Chapter 11: Return to Tokyo
"We're back." Hitomi whispered.
The white light that had surrounded Hitomi, Van, and Kylenia faded in to the night. Hitomi released her hold on the pendant and put it back under her shirt. Van and Kylenia unhooked their arms from hers and stepped back to examine their location. They were surrounded by darkness and could just make out each other and their surroundings by the bright moonlight and distant streetlights.
"We made it to the graveyard." Van said in awe. "I recognize this place. This is the same tree from before." Van looked at the tall tree above him, the only one in the graveyard, raised by a small hill. Almost a year ago, Van had come back to Tokyo and landed here, determined to find Hitomi, but it was Hitomi who had found him.
Hitomi exhaled deeply and felt better. She didn't have any clue if their plan to transport three people to Earth would work. Now that it had been accomplished, the hard part would soon begin. Hitomi glanced over and examined the mysterious Mystic. Kylenia was looking around with wide eyes, not exactly showing awe, but not exactly hiding fear. She was holding her staff very tightly and her body was very stiff.
"Okay." Hitomi said to get Van and Kylenia's attention. "This worked out well. It's still really early and we have an hour, maybe more, to move around before the population wakes up. Don't worry, Kylenia. I grew up here, I know what to do. Okay, the dorm Yukari and I shared is up the street a ways, but it shouldn't take that long to walk there." Hitomi stared at Kylenia for a moment. "Kylenia, your appearance won't attract that much attention at this time of day, but your staff will. Is there any way you can...?"
"I can conceal it for the time being, if you think it best." Kylenia said. Hitomi nodded. Kylenia held the staff with both hand and whispered something under her breath. The staff became infused with a soft blue light and it shrunk in size until it rested in Kylenia's palm. The blue glow faded away and Kylenia hooked her now shrunken staff on to a necklace around her neck.
"Perfect." Hitomi said impressed. "Okay, let's go." She led the way, but she stopped after a few steps. "Oh! If any one asks why we look so different, just say we are going to an anime convention." Hitomi continued along and Van and Kylenia looked at each other and just shrugged.
Once they walked out of the graveyard, they entered a very beautiful park. There were fountains, statues, many flowers, bushes, trees, and a temple not too far from them.
"What is this, Hitomi?" Van asked. "I thought it was a graveyard?"
"We just came from the graveyard." Hitomi said. "We're on the grounds of the Yushima Tenmangu Shrine. The graveyard is part of it, but hidden in the back. This is a public and free garden, which is why I was able to come here all the time. It's famous in Tokyo for its white ume blossoms that grow on the trees around us. It's also popular among students, especially around exam time, because the shrine is the home of Sugawara no Michizane, a deity of success in learning."
Van nodded and continued to peer around in the darkness. Hitomi led them out of the shrine through a large red gate. They were now on the street and following the sidewalk. Kylenia walked very close to Van and Hitomi because she was now obviously nervous by the streetlights and occasional passing car.
After a brief walk they passed under another gate that said 'University of Tokyo Akamon and Yasuda Koudo'.
"This is where I went to school." Hitomi told Kylenia. "The dorm I lived in is just up here." Hitomi followed the path until they reached a building about fifteen stories high. Hitomi instructed Kylenia and Van to stay off to the side in the darkness while she went up to the lighted porch. Van watched her as she read a list on the wall by the door. A minute later, Hitomi walked back to them with a frown on her face.
"Yukari doesn't live here anymore." She told them.
"What should we do?" Van asked.
"The semester is still in session, so Yukari will need to be nearby...unless she's off on internship. Uh oh, I didn't think of that. Hmmm...give me a second to think." Hitomi rubbed her chin while she thought it out.
"I know!" She said. "I'll use the pendant to find her. It should work if she's nearby." Hitomi pulled out the pendant from under her shirt and held it in her hands. She closed her eyes and pictured the pendant swinging in her head. She concentrated on finding her friend Yukari. The pendant in her mind suddenly swung strongly in one direction. Hitomi opened her eyes and felt a very strong pull back the way they had come.
"She is nearby! She probably just moved. Come on, I'll be able to track her down with this." Hitomi said as she led the way off the university grounds and back towards the Yushima Tenmangu Shrine. Hitomi continued to hold on to pendant and followed the tugging sensation in her mind, with Van and Kylenia walking in silence close behind her. The three of them walked past the shrine and turned left down another street.
"Over there." Hitomi said pointing to an apartment complex. "She's in one of those apartments." Hitomi, Van, and Kylenia dashed across the street and walked towards the complex. Hitomi took a second to use the pendant one more time and pointed to a building near the back. They walked around until they came to the front doors and Hitomi scanned the tenants list once again.
"Bingo!" She cried. "Amano Susumu and Yukari Uchida! They moved in together!" Hitomi pressed the small button a few times beside their names and they all waited anxiously.
"Hello?" A very groggy female voice answered.
"Yukari! It's me, Hitomi!" Hitomi said, excitement bubbling up inside her.
"HITOMI! What? Oh my God! Come in, come in! I'm on the ninth floor, turn right as you exit the elevator, apartment 901." The intercom went quiet as the door buzzed. Hitomi opened it up and Van and Kylenia followed her in.
"Nice place." Hitomi commented to herself. Yukari and Amano obviously were living well. Hitomi wasn't all that surprised, Amano's family was rich. They entered the elevator and Hitomi pushed nine. Kylenia grabbed the handrail as they started to move up.
"Amazing!" She said.
The elevator reached the ninth floor and they turned right and headed down the hallway. Apartment 901 was at the end of the hall. Hitomi lightly knocked on the door and it flew open to revel Yukari wrapped up in a red housecoat with her red hair flying everywhere. She squealed with excitement and threw herself in to Hitomi's arms, giving her a big hug. Hitomi hugged her back and they both screamed with excitement. Yukari pulled away shortly after.
"Quick, come in before we wake up the neighbours." She said in a loud whisper as she escorted them in. She closed the door behind them and looked at them in amazement.
"I can't believe you're really here! It's good to see you too, Van." Yukari said as she gave Van a hug. Van smiled and hugged her back.
"You too." He said.
"Do you people realize what time it is?" A male voice said from behind them. Hitomi turned to see Amano also wrapped in a white housecoat and wearing a big smile. He walked over to them and hugged Hitomi and then Van.
Hitomi then stepped over beside Kylenia.
"Yukari, Amano, I'd like to introduce you to Kylenia, a Mystic from the island of Keshia." Kylenia bowed towards them and Yukari and Amano bowed back, awe and confusion on their face. "I'm afraid we're not here for a social visit." Hitomi continued, but Yukari cut her off.
"I have the feeling that this is going to be another long story." Yukari said. "Let's sit down first and I'll put on a pot of coffee."
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"And then we arrived at the Yushima Tenmangu Shrine and headed towards the dorm to find you. When I realized you didn't live there anymore, I used the pendant to find you and it led us here. Thankfully, you lived closed by." Hitomi said, finishing her tale. Hitomi, Van, and Kylenia were seated on one couch and adjacent to them sat Amano and Yukari.
"Whoa." Was all Yukari could say. She and Amano wore identical expressions of bewilderment. Yukari reached over to take her mug and finished the rest of her coffee. She then held it in her lap. "I can't believe you three are part of a prophecy! Poor Gaea, it doesn't sound like your home has much time left."
"What can we do to help?" Amano asked.
Van and Hitomi both sighed inwardly with relief. Not only were Amano and Yukari going to help them, but they were more than willing.
"Well...for starters, the three of us will need to borrow some clothes to walk around in."
"No problem." Amano said, shaking his brown hair out of his eyes. "What else?"
"Ummm...that's what I'm not really sure about it. We have to find Atlantis and I'm not really sure where to start." Hitomi said, worry starting to creep on to her face.
"Well, the best place to start is probably the internet." Amano said as he stood up. "I'll go load up my computer and run a few searches and see what I can find. While I do that though, you three should shower and change." Hitomi and Van nodded in agreement and then Amano left the room. Yukari took the three travelers into the bedroom she shared with Amano.
"Hitomi, you can look through my stuff to find something for you and Kylenia to wear and I'll help Van get something." Yukari said.
After Van, Hitomi, and Kylenia had taken turns showering and dressing, they were sitting around a table eating breakfast. Hitomi was dressed in khaki colored capri pants with a short sleeved, blue, shirt that had a wide neck. Van was wearing blue jeans and a black t-shirt and Kylenia was wearing a pink sundress and had her hair pulled back into one long braid down her back. Hitomi was indulging herself by having a bowl of her favourite cereal while Van and Kylenia shared bread and cheese. Yukari had remembered that she still had a textbook from her Greek mythology and literature course, so she was flipping through it while eating a muffin.
"Ah ha!" Yukari said, as she raised her head from the textbook. The others turned towards her.
"There is a play in here written by Plato called 'Timaeus and Critias' and it makes references to Atlantis. According to the authors who put this textbook together, this play is the only recorded reference of Atlantis from the days of Ancient Greece."
"Does it give any clues about its location?" Hitomi asked.
Yukari skimmed the text and flipped a page. "Well...let's see. According to Plato, Atlantis was an island created by Poseidon, god of the sea, as a home for his human lover, Cleito. It goes on to describe the geometry of the island: in the center was where the population lived, in rings of circles, and then past that there were fertile lands, canals, rivers, mountains, and such. The island was very successful and a desired place to live, but over time, the people let greed and power corrupt them. Zeus, king of the gods, saw their immorality and gathered the gods to sink the island and its people in to the sea. According to Plato, and the work of historians, the island was believe to be somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean, close to Europe and Africa. Hmm...that doesn't exactly narrow it down." Yukari said with a sigh.
"I believe I can narrow it down." Amano said as he walked back in to the room, holding some printouts. "The Azores Islands, off the coast of Portugal, could be that spot in the Atlantic that Plato was talking about. The islands are rumoured to be the mountain tops of Atlantis." Amano took a seat beside Yukari and spread out a European map in front of him. "However, there is a second school of thought that believes Atlantis was the island of Thera, known to us today as Santorini, which was destroyed by a volcanic explosion sometime around 1500BC. It's not too far from Greece."
"Good searching Amano!" Yukari said as she patted him on the shoulder.
"I did as much searching as I could, and even contacted a few people, and these two theories seem to be the most popular. Nothing is conclusive though, because all explorations that have been made around these areas have turned up nothing."
"It could be very possible that a magic barrier of some kind exists to hide the ruins of Atlantis." Van said. "We know that the Atlantians worked some very powerful magic when they create Gaea, so either by their hand, or someone else's, they could be shielding the location of the island."
"But between the magic of the pendant, which is an artifact from Atlantis, and Kylenia's powers, we just might be able to find it!" Hitomi said. "Amano, pass me that map. Maybe I can dowse the location."
The others cleared the table to give Hitomi room. She flattened the map in front of her and took off her pendant and stood above the map as the others watched silently. Hitomi closed her eyes and began to swing her pendant in a circle. Van watched Hitomi and then the pendant closely, waiting for the pendant to jerk to a stop. They all waited patiently for five minutes, then ten, and then at fifteen, Hitomi stopped.
"I give up!" She said as she fell back in to her chair. "I can't feel anything strong except a small tug in the back of my mind. So, the general area around the Mediterranean Sea and the edge of Portugal is correct. Maybe if we get closer I could get a stronger reading, but I don't know."
"Then we will get closer. What's the fastest way to get here?" Van said as he dropped his finger down on to the map near Greece.
"Flying into Rome or Athens and then renting a boat." Amano said.
"How do we take Van and Kylenia with us on a plane though?" Yukari said frowning. "They don't have passports, or any identification for that matter."
The five of them sat quietly pondering their problems until Kylenia spoke up.
"Could we get access to a ship nearby?"
"It depends what size of ship you are talking about." Amano said.
"Just big enough to hold us comfortably." Kylenia said.
"That's easy then." Amano said. "My parents have a boat they use to travel with when they are on vacation. They're not using it right now and I have a spare key. But...do you want to sail all the way there? That's going to take a lot of wind, and gas, and time."
Hitomi's eyes brightened as she started to understand what Kylenia was planning.
"Once out on the water, I can use my powers to increase the speed of the ship." Kylenia said.
"Really? How fast?" Amano asked.
"I am unsure of your units for measurement, but if we had the need, we could sail from our shores to the dock of Fanelia in a few hours."
Van started choking on the orange juice he was drinking as she said that. Hitomi vigorously patted him on the back. "A few hours!" He said. "It took us a few days to cover the same distance by air ship. That's amazing!"
"All Mystics are able to move anything on the water at incredible speeds."
"I guess that solves how we are going to travel." Hitomi said. "Let's try to plan our route now. Do you have a world map we could look at?" Yukari walked over to the bookshelf and picked up a small atlas and handed it to Hitomi.
"Okay, here's the world." She said as she opened up the main map. "We are here." She said, pointing to Japan, "We need to get here." She moved her finger to the Mediterranean. "The fastest way is probably off the coast of China, past Malaysia-"
"Wait, Malaysia and Singapore look like they are squished together in this map." Yukari said. "Find the page that zooms in here." Hitomi turned the pages and found the Asia map.
"We can come down between Taiwan and the Philippines, turn south, and travel between the islands of Sumatra and Java to get to the Indian Ocean." Yukari said.
"Perfect!" Hitomi said, flipping back to the main map. "Then we can travel up to Africa and enter the Red Sea and then...oh no! There's no access to the Mediterranean Sea from there!"
Yukari leaned over and playfully knocked on Hitomi's head. "You've been gone too long already, I see." She said as she turned to a detailed map of the Red Sea and Saudi Arabia. "You forgot about the Suez Canal." She said, pointing to the thin blue line connecting the seas.
"Of course! I'm so stupid! But, there are bound to be custom agents or patrol ships. How do we avoid them? We might have those problems anywhere else too, for that matter."
"I can use my magic in those situations as well." Kylenia said. "I'll be able to hide our boat using the reflection of the water so it looks like nothing is there. I can even call up a fog or a storm if need be."
"That should work." Yukari said. "But what about radar or metal detectors?"
"At the speeds we will be going, hopefully we don't have to worry about that." Amano said. "Good. I think we have a plan then. We'll take my parents boat down to Malaysia, through the islands, up the Red Sea, and through the Suez Canal. We will be close to Greece at that point and perhaps Hitomi will be able to sense if it's there we want to be. If not, we can continue on through the Mediterranean and cross the Strait of Gibraltar and head towards the Azores Islands." Amano said. No one mentioned that both positions could be wrong.
"We should leave right away!" Yukari said, standing up and taking charge. "But we will have to get ready and tell a few people that we are leaving." Yukari turned to face Amano. "Let's come up with a family emergency story, Amano. Your boss won't question that and neither will my professors." Then she turned back to Hitomi. "While we do that, you should try to pack for all of us, Hitomi. We should pack for about a week. We'll go to the grocery store on the way to the harbour."
Hitomi stood up and hugged Yukari fiercely. "Thank you." She said softly, as tears filled her eyes. Yukari hugged her back and then gently pushed her away.
"You would do the same thing for me. But we don't have time to get emotional. Let's get to work!"