Disclaimers: DNAngel does not belong to me and… yeah.

--- The Night Never Ends ---

--- Chapter Six: Acquaintance ---

Pulling the reigns just slightly to keep his horse at a mild trot, Risa looked around her, although there wasn't exactly much to see at the moment. As they had just reached the town itself, the only difference she would agree to was her current view; and the fact that she didn't like horses. Too high creatures… cantering along and trotting and all the usual stuff that horses do… it was just too much for the brunette. She liked to be on firm ground and that was a final fact; but no, this was very important and they had to get there fast.

The other four seemed not to care though, she thought sulkily as she shifted her weight in an attempt to get more comfortable in her position, probably because they had to ride horses more than she did. It was just insane and she just didn't like it and if she had been allowed to, she would just start complaining. But something in the back of her mind told her that Krad wouldn't like that one bit, and he seemed to be at the edge of sanity and insanity, and she didn't want to be the reason for him going insane; leave that to Dark.

As it was, strangely enough Dark was actually taking the situation seriously, not saying anything as they focused on getting out without charging into innocent people. Witnessing this was scary upon itself, but that wasn't the time to be thinking about it.

Both Daisuke and Satoshi seemed to be lost in thought and told her nothing. So there she was, sulking to herself and still in complete bafflement as to why she was there in the first place and what the reason was anyway and she was annoyed and confused and all those other emotions that girls usually get when they're not really used to be being shoved into their doom with no way to protect oneself.

The redhead, who had been staring at the moving ground for quite some time now, glanced up and noticed that Risa was pouting. He smiled slightly at this, before turning back again, and allowed his mind to wander off some more. One of the many questions that plagued his thoughts was; who was really their guide, what were they supposed to do about it, and all that. Another one was just how long would it take for them to get there? It was going to be hard to say, as no one ever talked of its exact location in the end.

Not only that but the constant visits he'd received from the voices … those things that screamed and begged for help but would never receive it. They were in constant turmoil and it hurt him almost as much as it hurt them. His empathy was probably stronger than most people, and placing that with magic abilities and the result was rather… well, whatever it was, it wasn't enough to worry him to tell anyone about it yet.

He shuddered unconsciously and shoved the thought out of his head, focusing his attention on where they were going and noticed that someone completely swathed in dark-cotton-brown fabric on a horse was by the only entrance and exit of the town. The towering walls that actually surrounded the entire town and the farms reminded him of the fact that the dangers out there were more serious than one would have thought; and that did not just include the bandits and thieves around. Survival of the fittest, it was, and if they got eaten by monsters, it was their own loss.

Krad sped up just slightly to meet the waiting figure, "You must be Akane then." He stated shortly. The figure pulled the hood down and nodded, her eyes unblinking so that it was unnerving. Not that the blonde showed any signs of discomfort; traveling around certainly helped with his nerves and all.

"And you must be the squad that I asked Argentine to send forth," she glanced back at the other four and then shrugged, "And Harada Risa-san is here, correct," this she focused on the brunette, who swallowed nervously and nodded. There was something about this girl that didn't feel right; what, she didn't know. "Well, then, we have a lot of ground to cover if you want to get there as soon as possible and deal with the matter. Let's go."

"Wait, don't we get to ask you any questions?" Dark demanded, "Krad and I just got back and already we're being shipped off again! How is that justice, may I ask?"

Akane raised her eyebrows at this while Krad hit his forehead in frustration, "This is a very serious matter that needs to be dealt with immediately. You must know that, surely."

"But it's not fair!"

"When has anything in this world ever been fair?"

"…"

"Well, I haven't formerly introduced myself either; how rude of me," there was something mocking her words as she bowed slightly on her horse, "Takada Akane, Shadow Elementalist, at your service. I shall be your guide to Rutile. Pleased to meet you."

"Hikari Krad, Mousy Dark, Niwa Daisuke, Hiwatari Satoshi and Harada Risa," the blonde rattled off, pointing to each person in turn. They all bowed back, save Dark and Akane inclined her head just slightly in curiosity. "I guess you could call us professionals in this business, save for Harada, and we're curious as to why she has to come with us in the first place."

"Yes, I know that much," the redhead-brunette turned her steed around thoughtfully, "But we really must be off already. As for your questions, I'll answer them when we make camp."

"Why can't we just talk while riding?" demanded Dark, earning a sharp poke from Satoshi, who seemed to be getting really fed up with it all.

"Because I need to make sure we're heading in the right direction, for one thing," she answered coldly, frowning at him, "You might not know it, but it's nearly a one in a million chance to find that town without a guide. Now shut up and let's move out."

Satoshi frowned at this while Dark grumbled in front of him. Something was odd, that was for sure, and it was not just the fact that this person was going to be their guide to this place. And the fact that she didn't look like the sort of person that should have been out of the house in the first place. Her looks clearly defined her as someone of the upper-class: the sort of people who allowed others to do all the work for them, and not the other way around, and the idea of leaving the house unaccompanied terrified them.

Or he was just overanalyzing the situation again; he seemed to do that quite a bit and the results in the end weren't all that pleasant, true. But there was definitely something about that person that was beginning to irk him, despite the fact that they had only met her for less then five minutes.

The blunette chose to place these thoughts in the back of his mind and followed the others out of the town that he had been brought up in since birth.

---

Looking around himself and taking in the scenery, Daisuke had to admit that it wasn't really all that exciting. Fields, wild plants creeping around the place, and incredibly dusty roads that intertwined with each other made up the most of the area, along with the oddly shaped rock that didn't make much sense or anything. Although it probably wasn't supposed to make sense, but whatever in the end. They were there and their meanings usually baffled him.

For the past few hours they had done nothing but ride, walk, and didn't even talk all that much. Dark and Krad seemed to be used to this sort of traveling, to an extent, but Risa in particular wasn't liking it at all and made constant complaints about it; no one listened to her, naturally, and it wasn't exactly the best way to start a conversation anyway.

Heat from the sun beat down on them like waves, and it was around noon that Akane finally called for a halt around a large place that seemed to be full of nothing but trees; well, at least they would have some shade and all.

"We're going to have to cross this forest after we've recovered, because you never know what's going to attack you next," she explained, despite the fact that they hadn't even seen any sort of creature that seemed capable of attacking, "We'll also have to move quite quickly to prove as lesser targets and if all goes well, then we shouldn't have any problem at all."

Dark snorted out loud at this and Krad raised an eyebrow, one hand ready to gag the purple-haired teen in case he tried to say something incredibly stupid; "And what makes you think that it's going to be an easy ride in the first place?"

She didn't even turn to reply to his question, "I suppose you doubting my word says a lot about what you think of me, but trust me; don't pay attention and you're as good as dead, even if you have been traveling for four years."

"…"

"And if this has anything with my gender, then I advise you to drop that thought as well, because when we get to Rutile, you'll be learning a few lessons of your own," she spun at this, a thin smile crossing her features, and then it switched back to something akin to neutral. Leading her horse into the shade of the entrance to the forest, she completely ignored them as they exchanged bewildered glances before eventually following her lead.

"Satoshi-kun, you know…" Daisuke started in a low voice, as his boyfriend turned to face him, "Uhm…"

"Something wrong?" he asked.

"Kinda… I mean…" the redhead fidgeted for a moment, stopping short and his horse snorted in frustration, "I don't know… it's just some queasy feeling that something isn't exactly right… or something. But… uhm…"

"Takada?"

"No, I mean, yeah, she is a bit strange and I'm getting an odd vibe from her, but it might just be the fact that she's an elementalist," he shook his head in frustration, "I think it's more the feeling that we're actually going to Rutile… like something horrible is going to happen when we get there… like we're not supposed to be there at all to disturb the spirits there…"

Satoshi blinked at this; great, not it seemed that Daisuke had gone slightly crazy on him again. Just the trip itself was bound to cause trouble. "I'm sure we'll be fine; we do this sort of thing all the time back home, right? And it's not like we're doing anything to them, just trying to find the cause of all of it." He didn't get a reply for this and Daisuke sighed. "It'll be fine, Daisuke, trust me." He held out his hand.

Gnawing his bottom lip, the redhead knew that as much as he wanted to trust that, his senses said otherwise. Yet the knowledge that he wasn't about to be abandoned by his boyfriend, for one thing, and that his closest friends would be there, reassured him and he managed a smile, taking Satoshi's hand, "Okay then."

Having come to some form of conclusion at that (although Satoshi was suspicious about the hesitation shown) and they joined the two girls who were preparing one thing or another. The redhead looked about, "Where are Dark and Krad anyway?"

"Dark-kun was going on about needing time to clear his mind," Risa explained calmly, "and Krad-kun decided that it would be best that he didn't go alone, so he just joined him and they left. They promised to come back soon, though."

"Ah, okay then." Tying the reigns of their horses securely where the others were located, the two boys took a seat and lapsed into silence; which did not last long as the brunette began to question their guide.

"So, Takada-san, when did you start traveling anyway?"

"Me? Well," Akane seemed slightly shocked at this question, but answered it, "about the past four years, I have to say. Although that is just a rough estimate. I move around a lot and all, so it's hard to keep track anymore."

"Eeeh? But what about your family?" Risa's eyes widened.

The redheaded-brunette shrugged lightly, suddenly intent on staring at the trunk of a tree rather than at the others around her, "They passed away when I was seven. No one seems to know the cause of it, though, and I was put into an orphanage for the next three years or so. Of course, once I discovered my magical talent, people didn't want to be around me, so I left and have traveled ever since."

"Oh… I'm sorry to hear that."

Inclining his head to one side, Daisuke couldn't help but attempt to try and read between the lines of it all. There was definitely a lot more to it than what they were being told, and although he knew that they didn't even know each other to her, really, it just didn't… sound right. Not to mention that Satoshi was scowling next to him and seemed to be in a like mind. He was about to say something – whether it was interrogation or just another random question – it was immediately cut short as a loud gunshot was heard deeper within the forest and they could see birds taking flight in surprise.

"What was that?" Risa jerked up in surprise, but Akane pulled her down again.

"Actually, I think the question is who was that," Satoshi corrected her calmly, his scowl now focused on where the birds had come from, "Definitely sounded like something that either Dark or Krad had on them, don't you think?"

He glanced over at Daisuke, who nodded, "Takada-san… did Dark and Krad go into the forest when they left?"

"I wasn't really paying all that much attention, but I think so," their guide turned to face the entrance of the forest and shook her head, "If they have gone in, I'd go against going after them."

"What?.! Why?" the brunette nest to her looked appalled at this decision and Daisuke looked ready to stand up, but, surprisingly enough, Satoshi stopped him and gave Akane a look that read that he was in agreement with her decision.

"It's too dangerous to go in there, especially if we don't know where they are; or how deep they've gone in," the blunette stated bluntly to the other two, who were shocked, "Besides, we both know that those two are able to take care of themselves, so we should just wait."

"But Satoshi-kun…"

"The last thing I need is to see the rest of us in any sort of harm."

"…"

"But what if they get hurt badly?" asked Risa, still looking distressed, wincing as another gunshot was heard, "Then how are we supposed to know and what do we do?"

Akane stood up at this, brushing on hand over the rough bark of a trunk; "I don't think even they could be in that much danger. Just wait a moment, and it'll be fine." She smiled slightly at this, as if amused, and then turned back at the shadows of the forest once more.

---

"Out of the way!" snapped Krad, aiming the barrel of his shotgun and firing it, just as Dark managed to spring out of the way. Nearly colliding into the base of another thick tree, the purple-haired teen mumbled something under his breath.

"I'm assuming that this is the reason as to why we were told not to go in here?" he asked, cracking a humoress grin before firing off his own weapon at whatever it was attacking them. It was hard to tell, as it was pitch black and all; and it was a miracle that neither teen had killed the other yet. Or it was just luck, they didn't know anymore.

As it was, whatever that was attacking them was making a lot of noise and being a nuisance towards them, although the loud noise was definitely a good indication of its current position. Krad snorted slightly as he reloaded. "Funny how slow your mind seems to work a good half of the time. And that's why you should listen to people smarter than you as well."

"Very funny."

They were forced back into the attack as the creature smashed into another tree; coming after them.

---

The link that brought them together would one day tear them apart; that was what was said about them all. Nothing could change it, no one seemed to care, and all those who opposed to it died in the end. There was no use denying fate.

And that was why that very town…

"… -kada-san?"

"Hm?" Akane glanced up, noticing that the three present exchanged odd glances at one another, "I'm sorry there; I must have been thinking too deeply again."

"Right," the redhead nodded at this, as if understanding. Akane blinked at this, waiting for the question to pop up; "So… what exactly is a shadow elementalist? I mean, I've heard of the basic ones and all, but this one I've never come across…"

Of course the Niwa's had been connected to magic for a long time, it was clear to see; and it wasn't like telling them was going to hurt them in any way. "Like every other elementalist, the shadow type only controls that source. Because it's such a rare case, most people don't even know that it exists at all and it's actually quite useful for both attack and defense. The origins of it, however, is probably the same with any other element, so there isn't' much to say about it."

He seemed thoughtful at this. Yeah, he would probably take it all in and consider it the exact truth.

Alter the truth, alter the truth…

That was what she always did. No matter who it was or what the situation was, she would always have to clean it up a bit for better hearing. It was best not to scare them off before the actual mission, and she hated people panicking.

Just living a lie…

Yes, that would explain a bit about her as well. Some things were better left untouched and much better off than what was going on now.

If those damn fools hadn't done such a thing in the first place… maybe, just maybe, Rultile would have been spared.

And the innocents would have had a chance to live and prosper.

Damn them all.

"So that would mean you can control all the shadows around us," stated Satoshi, who jerked her out of her thoughts. His eyes were narrowed, as if daring for her to lie about something. Perceptive, yes, and it was clear that his trust in her was only just that bit more than that other guy's… Dark, was it? Hmph, whatever.

"Yes, but it does take up a lot of energy, so it's best to hold out until it's needed," she shrugged. He continued to give her that look.

Be nonchalant; don't say more than necessary…

Any other questions that were asked were all forgotten as both Dark and Krad suddenly crashed out of nowhere, the blonde nursing what looked like an injured arm. Risa was up instantly, the other two following, and Akane stood up too, but did not approach them.

"I need to get an overview of the land," she muttered, somewhat mechanically, before leaving them to their tasks. She didn't wait for them to answer, didn't expect them to actually say anything at all, and it didn't really matter.

Nothing really did, in the end.

---

Taking a seat, Dark watched as their guide walked off, "What's up with her?"

"I don't know," admitted Daisuke, "And it's really hard to say. I know we always thought that she was a bit odd, but this time… it's more like… something else. She's not telling us the exact truth, for one thing; and that really worries me."

Krad winced as Risa tightened the bandage around his arm; "Are you trying to say that she might betray us in the end? Or won't take us to Rutile?"

"Maybe, who knows."

"No, I don't think even she would do that," Satoshi shook his head at the blonde, "I'd just say that she's not telling us something. Whether it's a warning or something else, I'm not all that sure about. What I'm questioning is her elemental ability. Is there even such thing as a shadow element?"

The blonde looked over at his partner, who frowned, "We've heard of it, but there're very few places where one can get information on it. Even mages don't seem to want to talk about it much."

"Why?"

"They don't say. The most we've gotten from them is a mumbling excuse that shadows should be left alone and all that usual junk."

"…"

They plunged into another bout of thinking, no one knowing what would become of them next. But they didn't get have to wait more than an hour before Akane came back and re-saddled her horse. "Let's go then; we're running out of time."

---

This actually has to be the worst chapter I've written lately. And I don't mean… whatever. I mean, it's just that mental block you get and it's like too hard to write what you want down. But now that that's done, I can try to continue it without too much trouble… hopefully.

The group should reach the town in approx. two chapters, if we're lucky.

Reviewer replies:

neko-nya: ghosts can't stop mocking us. Makes me wonder what the actual cursed town's going to be like… XD telepathy is very dangerous business, though, isn't it? I mean, if you're trying to control a rather large body of matter… :P

Angel Born of Darkness: Sorry for being so slow (bonks head) I have horrible writer's block a good half of the time so yeah. I'll try to make updates faster, but I'd rather not put my head in the noose again with hollow promises…

Hakudoshi-chan: Thanks—

Snowy Leopardess: I'm glad you decided to give this a try :D Thanks for the review--!