Elements: The Powers Within (Book 5)

Minds Colliding (Chapter 29)

That is until someone recognized that both he and Victoria are no criminals. Hiro freezes up but Victoria quickly grabs his shoulder and pulls him into an alleyway.

"Now we travel by the shadows," she announces. "Ubel will want to meet us once he knows that I'm here. If we do encounter him, you need to stay back alright? He's not a force to be reckoned with."

"Then why exactly are you trying to get fight him?" Hiro questions, feeling the adrenaline kicking in for no reason.

"Because he and I have some unfinished business and everyone prefers that I deal with him, not Sensei Ku," Victoria answers. "And if he told you anything about Ubel then you would know why."

"He's the one who tried to kill Sensei Ku. It was all over the news man, everyone knows," Hiro takes a deep breath to calm his nerves about potentially dealing with the Duke.

"Then you know why I'm trying to handle this before Sensei Ku gets himself hurt again," she starts to walk, leading the way through the eerie alleyways.

Hiro nods his head, silence falling over them. She didn't speak either so he didn't bother trying to start up another conversation. Not that he could think of any reason to.

She lifts her hand to signal him to stop. He nearly crashes into her but stops right before she moves again.

"I see Ubel, be very careful. It won't be pretty if he sees us," Victoria reminds him as they follow Ubel.

The man walks through the crowds, his head held high as everyone moved out of the way for him. Victoria growls in annoyance and Hiro could see that she's trying so hard not to turn into her original form of a dragon.

"I think you mean it won't be good for him," Hiro could feel the magic power radiating from her. She does outrank him.

"We just need to find his hideout. That's all we need to do for now," Victoria clenches her fists then unclenches them. "Then I'm gonna destroy that ass of his. Going ahead and ruining other's lives. What does he expect to gain from that?"

"Satisfaction that someone else is suffering just as much-if not worse-than he is. He wants others to feel the pain he feels too," Hiro guesses.

"I understand that Sensei Ku always got the reward at the end but he always put in more effort than Ubel ever did," Victoria lets out a sigh. "At least from what I've seen as him being a Duke and all."

She drops the conversation as they follow Ubel through the corners. Ubel himself looks as though he's trying to hurry up and get out of the city.

They both narrow their eyes as Ubel exits Bad Central.

---

Urana's eyes widen as she watches through Hiromi's eyes of her earliest moments. Urana watches as little her and her brother were in Hiromi's eyes as she played with them.

Hiromi's eyes lift up and just as Urana is about to see her parents' faces, the real Hiromi blocks off the rest of the memory.

"What do you think you're doing?" Hiromi, Urana expected would be sounding harsh, but her tone is more hurt.

"I just wanted to see them...even if it was just once," Urana answers in a quiet voice.

"I know you do and trust me I wish I could but it hurts to talk about them..." Hiromi starts to tear up and guilt appears in Urana. "Please don't feel guilty, I just have a hard time talking about them. And I don't want you to feel what we all did..."

"But what happened to them?" Urana presses on. "Was it really so bad that you don't even want to tell us?"

"It's hard Urana..." Hiromi wipes her eyes. "They may not have been as close to me as they were with Ku but I can still feel what their absence brings...and I sure as hell know that we don't want you to feel that."