Pai re-joined the party when this was still halfway to lab, with a face so dark that no one dared to ask for an explanation.

MoiMoi led them briskly to the building's main entrance, went one floor down, and then turned into a small hallway on the right that opened onto a small spiral staircase; the group walked for a few minutes, going lower than the conference room, and arrived in a larger room, but looking more cramped; the ceiling was low and, like the floor and the walls, was cluttered with electrical cables as thin as hair or even a meter wide. On the wall opposite the entrance, there was a huge flat screen a couple of millimeters thick, which occupied the entire wall along with its gigantic keyboard, just below it. In the few meters left that were not used as walkable path, there were pedestals topped with transparent spheres, like those that Pai used on Earth for data analysis, making it almost impossible to move without hitting something. All this was spiced with an insufficient, cold light, which gave the comforting sensation of being in a cell.

Throughout the pile of objects, only cutout of the floor was left clear, perhaps for some special function, but at first glance it was only an empty circle of untapped steel.

With confidence, MoiMoi ran to the pedestal closest to the empty space and touched its sphere, lightning it up, then typed some commands: a buzz was heard and the floor opened, lifting a transparent case filled with the bluest liquid the Earthlings had ever seen; inside, lazily swaying like a silvery fish, moved the MewAqua Drop.

"It took us a while to find her a little home," MoiMoi said, "But in the end we used the same system with which we keep the passage to Earth open."

An enthralled Ryou reached his hand towards the case, coming into contact not with glass, but with a strange vibrating surface, icy to the touch and slightly elastic. He looked at his palm that itched numbly and grumbled:

"Reverse energy frequencies…"

"The blondie is smart!"

MoiMoi exclaimed and looked at him admiringly:

"That's right. As with the passage, which will remain active until we turn off the impulse, the Drop cannot exit until we turn off the case."

"But why not use it to heal the planet?"

"It would be useless," Pai explained, "The sick area is constantly expanding; if we used the energy now, it would disperse before it had any effect."

"We must find the other Drops and return them to the crystal shell from where they exploded," MoiMoi continued, "And at that point we could put them back in their place, as long…"

He stopped, as if progressing frightened him.

"As long as it's on time."

Pai's laconic conclusion left a veil of ice on everyone present, and for a few moments, in the room only the electrical noises of the sphere were heard.

"One more reason to hurry," Ichigo called decisively, "So, MoiMoi-chan?"

The alien smiled at her and ran to the giant monitor. Once seated in a chair, he typed a few quick commands and an image appeared. The outline of a sphere drawn in white, from whose equator began a series of parallelepipeds, and in the center of the globe a bright dot.

"Here," he pointed to the dot, "is the shell of the Gift of the Forefathers, that is the MewAqua crystal; basically, it's…"

"Us?"

Sando asked, already fed up with all those discourses. MoiMoi nodded as he watched him resigned:

"Yes, that's right. These here," he went to indicate the prisms, "Are the passages that the Gift created when it was split."

"One of which has come to Earth."

"Bingo, Reta-chan."

The boy turned to the Earthlings and pondered a moment on how to explain the situation to them, without getting at contorted scientific definitions that he feared Ryo only would understand.

"So," he said at the end, "I'm simplifying, so just bear with it. There's a more or less universal law for which matter in all its forms seeks to maintain a state of equilibrium, or of minimal expenditure of energy. Too much energy means little balance, so nature tries to equalize it. Are you following me so far?"

"You have reduced the Odyssey to a strip of four cartoons, but I think so."

Ryou said sarcastically.

"Sorry if we need the paperback!"

"No one had any doubts about you, Ichigo…"

"What the hell is the Odidey?"

"Stop it, Taruto. And by the way, it'sOdyssey."

Pai scolded him and beckoned MoiMoi to continue:

"This is what happens with atoms," he said, "They must have the same positive charge (protons) and negative charge (electrons) to be balanced; if they are not, they seek stability with other atoms of the same type or of other elements."

"Okay, slow down a second…!"

The mewneko cried and they saw her muttering to herself and gesticulating with her fingers, in the vain attempt to remember chemistry lessons she had never listened to:

"Yes... Okay, I'm following…"

"I mean, Ichigo, it's fourth grade stuff."

"What kind of elementary school did you attend, Minto?!"

"The MewAqua," MoiMoi continued, raising his voice to silence them, "Is reacting in the same way. Perhaps because they have not been separated with the right system, the shell and the Drops are still connected: this state makes the MewAqua release a huge energy, with which it can open the passages, but the energy is too much. Therefore, the Drops attempt to return to their point of origin to restore balance."

"This explains the behavior of the little girl at Yakori," Zakuro thought out aloud, "She had to feel the instinct to go back, but of course the MewAqua isn't sentient so it couldn't give instructions to the poor girl and she ended up going around in vain in a state of semi-unconsciousness due to the presence of the Drop."

MoiMoi clicked his tongue affirmatively and sighed:

"But the fact that the Drops move is just the minor problem…"

"Is there another one?"

Ichigo mumbled worriedly and he smiled at her tensely. Pai approached the keyboard and pushed a few buttons: the prisms on the monitor suddenly changed position and from a regular circle they dispersed across the whole surface of the sphere, on the top, bottom and side, oriented in every direction.

"We thought the Drops had opened up passages for other planets, but we were too optimistic."

"Some passages lead to planets on this dimension, it's true," MoiMoi continued, "But others…"

"Wait a second!"

On Ryou's impassive face, a grimace appeared:

"Did you say, 'this dimension'?!"

"I don't think I got it either, senpai…"

Kisshu chuckled, stunned.

"In this dimension." MoiMoi repeated as calmly as he could, "Some, yes. Others, no."

"Are you saying that the MewAqua has opened passages not only across space," Minto said agitated, "But even across new dimensions?!"

"That's what it would seem."

Pai replied dry, annoyed by their childish reactions.

"What is it, an episode of The X-Files?!"

"You weren't even born in the days of that tv show!"

"Do you think this is the main problem?"

Retasu exclaimed, looking shocked at Purin and Minto.

"So," Zakuro's voice betrayed a slight apprehension, "This is our biggest problem."

MoiMoi waved his hand left and right:

"So and so. The shielding bracelets work by detecting data from the external environment and can encode any possible idiom, so they should be very valuable aids to keep us unnoticed; unless you happen to be in a dimension or on a planet of sulfuric acid... But in the case, we can evaluate the situation."

He winked at her, unsuccessfully trying to tone it down:

"Let's say that the problem is a fusion of the two things."

He typed again on the keyboard. From the dot in the middle a trail of light started, which those present sensed represented a Drop, which crossed one of the prisms stopping at its border; after a few seconds, however, the Drop moved randomly on the screen, causing a new prism to appear in the point where it stopped and making the previous one disappear.

"Once on the other side, the Drops can't go back," said MoiMoi, "But it seems that, if they find a passage that brings them closer to the "home plate", they may be able to enter it."

"The fragments move?"

"I'm afraid so, Reta-chan..."

The boy jumped out of his chair and nodded toward the giant monitor, on which the tridimensional figures were rotating and fusing into one confused body:

"We are in the middle of a Crossing that never leads to the same place; every Road through the Crossing, so any connection to the MewAqua, is a potential danger to the two worlds beyond the passages, but the Drops can move…"
"The good thing is," Pai said, "That the Drops react to one another. With the one we have, we can locate the Drops on the other side."

"As long as they don't move."

Pointed out Sando nipping.

"With regard to this," MoiMoi said more serenely, "We know that the Drops cannot keep more than one passage open at a time; if we used the device with which we're going to Earth, once we find the Drop, we can weld the passage it created and stop it from escaping."

"It seems easy, explained like that…"

Ichigo murmured unconvinced.

"That's right!"

"I was being sarcastic, Purin…"

She shrugged and Ryou massaged his temple, tired:

"So the fragments could be anywhere?"

"In every possible dimension and on every possible planet that the Crossing reaches," MoiMoi admitted with a sigh. Minto pressed her fingers hard against her forehead at the apex of her irritation:

"Perfect! And we should collaborate for...?!"

"For as long as it's necessary, dear little sparrow."

"Call me that again, Kisshu, and it'll be the shortest collaboration of your life!"
Pai refrained from slapping them both; he felt like he was working with children:

"That's right," he said as calmly as he could, "And since none of us seem thrilled about the idea of these trips, I would say to start now."

"Right away?" Purin exclaimed, "Hey, wait! I can't disappear from home without warning!"

"There are obvious reasons of force majeure."

He made clear hardly.

"Force majeure or not, I can't leave like that. Neither do the others."

Her friends nodded to support her.

"And so?" he hissed poisonously, "When would the ladies be ready?"

"Now calm down Pai," Eyner tried to calm him, "It's clear that we must leave as soon as possible, but let's leave them the time to get organized…"

"Always the devil's advocate…"

"I'm just saying that nothing happens to us if we disappear for a few days," the other insisted, "No one would come looking for us."

"That's right," Ichigo agreed, "Do you have any idea what it means to disappear for an indefinite time from the Shintaro Momomiya's radar?! I doubt that as collaborators we would be very useful, locked up inside the house for punishment until we come of age."

The boy avoided answering and looked at them, clenching his jaw so much that Kisshu swore he heard his teeth creak.

"We'll be here tomorrow morning," Zakuro said firmly, "Before dawn."

Since Pai was no longer willing to participate in the discourse, to him irrational, and he didn't reply, MoiMoi nodded for him:

"Before dawn. Meanwhile, Pai-chan and I will block the nearest passage, but we have to be fast," he pointed to the monitor again, "Of the Drops that we have detected, three have left only the trace, but we can no longer locate them. I wouldn't want them to disperse, after too much time."

The Earthlings nodded in silence.

It was MoiMoi and Eyner who accompanied them to the passage. The sun was setting over Tokyo, and the temperature was dropping rapidly, carrying a fresh scent of grass and spring; none of the girls seemed inclined to indulge in that quiet while, anguished, they watched MoiMoi deliver to Ryou five small gelatinous balls:

"In case it takes us a while."

He said, and Ryou saw the spheres floating an inch above his palm, the surfaces flickering as if they were breathing.

"You can use them to create diversions."

"Should I clone the girls?"

MoiMoi shook his head:

"They are special screens created in the laboratory... They have the same function as your bracelets, but they can recreate a complete person," he jumped into the passage, "They are already programmed, just press on them to activate them. While you're not using them, keep them in a drawer."

And after nodding goodbye, he went back with his companion.

Ichigo and the girls looked at each other in silence; walking home, the redhead couldn't help but think of the dream from the previous night, the words by the evanescent figure and then by MoiMoi and Pai.

Drops and passages, Drops and Roads.

Three Drops disappeared.

The Roads unreachable without a Key.

Was he referring to this?

Troubled, she thought of talking about it with her friends, but she had no certainty, either that the two matters had any connection, nor of who was actually the person of her dream.

She kept quiet, heading home and watching worriedly the sun disappear behind the tallest buildings in downtown.

Dawn would never come fast enough.

It was still dark when Retasu arrived in front of the passage for Jeweliria. She sighed at the dark sky and grayish light in the distance to the east, and was certain that she had arrived too soon.

Well, better to wait than else…

She had hardly slept due to the anxiety, and when her alarm clock had marked twenty past four in the morning, she had grown tired of turning around in the sheets: she had dressed quickly leaving a note to her parents – in which, by the time they woke up, they would have believed easily – where she announced that she had woken up "a little earlier" and had already headed to school, and had rushed to the park without thinking that the appointment with the girls would be after more than half an hour.

She sighed again, shuddering at a breeze of fresh air. It wasn't really a great idea to stay there, but certainly she couldn't go back home, and it seemed absurd to go to the Café, risking to only waste time and maybe wake up Ryou and Keiichiro in advance.

"Who knows... If MoiMoi-san is already awake..."

She looked around again and entered the passage. On the other side it was still dark as well, but the dawn peeped with more conviction from beyond the horizon.

With an uncertain pace, Retasu went to the lab, then stood still in front of the entrance for long minutes: of course, there were no bells of sorts or intercoms, and even with her short-sightedness she could see the reflection of the barrier around the building.

What now?

"M-MoiMoi-san...?"

"Reta-chan?"

The green sighed for a long time, sometimes a she was a little lucky too:

"Yes, it's me."

"What are you doing here? It's very early!"

"The others will come soon," she promptly justified them, "I... Well, I was a little nervous and... I got here early."

She said awkwardly:

"If I'm bothering you…"

"Come in, Reta-chan," he laughed, "Get down to the lower lab... I'm on my way."

The green girl trotted through the door that opened with a dull suck and descended to the lower floor with confidence; she already had a beautiful smile painted on her face and was ready to greet her friend, but all the enthusiasm evaporated the moment she saw the room.

Straight in front of her, she saw Lenatheri sitting in a chair, her left leg just lifted and shielded from view by Pai's figure, kneeling on the ground; the boy had his back to the stairs, but his hand was visibly intent on testing the white curve of the brunette's thigh, as it was visible the attention he was paying to doing so.

Retasu became pale, then red until she was scarlet and then again blue from the fright of seeing that Lena had noticed her; the green girl went from cyanotic to a nice hue of magenta, she turned around at once and squashed against the door jambs, squeezing her eyes shut until she gave herself a headache:

"So-sor-sor-sor…! I didn't – n't – n't…!"

Her brain was traveling so fast to try to figure it out that she couldn't talk.

She didn't believe what she had seen.

It wasn't possible!

If never, never, never in life would she had wanted to be in such a mess, it was aggravated by its irrationality.

"Reta-chan?"

The girl jolted at the voice:

"M-MoiMoi-san...?"

Irrationality became absurdity, there was something wrong.

Lenatheri, Pai... And MoiMoi?!

Almost unsure of having heard her name, Retasu looked in again, more confused than ever, meeting the smiling honey-colored eyes of her friend:

"Good morning! Come on in."

She looked at him as if he had gone mad and hesitantly moved her gaze onto the other two. Pai was watching her quietly, even a little astonished to see her so agitated, while Lena was giving her a kindly mocking smile:

"Midorikawa-san, right?"

The green girl barely nodded, and Lena's smile widened, softening:

"Good morning."

Retasu saw her move her leg and the embarrassment was replaced in a flash by a cold discomfort. On the left leg where the day before Lena had worn a colored band, instead of light skin there were a series of tiny gears and metal foils, glowing in the light blue light of the electronic tools; the screws and joints hissed imperceptibly at every slight movement of the brunette, supporting everything that was below the curve of her hip.

"Ikisatashi was helping me."

Lena explained hastily, glancing at Pai. Only then did Retasu realize that the boy's hand, which he had believed naked on Lena's skin, held a small tool similar to a screwdriver: he gave it one last half turn and then extracted it from what, once, had been the girl's ankle. Lena barely hissed when he pulled out the metal tip and turned again to Retasu:

"My leg is misbehaving."

She looked at the alien as if expecting an answer, but he didn't say a word and got up annoyed:

"I'm not a doctor."

"We need a mechanic here, not a doctor," she joked bitterly, "And what better mechanic than the one who built it?"

He glanced daggers at her, offended by the term. MoiMoi laughed and Retasu felt the annoying hum of the neurons quieten and she resumed breathing regularly.

It was evident that there was a rational explanation for what she had seen and logically it wasn't... What she thought she had seen.

Obvious.

After all, how was that possible?

Pai wasn't…

Come on. With a woman, being affectionate…!

Even the thought was ridiculous!

Retasu distractedly pinched a corner of her lips. She knew nothing about Pai other than what she had seen fighting against him, she couldn't affirm for sure what was possible or not.

"You're a morning person."

Lena's words, as she wrapped again the sash around her leg, suddenly brought Retasu back to earth.

"I had come early on purpose to let you work in peace."

Retasu bowed slightly to apologize and blushed, noting that her politeness and being uncomfortable amused the brunette a lot:

"Only... A little insomnia..." she muttered, trying to ignore her grin, "So I arrived too soon…"

"Don't worry!" MoiMoi smiled, "We were here anyways, Pai-chan and I are the king and queen of insomnia!"

Retasu smiled, but couldn't get shake the impression that Lena, who was covering her leg, was amusedly studying her every now and then.

"Here you go."

The green girl blinked a couple of times, looking puzzled at the small cup that was given her. She fearfully took the steaming mug between her fingers and recognized the smell of paina, which she had drunk at Lasa's:

"Thank you, Pai-san…"

"Being too nervous is not very helpful," he remarked drily, "That should relax you a little bit."

She didn't take any offense for his tone and smiled at the gesture, thanking him again.

"I want a little more too!"

"Senpai, you drank three cups in an hour," he pointed out, "And you're already too relaxed. The next stage is catalepsy."

"Uff, Pai-chan! You're not nice! »

Retasu laughed softly at the scene and MoiMoi followed her, playfully mocking her kohai, who as usual didn't rebut to the provocation even though his serious face was serene.

It was only a few minutes later that MoiMoi realized that Lena was gone.

When they were gathered, the sky was beginning to turn light blue above the still-sleeping city. In the basement, the last details were discussed and Taruto was engaged in a chat with Sando:

"You're not coming, senpai?"

"Councilman Teruga still has enemies among the Council," he explained, "It's always good that he has his back covered."

The brown-haired boy took on an air evidently disappointed:

"I understand…"

Sando chuckled and rubbed his hair:

"You've become strong, kid. Don't worry."

Taruto laughed smugly and then tried to compose himself again, adjusting his hair annoyed.

"Of course Eyn is late…"

Kisshu sighed distractedly.

"I think Teruga-san called him for something," MoiMoi said vaguely, "Maybe he held him back."

Sando frowned, not convinced:

"Then he's taking too long."

MoiMoi watched him get up and head up the stairs, he knelt on his chair:

"Where are you going?"

"To look for him, no?" the other replied abruptly, "Didn't we say that we were in a hurry?"

"Ah, Sando-san...! I'm coming too... I might go crazy if I keep staying still!"

The man studied Retasu in silence and then saw Zakuro come up beside her friend, the same face that asked only to be able to move a little and escape from the unnerving wait of departure. Sando shrugged his shoulders:

"At least have the decency not to get lost..."

Sando led them through the passage from which they had reached the Council Palace the first time and immediately found a way to make them useful:

"There are only a couple of places where they might be."

He pointed to the two Earthlings the corridor to their left:

"If you get to the bottom and you don't see anyone, it means they're this way."

And he hinted with his thumb to the other side.

"Explanatory."

Zakuro commented amusedly, but Sando didn't mind her and left on his own.

"The sun has almost risen now," Retasu worriedly noticed, "We better hurry."

The mewwolf nodded and preceded her briskly.

They walked in silence for a few minutes along the semi-dark corridor, pierced only here and there by the cold light of dawn that reached some windows; he shiny floor and smooth walls were interspersed with blue shadows and not a sound, except their light steps, skimming the motionless air.

"If I weren't so nervous about the thought that in less than ten minutes I might be on another planet," Retasu said with a tense smile, "I'd love to walk around this place..."

Zakuro barely nodded and smiled encouragingly.

Suddenly they heard distinctly, albeit distant, voices; voices not at all reassuring and smothered imprecations, accompanied by thuds tremendously similar to bodies being struck.

Retasu alarmedly looked at the brunette and instinctively snapped in the direction of the sounds, turning in a side hallway with no way out, packed at the end with racks of weapons. It was very dark, but one could distinguish the figures intent on beating with sadistic satisfaction on a fourth one: the attackers were soldiers, by the uniform they wore, while the fourth...

The moment Retasu recognized him, she could barely hold back a yell.

"Eyner-san!"

He, until a second before still in front of his assailants, widened his eyes hearing her and, having raised his head, he grimaced:

"Ouch, ouch…"

Retasu noticed the rapid passage of his gray eyes from her to the brunette behind her, as well as the bitter smile that for a second curved the lips of the brown-haired boy, before he returned to look at her saddened:

"It'd be better if you didn't see this…"

"What do they want?"

One of the soldiers, the closest to the Earthlings, looked at them menacingly:

"What is it? Did you com –"

"They have nothing to do with this."

Eyner blocked him. Despite his battered face and blood on the collar of his clothes, his voice was calm and nothing in his movements betrayed any beating; effortlessly, he pulled himself straight and unceremoniously pushed away the two who were holding him, giving the impression that he had limited himself to not reacting until that moment.

He wiped his split lip and stared with tired resignation at the three around him:

"Well, you're done playing," he said softly, "Now I'm leaving."

"Where do you think you're going to run, faiglek(*)?!"

One of the two behind him grabbed him by the arm, tugging him back:

"We're not done!"

Looking at Eyner's face, the threat wasn't really much incisive, because the brown-haired boy merely stared the other off with annoyance. Retasu, on the other hand, became more frightened and pushed away one of the soldiers, trying to get closer to her friend:

"Leave him now!"

The guard obviously didn't even listen to a syllable and pushed her back, chuckling:

"What a sweet squad of helpers!"

"Keep your hands away from my friend, piece of imbecile…"

"I told you that they have nothing to do with it."

Eyner blurted hard, pulling his arm away; the soldiers laughed more with gusto.

"Hey, I know them," the third one clamored, "Are they not the Earthling with whom faiglek hangs around?"

"You'd better be careful about what you say," Zakuro hissed again, ice-coldly, "And if I were you, I'd leave,, before I'd hurt myself."

"So scary!"

The three burst into belly laughs and the first grabbed Retasu's wrist, snatching a sharp squeal from her:

"What do you want to d-"

Before one of the two girls could react, the soldier screamed and left the green, bending backwards in pain. Retasu and Zakuro saw him trying in vain to free himself, but Eyner kept his forearm flexed behind his back and the only thing the soldier could do was try not to give in on his legs.

"If you want to be assholes with me, have fun," the brown-haired boy growled furiously, "But touch them, and I might get angry."

To confirm the threat, Eyner bent the soldier's arm even further, and he barked and cussed, writhing in a futile attempt to loosen the brown-haired boy's grip.

"Damn fucking faiglek...!"

One of the soldiers behind him made a dagger appear in his hand and attempted to hit him, but Eyner was quicker. He vigorously threw the boy he was holding against the wall, where the latter slammed his face and then collapsed to the ground with a groan, and before the other soldier pierced him, Eyner pulled out his weapon; the opposing blade was cut in half like a sheet of paper and the brown-haired boy kicked the assailant in the chest, and smashed him to the ground, against one of the racks with a large bang.

"Huge son of a b-"

The last of the three couldn't even complete his sentence, not to mention the attack, and was hit by a sharp elbow to the teeth, ending up lying flat on the floor, cursing with his hands clenched on his face. The dagger's owner tried to get up, coughing and spitting, and terrified saw Eyner pointing his jitte between his eyes; the metal of the weapon barely glowed red and appeared to be on the verge of spitting fire.

"If any of you, anyone, even tries thinking of putting their hands on them, I won't simply disarm you."

He kicked towards the soldier the parts of his now destroyed weapon, the edges of the two broken halves incandescent. The three soldiers, once so bald and satisfied, looked at him trembling and pale in the face, stunned by his reaction, but did not move.

"What's going on?!"

At Sando's imperious voice, the soldiers emitted yelps of terror: they scrambled to their feet and immediately staggered out of the corridor, pushing one another to escape, speeding up the pace as the man railed against them and ordered them to stop.

"Forget it, senpai…"

Eyner's words died on his lips and with a groan he let himself fall on his knees, clutching sorely an arm on his chest.

"Eyner-san…!"

"I'm fine, I'm fine…" he reassured her, his right cheek swollen, "Seriously…"

Gently, Sando moved Retasu aside and put Eyner's arm around his shoulders, lifting him up and making to teleport. The girls placed a hand on his back just in time, before he left them there: they found themselves in a narrow and unknown room, but in a familiar style; Retasu was certain that they were in some wing of the lab that they had not yet seen.

"What happened?"

Zakuro's voice, a bit more daring than usual, did not shake Sando, busy on helping Eyner sit in the only chair present. She frowned and called the man to answer her, but Sando continued not to mind her as the door of the room opened and MoiMoi entered.

"Sando, what... Eyn-chan!"

The boy trotted lovingly to the kohai, looking at him frightened and taking to inspect him, gently turning his face to assess the extent of the damage.

"It's been a while since it happened, senpai..."

The brown-haired boy smiled awry to him:

"Must have been distracted."

He added nothing and bit his lip, fidgeting with something hidden behind a pile of battered cables. Sando looked at him distractedly with the corner of his eye, dark in his face, and Retasu approached Eyner shyly:

"Eyner-san, but what happened?"

"Don't worry, Retasu-chan," he smiled to her hearteningly, "It's not serious. We're just going to leave a little late."

She wanted to say something else, but MoiMoi grabbed her by the arm and pushed her and the mewwolf towards the door, also signaling to Sando to follow them:

"Now get out," he said briskly, "See you upstairs."

"Wait, MoiMoi-s...!"

He closed the door in her face without giving space for an answer.

Retasu looked confused at the brunette, evidently on the verge of bursting but who remained mute, her fists closed, and heard Sando heading up the ladder behind them.

"What happened?"

Zakuro asked, but Sando only turned his back to her and climbed up.

"Sando-san."

He insisted in his stubborn silence and arrived at the threshold of another door, hunted by the mewwolf:

"Sando-san!"

He stopped with his hand already on the handle. They remained like that for a good five minutes, he staring at her fixedly and silently, she who stared back his night-colored gaze, firmly intending to have answers; at last, sighing, he lowered his hand and turned to the Earthlings:

"It's complicated."

"Everything around here is complicated," the mewwolf pointed out harshly, "That's why we have a right to know."

Sando seemed still undecided, until they heard MoiMoi coming close humbling a grotesque nursery, which terribly reminded Retasu of the idiotic songs that sometimes children invent to tease their mates.

Head of soil, old eyes

May the coward freeze and die

In the ice he will not end

From the house he won't defend

Throw the key and apprehend

Rot! Die! Wither

Hurt the traitor and don't dither

The two girls looked at him bewildered.

"In our language, at least, it's more musical."

He said sarcastically.

"MoiMoi-san... Where's Eyner-san?"

"He'll join us in ten," he reassured her, "As soon as he's fixed up."

Retasu looked at him without understanding.

"We have a useful machine to heal small wounds in a short time," he explained, "An emergency solution, since it wasn't serious, and we have to leave immediately."

"Yes, but..."

MoiMoi ignored her protests, overtook the trio and opened the door, stopping only once he'd opened it. He turned to the girls and sighed softly:

"I only tell you about it because you have seen it. Don't tell the others, okay? And especially to Kisshu, don't mention it! He and Eyn-chan... don't like to talk about it."

They nodded and MoiMoi resumed going up, this time at a slower pace.

"MoiMoi-san, that kind of nursery rhyme…"

He sighed again and turned to Retasu with a melancholic smile:

"You could hear it a lot, until two years ago."

He chuckled:

"It's weird… Before Kisshu and the others left for Earth, no one would ever think of singing something like this about Eyn."

"I had guessed something."

The alien studied surprisedly Zakuro who instead gazed at her right arm:

"Yesterday... Even if I wanted to, I couldn't stop him from holding me back," she said flat, "I wondered why such a strong fighter hadn't been chosen for the mission."

"Eyn-chan was chosen."

The girls looked up, meeting MoiMoi's said and golden gaze:

"The Council chose four of the most skilled soldiers in our army to go to Earth, but Taru-chan had received the appointment only as a formal title."

"A 'reserve,'" Sando explained, "In case one of the chosen ones refused the mission. A bureaucratic formality, more than anything."

"But Eyner-san…"

MoiMoi smiled grimly:

"At that time, even Deep Blue had to comply with our laws, and they say that for good reasons you can refuse a mission. Eyn-chan simply said that he could not go to Earth because he did not feel he had the determination to fulfill all the orders he could receive. Meaning, he didn't know if he'd be able to fight at any cost."

Retasu tightened her lips and gathered her hands to her chest, perfectly understanding Eyner's doubts and imagining how much it must have cost him to utter such words in front of his people.

"No one could imprison him or punish him for it," Sando added, "But no one ever really accepted his decision."

The girls didn't answer.

"Faiglek..."

MoiMoi looked at Zakuro and breathed a long sigh:

"Coward…"

"B-but why doesn't Eyner-san resist?" Retasu asked hesitantly, "I mean, he would have no problem defending himself."

Sando laughed bitterly:

"The first and last time he reacted, they put him in a cell for three weeks. He's sturdy, it's quicker to make them vent so they get bored, than to beat them and then end up in jail because of them."

Retasu didn't think that was a very healthy line of reasoning and imagined that the reason was another, but didn't ask. Zakuro, on the other hand, barely relaxed her forehead, pondering up the man's words.

"Don't mention it, okay?" MoiMoi insisted, "Please."

The girls nodded and followed them to the main laboratory, where the others were gathered waiting for their arrival. Immediately everyone began to ask where the last member of the group was, but Zakuro and Retasu simply shrugged and let MoiMoi explain, who invented an absurd excuse that only the unaware Earthlings could believe.

Retasu fixed her glasses on her nose and sighed tremulously:

"Do you think that Eyner-san will be fine?"

The brunette didn't answer her.

They went out into the open when it was full morning. Eyner had reappeared about ten minutes later, just as MoiMoi had said, smiling serenely and without a trace of any scratch or bruise or marks on his clothes, which had appropriately changed. However, as they made their way to the passage by crossing the woods behind the lab, he stood on the sidelines and began to slow down, walking listlessly through the low vegetation.

"Deep in thought?"

He barely lifted his head and made a strange crooked smile:

"Zakuro…"

He realized that he was far behind the others, but no one had noticed.

"The senpai have told you."

He deduced from her waiting for him. Zakuro shrugged her shoulders condescendingly and began to walk by his side:

"Retasu was worried."

"I imagined it," he replied, sighing, "She's like that, isn't she?"

Zakuro nodded with an undefined sound.

"I'm sorry you saw such a scene," he stopped and studied the brunette in silence, "I imagine that you think I'm a fool."

She continued not to speak and reciprocated his gaze; Eyner didn't understand her expression, but he had the feeling that she was studying him.

"Is it because of Sury?"

Eyner stared at her strangely, and Zakuro continued:

"Your sister. Are you not reacting because of her?"

He expected every question on the subject except for that one. He took a few moments to internalize it and finally nodded:

"Thanks to Lasa-san I got away with it once, but I can't leave her alone. Besides, after the boys came back, things got better… By now I had learned to avoid the problem from the beginning, that's why I did not expect the funny guys, today."

Zakuro nodded her head in assent.

"You can say it, you know?"

She gave him a questioning look.

"You think I'm a pathetic idiot."

In that instant, Eyner became convinced that Zakuro was the most surprising and inscrutable person he could ever meet in his life. He saw her turn again and, before whispering to him amusedly the answer, she smiled:

"Yes. You're an idiot."

And catching up to the others, she corrected him:

"A brave idiot."

They walked for a few minutes, reaching a small clearing among the trees, behind a slope at the back of the portal to Earth. Floating above the dry grass was another disc of dazzling light, smaller than the one for Tokyo and with more jagged, trembling, imprecise edges; two small triangular black boxes were positioned on either side of the passage and buzzed slowly, emitting invisible blue sparks.

With zeal, MoiMoi approached the boxes and pressed some buttons: the objects hummed louder, and the passage trembled, becoming clearer.

"I focused the frequencies on this passage," he explained quickly, "So the portal to Earth will be half-closed. Don't worry, once you're back, I'll fully reactivate it."

"Do we even know where we're going?"

"Don't be so sour, Ryou."

The reproach wasn't useful for Ichigo to mask her frightened little voice.

"It's a planet in this system," the alien comforted them, "Glatera."

Kisshu whistled relieved.

"At least we start off easy!"

"Are you serious or are you joking?"

"Never been more serious, kitten."

His sneer didn't reassure her much.

"It's a little planet of forests where there's nothing, apart from a large harbor," Taruto said, "We won't have many places where to look for the Drop."

With a brisk pace, Pai overtook the group lost in chatters and entered the portal, a sign that it was time to move.

With a leap Purin and Taruto queued up behind him, imitated by Minto and Retasu; Ichigo waited a second, took a deep breath and followed, with Kisshu behind her, stopping for only a moment to look at MoiMoi, intent on fixing the stabilizers of the portal:

"You're not coming with us, senpai?"

"I am forced to rest," he sighed, glancing sideways at Sando, "So it's better I stay and keep an eye on the situation. Besides, I wouldn't want those guys to come and visit us."

"If it happens, we'll come right back," Eyner said firmly, following his friend, "Be careful."

MoiMoi smiled at him and watched them disappear. The last one to enter was Ryou, who had been staring raptly at the white surface for a few minutes.

"I don't think anyone would say anything if you decided not to go."

The blond looked at MoiMoi inexpressively.

"I understand your desire to follow them, but you have no powers, do you? I don't think… What's that?"

The alien stretched toward the boy's wrist and brushed his fingers against the shielding bracelet, his eyes widening; Ryou smiled amusedly.

"What did you do?"

"A little fix a la Ryou."

And he passed through the portal giving him one last enigmatic look.

The boy had to cover his eyes because of the bright light and after a few steps he was out of the passage, ending up hit by a suffocating air, warm and pregnant with a moisture that bore the smell of soil and plants, dirt, metal and dust. It was hard to understand where he was, the portal popped up behind a low brown building in a narrow alley, closed on one side by a coarse wooden fence and open on the other side on an addling crowd. All his senses were numbed by the heat and the noise and around he saw nothing enlightening, except the stone wall.

"Shirogane-kun!"

Ichigo called him from the side facing the road, waving her hand, and he reached her; he noticed that all the girls were in their Mewform and wanted to ask why, but changed his mind seeing what was walking in front of him.

It looked like the set of a science fiction movie. Between battered stalls and little shops that opened on the dusty street strolled beings of all possible species, sizes and aspects. Some resembled humans or Kisshu and the others, with skins more or less dark and distinct or round ears, some – and Ryou understood why the girls had transformed smoothly – with animal ears and tails and even with furs or scales for skin. Other passers-by had physiques, as well as all other physical features, resembling squat anteaters or large biped lizards and spoke unknown languages, so quickly that the bracelets didn't have the time to translate them and to the Earthlings' ears came only puffs and growls. Someone had so much rusty junk on them that they couldn't understand what was underneath, someone else wore fur clothes that made them evaporate for the heat just at the sight of them, others were dressed only for the bare minimum modesty.

Kisshu took a sound breath and theatrically said:

"Aaah, Glatera! How much I missed you!"

"It's so hot!" Purin complained, wiping sweat from her face, "How dare you complain about the heat of Tokyo?! It's like the rainforest here!"

"I think it's similar... Judging by the vegetation..."

Zakuro commented distractedly.

"How will we find the Mew Aqua in such a mess?"

"Old-fashioned way, little crow. Saddle up and let's take a look around."

Trying not to get lost in the Glatera crowd was as complicated as finding clues about MewAqua, especially wandering around in a group of ten. Eyner, feeling sorry for him, looked at a desperate Taruto, intent on holding Purin back from snooping alone and getting lost:

"Let's hope they don't get caught by some merchant; here they might sell them for a sack of flour!"

At that statement, Retasu sent a terrorized squeak and glued her gaze to her blonde friend, all concentrated on a cage of strange furry, hungry-looking beings. Minto sighed annoyed and wiped her sweaty forehead:

"What a nice little place..."

"We get by as much as possible," Pai retorted flat, "There isn't much here, but it's the only planet within the range of hundreds of miles where you can stop and refuel. It makes sense that a little bit of everything gathers here."

"Obviously."

Trained for years by Kisshu's tongue, Pai didn't even reply to Zakuro's sarcasm.

"Do we have at least a few options on where to look?"

Eyner dodged a group of three low short and squat characters with heavy metal shoes that almost chopped his foot, and cursing incomprehensible profanities answered:

"The best thing would be to ask for information, but we don't know how they might react. The Drop could be joined to someone and played a trick like the one on Earth, or it may have lodged into some object that has taken on some value…"

"The classic needle in the haystack."

Minto sighed, nodding.

"If we can find someone we know," the brown-haired alien muttered deep in thought, "Maybe…"

"I thought you didn't travel much away from your planet."

"You mean because of the climate?"

He answered his question and Ryou made a silent noise of assent.

"Not as much before, but it wasn't rare," Eyner said briefly, "Obviously now we travel more."

"Kisshu's the one always wandering," Pai hissed annoyed, "Maybe he can find something useful."

"And where did he go?"

"He was behind us with Ichigo…"

At Retasu's words, Ryou clenched his jaw and looked over his shoulder, instantly spotting the flamboyant pink dress of the mewneko. Too far away, too many people between them; an alien with too many blatantly malevolent intentions near her.

Too much was his pride that, instead of making him do a U-turn, made him accelerate his pace.

Ichigo bent down cautiously to study the box, left on the corner of the stall in front of which she was standing. The owner was busy dealing with a customer for the purchase of a strange lilac-colored lizard and didn't mind her, who put her nose as close as she could to the cage: inside there were five little beings who at first glance were equipped with spines, but at closer inspection, they better possessed a mantle composed of long thick filaments, which moved continuously like a sea anemone; the filaments were of warm colors, yellow and reddish, and became iridescent at every move, turning to violet and greenish shades; the creatures had tiny black eyes and three squat, round legs on which they clumsily stood, continually emitting a subtle whistle-like verse. .

Ichigo looked at them ecstatically due to their strangeness and the beauty of their colors, getting even closer. She wanted to stroke them and stretched a gloved finger between the bars; one of the little creatures stared at her with shiny eyes and the redhead sent an excited squeal:

"Oh, you're so cute…!"

The little animal moved its mantle a little more, stepped back and frantically started to smack its tiny mouth. Ichigo stopped disoriented, managing just in time to dodge a gush of drool he spat at her, yelping and tumbling to the ground.

"Curiosity killed the cat. Isn't that what you say?"

She stared at Kisshu who was teasing her, blushing offended:

"No one asked for your opinion!"

He laughed and helped her get up, pointing to the ground:

"Why don't you ask before you get your hands on it?"

Ichigo followed his finger with her eyes and a tremor shook her: where the creature had spat there was a nice smoking hole.

"They were so cute…"

She cried in her defense; Kisshu looked at her amusedly:

"Those cute things spit acid."

He pushed her away before anyone asked anything or protested, whispering to her:

"Honestly, it's not an animal I'd like to have in the house."

Ichigo couldn't agree more.

They quickly moved away and suddenly Ichigo realized that they had been separated from the others. A surge of agitation clenched her stomach, being alone with Kisshu was not the greatest of her aspirations.

She tried not to think about what he might do or tell her and instead focused on what she should say; she took a nice breath, lowered her feline ears with a guilty demeanor and murmured:

"Listen..."

"Uh?"

"I wanted to... I'm sorry about what… what happened the other day."

She tormented a flap of her skirt, looking at the ground:

"At the Council. I didn't mean to act like that with you, I'm so sorry..."

Kisshu looked at her for a moment and smiled:

"Apologies accepted, kitten."

She was dismayed, both for the speed with which he had accepted her words as for the happy air he had taken in hearing them, and she looked to the side uneasy.

"Don't make that face kitten, I'm not going to eat you!"

He laughed and then took a mischievous smile, lowering his tone:

"At least not if you don't ask me…"

"You're always so stupid!" she blurted out, raising her tail, "How can I listen to you when you're serious, if you spend your time making fun of me?!"

The smile disappeared from Kisshu's face, and he assumed an indefinable expression. Ichigo believed she could see an ocean of unspoken phrases behind the boy's amber gaze, but she didn't catch any. Or maybe, she didn't want to.

"I don't make fun of you, Ichigo."

At being called by her name, the redhead could no longer move a muscle.

"Everything I tell you, I really believe it."

He raised an arm and brushed her cheek with his fingertips. Ichigo tried to convince herself that it was Glatera's heat that chocked her, not his hoarse and warm voice:

"I like you, I find you adorable and if it wasn't that you'd probably punch me, I'd kiss you right here and now."

Ichigo felt that her abs had returned to the size of when she was three years old, so much they tightened her stomach and took her breath away. She prayed he'd take his hand off her face or he'd notice that she was blushing; unless she was already betrayed by the color of her skin, at that moment certainly the same shade of the bow on her tail.

"Because I love you."

She gasped and shrugged her shoulders, her heart hammering in her chest. She remained silent to stare at him, unable to reply to the desire she felt pierced her skin at every glance, to that burning love sad of being declared for the umpteenth time, receiving only silence.

As if nothing had happened, Kisshu smiled slyly to her, patted her nose with his index finger and resumed walking. Ichigo stood motionless and staring at him, breathing hard to calm down, and then, hesitantly, trotted behind him so as not to get lost, still keeping a certain distance.

She didn't love him... But if he spoke to her like that, if he always looked at her as if she was the most beautiful thing in the world, telling him became difficult.

Damn you!

She watched him turn his head, attracted by something, and approach a shop, beginning to talk with the noisy salesman. The man, small and flabby, had a strange bald head covered with scales and slurred so much that despite the translator Ichigo couldn't understand too well what he was saying. She thought the man pointed at her as she approached and said something suspicious to Kisshu, chuckling, and she blushed angrily:

"I hope you didn't tell him anything he could misunderstand..."

She hissed in the boy's ear, and he smiled candidly:

"All his insinuations."

"So!" the man continued in a raspy voice, "What can I sell to you and your better half?"

Before Ichigo clawed his faces in a fitty shot of embarrassment, Kisshu smiled carelessly:

"Luckily I think I can keep my money in my pocket without having you rob me."

The man made a theatrical offended grimace.

"But if I can ask you something as a friend, next time I can think about it a bit…"

The man narrowed his eyes and nodded with a grunt, decidedly less cheerful:

"Look, if it's something I can risk my limbs for, don't even think about it."

"None of that!" Kisshu reassured him "Do you know anything about a strange shiny sphere?"

The shopkeeper kept staring at him and shook his head without understanding. Ichigo then came up again and added:

"It's big," she said, tracing the shape of a ball with her hands, "More or less like this… and it's kind of white, and it moves all the time."

The man studied them as if they were crazy for another couple of minutes and then grunted:

"Mmm... I don't know if that's what you're looking for, but maybe I've seen something like that before..."

Ichigo leaped with joy:

"Really?"

He stretched his arm beyond the window of his shop and pointed to the adjacent wall: above there was a strange poster, all dirty, with the very realistic drawing of a large monster similar to a giant dog.

Kisshu got closer to read and turned white. Ichigo bit her lip:

"How much trouble are we in?"

"Do you really want to know?"

He made room for her to look better. Ichigo didn't understand what was written on that piece of paper, but she perfectly recognized the bright ball drawn around the canine monster's neck.

"I would say in very, very big troubles. And with fangs."

(*) I invented the word, based on the German Feigling, eg. coward