In the Sub-Levels…
"How much longer do we have to walk? My legs hurt!"
Hikari, Akari, Aoki, and Dachii walked along a large bridge, while Saori lagged behind.
"Dachii? Can I get on your back?"
"Sure."
Saori jumped on his back as he carried her across. Akari and Aoki were busy walking at different paces, making sure they didn't come too close to each other. Hikari stood between them, sighing.
"Okay, this is ridiculous!"
Aoki lifted an eyebrow. "Hmm? Is something wrong, Hikari?"
"Yeah," Akari replied. "What seems to be the issue?"
"You know what the issue is!" Hikari exclaimed. "We've been walking for half an hour now, and neither of you has said a word or even looked at each other!"
Aoki shrugged. "I don't follow."
"Just… never mind."
After more time walking on the bridge, they reached a large double door, which was coated in ice. Aoki immediately ran up to it, slicing with her sword. "Fujii! Hang on, I'm coming!"
Akari watched as Aoki sliced the door, slapping her forehead at muttering to herself. "Such an idiot. How stupid can you be?"
Hikari walked up to Aoki. "I don't think that ice is from Fujii…"
"Who else would freeze a door? Come on, help me open it!"
Before they could do anything, the door opened on its own, revealing a massive glacier terrain, with a castle of ice in the center.
Without wasting any time, Aoki immediately ran toward the ice castle, jumping across rivers and rocks to cross the gaps.
"Well, it looks like we have to follow her," Hikari suggested.
"What a dumbass," Akari murmured. "After her, team."
Akari navigated the gaps as well, and so did the others. Once they caught up to Aoki at the front of the castle, she began knocking. "General Fujii? Sir? Are you in there?"
There was no answer.
Hikari looked the castle up and down. "I have a bad feeling about this…maybe we could just advance further?"
"We have to look, Hikari," Aoki explained. "He's our mission."
"Okay, okay."
The door opened, and an older, plump Voltian woman, who was very short, opened the door. "Hello! I didn't expect to get visitors so soon!"
Aoki drew her blade. "Tell us where Kenshi Fujii is, right now!"
The woman raised her hands. "Hey, easy now! Could you tell me who you're looking for?"
"This castle is covered in ice. Was he here?"
The woman tapped her chin. "Hmm. No one else has been around these parts but me. They told me when the Dome opened, I'd get some lovely visitors to share tea with. Are you those visitors?"
"Listen, I'm not here to share your tea—-!"
Hikari looked to Akari, who remained silent, before speaking up. "Excuse us, we're just looking for our missing General! His name is Kenshi Fujii, we're members of Squad S-1!"
"Military members?" the woman inquired. "Well then, come on in!"
Aoki watched as the woman walked down the hallway, narrowing her eyes. "She'd better not be tricking us."
She sheathed her blade. "Follow me, team."
While Dachii and Saori walked behind her, Hikari stayed back with Akari. "Hey, Akari? Why didn't you say anything back there?"
"What difference does it make? All she does is argue and try to control everyone."
Akari stormed after them, leaving Hikari to follow.
They navigated the ice-coated hallways of the castle, before reaching a dining room coated with snow, where there was food cooking on a stove. "Please, have a seat!"
Dachii, Saori, and Hikari sat down, while Aoki studied her chair, making sure it wasn't boobytrapped. Akari waited for Aoki to sit down before picking the seat farthest away from her.
The elderly woman placed cups of tea in front of them. "I almost forgot to introduce myself! My name is Sumie! Sometimes I forget, haha! A bit on the older side, as you can see!"
"Uh-huh," Aoki scoffed.
Sumie looked the kids up and down. "What are your names?"
Hikari answered first.
"I'm Hikari."
Saori followed suit.
"Saori!"
Akari sighed.
"Akari."
Aoki hesitated for a moment. "It's Aoki."
"And you, young man?" Sumie asked, looking at Dachii.
"Dachii Jones."
Sumie gasped. "THE Dachii Jones? The one who helped save Umego? The one that has two of the thirty Elements running in his blood?"
"Yep," Dachii confirmed, flat.
"How wonderful! The Directors did say they intended to bring you here, but how did you end up in the Sub-Levels?"
"I fell."
Sumie laughed. "That's one way to get down here."
While the others sipped their tea, Aoki checked it for poison before taking a sip. "What is this place? Where's our leader?"
Sumie sat down. "This place is the Cold-Zone. As you can see, it's my little playground. I like the wintertime, and with my status as Umego's head librarian, they granted my request to have a permanent ice home!"
Aoki stared at her. "So if someone were to be taken, where would they be dragged off to? Is there a prison? Dungeon? Holding cells?
Sumie nodded. "Deeper inside. This Dome was built as a massive weapon of war, first and foremost. There's a prison on the deepest layer, but I doubt anyone has been put there."
"And why is that?" Aoki questioned.
"Because an alarm sounds every time someone is brought to the Prison. If your Kenshi Fujii was placed in one, the whole dome would know."
"And why should we trust you?"
"Well, honey, if you want to go investigate, be my guest. It's a long trip, however, and getting clearance is time-consuming."
"I can be very patient," Aoki told her. "Don't tempt me."
Hikari cleared her throat. "Is there any other place a high-profile target could be taken?"
"There is the Central Lab," Sumie noted. "It's at the very top of the Dome, and it's near the control center. But only the Mistress resides there, and she's only focused on her experiments."
Aoki got up. "Fine. Let's go confront this 'Mistress.' Point us to the exit, lady. Now."
"Well, you can't go just yet."
"Why the hell not? You're setting a trap for us?"
"The door needs a key," Sumie explained. "It won't open without a Clearance Level 15 Key.
"Then give us the key!" Aoki demanded.
Sumie gave her a warm smile. "I'm sorry, I don't have it. It's sitting in the giant lake next to my castle. It's guarded by my pet, Umibōzu. He doesn't take kindly to visitors."
"What's a kraken?" Saori asked.
"Something that can't stop me," Aoki replied. "The rest of you, stay here. I'm going to get that damn key."
She quickly left before Sumie could stop her. "That girl's a bundle of fire, isn't she?"
Hikari nodded. "She's got temper issues."
"That's an understatement," Akari muttered.
"I do hope she turns back before she finds herself in real trouble. Fighting my Kraken is inadvisable while he is awake. It's best to wait until he is sleeping, and take it from his neck."
"I'm sure the great 'Aoki' can handle it," Akari said, crossing her arms.
"Do you folks want some dinner while you wait? I have made some lovely stew!"
Thirty minutes later, the four were eating stew alongside Sumie when Aoki came back, heavily injured and breathing hard.
"What happened to you?" Saori asked?
"A stalemate. Hikari, heals. Now."
She extended her arm out to Hikari, and Hikari touched it, healing her. "Appreciated. Thank you."
Aoki noticed the stew. "The hell are you guys doing? Why are you eating her food without my permission?"
"Sorry, I didn't know we had to have express permission to EAT in this group," Akari mocked.
"If you've got something to say, then come out and say it, Asato," Aoki growled. "Don't talk under your breath."
Akari tossed her bowl aside and stood up.
"Oh boy," Hikari realized.
"You want me to talk, then fine. I'm done following you! I'm done sitting here letting you disrespect me and my teammates! I'm done, I'm done, I'm done!"
Aoki laughed. "Aww, are you upset?"
"Yes, I am! And you know what, I QUIT!"
"Akari, wait!" Hikari interrupted.
Akari stormed out as Aoki waved. "Bye-bye."
She sat down. "Finally, that little thorn is gone. I'm in a much better mood now. Now, team, let's discuss how we're going to get that key. Any objections?"
Saori and Hikari shook their heads, while Dachii remained staring at the ceiling, oblivious.
"Perfect."
"You'll have to wait another hour, dear," Sumie admitted. "He won't pop out again until he's awake, and that water is way too cold for your bodies to withstand."
"Then we'll regroup in an hour," Aoki ordered. "Don't be late, guys. I'll be outside, monitoring. Keep an eye on this one."
She gestured to Sumie before leaving. Once she was gone, Sumie set an apple pie down in front of the remaining three. "Not as tight a family as I thought. You children have the blessing of youth, you shouldn't waste it at odds with each other."
"It's only those two," Hikari complained. "They're always fighting, arguing, and having petty squabbles with one another. Yeah, Aoki was an ass when we first met her, and she kind of still is, but she cares, at least now! Akari can't see that, and Aoki refuses to meet on her level! It's just two egos that refuse to bend, and I fear they'll get us killed before we even find our leader!"
"Is it really that bad?" Sumie asked.
Saori nodded. "They fight all the time, it's really sad…"
Sumie handed them each a slice of pie. "Dachii, how does this make you feel?"
"It doesn't matter either way."
"Such an unfiltered view! You aren't afraid to speak your mind, are you?"
"No, it's just the truth. They can't get along, as many flawed individuals tend not to."
"What if we change that?" Sumie proposed.
"How?" Hikari wondered. "We've tried everything!"
"Have you forced them to grow up? To talk out their feelings, instead of using hostility?"
"Well…no. They only care about strength."
Sumie chuckled. "Exactly. I have a plan, dears, if you will hear it."
Hikari leaned forward. "We're listening, ma'am."
Nearly an hour later…
Akari was sitting on top of a rock, focusing concentrated energy in her hands. "It's not fair! All the work I put in, all the growth I show, and they just let HER rule? I'm just as good a leader!"
She threw the energy blast into the air, which exploded into a powerful blast of light. "I'm STRONGER!"
She punched the rock, cracking it into pieces. "I'm BETTER!"
She took a few moments to calm down. "It's fine, Akari. Once I find General Fujii, I'll ask him to kick her off the team, or I'm gone."
Aoki, on the other hand, was busy training with her katana on the edge of the glacier, practicing her balance and technique.
"No need for pouty brats anyway," Aoki thought. "She wants everything handed to her without any reason, she's no teammate of mine. We don't need her."
A snowflake floated beside her, and she cut it into pieces without looking. "And I'll make sure of that."
Saori approached Aoki. "Hey, Aoki, could you come with me?"
Aoki stopped. "What is it, Saori?"
"I've got something to show you!"
Aoki sheathed her blade. "It better be good. Okay, I'm following."
Saori grabbed her hand and pulled her along. On the opposite side, Hikari walked over to Akari. "Hey, bestie, there's something I need to tell you."
Akari looked back. "Hikari, I'm not joining the team again. Not unless she leaves. We can still be friends."
"It's not that, it's something else!"
"Like…?"
"You've gotta follow me first!"
Akari rolled her eyes and reluctantly followed Hikari as she walked toward the center of the room. At the same time, Saori and Aoki reached the center, where Dachii was standing.
They both came face-to-face.
"What the hell is this?" they demanded.
Dachii remained still. "I was told to do this. Now!"
A large tentacle burst through the ground, wrapping around Dachii and pulling him away.
"Dachii!" they both gasped.
As the kraken emerged from the ground, they both drew their weapons, while electric tentacles swung violently at them.
"Look out!" Aoki warned.
Akari formed a shield, covering the team from the attacks.
The kraken flailed Dachii in the air like a yo-yo, and Akari dropped her shield while Aoki threw a red card at it, staggering it with the explosion.
"There!" Hikari thought. "They're working together!"
Akari flung her shield at the kraken, hitting it in the eye and blinding it. "Put him down!"
Aoki jumped up and delivered a powerful kick to its stomach, making it double over. "What she said!"
After a few more coordinated attacks, the kraken began to lose its strength, and with a blast of magic at the same time, they knocked it clean over, and both Dachii and the key rolled out of its hands.
"You guys did it!" Saori cheered.
"Great job working together!" Hikari added.
After helping Dachii up, Akari and Aoki turned to face them.
"Did you guys set this up?" Aoki questioned.
"Yeah, not cool," Akari agreed. "Dachii, putting yourself in danger is a terrible idea."
She sized Aoki up. "And it'll never get me and her to be friends."
"Feeling's mutual," Aoki confirmed. "No respect."
"Well," Dachii remarked. "Guess that's that."
Sumie reunited with them. "Did it work?"
Hikari and Saori shook their heads. "Another failure."
Aoki pointed a finger at her. "This was YOUR idea? Why you little—-!"
BOOM.
"Having some chemistry issues, girls?"
A pair of chains wrapped around Dachii, Saori, Hikari, Akari, and Aoki.
"What game are you playing now, woman?" Aoki yelled.
"Wait! This isn't my doing, who else is here?" Sumie exclaimed.
Akamon dropped from the ceiling, snatching the key. "You kids thought you were safe. The hunt continues."
He pulled Aoki and Akari toward him. "And I think I'll start with you two, Vice-General Aoki and Princess Akari…"
The chains began to drain their strength. "Prepare to die."
—-