The Endless Sea Stage (Secondary Training/Solo)

"Miiiissss Saaaakuuuurrrrraaaa... Are we there yet?"

This wasn't the first, the second, or the seventeenth time that question had rung in her mind. Carrying Russet had not been an issue for the most part since she had bought herself a small backpack, but the fact even fully zipped up never stopped him from asking about how close they were to the destination that she was traveling to. "I offered to let you stay at home. My mother would have loved to spend some time with you, Russet. But you were so insistent upon meeting the mermaids, I couldn't really take no for an answer, now could I." The doll spoke up, looking over her shoulder. She'd been walking for very much over a day along the ocean. There was no real telling how long it would take before the yokai would even reach the destination as there was no map or anything of it's positive existence. However, if she was certain of anything, it would be apparent that when she reached it, it would be impossible to ignore. Having been here time and time again made it easier for her to be able to recall in some fashion, but... well the wide open sea was not known as a place for landmarks. Everything moved in time eventually. Be it from the current, the wind, or storms and the like that did that, it wasn't anything that could be avoided from happening. Quite frankly, Sakura had been excited for this day. But maybe the next time they could rent a boat so Russet could be more comfortable...

After some time of continual walking, the doll simply stopped atop the waters surface and looked down into the water. Many fish swam below, however the way they did so is what helped give away the place from which she was. Much smaller fish had a murky look to them while the bigger fish seemed to travel through normally. Along the route, it was so easy to spot the sharks and whales, even the dolphins that swam by in order to notice the area in which she was. However, here seemed to be some kind of visual illusion meant to deter things. To the untrained eye, this could be thought to be at the most being some kind of trick of the eye. People wayward at sea would be much more inclined to avoid looking at this again due to how long they had been at sea by this point, but Sakura's eye was a little more.. attuned than others. As someone whom took her job to survey things and people, something like this was just in her radar to pick up on.

Sakura had to take a moment. She could feel her heart racing with excitement and a feeling of worry. It had been so long since she had seen her old friends that she was worried that they may not want to be around her so much. However, that was overrun with the bubble of her heart pounding. She was a hollow doll... what heart was there to feel pounding. Well, turned out it wasn't. It was her seeing the reflection of Russet lightly shoving her body. Looking over her shoulder, she removed her backback and held it over the ocean. "Keep it up~ I can drop you here and I hope you can swim, Russ." The small companion remained silent, only squirming in the bag before becoming still. "That's what I thought..." With a small chuckle, the doll slipped back on her pack and turned back around and took a step forward. That feeling of the illusion was the only thing that ever seemed strange to pass through as her doll form.

Something didn't feel right. She passed through the barrier, but then she heard a splash in the water behind her. Turning to face it, she took another step forward and a small thud made her cry out lightly in pain. Wait... did she feel pain? How- Looking over her shoulder, her eyes widened. She wasn't in her doll body anymore. The hue of blue hair sitting over her shoulder and blocking her view was the very most apparent thing to her at first aside from that feeling. When her body shifted, there she saw the doll body lying at the shore of a beach. Russet popped out of the top flap of the bag and looked at the two before he looked to the conscious spirit in probably close to the same confusion as Sakura had been in herself. The two of them looked on to the other before Sakura let out a small sigh and walking over. "Strange... I never had that problem before. Must be a newer addition or something. Ugh... Now my dress is all soaked. Darn it." Giving a light shake of her head, she pulled the porcelain shell onto the beach and turned it to lay on its back. "You think it'll dry that way, Miss Sakura?" The small fox asked, prowling curiously around the doll.

As Russet took a look up, he had seen that Sakura's attention was now averted. The blue haired spirit was now focused on a large, docked ship that had never been here before. Had they found an abandoned ship and let it stay here for an aesthetics pleaser? Maybe it was recent and wanted to use this for stage material? Who knew? She would place one hand on the hull of the ship, running her hand along it until she was surprised as something broke a piece of the hull board off. It flew past the two and landed in the sand, followed by a very.. creepy laugh. Something that could only be described as a laughing clown on helium. Her head poked up to see through the opening when she had scene a malicious act that infuriated her to no end. One the mermaid whom she'd previously known was trapped in this ship, trying to avoid this creepy looking male sailor who held a perverted grin to his face. "Come on, girly~ Give it up already. You can't do anything in this ship~ Your little sound friends are gagged, your watery pals are kept from any water, and the ice ones are too useless to do anything with~" Well... that about summed up what she needed to know.

Looking further into the situation, the mermaid whom this sailor was trying to get in the moment with was Annette. The once bubbly and friendly girl was also one of the sound mermaids. Unable to speak or cry out for help, she nor the sailor noticed the onlooking spirit. Not willing to stand by and watch, Sakura popped her head away from the makeshift window and nodded to Russet. The fox began to produce fire in his mouth. Jumping up, he saw his aimed target and spat the fireball through the window, hitting him and setting him on fire. The mermaid's eyes began to widen in surprise but also fear. Suddenly, she was pulled through the hull of the ship by the spirit and let down onto the sandy beach. There she saw the blue haired idol and her fox companion, but was completely confused by whom they could be until the sleeping looking doll on the beach brought her memory back. "Hold on, Annette. Let me get this off of you." She spoke softly in case others were nearby. Pulling out her gag, she began to remove the restraints on her wrists while the girl was able to breath through her mouth finally after some time. "I-Is that you, Sakura?" She asked, watching rope being tossed away, her arms wrapped around the girl in a tight embrace. Flushed cheeks came to the girl, but she hugged back happily. This felt so good. The feeling of old friends. Before she had only imagined it, but even in the fearful moment for this mermaid, the spirit was sucking that chance up.

It took a little bit of time to calm the poor mermaid down before she could feel safe enough to be able to ask her any questions. Not only was it the trauma of the whole situation she was saved from, but there was also the fact that Sakura and Russet had practically burned that person alive and didn't seem the least bit caring for them. After a little time, neither did the mermaid. "So, this whole thing happened two weeks ago!? H-How come nobody tried to get to me?" Her tone was worried, angered, and upset all in the same breath. The mermaid, still a little upset, and rightfully so simply nodded and tried to calm herself down. "Well like that Kentucky Fried Chump said, we know what happened to the other girls, so why not find them next?" Chiming in his own thoughts, Annette looked down and calmly petted the fox on the head, smiling sweetly while she had gotten herself back into her old mindset. "I would love to, but they kept all the others together. They only separate us when they do.. things." Her body began to visibly shake at the meer mention of it. She was clearly traumatized, but Sakura quickly took her hands and stared at her, meeting her eye-to-eye. "Then let's take them back."

1568/2000 words

Get them back? Just the two of them? Well... Three if they counted Russet as well, but Annette knew she could stop them, so plan did Sakura have planned out. "Do you still use the contracting items?" She wondered. Last time was a rather special type of occurrence, but she had to break her summoning abilities when she had left for school. The look on Annette's face by the thought of how she was asked had made her snap back to the moment of reality and only shake her head. "We knew you'd come back, so we had prepared something special to use when you had. When you and Miss Akita were here, we designed it in preparation of having to use it on her... Speaking of which, where is she?" The mermaid looked around, waiting for the rather strange wolf girl to pop up, but she never did. As she looked back, Sakura was simply scratching her cheek. How did she want to explain it? "While I was away, they found a way to separate our souls. The only issue was when they did, it ALSO gave me a spirit body. So in essence... I'm also now a Yokai just like her. I.. I think that's how that works. Technically because I inhabit that doll body, I believe I am at least some type. Anyway, that's the short version. We need to act fast before they start looking for him."

Standing up, she was stopped as the mermaid grabbed her hand and pulled her back a moment. Then, something pressed against her upper arm just under her shoulder. "With this, you can now use the summoning abilities again just like before, only this time no matter what doll body you happen to be in, it will allow you to use the magic just the same as in this one now." The information that was given was incredibly useful and helpful even. To know now she could be in or out of her doll made things so much easier for her in the long run. The trivialities she used to face were no longer a worry, the magic would be so much easier to use. Giving a smirk, she would pull the mermaid up and begin to run off with the girl in tow. "Where are we going, Miss Sakura?" She yelled out while being dragged, only to come to a stop against a wall. "Do you smell that? ...No, probably not. It' the smell of demons. The whole area is drenched with that smell." She had turned back to the mermaid to whisper her answer, keeping them from hopefully being found out.

The sound of a gunshot caused the two to become wide eyed. The whole room went dead and they both peeked over the corner of the wall they hid behind. All attention focused on the scene, watching a rather burly sailor kicking around one of the mermaids. Unable to talk back, she still fought tooth and nail until a second shot rang out. The anger was boiling inside of Sakura now. Annette paralyzed with fear in seeing the mermaid they knew as Iori had been the victim. "Y'er fightin' back was cute at first. Now it's just pissin' me off! Now it's time..." He grinned and snatched the mermaid up by her hair, dragging her bloodied, flailing body past countless others kept close to others via chains and collars. They had enslaved every last mermaid that was here in some shape or form... but this one wasn't having it. Up steps to a throne that once sat the head of this civilization was now beside her like some sort of sad, lonely pet. Chained to it and unable to draw the will to fight, she only watched on with fear. "Tsk tsk. I was liking you, too. Enough I was willing to put you on my other side and maybe pet you a lot~ But... it's a shame to lose a pretty face~" A feminine voice spoke. The malice and the intimidating glare shot a shiver down even Sakura's spine from this distance.

Looking on, she noticed the mermaid chained to the side of the throne could see the idol. Her eyes showed a regrown look of life. One of motivation and a fire to fight. This one knew exactly who Sakura was just from a look, and the nod exchanged started up their plan. This however didn't hold up their actions. Dragging Iori into the center, a woman in a rather nice looking purple dress, a pair of demon like wings folded on her back. Long, black hair and almost lilac tone skin approached them.Her eyes glowed red and a large axe appeared over Iori. "Sakura! You have to do something! They're going to-" She paused as she noticed something that had gotten the attention of every last person. A fox? How did a fox just appear on top of the mermaids shoulder. "It's a little windy out, ain't it?~" He giggled and a vortex of wind would circle around Iori and Russet, expanding in both size and diameter, it knocked the demoness back and angered her greatly. Now it was time for the fun part. "Captain! Look out!" A sailor yelled out, pointing into the air. That was right. A shark crafted of the water itself, hues of the rainbow and the brighter light colors flipped through the sea air before it shot down like a bullet and crash landing on top of her. A loud, painful scream left the strange leaders mouth from the impact. Her target hit the mark and it was easy to go from there.

Inside the tornado

From the air formed bubbles of water and from that came the formation of a blue haired teenage girl. She knelt down and removed the gag and bindings from the blonde mermaid. A growling of anger ensued, which she had anticipated. "Try to hod still, Iori. I'm gonna heal those while we have the chance." Water would begin to surround their hand, the hue of a rainbow shimmering constantly in the reflection while they began to heal up her wounds. The blonde looked on in surprise before she smirked, toothy snicker and all. "Well I'll be damned~ If it isn't our favorite little doll! Back from the dead, huh? School that bad?" She joked, giving a playful punch to the idol's arm. She didn't give any reply, as she finished up and then her attention turned to the view above. "A doll sounds like the perfect fit for our new guest. I'll just have to break every bone in her body so she'll never be able to fight back against me ever again!" She proclaimed, as if she was already going to win by looks alone. Oh boy was she wrong. "What's wrong, love? Don't tell me you're now afraid of me~" With a smile that could insight fear in the blind, the idol only dropped down to one knee, huffing and panting lightly. Then came a chuckle. And then that chuckle became a larger laugh. "I just haven't used.. so much of my energy in one time in.. god knows how long." Her breathing started to slower. Then deeper. Soon, Sakura simply stopped.

The summoners head drooped down and in a moment of confusion, both Iori and this strange demoness looked puzzled. Sakura had taken no breath of air or moved an inch for what felt like minutes, and as such, the demoness had thought she passed out. Moving lower and lower, she was caught off guard as a fireball shot passed her, missing her, but distracting her. Seeing the fox, her eyes narrowed on it and it was then the playful giggle of Russet got her to act. Her cheeks would puff out and then a howl like sound left as a smaller looking cyclone of a rainbow shot from her mouth. She began to propel herself into the air while light formed in her hand. She stopped expelling her Howl and began to twist her body around. It was then the sound of a crashing wave crossed the demoness' body and she floated there, stunned. A small wave of water rose toward her landing area and then froze. Giving Sakura a place to land, the cyclone surrounding them had now vanished. On the outside of that area were each and every mermaid, staring on at the area. All the pirates of the ship were unconscious and others frozen solid. As she looked to the blue haired girl, the rainbow sword in her hand and a playful wink was her first notion of a reply.

That's when it all clicked. Her exhaustion was the result of using her summoning to summon multiple mermaids at a time and letting the cyclone act as a veil to hide the outside events they were able to stop and overturn the tides into their favor. Blood dripped down onto the ground. One, then several, two to three. All in random intervals. The demoness was injured. The crew she manipulated was useless to her. The land she claimed stolen back from some brat child! "You have one chance. Leave now, or it ends for you here." Her sword raised, trying to hide just how exhausted she'd been from her plans. Not willing to martyr herself, the demoness gave one last glare to the idol before she flew off, heading out of the island. "Miss Kisagami, correct?" The voice caught her attention as she turned to face the mermaid whom seated herself on the throne. With a nod in her state of exhaustion, several mermaids approached with cups of water. As though she was dehydrated for weeks, Sakura took each glass and downed them like shot glasses, licking her lips and then pouncing back to her feet. "You're a lot different than last time. I believe you couldn't even use a weapon on your own." The girl only laughed in reply, shrugging.

"That flea biter had her upsides. She taught me everything she knew about how to use a sword while I was in this form. Even the lacrima I use was a gift from her." The teen looked around, seeing the rather crummy decorating that the pirates had done and then looked back toward the leader. "Why don't we clean up everything, then we can catch up. Don't you agree?" Giving back only a smile and nod, she turned and stood up from the throne and following the idol, headed down to join everyone in restoring everything back to the way it was. It took them several days in order to get everything back to normal for the land they used. And in the end, the celebration had been the biggest, and happiest concert that the mermaids ever had.

"You'll be mine, little doll... Just you wait."

1839 words
2000/2000 words (training complete)
1000/1000 words (exam complete)
363 words extra