*grumble* sorry it took so long...

Anyway, Chapter 5, ready for blastoff!

It's...a lot shorter than the last...sorry T-T

Still, it's not small either, but then again, it took me longer than usual...sooorrryyyyy~ T^T

Pardon my insecurity (it might suck too), hope you enjoy it! Make sure you R&R!

Chapter 5 : River Of Fire

All over the world, the earthquake that hit Tokyo was big news. Reports were broadcasted and people were chained to their screens, especially in the regions around the Japanese capital, if they were still awake on such a late hour. Many other countries were already making plans for relief funds, special support and sending supplies to the disaster zone. Many people lost their lives, were severely injured or were rendered homeless. Many people were shocked to hear of the sudden catastrophe, and didn't hesitate to show their support. But then came a special report, one that got the warning that it might be disturbing to some. They also assured that all the footage that was about to be shown was genuine, and was in no way altered.

"We bring you this breaking news report from Shinjuku Central Park, Tokyo. The footage you are seeing now was filmed only a few minutes ago, not too far from the Kimano-Jinja shrine. As you can see, there is a plume of black smoke coming from behind the temples, and steam coming out of the manholes. Next, a ball of fire is seen shooting through the air and crashing into a building, turning it into a sea of flames. When we look at the end of the footage, we can see another earthquake happening, followed by a powerfull explosion coming from behind the temples. This is where the footage ends. We hope to be getting a helicopter in the air soon for live footage."

"In response to these strange happenings, experts from the JMA have also reported that the city's water supply is contaminated with sulfur dioxide, and that most of the natural creeks and ponds have acidized. People from around the city have reported that there's a scent of sulfur in the air, as well as strange gasses escaping from the fissures created by the earthquake. The JMA can only come up with one conclusion. Volcanic activity."

02:32 AM

"Kurosawa-san! We need to know what's going on! Please reply!"

Nyamo was still speechless. She simply couldn't explain what she was seeing. Everything around the temples was ablaze, including the structures, the trees and even the ground. From the exact same place that the black smoke was coming, a small hill with a crater had formed, and a giant fountain of molten rock spewed out of the hole. The orange, blazing liquid incinerated everything it touched, spilled on the plaza in the center of the demolished temples and slowly swallowed everything that was left. The geyser reached up to 15 meters in the air and was so violent and powerful that it sizzled and roared like a mad beast. The tremendous heat given off made it hard for Nyamo and the others to breathe. Still not believing her own eyes, Nyamo replied in the microphone in a stammering fashion.

"Th...there was a...an earthquake and an explosion, and..."

"We felt that earthquake Kurosawa-san, but what happened?"

"There's... This may sound completely rediculous, but there's lava coming from behind the temples!"

"...could you repeat that please?"

"There's a crater behind the temples, and a fountain of volcanic lava is coming out of it! It's now pouring on the center plaza. There's fire everywhere!"

"You mean like a volcano?"

"Yes!"

--

Tomo and Kagura stared in utter disbelief at the menacing blubber pooling all around the crater, setting everything ablaze that got too close to it. Trees spontaniously combusted and all that was left of the once pittoresque temples were some burning skeletons slowly sinking into the giant puddle.

"Are you seeing this too? Or am I just dreaming."

"No, you're not dreaming. Is that stuff what I think it is?" Kagura responded.

They both snaked their way through the panicking crowd of citizens, medics and firefighters, towards Yomi, Kaorin and Sakaki standing not too far away.

"Guys! What the hell is that?!" Tomo yelled through the noise.

"Isn't that painfully obvious? It's lava!"Yomi yelled back.

"B-But... Doesn't lava only come from a volcano? What's it doing here?" Kagura reasoned.

"Well, then that's a volcano! I don't believe it either, but that's how it is."

"A volcano? In the middle of Tokyo? How is that possible!"

"Well, there you have it..."

"G...guys?! It's coming this way!" said Kaorin.

Indeed, the pool was slowly creeping its way up to the street, ready to head down south, where everyone was standing.

"This street is going downhill. That stuff is coming our way! There's still people who are injured back there!"

"Yomi, you're not thinking what I think you're thinking right?" yelled Tomo.

"Afraid so!"

"Are you nuts?! Are you gonna go near that? That's lava you know, you'll get yourself killed!" Kagura wailed.

"Well those people are gonna die if we don't! Stop being so selfcentered and help out a little! If you're scared, go ahead and run away, but I'm going!"

With that, Yomi ran off, heading towards the boiling liquid, ignoring her own survival instincts. Tomo cussed inarticulately and clenched her fist.

"You moron..."

"Come on Tomo, let's do this. Yomi's right. I think I'd rather die a hero than survive and run away like a coward," Kagura spoke.

"Not exactly a motivational speech Kagura, but I guess you're right. Dammit... I was actually fine with being a coward up until now."

Tomo and Kagura chased Yomi, leaving Sakaki and Kaorin behind. Sakaki hadn't said a single word since the eruption. She was genuinely terrified, and had serious doubts about getting too close to the lava.

"Sakaki-san... What are we going to do?"

Sakaki didn't reply. She just stared at the giant fountain with wide eyes. Suddenly, it was like the volcano twitched and blew another big gush of molten rock up in the air with a frightening hiss. It just kept coming, and coming and showed no sign of stopping whatsoever. On the contrary, it seemed to be getting more fierce by the second. She gawked at this brutal display of nature and was too scared to move.

"Errr...Sakaki-san?"

"Huh? Oh ehh... This man, we have to bring him to one of the ambulances. I need your help, I can't do it alone with this arm."

Kaorin had nearly forgotten about him. He was still unconscious, with some burnwounds, but he was probably going to be fine.

"Yeah, okay."

--

"The lava is now spilling on Junisha Dori and it's going down south!" Nyamo yelled through the radio while wiping away the sweat on her forehead. "It's coming this way! There's still a lot of people injured and unconscious on the streets, and the firetruck is still on its side."

Dammit...Yukari...

"Okay, Kurosawa-san, get Miyamoto-san out of the policecar and get out of there. After that, help as many of those people as you can. We're sending more reinforcements your way. Do you copy?"

"Yes, I copy. I'm going now!"

Nyamo threw the microphone to the ground and pulled the car door with all her might. Unfortunately, it wouldn't budge, and she surely couldn't open it alone.

"Dammit! Open!" she shouted in frustration.

She turned her head and saw that the lava flow was getting dangerously close. From the surface, bubbles bursted open, and the asphalt in front of it melted within seconds. The heat was so tremendous that she could barely keep her eyes open, so hot that she felt like she was about to melt herself.

Yomi, Kagura and Tomo ran past the downed firetruck and choked when they saw Yukari crushed underneath the firetruck. She was surrounded by firefighters trying to lift the heavy vehicle off her, and a medic was keeping a close eye on her condition. But from what they saw, she really didn't look good at all. Her face was as white as milk, and bloodstains had sunken into the carpet of ashes in front of her. Just a few meters away from her, Chiyo, Osaka and Kimura spectated, all with worried and defeated looks on their faces.

"Oh no...Yukari-sensei!" Yomi uttered.

"We..we have to get her out of there!" Tomo cried.

"Hey, you three! Get over here! Hurry!"

Nyamo's voice was barely audible over the immense ruckus, but managed to grab their attention. They looked behind and saw her signalling to move it. They all looked at Yukari one more time, and then headed her way.

"I need your help! I can't open this door by myself. I need two of you to pull as hard as you can okay?"

Tomo and Kagura agreed, but since there was not enough room on the handle for 4 people, Yomi decided to look for more survivors. She found one, covered in ashes, that was still richly falling from the sky. It was a man, around his twenties, and he was still breathing. With no time to ask him if he was alright, she threw his arm around her shoulder and dragged him away. By now, more ambulanced had arrived, they could take care of him. Meanwhile, Nyamo, Kagura and Tomo used all their might to open the door, but to no avail.

"Argh, it's no use! It's jammed!" Tomo panted.

"Guys, it's getting too close! I feel like I'm burning up!" Kagura gasped.

The lava river was now only a few meters away from the police car, and steadily closing in. They could literally feel the burn.

"Don't give up! We have to open it, he'll die if we don't!"

They once again tried, using every ounce of strenght in their bodies. Finally, the door gave in and flung open, knocking the girls back. Nyamo untied his seatbelt and dragged his motionless body out of the car, then ordered Kagura and Tomo to get him to the nearest ambulance.

"Move you two! I have to go check on Yukari."

A bit later, the lava made contact with the roof of the toppled police car. The bodywork crumpled under the incredible heat and the vehicle was engulfed in flames in seconds. Only some seconds later, the car slowly started sinking into the hot fluid. The gasoline caught fire and the car blew up. Nyamo stared in horror at the vehicle slowly being dragged along with the flow, unrecognisable, nothing more than a black, burning husk.

The fireman that was trapped in the cockpit had been freed in the meantime, but all the attempts to lift the firetruck off Yukari had failed. When Nyamo arrived, the medic shouted something that she didn't want to hear.

"Her pulse is dropping fast! We're losing her!"

Nyamo froze and her eyes started to water. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"No...that can't be!"

Kimura heard it too, and didn't think twice. He ran up to the firetruck and helped the other firefighters to lift it, but even with his help, it didn't move single inch.

"Don't worry Yukari-san, we'll get you out of there... Just hang on!" he cried out.

"The lava is closing in fast! Someone get those kids out of here!" one of the firefighters yelled.

Nyamo looked at Osaka and Chiyo standing at the sidelines, scared out of their wits. She called out to them.

"Chiyo-chan, Osaka-san, you have to go. It's too dangerous here."

"B-but, Yukari-sensei..." Chiyo weeped.

"She is going to be okay is she?" said Osaka.

Nyamo had no idea what to answer her. She wished she could promise them that she would be fine, but she couldn't.

"Listen, go find the other ones. We can't help her to our fullest if we have to worry about you too, do you understand?"

They both nodded with tears in their eyes.

"I promise, we'll do our best. Now go!"

They both glanced at Yukari one more time and ran further down the street, away from the lava. Nyamo jumped up and joined the others with trying to lift the downed firetruck.

"Alright, let's try this one more time! Ready?"

Nyamo used so much force that she felt like her arms were going to burst, but alas, even with all the combined manpower, the truck simply didn't give in a single inch. They needed a miracle, and they needed it fast.

"Damn! It's no use, we can't lift it!" one of the men shouted.

"G...get out of here..."

"What?"

"I said, get out of here!" Yukari repeated.

Nyamo crouched down by her. Her voice was weak, so she had to get closer to hear her.

"What are you saying? We're not leaving you here. We'll get you out of there!"

"B...bullshit, and you know it. There's not enough time, and there's no point anyway."

"Why...?"

"I don't even feel any pain anymore. Didn't you hear the medic? I'm dying Nyamo... I can feel it..." she laughed weakly.

"No..."

Nyamo couldn't hold back her tears anymore. She tried to stay strong, but the thought of losing her best friend made her feel empty inside.

"'Fraid so... It's game over for good ol' Yukari..."

She didn't want to believe it, but Yukari was right. Her face was pale, her eyes were glassy and lifeless, and her breathing was very weak. Nyamo grabbed her by her cold, shaking hand and sobbed silently.

"C...could you...leave us alone for a minute?" she asked the rest.

The firefighters slowly dissapeared from the scene.

"We're sorry ma'am..." one of them spoke up.

Kimura stayed behind a little longer, but ran off too after a few seconds, a look of despair stuck on his face.

"I will miss you, Yukari-san..." he sobbed while running.

Nyamo felt the blazing heat of the lava river slowly crawling up to her, burning into her back. But she didn't care, she just wanted to say goodbye.

"Death by firetruck... Damn... This stinks you know. I would have preferred to die in a more heroic manner..." she sluggishly chuckled.

Yukari slightly tightened her grip on Nyamo's hand, who was trying hard not to burst out crying.

"Don't...don't think I wanted to die... I don't want to, but I...I have no choice..."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't want you or the kids to get yourselves killed over me...that's all."

Yukari twitched and coughed up another dose of blood on the ground. It was getting harder for her to talk, and her vision slowly started to blur.

"Because...you were always my best friend Nyamo..."

Reality hit Nyamo like a deadly bullet. She bursted out in tears and embraced her friend tightly. Suddenly she realized that she herself was to blame.

"I...I-I'm sorry Yukari! This is all my fault! If I didn't push you on to come help, this would never have happened!" she cried out loud.

"Ah don't give me that. You know it's not your fault. I actually feel good that I managed to save someone... Even if it was just one person..." she sputtered.

"But I couldn't save you!"

Yukari returned the hug with the last bit of strenght she had left in her dying body, and a single tear rolled over her cheek.

"Well, that's the way it is... I'm very happy to have met you..."

"Me too..." Nyamo blubbered.

After a few seconds, Nyamo broke loose from the hug and gently layed Yukari back on the soft carpet of ashes. It was time for her to get going. The lava was getting dangerously close.

"Tell the others...I love them...and that they don't have to feel sad or guilty. Tell them I died with a smile on my face. And if you see that woman, give her my regards, okay?"

Nyamo nodded and wiped the tears off her face.

"Okay..."

"Goodbye my friend..." she faintly smiled.

"Goodbye Yukari... I'll never forget you..."

Reluctantly, Nyamo ran away, glancing at her smile one final time, and headed down south again. Yukari closed her eyes halfway and could only stare at the menacing river steadily crawling towards her. The heat scorched her skin and hair, but she barely felt anything. Her regret was that her body was going to disappear, never to be found again. Also, if she knew that this was going to happen, she would have had a couple more drinks when she still had the time.

"At least...it will be all over before you can reach me. I will not be your victim...you God damn lava!"

Her eyes fell shut, and her final vision was that of all her friends, which made up the best moments of her short life. But most importantly, the last thing she uttered before she disappeared from the realm of the living was the name of the best friend she had ever had.

"Nyamo..."

02:42 AM

"Shit!"

Aishi pounded down on his desk with his fist angrily. He had the tv in his shabby office on, and the happenings were all over the news. The images of the the lava fountain and the molten blubber creeping up on the street were too much for even him to handle. Even though he saw it coming, he was still surprised and dumbstruck.

"I never would have expected for it to happen so quickly!" he grunted.

"Unbelievable...!" Keichi gasped. "Is this really happening?"

"No, this is just a movie I popped in. Yeah this is really happening!" Aishi snarled, his voice overflowing with sarcasm. "If you don't believe it, look outside. It's raining ashes, and if you miss the red glow and the smoke in the distance, you need glasses urgently!"

Keichi didn't let it get to him. He knew that if Aishi was stressed out, he easily got pissed off.

"Dammit! There was not enough time to evacuate the Central Park. Just look at how many people are still there! As if the earthquake didn't make enough victims aready."

"What are we going to do Aishi-san?" Keichi hesitantly asked.

"Hell, what can we do. I'm just an old geezer almost ready to retire, and I doubt you would want to go risk you hide out there trying to look for a solution. Besides, that's lava we're dealing with. There's nothing anyone can do about it..."

"Then, you mean..."

"Yeah, we have to continue the evacuation. I don't know where that lava is going, but we have to keep an eye on it. Tell the authorities to clear the area as soon as possible."

"But Aishi, that would come to millions of people! How are they going to pull that off! Besides, there's several hospitals in that street, they can't possibly evacuate all that in such a short time!"

"Well then what are you waiting for?! Call them now! The police, the army, hell, everyone that can help! We need the vicinity clear of all civilians as soon as possible!"

"Yes sir..." Keichi sighed.

Aishi turned his focus on the tv screen again. The live footage was shown through a camera in a helicopter. The panoramic view showed that the temples were completely gone, swallowed by the lava, liquified. The mass wasn't only flowing onto the street, but also spreaded out across the Central Park. The many trees were no obstacles, and were quickly turned into firewood. Everything that the lava had come in contact with was furiously burning, including the buildings and the cars. The image turned to a crashed firetruck, and the river had already reached it, combusting the downside and slowly dragging it along. The flow was diverted slightly, but it wouldn't be long until it found its way around it and swallowed the truck completely.

"This is a nightmare. A God damn nightmare!"

02:43 AM

Nyamo stumbled across the warzone. Doctors were treating the wounded and firemen were desperately trying to extinguish the flames coming from the buildings. She didn't know why. As soon as the lava reached this far, everything would burst into flames. Wetting the structures was pointless too. Nyamo looked around, searching for the others, but it was becoming so crowded that it was hard to distinguish anyone. Also, the heavy downpour of ashes, resembling a blizzard, obstructed her view.

"Come on, where are you guys," she softly sniffed.

She could hear the roaring of the flames behind her back, but she didn't want to look, nor did she want to think about it. Yet, it was all that popped up in her head. All the people around her, she was oblivious to them. The only thing she could think about was her best friend that she couldn't save. She felt so powerless, so broken.

"It's not fair dammit..."

She fell to her hands and knees in the middle of the street. A few of her tears landed into the ashes below. She grabbed a handfull of the ashes and wildly threw it upwards as she she cried and sobbed loudly. Her body shocked and the tears of sorrow poured down her face.

"Goodbye...Yukari..."

She silently lisped those last words she said to her. After that, she simply couldn't look back anymore. She could only hope that Yukari had already passed on before the lava reached her, that she didn't get burned alive.

"I'll never forget you..."

--

"She didn't make it did she..."

Kagura had already come up with this conclusion as she saw the particular firetruck being swallowed by the lava flow, slowly sinking while engulfed in fire. It was a hard pill to swallow, but it was obvious even when they just looked at her a little while ago. They couldn't believe it; their homeroom teacher for almost 3 years, 2 years for Kagura and Kaorin, and colleague for a few years to Kimura. But most of all, a good friend to all of them.

"Yukari-chan..." Tomo whispered.

Yomi cried bitter tears while trying to comfort a broken Chiyo. Osaka sat next to them on the kurb, both her hands covering her face, hiding her emotions. The only thing that gave her away were the silent whimpers. Kaorin and Sakaki shared the same emotions. Both of them felt crushed. Kimura sat a bit away from the rest, his hands supporting his forehead.

"Do any of you believe in fate?" he suddenly asked, getting the attention from everyone else.

"I don't... You know, you have 2 kinds of people in the world. Those who believe that everything that happens is predestined to happen, and those who think that everything is a coincidence. Yukari sacrificed her life to save that of others. If she had chosen not to do that, she would still be alive...maybe... Is that fate? Or coincidence?"

"But it all comes down to the same thing right? It doesn't matter if it was fate or not, she still died..." Kagura murmured.

"Yes... But everytime something terrible like this happens, people start to wonder about this."

Everyone thought deeply about this. Kimura actually had something deep to say instead of always acting like a pervert.

"Don't worry about Yukari. She's at peace now, somewhere where this disaster can't bother her anymore. Just recently, I started believing in heaven. That's probably where she is going now..."

They all managed to crack a smile at these words, and that was the first time Kimura had managed that. He too had suffered a big loss, he just never says it in those words.

"That's...where my mom and dad are now too, I bet..." Kagura smiled melancholically.

"Kagura..."

Tomo placed her hand on Kagura's shoulder, and got a small smile in return. But the scene was violently interrupted by another bang and a whistle. Another huge ball of fire flew through the air and seemed to be heading directly towards the group. Everyone jumped up from their position and were about to run for it.

"Wait! Watch where it's going to land!" Kimura yelled.

Everyone followed the fireball with their eyes as its trajectory bended down and was about to hit.

"Now, run! Get out of here!"

Everyone swiftly scattered and the ball crashed down almost exactly where they estimated it to; directly on top of a parked car. The car exploded, but the upper side of the ball was still intact. It was dark red, partly liquid, partly solid, and glowed with lava from the inside, sputtering out of the cracks occasionally.

"I know what that is now. That's what they call a lava bomb! Don't run until you know where it's going to land, or else it might come down on top of you" he said.

Everyone took heed to his advice. They wouldn't want to be crushed underneath one of these.

"Hey, are you alright?!" a voice sounded not too far away from them.

It was Nyamo. She finally found them and came running straight at them. It was obvious to everyone that she had been crying.

"Kurosawa-sensei! Yeah, we're fine..." Yomi responded.

"That's good... I don't know how to say this, but..."

"We know... You don't have to say anything..." Tomo said, looking down to the ground.

Nyamo was on the verge of crying again, but held it back this time. She still made a promise to Yukari, and she was determined to fulfill it.

"I...I have to say something, to all of you, a message from Yukari..."

She swallowed the lump in her throat and sniffed loudly.

"I have to tell you that...she loves all of you, and she doesn't want you to be sad or feel guilty, and that she...that she died while smiling..."

Nyamo was having a hard time again, but bit her teeth and pushed the tears back. Everyone was touched by this, but there was not much time to mourn. Because still coming straight at them, the still rapidly growing river of lava slowly approached, not giving any sign of stopping. Back at the source, the fountain was still going at it at full force, constantly spewing more and more molten rock in the air. Frighteningly, the lava didn't seem to be coming only onto the streets, but was also forming a sea in the Central Park. Everywhere they looked, there was only red. Fire was literally everywhere, and the temperatures went up to unbearable numbers. The ashes were still falling and forming a thick carpet on the ground, and small fragments of burning rock fell from the sky. Firefighters tried to cool off the glowing liquid by spraying water on it, but those actions were absolutely useless against a muck of over one thousand degrees celsius. If they got too close to it, they would end up dead, without any chance of getting away. Now, with a real volcano directly in the center of Tokyo, it really looked like the downfall of the mighty city was looming right above their heads.

Wata : Short! But tough as nails! If you don't know what crossover it is now, you'll never know, so I'll just say it. The 1997 movie 'Volcano' of course! (Tommy Lee Jones is awesome! XD) Duh! It was very obvious in the previous chapter, but yeah, you had to have seen the movie. So yeah, a volcano in the middle of Tokyo...seems a bit far fetched, but despite that, hope you're still enjoying it! I put a warning for possible character death in the summary, and Yukari was the first victim... I'm sorry Yukari fans, please don't lynch me! D8

Yukari : As a compensation, I demand that I show up in every chapter's author's notes starting from now!

Wata : Fair enough. Well, you got what you wanted for now. Please bear with me people, I'm trying here! It's not easy ya know! See you next time!