*	*	*

Neither of the two creatures was aware of a silent observer.  The man 
in black had passed through the portal only in time to witness the end 
of their conversation, but it was enough.  He knew he would not be able 
to catch up to them, not at their speed and he thanked the four armed 
creature, silently. Whoever he was, he slowed the shadow long enough 
for the man to catch up. And, more importantly, he had freed her..

It was impossible to understand how someone could have convinced the 
shadow to let *her* go, but the man suspected a possibility.  Sailor 
Moon was only created a short time ago and He probably did not know 
that the princess acted like a scout.

He shook his head silently as the other two creatures faded into the 
darkness. Ignoring the strange surroundings, the man moved next to the 
scout.  She looked so frail, lying on the ground, shivering, 
unconsciously freezing in the frigid air. The man stared at her for a 
long time, and something seemed to happen to him.

A shiver passed through him as he bent slowly toward her face.  Their 
lips grew closer, the distance slowly diminishing.  He did not seem to 
be aware of what he was doing, his eyes locked in a trance.  He could 
feel the warmth rising slowly from her face as his lips almost brushed 
hers.  Just a little more and- a sudden noise snapped him out of the 
strange state.  He jerked himself up away from the scout, his fists 
clenched.

After a moment, he calmed, his breathing relaxing slowly and he heard 
the sound again. A large number of voices, murmuring in the distance. 
He wondered what they were until a long unused memory told him. A 
single word went through his mind. 

*Grenoks*.  He took out a black cloak from somewhere on his gi and
wrapped the slightly moaning scout in it as he picked her up.  Choosing a
direction that led away from the voices, he strode forward.

Trying to occupy his mind, he attempted to remember what he could 
about where he was.  The memories were old, distant, covered with 
mental cobwebs.  But they were there despite the time that had passed 
and he forced himself to remember.

Bubble universes were dangerous.  Each was completely self contained, 
and could be composed of anything.  Usually, there was some sort of 
ground or floating rocks or *something* that a person could walk on.  
And almost always, there was at least one stationary portal, one 
entrance to the small world from somewhere else.  And very often, the 
worlds were inhabited.

The man sighed as the memories floated up, realizing that their age 
might make them inaccurate, but tried to force himself to think.  The 
creatures had to come from somewhere, he thought to himself.  Slowly, 
the training he had overcame the time barrier and his mind reluctantly 
provided the answer.

The problem consisted of keeping someone away since anyone with the 
coordinates of the universe and an ability to make portals could make 
his way to it.  At least if the universes were close enough.  
Generally, creatures from the Negaverse, fierce scavengers came across 
as soon as the bubble was created. They were known as the Grenoks, the 
homeless, those creatures in the Negaverse which were not affiliated 
with the Negaverse army.  They generally lived in tribes, scavenging 
for food in the bare plains of the Negaverse.  And they were never 
friendly.

The man continued on his way, ignoring the other images that floated 
up with what he needed, memories of times long gone.  The girl was 
growing less active, freezing to death in the rarefied atmosphere.  
Finding a somewhat sheltered region he set her down on a smooth rock, 
gently using the cloak as a buffer between her and the frozen surface.

He concentrated.  <Can you hear me?>

<Yes.> The answer came from a place separated by more than physical
distance.

<You must come.>

<You have freed her.> It was not a question.

<No, there is another who did that for me.> In a brief flash, he related
what he saw of the four armed creature.

The reply came almost immediately. <Interesting.  I would not have thought
that honor existed among the creatures of the Negaverse.>

<You cannot be sure it was honor.  Perhaps he made an ordinary mistake.>
The man shrugged, though he knew Guardian could not see him. <Besides,
there are exceptions to every rule.  Remember Nephlyte.>

<True, but he was a very rare case, and not nearly as extreme.>

<Not until the end.  But that is not why I need you.>

<I know.  I can feel it in your thoughts.  She is injured.>

<Yes, and I can heal her.>

Abruptly the light appeared in front of the man.

<You must not!  If you use enough power to heal her, you will not have 
enough to confront Him.  That is the ultimate goal, that takes priority.>

"You know better."

<You must not do it!  If you have any belief in the balance of the 
universes, you must let her recover on her own.>

"She has been touched by a shadow and drained.  She might not recover."

Guardian knew it was hopeless, but he had to try. <Then you must.. >

He did not let the light finish "Must what?  Must let her die?"

Though he must have known it was futile, Guardian tried to reply to that.
<Yes!  If you truly believe in your cause, in your destiny you will!  
If she were awake, she would tell you the same.>

"I can't let her die!  Not again!"  Abruptly, the man turned away from the
light, facing the prone scout.  "I have no choice."  He extended his arm.

<No! >The globe of light emitted something very much like a sigh. <Step
aside. Guardian floated to a position over the girl's face.  The
aura around the light pulsed, then seemed to concentrate.  All of the 
separate beams converged into one, pointed at the scout's forehead. 
For a moment that seemed to last forever, the beam held, then 
vanished.  The girl drew a shuddering sigh, then slowly stopped 
shivering.  Sending a grateful look to Guardian, the man used the edge 
of the cloak to cover the girl, then turned away, waiting.

*	*	*

"You WHAT??" The shriek tore through the chamber. The shadow cowered 
away from it, six captives still clutched in it's dark appendages.

"I..."  The shadow paused, wondering what it should say. "I..   He 
told me the other scout was a fake."

"WHO?  Who told you?"  The voice was full of death.  The shadow 
flinched away toward the entrance.  With its last wisp of courage, it 
whispered the answer hoarsely. "Kaneth."  

The dark shape on the pedestal seemed to recoil.  It stopped moving 
for a few seconds as if in thought, then returned its gaze on to the 
shadow.  Though the eyes were invisible, the gaze had a power that made 
it felt like a physical blow.

"Place them there."  The shadow wondered at the sudden change in subject,
holding still until an invisible arm pointed the direction. A shadowy arm
stretched out toward one of the walls of the great chamber.

Seven indentations were along the wall, hollows surrounded by pulsing 
black tentacles. At the end, farthest from the throne were two small 
ones, obviously made for the guardian cats. Though they looked 
appalling, they were not as bad as the rest. The next five hollows were 
all human sized, but not identical. The first three were the only 
similar ones, differing only in the position of the pulsing veins and 
slightly in size, as if made specifically for individuals.  The next 
one looked stronger, as if made to hold a more powerful creature.  And 
the next-

The next one was ghastly.  It was set forward from the rest, 
emphasized by a glaring white light that would make a captive blind.  
The black veins surrounding it were a network of dark poison, pulsing 
in a hideous rhythm.  And unlike the rest of the depressions which 
seemed designed merely to hold, this one was different.  It was 
surrounded by instruments, black tentacles tipped with cutting edges, 
with syringes made to deliver a black poison into a person, serrated 
edges that would rip flesh rather than cut it.  Like a surgeon's table
gone mad, it awaited a victim.

The shadow moved slowly, hoping not to attract more attention.  It 
placed the two guardians in their hollows, then hesitated.  The Dark 
Lord noticed and rasped directions in a harsh tone.

"Put the one with the tiara in that one." He said, extending a shadowy arm
toward the stronger chamber.

"But Lord, I thought that was reserved for the Princess with her.." It was
interrupted by a scream filled with more frustration than hate.

"She *is* the princess, you fool!!  Do as I command!"  The shadow obeyed
quickly, fearing for its life.  The tentacles and veins wrapped around the
scout, imprisoning her more securely than they did the two guardians. "Now
place the other ones in the three slots."  Understanding, the shadow 
placed them in the recesses, sorting them by size, watching the 
tentacles react swiftly, immobilizing them. It waited for further 
instructions, knowing that it was close to being killed.  But the Dark 
Lord seemed too caught up in his own thoughts, he only noticed the 
shadow several seconds later. To the shadow's astonishment, he did not 
seem as full of rage as it would have thought. "Leave me."  Glad to 
obey, the shadow slipped out as quietly as possible.



With the shadow gone, he concentrated on the problem.  Some time ago, 
he had felt the Chosen come in through the first portal, but knowing 
the speed of a shadow, the Dark One had not worried. He knew the Enemy 
would not be able to catch up.

Now was a different matter.  He was sure that the Chosen was with the 
scout, and he had to figure out what to do about it.  And, he continued 
with anger, what to do about Kaneth.  Kaneth was a problem. His 
*honor*, the Lord scorned the concept in his thoughts, his honor 
forbade him to obey his orders so he had to be destroyed.  He was too 
fair, to honorable to continue serving the Dark Lord, and he had to 
killed.  But because of his popularity, it had to be done in a way that 
would not appear suspicious, something that would make his followers be 
proud of him.

For a moment, the Dark One was concerned that Kaneth might command 
more respect than the Lord, but wiped the idea from his mind.  Even if 
he did, he was not as feared, and *fear* was power. Still, he had to 
get rid of him in a way that would not cause unrest.  And Kaneth was the 
second greatest warrior in the realm, the best next to himself, he was 
too valuable to waste.  There had to be a way to get rid of him that 
would make use of his particular talents. Making the equivalent of a 
frown, the shadow realized that Kaneth knew of his impending doom.  
That knowledge would have to serve as a punishment until something 
better came up.

And what about the Chosen?  The dark shape set his mind to tackle the 
problem of separating the scout from him, forcing her here, making him 
come after.  But he had to let that idea go, though possible, it would 
require more energy than he would gain, and might not succeed.  There 
*had* to be some other way to use him-  The Lord's thoughts trailed off 
as he paused.  Of course!  With a jerk, the Dark Lord stood up.  This 
could serve me after all, he thought to himself.

On the wall, in their individual niches, the scouts were waking up 
slowly.  He came up to their leader, the princess.

"You, my dear," he whispered in a voice that was anything but 
pleasant, "are going to be very, very useful to me."  He grinned, a 
dark slash across his face.  He then reached up, altering something 
over her head.  She was too powerful to leave conscious, the dark shape 
thought to himself as he administered a drug to her system.  A 
previously hidden tentacle rose up, sticking a needle in a vein in her 
arm.  The scout tried to twist out of her bonds but she was too groggy, 
and the drug worked quickly.  A black fluid flowed up into her arm, the 
tentacle pulsing like a twisted IV.

The Shadow turned away, satisfied. "Guard!"  A different shadow 
answered his call, flowing in smoothly. "Set up a guard at each of the 
portals leading to were *he*," the reference to the other shadow was 
obvious, "left the scout.  Make them ordinary guards, formidable, but 
no shadows.  Do you understand?  No shadows!"

"But my Lord, if the Chosen is truly out there, he might break through a
defense of that nature."  The shadow did not question, it knew better, 
but as a shadow, it had to inform its Master of everything he was aware of.

The Dark Lord smiled. "Exactly."

*	*	*

Mina was alive. She was sure of that.

Almost sure.

The pain was considerable.  Well, not so much pain, as *aching*.
And the *cold*.

Slowly, she regained consciousness.  Over time, vague definitions of 
feelings became more and more distinct.  After a while, the fog over 
her senses seemed to lift faster, and she was surprised  to realize 
that she could feel everything around her, though as if from a large 
distance. As if nothing applied to her in her stupor.  Hesitating to 
open her eyes for a reason she could not quite explain, she tried to 
figure out where she was.  Lying on a flat, hard surface, though there 
seemed to be a softer cover over it that made it bearable to her cold 
bones. A conversation was going on, somewhere that seemed distant, yet 
she was sure that it was right next to her.  She listened a bit, then 
realized it was not making any sense.  As if she was hearing only one
side, the speaker answered questions and talked, but the other side of the
conversation was left empty, for her to guess about.

The voice she heard was sad, filled with pain. "So long.." It breathed
quietly.



He reached out with one hand, almost touching her.  A slight shiver 
worked its way up his frame as his hand moved down to her.

<You must not.>

"So long... So much time I've waited for this moment.  Always training,
learning, getting myself ready.  And now..."

<You know you have to keep away from her.  If you do not, the results 
could be disastrous.>

The man turned to the light behind him, anger clearly written on his
face. "What do you know of denial?"

<Every one of us has been through the same thing as you.  And when we 
failed to break the destiny, when we could not keep away, then *He* 
struck.>

"At least you survived."

A tinge of sad humor entered Guardian's thoughts. <You call this survival?
Trying to teach someone who insists on repeating our mistakes.>

"At least I managed to survive once.  That is more than any of you can
say." The man sighed slowly. He rubbed a hand over his face, then looked
directly into the light.  "I know what I have to do."  His voice sank to a
whisper. "It's just that it's been so *long*."

<You knew this would happen for a long time, you are ready.> The light,
too, seemed to sigh. <As ready as you can be for something like this.>



Mina wondered what the man was talking about.  He seemed to pause, as if
listening to someone else speaking to him.  The scout thought that she 
might not understand because she did not know the other side.  What she 
did not realize was that she wouldn't have understood the conversation 
anyway.

The man fell silent for a while, during which time much of Mina's feelings
returned.  She still hesitated to open her eyes, and was debating with 
herself on that subject when the man spoke again.

"Does He sense you yet?"  The voice seemed to be more relaxed, not sad any
more. A pause, while no one replied, yet again.

"Then you should go before He is sure."  Another pause, this one 
longer, as if the answer was long, but Mina still did not hear 
anything.  She wondered why the voice emphasized 'he' so much.

"I understand, but surely He will take action to get you away." 
Another halt. In a way, Mina was becoming used to this.  It certainly 
made for a lot less strain on her mind, she did not even need to try to 
understand.

"And once He does notice you completely He might destroy you. He might 
send a shadow after you, even if He cannot reach you here."  The voice 
sounded aggravated, and that made it seem familiar.  She tried to place 
it, but failed.

Then a single word he said leapt out to her.

*Shadow.*

The Creature!  Suddenly, Mina's memories came flooding back. The monster
attacking, her being taken and now... Where was she?  She tried to 
look around, but her eyes would not open as if she was paralyzed. Then 
the shot of adrenaline brought the surroundings closer to her in a 
sudden jump, and the paralysis seemed to move back a little.  Forcing 
motion into her muscles, she moaned, then cleared her throat.

"Where am I?"  Her voice sounded alien because of the dryness of her 
throat and mouth.

"Disappear."  The voice was quiet and commanding, and she was not sure she
heard anything.  Did she hear that one word, or was it her 
imagination?  There was a brief echo of motion, then a voice, the same 
voice she heard before said something.  It took a bit of time for her 
to figure the words out, her mind still fuzzy, but he seemed to be 
replying to her question. "Great, a cliche."  Her eyes were still 
closed, but she had the definite impression that he was smiling. He 
paused, then continued. "You are in a..  you would call it a bubble
universe.."

A what? 

"You are safe for the moment."

That was good to know.  If she could trust whoever was speaking.  
Maybe she should open one of her eyes.  A portion of her brain told her 
to relax while another fought for action. "Wait!"  She scrambled 
through her thoughts.  "My friends... Where are they? Are they all 
right?"

The voice was slightly sad now. "I do not know.  There is nothing you 
can do for them yet, but we *will* help them."  The voice reassured 
her, relaxed her.

Finally, her eyes came open. She could not see anything, then the fog 
over her sight lifted and she found herself staring at someone bent
over her.  At first she did not recognize him, then with astonishment 
realized it was the man in black.  

Of course!  *That* was the voice she could not place, what did he tell her
that time on the tower? <Do not despair.  It is not the time yet>. She did
not recognize him because the shadow over his face was absent, she could
*see* him for the first time. A question bubbled up through her mind, a
question she wondered about for a long time. "Who are you?"  Her voice 
still sounded alien to herself.

"Not that again," he sounded disappointed, though the smile did not 
disappear. "That is a *very* long story, and I do not have the time.  
Neither do you, for that matter."

What did that mean? "But... What is your *name*, at least?"

"You just asked that."  His voice was reproachful.

What? "No, I asked who you were.. it's not the same thing."  She 
fought to get her thoughts together.

"What a person is, and who a person is are one and the same. I though 
you would remember that."  His voice sounded even more disappointed, 
and the slight smile vanished.

Remember from where?  "Then what am I supposed to call you?"

"I let people call me what names to me they will.  Some are better then
others."  Seeing her surprise, he smiled again, a slight turning at 
the corners of his mouth and sighed with resignation. "Just call me... 
Call me Chosen."

Chosen?  Chosen.  The word spun in her mind.  It had to connect to 
something, it felt so familiar, but it fell through without hooking on 
to anything.  As if she knew of him, but did not let herself remember.

Forcing herself, she looked past him.  She was lying in some sort of 
niche, surrounded by short stone walls.  As far as she could see, the 
surrounding were completely barren. Just stretches of rock with nothing 
on them.  And the sky...

The sky was hideous.  Like a living entity, it swirled in its colors 
of garish purple and gray, threatening to consume her.  It twisted and 
turned with no end, no cessation of motion, no way of escaping, 
grasping at her, luring her inside its depths.

Forcing herself to tear her eyes away from the sight, she gasped.

"Where are we?"  The question escaped her before she realized she had 
asked it already.

"I told you. A bubble universe."  That did not help any more than it 
did the first time he said it.

"What's that?  A bubble universe, I mean."  Funny, her voice sounded 
almost human now.

He frowned. "I thought you would know, you've been in enough of 
them."  Seeing her confusion, he seemed to remember something. "No, you 
came later.  Serena and Ami are the ones, and I think Rei was in one or 
two.  Jadeite was a master at these, it's amazing the scouts managed 
to defeat him." 

Jadeite?  Who was this guy, and how did he know all of this?

She heard scrambling somewhere near, and voices, lots of voices, 
distracting her.  "What are those?"

He seemed to notice them and frowned again. "Grenoks.  Can you move?"

"Do I have a choice?"

*	*	*

Aspirin.  Darian wondered why his mind was sending that word to him 
when he tried to move.  Some part of him went 'oh, that makes sense,' 
while the rest of him screamed silently in protest.

His body felt like it had been frozen solid, then thawed with a 
flame-thrower. There were a few places that were not aching, but that 
was due to them still being numb.  His head... he did not even want to 
think about his head, which seemed swollen to at least four times its 
normal size.  Or so it felt.

Another thought made the treacherous journey through the numbed 
portions of his brain.

Serena!  The word made him wince in more than physical pain.  Last he 
saw, she had been grabbed by the creature with the other scouts, then 
he himself got grabbed and... where was he?

With a force of will impossible for most humans, he forced his eyes open.

A jeering voice greeted this.  "So our little prisoner is awake?  
Where'd you get the costume, man?"  The voice made fun of him, but 
there was something else.  It took a moment for Darian to identify.

Fear.  Now why would someone fear me?, Darian thought to himself.

His eyes could not focus at first, the surroundings floated around in 
shades of gray and blue.  All of a sudden, the fog seemed to clear, and 
the objects around him became well defined.

He was staring at the uniform of a police officer.  As near as he 
could tell, he was sitting on a bench in the rear of a police van.  A 
quick glance confirmed that he was wearing handcuffs and the door was 
securely closed.  The van was moving.

OK, Darian thought, so now what?  He wondered how he got captured by 
the cops, then wondered what happened to the others.

Well, as a first order of business, I can't have myself getting caught 
by the police, Darian told himself.  At least my mask is still on so 
they don't know who I am.  Casually, he addressed the cop across from 
him. "What happened officer?" He did his best to fake confusion which 
wasn't hard under the circumstances.

"Damned if I know- Some friggin' *hole*in the middle of the sky opened up,
and you're the only guy left 'round to talk." Hopefully, the man added, "I
don't suppose you can explain it?"

With an attitude of complete relaxation, Darian answered, "No, I 
can't." Trying to relax the other with his attitude seemed to work, and 
the guard did not seem all that battle ready anyway.  Suddenly, the 
prince twisted his wrists with inhuman strength, breaking the metal 
chain.  Before the officer could react, Darian kicked the door open, 
shattering the metal lock, and leapt out of the moving vehicle.  By the 
time the van stopped, he was racing down a side alley, keeping to the 
shadows.  After avoiding any possible pursuit, he wondered what 
happened to the scouts.  He continued down the alley, worrying, unaware 
that the scouts knew little more than he did.

*	*	*

"What do you want from us?"

This was beginning to get annoying.  Not that it mattered, there was 
nothing any of them could do, anyway.  The bonds had been specially 
designed to hold them, and no power could set them free.  Well, almost 
no power, he thought with a dark smile.

"Why are you keeping us prisoner?"

Yes, this was definitely becoming annoying.  They had not stopped 
since they had began to wake up.  To their credit, it had only taken 
them a couple of moments to realize that their powers did not work.  I 
took a bit longer to figure out what was wrong with the Princess, but 
one saw the needle sticking in her arm.  He sighed, wishing they would 
shut up.  Yes, that would be nice.  He reprimanded himself for his 
thoughts, shifting his mind outward, trying to locate the Chosen, and 
trying to block off the Guardian.  He was interrupted yet again.

"Who *are*you?"

Very well then. "*Enough*!"  The voice, filled with the passionate hate he
had built up over eons silenced them.  Slowly, he approached the suddenly
silent scouts, a darkness even blacker that the shadows, visible 
against the lightlessness of the cavern only as an even darker place.  
Just to see what the effect of it was, he repeated himself "Enough."  
With surprise, he noticed that not one of them flinched the second 
time.  The two cats did not seem to fear anything, as they should not.  
They were, after all, guardians.  Not the Guardian, but guardians 
nevertheless.  The red and the green, Mars and Jupiter if he remembered 
correctly seemed defiant, the blue, Mercury caught up in her own 
thoughts, and the Princess..... The Shadow smiled to himself.  She was 
mumbling something, but was completely out of it, her muscles relaxed 
and her eyes closed.  He could understand that since the drug, having 
to restrict her powers to a great extent, might be set too high for her 
to tolerate consciously.  He smiled again, knowing they could not see 
his face under the shadows that cloaked him.

He remembered the question, and decided to answer it.  Leaning close, 
he spoke out in a harsh whisper, moving his head next to them. "You 
want to know who I am?"  The voice he used was a special one he 
developed for dealing with stupid questions.  After hearing that voice, 
it was not infrequent for a creature to have an 'accident,' stupidity 
was not tolerated.  But of course, the scouts  would not know that, all 
they knew is that his voice mocked them. "Very well." His voice 
descended an octave, lower than a human could manage. "I am aware that 
certain portions of your memory were... how should I put this?"  He 
grinned at their discomfort. "Erased."

The green one spoke up.  "Our memory was restored.  All of it!"  She was
defiant, that one.  He would have to think of something special for 
her, after the Chosen was dealt with.

Meanwhile, he answered. "All of it?  Are you sure?  Are you quite, 
quite sure?" The voice questioned any belief. Seeing her about to 
protest, he continued, this time putting anger into his voice. "No, you 
do not remember everything. But perhaps this will spark your memory a 
little."

He breathed in deeply, savoring this. "I have been known by many 
names, most of them bad."  He started at a whisper, gradually building 
up his voice.  "I have been called the Lord, the Enemy, the Shadow!...  
But there is one name I have been known by for the longest period of 
time.  I am the *Dark Lord*!"  His voice reached an intensity beyond 
anything human at the end.

The red one replied to that heatedly. "Nope, doesn't ring a bell.  But 
wait until we get free.." She twisted uselessly within the confines of 
the vines.

He laughed suddenly aloud, a dark laugh that instilled cold into the very
marrow of a creature's bones.  Or so he had been told, for he had never
experienced cold in his infinite life. "Oh, I think you will remain 
there until *I* say otherwise.  You six are going to be much more 
useful than I originally imagined."  He dropped to a conspiratorial 
whisper. "Originally, you see, I took you for nothing more than backup, 
just in case.  Now, you are all of the bait, and you will be enough.  
She will come for you. And He will have to come with her! Until then, 
you are staying right here."  Turning his back, he slid over to the 
throne.  "Guard!"  While he waited, he turned his head toward the six 
figures along his wall.  They seemed to be talking, probably making 
plans, but it did not matter.

Things were going well indeed.



"Serena, snap out of it!"  Rei could not believe she would sleep at a 
time like this.

Lita seemed sympathetic. "Leave her alone, she has been going through 
a lot."

"She has been like this since we awoke, perhaps this is serious.  It 
could be some sort of shock."  Ami had a point, since they woke up, Serena 
showed very little movement.   They had noticed the needle in her arm, 
but knew there was nothing they could do about it. Although she seemed 
to moan something about usefulness at first, she quickly quieted, and 
they could hear nothing from her.

"She is our leader, we need her awake!"  Luna was not in a very good 
mood.  The two cats got a higher dose of freezing and it was only now 
wearing off.  And because of the difficulty of restraining a feline 
more so that with a collar, they were tied up much more uncomfortably.

Artemis suddenly interrupted. "That chamber looks more powerful 
somehow, maybe it is draining too much of her strength for her to stay 
awake."  The white cat suddenly noticed everyone's eyes focus on him.  
"Just a guess." He finished, rather lamely.

Rei continued, heedless. "And where is Mina?"

Now there was a question that had been troubling all of the scouts 
since they awoke.  Mina was not tied up along with them.  The quiet 
hope seemed to be that she escaped and would free them, but that seemed 
a bit far fetched. Nevertheless, no one was willing to venture the 
other alternatives.

Again, Artemis replied for everyone. "She is all right, I know it."  
This time, he ignored the surprise at the confidence in his voice.  "We 
just have to keep hoping."

*	*	*

Mina was most definitely not all right.  She was running down a rocky 
plane in nothing but her sailor outfit, with the temperature 
considerably lower than comfortable.  The fact that they were chased by 
a horde of assorted monsters did little to alleviate her concern.  
Neither did the fact that her companion in black did not seem tired in 
the least.  In fact, he seemed to hold back for her, which annoyed her 
since she had always done well in gym.  And she was going at a pace 
that was faster than any human on earth.

That the creatures were gaining did not help her mental attitude either.

She wondered when her heart would give up, it was certainly beating 
faster than ever.  Any time now, she imagined, the muscle would be 
driven to its extreme, the blood would pump a little too fast, and it 
would rupture.  The flesh giving way to red, spurting blood, flooding 
everything, her body falling gracefully to the ground, the creatures 
boiling her as a tasty snack, their drool..... Fortunately, she was not 
allowed to finish that train of thought, though she had gone far enough 
to be nauseated.  A sudden light seemed to illuminate the ground in 
front of her, appearing so swiftly she almost twisted her ankle on a 
rock, which would have been suicidal.

"Did you find anything?"  The man did not seem to be out of breath at 
all.  He was talking.... He was talking to... She could not quite 
distinguish it, but it seemed to be a sphere of light hovering over 
them.  The man seemed to be listening to something, though she did not 
hear any reply.  His face turned  grim as he answered. "That will have 
to do.  Hopefully it isn't poisoned."

Grabbing her arm, he changed course, heading somewhat to the right.  
The light disappeared so fast it might have vanished into thin air. 
Which would make sense, she thought with a bit of irony, since that was 
how it seemed to get there in the first place.  She followed him 
quietly since he seemed to know what he was doing.

"How well can you swim?"  For a moment, she thought he was talking to his
silent guide again, then realized he was staring at her.

Between pants, she tried to reply. ".... I.... was second..... in my.....
class."

He nodded tersely, then did something strange.  She had noticed two 
swords in some sort of harness across his back, but when he reached 
behind himself, he took out a knife that had also been there, hidden in 
the black folds of his gi. With two swift motions, he tore away the 
fabric on the side of his top, revealing his ribs.  For a moment, she 
though she saw lines drawn in the flesh, parallel to the ground, then 
had to concentrate on running.

A lake appeared in front of them, a glossy surface reflecting the 
rather nasty sky.  Within moments, they were at its edge, and she 
wondered what they were going to do next.  It was huge, and though she 
could see the other side, there was no way to get to it.  And it looked 
*cold*.

With a wavering voice, she asked him  "Um, I don't suppose you can fly."

"No."  The reply was casual, as if she asked if he knew what the time was,
passing him by on the street.  He did not seem to have really heard her.
 
With a smooth motion, the man bent down, dipping his hand in, then ran 
a wet fingertip across his tongue.
 
"What are you doing?" She asked, frustrated.
 
"Testing for poison."
 
Oh, yeah, that was helpful, she thought to herself.
 
The horde was a hundred meters away, and he still paused, standing still.
  
It was fifty meters away, and she believed she could smell the individual
creatures composing the mob of monsters, when he smiled.  In a single 
motion, he grabbed her around her waist, and threw them both into the 
waters. Noiselessly, the water closed over their heads.
  
Frantic, Mina tried to make him release his grip.  She had been 
correct, the water was cold.  After a moment, she started to lose 
feelings in her limbs, despite her scout physique. Then she became 
aware of a burning in her lungs, a desperate need for air. As a scout, 
she could hold her breath for several minutes while being active, but 
she needed to take a deep breath first, something she had not been 
given  chance to do.  She struggled to keep herself from inhaling as 
she realized that the only question was what death she would suffer.
  
Would it be the lack of oxygen, pressing on her lungs, collapsing and 
inflating against her closed lips?
  
The cold around her gripping at her limbs with gaunt hands, paralyzing 
her?
 
The mob of creatures an unthinkable distance above her, barely audible 
through the water?
  
Or, she added one more, or the man in black, this Chosen who seemed 
intent on killing her?
  
Slowly, the two figures drifted into the depths.
  
*	*	*
  
The shadow was furious.  In a single gliding motion, it entered Kanenth's
living chambers, passing through the door as if it wasn't there.  
Seeing the warrior in some sort of meditation, the shadow almost 
stopped, but its anger was such that it disregarded all that was told 
of Kaneth's battle prowess. Besides, it thought to itself, nothing 
physical could threaten it.
 
"Traitor!" It spat out hoarsely in his face. "You will face me or die a
coward."
  
The four armed creature woke calmly.  Almost casually, as though 
unafraid, it replied. "Why should I?"
  
The shadow swelled with anger, quite literally, growing until its 
insubstantial head passed through the ceiling. "Why?  *Why*?  You 
betrayed me!  That scout was not a fake, that was the one He had been 
looking for.  you lied to me, you..." The shadow paused, looking for 
the worst insult it could give.  In a flash of inspiration, the answer 
came. "You have no honor!  You betrayed a sworn lord, and therefore you 
are just as deceitful as the rest of us."
 
For the first time, Kaneth looked uncomfortable, but he came back 
strong even so. "I did not betray my lord, He betrayed *me*!  He lacks 
all honor, and uses innocent humans to bait his trap!"  But he did not 
sound very sure.
 
The shadow was on a roll however, answering the weak excuse. "You 
don't seem to know as much of honor as you say you do.  Just because 
you serve a dishonorable master does not mean you have the right to 
betray him.  A sworn allegiance remains, no matter who you swear to.  
And the order was not given to *you*, so you could not claim you were 
made to do something you could not. Now face me, if you dare!"
  
Kaneth bowed his head.  He clenched his fists, then raised his head, 
sighing. "Perhaps you are right.  But I simply couldn't allow anyone to 
commit such a deed."  He suddenly drew himself up, glaring at the 
shadow. "But I do not wish to kill you, and if you fight me, you will 
not emerge alive."  Before the shadow could laugh at what it perceived 
as an empty threat, Kaneth unsheathed his two swords, leaving the 
shorter ones in their harness.  "These blades were made long ago.  I 
*inherited* them from their previous honor, who died challenging me."  
Seeing the shadow moving back a little, he continued. "They were made 
of a material that could cut through almost anything." Again, he 
paused, then suddenly looked into the eyes of the blackness in front of 
him. "Even shadow-flesh."
  
The shadow shrunk back against the wall.  "Yes," he whispered 
quietly,  "I have heard of blades that could cut through even our 
intangible flesh.  I had thought the only pair left was the one the 
Chosen carries and the one belonging to the Dark Lord, but I recognize 
the metal."  He paused quietly. "But I cannot let this insult go 
unpunished.  And so I must die."
 
Kaneth nodded once, shortly, and gave the shadow the best compliment 
he could. "In a way, you, too have honor."  The shadow leapt on him and 
the two swords whistled through the air.
  
*	*	*
  
Yet again, the fire defied him.  Grandpa sighed his distress, his face
unusually somber.  It had been hours since Rei was supposed to have 
come home, and she had not even let him know something was up.  And the 
flame refused to tell him anything.
  
Sinking down to the ground, Grandpa tried to recall all he knew of Rei's
mysterious nature.  Ever since she met Ami and Serena, she had been acting
strangely.  Disappearing for hours, coming home with various minor 
injuries. And then that time warp came, that no one seemed to have noticed.
  
And the fire, the flame that was supposed to serve him, reveal to him 
what his limited senses could not, did nothing.  For many decades he 
had trained to use the flame, to join with it until it was part of him, 
burning in his flesh.  And he had thought he was a very good student, 
until Rei was born.  She had an instinct for the fire, for priesthood, 
that defied belief.  When he taught her, he could hardly contain 
himself from the elation he felt at her inner strength. Instead, when 
she came around, he tried to put on a goofy exterior, hiding his own 
strength deep within, the strength that had honed her to the power she was
today.  
  
Sailor Mars.  He smiled to himself despite everything, amused that she 
thought she could hide her identity from him.  Just because the fire 
refused to tell him of her nature did not mean that he was helpless, or 
stupid.  And he was sure that she and her friends were the sailor scouts.
  
And now she was gone.
  
She was with her friends, having one of their 'secret meetings' when 
something exploded in the city.  He felt an evil force nearby, and saw 
the scouts run off toward it with their secret companion, Darian, on 
whom Rei had a crush for a while.
  
That was the last he saw of them.
  
Well, at least Chad was away for the week, Grandpa thought to himself 
with a sigh.
  
He heard footsteps behind them, steps that would have been silent to any
ordinary human, but easily felt by Grandpa.  Very few humans could be that
silent, and he knew only of one with that particular feel.  The fire 
flared once in an answer to an unspoken question.
  
"Hello Darian."
  
Tuxedo Mask was obviously taken back a little, though he replied smoothly
enough. "So you are not as senile as most of the scouts think."
  
Smiling at the backhand compliment, Grandpa answered. "Why should I 
be?  I have been trained for this job since I was a kid.  I like to 
think I am pretty good at it."
  
"Then I assume you tried asking the fire for Rei's whereabouts."
  
"I have, but as usual, it is not very responsive when it comes to 
her.  Still, it told me nothing at all, which is unusual."
  
"That's what she said."  Darian did not look surprised, knowing that 
Rei had the same result when dealing with the situation they had been 
dragged into.  He walked up to a chair, then swirled his cloak about 
him.  Within a moment he was back to the ordinary looking Darian.
  
Grandpa noted this without surprise, though it was certainly an 
interesting mode of metamorphosis. He waited for the end, then retold 
everything he knew. "She worked with the fire for a long time 
yesterday, and nothing came of it. She went to sleep frustrated, I 
could feel it.  And when I tried to get the flame to tell me what she 
was asking, it brought me to a similar frustration." Knowing the 
answer, Grandpa asked the question anyway. "Do you know what happened?"
  
Sighing, Darian collapsed into the chair. "No."  He looked at the 
crows, flying from post to post, and envied them.  They were oblivious 
to the problems around them and had no worries beyond feeding themselves.
  
For a while, the temple was silent.
  
*	*	*
  
Of the different demises possible, Mina was going to die because of
asphyxiation, she was sure of it.  It was definitely not pleasant.  
The other possible deaths, while being threatening, did not seem 
anywhere as immediate as that.  The cold bound her, froze into her 
skin.  She could no longer feel most of arms and legs, and she knew she 
was going to get hypothermia soon.  But that was too far away a death, 
the lack of breathing was much more immediate.  The monsters, hardly 
noticeable at the depth she was at, were too far away, separated by too 
much water to reach her.  And the man seemed to be satisfied at what he 
already did.
 
She knew she was going to die, and yet she did not move.  Her mind, 
numbed by the sudden drop in temperature, refused to let her move.  And 
what force of will she could muster she needed to keep herself from 
breathing in the water, from dying.  Then she wondered why she 
bothered.  If she died by breathing in, she would at least be free of 
the pressure on her chest.  She would not have to fight any more.  She 
could just relax, let herself drift off into the depths forever.
  
Some portion of her mind fought back at the passive voice.  You have 
to fight, it told her, insistently, you have to hold your breath.
  
Why, she replied, why should I listen to you?  All you have brought me is
pain.
  
Your friends!  The active portion screamed, and that reached Mina.  She
disregarded quiet voice telling her to surrender, and tried to move.  With
jerks, she forced energy into her limbs.  And nothing happened.  She 
realized she was too far gone, there was nothing she could do.  The 
part of her that wanted to fight broke, and she almost inhaled.
  
Almost.
  
At the last moment, strong arms flipped her over.  She was suddenly 
staring into the face of the man in black.  For a moment, some far away 
part of her tried to remember his name, but failed.  And then he did 
something astonishing.
  
He kissed her.
  
In a normal situation, she would have jerked, reacted somehow, but 
this was not normal, and the only thing she managed to do was widen her 
eyes a little.  She felt him open her mouth with his tongue, and tried 
to twist away when he breathed out.
  
And sweet, vital oxygen rushed into her lungs like a knife through her 
chest!
 
Stunned, she breathed in, savoring the taste of air.  She thought she 
felt his lips curve up against hers at her surprise.  The coldness in 
her limbs retreated a little, as if forced back by her elation.  After 
an eon that might have lasted for seconds or hours, she began to 
approach normalcy.  The coldness retreated even more, until only the 
ends of her limbs were numb.  Then she felt an intangible warmth flow 
from him into her body, and she recovered even farther.
  
After a time that seemed to last forever, they separated.  She felt 
she could last a few minutes like this, even in the cold, but then she 
would need more air.
  
Then she wondered what just happened.  Startled, she looked at her 
savior.  He did not seem uncomfortable swimming in the water.  His eyes 
were fully open, and his clothes hung loosely about him.  Seeing her 
wonder, he smiled again. Gently, he took her arm and brought it to his 
side, where he had torn his gi. Moving her hand softly, she felt 
several indentations running across his ribs. Swimming up to get a 
closer look, she saw them to be slits, where she had seen the lines 
before.  As she watched, the holes contracted and relaxed, and she
saw his chest rise and fall at the same time.
  
Gills?  
  
She shook her head in astonishment, then realized she needed more air.
Hesitating, she looked at him, and he nodded, bringing his head to hers,
exhaling into her again.  The air had a slightly salty aftertaste, but 
so did the water, so she hoped that made sense.  Once she separated, 
he pointed a direction, and they swam off in it.
  
*	*	*
  
Darian was the first to break the silence. "Um... is there something I 
can call you except 'Grandpa'?  I mean, that's what the girls use, but 
it seems kind of awkward.  Don't you have a real name."
  
Grandpa looked sad for a moment, but replied. "No one has called me 
anything but Grandpa for a very long time.  You might as well use it."  
Seeing Darian frown, he continued. "Don't you understand?  Names have a 
far greater impact on a person than one would think.  If you know 
someone's name, you have a power of them that few others have.  Take 
yours, for example, your name is Darian, Right?"  Darian nodded
agreement. "Are you sure.  Who do you think yourself to be.  Are you 
Tuxedo Mask, for example?  Or maybe Prince Darian? When you were on 
Beryl's side, were you aware that your name was Darian?"
 
The prince looked confused for a few moment, but answered the 
question.  "Um... no, actually.  I think I thought of myself as Prince 
Darian, nothing else.  I remember, right before I summoned the water 
sprite, Serena asked me if I remembered the name Darian, and I didn't.  
I suppose I really was not aware that 'Prince' and 'Darian' was not 
one... one word, I guess."  After a pause, Darian nodded. "Yes, I think 
I see what you mean."  He was about to ask another question, but he was 
interrupted.
 
Another set of footsteps came up to the door, uncertain ones.  The door 
slowly slid open yet again.
  
"Hello." Greg said as he walked in.
  
*	*	*
  
Slowly Mina was getting used to their mode of traveling.  At first she 
felt rather uncomfortable kissing the guy every few minutes, but at the 
same time something strange happened to her when she did.  It was like 
a tingle of electricity going through her mind, as if a long forgotten 
memory was trying to awaken.
  
The orange scout shook her head, something not entirely effective 
underwater, and sighed, something that also didn't work too well.  She 
had been trying to figure out what that feeling was, but without any 
success.  Just that when she was with him she felt-  Mina paused in her 
thoughts.  She didn't really understand how she felt, just that she 
liked it a little, and was scared of the emotions a little.
  
With a mental shrug, she turned her attention toward their passage 
through the water. The lake was amazingly clear, and completely empty.  
Sometimes she felt like they were swimming through a pool in which the 
chlorine had been replaced by a small amount of salt.  There were no 
animals, no plants, no life of any kind, just water.
  
Not for the first, or last time, she wondered about her companion.  
Although he was very calm, he did possess emotions, she could feel it.  
That was a good sign, because most of the creatures of the Negaverse 
had only room for hatred. He, on the other hand, had a sort of humor, a 
sarcastic type, but a humor nevertheless.
  
Then again, there were mysteries about him that made her unsure of his
allegiances.  The rose episode and the globe of light seemed to be 
good, but the gills reminded the scout of several monsters she had 
fought over time.  She had gotten used to her friends being completely 
human and the enemies having differences in physical structure and that 
prejudice was becoming difficult to overcome.  Mina was also fuming 
slightly at him dumping her in the lake like without warning, but she 
tried to ignore that residual anger.  After all, it had saved her life.
  
Still, despite all the unknowns about him, despite all the questions 
which she had, there was something inside her that insisted on trusting 
him.  Even when she told herself that there was a good chance he was 
from the Negaverse, a part of her refused to believe it. In some way, 
she believed in him far more than could be explained rationally.
  
And she felt safe with him, safer even than she felt with Artemis or 
any of the scouts.
  
Ahead, she saw the other side of the lake approaching slowly. The 
shore was like a cliff, going straight down into the depths at a steep 
slope.  The reflection of the water hid what the cliff did above, but 
she assumed it was something similar. They would probably arrive 
straight on the rocks, and have to climb up to get to the level of the 
land.  She shook her head, thinking forward to the time when she would 
be able to get out of the cold water. Despite her receiving some sort 
of heat from him every time she took a breath, the water was still too 
frigid to be comfortable.  And she was tiring, not used to swimming 
this sort of distance while holding her breath all the time.
 
A glance at her companion confirmed that he seemed as relaxed as ever, his
motions smooth and strong.  Neither the cold, nor the long swim, nor the
absence of air seemed to have bothered him, Mina noticed once more, slowly
getting annoyed at his seeming strength.
  
Slowly the shore approached until she could hear the sound of water 
crashing against rocks.  As she neared air her body seemed to grow 
lighter, going faster toward the rippling light of the surface.  A few 
more moments and they broke the curtain of waves, their heads finally 
above the bottomless lake.
 
Drawing air in gasps, she welcomed the sight of the rocky shore and the barren
land.  Even the sky, the sight of which had scared her before, seemed
pleasant.
  
She did not have much time to enjoy being alive, though.  Her 
companion swam quietly to one side and she followed him.  He climbed 
out where there was a rock outcropping, hiding them from anyone on the 
plain.  Despite her fears, the cliff only extended several feet into 
the air at which point it leveled off, giving way to the normal rocky 
terrain. Mina followed him out quickly, eager to leave the cold water, 
then found that it was a mistake.
 
She had gotten somewhat used to the cold, but a harsh wind dropped the
temperature of the water on her to below freezing.  She started to 
shiver, and the man looked at her.
  
"Can you regulate your beam to dry us?  The temperature of the air 
seems to be a bit chilly today."  There was the suggestion of humor in 
his voice, but he was clearly uncomfortable. Mina tried to be coherent 
through the shivers that racked her. "Um, I don't really know, I 
suppose I could try."
 
The man smiled at her a bit. "Do try it."  Before she could yell out 
the words, he added, "quietly."
  
She breathed out the air she had intended to use for a yell, and whispered
instead. "Venus Crescent Beam.. " Mentally, she set the beam to a mild
temperature that should warm both of them. "Smash." She closed her 
eyes, hoping they would not both get fried.
  
The beam surrounded both of them, evaporating the water in seconds.  In a
moment, she was dry, though a bit uncomfortable, her skin warming swiftly.
Looking down at herself, she decided not to think what her uniform 
looked like. The white material was not made to be soaked for long 
periods of time and then dried suddenly.
  
The man seemed unimpressed at her display of power other than for a slight
elevation of an eyebrow.  He walked to the edge of the grotto and 
looked beyond it. Whatever he saw, it was important, judging by the 
expression on his face, so she came over quietly to look as well.
  
A portal.  At least that's what her mind labeled it as.  It hung in 
the air, a roughly circular tear in the barren landscape, hovering in 
midair.  In front of it, two guards stood.  They did not look overly 
imposing, each roughly two meters high, with two arms and a dull skin.  
If not for the rows of spikes on their shoulders and the malevolence in 
their eyes, they could be almost thought of as being harmless.  But 
their location and their stance assured her that they were guards, set 
up to defend the gate.
 
Silently, the man drew her back into the grotto.  His voice was barely a
whisper, but she could understand him easily enough. "Only two.  And no
shadows."  He sounded surprised. "Perhaps because this is not near the
Negaverse yet."
  
Wait, she thought, this is going too fast. "What is that thing?"  She
whispered. "And what are you talking about?  What about the Negaverse?"
  
He looked at her with slight annoyance, then relaxed. "Your friends 
are there. He probably did not want to waste power creating a direct 
portal which wouldn't last, so he made bubble-universes that make sort 
of stepping stones between the Universe and the Negaverse.  We have to 
get past those guards."
 
"Wait... who's 'He'?  And how do you know?  Are you from the Negaverse?"
  
Ignoring the rush of questions, he walked to the edge.  "You take the 
one on the right, I'll take the one on the left."  His voice allowed 
for no hesitation so she joined him, not having much choice at the 
moment. "One, two, three, GO!"
  
It was amazing, really, how fast the things reacted, Mina mused to 
herself as she charged. As soon as the two came into sight, the guards 
turned to face them, dropping into combat stances.  She wondered what 
her first move should be for a split second, then an idea came to her. 
What worked for the meatball headed scout might work for everyone else 
as well, she decided.
 
"I am Sailor Venus, the champion of justice.  On behalf of... er... Venus, I
shall right wrongs and triumph over evil, and that means- aarrrgghh!"
She was not allowed to finish her speech as the creature, at first 
taken back by her tirade, regained its poise.  With a single motion, it 
threw a handful of flashing stars at her, an attack she avoided with a 
leap.  Unfortunately they smashed into the ground beneath her and the 
resulting explosion knocked her off balance in midair.  She landed 
badly, almost twisting her ankle, then the thing was on top of her.
  
The Chosen was doing considerably better.  Not bothering with any
preliminaries, he came straight in at his target, dodging a similar 
array of stars with a fluid twisting motion.  Within a second, the two 
combatants were face to face, a position they did not retain for long.  
Effortlessly blocking the swipe of a claw, the Chosen ducked under the 
outstretched arm, hammering at the creature's stomach.  While it bent 
in pain, he hit it with an elbow to the head, and grabbed its still 
outstretched arm.  Stepping back, he kicked it in the stomach, keeping 
his hold on the hand to double the impact, then knocked it out with a 
spinaround back kick.  As it collapsed to the ground, motionless, the 
man looked at Mina's struggle.
 
It did not look good.  Mina was half unconscious, the creature being 
to strong for her to defeat in straight hand to hand combat.  She never 
go a chance to fire a blast at it, since it attacked her so fast, and 
now its claws were arrayed about her throat, ready to rip it out.  She 
was half unconscious, limply hanging in the creature's grasp, unable to 
free herself.  And the Chosen was too far away, ten yards or so, to 
help.  The creature raised its head, smiling grotesquely, then decided 
to finish Mina, before taking on another opponent.
  
Before the monster could finish its motion, the man in black spoke out 
to it. "Hey pussface!"  It was not a yell, but it carried clearly 
through the valley. The creature paused, relaxing its grip somewhat and 
raising its head at the man in black, wondering what he was trying to 
accomplish.
 
Suddenly, its gaze stopped on the man's eyes.  Somehow, they seemed 
bigger than they should be at this distance, it thought to itself as it 
tried to tear itself away from the sight.  It could not, for some 
reason it was frozen, seeing the only the eyes, getting bigger, huge, 
overwhelming.  The creature ordered its muscles to twist away, look to 
the side, tear out the scout's throat but it continued to hold still, 
its body slack.  With the sudden relaxation, the scout slipped out of 
the hold, dropping to the ground.  With her vision blurry, Mina forced 
herself to get up, facing the monster, but it seemed to pose no 
threat.  It just stood in place, staring at the man across the distance 
between them.
 
Suddenly, the man raised his arm, stiffening his hand into a fist.  With a
swift motion he punched the air in front of him.  The monster recoiled 
as if the punch landed on it, thrown away from Sailor Venus.  Again, 
the man punched, somehow hitting the monster, and again.  With a 
strength that Mina could almost feel, the Chosen punched for the final 
time, the creature collapsing in a crumpled heap fifteen yards away 
from him.  Mina looked at the monster, then at the man, astonishment 
plainly written on her face.
 
The Chosen's voice seemed slightly sad as he came up to Mina, hurrying 
her. "Come on, they will send reinforcements soon." He paused, looking 
at her. "Oh, and we *are* in the Negaverse, or somewhere close.  Next 
time, shoot first, make speeches later."  Not waiting for her to nod, 
he turned toward the circular hole. Together, they leapt through the 
portal.
 
*	*	*
  
"Prince Darian, Grandpa," Greg nodded as he sat down.  He looked with 
distrust at the first until the prince remembered the circumstances 
under which they met last.
  
The prince snorted. "Does *everyone* know who I am?"  He asked no one in
particular.  He quickly changed to a more serious attitude.  "Hello 
Greg.  Last time we met, I was trapping you in the black crystal, I 
believe. You're Ami's boyfriend, right?"
  
"Um.."  The boy actually flushed, Grandpa observed, staying out of the
conversation. "Well, I suppose you could call it that.  Ami did tell 
me of your change, and I saw it in my...  Anyway, I know you are on our 
side now."
 
"But you still don't quite trust me." Darian observed.  
  
It was not a question and Greg ignored it, the answer being obvious.  
Instead, he changed the topic. "Still, I need your help.  All of the 
others are missing, and my powers can not find anything out, except 
that they are gone.  And the only person who I thought could help was 
you." He said looking at Darian. "But you don't know either."  Seeing 
agreement, he turned to Grandpa.  "Rei told me once that you did very 
good fire readings, but I had a dream the you would not be able to help 
me either."
 
Grandpa shook his head. "The fire refuses to tell me anything.  All I 
got was a flicker."
  
Greg sighed though he was quite obviously expecting the answer.  Then 
the boy sat up straight. "Then tell me of the man in black."
  
Both Darian and Grandpa sat up attentively, wondering what he knew 
about the guy, but Darian's reaction was just a bit faster. "How do you 
know about him?" He blurted out, a split second before Grandpa would 
have said the same thing.
 
Greg seemed taken aback by the other's enthusiasm.  "Just that he is
important."  He frowned. "It's almost like something is blocking my 
powers, I cannot clearly see anything."
  
Darian sank back, disappointed. "Join the club." He said with the bare
suggestion of a smile. "Apparently, none of us can do anything but wait.
I've never felt this helpless, never! I guess I'll stay here for now.  
Oh, how did you get here anyway?"
  
"Um, I told my dad I'm going to visit Ami for a couple of days.  I 
guess I'll stay here, if I can?" He looked at Grandpa, who nodded.
  
The figures, now three, sat silently, waiting.
  
*	*	*
  
The passage seemed to take forever, as all interdimensional travel 
did.  He tightened his grip on the girl's arm, letting her know that he 
was still there. After what seemed like an eternity, but probably took 
less than a second, they emerged onto a new scene.
  
The Chosen's well trained eyes surveyed the surroundings.  They seemed 
to be on a free floating island, a rather large one, in the midst of 
other such islands floating through the air everywhere.  Beyond, a 
border similar in some ways to the sky they had just left formed its 
curtain.  However, there was more pressing business to be done since 
directly in front of them, ranged in a strange formation, was a group 
of guards.
 
Letting go of the scout, who seemed to have recovered from the journey, he
switched automatically to a combat situation mental outlook.
  
After as many years of training as he had received, his mind easily 
switched to the battle mentality.  It was almost as if his brain got 
detached from his body, observing what was going on and delivering 
information.  Then his body would take over, acting on the information 
as if it had a mind of its own.  In reality, he knew that it was two 
separate portions of his brain talking to each other, but it always 
seemed like his body knew what to do before he did. Mostly it came from 
the enormous amount of training, the basic forms of combat had become 
ingrained in him until it was part of his subconscious.  Then again,
his subconscious was not exactly subconscious any more, so that did 
not apply, he thought with a slight mental smile.  Still, now as 
always, the different portions of his brain kicked in, one analyzing, 
the other acting.
 
There was no real way to convey what he was thinking in words, it was too
intuitive for that.  The best way it could be translated would turn out a
little like a series of commands, or informational messages sent from 
one part of his brain to another.
  
<Tactical: Large group of creatures arrayed in spread out position in 
front of another creature, probably as a defense for it.  Mostly minor 
powers, probable threat low.  Rear creature unknown, threat unknown.>
  
<Probable causes of rear position of creature:>
<Creature is in command.>
<Creature has long range power.>
<Creature has no power.>
<Creature is wounded.>
<Creature is afraid.>
  
<Most probable: Creature has long range power.>
  
<Course of action:  Take out rear creature first.>
  
"Cover me," he told Mina as the thoughts flashed through his mind. He
ignored her consternation at his tactics, concentrating on the 
situation. His body was moving even before he finished analyzing, 
accelerating toward the line of defense.
  
<Tactical: At least two of the other creatures will have to be passed.>
  
He noticed with detachment that Mina threw a blast that smashed into 
one of the minor creatures in his path, this time without a preceding 
speech.  Another monster took it's place, closing the gap.
  
<Recommended priorities for passing defense creatures:>
  
<I Self Preservation>
<II Speed>
<II Disable, temporarily or permanently, encountered creatures.>
  
His body seemed to concur as he closed the distance.  Suddenly there was a
flash ahead, the rear creature having extended both arms in front of 
itself.
 
<Incoming!>
  
His body was already in motion, leaping over a radial blastwave coming 
from the monster.  Some portion of him noticed calmly that Mina had 
avoided the blast as well. A creature came in at him, snarling, a shard 
of crystal in one hand.  It swung the sharp chunk at his head, missing 
completely because his head was no longer there.  In a smooth motion 
that belied its speed, he twisted in a way that brought his rear foot 
into contact with the guard's face.  Stunned with surprise and physical 
impact, it slammed into the ground and he continued.
 
<Warning: Dispatch next creature quickly, more closing.>
  
Fuming at the logic, his body obeyed.  The next creature wielded an energy
sword, which whistled through the air over the Chosen's head as he 
ducked.  In a seeming caress, his fingers brushed against the monster's 
side as he passed it without looking back.  He did not need to, he knew 
what would happen.
 
Shrieking as if it had been burned, the creature dropped to the 
ground, the energy sword vanishing from its grasp as it screamed, 
clutching its side. Mina, stopping her frantic blasts for a moment, 
gaped in surprise.
 
<Warning: Incoming blast- unknown energy signature!>
  
The creature extended its hand again, but the blast was different.  
Instead of a solid blast wave traveling close to the ground, hundreds 
of separate energy blasts radiated from it in a wave that traveled up 
as well as to the sides. Distracted by his brush with the defense 
creature, the Chosen was not quite fast enough.  Whipping his body 
around to avoid a blast that came directly at him, he did not quite 
make it.  The blast grazed along his biceps, going through the fabric 
of his suit and through his skin as it passed by.
 
<Tactical: You Idiot!>  His body ignored that, knowing there was nothing
to be done.
  
<Damage Report:  Minor damage, skin and portion of biceps pierced, wound
cauterized by blast, no  bleeding.  Estimated negative impact on combat
ability, -.01.>
  
It sometimes frightened him how rational his brain became at times of 
combat. A part of him noticed that Mina dodged the blast effortlessly, 
it being too spread out to do be dangerous at her a distance away from 
the source.  However, the portion of the creatures that oriented on her 
were giving her more trouble. Several seemed impervious to her attacks.
 
<Tactical: ETA 1 second.>
  
He arrived with a crash, impacting on the creature before it could react,
pushing it off balance.  Unfortunately, there was little else he could 
do, the creature's scaly skin seemed impervious to his attacks.  
Thrusting himself away, he twisted on one foot, smashing the other into 
it's face.  The only thing that got hurt was his foot.  A low growl 
emanated from the creature as it sprang forward, claws first.  
Fortunately, he was ready, with a quick motion, he twisted himself out 
of the way, letting the claws pass, then shoved the creature along its 
path, almost making it fall on its face.  Then it recovered, from an 
almost impossibly tipped position to a completely balanced one.
 
<Warning: threat recalculated to be high.  Skin is impervious to most
weapons, and creature shows signs of high combat intelligence.>
  
As it did.  With another motion, it sprang at him again, but this time 
it was balanced.  All he could do was to keep its claws away from his 
throat as they struggled for control.  Moves which should have broken 
the grip and sent the creature flying provoked no more than the 
occasional growl.
 
<Warning, defense creatures incoming, ETA 10 seconds.  Secondary 
defense unit close to being compromised.>  His mind disregarded the 
fact that Mina was not just a defense unit, for the purposes of direct 
combat, it became irrelevant.  But only to the tactical portion of the 
Chosen's brain.
 
Knowing that he had little time, he decided on a more speedy, though 
possibly more dangerous course.  He looked directly into the creature's 
eyes, keeping the claws well away from himself, staring at the 
monster.  With a force of will impossible to most people, he released 
himself, letting his essence leak out through his eyes and into the 
guard.  It froze, staring into them, the two orbs, gleaming, getting 
wider, deeper.  The creature knew that something was wrong, its brain 
told it to twist free, to look away, but it was already too late.  
Falling into a bottomless pit, those dark eyes getting larger and 
larger, it was trapped.  With a shriek of mortal pain, it collapsed, 
its body twisting in on itself, turning into a fetal position, 
shuddering slightly.  The Chosen turned his attention toward away from 
it, a look of pain for his actions hidden behind a mask of impassivity.
  
Mina was not doing very well.  Heeding the guy's advice, she attacked 
as soon as he left her, wondering where he was going, then seeing the 
rear creature. Immediately, she decided to start with the heavy stuff.  
Concentrating, she summoned power from within herself, pointing at the 
creatures in front of her. "Venus... Meteor Shower."  A spray of rocks 
sprang out from her hand, showering those in her path and temporarily 
clearing the way for the strange man.  She saw two or three of the 
creatures go down, but also a similar number from whom the meteors 
simply bounced off.  A few remaining blasts made it to the creature at 
the rear, but they bounced off it as well. For a moment, she wondered why
the thing was so important, then it let out some sort of energy blast wave,
answering that question.
  
She followed the example of the other, leaping over the blast, then 
the smaller creatures were upon her.  She let out another blast of 
meteors, which seemed to have little effect, then switched to her 
beam.  The power of the beam was more concentrated and only two 
creatures survived to reach her from the first wave. The second wave 
was mostly after the man in black, though more were heading her way.
  
Then the two who penetrated her defense were on her, springing at her 
swords first.  She was able to see their forms with eerie ease, they 
seemed very much like humans.  Carrying swords made out of crystal 
shards, they jumped at her, making her dodge- too fast, off balance.  
It took her several moments to regain her stance, then the first was 
attacking her again.
 
Dodging his first strike, she tried to blast him again, but his skin 
seemed absorb the beam, receiving no damage.  Blocking his next strike, 
she smashed  him with her fist, and that seemed to work much better as 
it staggered back.
 
The creature at the rear, now pretty far away, let out another blast, many
individual bolts this time.  She could not be sure, but she thought 
that her companion dodged it, then it spread out too far and none 
impacted near her. She returned to her present problem, which was 
dodging the second of her attackers.
  
This one seemed smarter somehow, more cunning.  It swung its sword, 
keeping her out punching or kicking range.  Distracting him for a 
second with a fake kick, she leaped over his head, landing behind his 
back and smashed her elbow against his spine.  He collapsed, clutching 
at his back and dropping his sword.
 
Thoughts seemed to pass very slowly across her mind.  As if observing 
herself from a distance, she waited while things took forever to reach 
her brain.
 
The creature with the damaged back was in front of her.
  
The portal was behind the creature.
  
Therefore, the portal was *in front* of her.
  
The main force of the creatures was behind her.
  
She was between the portal and the creatures.
  
She waited while her mind tried to come to some conclusion, then it flashed
through her.
  
Most of the creatures were behind her!
  
She felt something close to her back and started turning, knowing it 
was too late.  It was one of them, crystal sword raised high over her 
head, ready to split her in half.  Instinctively raising her hands, she 
waited for the blow, then was stunned when it did not come.
  
The creature shuddered, then slid quietly to the ground.  A knife was 
stuck in the middle of its spine.

A quick glance showed the situation behind much changed.  The rear 
creature had apparently fallen.  The man in black was standing there, 
looking at her.  Most of the other monsters were fleeing as fast as 
they could, leaving the two people behind.
  
Slowly, she walked up to him, looking at the whimpering rear creature 
in its fetal position.  She started to ask a question, but he stopped her.
  
"We have to go, they will bring reinforcements."  Seeing her almost 
bursting with questions, he sighed. "I will explain, now come on!"
  
Together, they ran toward the next rock island, floating in midair.  She
wondered how they were going to get from one flying rock to the next.