about, his look of confusion being replaced with shock before turning into a scowl. "Seriously? You're thinking of asking for her help?"

"Oh, come on, Rico." I said to him. "You're not still mad at from the last you guys tussled, are you?"

"You freaking kidding me, 3?" Aurico exclaimed in anger. "She nearly killed me!"

"Look, I know she isn't exactly much of one we can easily turn to for help, but she's the only person we got who knows how to get around the area." I said to him. "Besides, she still owes me one. She can't back out of that. Just trust me, okay? Everything will be fine."

Aurico scoffed with his arms crossed, not looking at me when he said "Fine."

"Good." I said to him with a smile.

"So where do find this… Burrow finder?" Kipo asked me.

"Depends. She tends to move a lot." I told her. "We'll have to get up early tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" she said with shock. "Why can't we start now?" With that, I then pointed out to the window and she saw that the sun was going down. "Ohhhhh."

"Yeah. Trust me." Kipo then looked back at me. "You don't wanna go out at night. Some of the more dangerous Mega Mutants come out and hunt."

"And let's not forget about the Wonderbeast Packs and Scarlemagne." Gordy said as we looked at him. "Don't run into those guys."

"Scarle-who?" Kipo asked in confusion.

"Oh, right. This is your first day on the surface." Miwa said to her. "I think Kipo needs to hear about the origin tale."

Me, my team, and my friends all gasped as that was one of the oldest tales in the entire Tribe. For this tale, we had to hear from the only source we had: the Tribe's great elder, Donatello, our Uncle Donnie himself.

---

After we talked to Uncle Donnie, we all gathered around in the living room as he sat on the couch in lotus stance, giving him our attention as he told us the great origin story.

"To understand how our world came to be, I will start at the beginning." Uncle Donnie said as he told the story. "Before the first Beast War and how I became one of the first mutants of this world." As he told the story, I could see the very events that would become the story of legend. "It all began over two centuries ago in my home, the great city of New York. Within this city was a man named Hamato Yoshi. He was quite the famous man, known as an actor named 'Lou Jitsu'. It's a long story there. Anyway, what people didn't know was that there was more to this man than it seemed. He was a member of the great Hamato Clan, an entire family that had been taught in the ways of ninjitsu, a great and ancient battle art that would allow one to protect themselves physically and mentally. But, due to events of his past, Yoshi vowed to never harm a single living creature and gave up ninjitsu. Though he had to break his vow after he was brought into and forced to fight the Battle Nexus, a brutal fighting competition ran by a Yokai named Vemoria Nexus, better known as the crime boss Big Mama."

"Yokai?" Kipo asked. "What's a Yokai?"

"A Yokai is this mythical being with some strange mystic powers." I answered her.

"Yes, and there was a whole world full of them beneath our very feet." Uncle Donnie said to us. "In fact, we even have some Yokai here in our Tribe."

"Really?" Kipo was surprised by this.

"Indeed, now…" Uncle Donnie then cleared his throat as he continued the story. "Within his time in the Battle Nexus, Splinter, a nickname that Yoshi is famously known by, was then discovered by another warrior, a Yokai named Baron Draxum. Draxum was a scientist who had been working on a special serum called mutagen, which would cause any living creature exposed to it to mutate into an entirely new being. Seeing an opportunity, Draxum kidnapped Splinter and took him to his lab. Using Splinter's Hamato DNA, he managed to perfect his mutagen. As part of his first test of it, he exposed the mutagen to four baby turtles."

"That was you, Grandpa Mikey, Grunkle Leo, and Grunkle Raph!" Hikari exclaimed, standing up slightly and pointing out the obvious.

"Yes. Don't interrupt." Uncle Donnie said as Hikari sat back down. "As I was saying, from being exposed to the mutagen, me and those other turtles were infused with Hamato DNA, transforming us into the first mutants of the world. Hearing of the evil Draxum planned to do with the mutagen, Splinter knew he could not let him have his way. He broke free from his imprisonment, rescued me and the other turtles, destroyed the batch of mutagen Draxum created, and managed to escape. But this all came at a price. In his escape, Splinter had turned into a mutant himself. Unable to hide amongst humanity, Splinter was forced to hide with the very shadows of the city. But, for his heroic actions, fate decided to give Splinter a gift in the form of an old friend, one who was part of a family allied with the Hamato Clan: a man named Jamey Frank."

"Jamey Frank?" Kipo said before she then realized it. "Hey, he's got the same name as Axel and Miwa."

"Yes, because Jamey is their great ancestor." Uncle Donnie said, causing Kipo to gasp in shock. "When Jamey found him, he took Splinter back to his home. There, Splinter had told him everything that transpired to how he came to be a mutant. It was in that moment that Jamey decided to let Splinter live with him and his family. He even allowed him to hide me and the other turtles there. Splinter accepted and was made an honorary member of the Frank Family, becoming the godfather of Jamey's twin sons Axel and Lucas. That Axel was the original, the ancestor of the very child who bears his name and his older sister descended from. Splinter saw how much Jamey loved his children and knew he had to show that same love to me and the other turtles. He became our father and we became his sons. From there, I had gained new brothers: those other turtles and the twin Franks. With this, Splinter decided to give me and my turtle brothers proper names. Wanting to be an artist when he was young, he decided to name us after the masters of his favorite period in art: the Renaissance." He then looked to Sora, Hikari, Hotaru, and Riku, no doubt smiling as he looked at them. "These four here are our very descendants. Sora Mishou descended from the oldest Leonardo." Sora then sat up straight. "Hikari Kujou, who is as free-spirited as her ancestor Michelangelo."

"That's me!" Hikari proudly said with a smile.

"Hotaru Tsukikage, a descendant of myself, Donatello." Uncle Donnie said, causing Hotaru to hum a fanfare. "And Riku Misumi, the genetic successor of the brave and strong Raphael." Riku stood there with a proud smile and his arms crossed. "As the years went by, Splinter then decided to teach me and my brothers the art of ninjitsu to handle any dangers that come to us. 15 years from that day, my brothers and I went on to have many adventures. We made new friends and faced great enemies as we fought to protect the good people of New York. It wasn't long until we eventually became heroes. For the twins, they were part of a team made up of great elemental heroes." He then motioned to Gordy, Kylo, Caldwell, Thora, Aurico, and Brook. "These six are the descendants of most of who made that team and are the successors to their legacy. Gordy Triggs and Kylo Labelle, descendants of Basar Blood and his wife Tricha, with Gordy given great strength as the earth elemental as much as Basar and Kylo possessing the power of air passed onto her from Tricha; Caldwell Verity, grandson of Trustin Kelsch and possessing the power of ice; Thora Toivonen, granddaughter of Meri Mock with the power of lightning; Brook Gentile, being as quick as his water elemental ancestor Jay Richey; Aurico Sloan, who descended from the original Axel's twin brother Lucas and the Fire Dragon combatant." He then looked to me. "But they could not be complete without their leader, the Fire Dragon of the time, the original Axel Frank. Brave, smart, strong, and wielding the very power of fire." I gained a smile from hearing about my ancestor as my uncle continued. "Together, they were known as… the Element Gang. As for me and my turtle brothers, we became a team of our own, a group of allies to the Element Gang. We were known as… T-M-N-T." With the name of the team he was part of in the past, he said each letter separately.

"TMNT?" Kipo asked.

"It stood for 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'." Uncle Donnie explained. "It was much easier to use the acronym than the full name of the team. Anyway," he then continued with the story, "That's how our story began but it isn't where it ended. One day, we didn't know it, but our world was about to change. I still remember it like it was yesterday. The year was 2020. A group of villains known as the Dark Gang were about to detonate a bomb filled with a gas-form version of the mutagen that would turn all of New York into mutants. We tried to stop them, but we couldn't defuse the bomb in time and it released the gas. But… for some odd reason, the mutagen gas didn't do anything. No mutation of any kind. In the confusion, the villains managed to escape and we decided to call it a day until they decided to attack again. We checked with all the Yokai present in the city, but they were all pretty normal as well. It seemed as though the gas was harmless. But, within the coming week, something peculiar began to happen." We all listened closely as we knew he was getting to where the world would change forever. "All around New York, normal animals from all around New York had begun to grow, becoming larger than their normal size. I actually found a dog twice its own size. But what was really strange was that they obtained a new form of intelligence. They had begun to figure things out for themselves like the earliest humans. After gathering some blood samples from these animals, my friends, brothers, and I found out the cause of this phenomenon. The animals experiencing this were infected with some sort of virus that had been causing them to mutate. We suspected it came from the gas after it was released. The reason for that was because it shared a genetic makeup very similar to the original mutagen."

"You mean the same one made by that Draxum guy?" Kipo asked.

"Actually, this was a second batch of mutagen he made with Yokai and Elementar DNA." Uncle Donnie said before Kipo interrupted him.

"Wait, Elementar?"

"It's a species of organic beings from another dimension that is similar to humans, but more evolved." I explained to her. "Long story there. I'll tell you later." I then looked to my uncle. "Uncle Donnie, continue."

"Thank you." Uncle Donnie then continued with the story. "Now the strangest thing was that the way the virus infected living creatures was odd. You see, the virus only target beings with animal DNA. More specifically it only infected animals that had no abnormal mutation like me and my turtle brothers. And, because it contained Yokai and Elementar DNA, it also avoided humans and even Elementars."

"So it just went for normal animals and ignored everything else?" Kipo asked, making my uncle nod at her. "Why?"

"That is something we are still trying to figure out. Currently, we have no clear idea of why the virus acted this way. Anyway," Uncle Donnie said, "at first this seemed harmless enough as many pet owners enjoyed having clear conversations with these animals. But, with their continued growth to where they were now at frightening proportions, the infected animals were now experiencing aggressive behavior, specifically to humans. Even the pets began to turn against their owners. One man actually had to lock his own cat in his home just to escape it. It wasn't long until the infected animals began to rebel against humans, attacking them and chasing them out of their homes. We also found out that New York wasn't the only place having that sort of problem. It turned that the virus was airborne and was already infecting more animals out the cities limits. It had already crossed the county border and headed into other countries, mutating more animals and causing them to rebel against humans. This was the day where the world I lived in had come to change and one many of the people remember: September 23rd, 2020, better known as 'The Great Mutant Outbreak of 2020'. Without being able to come up with a cure, humanity tried its best to fight off the rampaging mutants. But, even with the whole world working together, they couldn't be able to hold them back. With the virus infecting every non-mutant animal in the world, all the world leaders came up with a plan, one I have to say was the most idiotic plan I've ever heard. They decided to have all of humanity go into the underground shelters they made and stay there until this whole mutant crisis was over. It was at that point that Axel, my brother, decided to speak out against authority. He told the people of how this 'solution' would not solve anything as humanity could not live in hiding while they still had a chance to fight."

"To help people see that they could still fight, he and the Element Gang revealed themselves to the world. Back then, they had kept their identities a secret and the world did not know the true identities of these great heroes until that day. From there, Axel spoke out to the people, telling them they did not have to live in fear of the mutants and that they could still fight back. That, even though they seemed outmatched, they would be able to take a stand and save their home as long they worked together. His very words flew throughout the entire country and some of the people chose to stay on the surface and fight for their home. With this, humanity became divided into two groups: the majority of them going underground into the shelters which would become what we now know as Burrows and those who chose to stand with their heroes and fight to reclaim their world. In that, me and TMNT then went on to get some extra help in the fight. Going to the world of the Yokai, we had managed to rally up an army of Yokai to help us fight against the mutant animals threatening the world. From there on, our own group became an army. An army the last piece of resistance to fight against the mutant animals with Axel as their leader. From that day forward, we were known as… the Beast Hunters. It was later on that we discovered that Axel's words spread even beyond the country we lived in. All around the world, people had formed their own Beast Hunter factions, choosing to stay on the surface and fight back against the mutants. The battles that occurred from their own were the event we now know as The First Beast War. It was a long struggle and many lives were lost. The battles were so fierce that it lead to old mutagen storages being released, causing the natural flora to mutate and overgrown on the entire landscape."

"It had gone so long that we soon came to face a new form of these mutants: the Mega Mutants, the mutated animals which had grown to a size that made them a threat to everyone, even some of their own. But, at one point in the war, we made a shocking discovery. After almost two centuries of war, the mutants we found against had actually changed. They were no longer vicious creatures, but had become creatures that had developed a great understanding of things. They were able to tell what was right and what was wrong and decide what to do in their actions. In a way, these creatures had developed one thing we didn't expect from them: a sense of humanity. It was there that we saw that they were no different than we were. Like how humans had gone through change to becoming the previously dominant species of the planet, the animals were in their own process of a similar change. The virus had not just mutated them, it allowed the animals to evolve into a new species, one that could be reasoned with and coexist with. Seeing as they were no different from each other, us Beast Hunters and the mutants declared peace with each other and brought an end to the Beast War. From there on, the Beast Hunters were disbanded and everyone, human, Yokai, and mutant alike began working together in order to rebuild. With this new peace, we decided to give these mutants a new name. As they filled this world with great wonder, we decided to call them 'Wonderbeasts'."

"Wonderbeasts…" Hearing her voice, I looked and saw Kipo had a look of awe.

"With the help of the Wonderbeasts, we were able to create a new civilization." Uncle Donnie spoke out in a calm and peaceful tone as he no doubt remembered those days when the Tribe was being formed. "And thus, the Wonderbeast Tribe was born. I became an elder of the Tribe and Axel's descendant who made this discovery became a legend as we all began a new era of peace. With this, we then tried to bring the rest of humanity out of hiding so they could enjoy the peace as well. Though few did join us, most were too afraid of the Wonderbeasts to come out. Seeing as we could not convince them all, we decided to leave them alone and give them time to warm up to the idea. It was such a wonderful time and the world was so at peace."

"But, if it was at peace, then how did this new war come around?" Kipo's question then made Uncle Donnie sigh in sadness.

"That was because, one day, the peace was soon brought to an end." Uncle Donnie then explained in a grim tone. "14 years ago, a Wonderbeast by the name of Scarlemagne came around. He told every Wonderbeast that humanity was not their friend as he believed they were the true dominant race and that humanity was only fit to serve them. While few refuse to believe that, Scarlemagne managed to turn most of the Wonderbeasts against us. It was there on that the second Beast had begun. In that time, the Wonderbeasts who sided with Scarlemagne decided to be with their own kind and were divided into different groups, packs of their own Wonderbeast species. Even to this day, the new Beast War rages on with no sign of it coming to an end."

"Wait, so this Scarlemagne guy is a Mute who started a new war?" Kipo asked, shocked by all this. "Why did turn all those Wonderbeasts against you?"

"We have no idea. He just showed up and made that declaration that sound the call for war." Uncle Donnie told her. "But, whatever the reason is, he is bent on trying to making humanity his personal slaves."

"Which is a reason why nobody here in the Tribe goes looking for Burrows." I said, getting Kipo's attention. "It's the only way we can keep people like you save from that tyrant."

"But that's not fair." Kipo said, standing up with a look of anger. "Why can't that guy see that humans and Mutes…"

"Wonderbeasts." Me, my team, and our two friends said, correcting her.

"Oh, right. Sorry." She said. "Humans and Wonderbeasts can live together instead of fighting each other. Why doesn't he see that?"

"That's just how it is." I told her. "Even before all this stuff, there had always been people like that, some who just don't agree with the idea of how to do things. Scarlemagne is just one of them and he is against the idea of peace between humans and Wonderbeasts." With seeing her standing there, arms crossed and looking at the floor with sadness, I then stood up and put a hand on her shoulder which made the girl look at me. "Let's not worry about that now. Instead, let's focus on getting you home."

"Well, you kids might want to get some sleep." Uncle Donnie said as he stood up. "You got a long day ahead of you."

"Uncle Donnie is right." Miwa said as everyone stood up. "It's time for you to get to sleep, so you kids better get back home."

With that, Uncle Donnie then started escorting Hotaru as the two of them along with my team and my two friends left the house and went to their homes in the Tribe.

"You can sleep here with us, Kipo." Miwa said as she came over to her.

"Thank you." Kipo said with a grateful smile.

"Although, I think you're gonna need a bath first." Miwa said before she looked at me. "Axel, would you mind preparing a bath for her?"

"You got it, sis." I said before I then ran off to the bathroom.

I filled the tub with water and heated it up with my fire breath. I had to make sure it wasn't scolding as we didn't want Kipo's skin turning red (magenta in the Burrow girl's case).

"Bath's all-ready!" I yelled out.

"Good! Thanks, Axel!" Miwa thanked, yelling back for me to hear.

---

A short while after, I left the girls to the bathroom while I went around lighting candles around the house to help us see now that night had fallen upon us. Yeah, my big sis decided to stay to share a bath with Kipo and show her how we bathe here on the surface. Only been a few hours since they met each other and Miwa was already treating Kipo like a sister. Though I guess Miwa is trying her best to make Kipo feel at home. Being a place without a single person she knows from her Burrow, it would be nice to make her feel welcomed.

"There." I said to myself, after lighting the last candle and put out the claw I used to light it before I sunk back and returned my finger to normal.

"I'm sorry we don't have any rooms to spare for you, Kipo." Miwa said as I looked to see her and Kipo walking over to me. "I hate having you sleep on a dusty old couch."

"It's fine. I can't thank you enough for letting me sleep here." Kipo said to my sister and I was surprised when they came into view.

"It's no problem at all." Miwa kindly said to her. "Our home is your home. Anyone is welcome."

Miwa's current attire wasn't a surprise as she was wearing an aquamarine night gown as her night time clothing. What surprised me was that Kipo was not wearing her jumpsuit like I thought she would. Instead, she was wearing a pink, short-sleeve t-shirt with a purple cat logo and a pair of indigo dolphin shorts with purple lineage. She also had her hair down, which showed me she had shoulder-length hair. Just like when I first found her, I couldn't help but stare and felt my cheeks get a little hot again.

"Uh… Axel? Are you okay?" Kipo asked, snapping me out of my trance.

"Me? Uh, yeah." I said to her, feeling nervous for some reason. "I-I'm fine."

"You sure?" She said to me. "You're looking a little red there."

"Y-yeah. Don't worry." I said before I cleared my throat and then changed the subject. "So… what happened to your jumpsuit?"

"Oh, this?" Kipo said before she started explaining. "Your sister thought it would be better if I slept in some pajamas instead of the same clothes I came up here with."

"And your ponytail?" I asked.

"Oh, she also thought it would be better to have my hair down." She answered.

"I believed it would be best for her to experience the best comfort for her first night on the surface." Miwa said as she held Kipo's jumpsuit. "I also took this opportunity to wash her clothes. Don't want a day's worth of unwashed fabric staying on it for when she goes back home." She then looked at Kipo with a smile. "I'm glad that my old PJs fit you."

"Yeah, thanks for letting me borrow them for tonight, Miwa." Kipo said to my sister before she looked back at me. "So… what do you think of my new look?"

"It's… nice. It… really suits you." I said as I looked away, unable to look at her for some reason.

"Thanks." She gratefully said to me before I came up with an excuse to walk away.

"Well, I better, uh… get myself cleaned up and… ready for bed. Later!" I quickly said before I then ran to the bathroom, no doubt leaving the girls confused by my actions.

After I got into the bathroom, I took a moment to calm myself as I felt like I had gone through something terrifying. I had no idea why I was acting like that. Just a while ago, I was able to speak to her clearly, but I suddenly had a hard time talking to Kipo at that moment earlier. And that wasn't the weirdest part. My heart was racing, my cheeks still felt hot, and I'm pretty sure I felt some sweat form on my brow. Almost exactly the same that happened when I found her after that flush flood repeated itself right there. With that, I had one question in my mind: Why did I act like that just now? Pushing that aside and regain my composure, I then walked out of the bathroom, went to my room, and grabbed my own pajamas before heading back into the bathroom. Good thing we were able to make a working door for the knocking is a better signal of someone coming near the bathroom than just calling out and avoids someone just walking in without warning, especially if an individual in there isn't… decent. As I washed myself, I couldn't help but wonder about what my sister had said. Was Dad really friends with someone from a Burrow? If it were true, then why didn't he tell me? In fact, why didn't anybody in the family tell me? Well, with how Uncle Donnie reacted to Kipo, I had to guess he didn't know about Kipo or her dad either. But why did he keep it a secret from everybody? And, if Miwa knew, did that mean Mom and our big brother knew too? Just when I thought there were no more secrets in my family, a new one just showed up. Well… I did find out the big secret of my life. Maybe I can figure this one out too. After getting through with my bath and getting dressed in my night time clothing (which was just a blue tank top with navy lining and a black tiger logo on the front and a pair of split-color shorts with the right side red and the left side yellow), I then got brushing my teeth.

For what we on the surface used as toothpaste, we would soak our toothbrushes in water before dipping them slightly into some baking soda. This leads to another reason why people call me "Tiger". You see, my teeth aren't exactly normal. You see, the weird thing about my teeth is that my incisors and canines are a bit sharp, up to where they look like fangs. Another thing I inherited from my father. Yeah, he had teeth just like that. And, like I said before, the reason for this appearance of mine will have to wait. As of now, let's get back to the story. After I was done brushing my teeth, I was about to head into my room when I heard Miwa and Kipo talking to each other. Curious, I went over to hear what they were saying, hiding as I watched Miwa put the blanket over Kipo who had her head on a pillow against the armrest.

"There you go." Miwa said to her. "Snug as a bug in a rug?"

"What does that mean?" Kipo asked her.

"It's an old expression." Miwa explained. "I'm asking if you're comfortable."

"Oh. Then yeah." Kipo said to my sister. "Are you sure we're safe here?"

"Don't worry. The Tribe is watched over by a great guardian. If any threat would come to us, he would let us know."

"Okay. Thank you."

"Anytime, Kipo." Miwa pat Kipo's head a bit with a friendly smile. "Now get some sleep. You got a big day ahead of you."

"Right. Good night." Kipo said as the two smiled at each other.

"Good night, Kipo." My sister said before she blew out the candle, stood up, and walked toward the hall.

As my sister walked over, I looked to Kipo as she turned and no doubt looked at the window as she said "Night, Dad. I hope you're okay." Hearing her say that, I couldn't help but smile a bit as she held on to the hope she could find her way home.

"Wanted to say good night to Kipo?" Miwa asked me, whispering as she smiled at me.

"No. Just curious." I said as I returned the smile before we both started walking down the hall, talking at the same volume as to not wake Kipo. "I still can't believe you know her dad."

"Well, I also knew her mom." Miwa said before she got a saddened expression. "I would like to tell her, but I think Mr. Oak would be better to tell her about her mother."

"I get it." I said to her, understanding that she didn't want to talk about it. "Not really a good subject with you, huh?"

"Yes." Miwa said as we got to her room and she turned to look at me. "Let us just say that it's not something I can easily tell her. Or you, for that matter." With that, she then looked at me with a serious expression. "Axel… I can't believe I'm saying this, but… I want you to go with Kipo and help her find her Burrow."

"Really?" I asked her, surprised by this. "But I thought…"

"I know what I said." She said to me. "Though I am still against the idea, it's the only way Kipo is going to get back home. Along with you finding some answers."

"Answers?"

"There's a lot of stuff Mom and Dad didn't talk about, secret that they kept even to their own family. One time, Uncle Donnie put Dad through the Hashi because of them."

"Seriously?" I was surprised because I didn't think Uncle Donnie would do anything like that to anybody.

"Yeah, and Dad didn't even break. Mom didn't really say much either. Whatever secrets they had, neither of them were willing to give them up."

"What kind of secrets did they had?"

"From what I know, it's the reason why you are like this, the secret that Dad shared with us all those years ago."

"Wait, you mean…"

"Yes. And I believe that the answers to this very mystery that has been with us even before you were born lie with Mr. Oak."

"What makes you think Kipo's dad would know anything about this?"

"You'll find out when you meet him and a lot more than you think."

"Okay." I wasn't exactly sure if she was right, but my heart told me that I had to trust her. "So you're sending me out to find out how me and Dad are… you know."

"Yes. But…" She then turned her head away before looking at me from the side with one eye and a sly smile. "I also have another reason."

"Which is?"

She then turned to face me, raising her hands in emphasis. "Oh, come on, you know."

"No, I don't." I wasn't lying. I was confused as I had no idea what she was talking about. "Sis, just tell me. Also, mind telling me why you're looking at me like that?"

"Well, I just thought that you might like spending time with Kipo." My sister told me. "Especially since she did catch your eye."

With her giggle, I then realized what she meant and was shocked by it as my cheeks heated up again.

"What?!" I said to her, soon finding it hard to talk through my embarrassment. "W-what are you talking about?"

"Don't act like you don't know." My sister said. "I saw the way you were looking at her. You think she's cute, don't ya?"

"Um… what?" I was now starting to sweat a bit for some reason. "T-that's crazy. I've only just met her."

"Yet she's the only one you tried to make an excuse for." After Miwa said that, she then started gushing a bit in excitement. "I'm just so happy my little brother found someone in his life! I think you two would make a cute couple. Who knows? Maybe she and I could really be sisters if you decide to make the big leap with her! Ah-ha-ha!"

"Sis, I think you're making the wrong assumption." I then crossed my arm and turned away from her, closing my eyes to not look at her. I've only known Kipo for a few hours. There's no way I could be harboring feelings like that for her."

"Oh, really?" Miwa had a teasing tone in her voice when she said that. "If that's the case, then why is your tail wagging?"

"What? My tail isn't…" I then opened my eyes and looked back, becoming shocked to see that my tail was actually wagging and doing it quite vigorously. Thinking quickly, I grabbed a hold of my tail to stop it from wagging.

"See? Try all you like, you can't deny the signs." With that, I then growled as I glared at my sister and my face started to heat up a bit.

"I'm going to bed." With a huff, I walked to my room, letting go of my tail.

"Alright. Good night, little bro!" After saying that, Miwa then walked into her room, giggling as she did.

Reaching my room, I looked around and saw the posters I've collected over the years, most of them depicting the heroes from the past. With getting beside my bed (which was just an old mattress, a caseless white pillow, and an old white blanket with a blue and black checker pattern on it) and sighing, I fell back on it from feeling the relief of the end of a long day. Getting fully into bed and under the blanket, I looked up at the ceiling and took a moment to stare at the poster of the original Axel and his team, him and his fellow elementals in their fully elemental forms. I then got to thinking about what Miwa said. Not about Kipo, of course. I was thinking about the mystery she told me about. Could Mr. Oak really know the answers, the secret behind the way I am like this and why my dad was the same? With that, I then decided I will find out when I meet him. And so, I then blew out the candle and turned off the light, getting myself to sleep for the long day to find the only person who can help Kipo get home.

---

Author's Note: Hey, guys! Sorry it took me so long. I've been a little tied up with some stuff. I hoped you liked the chapter and the story. I will be continuing to work on this story with help from my good friend FoxyKhai0209, who helped me create the descendants of the great heroes. And you think this is crazy, just wait until these kids start their journey. There will be a lot more craziness and action as they try to help Kipo find her way home. Also I hope that you found some references I placed within the story and more than the kinds of fandom this crossover is made of. That's all I got for now. Don't forget to leave a comment to tell me how you think of it. See ya in the next chapter!