It was a dark underground cavern, the moist damp air seeping from the lake above the large chamber where stood a lone girl overlooking what was a large stone that seemed to cover a fissure. Her name was Mio Amakura. She'd just performed the crimson sacrifice… She had just killed Mayu, her sister, with her own hands.
"B… Blood," Mio's mind drifted through the awful realization of what she'd just done. Her hands were stained with blood.
"... Murderer" the words flowing into her mind a burning accusation.
"No. I, I can't think about that right now. I just need to get out of here as quickly as possible. No one will ever be able to know I did it anyway. There's no evidence," As sick as Mio felt at that. Those thoughts at least seemed reassuring to her.
It was also of some surprise that it worked despite the fact it required Mayu's life. The village was now free from the malice that corrupted it. Yet her hands were stained with blood.
She'd turned away from the village and was running up the hill, still trying her best to comprehend what happened and what she'd just done. She ran and ran through the thickets of trees in front of her.
"Where are you going?" Mio suddenly heard a voice in her head. A terrifyingly bone-chillingly familiar voice. The sound of Kurosawa Sae, the monster that had hunted them and forced them to perform the crimson sacrifice ritual. That had killed Mayu.
"Sae!? Where are you!" Mio almost sounded enraged.
"Inside. I don't know how it happened but it seems I've become a part of you. Now we're stuck together," She appeared in the forest and said. Mio went silent. She was hysterical and just had to get out of there. She stood and began to run. Silently ignoring her traumatic experience, her pain, all of it.
She felt tired… her body began to collapse and she lacked the strength to stand. The world became a blur before she blacked out altogether.
"...Mio." A quiet voice whispers in the dark.
"...Mio, wake up!" Her eyes slowly opened as she stood. It was a dark environment she was in. There she stood. Kurosawa Sae, her face a calm temperament that seemed unlike her. Mio's rage was inexplicable. Her face was red with anger, Sae stepped back almost a look of frightened confusion on her face.
"Y, you! You killed my sister! You took her away!" Mio said a flood of tears and rage as she grabbed Sae. She was desperate to do anything to her yet Mio felt weak, her eyes barely staying open as she quickly fainted.
"Mio? Mio!? Mio!" She could hear Sae cry out in what sounded like a worried tone.
" Miiio!" The voice faded to nary an echo as sleep. Warm welcome sleep overtook her. For what felt like an eternity Mio, willingly or not, slept in peace.
"...Mio, Miioo," It sounded like Mayu's voice was calling out to her. Another time she'd blacked out came to mind. She woke in bed with a fever to find Mayu watching her with a cool wet rag placed on her head.
"Mio, it's going to be okay I promise you! You can fight this!" Mayu's image suddenly frighteningly turned into Sae who seemed equally concerned.
"Miss Amakura, you are Unwell! Try and relax. I'll take us to a safe location!" She tried to say but Mio's rage and hatred seemed to know no bounds preventing Sae's intervention. She was quickly dispelled from the mindscape and Mayu's image reappeared in her place.
"Oh, your head feels hot! Take this fresh cool towel," Mayu's soft hand placed the cool towel on Mio's head. Mio's eyes were diverted off to the side to see Sae with an incredibly confused almost worried look on her face before that memory ended promptly.
"Miss Amakura, what was that!? Are you okay!?" Sae seemed frantic. Mio gave her a stern angered look while Sae went on to contemplate out loud.
"I just don't get it! There's no record of anything like this happening. The living twin is having hallucinations? Or that it would be so visceral and even invoke physical sensations like touch," She was frightened and surprised to see Mio suddenly grab her out of rage.
"You killed my sister! You tormented me, dragged us through hell and you just show up here!? You think you can just give me some fake excuses and that'll make it all okay!?" She screamed out in rage.
"N, no. Killed your sister? You accuse me of Murder!?" Sae sounded offended.
"My sister's dead because of you!" Sae managed to step back from Mio, her face of disgust at Mio's accusations turned to a contemplative look.
"Miss, Amakura. I. Think, perhaps we have a lack of context. You saved my people. My village, y. You're a hero!" She was silenced by a glare of rage from Mio's eye's that were directed at her. Mio's tearful eyes closed as she took a deep breath.
"Doesn't matter right now. I hate you, and I will blame you for everything. But for now. How are you here?" Mio asked.
"I don't know. It's a strange link that's happening between us. I never intended for us to end up like this. I've heard of some instances of this happening to remainings. But never between two unrelated souls. And we have the link," A red strand of energy appeared.
"Where are we? Are we still in the forest?" Mio asked.
"N, no. I managed to … Take over and move to a city. I believe they have us in a, h, h … hos," It seemed a struggle for Sae who was unable to pronounce a word.
"A hospital, yes?" Mio received a sheepish nod.
"And did you manage to catch what they said?" Sae shook her head.
"We're alive and it seems you cannot move. That is all I know," She replied.
"And did they mention a person called Kei?" Sae nodded.
"I did get something about a Kei in the room,"
"I'll deal with you later. I'm going to try and wake up. If you can leave you should. Otherwise, I will share my hate and rage and you'll feel every ounce of agony," Sae was in tears as Mio began her attempts.
"And you say there's no way to know when she'll wake?" Uncle Kei's voice echoed through the world as Mio's attempts to will herself awake began to take effect. Fingers twitched, and arms shook for a moment. She felt groggy and weak. Mio's body slowly but surely began to stir.
"Mio!? Are you there!? Mio!" Kei called out to her.
"Mnph. Unh. Un. Uncle, Kei?" Her eyes opened. Mio was certainly in a hospital as Sae had said. Her uncle Kei with several doctors hovered over her.
"Oh, thank God! You're alive! You're okay!" He was fanned out of the room as the doctors began to check on her. Her vitals and anything else they could do medically. It seemed she was going to have to stay a few nights but would make a recovery.
Deep within, she could feel Sae was still there and stirring. All Mio could do was try to fight her as best she could. Willing Sae's consciousness away until she could figure out what to do to enact any sort of vengeance. She remained in her bed, eyes shut.
"Mio! Come on, hurry up!" Mayu's voice came to Mio's ear. They were in the forest running around as children.
"Miss Amakura? What's going on!?" Sae appeared before them and was slowly following Mio. They seemed entirely ignorant of Sae's presence at first but slowly it was Mayu who seemed to notice her.
"Get out of my sister!" The image demanded as Sae again stepped back in shock.
"N, no! This shouldn't be possible. You've become a butterfly!" Mayu's image vanished into the form of a red butterfly, shocking Mio awake. Tears flowed from her eyes as Sae stood in a ghostly form hovering in the room with the red strand of energy linking her and Mio showing.
"I don't understand. Why do you keep having these hallucinations and her consciousness? It shouldn't be possible!" Sae's words were again met with rage and anger from Mio that Sae this time dismissed with a glare that seemed to frighten Mio to the bone.
"Now, listen to me. Miss Amakura. I mean you no harm, I'm just trying to understand what's happening. I fear you will face a disaster if you," Mio's eyes watered with tears.
"I've already faced disaster! You! You took my sister!" She shouted at Sae who looked confused and hurt.
"Again. I don't understand what accusation you are trying to place upon me. I gave you honor and," They were interrupted by a nurse entering the room.
"Are you alright, miss? We thought we heard shouting a moment ago," Mio shook her head.
"I, I'm fine. I think I just need some rest," The nurse walked right through Sae, a funny sensation that echoed through Mio's body only proving that no one else could hear or see Sae, and that. They truly were connected.
"It's alright, we can tell you've had a traumatic experience. Here, let's get you some fresh pillows. You can lay back and relax in the meantime," The nurse turned and left before procuring some fresh bedding.
"Alright, just let us know if you need anything else," She stepped out and said. Mio laid back with tears in her eyes that seemed to tell Sae she didn't seem to be feeling well. Mio was fuming, livid. Then came the most damning thing. It felt like a pressure in her body was building up that Sae noticed as well as a dark awful feeling that burst through her and soon a frighteningly familiar earthquake like a low rumble that seemed to be in response to the feeling in Mio's body that was growing and growing and growing.
"Miss Amakura! You must stop this! Only you can!" Sae screamed out in desperate horror. Mio seemed to understand as she closed her eyes and did everything she could to right herself. Deep meditative breaths were taken that seemed to slow the quaking. And then, a memory as Mio quickly fainted.
"Come on! Keep up!" She and Mayu were children chasing each other playfully through the woods.
"Ahhh!" Mayu slipped and fell down the ravine severely injuring her leg and had to be carried home by a determined Mio. That was the first day her promise to Mayu was made. The promise they would always be together. That was the day Mio swore to herself she would protect her sister no matter what the cost. Sae watched with awe in the background.
It was the first time she felt Mio's emotions, and it was the first time she knew. Something was very wrong and she hadn't begun to understand the person she was now stuck with. Yet, she couldn't help but recall that day with Yae when she'd taken a similar yet planned fall to force their capture and perform the ritual that ended in Yae's escape and the ritual's failure. Oh, how Sae regretted that.
"Miss Amakura! You must wake up!" Sae again attempted to wake Mio out of the situation. Again it seemed Mayu's image was going to intervene but surprisingly it seemed Mio was the one to wake up on her own. It was the darkness of Mio's mind that seemed surprisingly calm. Looking to Sae if anything for answers.
"Wh, what was that!? What the fuck just happened!?" Mio asked in a mania of tears.
"I need to stress one thing. This isn't a straightforward situation per se. Our connection is already unusual but not unheard of. It's how it's happened that's odd. We certainly had no blood or twins relation but here we are with the link.
You are connected to the gate, fascinatingly so. But again there have been instances where it responded to the living twins' feelings. Never like we just experienced. And that a new gateway was about to open from it. That the malice was flowing through you. There are many unknowns. Or so I'd like to say. But the truth is, you're showing the symptoms of the remaining.
And I believe our link can be explained in many ways," Mio nodded her head.
"My hair remains with color though?"
"Some are different from others. You're not turning white as Itsuki did. You resemble Akane's situation. But you maintain your consciousness and sanity because I am here. I've been keeping you together," Mio nodded her head.
"What was that feeling? You said malice was flowing from me!?" Sae nodded.
"In response to the heavy emotion you were feeling. The anger, rage, and hate. If that gets too far, I fear the worst not just for you. But for everyone!" Mio's face a stressed look of anger.
"I, I. I don't believe that! This is all your fault!" Mio said in tears. Sae sat with a dismayed expression on her face. She didn't know what to say to help Mio accept the situation that even worse she was blaming Sae for. It was an awkward silence that permeated their conversation.
"Miss, Amakura. I will contemplate this and I will give you an answer later. I will stay here for now since I can sense that's what you desire," Mio nodded.
"I, I… Thank you. Let's not talk outside, like this. No one can see or hear you anyways. And besides, they wouldn't believe us and just think we're crazy anyways.
I will have my revenge and her blood paid in full. But until we can figure out what's going on. I suppose that'll have to wait," Sae nodded and agreed. Mio turned away, waking herself up. It was early the next morning Kei was in the room overjoyed to see her up and about.
"I'm so glad you're okay" He embraced her sore body.
"Uncle Kei, that's painful right now," Mio laughed and said.
"Oh! Sorry, everyone was so worried about what had happened to you guys. We're still looking for Mayu," He tried to say reassuringly. Mio remained strangely quiet about that before nodding her head.
"Oh, ye. Yeah," Was all Mio could say which Kei seemed to accept.
"You've had a difficult experience. I'll give you time. The doc was saying you should be good to go tomorrow. I'll pick you up then," He replied, which made Mio nod her head. She laid back as he left and took deep breaths for a moment before turning on the TV.
" Miss Amakura. I wish to speak with you," Sae's awful voice echoed in her head. It took Mio every ounce of strength to not scream at hearing it. Again deep breaths were taken before with clenched fists Mio barely managed to answer in her mind.
"No. I will later," It seemed Sae could sense anger in Mio again.
" I apologize for my disturbance. I will remain silent until you sleep and we can speak," Her voice echoed through Mio's brain. Then, silence. Mio looked up at the TV and began flipping through several channels.
"The quake earlier was said to be a small 3.5 magnitude and lasted for 2 minutes. Scientists are baffled at the suddenness of the quake and are still investigating the cause," Mio stared at the TV for a moment with a dumbfounded expression. She quickly changed the channel before a movie she loved was on.
She spent the hours in bed with several things she could do to get up with assistance and walking about. Night came, and she fell into a deep sleep.
"Miss Amakura. Are you there?" The bitter voice of Sae echoed through Mio's mind again.
"... ye, yeah," Mio could barely speak as rage again built up. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
"We need to talk about the gateway. I've been in here prodding about, there's a very … intricate link you seem to have to the gateway unlike any I've seen," Sae waved a flash of energy revealing what appeared to be a strong metal chain connected to Mio flowing out somewhere.
"Why! Why do you torment me with this!?" Mio shouted at the shocked Sae.
"Tormenting you!? I'm trying to figure this out! I'm trying to understand what's going on!" Sae said with genuine concern in her voice.
"N, no! You! You caused this! My sister's dead because of you! Is there nothing I can say to make you understand that!? What about my feelings!?" She said with anger in her voice. Sae had fallen back in a mania of tears at Mio's attacks and began to plead with her. A bitter, almost pathetic attempt to try and calm Mio down.
"Miss Amakura, please! I have no idea what you speak of!" Sae cried out.
"What I speak of!? That's utter bullshit! You possessed her and forced her into the village! Forced us to perform the sacrifice! I killed her because of you!" Mio was red-faced and enraged. A memory summoned out of determined rage filled the mindscape. Mio's hands wrapped around Mayu's neck, and her life slipped away at Mio's behest.
Pain, Sadness … Agony. All swirl through like a storm. Bursting from the seams with malice. Sae could only cry in agony and horror at what she was seeing and feeling. As quick as it had come, Mio was suddenly shocked awake with several concerned doctors hovering around her.
"You were in a coma with a strange cold sweat. We managed to resuscitate you. How are you feeling!?" They asked her.
"Uhh, I, I'm fine. I was just, having a bad dream is all," She shockingly dismissed their concerns.
"If you're okay, we have no concerns with declaring you otherwise stable," Mio nodded her head and closed her eyes lightly to see a terrified Sae cowering inside of her.
"That's just fine. I'm ready now," The doctors ran a few other physical tests before declaring her stable.
"Mio!" Kei entered the room with tears of joy in his eyes as he presented her with her regular brown dress outfit. She quickly dawned before exiting the hospital with a tearful Kei. Mio was alive … Mio was before him again healthy as she'd ever been.
"Let's get home and get you some rest," He led her out of the hospital and to the car. It felt, empty… without Mayu. Mio and Kei drove back home in silence.
Sae was conflicted about the experience. Her mind raced with thoughts about what she'd felt. The awful pain and suffering. The sadness, rage, and hate that Mio felt toward her. Sae couldn't understand any of it!
"Sacrifice is an honor! That's what I was taught! That's all I've ever known! My father said it was for the village! For the village… I would do anything for the village! Why does no one seem to understand that!? Yae abandoned me! And now Miss Amakura. She feels such anger and hatred. I gave her an honor I dreamed of and I never received!" Sae screamed out in rage and anger to herself. Mio was in the car when she suddenly blacked out.
Thoughts of Yae burst into her mind. A memory of Sae and Yae, an attempted escape. Sae's fall which at that moment Mio realized had been on purpose!?
"For the village," A man Mio identified as Sae's father suddenly came to mind.
"Even though it is my daughter...
for the sake of the village
I will perform the Ritual...
For the village..." Mio suddenly felt Kei lightly jostle her awake.
"Mio, we're home," She had a conflicted look on her face as she unbuckled and stepped out of the car taking deep breaths.
"Mio? Are you okay?" Kei asked with a sense of worry.
"Hm? Oh. I'm okay, just need to take a breather," She replied.
"Yeah. You can take all the time you need," He said as she pressed into the familiar home and returned to her room in tears. She took deep breaths as Sae's feelings flowed through her before she'd managed to will it all away.
She sat back and took a moment to catch her breath before she stood and entered the shower. Her mind wandered thinking about the warm water, to the feeling of the soap and the resulting cleanness she felt. Yet, blood. Her hands were stained with blood.
"Ugh, n, no! She grabbed the soap and rubbed furiously yet. It wouldn't go away. It wouldn't stop,"
"Ehehehahahahah!" the awful horrible laughter as Sae's awful image flashed to mind. Then it was Mayu's image, so peaceful as her life was being taken from her by Mio… Hands stained with blood. She was gasping for air as she turned off the shower and stepped out dawning a towel. She quickly dried herself and then put on a fresh pair of clothes. She laid back with an annoyed look at the memories of Sae flowing back into her mind.
"Stop it! Just stop it!" Mio was suddenly before Sae in her mind filled with rage.
"No! You need to understand what the duty I bore is!" Sae said sternly.
"I don't care! Mayu's dead because of you!" Mio screamed out in tears.
"No! She's here! She's become a butterfly!" Sae's sharp retort only brought more anger to Mio's face.
"How dare you mention her name! You don't have any right murderer!" Sae firmly stood her ground as Mio approached with a vengeful look.
"I'll bet that's why Yae left you. She didn't want to be sullied by your murdering hands," Sae's face became a patchwork of sudden rage at Mio's insinuation.
"What did you just say to me!?" Sae sternly asked.
"I meant what I said. Yae must've been terrified of you people. That's why she abandoned you," Sae's expression returned to the awful face from before. Mio shrugged off her fear and approached Sae delivering a hard slap to Sae's face. Sae looked up with an enraged look before she sharply retorted with a punch to Mio's face.
It was a fight that grew more and more vicious. Both girls calling each other names to physically attacking each other with open hands and fists alike it seemed nothing could stop their battle.
"Murderer!" Mio screamed out.
"Honorless cow!" Sae's retort. A slap to the face from Mio she quickly retorted with her own.
"You stole my sister from me, you're a murdering bitch!" Mio screamed out at Sae before charging her with rage.
"No, I'm not!" Sae screamed out in tears as Mio began to assault her trying to strangle Sae or do anything she could to get rid of her. Her hands began to wrap around a terrified Sae's neck. Out of desperation, rage, of a strong desire to be rid of Sae.
Sae's eyes began to roll up, succumbing to Mio's rage.
"...Mio!" Kay's voice suddenly shocked her out of her rage. It was a massive quaking feeling on the outside as a large swath of malice energy began to burst through her and Sae both together. Mio fell back releasing Sae taking deep breaths of shock and fear.
"Wh, what just. Happened!? I, I, I was!" Mio was on her knees in tears looking at her hands with horror.
"M, Miss Amakura. You are not well!" Sae was coughing from slowly gasping for air.
"This is all your fault!" Mio screamed out in tears. Sae remained silent and confused thinking about what Mio had shared with her. Such pain. Such tormented awful pain, unlike anything Sae would have imagined.
"I, I need. Time. Time to think about what just happened… Sae, I want you to take over. If we're trapped anywhere, get me out of there. I'm… sorry. I know you don't understand why I'm acting like this or I blame you. But I want you too, so badly," Mio received a sheepish nod from Sae who turned and faced away, taking control of the body.
"Ghuuughh" A deep breath of fresh air unlike Sae had taken in what must've been centuries. It was a strange situation she woke up to. She had been carried downstairs under what appeared to be a table she was strangely laid under as she crawled out to a world she couldn't begin to comprehend.
The first thing she noticed was the house was of a design and type she'd never seen before. Walls made of material, unlike her people's construction work. Color and colors adorned the entire structure from white and brown to blues and all other sorts of shades of color. Strange lights and other items Sae had never seen before.
She quickly closed her eyes to focus and think. Trying her best to absorb as much from Mio's mind as she could to understand this new world. Memories of a childhood that was not her own flowed into Sae's head. She learned so many things almost instantly about the new world and Mio.
"Mio!" Sae could hear the person called Kei call out to her. She put on a calm face and began her best act.
"I'm here Uncle Kei!" She called out as he rushed into the room.
"Oh, thank God you're well!" He rushed to the girl as she crawled out from under the table.
"Wow, that was a massive quake!" He said, leading her out of the house. It was a surprising crack in the road to a good amount of property damage yet their house seemed to be spared from major damages.
"They're asking us all to leave until they're sure it's geologically stable," He led Mio to the car where she seemed to be confused about everything.
"I understand. I'm worried about what's going on too. They're saying on the news that they had no idea how this quake happened. There was no warning or signs about it. And there are no known fault lines around here," Sae was dumbstruck about what he was saying or where they were, and what was expected of her in this situation. It wasn't until Mio quickly took over that their situation progressed.
"Yeah, that's crazy Uncle Kei! Thanks for saving me," She responded as she buckled her seatbelt and the car started.
"So where are we going to go?" She asked
"I don't know. Right now I understand we just need to get out of here. I'm worried about Mayu, hopefully, she's made it out of all these quakes alright," His words were like a sharp piercing dagger to Mio's heart as she did her best to process that and move on.
"Ye, yeah. Let's get going. I kinda wanted to see how mom's doing," Kei nodded and backed out of the driveway, and began to drive toward the hospital. Sae had never seen anything so fast in her life. She felt like the entire world became a blur as they moved about through oh what were they called… streets. That was the word that seemed to be in Mio's head. Streets.
"It seems, I have much to learn about this place," Sae quietly said to herself as she went along for the ride and watched from Mio's eyes as the world seemingly became a shocking blur that would've made Sae nauseous. They stopped outside a large and tall building where it seemed sick and injured people went to see a healing man. Sae recalled the village had its treatments and cures for things but nothing like what she was seeing in that place.
Her and Itsuki's adventures surely didn't bring any fortune or health upon her, meaning she had to see a healer many a time "... Itsuki, I, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry!" The awful familiar sound burst through Mio's mind and brought flashes of memories like PTSD through her mind she did her best to covertly fight off. She seemed to have a strangely determined face from Kei's perspective as she marched into the hospital trying to abate any thoughts of what happened.
"Mio, are you okay? You look tense!" He approached her with a worried expression.
"Yeah. I'm okay," Mio said, putting on a fake smile before pressing into an elevator and heading to the floor alone. She entered the room and saw her mother there as tears welled up in Mio's eyes; Life support machines, a breathing tube, and a feeding tube; Her mom had been in a coma since the incident.
"We don't know when she'll wake up," Kei entered the room with a calming tone of voice.
"I, I know. And I hope so dearly to see her better again," Mio reached out and grabbed her mother's hand momentarily.
"Huugh!" It was like a shock of electricity that suddenly burst through Mio for a moment as she quickly retracted her hand.
"Was that… Malice?" She could see out of the corner of her eye Sae gave a nod with a fearful look on her face that seemed to tell Mio the tale.
"I want to talk to you later…" Mio responded in her mind.
"Very well, I have much I wish to discuss with you as well," Sae replied before Mio was shocked back into reality.
"Let's go, Uncle Kei," Mio turned away. She and Kei sat in the car for a moment.
"I think a hotel around here would be for the best right now. I'll get separate rooms for us to stay in," He took them to a nearby inn and rented rooms for them to stay the night in. Mio laid back in bed with a quiet dead expression on her face. She was sitting back watching TV when Kei knocked on the door to check on her.
"We're going to figure out if they'll let us back soon. They're doing some geological survey and other tests before they let us back in. We'll have to figure out what to do in the meantime," Mio nodded her head.
"I'd like to be alone… For a while," Kei nodded his head.
"I understand... Let me know if you need anything," he turned away and left Kei stepped out of the room, and left the hotel. Mio sat back in her bed and closed her eyes for a bit.
"Sae, are you there?" Mio called out coming too in her innerscape.
"Yes. I've just been a silent observer as I promised I'd be for now," Mio nodded her head. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath as if she were about to say something… difficult.
"Sae. I understand you. I understand why you did this. I don't know what's happening to me! I don't know what's going on!" Sae nodded her head and quickly shockingly embraced Mio.
"I understand. There's no easy answer for either of us I'm afraid," She could feel Mio's emotions bursting through a complicated array of feelings that Sae could feel. It was like a raging storm of emotional pain and trauma was boiling to the surface and Sae was the only one who could understand and still the tide.
"Miss Amakura. I can feel what you feel. I came from a very … different walk of life. I cannot comprehend what you're showing me. But, I want you to be calm as well. I understand that this has been a difficult experience for us both. We need to get this figured out together and I mean together despite your hatred of me.
But, I wanted to talk about your mother. That was pure malice flowing from her unlike I've ever seen. I believe it is a repairable condition but I'd need to see her for a bit more time. We'll have to wait on that and she's still able for now but I believe it's possible," Mio's eyes widened in shock as she sat back.
"I will hold you to that!" She said near shouting at Sae.
"I know you will. But that's only part of what I wanted to discuss. What's happening to us, to the gateway? There has to be another party involved somehow, it is such an intricate link there's no other explanation I can come up with. You Mio have the power to open gates to Yomi and summon the malice," Mio was white faced shocked.
"I, I don't understand!?" Sae nodded.
"Nor do I. We need to investigate this mystery. At present the village may be the key to answering this mystery but I believe they were to flood it soon for whatever odd purposes they have in doing so. But I should still be able to get there even with the water in the way. It's been enchanted with a barrier that'll prevent anything happening to the village," Again Mio's face was of contorted horror and anger.
"No! You did this! I have no intentions of going back there!" She again began to approach Sae in anger yet shockingly Sae stood her ground!?
"Are you going to harm me again? Choke the life out of me? I welcome it. Rather than being stuck with an honorless cow like yourself. I'd rather be with my people right now but get here I am stuck with you!
But you have to wonder. Could you live with more blood on your hands? I am alive, a part of you after all. Wouldn't that just be like a murder or whatever you call it?" Mio was stopped dead in her tracks. Taking heaving breaths at the realization of it all she fell to her knees in tears.
"I will … Take over again. With the memories I've slowly absorbed from you I should be able to function right now. Think about the consequences of your actions in time we can work this out together," Sae stood and faced away taking control.
Sae sat up in the bed to find it had only been an hour at most and turned off the television. She stood and looked out the doorway to see several maids about their work then Kei was on a telephone… call before Sae acting as Mio opened the door and stepped out with an acted sad expression on her face.
"Oh Mio! I was just speaking with a friend. I've got a place for you to stay for awhile while I try to get this all figured out and while we try to find Mayu. It'll be less stressful for you," Sae nodded her head.
"I understand Uncle Kei. What's their name?"
"Her name is Rei. Rei Kurosawa. The finance of a good friend of mine Yuu. They live a few hours from here so it should give you some much needed distance I'm sure," Sae seemed conflicted about it as they finished their conversation. She'd pressed out of the hotel alone with Kei's permission promising not to press too far from the hotel.
"This truly is a whole other world I've become apart of," Sae noted as she observed the present day.