Ice Chronicles

Chapter 72: Departure

Two months and a week have passed ever since we took down Higa and his battalion. During that time, MBI have invaded the sector and tore down the remains of Higa's old building. Now a new MBI tower is in the making, and Minaka didn't hesitate about boasting about this either. Kai continued to kill Jason and me with his rigorous training; he even increased the weight we carried to about a hundred each. I can't count how many times my legs almost fell off, but Kai didn't want to waste time. Luckily, all the weight weren't for my legs; I also had weights on my arms and wrists, even on my torso, but majority of the weight was stationed on my legs. Jason was in no better shape; the guy nearly died several times per week, but he persevered through it all. Ryan's leg finally healed and he could start training once again, but he was a little too enthusiastic about it and helped Kai run Jason and I into the ground. Unlike us, Ryan could keep up with Kai's training for longer periods of time. Jason and I were just lucky to survive.

Our respective sekirei continued their training as well; I was a little skeptical about letting Kusano train as well, but I was completely overwhelmed. Hell, it was about thirty-to-one, meaning me against everyone else. Even Carmen, the computer A.I that protects my house, and Chiho, my adopted daughter, sided with everyone else. Well, they certainly proved me wrong, because Kusano has become very skilled with her powers. She still has that little jealousy streak, like another blonde sekirei I know, but her skills have dramatically improved.

For a good several days, we all relaxed and recuperated, resting our sore bodies. I mostly slept in the spare time and continued working on strategies for our fight. When I wasn't strategizing, or sleeping, I was training my body along with the others. Thanks to said training, my speed and endurance have increased. Kai still bested me in speed, but that's not surprising. We've all grown stronger over the past two months, but the bigger question is do we stand a chance against MBI now.

Even now, I still remember the words Minaka and Karasuba said to me. They were disappointed with my Higa battle, but I didn't disagree with them. I too was a little disappointed in the way things escalated; and while I agree there were still flaws in my plan, I should've taken a much more careful approach. Now I have to be even more careful than before if I want this next plan to work. There's still no telling if things will go right but I'm…sixty percent sure we'll succeed. The remaining forty is that we will all suffer a horrific and painful death while having the wicked laughter of Minaka fill our ears as our final memories, no pressure.

It took a lot of weight off to know that I had plenty of help devising the plans, but I completely forgot that I'm the one leading the group. When Matsu pointed that out, I was frozen for a good ten minutes. It was overwhelming to be honest; I knew from the beginning that things wouldn't sit well with me. After Aki told me about sekirei and ashikabi, which was very intriguing to learn about, I knew there would be mad people roaming around with sekirei at their exposal. What I didn't expect is to find out my uncle worked for the company that oversees the entire plan; he told me he worked for a pharmaceutical company. It did explain how he managed to get me medicine so quickly without any hassles. I also never expected to have so many sekirei, but hey, they can't resist this handsome face. However, I never would've guessed I would have a daughter at my age. I'm only eighteen and have a thirteen year old daughter; don't get me wrong, I love Chiho dearly and treat her as if she's really my daughter, but it's still so unexpected. She's starting to take after Uzume in some ways I refuse to mention and that's unacceptable. No daughter of mine will be walking around like her mother and/or aunts. Nevertheless, the biggest part I never expected was to lead a small army against the man who runs the game with an iron fist. He's a madman yes, but I never thought about fighting him directly.

To say I'm scared is an understatement; I'm completely terrified. MBI is who knows how many times more powerful than Higa. With more skilled soldiers and deadlier traps at the ready. Combine that with a fucking thousand floor building and that's half the challenge right there. About thirty percent are the soldiers, including the Discipline Squad and Special Forces, and the remaining twenty should be the traps set to kill us all. It's not going to be easy; this will be the most difficult challenge we've ever faced. I know many more of us will perish; that's a given, but I've come to accept that relatively early yet hesitantly.

I stare out at the horizon from my terrace. It was nighttime and everyone except me was asleep. We went through another hard day, but instead of feeling exhausted, which I was, I was more anxious. Something just kept nagging me, but I could never figure it out. I don't know what it is, but I had a very strong urge to call my parents. I talked them to earlier, still keeping the promise I made back then, but now I had an even stronger urge to do it again. It was late so I didn't expect anyone to pick up.

My father grumpily answered the phone and I explained some of the things that's been happening, except the way more dangerous stuff. I just kept it simple and explained my anxiety. I still couldn't explain why I felt so apprehensive though. I mean having to fight MBI was nerve wracking enough, but now I'm feeling even worse. Wait, MBI? Oh duh! Ren you're a dumbass!

When dad finished speaking, he was telling me of his day and such, I finally realized what else needed to be done. I couldn't believe I didn't figure it out sooner.

"Dad, I know this is very sudden, but it's time for you, mom, auntie, and my brothers to leave Teito," I stated.

"What? What do you mean leave Teito?" he asked back. "Ren what's going on here?"

I couldn't tell him about the mission; it will only put them in danger, which would put me at a huge disadvantage. I couldn't let them know what was going to happen.

"I can't explain why, just trust me though. You all need to get out of here," I told him. "Believe me when I say something bad is about to happen and I don't want you getting caught in it. It'll be much safer if you all left as soon as possible."

"And just how do you expect us to go anywhere? Do you think we can just magically find a place to go?" my father questioned.

"Ask Blake; he's the oldest and should be able to accommodate. Just trust me dad; I know it's very sudden, but I can't have you sticking around. I know you don't live right in Teito, but it's still a lot better if you go like overseas or something," I answered back; he was starting to become difficult. There wasn't a response. "Dad?"

"Hold on, let me talk to your mother and auntie about this," he stated. "I'll talk to you another time."

"Wait dad!" He hung up on me, a repetitive beep playing instead. I ended the call as well and let out a big sigh. I didn't stay outside and walked in my still lit room. I was the only one in the room, as my sekirei were sleeping peacefully in their respective beds; however, there was one more matter that needed attention.

I silently opened the door to Uzume's room and tiptoed in. I saw her sleeping soundly with our daughter in her arms. Kazehana was fast asleep as well but faced the other way. I gently shook Uzume awake and placed a finger over her lips to keep her silent. She glared at me angrily and reached out for me to carry her. I was reluctant and gave her that 'really?' look but just continued to glare. I carried her back to my soundproof room while she rested some more.

"So, give me one good reason why you woke me up from my sleep. You know how I am about sleeping." She stated.

"Yes I know, but this is very important; it's about Chiho," I responded. She woke up quick after that and let out a big yawn. Luckily, she was dressed a little.

"What's this about my little girl?" Uzume asked.

"She needs to leave Teito and take comfort with my parents," I simply said. She looked at me with a dumbfounded stare.

"Wait what?" she questioned.

"Chiho, our adopted daughter, needs to leave Teito and go with my parents to safety," I repeated.

"Safety from what now?" Uzume asked. I shook my head.

"We're taking on MBI; don't you think it would be wise to make sure our daughter and my parents get out beforehand."

"Oh," was all she could say. "So you want Chiho to stay with your parents for the time being?"

"That's right. I already spoke to my father about them leaving but they're going to debate it. I tried to explain without revealing the big plan but dad said he'll think about it with mom and auntie. However, I'm still going to get them to leave and take Chiho with them so she'll be out of harm's way."

Uzume yawned again. I understand she's tired but this is serious business.

"I agree with what you're saying but what's wrong with putting Chiho at the inn?" she asked next.

"The inn won't be able to withstand this kind of assault; we're taking on a corporation with military at its disposal. They'll be coming with everything they got and it could basically turn into a giant war and if I know that Chiho and my family are still around that will make me very uncomfortable and distracted, which I absolutely cannot have," I explained. Uzume was about to speak but I placed both hands on her shoulders and gave them a firm squeeze. "Before you say anything, really think about it. Think about who we're facing, what they have handy, and what's likely to happen once the fighting starts. I'm not going to argue about this; Chiho leaves, my family leaves, and that's final. I will be talking to the rest to see if there's anyone that needs to evacuate as well, because this isn't your average battle Uzume; this is war."

I left Uzume speechless. She couldn't say any retort and accept defeat.

"When do you suppose they leave? They'll need to pack up and make preparations. Time is of the essence," she pointed out.

"Yes I know, that's why I'm working as fast as I can. I'll try to convince them but everything is all on them. I can get in touch with one of my brothers and have them set up a place, but other than that, that's all I can do."

Uzume nodded at the plan and smiled. "To think you were the one most hesitant about the adoption and now look at you. Father of the Year right here; you thought of Chiho and your family all the while keeping them in the dark about our plans and how badly things are going to turn out. Father and Son of the Year."

"You can tease me later," I pulled out my phone. "I need to-hey."

Uzume grabbed my phone and waved it beside her head.

"You need to rest; it's two in the morning. You can do what you have to do later, but right now, it's time to sleep."

"But."

"Aah bup-bup, sleep first, preparation later," Uzume placed my phone in her cleavage.

"But why do what I can later when I can do it now?" I asked. She was softening a pillow.

"Ren, it's two in the morning; you disturbed your father already. Now you're going to disturb your brothers. I know you're worried but calm down, geez."

"I can't calm down," I told her. I was about to rant, but Uzume forcefully clamped my mouth shut and pushed me down. She kept her hand on my mouth as she straddled my waist.

"You can and will calm down," she ordered more sternly. "I know it's a lot Ren, but don't you think we feel the same. We're tired of explaining this to you. Yes there's a lot of pressure, but is it all on you? No, it's not; we're under a lot of pressure too. You're not the only one having a hard time about. I don't know when you started becoming so selfish but it needs to stop. The Ren I fell in love with was not selfish by any means; he may be a little stubborn, but never selfish. I get it's a lot to bear but you just can't let it all bring you down. Geez Ren, start thinking of people again; do you know how terrified Chiho is. She can barely sleep she's that scared, but I keep telling her that it will be all right. We have an ace tactician with us and he's never failed us before; we can make it through this, even if it's just by a thread."

She uncovered my mouth and took out my cell phone, which she used to send a text to my family. She told me she said that everything will be all right. After placing the device on the nightstand, she kissed me goodnight and rolled off me, placing her head on my chest.

"Hmm, Kai's training really did wonders for you. Your chest is so toned."

Before I shut off the lights, a knock came at my door. It slid slightly and revealed little Chiho poking her head in. The message was clear so we let her sleep in between us as usual, but Kazehana joined us as well. She was more than happy to use my back as her pillow.

The next morning, I was talking to my parents about the moving away thing. Chiho stayed with me while the sekirei were training some more. I talked to her about the same thing; she didn't know how to take it, but I managed to convince her to go with my parents. Now my parents are asking questions left and right about the situation. I can't tell them about our plans, otherwise who knows what they'll decide to do. I can't have them staying close by; I need them gone far away from Japan. Thankfully, I had some very reliable brothers. Blake could get them some place to stay; Marcus knows many different languages so he can help with foreign problems, and Chris has a plethora of connections and knows whom to ask.

I've been trying to convince them for hours and they were still asking question; it wasn't going so well. I sighed for the thousandth time and covered my face.

Now I know whom I inherited my stubbornness from; this is ridiculous!

I shook my head, but then my phone suddenly slipped out of my hands.

"Grandma Claire, Grandpa Kyle, please listen to father," Chiho's voice rung through my ears. I looked at my adopted daughter and saw my phone pressed against her ear. She was speaking in my place. I just let her do the talking instead; maybe they would listen to her better.

When she was finished speaking, she closed the phone and handed it to me. She then flashed me a smile and I ended up shaking my head.

"They listen to you but not me," I ruffled Chiho's hair with a chuckle. "Nice work; now I can help you pack."

"Do I have to leave now?" my little girl asked with a dejected look on her face.

"Yes Chiho; we've been over this. You're not in the Sekirei Plan so you can still leave without any trouble, but I and the rest must stay behind. We have to move quickly, but we'll see each other when it's all over; I promise," I reassured her. She hesitantly nodded. I had Carmen call Uzume out and help Chiho pack her things. There was no telling how long it would be until she can see us again so I made sure she had everything she needed for elongated periods of time.

"Okay, that should be everything," I said while zipping up the second and final bag. Chiho and Uzume sat on the bed. The latter was giving her daughter her final hugs and kisses while the former, dressed in her white dress and hat, held her mother tight.

"I'm going to miss you Chiho," Uzume stated. "Stay safe okay?"

"I will; you all stay safe too," Chiho replied. I set the bag beside the other one. I faced the girls, seeing Uzume look at me with adoring eyes. Chiho looked at me the same way and I just blinked at them a couple of time.

"What?" I asked, mentally kicking myself for asking.

"Family hug," the two stated and held out their arms.

"Huh?" I said in confusion.

"Get over here and give your wife and daughter a hug; she's leaving and needs a big strong hug from her father," Uzume explained.

"I can't hug her when my parents come to pick her up?" I shrugged my shoulders. Now the two puffed their cheeks out and I couldn't help but sigh. "Fine."

I brought my girls in for a nice big hug and received a kiss on the cheek from both. Uzume just couldn't let her little girl go; she wasn't all too happy to part with her just yet. I couldn't bring myself to break the hug and just left them alone. I informed Jason and the rest about the family situation and told them that any family members close by needs to leave ASAP. Jason was already on the case with his mother, though he was having much better luck than I did with my parents.

"Director, your parents have arrived to pick up your daughter," Carmen notified me. The hugging mother and daughter hopped off the bed and followed me downstairs, where Chiho was hugged to death by the other sekirei. They bid farewell to their little niece as I opened the door to see my parents. Chiho appeared right next to me and looked at her grandparents for the first time. They welcomed her with open arms, especially my mother. After one last family hug, Chiho hopped in the car with her grandparents. I could see Uzume's eyes starting to water as she waved back to Chiho, who was blatantly crying. Uzume wrapped her arms around me as she cried on my chest, and I comforted her as she did.

"She's a lot safer this way," I told her. "We can't have her getting caught in any crossfires."

Uzume wiped her face and looked down the road my parents drove off to.

"Come on, we still have work to do," I told her and pulled her inside.

P.O.V Change Ryan

"Come on!" Kai yelled and smashed a fist in my open palm. We've been sparring for about two hours now; both of us of were soaked in sweat and exhausted to boot. My leg has healed so I can finally move around like before, but Kai immediately enlisted me in his camp with Jason and Ren. It wasn't that bad actually, just some basic exercises and weight training, nothing I couldn't handle. Hell, I even outlasted Jason and Ren, both of whom were in Kai's camp longer.

When I finally left the hospital, much to my reluctance, Kaie and my other girls greeted me with open arms. They filled me in on everything I missed and showed me how much their training has paid off. Feeling very lazy being stuck in the hospital, I didn't hesitate in trying to resume mine; however, I had a problem.

Flashback

"No way are you training when you just got out of the hospital!" Kaie declared with her arms crossed over her chest and her stern glare peering at me. The rest joined Kaie's glare stare and nodded in agreement. At this point, there was no use arguing, or complaining.

"Fine, I'll continue recuperating, but when my muscles start deflating I'm holding you accountable," I stated and just went to shower; however, I made sure none could see my smile.

Later that night, I made sure everyone was asleep before sneaking downstairs in my training attire. I swear they booby-trapped the place so I couldn't escape, but a little swift maneuver here and there allowed me to stand in my backyard where I saw the weights and equipment I've missed so much. They were clean too, not a single speck of dust, which made the reunion all that much sweeter. I didn't want to waste the opportunity and started training once more; I didn't know if the girls could hear me or not but I managed to get in a very great session the first two nights, but on the third, I was caught.

The stars were very glistening tonight; I was doing some pushups as a warmup while watching the stars. The girls didn't know about my nightly training, or so I thought.

"Ahem," a grunt entered my ears and made a loud gasp escape my lips. I froze in the middle of the incline and slowly turned my head to the backdoor entrance, where I saw Kaie staring at me with a blatant frown on her face. Her foot was tapping on the wooden floor repeatedly as she glared at me. I could feel the sweat pouring down my face now, and it was not from the warm up.

"K-Kaie, good evening," I spoke up sheepishly. "Um, you look…very beautiful tonight."

I gave a nervous chuckle and continued to watch her while getting to my feet. I made sure not to avoid my gaze.

"Sooo, what are you doing?"

She didn't respond and continued tapping her foot. I slowly backed away, nearing the wooden fence that could get me to freedom.

"Well, I was just stargazing; it was a beautiful night and the stars looked so beautiful."

"Then why were you doing pushups if you were just stargazing?" she questioned harshly. I flinched at her tone and sped up a little.

"Oh, um, that was…to loosen me up?" I responded. I was close enough to the fence that I could reach the top and hop it; however, I made a grave mistake. I chuckled nervously again after explaining the pushup thing and ended up closing my eyes, which was my mistake. As soon as I opened them, Kaie was dead in my face with her arm swiftly reaching past my face and her hand forcibly grabbing my ear.

"AAAH!" I let out a painful scream. Kaie squeezed my ear, but I couldn't scream or the neighbors would hear me. She pulled my face towards her and glared at me even more intimidatingly.

"If you don't get your ass back in that house and rest like we said, I'll have to show you what ten pounds of torque does to the human ear, understood?"

I gulped and nodded, but she pulled me again.

"Say it!" she demanded venomously.

"Yes ma'am I understand," I stated. She leaned back and nodded.

"Good, now let's go," she dragged me towards the house, ignoring my begging and cries.

Flashback Over

My ear still throbs when I think about those days. Thinking about it now makes it throbs uncontrollably and all I can do is hiss in the pain.

Kai have started coming over to help with my training, and while it took a lot of convincing, Kai had the girls beat before they could even retort. I don't know how he did it, but I'm going to have him show me, because I could persuasive skills like that. He also ou me in the camp he made Jason and Ren go through, the former calling it Purgatory instead of camp, but I honestly saw no problems with it. All it consisted of is basic exercises and weight training; I do that all the time, except for actually wearing weights for everything I do. It was difficult at first, because I had about eighty pounds total weighing me down during training and couldn't take them off until bedtime.

Kai also told me I have yet to unlock my ashikabi ability and that will give us an edge in this fight. I don't have any clue what he's talking about, but from what I've seen Ren do, it must be awesome. It's been one hell of a training session; Kai is very strong and fast. It's hard enough just to keep up with him.

"Kai; I'm not sure what you want me to do," I dodged another punch and smashed my right leg into my opponent's side, but he blocked the attack and delivered a fierce punch to my jaw. I fell back, but quickly rolled out of the way, as Kai attempted to stomp down on me.

"It's as I keep telling you," Kai stated. "I need to get you to unlock your ashikabi ability. Maybe I'm going about this the wrong way though."

I dusted myself off and let out a sigh. "Is it really necessary that I do?"

"Yes, it is highly necessary," he responded. "I think we're close though. However."

I yawned and then looked back towards Kai, but the guy slashed downward with his sword. I quickly jumped back, but my shirt ripped on the shoulder. Kai continued his assault, swinging his sword with deadly accuracy. I had to move twice as quick in order to evade his swings, but I still suffered many hits. He brought me to my knees and pointed his sword in my face.

"Focus Ryan; you need to do this. Ren, Jason, and even I have unlocked our abilities but you are still lacking. You need to focus."

Before I could respond, electricity started chirping around Kai's sword. My eyes opened up wider as I felt the intense surge send jolts down my spine. How was he generating lightning?

"Black as day, and dark as night; I use this power to assist my fights. Those who face my strength and might, beware my power, Raiden's Light," Kai chanted. "My ability allows me to command lightning, a strange ability for a human I might say, but mighty as the same. Ren specializes in speed, Jason for some reason specializes in defense, and if I'm correct, you'll be a strength person. We just have to figure out how to unlock it, which is why I'm going to kill you."

I just shook my head for a bit and sighed again.

"Yeah, kill me, that will do wonders," I chuckled. It felt like a truck hit me when I realized what he just said. "WAIT WHAT!?"

"Took you long enough," Kai said. I backed away so fast I was already at my porch.

"You're going to kill me?!" I cried. "How is killing me supposed to unlock something?"

"A very powerful traumatic experience has the power to reveal something in a person; it can permanently change them, for better or for worse. Usually, such an experience deals with the murder of a loved one, or in this case, having a near death experience," he explained. I was not complying with this, no way in hell. "From what I gathered from Ren and Jason, they were put in a situation that really pushed them beyond their limits. So, if I can get you to experience the same thing, the same results should work for you."

"Yeah I don't like the sound of this," I told him.

"Oh stop being such a big baby; you know the saying, no pain no gain," he retorted.

"The only thing I'm gaining IS pain," I declared and continued backing away.

"Well, I'll explain this as simple as I can. Do you know what genjutsu is?" Kai asked. I raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Are we talking about some illusionary work here?" I wanted to clarify. Kai simply nodded, his hair covering his eyes now. "Yeah I know what genjutsu is."

"You're trapped in mine," Kai said softly but still loud enough to hear.

P.O.V Change Ren

Jason just informed me that he finally got his mom to leave. Ryan has yet to inform me of his progress but he's with Kai so they could be training. That's not all; Minaka has set an appointed time for all remaining ashikabi and sekirei to meet today. Apparently, there is some big news he wishes to relay, most likely more about the Higa business and taking over his territory.

"Hey!" I screamed through the house. "Ashikabi and Sekirei meeting at five o'clock; the Game Master has summoned all remaining players!"

They gave a confirmative response as I focused on my family's progress. They were able to leave successfully and are heading out to see my brothers. Chiho is doing fine, which is a great load off my back. Now I can relax more now that I know they're all safe. But my uncle has to remain due to his job in MBI, so it's just him and I.

When it was time to leave, we all headed out to see what the Game Master himself has to say. Just one last time I had Stephanie transport us, but when she fulfilled her task, I told her to evacuate as well. It took more convincing but I managed to talk her into leaving; the girls were sad to see her go but they knew it was for the best too.

I found the team gathering, but Ryan of all people had a distraught look on his face. All his sekirei were comforting him as he just sat on the floor with his back against the wall. Now I had to know what was going on.

"What's wrong with Ryan?" I asked the group. They were a little hesitant to speak at first, but Ryan managed to say something.

"Kai," he said softly. "I saw… very bad and disturbing things."

I blinked a few times and tried to figure out his statement. Kai must've did something to him.

"What did Kai show you?" I asked. Ryan just shook his head slowly.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Uh, okay then? You alright though?" I asked next. He nodded yes in response but I could see that he was seriously messed up in the head. What did Kai do to him?

"You feeling better Ryan?" the perpetrator asked. Kai approached with that serious looking expression he always wore. Ryan nodded again, but his sekirei shot Kai a glare. He wasn't bothered by it though.

"Kai? What did you do to Ryan?" I questioned. "It's like he's been mind-fucked."

"He was," Kai answered bluntly. "I was working with him to help unlock his ashikabi ability, but nothing seemed to work. It was either kill him, or mess with his mind just as effectively. I figured killing him would be too risky so I went with the genjutsu."

"Genjutsu? Since when have you been able to use genjutsu?" I was intrigued now.

"That's not important right now," he denied my questioned. "All Ryan has to do is get over what I laid and so far, he's getting his ass kicked."

"I can see that," I saw Ryan's head sink lower.

"As I told him, a powerful traumatic experience can permanently change a person. I'm just trying to spark something. Everything else falls on him."

"It was terrible," Ryan spoke up. His girls continued to comfort him while shooting glares at Kai.

Finally, the man of honor made his appearance. He was accompanied by his three top employees, but I could see my uncle staring at me. Minaka's gaze fell upon as his signature smile crossed his lips.

"Welcome remaining players!" he greeted, his tone as authoritative as ever. "I've gathered you all to inform you of critical news."

His gaze met mine. "First of all, the Ashikabi of the East have been defeated in battle; he is no more. Isn't that right Ashikabi of the North, Ren?"

All eyes fell on me.

"He had it coming; I just gave him what the bastard deserved," I stated. That sounded so badass

"Regardless," Minaka continued. "Higa Izumi is no longer here; and as such, a new MBI tower is being constructed in that sector."

"I feel like there's something else he wishes to gloat about," I said.

"Wouldn't surprise me though," Jason spoke up. "I'm just wondering what he has planned next."

"Time is of the essence, so I'll cut straight to the point," the Game Master stated. His smile faded and everyone, even Kai, was surprised by the serious look plastered on his face. Even I was surprised to see it; he would usually wear a wicked smile even if he was dead serious, but seeing the smile disappear and what seemed to be a look of rage. "There have been a major change of plans."

"Change of plans?" I repeated. I looked towards Kai and saw him speaking to his cousin; however, his faced was paling with each second.

"I'm afraid that we've entered a code red," Minaka continued. "There isn't enough time to explain but I need to take a select group with me. The rest of you will stay here along with two of my aces and receive orders from them. The group I pick will follow me immediately and await further orders."

He was about to walk off while everyone in the crowd talked amongst themselves.

"Wait a minute!" I screamed. It got silent again as Minaka looked back at me.

"Yes, North?" he asked.

"You're keeping us in the dark," I announced. "What exactly is going on that requires us to break off into separate groups? You can't expect me to just agree to something I have no knowledge about."

"Hey! If the boss man says it's important, then it's important," a male ashikabi screamed at me. He even had the nerve to approach me in that tone. I wasn't going to take that. I heard a collective gasp as my hand swiftly clamped the guy's neck and my arm easily lifted him in the air.

"Let me ask you two questions," I spoke in a low voice. I could hear the man choking for air and feel his hands try to pry me off. "Was I talking to you? Did I ask you for your opinion? I think not."

I threw him away while still looking at Minaka.

"I need answers and you will tell me them. What's going on? I demand to know."

Minaka stayed silent and didn't respond. Our eyes stayed locked on each other, but they soon switched to my uncle, who was laughing uncontrollably. Soon, we all heard his laughter.

"You see? I told you he wouldn't take things sitting down," he stated. "I got this."

Now I was scared since my uncle had to relay the message.

"Listen up everyone!" my uncle shouted. "We have very little time to speak and even less time to prepare. We need our best coming with me and Minaka while the rest stay here to defend our home. I won't go into specific detail, but we're going to war."