The Black Phoenix's POV:
The next morning, I was greeted by Wake breaking into my room and dragging me out of bed. I'm pretty sure that's gonna be a routine thing...
"Come on, BP! You can't be late for a morning meeting! Morgan will freak!" Wake's messy ponytail bounces behind her as she dragged me down the staircase to the meeting room.
"But-But... I haven't had breakfast, or taken a shower!" Or enjoyed any time away from you crazy people!
"Eh. You'll do it after the meeting. Meetings come first."
Why are meetings such a big thing? She's usually so playful but...
"Alright." I yawned, my mouth full of morning breath.
Yeesh... at the very least, could she have allowed me to brush my teeth..?
*~*
"Good morning everybody!" Free seemed like the absolute picture of happiness and sunshine... at 4 in the morning. I guess she woke up earlier than the rest of us, considering that she looked showered, clean, and was in uniform.
The rest of us, of course, were all nodding off. Even Ronin looked like he might try catching a few Z's in between Free's orders.
"Alright. Today's order of business. Shade and Ronin, you're going to be making breakfast."
What? Ronin... as our cook?
"I'll be sure to add extra poison to your eggs, doll face."
"And I'll be sure to dock a couple hundred dollars off your pay if I have any complaints."
"Grrr..."
I glanced over at Shade. She seemed to be back as her usual, distant self instead of the wild nightmare I met yesterday. My eyes jumped off of her when she met my gaze.
"If that's all for me then," She sighed. "I'll go get to work."
"Kayde, you'll be helping Skylor and Wake in Skylor's restaurant."
"What? But Free... tails and kitchens don't... mix..."
Tails don't seem to mix with a lot of things, huh Kayde?
"You'll be fine. I trust you." Free's smile was accompanied by the sweet scent of cookie dough and Kayde's expression instantly changed.
"I'll do my best."
"That's all I ask." The Kunoichi's leader turned to me. "Alright Black Phoenix. Today's be your first mission and... you'll be with me and we'll be outside the base."
What? So... I'm essentially free... with Free..? Which... isn't really free at all.
"Um... okay. What's the mission?"
"You'll actually like it a whole lot. I assure you, you'll be in your element." She winked and dismissed us and as she did so... I had to wonder...
What is THAT supposed to mean..?
*~*
"Oh. This is what you meant."
The loud cawing of seagulls, accompanied by the salty scent of the sea was starting to make me rethink my plans of being with the Kunoichi, especially Free.
"Yep. This is exactly what I meant." She snickered, as the boat set sail.
She was standing at the front of the boat, leaning over the railing, an area I soon joined her at. "So... can you elaborate on what the actual mission is, or are you planning on keeping everything a secret from me?"
"Hm? Oh. Sure. You should've just asked on the way here."
"You blindfolded me, tied me up, and put this scarf over my mouth." I have no idea why I'm still wearing it, by the way.
"Oh. Right. Didn't want to ruin the surprise." She smiled.
"Whatever just... tell me where this boat is going."
"To the middle of the ocean!" Free thrust her arms out and a pair of dolphins leapt out of the sea, landing where the other had leapt from. It would've been a pretty sight if... she wasn't totally insane!
"What do you mean we're going out to the middle of the sea?"
"I said ocean."
"Technicalities!"
She sighed. "You sound like that spazzy lightning ninja."
Jay?
"Black Phoenix, calm down. We're just going to retrieve an object from the ocean floor."
"What object?"
"Hm... a precious ring that holds..." Free covered her mouth to keep from laughing. "Something."
"Well that doesn't sound suspicious at all." I sighed, looking over the railing of the boat. The water was clear, the sun was shining bright, and yet... I can't feel happy because I'm around this crazy girl. "So how are we getting to the bottom of the ocean anyway?"
"Using our powers, of course. That's why I hand picked you for this mission."
"Huh?"
"Wake would probably try and wrap herself in a ball of thorny vines." She whirled a finger in an 'O' motion, imitating Wake's presumed actions. "But... that's really dangerous because if it's not airtight, she could..."
"Drown. Right."
"And for Shade, she's not exactly any help underwater. The deeper we go, the darker it gets and... the crazier she gets." She glanced over at me, her face looked like she expected me to say something, and when I didn't she spoke again. "Um... you saw how she gets in total darkness yesterday, right?"
"Oh... yeah."
"Right. So you can imagine how awkward that might be in a mission like this."
Awkward isn't the word that I'd use. I'd use... completely irrational and destined for failure slash fatalities. Hm... that's wasn't one word.
"And Kayde?" She was kind of my equal in this since she was kidnapped by these girls too.
"Tails and seawater don't mix."
Yep. Why didn't I see that coming.
"Oh. But wouldn't Skylor have been a good choice? I could've let her use my powers and-"
"Nope. Well... possibly. But Skylor's powers have weakened since the Chen incident a few months back." How does she know about the Chen incident? "So it would be dangerous to put her down at the bottom of the ocean. Besides, we need her to work the restaurant."
"I guess." I shrugged.
Free placed her hand on my shoulder and sent me a small, soothing smile. "It should be about twenty minutes to half an hour until we get there. You should relax, BP."
"Alright." I nodded, taking in a familiar scent of cookie dough that surprisingly wasn't being drowned out by the ocean's salt.
I'm not sure if I'm even the best person for the job... my powers are growing a bit stronger but... at the bottom of the ocean? I doubt there's any way I can talk her out of this so I guess what I have to try and do is... go with the flow.
Ugh... pun not intended.
*~*
Ronin's POV:
"So little miss doom and gloom, what's your story?"
Most of the other girls had left after breakfast. Nya was off on her mission and Skylor was working her restaurant. Apparently, since I'm the butler around here, I've gotta clean the dishes. I'm surprised that Shade is still here to help.
"What do you mean, Ronin?" Her hands were completely pruned and she had barely even washed the plate she was holding. What kind of show are these Kunoichi running?
"Let's start with the way that you wash dishes." I sighed, snatching the plate from her hand.
"Rude." She groaned. "What is the issue with the way I wash dishes?"
"The issue," I growled, quickly running a soapy sponge over the plate that she had failed to clean properly, "Is that you don't know how to wash a plate."
"I was washing the plate. Just because I didn't do it in a rush does not mean that I was not getting it done."
"You weren't getting it done. Geez, who taught you how to wash dishes?"
She glared at me for a little bit before she sighed and started talking again. "No one."
"What?"
"We don't have plates where I come from. So... I've never had much experience washing plates."
I can understand that. "I was in the same sort of predicament as a kid. I didn't have much growing up either." The only reason that I know how to do it now is because I was a busboy a few years back.
"Trust me, city boy, we were not in the same predicament." She hissed that last word at me.
"Okay, sorry princess. Didn't mean to offend." I waved my wet hands in front of me, trying to show that I was peaceful.
"Mhm. Such an appropriate word and you don't even know it." She smiled, looking into the bubbly sink.
Forgot all the girls around here are totally whacked out in the head.
"Predicament?"
"No. Princess."
*~*
The Black Phoenix's POV:
From Free's time check, we'd be arriving at our destination in a few minutes. She had been sunbathing for the last couple minutes and I tried to do the same but... I was feeling a bit too tense.
How am I supposed to do this?
Am I just supposed to jump into the ocean and just... sink?
How can I use my powers to avoid drowning?
"Hm? You look like you have a lot on your mind, BP." Free sighed from behind her oversized sunglasses. "What's up? Tell me, I'm not just your boss." We're not frien- "I'm your coworker."
Well. She just shut down the friend route.
"Uh... it's nothing. I'm just wondering..." Well I'm wondering a lot of things, actually. "Um..."
"How you're going to use your limited Elemental abilities to get to the bottom of the ocean?"
"Limited?" So what if she's right? Nobody calls my power limited.
"Look, you've unlocked your true potential, you can call forth an elemental tornado, you can use your power in short bursts during combat. At your level, you'll be fine. I have faith in you."
She used that same line on Kayde... "Gee, you sure have faith in a lot of people, huh?" I let out a shaky laugh. I mean if she's just using that line to get us to do what she wants us to do... she's not a very good leader.
She lifted her sunglasses from her face and her blank expression took on a small smile. "That's because it's true. I chose you, every one of you, to join my team because I have faith in the things that we can accomplish together. Whether it's running a noodle shop, making breakfast, or diving to the bottom of the ocean, I have faith in everyone to get their job done."
She rose out of her chair, setting down her sunglasses.
"And I have faith in you, Nya."
At first, I couldn't manage any words to say to her but... something came to me.
"That's Black Phoenix to you."
"Well said, now come on. We have a mission to complete." She started walking back to the front of the ship, me on her tail.
I was surprised when Free leapt onto the railing and stretched her arms out wide. But what shocked me even more was when she yelled back to the back of the ship. "Alright Jack, that's good enough, cut the engine!"
Huh. Hadn't even noticed that we had someone driving this thing.
"Alright Miss Free! Good luck down there!"
"Thanks Jack!" She called back to him before switching her attention back to me. "He's so sweet."
"Um... yeah." Still not quite sure how I'm going to get down there. Or even find this... ring.
"Y'know BP, I'm not sure if I told you this before but... Wake thought she'd be a water kunoichi."
"Um... yeah, I think you mentioned that to me a while ago. I don't understand how that works though. I mean... you get your powers from your parents, right?"
"In some cases, yes. I'll explain later. For now, Wake thinks a lot like a water kunoichi. Keep that in mind."
"O...kay?"
"Alright. That's your hint! Good luck with your search!" With that, Free leapt backwards off the railing and into the ocean. For a split second before she dove, the wind around us had changed and I believe she used it to... I guess survive underwater.
So... she just gave me a hint that I don't understand at all. Great.