Me: Here you go, the eleventh chapter of 'The Final Battle'. I hope you like it, minna!

Tenma: ... O.o

Kirino: Huh? Tenma, what's wrong?

Tenma: I... I already read it... In the end, it's-

Me: Shush, let the readers find out for themselves!

Tenma: :#

Kirino: The usual disclaimer applies, Att-chan doesn't own anything!

Me: It's long (over 4000 words, the bold words not included), but I still hope you enjoy it!

"That's it, Kirino-san," Tenma smiled as the merman took another insecure step. Kirino didn't respond, for he was focussing on his newfound legs. Although he was improving rapidly, he still couldn't walk on his own without falling to the ground.

At first he had already a lot of trouble with standing on his own, for his knees didn't work properly yet. After a while and lots of comments from the others, he figured out how to stand straight without anyone's help. Then came the second part, which was far more difficult than standing: walking. It was hard to control two legs instead of one tail. Now he had to focus on two limbs that had to do two different things. If he raised his left leg, then his right leg had to remain on the ground. Kirino, who was used to moving one thing, often moved both his legs at the same time. This was why he couldn't walk alone. He was improving, though. At first, he needed the help of at least two people to keep himself from falling, now he only needed one.

He was currently being supported by Hikaru. The purple haired boy suddenly stood still and Kirino shot him a questioning glance. He wanted to ask what was wrong, but Hikaru flashed him a smug grin before Kirino could say a thing. "Let's try the next step, Kirino-san," the boy smirked as he suddenly let go of Kirino's shoulder and ran away.

"What the- Hikaru!" Kirino wobbled without his support, but frustrated as he was, he wanted to get back at te boy. So he did what he had never done before: he ran. Kariya, Tenma, Shinsuke and Shindou looked with great surprise as the former merman chased Hikaru like he was born with legs. Truth be told, Kirino was fast. He slowly caught up with Hikaru while scolding the boy for his prank.

"But Kirino-san, just look at what you're doing right now!" Shinsuke yelled when Kirino stormed past them. "You're running!" Kirino slowed down and looked at his legs, as if he couldn't believe what just happened.

"I... I did, didn't I?" he said.

"I got an idea," Shinsuke suddenly exclaimed. "Let's play tag! Kirino is 'it'!" Only a second later, he dashed away with Tenma and Hikaru.

Kariya scoffed. "Tsk, little children." But after a good two seconds, he backed away from Kirino as well. The pink haired boy eyed the others' behaviour with curiosity before he turned to Shindou. The captain was the only one that hadn't backed away from him.

"What are they doing?" Kirino asked and Shindou smiled.

"It's a children's game called tag. The one that is 'it', in this case that's you, has to touch one of the others and then that person becomes 'it'. The others run away and the one that is 'it' chases them."

"I see," Kirino muttered thoughtfully before he took a half step and seemed to lose his balance. "Woah!"

Luckily, Shindou caught his shoulders in time and kept him from falling. "Are you alright?" he asked with worry. Kirino smiled and nodded, but just as Shindou was about to sigh in relief, he felt something tapping his shoulder.

"You're 'it'," Kirino smirked before he suddenly dashed away. Shindou stood there dumbfounded. Kirino had... tricked him? But then a small smile appeared on his face and he chased after the other boys. They played tag for quite a while and neither of them was bothered by the fact that it was a game for little children. They hadn't felt this carefree in a long time and they enjoyed every moment of it. For Shindou, Tenma, Shinsuke, Hikaru and Kariya, this game brought back many memories of their past and for Kirino, it was just a whole new experience. When he was a young merman, he didn't play with other merfolk very often. This little game gave him a piece of childhood that he never had.

Kirino was currently being chased by Shindou, who was 'it'. He was astonished by how quickly he got used to his legs when he just did something fun. He had barely any trouble with running, walking or standing anymore and it seemed like his new legs were just as muscled as his former tail was. As he ran away from Shindou, something caught his eye and he slowed down.

Shindou caught up with him and playfully hit him on the shoulder. "You're 'it'," he laughed, but stopped once he saw that Kirino wasn't paying attention anymore. He followed the other boy's gaze and was shocked to see that the sky was dark. But not a normal dark, like when the sun is setting. No, the sky was dark because of thick black smoke that came from a distance. Shindou whistled through his teeth as his juniors slowly got closer to him. "Seems like there's a big fire over there."

"How do you know?" Kirino asked.

"There's a lot of smoke, so it must be a big fire," Shindou explained and Kirino nodded.

"But Shindou, isn't your home there too?"

"It's in that direction, yes, but we don't know how far the fire is away. It's clearly not in the woods, because that would be too close, but it's close enough for us to see the smoke."

"Maybe we should go back," Kirino said. "I have a bad feeling about this."

"I'm telling you, it's probably nothing," Shindou reassured with a smile. "But maybe you're right, let's go back to Akane." Everyone agreed and climbed on their horses. They had used the animals to get deeper into the forest so no one would see them. After all, if rumors started spreading about a boy who couldn't walk properly and was covered in scales, the Leader might come for them. Since there were five horses and six people, Kirino sat behind someone else. Sure, he could walk and run now, but riding a horse was something completely different.

This time, he sat behind Tenma as the five horses galloped through the forest. Kirino noticed that no matter how far they went, the cloud of smoke was always right in front of them. And that could only mean one thing: the thing that was burning was on their path. The closer they came to his home, the more nervous Shindou grew.

Suddenly, without warning, they exited the forest. Everyone blinked furiously to let their eyes adjust to the sudden change of light intensity. Their horses stopped and stumped nervously with their hooves. Kirino only had to look in front of him to see why: the gristmill was on fire. Though the building was still a few hundred feet away from them, the smoke and the blazing heat scared the animals. It took Kirino a few moments to let the sight sink in. The mill was on fire. The place where he had stayed was on fire. Shindou's house was on fire.

Akane.

Shindou seemed to have had the same thoughts, because he suddenly gave his horse the spurs and raced towards the fire. The horse was a bit reluctant, since its instincts said that he should get away from the fire, and not closer to it. But he followed the orders of the one on its back. At least, until its instincts finally took over. Everything around it told the poor animal that it would die if it went on, yet the person on its back kept on sending him forward. When the instincts took control, the horse pranced and launched its master from its back. Panicked, the animal ran away from the blazing fire, leaving its master on the ground.

The man didn't stay there for long, though. Shindou got to his feet and started running towards the gristmill. His eyes were narrow because of the smoke and the heat, but he didn't notice it. He just kept on running and running. Please, let her not be there, he thought as his eyes started to water. He didn't know if it was from the smoke or from the possible loss of his wife. "Akane!" he yelled, but the fire swallowed every sound he made.

Was this the Leader's work? It had to be, who else would do such a thing? If it was the Leader's punishment for them, then Akane was probably still... He couldn't finish his thought as tears streamed down his face. He had to get her out of there! He had to save her! Even if that meant that he would have to go into that burning hell himself.

He was still a few dozens of feet away from the burning building when he was suddenly tackled to the ground. His hands were pushed down by someone's knees as that same someone sat down on his back. He tried to get loose, but the person wouldn't let go of him.

"Let me go!" he screamed to be heard over the fire. "I have to save her!"

"If you'll do that, you're dead, Captain!" the person yelled back. It was Kariya. Unbeknown to Shindou, the teal haired boy chased him immediately when he, Shindou, dashed off. Kariya had seen the panicked look in his captain's eyes and realized what the older boy was thinking. When Shindou's horse pranced and tossed him off, Kariya took his chance and jumped off his horse as well. Luckily, he caught up with his senior in time and he tackled him.

"No! It's... I... Just let me go!" Shindou struggled to break free, but Kariya pushed him down. Tears ran down Shindou's face as he watched the fire in front of him. Deep inside of him, he knew that he couldn't save Akane anymore. After all, the fire was already burning for so long... But another part of him wanted to jump in the fire and save her. She had to be okay, right? He shouldn't waste time here and just go looking for her. And then, when he found her, they would just walk outside. Dirty, scared... but alive. And then he would kiss her, and then she would throw her arms around him and whisper his name.

His heart broke into a million little pieces when he realized that she would never to any of those things. He would never be able to hold her again, he would never see her smile again or hear her voice... She was gone, he knew it. So he finally gave up his struggle and cried. He cried his heart out, unable to keep his feelings to himself. Akane, his beloved, sweet, beautiful wife, was gone...

When the fire died down, Shindou's tears had been long gone. All that was left were quiet sobs and an incomparable pain in his chest. She was gone... Forever... Kariya stood up and noticed that his eyes stung. Refusing to cry, he rubbed in them and turned towards the others.

They had all gotten off their horses and Shinsuke managed to get a hold of Shindou's horse. The little boy was still trying to calm the animal down. Hikaru, Tenma and Kirino stood next to the other horses and looked at the windmill with sad eyes. Kariya felt the same pain as they did. Akane had been such a nice, lovely woman and now she was dead. They couldn't even imagine how Shindou must feel, because Shindou knew Akane far longer than any of them did. Kariya eyed his captain once more and saw that Shindou was still in the same position. He was on his knees and stared with glassy, empty eyes towards the black, smoking residues of his house. His tears had left a trail though the soot on his face.

Kariya sighed and decided to leave the older boy be for a while. He walked back to the others and devided the chores. It was around noon, so they should prepare something to eat. They quietly fulfilled their taskes. No one really felt like talking after what happened. Kirino often shot concerned glances towards Shindou, but the other boy didn't move. When the food was ready, Kirino took soft steps towards Shindou.

The latter didn't really seem to notice Kirino's presence, so the boy coughed softly. Although Shindou clearly heard him, he still didn't respond. "Shindou?" Kirino's voice was soft and hesitant, but he continued. "Shindou, you have to eat something."

"Who cares?"

"What?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Yes it does."

"Please, just leave me alone."

Kirino hesitated. Should he do as Shindou said? He shook his head to clear the thought away and walked closer to the brunette. "I won't. Come on, you got to eat something." He grabbed Shindou's arm and pulled him up, almost losing his own balance in the process. But he kept his ground and soon, he walked with Shindou towards Kariya, Hikaru, Tenma and Shinsuke.

The meal was scanty, with hard bread and a thin slice of cheese, but it was all they had. They hadn't really packed a lot of food for today's little trip and all the other food was lost in the fire. They would have to earn money very soon.

When they all finished their meal, Shindou stood up and looked at every one of his companions. They were kind of shocked to see his facial expression, since it wasn't sad anymore. It was strict and determined. "Pack up your stuff, men, we'll leave soon."

"Leave?" Tenma asked. "But Captain, where are we going?"

"None of your business."

"B-but-"

"I said we leave soon, now pack your stuff and prepare your horses! Am I clear?" Shindou asked sternly. He spoke so loud that he almost yelled in poor Tenma's face and the latter hurried to nod.

"H-hai, Captain, very clear!"

Shindou nodded and walked away to prepare his horse. The five other boys did the same, but shot worried and confused glances at their captain from time to time.

They traveled for the entire day with barely any breaks. The breaks they did have were short and rushed, for Shindou constantly urged them to hurry up. The horses they rode on became tired and couldn't keep up their galloping pace anymore. Much to Shindou's annoyance, the animals often slowed down.

The sun had already set and they were still riding. Their bodies hurt from riding so long and their horses' flanks were wet from all the sweat. The poor animals and their riders were close to breaking down. But despite all this, Shindou still urged them to go on. Whenever they asked him about their destination, he snapped at them. He was currently riding a few feet ahead of him while Tenma, Shinsuke - along with Kirino - Hikaru and Kariya grouped together behind him.

"That's enough." The four boys were surprised to hear those words from Kirino. "Please prepare a simple camp, we need to rest," the pink haired boy said as his eyes were locked to Shindou, who was still in front of them. Shinsuke urged his horse to speed up and he soon rode alongside Shindou.

Before the latter could say a word, Kirino bent forward and took the reins from Shindou's hands. He pulled them and both horses came to a stop. Shindou glared at him and opened his mouth to object, but Kirino was faster. "It's enough, Shindou. We all need to rest now."

"It's not enough until I say it's enough," Shindou angrily snapped, but Kirino didn't even blink. Shindou tried to snatch the reins back from the former merman's hold, but Kirino evaded him. He jumped off Shinsuke's horse and started to guide the horse back to the others, but Shindou jumped off as well. "Stop that, you don't tell me what to do, Kirino!"

Kirino looked at the brunette in front of them, completely calm on both inside and outside. Shindou on the other hand looked bewildered and he wouldn't look Kirino in the eye for longer than two seconds. "Shinsuke, please take care of the horses," Kirino said without breaking the eye contact with Shindou. He felt how the little guy took the reins from his hand and heard how he walked back to the camp.

When they were alone, Shindou repeated his statement from before, only softer this time. "You don't tell me what to do..." It sounded more like a question than a threat.

"I will. I will, because you can't lead us right now."

"What are you talking about?!" Shindou angrily shouted. "I'm the captain."

"And not a really good one at that."

"What?"

"You're gonna kill us with that crazy march of yours."

"That's not true!"

"I know you're sad about Akane, but you have five people to take care of right now. If you can't do that, I can no longer see you as a captain."

"I'm perfectly fine!"

"Then where are we going? Where are you taking us to?"

Shindou kept quiet and looked at the ground. His actions confirmed what Kirino thought: Shindou didn't take them to another place, he took them away from the place where he lost everything. There was no clear destination to their journey, Shindou just didn't want to be at the place where he lost everything dear to him.

"Shindou, I know it hurts, but-"

"You don't know anything!" Shindou's sudden shout startled Kirino and he almost took a step back. Almost. Shindou glared at him. "You don't know anything," he repeated.

Kirino took a step forward. "I do know, Shindou, I-"

"No you don't! You're a stupid, bothersome little pest who keeps on asking about every unimportant detail here. You know absolutely nothing about me!"

Silence hung in the air when Shindou finished his rant. Kirino squinted his eyes. His next action caught Shindou completely off guard: Kirino stepped forward and hugged him tight. He didn't say anything, he just hugged him. Neither one knew how long they stood there. Seconds? Minutes? Eventually, the silence was broken by Kirino's soft whisper. "I miss her too."

Suddenly, he felt how Shindou leaned in. The brunette rested his head on Kirino's shoulder and started crying. Once the first tear escaped his eyes, Shindou couldn't stop anymore. He just cried and cried and cried over his loss until there were no more tears. Kirino rubbed his back and whispered soothing words from time to time. When Shindou finally calmed down, Kirino pulled back from the hug to look Shindou in the eye.

"I know it hurts, but do you really think that this is the way to deal with it? Think to yourself, would Akane be happy when she saw you right now?"

Shindou's eyes widened a bit. "No," he whispered. "No, she wouldn't." Kirino smiled a bit and took his hand. He softly guided Shindou back to the others, who had built a fire by now.

Before he sat down with Kirino, Shindou bowed to the other boys and apologized for his behaviour today. "It's alright, Captain, we understand. But please, can we take it a little easier tomorrow?" Tenma pleaded and Shindou smiled and nodded. Hikaru gave them all some of the food and they ate their scanty meal while chatting a little with each other. Kirino noticed that Shindou was still pretty silent, but he decided to shrug it off. It took time for these kind of wounds to heal. He stroke Shindou's hand with his own and when the brunette looked up, Kirino flashed him an encouraging smile. 'I'm right here for you,' it seemed to say. Shindou smiled as well.

"We will have to buy new food very soon, there's barely any left," Hikaru said as he looked into the bags. He, Tenma, Shinsuke and Kariya unconsciously looked at Shindou, asking him what to do with their eyes.

"To buy food, we'll need money," Shindou thought out loud. "To get that, we could try to get a job, but I'm afraid that won't go well since we're on the run for the Army and can't stay long in one place... Don't we have anything with us that we could sell?"

Everyone except for Kirino started to search their pockets. The merman didn't look for anything because he was wearing Shindou's clothes and not his own, so he figured there wouldn't be anything in his pockets. Everything they collected was worthless stuff: a small piece of rope, two handkerchiefs and Shinsuke's lucky stone. Then Kariya put down his stuff.

"What's that?" Tenma asked as he picked up a little figurine. It was a statue of a boy who was kneeling with his hands raised, as if he was going to sacrifice something.

"I don't know," Kariya shrugged. "I took it from the Leader's tent the day I stole that key. It was attached to this, so I took it with me. I completely forgot I had it until just now."

"Did you see that there's something engraved here?" Tenma asked as he pointed to the bottom of the figurine.

"Really? What does it say?" Kirino asked.

"I don't know, I can't read," Tenma confessed and Shinsuke, Hikaru and Kariya nodded to signal that they couldn't either. Shindou actually could read a little, since that was required for someone of his position in the Army, but he couldn't read much. Kirino looked closely at the figurine to make out the words in the little light that the fire provided.

"There's only one word," he said. "Clau... Claustrum. If I'm correct, it's an old word for prison."

"Prison?" Kariya muttered. "Could it... Could it be that the Leader locked someone up in there?"

"There is definitely something weird going on around the Leader," Shindou muttered. "I mean, he knew about the existence of mermaids and maybe there are even more species that we don't know of. I wouldn't be surprised if that man could actually perform some kind of magic."

"Well, if someone is locked up in there, let's free him!" Tenma exclaimed as he took the figure from Kirino's hand.

"Wait, Tenma, maybe-" Shindou started, but it was too late. Tenma stood up and threw the figurine at the ground. When it broke, purple smoke seeped out of it. The others got up as well and slightly backed away from the growing purple mist. The smoke slowly cleared and revealed a boy with navy blue hair. He sat in the same position as the statue and they all noticed his increddibly pale skin. The boy coughed because of the smoke, which showed that he was really alive.

Tenma, as naive as he was, took a step forward and extended his hand. "Hey, are you okay?" The boy looked up at him and Tenma looked in his golden eyes. The boy looked... fragile. He slowly raised his hand and grabbed Tenma's.

The next moment, Tenma's view got blurry and wind blew through his hair. He let out a startled yelp when his back collided with a tree. He saw his companions about a hundred feet away from him. How did he get here so fast? When he looked in front of him again, he saw that it was the navy blue haired boy who pushed him against the tree. The boy held him at this shoulder and Tenma figured that he was pretty strong, since he could raise Tenma from the ground with one hand.

The aura of fragility had disappeared: this boy was strong and dangerous. His lips parted in an evil grin when he saw Tenma's shocked face. Tenma gasped at the sight of two pure white, razor-sharp fangs.

"One little tip for the afterlife, kid," the creature in front of him said in a deep voice and he smirked. "Never, trust a vampire."

Me: Hehehe, cliffhanger! ^^ Mermaids aren't the only 'mythical creatures', you know? :P I guess you can all guess who this vampire is :3 Just so you know, this story still has a plot (it's not like I just come up with something and don't know how to end it... so yeah).

As I said, it's quite long, but I just had to put in this last scene... I hope everything is still clear and if not, PM me or leave a review.

Tsurugi: Please leave a review on your way out! *smirks and reveals his fangs*

Tenma: O.o *shivers*