Kasumi

"Let's get to business, then." Takomaro stroked his beard before walking up to the table and pointing at a spot just outside of Pearl, to the south. "So, as you've all been told, some sort of anomaly has been detected just outside of the city's walls. We had a few scouts inspect it and they let us know that multiple demons were spotted in the area. The creatures that inhabit Pearl's surrounding areas tend to be somewhere between levels 20 and 30. As such, our presence was required. Shortly, we will all be heading there and dealing with whatever creatures we encounter, before that though, I wished to discuss what we will do about the anomaly."

"Are they setting up some sort of beacon maybe?" Satsuhiro asked. He hasn't changed at all since last I saw him. Still so serious, all the time. Kasumi looked around. None of them have, really. Though she did notice that now and then, the Saviors would give Satsuhiro a strange look. Is there some elephant in the room I'm not aware of?

"Maybe," Takomaro responded. "the scouts were apprehensive to walk too close to this thing, but it is clear this thing holds some sort of significance to them."

"Then, maybe set up a few camps surrounding it," Satsuhiro responded, "send some mages and scholars with enough equipment to comfortably study it. Of course, we'd also need some Saviors to volunteer to help protect them."

"Have the demons' magic capabilities been evolving?" Magnolia, the older woman asked. "If this is some form of reality-altering magic, it could be far more important than we're being led to believe."

"Doesn't matter what it is," Akiven flipped his white hair over his shoulders, smugly stating, "to us, anyway. We can leave all the head-scratching to the bookworms. Let's just go, kill some demons and walk out."

"Is there any way to eliminate it?" Alkoram, the man with the sickle-shaped blades asked, ignoring Akiven. "Mizaki? Takomaro?"

"Oh, oh! I know a cute little Dispel spell, heh, 'Dispel spell', that's fun to say." Mizaki laughed. "I could give it a shot."

"If this particular spell's activation is linked to a person, in this case, a demon, and the anomaly isn't self-activated, we'd have to find the demon who cast the spell and kill it," Satsuhiro noted.

Kasumi tuned them out as they discussed their proceedings. Can we just get to the part where we go kill these things so I can go back to napping?

"And you, Kasumi?" Magnolia asked, a stern expression on her portrait. "What do you recommend?"

"What else can we do but go and fight?" Kasumi shrugged. "Let's clear the place out and have Mizaki try her spell."

"I agree with the woman with the excellent rack," Akiven stated, smacking a hand on the table and earning a series of eye rolls.

"As much as it might pain me to agree with this 'man'," Kuro, the Savior who'd taken Kasumi there, said, "I believe we should get to work. Whatever the anomaly is, it could potentially be in the process of causing harm."

"Well," Takomaro noted, "send word to the city's expert mages that they are to prepare camps as Satsuhiro suggested. In the case that we can't eliminate the anomaly, it would be good to study it."

"Aye. Should it take long, I will meet you all there, then." Kuro replied, bowing and walking out of the room.

"The rest of us, we'll go now and see what we can do," Takomaro stated.

With that said, Takomaro took the lead and walked out of the room, the rest of the Saviors following him as he walked through the palace. Magnolia went up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"How long has it been since we've worked together?" Magnolia asked with a smile.

"Far too long. I do look forward to it, fighting at your side has always been a pleasure, Maggie."

"Heh, they won't know what hit 'em, with us in the fight. Looking forward to seeing those healing hands at work, old man."

Kasumi trailed behind everyone, hoping to avoid as much human interaction as she could. Unfortunately, one of these Saviors happened to be far too extroverted for that plan to work.

"Oh my GOSH!" Mizaki walked up to her, snaking an arm around Kasumi's left elbow. The older woman made an exasperated face, one that Mizaki simply ignored. "I can't believe I'm going to work with you! Ah!" Mizaki was so giddy it was like she was draining Kasumi of her own energy. "It's going to be so cool! Remember when I used to train in the barracks?"

She sighed, as memories of Mizaki wildly swinging a large hammer at some instructors came to her.

"Yes," Kasumi replied.

"OH! And you'd always bring your daughter along too to watch, she was just the cutest thing!" Mizaki laughed and Kasumi paled. "What was her name again, Nozomi? How is she?"

Kasumi looked at Mizaki, some annoyance in her eyes, but she turned away before that emotion turned to grief.

"She's dead."

Mizaki blinked. Then, she laughed.

"No, no, seriously, how..." When Mizaki looked back at Kasumi, she understood the older mage wasn't joking. "O-Oh... I... I'm so sorry, uh, I didn't know, I..."

"It's fine." Her voice cracked. "It's fine. Just... Yeah."

Abandoning her earlier plan, as the group of Saviors made their way outside of Pearl, Kasumi walked a bit faster than everyone else, staying right behind Takomaro.

---

The group continued outside, eventually reaching the strange thing in question. Trying to distract herself from the conversation with Mizaki, Kasumi gazed upon the object. It was like an exceptional violet tear in space itself. It was so tall, it nearly stood over the walls of Pearl. Hm. So, this thing just appeared there out of nowhere? Kasumi wondered.

A few demons were walking around aimlessly at the base of this anomaly. Akiven took out his pair of blades and grinned.

"Now, first," but before Takomaro could finish that statement, the white-haired Savior was already rushing in. clearly eager to be the first one to spill blood. He rushed a demon, slashed at its ankles with one blade, and then caught its neck as it fell. Then, he threw his left sword at a demon, piercing its head. Another to the right charged in, but Akiven retrieved the blade he'd thrown and used it to decapitate the approaching creature. All three demons were dead in no time.

"Lumina, have patience with him," Takomaro muttered as Akiven struck a pose, flipping his hair back. Some more demons came out of the strange tear and Mizaki stepped up. Wielding the oversized hammer, she crushed an enemy under its weight before it could reach Akiven.

"Thanks, sweetheart," Akiven told her. "Gotta keep a face like this clean, you know?"

"Well," Takomaro continued, "we know what we're here to do. Come on, let's see if we can gain any information from this thing."

Kasumi remained behind everyone as they approached it. The closer they got, the more they could see some sort of image.

"There's..." Alkoram muttered, "some sort of forest in there."

"A portal then?" Satsuhiro asked. "Interesting. How did demons get their hands on this kind of spell?"

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"Evolution, maybe," Takomaro replied with a shrug. "Regardless, Mizaki, try your spell."

"On it!" The girl smiled and walked up. She muttered an incantation under her breath. Lightning surged from her hands and connected to the portal. However, as soon as it did, violet lightning surged back into Mizaki's body and she was launched back. "Agh!"

Takomaro was at her side in a moment.

"It, uh, it didn't work." Mizaki stated as he healed her.

"We will need to walk in then. Are you all ready?" Takomaro asked, looking back at everyone.

If I have to, I guess. Kasumi sighed and nodded. The others gave their affirmative and Takomaro turned back towards the portal.

"Let's go then."

And so, the group of Saviors promptly entered the doorway. As soon as Kasumi did, she felt raw Dark magic surrounding her. Looking down at her hands, her skin was glowing violet, as though she'd become a spirit just by entering this place.

"Ugh," Mizaki said, "this place feels wrong."

"It's like being in the head of one of those things," Magnolia replied. "There's an energy in the air that's weighing heavily on me. Keep your guard up. We'll probably run into trouble soon."

"As I said before, if this is a concentration spell," Satsuhiro stated, his demeanor not changing too much even with the new surroundings, "there will be either an object or a creature that needs to be destroyed to extinguish this."

"Okay, but, uh, yeah," Akiven started, "when that happens though, can we still get out?"

"Alternate-realm magic isn't too common," Satsuhiro replied, "but most of the time, when the concentrating source is eliminated, the realm itself fades away and everyone in it is tossed back into the regular world."

As they continued searching for any demons or objects that could be the cause for this portal's existence, they came across a pond filled with violet water, giving a clear reflection of everything that loomed over it. Kasumi walked up as everyone else moved around the waters, uninterested.

She looked down at her own reflection. But, before she turned away, she spotted something. There was someone else in there. A woman with white hair walked up, who strangely resembled a demon, accompanied by a blonde dressed like a Savior. Kasumi narrowed her brows with confusion as she watched the pair. The demon looked up at her, and their eyes connected.

What the...?

Her first instinct was to reach in and see if this too was some sort of portal. So, she extended a hand. The demon did the same thing.

She was just about to touch the water when something caught their attention. The demon and the blonde looked to their left and then, panicked, they ran the opposite way. A few seconds later, Kasumi saw demons chasing after them.

What the hell did I just see? She wondered.

"Kasumi?" Satsuhiro asked. He was with Mizaki, both of them waiting for her while the others had kept going. "What's the matter?"

"I saw..." She looked down. "There were people in there. In the water."

'What do you mean?"

"I saw two girls," Kasumi scratched her head. "One looked like a demon, with horns, white hair, violet eyes, and all that. The other was a blonde dressed in Savior armor."

Hearing that, Satsuhiro's eyes widened.

"Wow, how strange," Mizaki said but Satsuhiro ran up to where Kasumi was.

"What?" He asked, utterly stunned. He looked into the water himself, but of course, they weren't there anymore.

"They were there a second ago, but they got chased away by some demons." Kasumi raised a brow. "Are you alright? You sound like you know them."

"Because I do." Satsuhiro sighed. "They're the Saviors I'm training."

"What?" Now it was Kasumi's turn to be confused. "What the hell? I mean, one of them was a demon."

"Half-demon." Satsuhiro corrected her. "Her name's Ash. She was chosen almost a month ago. You seriously don't know?"

"I don't keep up with Savior news nowadays, Satsuhiro."

Satsuhiro, probably understanding why, nodded and looked back into the water.

"Right. Well, yes. What the hell were they doing in there?"

"I don't know, but it didn't look too good for them." Kasumi shrugged. "They got chased off."

Satsuhiro stared into the water for a few more seconds before she finally turned away.

"Nothing I can do for them from here. Come on, let's keep going." His voice sounded calm, but Kasumi noticed he was walking in a little more hurry.

They caught up to the other Saviors when they reached a cliff. One Magnolia, Akiven, Takomaro, and Alkoram were all looking down from.

"What is...?" She didn't get to finish her question because she was shocked into silence.

When she walked up, she looked down and saw what had made them pause.

"Well," Takomaro grumbled. "This is quite the discovery."

It was a pentagon-shaped city. At its corners, violet spires surged into the sky. Even from this distance though, they could all hear roars and screams coming from below. Music, some chanting going on accompanied by metallic creaks and groans.

"So, this is what the demons have been up to?" Alkoram asked himself.

"I think it's safe to say the source of the concentration spell is in there." Satsuhiro pointed ahead. "Which, if this is what it looks like, a city of demons, means deactivating the portal isn't happening. The best we can do is go back and relay this information to the Royal Council, then prepare Pearl for whatever this is supposed to be."

Then, one of the spires seemed to turn towards them. Kasumi and the others noticed it.

"What's that thing doing?" She asked, pointing at it.

"If I had to guess," Satsuhiro responded, "it's just noticing us. Which means getting the hell out of here is probably our best choice."

"We'd best get moving then," Takomaro said. "This information is..."

Then, they all heard a roar come from behind them. They froze. Kasumi, who had been at the back of the group, was now at the front since they all turned around. She looked beyond the violet trees and paled. That fast!?

"Demons. Get ready!" Takomaro called out like a horde of creatures came from the ethereal forest. They ranged in all different shapes and sizes, wielding different weapons, each one running straight for the group.

Akiven stood at the front.

He spun in place, becoming a whirlwind of swords while Mizaki and Magnolia both flanked him. Magnolia broke her enemies apart with her mace, using her shield to keep them at bay while Mizaki swung her hammer like a toy. Satsuhiro put his hands together and started reciting incantations. Alkoram muttered one of his own and his body was covered in gold light. Then, he ran up and joined the other fighters.

Uh... Come on, what....? She tried to think about any illusions that could be of use here. Maybe Petrify? She thought.

"Fear becomes a weapon, courage becomes a distant dream, petrify!" From where she stood, a dark face appeared above her and screeched. Some of the demons slipped as they ran, scurrying back in shock.

Then, a dragon emerged from Satsuhiro's hands, engulfing the approaching creatures. Alkoram sliced off two demon's heads but was then injured in a leg. Takomaro extended a hand towards him, cast a spell, and his wound was gone.

The group of demons was being pushed back, as Mizaki swung her hammer, sending multiple demons flying into the air at a time. Until Kasumi heard something thudding as it moved in their direction.

Oh no. Kasumi's eyes widened.

"A Nightmare?" Satsuhiro asked.

No. Multiple Nightmares appeared beyond the trees.

"Okay, ah, listen," Akiven started, "I'm all for fighting and having a good time but, that," he pointed at them, "doesn't seem like a good time though."

"Gauge their strength," Takomaro instructed. "We could take them!"

Akiven nodded. He ran up to one and slashed its ankle. The demon raised a leg, and before any of them could see it coming, it kicked him all the way back to the group. Akiven spat out blood and Takomaro instantly went to heal him.

"I'd," Akiven coughed, "I'd say that about tells us all we need to know."

"W-We need to run!" Kasumi told the group.

"Cut a path," Takomaro instructed, "then, we go!"

Nodding, Mizaki leaped up into the air and brought her hammer down, crushing the earth under her and sending multiple demons into the air. Akiven saw this and nodded, jumping up, using that strange whirlwind technique and falling back down, as pieces of the demons fell around him.

"Okay, now!" Satsuhiro called out and the Saviors started to run.

Takomaro, Akiven and Alkoram were in front. The others trailed behind them, with Kasumi trying her hardest to keep up as the Nightmares chased them, but she hadn't run like this in years. She was already tired.

"Agh!" Mizaki yelled and Kasumi stopped, breathing heavily. The other Savior had tripped.

"I've got her!" Magnolia yelled, running up to Mizaki as Kasumi stood there. She looked back and put her hands together.

"Blanket of reality, cover our visage." Kasumi quickly stated the incantation and an invisibility cloak was placed over each member of the group. If the demon's levels are high enough, this spell won't work, but I had to try something!

"Come on, up, up!" Magnolia pulled Mizaki to her feet. Both women started running towards them.

Good job, Kasumi thought, good...

Then, one of the Nightmares, a large, bloated creature, opened its mouth. Its tongue launched out and snaked itself around Magnolia's right leg.

"W-" The woman was pulled back.

Oh no. Mizaki screamed as the older Savior was dragged back. Kasumi ran forwards.

"Fear becomes a weapon, courage becomes a distant dream, petrify!" She cast the same fear-inducing spell from before, but this time, it did not affect.

"Magnolia!" Kasumi yelled, turning around, trying to alert the other Saviors. Satsuhiro and Takomaro turned around, but Akiven and Alkoram kept running.

"What?" Takomaro realized what was happening as Magnolia used her mace on the tongue, trying to sever it. "Maggie!"

But it was no use. The Nightmare raised her body with its tongue and swallowed the Savior whole.

Kasumi stood for a moment in disbelief, as did the other Saviors. But, soon, she realized they were still being chased. She grabbed Mizaki by her right wrist and pulled her to the others.

"Keep going!" She cried as Mizaki shook her head and started running once more.

They moved through the trees, eventually passing the pond and reaching the portal they'd come through. When they got to it, they looked back and found that they weren't being pursued anymore, but still, they exited the alternate dimension.

Akiven and Alkoram were already there, of course. Takomaro, Satsuhiro, Mizaki and Kasumi came out, in that order. Kasumi fell to her knees, coughing. Ahead, Mizaki broke down in tears.

"Where's....?" Alkoram started, but after he saw the look on Takomaro's face, he understood. "No..."

"We..." Satsuhiro took a few deep breaths. "We need to report this. As soon as possible. Something big is clearly happening, and those Nightmares were far too strong for this area."

Takomaro nodded. He choked in a deep breath and started walking back to the city, wordlessly.

Each of the Saviors remained frozen in their spots, internalizing what had just happened.