NationStates Jolt Archive

It was a calm summer day in the village of Nova, a village separated from a river by a small forest. The forest continues on on the other side of the river for a long distance. Inside the village was a quiet community busy with there daily lives. Children were being taught by the elders, small buildings were being built and other activities were happening around the village. On a small hill over looking the village a young girl lay resting against a tree. She lifted her hand to block the sun from her eyes when she heard a voice "Hiyo!" came a shout. She sat up and looked where it was coming from "What is it?" she asked sitting up.

"Your father is calling you, he says it's important" he said to her as he stopped at the top of the hill to catch his breath. She stood up and brushed her self off "Do you know what this is about Joshua?" she asked putting her hand on his shoulder "No all he said was to bring you, I'm guessing its official business" Joshua said to her. She scratched the back of her head "man, what is my old man thinking? he should learn to leave a young girl alone, well come on" she said as she began walking down the hill towards the village.

As she walked thoughts cross her mind about what it could be about. She then got angry for a second "GAH! if this is some marriage proposal from some one I'm going to smash heads!" she screamed out "hey, hey hey, calm down I'm sure its nothing like that" Joshua said to her as they reached the bottom of the hill and walked into the village. Now Hiyo was just flustered with the idea stuck in her head about some marriage proposal from a friend of her father.

They reached the steps of her home, the home of a elder. Hiyo is daughter of a elder and in line to become one of the governing lords. Her and Joshua walked up the stone steps to the house. It was a large wooden house with a pond in the middle garden. She opened the door at the main entrance into the grounds where the pond was. The two crossed a small bridge and went to the door of the room her father was in. The two sat down on there knees and did not speak for several seconds "You called for me father?" Hiyo said as she bowed.

"Yes, come in both of you" he said waving his hand at the door. They both stood up and Hiyo opened the sliding door and walked in. The two then bowed and sat down "What is it you wanted to see me for father?" she asked as she put her hands on her legs to rest them. Her father turned around and smirked "Marriage" he said trying to keep a straight face. Hiyo quickly grabbed a near by pillow and threw it at his head "What the hell! you damn old man don't go around offering me to your perverted friends" she shouted, her fist clenched and filled with rage.

Her father began laughing "well that was a good laugh for the day, Don't worry this isn't about marriage" he then said as he stopped laughing. Hiyo's face then turned to one of confusion "huh? what? then whats this all about?" she asked with a strange expression on her face "The lords have a assignment for you" he said turning back around to face the two of them "You two and one other will set out from this village, and from these lands in seek of other lands so that we may end our isolation"

"Who is the other Milord?" Joshua asked him wondering what the lords were thinking "We are sending Akatsuki with you" he told them. Both were shocked by the name, the man was a Phantom, a elite assassin sent to kill those who break the law's of the land "Why a phantom?" Hiyo asked her father as she was now fully paying attention to what he was saying. He quickly sighed "It's because of how dangerous it is, isn't that right Akatsuki?" he said raising a eyebrow. A blur then passed by Hiyo and Joshua and she looked to her right only to see Akatsuki sitting down "impossible, I couldn't sense his presence" she said.

Akatsuki smirked "While it is true all of us can sense each others presence, us Phantoms are trained to mask our selves, only Lord's usually have the training to still sense us" he said, his voice was deep and his face was covered by the helmet all must wear when they leave a village and go out in the open. It was then silent for several seconds before Hiyo's father interrupted "You leave tomorrow, I'll give you the day to say good bye to your friends and gather supplies, it will be a long trip"

"Yes milord" the other two said "Vary well father" Hiyo then said standing up and bowing to him. She then turned around and started to leave "Oh Hiyo one more thing, Remember our rules, no one is to see your horns, no one is to know your Diclonius until you make diplomatic contact, i've already briefed Akatsuki on what to do if it does happen, that is all" he said.

The three then left the room and went into the garden "Now life gets interesting, well this will take some time those mountains are a pain to climb I hear" Joshua said putting his hands behind his head and stretching "Yes they are, be prepared for anything you two this will be difficult" Akatsuki said taking off the helmet "Be sure to also keep your helmet on at all times even when sleeping, If they find out we are Diclonius they will try to kill us" he added quickly. Hiyo brushed her hair back with her hand revealing her horns "I know that, I am the daughter of a lord, I know the rules" she told him.

The next day early in the morning the three of them assembled at the main road. Many villagers and the elder had gathered to see them off from the village. Hiyo's father hugged her and kept his hands on her shoulders "Be careful Hiyo this is the first time in a long time a group has set out to go past the mountains" he then turned his attention to Akatsuki "I'm leaving them in your hands, they may be young but they will help you more then you think" he then moved to his left to Joshua "Seems I can't separate you from my daughter, well keep looking after her, make your mother proud" he said putting his hand on Joshua's head.

Hiyo folded up her long hair so that her helmet would fit "Well it is time we go, we shall return in time father" she said putting the helmet on and turning around. Joshua and Akatsuki put theres on and quickly followed with the villagers waving good bye to them. They only walked and did not use there powers to travel quickly. Akatsuki told them earlier to save there strength for the mountains.

"So Hiyo I didn't see your mother, is she still ill?" Joshua asked as he walked beside her "Yeah but the best doctors in the surrounding area have come and they say she is slowly recovering" she said in a sad tone "Stay on guard you two, it may be a days walk to the mountains it doesn't mean we won't run into any problems" Akatsuki said as he walked behind them. He easily seemed like the one in charge, being older then both of them and also having more training then both of them as well.

"After we get over the mountains which way will we go?" Joshua asked out of curiosity "South eastish, that seems like the best idea, and remember act normally if we run into humans only kill if they find out who we really are or in self defense" Akatsuki told them with a stern tone not wanting to draw to much attention to them selves "Hey if it's a day away to the mountains, wouldn't it be faster to use our power and then rest at the base? I mean if we go by the tree tops we won't be noticed" Hiyo suggested after thinking everything through "Heh guess your right, well lets do that then" Akatsuki said as two ''arms" came from his back propelling him at high speed through the tree tops with the others close behind. The psycho-kinetic arms gave them exceptional speed, it is said only Diclonius and those with magical abilities can see the semi-visible "arms" coming from them. To any one that did not have magic abilities they would see nothing and thats how the Diclonius wanted it.

As they moved through the trees it began to rain, it wasn't just a normal rain either, it was a full thunder storm. The three quickly stopped and went back down to ground level "Well guess we need to continue on foot, hard to grip a branch while it's wet" Joshua said as his feet touched the ground "We shouldn't be to far now from the base of the mountains, if we make a run for it we should get there before night fall easily, once there we better set up shelter from this rain" Hiyo said as she began running through the trees. Joshua and Akatsuki followed close behind as the ground slowly turned to mud making it harder for them to run. Despite the weather hampering them they were still making progress towards the mountains, they could already see a large rock formation that was the entrance to the path they would use to get through the mountains.

"Just how tough is the mountain pass we are taking tomorrow?" Joshua inquired as he ran through a line of puddles "Vary hard, it's not easily passable, this way we limit human contact from those who might be venturing into our lands" Akatsuki said wiping rain from the eye holes on his helmet. The group had been on the move this the early morning, it was now the mid-after noon and the effects of being on the move so long was beginning to take hold of the three of them, before long they would need to rest in order to regain there strength.

"We will make camp under those rocks" Akatsuki said as the slowed down at the base of the mountain. The three of them ran under a rock formation to seek shelter from the rain that was still coming down "I've haven't seen rain like this in a long time" Joshua said as he got under the rock formation. All three of them were soaking wet and covered in rain "Any chance of getting a fire going?" Hiyo asked as she huddled up in a corner "Maybe, I'll go see if there are any dry sticks or something we can burn" Joshua said as he bolted out and into the tree line "Well chivalry seems to be alive and well" Akatsuki commented as he pulled a cloth from his pocket that some how stayed dry and used it to dry his helmet and neck before giving it to Hiyo to do the same.

The sky was as dark as night as thunder filled the air and lightning covered the sky. Any footprints would of easily been erased by the heavy down pour which was best for the three trying to conceal where they had came from. The rock formation they were under extended for several meters out from the base of the mountain making it the perfect shelter for a over night stay to protect them from the rain, but not the non-existent wind.

"So Akatsuki why did you take this mission from my father?" Hiyo asked trying to get her mind off being cold "I saw it as a chance" he replied as he sat up against the rock face "A chance for what?" she inquired as she turned to face him "A chance to see how good I am, and a chance to better my understanding of everything around me" from within her helmet Hiyo smiled "Thats one big chance your hoping for there Akatsuki, I hope you get it" she said just as Joshua popped in and snuck up on Hiyo "Yo!" he shouted scaring Hiyo. She jumped when he said it "Josh you scared me half to death" she said, all he did was laugh and put down a small handful of things they would lite a fire with, and some wet logs "We can make a fire and use it to dry our selves and the logs" he said as he began to start the fire. Before long it was going and they all relaxed to the comforting heat.

As the fire burned and they dried off a calmness entered the hearts of the three as they began to relax under the dark rainy sky. Akatsuki pulled off his pack that was strapped over his shoulder and pulled out some food for the three of them and passed it around "well it isn't mothers home cooking but it's better then nothing" Hiyo said as she accepted the food and began to it. Although it could not be seen the reflection of the fire was burning into Joshua's eyes "Hey guys..." he said looking up "I think we should give our selves code names to use for when we encounter people and during the initial stages of any talks with other governing bodies" it sounded like a good, and cautious move "A good idea, it's unlike you Joshua, heh I guess you are dependable must be why Milord had you come along"

"My father.....I mean Milord has a reason behind every thing, he wouldn't of sent Joshua if he didn't think he would be of some value, as for code names, I agree" Hiyo said as she continued to eat. It was a peaceful meal something they thought wouldn't happen again for a long time.

As the rain stopped and day turned night without them even knowing Hiyo and Joshua fell asleep. Akatsuki stayed up to take first watch to make sure nothing happened, if anything major came up he was to wake them both. If nothing they would stay quite until he had to change watch with one of them.

Over night nothing at all happened and every one had time to rest. When morning broke they awoke to Joshua sitting by the fire and a clear blue sky. They quickly ate some food and prepared for the climb ahead of them "Well should this be fun or a challenge?" Hiyo said as she looked up at the path they would take to get across the mountains "Both perhaps" Joshua commented as he put out the fire "Well lets get climbing its going to be a few days to get across" Akatsuki said as he started to get his footing "And don't forget your code names" he then added "Yeah I know" Hiyo said as her and Joshua began to climb as well.

"A little help here" came a call from over the rock face. Joshua's head quickly popped over the top looking down, he reached his hand forward "Not the best rock climber now are you Hiyo?" he said as she grabbed onto his hand and he pulled her up. They had already scaled a fair portion of the rock face and they had another good thirty feet to go before they would reach a mountain pass that they would use to go the rest of the way. Hiyo took a drink of water from her canteen "Man this is a work out" she said putting her canteen away. She then continued to climb her way up. Akatsuki already warned them that people could be using the mountain pass, to be cautious they would stay quiet and not speak to any one.

"Damn this hard climb, can't we climb using them?" Joshua asked as he pulled him self up on another rock "Your a idiot, we are near a route outsiders travel don't speak of them and don't use them unless Akatsuki says so, you know the code word so wait for it" Hiyo said as she continued climber closer to the mountain road they would take. As she climbed she looked for Akatsuki but couldn't see him "damn he is fast" she said as Akatsuki rested at the top while waiting for them.

After another twenty minutes Hiyo and Joshua reached the top where Akatsuki was waiting "Thank god thats over" Joshua said pulling him self up to where Hiyo and akatsuki were. They all then rested to take a drink of water and rest before continuing on the long walk. Akatsuki lifted his helmet just enough for him to drink before letting it rest back down on his head. From then on they would start encountering people often so they had to be careful.

As they walked the mountain pass they encountered there first outsiders. It was a young man and a ox cart, the cart itself had something on it in the way of cargo but some sort of cloth covered it. As they watched the cart, the man watched them, they could sense fear from his eyes and facial expression. Akatsuki brushed it off, he knew the man probably thought they were bandits or something to that extent. He was the only one with experience in the outside world, being a Phantom his job was to hunt down renegades and criminals who usually escaped to the outside world. One thing he didn't know was that at the end of the pass there was a village to which they would soon encounter "Calm your self wolf, I can see your agitated just by seeing a human" Akatsuki said to Joshua after they were clear of the man in the ox cart.

"How long before we reach a town?" Hiyo asked as she seemed to get slower as they continued along the path "Not long I assume, then we can find some lodging to rest up I'd rather not get stuck in another rain storm if I don't have to" Joshua told her as he turned his head back to make sure she was still keeping up. The path was different from what they expected, as they got further in they ran into more and more people, and now the mountain path seemed to follow a river. The river probably lead right to the town at the other side of the mountains and probably even further inland.

"Hey Zero, why do you have that?" Hiyo said pointing to the sword strapped too Akatsuki's lower back. He just gave a brief chuckle "Whats so funny?" she then asked "You rely to much on your abilities" he said without delay or even looking at her. They were still a good few hours from the town at the end of the pass and as they got closer it seemed they ran into more and more people. They hoped they would find a inn or something for them to stay at but they weren't expecting to much from the outside world.

"Hey look its the village!" Hiyo shouted pointing to a group of buildings and farms along the river "Yeah thats it, well come on we didn't spent two days to get here for nothing, it will be dark soon" Joshua said running ahead of them. Without knowing he ran into some one and fell down. He hit the ground and stood up "Sorry about that guess I wasn't looking" he looked up to see some big guy standing there looking pissed off. He grabbed Joshua by the caller and lifted him up "You should of watched it better boy now your going to pay" the large man said lifting his other hand. Before he could even go for the punch though Akatsuki came out of no where and grabbed the mans arm "My friend is far beyond the worth of your time, now I suggest you be gone and never bother us again" he said putting his other hand near his swords handle "Just who do you think your talking to, I'm a proud warrior in these parts and no punk can stop me from doing what I want"

"Remove that hand from my friend or i'll remove it PERMANENTLY!" Akatsuki shouted at the man as Hiyo walked over "For your own health and safety I suggest you listen to him" she said to the man. She knew Joshua was probably close to using his arms so she had to prevent that or be discovered. Seeing that there was three of them the man backed down "What ever, looks like your are more trouble then your worth" he said spitting at the ground and walking off. Joshua brushed him self off "Thanks" he said "No problem" Akatsuki said as they then continued on to the village.

Before long the group of three found them selves at the front door of a small inn. They knocked and opened the door "Excuse me!" Hiyo said entering the small inn. The man who ran the in stopped what he was doing and looked "Umm....do you have any rooms available?" she then asked, the man then pointed to a door "If you don't mind all sharing I got one left, cost is 50 for one night" he said before getting back to his work. Hiyo leaned over to Akatsuki "Just how much do we have?" she whispered into his ear "Enough" he whispered back "Vary well then one room kind sir" Akatsuki said pulling out the needed amount. The man then walked over and took the coins, showed them to there room and got them settled in.