Hyo looked up at her.  “I’ll be fine…we just have to worry about her…” With that, he gestured to Maji.  

“I’m not blind Hyo…you’re injured as well…” Kuri told him.  She shook her head, looking around the forest, praying for a miracle as she tried to think things through.  She fell into deep thought but snapped her head down to look at Maji as she tried to speak, merely choking on her words.  “Shh…save your energy…” Kuri told her softly, looking at Hyo, at a loss.  Her mind just drew blanks; nothing that could help came to mind.  

“Ten miles…due east…” Maji choked out, coughing up some blood when she did.  “There’s…a town…”

“Maji…hush…any town…would be crazy to take in traitors…” Hyo told her weakly, trying to get to his feet, failing in the process.  

“It’s a neutral…town…” Maji told him. Kuri looked at her and nodded, not saying another word, until after she stood, holding Maji up with one arm pulled over her shoulders, her other arm around the elf’s waist.  

“Can you walk, Hyo?” Kuri asked, her friend merely nodding.  “All right…Tell me if you need to stop and rest.” She told him, leading the way slowly, mostly because she was carrying Maji, but she’d stop and wait for Hyo to catch up.

~*~

“Sir…she’s escaped.” Khyo bowed before the Celestial, Ino.  “I have our guards scouting the forest, but none have come across her.”  Ino turned and glared at him.  

“She was your responsibility, Khyo…”  the Celestial sneered, raising a clenched fist and sending it forcefully into the other elf’s gut, knocking him back at least five feet.  Khyo gasped and clenched his stomach, dropping to the ground.  “She is free because of your own stupidity…” Ino walked up to him and sent his steel-toed booted foot into his side, a loud crack sounding through the hall.  “I want her found and slaughtered, along with her new allies!” the Celestial demanded.  

The silver haired elf scrambled to his feet and bowed quickly, running as fast as he could out of the room, still feeling agonizing pain throb through his stomach and left ribcage.  “I’ll get you for this, Maji…” he sneered, leaving the council hall, and soon Celes all together to find the traitorous elf and her friends.  

~*~

Dawn had all ready long since passed, and it was well into the afternoon by the time Kuri and Hyo reached the town Maji had spoken of.  “We need a doctor…” Kuri muttered, looking around.  Her eyes narrowed as passer-bys gave her and her friends the oddest of looks.  

“Excuse me!” Kuri went up to an older woman, who was wearing an old fashioned looking dark blue gown.  

“Hello…” The elderly woman greeted, her silvery hair falling over her shoulder.  “How might I help you, miss?”

“My friends need a doctor…can you tell me if I can find one here?” Kuri asked, a glint of hope in her eyes.  

“Why yes...of course…follow me…I’ll show you.”  The woman answered, her antique looking blue dress swaying slightly as she walked, leading them down the street until they stood in front of a blue building on the corner of a street.  “Here you are young miss.” She smiled sweetly at Kuri and Hyo.  “The best of luck to you.” With that, she bowed her head and left them.

Kuri looked at the door but soon went inside.

~*~

Kuri could feel her hands shaking, her  usual bright sapphire eyes dimmed with so much worry.  It’d been at least seven hours since the doctor of the town had taken them in.  He had treated Kuri’s shoulder and Hyo’s wounds first, knowing the elf was in such bad shape, that she’d be a challenge.  Kuri looked over at Hyo who lay in the small room with her.  He was still unconscious, and she was waiting for him to wake up.

Silence enveloped the entire room, making it seem like eternity was dragging on and on.  Kuri looked around the area.  It was a simple four white walled room with two beds for patients in recovery.  The floor was made of pure white tiles.  Kuri shivered lightly, feeling as though she were in a prison of some sort.

Kuri sighed, looking at Hyo.  I hope Maji’s all right… the girl thought o herself, shaking her head.  The doctor’s words about the elf’s condition played through her head and she began to mutter then aloud to herself.

“She’s lost too much blood in a short amount of time…It’ll take a few hours at least to get enough blood back into her body, and then we have to stitch her wounds…Also…we found traces of a mild concussion…” Kuri mumbled each word softly, shivering somewhat, but what the doctor had asked after he’d described the procedures he needed to perform to save the elf entered her mind.  “She’s been starved and beaten to death, miss…what happened?”  The words played across her mind violently.   “What did happen…” she breathed, not noticing Hyo sit up and look at her.

“Kuri…?” he asked, looking at her with a smile.  The girl blinked and looked at him, forgetting herself and throwing her arms around him, squealing softly, delighted to see him awake.  Hyo chuckled lightly, wincing somewhat when she’d carelessly thrown her arms around him, but he hugged her back nonetheless.  “How’re you doin’?” he asked, his gaze turning from joy to worry in an instant.

“It’s not me we need to worry about…It’s Maji…” she answered, looking at the ground, as she repeated everything the doctor had told her.  Hyo grimaced somewhat, but his thoughts were cut off as the doctor came into the room, wearing a white lab coat and round framed glasses.

“Good afternoon, Hyo…I’m glad to see you awake.” He greeted with a smile.  He was a fairly young man, having blond hair that was short and spiked somewhat.  He looked at both Kuri and Hyo.  “Well…Maji has seemed to pull off the impossible and has pulled through…She’s resting right now, and everything went rather smoothly.” He told them, seeing both friends look at each other with relief swelling in their eyes.  

“Thank you so much, sir…”  Kuri answered with a smile.  “It’s greatly appreciated.”  The doctor waved it off.

“It’s no trouble at all…I’m glad to have helped.” He assured.  “You are all welcome to stay here until you are all healed and if you need more time than that then make yourselves at home.” He told the two.  “I have very few patients in this town so you won’t be a bother at all.”  Kuri and Hyo both nodded, giving strong, grateful smiles.  The man laughed lightly and looked at them.  “You’ll be able to see Maji by tomorrow…for tonight, though, I think it best she be alone to rest.”

Again, the two friends nodded, the doctor turning and leaving.  Kuri turned and looked at Hyo, grinning broadly.  “Looks like things are starting to look up.” She stated in a chipper tone.

Hyo nodded, sharing a grin as well.  “It would seem so.”  He looked at Kuri.  “How’d you escape…?” he asked.  Kuri grinned and explained to him what had happened, quite proud of herself.  Hyo laughed lightly when she got to the part where the elves had come to rescue her, thinking she was of their clan.  “So…that’s where those guards went to.” Hyo chuckled lightly.  

Kuri smiled happily and did a mock bow, drawing a laugh from her friend.  Kuri stood up straight and looked at Hyo.  “What do you say you and I go find some food In this town?” she offered with a laugh.  Hyo chuckled lightly and nodded, getting up and following her out of the room.

~*~

“Maji!!!” Kuri squealed when she saw the elf up and about at noon the next day.  “My god, you gave us both a heart attack!” the girl shouted, playfully tapping Maji on the head.  The elf merely laughed and hugged her, looking at her and then Hyo, pulling him into a hug as well.

“I owe you guys…” she told them with a grin.  “Thanks for comin’ after me.” She told them.  Kuri huffed, puffing up her cheeks.

“We wouldn’t have had to come rescue ya if ya hadn’t gone on your own!” she snapped, but calmed down soon after.  “But…it’s good to have ya back…but what do we do now?” the girl blinked and looked at Maji and Hyo, both of her friends merely shrugging.

Maji sighed, not liking what she was about to say.  “The only things I can think of are running...and…” she trailed off, but Hyo finished for her.

“Assassinating the leaders of each town…” He muttered, not particularly liking the idea.  “But none of us are trained assassins-”

“I am…” Maji answered, looking off to the side, down at her many bandages.  Kuri and Hyo both gave her a confused look.  “I started out as an assassin…before I was promoted to battle tactics, and then moved to the frontline.”  

“Why did you never tell us…?” Kuri asked, blinking, though Maji only shrugged and didn’t answer.

“Well…that still only gives us one trained assassin…” he stated.

“But…assassinating isn’t much different from being out on the battlefield, though…right?” Kuri asked, Maji answering with a nod.  “Then it’s just like that with stealth and-” Hyo gave her a look that asked if she was insane.

“You cannot be agreeing with this idea, Kuri…” He gave her a puzzled look, and he grew even more baffled when the young girl nodded.

“If it’ll stop this war…then…I am...at least considering it…” she admitted.  Maji looked at her.

“But that would mean we’d have to kill your father as well…” she clearified for the girl why Hyo was so shocked.

“How…how did you know about that?” Kuri asked, blinking in confusion.

“You learn a lot when you’re out on a hunt…” Maji answered, sounding regretful.  “I was sent out to kill your father once, I came back as a failure because I’d almost been caught…but I was luckily forgiven since it was my first mission…”  Kuri grimaced.  “forgive me…I should’ve said something sooner.”  

Hyo shook his head.  “Any other secrets we wanna share before we jump head first into this plan of assassinating people?  Especially the town leaders?” He stated.  Maji blinked, as did Kuri, both shaking their heads.  “All right…now about this plan, Maji…”