“I’ve already checked, there’s no reception.” I had been reaching for my phone when Yui made the simple statement from behind. Looking back, Yui was holding her own above her head, waving it back and forth as if the sweeping motion would somehow connect her to a network. She’s taking that better than I expected. Yui was always on her phone, always messaging hordes of friends and reading about the latest trends on message boards. The saying “glued to their phone” might be putting it lightly for her.

“I was thinking we could use the light to help us see,” I gave her hand a slight squeeze. Of the three of us, she was the one I was most worried about. She was the happiest person you’d likely ever meet, but I knew she was easily frightened. She tended to lock up when unexpected events unfolded.

My father had taught me to keep a level head, assess my circumstances, and continue to the best of my abilities. I may not be as good at handling the unexpected as Kaede, but I was confident that I would not break down. For her part, Kaede would continue forward into the unknown, allowing her knowledge and pragmatism to guide her through any situation that might arise.

Yui on the other hand...she was delicate. I dare anyone to talk with her and not want to protect her. To not feel that overwhelming fear that she would snap from the slightest touch. I looked at her for a long moment. Her tiny frame stood barely more than four and a half feet, and even soaking wet only seventy five pounds. I’ve been told she was a preterm, and it’s well known she is anemic at times. She easily ran out of breath, had never been allowed to partake in P.E. classes, and struggled to lift stacks of papers given to her by our teachers. Despite all this, she could never be kept down, and would never let on any pain she might be in. I loved her with all my heart. As I’m sure everyone did.

She looked up from the screen, and smiled lightly at me. Now that I took a closer look, I realized she appeared tired. Or perhaps it was the light from her phone distorting her appearance. I couldn’t say for certain, but it proved to push me to worry.

“Are you...don’t push yourself too hard Yui,” I said, trying my best to sound unphased.

“I’m fine, I’m fine! I’m stronger than I look, you know!” She put as big a grin on her face as she could.

That’s right. I thought. This is Yui, she won’t give up that easily. I tried to push my fears aside. Not just my fear for Yui, but for our whole situation. Just where exactly were we?

We wandered about the Ruins in silence. My earlier assessment held true; there was not a single bit of the usual construction materials used in modern buildings to be found. Just more of the stone and lumber we found at the edge. We did discover several foundations of what appeared to be fully wooden buildings, and even what appeared to be mud.

“Some type of Adobe...top of the original stone...old, it crumbles when touched,” I overheard some of Kaede’s mutterings as she examined one of the mud buildings.

None of the buildings had enough still intact to be much more than rubble, save the random wall or corner that still stood one or perhaps two stories high. I had noticed that moss and vines had begun to gather on most, if not all, of the stones. Weeds and grass had begun to poke through the wooden floors of the interiors. A few of the structures had as much grass on the inside as the ground surrounding them. In one case a small tree had found a safe spot nearly dead center of the crumbling walls. Nature was reclaiming the land.

How long has it been since this place fell to ruin? It seemed strange that the place was so undisturbed despite it’s obvious age. Perhaps it was different in European countries, but I felt that this would be a heritage site normally. Yet there were no signs of anyone having walked these grounds in years. Why has this place been completely abandoned? Something’s not right here.

The further into the ruined city we traveled, the more that something felt off. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but I knew some aspect of this place was...wrong. The more I saw, the more I came to question why this place lay in complete disarray; why no one would have made any attempt to reclaim it. Yui gripped my hand tightly. Had she, too, felt something was off? Or was she sensing my hesitation?

“There’s a hill over there,” Kaede suddenly said. After the extended silence we had been walking in, her voice seemed to ring out unusually loud, causing both Yui and I to jump. Yui immediately gave a half-hearted giggle to cover up her embarrassment. I felt no such need. I felt no shame in admitting I was unnerved.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

It was only after Kaede had broken the silence that I realized part of what had thrown me off. It was the silence itself. An unnatural silence I’ve never experienced in the real world. The kind only found in horror movies. Not a sound had been made outside our own tromping feet and quiet breathing. No singing birds, no hooting owls. No squeaks from mice, nor humming cicadas or chirping crickets. Not even the breeze had seemed to make a sound as it tussled my hair, ever so gently.

This is wrong, I thought. This place, this atmosphere. Everything about it is wrong. What happened here? I was easily put on edge, always ready for the unexpected. But I wouldn’t consider myself someone who scares easily. Scary movies had never gotten to me at least. This place had done just that however. It had me unnerved right down to my core. I could feel my heart beating faster by the minute, my breathing becoming quicker and more shallow.

“Hinata?” I looked back at Yui, who now wore a worried look on her face.

Do I reassure her? Or would that be the same as lying to her?

“I...I don’t know...something just feels...wrong,” I said slowly. Ahhh what’s wrong with me, why can’t I get my thoughts straight? I might not be as pragmatic as Kaede, but I was level headed enough to point out what was bothering me usually.

“I agree,” Kaede’s response threw me for a loop, and I quickly turned around to look her in the face. She had her brow scrunched up, chin resting between her thumb and forefinger, and her eyes cast on the ground. “Everything about this place is counterintuitive. Perhaps…” she trailed off. For several moments she stood staring at the ground, before looking at our surroundings again. She worked her lip furiously, her frown intensifying. So I wasn’t wrong to be worried.

“I still think we should get the high ground,” she said, once again turning in the direction of the hill. Foregoing an explanation to her agreement, she set out at a slightly brisker pace. Perhaps she did not feel comfortable sharing what she was thinking, or wanted more information before she finished making her assessment. Either way, I knew she would not easily give out a half baked idea. I began to follow.

Yui, however, made no attempt to move, and her hand slipped from mine. Turning back, I could see fear working its way into her features. Her eyes were moist, the corner of her lips were quivering and slowly being pulled down. The hand I had just been holding met the other, pulled in close to her chest and chin. She looked ready to cry.

“I don’t like this,” she managed, her voice wavering. “This place is giving me the creeps, and you guys are saying something is wrong. What if something comes after us?” suddenly dropping to the ground, her shoulders began to shake. Before I could even make a move to comfort her, Kaede swooped in from behind me and wrapped the tiny figure in her arms.

“There there…shhhh,” she cooed softly at the crying girl. Gently, Kaede began to pat Yui’s head. “I’m sorry I made you worry Yui,” she continued to whisper at the other girl, rocking her shoulders ever so slightly. I slowly made my way to the other side of Yui, where I crouched down to place a hand on her back.

“No animals are gonna get you Yui, I’m here with you remember?” I said reassuringly. After a moment's hesitation, she nodded, but kept her face buried in Kaede’s sweater.

In truth, I don’t know how well I could live up to what I said. I was large by Japanese standards. Nearly five and a half feet tall, my shoulders were a touch wider than what an average beauty would have while my frame was “well toned” as Yui liked to put it. My hair was rather long, reaching halfway down my back, but I rarely messed with it. I tended to keep it out of the way with some amount of braiding in the last few inches, or in a tight ponytail while exercising. To make matters worse, I had my fathers eyes with my mothers traditional Japanese face. I was distinctly less feminine than the average highschooler, though it was not something that ate at my heart quite so much as my peers might expect.

My father had been in the U.S. Navy Special Forces when he met my mother. He was big on physical fitness, and had taken me training every morning that he was in port for as long as I could remember. I had always loved those times with him. It let me bond with my dad in a way none of the other girls I knew had gotten to with their own fathers. Running, body weight exercises, swimming. All forms of physical exercise were par for the course with him. He had trained me in his militaries’ hand to hand combat, and we went to the firing range every time we visited grandma and grandpa in the states. He was hard and strict in his training, never letting up for even a day. I think it was his way of showing he loved me, for he never berated me when I couldn’t keep up.

He was also, embarrassingly enough for me, a massive nerd. He loved Japanese anime, and obsessed over popular fantasy games. As such when I had shown even the slightest interest in learning kendo as a child, he had immediately signed me up. I’m not all that proficient at it, even after all these years, but it was another aspect that let me connect with him.

“Never give up. Never look down on yourself. Whether you succeed or fail, win or lose, I am more proud of you and the effort you put in than I can ever hope to make you understand,” he had always said. In my mind I could see his broad shoulders; short G.I. Joe buzzcut; brilliant, sharp and intense ocean blue eyes; and the small, soft smile he always put on when around myself or my siblings. I took a deep breath, slowly letting it out through my mouth. I focused on my heart and the idea of its rhythm slowing. After a moment I felt my shoulders release some of their tension.

Thank you dad.