Earthbound: Champions of the Future

Chapter Thirty Seven

~ Ozella Mizu's POV ~

I watched the silent, shocked expressions of the three after I had spoken. "Did you just say your surname was Mizu?" Gaius questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"I did." I responded.

"B-But that's..." Azura sputtered. "That's impossible..."

I smiled, placing a hand on Azura's shoulder. "I promise, it's not impossible. I missed you."

Azura's eyes began to brim with tears. "I-It can't be... M-Mother...?" She whispered. I nodded and pulled her into a hug. She sobbed into my shoulder as I brushed a hand through her hair. Gaius and Naoma watched, confusion visible on their expressions.

Azura calmed down after ten minutes, although she still seemed to be in shock. "I-I didn't mean to lose control like that..." she whispered. "But... I'm so happy to have found you again...!"

"Please don't blame yourself," I said, wiping away a stray tear that rolled down her cheek. "I, too, could not believe it when I first discovered it. But seeing you in person... Just look at how beautiful you are!"

"Wait, Azura... this is your mother?" Naoma asked.

Azura nodded. "When I was young, I was taken away from my home and left abandoned in the streets of Siton. That's when I met Mr. Shirosama: his wife found me and took me in. I became a dancer and decided to devote my life to repaying that debt. I took advantage of my powers to help with it."

"The whole water manipulation thing, right?" Gaius guessed. "I have heard rumours of a real pretty singer with long blue hair with the ability to manipulate water. I guess I was hearing about you."

"The home Azura was taken away from was this temple." I explained. "Before that, we lived in tranquillity... Myself, Azura, her father and the acolytes of the temple."

"Where's the old man now, then?" Gaius interrogated. "His kid's just come back after years away, and he's nowhere to be found."

I glanced down at the ring on my hand. "Azura's father... Yuuta... he passed away on that day. He died trying to protect me." I muttered.

"Oh..." Gaius whispered. "Crud, sorry. Damn, I seriously messed up with that..."

The room was silent until Naoma shifted slightly in her bedsheets. "Um..." she began. "This is really off topic, but... what actually happened earlier?"

"Begin by telling me what you remember." I instructed.

Naoma nodded in response. "Well... the city was being attacked by the mastermind we're currently chasing. I tried to go after them, but Rebecca stopped me. She forced me to run away. They must have had PSI, because they used PSI Freeze to attack us. Rebecca pushed me to the ground and... and took the hit for me. She just kind of... fell limp in my arms. Then... I began to ache all over. There was some kind of roaring in my head... and that's where my memory cuts out."

"That roar you described was the beast within you emerging." I told her. "You, similar to Azura and I..."

"You mean, I'm the same kind of thing?" Naoma gasped. "Like, I get to turn into a dragon and throw water around?!"

"At the time, you were understandably very angry and upset." I said. "Those emotions unlocked your powers. However, because of the way your powers surfaced, it would be dangerous if such a thing happened again. We must control your abilities, so you can summon it at will."

"How do we do that?" Gaius asked. "I'd rather not get my head bitten off by a crazed giant lizard. At least, wait until I've hit it off with that sweet-looking cat girl with the purple eyes-"