Chapter 14 Rising Conflicts

"Ryuuzaki," Fuu whispered the name as understanding hit her.

Umi closed her eyes, "He told us we would leave Japan, leave Asia, Europe behind. He bought the tickets, and we were going to leave. A few days before we were going to leave soldiers came to my home. They broke down the door and…" tears were streaming down her cheeks, "They…they came into the house and demanded to see my father. He came in, and they asked if he was part of the Resistance.

"He told them he was, and they asked why. He told them it was because world domination was a hopeless cause, that it was wrong. He tried to make them see, but they hit him. They hit him with the butts of their guns and when he tried to fight back five of them ambushed him.

"My mother…she got in the way, and they threw her into a table and knocked her out. There was no one to protect him except for me. So I-so I- I put myself between the guards and my father and took the beating for him," slowly she walked from the tree and raised the back of her shirt, and their eyes widened. They looked at her scarred back, and Yukito reached out and traced the scars with his fingers. She flinched at his touch. He ran his fingers across her back and to her sides, here the scars were worse; he remembered feeling these before. He had never said anything, he wasn't sure why, but he had never questioned them. His hands balled into fists, and vengeance gleamed in his eyes as she let go of her shirt and turned back to face them with tearstained eyes.

"What kind of weapons did that?" Yukito demanded, and little drops of blood fell from his hands where his fingers made cuts in them.

"Not sharp enough to be swords, dull," Ferio muttered, "But strong enough, heavy enough, to break the skin."

"Guns," Fuu and Hikaru mumbled at the same time.

"The butts of guns," Umi agreed, "They beat me badly until my father pushed me out of the way. I attacked them, but they pushed me back and said, 'Traitor,' to him, then shot him in the head. That was it," she sobbed and leaned her head on a tree, "Two days later they came back. They asked if we had taken place or known about my father being part of the Resistance. My mother vouched for us, and we left the next day.

"When we got to America my mother was so depressed she stopped eating. I had to force her to eat. They came for us a month later; the government, right after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. They penned us up in an internment camp and left us there. We worked for our meals and were beaten and mocked. I was always the pretty little Jap, alone and lost, the one who tore their country apart. Somehow they believed that I, a girl of sixteen, was the mastermind of Pearl Harbor."

They all looked around and saw there were still more questions to be answered.

"What is a gun?" Clef asked softly, and Umi closed her eyes.

"It's a weapon, like a sword, only stronger. When you pull a trigger," she stopped, "Like a button kind of thing on the weapon. When you pull it a bullet, a pellet, comes out of the gun with fire. It comes out so fast that it can kill you easily."

"And they dared to hit you with these things?" Yukito growled.

"They didn't use them exactly," Fuu whispered, "They just hit her with them, like you would use the hilt of a sword to knock someone out."

"That doesn't make it right!" Ferio burst out, and they nodded.

"But then, most Japanese war agents are like that," Hikaru said dryly as she began to answer their next question; Pearl Harbor, "The Japanese were bent on world domination, destroy everyone and take them over, to control all the land in the world. To do that they knew they would have to defeat the strongest countries. They started with America, the Land of the Free. America accepts all kinds of people, and it makes a lot of people angry. They don't like the fact that Americans are who they are; they don't like being weak compared to the Americans. They went there first. They sent planes, giant machines that fly in the sky, they sent them to Hawaii, an American state that's in the water, an island.

"When they got there they dropped bombs, huge pieces of metal that blow up when they touch something. They dropped many bombs and when they ran out of bombs they turned their planes towards ships and ran themselves into the ships. They were called kamikaze pilots, suicide trips," she explained, and Fuu scowled.

"We did what we had to, Americans are evil, they corrupt people's minds."

"That's not true!" Hikaru screamed, and Fuu and her just glared at each other.

"It is so! They have even managed to corrupt your mind!"

"Stop it!" Umi screamed, and they looked at her, "I've lived in both Japan and America, and they both have flaws. You two cannot continue to fight like this. Japan is bent on world domination which is wrong, but America is full of pride, their pride got them caught at Pearl Harbor. Either way none of that matters now, all that matters is what is going to happen."

"So you believe that Japan is wrong?" Fuu demanded, and Umi's eyes swung.

"I believe that trying to take over the world is wrong yes. I believe that trying to erase a certain people from the map completely is wrong. Japan is bent on world destruction, and I don't like it. I think though that Japanese people are good, just being led by the wrong people," she answered carefully.

"My father is a second ranking general, close to the commander of all the Japanese armies. Are they the people you speak of?" Fuu questioned

"My father was murdered in cold blood, killed for doing something for the thing he believed in. I saw him killed in front of me, bludgeoned to death in front of me, in front of my very eyes," Umi whispered, "I believe that all those who believe in that philosophy are wrong."

Fuu's eyes flared up, "Ryuuzaki," she said again, stronger this time, "Your father was not only part of the Resistance; he was the head of it. My father was there that night; he led that raid. He was the one who headed it up. You are a traitor, just as your father was."

"What?" Umi whispered, and her eyes flashed back to that man, "General Hououji?" she mumbled almost to herself, "Your father killed my father then."

"That's right, he was killed. Treason is a crime punishable for death; it's been said since the beginning of time," Fuu's voice was cold.

"I want to kill you!" Umi screamed and drew her sword, "How can you say that?" Tears trickled down her cheeks and mixed with the blood that fell from her hands where she gripped her sword so tightly it was to the point of drawing blood, "Why can't you see?! Your father is still alive, you still have him, but me…I have no one left except a mother who might be dead now!" the realization hit her hard, and her sword clattered to the ground as Fuu drew her own. Thinking that the noise she heard was Umi's sword Fuu swung instinctively and grazed Umi's side. It sunk in deep, and the Magic Knight fell. 

§§§~~~

"How…interesting," the voice was cold in that darkness, "That you should be struck down by a fellow Knight before even the third Rune-God was revived. No matter," he came from the shadows, and Umi gasped and tried to scamper away, but her side screamed in agony and she couldn't move.

"Leave me alone," she begged more than ordered, terrified.

"I don't think that's going to happen soon," he laughed, "I want to…get to know you."

She closed her eyes; she knew what that meant, "Please, I don't want to be hurt. I just want to go home."

"Home?" he questioned, a sick gleam in his eyes, "Home to what? That dingy internment camp, and the mother who you have to treat as if she's the child? Why would you want that? No you want this life. You want to live here, and I think I know why you want to live here or…should I say who?"

"You!" Umi screamed and tried to draw her sword, "You're the one who was in my head!"

"The one and only," he bowed slightly, "But then, I'm surprised your boyfriend didn't tell you that. We're connected you know, you and I. We all are, you, me, him, that damn Master Mage, your precious Selece, even the other two. Hell, the swords have their own voices if they so choose to speak."

"What are you talking about?! What do you want from me?! Where am I?!" she didn't know exactly why she questioned him; she didn't expect any honest answers, but she could see nothing else to do to prolong her death.

"I'm talking about this destiny, this prophecy. It's been hidden from you Umi, for good reason, but seeing how I am the bad guy I guess it's my time to tell you. As for what I want from you, well…that's part of the story. You're in my place, my vortex, don't worry, you'll get out…as soon as someone saves you, if someone saves you."

She looked around her and saw nothing but darkness. Even if she could move she feared she wouldn't be able to get anywhere in that eternal black. The only thing she could do was sit here and listen to him, play it out, let him play his sick mind games with her. She waited, and as she knew he would, he began to speak.

"It all started when we were little; we went to school together, Clef, Yukito and I. We were the best of friends, then the Master Mage of Cephiro changed it; he changed everything. You see he made a prophecy for us. The first, the eldest, Clef, he would be the Master Mage and he would be destined to take from Yukito. The second, the middle child, yours truly, I would be the bad guy, the one who ruined it all, all the happiness," here he made a fake sniff, "And I would be destined to take from Clef and the Magic Knight of Water," here he sent her a vicious glance, "And then there was Yukito. He would be the good guy, the one, the hero, the bearer of the Blade of Cephiro. The Knight in Shining Armor if you please, and he…of course, would take only from me, the bad guy. So really everyone looses something in this deal, though, personally I find myself on the bad end."

"I don't understand," Umi cried, "What will you take from me?!"

Here he laughed again, maliciously, "Well you see now, that's the good part…I'm going to take your…"

§§§~~~

"Umi-chan!"

She opened her eyes and met the terrified eyes of Hikaru.

"What?" she sat up and screamed as she fell back and decided to look around her from the ground. Fuu stood behind Ferio with her sword drawn; Ferio and Yukito were fighting hard for access to the girl, "Stop," she whispered and immediately the fighting stopped.

Yukito fell to his knees by her side and caressed her face with his hands, "Are you okay?" he whispered, and she nodded.

"It hurts," she could feel the sweat falling down her body from loss of blood, "I'm loosing too much blood. The wound needs to be closed."

"Stitches," Hikaru muttered, and Yukito looked at her confused.

"What is a stitch?"

Umi laughed weakly, "When they sew pieces of your body back together," she answered, "With a needle and thread."

He grimaced, "I don't think I'd want that, besides," he turned back to Umi, "Clef is going to fix you."

Clef nodded and sat beside her, putting his hands on her wounds. He chanted words no one understood and slowly a blue magic radiated from his hands. His brows frowned and tightened, "There's magic in this wound," he whispered, and Yukito's anger flared.

"Magic?!"

"Magic from her sword," Clef looked at Fuu, "Only she can cure it, but she has to want to."

"What?" Fuu whispered.

"You have to cure her," Ferio told her, "Because it was damage done by your sword to another Magic Knight. He can't fix Umi, you have to."

"I…" Fuu looked down to the girl who fell back on the ground and screamed in agony as sweat poured down her face.

"Dammit Fuu fix her!" Yukito growled and stood.

"You can't force her to do it," Umi muttered turning slightly, and wincing, to see them, "You can't force her to fix me. She has to want to do it, like I wanted to help those villagers. She can't just do it automatically. And besides, who would want to fix a traitor's daughter anyway? Even if they did used to be friends, even if they do share the same passions, what is it to her? She can go on, thrive, just like her father went on and thrived. Just like her father killed my father she will kill me. It's the cycle. It's only different…" Umi looked away, "Because see, I thought we were friends."

Fuu looked pained as she remembered the first time she had truly learned to appreciate Umi; riding along the shore. They both shared the love of horses and the feel of the forest under them. They both understood, why should who their parents were matter? They weren't their parents, and she wasn't sure she could watch this girl die, she wasn't sure she could watch her friend die. She closed her eyes, and tears fell down her cheeks, "Gomen nasai Umi-san, for everything," she muttered and as she did Windam's voice came to her.

'Fuu, Magic Knight of Wind, use your magic to heal your friend.'

She nodded and raised her arms as the words to a spell formed on her lips, "Iyashi no Kaze!" swirls of Wind formed around her fingers and fell onto the Magic Knight of Water. As they did the blood was reformed in her body, and the wound was cleaned and covered without a nick or a scratch.

When Umi opened her eyes expecting a white light and a stairway to heaven she was lying on the forest of Cephiro, feeling strangely healthy.

"Fuu," she muttered and opened her eyes more, "Did you help me?"

Fuu nodded and knelt near her and touched her hand, "Gomen nasai, I shouldn't have said that. I'm sorry…for…for your loss, at my father's hands," she said quietly, and Umi closed her eyes.

"You are not your father Fuu, and I will not treat you as him. I do not hate you for it because you had no idea. You…you've been nothing but kind to me, so I will never be able to hate you. Arigato for saving me," she sat up shakily and hugged the girl. After a moment's shock Fuu hugged her back and peace was somehow restored. Yukito put a hand on her shoulder as she stood, and she felt a chill as she remembered his words.

"I need to speak to you, to you and Clef," Umi told him bluntly, and he looked worried.

"Okay."

"Now," she said it firmly, and left no room for argument, so the three excused themselves and walked into nearby forest.

"Is that safe?" Hikaru asked as they left.

"We are in the Heated Mountains now," Ferio told them, "It is safe en…" but he didn't get to finish because Hikaru's eyes got strangely blank, and she began to walk into toward the mountains, toward the volcano.

"Hikaru?" Fuu asked, but she kept walking. The girl was about to run after her, but Ferio stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

"It is her turn," and Fuu understood and let the girl go.

*Hey! I think it's another clue *gasps* and another Rune-God! Oh yeah, by the way, a lot of people asked about the Umi and hearing the Rune-Gods thing. In this story particularly, I tried to make basically everything have meaning, almost everything, so that has a meaning, quite a huge meaning actually but you'll have to wait and find out what it is. *laughs evilly* so until next chapter ja ne ^.^*