Part 3 of S3: Falling Away
By Snow Moon
GldnJewl@aol.com
wovenstardust@yahoo.com
********************
"Wow!" Kakou said. "They're really wild tonight."
"Yeah... they want another encore." Hikaru said, peering out.
"Hey, guys!" A voice called. Yukiko ran up to them.
"Yukiko! Do you like the show?" Kakou asked.
"It's really great!" Yukiko said, excited. "I've never been to one
of your concerts before!"
"Glad you like it!" Yuushou smiled. "I guess we should do one more
song before they tear down the house."
Yukiko nodded. "That would be a good idea."
"Don't think too fast."
The four friends turned around to see a man with pure white hair in
silver armor.
"Who are you?" Yuushou asked suspiciously. In a flash, he changed.
Yukiko gasped.
"We don't know what you're doing here..." Hikaru started, changing
to her super form in a flash.
"...But you'd better identify yourself!" Kakou finished, also
changing.
Yukiko gaped. The man laughed.
"If you insist. I am Lock, life-servant of Queen Electra, who has
commanded me to bring you to her. Now, shall we be off?"
Their surroundings faded to black. When they faded back in, they
were standing on a hill overlooking a large labyrinth.
"What? Where are we?" Yuushou demanded.
"Yuushou? Kakou? Hikaru? W-what's going on...?" Yukiko asked, her
eyes wide.
"Ah... it's a long story..." Hikaru said softly.
"Yeah, don't worry, we'll tell you everything." Kakou reassured her.
Yuushou glared at Lock. "Where are we?!" He repeated.
"Well, this is Queen Electra's world." Lock explained. "She rules
this dimension, and all of the Akurei and Reijin who live here."
He didn't look evil... Kakou thought to herself. She shook the
thought off. Appearances could be deceiving. That was the first thing
she had learned.
"The reason you are here is because Electra-sama has taken a
particular interest in you. Not everyone is a super hero, teen idol,
and a high school student." Lock continued.
"What about her?" Yuushou demanded, gesturing to Yukiko. "She's not
Reijin! Why bring her into it?"
"Well, I'm afraid you friend was simply in the wrong place at the
wrong time." Lock looked at her. "But who knows? She may prove useful
to you."
Hikaru growled. "Why? Why did you take us her, to this evil
dimension?"
"I was wondering when you would ask that." Lock looked out at the
giant maze before them. "You must solve the labyrinth. Electra-sama is
waiting at the center. It's the only way to get out of this world." He
smiled again. He had a nice smile, actually.
"Why? I don't understand!" Kakou said.
"Ah, ah, ah!" Lock wagged one finger at her. "That's all I can
reveal. The purpose will become clear soon. All you have to do is get
to the center. Of course, there will be difficulties along the way.
I'll see you at the palace."
He disappeared in a flurry of silver petals.
"Eh!! WAIT!!" Hikaru yelled, started toward where Lock had been
standing but a minute ago.
Yuushou put a hand on her shoulder. "Hikaru, it's not worth
it..."
Hikaru stopped. "You're right..." She said quietly.
"Well, looks like all we can do is go into the labyrinth. Look
behind us..." Kakou said.
The other three looked. Behind them, dessert stretched for miles and
miles... as far as they could see.
"Before we go..." Yukiko said. Everyone turned to look at her. "Do
you mind explaining all of this?"
The other three looked at each other and sweatdropped...
********************
"Well, to start out, we're Reijin, spirit people." Yuushou started.
"We didn't come from this dimension, though. We came from a dimension
for another planet call Asclepius. You see, every planet has a
different dimension, which is inhabited by Reijin and Akurei."
"What's the difference?" Yukiko asked.
"Akurei are evil, while Reijin are good." Kakou explained.
"Oh, I get it."
Yuushou continued, "Not all Reijin have powers like ours. We were
blessed by the queen of our dimension, to whom we owe a life debt since
she saved us from death.
"Our queen, Moon, has gone into hiding in order to test us. We
must find her in a certain amount of time in order to be free from the
life debt."
Yukiko sighed. "I see... This is amazing. So, this Electra... I
guess she's evil, right?"
Yuushou shook his head. "No, that's impossible. All the queens are
good. If they were evil, they would be eliminated and a new queen would
be chosen. But they do have rivals. Electra-sama must be an old rival
of Moon... Or something..."
Hikaru looked at him. He had a strange look in his eyes. She got the
feeling that he wasn't telling them everything.
Yukiko nodded. "So now we have to solve the labyrinth?" She looked
out over it. "I wonder what waits for us at the center..."
Yuushou stood up. "Well, we'd better get going."
The three girls stood up after him.
"You're right, sitting around isn't going to get us anywhere!"
Hikaru agreed.
So, the four headed to the labyrinth...
********************
"Hyaa... KYAAA!!" Yuushou yelled, slashing through an Akurei. It was
killed in a burst of white light, leaving Yuushou to catch his breath.
"Yukiko-chan, are you okay?" Kakou asked the brunette girl as Hikaru
went to Yuushou.
"Yeah... Actually, I feel kind of useless..." Yukiko admitted.
"Don't worry, I'm sure you're here for a reason." Kakou reassured
her.
"Yeah, you're right." Yukiko said, though she didn't entirely
believe it.
After a minute, they left again. They were heading down a long
passage, when two Reijin, a girl and a guy, came out of a dead end. The
guys had a large bag slung over his shoulder.
"I told you it was a dead end!!" The girl yelled. She had two large,
round ears on top of her head and buckteeth.
"You did not!" Argued the guy, who had fox-like ears.
"No point in arguing now, the soldiers are coming!" The mouse
answered. Both of them talked with British accents.
"Right!" The man said. He looked around and spotted Yuushou, Kakou,
Hikaru, and Yukiko. "You there! Can you help us?" He asked.
"Umm..." Kakou said, blinking.
"Who are you?" Hikaru asked. "And what's in that bag?"
The man laughed. "You mean you haven't heard of me?"
"What rock do you live under? That one?" The girl asked, pointing to
a pebble. Kakou blinked.
"I am Robert." He took his hat off and gave them a sweeping bow.
"Robert Hood. I... barrow, for lack of a better word, from the rich and give to the poor."
"And I'm Negumi. Neg for short. Charmed." His companion stated.
"Now, quick!" Robert said. "We must escape before the sheriff's
soldiers catch up to us!"
"All right..." Yuushou said, a bit uncertain. "This way."
They ran to the wall across from them into a secret passage and down
it always.
A few minutes later, a group of soldiers came out of the dead end.
They looked around. All was silent.
A skinny soldier scratched his head, tipping his helmet. "Well," He
spoke in a cockney accent, "They seem to have gotten away while we
weren't looking."
The fat soldier next to him bashed his helmet with his sword. "You
idiot!" He also spoke with a cockney accent. "Of course they got away!
Unless they turned invisible or something."
"Oh, the sheriff isn't going to be happy about this..." The skinny
soldier replied, not even shaken by the loud ringing in his ears. He
was used to it.
"Would you shut up?!" His large companion demanded, banging his
helmet harder.
The skinny soldier fell over.
"And get off the ground! You're not a stick or something!"
The group of soldiers turned and left. Someone made sure that the
skinny soldier was taken care of, as always.
********************
"Yuushou!" Hikaru said quietly a moment after they got away from
the soldiers. "I wish you hadn't done that, we don't know if we can
trust him!" She frowned in Robert's general direction to show him what
she meant.
"Don't worry." Yuushou reassured her, "I have a feeling about
him..."
"Feeling? Gosh, Yuushou, that just makes me feel soo much
better." Hikaru's voice was fairly dripping in sarcasm. Yuushou chose
to ignore her.
Ahead of them, Kakou was worried about the same thing. Yukiko
noticed this and whispered to her, "Kakou, are you okay?"
Kakou nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking about why we're
here." She lied.
Yukiko smiled. "Ah. Don't worry, I'm sure everything will be fine."
Kakou nodded and grinned. "It kinda reminds me of that
commercial..."
Yukiko tilted her head. "What commercial?"
Kakou started to sing. "Chocolate thrill! Chocolate thrill! A
mystery in a box! To get to the treat inside, you must solve the puzzle
locks! Chocolate thrill, chocolate thrill! A yummy chocolate riddle!
You have to solve the puzzles to get to the treat in the middle!"
Robert applauded her. "Terrific!
Hikaru rolled her eyes. "You and you dumb commercial jingles..."
Yuushou sweatdropped. "Well, I guess it is sort of the same... In a
childish kind of way..."
Neg gave Kakou a funny look. "Well, that's interesting..."
Yukiko just giggled.
Robert suddenly stopped. Yuushou, Hikaru, Kakou, and Yukiko looked
at him.
"Well, I suppose that's far enough. We can find our own way out,
now." He took his hat off as he bowed again. "We are eternally
grateful." He and Neg turned to leave.
"Wait!" Kakou said. Robert and Neg stopped and turned around. "Um...
Well, could you help us solve this labyrinth?"
"You mean that's what you're doing?" Neg asked.
"Yeah... So, how about it?" Yuushou said.
"Well... I don't think we can do that." Robert said. "But, if you'll
let us blindfold you, we can take you to our hideout. Perhaps we can
help you there."
"Um, just a minute." Hikaru said. "Yuushou, Kakou, can I
talk to you two for a minute?"
"Sure!" Kakou chirped.
"I suppose..." Yuushou said.
"Great!" Hikaru turned back to Robert and Neg. "It'll only be a
minute."
The three Reijin stood a few feet away.
"What is it, Hikaru?" Yuushou asked.
"Well, I don't know if we can trust that guy..." She admitted.
"Yeah, didn't he say he was a robber?" Kakou asked, worried.
Yuushou sweatdropped. "Not exactly..."
Yukiko looked at her three friends, who were discussing the matter
in hushed voices. She wondered if they really trusted her. Maybe when
they had come to her house, Hoshi had told them about her...
"M'lady, you look sad. Are you all right?" Robert asked.
Yukiko blushed little. "Oh, sorry. I'm Yukiko. And I'm all right."
"Do you mind us asking why you're here? You're not from this
dimension, that's clear." Neg asked.
"Well, we're stuck here, we have to get to the palace to see
Electra so we can leave." Yukiko explained.
"Aha. Well, I'm sure her majesty will understand. She's a kind and
just ruler." Neg said with a smile. Something about this girl seemed to
make you feel her sadness, though she didn't know what.
Robert didn't say anything, but wondered how they got here. At least
the other three were Reijin, and Reijin could travel between dimensions
whenever they wished...
Before much else had a chance to happen, Yuushou, Hikaru, and Kakou
came back.
"Well? Have you made a decision?" Robert asked.
"Yes, we have." Yuushou said. "And we decided to trust you."
"And if you betray it, we'll fry you." Hikaru said.
"Yes... We'll keep that in mind..." Robert promised.
"Not that we'd do anything in the first place." Neg said, glaring at
Robert.
"Of course not!" Robert laughed, nervous under his partner's glare.
********************
That night, the four friends found themselves deep in a forest with
two giant trees that had houses built into them. It was like a small
village, and everyone was partly some animal. Right now everyone was
gathered around a bonfire, laughing and talking. It looked like a
party.
Robert climbed up onto a rock and yelled for everyone to be quiet.
Everyone stopped talking and gave him their attention.
"Today, we had one more victory over the evil sheriff and his
minions!" Robert announced. Everyone cheered. "Four people who helped
us greatly are visiting us. However, they are traveling through the
labyrinth and to the palace. They need a guide, if anyone would help
them..."
The people talked among themselves, trying to decide who would do
it. Before long, a tall man with Robert's bright red hair and fox ears.
He bore a great resemblance to Robert. His face was turned away.
Everyone fell silent.
"I'll do it." He said, his voice devoid of emotion.
"Brother..." Robert looked at him. "You don't have to, we can find
someone else."
"I said I'll do it." He looked up angrily. He had a scar on the side
of his face. It went through one of his eyes, which was permanently
closed, leaving him half blind.
Robert didn't answer. Neg walked up to him. "Listen, Robert's just
worried about you. You know him. You can go if you want. In fact,
you're probably the best person for the job. You know the labyrinth
better than any of us."
He smiled at her. "Thank you, Negumi. You're the only person who
actually understands me in this entire band." He looked at Yuushou,
Hikaru, Kakou, and Yukiko. "We leave first thing in the morning. Get
some rest, it's a long journey."
He turned and left. Robert looked up again. "Well, I guess that's
it."
After a pause, everyone went back to the party, and the forest
became full of life again.
Robert left and went into the room he shared with his brother. It
was a poor looking room. The only furniture was two small beds, a
broken dresser, and a small table. His brother was in the room, putting
a few things into a pack.
"You're not coming back, are you?"
"You know what I have to do." Came the answer.
"Why, Jonathan? I don't understand what's wrong with here, this
life."
"Listen." Jonathan closed his pack and looked at Robert. "I'm not
the same as you. You must have realized that by now. The only problem
is, I don't know what I am. If I don't find out, I'm not going to be
able to be happy with anything."
Robert sighed and sat down on his bed. Jonathan moved his mattress
and got a small bag of money out. Robert's eyes widened in shock.
"Jonathan!"
"Yeah, I know. No money is allowed here. But I'm leaving now
tomorrow." He put the gold into his pack. "And I'll need it."
Robert hesitated, but agreed. "You're right. Just... be careful, all
right?"
Jonathan nodded, but didn't say anything.
********************
Later that night, Neg lead Hikaru to a room similar to the one
Jonathan and Robert were in.
"You'll stay in here with me." She said.
"Thank you. You've been very hospitable." Hikaru said.
"Yeah, well, it's the least we could do. You know, you saved me and
Robert back there."
Silence.
"You like him, don't you?" Hikaru asked.
"What?" Neg was surprised by the unexpected question. "Robert? Oh,
well, he's a good friend..."
"That's not what I mean!" Hikaru said, sweatdropping.
"Uh... well... I guess... I mean..." Neg stammered.
"Come on, just say it. I won't tell." Hikaru promised.
"Well, yes, actually." Neg sighed. She felt like a weight had been
lifted from her chest.
"Then you should tell him." Hikaru told her. "You might regret it
otherwise."
"What happened?" Neg asked.
Hikaru blinked. "Pardon?"
"What happened?" she repeated. "Something happened to make you say
that. No use hiding it, dearie. I can tell."
Hikaru shrugged. "Well, I used to have a friend that I liked, but he
fell in love with someone else because I was too shy to tell him." She
explained.
"Ouch."
"You're telling me."
Silence.
"Well, I guess we'd better get to bed now." Neg said after a moment.
"You've got a long journey ahead of you. All the way to the castle..."
Hikaru nodded and turned off the light.
********************
"What's taking so long?!" Electra demanded.
"I... I don't know, my queen..." Lock answered. His mistress was
awfully quick to anger as of late...
"You brought them here, didn't you?!" She yelled.
"Of course, my queen. I owe you my life..."
Electra started to pace. She hated to wait.
"We have to get them here soon!" She growled. "I can't wait much
longer..."
"M-my queen, are you all right?" Lock managed to stammer. He was
worried.
"Of course I'm all right!!"
Lock winced. He had made his queen angrier...
Electra seemed to calm down as she crossed to her golden throne and
sat. "How is the situation?"
"It's the same, my queen." Lock answered. "Though it looks to be
improving." He quickly added. He didn't want to make his queen even
angrier at him.
"Fine, then. You may go." Electra said.
Lock blinked. She was completely calm... "Y-yes, my queen." He
disappeared in a flurry of silver petals, and reappeared in his room,
which was decorated completely in silver.
"What is wrong with my queen? She seems to have changed..." He
wondered. "She is only concerned about the three foreign Reijin, and no
matters of the court..." He sighed and decided to go to bed for the
night...
********************
The next morning, Yuushou, Hikaru, Kakou, and Yukiko were
blindfolded and dropped off where the forest and labyrinth met by
Jonathan, Robert, and Neg.
"Well, looks like this is good-bye..." Robert said. "Yuushou,
Hikaru, Kakou, Yukiko... don't give up. And brother... Be careful. You
know where to find me if you ever need anything..."
"Thank you, Robert. You've been very generous." Yuushou thanked him.
"You're welcome." Robert said with a charming grin and his trademark
bow.
"I'll remember what you said, Hikaru." Neg said with a wink. Hikaru
smiled at her. She and Robert would be going back to the hideout alone.
She hoped something would come of it.
After a few more farewells, the four plus one left.
"Oh!" Kakou said after a little while.
"What is it, Kakou?" Yukiko asked.
"We haven't been introduced to our guide." She said.
"I no longer have a name." He said shortly.
"Then what should we call you?" Kakou asked.
He paused. "Kaijin. You may call me Kaijin."
"Oooh... mysterious..." Kakou said. Hikaru rolled her eyes. Kakou
continued, "Well, I'm Kakou. You can call me Kakou-chan, though! This
is Yuushou-kun, Hikaru-chan, and Yukiko-chan." She said, pointing to
each respective person.
Kaijin didn't answer.
Yuushou shrugged. "Well, looks like another chapter in our story..."
********************
Negumi: Mouse
Kaijin: Mysterious person, stranger
End of Part Three
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