Elemental Aeon
Kesshou Uryou

Act III
Chapter IX
Distinction

Elementalists were a new breed in an aged world. Ever slowly inching towards the century old mark, they were a fresh and newly written page of history. For as long as the elements have spun out of control, there have been Elementalists. From the time that the Elemental Aeon began, there have been those who could control the phenomena.

It had been something akin to a chain reaction in essence. To maintain the unstoppable, wherein control had been completely nonexistent, life forms found a way to grasp power again. The free thinkers that lived in this world, all the people that inhabited it, had always been personal seekers of the glory and curse of power. For it was, at its truest, a double-edged sword.

Rapidly enough, an endless cycle had been crafted where the very nature of the world had ventured out to take control once and for all, possibly to extinct its captors. But life had passionately fought primitively for itself, and when that battle has passed, life was consumed by the attained power it had received in the process.

Nature slips away to chaos. Elementalists mend this if they so choose. A brief interlude of peace is interrupted by a repeat of this sequence.

Control is really such a fleeting thing.

Myth and lore have come to surround just how Elementalists came about, especially since there has not been a long length of time to understand how the unusual gift has been passed along after its essential creation. Is an infant just born with the possibility of being an Elementalist? Is it something that is capable of being passed on? And if so, how did the first ones achieve the power? Countless people must have been afflicted by the quartet of abilities for them to spread as rapidly as they did.

True, they were still a grave minority in the beginning days, but they were not something to be easily forgotten, and they have only increased as time progressed to today's time. So the question of how these people existed is one asked in high frequency.

But truly there has been no explanation either on how the Elemental Aeon sparked to life. Certainly it could not be a mere coincidence that Elementalists sprang up at the same time of the Elemental Aeon. Somehow the mysteries seem to be related, but nothing has ever surfaced to prove just how and, more importantly, why.

With the growing numbers of those who can control the elements, so does those who say their parents themselves could not. It is hard to tell what the direct relationship really is, as Elementalists are only in their third, or in some cases, fourth generation. And due to this chaotic world, first generation, eighty-some odd year old Elementalists are dropping fast and so do their stories and possible answers.

Be the real explanation as it might, one thing is certain. People and their respective world are and have always been connected with a fine and flexible thread. An overbalance on one side, affects the other. Everything involving the two has recuperations.

So it perhaps could be this world's way of getting revenge on its inhabitants or just a string of unforeseeable events, but it has happened. And there appears to be no end in sight despite the measures taken today to limit or cease the elements' advances.

-Two Years Later-

"Hmm?" Tomoyo slammed her book shut at that, peering up at the inquisitive Meilin. The raven haired girl was leaning over Tomoyo's shoulder, blinking nonchalantly despite Tomoyo's obvious rudeness. Meilin's hair was wet and down, parted over one shoulder. Obviously, she was back from the baths, but it seemed that it had been a rather fast trip, and Tomoyo had hardly read a peaceful chapter in her absence.

The only other thing running through her mind was that Meilin was far too good at sneaking up on people. Oh, and a little exasperation.

"Why are you always so interested in what I read anyway?" Tomoyo scrambled up tiredly from her position that was best described as chaotically spread across her bed. She placed the now closed book with the rest of her other ones, a growing mound threatening to take over a good size portion of the room. With Meilin's efforts, someone could mistake their living quarters as a library. It practically was Tomoyo mused.

"It could be something useful to know," Meilin quirked, an eyebrow raised as if she was stating the obvious. Tomoyo knew from experience that she was in a childish, almost playful, mood. Which, in other words, meant she was in good spirits.

"For whatever the hell you're up to?" It was a question Tomoyo often used in their conversations. Meilin seemed she had yet to tire of it, though.

She paused in partially drying her hair, shooting the door a thoughtful look before grinning back at Tomoyo. She abandoned her task, making quick work of blowing out all the candles still flickering in the otherwise dark room. The sun had set hours ago.

Straightening out her choice for sleepwear, she was under the covers in record time. Tomoyo was still sitting up in surprise, blinking and attempting to adjust her eyes to the newly established darkness. Before she could say anything, however, Meilin was closing off all forms of communication.

"You reminded me. I have to get up really early tomorrow. So it's time to sleep now. G'night." Tomoyo slowly came to lie down, wondering if it was something to do with Clow or if it was one of her own crazy schemes that had become the cause of her actions. Meilin hated getting up early.

But, well, it did not matter much. It was hard to believe it at first, but Meilin was seventeen, practically an adult. She could handle it. And the possible consequences that might result. Tomoyo herself had to get up and do some early and critical work in the medical ward. Some extra sleep couldn't hurt.

Actually, it looked like things were working out so that tomorrow would be a rather eventful one for more than just one person.

--e--a--

He leaned forward in careful study, afraid that blinking would break the spell that had been cast or make him miss a careful motion. Each step the older man took, each movement, Syaoran absorbed like a sponge, eager and restless to try it out himself, but he could manage to sit still long enough if he could somehow manage to do it so effortlessly like that.

Wei had become something akin to a father figure to him, but then considering their ages and their off-hand relationship, it was far less complicated than one between a father and son would normally be. He opted to think of Wei as more of a grandfatherly type, and so he gladly accepted the offered help because for once pride was not on the line here.

So when the demonstration had concluded, he wasn't nervous in stepping up to try the very same execution. He had never been willing to embarrass himself in front of anyone, and he still did get aggravated when he screwed up in front of Wei too. However, it was just that he was learning to accept the fact that he couldn't be seen as a perfect Elementalist in front of everyone. Eventually the mask had to crumble and someone would be there to see what was attempted to be hidden.

Failures had to be recognized. He didn't have to like it though.

He dipped forward then quickly back up, his arms trailing as he moved and his legs shifted. He watched in mild horror at was a produced. The sparks fell to the ground, not even worth a stamp of the foot to kill them off. Their short life had only been marked by a strange fizzling sound as they flew to the earth as the rejects they were.

"You still haven't relaxed." Syaoran instantly stiffened even more at the sudden speech then went completely loose in discontentment, waiting for more words of advice. He wasn't disappointed this time.

With this second exhibition, he really did watch the quicker and closer display without blinking. Wei turned around for the follow up comments.

"Remember that fire Elementalists use flames as extensions of their bodies. It's somewhat like this for the three other elements, but it's not exactly the same. Because fire Elementalists are the only ones capable of producing their own element, it's truer for them. The other Elementalists like to think they have the same connection, but it's more their own influence in their surrounding environment than anything else." He paused to catch Syaoran's eyes, the owner of them listening closely but already moving back into position to try again, eager to attempt it once more. Wei had a few last words, though.

"So relax. Even now you're still very stiff. Remember it's an extension of you." Syaoran almost ashamedly dropped into a slouch before straitening up and nodding. He rushed forward, increasing his speed and trying to keep the recent words in mind while still concentrating. It paid off.

Just maybe not in the way he would have expected.

A burst of flames, sparks mixed in too, shot up in front of him, wildly dashing out in an array. His arm moving to shield his face accompanied his startled yelp. Nothing could stop his own shirt from catching on fire or the small rebellious fires that sprouted forth from everywhere near him.

Being a little distracted by he himself catching fire, becoming almost frantic didn't seem too unrealistic. Fortunately he saved some face value by extinguishing the fire immediately threatening himself and a quarter of the nearby remaining ones by himself. Wei efficiently cleaned up the rest of the minor damage.

"That was a total disaster." Syaoran dropped to the ground, making sure that every last ember was no longer a threat. He knew that Wei's damage control wouldn't leave a single one, but it left him feeling a little less frustrated. Well, rather the action hid his current emotion a little better.

"Still better than what you did before. Your first attempts produced either nothing or a few sparks. At least you have something started now. You can build off of that, but you can't exactly work off of nothing."

Syaoran knew it was an attempt of cheering him up, something to raise his spirits, but with chin atop a fisted hand, feeling a little more accomplished didn't seem on the agenda. Brooding was.

"It was supposed to shoot forward in a controlled line. What the hell was that?" He straightened up to gesture with his arms without any extra meaning being conveyed by the motion. Syaoran became tongue tied in trying to continue.

"I didn't expect you to get it so quickly. It wouldn't make sense if you did." He blatantly ignored Syaoran's deadpanned comment about how it did make sense that it had backfired in his face. "The elements have a mind of their own, after all. To be able to control any or all of them without any trouble is a skill that doesn't come so easily. You have learned to control fire in set patterns, but it has to go beyond that if you truly want to become one of the best."

Syaoran took another look at the newly formed ashes, and there was the light scent of burnt grass in the air. "I do." He hadn't noticed until now when it was a little too quiet and that he was breathing heavily.

"We'll stop here for today. Tomorrow we'll see if you really can't do it. If not we'll only do some basic earth techniques." Syaoran whipped around, a clenched fist showing his opinions on the matter.

"I never said I couldn't do it! It's just a matter of time."

There was no time for his indignation to be fully appreciated though as Wei burst into a fit of coughs. Syaoran, knowing that this wasn't all too uncommon, raced to his side in apparent concern. There always seem to be a few loose gaps in Wei's overall health. He being aged induced further worry over him whenever he came into bouts like this one.

However, he stood up from his slightly bent over position, waving Syaoran off and walking slowly off. His mutters ran along the lines of he was fine and that he just needed some rest. Syaoran watched him walk off suspiciously, but he offered no protest in letting him go back alone. If Wei said he was fine, then he was.

He sighed, realizing he was alone once again. He picked his way through the charred ground slowly, making his way back to their camp.

Trailing his feet's progress with his eyes, he thought about his previous tries at controlling earth. The basics were generally the same between the elements, but trying to control another element all together seemed almost foreign to him after all this time he had solely focused on fire. Still, if he had the gift, he wanted to increase the results he could cultivate from it. It would just make him a better Elementalist if he knew how to work two elements at any given time.

He had been lucky to have been given a chance to train in accordance with Wei. Actually he had been lucky that the older man had existed at all. Syaoran found what he needed in a teacher, and he hoped he showed what was needed in a student.

Although, even with him being a pupil, there were actually no real guidelines to the teachings he was given. Everyone here usually just did things such as train without regulations. It seemed to be the norm to find someone here older and more skilled than you and try to convince them to teach you. Wei fortunately had no objections after Syaoran had confronted him upon seeing what the aged man could do.

Wei was a true talent with the ability to use all four elements. He was actually not nearly as gifted in the other three as he was with fire, but Syaoran had yet to find anyone else here who could make the same claim of having all four.

In fact, the leader, the willful and sometimes even cunning and sly Madoushi, was only a water Elementalist. Syaoran had been surprised upon learning this at first. Having originally come from where the leader was a renowned and balanced user of all four elements, hearing this was not what he had been expecting.

Actually there were more than a few differences between the two factions than just the singular one he joined Madoushi's group for in the first place. There were no carefully planned stops to rest at or paths specifically chosen to travel by. Things almost always seemed hastily decided, something like last minute planning.

Often Madoushi would come out into the clearing made for camp, nonchalantly waving in her hand several papers. Letters or requests, rumors or the like that she sought after through the towns they traveled through. And when finding one to her liking and specifications, they set out. That was all there was to it.

Well, that was all he heard about and saw on the matter for a while. But he was starting to traces of something else. Madoushi usually retreated from others, usually working her best craft: water. If he didn't know any better, it almost looked like she was trying to be a prophet.

Still, what his opinions over that topic had to with anything that was happening now, he didn't know. But when he arrived back at camp, it looked like he was stepping back in time. Only he wasn't; this was just how it always was. Madoushi was standing in the center of the commotion, a long rolled up parchment held firmly in her hands.

This time, however, he could have sworn that she had been the only one working on scrolls and parchment today, taking down her own notes. He hadn't been around the entire time but usually when mail was delivered, it came together with supplies and that would have taken longer to sort out. That being the case, there hadn't been enough time for all of that while he had been gone. And there were no traces of anyone else clutching notes from homes with excited or devastated faces.

So perhaps it wasn't any requests or rumors, but her own decision or idea. She seemed to be making more of those recently. And so far they had only, surprisingly, lead to strong conflict with the element at work. She either had good intuition or something else had to explain all the correct guesswork.

Now everyone was snapping around to their full attention, hurrying to pack up whatever belongings they had set out during their rest stop. It was already late afternoon and the sun had no delay in setting this time of the year. It looked like they would be doing a little bit of traveling in the dark today.

As everyone rushed him by, Syaoran self-consciously began to pick up nearby sleeping mats, not even sure of whom they had been set out by because everyone tended to share everything here. The plan had been to spend the night, but that had been easily abolished. Watching everyone else lugging supplies and materials, grinning at one another or in some kind of friendly conversation, he wondered if his reasons for getting out had been fulfilled.

He had wanted to get better having felt like he was being held back. He wanted to get away from the pressures back there and improve in a different environment. Regardless of whether this was a faster method, he liked to think that he had learned very quickly here and wasn't treated as a kid anymore. You had to lug your own weight around here, and they liked to split it evenly. No slacking off, no getting out of work.

But really, he knew that wasn't why he left. Not all the real reasons. To feel suffocated, to feel like he was losing all control, hopeless and helpless, he never wanted to feel that way again. Yet back there, everything was just the same as many, many years ago.

And despite how he hated to be reminded of it all, he couldn't stop wanting to see the ocean. He really couldn't. It annoyed him to no end because he had told himself that he wasn't supposed to ever think of it again, but he couldn't stop the tugging at the corner of his mind. And try as he might, he couldn't quite convince himself that he wanted to forget, wanted to make it all go away.

Yes, he wondered what it would be like to see the ocean again.

--e--a--

She was glad for the excuse. Her restlessness had escalated to the point she couldn't stand or sit still, and she was forced to pace around anxiously. She covered up her actions with the excuse of stretching her legs out after the short trip over here. It wasn't that far, not even close to the surrounding towns or villages around the complex. It was close enough for convenience, but far away enough for secrecy and isolation. Not to mention that the area didn't have boundaries or limitations on the use of an Elementalist's powers. Which meant that the sometimes irritating wrist guards were gone, much to Sakura's relief.

Still, Sakura had not too long ago learned how to manage the elements through other parts of the body and not just with her hands. It was easiest to work through them, and it required time and talent to make it work through any other outlet. Although she admittedly had only dabbled in it so far due to the fact it was surprisingly harder to control water without the use of the hands. Kaho-sensei had attributed it to the fact that people experienced life through their hands.

Therefore, it was only natural for manipulation to come easiest to them. They were in fact, she had said, very good at manipulating things regardless if the elements were involved. Sakura took it in like the good and gracious student she was trying to be. And Kaho-sensei's word, no matter it could be, had become law somewhere along that path.

Today was the day to put it to the test. The Water Apprentice Exam was the only thing keeping her from a very important promotion in level. That was the reason why she couldn't stand still. It was also why she was approaching the Water-sensei with just the faintest inkling of hope to get some final words of useful advice from her. On her way over, Sakura glanced to Rika who was staring at her feet, looking deep in thought. Sakura could only wish that she could look so calm.

"Kaho-sensei," Sakura greeted, with a quick and obviously nervous bow, returning to full height with her desperation to know any little bit more of what was awaiting them. "Is there any final advice you can give me?"

Kaho, herself insisting on being referred to as Kaho-sensei instead of Mizuki-sensei by her students, lowered her arms to her sides in response. Her smile was genuine and so was her apologetic expression.

"You know I can't give anything away about the test, if that's what you mean. That would be cheating. Just keep in mind what I have taught you, and you should do fine. Remember always consider the options before acting. You tend to get a little frantic when you're in the middle of the situation." Sakura lowered her head in slight embarrassment. That was no lie.

"But… are the rumors true? Is it like some kind of big maze inside?" Kaho raised her arm to stop the questions, but choose to glance at the said building before responding. Sakura turned her head to study it too.

It looked to be a decrypted, rundown, and aged building, too many cracks in the surface of the once smooth stone for it to be passed off as a decently new structure. Anyone could see the many doorways cutting into the rotunda-like or circular building. A careful eye could see how it slanted downwards as the further one's eye moved down to the center of the structure. Of course that was only from this vantage point on higher ground.

Kaho almost wanted to smirk. It looked a little intimidating from the outside, but she had had the real enjoyment in fixing up the inside for this year's Water Apprentice Exam. The chance to do something like it only came around once every other year, after all.

She turned back, her smile having never changed its appearance on her face. "You'll just have to figure that one out on your own. I promise though it won't be hard to figure out." Sakura wanted to gulp, but decide that would be a tad rude. She was in the middle of offering her thanks instead, however, when she was startled. Kaho wasn't.

"Clow Reed, it's almost time already?" Kaho nodded her head in Sakura's direction, and she took the hint. She stumbled off, leaving them to their business. It did not turn out to be a long conversation, however. A sudden and single clapping noise made her swivel around as Kaho gestured for everyone to move in closer. When everyone was in a reasonable distance, she began to speak.

"Everyone, welcome." Her arm shot out to her left and a smile that made its way to her eyes marked her face. "As you know, that is the location of this year's Water Apprentice Exam. The parameters are simple. There are sets of two objects that everyone hoping to pass must retrieve. Just make sure to return them in the condition they are found. Make it out in two hours, or it is an automatic failure. But without the items, leaving at anytime is instant disqualification.

"There are many entrances to the inside, and in a moment, please choose your entryway for the Exam. All of them are of the same difficulty so it does not matter which one you choose. You have all made this far and I congratulate you, but I have one word of advice. As long as you don't overestimate your abilities, you will be fine.

"Lastly, as I'm sure you've heard, there will be absolutely no use of any of the other elements once you are inside. All this applies to, remember this well. The Exam is being monitored, and you will be caught and flunked. That is all."

Sakura's mind was racing as she tried to retain everything, running back and forth over what had been said. It looked like others also had the same predicament of stowing away the information just now thrown at them. Those nervous before now looked like a wreck. Anyone still anxious and eager was beginning to shift their weight between their legs, but their Water-sensei had a few final words contrary to her last sentence.

"As for a start single… if Clow Reed would now do the honors." Everyone followed her finger skywards, and it didn't take long for them to figure out why. The once almost cloudless sky was filled with a multitude of the gray variety that only a heavy storm could procure.

Kaho caught their attention again. "Perfect. There'll be a heavy rain for a minute, so you might just want to go inside for that. So we'll take it as our starting signal. Please move to your starting position now so I can officially start the Exam."

No one dared to make her say it twice, even those that might have wanted her to. Sakura was almost lost for a moment amid the flutter of color and blurred faces. Chatter grew rapidly then died off as people separated; all was quiet now except for a few disputes over who had claimed they had gotten to a particular entrance way first.

But it wasn't long at all until Sakura was staring heatedly and just a little bit unsurely at the now opened doorway. But doubt hardened into resolve. She'd do this. She didn't just waste two years of her life. And she definitely wasn't going to waste another two while waiting for the next Exam.

And the sudden icy chill that ran across her now wet skin was motivation in itself to get started.

She was discovering a few things rather quickly, however, before her mind could even wrap itself around the fact that she was in a race against time to complete this test. The air was damp, the hairs on the back of her neck almost tingling about how overrun the place was with her element. The narrow hallway she now occupied was currently deserted if she didn't include herself, and she instinctively reached out at shoulder height to press her palms across the smooth walls as she walked slowly forward.

It was then that she heard the abrupt sound. Swinging her weight around, she managed to glimpse a small sliver of light before the door was completely closed. That would have been fine as far as she was concerned, but it became all too apparent that light was conspicuously lacking inside.

In fact, trudging forward, hands still against the walls, she only discovered her next source of light after another minute. It was dim in the distance, but she eagerly approached it with renewed vigor. On her tiptoes, her closest inspection could only confirm that it was a rather high up small square opening in the ceiling, barred by a crisscrossed pattern of metal. And as far as she could tell, the rain had already let up outside. But that didn't change the fact that she was standing in a rather large puddle.

She set out again, moving ever inward, not knowing in the least what to expect. So the sudden downpour had the intended effect. Not only was she startled and on edge, but she was damp and cold. At first she was more than happy to use her control over the element to keep herself dry, but as she continued on without any respite and upon reaching the first three-way intersection, she realized this could go on forever. Not to mention that this was a water evaluation test. Getting wet should be expected, and it was a waste of her energy to maintain keeping herself dry.

A bit reluctant though she was, she did drop the extra effort. She was quickly and miserably soaked to the bone, but she now needed to decide which way to go. It was then the brilliant idea struck her. She patted the surface of the wall where her left arm was still extended to and formed an oval shaped and jagged layered piece of ice. Markers would be a good way to get around if she was going to be reduced to feeling along the walls when it became dark, despite her eyes adjusting to the lack of light.

Feeling a bit of pride in her idea, she came to make several more directional decisions, letting instinct move her forward. Walking and stumbling, turning and twisting around corners, in and out of the dark. It felt like it was becoming a never ending cycle.

What really put the damper on her spirits, however, was her coming back to a place she had been already, feeling along the wall a distinct marker of her own. Her delight received from her prior creativity had suffered a bit back there, noticing how others had similar or variant ideas of her marker one. Still, there was no doubt that this marker was one of her own, and she sighed in frustration.

She didn't get it. She felt like she was wandering endlessly, sometimes being rained down upon, sometimes not but partially not even noticing the difference, so soaked to the bone was she. Nothing had even really happened yet. Was the test just something akin to a maze where you had to wander around corridors endlessly? It didn't sound like much of a test.

What irritated her even more was that she had made no direct contact with anyone else. She hadn't even heard a single other noise that signified human existence. Not that she could hear much over droplets pounding on the slabs of the floor's material when she was caught in the rain again. Still, it made her think that all the others had already moved on to where the true test was while she was here doing nothing yet except getting lost.

So it was in a desperate state of mind that she stumbled out of the rain for the nth time. And unsuspecting as it was, she took a short break, hands dropping to her side as she breathed deeply, listening faintly to the outpour right behind her. Up ahead she could see another shaft of light making harsh contrast with the darkness, and she approached it readily. It was just that she stopped halfway there.

She grimaced at what she immediately recognized to be standing in, the water slightly above her ankles in deep, running puddles. If that's what they could even be called. But something was wrong, the sound of rain was dying out behind her as she moved forward, and she could hear the faintness of trickling water. Coming closer to the light, her instant guess was proved to be correct by a quick glance. Eyes wide in relief and happiness, she saw the water ever so slowly running down the stone floor in the direction she was facing. The puddle at her feet was shrinking.

And hadn't it looked like there had been a depression in the structure from where she had studied it when she was talking to Kaho-sensei? Did that not mean that she had reached the center of the building? And perhaps this was as good a place as any to search for the two part requirement in this retrieval assignment.

Really anything would be better than wandering around so utterly lost at that very moment.

She wasn't really all that surprised, more like delighted, when something different stood out, illuminated by a rather high up but large opening for light to pass through. Sakura cautiously gave it a kick for no real good reason, finding that the door was indeed of solid metal and had to nurse her foot tenderly because of it.

But when her mind had started to focus on her surroundings, she found an overwhelming indication of water tugging on all the contours of her senses. Even more than before, she eyed the wide door cautiously, running her hand along the length and staring with a slight frown at what was clearly upon it. It was a circular handle, looking very necessary to be spun to open the door.

Excitement resulted in her full attention, she being sure that she was on the right track now. She only stopped for a moment to contemplate that she was standing in water up to her knees, and she almost stumbled at the sudden realization. But it seemed to be draining here too.

The way she saw it, the water must have came from further back in the corridor, running down the small slant to here where it collected. But even here it was not stagnant water. Instinct took over and she pressed her ear against the cool metal.

Biting her lip, she could hear, and now, ever so clearly, she could feel the water in that room. Tons and tons of it, that room was full of collective water. And this water here was going to be pushed into it. There must be some sort of pressure that caused it. She stared for a moment and took a look around again, finding nothing else.

With a deep breath, she dared. With a heavy ambiance weighing her down, she turned the handle and she instantly heard a loud flow of water and it started to pump back in reverse, now filling up the area she was standing in more rapidly than it had been leaving the same portion of the corridor. She could see the outline of the rushing water now, coming from a rather decently gaping sliver of the platform below the door. Sakura took the initiative to back up with still being able to see the source of the change of events.

And it so happened that the water really was spreading out in the hallway, and it was even approaching her knees when she was standing farther away. Fretting over this, she heard the sound of the pressure on the metal shifting and the handle was spinning, and the door opened without further delay.

Realizing what needed to be done, she tightened her fists and decided to get it over with. Besides, she was already soaked as it was. A big gulp of air was all she took before she dove into where the water had actually amassed to a height that was possible for swimming in.

Her eyes burnt a little more than she would have liked, but it was over soon. Anyway, she didn't think she could handle such large amounts of water all at the same time to clear a path in the onslaught of water, surrounded and distracted by just how much water there was and not even being able to see it all at once. This was less energy consuming, and the smarter way to go about things.

She came up to where she could freely breathe again, taking in a large amount of air despite the fact that the distance traveled underwater had not been great. She stood there dripping wet, but quickly moved when she felt the strong current pulling her back towards the door. And while she collected herself, it seemed that water really had mostly left the room. Still, she heard the drips of water, and looked up to realize a disturbing fact. The small room had been filled with water all the way to the ceiling where it now dripped excess water from. Also farther up than anything else was another opening for light to come through.

She accidentally, rather than deliberately, discovered what came next. She almost incidentally fell in. After stumbling about, she found her bearing again, and looked down in an attempt to study it.

It appeared to be something akin to a well. However, there was a round depression for a given distance before the water piled up in the confines of its stone prison. That and there was no efficient way to draw water from it.

Still, in the small room it did stand out, and she thought if it was there then it had to have some purpose for existing as it did. So she gave it her full attention. She could see to the bottom, and it really wasn't that far. When she squinted her eyes, she could make out a hazy image on the bottom. That decided it.

Spreading her knees across the slippery floor in her kneeling position, a little concentration went a long way. With caution in mind, she raised the water out slowly. And when the last of the water had been drawn out, she sat there bewildered. Then a content smile made its way to her lips.

There were several of them. Thrown about in no order, they had clattered to ground, lying in pools of the displaced water. It had to be the first part of two in the retrieval process. She collected the nearest one, turning it round in her hands.

It was metal, that was for sure. It looked like a tin, boasting a round and narrow indication. If she didn't know any better…

But that couldn't be it. She stood up shaking her head of the thought, and the complications of her being right would bring. Instead she gave a minute's thought and then decided that it was only fair for someone else to have to discover this on their own too.

She kicked the remaining ones back down the short distance to where she could hear them land in a jumbled mess. Then she set about shifting the water back down, only satisfied until the water was almost completely replaced back to the level where she had found it.

Two things then happened at once. Thinking everything was going fine and everything was alright now, she turned back to the door to leave. It had been with the intention to reverse the process she had done before by turning a handle and the water flowing back the reverse way. It was not so.

Instead she stood their blinking and gaping all at once. Her hands running the length of the door found no distinction to contradict what her eyes had confirmed. There was no handle. And a quick look was all it took to see the water was gushing back into where it had originated. From the way the ceiling had been dripping, she knew that this entire room filled up, and then where was she going to get the air needed to breathe from?

She thought quickly about her options, she couldn't stop that much water from flowing back in, right? But maybe she could seal the opening so that it would stay out there in the hallway.

Her thought process was suffering per usual from the strains of having to make quick decisions. Her turning the water flowing through into ice did nothing. The pressure had been reversed, and the water was dead set in coming back, slamming through the ice barrier that had covered the small opening.

This seemed only too surrealistic to be true, and she took deep breathes to calm herself, head turning crazily for another way out. There had to be one. It made no sense if there wasn't. How else did anyone get out of here if there wasn't? Her half-desperate thoughts turned out to be right for once. For the second time in such a short lapse of time, she almost fell. This time, however, it was a rectangular and small opening in the floor, implanted right by the wall.

She instantly dove her head in where naturally there was more collected water, stinging eyes searching to see where it led, if anywhere. The light was diminishing further in, but she saw how the opening continued underneath where the wall stopped progress on her current level. She had to hope that it lead somewhere. The water was not being very benevolent here as it was already starting to cover the small of her back as she leaned over the opening.

She only took a quick pause to secure the item she had just retrieved by tucking it away between her two layers of clothing. It slipped underneath the jacket-like clothing piece, and she secured it tightly against herself. Eyes closing in anxiety, she took the largest breath she could manage and plummeted in.

She had no way of knowing if the water's temperature was that cold or not since some of her body had already gone numb from the complete exposure to the water around her. Still, she couldn't help thinking that it was indeed a freezing temperature.

She continued on, arms flailing in front of her to be her eyes when it became completely dark, kicking with as strong a kick as she could muster. And precious air was being lost in the form of small bubbles in her wake.

This feeling. It was like being completely oppressed. To be surrounded by what you were supposed to be able to control and to feel completely helpless like this. It made her feel small and insignificant. Swimming as fast as she could in darkness and without the power to do anything about it was an overwhelming experience.

It had occurred to her to move the water away from her face to use whatever air was down here, but was there any to begin with? She wasn't even sure. And to do it while she was in motion at this speed with her arms already occupied? It seemed that would only hinder her instead of being an aid in her current plight.

But she had another idea, one that would also stretch the test of her abilities, but this one had some undeniable usefulness to it, and she couldn't stop herself from giving it a try. She bit her lip as her lungs began to burn, and she went for it.

Shutting her eyes made no difference in relation to her amount of sight, but it did seem to help her concentrate. She did take a little water in, however, (much to her horror) when she finally managed what she had been trying to accomplish. She wanted to shout in joy, but there was no way she'd ever attempt it here. Instead she had to silently relish in the fact that she was moving herself along besides the instinctual arm flailing. It was through the effort of controlling the water into a small current with her hands and even partially with her feet that brought her joy.

And she liked to believe that she was going faster now, cutting through more space at a faster tempo. The way the cold water sliced at her numbing cheeks would have been her evidence. But she didn't know if she was, couldn't know being as good as blind. Her eyes were open, unseeing and stinging, and all she could do was keep going.

But her outstretched hands suddenly contacted the wall, and even her head slammed the wall lightly, making her intake more water. Her lungs felt like they were searing, about to collapse. Her mind was racing, but she felt like it was on fire. She was lost and confused, but she knew she had to act fast.

She slammed her fist into the wall in frustration. She instinctively looked up where she thought her hope would lie. She didn't know, and she wouldn't know unless she tried, so she kicked her feet hard, arms stroking the water as she moved up to where she hoped the surface could be.

And there it was.

She laid there, like a beached sea creature, half out of the water, half still in it. Her ear was pressed into the cold floor as she turned her head to the side, breathing like she hadn't in ages. And it felt like she hadn't.

Her lungs were cooling, no longer her sole piercing attention as she stayed there recovering from her breathless state. Wincing, she coughed up some water, and she slowly used her arms to push her lower body out of the water too. She granted herself a few moments to collect her bearing, lying as she was until she decided enough had been enough.

She stood shakily, one hand aiding her balance by clutching the wall. The other was nursing her skull where it had impacted the wall after not being able to slow down in time. Eyes widening, she almost fell to the floor as her extra support neglected its duty to check where she had placed the small piece of metal she had previously picked up. She breathed a sigh of relief upon confirming it was still there, but then remembered that she shouldn't be wasting anymore time. She absolutely had no idea about how much time was left.

She surveyed where she had ended up. She looked behind herself quickly, noting what was there. What was there only actually entitled an identically small rectangular opening next to the wall as there had been in the other room. Besides that, it was all very much a solid wall. That would be a dead end.

Turning back around, she decided there was nowhere else left to go. Looking up, she realized painfully that there was light again. She hadn't ever particularly disliked the light, but it was hurting her eyes after the experience in the darkness. Moving forward she could now see that the hallways continued straight, but it also left the options of going left and right open.

Sighing, she set off towards the left. The floor had somehow cunningly decided to vanish and was replaced by a not too deep pool of water. This time there were no problems related to freezing water, and she half slipped, half walked, down that way until she exasperatedly realized it lead absolutely nowhere She hurried all the way back to the intersection, this time going straight. The path that went right from before.

This one was uneventful, but the walls were full of water rushing down its surface. She found it to be more annoying this time than ever before to keep her hands spread out on either side of the wall as the darkness returned. But that only lasted until she bumped straight into another dead end.

There was no other way to go now, and she could only pray and hope that this wasn't another dead end. Otherwise there would be no other hope for her. And as she turned the seemingly quiet corner and went down the equally silent corridor, she couldn't but think she had made a wrong turn, a mistake somewhere.

Only this time there was a light up ahead. It just didn't look like the kind of light the outside sky provided. She soon found out why and discovered her previously discarded idea had indeed been true. Much to her displeasure.

There they were, all planted in their respective holders, giving the room an eerie, moving glow. Sakura became bathed in the orange light as she stepped closer to its source. There were many, many of them. And one was for her taking.

Reaching under her thin and soaked jacket, she drew out the metal tin. With an absolute shudder, she plucked the nearest candle and planted it into its new holder. This was not going to be easy.

With the two item requirement met, she held the combined item close to her around the metal frame with her left hand. Although she was sure not to hold it too close so that she'd catch on fire. That would be beyond messy.

Her search for a way out of this new room was ended quickly enough, but a constant dread had set down upon her. To keep this candle in the same condition that she found it in meant that it couldn't get wet. In an Apprentice Exam where the focus was water, that could really prove to be difficult.

She continued forward in this state, further depressed when she finally realized she was in another sort of maze. The only saving grace of the damn candle was that it gave off light to challenge the now ever present darkness.

Down the nth hallway of the day, a piece of the ceiling caved, only it was in the form of ice which she responded to by shooting out her right arm to redirect it. A mist settled in shortly after, and she was a little aggravated by the fact that the flame was even less useful now because seeing was becoming a thing of the past.

Deciding against dissipating it, she shuffled forward, the small light she had cutting through the darkness just enough to produce the image of an open area. Unfortunately for her, she hadn't looked closely enough.

Out of nowhere, she found herself being grazed with a shot of ice. She turned to see what had catalyzed it with every intention of stopping it. She was surprised to see that it was a person. She was going to speak, to ask what the hell was going on, but she only needed to see him clutching his extinguished candle to understand.

She could tell with a quick dodge of an ice laced fist that he was aiming for her left arm and shoulder. He also wasn't being stupid and using the liquid form of water that could easily and accidentally extinguish her candle. And when a blow connected to her shoulder, she almost did drop her possession. But she'd be damned if she lost it that easily.

She didn't want to counterattack, and she was not good at fighting in general. She was not particular skilled in the field either, but her highest attribute by default had to be agility. However, she did have the sometimes useful skill of coming up with an unexpected strategy to move a fight in her favor. That was, when she hadn't completely lost her wits. And this wasn't a time to.

Sidestepping the front assault of ice, she had to duck quickly before the one behind her made contact. She landed and bruised her right leg in the impact, but she had what was hers so everything was still fine.

She shot up to her feet, not waiting for him to make another move. She took a risky endeavor, shielding the flickering candle behind her back as she used what was a threat to it. She lashed the water at him, changing its direction as he moved and slammed it into his face. He shut his eyes tight, and she winced a bit on his part, and froze what water was still clinging to his face.

"Sorry!" She was off now, noticing there were three paths left to take if she were to move forward, and she picked the right. She paused to momentarily seal the wall up with ice as she did with the other three. Hopefully if he continued to pursue her, he'd pick the wrong hallway in the process.

She was running now, partially from her adrenaline racing and also because she wasn't sure how much time was remaining. For all she knew, time could have run out. And that thought only made her move faster. In the chaos she couldn't help but conclude that maybe meeting no one else had really been a blessing in disguise.

She couldn't tell how much longer this corridor went on, but she knew that so far there had been no digressions of the straight path. Although for some reason she felt uneasy. It could be accounted to the fact that she was still trying to protect flame in a place full of water, but it felt more like something was about to happen. Her free fingers were almost twitching, and the presence of water almost felt completely irrepressible, like she was surrounded. But she couldn't see any reason as to why she was thinking along these lines.

Her answer came in an unorthodox way, not that anything in here had been of the norm. She felt her foot brush against something, something that felt not quite right. And somewhere in the process in that step forward, she began falling. On instinct alone, she threw the candle from a low height down the hall, watching until it stopped where she thought it rolled over onto its side. It was not just the resounding sound of metal scrapping the stone slabs that made her grimace.

How exactly it had happened was something she'd probably never be able to figure out, so fast had it happened. All she knew was that she was clutching metal bars, water filling the area she occupied to the very brim. The foremost problem here was to be able to keep breathing.

The solution, for once, came quickly, but she'd have to make sure that she pushed the water out in the opposite direction from the fallen candle. She didn't need that to go out now of all times. So with that in mind, she shifted enough water out of the top opening by the grate in small waves, just enough room for her to get her breathing straight. Now she just had to figure out how to get out of this.

Hands clenching around the metal bars, her mind ran in circles in exasperation. In aggravation she kicked her foot out at the floor that was the bottom surface of the one on the normal ground level. She was already wincing from the about to be stubbed toe, but the pain did not come. Instead she was speechless at the turn of the events. If she was a bit more egoistical, she would have called herself a genius.

So the floor where she had kicked was actually wood, painted in accordance with the stone ground. And a good kick had sent what had already been loose up and out onto the adjacent ground. Luck had made its presence known she thought wryly as she climbed out, replacing the board back to where it had been just a moment ago.

She made to where sure enough the candle had landed on its side, kneeling down to gingerly pick it up as if it might break. It having just been its own beacon of light to guide her towards it to be rescued from the floor, she signed in relief. It was still burning stubbornly on. She wasn't out of this yet.

This time she moved forward more cautiously yet even faster than before if that was even possible in the first place. But she couldn't take it anymore, she had to get out. Her own footsteps wading through ankle deep water was driving her insane.

The rain started up again, and that did force her to slow down to make sure the rain didn't hit the flame in a controlled and exclusive dry area. But her newly formed frown shortly became erased.

There she could see it. Straight ahead.

The exit.

--e--a--

Tomoyo had come into the Medical Branch today to help someone get back to what they once were. That was how rehabilitation worked. It just didn't seem to be working for her.

Forming relationships, getting to know the actual patient. To make it more personal than just a data sheet and another scenario. She had thought that rehab would make that happen. And it did. The whole treatment idea was a long road of recovery for these people, and that made it possible to get closer to her patients like she wanted. It gave it that human element. But it was also depressing.

Surrounded by people that weren't just faces and numbers and getting to know them was how she spent most days. A lot of them had no will left in them. Some wanted to end their own life. Most where just subdued, but the occasional patient had this agonistic mindset. And when she thought that she knew this people, at least to some extent, that was hard to deal with.

And just today, coming into work… seeing someone she had worked with closely like that. Of course she had seen the deterioration, but it still almost seemed to be too unreal.

Death would probably always be a difficult situation to deal with no matter who you were.

And upon opening her room up and closing it silently behind her, she considered the option of changing. But she would feel guilty, a traitor for not wearing the traditional black so she swallowed the essence of being uncomfortable when she felt like she was awkwardly wearing another's skin.

She removed her shoes in customary fashion and her jacket too, going through the actions but not really feeling like she was doing them. Her eyes adverted to where she had left her source of peace, automatically reaching for it and settling crossed legged on her bed.

Reading and making notes, learning new theories, writing what came to mind to check if her own ideas were possible, that's what was stagnant. This was never changing information that she consumed for the sake of herself. No life and death here, no people. This was what furthered her studies in the medical field.

But her other topic of books, mixed in and interlaced with the medical ones, was her Elemental research tomes. While reading these she often felt wistful, but they were always interesting, and she found that once she started, it was hard to stop sometimes. And on occasion she'd hesitantly write down her own theories on these matters, wondering if she was so misguided in her thinking that she could be laughed at by a more knowledgeable person.

Then she'd stop with her self-doubting, melancholy thoughts pushing out this different information from her head and causing her to dive back into medical books. There's a reason she shouldn't theorize, shouldn't even read them. She wasn't good enough to be one of them. She really didn't fit in any determined single place. She was just drifting… drifting along.

Finding her own place, staying there. She'd love to find that. But the continuous scratch of her quill lined with ink, the countless flipping through pages of information. All that helped her forget that she couldn't find one. Maybe she never would. But to keep going meant to deny that, and she wanted to deny that if nothing else.

Feeling undead, mind wandering, she didn't know how long she had been doing this perhaps unusual source of comfort. However, when she stopped she stared in surprise at all that she had written down, crossed out, reworded, everything that she had done and yet remembered almost none of it. Sighing she turned back pages to the last thing she remembered, glancing over her notes to hopefully guide her through it this time faster while still retaining the information.

She didn't expect Meilin to come bursting in a moment later, over her shoulder lugging a tarp sack. Tomoyo instantly bent over and started coughing. Meilin turned bewildered and raised an eyebrow.

"What the hell's wrong with you?" Meilin stood there blinking in true wonder, yet still not at the point that she'd be worried for Tomoyo's wellbeing. Tomoyo herself dove into her covers. When she emerged, she made an overdone gesture of pinching her nose.

"Meilin, you stink!" Meilin sighed at this, shrugging off her load and crossing her arms.

"So I did something wrong again. You don't have to say it like that." Tomoyo clasped an hand to her mouth, cringing in what looked like pain as her head shook back and forth.

"No, no! You literally stink. Where the hell have you been?" She opened her eyes, ready to interrogate. "And what have you been doing?"

Meilin looked like it had just come to her. "Oh! You're talking about that smell." She took to waving a hand carelessly, the other sheepishly rubbing the back of her head. "Don't worry, don't worry. I forgot all about it. You get used to it soon enough." Meilin truly looked as if she believed what she had said. Tomoyo could only assume she was right, but she wasn't taking any chances here.

Rummaging her drawers, she found what she had wanted: an old handkerchief. Only when it was securely clasped over her mouth did she breathe again and dare to talk.

"The only thing that's keeping me here is that Sakura-chan is probably gone crazy with celebration by now, and that would just leave me completely depressed." Her muffled voice didn't mask her irritation. "And you didn't answer the questions! How is it even possible to get like that and forget about the smell?"

"Hey, hey." Meilin placed one hand on her hip, the other outstretched and palm up as she closed her eyes and explained. "I'm just taking care of things. Nothing to worry about."

"You do realize what you just said, don't you?" Meilin laughed at those words, dragging the tarp that she had messily tied up in a knot at one end. She proceeded to bring it out of Tomoyo's sight behind Meilin's messy bed. Tomoyo sighed. "Look at you. You're a mess, you bring in a horrible stench, and you're running all over the place. You're out of control."

Meilin peeked her head out, a small smile on her face. "That's just the kind of person I am. Out of control. Yeah, that's me." Tomoyo clenched the cloth over her mouth harder, having almost let it drop.

"You say not to worry, but I do, Meilin. I've been thinking, and even though you never tell anyone I think I'm right… Meilin, you aren't trying to-"

"Like I said you worry too much. Don't worry about the smell for that long. It should be gone within a couple of hours at the most. So if you just want to work in a private study or the library until then, you probably should." Tomoyo stared hard at the back of her head, but then she ducked down completely, and Tomoyo frowned as she stood up.

Meilin always was trying to be so strong and put on a strong face. But she hid so easily like that. Tomoyo collected her papers in a hurry without taking another glance at the hunched over Meilin. Tomoyo wouldn't interfere. She had the worst feeling about it, but she wouldn't stop Meilin's work. She couldn't even if she wanted to. There probably wasn't anyone who could.

She was just worried that Meilin was in way over her head. And she thought Meilin knew that too. Yet she kept going, and that would surely be the death of her. She just hoped that if it had to happen, it would remain figuratively and not become literally.

--e--a--

Rika crossed the distance quickly, her face still flushed as she approached her target. The blanket was flying behind her like a cloak as she grasped it tightly in front of her. Coming to a halt she leaned over, her cloak looking as if it were about to envelop her.

"Sakura? That was a close one. How are you feeling?" Sakura tiredly smiled back up at her, bundled up herself in another similar looking blanket in front of a small fire. Rika took the small pause to seat herself down too, hands moving like they were drawn to the edge of the fire's full warmth.

"I'm fine. I would be great if I hadn't banged my head a few times. I guess I really am a klutz. I cut it really close though. Only made it by ten minutes… You made me look so bad."

Rika was waving it off, chin to her knees, grinning. Loosing herself to staring at the fire, she managed to still speak unwaveringly. "Hey, I'm two years older than you. It would be twice as bad for me if you beat me." She then averted her eyes to gaze across her exposed leg that was looking worse for wear. "Besides, I got beat up a lot worse than you so no complaining."

Sakura looked a bit sheepish for what she had said, but she still mumbled something off. "I wasn't complaining. Just saying." She inched closer to the fire, kneeling to get her upper body warmer. She changed the topic. "You'd think that we'd be warmer by now that we got all the water removed… but I still am shivering."

Rika stared at her shoes, nodding. "Probably from the sudden change in temperature. It'll go away. But for now," she snuggled into her blanket even more, leaving the sentence dangling, but the message came across clearly. Sakura sighed and wrapped hers closer in response.

"What's wrong with us? I mean I'm happy that I passed, but it just doesn't feel like anything changed. I always get let down. You'd think we'd be so excited that we couldn't sit still. It's almost like we're depressed!"

"Ah… Yeah, I know what you mean…" Rika's thoughtful look was lost with a sudden short laugh. "I couldn't help but imagine us out drinking. You, drunk. That's a funny image." Sakura knew it wasn't supposed to be taken as an offense, but old habits as well as reactions died hard.

"You're one to talk. I could probably hold more drinks than you could." Sakura stuck out her tongue, and she burst out laughing. But the moment was quickly lost, and she sobered up. "I know what you mean, though. I can just imagine it. Depressed enough to drink ourselves into a stupor. What's wrong with that picture?"

Rika contributed a dejected sigh. "Everything. And it was such a big event too. It's what we've been working up to for what seems like forever. To think, even Clow-sama and all the other Elemental-sensei came."

"Yeah… Oh, weren't you just talking to Terada-sensei?"

"Huh? Eh, that's right," Rika blinked, caught off guard.

Silence reigned for a few moments, and Rika shifted uneasily. Finally Sakura turned her gaze over to her companion with a small smile. "Well, I'd like to see how I feel about all this in the morning. At least I know that I wouldn't have wanted to fail. I'd probably be really depressed then. And who knows, maybe all the hype of being at Apprentice level is true."

Rika watched as Sakura stood up, and her eyes were drawn back to the fire. "Could be… I'd like to think so at least."

"Uh, Rika, maybe you'd better get back from the fire too. It looks like it's making your face all flushed."

"N-no, I mean… Yeah, never mind, I guess you're right." She stood up too, and followed Sakura who was already heading off.

Sakura took a glance at the sky, endless as always and clear after that induced momentary rain. She hoped that this sort of accomplishment would be one that she'd be proud of in the future. But how much had Trainee level changed things? Was it going to keep going on just like this?

Still, at least it wasn't as if she didn't know why she kept doing this. It was like something that she had to do, no questions asked, and she felt that there really was no need for them. It was simple and easy to say that she did it to help those she could because that's what she believed. It didn't matter how many times she had failed at it, as long as she could save someone, she'd keep giving it her all.

But suddenly she frowned, a fist at her hip as she looked skyward again, muttering under her breath. "See, Syaoran? Look at what you missed out on! You let me get ahead of you." A small sigh and then, "You better be taking care of yourself. I don't really trust that Madoushi."

"Huh, did you say something, Sakura?" Rika turned towards her, an inquisitive look spreading across her face.

"Nothing really. Just thinking out loud."

--e--a--

Syaoran felt that it was all wrong, couldn't be more wrong. He wanted to say something, anything, but there were no words that came to him. Instead he just stared, waiting for Madoushi to take center stage again, commanding everyone awaiting orders without any explanation offered.

She swung around her arm in a specific direction, talking in her voice that maintained the condition of no resistance, securing complete obedience. Maybe he was taking it too far in his interpretation, but wasn't she going too far? To recklessly attack a town like this, complete lack of concern towards the inhabitants. No precautions for their safety… And he had thought he was uncaring. This was certainly not helping Elementalists gain any better reputation among the general public.

And all the water in this town just didn't settle well with him. Not in the least.

Somehow, amongst the chaos, his own set of directions was issued, but they had fallen on deaf ears. It was only when he felt Wei clasp his shoulder did he come out of his state of unawareness.

"Off to the edge of the clearing. Last resort to keep the water back." Syaoran didn't find it very surprising. After all, he being a fire Elementalist was practically useless in this situation. And being rather a novice in all that controlling the element of earth pertained, he rightfully should be expected to be a final, desperate option in using either of his two elements.

So he went where he was told, knowing he'd otherwise be dead weight and a burden, two things he'd despise himself over becoming. He stood there, eyes following Wei's back as he became wrapped up in Madoushi's workings, coming to stand not too far from her own side.

She stood there, arms spread and fighting back a rather large flood of oncoming water, displaying why she was in fact capable of being a leader of Elementalists.

Coming down to the option of having to redirect it rather than force it back, she made a harsh gesture with her right arm, and just like that, making it look so easily, she split the water in half. The spray of water caused by the action even reached where he was, he being left to shield his eyes from the incoming substance.

"Surround it and get it under control!" She hadn't even looked back to see what was happening, only focusing on her new target of interest, one that couldn't be ignored.

He found out what that was soon enough. When he could fully see again, he was met with the sight of a nearby building that had gotten wrapped up in the onslaught of water, collapsing from the element. And with some visible effort, she set about to take advantage of the water it was surrounded by.

The remaining pieces went flying without warning, and Syaoran himself had to narrowly dodge a piece of the stone wall, now just crumbling slabs of material, as it headed towards the ground to make a flashy impact.

Focusing his eyes angrily on Madoushi again, he was met with the sight, however, of Wei taking a partial blow from the debris, it only having been lessened by his manipulation of the air.

Syaoran didn't know what was going on anymore, but he was instantly running, cutting through waves of water and floating doors and the like that were torn into pieces. He tried not to look at the floating yet sinking bodies.

He came to Wei's side, already offering his shoulder. Madoushi half turned in his direction, but her main attention was obviously elsewhere.

"Good, get both of you to the sidelines."

Syaoran wanted to snap, but he knew the priority here. She was right; he did have to get over there as soon as he could. But he couldn't be completely silenced.

"What the hell are you doing? That was completely reckless, and you even hurt one of your own! And you don't even care!" Madoushi frowned.

"Kid, there's no doubt in my mind that Wei is perfectly capable of taking care of himself. Maybe that's something you don't understand. And you really should have kept shut about that other part. Because, really, have you ever looked at your own style?" She ended with a smirk, moving forward and being cut off by another curtain of water.

Cursing and half-supporting Wei through more of the like only left him drenched, but when they had finally made it to the sidelines, Syaoran sighed in relief, trying to get a glimpse of Madoushi. Wei stopped his efforts. He was coughing up blood.

"Are you okay?" Syaoran was near to the ground, staring in horror at what had happened.

"There's nothing to worry about. She is right. We have faith in each other's abilities. And this just showed up at a bad moment. It has nothing to do with my other injury." Syaoran didn't look convinced. He knew Wei coughed often, but this was the first time he had seen him cough up blood.

He turned his attention to the surrounding chaos. So Madoushi's "prediction" or "intuition" had been right again. He really wanted to know how she did it. More importantly, why it always had to entail something abnormally chaotic where nothing made sense. His experience under Clow had never given him the same experience, and he wondered why she operated like this with complete lack of regard for the living, and subsequently, the dead.

He fisted his hands at his sides and wondered why nothing was right no matter what he did. Had it made any difference coming here? What had been the point in the first place? Things felt like they were falling apart all over again. Some hole that couldn't be mended. It was there. It looked like it would always be there.

And he wondered if it really mattered anymore what he did. If it was only destined to come down to this…

It didn't matter what he did. It didn't matter where he went. Everywhere seemed to have its own set of freedoms. But there were always the chains that came along with them too.

Longest chapter I've ever written. If you have any comments, I'd love to hear them. It's been a while in the review window, and I can't even begin to describe how inspirational they are. So if you do that for me, I'll be off working my butt off on two stories for this series now. Next chapter is the premier of Elemental Basics, basically a collection of one-shots.

And, next chapter should be fun too because I had been itching to write it since practically the story began. It's centric to one character and one character only. Here's the hint. Chapter's entitled: Attempt.