The world was a spinning, nonsensical blur as they tumbled out of the tree, pain flaring in Erina's back repeatedly as she and Akira rolled over each other again and again until they finally slowed to a stop. Bruised and aching, Erina got up and tried to hold back her nausea at the long trail of dark red and terrifying pink bits that marked their entry into the other side. Even knowing that youkai could regenerate, and even seeing Akira heal with her own eyes, it made Erina queasy all the same.

  Akira pushed her fading spare body aside and got to her feet with her. "Are you okay?"

  Erina nodded. "I-I am." Her barrier had protected her from the worst of it.

  "Then get up. Not over yet."

  Erina saw the air shimmering in several spots and panicked, hastily setting up her cubes and orbs before readying a glowing spear in hand.

  The first yakuza to come through was greeted with an immediate spear to the chest. The branches of lightning flashed, and he crumpled to the floor as several more of his comrades popped into existence around them.

  Erina worked as fast as she could, each hand managing a different set of attacks. A swipe of her left to cover her side with mines, a flick of her right to rain a quick burst of lasers on the opposite to discourage an approach from either end. Another motion to refresh the orbs floating in the air above her and then one more to send down a barrage of beams on either side.

  Akira never kept still. One moment she was in front of Erina, kneeing a man in the gut and kicking him far down the road. She was behind Erina the next, intercepting a charging goon with a rising kick to the chin. Another man tried to approach from the front and received three tossed knives to the chest for his trouble.

  They were surrounded. Someone tried to walk into the minefield and was blown back by the chain explosions, clearing the way for the rest of the thugs. The spear flashed into Erina's hand and she drove it into the ground at an angle. A pulse of mana, and rather than energy, a column of dirt and rock sprouted from the earth, splitting as it grew to form a thicket of razor-sharp points. The men before her backed off.

  Erina pulled her spear out and drove the back of it into the dirt behind her to do the same, and then one more at her side. The thickets twisted and coiled, growing through each other to form a wall that only allowed one direction of entry. One wild man made a reckless charge, only to be repelled by the threat of the spear. Erina panted as sweat rolled down the back of her neck. Her array of orbs floated over their heads, ready to fire down at a moment's notice.

  Akira paced back away from the hedge, her back to Erina's as they looked around. The battle had come to a brief standstill.

  "Akanaga, sir." One of the men stepped out of the crowd before them. "Emisane-san. Welcome to Mount Hakusan… Patriarch Kirigami's vacation home. Unfortunate as it is, he has not extended an invitation for your presence today."

  "Thank you for the warm welcome!" said Akira, her voice oozing fake cheer. "Now that you've informed us, we'll turn right around and head on home like nothing ever happened!"

  "Please do see yourself out," he said. "While you are in the family's good graces."

  "So he says after trying to cap us." Akira shot a look at Erina and then tapped the steel toe of her boot on the ground, eager to get back into the thick of it. "Whaddya say to that, Erina?"

  If it was really up to Erina, she would've gladly said yes and gone home. As it was, she kept her mouth shut and raised her arm as another spell circle glowed to life at her feet.

  "Then your path will only end deep under." The leader glanced around at his men. "Don't hold back. Get rid of the girl first and then focus on Akira. Bury them so deep they never crawl back out!"

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  A high-pitched whine filled the air, and Erina's stone barrier shattered. She spun in the direction of the noise, but she couldn't see what caused it. All she saw was the faces of angry men trampling over the broken thorns.

  "Oh, come on…!" Akira saw the air shimmer in the distance behind the crowd of men. The gunman had arrived. "Sorry, Erina! Don't die on me!"

  A thunderous boom as Akira lashed out with a devastating kick. Several mages were blown back, one youkai ripped in half, and the rest backed away from her as she tore her way through the crowd, weaving and cutting down whoever crossed her on her way to engage the gunman.

  "Akira?!" Erina turned back. Now it was just her against all these men?! Her spear formed and struck the ground twice, but that was all the time she had, and she still left two openings for them to come at her. Erina threw a cube behind her and willed it to multiply as she turned to the men coming the other way. Her spear blocked the first swing and then pushed them back with a blast of lightning.

  The weapon faded from her hands as she conducted a fresh wave of splits and lasers from above, taking out some more. Her mines exploded behind her, the wind whipping up her hair. Erina let her orbs continue firing down as she turned the other way.

  One of the men had already closed the distance! Her spear was no good at this range. Erina's katana flashed into being and flew from the sheath, ripping a deep gash into her assailant's arm. She advanced with the swing and followed up with a vicious slash across the chest—

  A fist to the face sent her reeling away. Erina narrowly caught her fall just short of taking a total spill to the ground. The back of her hand to her cheek, she glanced behind her again. Her last orb converted itself into a laser, shot down, and that was all of her setup used up. She had nothing else in play, and they were coming at her from both sides.

  Bang! The man leading the charge was blown off course by a bullet to the head, followed by several more shots taking out the ones behind him. Akira had wrested the handgun from her opponent, her aim snapping from one target to the next as she fired round after round.

  Erina jabbed her sword into the dirt and swiftly drew it back as the tree of lightning burst forth, clearing the other entrance. A lot of them were picking themselves up off the ground. She couldn't maintain this position… and she definitely couldn't maintain it when something smashed apart one of her barriers again!

  Erina flipped the sword over in her hand and stabbed the point straight down into the ground. The leafless tree of dirt and stone grew up from directly under her, launching her up and away to safety in its branches.

  One more headshot and the pistol slide locked back. Empty. Akira dropped it to the ground and crushed it underfoot, followed by the injured gunman's skull.

  "Where the hell is it?!" barked the leader of the thugs. Erina had taken up her high post to happily duplicate her orbs all over the top of the tree, letting them float away and then using them to bombard the mob as soon as they cleared the branches. He spotted what he was looking for and dived under a beam. One of the other men lay in the dirt, venom oozing from his smashed-in face. The leader pried the suitcase from his fingers and opened it.

  Erina nearly screamed as a blast of light rocketed straight up inches away from her, tearing through stone branches like nothing. She wobbled away on the uneven and tangled footing, only to fall down and nearly poke her eye out as another blast tore through the branches and flew off into the clouds.

  Akira rushed their leader, inky venom trailing her blows as she blew away anyone in her path. In his hands was a large bow with wicked blades incorporated into the limbs. He dodged the skull-busting straight kick, and his retaliatory slash with the bow was repelled with her knives. They broke apart, and then flew back at each other in a vicious in-your-face melee.

  The crazy light arrows stopped. Erina peeked over one of the holes to see Akira and the leader exchanging blows. This was a chance Erina couldn't let go to waste. She redoubled her efforts, orbs of light flying around the tree in interlocking orbits as she brought down a light show of lasers.

  Akira grabbed his arm as he made another swing with the bow. She took off from the ground, wildly swinging around on him to pick up the momentum to kick the bow out of his hands and then bring him down with a knee to the face. She untangled herself from him and then finished the job proper with a clean brutal stomp.

  The bow skittered across the dirt away from the unconscious and bleeding bodies piled around the tree. Erina shot down someone else trying to climb up and then spotted a runner for the bow. The spear dropped into her hand, the accelerating rings formed before her, and the lightning that split on impact was only just enough to leave a few dozen burns in the ground—Erina reducing her output and pacing her mana flow. She was counting on Akira, and sure enough, Akira broke off from the crowd and found time to make sure the runner wasn't running anywhere any time soon.

  The world darkened. Erina looked up. The gray overcast clouds had turned storming black, blotting out the sun so completely it almost looked as if evening had arrived early.

  And a bestial, unearthly scream split the air.