Umi smiled at Arista. "Do... we know you from somewhere?" She looked like someone, almost, in a certain light. She settled back and smiled. "Are you related to Lafarga?" She grinned and laughed. Her eyes searched again the area. "Ascot? Clef? Caldina?" She took a few measured steps forward.

Ragyn perched from above a skyscraper keeping an eye on the wavering Emeruald. He scoffed. She had brought back the Knights but just because they were gone didn't mean he had to stop his attack on their loved ones. 'Humm.. how very Nova like.' He got up. Mentally scoping out where Lamont, the Shadow, was hiding himself.

~Oh Shadow... can you guess where Im going? Can you guess which way the wind blows to the doors of two sisters? Can you save her?~ He taunted.

"Ascot!" Umi ran forward and threw her arms about Ascot's waist. "Have you gotten taller again?" She smiled up at him her blue waves of hair falling back into black around her shoulders.

Arista shook her head slightly. "No, I'm sorry, I'm not from here," she told the pretty blue-haired girl. Then she laughed. "Well, of course, then I'd know you if I was."

"I'm Eagle Vision's younger sister...perhaps you know him?"

Chad stood there shocked. Suddenly the blue haired girl and her friends all vanished!! What had happened?! Did they just up and go back to the land where the blue haired girl and himself were conversing about?! What was going on? Only one way he could possibly find out, and that was to find a way to the mysterious land himself!

Elsewhere,Skyhawk returned from his previous mysterious mission and noticed that something was causing a disturbance in the hospital. He immediately appeared there and ran to the area where Umi had vanished. He stopped suddenly when he noticed that another young man was standing there. His gaze slowly turned to Chad and confusion started to fill his mind. Is this the disturbance I sensed? Did he cause it? Only one way to find out, he thought silently. "You were here when the disturbance in the dimensions happened. What just went on?" Skyhawk asked the other teen.

"Um...I was talking to this girl and she just vanished!! Just like that! Wait..You said dimensions...You know about the other one?!" Chad asked surprised.

"Yes, and obviously so do you. What connection do you have to all of this?" Skyhawk asked seriously. His visor reflected Chad's surprised look.

"I don't know! Things have been crazy ever since the dreams started! Dreams of another world in danger! And everything has been turning upside down!! What the hell is going on?! Do you know?!" Chad shouted. Panic started to take over his emotions as people around him and everywhere else were being hurt. He had to find a way to help stop this madness, and it seemed like the white haired individual before him had a clue on what was going down! He took a martial arts stance and prepared himself to face off against this young man!

It was then that another voice intervened and stopped the two teenagers from attacking one another. The voice belonged to Skyhawk's communicator. It was his commander trying to break through the static from the dimension rip. "Skyhawk! Listen to me! Don't fight with that boy! He's the one I told you about that was separated from you! That's Chad!!"

Skyhawk's eyes grew wide as he heard this and his ready position dropped quickly as he looked towards the young man he knew now was his brother. "Now this is definitely a change of plans. You are the one I've been searching for all this time. Your blood is my blood. We are brothers." Skyhawk said finally regaining his composure.

"Brothers?! Me and you?! Wait....You do look familiar now. You are the other one I saw in my dreams and visions!! You....Are Skyhawk!" Chad said dropping his guard. Skyhawk's only reply was his silence. It was then that another rip tore open and sucked the two boys in quickly into the land of Cephiro! Skyhawk's communicator dropped out of his hands as he was pulled through and hit the floor. "Skyhawk! Skyhawk! This is your commander!! Come in!! Skyhawk!!" The commander's voice rang through but got no reply. The two were headed to Cephiro where they originally came from!! The adventure for these two was about to begin!

Chad was the first to land near the castle. He stood up and looked over as his brother soon followed. Skyhawk rose to his feet and dusted himself off. "That was quite the trip. Looks like we are in the other dimension that we both have had these strange "visions" of."

Chad's jaw was dropped. He couldn't believe that he was truly in this dimension his dreams showed him. The dimension rips finally closed behind them both as they examined theirselves to make sure they were not dead or worse. Chad finally spoke up. "What's going on?! What are we going to do now?! This is freaking crazy!"

Skyhawk smiled slightly and looked over at his younger brother. "Don't worry about it. We'll head to that castle. If a threat arises to stop us, we'll eliminate it. Besides, we need to get some questions answered,eh?" He said walking towards the castle. His long, white hair blew in the winds as he walked.

Chad shook his head at his brother's calmness at the present moment and ran behind him. "Hey! Wait up!" He shouted as he tailed his brother. It wasn't long until the two finally reached the castle doors. Skyhawk smiled slightly as he approached the guards. "Pardon us, but we have a meeting to attend to here." He said with a calm demeanor. The guards instantly were taken off guard and let him in. The guard stuttered as he spoke the words "Impossible." They immediately let the two boys in the castle without so much as a hesitation.

Chad walked in alongside his brother slowly. "What was that all about? They sounded like they were really scared of us or something." Chad whispered as they found themselves in the main hall.

"They probably were. There are some crazy things going on so far. It wouldn't surprise me if we were wanted criminals here. Now..Where exactly are we?" Skyhawk said looking around. "I don't know my way around here, do you?"

Chad shook his head and looked around. "No, I don't. I don't even know if I know my way around my own sanity anymore. I wonder if those girls I met earlier are here?" He inquired to himself.

"Perhaps, but the only way we're going to find out is if we split up. Let's take separate paths and I'll meet back up with you later." Skyhawk said still smiling slightly.

"Alright,it sounds like a plan to me!" Chad said nodding. He took off to the west hall as his brother took the right. Only time would tell who or what they would find in this castle!!

***

"What a pretty day!" Mackey took a lighter out of her pocket and lit her cigarette with it. "Kinna sucks that I gotta visit the old man today, though." She folded one arm behind her head and smiled. Her father had been incarcerated for life for possession and trafficking of drugs and for murder and she was pretty happy about it. At least it meant that he wasn't going to kill her for leaving the yakuza as he was originally intending to. Chuckling inwardly, she leaned her back against the wall outside the Auto Shop and lifted her gaze upwards the top of the skyscraper across the street. Murderous bastard or not, the man was her father and she had promised she'd visit him if he ever ended up in jail.

Suddenly, she thought she could barely make out a figure standing on the roof of the skyscraper. Squinting through blue-tinted sunglasses, the girl couldn't really make out who it might be. Absently, she wondered if the person was waiting to jump until the confused-looking blond girl had moved out of the way so that he wouldn't ruin her day by splattering his guts in her hair. Or maybe he was just fixing the roof and Mackey was letting her imagination run off with her. There was just something about him that said that he didn't belong there.

* Darkness.

A click and a beam of light shone down on a polished oak desk. The desk itself served as support for a large computer, beyond state-of-the-art, able to process tons of data in mere seconds, one step ahead of world technology.

Two hands whose wrists vanished into the darkness beyond the light were manipulating the computer's keyboard. The hands were slender and encased in black gloves. Upon the middle finger of the left hand was a sparkling girasol ring, with a Chinese character engraved on it. Light from the lamp reflected off the ring, making it pulse steadily with a scarlet aura.

A small clock next to the computer showed it was fifteen minutes before 1:00 PM. Time was running out.

The right hand momentarily vanished and returned with a black diskette, which was inserted into the disk drive. The hands deftly tapped the keyboard with amazing rapidity as unseen eyes surveyed the data. Eyes that were lost in gloomy evil shadows.

Momentarily, the eyes skimmed through three files, one by one. Files of whose content were already known to the unseen observer. A mysterious fire had enveloped a kendo school downtown, the Shidou dojo. A woman, Hiroko Shidou had been injured and hospitalized with serious burns and was recovering slowly. Next was Mariko Ryuuzaki, who had suddenly come down with a strange and deadly illness on the day of her daughter Umi's birthday and had fallen into a coma. Currently, her husband was using every resource at his command to save her life. Last was the strange death of Kobayashi Ryo, killed by a heat stroke on a beautiful spring day. Coroners could not help but notice the look of horror on the math teacher's face when they found him.

At this file, there was a double flash of emerald from the darkness outside the light. As if it had represented a flare of anger. The right hand clenched into a fist, but slowly forced itself open as if realizing anger was useless at the moment.

The hands paused for but a minute, index finger slowly tapping the desktop as if in thought. Then the typing rhythm picked up again, accessing the last two files.

* Skyhawk glanced from side to side as he walked down through the hallway. His visor picked up readings of many people inside the castle,but none he had plans on communicating with. He looked around for his communicator but found nothing. "Curses...I must have left it behind when we were ported here. This isn't good one little bit. I'm going to have to leave my brother alone here and go search for the supplies necessary to rebuild my communicator. I can't afford to let something like that out of my grasp." He spoke turning around only to be faced with about 4 guards.

"Hey..It's that guy the entrance guards were speaking of! He doesn't look so tough!" One guard replied. The other guards grinned at the sight of the visored young man as he slowly pushed his long white hair out of his eyes. The lead guard chuckled at this sight. "I don't think this is the one that Emeraude and Zagato had! He must be a demon impostor in disguise! Let's destroy him before he takes out this entire castle!!" The guard said drawing his sword as did his comrades.

Skyhawk smiled slightly at this action. "This must be a form of mistake,gentlemen. I don't believe myself to be a demon. Now if you'll excuse me." The young man said turning his back to them all and continuing on his way. This was not good. He wasn't trying to make a commotion. In fact,he was readying himself to leave, but evidently, that was not going to happen if the guards had something to do about it!

The lead guard took offense to this and charged at the white haired agent of Black Lotus. He swung his sword with powerful force but ended up with a blade without a successful attack due to Skyhawk's maneuvering. "You'll have to do much better,if you wish to slay me,knight." The brother of Chad said still with his mysterious smile. The guard screamed in a fit of rage and charged him again. This time Skyhawk stepped to the side and slammed his knee towards the guard's stomach and pushing the guard's back with force to send him into that very knee with more speed. The guard's eyes grew wide for a moment before he hit the ground holding his stomach. The other guards stood there in horror,noticing that Skyhawk's knee had bent even the armor on the lead guard! The others grew angry and rushed at the visored one swinging their blades hoping to defeat the newcomer! Skyhawk jumped away from them and instantly his right arm started to illuminate with a strange light. An energy shield appeared on that particular arm and sparked with it's reddish energy. Skyhawk immediatly placed his right arm in front of him and his visor seemed to glow in the light. He smiled as the guards all ran at him at once,and finally he rushed forward,with the same energy as his shield surrounding him!! "SHIELD RUSH!" The words escaped from his lips in the form of a yell as he burst into the guards knocking they all away from him at once!! The energy slammed into them like electricity as one by one was knocked away and unconscious. The young shield wielder skid to a halt a ways after the attack and the shield vanished from sight. He turned around and threw his long,white hair behind him. He smiled slightly at the defeat of the guards. "I didn't want to cause such a commotion,but you left me no choice. I'll be seeing you guys later!" he said giving them a two finger salute and walking away. "They will probably attack my brother next. I hope he can fare well by himself on this one." he said softly as he walked ahead.

Chad slowly closed his eyes as the guards in front of him drew their swords and smiled. "Let's end this demon's life now! I haven't gotten to fight in the longest of time! Let's go,guys! Get 'im!"

Chad sadly looked towards the rushing guards. "I don't want to fight with you..Don't make me do this,please.." But the words had no effect to the deaf ears of the fight-thirsty soldiers. Chad sadly took his fighting stance and dodged out of the way of a sword coming down towards his neck. He gave the guard a swift kick to the side of his head and sent the guard spiraling out of the way. Another attacked and was met with a jump over his weapon and then a rushing kick downwards to his chest,knocking him into another guard and sending both to the ground. The other guard stared as Chad attacked defensively. "His strength isn't normal! Who is this kid?! Is he really a demon?! He seems like he isn't even violent! Like he's.....fighting....because we are making him!" The guard said lowering his defense. "Stop..All of you. This young man isn't a demon,he's a boy wandering these halls. However,we must detain you for invading this place! This is where the great princess Emeraude and great priest Zagato once existed! You have disrupted the peace here by your trespassing! Please at least come with us! You do understand,do you not?" The guard asked Chad. Chad closed his eyes and sadly replied with an "I do." And with that,the guards took him away past the other rooms. The guards opened the doors to where Ascot,Umi,and Arista were conversing. They looked confused for a moment then looked over at each other then back at Umi. "Water Knight Umi! You have returned?! Welcome back! Say...We can't find the captain guard anywhere! What should we do with this prisoner?" The guard said bringing Chad forth. The youth's arms were shackled as were his feet. He had now wished he had not come here,but he understood well that he was trespassing,and was ready to serve his crime,no matter what the blue haired girl would request.

* Fuu knew she must have been quite the sight. Her hair in tangles and wearing wrinkled, blue, hospital issued pajamas and slightly limping from her injured foot. She hoped Clef would give them their magic back soon, she was dieing to use her healing wind on her shoulder and ankle. Her green eyes darted around the expanding group and smiled. It was good to be back in Cephiro with all of her old friends . . . and Ferio, who she thought of as much more than a friend. She blushed a bit as she caught him staring out of the side of her eye. Oh yes, it was good to be back.

* The invisible eyes focused on the case report of Mashigawa Mitshi. Assistant captain of a fencing team at an exclusive all girls schools, she attended practice one afternoon and was challenged by an unknown girl, allegedly from a rival school. The two engaged in a one minute duel when the challenger was shown to be the better fighter...proven when her sword pierced Mashigawa's breast, through her heart and out her back.

Mashigawa was rushed to the nearest hospital and was pronounced dead on arrival. In the confusion, the challenger escaped and a positive identification was futile, for witnesses maintained her face had been fully concealed with the standard fencing mask. Inquiries had been directed to the fencing team of the rival school, yet solid evidence was shown that all members of that fencing team and their affiliates had been far away from the gym of the incident.

The left hand with the girasol ring hit a button on the upper left of the board, exiting the file even as the right clicked and accessed the next. Less than a week after the Mashigawa incident, misfortune had befallen one Hijimari Koto from another all girl's school. After classes that day, she and five other friends had gone out for a snack at the local ice cream parlor. As they crossed the street, as if from out of nowhere, a white sedan roared past a red light and smashed into her, an uncannily direct impact. The entire front skeletal framework of the girl's body had been seriously shattered. Doctors fought to save her life for seven hours before death claimed her.

Sworn eyewitnesses reported the white sedan's license plate number as 404-CEP. Yet when land transport agencies were checked, absolutely no records showed that such a license plate had ever been issued. In a minor statement from one of Hijimari's friends, it was also reported that the car "Was strangely new...like it had just been purchased that day...smelled like it too..."

The gloved hands clasped together. Slowly and almost with rhythm, the fingers on either hand flexed and tapped against each other. A mind was working somewhere in the sable darkness.

Then the computer was switched off, the diskette retrieved, and a board below the desk was opened. The hands emerged with a blank sheet of paper and a pen. Keen thoughts found their cold statement in blue cursive writing.

"Ragyn targetted people close to the Magic Knights, for reasons as yet unknown. Agent Kobayashi Ryo was a favorite mathematics teacher of Hououji Fuu. Mashigawa Mitshi was a friend and fellow fencer of Ryuuzaki Umi's, who was the captain of their school's fencing team. And Hijimari Koto was a seatmate, childhood friend, and confidant of Hikaru Shidou.

"Elements not of this world, Ragyn's own doing or his cohorts if he has them, are responsible. The inhuman skill and speed of Mashigawa's masked opponent is one evidence of this. The second is the car that crashed into Hijimari, of which no records can be found. The last is the sudden death of the otherwise healthy Kobayashi.

"He has already attacked friends dear to the three girls in some way or other, but he has not ceased there. The fire at the Shidou dojo is one indication. The illness and coma of Ryuuzaki Mariko is another."

The hand wielding the pen slowed and stopped writing entirely. The mind behind it had just realized something. The scrawling picked up again, faster now.

"Now Ragyn targets their families. Hououji Fuu's is the only one that hasn't been affected yet. Either her father, mother, or sister is in danger. He will make his move tonight, under the cover of darkness. It will have to be tonight for there will be a new moon and enough time has passed since the last incident."

The eyes pored carefully over what had been written, pen carefully examining each word. Seconds later, the writing faded into nothingness, leaving the paper as blank as when it had been procured. Then the hands tore the paper in half, then half again, and again, until nothing but white confetti remained. The torn bits found their resting place in the left hand. Pen and diskette vanished from the top of the desk and a plastic cover shuffled over the computer. The clock registered 3:25 PM.

Then there was a sharp click and the room was bathed in black again.

All was quiet for a moment, when from the depths of the Stygian gloom came a hissing mocking laugh, no louder than a whisper.

Standing in the desert was a man wrapped in a torn cloak. The mysterious individual was being confronted by monsters which were delighted to see that a new dinner had seemingly been delivered to them that particular afternoon. One of the creatures edged towards the lone stranger with a menacing look on it's face. "Anything you would like to say,before you become our main course,boy?!" The creature squeeled delightfully. However,the cloaked traveller stood there. The top of his cloak covering his lower face. However,his long black hair as the bottom part of his cloak blew wildly in the winds as the creature edged closer and closer to him. "Well?! You aren't saying anything! If you won't talk,then I'll just say that this kill was a mute one!" The creature said laughingly charging his fist at the dark skinned traveller!!

The fist was caught quickly,as the mysterious stranger stepped to the side and caught the creatures fist with almost no effort and with strength that far surpassed this monster's!! The monster let out a shriek as the bones in his hand cracked due to the newcomer's strength! "L..let go!! What the hell are you DOING to me?!" The monster howled as his hand was now nothing more than a compacted stub. The creature fell to the ground and immediatly afterwards,his ever-hungry comrades attacked. One by one,they dropped as this man's skill was more than a match for them all! He caught one of the monster's arms and broke it in half,now leaving nothing more than a bloody stub where the creature's arm once existed. The beast shrieked like his now-handless comrade and fell to the ground. The silent warrior then proceeded to dash towards the other two stalking beasts and give them their rightful punishment! One was met with a kick to his abdomonen, splitting the beast in half, killing it instantly. The other stared with utter shock written on it's statement. "W..What kind of monster are YOU?!" The monster shouted towards the dark tanned individual walking towards him.

"I'm the one you picked to try and finish off as a meal. The one that will feed you nothing but your very demise. My name is Megor Ryuuzaki...But to you,I'm known only as death." The young man said raising his hand and placing it towards the monster.

"WAIT!! NO! Don't kill me! Please! I beg of...." But his words ended as a blast of dark energy came bursting out of Megor's hand and annihalating the creature's form into nothing but oblivion. It was then that the one named "Megor" turned his back to the dead bodies and continued on his journey....To the castle. "It appears that you have returned to Cephiro,sister. Now maybe I can get some questions answered around here." Megor muttered quietly walking throughout the harsh heat in which he was so heavily trained in.

*** Arista turned her head towards the others as the graceful blue knight left to talk to the Bal. She tilted her head slightly towards Zazu, who seemed quiet through all of this. Arista met his eyes, smiled faintly, and walked towards the fire knight, who, strangely enough, had another maiden that looked very much like her. Nova, they called her.

"Hikaru?" Arista called to her, a slight amused smile on her face. "Is this a relative of yours?" She looked over to Nova.

*** Emeraude woke up and as she opened her eyes slowly, blurred visions appeared to greet her. Then, all seemed to clear. She stood up from the couch she had been sleeping on. "Where am I...?" the princess asked outloud, remembering being on the busy streets, and the hurt of her body as she was thrown out of Cephiro.

"You're in my shop, my dear," a slightly older woman of thirty-five answered her question. Then the woman's beautiful serene face disappeared to take on a different kind of beauty as a lively smile came upon her features. "I am Leilani, but you may call me Lani as many do."

"Oh," Emeruade said, not sure what to say. "Thank you. How did I get here?"

Lani laughed softly. "You were on the street, and you were causing quite a crowd, too! Luckily, my shop is not too far from where you were."

"I see. Thank you again," the golden-haired princess told the woman with soft gratitude. "I am Emeraude..."

"Nice to meet you, dear Emeraude," Lani's golden eyes twinkled. "Is there anyone you would like to call to come and pick you up later?"

"Why..." Emeraude thought outloud. "I dont..."

"Its okay, you can stay here if you like," the pretty maiden told her.

"No, I have to go somewhere...its very important..." Emeraude's blue crystal eyes reflected her panic.

Leilani nodded her head slowly. "Alright...I'll do what I can to help you, is there anything right now?"

"Yes, can you tell me how to contact Mr. Lamont Cranston Jr.?"

* Hikaru laughed a little and answered, "Yes, we are related. Nova is part of me!" She looked around to see if Lantis was here but to no avail. Her heart hurt to not be able to see him here. 'Where is he anyway?' Hikaru continued, "Um, is...is Lantis here in Cephiro at all?"

* Before Arista could comment at her answer, a stab of recognition filled her clear violet eyes at the name.

"Lantis.." she whispered softly beneath her breath. Lantis was her brother's close friend...until he returned to Cephiro and Eagle had betrayed him, as well as his secrets for the sake of Autozam's dying land.

The silver-haired maiden waited for an answer as the lights around her made her golden streaks shine.

* The afternoon was waning as the taxi took a side street through downtown Tokyo. Lamont Cranston's eyes were open, yet he was asleep. It was a small technique he had perfected over the years via self-hypnosis. He was very much alert of the world around him, yet when he 'awoke' he'd feel as rested as if he had taken a full night's nap.

In a way, Lamont was glad he'd ordered a full weeks leave at the company. In light of the Tokyo Tower bombing, his employees needed to be with family and friends. Other offices like Cranston Industries Japan around the city were closed.

Lamont knew full well though, there would be no more attacks on buildings. The Tokyo Tower had been assaulted because it was obviously of some value to the Magic Knights. The darkness in his heart flared up, threatening to consume him, yet he forced it down to its rightful place. Ragyn had been meaning to damage the Magic Knights emotionally by taking lives. One thing for the offworlder to pay for.

Sunset wasn't far. Ragyn, or maybe one of his henchmen, would strike the Hououji home hours later, possibly midnight. So would he.

He awoke at the precise moment his cellphone rang. His eyes narrowed at the sight of an unfamiliar number, wondering who it could be. Lamont couldn't think of anyone who'd want to call him on any importance. All calls to his office were automatically being redirected to his personal cellphone.

The Accept button was pressed. "Hello?" *

Relief filled Emeraude as she heard Lamont's familiar voice. Thanks to Leilani, she had gotten his number. The golden-haired maiden looked over to Lani, smiled faintly, and returned to the phone.

"Lamont...? It's me, Emeraude," a sigh escaped her lips.

The other woman, still with the faint smile on her lips that she had returned to Emeraude's, nodded gently to her and turned to leave the room to give her privacy. "I'll be downstairs in the kitchen if you need me, alright?" Leilani whispered.

Emeraude nodded her head as the beautiful woman left. "I'm back from Cephiro. It was Ragyn's doing....I'm an ordinary mortal now, he had stripped me of my powers and had given me a body too weak to use that energy I have a right to. I need your help."

A slight pause filled her end of the phone. She was not sure how to get her powers back.

"I must go back to Cephiro."

* A voice like smoke and honey said his name, and Lamont sucked in a breath at the sound of the familiar voice. His grip on the phone tightened. "Emeraude?! You're back? What hap...?" He fell silent at her next words, listening intently. For the second time, anger and the darkness clawed its way up his soul, but he pushed it away. Ragyn had stripped the Princess of her power and sent her to Earth...hoping she would die of her own accord, an ordinary mortal.

Lamont gritted his teeth, nodded slowly, realizing at the same time why he couldn't feel Emeraude's extraordianrily powerful aura, though the psychic signature that all people possessed was still there. "Yes...you must return to your world. I already pledged to help you, Princess. You have my support." His mind touched on the current matter of Ragyn's next move. "Something just as important has come up that I must speak with you about. Where are you?"

She told him.

Not too long after, Jubei stopped the taxi and Lamont stepped into the little nondescript shop. Lamont's heart tightened as his eyes met the Princess'. Her clothes and face were streaked in the dust and dirt of the Tokyo streets, yet her beauty still did not fail to shine. Like a damaged flower that refused to fall. Her attractive blue eyes widened as she saw him.

"Emeraude!" He crossed the room and very nearly embraced her, yet feeling she might be offended, he clapsed her hands instead. "I'm glad you're all right...we've things to talk about, but you'd better come with me. It's not safe for you alone."

Emeraude nodded as Lamont took her hands in his. "Yes, I know." She looked towards Leilani who was waiting at the door. "But wait..."

The maiden walked towards the other woman and gave her a beautiful and elaborate golden necklace. "I want you to have this, thank you so much."

They said good-bye once more and Emeraude entered the car with Lamont. "Alright...please tell me what you have on your mind."

Ascot's cheeks coloured very very slightly at the bright words and eyes of the sapphire-eyed Knight whom addressed him on a lighter note. He felt that these knights were so at home here.. they were a comfortable feeling, when seen... he thought that.. they would be much better off... if they.. Ascot bit his lip.

"Eh.. Umi-san.." He laughed lightly, but then heard the entrance of a certain red-haired Pillar of Cephiro. Turning, he was about to wave at her, when he spied a familiar face.. someone whom.. Ascot's face grew astonished as the sight registered in his mind. Nova!! But.. he wasn't quite sure what to say. Though.. though his apprehension spoiled him, he took note of the lack of hostility around her.. the rouge-haired, elven counterpart of the She from another world. Perhaps she was friend then..? Of course, Ascot hadn't been informed of the truce between She and Hikaru.

+

Zazu grew quiet, though didn't catch Arista-san's gaze as she looked over him. The mahogany-eyed boy only stood back, quietly backing against the large, double-doors in which they had entered in through. The Magic Knights were here.. surely that meant that everyone.. and everything would be okay..? It was.. ominous.. it must be! His thoughts reveled in what was to happen with their coming.. and the return of.. of Nova, even!! Nova.. she had.. with Eagle.. Zazu pushed the memory away from his mind.

There was no time or tolerance for such depression now, he mused...

The young man sighed. He was worried about.. about Geo, now. He'd already lost one friend; he really didn't expect himself to hold any if he were forced to lose another.. Geo was all he had left. But he caught himself, and stole a glance over at the tall, intriguing, Autozamian beauty who stood resolute and contained through all of this. Was she his friend..? He was eager to know what had kept her all this.. this time. Though those matters could be tended to later.

Zazu bit his lip and shadowed his face with the rim of his hat.

*

Seeing that Fuu seemed to be limping slightly, Ferio moved to stand beside her. He extended an arm in order to give her something to lean onto, trying to act as a support. "Are you okay? What happened?" he asked the golden-haired Wind Knight with a worried frown.

Suddenly, the prince noticed Hikaru Shidou arriving at the scene, accompanied by a familiar figure. Nova...? Involuntarily, Ferio moved closer to Fuu, ready to protect her, should the need arise. However, it didn't seem as if Nova was going to do anything against them... On the contrary. The elfin girl was standing beside her counterpart, certainly making no attempts to harm anyone in any way.

As strange as it was, Ferio couldn't help being relieved that nothing truly unsettling was taking place and everyone was safe. He turned his attention back to Fuu, giving her a smile.

* Nova glanced at Ascot, Zazu, and Ferio, who all seemed uneasy about her presence, Zazu especially. She walked forward a little and opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Then, Nova looked down to the floor and thought to herself, "How could I ever think to ask for their forgiveness? I don't deserve it after all that I've done, even if I was under Debonair's control."

* It was so bright... So incredibly bright... The light was piercing and painful to look at...'I must be dead by now... I...' Unexpectedly, the light vanished. At the same time, Quatre felt a sharp jolt rattling his whole being as he came in contact with something hard and flat. The impact fortunately did nothing more than knock the wind out of him.

'I guess... I must be still alive... But... why?'

With a small moan, the boy cracked open his eyes, allowing soft sunlight to fill his vision. He coughed several times, clutching at his midsection as a searing pain shot through him. A collage of events flooded into his mind.

Failed mission...? Getting shot... An explosion... A bright, blinding light...

Quatre grimaced, attempting to breathe properly. He hurt all over, even the slightest movement was difficult to perform. How ridiculous... He could laugh, really. The situation seemed to be strangely comical all of a sudden.

"I don't even know where I am..." he murmured, voice uncomfortably scratchy. Gazing around as he remained sitting in the dewy grass, the blonde pilot noticed that his surroundings seemed to be a forest. He couldn't recall having been anywhere near a forest before the mission...

Looking faintly curious, Quatre struggled to his feet. That was obviously a mistake. Instantly, a wave of dizziness swept over him and he had to grab onto a nearby tree trunk to support himself. 'Wufei would call me weak...' he mused, a sad smile tugging at the corners of his lips. Were the others here too?

* Lamont too smiled and nodded his thanks at the shopkeeper. He wouldn't forget this. "Thank you for taking care of my friend." He watched as the Princess handed her a beautifully crafted gold necklace. It was only right she had something so valuable. She could be playing a part in saving their lives, the world in fact.

At the sight of Emeraude, surprise was evident on Juebi's face as they stepped in, but he kept silent and drove. Lamont turned to the Princess as she asked him what it was. His grey eyes lingered on hers a moment, then he spoke. "It's Ragyn...you know that he has been attacking friends close to the Magic Knights, one by one. Weeks later, he assaults their families. I've very recently learned that only one has not been affected: the Hououjis."

Silence befell them for a moment as Lamont shifted in his seat. Shadows cast on the sidewalk seemed to elongate and spread with the seting sun. There was something about the darkness in the cab as well. It seemed to be alive...

The man who had once been known as the Butcher of Lhasa spoke again. "I don't know what he could want with any of them, but I feel it's part of his campaign against the Magic Knights. He strikes tonight. And I must stop him." It could have been just an illusion caused the darkness...but the grey in Lamont's eyes sudenly seemed to flare up and blaze emerald, as if someone had poured gas into a flame.

The taxi stopped at a corner, and Lamont stepped out and held his hand out to Emeraude. Together they walked down a lonely alley, then Lamont slid up a particular brick behind a dumpster and input a code into the number pad behind it.

Lamont took Emeraude's hand again as a part of the brick wall slid to the side, revealing steps going downward. "My...other home. From where I wage my personal war." His hand squeezed hers gently, he could sense her apprehension. "Don't be afraid Princess. You are safe. I have promised to protect you and I don't intend to back down on it." He smiled reassuringly.

Caldina's feet were light as she jogged towards the castle, eager to meet with the Knights she was almost certain she had spied. And if she wasn't mistaken, she heard.. a bit of a commotion up at the Palace up ahead... laughter and.. Well, her hearing wasn't so advanced that she could pick up just exactly what they were speaking of.. But she knew that they had returned!!

The airy sound of the bells adorning her outfit rang out through the forest; a lulling, surreal sound... Caldina noticed that the sound of her seemed to put most off guard, and left her to pick up on any unseen being.. And that is just what she heard. An offbeat, shuffling sound interrupted her thoughts, and instantly, hearing the unnatural groping of it, she halted.

As she stood, inquisitive, crystalline depths of her blue eyes scanning the skies and keen, youth-inflected ears listening into the forests, Caldina could.. hear something.. it was something..

It sounded as breathing sounds.. laboured breathing.. The young woman bit her lip apprehensively. Someone was nearby.. someone.. Taking a few cautious steps forward, hands on hips, Caldina peered in through the trees. Her brow knotted.

"Helllooo..? Is th'someone the'ah? 'Ah you hurt..?" Caldina called out semi-quietly, into the depths of the trees, hoping for a response.. a someone who didn't talk was... unnerving.. Caldina caught her breath and bit her lip. The chizetan charmer peered further into the trees, stepping lightly so as not to give herself away.. these were times in which not everyone could be trusted..

The light, lustrous pink hair that framed her face glinted distantly as she wandered furhter and further away from the light, and into the soft dark of the protective canopy of the forest.

"... Hello... heeeelllooOOoo! Hello; are you ok..aaahhaa!" Caldina stumbled as she stopped in her track,spying what she did.

A boy... he looked.. about 14 years old.. or 15. Her mouth worked, but nothing came. The boy's hair was of the lightest gold, his eyes of the softest, sky blue. Though.. his face.. he was deathly pale.. sweating, Caldina noticed, even from where she was. The boy supported himself on the side of a tree trunk, and seemed to be struggling for air.. But his face.. she'd never seen it..

"Oh m'stahs... mah poor little darlin.. Are you holdin' up okay? Sug?" Caldina went to his side, and searched his features for any signs of inevitable death. Instantly though, before she could check him at all, The boy's muscles relaxed onto her as she put an arm around his waist to support him. He seemed.. she needed to help him.

"Can you talk..? .. eh.. what am 'ah doin'.. you need help, quick! What sort uvvah monstah' am 'ah.. askin' you poor dear all these questions.."

Megor dashed through the desert and finally reached a nearby town. This town was rather close to the castle, and the dark warrior's eyes could view the castle from a distance. This put a small smile on Megor's face as he prepared to head towards the castle. It would not be long now. Not long at all before he could finally meet his younger sister Umi at last.

Skyhawk walked through the forest, not making so much as a sound as his feet clearly touched the ground. He kept his mind set on finding pieces for his communicator,but it had seemed that this land was not very good with technology. What was he going to do now? His communicator was down. No not down,gone,and he had nothing better to work with. He clenched his fists and uttered a single curse as he continued to think about his next plan. He finally thought about it,and realized that it would be better for him to head back to the castle,perhaps,and see if his now-found brother was doing well. He started to turn,when suddenly,he heard a woman's voice talking. It was a girl's voice. The forest seemed to be a dangerous place,so the beshaded warrior decided upon himself to head towards the voice. He walked until he finally met up with a mysterious young lady and a golden haired young man as well. Perhaps they were fighting,or it was a battle that concerned him not at all. However,Black Lotus was not here,and he at last got to make his own decisions and judgements. He smiled at this thought and placed his hands in his pockets and walked towards Caldina and Quatre. "Is everything alright? This young man seems to be injured. If needed,I can provide protection,while you get him to the castle." He said with a calm composure.

Hikaru noted everyone's uneasyness about Nova and frowned slightly. First Lantis is not here now everyone is shying away from Nova. Hikaru sighed, "Please everyone...Nova isn't going to hurt us. We are at peace with each other and I hope you can make peace with her too." she fingered Lantis' necklace and smiled, "It looks like you're all alright, I was really worried. Things haven't been going well in our world and I had this odd feeling that there were some problems going on here. So, is there anything us Magic Knights should know?"

The Shadow and the Princess descended down the steps into what seemed to be a wolf's mouth. The brick wall slid closed behind them and for two seconds, the stairway was bathed in total black...until several small light bulbs activated of their own accord and illuminated the way down for them. Lamont gently held the Princess' arm and smiled. "Watch your step now."

Sable shadows cast by the feeble light shifted around them as they descended. Perhaps the Princess was already noticing something about this living darkness that seemed to surround Lamont like a mammoth blanket.

Some traditions around the world, like the Chinese, held that a man's shadow was a reflection of his soul.

The two reached the bottom into an even better illuminated large room. "Welcome to the Sanctum." said Lamont, as he slipped off the coat he had placed around Emeraude's shoulders and hung it nearby. He ran a hand through his hair, let it linger on his forehead a moment and rubbed his temples, frowning slightly. He DID need more rest and sleep, but it would have to wait. "Please make yourself at home, Princess." he said reassuringly as he pulled up a large comfortable leather chair for her and poured her a glass of soda. He could have given her something else like brandy, but he figured it wouldn't be good for her at the moment.

He went to one of the corners of the room towards the pantry, opened a drawer and found a cup of instant noodles. He grinned. "This is all the food I have at the moment. Are you hungry, Princess?"

Kaine sat on a bench outside an inn on the outskirts of the capital. He was holding his head in his hands and mumbling to himself.

'I saw three people fall from the sky. I know I didn't imagine that. I told the Elders that I wasn't the right man for the job but they wouldn't listen to me. Kaine, what have you gotten yourself into?'