CHAPTER 2, The Gathering:
"Where are we?" Akira said as she sat up. Her head felt like it was splitting in two. "What…? What happened…?" Shouri sat up, and looked around, wide-eyed, at what he saw. He and Akira had been sucked into another world, some strange, far-away world. Akira looked dazed, and she was holding her head with one hand. "Hey, you ok?"
"I think so. Where are we?"
"I dunno..." He went back to looking around. Then they heard it, a rustling in the bushes. "Did you hear what I heard?" asked Shouri nervously.
Akira only nodded. Both of them stared in the direction from which the sound had come. Then they heard a voice. "Man, this is weird. Where the heck am I?!" Then, through the fog, a figure walked into the clearing. It was a boy, not any older than 12, Akira guessed. He had dark hair, with blonde highlights, and his clothes were rather casual; just a black t-shirt and jeans. "Who are you?" Akira asked. "Are you friend or foe?" she said warningly. "Depends. Are you from America? Or anywhere in the real world? I don't know how, but I got sucked here when I grabbed this little thingy" said the stranger. He held up a device like those that Shouri and Akira had picked up. 'We've got one of those too' Shouri said. He held his up. "We got here the same way you did." Suddenly, something knocked the new boy off balance, and he fell to the ground. "What the heck? Hey, who are you?!"
"Nice catch. My name's-"
"Yuuki! What are you doing here?!" The little girl shrugged. Her shoulder-length brown hair had fallen in her face. Akira walked over to the new kid, picked up her little sister, and helped the boy up with her free hand. "Sorry about that. Guys, this is my little eight-year-old terror of a sister, Yuuki."
"I'm not a terror! You're meaner to me than I am to you!"
"I was just kidding. Geez! Lemme guess, you got one of those things too, right."
"Uh huh." She held hers up. "What's going on, Akira? Why are we here?"
"I'm not sure. But I won't let anything happen to you." Shouri stood up. "Well, now what do we do? I mean, we don't know what's out there in that forest and-" He stopped short. "What? What's wrong?" said the new kid. "I thought I heard something." He began to look around, listening intently for any sound that could signal an attack. "What is it, Akira?" The young girl grabbed her sister's hand. "I dunno. Be quiet, ok? We need to hear." Yuuki nodded. Suddenly, eight kids were surrounding them. There were three girls and 5 boys, each standing next to a strange creature. There were two young kids, a girl and a boy. They had a cat and a flying thing. Some kid with a laptop, who was standing next to some sort of bug thing. There was a girl in a pink cowgirl outfit, and her creature was a plant-type thing. The last girl, with a pink bird creature, had a really interesting hat. Then there was some boy with blue hair, and what looked like a fish. There was some blonde guy, who was obviously related to the young boy. He had some dog thing with a horn. And the last kid, oh, the last kid had such crazy and, as Shouri thought, big hair. He was wearing goggles, and had a dinosaur. He seemed to be related to the little girl. Probably her older brother thought Akira. "Uh oh…" Yuuki whispered. "Yeah…"
"Where are we?" Akira said as she sat up. Her head felt like it was splitting in two. "What…? What happened…?" Shouri sat up, and looked around, wide-eyed, at what he saw. He and Akira had been sucked into another world, some strange, far-away world. Akira looked dazed, and she was holding her head with one hand. "Hey, you ok?"
"I think so. Where are we?"
"I dunno..." He went back to looking around. Then they heard it, a rustling in the bushes. "Did you hear what I heard?" asked Shouri nervously.
Akira only nodded. Both of them stared in the direction from which the sound had come. Then they heard a voice. "Man, this is weird. Where the heck am I?!" Then, through the fog, a figure walked into the clearing. It was a boy, not any older than 12, Akira guessed. He had dark hair, with blonde highlights, and his clothes were rather casual; just a black t-shirt and jeans. "Who are you?" Akira asked. "Are you friend or foe?" she said warningly. "Depends. Are you from America? Or anywhere in the real world? I don't know how, but I got sucked here when I grabbed this little thingy" said the stranger. He held up a device like those that Shouri and Akira had picked up. 'We've got one of those too' Shouri said. He held his up. "We got here the same way you did." Suddenly, something knocked the new boy off balance, and he fell to the ground. "What the heck? Hey, who are you?!"
"Nice catch. My name's-"
"Yuuki! What are you doing here?!" The little girl shrugged. Her shoulder-length brown hair had fallen in her face. Akira walked over to the new kid, picked up her little sister, and helped the boy up with her free hand. "Sorry about that. Guys, this is my little eight-year-old terror of a sister, Yuuki."
"I'm not a terror! You're meaner to me than I am to you!"
"I was just kidding. Geez! Lemme guess, you got one of those things too, right."
"Uh huh." She held hers up. "What's going on, Akira? Why are we here?"
"I'm not sure. But I won't let anything happen to you." Shouri stood up. "Well, now what do we do? I mean, we don't know what's out there in that forest and-" He stopped short. "What? What's wrong?" said the new kid. "I thought I heard something." He began to look around, listening intently for any sound that could signal an attack. "What is it, Akira?" The young girl grabbed her sister's hand. "I dunno. Be quiet, ok? We need to hear." Yuuki nodded. Suddenly, eight kids were surrounding them. There were three girls and 5 boys, each standing next to a strange creature. There were two young kids, a girl and a boy. They had a cat and a flying thing. Some kid with a laptop, who was standing next to some sort of bug thing. There was a girl in a pink cowgirl outfit, and her creature was a plant-type thing. The last girl, with a pink bird creature, had a really interesting hat. Then there was some boy with blue hair, and what looked like a fish. There was some blonde guy, who was obviously related to the young boy. He had some dog thing with a horn. And the last kid, oh, the last kid had such crazy and, as Shouri thought, big hair. He was wearing goggles, and had a dinosaur. He seemed to be related to the little girl. Probably her older brother thought Akira. "Uh oh…" Yuuki whispered. "Yeah…"
