A/N: And here's the next chapter, as I promised.


Chapter 1: Rebuilding

"Heave, ho! Heave, ho! Heave, ho!"

"C'mon, just a little bit more!"

"Heave, ho!"

With one final surge of effort, another wall was pulled up into the foundation of a new building. The group of men noticed the sudden slacking of the ropes they used to pull it up, and thusly dropped them and sighed with relief. "Great job! Alright, we've got two more of these to put up, so lets try and get this done by the end of the day!" commanded the voice of Lighter, who was leading the group and was none the worse for the wear in comparison to them. A collection of groans and cheers were let out from the small crowd as another slab of large, wooden wall was being carried over to them with the help of a hovering forklift.

It had been six months since the revolt against King Porky. When the Dragon of Darkness had risen, the populaces of Tazmily and New Pork City were very shocked and disappointed about the result, firstly because it didn't appear that the world had been reset. Or at least, Nowhere Island hadn't been reset; when the island-sized beast had ascended, it had came out all in one spot instead of destroying all of the island, resulting in a massive tear in the ground above the cave that stretched all the way to the volcano. The second problem was that the volcano's eruption had spewed igneous rocks onto the floating New Pork City and sent it crashing into the side of the island; it was the only place that was really damaged by the eruption, as if the volcano was punishing the Pig Mask Army for trying to revive the Dragon with evil intentions in mind. Fortunately, the casualties were minimal and the deceased were properly buried at the cemetery. A service was held for them after all the bodies were believed to be found.

In the wake of this disaster, the citizens of Tazmily reached out to the citizens of New Pork and offered residence to them. Since that time, the remaining six months had been a massive operation of expanding the village and bringing supplies and necessities from what was left of New Pork. The army was lost without their king -- especially the vast majority that had used Porky's Good Person Spa -- and had no choice but to accept the generous offer; some were reluctant, but the fact was that the Pig Mask Army was virtually finished and that there was no way for the people to get back to their own time frame, so they had no alternative.

By this point in time, the expansion of Tazmily was very nearly done, the village having been almost completely transformed into a city even bigger than New Pork. Everyone who was capable was helping the cause, even Kumatora and Duster when they had gotten the point across that being a girl or having a limp made no difference. The effort was mainly led by Flint and Lighter, one usually taking over for the other when they were training their sons. True to his word, Flint had trained Lucas hard, and the surviving twin had made no argument about it. The thirteen year old savior -- soon to be fourteen in a week -- had become almost as strong as his mentor, and this was when his powerful PSI and newfound mastery of his brother's Thunder Sword weren't taken into account. This progress had left Lighter's son, Fuel, jealous to the point where he asked his own father to train him. The boys would occasionally spar with each other, sometimes to keep their skills sharp, sometimes for the sake of fun. If she was around, sometimes Kumatora would watch them spar, and usually jump in when she felt like it.

Ironically, the arduous expansion of Tazmily was the most peaceful time the citizens had ever had, both to its original residents and to the ones who had taken it over. It was an awkward experience, but the people were adjusting nicely.

However, all good things must come to an end at some point. From atop the edge of the tower of the haunted Osohe Castle, a figure watched. Regret and sadness resonated in his young, black eyes. "Enjoy this peace now… because it'll be gone really soon…"

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"C'mon boys, are you going easy on me just because a girl?" Kumatora taunted, her black fighting gloves planted on her hips and a cocky smile on her face. She was staring down Lucas and Fuel, the former armed with a wooden sword and the latter armed with a large two-by-four. Lucas and Flint worked together to craft his sword to be like his brother's, but without the electrical charge. Fuel simply had a smaller version of his father's preferred weapon. They had been sparring with each other in Flint's yard, until Kumatora practically appeared out of nowhere and decided to join them as per usual. Despite the two-on-one difference, the boys weren't doing so well; neither of them had landed a real hit, and both of them had been punched and kicked several times. Lucas was on one knee, and Fuel was lying on the ground face-first.

That is, until Kumatora's taunt caught his ear. Fuel was on his feet immediately, his face red from anger. He growled and retorted, "I'll show you!" He yelled out a war cry as he held his two-by-four up and charged at her.

Kumatora shook her head and sighed. The two-by-four came down towards her, but she quickly sidestepped it and it hit the ground. "This is why you never win against Lucas." she said just before she sent her fist into Fuel's face, causing him to stagger backward. A kick to his stomach sent him off of his feet, and he landed on his back. "It's too easy to push your buttons. And speaking of Lucas…" she said, turning to him in preparation to charge… or rather, where he was. "Where did he go?"

"Right here!" came his voice from behind her. Kumatora wheeled around quickly, bracing her arms to block his incoming wooden sword; he had used Fuel's attack as a distraction to sneak up on her. He pulled his sword back and swung again to an unguarded part of her midsection, but she jumped to the side. He didn't let up, swinging his sword quickly but with precision at her, up to five times. But each one was either blocked or dodged, until she caught the sword by the hilt and blade, putting them in a deadlock.

Throughout it all, Kumatora's smile hadn't faded. "C'mon, when has something ever snuck up on me like that, Lucas?" she inquired.

"Plenty of times! I should know, I was there for them." Lucas countered, trying to outmuscle Kumatora. A bad plan of attack, as Kumatora was not only stronger, but also taller. Using this poor choice of tactics against him, she quickly pushed her foot against his chest, using it to help hoist him up into the air so she could use the momentum he was trying to generate to throw him to the other side of her. "Whoa!" Lucas shouted in alarm and surprise, landing on the ground with a roll until he stopped on his back, laying out flat. He groaned and said, "Bad idea…" He could hear Kumatora's laughter in response.

A whistle caught the sparring trio's attention, and they turned to see Flint standing at the doorway to his house. "If anyone wants some supper, I have some lamb chops ready!"

"Ooh, good. This fighting works up an appetite." Kumatora commented, smacking her lips. Lucas got to his feet with a chuckle and followed her.

Fuel was the last to get to his feet, raising his two-by-four and vowing, "I'll beat you one of these days, Kumatora!"

"Sure you will." Kumatora joked back to further infuriate the brunette as she entered Flint and Lucas' home; despite all of the change that Tazmily was going through, the father and son still wanted their home to remain the same. The only difference was that they had a telephone hooked up. Kumatora was immediately greeted with the aroma of fried meat when she walked in, and it made her mouth water; Flint wasn't as well known for his cooking as he was for his cowboy-esque personality and strength, but she had firsthand experience that he could make some grade-A meat.

"It's nothing like Hinawa's cooking I'm sure, but it's edible." Flint said, bringing over a plate of freshly-fried lamb chops and putting them on the dinner table.

Kumatora took a seat, immediately putting her fork into a lamb drop and lifting it onto her plate, then taking a quick bite without even cutting a piece off. After swallowing it, she said, "You're being too modest, Flint. If anything, Hinawa's rubbed off on you a little." Lucas and Fuel took their seats as they talked.

Flint shook his head and replied, "No she hasn't. I still can't make an omelet for the life of me." Lucas, Kumatora and Fuel all burst into laughter at the thought of a cowboy making an omelet. He grabbed some mashed potatoes from the counter, setting them on the table before finally taking a seat himself. Everyone promptly took their share of food and began to dig in. "The expansion is coming along nicely. Lighter thinks that if things keep going the way they are, we'll be done by the end of the week."

"That soon?" Kumatora replied. "I think Lighter's asking a little much…"

"Haha, that's my dad for ya!" Fuel interrupted. "He's as hard-working as they come, and he wants the same from the people who work for him."

Lucas swallowed some potatoes and joined the conversation. "It's actually possible, we all thought it was going to take at least a year. Lighter and Dad have got it done in half the time."

"The sooner it's done, the better." Flint said. "Everyone wants a home to themselves, and the best way to do it is to help build it themselves. The best part is that even the people whose homes are already built are still pitching in when they can. People are helping each other out of the goodness of their hearts instead of just for money… just like the old days."

"Yeah, and snow is supposed to fall just after the week is over." Lucas informed everyone. "We're lucky it'll be done before then."

"Hey, speaking of the end of the week… isn't your birthday coming up, Lucas?" Fuel asked before biting into a lamb chop.

"Heheh, yeah." Lucas answered, rubbing the back of his head. "I'll be fourteen years old on Saturday."

Kumatora blinked and said, "Whoa, really? I wish someone had told me…"

Lucas shook his head. "No no, it's okay Kumatora. My birthdays aren't all that special anyway."

"…Well, they had to better than the ones that I had." Kumatora stated. Everyone looked at her skeptically. "What? You try having a party thrown by ghosts."

A collective "Ohh" echoed from Lucas, Fuel and Flint in understanding.

"Anyway, I've been hearing rumors about a boat… what's that about?" Kumatora inquired.

"It's a side project that some of the people are working on." Flint explained. "They want to see if the world really was reset for themselves, so they were going to search for new land with it."

"They're just now doing that?" Kumatora said in disbelief.

"They were scared that they'd wind up in open water for the rest of their lives." Flint clarified. "Everyone was. Some of them are taking the chance, though. They're setting sail tomorrow morning."

Lucas looked at his father with a slight smile. "I hope they find something…" he said. Everyone silently agreed with him.

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The conversations remained lively and random as Flint, Lucas, Kumatora and Fuel ate their fill. As they finished, Fuel was the first to get up. "Well, time for me to go. Dad wants me to help out with the construction tonight. Thanks for supper, Mr. Flint."

"You're welcome, Fuel." Flint answered.

Fuel nodded and said, "See you guys later!" as he turned and jogged out the door.

"Mr. Lighter sure works Fuel hard…" Lucas commented as he finished his meal.

"It's to motivate the other workers." Flint explained. "Lighter can't show bias to the people working under him, or they'll start to slack off. His son included."

"Huh. Fuel doesn't seem like the slacking type…" Kumatora said. "Anyway, I'm gonna head out too. It's a long walk to Osohe."

"Why not just have a house built for yourself here?" Flint asked. "It would save you some trouble."

Kumatora shrugged and replied, "Someone has to keep the ghosts in check. Later guys." And with that, she took her leave as well.

Lucas watched as she exited. "Hm. As for me, I think I'll go to the hot spring."

Flint turned to his son. "After you do the dishes."

Lucas cursed inwardly, hoping to get out of the task; while he was a more polite and obedient child than most, he hated doing chores just like anyone else.

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A contented sigh escaped Lucas' lips as he lowered all but his own head into the warm waters of the hot spring in the forest north of Tazmily. He was really starting to miss this steamy, soothing water; between training with his father, sparring with Fuel and Kumatora and helping out with the construction, he didn't get to enjoy this simple pleasure very often anymore. He only got here once a month if he was lucky. It was certainly nothing like when he traveled with Kumatora, Duster and Boney, where they had come across and used hot springs like these frequently to relax and refresh themselves.

As he remembered those brief moments of peace in their journey, the memories of those journeys started to resurface. They had braved snow, lava and the ocean. They had fought through machines, chimeras and an entire army. They had overthrown an evil dictator bent on the destruction of the world, and released a mythical beast in the hopes that it would restore the world to a peaceful state. Lucas, Kumatora, Duster and Boney had faced almost insurmountable odds to save the world… and he still wondered how he survived it all.

It had taken them all some time to get used to this peace… they didn't see each other too much anymore. Lucas himself was usually training or helping with the construction, Duster was only able to get out of the house when his limp wasn't bothering him, and Kumatora was at Osohe Castle most of the time. He was starting to miss them, especially Kumatora. When he thought about it, most of his adventures -- not counting his dog -- were ones that he had with her. He'd only met her briefly in the forest when he called some Dragos to save her and Wes from the Pig Masks, and he saw her again as a waitress at Club Titiboo when they were both searching for Duster. She had definitely surprised him then… and he had to admit that she looked cute in that waitress outfit…

Lucas blinked quickly, blushing; where had that thought come from? He'd never thought of Kumatora as "cute" before… and to him, she looked just fine without the waitress outfit… his face got redder; that had came out totally wrong. He shook his head and groaned in frustration. "Why am I suddenly thinking this out of the blue?" he questioned himself. Inwardly, he prayed for something to get him out of this confusing train of thought.

That distraction came in the form of a loud noise. He turned his head in its direction, hearing leaves and tree branches rustling; something was coming through the branches, fast. Within a moment, the source of the noise burst through the trees, planting itself into the ground just a couple of inches away from Lucas' skull. He yelped in surprise, pushing off of the edge of the hot spring to get away from it. This made him remember another commonplace factor in his journeys: the feeling of anxiety.

As he tried to slow his heartbeat by taking deep breaths, he looked at the thing that had came through the tree branches. It was still dusk, so he could still see clearly enough; it looked like a wooden arrow, the kind that would be typically fired from a bow. He noticed something white dangling from the back of it. Curious but wary, he slowly swam over to it and pulled the arrow out of the ground so he could reach the white object… it was an envelope. It seems that someone was trying to send him a message. He took the envelope and tore it open, then began to silently read it.

I've been watching you. Watching you for a long time now, since you realized your ability to use PSI from one of the Magypsies. You have overcome your fears and inhibitions to try and save the world. But I am here to warn you that this peace that you have achieved is not going to last for much longer. Meet me at the former needle site of Osohe Castle tomorrow morning. Come alone.

Lucas looked at the letter with an indifferent expression. There was no signature on the letter… and what did he mean by saying that "peace won't last for much longer?" And that he had to come alone… he didn't like this. But… something in his gut told him that it would be best to follow the anonymous writer's advice; he didn't know why, he just… knew. Just like he somehow knew that something bad was going to happen soon.


A/N: And here's where I start to put the actual meat into the story. I personally like how the fighting scene came out. R&R, people!