???

Leia

You take a few unsteady steps backwards.  You notice Kiran loitering, taking a peek at his phone.

"Uh, Leia?  We should g-" Kiran gets cut off as you suck him up into a spaceship.

Everything you say to the butterfly seems to go unheard, as it continues repeating that same line over and over, louder and louder.  It flap again, this time a single, powerful stroke.  A gust of air slams into you, sending you sailing into the unyielding trees behind you.  The spaceship also crashes into them, forcefully expelling Kiran.

"-o what the heck was that?" Kiran looks around.  "Anyway, we need to run!"

He might be right.  Your key is already starting to glow brighter from all the damage.  You feel like this monster is extremely dangerous.


Tai

"Oh no sorry（^□^;）" Natsumi answers.  "I promise I'll make it up to you later"

"Where are you?" Mattea messages you back.

Before you can answer, "MATTEA SAID YOU WERE IN TROUBLE ARE YOU OK" Natsumi sends. Then, as if an afterthought, a third message. "((>;゜Д゜<))"

Buttons hesitates.  "Uh...  Um...  Y-yeah, we, uh...  I messaged Kiran, but didn't hear back.  We need to figure out where they are.  We should try heading the way they went and try to find a trail or something, but we have to keep going."

"Let's... Let's run! I... I don't feel good..."

Leia will try to run back the paths they took.

"TAI! BUTTONS! WE'RE HERE! WHERE ARE YOU?!"

"Damnit, we don't have time for this shit. We have to cross it and get to them. They sounded like they were coming fron dead ahead, right?"

Without waiting for much of a response, Tai grabs Buttons and keeps them running.

Tai

You grab Buttons and start running forward across the pond.  You can't tell a difference between the pond and the normal ground, at all.  Buttons grabs you back and yanks you to the left.  "Not straight, left!" he yells, reversing the pull to drag you that way.

By the time you arrive at the room, it's empty.  You can see that crab thing hanging out with a small cat-like creature and what looks like a tiny, big-headed person, both glowing pale blue.  Oh, they aren't hanging out.  They're fighting.

That shadow is still chasing after you.  It's keeping pace with you, too.  The stomping has faded into the background.

You hear a familiar voice coming from down the corridor...


Leia

"Yeah."  Kiran keeps holding onto you and starts running past the thing.  It notices you as you pass and takes a quick stab with that needle-y arm.  It barely misses as Kiran gives you a sharp tug.

You hear something running towards you from up ahead on the path.  You round a corner and almost crash right into Natsumi.  "LEIA-PERSON!  And Kiran!  You're alive!  And... holding hands...?  This is not the time for a romantic stroll!  Tai and Buttons are in trouble!  What's going on!?"

"Wai.. Wait... I... I have many questions, but we're both poisoned... We need to go to the hospital or find a way to heal..."

Leia

"Oh, no!  Poor Leia-person!" Natsumi gasps.  She pulls you into a hug.  "Don't worry, it'll pass in a few minutes.  You don't need to go to a hospital or anything, your key will purify the toxins.  There, see?  You're looking better already!"

Kiran coughs.  "I got his by some spores, too.  Na-a-a-atty-y-y-y, you're going to nurse us both back to health, right?"

Natsumi lets you go and instead grabs Kiran by the collar.  She begins to shake him violently.  "WHY DID YOU LET LEIA-PERSON GET HURT!?"

"I'm? Sor? Ry? Nat?" Kiran says.  When she finishes the throttling, he shakes his head to clear it.  "Aren't you upset about me being hurt or anything?"

"Yes!  I am!"  She plops her hands on her hips.  "If something had happened to you, I still would've been upset!"


Tai

You hear some yelling, and follow it to its source.  The crab monster slaps you with its big arm as you pass, but you pick yourself up and keep running.  You notice a large, golden butterfly flying above the area, heading in the same direction as you, but slower.  And that shadow is still following.

You find Kiran and Leia in the middle of a heated argument with Natsumi?

Buttons looks surprised.  "Uh.  Nat?  How are... you even here?"

Natsumi runs over and grabs you both.  "Oh!  Buttons!  Tai-person!  You're OK!?  Thank goodness!"

"Yeah, but...  Why are you here?"

"To help you!  I snuck out."

"Yeah, yeah, this is all great," Kiran says.  "But can we deal with the monsters now?  There's this giant butterfly, and now some kind of freaky crab?"

"We...!"  Natsumi gets cut-off mid-sentence as she drops to her knees and gasps in pain.  Suddenly her summoner outfit disappears, and she's in a pair of bright-pink pajamas instead.  The shadow-lady that was right behind you disappears, as well.  "Ah...  Wh-what... was... that...?  My key.  I can't... use my... key...?"  Natsumi clutches her chest and seems out of breath just speaking.

Tai, Leia

"I just told you, Tai.  I came to... help you..." Natsumi says.  She doesn't protest to being helped up.  "Um...  I think...  something...  did something to one of my Shikigami...?  Um...  Something... that can stop you from using your Soul Key...?"  She shakes her head and tries her key again.  Her armor appears, translucent, for a brief moment before fading again.  "Whatever it was, it's... wearing off.  Slowly.  I think I'm OK.  I can walk."

"Wait, ain't that bad?" Buttons asks.  "Really, really bad?  If we can't use our Soul Keys..."

"We can't fight!" Kiran finishes.

"Hell, some places in here we can't even survive without them," Buttons points out.  "If that happened in the wrong place..."

"Or while you were poisoned?" Kiran suggests, patting Leia on the shoulder.

"...Yeah, that would be bad..." Natsumi says.  "We should probably go."

"Aw, I wanted to fight the thing," Kiran says.