Chương 44: Until we meet again, brother

The others waited outside the ruined area, keeping an eye on the path. Amelia glanced into the distance.

"Thomas has been gone for a while... I wonder if he's okay." Ace leaned against a nearby wall.

"He's Thomas. I'm sure he's fine." A few moments later, footsteps could be heard approaching. Mochi appeared from the distance, carrying Thomas on his back.

"Hey guys! We're back!" Everyone's faces immediately lit up.

"You're back!" But their smiles quickly disappeared when they saw Thomas. Amelia's eyes widened.

"What happened to the old man?!" Thomas slowly opened his eyes.

"I'm alright. Don't worry about me. I'm tougher than I look." Mochi carefully lowered him onto the ground.

"Tony, you think you can heal him?" Tony nodded confidently.

"Most certainly. Lay him down. We need to work quickly!" Mochi placed Thomas on the ground. Tony immediately pulled out his portable cauldron and began mixing ingredients.

"A little bit of this..." He tossed something into the cauldron.

"And some of that..." Another ingredient followed. Tony stirred it before nodding proudly.

"And we're done." He poured the strange mixture into a bottle and handed it to Thomas.

"Alright, Gramps. Drink this." Thomas stared at the liquid suspiciously.

"It doesn't look very drinkable." Tony pushed the bottle toward him.

"I can confirm that it is. Now drink it or you might die." Thomas sighed.

"Alright, alright. Relax, my boy." He took a gulp. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. His face immediately twisted in disgust.

"BLEGH! This tastes horrible!" The others watched as the wound in his chest began closing. Thomas looked down in amazement.

"Would you look at that... good as new." Tony proudly crossed his arms.

"Well, what would you do without me?" Zeal stepped forward, looking toward Mochi.

"I assume the doctor has been defeated?" Mochi nodded.

"Yeah. I dealt with him." Zeal let out a relieved sigh.

"Thank goodness." He looked toward the destroyed town.

"Now we need to inform the townsfolk about what happened. Don't worry about that part. I'll have everything sorted." He looked at the group.

"You all deserve to rest after what you've been through." Mochi stretched his arms.

"Thank goodness. I really needed this." He immediately collapsed onto the ground. Thomas stared at him.

"At least wait until we get back to the guild before you plop yourself onto the floor." Mochi groaned from the ground.

"But everything hurts a lot, you know!" Thomas sighed. Amelia couldn't help but laugh. Ace shook his head.

"What an idiot." Mochi instantly got back up.

"What did you just say to me?" Ace looked him dead in the eyes.

"You heard me. You're an idiot." Mochi stepped closer.

"Oh, you wanna say that again to my face?" The two bumped foreheads. Thomas raised both hands.

"Enough!" He smacked them both on the head.

"Stop arguing, you two. Let's head home. I'm tired of listening to you bicker all the time." Mochi and Ace rubbed their heads.

"Ow..." Amelia smiled.

"Well... the guild is back to normal now, huh?" Tony nodded.

"You can say that again." Zeal turned toward the road.

"Alright. I'll see you all soon." Mochi smiled.

"Alright! Nice seeing you again, brother!" He extended his fist. Zeal stared at it for a moment. He sighed before bumping his fist against Mochi's.

"Next time we meet, how about we have a little match ourselves?" Zeal smirked.

"I'll wipe the floor with you." Mochi grinned.

"I'd like to see you try." The two brothers stared each other down for a moment before Zeal finally turned away.

"Take care, Mochi."

"We shall meet again someday""You too, Zeal." With that, the two groups went their separate ways. Mochi, Amelia, Ace, Tony, and Thomas began walking back toward the Voyagers Guild. Mochi looked toward the road ahead and smiled.

"Man... what a day." Ace sighed.

"You have no idea." Amelia laughed softly.

"Let's just hope the next mission is a little less chaotic." Thomas looked at the three younger Voyagers.

"Don't count on it."

"I plan to make everything harder for all of you!" Mochi groaned.

"Aw, come on!" Amelia walked alongside the others, still thinking about everything that had happened.

"Well... I'm actually excited." Mochi looked over.

"About what?" Amelia smiled.

"After seeing you transform, I started thinking... I hope I can do something like that too." She looked between Mochi and Ace.

"You can transform. Ace can transform. But I can't" She clenched her fists.

"I want to become stronger. I want to make myself more useful to the guild." Mochi looked at her"Amelia..." Ace glanced at her.

"I can transform, yeah... but I can't even control it just yet..." He looked down at his hand.

"Now that you mention it, I haven't transformed since I fought Rakai." Mochi looked over.

"Seriously?" Ace nodded.

"That form was insanely strong. It actually put me on Rakai's level, even if it was just for that moment." Thomas overheard them and chuckled.

"Well, perhaps you should all figure out exactly what you're capable of." He pointed toward Amelia.

"Feel free to practice once we're back. Just don't forget that you're supposed to rest too." Amelia nodded.

"Got it, thanks Thomas!" Mochi stretched his arms.

"Sounds like we've got some training to do." Ace sighed.

"Great. More training."

"But it's needed if I don't want to get left behind.." Tony smiled.

"At least this time nobody's trying to destroy an entire town." Thomas looked at him.

"Don't jynx it now.." Tony immediately went quiet. The group eventually reached the station. The train to Azuma arrived, and they boarded together. Mochi dropped into his seat with a satisfied sigh.

"Finally... a chance to relax." Amelia sat beside him, staring out the window as the train began moving. Ace sat across from them, quietly watching the scenery pass. Thomas leaned back, closing his eyes. For the first time in what felt like forever, there was nothing chasing them. No enemies. No battles. Just the long journey home. And somewhere in the back of Amelia's mind, one thought remained. She wanted to discover what she was truly capable of.