Emiko

I didn't really have much to say after what happened. Honestly, I didn't know what to say. Idril was having a mental breakdown in the lower part of the boat with Himari trying to comfort her. Meanwhile, me and Kaito were above deck, trying to figure out a way to get passed the Sirens.

Kaito: "I'm not sure Idril will want to go back. Maybe we should send her back to Mytho-Academy"

Emiko: "No! Are you crazy! Didn't you hear a word she was saying? She feels like she's useless to the team. Sending her back will just make her feel worse"

Kaito: "I know... but making her go back to the Sirens isn't much better"

I walked over to the front of the boat and stared out into the open water.

Water.... that's it!!

Emiko: "Kaito, would it be possible to ask for a blessing from Sobek? We're in mixed waters now, so he may have some power here"

Kaito: "Possibly. If that doesn't work, we could always try asking for a blessing from Poseidon or Neptune"

Emiko: "What would we have to do?"

Kaito: "All requests for blessings need some kind of sacrifice. Do we have any food onboard?"

Emiko: "Yeah, there should be. What kind do we need?"

Kaito: "Fish, lots of it"

I quickly ran down into the lower part of the boat to get the food. I saw Idril was crying into Himari's arms, which made me feel horrible. I walked over to them and started rubbing Idril's back.

Idril: "I'm sorry... I'm causing you all so much trouble..."

Emiko: "No you're not, stop talking like that"

Idril: "I've always been weak..."

Emiko: "You... mentioned your mom. Would it be okay to talk about it?"

Idril wiped a tear from her eyes.

Idril: "Ever since I can remember, I've was serving under Driam. Both me and my mother were his slaves, and... you know how we were treated"

I held onto Idril's hand and rubbed it a little.

Idril: "Me and my mother were not normal elves. We're a lower ranking elf, one of the lowest. That's why I have a tail, it shows my imperfection"

Himari: "That's not a rule we believe. If anything, you're the perfect one"

Idril blushed a hint of pink while smiling slightly.

Idril: "I don't deserve your kind words"

Her face went pale again as she continued.

Idril: "One day, my mother accidentally pricked Driam's leg will sowing a cut in his pants back together. It drew blood, so he considered it an act of violence. In response, he tried to kill her for it. I... tried to stop him. But... he just shoved me aside like I was nothing. I couldn't protect my mother... and now..."

Her eyes started to tear up again.

Idril: "And... because of me getting in the way, trying to protect her, Driam gave me a reminder of what happens when I disobey him..."

She lifted up her dress to reveal a large scar on her chest.

Emiko: "Oh Idril..."

I was actually speechless. All I wanted to do at that moment was kill Driam. I should've let Connor kill him when he had the chance.

Idril: "I-It's okay, I've gotten used to things like that"

Idril squeezed my hand.

Idril: "Then, when you all came to save me, I was able to help save your lives. I felt like I finally had the power to help people. But the second I left Alfheim, I became the weakest link in the team..."

Himari: "That's not true! Back when we rescued Angel, you were able to get her hone safely, without hindering the mission. We would've had to risk a lot more if we used Kaito's portal. You saved us all from that"

Idril: "Still... I haven't been useful in an actual fight..."

Emiko: "When we first got to Long Beach Island, and we were attacked by Surtr, you slowed down time just enough for us to avoid his attack. If you weren't there, we would've been killed"

Idril: "Why... why do you keep trying to make me feel better..."

Emiko: "Because we're your friends, your family, we care about you"

Himari: "Why else would I share my delicious chocolate cake with you? We love you so much!"

Idril smiled and wiped away her tears again.

Idril: "It still doesn't change that I'm the weakest here"

Emiko: "So what? For a while, I was probably the weakest in the whole school. I couldn't even shoot a bow, Himari can attest to that"

Himari: "It was freaking hilarious"

I blushed a tiny bit.

Emiko: "The point is, we aren't born strong. And hell, strength alone won't solve everything. You've always been more of the pacifist type. So you don't need to be good at fighting or shooting balls of fire. Do whatever's special to you"

Himari: "I mean, hell, you're better at magic than me, and my father is Loki, the literal God of Magic"

Emiko: "Heka was my father, and you're still better at magic than both of us combined. You have a real talent for it"

I rubbed her hand a little more.

Emiko: "We all have an important role to play in this team. We each have a specific place in the team. Kaito is the close range fighter, I'm the long range figher, Himari is our Berserker, and you're the magic support. Without your magic, we would've been dead long ago. So you're not weak, you're strong. Maybe the strongest one of us all. You've gone through so much, and yet you keep smiling. If that doesn't say strength, I don't know what does"

Idril brought us both into a hug.

Idril: "I love you all... so much"

She then let go of us and faced Himari.

Idril: "Y-You mentioned the chocolate cake"

Idril's stomach rumbled.

Himari: "Sure, I'll get it"

Idril's ears perked up out of excitement.

I'm glad Idril finally cheered up, since we would probably need her later. As Himari got Idril her cake, I gathered together about 5 whole salmon. I was surprisingly able to carry them all up onto deck and carried them over to Kaito.

Kaito: "Oh yeah, that should work"

Emiko: "What should I do with them?"

Kaito: "Get ready to throw them into the water"

Kaito turned towards the sea and closed his eyes.

Kaito: "Oh dear lord of the Nile, please accept this offering and allow us safe passage through your waters"

Kaito nodded to me, signaling me to toss them in. I quickly let go of the salmon and let them fall into the water. At first, nothing happened. They just floated on the top of the water.

Emiko: "Um... was something supposed to—"

Suddenly, the salmon was pulled down deep into the water, which never resurfaced. The water where the fish sunk started glowing a bright green.

Kaito: "Hell yeah! He accepted the offering!"

Emiko: "So, we should be safe?"

Kaito: "Yeah, hopefully"

Suddenly, some small objects shot out from the water and onto the boat. I picked them up and realized they were earplugs. However there was only three sets of them.

Kaito: "I guess that means one of us won't be able to use them"

Emiko: "Why not use the ones we already have?"

Kaito: "Sobek wouldn't gift us these if he didn't have a reason. They must be designed to block out the Sirens' songs"

Emiko: "I'll go get Idril and Himari"

I called down to the lower part of the boat, and after a few seconds, they made their way above deck. We quickly filled them in.

Himari: "Crap, so who'll be the one who doesn't wear them?"

Idril: "It should be me"

Emiko: "No, you've already survived their song once. I'm not sure you'll last a second"

Kaito spoke up.

Kaito: "It should be me"

Himari: "Why?"

Kaito: "Because Sobek gave us his blessing. I think he wouldn't let anything happen to me after that. Besides, I already have everything I need, so their song won't affect me as much"

Emiko: "You sure?"

Kaito: "Yeah, but you'll still need to tie me down"

Idril: "I'll try not to make them too tight"

And with that, we started to tie Kaito to the main mast of the boat, like how we did with Idril. While we were tying him, Himari tried to act smug.

Himari: "You're so lucky, Kaito. Being tied up by three cute girls"

Kaito: "I'm being tied up by two cute girls. And you're not one of them"

Himari: "H-Hey!!"

Emiko: "You walked right into that one"

Himari pouted.

Himari: "You sure you want to make smart comments when you're so vulnerable?"

Kaito: "You won't do anything, Emiko won't let you"

Himari: "Yeah right, she'd support me—"

Emiko: "No messing with Kaito, please"

Himari: "You're no fun!!"

Idril: "This sounds like the beginning of a weird manga I read back at Mytho-Academy"

Kaito: "I'm not sure that was just manga...."

Himari and I bursted out laughing while Idril just looked confused.

After we got Kaito fastened to the mast, we finally set sail again. Idril, Himari, and I all put the earplugs in, and we couldn't hear a thing. As we approached the same island that the Sirens were on, we saw Kaito was starting to struggle against his restraints. He looked like he was in pain, but we couldn't stop now.

I steered us through the island, which was a lot easier because the current seemed to be helping us. After we got a good distance away, we took the earplugs out and quickly went to untie Kaito. He was actually passed out, so we helped him out of the restraints and laid him down below deck. We let him rest on a small bed that was down there.

We had a long way to go, so we kept sailing throughout the day. This boat was extremely slow, so we weren't getting there today.

Night soon hit, and Kaito was still out cold. The rest of us were relaxing above deck, telling scary stories to pass the time.

Himari: "Have you ever heard the story of the evil chocolate cake that eats.... you!"

Idril: "EEEEK!!! T-Too scary!!"

Emiko: "It's not that scary"

Idril: "Imagine your favorite food eating you... gives me chills"

Emiko: "You wanna hear a real scary story?"

Himari: "Sure!"

Emiko: "There was once a high school student who could see people's aura. And depending on the color, they were going to die sooner or later. If it was green, they still had many years before they would die. If it was red, they would die on that exact day"

I could see Himari and Idril were getting goosebumps.

Emiko: "So one day, he went to his school. The second he sat down at his desk, he noticed all the students around him all had a blood red aura. He thought "Sucks to be them". However when he looked at his reflection through the window, he saw the same red aura around himself. Then, the teacher walked inside and locked the door, glowing with a bright green aura!!"

Himari and Idril actually screamed, making me burst out laughing.

Idril: "T-That was a nice one"

Himari: "Good thing I never went to high school"

Emiko: "You didn't?"

Himari: "Came to Mytho-Academy the year before I actually went into high school. Since then, I've learned everything I need at the school"

Emiko: "Lucky..."

Himari: "Well, if there was one class I hate in this school, it's probably Sex Ed class. I love Miss Aphrodite, but she makes that class way too awkward"

Suddenly, we heard Kaito walk up the stairs.

Kaito: "Same, the atmosphere of the class is just awkward"

Emiko: "Hey! Good to see you back on your feet. How are you feeling?"

Kaito: "Tired as hell, but I just slept, so I need to get up"

Kaito sat down on the floor with us.

Kaito: "And what was with all that screaming?"

Idril: "We were telling scary stories"

Kaito: "I thought we were under attack or something"

Emiko: "Nope, just these two being scaredy-cats"

Himari: "H-Hey!"

I quickly leaned over and hugged her.

Emiko: "You can't hide the truth"

Himari: "You're lucky you're cute..."

Kaito sighed.

Kaito: "Get a room..."

Himari: "My god, you are so anti horny"

Idril: "What does—"

Emiko: "Forget you ever heard that word, it's to protect your innocence"

Idril: "O-Okay"

I looked over at Kaito.

Emiko: "Have you ever actually had a crush on someone?"

Kaito: "I actually did, but you'd laugh at me for it"

Himari: "We won't laugh"

Emiko: "Promise"

Kaito took a deep breath.

Kaito: "Frostine"

Emiko: "H-Huh?!?!"

Himari: "You like that ice girl?! But she's with the Fallen!"

Kaito: "I know, I know. But there was something about her that was just... graceful"

Idril: "All love is acceptable. And we shouldn't judge him on his choice"

Himari: "Still... Frostine of all people?"

Kaito: "She's strong and she's one of the few people to ever stop my water attacks. Hell, when I first fought Apophis to get you and Connor to safety, even he couldn't stop my water attack"

Emiko: "He was seriously weak at that point, but yeah"

Kaito: "The look on her face, she didn't look evil. Something must've happened to her, like what happened with Siyuka"

Emiko: "Oh yeah... Siyuka"

Himari: "The hooded person said they were caught. Do you think it's true?"

Emiko: "Maybe... I don't know"

Idril: "I have faith in them, they'll be okay"

Kaito: "Yeah, they're strong"

Idril yawned, followed by me and Himari.

Kaito: "You three should get some rest. I'll keep watch"

Emiko: "Thanks, we owe you one"

The three of us went down below deck and found 2 beds we could use. Himari kept pestering me to sleep with me, so I eventually let her.

Emiko: "I swear, if you try anything while I'm sleeping, I'll send you overboard"

Himari: "I know, I wouldn't do anything like that. Especially not with Idril here"

Emiko: "W-We wouldn't do it regardless!!"

Idril: "Do what?"

Emiko: "Nothing!"

I quickly laid down in bed and got comfy. After a few minutes, I finally managed to fall asleep.

When I woke up, we weren't moving anymore. I quickly sat up and rubbed Himari on the shoulder.

Emiko: "Himari, something's wrong"

Himari sat up.

Himari: "Where's Idril?!"

I looked over and saw Idril wasn't in her bed.

Emiko: "Oh crap!"

We jumped out of bed and ran above deck. The second we got up there, we saw Idril and Kaito were sitting on the floor, just chatting.

Idril: "Oh, good morning you two!"

Kaito quickly covered his eyes with his hand and looked away.

Kaito: "Did you two seriously sleep in your underwear?"

I looked down and realized I wasn't wearing my shirt or skirt, and neither was Himari. I'd gotten out of my heavier clothes so I could be more comfy. But I forgot to wear them out here!!

Himari and I quickly ran below deck, blushing super hard.

Himari: "Thank Odin, Kaito's so anti horny, that's a blessing"

Emiko: "Will you stop saying that!!"

We quickly got dressed and went back above deck. The second Kaito looked at us, he smiled smugly.

Kaito: "Never thought you were the type to wear pink, Emiko"

My face grew red with embarrassment and anger.

Emiko: "Shut up or I'll throw you overboard!!!"

Kaito chuckled a little.

Kaito: "Okay, fine, I'll shut up. Anyways, we're here"

I looked out passed the boat and saw a large beach. We quickly found a safe place to hide the boat, which was behind a massive boulder on the beach.

Now, I'm not going to lie, it felt amazing finally getting off of that boat. I took my shoes off before walking onto the beach. Feeling the sand between my toes was one of the best feelings you could ever have.

Emiko: "Ah, this is much better. No crazy fire giants or Fallen to ruin this beach"

Himari: "No kidding, if we have a chance, let's take a few hours to come down here and relax"

Kaito: "When the mission is done, we'll come swim for a bit"

Himari: "Nice, a beach episode"

We made our way up the beach and onto the main road. Kaito guided us along the shore to his house. The houses around here looked very different from what Connor and I used to live in.

We reached a white house that was just in front of the shoreline.

Kaito: "Here it is, my house"

Idril: "It's beautiful!"

Himari: "Yeah, I don't see why you were so nervous"

Kaito sighed.

Kaito: "You'll see"

We walked up to the house and Kaito knocked on the front door. Then, the door opened.

???: "Kaito!! Is that you?!"

A tall woman who looked almost exactly like Kaito stood in the doorway. She had long blue hair and dark brown eyes, so I assumed Kaito got his green eyes from Sobek. She was wearing a long dress with a bunch of flower designs on them. Her skin tone was much darker than Kaito's. She grabbed Kaito and wrapped her arms around him.

???: "It's so good to see you!! It's been so long!!"

Kaito: "I-It's good to see you too, Mom"

She then looked at the rest of us, and I swear I could see a twinkle in her eyes.

???: "And you've brought home three cute girls!!"

Himari: "See? Three cute girls, I'm included, Kaito"

???: "So, which one is your girlfriend?"

Kaito's face turned beet red.

Kaito: "M-Mom!! None of them!!"

???: "Are you sure? The white haired girl seems like your type. She's probably the cutest"

Idril's face actually went just as red as Kaito's.

Idril: "Y-You're too kind, Miss"

???: "And so polite! But please, call me Christina"

Kaito managed to get free of her grasp.

Kaito: "Mom, this is serious"

Christina: "Oh I'm sure it is! But first, please, come inside. I'm making some delicious cookies if you're interested"

Idril's ears perked up and her elf tail started swaying.

Idril: "T-Thank you so much! Cookies sound amazing!"

Christina led Idril inside the house while we followed. I walked along side Kaito.

Emiko: "She doesn't seem that bad"

Kaito: "Oh just wait..."

Himari: "I'm just surprised she hasn't mentioned the fact Idril's in a maid uniform..."

Yeah, Idril was still wearing her maid uniform. She never wanted anything new, for whatever reason.

When we got to the kitchen, Idril was already sitting at the kitchen table snacking on some chocolate chip cookies.

Idril: "These are delicious!!"

Christina: "Thank you so much, dear! That makes my heart melt!"

We all sat down at the table.

Christina: "So, Kaito, what brings you back? After all, you ran away last time"

Kaito: "I told you, this is serious. Something bad's happening"

Christina: "Oh what could possibly be more bad than my own son leaving me alone for a couple years"

Kaito: "You know I left to go train with dad"

Christina ignored him.

Christina: "So please, tell me why you're here"

Kaito: "Because the Gods sent us"

Christina's happy face suddenly shattered. However, she then forced a smiled that didn't look natural.

Christina: "Still going on about those Gods?"

Emiko: "Huh?"

Christina: "For a few years now, he's been talking all about Gods and Demigods and the like of such. I thought by now, he'd finally let his childish fantasies go away"

Kaito: "They're not fantasies!! They're real!! Dad was Sobek!! You know this!!"

She suddenly snapped and slammed her hands down onto the table.

Christina: "Your father was a dead beat good for nothing shit bag who abandoned his family to go live out in the middle of nowhere!!!!!!!"

She was seriously angry at this point.

Christina: "And after all this time, you're still acting like a child!! Gods are not real, Kaito!!! And neither are your fake powers!! Get out of that stupid fantasy world and face reality!!!!"

Kaito held out his hand and formed a ball of water by condensing the water vapor in the air.

Kaito: "If the I don't have powers, then what's this?"

Christina: "It's an impressive parlor trick, but nothing more"

Kaito got out of his chair.

Kaito: "And you wonder why I left in the first place!!"

He stormed out of the kitchen and out the door.

Christina: "That boy needs to learn what's real and what's not. There's no such thing as Demigods or supernatural powers"

Idril: "But.... they are real—"

She slammed her fist down onto the table again, making Idril flinch out of fear.

Christina: "Don't tell me he's convinced the three of you about those delusions too!!"

Idril: "B-But they're true"

Christina: "You're all idiots!! Get out of my house!! I won't have people like you inside my home!!!"

We got up and left the house, with me slamming the door on my way out. I saw Kaito standing down by the beach, by himself.

Emiko: "Hey, you two wait here"

I walked down onto the beach.

Emiko: "Hey"

Kaito turned.

Kaito: "Oh, hey"

His voice sounded so defeated and sad.

Emiko: "I'm sorry we made you come here. I should've listened to you"

Kaito: "No... it's not. The Gods made us come here. And besides, we can always find a hotel to stay at for now"

We stood there in silence for a while until Kaito clenched his fist.

Kaito: "I don't understand why she won't listen to me. She's seen so much proof of the mythical. She's even seen Sobek in his god form, and yet she still denies it!"

Emiko: "Has she always been this way?"

Kaito: "Yeah, ever since I first discovered my powers. She didn't agree with me going to train with Sobek, so she tried to stop me in every way she could. But I eventually just ran away to go be with him. Today was the first time I'd seen her in years"

Emiko: "I'm so sorry"

Kaito managed a smile.

Kaito: "It's fine, but I just hope that she'll realize the truth, one day"

I looked up into the sky and noticed the clouds around us were starting to gather and turn darker.

Emiko: "Is there supposed to be a thunder storm?"

Kaito looked out into the ocean and his face sank.

Kaito: "Get Himari and Idril"

Emiko: "What?"

Kaito looked at me with pure terror in his eyes.

Kaito: "Now!! We have to get out of here!!!"

He quickly ran up the beach with me shortly behind. I could hear waves crashing down by the bottom of the beach. The crashes were getting louder and louder. Heavy rain started to fall with strong winds that almost knocked us over.

When we finally reached Himari and Idril, they looked like they were paralyzed with fear. They were looking directly behind us. I turned around to see what they were looking at. The second I saw it, my entire body froze.

There was a large humanoid monster in the ocean. They had multiple arms made of tentacles, as well as many other tentacles as legs. Their dark blue and green skin was like armor. The actual armor on it was made of pure gold. It's head looked like a dragon's head. It was so tall that it was blocking out the sun.

Kaito: "I was right!! It's the Kraken!!!!!!!"

———————————————————————

Release the kraken!!!!!!!

Someone had to say it... XD

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I can't wait to write the next one!

I'll see you all next time!!