Me: And here we are, back again—going to start off this story with the usual, I do not own the series Mushrambo/Shinzo, nor do I own the plot or characters. I only use them to amuse myself for zero profit.
Mushra: Which is stupid. If you actually got fans like you did on the old one, you could make money off this stuff.
Me: Well, for one thing, it's illegal, and for another, this is for ENJOYMENT, not profit. I'm not so cheap as to twist childhood stories that are near and dear to my heart into something to earn money.
Mushra:…Unless you can make it into a published work, about some anti-hero.
Me: ….Stop looking through my computer, twerp. Anyways, WE ARE BACK. Immediately following the end of To Love Enterra: Waking the Serpent, we find the group reeling from the hell they were just put through, and trying to find the answers. New characters ahead, and the plot will be getting more and more intense as we go. Hope you guys are ready (and if you're readers of my previous version, hope you like the new turns and twists)! Enjoy, review, READ ON!

Chapter 1-What's Become of Us

The great interrogation and judgment room was empty, and had been so for many months now, as there had been no use for it. It was a wide room that seemed to resemble a small scale auditorium to some extent; a door to the left of the 'stage', and one to the back of the many rows of chairs. In the middle of the stage was a chair set with chains coming from the ground, ready to be bound around the one sitting—and the chair was barely that, more a metal stool.

And currently seated on the stool was a very fidgety Dr. Parasite, with Mushra pacing slowly in front of him with folded arms. The doctor was unable to move other than his head, or from side to side. He was wrapped in chains around his torso, chain and cuffs clamped on his wrists and feet as well. He never looked the fire Enterran in the eye, though his eyes kept almost wandering up, before casting back downward.

Mushra's body was tense in its movement. A warrior holding back his fight. His restraint was more unnerving to the bug Enterran than his actual attacks had been.

They'd been there some minutes since Mushra had had Kutaal chain the doctor up. And it was then that the silence was broken by more than breath and footsteps.

"I'm going to ask you questions, doctor, and let's just say, you'd be smart to answer them after everything you've done." He told the doctor and stopped his pacing. His hands fell to his sides, fists balled up.

Parasite still didn't look up, though he made a small whimpered noise.

"What could have possibly brought you to think your little experiments were a good idea, turning Earth humans into Enterrans?" he began. His tone was as terse as his body was tense. All he could think was this scientist had put his friends in the worst situation; he had put them through hell. Where once he thought maybe he could send them home, find a way to block the portal, he now felt they had no chance for that. They were stuck in his world, not completely fitting, but certainly unable to find a place in their old world now. "How long have you been working to do this? Months? A year? How long were you after them?"

Parasite said nothing, seeming to put all his energy into ignoring the Enterran warrior.

Even so, Mushra pushed on. "Why were you helping Ryuma? Are you working for any other Generals, or were your loyalties only to him?" When the bug still didn't answer, Mushra moved a few steps closer, making him fidget more. "What do you know about us…?"

That almost made Parasite look up, but his eyes never rose past the height of Mushra's hip.

"What did Ryuma know of us? He seemed to know more than our reputation…" Mushra accused, as that question had been aching in his head since the moment Ryuma first tried to kidnap the girls; in this timeline, they'd never even crossed into Zortown, much less crossed his path. And yet somehow, he seemed familiar of them, and their past, to a degree.

But still, he earned nothing from Dr. Parasite. It was working on Mushra's patience, which despite him maturing over the years, was not much better.

"What were you thinking going after those women?" he almost barks this time, taking another step toward Parasite. If he took one more step, he'd be touching toes with Parasite's chained foot. "What madness could have struck you to make you think taking them, OUR friends, was in any way a GOOD IDEA?!"

Before Mushra even finished, though, a noise began erupting from Dr. Parasite—something between a whimper and yelp of excitement and joy. It turned into strange, short laughter, and finally his eyes rose to meet Mushra's. They were wide and thrilled, and it just set Mushra on edge, his skin crawling in a way that reminded him of this creeps' maggots.

"This has been my dream, boy, and I could not wait any longer!" he began excitedly, and he spoke in a rush, sputtering half of what he said at times. "Those humans—Earthlings from twenty or so years ago, they were the first, and terrible wastes of ingredients. Guided by some silly legends, they managed creation of a portal. Oh, I would have marveled on how they did so if I wasn't so distracted—so very curious… They arrived just in time, though. I was just birthing my theory, just nurturing the scientific practice for that dream. And there they were!"

"Humans…from Earth…" Mushra muttered thoughtfully, glaring Parasite down as he spoke, and trying to think of what humans Parasite meant—he faintly remembered a story the girls had told them to explain the portal when they went to old Enterra one of the first times.

"They asked for help, some sickness was striking their home and they couldn't handle it themselves. They begged for my help, thought I was some disfigured angel from their legends. And I provided it. They were under the assumption it would take time, and I let them think it—such fools, such fools, ehehe! I observed their dead and managed a cure in a matter of days! Just as insurance… But they didn't know that…" he chuckled, and the more Mushra watched him, the scientist seemed as if he truly must have been growing mad over the years. This enjoyment, excitement, was beyond normalcy or sanity.

"Their virus was already being cured in the Old Enterra, but I made them think I was still working out their salvation. Fooled them well, I did, as I was able to use them to develop and test my experiments! Told them, 'It must come from you! Salvation will come from you, once I give you this power!' Fools, fools, fools," he repeated under his breath, "I worked on every one of them. All failed! All of them. One of them had small ones, of course, and I saw another chance."

"You experimented on children?!" Mushra cut him off in a rage, reaching for the color of the doctor's coat, pulling him against the chains.

"Made me promise, the mother did, and I did promise, but not the promise she thought, ehaha, haha! She wanted them cured, wanted them safe, thought they were still sick. One of them was, too far gone—didn't last through the trails. Not even a week. But the other two…" he spoke almost fondly, before sadly. It unnerved Mushra as he knew the sadness was not for any care of the children, but for his unholy experiments. "Their trials, I took my time. Their parents couldn't last the normal paced trails, so I had to adjust. I had to, ingredients had to be reacquired. They all did.

"Those little ones had such promise, and then they ran! Damn little fools!"

"They escaped?" Mushra's brows furrowed.

"Barely reached their age of ten and they wanted to be free, after all I was doing for them! I took them out as I always did, to feed them, and they'd broken free, with the gifts I'd given them, they used them against me!"

Mushra let go of his collar, the doctor knocking around on the stool as he dropped back down. "Serves you right…"

Parasite gave a hmph and continued. "Ran, and I searched far and wide, but never found them again—wouldn't be surprised if they died out on their own. That girl would have lasted longer, the boy was too fragile, even if he endured better than his younger brother.

"New subjects; I had to find new ones, but I didn't trust wandering into their world alone. Unbearable world that it was… I waited, hoping another would come through. And my king had kept me busy for some years doing his pitiful work, until I'd had enough. And then…those angels arrived…" he spoke of the girls in a dreamy tone, and Mushra resisted the urge to kick him. "It wasn't long before that, that I was sought out by Lord Ryuma. He said his alchemist was in need of my science. Took some convincing, but when Ungar started sputtering his visions, oooh, it was too interesting to pass up!"

"Visions—what were the visions about?" Mushra stopped him there, crossing his arms again. "Tell me about what he saw."

"You, of course. You and your friends, present and deceased." Such a careless statement had Mushra curling his fists, but the doctor kept on. "The reptile King was obsessed; he watched them over and over once Ungar managed to shed them into a Seer bowl. I barely saw anything but glimpses, oh how I wanted to see more—it seemed as if it were something other than truth, to me, and yet it was so real. Ryuma was in denial, but the more he watched it, that denial became determination. You really did him wrong, whatever that time or place was, didn't you?" he cackled.

"He brought it on himself, and apparently was doomed to repeat that fate." Mushra said through gritted teeth, remembering what Ryuma tried to put Yakumo through. "Continue, now. There was a reason you were helping him."

"Ungar." He stated. "The magic one found jewels, ones that could hold power, and I decided I would try, if only to get my hands on them—they were the key! I'd found some of my own before as I learned form my mistakes, but those jewels, they were imbued so much more gracefully—they could hold much greater power! And it gave me a chance to test how far my machines could go."

"Turning us to kids—that was just a test of length?"

"For me, yes—Ungar chose the specifics, and once I figured how strong an example it could set for my research, I agreed. They had their own reasons—weakening you all, and the like."

"So you had no reason other than your stupid experiments to be involved with them?"

"Stupid? STUPID?! My work is genius, I tell you! I have strove to create what the humans that began us failed to realize they could have done!" he exclaimed, his passion bursting from him now, making Mushra take a step back. "They created other beings, when they could have empowered themselves!"

"And then you never would have been." Mushra pointed out, but his words were over looked.

"They could have been something glorious! Imagine! Your water friend and his dragon nature, and even you! Ultra Hyper form gives you wings! Imagine, the gracefully powerful force that would have been had the Earthlings empowered themselves instead of created a race to save them! It has to be my purpose! When that girl came through, I took her in—I could not get to your friends just yet, and I had to be sure, I couldn't fail with them. And she passed the first few trials—I knew then, as I did my work and aided Ryuma, that I could do it! I just had to wait to get them!"

"And why them?!" Mushra demanded, moving forward again.

"Why them!? After all Ryuma told me?! Their knowledge, gifted somehow! And their connection to you, Enterran's who have defied timelines—you boys are something great, beyond any others, especially you…and those girls, in smaller but still spectacular ways, they are as well! Think of the glorious new race my beautiful hybrids and you men could create through breeding!"

Rage was obvious on his face from the redness that grew to color it, and he was at his breaking point.

"I have every intention of bringing that race to fruition, boy, eheha! My girls, my children, will be the mothers of a new beginning upon Enterra!"

Mushra scoffed, sounding angry, and he moved behind Parasite as the bug Enterran continued. He worked at the chains, undoing them as he was tired of listening to this bug.

"Scoff as you wish! They are mine! I injected them, fool! A potion formed of my science and Ungar's alchemy; we made it as a failsafe to use upon the three of you men if you could possibly break free of our intentions for you! They will obey my every whim and will and there's nothing to be done! I am their creator!"

Mushra tore him from most of the chains the chains and pushed him to the ground as he stood over him, holding a single chain that connected to Parasite's ankle.

"You are not their creator. You're just a mad-man."

I I I

Kutaal wandered carefully through his living-room with a look of worry unshakable on his face. He came back and forth with plates and bowls; bowls to the men, who were hungry, and plates for the women who were beyond such. Their bodies ached in too many ways to count, and no ways to describe as of yet.

They'd been back to the apartment for half a day now, and they'd said nothing. They'd barely even made eye contact, much less any physical contact other than sitting closely together amongst themselves. The four women were like neglected, homeless animals; they looked beaten, wounded, and neglected. They looked wild, and unlike themselves. No one knew what to do, other than Kutaal to bring them food, and Sago or Xavier offering water, or asking them questions.

None of them had spoken. They were either silent or full in the mouth when they would begin eating. Together, they'd cleaned 13 plates of varied food, and downed too many glasses of water to count. Kutaal had come to take their most recently cleaned plates to the kitchen then. He went over to Sago, his eyes mostly on them as he spoke low and careful.

"Should I cook another meal…? I have plenty more that can be fixed…" he offered.

Sago watched them as well, blue brows furrowed under his bangs. "…Hold off for now. I know their probably malnourished…and their bodies might be telling them to eat after what they've been through, but they'll hurt themselves if they eat too much, too soon… Let's just wait until they are looking or asking for it…"

Kutaal nodded sadly and, shoulders low, returned to the kitchen.

"…It's like…they're not even here…" Xavier commented as he stared, mainly at Winter; she, like her sister, were now more noticeably different. Tan color over her eye-lids and temples, her hair longer. There was a tired but wild look in her eyes, like with the other three. Her nails were noticeably different; where once they were normal, they were now thinner, and seemed somewhat retractable, as was Jaden's and the stranger girls.

Jaden's hair had somehow become red—there was still traces of brown, in tints and in some of the roots, but most of the strands seemed to have become a deep red. Even the shaved strands. Her canines, as well as Winter's and the other woman's, seemed a little more pronounced—Sago had wondered when he spotted them while they were eating, if they retracted as well.

Heather looked the most wild, like an aggravated predator trying to ease back into calm over and over, but she never got there. The red in her brown eyes seemed more prominent now, her glasses lost to her.

The strange woman they just found as a stranger. They did not know whether the whitened strands were natural, or if the paleness was her skin tone or her current state. If the vibrant blue of her eyes was power surging. The claws were surely unnatural, as for the teeth. But they took notice of the clothes, and how UnEnterran they were.

The two of them did their best not to stare at the wounds, whether to avoid being rude, or to prevent themselves from becoming very angry.

"They are." Sago responded to Xavier's statement, dropping his gaze when some of the girls started turning their shoulders on the two of them.

"Shouldn't we be speaking to them, finding out what happened?"

Sago sighed and looked at Xavier. "After everything they've been through, they need as much time to just RECOVER as they can, and you want to interrogate them?" he narrowed his gaze at the other Enterran, remembering how almost…irritable Xavier had been from the moment the girls had been taken by the bugs. "What the hell is your problem?"

Xavier glared back at that, very quickly defensive. "Nothing's my problem."

"That's a lie."

"Is it, water boy?" Xavier asked, his tone taunting and irritable. Almost tired of something.

Sago's jaw clenched as he watched him. Sure, he didn't know this Enterran as well as Mushra, or even Kutaal or he'd known for less time than Mushra. But he'd grown to respect and trust him. The respect had started dwindling the moment they set off after the girls. "Yes. It is. As I discern, from the vibe coming from you, that you have wanted to be anywhere but with us or the girls since we returned from Ryuma's palace."

Xavier clinched a fist. "Don't question me."

The earth Enterran stood then, and began heading for the door, just as it opened and Mushra stood in the doorway.

"Xavier—good, you, everyone, outside. We've got something to discuss." He stated, his tone louder than the hushed one's the other two had been speaking in, and the girls took notice, glancing briefly his way.

"What?" Xavier asked, still standing in the doorway, but Sago was heading to it; even Kutaal, who must have caught Mushra's voice in the kitchen, came out to do as Mushra said.

"What punishment to give Dr. Parasite." Mushra stated, and headed back out into the dirt and stone pathway between the buildings.

Xavier followed first, but surprisingly, the women sprang into movement after him. They weren't even following, exactly. But after Mushra said Parasite, they seemed to come to attention, turning, crawling, standing and heading out to meet them. Sago followed, keeping his eyes on them, with Kutaal just behind them.

They group found the bug Enterran watching the ground, bound by a chain and standing by Mushra, who began to speak as the lot of them grouped before him.

"He has no regret for his actions. And the girls weren't his only victims. They're just more of a 'success'. He intended to use them as nothing but lab-rats; the beginnings of some stupid race."

"Stupid, again, stupid?" Parasite muttered under his breath, but not any louder.

"He planned to use them without care, consideration, or consent, and nothing more." Mushra glared him down.

"Blatant disregard for others, and dark acts without reason, against warriors and innocents." Sago observed, glaring him down as well. He crossed his arms through his cloak. "His punishment may be close to that of Ryuma's… Xavier, Kutaal?"

Xavier was silent, just watching the bug Enterran with disregard, considering.

"He should surely pay for his crimes, the fiend!" Kutaal stated angrily.

The men spoke, considering putting him into some sort of service, or locking him away, or really considering Sago's comment of the punishment needing to be like that of Ryuma's. But the girls barely registered any of their words, now or before. They watched Parasite in turns as if he was an enemy, a threat that they were trying to consider whether or not to flee from. Sometimes they had to look away, as if it hurt to watch him, but eventually glaring gazes would find him again.

That's when he raised his gaze, spotted them, and smiled.

And that smile seemed to set them all off. Their eyes grew wide, their body language changed, and they started to separate from their grouped positions. Mushra, in the midst of speaking, noticed and cut off speaking. Their eyes were wilder than ever, but they were zeroed in. Sago, after Mushra cut off, followed his gaze, and the rest of them took notice.

Mushra took a step forward. "Heather…Jaden, guys…it's alright…" he began speaking. He looked to Parasite, who was smiling…and who began opening his hands as if to beckon them. And he feared whether what Parasite said, about what he injected them with for control, was true. "Guys—"

That's when he noticed their extending claws. He barely gets out, "Wait!" before they four of them launched after him with sudden unbelievable speed.

But it wasn't Mushra they were after. They were after Parasite, he realized, as the chain slipped from his grasp from the doctor yanking free to make his escape. The girls moved with inhuman speed that they never possessed before, and with fire in their eyes. The doctor squealed in fear, and for all his energy he put into his feet, his little body didn't bring him far enough fast enough.

And then sound burst from the girls, in angry screeches.

"YOU CUT US UP!" Jaden yelled and it was like a growl. She slashed at the air, fire slashing at him in claw strikes, knocking him forward and burning his back.

"YOU BROKE US DOWN!" Winter exclaimed, pained and angered, a blast of ice and frost seemed to burst from her chest and travel through her arm to blast after him, catching Parasite and freezing some of his limbs to the ground.

"YOU TORE US, STABBED, TWISTED!" Heather growled, and sent a blast of black and purple energy that hit him in the side, which broke him from the ice and sent him rolling. The three of them tackled him; they were attacking, clawing, kicking him, until Alex came up behind them. They parted as Winter pushed them aside. She nodded to the other woman, taking in deep breaths.

She stared down the whimpering Enterran, who was trying to crawl away. She walked calmly after him. She exactly embodied calm before a storm. Finally, she leapt at him, as fast as a lightning strike. Now curled over him, she grasped his collar.

"You took me, stole me, and broke me apart….you deserve everything you get." Alex growled down at him with absolute hate, raising a hand that was sparking, before she brought it down upon him.

With that blast, he was no more that his card. Glaring, Alex backed away from it in disgust.

The men had been too late and too unwilling to try and stop them before, and would have settled now that the disgusting doctor was nothing more than a card. But as Sago saw Jaden stalking towards the card with her claws extended, he sprang into action. Just as she kicked up the card to twirl in the air, she was about to slash it when a cool hand caught her wrist to stop her.

She looked to Sago, growling and balling her clawed fist, when she saw the look on his face, and in his eyes. All the raging fire she felt inside her, and the cool touch burning in her hand, seemed to weaken as she watched him. And she watched him in a strange trance. She was still defensive, hate within her, but she did nothing else, as if he'd stopped something that she couldn't muster the energy to try again. Sago was just thankful he stopped her before she went too far. She was so different…so hurt and vengeful, he almost regretted stopping her. But he knew it was right.

The other men came forward, a bit cautiously, but the girls were slowly reacting to their presence. Winter gravitated toward Xavier slowly but surely, until finally reaching him and laying into his chest, burying her face as he wrapped his arms around her. Sago picked up the card, passing Mushra as he told him, "I'm taking this to put it in Hakuba. Keep an eye on them…"

Mushra nodded as his friend left. He looked to each of them, Jaden near Winter, but still distant. Heather wasn't far from her, and Alex was furthest from everyone, staring at the ground where the card previously was. He took a step towards Heather then, ducking his head, hoping to catch her gaze, but her eyes looked glazed, like the life and fire their rage had brought to them had all-but vanished.

"Hey…Heather…?" he reached a hand to carefully touch her shoulder. When he did, she looked to his hand, and barely followed the path of his forearm. He gave a weak smile. "…Nothing to say to your favorite hot-head..?"

At that, there was a flicker of smile, and though it didn't last, it gave Mushra some hope.

Sago returned not long after. "His card is stored…. Now that he's dealt with… Girls…" he spoke to them, and they barely looked to him. "I'm sorry, for everything you all have gone through. But it will get better. You're all safe now. We all are, now that we're together…" He tried to speak comfort, but he almost felt it was useless.

None of them said anything, until Jaden slowly looked up towards him. He raised his brows, hopeful, but the look she had seemed fearful and worried.

She raised her clawed hand, looking to it with her brows furrowed in anger and fear, and then back to Sago.

"What are we now…?"

Mushra: Sago should have let you slice him.
Me: maybe so, who knows—we might get a chance later.
Mushra: later shmater, they creep needs to go down, and never get up again…
Me: Yeah, we'll see how that works. Let me know what you think, and look for the next chapter soon!