Chapter 9
96.
A surprise visit from the Beast Tamer herself greeted the Kemis in the Royal Castle. Maiko traveled to Kemitopia after ensuring that the tribes on Riverania could effectively defend themselves. As soon as her goal of uniting all tribes was accomplished, Maiko decided to find Kita's group. The bucket list is immediately checked because of this moment.
"Ara, it seems like Lulu is no longer afraid of Beast Mimis," Maiko said.
"I believe she surpasses nyu by now…" Kita commented.
"That sounds great, then nyu wouldn't mind if I reintroduce someone, right?" Maiko replied.
The 4 of them are curious about what Maiko is implying. "Lindsy, greet your old friends~" Maiko called Lindsy, the Giant White Spider that once tried to eat them, is currently right in front of them.
"Old friend or supposedly old food?" Hana responded.
"I think I still cannot handle that one…" Lulu added, still afraid of spiders.
"So, nyu caught Zela. How was it?" Yuna asked as the other Catgirls came closer to them.
"Well, we ran all around the places going back and forth. It was a good chase I must say." Maiko answered.
"I can't imagine how I will react if a Beast Mimi like that chases me…" Mae commented.
"I'll probably just give up," Mittsy replied.
"We were once chased by a Giant Mimi 10 times bigger than that. Celeste cried a lot." Raven mentioned.
"I would still do it if that Beast Mimi tried to chase me," Celeste responded.
"What about this iced muscleman, is he not gonna die?" Maiko asked.
"He is frozen solid, though we think that his talent will keep him alive. Since he has endless energy, we theorized that his cells will keep moving, therefore will keep him alive. If FeLinE's claim about his talent is true." Eve answered.
"Sooo nyu aren't sure about it?" Maiko questioned.
"FeLinE is 95% sure about it. The other 5% can be miscalculations or the element of surprise." FeLinE:1000X said.
"He won't die, and you are right about his talent." Zela intervened.
"Aaaand now nyu are talking," Maiko replied.
"Excuse me, I am Queen Grace, the ruler of this nation. I've heard a lot about nyu from Kita and others. I humbly invite nyu to our meeting room for a discussion." Queen Grace invited Maiko.
"Queen Grace, it's an honor to finally meet nyu. Of course, I would love to." Maiko responded.
"Guards, take these two to the prison." Queen Grace instructed. The maids also move to prepare some meals for Maiko as a welcomed guest to the land.
"I'll help the guards," Yuna said as she lifted the ice cage.
"We will also come and help in preparing the prison. The room should maintain a certain temperature so that the ice won't easily melt." Rubi offered.
"We will just ask for the materials to accomplish that," Eve added.
"There are a lot of things that should be addressed first. As much as I wanted to offer hospitality, may I request your assistance first?" Queen Grace asked Maiko.
"No problem, I've come here to offer help anyway," Maiko answered.
Since their job is not yet done, Queen Grace distributes the remaining tasks. The Kemis are free to choose where they want to help, and also rest when they need to. With that being said, it's an obvious choice for Lulu. It's been a long time since she took a daytime nap. Mae, Mittsy, and Celeste join her as well. Meanwhile, Rin, Lisa, Aoi, and Coco head back to the kitchen. The land is still in chaos and Kemitopia needs more help to assist the citizens.
Kemitopia does not have the same technology as Zenshin. It will be hard for Eve and Rubi to recreate a facility exactly like their laboratory. But with enough insulators covering the room, they can at least prolong the ice cage. Kita and Hana can restore the ice, though they all know that this action is temporary. The Kemis must do something soon to properly deal with Mathus.
In Zela's case, she is in a separate room where Queen Grace and Maiko can interrogate her. FeLinE, Yuna, and Raven are also there to observe and take notes. With Zela's resolve, it will be hard for them to gather any reliable information from her.
"Be careful about what nyu ask her. She can instantly deliver messages to other Kemis." FeLinE:1000X reminded them.
"Oh, I guess that's why I heard her talking while we were chasing her. She even shouted for someone named Hideo." Maiko replied.
"Tsk, so she's been connected to Hideo all this time." Raven madly said.
"Not anymore, Hideo cut the link right after that Catgirl caught me. A Kemi should accept my link first before we can be connected." Zela responded.
"How can we trust her words? I mean she could possibly just make those up." Yuna questioned.
"Maybe she is telling the truth, I heard her frustration when calling Hideo earlier," Maiko answered.
"FeLinE does not find her actions odd as of now." FeLinE:1000X agreed with Maiko.
"FeLinE told us that nyu and Mathus are classified as Horn-type Kemis from a different realm. What's it like living there?" Queen Grace suddenly asked.
"What are you trying to do?" Zela skeptically responded.
"I'm just curious why your kind has to create havoc in our world. It's not like we won't peacefully welcome other kinds in our realm." Queen Grace said.
Zela got triggered by the Queen's statement, she believes that every Kemi is just like in the Underworld. "LIES! ALL OF YOU LOOK DOWN ON US!" She madly reacted.
"But it's true, FeLinE is not from here remember? Though she is not tied up like nyu." Queen Grace replied.
"Kemis with Horn also live peacefully in Riverania," Maiko added.
"This… this can't be right… You are trying to trick me! All my life I've been fighting to survive. Don't tell me that this realm treats Horn Kemis differently!" Zela argued. Ever since she was little, the hunt for horns has been the norm at Underworld. Zela was laughed at when her right horn was cut in a duel.
"Are nyu from the Underworld?" FeLinE:1000X intervened.
Zela realized that she was being cornered. She madly looks away as she tries to redeem control over her emotions. Her ambition to break the norms is making Zela react even if she does not want to.
"FeLinE fully understands Zela now," FeLinE:1000X stated.
97.
At first, Zela and Hideo thought that Mathus was the one that would end up being interrogated. But it turns out, it's Zela who is in that position. As the conversation goes on, FeLinE is able to analyze why Zela is reacting that way. Her vast knowledge about different realms helps FeLinE to narrow down the options of where Zela came from. With just a single question thrown by her, FeLinE concluded her hypothesis.
"Underworld was not originally named as it is today. It was KeraValley back then." FeLinE:1000X started to explain the origin.
"What are you saying?" Zela confusedly reacted.
"Realms circulate the Realm Sanctuary. Each Realm has a certain species, Nesuto has Flying-type Kemis, Hachtile has Reptile Kemis, and KeraValley has Horn-type Kemis, those are only a few examples of hundreds of other realms. Centuries ago a disease wiped out the Oceanaia, the reason why Sea-type Kemis no longer exist. Due to this incident, the Guardians of the Kemis created a center Realm called the UniPaws. Each Kemi has a representative from their realm, in that way, certain species will never go extinct. It's our job as Sentient Kemis to protect the Guardians' creation." The room was silent as FeLinE:1000X told the origin of the UniPaws.
Everyone was stunned by the story. The history is only passed down to Sentient Kemis. For the other realms, the truth is for them to discover.
"Ruins are scattered in the UniPaws, they are the gates for each realm. At first, the gates were open for everyone to travel, but the Horn-type Kemis are not happy with this idea. They wanted to be the superior race, therefore they invaded the UniPaws. It became a bloodbath, and that's why the Sentient Kemis are left with no choice. They sent the Horn-type Kemis back to KeraValley, and only a few of them stayed in this land. The realms are then locked, and only the Sentient Kemis are allowed to cross. But still, there are certain ways to bypass the gates since the Guardians designed the UniPaws as the center Realm. The decision enrages the Horn-type Kemis, they rebelled and started to destroy their realm, threatening the Sentients that they will go extinct. They, themselves named their place the Underworld, the opposing side of the UniPaws." FeLinE:1000X explained the history of KeraValley.
"I… I don't understand… Then why are the Kemis in our Realm keep on fighting and cutting horns as trophies?" Zela questioned.
"The destructive nature of the Horn-type Kemis lives on, they don't have anything else to vent their frustrations out. Years went by and they eventually turned against each other," FeLinE:1000X answered. "Destructive nature, broken horn, nyu must be here to let others experience the same fate as yours." She added.
FeLinE's words irritated Zela to the full extent, her tears go down as she voices out, "I AM NOT THE SAME AS THEM! The only reason why I joined Ovae is to free our realm! I don't want to fight for my life every single day! That's our mission!"
"Maybe for nyu, but not for the rest of your group," FeLinE:1000X argued.
"Stop it! Enough with your lies!" Zela replied.
"If that's true, then why do they need to create armies of deadly creatures?" FeLinE:1000X questions.
The question stunned them and made everyone think, FeLinE made the rest of the group speechless. The events are not making sense, they are not congruent to their reasonings. A few more seconds later, Zela finally sees the true goal of Ovae and Hideo. She trembles as she realizes that her resolve was taken advantage of. All of this chaos is just a diversion to keep everyone busy.
"The… The… archives…" Zela said while stuttering.
In that instant, the rest of them caught on to the situation. Without any second of delay, they all run towards the Hidden Den. Kita and Hana saw everyone running, they followed where the rest were heading while Eve and Rubi chose to stay and guard Mathus.
FeLinE uses her Relic on their way to the Hidden Den. "FeLinE counted only 11 scholars before, that means there are two more Kemis in the library right now," she said.
"IT MUST BE HIDEO AND THE MYSTERY GUY!" Raven replied.
"GUARDS, SURROUND THE HIDDEN DEN THIS INSTANT!" Queen Grace shouted as they all ran swiftly.
Eventually, they reach the place. A foul odor welcomes them as they are all clueless about what's happening. Upon stepping on the staircase, thick red fluids are scattered around. There are even splashes of them on the wall. The group could not believe their eyes, these are not mere fluids, this is the blood of the scholars, lying on the ground. Kita, Hana, and Yuna immediately check the pulses of each severely wounded Kemi, while Queen Grace, Maiko, Raven, and FeLinE, search the library.
"They are still alive, though they need to be treated immediately!" Hana said.
"I'll try to find water here," Kita said as Yuna assisted her.
While they were panicking, a voice suddenly echoed "Greetings, it's good to finally meet all of you again." A guy wearing a full black outfit greeted them.
"I… I know that voice…" Raven said as they all traced where it came from. When they turn into the next room, they see 2 Kemis sitting on the couch. One wears a full black outfit while the other has long ginger hair with 2 short red horns. They are Horn-type Kemis from the Underworld.
"Oh, Raven. Did you miss me?" Hideo asked as he removed his mask. Hideo is apparently the mysterious guy who invaded Kemitopia before.
"We're sorry about the mess, they are quite stubborn. By the way, I'm Ovae~" Ovae said as she read the forbidden book.
"NYU… NYU MONSTERS!" Queen Grace madly said.
"Calm down now, I'm sure you don't want to escalate this situation any further~" Ovae responded.
"I SWEAR I'LL TEAR NYU APART IF NYU DO SOMETHING TO VALI!" Raven furiously stated.
"But darling, that's impossible~" Ovae said as she laughed.
"What did nyu do to her?" Raven seriously asked.
"Nothing, I wouldn't do something that will harm me, for I, I've been playing as Vali the whole time~" Ovae revealed as she and Hideo both laughed.
Raven drops to her knees, the truth left everyone flabbergasted. It's been Ovae's disguise while they were studying how UniPaws works.
"ARREST THEM!" Queen Grace ordered. The Royal Guards charged in, cornering Hideo and Ovae.
"That's our cue. Until we meet again~" Ovae said. Hideo touches Ovae's shoulder, and then they warp out, vanishing into thin air. Hideo's Riftwalk talent helps them escape unscratched.
98.
This time, Hideo managed to steal the remaining archives that they needed. As soon as they left the premises, the Evil Mimis also stopped their invasion. Since the Evil Mimis are now cloned, Cerono has a destruction button for them. Knowing that the job is done, Cerono cuts the power from the cloning machine, making the Evil Mimis disappear, popping like a balloon, one after the other. The confusion fazed everyone but they could not stay as they were, right now the scholars needed medication. Queen Grace snaps out of it and prioritizes her citizens, while Duke Nasmuir starts their investigation around the place.
Hana heals the wounded while the other guards assist her with what she needs. Queen Grace with others went back to check on the prisoners, Mathus and Zela were missing. On the other hand, Eve, Rubi, and Maiko's Beasts are on the floor, unconscious. Ovae made them fall asleep, just like what she did to Lulu.
An hour passed and eventually, the rest of the group knew what happened. Not only did they all fail, but also letting everyone get hurt made them feel guilty. The worst part of it, Ovae and Hideo can do much worse, now that they have the archives. The group sat in the meeting room, speechless and depressed. They all share the burden and downfall of Kemitopia.
A couple of moments later, something is buzzing in Maiko's head. "Link incoming, accept or decline?" Those words echoed to the room but only Maiko could hear them.
"Hai?" Maiko confusedly responded, and everyone else suddenly looked at her.
"Link accepted." The voice added. "Maiko? Are you listening?" Zela whispered.
"ZELA!" Maiko shouted as she stood up, the rest confusedly watched Maiko.
"Listen carefully, we are here at our base. An island in the Deserted Isles, the nearest one to the south of Zenshin. They are probably analyzing how to enter the Realm Sanctuary through the archives by now. By the way, there's a limit to Hideo's talent. He cannot Riftwalk between portals, and he can only go back to the places that he has been. I'll link again if we move out." Zela instructed as she immediately cut the link between them.
"What's going on, did Zela link with nyu?" Kita asked.
"Ha-Hai… She also told me their location and then she cut the link immediately…" Maiko answered.
"But why?" Raven questioned.
"That could be a trap, right?" Rin worriedly mentioned.
"Maybe not, Zela spilled Hideo's limit about Riftwalk, the talent we had witnessed. She said Hideo can only go back where he's been and is only limited inside a realm." Maiko said.
"But how are we even gonna stop him from doing that? What if he just goes back to Kemitopia as soon as we arrive there?" Lisa questioned.
"Then we should isolate that island. We need to create a magnetic field with the same frequency as the gates. It will serve as a barrier that will separate the island from the UniPaws." FeLinE:1000X answered.
"Hearing that almost made me vomit…" Kita commented.
"Even I did not understand a thing she said…" Rubi responded.
"Is that feasible in our realm?" Eve replied.
"Hai, Zenshin is advanced enough to recreate this matter. Just gather the materials that FeLinE will ask for then FeLinE will build the machine. FeLinE can create that within one hour if all the necessary elements are present, or at least with a substitute of." FeLinE:1000X said.
"Then we shall board a ship towards Zenshin, I just hope they are still there after a couple of days…" Queen Grace mentioned.
"Oh, we don't have to travel for days. Trust me, nyu will all know when we get to the shore." Raven intervened.
A chance for redemption falls right in front of them as Zela suddenly has a change of heart. Since Zela directly communicated with Maiko earlier, she can ask for a connection to her, they will be automatically linked once Maiko accepts the request. From Eavesdropping for Hideo to returning the favor to the group. Zela is hoping that it is not too late for her to have a normal life.
The group immediately goes to the dock. They all want to come and make things right. Or at least offer assistance for the betterment of the mission. In the meantime, Duke Nasmuir is in charge while Queen Grace is out.
Eventually, they reach the shore. The Queen's ships are all wrecked, while luckily Maiko's ship is still intact. It was not targeted since she arrived recently. They all board the ship with a few Royal Guards accompanying them.
"This is the part where Lulu will prove that she surpasses nyu now," Kita told Maiko.
"THIIIIRDYYY, WHEEERE ARE NYUUU!" Lulu shouted.
"Anooo… Nyu might want to prepare yourselves." Celeste warned both Mae and Mittsy. She knows that the 3 of them belong to the same group.
Everyone patiently waits as Lulu summons the King of the Sea. Later that moment, the ship starts to sway a little bit while the waves are changing. The Blue Sea Serpent appears, covering the clouds, hearing the call of Lulu.
"Ara..." Maiko reacted.
"WHAT ON UNIPAWS IS THAT!" Coco screamed.
"Can't I just go back to the Cafe," Aoi said, trying to escape but Lisa pulled her back.
"Apparently, her talent is communicating with Giant Beasts. Aaaand that is the King of the Sea." Yuna said.
"I knew that she has potential, but I never thought that she's capable of such a feat… The four of nyu have grown so much since the last time we met." Maiko replied, completely mind-blown by everyone's talent.
"From being maids in our cafe to this, I hardly got any words for these four Kemis," Rin responded.
"Welcome to the club…" Eve replied to Rin.
"Thirdy, we need your help. Can nyu take us to Zenshin?" Lulu asked.
Thirdy roars and immediately submerges into the ocean. "HOLD ON TIGHT!" Raven warned as the King of the Sea once again put the ship on its back, and raced through the sea.
"WE'RE GONNA DIE," Mittsy screamed as they experienced the ocean sprint for the first time.
"THAT'S WHAT I ALSO SAID!" Celeste replied.
Last time, they shortened the supposedly weeks of travel into one and a half days. Having the same speed just like before, their voyage only took a day and a half from Kemitopia to Zenshin. All of them are baffled, especially those who experience it for the first time.
99.
Eventually, the Kemis recover from motion sickness. Zenshin suffered the most, based on the destruction of the place. The group landed in the Central Region since Thirdy can cross through strong currents. The timing of the groups' arrival couldn't be better as all of the 3 Head Developers are in this Region, planning for recovery.
In the history of Zenshin, they believe that a Kemi gifted the land an advanced technology that helped them flourish. The myth is unclear but the details resemble FeLinE's appearance, her advanced ways left rumors about her being a threat to mankind. When the Developers saw FeLinE, they bowed and offered everything that they could, hoping that they would be spared from mass extinction.
There has been a misunderstanding about FeLinE throughout history. But the group took this advantage to build what they needed. It will be easier than explaining everything from the start.
With that, the preparation for the Field Separator immediately starts. FeLinE lists down all of the materials needed, as well as the possible substitute for each substance. She wrote everything in under a minute, the scientists are shocked but there's no room to be idle. The Kemis do not necessarily need to put the island in a different realm, only a forcefield that mimics the gates is their goal. A lot of scientists still could not comprehend the principle but it is not a problem. As long as they can provide the materials, FeLinE will do the rest.
A lot of time has passed and the daylight is over. Everyone takes part in the mission, certain groups are assigned to specific materials, while others offer assistance like food, service, and security. It is the first time that the Kemis from all over the UniPaws are walking towards one goal. It is a rare sighting that will go down throughout the history of each continent.
After almost 5 hours of planning, searching, and collecting, they finally completed the checklist. Some are incredibly hard to find, but with great minds working together, experimentations are made to produce the desired element. While the gatherers rest, it's time for FeLinE to build the machinery. Eve and Rubi act as a helper to her, they are the only chosen Kemis since having too many assistants will slow FeLinE down. Not to mention, FeLinE is skeptical of everyone else.
Just like what FeLinE stated, the device is created exactly in an hour. They rejoice as the group immediately boarded the ship once more. The mission is not yet over, it is just about to start for them.
As the night sets in, an unnoticeable change of atmosphere surrounds the island where Ovae's base is located. They cannot feel the changes but it is interfering with Cerono's machinery like it's some sort of bug. Cerono reports that something is quite not right. Trying to analyze what's going on, Zela smirks as they witness countless Beast Mimis appearing from different angles.
"Beast Mimis… Wait, are they being controlled by the Kemi you reported?" Hideo asked Zela.
"Maybe, I'm not sure." Zela denied.
"I don't want to waste time and energy with them, let's get out of here," Ovae said.
"Hai," Hideo responded as he immediately tried to Riftwalk but Hideo was only warping to the same position. "I… I can't Riftwalk elsewhere…" He added while in shock.
"I knew it… something is going on…" Cerono replied.
"You can all just sit there, I'll handle everything," Mathus stated as he cracked his neck. Mathus charges in, ready to fight single-handedly. The Beast Mimis run back as they are being chased by Mathus. When they are out of sight, the ground shakes a little bit.
"Mathus must be having fun," Hideo commented.
"QUEEEEK!" A loud screech follows the previous noise. Ovae drops the book that she was reading, finally acknowledging the commotion that is going on.
"Connect to Mathus this instant," Ovae ordered.
Zela sends a link to Mathus but no one is answering. "No response," she reported.
"CHARGE!" A loud voice commanded from a far distance. At that moment, Royal Guards with Beast Mimis surround the Horn-type Kemis.
The group shows up in front of them, Queen Grace is the one that leads the army. "Nyu are all under arrest for the criminal actions that nyu have made. Surrender now!" Queen Grace stated.
It turns out, the Kemis planned things prior to their landing on the island. The King of the Sea carried four more ships, in addition to the current one, so that the other Kemis and Beast Mimis could join the ambush. Maiko summoned the Beast Mimis while Lulu summoned Thirdy and Krakquad. As soon as they reached the island, FeLinE turned the Field Separator on. Not only trapping Hideo's talent but also interfering with the gates that Cerono opened. Ovae can only make a target sleep one after the other, using her talent against this army will only exhaust her.
"LET ME GO!" Mathus shouted as Kranki firmly held him.
"Okay… I'm out…" Cerono said. Her body suddenly fell to the ground lifeless. The one that has been accompanying Ovae is a clone, no one knows where Cerono's real body is.
"This is what you get for fooling me…" Zela told Ovae.
"You… You betrayed us." Hideo said.
"You are the one that betrayed me first! Both of you never wanted to free the Underworld. You wanted to take over the Realm Sanctuary!" Zela madly responded.
Ovae laughs as she realizes that Zela finally caught up to her manipulation. "I'm proud of you for setting things up. Buuuut… Don't you find it odd that I'm still here? Hideo and I could have entered other Ruins by now. We have like hundreds of Runekeys after all. Why do you think I stayed here and thoroughly read every archive?" She said.
"Hideo and I can kill at least half of this army, though that will be pointless. You thought I'd target the Realm Sanctuary? I thought so too!" Ovae said as she laughed hysterically. "It turns out, I don't have to… We can just patiently wait for an opening~" she added.
Ovae and Hideo raised their hands, surrendering to the Kemis. Queen Grace finally caught the masterminds behind the chaos. The efforts of everyone blossom as the battle ends today. Hopefully, a peaceful UniPaws is waiting for the upcoming days.
End Chapter 9