“Luce Lunare, Piano!”

A ball of lunar energy easily cleaved through the white scorpion-shaped Scherzando attempting to impede Vii and Shouri’s progress.

“Whew, easy enough.” Vii wiped the sweat from her brow.

The sun had long since set, dropping the temperature significantly.

Shouri had their limited supplies pilfered from the remains of the plane. Vii had emptied a parachute pack to convert into a bag to carry the recovered supplies. A couple of water bottles, some food, and other incidentals they could use to make the trip to Subterris.

They continued their trek anew. The grass here was thin, they’d reach the desert proper if they kept up their current pace. Their current path would hopefully prevent that, heading westward towards some mountains towering in the distance. “Do you even know where we’re going?” Shouri asked.

“Of course. I made sure to do my research before waking you up,” Vii replied, keeping a healthy pace ahead of the Maestro.

“Uh-huh.” He couldn’t necessarily trust this girl. There were two running theories in his head. This girl had some kind of ability to copy Resonator’s forms and she had chosen to copy Taika. Or the more complicated option of Vii being a Lunar-healing Resonator already and going through the insane effort of copying Taika’s entire look and vocal range.

It was easier to just blame some ability he was unfamiliar with than the more insane version of events he was cooking up in his head.

“Uhg.” Shouri held his head, closing his eyes. The headache had yet to subside.

“Drink some water,” Vii told him.

“We have a limited supply, gotta ration it,” he countered.

“Won’t be a problem after we get some sleep, just drink,” she demanded.

With a grunt, Shouri gave into the pushy Resonator’s demand and polished off the bottle he had started on, leaving only one remaining. The usefulness of an empty bottle wasn’t lost on him, however, so he capped it and returned it to the bag.

“Shouri,” Vii called to him. She had stopped in place, another Scherzando barring their way. An earth element, a small feline-shaped creature. It was crouched down, ready to pounce on the easy prey.

Taking hold of the tuner, he gave his command, “Luce Lunare, Piano.”

Vii was well-trained; light on her feet, and deadly accurate. As soon as the Scherzando jumped to attack her, she pivoted and sniped the beast from behind. All accomplished in one fluid motion.

“Haa…” the Resonator let out a pleasured sigh. “This is the best,” she cooed.

Glancing down at the tuner, he took note of her condition.

Shouri

Resonator: Vii (Taika)

Species: Demi-Human (Fox)

Element: Lunar

Attribute: Healing

Rhythm: 17%

What was interesting was her designation. It had both her and Taika’s names there. Why was that?

Even crazier was just how low her rhythm was. Seventeen percent was not all that much, but the way the mystery girl was carrying herself almost seemed like she had seventy. She looked a bit tired, but not near exhaustion like he had seen with other Resonators toeing the line between the danger line of zero percent.

Was she just that powerful or was there something else at play?

“Itchy curiosity?” Vii grinned.

He didn’t dignify her with a response and simply returned the borrowed tuner to his side. “Let’s keep going,” Shouri decided.

Onward they marched.

Vii seemed to be unusually aware of Shouri’s condition, stopping to demand he rest and drink more of the little water that remained and eat the small rations they had.

Despite Shouri’s protests, Vii herself never partook in the consumables. She remained insistent it wouldn’t be a problem after they got some sleep.

Their pilgrimage through the night was rewarded when they arrived near some smaller rock formations by sunrise.

“We’ll sleep here,” Vii spoke up. “Should be dark and cool enough inside for us to rest through the day and continue at night,” she told him.

All he could muster was a short nod in agreement. Even with Vii making sure he got plenty of breaks, food, and water, he was beyond exhausted. It would be extremely easy for him to sleep; despite the conditions he’d be doing so in.

The duo entered the rocky structure and found it went deeper into the ground than either of them had expected.

“Yeah, this is good,” Vii noted. “They won’t be able to spot us by the air either if they have helicopters or planes scouting overhead,” she added.

Another slow nod from Shouri. He just didn’t have the energy to commit to using his vocal cords.

He counted his blessings that Vii just so happened to be a Lunar element – no light needed for the dark crevice they sought refuge in. Locating a suitable corner, he took off his jacket and laid it out as a makeshift bed. Then he emptied the supplies from the bag to use as a pillow.

Briefly, he considered what Vii would do for sleeping arrangements, but she was just kind of standing there watching him. He shook his head and tried to ignore her, though the blue glow in her stolen eyes unnerved him. If not for his sensitive rhythm, he would have believed that she was Taika, a frightening prospect.

He took off his shoes, allowing his feet to breathe for the first time in nearly a day. He winced as they protested the intense workload that had suddenly been thrust on them. Most likely he’d be nursing some blisters tomorrow, not an exciting prospect.

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“La Bella Vita.”

Shouri’s heart jumped, when had Vii moved closer?! She knelt next to him, examining his covered feet. “We can at least stop the blisters from forming,” she spoke gently.

“La Bella Vita, Allegro,” Shouri called out.

With a pleasured sigh, Vii held out her hands, illuminating the dark space with the glow of healing magic.

Relief poured into him, chasing out some of the soreness that had crept into his legs.

“Better?” she asked.

“A little,” the Maestro mumbled. “Thanks,” he quickly added, quieter.

“Good.” The Resonator rubbed his back, before standing up straight. “Get some sleep, we still have a couple of hours to the mountains. Will be easier if you’re topped up on rhythm,” she told him.

He grunted, glancing away. She was genuine at least in that statement. Stealing Taika’s face though, he couldn’t fully trust her.

----------------------------------------

Sleep came easy. Poor Shouri was too exhausted to even dream. However, he would wish he had, as the evening came with a new waking nightmare.

It was dark, darker than he had remembered falling asleep to. What’s more, he found he was sharing his back with another, though the tail at his feet wasn’t the same fluffy fox tail he had expected. It was a familiar shape that shouldn’t have been there.

Sitting up, Shouri’s body certainly was sore, but at least he was alive and no longer totally exhausted.

His eyes weren’t adjusting to the dark like he had expected. He still had Vii’s tuner and she was granting him the night vision perk that Lunar Resonators gave their Maestros. At least she should have been. Then again, he was dealing with a fake tuner, so perhaps the connection wasn’t stable enough to constantly grant the resonant bonus.

Speaking of, he decided to check on her rhythm. She had below twenty percent yesterday, so hopefully she had recovered most of it with some time to sleep.

After flash-banging himself with the backlight, he navigated to Vii’s vitals, but before he got there, he noticed something was different about the device itself. From the little bit of it he could make out in the limited light, the edges of the case almost appeared blue…

That’s when he saw it.

Shouri

Resonator: Vii (Pacifica)

Species: Demi-Human (Otter)

Element: Water

Attribute: Piercing

Rhythm: 50%

“Wh-what?” The boy gawked at the screen, utterly flabbergasted at what was being conveyed to him by the device.

He turned the illuminated screen to the sleeping body at his side. Sure enough, the form that greeted him was no longer Taika’s but Pacifica's.

“Is it night?” Pacifica’s voice came from the body. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, blinking a few times. “Close enough,” she grunted.

“Vii?” Shouri asked hesitantly.

“Yeah, it’s me,” she replied.

Silence.

Vii stretched, yawning loudly.

“I have so many questions,” were the words Shouri decided on.

“I kept telling you water wouldn’t be a problem.” Vii grinned toothily. “Now let’s get to it, I’m parched.” She clapped her hands together, rubbing them eagerly.

“No no, explain yourself. Why were you Taika yesterday and Pacifica today?” Shouri pointed at the strange Resonator.

“Well, obviously I studied them thoroughly to make sure you had something familiar to cling to.” Vii shrugged.

“No! How are you doing this? This is not Allucinazione di Massa. You’re changing elements, that should be impossible,” he said.

Vii raised a borrowed brow. “Yeah, you’re right. That ad-Lib is an illusion skill.” She grabbed his hand and placed it firmly on her chest. “I assure you; this is no mirage.”

Shouri yanked his hand away in horror. “What the fuck!? Don’t do that!” he shrieked. “Especially because that’s not your body!” the Maestro barked.

“Oh? I didn’t think you were that considerate.” Vii grinned toothily. Shouri was shooting her the nastiest glare he could muster. The smirk faded from her lips. She sighed, shaking her head. “It was just a joke. I’m not interested in that stuff.”

Sitting on her legs, she retrieved the water bottles. “I’m only into rhythm – your rhythm.” Vii set the two uncapped bottles in front of her. “Now hit me with it.”

Shouri remained silent, considering her request. Oh, how he wanted to deny her that rhythm, especially after the stunt she had just pulled. Thirst won out over spite this day. “Fine,” Shouri grumbled. “Mani Nell'acqua, Lento, make the water cold,” he commanded.

Vii trembled. “Ahhh, yeah you got it,” her voice dripped with pleasure. The task didn’t take long, both bottles filled in a snap. Both travelers downed their respective bottles and Vii refilled them using the rest of the rhythm she was given.

“All we have left for food are these granola bars,” Shouri noted.

“We’ll take one each. We should get to Subterris in three hours, two if we hustle,” Vii advised.

The Maestro mulled that over. Subterris was a Natural Reservation. While there they wouldn’t be subject to Riterran laws. They’d be at the mercy of Natural laws.

This couldn’t be his end. Maybe it was Vii’s willpower pushing him forward, or perhaps he simply desired to get back to his Resonators that propped him up. Either way, today wasn’t going to be the day he died.