Kaze: Guardians

The Journey

     Juno had packed everything for the trek up Backdrop Mountain. He, of course, wasn't coming. Though he was disappointed, he smiled at us as we procrastinated. He always smiled.
"Hey, Juno. Why do you constantly smile?"
"Do I?" He asked.
"Yes. You smile when you're sad, you smile when you're angry, you smile when you're in fear. Why?"
"I never really thought about it. I guess, statistically, if I always smile, someone will eventually smile back."
"Hmmm. Well, you're not wrong, I suppose."
     The trip took way longer than I had guessed. We couldn't go straight up the mountain because it was too steep. There was a trail, however. As we climbed up the mountain, the air refused to enter my lungs. It was cold, and only a few animals lived there. Evergreens dotted the hard rock, and eventually, the white snow.
     As the incline temporarily leveled out, I turned to look back at the town. Each building was only about the height and width of my thumbnail. I was shocked at how tiny it was! I turned around and kept walking. Kasumi walked ahead, her face frozen as ice. Just as I was about to ask her what was wrong, my feet slid out from under me and I landed on my back. I sat up and saw that Kasumi had picked her way around to the other side. She sat on a snowdrift, laughing.
     "Oh yeah?! How about this?" I got up and attempted to dash at her, but instead I face-planted on the ice, causing yet another burst of laughter. I was bruised and my pride was sore, but I managed to crawl across to the other side of the ice. Her eyes were full of pity for me, but her mouth was still suppressing giggles. "Whatever." I grumbled.
     We soon came upon several snow covered houses. They all had some sort of holes in the ceiling. I checked each and every house, as if my urgency could bring the residents back. Their food stocks were too low for anyone to live off of. The water had frozen over, and there were stone cold skeletons buried in the snow. "These people starved to death up here." Kasumi simply nodded in reply.
     We ate lunch in one of the houses. I figured that it was at least out of the wind. The damage was difficult to take in. My guess was that once the village had starved, wear and tear from the elements had caused structural damage. Juno would've had a field day fixing it up. I wondered where he was.
     We were soon back on our feet marching up the mountain. I no longer bothered to turn and look back. The top was within sight. Kasumi was firmly staring straight ahead. She was either determined to finish this, or planned to do something at the top. About an hour after lunch, we finally reached our destination.
     We turned to face the village, but clouds blocked the view. Nothing mattered except this mountain. This moment. The emotion was overwhelming to say the least. It soon started to snow. It wasn't a hard snow that blew in the wind and blinded people unlucky enough to get stuck outside. Rather, it was a soft snow that muffled all noises and gave an air of calm tranquility. As the snow gave under our feet, the sound never reached our ears. Everything was silent, as if holding its breath, waiting for an epic final confrontation. The final boss. I could practically hear the intro to the hard rock boss track playing in the background.
     We found the Snow Bloods earlier than I thought. They weren't hard to find. They simply swayed in the breeze, paying no mind to the snow burying them. I was shocked at how such a fragile plant could survive at the top of a mountain, but it soon became very clear. Picking them was a nightmare. I spilled my own blood on the snow countless times because I had forgotten about the thorns. I hoped secretly that we could find a bandage when we returned. We had picked all of the Snow Bloods on the mountaintop by mid-afternoon. I turned to start the trip back down the mountain, when a purple ball of psychic energy demolished a nearby boulder. I whirled around and saw Kasumi, charging up another attack.
             7 Hours Before Disaster
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Dun dun DUN!!! So, why do you guys think Kasumi is attacking Kaze? Thanks for reading! The snowy mountain and abandoned town scenes were really fun to write. We're getting really close to the end, maybe... Oh... 5 chapters tops? Don't forget to vote, comment, etc. Bye everyone!