Slayers GD: Generation of the Dragon©

Book 4

A fanfic by Behemel Fatereaver

Chapter 1: Journey! The Smell of Money and Freedom!

What a beautiful day today! A couple days on the road does a kid's spirit wonders. The sun was shining. The birds were singing. The butts of bandits were burning.

Oh, did I throw you there? Let's backtrack here for a second.

The corny trash talk was just plain sad.

"Give us your money and no one gets hurt!" a bandit, one of a whole gang before us blurted out. My first response to them however was a tired sigh.

Honestly, don't these Neanderthals have anything better to do?

"Don't get smart with us!" another bandit piped in, pointing his sword at the three of us-- Rion, Cassandra, and me. Sadly, it only made the gang look even lamer.

Our travel north had been fairly smooth for the first two days since we'd set out. We'd had taken the back roads in hopes from running into any bandit gangs-- and our pursuers.

And then as luck would have it, in came the brainless bandits. Despite their threats, we had seen worse foes. Of 1 to 10, 1 being the weakest thing worth fighting, they didn't even make 1.

"Cockroaches..." Rion, our recent ally said as if he'd spitted on them. Rion; short for Rionos, was the mysterious, honorable avenger-hero type. Despite my lack of knowledge in swordsmanship, he was the best swordsman I've ever seen. Far older than Cassandra and me, he stood tall with his sword at his hip. With his brown cloak and large hat, it made him all the more mysterious. He turned his gaze away from them in disgust. "I've swatted pests like these in my sleep."

"Y-you better not get an attitude with us!" another bandit shouted, slight nervousness trembling in his tone.

Just then, another one of the idiot vandals shouted out. "Hey, what's she doing?" he shouted and pointed.

Clinging to a tree like a koala was Cassandra, my third companion and classmate. She inched her way up the tree. I just rolled my eyes, knowing what was to come. "In a minute. You'll see."

At that time, the bandits just about had enough of talking. "Alright! Enough's enough! If you won't hand over your coin, then will pick em' from your bloody remains!" the head bandit spoke as they took a step towards us.

"Freeze, villains!" a voice cried from above, sounding as loud as the Voice of Doom.

...And there she is...

The bandits gawked up towards the tree. Standing on a branch of the tree was, naturally, Cassandra. She stood there tall above the rest of us, sticking her chest out in proud superiority. The bandits below just pointed up at her, saying "who's that?" and "where'd she come from?" as if they'd didn't noticed her a few seconds ago.

Standing proudly in the sunshine, she raised a hand and then pointed down at the villains below like some, all-powerful deity about to rain hellfire upon us.

"Evil fiends who steal from the efforts of others," Cassandra announced, "I, Cassandra, the Hero of Justice shall not stand for your ways. Heaven will hold none for you!"

"It wont?!" the bandits all asked dumbly, simultaneously. So I was wrong. They had a brain, but they shared it with one another.

Now this is just all kinds of sad.

Continuing on, Cassandra then gave a dramatic toss of her hair over her shoulder. "It's too late to repent! I am the mighty hand of heaven! By my virtuous power, be prepared to accept your fate!"

Translation: I'm Justice and I'm about to kick your butt.

"Yaa!" she cried and jumped high from her branch. Like the drama queen she was, Cassandra gave a flip in the air and then fell for the ground below. She spun, she fell, then...

SPLAT!

Her whole dramatic entrance went to hell as she missed her landing and landed face-first with the road. She was always doing this. Despite she's the best student in my class she wasn't the best when it came to acrobatics.

"Cassandra!" Rion cried. Shocked for a second, Rion knelt over to Cassandra to make sure if she wasn't unconscious. "Are you alright?"

Cassandra then spat out a twig and coughed. Almost immediately, she quickly stood up before Rion. She planted her hands on her hips, standing up tall before the bandits. "You need not worry!" Cassandra laughed, pretending her fall didn't happen. Yet it did, and her wobbling legs and her dizzy stance was enough to prove it. "It'll take more than that to break my spirit!"

...But wasn't it enough to crack your brain?

One of the masked bandits came to his senses and spoke to the others. "I think," he mumbled to his buddies, "We shouldn't mess with these people."

Forget it pal, I thought as I already chanted a spell. I'll teach you to try and attack future world-renown sorcerer, Zane Cosmon!

To make a short story shorter, our fight ended sooner than it started. After all, for Cassandra and me, two students of the Saillune Sorcery Academy, our powerful offence magic spells were more than enough to handle a sorry band of bandits. A dodge here and there, a couple of fireballs there. Walla. The end.

"Hey, you two," Rion said as the battle was over. He hadn't even drawn his sword since we finished the job so quickly. The road was littered with the burnt bandits we toasted, knocked out from the fight. Metaphorically and literally.

"Had you waited, I could have dealt with them for you," Rion said, a bored tone was in his voice.

"Thanks for the offer," I said and turned to give him a smile. "But I need the practice. Besides, I always need a way to vent out my frustration."

Cassandra then gave me a sarcastic glance. "Of course," she said with that cheery tone, "It's so better you blow up villains instead of blowing up the school grounds with your spells."

I just gave her a crossed stare of my own. The idea of blasting her to the moon with a Blast Bomb spell tempted me. But it would kill her, so I didn't. Oh well. A guy can dream, can't he?

Just then, the sound of a groan caught my attention. Turning around, the three of us looked to find one bandit who hadn't fallen unconscious from the fight. Still on the ground, he slowly sat up, several burns on his clothes and unkempt face.

"I can't believe this..." he grumbled, ignorant that we'd saw him. "Beaten by one guy, a crazy girl, and a pipsqueak sorcerer..."

A nerve in my mind snapped.

"Crazy girl...?" Cassandra asked, peeved.

"Pipsqueak...?" I asked, even more peeved.

Hearing us, the bandit looked up to see us. His face went pale as he saw the anger on our faces.

"Dill Brand!!!" we both cried simultaneously.

The ground exploded, casting a grand amount of dust into the air. We sent the bandit flying through the air, screaming as he was sent airborne. As he flew away, falling far out of sight beyond the trees, another object fell back towards us. With the dust cloud settling, a small brown bag fell towards me and I caught it.

I blinked for a moment in surprise as it fell right into my lap; figuratively speaking. Curious, I gave it a shake. The sound of coins jingled in my hand, igniting a smirk on my face. "Lucky!" I cheered, showing the sack of gold to Rion and Cassandra.

"Zane," Cassandra then pouted, about to burst my bubble with a lecture. "Don't you dare! That's stealing, and stealing is wrong!" she said and wagged a finger at me.

I kept my temper inside as I let out a sigh at her. "Okay..." I said and held out the bag to her.

"Say it," Cassandra instructed, "What did you learn?"

I sighed again. "Stealing is wrong..."

"Very good," Cassandra said and reached for the bag.

And with a flick of my wrist, I jerked the bag right out of her hand before she could take it. "... Except when it's from bandits!" I laughed and flashed a smirk.

Peeved again, Cassandra gave me a crossed glare. "Zane...!" Cassandra growled. I could so picture steam coming out from her ears.

Oh, unclench! Don't be such a prude, Cassandra!

***

For those of you who don't keep up with current events, Professor Cosmon is here to fill in the blanks for you. I'm sure you're all wondering why my friends and I are traveling. So listen up, and pay attention.

To sum things up, Cassandra and I are students of the Saillune Sorcery Academy; sorcerers and priests in-training. Over the past couple months, I had been targeted by these vicious monsters called Mazoku; demons of the astral plain. They were after me because (pause for dramatic effect)... I hold a mighty power that holds the balance of our world.

The power I have is actually the Soul of Ceiphied, the king of the dragon gods of this world. Supposedly, Ceiphied's Soul had been reincarnating itself in other humans, growing stronger in preparation to one day be resurrected. Apparently, I was the next in line to have it.

Anyway, after several battles with Cassandra at my side, fending off attacks to kidnap me, the Mazoku finally captured me. It was then they revealed what my hidden power was. Their goal: to plunge the world into darkness by destroying the god's soul. I won't complicate things by explaining every little detail. Your fault for not keeping track!

Back to what I was saying, I was captured, but I was rescued by Cassandra. She had teleported from Saillune, sprung me loose and we escaped the enemy's stronghold. And shortly after, we met Rion, a Mazoku hunter. He's a bit of a mystery I'm still trying to figure out.

Current situation: Now the Mazoku race is after me. Lost, far from Saillune, we journey back home with Rion as our guide. Saillune is the only safe place I can think of that can help us.

Okay! End of flashback already!

And to the present: After having left those pathetic bandits behind us, Rion, Cassandra and I traveled towards the mountains. Night came, and to our luck we found an inn just before the light of day disappeared.

The night was crisp and cool. It was late at night, everyone fast asleep. Cassandra and Rion slept in separate rooms as did I. Rion, the clever gentlemen he was, convinced me to pay for the rooms with the money we got from the bandits.

Everyone must have been asleep by now. Disappointingly, I was still wide awake. So many things were rushing through my head. Lying in my bed, I looked at the golden tattoo of the Ceiphied I had branded upon the back of my hand. The simple thought that I held a god's soul inside my own body was enough to make anyone reflect.

But the truth was at that moment... I was excited.

I smirked as I thought of something else. When we blasted those bandits and reaped their stolen loot as our own, it felt exhilarating. It was like those stories I read about Lina Inverse when she was renowned as "the bandit killer". She'd swat those bandits, and make a prophet off of it. And in truth, the legends about her from two hundred years ago were what inspired me to be the world's greatest sorcerer. She's my idol. I couldn't wait until tomorrow for a chance to do it again.

... But why wait.

Smirking all the more, I promptly rolled out of bed. Grabbing my cloak which hung off a desk chair and my shoes, I put them on and proceeded towards the window. My breath left moisture across the glass as I looked out. The road was dark, lit only by the wading moon and the stars above. Being careful not to make a sound, I slowly opened the window and climbed outside. After levitating down to the ground, I quickly ran into the woods.

A small word of advice for all you travelers. Bandits are as common as bugs. And like all bugs, you got to learn how to swat them. That's why I took up sorcery. I lacked in physical strength compared to someone like Rion. But what swordsman could throw fireballs or shoot lightning? In any case, you need to know how to defend yourselves on the highway. But the fact that bandits are so common, you'd have no trouble finding them.

And sure enough after sneaking about the forest for a distance, I found a camping of bandits not too far up the mountain. The blaze of the bonfire they build was a clear give away, followed by the loud chatters of drunken bozos that were there so late at night. They looked like bandits if I'd ever seen one.

Peeking through the safety of the brush, I looked as the bandits celebrated recklessly. Their camp was placed right before a ruin in which I assumed they stashed their loot. I must have hit the jackpot tonight. There were roughly twenty or thirty of them. If I wanted to take them out fast, I was going to need the element of surprise.

"Piece of cake," I said in a breath's whisper. Taking a deep breath in preparation, I raised my hand with the Ceiphied tattoo on it and chanted a spell, causing the tattoo to glow. The spell I cast was an amplification spell, in which using the tattoo on my hand, I could tap into Ceiphied's Soul at will to amplify my spells. I began to murmur another chant under my breath. And with it, a ball of fiery light appeared in my palm. "Fireball," I spoke simply and gently tossed it over the brush.

The ball of light fluttered slowly out overhead and into the air. The bright light caught the bandits' attention as it gleamed in the night's sky. Like a feather, the ball slowly came back down to earth in the center of the camp.

And then it happened.

The moment it touched down, the ball of light erupted in a tremendous, fiery explosion. Flames shot out everywhere, jumping onto several bandits who ran in fright, chaos and pure stupidity. Confused to where the attack had come from, the bandits, all drunk by the way, ran about in fright.

Taking my cue, I began to cast another spell from the safety of my hideout. "Dug Wave."

This time the earth exploded, sending a mighty shockwave in all directions. I made sure to keep my spells clear of the building. If anyone was in there, they'd be sure to come out to find out what was happening. Once all is clear, I'd slip in and swipe their treasure.

Deciding to cause the last bit of fright, I chanted one last spell to send them flying. "Vice Flare!" And fire spewed out everywhere, also setting the bottles of ale the bandits had ablaze to my advantage. Soon enough, the bandits had all ran off and out of sight, screaming like frightened rodents into the woods.

As soon as the burnt patches of the ground smoldered out, I got out from my hiding place and looked around. All was quiet now and no sign of anyone was in the ruin. Smirking, I ran towards the ruin.

Inside was a simple large treasure chest. Not finding any stragglers from the bandit gang, I approached and opened the chest. A gasp of enjoyment escaped my lips as I found the bandits' stash. Several gold objects, jewels and other articles of value glimmered as I looked at them. I took a moment to enjoy the sensation of beating the bad guys and reaping such rewards.

Bandit bashing rocks!

Realizing I didn't have a knapsack or anything to carry all of it, I decided to sort the treasure out for the objects of most value. I mostly took gemstones and magic items that could be useful to me.

After filling my pockets, I was about to take off my cloak to use as a sack to carry anything else. But just then, a voice from behind called out, "What do you think you're doing here?!"

Oh-no...

A shook went up my spine as I froze. Had it been a bandit come back for his already stolen treasure, I would have Blast Bomb his butt to hell. However, I hesitantly turned around and saw those of who I dreaded it was.

"Cassandra! Rion! Hi, there! What brings you here this evening?" I gave a grand smile and scratched the back of my head. My tone was casual and cheery. That always helps.

Standing in the entranceway of the ruin was Cassandra and Rion. Fully dressed, the two stared at me with crossed looks. Cassandra seemed even more crossed. "I could ask you the same question," Rion said rather sternly, his voice a cold grumble. "Why are you out here?"

It was clear by the stern looks on their face that they were upset. Shrinking a bit as I knelt there, I gave a nervous chuckle. "Well, he-he. I couldn't sleep when there were laws being broken. Evil never rests and no rest for the weary, as they say." I laughed a little, but the concrete faces of my comrades didn't fade. A frown of disappointment quickly overcame me, realizing I was caught.

Cassandra was trembling with anger. "Zane..." she growled, about to burst in frustration. And then she did, shouting at me so loud my ears shook. "WHY ARE YOU ALWAYS DOING STUFF LIKE THIS!?"

"How'd you find me here anyway?" I shouted back at her.

"We could hear the explosions all the way back at the inn!" Cassandra shouted again.

Tossing back on my cloak, I stood up to them proudly. "Okay, fine," I said clearly and unafraid. "I'm bandit hunting!"

"Quit fooling around!" Rion said.

Who's fooling around? It's true!

"I'm not!" I rebutted, "I just liked it when we beat those bandits yesterday and took their loot. It felt so fun! I just couldn't wait until we got another chance. Besides, they're bandits! There's nothing wrong with stealing from bandits, right? Right?"

With a mutter under his breath that sounded like a foreign swear, Rion grabbed me by the wrist and began yanking me along as he walked out of the ruin.

"Wait-Wait-Wait! I'm not done yet! My treasure!" I wailed and protested. He still kept walking.

Finally getting me out of the ruin, Rion dragged me out into the open clearing where the bandit camp once stood. All was leveled and turned extra crispy, smoke still smoldering off the rubble. Stopping in the center, Rion turned around and firmly clamped his hand over my shoulders.

He knelt down to my height and looked me strait in the eye. "Let me explain something to you, Zane!" Rion snapped, his tone furious. It was clear he was seriously pissed off. "We are trying to avoid an organization of Mazoku searching for you. If you go off and cast such explosive spells right and left, you might as well send them an invitation telling them where to find you! Your fights can end up giving away our location!"

I was quiet, listening to him attentively. I was used to being scold for my mistakes. I just didn't think of this possibility. "Okay," I breathed nervously before Rion. His face was so stern it was frightening. "I'm really sorry. I didn't know. I won't be so reckless with my fire spells, okay?"

Taking a sigh, Rion nodded in agreement. "Alright them," he said calmly. He let go of my shoulders and stood up. "Let's head back to the inn before those bandits come to their senses."

"That's it?" Cassandra groaned, disappointed. "No punishment? No scolding? Where's the justice in that?"

I gave her a look through the corner of my eye at her as we began to walk into the woods. "Oh, knock it off," I sighed tiredly, "It's late."

"Not late enough it seems for you to cause mass destruction," she added, "as always."

Too tired to argue with her, I just sighed as we followed Rion through the thick forest. "Oh, please," I begged, "Give it a rest."

All of a sudden, I ended up bumping into Rion as he came to a sudden stop.

"Rion!" I said as I backed up from him. "What's the deal? Why'd you stop?"

"Quiet!" he whispered sharply. Looking at him I could see he was on guard. "We're not alone here." He must have sensed someone. I quickly scanned my surroundings for presences but couldn't find anything. That worried me.

"Is it the bandits?" Cassandra asked, staying close behind Rion.

"Do you think it might be Grou?" I dared to ask, being on guard for the high-level Mazoku general.

"Neither," Rion said simply with a hand laid on his sword as he glanced at the dark woods around us. "Whoever it is, he sure is talented to get so close without us knowing."

I felt my stomach turn and my spine shiver under nervousness. The silence of night was maddening, knowing someone was in hiding nearby. It was just plain suffocating as we waited.

Having enough, I stepped out from the cover of Rion and into plain view. "Alright, come on out!" I shouted aloud into the night. "We know you're out there!"

"Zane!" Cassandra shrieked, surprised I just said what I said. I couldn't help it. I wasn't about to sit quiet like a sitting duck. Cut the suspense, I say!

"Stupid coward!" I egged our hidden stalker, "We know you're here so there's little point for hiding now!"

Still, the deafening silence hung in the air. I stepped further out into the open, on my guard. "I'm waiting!" I shouted.

"What a short temper," a voice growled gently in the dark. "Just as I expected of you, Zane Cosmon."

Alarmed, I turned towards the voice. Cassandra and Rion too turned in reaction. From the treetops, a dark blur of movement dropped down to the ground. Landing into a crouch, the person knelt before us was clothed in black.

I gave a silent gasp as I saw who it was. Slowly he stood up, his black clothes melding with the night. The assassin figure was not a man, but a werewolf. Covering his mussel he wore a scarf, acting as a mask. He wore a headband, giving way to a wild mane of grey-silver hair which ran down his back. But most of all, his eyes pierced the darkness, glowing with a killer instinct.

The werewolf assassin... Alpha...

I knew him all too well, like a disease. It was his attempt to kidnap me months ago which started this whole mess. And now, there he was...

"Hello Alpha," I spoke in a sarcastic spat. His eyes narrowed on me, sensing my bitter tone. "Or do you prefer, The Big Bad Wolf?"

Alpha gave a small growl at my under his breath. I loved getting his goat. A word to all future victims of this werewolf's wrath: His primary weakness is cracks referring him to fairytale antagonists. J

"The Alpha?" Rion asked, slightly surprised. "The famous assassin?"

"He's one of Grou's henchmen," Cassandra told Rion worriedly. Her eyes were glued to Alpha in worry. "He's the one who kidnapped Zane from Saillune in the first place."

All the while, Alpha's gaze remained on me. I stared strait back at Alpha, my gaze strait and firm at the assassin. "And how are you this evening, boy?" Alpha said, pretending to act pleasant in his grim tone.

"Cut the garbage!" I scold at Alpha and pointed a finger at him. "So you found me again! Congratulations! I expected less considering you sold yourself out to be a lack dog for Grou!" I saw Alpha's eyes narrow with anger as he listened to me. "But if you think I'm going to let you capture me twice, you got another thing coming!"

Standing fully erect, Alpha then crossed his arms leisurely as always, his efforts so first-rate, he needed no reason to be on guard. "That will not be necessary, Zane Cosmon," Alpha spoke. "Actually, I came here to personally inform you that I no longer work for Grou's organization."

Got to admit there, he caught me by surprise. "Excuse me...?" I said, my reaction the same as Cassandra's as she came out from behind Rion.

Lowering his arms, Alpha stood where he was, never moving an inch forward. "You see, after you left our base in ruins, Grou was not happy to say the least. No wrath like a demon's scorn, as they say." Still worried, I listened to him as I kept my guard up. "Anyway, afterwards I had enough of serving him so I withdrew my services."

In other words, he got tired to the Mazoku and ditched them. Figures.

Looking at him, I noticed the crimson red crystal that hung around his neck. The mysterious Chaos Crystals which Grou gave to his minions. "So why are you still wearing that thing?" I said, pointing to the crimson stone. It was a magical item which amplified dark magic and allowed one to cast spells powered by dead Dark Lords. I should know. I swiped one from a Mazoku when I escaped their base.

"Just a keepsake of my time there," he said simply, a touch of sarcasm in his tone as well. "It comes in handy as I'm sure you're aware."

"Whatever," I dismissed with a wave of my hand. "So what's the point Alpha?"

His eyes then narrowed to me once more. The glint of his wolfish eyes once again flashed at me. "I just wanted to inform you of my withdrawal from Grou," he said in an icy calm, "So you see, I have no reason to kidnap you anymore."

A chill of discomfort ran down my spine again. His eyes were piercing as if his words were of other meaning. I didn't like it. I didn't like it one bit. The suspicion of his tone spurred another long silence around us.

"...Well," I replied with a nervous smile, "Thank you so much for coming out here to tell us that. I'm so glad we could come to a mutual understanding."

Still, the discomforting looks in Alpha's eyes were anything but reassuring. I slowly began to back away from him. "So, good luck job hunting. See ya. Take care. Bu-bye then," I said and turned away.

"Not so fast," Alpha said.

I knew it...

Stopping in my tracks, I slowly turned back around to Alpha. "Yes..." I replied hesitantly, almost afraid to ask.

Alpha's gaze still remained on me as he took a small step forward from the cover of the brush. "Despite my resign with General Grou," Alpha spoke grimly, "I still have a bone to pick with you."

I gave a hesitant step back, defiantly not liking his tone of voice. "A-About what?"

And just then, even though under the cover of his mask, I think I saw him crack a sinister smirk. "Tying up loose ends, of course," he growled sinisterly.

I grew rigid with fright and my eyes widen with alarm. Tying up loose ends? Is that Mafia talk for... gulp, doing me in!? I was so scared with the idea of Alpha kidnapping me, I forgot to consider the fact of him actually killing me.

"O-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho!" A loud laugh rang through the bitter tension between Alpha and me. It was Cassandra's laugh. A word of warning: The one thing worse than Cassandra's speeches is her laugh.

With her laugh, Cassandra leapt forward next to me. Her confidence was now smoldering, her expression enthused now with her desire for justice. "Ha! You shouldn't make promises you can't fulfill!" she spoke proudly, her hand on her hip in her heroic pose. "If you think we'd allow you to threaten one of us without resistance, then you're an idiot!"

"Do not think you won't suffer my wrath, little girl," Alpha snarled under his masked mussel. I saw Cassandra flinch with fear at his words. "You, too, in your final moment shall feel the sting of my blade."

"O-Oh yeah?" Cassandra retorted and pointed at Alpha. "You and what army?"

At that moment, Alpha gave a forbidding chuckle. As he did, he raised up his paw and snapped his fingers. All of a sudden from the brush and trees, the figures of assassin-clothed werewolves stepped into view. All of them wore full-face masks. One by one, they soundlessly came out of hiding, appearing from the brush and trees. Rion, Cassandra and I quickly looked around us as more appeared. I counted twelve of them. They had us surrounded in the small clearing, trapped.

"You just had to say it," I said bleakly to Cassandra.

"Allow me to introduce my pack," Alpha said calmly, his wild hair the only identification amongst his pack. "As you can see, there is no escape. And now..." He slowly reached to his side and drew his sword. "...Let us cut to the chase, shall we?"

I stepped back instinctively, Cassandra doing the same. My legs felt ready to cave in fright.

"Not so fast," Rion spoke calmly. To our surprise Rion strolled around us and stood before Alpha. Remaining calm, our swordsman ally stared crossly at the head assassin. "If you wish to harm these children, you'll have to go through me first."

Oooh! Classic line, Rion.

"I refuse to stand idly by while you threaten to kill those under my care," Rion said and with a loud zing of metal, he drew his sword.

"You wish to die before the whelps?" Alpha hissed in a dark tone, "Very well. Prepare to perish, pathetic human!"

Alpha immediately leapt forth with amazing speed, his sword poised towards Rion. At first I thought Rion would be stabbed clear through, but as always, Rion never ceased to amaze me. Rion directly charged head-on with Alpha as swift as the wind. The two collided with a clash of metal and sparks lit the dark around them. Moving fast, Alpha and Rion separated and struck their swords again.

Their moves were so fast I could barely keep sight of them. Rion's speed matched that of Alpha's as they clashed swords. Sparks flew as their blades violently met. Cassandra, the other werewolf assassins and I watched as the two were matched in skill.

Giving a loud war cry, Rion gave a wide sweep of his sword to meet Alpha. Unfortunately, Alpha blocked the forceful strike with his sword. Locked together, Rion stared right at Alpha, their faces inches away from each other.

"So you're no ordinary man, are you?" Alpha said in slight amusement. Rion looked shocked, amazed how matched the lupine assassin was to his own skills. A look of bloodlust glimmered in Alpha's eye. "This will be interesting," the werewolf said, pushing his sword against Rion's.

"Zane!" Rion shouted sternly over his shoulder, "Take Cassandra and go!"

I saw suddenly perplexed by Rion's command, his back constantly to us as he held off Alpha. "What?!" I shouted, "We can't just--!"

"Do as I say!" Rion replied in a loud tone. Still, he held his ground against Alpha. "Don't worry about me! I'll meet up with you later! Just run!"

Realizing we had no other options, I turned to Cassandra and took hold of her arm. "Let's go!" I told her.

"But we can't leave Rion here!" Cassandra shrieked in disbelief.

I tugged her slightly in emphasis of our dire situation. "He'll be fine, but we can't stay here!" I said, "It's not safe!"

"But what about justice?!"

"Forget about the justice! We're in danger!" I scold at her in panic.

"Don't let them get away!" Alpha boomed from where he fought. Answering their leader, the surrounding masked werewolves quickly began their approach, closing in on Cassandra and me.

Realizing the peril, Cassandra quickly chanted a spell and raised her hand overhead. "Dark Mist!" she shouted. From her hand, a haze of pitch black swept around us. The black smoke engulfed us, Rion, Alpha and all his goons. The sound of the goons' shouts and the clash of swords filled the black space. Despite the smokescreen, it didn't guarantee that the ninja werewolves wouldn't know how to find us in it regardless.

"Now's our chance," Cassandra said. This time tugging me, Cassandra guided us through the thick darkness of her spell, leaving the shouts of our pursuers behind us. Breaking into a run, Cassandra and I ran away as fast as we could and successfully out of the black mist. With the sounds of Alpha and his pack behind us, we hastily ran deeper into the forest.

***

The still silence of the cold night hung around us as we finally stopped running. We had run for what felt like an hour, doing our best to ditch Alpha's pack. It was now probably early morning already, the sun still far from showing anytime soon. Feeling we had made promising distance between us and them, Cassandra and I finally stopped to breathe. Panting, we knelt in the thick grove of trees with our hands on our knees. The both of us were exhausted, not to mention tired on the account for the late night hour.

"Zane," Cassandra asked, her upbeat tone now sounding worried. "Do you think Rion's going to be okay?"

Truthfully, I felt terrible leaving him there by himself. Alpha was as merciless as they come. The fact that he was now gunning for my head made him all the more terrifying. I told myself not to worry. Rion was the strongest out of all of us. But still...

"Zane?" Cassandra asked again.

"Oh, sorry," I mumbled, "What is it?"

"Do you think Rion's okay?"

Taking a deep breath, I put myself together. "I'm sure he's fine," I assured Cassandra. "I hate to admit it, but Rion is stronger than the both of us. I'm sure he escaped okay."

Cassandra gulped, trying her best not to worry her head off about Rion. "So, what should we do now?"

I pondered for a bit. We had to reach Saillune. It was the only safe place we could think of against Grou's Mazoku forces. Rion knew this, so if we continued north for Saillune, Rion would sure to find us eventually.

"The best thing for us to do is continue on towards Saillune. Rion said he'd meet us later, so we need to have faith in him that he'll pull through," I reasoned aloud. Cassandra nodded in agreement. "For the moment, let's just find somewhere safe until sunrise."

"What a pity," a voice growled, "too bad you won't be alive to see sunrise, pups."

A chilling laugh followed the voice, causing us both to look around in alarm. "Dammit," I grumbled, recognizing the growl as one a werewolf had. Alpha's goons must have followed us.

"Two little kids all alone in the woods," another voice spoke sinisterly. Had they been anywhere around, I'd punch them clear in their snouts. "You shouldn't be out here all alone. Never know what might be out here at night."

"OH, SHUT IT!" I cried out into the thicket of trees. "Come out already, ya flea-infested morons!"

And then, they did. Answering my shouting, two figures stepped out from behind the trees before us. They were two masked werewolves of Alpha's pack. Almost looking identical, the two looked at us calmly from behind their masks. In their paws they held odd looking chain whips. Not a pretty picture of what they'd use them for.

"My, how rude these runts are getting these days," one of them said with a sinister snicker. "What shall we do about them, brother?"

The other one flexed the chain in his hand. "I think we need to teach them a little respect," he dawdled on, causing both Cassandra and me to prepare ourselves. "Besides, I want to have my fun before Master Alpha disposes of them."

"You can try!" Cassandra boomed, infuriated.

The two snickered and then all of a sudden charged. Prepared for a fight, I made the first move. Holding out my hand, I finished chanting my spell. "Burst Rondo!" An array of fiery balls of light burst forth towards them. Just then in the blink of an eye, they separated, dodging my fire spell between them.

"You first," one of them hissed, each one of them holding an end of the steel chain. All of a sudden, they shot around me so fast they appeared like blurs. Too fast for me to stop, they dashed over me and strait at Cassandra.

Before I could warn her, the two werewolves already snagged Cassandra with their chain. Caught, Cassandra was sent flying backwards along with the chain as the two werewolves tugged her along on either side. Cassandra ended up slamming her back against the trunk of a tree as the chain clenched to her. And with their lightning-quick speed, the two werewolves seemed to spin around like a whirlwind. Before Cassandra knew it, she had been completely tied up by the chain, unable to move.

I looked in shock as I saw the scene end as quickly as it begun. Cassandra now tugged relentlessly against the chain wrapped around her body. Only her hands, head and legs were remotely free, each of them moving to get out of the binds. "Cassandra--!" I shouted but suddenly froze. Behind me I heard the sound of another chain's rattle. Turning around I found the two werewolf assassins behind me, looking down at me with mischievous eyes.

"Eeep!" was all I could get out.

"And now it's your turn..." the other assassin chuckled. With another chain held between them, they lunged at me, milliseconds to strike. Unable to launch a counter attack, I braced for the worst.

All of a sudden, a bright flash of white light shot right in front of me, knocking the chain away. The bolt of light cracked the earth before me open, startling the assassins and caused them to let go of the chain.

Startled myself, I took a step back not knowing what just happened. Then out of nowhere, several more bolts of light flashed, this time at Cassandra. With swift strikes, the bolts of light struck and shattered the chains holding Cassandra, freeing her in seconds.

The both of us were confused to say the least, let alone the two assassins that had tried to gift wrap us for Alpha. "What was that?" I ended up saying out of impulse.

"My, my, are servants of the notorious Alpha so weak they can only risk fighting children?" a rather carefree and almost pleasant voice spoke from the trees. It sounded so awkwardly friendly I nearly thought I was hearing things. Alpha's goon's reaction proved me wrong.

"Y-You again?!" one of the werewolves raged in detest.

"Despicable priest! How dare you get in our way!" the other snarled.

It was pretty clear that those two were not friends of the guy who just came on the scene. Curious and surprised, Cassandra and I quickly looked to who had intervened.

Chapter 2: Friend or Foe? The Mysterious Priest Returns!

Standing in a small clearing was a young man. He looked to be in his early twenties and was of medium figure with dark hair cropped below his chin. He was clothed in black robes, common amongst most priests. In his hand he held a staff that looked like it came strait from a tree branch with a ruby embedded on top. He stood there rather simply, an out-of-place smile resting smugly on his face.

It was safe to say this guy wasn't with Alpha. The snarls coming from the masked werewolf brothers were enough to tell. "You've crossed us for the last time, freak!" one of them said as he tossed his brother another end of a long chain. Bloodlust was flaring between the brothers at the black robed priest. Slowly I stepped back from the vicinity, Cassandra doing the same.

All the while, the smile on the priest's face never left. "Oh please, you two," the priest appealed, "Let's not fight. I have no desire to kill you. I only wished if you would take me to your leader."

The look on the wolves' faces narrowed on the priest. "Oh we'll take you to him, alright..."

"...In pieces!" the other brother shouted.

With a loud snarl, the two flew off again towards the priest. From their paws I saw the chain sprout daggers like a saw as they charged, prepared to attack him the same way they attacked Cassandra. Moving fast, they closed in on the stationary priest.

"Oh dear," the priest sighed, "I guess I have no choice." And just then, the priest was gone. He had somehow leapt up into the air, just avoiding the werewolves' chain assault. Up in the air, he then held out his hand towards the chain. "Balus Rod!" From his hands, a whip of light appeared and shot out. He whipped it and snagged the chain.

With a tug in midair, the priest sent the chain back-lashing at its wielders. Snagged in the opposite direction, the chain uncontrollably whipped around at the two werewolves who held it. Still moving at high speed, the two were suddenly snagged by the chain and ended up tripping. In a second, the werewolves violently crashed into a nearby tree. Still whipping about, the chain whip instantly wrapped around the tree, along with the werewolf assassins it once belonged to.

Wha-?! was my immediate response as I saw the priest's work. He turned the assassins' own weapon against them, looking as if it was effortless.

Falling back to the ground, the priest landed aside the tree with his staff still in hand. Flipping his cloak in a cool gesture, he held out a hand towards the tree he had the wolves tied us. Not even looking at them, the priest spoke the Chaos Words to a spell.

"Blast Ash!"

From his hand a black mass like that of Cassandra's Dark Mist shot out, enveloping the space behind him. The air screeched loudly as the two werewolves screamed but quickly silenced as the black energy sizzled in the night air. Just as quickly had it appeared, the black cloud departed. A new clearing had been made from the result of the priest's spell. Standing in the space where the tree once stood was but a pile of ash. He had vaporized them, along with the entire tree.

Slowly, the priest stood up from his crouched pose. Looking at his doing, he then gave a tired sigh. "Hmm," the priest said as if in mild disappointment, "Perhaps I went a bit too far." But turning around, I saw that same smile still on his face. "Oh well, easy come, easy go."

Okay, I think I met my first sociopath.

The guy was seriously creeping me out. Keeping that happy lil' smirk while he VAPORIZED two skilled assassins was making me think he was some sort of runaway nutcase.

"This guy scares me..." Cassandra whispered in a sing-song voice, just as freaked out by the guy as I was.

Slowly, we stepped further away from the priest while his back was turned. "Maybe we can sneak away without being noticed," I whispered back as we turned for the forest.

"Excuse me,"

Oh crap!

Cassandra and I froze in our tracks at the priest's call. Slowly turning back around, we looked to find the priest standing calmly with his staff at hand. His smile brightened as he looked towards us. "I hope I'm not being rude to ask," the priest said politely, "but do you know where those assassins and their leader congregate?"

Out of habit when I'm nervous, I scratched the back of my head and gave a nervous chuckle. "Us?" I asked modestly, "Well--no, unfortunately!"

Just then, the black robed priest slowly approached us. Standing firm, Cassandra and I awaited the priest as he drew near, not knowing who he was or what he wanted. His eye all of a sudden came to my hand, seeing the glimmer of the gold tattoo of Ceiphied on it I used as a magic amplifier.

Enthused by the sight, the priest grabbed my wrist and pulled my hand forth so he could see the tattoo. The crest on my hand acted as a magical amplifier, tied into my hidden power of Ceiphied's Soul. His interest in it was starting to worry me.

"My, what a curious marking you have there," he said simply, "Are you a priest yourself?"

"Uh, well yeah," I said, slightly startled by the man. "Do you mind letting go. You're kind of invading my personal space."

Cocking an eyebrow, he let go of my wrist. "My apologies," he said and with closed eyes he gave that same carefree smirk. "Perhaps I was being too forward." I think he could sense our unease from his presence.

"Um, excuse me sir," Cassandra asked in hesitant politeness, "just who are you?"

A gentle wind blew through the forest, flapping the priest's cloak in a dramatic wave as he paused for a moment. "Of course, where are my manners?" he said casually, "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Xellos, the Mysterious Priest."

Cassandra and I looked bleakly at the priest now known as Xellos, his smile ever present. His title was nothing to smirk about. "Mysterious...Priest...?" I asked, suspicion touching my voice.

"That's right," Xellos beamed.

Riiiiight...

A long pause hung between us. Cassandra, like me, gave him a bleak stare of distrust. Who goes around willfully calling themselves 'the mysterious priest' anyway? We ended up meeting quite the odd ball this time. Uncomfortable, I felt it was time for Cassandra and me to leave.

"Okay... well, thanks for saving us and everything," I said, trying to sound genially grateful as possible at the same time backing away. Cassandra did the same, smiling her own cheerful smile. "See ya."

A chuckle came from the priest. "Where are you two going in such a hurry?" Xellos asked, cocking his head in a curious gesture.

Turning around, Cassandra glanced at him over her shoulder. "There are more of those assassin werewolves after us," she said shyly. "We just want to get out of here before more show up."

The smile on Xellos brightened again. I just glanced one last time at him, feeling uneasy. "Uh, see you later." With that, Cassandra and I walked away and further into the dark forest.

***

Dawn had come after we finally found the road leading through the forest. The singing of the birds was comforting as we walked north up the mountain path. The chill of winter was present in the air. No surprise since we were traveling through a mountainous part of the continent. I could see snow further up the mountain, several miles away.

We had avoided conflict after we escaped Alpha's two assassin's Xellos took care of for us. Cassandra and I had generally smooth sailing. The only problem was the third set of footsteps that sounded behind us on the gravel road. It had been following us since we traveled out again. The worse thing was, I knew who it was and he was starting to get on my nerves.

I stopped in my tracks for a moment. As Cassandra stopped with me, the third person stopped as well several feet behind. Infuriated, I spun around to find, who else, but the annoying priest Xellos.

"Stop following us!" I shouted, this being the third time I told him to go away.

"I'm not following you," Xellos replied simply.

"Then why are you towing along several feet behind us?"

Xellos cocked an eyebrow at me, perplexed by my hostility. "This happens to be the only road leading through the mountains," he replied.

I felt like Blast Bombing him. He'd been following us ever since we left him in the forest. Having a mysterious priest following us wasn't exactly comforting. We had enough problems with psychos like Alpha and Grou.

Feeling my blood boil, I turned around to Cassandra and continued to walk. With the two of us walking, Xellos relentlessly followed. "Okay," I whispered to Cassandra as we walked, "I know he seems friendly at first sight, but he's defiantly got something up his sleeve."

"I know what you mean," Cassandra whispered back in agreement. Stealing a look over her shoulder, she glanced again at Xellos and turned back. "Someone who willfully calls themselves mysterious isn't too settling for me either. He's too suspicious."

"So what do we do?"

"Let's just see if he's really following us," Cassandra suggested. I nodded in agreement, already getting a plan in mind.

Turning around, I looked to Xellos with a pained smile on my face. "Since you're not following us, I hope you don't mind if we go up ahead," I told Xellos matter-of-factly. The priest just smiled at me. "Would you Xellos?"

"Of course not," he said welcomingly, "do as you please?"

And with that, I grabbed Cassandra by the arm and immediately ran down the road, leaving Xellos behind. Cassandra gave a surprised cry as I pulled her along, she beginning to run along with me down the road. Still running, I looked over my shoulder to see the weird priest shrinking into the distance.

Finally after taking several turns on the path, Cassandra insisted we stop running and I obliged. I turned around again. Xellos was out of sight. We must have left him about half a mile down the road. If he was still walking at a simple pace, he'd never catch up with us.

I took a much needed sigh of relief. "Thank god, we lost him," I breathed, "I bet we left him in the dust."

"Did we have to run so fast?" Cassandra complained, panting still. "I had my fill of running last night."

"Listen," I stressed, already feeling the pressure of our fatal situation building upon me. "We already have enough troubles with Mazoku conspiracies and assassin beast men. I personally don't want to get involved with a nutcase priest."

"You talking about me?" a familiar upbeat voice said.

I froze in disbelief. It can't be. Turning around, I looked to who it was. Standing just behind us was none other than Xellos. He stood there calmly with that cheerful look and smirk.

"Xellos!" Cassandra shouted, surprised to see him as much as I was. "W-What... H-How did you get...?" She stuttered in disbelief. We had run so far, so fast and this guy had just caught up with us in seconds and it didn't even looked like he broke a sweat. How the hell did he catch up with us so quickly?!

Xellos scratched the back of his neck in a modest gesture. "Well, I was going to honor your wishes," he dawdled on, "but then I realized it would probably be safer for all of us if we traveled together. There's safety in numbers, as they say."

A chill crept up my back. It wasn't a malevolent chill, but an uncomforting one nonetheless. I slowly staggered a step back, faking a smile as I did so.

"Riiiiight..." I said slowly. As I did, I backed up next to Cassandra and took a hold of her arm again. "If you would excuse us, Cassandra and I need to speak of this privately..." And just then, I gripped Cassandra's arm hard, causing her to squeal in surprise as I took a short dash in the opposite direction.

"Raywing!!" I shouted and with my spell, the wind took a hold of us. Staying close to the ground, I literally shot down the road at high speed flight, dragging Cassandra with me. I heard her scream over the rushing wind of my spell, 'Zane Cosmon, I'm gonna kill you for this!'

After speeding down the forest road for a bit, I looked over my shoulder to see that Xellos was clear out of sight. Thank god! Still in a bit of a panic, I immediately turned my flight path towards the woods and flew into the thicket of trees. With Cassandra shouting behind me, I found a thick grove of bushes near the road and landed behind them.

While I landed safely, Cassandra managed to tumble to the ground unprepared for my landing. Quickly, I peeked over the brush. Not a sign of anyone was there. "Whew," I breathed as I sunk back behind the bushes, "we lost him--"

"What the heck was that for?!" Cassandra shouted at me dead in the face. I flinched at her anger. "How'd you like it if I dragged you around like a sack of potatoes, huh!?"

"Sorry, but we had to get away from him," I stressed as I peeked over the side of the bush. Pushing her way next to me, Cassandra looked as well, keeping watch for the priest. "I think it's safe to say we're not imagining this. He is following us."

"But why," Cassandra asked, "Could he be a hired gun for the Mazoku after us?"

I shook my head at the thought. "I hope not. But I know there's no way he could follow us after flying off like that. There's no way he'll find us here."

"Psst, who are we hiding from?" Xellos whispered.

My mind went blank at that moment. Surprised, Cassandra and I turned around to find Xellos knelt behind us. A long silence hung around us. We stared at him dumbly, blinked a couple of times, and then...

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!"

Screaming, Cassandra and I jumped in fright from the bushes and ended up tumbling over one another back onto the road. Landing with a painful thud, we got tangled up in one another's limbs.

Okay, I thought as the pain of my fall jump-started my rational thought. Now this is getting ridiculous!

As we quickly untangled ourselves, Xellos stood up and emerged from the thicket. Getting back to our feet, Cassandra and I looked to confront the mysterious priest as he smirked at us curiously.

"Were you playing hide and seek or something?" Xellos asked innocently.

I cast an infuriated growl at him. "Alright! That's enough!" I shouted, unable to control my temper. In hard stomps, I marched up to Xellos with gritted teeth. "Just what do you want from us!?"

"Me?" Xellos replied, his voice sounding hurt as if offended. "Why, I don't want anything from you."

"Oh please!" Cassandra shouted, just as suspicious of the priest as I was. "Then why have you been following us since dawn? Don't try to deny it!"

Xellos pondered the question, pressing a finger to his chin in thought. With scowls on our faces, we waited for the mysterious priest to answer. Then, he raised his finger and smirked. "That is a secret," he said simply.

AAUUGH!!!

Growing a first-class headache, I erupted with an infuriated scream. "That's it!" I yelled at Xellos. Shocked by my outburst Cassandra responded, but Xellos's calm expression never faded. Getting right into Xellos's face, my eyes stabbed right into his. "SIT DOWN!" I shouted.

Acknowledging happily, Xellos knelt onto the grass aside the road in an honorable squat, his staff across his lap. Prepared to interrogate, Cassandra and I sat down, forming a powwow amongst the priest. "Okay. No more games, Xellos," I said firmly to him, his grin shrinking a tad at my directness. "Just who are you and what do you want?"

He paused for a while, just glancing at Cassandra and me curiously. Finally giving a remorseful sigh, he dropped the act and gave a small frown. "Okay, I'll tell you," he surrendered.

Finally!

Cassandra and I listened intently as Xellos began, his smile returning onto his face. "You see, I am on a quest of grave importance," he summed simply.

"A quest?" Cassandra asked.

"Yes," Xellos explained as he looked at us calmly. "My master had instructed me to find several magic items of devastating potential and destroy them. These objects are so dangerous that they could threaten the very fabric of our world."

I had to admit those words peeked my curiosity. I grew slightly tense as I listened. "What are these magic items called anyway?" I couldn't help but ask.

Xellos smiled again calmly. "They're called," he spoke, "the Chaos Crystals."

Cassandra and I gave a silent gasp as we heard Xellos. The Chaos Crystals?! I felt myself involuntarily grip the one I had from through my shirt. What a minute?! How dangerous is this small shard of crystal anyway!?

Xellos continued. "You see," he spoke like a lecturer, pointing a finger up in exclamation. "The Chaos Crystals are actually..."

"...Fragments of the Sea of Chaos, right?" I finished for him.

At that moment, Xellos eyes widen with attention and his smirk faded. Had I made light of this situation, I would have celebrated for wiping that smirk off his face. "Huh? How do you know about that?" Xellos asked.

I stole a glance at Cassandra for a moment, and then turned back to Xellos. With that, I reached down into my shirt and tugged the silk cord off my head. "That's because..." I said as I held out the ruby-red crystal before Xellos, "... Cassandra and I have one."

Xellos almost jumped with surprise, his eyes wide with disbelief as he saw the crystal right before him. "W-W-" Xellos struggled to say, blown away by the small crystal shard. "Where did you get that?!" he shouted.

"From the remains of a Mazoku we'd happen to defeat," I said modestly, "I thought it would be smart to have one, just in case."

Surprising me, Xellos's expression grew grave with worry. "Forgive me for saying," he started, "But you have no idea how dangerous that crystal truly is."

I was starting to worry. What did he know about this thing that I didn't? Grou said it drew powers from Dark Lords that were destroyed and now dwelled in the depths of the Sea of Chaos. It amplified Dark Magic and allowed the user to cast spells from dead Mazoku, but that's all I knew. I used it once, but I never got the chance to truly test its capabilities.

Cassandra grew concerned as well. "Why is this crystal so dangerous Xellos?" she asked kindly.

Xellos now rested his staff along the ground where he sat. "Let me explain. Since you have the crystal, you must already know it can allow you to call on power from Dark Lords which have been deceased and amplify Dark Magic spells, right?" he asked. I nodded, confirming his assumption. "Okay. Imagine if you would, the Chaos Crystal as a doorway between our world and the Sea of Chaos. When someone uses the crystal, it allows energy from whichever source you're trying to draw in the Sea of Chaos to travel through into this world."

I nodded as he continued. "Now imagine if the user calls on too much power from such a place. It would blow the door between our worlds off its hinges. If say I tried using the crystal several times constantly, it is quite possible the power can turn back on me. That energy can quite possibly consume me if I was reckless."

This was new information for me. "So you're saying the crystal can cause a rebound against the spellcaster, right?" I asked.

"Exactly," Xellos said, raising a finger.

I should have known better. Any Dark Magic had the risk of going out of control. I was careful anytime I had cast one and took my time casting it, but I never thought such an amplifier would be so dangerous. I needed to be more careful if I use the Chaos Crystal anytime soon.

And then, my thoughts drifted back to Alpha. Yes, I was going to need that crystal to survive his wrath.

"Okay Xellos," I tried to change the subject. The idea of a devastating object hanging around my neck was making me feel short of breath. "Your reason is all well and good, but why exactly were you following us?"

Xellos smirked again. "Well you see, recently I received a tip that the leader of a band of assassins had got his hands on one of the Chaos Crystals," he explained.

Alpha. Figures...

"Anyway, I have been searching for him for quite some time. When I tried to convince his followers to introduce me to him, I fear they didn't take too well to me. So I ended up tracking them down and then, I happened to find them along with you," Xellos said. "I overheard that those assassins were after you for some reason or another. So I thought if I just stick near you, I'd find the one who has the Chaos Crystal."

I grew a sour scowl. "So basically," I grumbled. "You want to use us as bait."

Xellos leaned back, holding up his hands in apology. "Oh, no, no! Nothing like that," Xellos hastily corrected. "I don't mean to make light of your situation and I really could use your help."

Cassandra and I exchanged glances. The priest seemed like an okay guy, but his calmness was still a bit unsettling. "But back to the issue at hand here," Xellos interrupted, his smile now aglow. "I was wondering if you would sell that Chaos Crystal of yours to me."

"WHAT?!" I cried. His tone was so calm and upbeat about it I almost thought he was joking. I couldn't part with the crystal right NOW. I still have Mazoku cultist after my butt. It's the only real weapon I have against them and he wants me to SELL IT!?

"I'm prepared to meet any price you want for it!" Xellos continued, smiling like a proud merchant. "Anything at all! As you know it is vital for me to retrieve those crystals, so I really do need them."

I need this too, you screwy priest!

"N-Now hold on a minute!" I shouted and gripped the crystal tight. "I can't just give this away! I need it!

Xellos's expression never changed. "Please understand. I must retrieve them. I'd thought you'd be relieved that I would take such a dangerous artifact off your hands."

"It's not that simple, Xellos!"

"Please be reasonable, young priest," Xellos said. And just then, his eyes narrowed at me with a serious, almost stern look. "I'd hate to have to take it from you by force."

Realizing he was serious, I lowered my tone and looked at Xellos in the eye. "Now just hold on a second, Xellos," I said calmly and his stare lessened. "You don't understand. The reason Cassandra and I need this crystal is because the people we took it from are after us."

"After you, you mean," Cassandra corrected curtly. I gave her a sharp glance.

Curious, Xellos blinked. "They're after you? Is it because you stole the crystal from them?" he asked courteously.

"No," I sighed in frustration. "They were after me long before I snagged it." The thought of the Mazoku conspiracy really started to bum me out. I was on the demon's most wanted list. "It's complicated," I summed hesitantly.

Xellos hummed in thought. I could tell the gears in his awkward mind were turning. "Forgive my asking," he said, "But tell me, who is after you anyway."

I sighed again. I guess I wasn't about to get out of telling him the painful details. I glanced at Cassandra and she just shrugged at me. With it my decision, I turned to Xellos. "Okay. The people after me are a Mazoku organization," I told Xellos as he listened attentively. "Actually, Alpha used to be a part of them. They are run under the command of a Mazoku general named Grou."

"EEEEAAAAGGH!?" Xellos shouted in surprise as if I sprouted three heads. "G-General Grou's involved with this?"

A jolt zapped in my head as I heard Xellos's reaction. "Huh! Wait!" I asked, Cassandra and me leaning towards him in surprised. "You know Grou?!" I asked Xellos crossly.

Recovering from his shock, Xellos scratched the back of his head in thought and glanced at the ground. "Well, sort of," Xellos said hesitantly. "We've sort of...bumped heads a while ago."

I gave a sigh. Well that was a relief. It was clear to me that Xellos wasn't friends with the enemy. That was a bit reassuring. Still, with Xellos's overall attitude it was hard to trust him.

And then, an idea popped into my head. I gave a smirk towards Cassandra, who looked at me with a questionable glance and I turned back to Xellos. "Well, Xellos," I said as I stood up. "You're in luck. The Chaos Crystal I have is not just from Grou's henchmen, but they were distributed by Grou himself."

Xellos eyes seemed to widen at the news. I think I surprised him, just openly telling him like this. And then, absorbing in the information, Xellos smirked. "So it appears," Xellos pieced together, "we have a common enemy."

"Exactly," I said confidently as Cassandra stood up beside me. "So, how about we make a deal, Xellos? You can tag along with us and help us against the Mazoku after us. No doubt that they'll have the other Chaos Crystals with them. It's a win-win situation for the both of us."

Xellos raised an eye brow at me. "But?" he asked. He knew I was about to say 'but'.

"Truth is, I'd gladly give you the Chaos Crystal," I confirmed for him, "but I needed it to keep a competitive edge against our enemy. So here's the deal. You can travel with us and we'll help you retrieve the other Chaos Crystals. In exchange, you let me keep this one. Once we successfully defeated the Mazoku conspiracy after me and destroy the other crystals, I'll give you the one I have."

Interested, Xellos scratched his chin in thought. "Hmm," he hummed, and then smiled up at me. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend it seems."

I nodded in agreement to the black robed priest. Using his staff to prop himself up, Xellos returned to his feet. "Very well," Xellos said happily. "I accept your terms. Besides, your assistance can be of great asset to me."

At that moment, Cassandra butted in with a cough. "Not to interrupt," Cassandra said, "but don't you think we should be focusing on our current problem? You know, Alpha and finding our friend Rion."

Xellos cocked his head curiously like an owl. "Rion?" he asked.

"Our other ally," I explained, "We got separated when Alpha attacked us earlier."

Xellos nodded, understanding our predicament. "Sounds like you two lead lives that are anything but dull," he said, trying to sound optimistic.

As I say, being normal is vastly overrated.

"Anyway," Xellos beamed and reached into his robes, "before we go, I want you to have this. Think of it as a way to seal the deal. I think it will aid you more than it will me."

From his dark robes he pulled out an old scroll and handed it to me. "What is it?" I asked as I took the scroll.

"A powerful spell, said to have been written several thousand years ago by Rei Magnus. I fear it won't do a lot of good for me. And besides, it seems like you could use it more."

Rei Magnus!? For a weird priest, Xellos was well informed!

Curious, Cassandra and I peered at the scroll as I slowly opened it. The text was in red runes, arcane language. Luckily I learned the meanings of the runes from school during my first year. No sweat. I skimmed the first few lines of the scroll.

After the first few lines, I gasped. "This is..."

"What is it?!" Cassandra asked, not seeing the part I read yet.

I spun to Cassandra. "It's another spell that draws on the power of Ruby-Eye Shabranigdo, the dark lord!" I said enthusiastically, amazed by it. I read further on into the spell.

"You mean the dark lord who powers the Dragon Slave spell?" Cassandra asked.

"Yeah," I said, my eyes still glued to the scroll. "But this spell is different. Drawing on the same power, this spell creates a blade of red energy in the caster's hands." I read the text, unable to believe I found such a spell. "Its power says to be even stronger than the legendary Sword of Light!"

All of a sudden, my overjoyed emotions stopped as my rational thought came back. I immediately rolled up the scroll to see Xellos. The smirk on his face was still there. I gave him a suspicious look.

"Wait a minute," I asked, my gaze piercing at his. "What do you mean it won't do a lot of good for you? Why are you just giving me this?"

Xellos gave a small laugh as he scratched the back of his head. "Well as you can see, the spell conjures a sword. And I fear I have no skill with a sword, me being a humble priest and all."

Suspicious herself, Cassandra leaned forward towards him. "Hey, just where did you get this scroll from anyway?"

Xellos stopped in silence to think. Cassandra and I both leaned closer to him, stabbing him with our stern gaze. And then, all of a sudden, Xellos gave a small chuckle and wagged a finger.

"Now that is," he said cheerfully, "a secret."

Cassandra and I fell over, stunned.

Screwy priest!

I slowly stood up, restraining myself from wanting to strangle Xellos, but because of his generosity for giving me a new spell, I let it go.

"In any event," Xellos said cheerfully, "we should get going. No sense dallying when we have foes searching for us."

Cassandra then stood up as Xellos took lead and began to walk down the road. Peering back at us over his shoulder, he still smiled. "Coming?" he joked.

At that moment, throwing a fireball at him was starting to become mighty tempting.

***

The air grew crisper as we headed further up the mountain range. Even though it was spring, up here it felt unfamiliarly like winter. Snow dotted the fields around us as we walked. Further up the mountain range we could see more snow up to the summit. I welcomed the scenery. I only wish I could say the same for the company.

The group's total was now three: Cassandra, Xellos, and I. Leading the way, we headed up the road towards the mountain's pass, the fastest way north we knew. Now don't get me wrong. Despite my raving of Cassandra's over perkiness, I welcomed her upbeat company in this dire situation so far from home. It was Xellos that worried me.

We had kept quiet since we decided to let him join. Now I'll tell you. I have no doubt in my mind that Xellos's mission was all well and good, but I got the feeling he wasn't being completely honest with me. He was unnerving to be around before. Now that he became part of our party, it felt like a weight was on the back of my shoulder. Plus all the while, that same smile kept on his face. Who smiles like that all the time?! It's not natural.

"Ah," Xellos said pleasantly, "What a lovely day today."

I narrowed my eyes at him grumpily. "Glad you enjoy it," I replied.

But during that time, Cassandra seemed worried as she walked along with us. "I hope Rion's okay..." she said sadly.

I turned to Cassandra. Her concern was clear on her face. Concerned for her, I gave a reassuring smile. "Don't be. Rion was a loner before we even met him," I reminded Cassandra. "He'll be just fine. He's probably out there looking for us right now."

Just then, Cassandra then stopped in her tracks as her mood seemed to lighten up a bit. "Then..." Cassandra mused in thought, "... let's wait for a bit."

I stopped for a second and turned to her. Xellos stopped as well, his staff touching the ground. "What?" I asked.

"Well, if Rion is looking for us, maybe if we wait for a little bit he'll find us," Cassandra said hopefully, "He is a pretty good tracker. If we just wait for a couple minutes to rest, he just might catch up with us."

Despite her optimism, I couldn't help but frown. "That or our enemies will," I said, "Rion said to keep going. Besides, if we stay here we'll be easy pickings for Alpha or Grou's men."

Cassandra gave a small pout and turned her head away. "If you really cared about Rion, you wouldn't be so objective," she spoke, stuck up. I gave a small grumble under my breath, restraining myself from starting another argument with her.

"I fear Zane might be right," Xellos piped with a tap of his staff against the ground. The both of us turned to him in attention. His smile had turned into a slight frown. "In case no one else had noticed, we have company."

At that mention, I quickly darted my gaze around us through the wide plains. Senses alert, I struggled to find anything out there. "Is it Alpha or his men?" I asked in alarm. Finding no one out there, I quickly turned back to Xellos.

Xellos just scratched the back of his head as if embarrassed. "Hmm, not so much," he hummed.

Just then, a low, dumb sounding chuckle sounded before us. "A-ha-ha-ha!" it bellowed, "I've found you! Yay for me!"

Then from out of thin air right in front of us, the weirdest thing happened. Out of the clear space of the mountain air, two weird eyes blinked into existence before us. After that, a wide, almost cartoon-like grin appeared below the eyes. The disembodied face stared at us like something from a freaked-out funhouse.

I couldn't help but gape at the ridicules sight. "Uh..." I spoke dumbfounded. Cassandra was the same. "...Are you the Chester Cat?" I tried to joke.

"No," it spoke in that dumb tone of voice, "I'm a powerful Mazoku sent by Lord Grou to capture you."

Oh great...

Cassandra and I gave the floating eyeballs an unthreatened look. "Like we're really scared of a disembodied head," I spoke dully at our enemy. "Oh, I'm shaking in fear."

"Don't try to mock me!" the Mazoku shouted. "I'm a powerful monster! You'd outta beg me for your lives!" At that point, his eyes narrowed into angry glares. "Behold my all powerful form!"

At that moment, the space between and around his eyes and wide smirk began to fill in with a purplish energy. It bent about like jelly, dripping outward to form the silhouette of his body. Once the dark energy had filled up the space, it disappeared, revealing the monster's form.

"Ta-daaaa!" he cheered dumbly.

I fell speechless again.

Standing right before us was a large white creature. It had a pink underbelly, its body and head almost looked like a part of each other in a strange, unnatural way. Two long ears stuck up from the top of its head. Behind him, he had a tail that strangely resembled a cotton ball. From my point of view... the monster seemed to look like a very strange, very freaky, bunny rabbit.

The urge to laugh shook through me at the very sight of him. At first I held it in, but then it building up more, it finally came out. Cassandra and I ended up bursting into laughter. I almost fell over from it.

Not having moved an inch from when he appeared, the bunny Mazoku stood there dumbly with the grin, looking at us laugh. "What...? What's so funny?"

I couldn't breath I was laughing so much. Cassandra was now rolling on the ground, cracking up in laughter. "You--You... Ahaha!" I tried to get out between laughs, "Pal, you look ridiculous!"

At that point as our laughs finally calmed down, the bunny-eared Mazoku finally got angry and narrowed its eyes at us furiously. "You little brats! I'll teach you to fear my power!"

The Mazoku all of a sudden gave a rather large hop into the air and landed right in front of us. At first I was about to attack and cast a spell, but just as he landed, he simply leapt away from us to where he was before.

The moment Cassandra and I got to our senses, something new had happened. Standing in front of us where Floppy-ears had hopped from stood a large, decorated red egg. I stared blankly at it, unable to believe the sour irony there. The Mazoku bunny had laid an Easter egg.

This is one sad Mazoku here, people.

Cassandra giggled a bit, suppressing the urge to laugh again.

At that moment, the Mazoku shouted. "Feel the wrath of my power!" he wailed annoyingly. And just then, as I though he was just blowing off hot air, something happened. The egg that he'd laid earlier began to glow. The hum of building energy was heard from inside it as it grew louder and glowed brighter.

An inner voice shouted a rather simple command in my head: Run! Having grabbed Cassandra by the arm, I yanked her away from the egg, ran a safe distance and ducked.

The egg suddenly exploded, fire scorching the area where we once stood. Looking back towards the spot, I looked to find the explosion left quite a crater in the road, almost making me dislocate my jaw in surprise.

Was that a Burst Flare!?

The smoke then began to clear, and from it I heard the Mazoku's dumb laugh. His silhouette showed through the smoke as he approached closer. "He-he-he. Did you like my little surprise?" Bunny-ears chuckled. And with that, he began to hop his way towards us. "Don't worry! I have plenty for everybody!"

The Easter Bunny is never going to look the same to me again!

While he was about to bounce upon us, Cassandra and I quickly ran for it into the surrounding fields. No sooner had we'd ran, he left another one of his eggs there as he hopped after us, only to explode a few seconds later. The Mazoku was quickly on our heels, hopping behind us.

"Attacked by exploding Easter eggs," Cassandra shouted in disbelief, "This is so embarrassing!"

All of a sudden the bunny Mazoku leapt over our heads. No sooner did he land ahead of us, he jumped away again, but not before leaving one of his little surprises. Dead ahead of us was a yellow Easter egg, already glowing and about to burst.

Taken by surprise, Cassandra and I immediately turned right and ran as fast as we could. But it wasn't fast enough as the egg exploded. This time it was a powerful lightning attack that erupted. It exploded everywhere, striking right behind us and sent us flying from the resulting shockwave.

I was sent tumbling across the tall grass, and finally came to a stop. Cassandra had landed near by, her face buried into the ground. I quickly turned around to find the Mazoku rabbit a good distance away for the moment. It had become clear now. He had the ability to use different spell attacks contained in each egg like bombs.

"This is not turning out well..." Cassandra groaned as she slowly got up.

"Keep running," I shouted to her. With that, we got running again as the Mazoku hopped after us. With his mighty jumping, he kept landing and laying eggs across the field. Each time we tried to change direction, he'd lay another egg, causing us to run before it exploded.

"We're getting nowhere running from him!" Cassandra shouted over the exploding eggs, the last one having been another fire spell egg. "Got any ideas?"

"I'm trying!"

Just then, Cassandra and I halted to a stop. The stupid bunny Mazoku had just jumped ahead of us again and landed right in our path. "Got you now!" he chuckled and leapt away again, leaving another egg from whence he stood. I quickly looked around. We were trapped. Surrounding us were three other eggs in each direction. With low hums, the four eggs simultaneously began to glow.

"Cassandra!" I cried in warning.

She was already a step ahead, as always. "Right! Defense!" With her cry she cast her spell.

The four large eggs finally exploded. Lighting, erupting earth, Fire and showering ice blasted off at the same time, looking like a miniature mix of natural disasters. How was I able to describe this, you ask? From behind Cassandra's defensive barrier, it was easy to tell.

Right as the eggs exploded, Cassandra had cast a defense spell just in time, creating a crystalline force field around us. Only the shake of the ground below us was felt as the blast went off. Finally as the throes of the explosions turned into lifting smoke clouds, Cassandra let go of the barrier and it disappeared.

"Whew," Cassandra breathed. "That was close."

I scanned the area until I could sense the Mazoku. "Don't rest yet," I warned, "I got a plan."

As the smoke cleared, I could see the Mazoku watching from a distance. He gave another dumb chuckle. "Nice trick," he huffed in disappointment, "but you won't be so lucky next time!"

"I'll take care of this. On my signal, we'll make the final blow," I whispered to Cassandra. She just nodded silently in confirmation. With that, I stepped forward, a confident smile on my face. "Is that all?" I mocked the bunny Mazoku, waving a hand at him. "Rotten eggs are worse than yours. Come on, give me your best shot, pal!"

I thought I saw steam spurt out of his bunny ears as I egged him on. "OOOHH! You're gonna get it now! You want my best shot, here I come!"

Egg-cellent! Tee-hee.

Taking the bait, he then leapt up high into the sky. I could hear the air screech as he came plummeting back towards earth before me. Acting quickly, I jumped back right as he landed and prepared to cast my spell. No sooner did he land; he jumped back high above again and left another red egg. Another Burst Flare most likely.

Having left his next surprise, he had jumped far in the field and landed where he was before. "You won't escape that one!" he shouted as if he'd already won.

And then, I took action. Finished chanting my spell, I raised my hands up high and stood before the egg. "Dimilar Wind!" The moment I shouted those words, a powerful gust of wind sprang forth from my hands at the egg. Like a catapult, the egg was all of a sudden sent flying through the air and towards my target.

Surprised, the Mazoku looked up at the airborne egg as it hurtled downward. Then as I hoped and aimed for, the red explosive egg landed right into the Mazoku's chest. He caught it with his tiny, bunny-like arms, holding the egg in surprise. And just as he caught it, it began to glow. The Mazoku looked wide eyed at the large egg. "Uh-oh," he said stupidly.

BA-BOOM!

The egg went off right in the Mazoku's grasp. I couldn't help but chuckle a bit at the comical situation. What better way than to use an opponent's own bizarre tactic against him. It wasn't enough to kill a Mazoku, but I bet it did quite a bit of damage. J

"Now!" I called for Cassandra, "Let's do it!" Cassandra and I quickly ran towards the billowing smoke cloud where the Mazoku was hidden in. Reaching the vicinity, we split up, she running to one side and me running to the opposite side for a two-point attack.

The smoke started to clear as we could see the Mazoku dazed, trying to find his balanced through closed eyes. Being swift, I took my position and began to cast a spell. I grasped the Chaos Crystal around my neck and chanted the spell to activate it. On the other side, I saw Cassandra casting her spell too, preparing to fire.

At that moment, the Chaos Crystal came to life and glowed with its crimson glow. Feeling the alien surge of Black Magic, I quickly started the chant for another spell, one that drew power from a now dead Mazoku. A red glow surged through my palms, prepared to fire.

"Uh...what...?" the Mazoku bunny groaned as he finally saw us near. His eyes widen with shock as he saw us prepared to attack.

"Elmekia Flame!" Cassandra shouted.

And I shouted out mine. "Gaav Flare!"

At the same time, Cassandra and I launched our spells, hers a white fiery spear, mine a blazing red one. Shooting forth, they both collided on the very unlucky bunny Mazoku. Exploding upon impact, the demon was engulfed in a mix of white and red flames, eating away at its unearthly form. He gave a loud scream as the supernatural flames quickly devoured him.

"AAAAAAHHHHH!" he wailed, his silhouette breaking away in the glow of the flames. "CURSE YOU...!" And with that, the freaky bunny Mazoku was no more.

Once our spells ended, I finally allowed myself a well deserved sigh of relief. Cassandra did the same across the scorched piece of earth we created. "Well," I tried to joke in reward for our victory, "That was weird."

Cassandra panted a bit as she laid her hands upon her knees for a moment. "You... said it... Whew."

Just then looking around, my mind snapped into attention as I forgot a very important detail. "Hey!" I shouted with concern to Cassandra. She quickly looked up at me. "Where's Xellos?"

Worried, Cassandra and I immediately jumped up to our feet. "Oh-no! Did he get hit by one of those bombs?" Cassandra cried in concern.

I then immediately ran back towards the road in attempt to find any trace of the priest. With Cassandra trailing behind me, we reached the road to where the Mazoku first appeared. Aside the crater where his first egg set off, no other signs of Xellos were near.

"Xellos!" I shouted out aloud. Alarmed, I quickly ran down the road further to find him. Perhaps he had been thrown further down the road from the blast. "Xellos, where are you? Xellos!"

"Yes?" Xellos replied cheerily from where he sat.

KLONG! I fell over at the site of him, reaching a rather painful stop.

Xellos was sitting behind a large bolder leisurely with his staff resting against his shoulder. He was not injured, perfectly untouched. If there were any doubt, the smile on his mug was enough to prove you wrong.

With gritted teeth, I pushed myself back up to my feet and swiped the dust off my clothes. "Xellos!" I shouted in irritation, "Where were you?" Cassandra had a shocked look on her face to find Xellos so relaxed.

"Oh, I was just resting here," Xellos replied simply, unfazed by my reaction. "He had no Chaos Crystal, so I felt there was no need for my intervention."

Cassandra blinked widely in disbelief to hear what Xellos was saying. "Your intervention?!" she cried angrily.

Having gotten closer to Xellos, I stuck my face near his. He only looked at me with that annoying grin of his. "So while we were getting knocked around fighting a rogue Easter Bunny, you decided to slack off and take a NAP!?" I shouted at him.

Xellos gave a small chuckle. "No, not at all," he pleaded while still smiling. Cassandra and I stared like daggers at him, waiting for what he was doing there. There was a small pause, until he finally answered.

"I decided it was more fun to watch the action from here. Wouldn't want to get in your way," he replied, waving a hand dismissively.

I granted him no such dismissal. "Didn't the thought of, maybe, helping us fight ever entered your mind?!" I asked aloud one last time, my temper at its limit.

He thought for a moment, and then he looked up to me with that cheery look. "Nope. Not really."

"DILL BRAND!!"

Xellos went flying as the ground below him erupted. Sent a good distance up into the air, the screwy priest then plummeted back down to earth. Having restrained myself, Xellos landed only with a painful thud on his rump and no serious injuries. He just lied there, dazed and shocked by the sudden flight through the air.

"Perhaps..." Xellos coughed as he regained his thoughts, "... we should not dally."

"Thought so," I agreed crossly.

Chapter 3: Thrill of the Hunt! Alpha's Revenge!

Night had come and thankfully, we all found lodging in an inn conveniently settled on the mountainside. It was a greeted sight to find a safe place to stay and get some well deserved rest. We had been awake for over twenty-four hours and desperately required to recover.

Despite all the comfort the inn provided, I was still infuriated at Xellos. After the battle back in the fields as we headed onward, when I asked him why he didn't help us, he said he'd found watching us fight was most amusing. Even though he complimented of how I could fluidly use the Chaos Crystal and our fighting capabilities, he still made me want to strangle him.

Now I understood why Alpha's goons were so resilient to him. He unwittingly drove people crazy!

However weird and abnormally annoying that day was, I tried to rest and get some sleep. We had rented separate rooms, with thanks to Xellos for his contribution towards the bill. Perhaps he was trying to make amends for his laziness earlier. At least, that was what I hoped.

With the annoying thoughts of Xellos the Mysterious Priest rattling in my head, eventually I was able to go to sleep. However, it was not meant to last.

While in deep sleep, all of a sudden I woke with a start. A sudden bloodlust had shaken me awake from within the tavern. Snow fell gently outside my window as I quickly got out of my bed, fully dressed since I was too exhausted after we'd checked in.

I could sense the bloodlust of a several people from somewhere. Stepping silently, I made my way to my room's door and hid next to it.

Assassins...

Just then, the door opened and on silent feet like shadows, five shrouded figures ran into the room. After a few feet inside, the strange figures came to a halt. With sheets thrown aside, they looked surprised to see the bed empty. I struggled to suppress my laughter.

"He's gone," one of the assassins growled.

"Excuse me," I chirped cheerfully, "Don't you knock?"

The five assassins turned to find that I had jumped out from my hiding place and stood in front of the doorway. Not giving them the time to attack, I quickly chanted a spell in my mind. Bringing my hands together, a ball of yellow light appeared. Tiny sparks flickered inside as it lit the room.

"Is that a Thunderball--?!" one of the men shrieked.

"BINGO!" I threw the ball of yellow light into the room, quickly ran out and slammed the door shut. A chorus of shouts came from the door, and then a loud bang erupted inside. The door jolted for a second, followed by small streams of smoke that trickled out the cracks. Taking a breath of relief, I rested my back against the wall and gazed at the door.

I think I got them.

Just then, the door bolted open. Standing in front of me stood the five masked assassins. Annoyed growls came from the ninjas as if they were not men, but beasts. It was clear now, their masked mussels sticking out and bushy tails behind them that they were defiantly Alpha's men.

The look in their eyes, the only part of them visible by their masked faces, gleamed with anger. Just then, the closest assassin threw his paw out, launching three darts in my direction.

As adrenalin jolted into my system, I threw myself off the wall, the darks striking there just a second after. Taking no time to alert Cassandra or Xellos, I had no choice but make a break for it. I immediately dashed for the end of the hall. It was a dead end with a window. Still I ran, charging for the window as I prepared another spell.

"Thunderball!"

The end of the hall erupted with a burst of electricity, blowing a hole through the wall. Still running, I jumped out of the smoke steaming hole and into the night air. Falling from the second story inn, I landed upon the soft snowy ground, breaking my fall. The snow flurried around me as I quickly ran for the woods, knowing well those werewolf ninjas were coming after me.

The sound of crushing snow sounded beneath me as I ran as fast as I could. The snowflakes floated gently as I ran through the forest of pine trees, all caked with snow on their branches. The snow was up to my ankles as I ran, slowing me down from my usual pace. With no path to follow, I weaved through the trees and brush, desperately trying to gain distance from my pursuers. Before long, I had reached a clearing within the endless forest.

The clearing was no bigger than the size of a large room, providing a momentary pause from the claustrophobic view of endless trees. Legs weak, I stopped in its center, panting from exhaustion. The sky above was dark with black-grey clouds. Snow still drifted down upon the fresh, untouched powder I stood on.

"Your resistance is pointless, pup,"

The voice made me shot my gaze up. There, standing in front of me at the edge of the clearing was none other than Alpha. Surprise gripped me, causing me to back away a step. "How did you find me?" I couldn't help but ask.

The wild-maned werewolf simply lowered his masked mussel towards my feet. Looking down, I glanced behind me. To my dismay, I found my own footprints left in the untouched snow. I had left a trail for them to follow.

Darn it! Stupid snow!

For a reason I couldn't comprehend, possibly instinct out of fear, I looked upward. Shocked gripped my mind and heart as I was greeted with a spirit-plunging sight. In the trees surrounding the clearing stood several of Alpha's werewolf assassins. Knelt upon branches, they had surrounded me. The wolves leered down at me like crows, waiting to swoop upon me if I tried to run.

"There's nowhere left to run," Alpha spoke in a chilling voice. The shocked look on my face remained. At that moment, Alpha pulled from behind his belt his assassin's dagger. "Your life is mine. Accept it and make it easy for yourself."

My mind raced for a solution out of this mess. The gleam of Alpha's eyes showed a seriousness that was frightening.

At that moment, I had an idea.

Keeping my shocked expression on my face, I dropped to my knees. I was hard keeping a strait face as I concocted my plan. I hung my head down, hiding my gaze from the werewolf assassin and stared at the snow before me. With a purposely-shaking hand, I began to draw a circle in the power.

A long silence hung around me as I knelt there. To make my act more convincing, I hitched small breaths and mumbled softly into the cold air. The whole scene looked as if I broke down in shock.

Damn, I'm good,

The silence hung as Alpha and his pack looked at me. After what felt like a few minutes, two of the assassins in the trees landed to the ground on either side of me.

"Heh, poor kid. Scared the life out of him," one of the wolves said.

"He probably wetted himself, I bet," the other joked.

"Whatever," Alpha snapped at the two. "Just grab him and bring him to me. I'll put him out of his misery." With that, the two werewolves slowly approached me, taking their time as if not to frighten me anymore than they did.

That's it... Just a bit closer...

As they approached, my mumbling took on a different rhythm. What those fuzz-for-brains didn't know as they approached was that my mumbling was no longer jumbled whispers. It was a spell.

Lords of heaven of the highest order, I call upon you.

Grant me all the power that you possess.

At my words, the dragon tattoo on my hand suddenly began to glow, amplifying my spell's power. The werewolf assassins gave a look of surprise. "What the--?" one of the assassins growled, but was too late. With the final action of my spell, I slammed my hand upon the ring I drew in the snow before me.

"Howl Freeze!!"

A gust of cold air erupted around me as the spell was released. In one second, a blast of artic wind swept up the snow around me and blew it everywhere. Gasps and shouts of surprise came from my attackers as a massive snow cloud blew around them, even the ones hiding in the trees. Taking the sudden opportunity, I made a run for it.

The Howl Freeze spell did three key actions to my aid. One, it provide me with the king-of-all smokescreens. Two, was that the blowing snow acted to cover my tracks so as to not leave a trail again. And thirdly, it gave off a stinging spray of ice and snow upon my attackers. Not anything lethal, but a well-deserved punishment for trying to attack me.

As I finally got out of the blinding snow cloud, I continued running into the woods. It wouldn't take long for those ninjas to catch up with me. Within a minute, I caught the sound of crushing snow behind me. Looking back while I still ran, I saw two of the black masked assassins coming up behind me fast.

Thinking quickly, I spun around with my hands out. "Thunderball!" A ball of yellow light shot out between the two werewolves. As the ball hit the ground, it erupted with a blast of electricity, catching the two in its current. The snow, I then realized, acted to amplify the spell as the ninjas got shocked. As the spell ended, the two fell to the ground stunned. They twitched upon the ground as streams of smoke trailed off their bodies. With that good and done, I ran on.

Two down, a heck more to go!

My pace quickened as I ran, relieved for the moment I got rid of two of them. I kept in mind however I was far from safe. Alpha and his other followers were soon to be on my tail.

"Our plans of avoiding Alpha have shot strait to hell!" I wailed in frustration.

"On the contrary," an overly friendly voice spoke, "This is actually going better than I thought."

My mind reeled for a second as I looked aside me. "Xellos!" I cried, finding him running along side me. "What are you doing here? And what do you mean 'better than you thought'?" I asked him.

He smiled again. "Well," he began sounding lightly of things, "I sort of tipped off Alpha and his gang that his targets were staying at the inn we checked into. Was that wrong?"

Disbelief froze my nervous system. "YOU!?!?" I screamed furiously, skidding to a stop.

Still, Xellos's smile never diminished. "What are you doing?" he said as he ran by me. "They'll catch us." Watching him run by, I quickly turned my eyes back to the woods. Seeing the movement behind the thicket of trees growing closer, I quickly continued running and right back next to Xellos.

"Xellos," I asked as we ran, "Why'd you go tell Alpha where we were WHEN WE'RE TRYING TO AVOID HIM!?"

He smiled in my direction. "Well, I figured the best way to confront him was by not to search him out, but draw him out," he explained very carefree. "We'd have to fight him eventually. What better way then on our terms?"

"How the hell is it our terms when Cassandra and I didn't even know about it?!"

"Would you agree if I told you before hand?" Xellos responded playfully.

"Then you were using us like pawns, weren't you?"

"Like pawns?" Xellos then pondered the thought for a moment, all the while we ran. Then he responded with a smile, "Hmm. Well, yes. I suppose I had."

"XELLOS!!" I shouted angrily.

He then just wagged a finger at me. "If you can fool your friends, then you can certainly fool your enemies," he said.

"YOU SCREWY PRIEST!" I wanted to punch him upside the head, but with the present threat following behind us I had to put it on hold. I could hear the growls of the werewolf assassin squad behind us. This was no time to argue.

"Okay, the past aside," I yielded to Xellos's actions for now. "We need to thin out those guys behind us first."

"You have a plan?" Xellos asked, more intrigued than worried.

I was panting for breath as I ran along with him. "I do," I told him, "but I'm going to require your help."

Finally, breaking that calm look on his face, surprise slipped onto his face. "Me?!" he said.

Just then, I quickly came to a halt and so did Xellos. I could hear our pursuers. They were far, but it wouldn't take them long to reach here. "What am I to do?" Xellos asked curiously.

With a smile of my own, I just beckoned him to not move. "Just stay put for a second," I told him. As he stood there with his staff, I quickly ran off the rough path and hid behind a bunch of trees. I could already hear the sound of the werewolves approach. Focusing my eyes on Xellos, I concentrated for a bit and cast a small spell.

The next moment, standing in place of Xellos was another me. At least it looked like me. "Um, Zane?" Xellos's voice spoke from the Zane that stood there, "Uh, what do I do now?"

I tried my best to sound convincing. "Just do the first thing that comes to mind," I told him simply from my hiding place.

Just then, the sound of shouts came into the surrounding area as the werewolves reached us. "There he is!" one of them snarled and pointed at the Zane look-alike who was actually Xellos.

Xellos gave a loud yelp as he saw them point at him. "Me?" he whined in disbelief.

"Get him!" another wolf growled and they all charged.

And doing as I instructed, Xellos followed the correct first reaction any sane person would think: Run.

I watched with a grin as I saw Xellos, disguised as me, freak out and immediately ran in the opposite direction from where I hid. I heard him yell as Alpha's goons gave pursuit, convinced that I was him.

"Zaaaaannneee!" Xellos cried as he ran.

I waved an arm in goodbye. "Good luck, Xellos! You'll be fine!" I tried not to laugh. Consider that sweet revenge for all the tricks and hoops he made Cassandra and me jump through. See how he likes it.

With that, I let go of my illusion spell. In the cover of night and Xellos running ahead of the assassins, they wouldn't notice they were tricked until they were far away from me. Now free from Alpha's goons, I had the time to formulate a strategy. Taking off again, I ran further into the woods, away from where Xellos went.

I pushed branches away from my path as I ran. At that moment, I saw an opening in the trees ahead. Without hesitation, I ran towards it and passed through.

The color of the dark grey sky greeted me as I came to a stop. A gasp escaped me as I reached a dead end. I was standing on the edge of a cliff. Out before me was the surrounding forest of the mountain. Aside for the other edges of the cliff, there was nowhere left to run.

"Oh hell, it's a dead end here," I groaned with dismay. After I absorbed the far distance of the cliff and the forest below, I turned around to double back.

My heart stopped for a second. To my horror I was looking right into Alpha's gaze. Standing coolly in my path was the leader werewolf assassin. "And where do you think you're going?" Alpha asked with a bit of a tease.

I backed away a step. I gritted my teeth as my foot touched the edge of the cliff, knocking some snow off. I was trapped, cornered between him and the long lethal drop of the cliff behind me. The steam of my breath thickened as my body felt immobilized with fear and dread.

"Did you honestly think I'd fall for another one of your illusion spells?" he spoke coldly. He didn't move or advance. He just talked, but the tension between us felt threatening. "In fact, I told my pack to follow that priest. I wished the pleasure of finding and killing you myself."

I swore in my mind. He saw through my trick and had his pack go after Xellos anyway. "You're friend is probably good as dead by now," he explained simply, his chilly tone still present.

My throat tightened at thought of them slaying Xellos. I wouldn't even wish that for him, despite his quirkiness. I felt paralyzed, held by Alpha's cold, steely gaze. "...Alpha..." I finally got the breath to address him.

We stood there, neither one of us moving. He was so confident that he seemed to relax as he stood. Finally swallowing down enough of my fear to think clearly, I finally was able to speak. "Why are you doing this?"

He cocked an eye at me, curious. "Don't you know what will happen if you kill me?" I asked him, trying to explain to the killer werewolf. "If Grou learns that you killed me, he'll be furious and make you pay for it! So why? Why are so fixated on me of all people?"

He remained calm, despite my frantic voice. "Because," he replied simply, "You are the only one to survive me."

I don't know what caused the chill to go up my spine, the cold or his words.

"From the day we met, you persistently evaded my efforts," he snarled quietly. "You were but a simple kid, yet you continued to make my job more difficult. And as I failed, you'd mock me. Not a wise decision, boy."

I wanted to step back more, but my back was right next to the edge of the cliff. "I have never missed my target. Never allowed my prey to escape. The simple thought that you survived makes my blood boil," Alpha explained, his tone becoming stronger and fiercer. "I had honored Grou's wishes for a time, in knowledge that they would kill you eventually once they got what they wanted. But my patients with them and you has run thin."

He simply stared at me with his steely, wolf-like eyes, gleaming with the lust to kill. "Say your prayers, Zane Cosmon. This is your final night."

"What's the matter with you?!" I couldn't help but shout at him. My eyes flared with disbelief. I couldn't believe this guy, ever since the day I met him. "Have you no conscious or shred of sympathy?! How could you kill so many with no care?!"

At that moment, I heard him snicker from underneath his masked mussel. "So innocent," he said amusingly. "Tell me, boy. Have you ever killed someone before?"

My mind reeled. I couldn't believe he'd ask me such a question. I'm only a thirteen year-old kid. I never, ever intended to kill anyone. I didn't answer. My face was a mask of shock.

"I'd thought so. You're face says it all," Alpha boasted calmly. "You've only had the privilege to slay Mazoku, those without souls. It's quite simple to slay a simple monster and keep a clean conscious. I however tasted the blood of others countless times. To kill just comes naturally to me. I kill for the simple joy of it all. It is because I've ridden myself of such useless emotions that you cherish so. Sympathy, kindness, conscience... they are but hindrance to one such as me."

"It is quite simple why your life shall end by my claws, boy, no matter how much power you wield," he sneered then, "I kill without any doubt or hesitation, while you hesitate, afraid to stain your hands with the blood of another. Tell me Zane Cosmon, in any of our battles in the past have you once tried to deliberately kill me? Have you?!"

It was true. I never wished to kill anyone. I allowed myself to destroy Mazoku, because they were soulless, heartless. There was nothing good about them and they gleefully killed. However, I never deliberately tried to kill mortal people. Sadly despite his ideals, Alpha fell into that category.

"Don't be too hard on yourself. It's just how things are. You'll just have to deal with it," And just then before I knew it, Alpha had somehow sprinted right in front of me. Painfully close, I didn't even have time to react. He stood over me, stabbing his gaze right into my eyes. "And now," he growled threateningly, "it's time we settled this."

Oh boy...

"However," he dawdled, only to see me squirm in fear. "I'm one who lives for the thrill of the hunt." I could feel the heat of his breath near. "I'll give you a two minute head start."

"B-But..." I stammered, "C-Couldn't we just..."

"One..." he began, "...two--"

_On-your-marks----Get-set----GO! _

Instantly I jumped off the ledge. Having that werewolf frighten me was beyond what my nerves could take. Now falling downward to the forest below, I quickly cast a Raywing spell. With plenty of time, wind had enwrapped my body and I was swiftly flying towards the forest floor.

If you though I was worried about the fall, you would be wrong! I wasn't scared of the fall. What scared me was the psycho werewolf assassin dead-set on killing me. Not kidnap, not capture--KILL!

With my flying spell in effect, I quickly swooped into the thicket of trees. Being careful, I steered around the trees as best as I could, finding wide enough openings to maneuver through in midair. I kept count in my mind, counting down till Alpha would come after me. To him, I'd bet jumping down a cliff was child's play for the assassin.

Finding a safe place to land, I quickly lowered myself and canceled my flight spell. No sooner I was off running again through the snow, still counting down. One minute had elapsed. If I wanted any hope of surviving him on my own, I was probably going to need to pull out all my powers.

Thrashing through the snow, I sprinted onward. Time was almost up, as I tried to formulate a plan. My heart was beating harshly, trying desperately to gain some distance between him. And then...

Two minutes were up.

At that moment, I could already hear the sound of running feet against the snow behind me. I did not dare to look back. It was clear who it was. The skilled lupine assassin now was hot on my trail.

Now was the time for action. Gulping down my fear, I decided to do what I did best: Face my foes head-on! With a sharp turn, I darted into another direction, heading for a small clearing that was near by. I could hear him coming, still a bit of a distance away.

Upon reaching the clearing, I then grasped the Chaos Crystal around my neck and started chanting the activation spell. With the spell finished, I kept running until I reached the other side of the clearing and then quickly turned around. Through the darkness of the night and trees, I could see his silhouette just beginning to show through.

He sprinted forth, a glint gleaming off his drawn dagger in his paw. With wolf-like speed, he ran right for me and into the clearing.

"Hellmaster Phibrizo, do your stuff!" I said in hope as I finished the incantation to my next spell. Drawing on the power of the Mazoku I just spoke, I held out my hands towards Alpha. "Ragna Blast!!"

Right on cue, my spell came forth. At my cry, an inverted pentagram appeared within the clearing with Alpha dead centered. A pillar of light then shot out from the pentagram, shooting skyward. And just when I thought I saw the coolest part, the pillar of light all of a sudden spilled out a blast of black plasma and spread within the pentagram area. The erupting plasma screeched with searing energy. A blast of overheated air swept around me, melting the snow in the current vicinity.

Now that was awesome!

Watching the dramatic display of the long lost spell, the surging black plasma began to die away. I watched in awaited tension to see if I had gotten Alpha. As the plasma disappeared, what stood there was a large smoldering crater. As I peeked inside slightly, I expected to see ash, dust, any article that a living being was hit. However, I looked to discovered nothing but the charred earth.

I took a large step back and alerted my senses for anything. There were two options. Unless my spell had completely disintegrated him into nothing, he could have found a way to avoid my spell. My breath hitched in slight panic.

"Where is he?" I thought aloud in alarm, turning my head to see if he was around. My senses refused to get off guard. His he behind me? Above? Where?!

All of a sudden, someone or something had tightly grabbed my ankle from under me. I gave a shout as I quickly looked down. A paw had stuck up from the ground and had snagged tightly at my ankle.

"Right. Under. Your. Nose." Alpha's voice spoke slowly. He had hidden underground.

Before I had time to know what was happening, his grip tightened and I was suddenly pulled downward. As if I'd fallen into quicksand, my body was pulled under by Alpha's grasp. The next thing I knew, only my head stuck up. I was neck deep inside the earth. I couldn't move, as if the ground had hardened the second I was pulled under.

Right before me, a cloud of earth shot up like an eruption. It swirled in a spiral as I saw something shoot up from the ground. It then landed on its feet within the smoke. As the dust finally cleared, I looked to find myself starring at the gray-maned Alpha.

He stood there looking down at me, an amused glimmer in his eyes. "How quaint," he said cunningly, "Now you're even closer to the ground."

I felt like steam was shooting out my ears. "Don't call me small!!" I spat at him. I tried to pull myself out from the ground, but my limbs and body were stuck tight.

"Cant move, can you?" he asked mockingly. "What a fitting position. It suits you."

I cast a snarl at him. "Get over yourself and go to--!"

Before I could swear at him, I was starring at the sharp end of a sword that he had quickly drawn. Whipped out before me, he held the sword with excellent precession. "Watch your tongue, boy, or I'll cut that off too," he growled at me, his gaze now crossed.

My eyes went wide with fright. Here I was, buried up to my neck immobilized while Alpha was in perfect position to attack. With my arms and hands bound, I couldn't even use magic. I was trapped, and Alpha knew it.

"Your head will make a perfect trophy," he snarled playfully as he raised up his sword. He then brought it down sharply. I closed my eyes to brace myself for the blow, but it never came. I opened my eyes to see that he stopped the blade just short of my face.

He snickered at my reaction. He was only toying with me now. "How does it feel, Zane Cosmon, to be so close to death?" he asked as he raised his sword again. "To know your very life is seconds away of ending?"

Alpha then brought his blade down again and I flinched, only to see him stop again and smirk at my reaction. I wanted to scream, but my shivering nerves wouldn't let me. He snickered and then with a step forward, he raised his sword once more. I doubted he was going to stop short this time.

"May the afterlife meet your accommodations, Zane Cosmon," Alpha snarled gravely.

With the glint of his sword above, he brought it down. Finally I screamed as the quick flash of metal flashed before my eyes.

But just then like a god send, a bolt of light shot out of nowhere and struck Alpha's sword before it could hit me. The sword was knocked painfully out of Alpha's paw and sent flying overhead. Alarmed by the sneak attack, Alpha leaped back. The werewolf assassin got out of the way just in time as a second shot hit, impacting the ground a few feet away from me.

I blinked for a moment. For a second, I thought I was already dead but my constricted body proved me wrong. Just then from above, a figure landed right in front of me. I gasped in a mix of surprise and relief to see who it was.

"Xellos!" I said enthusiastically, rather happy to see him.

With his staff in hand, he stood there proudly. Glancing over his shoulder, he looked down at me. "Ah, Zane," he replied cheerfully, "Up to your neck in trouble, I see?"

I lost my enthusiasm as stared angrily at him. "Very funny!" I snapped. What a way for him to kick me when I'm down.

"You!" Alpha snapped angrily. His eyes were wide in surprise. "You're still alive?! Where are my men?!"

Xellos smiled painfully and scratched his chin in thought. "Oh, those guys?" he asked causally, "They were so troublesome. I guess you can say that I, sort of... cut them lose in a way. Nothing personal."

What was he saying?! Did Xellos, that weirdo, fought and defeated all those assassins? Singled-handedly!?

Alpha's eyes now gleamed with rage. "Why you...!" he snarled loudly. Finding his sword, he grabbed it and held it firmly. "You wretched urchin! I'll make you pay for this!" With a loud howl and bloodlust, Alpha sprinted right for the priest.

To my surprise, Xellos had already taken off and Alpha behind him. For a mysterious priest, Xellos was fast. With furious anger, Alpha ran after Xellos as he dashed away for the thickets of the woods to fight.

Just then, I heard the sound of another person running towards me. As that person entered the clearing, I turned my head the best I could to see who it was.

"Zane!" Cassandra's voice shouted.

I quickly looked up, despite my lack of neck movement. "Cassandra?!" I cried in amazement. Indeed, there was Cassandra. She quickly ran up to me and knelt aside my head. Of all time, I heard her give a small laugh.

"Zane, have you grown shorter?" she teased.

I fumed, wishing I could flail my arms about. "I am not short! Knock it off!" I shouted at her, unable to believe she would crack jokes at a time like this. "Where were you all this time?!"

"I was with Xellos when we heard the explosion from inside the tavern," she explained, looking around for any sign of Alpha. "We went out to look for you, but before I knew it, Xellos had disappeared."

"He's fighting Alpha right now!" I informed her. I tried again to pull myself out from Alpha's ground trap but to no avail. "Get me out of here!"

Cassandra jolted with alertness, realizing I was stuck. "Oh--Okay!" she said. Acting quickly, she placed her hands upon the ground of which I was stuck into. I heard the murmur of a spell from her lips as her hands glowed. "Bephis Bring!"

At that moment, the ground around me began to glow with green light. Before I knew it, the ground around me had vanished, leaving a huge hole below me. Reaching for help, Cassandra reached out, grabbed my hands, and pulled me up just in time before I could fell in.

As she pulled me out of the hole, the sounds of Xellos and Alpha's fight echoed through the woods. The sounds of sword slashes and spell eruptions were quite noticeable through the trees.

"Come on!" I told Cassandra as I finished dusting off the grime on my clothes. With that, I ran towards the fight while Cassandra followed behind me.

Quickly running through the thicket of trees, we made it to the battle ground. The two were moving quite fast, my eyes had a hard time keeping up with them. From what I saw, Xellos was on a rather calm, defensive approach. All he did at the moment was dodging Alpha's sword. He kept his front to Alpha, keeping an eye on his movements as Alpha relentlessly attacked him.

"You pest!" Alpha snarled furiously, "Hold still so I can slice you up!" All Xellos did was chuckle at the response.

"Burst Rondo!" Xellos shouted playfully. With a flash of his hand, Xellos launched a stunning burst of fiery balls of light. They struck the ground right in front of Alpha. Taking advantage from the resulting smokescreen, Xellos ducked under Alpha's thrusting sword and then leapt away.

Jumping through the air, Xellos landed a safe distance from Alpha. All the while he remained calm and composed. I wondered if it was possible to stay that cheerful when running for your life. Alpha stepped out of the smoke, his eyes flaring at Xellos angrily.

"Oh, Mr. Alpha," Xellos said in almost a pleading tone, "Must we go through with this? All I want is the Chaos Crystal you bare. Is this violence really necessary?"

"Hm, let me think about that," Alpha said sarcastically. Just then in a flash, he drew some throwing darts and threw them at Xellos's direction.

Just as I was about to shout to Xellos in warning, he gave his staff a simple swish. All of a sudden, a small shockwave rippled through the air before him. The throwing darts were knocked out of the air and flew off elsewhere into the woods. Cassandra and I, watching from the safety of the sidelines gawked at Xellos simple action.

Xellos gave a weary sigh. "Oh well," he said simply, "If you really wish to be so resilient of this matter, I'm afraid I must insist."

Upon those words, Xellos broke into a run towards Alpha. But just then, something happened. Something my eyes refused to believe. At that moment as Xellos ran, he all of a sudden seemed to disappear. Xellos was practically a blur, dashing one point to another as if he was teleporting in the process. Then, before Alpha himself could even react, a blur of speed past by him and in that very millisecond, the Chaos Crystal that once was around Alpha's neck was gone.

I couldn't believe how Xellos did that. Slowing down from his dimension-breaking speed, he reappeared as a solid person where he leapt up high into the air. With his dramatic jump, he landed upon a tree limb above. Alpha's Chaos Crystal was snug in hands, its string wound around his finger.

Alpha spun around to the mysterious priest, surprise and anger expressed in his eyes. "Coward!" he snarled venomously at him. "Come down and fight!"

Xellos only smirked. "Thanks, but no thanks," he replied, holding the crystal. "This is all that I require."

Then, Xellos closed his fist around the Chaos Crystal. From where I stood, his hand all of a sudden flickered with energy as he grasped the crystal and then there was a sudden crack. As he opened his fist, the Chaos Crystal was now several tiny red shards. He leisurely let it go, the shards quickly becoming a powder on its own as they fell to the ground.

"Mission accomplished," Xellos chirped confidently. All the while, Alpha stood there stunned as the priest broke his crystal. I imagine the same irritation I've felt towards Xellos was now running through Alpha at that point.

"Good job, Xellos!" I congratulated him. "With the crystal gone, his Black Magic won't be as powerful now! If all three of us fight, we'll just be able to defeat him!" I tried to remain confident, building us up for the fight to come. However...

"Sorry," Xellos piped in cheerfully, "But I fear I have other arrangements." He gave a mischievous smirk in our direction. And in that moment, he made a small jump into the air and, to my horror, disappeared.

My mind went blank for a moment. Cassandra, utterly shocked, nearly fell over in disbelief. "He ditched us!" she cried.

"XELLOS!" I cried out angrily. "What are you doing?!"

"Sorry," Xellos voice spoke from somewhere. Though he was nowhere in sight, he still spoke from wherever he was for us to hear. "But this battle has nothing to do with me."

"Nothing to do with you!?" I shouted, infuriated. Everyone looked just looked towards where Xellos disappeared in stillness.

"My only concern however was destroying the Chaos Crystal Alpha had," Xellos explained from the darkness. "Now that it's gone, I'm no longer needed to take part."

Cassandra took a step forward angrily. "But what about our fight with Alpha?" she pleaded, "You can't just leave us!"

Xellos's voice sounded lighthearted. "Oh, you'll be fine," he assured lightly, "Good luck, you two."

"YOU SCREWY PRIEST! COME BACK HERE!"I shouted. But it was too late. He was gone.

A long silence hung within the forest as Xellos had took off. I felt completely dumbfounded. Everyone stood still, stunned by the mysterious priest's exit. "I can't believe this..." I said breathlessly.

"Well now," a grim voice growled.

Uh-oh...

Snapped back to attention, Cassandra and I looked to see Alpha in front of us. Standing across the battle field where Xellos had left, he slowly turned to us. "That was a grand irritation," Alpha growled as he turned our way. His eyes then peeked over his shoulder to us, flaring with frustration and bloodlust. "Luckily I have two whelps to take my frustration out on."

"Oh boy..." I said through gritted teeth. Cassandra and I began to step back, only to let Alpha advance towards us slowly. With pent up frustration from Xellos still within, Alpha reached for his sword.

"Blade Haut!"

At that very moment, a tremendous shockwave ripped through the forest. Charging full force, it ripped through the trees from the side of the battleground and flew towards Alpha. Alarmed, Alpha leapt away from the chasing blast, but was too late. In a loud crash, both the shockwave and the resulting falling trees struck Alpha and sent him flying in the other direction.

As the shockwave ended, we watched as the resulting debris crashed upon Alpha. Surprised, Cassandra and I turned around. Standing crouched in the plowed through area was a swordsman. One we knew and were glad to see.

"Rion!" we cried out thankfully.

Chapter 4: Showdown! Strike forth, Ruby-Eye Blade!

Crouched near the ground, Rion gave small pants for breath. The spell he used must have taken a lot out of him. "I'm glad I found you," Rion said in relief.

"Better late than never!" I joked happily as Cassandra and I ran towards his side.

Using his sword, Rion propped himself back up. With too much of a loving intent, Cassandra lunged towards him and hugged his arm. "I'm so happy you're okay!" she chirped.

Rion gave a small smirk to her. "Did you have any doubts?" he asked.

Cassandra shook her head. "No, no! None at all!"

"Ha!" was all I said. Reacting, Cassandra then gave me a small nudge in the ribs.

Just then as we all got back together, the sound of rustling brush from the cluttered trees appeared. From the debris of Rion's attack, Alpha finally dug himself out from the pile. With an angry snarl he stood up, shacking the twigs and leaves that clung to his fur and mane.

"Rrrr... You again..." Alpha growled in detest at Rion. "I should have killed you when I had the chance."

"I hate to break it to you," Rion said, sporting a small smile. "But you talk more than you fight."

Free from the rubble, Alpha stood up to his full height. Sensing Alpha's bloodlust, Rion then gently waved his arm at us, telling us to get back. "Perhaps," Alpha said leisurely. As he spoke, he slowly strode closer to Rion. "But you know what," Alpha added, his sword in his paw. Rion's gaze sharpened, his grip on his sword tightened. "I'm not the type of person to brag of his abilities and then lack the skill to back them up!"

In that very moment, Alpha charged. Finding renewed strength, Rion gave a loud cry and charged at Alpha as well. The sudden flash of their blades met, producing an array of sparks that lit up the night. Taking speed, Alpha dashed away from Rion, becoming a blur of speed. In a deadly blur, Alpha swung around Rion, attempting to strike from behind.

Just as I was about to shout, Rion had already took action. With incredibly sharp senses, Rion had spun around before Alpha had attacked. With sword raised, Rion met Alpha's strike, their blades once again locked in combat.

"A worthy opponent," Alpha growled while their blades were locked. "Be thankful I say so before you die!"

Responding to Alpha's words, Rion gave his sword a wide swing, sending Alpha back. However, Alpha was smart enough to take advantage. The moment he touched the ground, Alpha had disappeared in another blur of speed. This time, he jumped high and attempted to strike Rion from above.

I was constantly amazed by Rion's senses. They seemed to be what one would call superhuman. The moment Alpha struck down, Rion jumped backwards, avoiding Alpha's smashing decent. Cassandra and I could only watch as their fight sped by right before us. Their individual attacks were lasting no more than less of a second.

After dodging an attack from Rion's sword, Alpha then to my surprise knelt down to the ground and placed his hand upon it. "Dill Brand!" he growled. Targeting the ground between them, Alpha spell created an explosion right in front of Rion.

Right in his face, smoke and dust blasted right into Rion. He had been stunned, taken off guard by Alpha's trick. To my horror, the moment Rion hesitated, I could see the charging form of Alpha through the smoke.

"Look out!" I cried.

With a howl of triumph, Alpha swung his sword and struck with an upward slash. To Rion's luck, he had leaned back just to let Alpha's blade graze him lightly. Rion's large hat flew off his head, caught by the werewolf's sword.

As futile an event that was, what I saw next blew my mind. Cassandra and I gawked at what we saw while Alpha just looked amusingly at his foe.

Regaining his stance, Rion stood with his sword in hand. Upon his head, his hair ran down his back as it always had. But what surprised me, and what answered a lot of questions about our ally, was the pair of two, pointy ears he had.

"I don't believe it..." I said in breathless surprise. "He's an elf..."

Completely focused and unfazed, Rion tightened the grip on his sword. With a minor blow given by Alpha, it appeared his elfin body was sturdier than most peoples'.

"As I thought," Alpha spoke in amusement, "I knew you were too good for a mortal human."

Rion grinned, focused on the fight at hand. "What can I say? I'm full of surprises!" And with that he was off again, charging with his sword.

However, Alpha had anticipated him to make the first move. As Rion charged, he all of a sudden leapt up high into the air again. This time, he cast a spell while in mid air. "Scatter Brid!" Upon that spell, several balls of light came raining down on Rion in a blizzard.

The blizzard of pelting electrical bolts swarmed around Rion, both blinding and immobilizing him in their rain. However, the very moment the storm ended, I watched in horror to find that Alpha had sped behind him. Too fast even for Rion, Alpha raised his sword.

Rion then caught Alpha in the corner of his eye. Rion, quick as he could, raised his sword to meet Alpha in defense. However, as if intended all along, Alpha simply swirled his sword in the opposite direction and struck Rion in the gut with the sword's hilt.

"NO!" Cassandra cried in shock as we saw Rion take the blow.

"Tell me," Alpha asked simply, the hilt of the sword buried against Rion's stomach. "How many ribs did you crack? Two or three?"

Short for breath, Rion could only murmur his pain. The moment Alpha removed his sword's handle from him, the elf swordsman slowly fell to his knees. Alpha looked down at him, almost satisfied. "Any last words, warrior," Alpha warned, holding his sword leisurely, "before I take your life?"

It couldn't be?! How could Rion lose?

Trying to answer, Rion mumbled something under his breath. It looked as if he wanted to speak but couldn't. I brought my hands together, readying a spell in my mind to rescue him.

"Come now," Alpha teased, "I can't hear you."

Just then listening to Rion's faint mumbling, my mind snapped in attention. I knew the words he was barely getting out. Then, as Rion weakly opening his hand, a bright light flashed into existence right before Alpha's nose.

"FIREBALL!" Rion roared.

The ball of fiery light shot out and struck Alpha. In a fiery eruption, the fireball exploded and sent Alpha flying backwards. The moment Alpha was far away, Rion slowly got to his feet. The moment the flames parted, Rion could see Alpha slightly surprised by the sneak attack.

"You fool," Rion said bluntly as he wiped some dust off his cloak. "It'll take more than a few cracked ribs to stop me."

Alpha's gaze grew angry. A clear snarl was heard through out the battlefield. "Is that so?" Alpha growled in challenge. As he spoke, his hand began to glow with magic. He was preparing for a spell. "Well, will it stop you from saving these whelps!?"

My mind snapped. Alpha immediately threw his hand towards us and shouted his spell. "Raza Klouva!" Large bolts of light shot forth. They zoomed so fast towards us I didn't have time to cast a defense spell myself. The sound of Cassandra's scream filled my ears, she at point-blank range of the attack.

The impacts of discharged energy boomed in my ears, my eyes closed in fright. Slowly, I opened my eyes. And what I saw made my heart plummet.

Shielding us with his own body was Rion. The bolts of light had seared his back, his face a mask of pain towards us. Frozen, Cassandra looked up at him in pained shock to see him take the blow. I was both amazed and horrified. Despite his injuries, Rion was able to get here fast enough to shield us.

He stood there frozen in his shielding position for a moment. Then, mustering out a pained shout, he turned around to Alpha with an outstretched hand. "Fireball!" In another flash of light, Rion shot another fireball at Alpha. The blast erupted, spreading a wall of flame across the battlefield which separated us from Alpha.

However, the moment Rion finished his spell attack, his face twisted in pain. With a hiss to restrain his shout, Rion fell to his knees and dropped his sword. He grasped his left arm in pain, for what reason I couldn't tell why. Nonetheless, it was clear that pain and the pain of his other injuries had finally caught up with him.

"Rion!" Cassandra cried out. We quickly ran to his side to help. He still gripped his arm tightly, as if someone had stabbed him there with a branding iron.

"I'm... fine..." he grumbled. He was clearly trying to hide the fact he wasn't.

Cassandra frowned. "No, you're not!" she said with concern.

His wounds were pretty bad. I didn't know the physical status of an elf, but I bet from the pain he expressed it was not good. "Cassandra," I told her seriously, "Can you cast a Resurrection spell?"

She seemed unsure as she looked up to me. "Um, well yes, but..." she said shakily. "...I know it, but I never had used it in an actual situation before!"

"You have to!" I told her firmly as I stood up. Rion was in so much pain that he didn't even have the strength to talk to us. "His injuries are bad. If they aren't treated immediately, they will surely become worse. Do the best you can, okay?"

"What about you?!" Cassandra asked. She noticed as I turned towards the flames before us.

"I'm going to fight Alpha," I explained simply, not turning around. "It's me he really wants."

"WHAT?!" Cassandra cried, still at Rion's side. "Are you crazy?! He'll kill you!"

"I'm not about to let that happen!" I told her firmly, taking those words personally. Glancing at her for a moment, I tried to look confident. "If I can't defeat him, the least I can do is buy us time for you to heal Rion."

Cassandra became speechless, only a silent gasp on her lips. She must have been scared. I couldn't blame her. So was I inside.

Doing my best to hold up my courage, I gave a confident smirk towards her and gave her a thumb's up. "I'm counting on you, Cassandra." Doing so before Cassandra could stop me, I ran towards the wall of fire, cast a tiny levitation to aid myself, and leapt over the flames.

Letting go of my levitation spell, I ended up dropping down to the ground with a small fall. No sooner had I landed, I put up my guard. Alpha was here. No matter how he tried to hide, I was not about to let my guard down for a moment. "It's just you and me now, Alpha!" I called out from the glow of the flames near by. "Let's finally finish this!"

Over the crackling flames, I could hear the faint sound of snicker from around me. "Interesting," Alpha's voice spoke. I couldn't sense him. He must have been at a distance, deciding to toy with me with more of his talk. "You know you will die, and yet you choose to fight it."

Rion was right. He did like to talk too much.

My expression became stern. "You're wrong Alpha," I said simply. "I'm not going to die here. I can't afford to."

"Really?" Alpha chuckled from wherever he hid. "Enlighten me? Why aren't you going to die again?"

"Because of my dream." Alpha remained silent then. "I dream of becoming a great sorcerer, the greatest sorcerer of all time. To be known among the ranks of Lina Inverse, Rei Magnus, and those like them," I explained proudly. I gripped my hand into a fist, the hand which the Ceiphied crest was branded on. "And if I were to died here, all my efforts would be for nothing!"

At that moment, I heard Alpha chuckle. His sinister voice almost seemed to mix with the crackling flames, as if he was a devil himself. "But to have a dream, you would need a future," he spoke, "something which you don't have."

"You don't scare me, Alpha!" I shouted out, "I will have my name left on this world! And not you or any Mazoku cult is going to stop me!"

This time, I heard him clearly laugh out loud. Apparently, my threat didn't impress him. "Now what? Are you going to kill me, to keep your dream alive?" he laughed in amusement. "Now that's funny."

I gritted my teeth in anticipation. This was it. I did my best to bury my fear with confidence and courage. Now it came down to if I could cast the right spells to help me. "Don't worry, little boy," Alpha's voice seemed to coo, "You're name shall mark this world..."

My senses flared. He was coming!

"... on your TOMBSTONE!!"

Above!

Sensing my foe from an aerial point, I quickly stepped far to the side. Following, a mighty force smashed into the ground I once stood, leaving a rather large impact crater. The moment I saw Alpha there, I took action. Opening my hands, I took aim. "Digger Bolt!" In a mighty flash, lighting shot out of my hand poised for Alpha.

However, the werewolf assassin was quicker than that. The moment the lightning flashed, he had jumped clear from where he landed. My spell missed, striking and exploding at the ground.

Keeping my eyes and senses on him, I tried to track Alpha's movements. Traveling at high speed, Alpha dashed about the battle field. He was trying to physic me out to attack from an unguarded angle. Keeping on my toes for him, I started to cast another spell. Just as I finished with the basic incantation, I caught him in my site again. This time he charged, aiming to strike from next to me.

"Raywing!" I shouted. In that moment as Alpha charged, I was sent flying upward and clear from his attack. With my flight spell surrounding me, I now had the ability of high-speed flying. At the very least, I cast it to try and keep up with Alpha's speed.

No sooner had I taken off, I flew into the thick canopy of the trees. "You won't escape that easily!" I heard Alpha shout. With that, I saw him pursue me at a similar speed.

Flying through the trees was not easy. Though my spell granted me the gift of flight, it was difficult to maneuver with. I was taking a gamble with this one. I could hear Alpha following me. He was using his superior ninja speed, leaping from one tree limb to the next in pursuit.

Knowing I couldn't cast any other spells with my flying spell was in effect, I was only left with the physical approach. Taking aim, I flew towards my target destination.

"Little pipsqueak!" Alpha howled angrily as he ran. "Come here and fight me!"

At that moment, I flew head on towards a thick oak tree. Twisting my body in mid-air, I planted my feet on the tree and pushed. I was immediately sent flying the other way, pulling a quick U-turn right for...

"OOOFFFF!" Alpha grunted painfully. The look of surprise in his eyes was priceless.

"Who are you calling pipsqueak?!" I boomed as my knee was buried into his stomach.

Traveling the opposite way at such speed, I rammed right into Alpha with a rather painful tackle. With the added bonus of the wind aura of my flight spell, my blow added zing to my attack as Alpha was all of a sudden thrown backwards. Flying through the thicket of leaves and branches, I quickly flew after him to see him land upon the forest floor.

However, the moment he landed, he got to his feet and drew a handful of throwing darts. He threw them forth, threatening to strike me. Acting quickly, I cancelled my flight spell and fell towards the ground to just avoid the darts. Falling a bit of a distance, I reached the ground with a thud, kneeling to stick my landing.

"My, aren't you clever," Alpha snarled, catching his second wind from the strong knee to the stomach. "Got any other tricks you want to show me?"

"Come and get it!" I spat venomously.

And so he did. In another dash, he broke into his high speed. Becoming like a blur, Alpha had quickly ensnared me in a web of his streaking movements. He was all around me, dashing from tree to tree to find another angle to attack. But I wasn't going to give him the chase.

"Dodge this!" I cried as I already completed my spell. With hands aglow, I crossed my arms in preparation. "Blast Bomb!"

And this boys and girls, is why I'm destined for greatness!

Just as I shouted my spell, I quickly gave a sharp spin around. From my hands, fiery balls of light shot forth, each one containing a very destructive charge. Spinning around as I cast the spell, I spread the multiple balls of light everywhere around me. It was such a range attack, I knew Alpha couldn't escape.

KA-BOOM!!!

The flashes of exploding fire surrounded me. For a moment, the greenery of the surrounding forest quickly became an inferno. The eruptions boomed in my ears, the sheer force of the explosion barely grazing me.

Finally, after my super-destructive fire spell finished, the blaze began to die down. Around me, several craters from the blast had marked the forest floor. Broken tree stumps were left in the surrounding area while some isolated brush had been lit ablaze.

Now standing in a newly blasted clearing, I quickly opened my senses for Alpha. I couldn't see him anywhere. Either he got hit and was blasted to oblivion, or he had survived. He survived the Blast Bomb a few times before because he was quick enough to avoid the blast. Whichever one was the case, I couldn't be sure. Only the sound of the flickering flames were there and the sound of my ragged breaths. Still I did not move. I wasn't going to relax until I saw Alpha's remains.

Just then, my senses flared again. I quickly tried to move away, but it was too late. Having come up behind me, Alpha struck with his sword. I manage to get away, but not before he nicked the side of my arm with a rather painful slash.

Alarmed, I quickly turned around, backing away while I held the cut to my arm. With his sword in hand, he looked at me with those steely eyes. I swore in the back of my mind, really hoping I had got him with that spell.

"The Blast Bomb," Alpha toyed coldly, holding his sword ready. "A good spell, but not good enough for the likes of me."

With a feral snarl he charged with his sword. Thrown onto the defense, I quickly jumped away as he swung his sword. He was fast and I barely was able to avoid him. On top of that, I was physically unarmed. My odds really turned for the worst.

Keeping my distance, I side-stepped from where Alpha attacked. He was wearing me down. His sword was barely touching me, my instincts now struggling to get me to survive. Backing away, I tried to chant a spell to make some distance between us.

However, that was a mistake. Just as I spoke the first word, Alpha gave a mean slash of his sword. I dodged it, originally aimed at my head, but my shoulder ended up getting a rather bad slash from it.

My cry of pain stopped my spell casting. The blow wasn't enough to dislocate or break anything, but it hurt nonetheless. And no sooner, Alpha did what I did to him. He jumped towards me and kneed me in the stomach. With the blow, I was sent flying backwards.

Tumbling across the ground, I ended up landing on my side in pain. Alpha had sent my flying several yards away from him. The pain in my shoulder and stomach knocked the wind out of me.

Using what little breath I had then, I quickly cast a Recovery spell. With white light around my hands, I held it to my shoulder to heal my arm and shoulder. I pulled myself up a little bit and propped myself against a broken tree stump as I tried to heal my injuries.

From the distance between us, Alpha watched simply, his sword leisurely at his side. "A Recovery spell?" he asked wickedly. I felt the chill of his presence finally hit me. Now relaxed, he slowly approached in a slow walk towards me. "Do not bother. I shall end your pain."

With my healing spell still in effect, my mind raced for options. I was in major trouble. I couldn't cast a Dragon Slave spell because that would take too long. He'd kill me by the time I finished. All my other spells only worked to delay him and Cassandra or Rion was nowhere in site.

I was all alone. Alpha was going to kill me if I didn't do something. I couldn't die here. I wouldn't! How was I going to become a great sorcerer, if I let him kill me? But time was running out and he grew closer and closer, taking his time to prolong my misery.

"Am I really going to die here...?" my lips spoke silently in disbelief. My mind went blank, idealess.

"Use the spell!"

All of sudden, a voice shook me from my state of shock. Xellos?

"Use the spell I gave you, Zane. It's powerful enough to stop him."

Was I hallucinating, or did I really just hear Xellos's voice. Then, my mind came to the spell he mentioned. That spell. The spell which drew power from the same Dark Lord who powered the Dragon Slave. It would form a blade that could cut through anything. However, I never had the chance to test that spell. What if it didn't work?

Seeing Alpha's silhouette approaching, I didn't have much time to decide. I needed to decide now. To die pathetically and give up on everything, or give everything I had--for one moment of magic.

Having finished up my Recovery spell, I ended it and prepared for my final act. Standing a distance away was Alpha, he held his sword in preparation to attack. He glared at me, the embers around us reflected in his eyes.

And then, I cracked a feint smirk out of his sight. "I'm not going to die," I said simply.

Lord of Darkness beyond the Twilight...

_ _

Having enough, Alpha readied his sword. "It ends, Zane Cosmon," he growled, "Say goodbye to your dreams."

Sword as red as blood...

_ _

With that, he charged at my feeble form, slumped against the tree stump. I didn't have the strength to move, my focus all on this one plan. A plan I put all my faith on. And as I did, I felt power draw into my hands.

Free yourself from the bonds of the abyss.

Become one with my power, one with my body,

And let us walk the path of destruction together!

_ _

My eyes flared with determination, my hands now sparking with crimson light. "Power that can smash through all things!" I cried the last verse of my spell, Alpha only seconds away!

I won't let my dream die!!!

"RUBY-EYE BLADE!!!" With all my strength, I shoved my hands forth. A blaze of red light shot forth out of my clenched hands right as Alpha's blade came.

Slash!!

Time held still. I found myself frozen, pinned under Alpha's body. For a moment, I thought I had died.

Then, after an incredibly long moment of silence Alpha's head lurched forward towards me. A dazed look hung in his eyes, yet he looked at me in full awareness. "Imagine that," he laughed slightly, his grip still tight on the sword he plunged. "To think it would end like this."

My mind remained blank, still so blown away to know what had happened. Alpha hung his head forward till he was starring me right in the eye. "Heh heh," he chuckled, "The look on your face is priceless. How does it feel to do what you have done?"

I couldn't respond. My whole body was petrified.

"That innocence... that cheerful spirit is now gone from your eyes," he went on. Reaching one of his paws slowly, he reached the mask that covered half of his mussel. Pulling it off, I finally was able to see the werewolf assassin's full face. A pleased, almost relieved smile was placed on his mussel. "Now you know what it feels like to kill..."

With a groan, his breath hitched while I finally took a breath. Barely holding himself up upon the sword dug into the tree stump just above my shoulder, Alpha staggered. Gazing at me with fading eyes, Alpha looked almost peaceful. I felt my heart plummet with pity. "I hope you can live... knowing my blood... is on your hands..."

Giving one last gasp, Alpha's eyes closed. Finally, his body collapsed on top of me as the blazing Ruby-Eye Blade remained skewered through his back.

***

The light of the rising sun peeked out as Rion, Cassandra and I stood upon a grassy hill. Before us was a mound of earth we just finished piling, followed by an unmarked grave. You could guess who was under it. I felt too pained to leave him dead in the dirt.

When Rion and Cassandra found me, I was frozen in guilt and disbelief for what I had done. Not the best moment for me. And until that moment, standing their on that hill, his last words echoed in my mind. I remained quiet for a time, hardly able to speak until we had finally finished his grave.

"Am I really a murderer...?" I finally spoke, pained.

I felt Cassandra's hand on my shoulder. One of the rare moments she was sincere. "Is it murder for killing a murderer?" she asked lightheartedly. She was only trying to cheer me up, but I just couldn't reply.

"No you aren't, Zane," Rion reassured. Surprised, I looked up to the swordsman, now wearing his hat again. "You fought to save your life, and ours I might add. And in his death, you avenged the innocents that have fallen by his hands." Rion looked down in a calm, yet proud look. "You're a hero, Zane."

"Then why do I feel so bad...?" I couldn't help but ask. In attempt to ease my conscience, I gave one last kneel to Alpha's grave and gave a silent prayer. At the very least, I hope he could rest in peace.

As I rose up, Cassandra looked to Rion in question. "Rion," she asked, gaining his attention. "Why didn't you tell us you were an elf?"

Rion at first didn't reply, looking away as if to avoid the subject. "Yeah, Rion," I added, looking at him firmly, "I think it's time you explained a few things to us."

A sigh escaped Rion as he rubbed the temples of his head. "Come here and sit down," he instructed. Following Rion, we reentered the forest and sat on the fallen trunk of an old oak tree for a bench.

"As I said, I'm searching for someone from my past. Before then, I lived in my clan's village in the outer world," Rion explained as we listened. "We remained isolated from the humans, knowing that our magic and simple existence was coveted."

I scowled at him. "That doesn't explain why magic takes so much out of you," I challenged him. He looked at me, slightly surprised I mentioned that. "Yeah, I noticed. So don't bother to lie about it."

He gave another sigh in relinquishment. "Very well." With that, Rion reached for the sleeve of his left arm. Pushing the clothing of his cloak and shirt up, he slowly revealed the skin to his fine toned arm. From next to me and him, Cassandra gave a small gasp of admiration. But before Rion could notice, I gave her a simple elbow in her side to shut her up.

Rion pulled the clothing up to his shoulder, revealing his upper arm. There, on the muscle of his upper arm was a rather out of place black mark. Pitch black, it swirled out like a spiral, in its center it was intertwined with the design of an inverted black star. The symbol almost looked demonic.

Cassandra and I looked at the mark. "What is that?" I asked in light concern.

"It's a curse," Rion replied simply and then rolled his sleeve and cloak back down his arm. He paused for a moment in hesitation, his gaze almost pained with past memories. "It happened on a simple night like any other night. I was asked to travel to a neighboring human village for supplies. It was a simple errand, one of which I had done many times."

All the while as Rion continued, his gaze fell lower towards the ground. "However, tragedy befell my village that night. Upon my trip back, I saw in the distance smoke and fire coming from my village. I ran as fast as I could to see what was happening. When I finally got there, it was too late. My entire village had been set ablaze. Several of my people lied dead in the streets while the others were left to burn in their own homes."

"And then," Rion spoke, his voice now giving a snarl of hatred. "I saw him. The entire slaughter was done by the hands of a lone demon. The single Mazoku had wiped out everyone." His fists tighten at the thought. "Enraged, I charged at him. I fought with the sole desire to kill him. Sadly, my efforts to defeat him were in vain. His powers... were simply no match for my sword alone."

"Before he vanished, he branded me with this mark," Rion explained, gripping his arm where the mark was. "Every time I use a spell, the curse activates and grows. I can handle one or two spells, baring the pain. However, If I ever use my magic too much, the curse will inevitable consume and kill me."

I couldn't help but feel sympathetic to Rion's tale. To lose his whole village in one night and done by one person must have been a curse itself. "Did you ever... see his face?" I asked.

Rion shook his head no. "I'm afraid not," he answered. "His face was masked in darkness."

"The only way to avenge my village and remove this curse," Rion explained, "is to find the one responsible and kill him. And until I find him, I vowed to kill any other Mazoku who gets in my way."

I had to admit, my mind reeled. I had no idea Rion carried such a heavy burden upon him. "And that's why you became a Mazoku Hunter?" I asked.

"Yeah," Rion replied simply.

Just then from next to me, Cassandra, welled up in tears finally shouted out. "Oh, Rion!" she cried sadly, "Your tale is too sad for words! I didn't realize you bore such a horrible past with the souls of your people on your shoulders!" Almost intentionally, Cassandra hugged Rion's arm and cried against him. "I'm so sorry!" she cried out.

All the while, Rion remained calm and looked down at Cassandra. "Please don't cry," he said softly to Cassandra, buried against his arm. "I've shed my tears for my clan long ago."

As Cassandra cried her eyes out, I continued to talk to Rion. "But why didn't you tell us you were an elf?" I asked, "Why would you hide that from us?"

Rion lowered his gaze again, this time in shame. "As I sure you are aware, elves have been used in magical experiments because of our powers and longevity. Over the years, hiding my identity became common sense while living amongst humans. I was afraid of your reactions if you knew off the bat that I was an elf."

"We're not like that, Rion!" I replied immediately. He lifted his head up then, no longer shamed.

"T-That's right..." Cassandra said as she slowly stopped crying. Lifting her head up from Rion, she whipped her tears away and looked at him kindly. "Such practices are unethical, immoral, and strictly taboo in this day and age. As priests of Saillune, we'd never judge you just because you weren't human."

I nodded in agreement. "I'm personally proud to have a friend who's an elf. Besides, we owe you so much," I explained, seeing a slight smile light up on Rion's face. "If it weren't for you, Cassandra and I would be dead by now. Your secret's safe with us."

With his kind smile, Rion then bowed his head in gratitude towards us. "Thank you," he said graciously, "I was wrong to think the worst of you when it's clearly you're the best." Returning his kind words, Cassandra and I finally smiled back to him.

"Well, that was sad event I must say," Xellos said, "But alls well that ends well."

HUH!? WHAT?!

Surprised, I quickly turned around to find Xellos sitting next to me. Cassandra and Rion were surprised to say the least. "Xellos?!" I cried in surprise, "W-When did you get here?!"

Still baring that stupid grin, he just held up a finger in explanation. "Well, considering time is relevant," he explained annoyingly, "you can say I've been here the whole time or that I just got here."

Now peeved, I quickly sat up from the tree trunk and stared Xellos in his cheerfully closed eyes. "So, when you supposedly ditched us, you just stayed out of sight to watch us fight for our lives like some dumb spectator?"

Pushing himself off the tree trunk, Xellos landed before me with his staff in hand. "Now why would you assume such a thing?" Xellos pouted, sticking out a lip dramatically.

"Oh," I replied sarcastically, "So it wasn't your voice I heard when Alpha attacked me, telling me to use the spell you gave me? Is that what you're saying?"

Putting on his innocent face, Xellos raised his finger to his chin in thought. My gaze stabbed at him as he pondered. "All I can say is..." he began.

"Yes?" I asked, waiting impatiently for a good answer.

Then he replied with the one line I'd grow to hate. He smiled, wagged a finger and winked an eye open at me playfully. "That is a secret."

"WHY YOU--!!" I shouted. I lunged to punch him square in the jar, but all of a sudden he was gone. To my surprise, he had jumped several feet into the air and landed on another branch of the trees. He laughed as he saw me breath in infuriated, frantic breaths.

"Oh, don't be so upset, Zane," Xellos cooed cheerfully. "How are we to work together if you're so aggressive with your allies?"

"With allies like you, who needs enemies?!" I shouted at him, venting my frustration in shouts than punching him.

Xellos chuckled at the notion. "Don't you worry," he said cunningly, "I assure you, our partnership will be most beneficial for the both of us. As for now, I have other duties I must fulfill before I further assist you. Until we meet again, Zane Cosmon." And just like that, he leaped through the thicket of the canopy and vanished.

Realizing the infuriating priest was gone, I hung my head down in exhaustion and sighed in relief.

"Who was that?" Rion asked, slightly dumbfounded. "An acquaintance of yours?"

"Xellos, the Mysterious Priest..." I groaned tiredly as I turned around. Rion gave me an awkward look as I announced his title. "Don't even ask..."

"We met him while you were gone," Cassandra explained, "He's a bit of an odd ball."

Rion looked at the place where Xellos disappeared from in question. "Sounds like an understatement to me," Rion replied curiously.

You have no idea, Rion.

Taking a long breath, I slowly rose up to my full height and stretched towards the lighted sky. "Well, should we get going too?" I asked and turned to Cassandra and Rion.

"I think so," Cassandra said, "We're not getting any closer to Saillune just sitting around here." Rion too, nodded and gave a hum of acknowledgment.

Fully prepared and ready to go, we left the shelter of the forest's trees into the plains ahead of us. As we headed for the road leading north, I stopped one last time to look at the lone marker on the hill behind me where Alpha rested. I stood there for a moment in thought.

He was wrong. I was no murderer. Had I been, I would have no sentiment of his death.

"Zane," Rion's voice pulled my back to reality as he placed a hand on my shoulder. "We're leaving." Giving a nod, I turned my back to the hill and headed onward on our journey.

And that was how the legend of Alpha, the assassin who slew over a thousand victims came to an end...However, my legend is just beginning.