Chapter 4: The Forest
Hiya~! Hana is baaaaack! Did you all miss me? You know you did!
I made it earlier than the earliest day that I said that I would post! Well, one day, but still!
Response time:
Honestly guys, thank you all so much for the support and stuff! You are all da best! In my other stories I often got degrading comments or the nicer people telling me good advice and "good try though" so I really am glad that you all like it! I haven't even gotten one of those yet and I'm just like: "When is it going to appear?"
Scorpius: Lol. You're not the only one. I'm not a romance expert either. I'm thirteen and have never been in a relationship so most of my romance is based off of reading other fanfictions. And about Rin's ability… Nah. I'm going to keep it to myself. Thank you so much for reviewing on every chapter!
Anisademongirl: Hey~! Glad you're enjoying it! And lucky you I most likely won't drop this because it's my first vocaloid fanfic. And your English is great don't worry it's not my first language either.
Yeah, so I'm back. Sorry this chapter took a while, it is really long. I wrote a little bit every day. I put in a lot of new POV's that you should review about because I don't know whether or not to keep them. I was soooo busy on this chapter. (Rin: Too busy putting in little foreshadowing notes such as the fact that I'm-). Ahem. Moving on. Anyway, I'm currently locked in my room, trying not to die from a-
Mom: Hey _insert-my-real-name-here_, you have a friend at the door!
Me: Huh, who? *stands up and begins walking towards door before freezing* Wait, Mom? Does this friend happen to have blond hair, blue eyes, and a ribbon on her head?
Mom: Hmm, yeah. Why? She's still waiting you know.
Me: _insert-all-swear-words-here_
Mom: Watch your language!
Rin: *knocks down door* HANA!
Me: A-ano…
Mom: Hana? Who's Hana?
Rin: Oh hi! Hana is actually that girl's *jerks thumb at me* account user-
Me: *jumps on Rin* Hush! She doesn't know!
Rin: Oh… *forgets about Contract incident*
Len: RIN! DID YOU STEAL THE ROAD ROLLER AGAIN?!
Me: RIN!
Rin: AH! I'M SORRY!
Ahem, then. everyone, please enjoy the chapter while Rin and I try not to di-
Len: *chuckles evilly* Found you~
Um, yeah. Bye. Enjoy.
…
No no no no no. Rin stared at the gates. We were not ready for this.
The carefree attitude that had settled among the Draft members in their month at the safe base was long gone. They all trembled, staring at the sight before them.
In approximately one minute, the safe house wasn't going to be so safe anymore.
No one had turned into warlocks yet. After speaking to all the witches, the princess agreed that the warlock transformation should wait a while.
The men clutched their swords that Merli, a witch blacksmith had created. Her ability was manipulating metals. This was the reason she was a blacksmith. Her sister, Aoki, who was also part of the Draft, controlled magnetization. Merli built the swords out of actual metal instead of conjuring them and then placed a spell on them to let them dematerialize. It was a useful ability because then a witch's mana wouldn't be consumed when she tried to materialize and use the sword. And that was a really good thing.
Because they were just about to leave the safety and wander through the forest. Only ten of the fifty witches that didn't have abilities when the Draft begun had gained their abilities. This was bad. If everyone didn't contribute, they could die.
Rin materialized a rapier in her hand. She felt someone stand by her and she smiled at Len.
"We can do this." Len sounded like her was more of reassuring himself than reassuring them all.
She was so glad that he was in her group. Miku had split them up into groups because she had explained that if they all stuck together, then they would just be one big target waiting for attack.
There were six groups. Miku, Luka, Luo, and Merli all led one. The other two leaders were two witches named SeeU, who was powerful for having control over most animals, but not all magical creatures, and a witch named IA, who held power over trees and since they were entering a forest area, she was a good leader. SeeU was actually a Goddess, but she hid her identity, unlike Luka who told hers when Miku asked. SeeU had told Miku in private who she was; at the time, she hadn't trusted them. Each group had about fifty people.
She glanced back at the gates. 3. 2. 1!
She tensed, but no falcons appeared. She realized it was because of the auras the group leaders were sending out.
"Let's go." Miku spoke. Rin and Len followed Miku out. Rin waved goodbye to Gumi who was standing next to Luka and Haku who was in SeeU's group. She was glad that she wasn't separated from all her friends. Neru and Rei were in their group.
"We're going to survive." Neru whispered.
Rin smiled weakly.
…
Miku's group arrived at a small bridge after some time. The water looked dangerous, a sick purple color.
Miku hesitantly stepped onto the bridge with one foot. Just as she was about to motion them to follow, a creature leapt out of the water.
Cries of "Princess!" followed. The princess, however, wasn't fast enough to dodge the creature.
"Miku-sama!" One of Miku's maids at the Royal Palace, Miki, shoved her princess out of the way, the princess landing safely on the riverbank. The creature bore down on Miki.
However, Miki wasn't a pushover. Being one of the princess' maids required her to protect her from harm. She swept out her arm, quickly creating a shield.
Rin winced. If only they could do higher Rank spells…
The creature, that Rin recognized as the Zoku Fish, did not have extremely high attack. However, they often traveled in groups.
A school of the Zoku Fish all leapt up in the air, attacking Miki's barrier. They were wearing her down. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew some of them away.
"Let's help her!" Miku ordered.
As if she broke their trance, Miku's group all rushed forward. The fish's sharp teeth easily broke through the men's swords though. More species of fish began appearing from the water.
"Men! Step aside!" Miku called. "Ladies, Formation A!"
Formation A was quite simple really. It consisted of three lines. The first line was defense, who casted barrier attacks. The second line was offense that consisted of attack spells. The third line consisted of strong abilities and long range attacks. Miku stood behind the third line, manipulating wind.
Rin stood in the second line, shooting attacks from her fingertips. The first line was kneeling, sweating as they concentrated, trying to not let their barriers be broken.
Suddenly, it broke.
Miki, who had a hard time holding on before by herself, ran out of mana. The fish, spotting this opening, lunged at her.
It was quick. In less than a second, Miki had been dragged, screaming, underneath the water surface. All of the fish pounced to gorge on her.
"GO!" Miki's strangled voice screamed as the fish stopped attacking the remaining witches. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING-" She was cut off as she submerged.
The group quickly reached the other side. Rin froze in shock until Len grabbed her shoulder, dragging her along. Once they had reached the other side, the river had calmed and Miki couldn't have been heard anymore.
"M-miki." Miku fell to her knees. Even though Miki was her maid, Miku had been close to her. They were more like sisters rather than Mistress and Servant. Miku seemed to be frozen with shock, tears absently rolling down her cheeks.
Everyone glanced at each other nervously, somber. Why? Hey, what would you do if one of your comrades just died? What would you do if your leader and princess was sobbing by your feet?
"Ohime-sama." Rin hesitantly stepped forward, lightly brushing Miku's shoulder. She leaned in close, whispering to her. "Ohime-sama." She felt bad, but continued. "We need you. You're our leader. Everyone is disorganized without you. You can't cry now. Later, alright?" She asked gently.
Miku hiccuped softly, her face hidden by her teal hair. Finally, she raised her head, aquamarine eyes gazing back at identical aquamarine ones. She smiled softly. "You know how to grieve and take care of duty. You can control your emotions." Her eyes were gentle with respect. "You'd be a better princess than I'll ever be."
The blond let out a quiet laugh. "I doubt that, Miku-sama-"
"Miku-chan." Miku interrupted softly. When Rin looked surprised, she explained. "Everyone makes a big deal of my status. I want my friends to treat me normally. I-if you want to be mine that is?" Miku gazed at the younger girl.
Rin smiled. Deep down, Miku was just a regular female witch. She just used her status as a facade. "Of course."
Miku nodded, wiping her tears. She turned to stare at the river once more with sorrowful eyes. "Miki-san." She whispered. She clenched her fist, the air around her warm. "I'll never forget you."
She turned back towards the crowd. They all stared back, with varying degrees of worry. Their princess smiled softly, trying to boost their spirits back up. "Come on, everyone! Let's continue!" She chirped, making her way to the front of the crowd.
Rin joined the crowd at the back, Len falling in step besides her, amazed. "What did you say to her?" He asked, watching as the princess marched with a reinvigorated spirit.
Rin found herself smiling again. "That," She announced. "Is for me to know and for you to find-. Wait what am I saying? It's for me to know and for you to never find out!" She grinned happily. Why am I always so happy around Len and Miku? Sure, I was happy with my old gang, but I feel like I have an indescribable bond with them.
And she found herself laughing again at Len's exasperated sigh.
…
Luka watched as Miku disappeared into the forest with her group. Gumi stood quietly at her side.
"Good luck, Luka." A voice softly said. Luka turned to face Luo, who had quickly become a good friend of hers. Luo was born of a witch and a Chinese warlock. She wore blue and her brown hair waved in the wind. The Witch of Speed.
"Yes… Best of luck to you too, Luo."
"It was a pleasure meeting you." Luo nodded a goodbye, before silently leading her group away. Their steps faded as they trudged through the undergrowth.
"Goddess of Time, I hope to see you again." SeeU's face was grave.
"Same to you, Goddess of Animals." Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Merli and IA's groups leaving. She subtly raised a hand in acknowledgement as Haku waved goodbye.
"Well… Goodbye." Coming from anyone else, the sentence would have seemed awkward, but SeeU had a way with words. Luka nodded, and SeeU used an Ability Spell, a spell only limited to one's ability. Luka turned away, finally leading her group away from the safe post.
…
Their march didn't last for very long without an interruption. Only about an hour later, Luka heard some rustling. It could be nothing. Luka reasoned. But it's still best to check it out. Deciding to save her mana for emergencies, she called Gumi to the front of the group. Because Luka's ability was so powerful, she really didn't have a lot of mana. She could only stop time once every other day, but she could use her other time related abilities.
Gumi quickly made her way up front. "Yes, Luka?"
"There is rustling in the bushes." She informed her quietly. "Have you been practicing?"
"Hai." Gumi replied. "Where is this enemy?"
"The bush at 7 o'clock."
"Shokubutsu Kensa. (Plant Scan)" Gumi used an Ability Spell. "Scanning. Five controllable plants at 7 o'clock. As long as it's not too fast Luka, I can ensure capture."
"Commence." Luka replied.
"Hai." A bead of sweat ran down Gumi's face. She tried to attack as quick as she could. "Shokubutsu Motsure (Plant Tangle)." She whispered, trying to boost the power of the attack.
Everyone turned as the vines coiling around a nearby tree sprung at an object behind the bushes. There was a squeak and something - or someone - flew out.
It collided with Gumi's head, "You witches are no fun!" It pouted.
"A-" Gumi began, surprised.
"Fairy?" Luka finished. They had learnt that there were many different types of magical creatures in the forest, but they never expected fairies.
"Yeah!" The little fairy exclaimed. She glared at them. "What did you think I was? I swear, if you say a fly-"
"Iroha!" Another fairy flew out. She had silver hair, with the ends being highlighted with pink. "I swear, if you weren't one of the Queen's best soldiers-"
"I dare you to finish that sentence, Maika." The peach haired pony tailed fairy replied darkly.
"Uh…" Luka's group sweat dropped.
"Iroha!" The fairy named Maika, shrieked. "We're supposed to kill intruders! Not be their entertainment."
"Oh, fine!" Iroha snapped.
Maika turned towards the witches and humans. "I know that you unknowingly trespassed into our territory, but intruders have to be killed. I'm sorry."
"What are you talking about?" Someone scoffed. "You're the size of my hand!"
"Oh no." Gumi muttered. "They just-"
"-Did-" Maika continued.
"-Not!" Iroha snarled. The little fairy waved her wand and suddenly, they were both human size. They lunged. In a quick flash, two people were already dead, bloody from the green lasers that pierced them both. This quickly escalated. People were killed quickly. Before Luka could react, ten were already dead.
"No." Luka whispered. Gumi screamed her name. I have to do this, then. Luka decided, muttering as a couple more were killed. "Jikanteido (Stopping Time)."
Everything froze. Luka panted from the spell, but quickly recovered. This wasn't the time. One minute. She stumbled over to Iroha, grabbing a random stone from the ground and held it ready. She couldn't kill people when time was frozen. She waited.
Suddenly, movement started once more. Iroha's wand was targeting Gumi.
Luka swung the rock forward.
The fairy crumpled to the ground, her skull completely crushed. Luka dropped down on her knees besides her, fatigue taking over.
"No," Maika whispered. "This can't be possible." She shakily returned to fairy form. Her eyes glittered with tears and rage. "Queen Titania will hear of this. We won't forgive you." The little fairy sped away, dragging the now tiny body of a once respected fairy soldier.
Luka watched them go, feeling the pain and sadness.
That comes with bringing the death of another.
…
SeeU concentrated on her spell as Luka finally left. Her own group was restless, terrified.
"Doubutsu Hogosha: (Animal Guardians)." She murmured. As the Animal Goddess, she had contracts with many different magical animals. "Ikkakujuu (Unicorns)."
The first that appeared was a majestic lavender unicorn. Her mane and tail were grayish white, but the tail also contained a slight mix of light green. Her horn was a pure white. Appearing besides her was a handsome dark blue unicorn. His mane and tail were a sky blue, and his horn a dull black. The twin princess and prince of the Hibon Unicorns. They were two of SeeU's strongest contracted animals. Princess Shiro and Prince Kuro. Light and Dark.
The Hibon Unicorns were an ethnic group of unicorns known for their unique coloring and attack. Anyone was allowed to do contracts with only one species, but SeeU's ability allowed her to contract with one ethnic group per species of animal. Unlike wild animals, one could speak to their contracted animals. SeeU's ability allowed her to understand all animals, though. SeeU's contracted animals could also speak to other species as well, witches and humans for example.
"SeeU! How are you?" Shiro greeted cheerfully.
"Did I have to come?" Kuro muttered. "I was eating."
"Shut up, Kuro." Shiro poked him with her horn.
"Who are they, SeeU-san?" A hybrid named Haku asked quietly. (A/N: Never told you Haku's status, did I? Now do you know why she's so shy?)
"Shut it, hybrid." A full-bred witch snapped.
SeeU found herself quietly clenching her left fist, covered by a fingerless black glove.
Shiro noticed this. "Calm yourself, SeeU." She murmured quietly.
She took a deep breath. "Right." She raised her voice. "This is Princess Shiro and Prince Kuro of the Hibon Unicorns, two of my contracted animals. They will be guarding us today. Please wait a while before we leave."
Though the group stayed tensed, they seemed more relaxed knowing that they would be at the safe post for a while. Meanwhile, SeeU conversed with her contracted animals, filling them in on what was happening.
"I see…" Kuro muttered. "So we need a strategy?"
"Hmm…" Shiro pondered. "If we're attacking and defending, SeeU, you need a scout."
"A scout?"
"I bet your best friend missed you." Shiro smiled. Well, as much as an unicorn could smile.
"Oh." SeeU might not look like it, but she was actually a kind person. Most Goddesses were under their facade of a Goddess. Why did they put on the facade? If the Goddess wasn't intimidating, most witches that were hungry for power would try to kill them. But that would end up in an avoidable bloodbath. The stronger and more intimidating one seems, usually the less attempts for one's power.
"Doubutsu Hogosha: Neko (Animal Guardians: Cat)." A midnight cat materialized. The aura surrounding it was so sinister that you could see a tinge of red in the air around it.
The Shi Cats never mate with cats of its own species. Why? Cause there weren't any. Every time a Shi Cat is born, its mother and father die, regardless of species. If a female Shi Cat mates with a male cat from another species, they both will suddenly die at the time of the baby's birth. Their name literally means the "Death Cat", the cat that brings death in its wake. They were always a dark color, sometimes completely pitch black. And no matter how kind the cat really is, there was always a sinister aura smothering it. It was nearly extinct, for there was always only one left in the world.
The cat pounced on SeeU as soon as she materialized. "SeeU!" She whined. "It's been too long!"
"Yoru!" SeeU hissed. "Witches!"
"Oh." Yoru sat up, suddenly looking sophisticated. She glared at the staring group, manifesting her aura. "What are you all looking at? Scram." She growled.
They all complied. No one decided to mess with that cat. Not even the enemies lurking nearby.
And SeeU began to explain the plan.
(A/N: Fairly boring part, but you got some more info! She's a strategist. Not all of them have to be fighting scenes, right?)
…
After saying goodbye to Luka, who had been quite a good friend in the past month, Luo set off through the woods. Fifty or so people trudging behind her.
Their route was filled with animals. A couple people died in skirmishes with Falcons. They hurried on.
They made camp quite soon. Luo figured that the closer they were to the safe house, the easier the creatures were to beat. Therefore, they should bask in safeness for as long as they could.
Watching her people settle, she decided to scout through the woods. When she was far away enough, she spoke. "Tian Dian."
The music fairy materialized. "Yes, Luo?"
"Does anyone suspect me?"
"No, not yet Luo."
Luo sighed with relief. That was good. Like Luka, Luo wasn't actually the Witch of Speed. Her music fairy could just fly really fast and tug Luo with her. She needed to hide her identity as well. Like SeeU, she believed that she shouldn't expose her identity. Especially hers.
She glanced around. I think I've gone too far. Better go back. "Let's go, Tian Dian." Luo offered.
Tian Dian nodded. Fluttering over, she let Luo grab onto her string. "Take off!" She chirped, speeding away, turning invisible.
Luo was in the camp in seconds. Everyone glanced up. Mo and Ling, who were both Chinese witches races over. "Tianyi!" They cried.
(A/N: So, like Japanese, in Chinese, last names come first. Luo Tianyi's actual name is Tianyi. Mo Qingxian is Qingxian. And Yuezheng Ling is Ling. But, Tian and Yi are separate characters, the same with Qing and Xian and Yue and Zheng. Since it's weird to write, I'm going to call the Chinese vocaloids by their one character name, whether it be first or last. But Mo, Luo, and Ling are going to use the correct names because, well they're Chinese.)
"Qingxian, Ling? What is it?" Luo asked, alarmed.
"The falcon was carrying a disease when it bit- Nevermind! Just come here, Tianyi!" Mo explained frantically.
The two witches quickly dragged their leader over to a small crowd, gathered around a single man. She felt horrid, seeing him foaming at the mouth, his face contorted with agony. His eyes squeezed shut, his breathing shallow. His glasses were resting next to him, his skin a ugly purple.
Luo quickly got down to business. She wasn't fazed, especially with her true identity. "Ling! Report: Name, Info, Status."
"H-Hai!" Ling straightened. "Kiyoteru Himaya. Human. Close to becoming the warlock of Yowanne Haku, Group SeeU. Currently infected with a rare, most likely fatal disease, that we cannot identify."
"Crap." Luo swore. Healing was only used in potions and such. And she was almost certain that the Witch of Healing, which was one of the few witches that specialized in status rather than attack, was not in their group. She didn't even think that she was in the Draft. But she personally knew the Witch of Healing, and she could be disguising herself… She doubted that she would even participate in this…
But she had to check. "Yukari Yuzuki, Witch of Healing, are you present?"
She scanned the crowd, but no twin tailed, lavender haired girl stepped forth. She sighed, knowing that Yukari would have been too shy to participate in this.
"Is there anyone that I can trust to keep secrets and is gifted at long range attacks?" She asked this time.
There was a ripple in the crowd, and a girl stepped forward. "Zunko Tohoku, Witch of Archery, at your service."
Luo nodded. "Nice to meet you. Tianyi Luo. Now, everyone, go into your tents and if anyone peeks, shoot their eyes out, Zunko." Her voice was dark, unsettling many of the people. "I trust you won't tell anyone what occurs?" She asked once everyone cleared out.
"N-no, Luo-sama." Zunko gulped. She positioned her bow and pointed an arrow at the tents.
Luo turned towards, her patient. "Seinaru **** (Holy *****)."
(A/N: Not swearing. Just keeping Luo's power a secret. I'm not good at keeping them, but I'm keeping this one.)
Zunko's eyes widened. "Luo-sama." She breathed. "Y-you-"
Luo smiled sweetly, turning to face the archer. "Not a word, Witch of Archery."
(A/N: Oooh. What's Luo's power? Leave guesses. If you guys haven't noticed, I only bold important author's notes, if they're not bold, you should read them too, but the bold is either super important or a cultural note I feel like you all should know.)
…
Merli and IA decided to team up, knowing that they were most likely the weakest of the six leaders. They left together, trying to find strengths in number. After a while, they heard a gasp in the crowd.
"What happened?" IA asked, making her way to the middle.
A witch stood there, her hands outstretched. Leaves gently floated around her palms.
"Wait. You're not the Earth Elemental, are you?" Merli asked.
"No." The witch shook her head. "I was abilityless. Now, I'm the Witch of Leaves, I think. But I thought someone else was the Witch of Leaves. I saw her in Luka-sama's group."
"She's probably dead, then." IA murmured. When a witch died, usually their powers were given to newborns, but there was a chance that their powers were passed to an abilityless witch.
After that, the walk was quite uneventful.
For now.
But in a couple of months, there will be a price to compensate for the unsettling calm months that had passed for the two groups.
…
DONE! Am I going to tell you what happened to their groups? Probably not. You're going to infer from the results. Or it might just be the fact that my fighting scenes suck.
Things are getting intense!
Anyway review on Luo's power and the POV thing. Help me out here, please.
Just make sure I'm not dead before you help. (Len's still after us).
Rin: Ciao!
Me: 12 whole pages, I'm awesome! And 4,449 words!
Len: DIE!
Me and Rin: *sweat drop*
~Hana and Rin (and maybe Len if we're nice enough to let the banana loving freak tag along)