FELLOWSHIP

Main author: Guile Mustang

Co-authors: Legendary Biologist, DarkHorse26

DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything except the OCs.

ooo

CHAPTER 9: Much Ado about Data

The stone hallway was sun-dappled thanks to a few short and narrow openings on the wall. It was still afternoon; devoid of noise, save for the sounds of bickering and leather shoes hitting the ceramic floor.

Apparently, it was Chikara, who was walking along the hallway with his 'talking schoolbag'.

"Hey, Chikara! I hope you aren't lying about taking me to Shinjuku Park tomorrow!" a childlike voice shouted.

"Yeah…" Chikara said, before rising into a higher tone. "And would you mind keeping your mouth shut? I'm sure that you don't want to be caught here, Starky."

"Why are you talking like that?" Starky asked.

"You must know that people are all busy about these monsters!" Chikara yelled. "And now, SHUT UP!"

With that, the area became silent again, except for the noises of a two-legged walking.

It took a minute for Chikara to reach his residence. Knocking on the wooden door, Chikara called out, "Mom! Dad! It's me, Chikara!"

With a click, the door opened, and a grey-haired man in a pair of thick-rimmed glasses greeted Chikara, "Good afternoon, Chikara. Come in." After that, the man turned and walked away.

Chikara stepped into the houseroom, before closing the door behind. As he walked ahead, he smiled. There was no Haruko coming to 'rob' Starky away from him. It could be either Haruko had some homework to do or…

Wait! As Chikara inspected his surroundings, he could see that Haruko was clearly sitting on a couch, shuffling a few plastic teapots and teacups on the table in front of her. Had she found out that Starky was not a doll? Or was she more interested in those toys now?

As long as she doesn't bother me, I'll just forget about it.

Chikara walked past the living room and headed towards his bedroom, but before he could grab the doorknob, he heard someone speaking to him from behind.

"Chikara, I have something important to discuss with you."

Chikara turned to see his father, Hachiro Jikan, standing with his hands in the pockets of his trousers.

"What is it?" Chikara asked.

"Something important. Now, follow me into my computer room immediately," Hachiro replied as he turned and walked away.

Chikara nodded, before following Hachiro. He knew that he had better store his schoolbag somewhere before entering his father's computer room, otherwise Starky would be caught. However, if he did, his dad might be angry at him for not really following his order.

Well, that was the drawback of having a strict father.

Chikara followed Hachiro into a small rectangular room, which contained a computer set on top of a plastic desk with a printer. Aside from those, surrounding the room were a huge amount of cables, shelves, and empty boxes.

As Chikara stepped into the room, he closed the door gently, before walking towards Hachiro.

"You know, I have some important things to discuss with you," Hachiro began calmly as Chikara stopped walking. "Firstly, where's Starky?"

Chikara gasped. What made his father speak like that? He had ever told him that Starky was just a stuffed toy, nothing else.

"Did you lose him?" Hachiro asked, his voice rising. "Or are you not respecting me?"

Chikara gulped. His father seemed to be very serious…or did he know a lot about this?

"Tell me the truth, Chikara!" Hachiro yelled.

All of a sudden, a childlike voice replied aloud, "Hey, stop yelling at Chikara!"

Shocked, Chikara immediately put down his schoolbag. Upon unzipping his bag, he saw a figure of white and cyan leaping out of it and landing on the floor softly.

Now, standing on two legs, Starky pointed at Hachiro and shouted, "Hey, mister! Chikara just can't speak too much about me because of that brat outside this room, okay? So, don't blame him!"

"Hush! Starky!" Chikara immediately seized Starky on his helmet from the back, silencing him. "Mind your manners when speaking to my dad!"

"Cut it out, you two!" Hachiro roared. Soon, his voice grew calmer. "Now, listen to me. Chikara, if you are to talk about Starky with me, you must not hide anything."

"Why?" Chikara asked.

"Because I know a lot about this bizarre incident," Hachiro said calmly.

Hearing that, Chikara let out a 'huh' as his eyes widened. "Daddy, how come?"

"I'm sorry for hiding this from you, but I do this so that you and your friends won't depend too much on me when it comes about taking care of these characters," Hachiro answered. "If you do, you can't grow. You'll be lazy."

Chikara looked at his dad, his mouth agape. It was still difficult to him to accept that Hachiro knew a lot.

"Really, mister? You know a lot?" Starky asked. "Tell us!"

There was a pause, before Hachiro began, "Fine, I'll tell you the beginning of these oddities."

ooo

It happened two weeks ago.

In a room filled with cables and boxes, Hachiro was sitting by a computer set. With a hand on a mouse, he maneuvered the pointer wildly as he saw a weird message in his inbox. What made it odd was that the subject was 'In Need of Assistance', and the sender was 'Viper Manor Laboratory'.

Eyebrows twitching, he asked, "Who is pulling a prank on me? It's just a game! Even if this is referring to the fan game I created, it's still illogical! A strange program has infected and deleted it years ago!"

Hachiro scratched his head with his free hand. Sure, this could be a random kid who happened to be a fan of Chrono Cross joking with him. But why the subject sounded so formal and serious?

Or perhaps, it was something else?

Hachiro clicked on the message; another page opened as he did. He glared at the screen for a few minutes.

"Dear Hachiro Jikan,

This is Luccia, a scientist from Viper Manor. I hope that this message finally reaches you, because this is an urgent matter.

Our world is undergoing a threat by a strange program named Virus. It is invisible, but my research shows that it is hiding beneath our world, searching for a way to break free by creating earthquakes. Since there is no guarantee that the earth will not split because of it, we need help to eradicate that vile program.

Lady Riddel and I have managed to create the element Chrono Cross. I once believed that this element would give us the chance to emerge in your world, but it appeared that it needed more power. Until now, I do not know what can empower it so that we can emerge in your world, so I hope that you can help us finding how it works.

In addition, being close to this element yields odd reactions. I, myself, often feel more powerful near it. Sometimes, I also feel that I am about to change. Perhaps this element can cause evolution or something similar to it, but I am not sure. I guess it needs more power too.

As silly as this may sound, we may just be some data existing in an application, but we also can dream and wish. We do not want a vile program deleting our world. So if you have found how to use the Chrono Cross element, please reply. Here, I will attach these elements in the message. We currently have three Chrono Cross elements.

Note: One of the elements is flawed. Creating it destroys the lab and part of Viper Manor, but thanks to Lady Riddel, everybody is safe from the explosion. Unlike the two other elements, it takes about three hours to attach that flawed element in the message. While I am not sure what will exactly happen if it falls into your hand, it may just be dangerous if not kept properly. Or perhaps, you can just find a way to take an advantage of it."

Upon reading the message, Hachiro remained silent with his eyes widened and his mouth ajar. The content of this mail was too serious to be a joke.

Soon, after a few minutes of contemplation, Hachiro clicked on the 'Download All' button on the attached files.

He decided to believe in the message, because this was too similar to what had happened to his fan game.

ooo

"After that, the attached files disappeared and three Chrono Cross elements came out of the monitor," Hachiro continued.

"Well, what does that have in common with Starky here?" Chikara asked.

"I slipped that element inside the Starky board set after buying it," Hachiro answered. "It looks surprisingly fitting to the slots of the recently trendy Battle Board. So I figure out that the board is what that can empower the element to bring a character to Shinjuku."

"Oh, and then you're right about it!" Starky said.

Hachiro nodded. "And after discussing with Luccia about this, we theorized that once the element was empowered, three things would happen. First, a gadget will appear and call a character to the real world. The result depends on the medium the Chrono Cross element is placed."

"So that's why Starky is here instead of someone else!" Chikara commented.

Hachiro nodded again and added, "Second, a character is now a 'partner' to the person who empowers the element. Lastly, it enables a character to evolve with some requirements."

"Dad, talking about those three outcomes, how can another character like Pip appear in the real world?" Chikara asked. "I don't think someone has another Chrono Cross element."

"Good question," Hachiro answered. "Luccia told me that after a character emerged in the real world due to the effect of Chrono Cross, a gate would open up in her world and remain like that until people could find the solution to close it."

"So Pip came here by walking through the gate after the first emergence?" Chikara questioned, hoping for a confirmation.

"Yes," Hachiro replied.

"But why didn't Luccia and the other Acacia Dragoons travel through the gate?" Chikara asked.

"Because they choose to watch over their world while researching about Virus," Hachiro answered. "Luccia told me that."

"Wow!" Starky exclaimed. "Your dad knows a lot, Chikara!"

"Cut it out!" Hachiro shouted, before continuing in a flat tone, "It's because of hard work."

"My dad values hard work over many things, Starky," Chikara spoke calmly, before picking Starky up with both of his hands. "He probably theorized many things first before confirming his guesses via a discussion. Besides, he seems to actively keep his contact with Luccia."

"Exactly, Chikara." Hachiro sneered. "Now, I have another question. Earlier today, I saw a cloud of molecules flying across the sky. By any chance that belongs to Starky?"

"I don't know," Chikara replied.

"You don't know what it means?" Hachiro gave a stern glare. "That thing is heading towards a gadget because it is the additional data that comes from an evolved being."

Starky quickly butt in. "You're talking about evolution, mister? Yeah, I evolved, but I didn't remember a thing about it."

"Hmm." Hachiro placed a finger on his chin. Soon, he began, "Chikara, can you explain what caused Starky to evolve? Tell me, and I'll give you a hint what you have to do."

"Well, actually, Starky evolved after Yoshino provoked me yesterday. She ordered Guile to kill Starky," Chikara said. "But then, Starky went out of control and almost killed Guile. I couldn't understand why Starky was wild after evolving, while Draggy, who evolved this morning, was friendly."

"Okay, I'll respond to your remark one by one," Hachiro said. "Have a seat, because this may be long."

Chikara sat on the ground, his legs crossed.

"Just on the floor? That's fine then," Hachiro spoke calmly. "Firstly, you have to know that evolution depends heavily on your emotions and your bond with your partner. The rest…you have to figure it out by yourself."

"Eh? Why don't you just tell us everything about it?" Starky asked.

Hachiro smiled. "I prefer giving out hints to saying everything flatly. If I do the latter, it will only make you lazy."

Chikara nodded and added, "Yeah, it's more beneficial if you see. You can learn to analyze problems and solve them."

Ignoring Chikara's remark, Hachiro continued, "And about Guile and Yoshino… Is that true?"

Starky still managed to speak cheerfully, "Yeah, but Guile is now free from that meanie!"

Hachiro suddenly yelled, "What did you just say? Tell me more about it! Be serious, because it's impossible that Yoshino is being mean towards Guile!"

"Dad, it's really hard to believe it, but Yoshino…" Chikara paused and shifted his glance to Starky. "She forced Guile to fight although he was hurt. And she even told him to kill Starky!"

Silence.

"So, it's true… Honestly, I find it hard to believe that Yoshino treats Guile like that." Hachiro looked at the ceiling grimly.

"Dad?"

"Why do you think like that?" Starky asked.

"Yoshino… Her father was actually a huge fan of Guile, and I knew that Yoshino and her father loved each other very much," Hachiro replied, bowing down. "I often saw them strolling together at Shinjuku Park or a mall, sometimes with Yoshino's mother."

"Then how can Yoshino be that cruel to Guile?" Chikara inquired. It was hard to believe that Yoshino could be so different from her father.

Or perhaps, Hachiro speaking everything in past tense had something in common with it?

"Dad," Chikara began. "Why were you speaking in past tense about Yoshino and her father?"

Hachiro sighed. "Because her father died a few years ago." There was a pause, before Hachiro added, "That saddened me as well, because her father was a playful man, although he was a bit crazy and ambitious."

Silence.

"Anyway, let's forget about it," Hachiro muttered. "We can never end this topic if we go further."

Chikara nodded as Hachiro was speaking the wisest option right now. Talking more about Yoshino, her father, and Guile would be an endless discussion, because Chikara himself wondered if Yoshino knew about her dad being a huge fan of Guile. If yes, it was illogical. But if no, that made sense. If the latter was right, telling Yoshino that her father was once a Guile fan would probably lead to a dramatic change.

"Talking about evolution, I actually want you to show me the proof that Starky has ever evolved, but because now is not the right time…" Hachiro said. "…maybe tomorrow you can show me. We'll go to Shinjuku Park and talk more about evolution."

"But how? Is evolving the second time easier than the first time?" Chikara asked.

"Probably," Hachiro answered. "I have a hypothesis now, but I won't tell. If my guess is right, Starky will evolve here. And your mom and little sister will freak out."

Starky giggled. "But if I scare Chikara's little sister, she won't bother me anymore!"

Hachiro closed his eyes and smiled. "Chikara, I hope you know how to solve Starky's problem with Haruko."

"How? She'll be sad if I don't let her play with Starky!" Chikara replied.

"You can't hide the truth forever, Chikara. Haruko will soon know that Starky is not a doll," Hachiro said calmly, before standing up. "Now, I have another question. Who is the other person with a partner? Is it Ari Yamamoto?"

"The one with Draggy? Yeah, it's Ari," Starky answered.

"Okay, now let's leave this room." Hachiro walked past Chikara and Starky. "I have an important matter to do."

"And Chikara, you know what to tell your little sis, right?" Starky asked.

Standing up and nodding slightly, Chikara replied, "I'll do my best."

With that, he placed Starky on his head and walked out of the room.

Outside, as he was about to close the door, he heard a girl's voice asking: "Dad has done talking with you about Starky? Can I play with Starky now?"

Chikara slammed the door shut in a moment of shock and turned. Apparently, Haruko had been waiting for him. She was looking at his face with a cat-like smile and a pair of puppy eyes.

A soft 'no' was Chikara's only answer as he walked past his little sister with his eyes closed.

"Brother, why?" Haruko asked aloud.

Chikara muttered, "Starky…is not a doll at all."

"Liar! You lied!" Haruko shouted, before crying aloud.

"I'm sorry." Chikara grabbed Starky with both of his hands and turned to his crying little sister. "Just take a closer look, Haruko. Starky is alive."

Haruko opened her eyes and looked at Starky.

"Starky, say 'hello'!" Chikara commanded. This should probably work, and if it did, Haruko might back off.

"Hello!" Starky said. "I hope that you aren't shocked when I talk!"

Chikara raised an eyebrow at Starky's additional line. It was unnecessary, he thought.

Haruko was silent. Her eyes widened in shock as her jaw dropped.

"It's shocking, isn't it?" Starky asked.

"Stop talking for now, Starky," Chikara whispered. He suspected that Starky's talkativeness might end up hurting Haruko's feelings.

"Uh huh."

"Good."

Chikara walked towards his stunned little sister. Smiling, he said, "C'mon, Haruko. You have many toys, right? Go play with them!"

Haruko nodded reluctantly, before walking past Chikara slowly.

Problems solved!Chikara snickered.

ooo

Ari was sitting on a chair in his room. Looking at his bed, he muttered, "It always feels so different without Draggy."

However, today was more different since Draggy had evolved. Yesterday, he only felt a bit uneasy after leaving Draggy at Shinjuku Park. But now, concern added to his already troubled mind. Draggy was unable to shrink, and this might render the dragon visible to unfamiliar figures.

But wait! There was Guile, who offered to look after Draggy. With an experienced person like Guile, things were probably better… Or probably not. Guile was seriously injured, and taking care of Draggy might worsen his condition.

"I can just hope that they're all okay."

Suddenly, he heard a woman's voice calling his name from outside. He stood up, and walked towards the exit door of his bedroom.

Opening the door, he looked out and saw Michiko standing beside a table and holding a phone.

"Ari, Chikara's dad wants to talk to you!" Michiko shouted excitedly.

"Chikara's dad?" With an eyebrow lifted, Ari walked towards his mom. This was too weird to be a joke. He only knew Chikara, but why was his dad looking for him?

Stopping in front of Michiko, Ari took the phone and let out a 'hello'.

"Are you Ari Yamamoto?"

"Yes," Ari replied.

"Okay. Let's get to the main point of this conversation."

Scratching his head with his free hand, Ari muttered, "Yes…?"

"Tomorrow, can we meet at Shinjuku Park at nine? Chikara is coming along too."

"Huh?"

"I have something important to talk about. It's related to Draggy, Starky, and Guile."

With the phone still adhered to his ear, Ari looked at Michiko. "Mom, can I go to Shinjuku Park tomorrow to meet Chikara and his dad?"

Michiko nodded and grinned. "Of course!"

Ari resumed the conversation in the phone. "Yes, I can come, mister."

"Good, and can you bring some food tomorrow? We may end up spending the whole day there."

Ari looked at Michiko and asked, "Mom, can you prepare some food for me to bring to-"

Michiko interrupted, "Of course! I'll cook a lot for you!"

Ari spoke to the phone, "Yes, I can, mister."

"All right. See you tomorrow then, Ari."

And the phone went off.

After putting the phone down, Ari stood still and smiled. If Chikara's dad were really going to share with them about Draggy, Starky, and Guile, Ari could probably solve his problem. Who knew that Chikara's father knew about how to make Draggy shrink again?

This is just awesome!

ooo

Chisiki stood before a huge cylindrical machine with a monitor and a keyboard attached to its base and a huge amount of wires linking its top with the metallic ceiling of the room. Surrounding the device were men and women in white coats.

"How is the installation going?" Chisiki asked.

Several people answered in unison, "It should be done by tomorrow, Sir!"

Hearing that, an evil smile appeared on Chisiki's face. Tomorrow, he would be able to eliminate the beings at Shinjuku.

ooo

Night had fallen. The crescent had risen to its peak.

In a dark alleyway, there were five trash cans. All of them were piling up with rubbish ranging from paper and plastic to leftovers, except one, as someone was practically throwing everything in it away.

It was Skelly, who was standing on his right leg right now. The other leg was 'broken'; the calf and foot bones were missing.

"Nyak-nyak-nyak! What an annoying dragon!" Skelly uttered as he knocked away the trash can with a fist. "First, I landed on this filthy place! Second, I had to find my missing bones!"

Skelly turned and skipped, his sight locked on the trash cans. He had only finished digging one, and he could find nothing. Now, there were still four more to go…

"Bah, I'm not into digging those things anymore!"

For a few seconds, Skelly moved his arms rapidly, conjuring four solid balls of steel in front of him. With a sweep of his right hand, he caught all the orbs between his fingers before they hit the ground.

Letting out a 'nyak-nyak-nyak', Skelly slapped the air, throwing away the orbs as he did. Each sphere hit the body of the trash can and knocked it down on impact. However, there was a ball that missed; it hit the wall and left a few cracks on it before bouncing off.

Glaring at the standing trash can, Skelly roared, "This annoys me so much!" He hopped towards the garbage can and knocked it down with a punch.

As the big can crashed on the ground, the pile of rubbish in it spilled out. Amidst the mess, Skelly found something familiar. There was a long bone protruding from the heap of junk.

"Nyak-nyak-nyak! Found it!"

Skelly grabbed the thin bone out of the rubbish mound and attached it to the back of his shinbone.

But something was still missing.

"My foot!" Skelly screamed. "Those bones are like tiny rocks and how the hell can I find them all?!"

Skelly hopped around the alleyway and surveyed the area, only to find nothing. However, an idea suddenly popped up in his mind. Why had he not thought of trying to 'feel' where his other bones were? They were data, just like him.

Patting his own head, Skelly concentrated. It took less than five seconds for him to feel a vibration on his skull. It came from the dead end of the alleyway.

"Must be somewhere around the corners."

Skelly skipped towards the northeastern corner and found a brownish rock lying on the ground. He hopped, before landing his 'broken' leg on the rock.

CLACK!

"My heel bone!" Skelly grinned. "A great find."

After that, he patted his own head again. He concentrated, but after a minute, he felt nothing.

"Oh, crap! I STILL HAVE TWENTY-FIVE MISSING BONES!" Skelly yelled, smacking the wall repeatedly in a fit of rage. "WHERE HAVE THEY GONE?"

Grumbling, Skelly turned around and paced out of the alley. Sure, as long as he had his heel bone, he could walk, but it was just tiring when he tried to run because of having no foot bones.

Skelly stopped at the desolate pavement. Standing still, he watched several cars speeding along the street.

How nice they are. They can go anywhere fast just because they have wheels.

Wheels? Wheels could roll.

Skelly himself was capable of conjuring balls, which could also roll.

"Hey, if I conjure a bigger ball, I can ride on it and go anywhere fast like them!"

Skelly clapped his hands hard once, before pounding the ground with both of his palms. As he pulled back his arms slowly, a small steel ball rose from the earth.

"Yeah!"

As Skelly raised his arms over his head, the orb grew larger and larger. When it was as big as he was, he clapped his hands once again. And the ball stopped growing.

Excitedly, Skelly leapt into the air, before landing on the top of the ball with his hands. Now, on the pinnacle of the orb, he stood on his palms and began walking with his arms. As he did, the ball rolled, and sped up gradually.

"Here I come, Draggy!" Skelly shouted.

ooo

A crescent moon was visible in the indigo sky, accompanied by countless number of twinkling stars in doing its task: brightening the area below.

Down there, Draggy was sleeping under a tree like a dog, breathing and snoring rhythmically. Beside him, Pip was bouncing around like a ball.

Further in front of them, Guile was lying on the ground. With his head resting on his hands, he looked at the sky. The sparkling speckles reminded him of something he learned in his childhood.

My father once said that if there were a falling star, I could make a wish, and it would come true.

With tears welling in his eyes, he wondered if it were true. If yes, he would wish for something he had been dreaming to have for about twenty years.

A childlike voice suddenly snapped him out of his thoughts. "Guile? Why are you crying? Are you still hurt?"

Guile gasped and looked to his right side. There Pip stood, looking at him with a pair of concerned eyes.

"My old wounds still hurt, but I cry not because of them." Guile answered.

"Then why?" Pip asked.

There was a moment of silence, before Guile began, "I was feeling nostalgic."

Pip blinked. "Nostalgic?"

"Those stars…" Guile returned his attention to the sky. "Have you ever heard that if you make a wish when you see a falling star, the wish will come true?"

"I don't know…" Pip silently replied. "But why are you asking that?"

"Because I am curious whether it is true or not," Guile answered. "If it is, I am eager to make a wish."

"Really? What's your wish?" Pip asked. "Power? End that rivalry thingy?"

Guile looked at Pip and smiled. "None of them."

Pip fell flat on his back due to shock. "But earlier, you sounded like you really wanted power to solve that rivalry problem!"

"No, that is just a lie," Guile replied. "I have nothing against my rival."

"Why did you lie?" Pip asked.

Guile sighed. It was very hard for him to say the reason out loud.

"Why?" Pip insisted.

After a moment of silence, Guile finally began, "I know my wish sounds silly, especially for a cold person like Yoshino. It won't be wise to tell Ari either, because if I do so, he will try to help me to an unreasonable extend. But actually, all I want in my life is just one thing, because I have never had it. To be exact, it was gone when I was seven, and again when I was older."

"Huh?" Pip rubbed the back of his neck. "What's your wish? Treasure? Money? Fame?"

Guile replied in an almost inaudible voice, "A family."

"What?" Pip asked, placing a paw behind his pointy ear. "I can't hear you!"

A 'never mind' was Guile's only answer. Letting everything out would make him break down in tears, and this might result in Pip asking too many questions. And that would make him bawl even louder. Sure, crying aloud was very unusual for a grown-up man like him, but he could not help it.

"Pip," Guile began. "I'm certain that you'll cry as well if I tell you everything."

"Huh? Why?" Pip asked.

"Believe me; you won't want to hear about it," Guile muttered.

"But why?" Pip asked again.

Guile remained silent. Perhaps not answering Pip would be the best solution…and it worked. It only took a minute of waiting until Pip became quiet.

The cold breeze of the night blew, bringing with it leaves and dust. The forest area of Shinjuku Park was silent, save for a few noises from the howling of the wind.

But the stillness did not last long.

Hearing some rattling sounds followed with a 'nyak-nyak-nyak' from afar, Guile placed both of his hands on the ground. Slowly, he rose to feet and looked around.

"Guile?" Pip asked.

"Pip, wake Draggy up," Guile commanded. "That sounds like Skelly."

As the noises of rustling leaves grew louder, Guile pulled back his right arm. Red light emanated from his hand as flame sparks danced along his forearm.

All of a sudden, a huge ball of steel rolled towards Guile.

Before it could run over him, Guile leapt to his right side and dodged the giant orb entirely. Looking back, he spotted a skeletal figure standing on arms atop the rolling ball.

Immediately, Guile thrust his burning hand, sending a sphere of flame hurtling towards the silhouette. Upon colliding with the figure, the fireball exploded and knocked the skeleton off the sphere.

"Nyak-nyak-nyak! You again?" the figured yelled as it landed on the ground beside the ball with a thud. "I guess I have to get rid of you first."

Guile ignored the remark as he noticed something bad; the giant ball was about to collide with Pip and a sleeping Draggy. Seeing this, Guile jumped and glided towards the rolling sphere with lightning speed.

Within a split second, Guile stopped in front of the ball and placed his palms on the smooth surface of the sphere. The giant orb managed to push him back, but it was not long until it became completely motionless.

"Nyak-nyak-nyak! You're the most annoying guy I've ever met!" Skelly yelled, watching the giant orb vanishing into the thin air.

Guile looked at Skelly and said, "I do not mean to annoy you, Skelly. However, I cannot let you hurt these kids."

"Then I'll kill you first!" Skelly said, running towards Guile with his fingers wrapping into fists.

Seeing an incoming punch, Guile raised a forearm and blocked it. Instinctively, he countered the blow with a straight to Skelly's face.

"Getting serious, aren't we?" Skelly inquired, proceeding to punch in rapid succession.

Guile returned the blows by throwing a flurry of punches.

An exchange of fists ensued. The fisticuffs would be endless, only if Guile were more experienced in close combat. Unable to match Skelly's speed, Guile finally received several forceful blows to the chest and stomach, followed with an uppercut to his jaw.

Seeing a chink on Guile's defense, Skelly let out a 'nyak-nyak-nyak' and delivered a straight to Guile's gut, knocking some blood out of Guile's mouth and leaving him gasping for breath.

"Don't mess around with me next time, nyak-nyak-nyak!" Skelly laughed.

With sweat dribbling down his head and body, Guile panted and wiped the blood on his lips with an arm. He was tired and hurt, but his determination enabled him to speak fiercely, "As long as you try to hurt those children, I will NEVER stop ruining your plan!"

"Then I'm gonna beat you up!" Skelly chuckled.

Ignoring Skelly, Guile brought his hand in front of his face with the thumb between his index and middle fingers. He snapped his fingers rhythmically, letting loose a tiny lightning bolt for each snap. Unfortunately, his attack was futile; the thunderbolts bounced off and vanished as they hit Skelly's bones.

Clenching his hands into fists, Skelly jumped into the air and taunted, "Nyak-nyak-nyak! How about this?"

That was what Guile heard before a hammer-like blow landed on his head. Now, with his sight spinning and blurry, he fell to knees, huffing with both of his hands supporting his body. It appeared that he had to rest for now.

All of a sudden, he heard: "Nyak-nyak-nyak! Get lost, little squirrel!"

Reacting to Skelly's threat, Guile felt a surge of energy coursing throughout his body. He snapped out of his dizziness and got up.

"Skelly!" Guile charged at Skelly and put his arms over Skelly's shoulder by going under the skeleton's armpits.

"When will you stop meddling with my plan?" Skelly growled, looking back at Guile.

Without answering, Guile looked at a confused Draggy, who was hugging a trembling Pip.

For Guile, that was not a pleasant view at all. Skelly had scared Pip badly.

"Skelly, I'll make sure that you pay for this!" Guile roared.

"Nyak-nyak-nyak, don't you know?" Skelly laughed. "You can't attack me like this. Because you're a foot taller than me, you can't even hit me with your head. Now, let me go!"

Skelly was right; Guile thought. But perhaps, he could use some help from Draggy, who was standing further in front of him with Pip.

Looking at Draggy and Pip, Guile commanded, "Draggy! Attack Skelly!"

Draggy opened his mouth wide and leaned back.

"Cough Drop!" Draggy took a deep breath, conjuring swirling flame sparks in his gaping mouth. As a sphere of flame formed between his jaws, he bent ahead and fired the fireball from his mouth.

"You're so stubborn!" Skelly grunted as he swept Guile's left ankle with his left foot.

Stinging pain shot up from Guile's left ankle, followed with dampness and warmth crawling up from his left foot. Guile winced at this and loosened his grip, releasing Skelly.

It was probably his old wound reopening itself.

Before Guile could move, a fireball hit him on his chest and exploded. With his skin reddening and flesh blistering, he stood still and panted. He was in a bad shape now.

Skelly guffawed. "I guess I only need to poke you with a finger and you'll fall off, nyak-nyak-nyak."

Guile was still on his feet, wincing and panting. The stench of burnt fabric was telling him to retreat. The pain from his burns and his left ankle was urging him to fall back.

But he would not give up yet. Giving up was equal to breaking the promise he had made with Ari, and how would that boy react if he broke the commitment and something happened to Draggy?

He had better find a way to finish Skelly off once and for all.

Skelly was made of bones, and if I were able to shatter them, it would be over. A powerful spell should work, but it took a long time to cast it.

Suddenly, the term 'brute force' emerged in Guile's mind. Fighting with raw physical power was not what Guile usually did, but this might help now. Perhaps enhancing it with earth-related magic would do great…

Wait! Earth spells usually required the caster to pound the floor so that fissures and stalagmites would emerge. What if he beat Skelly instead of the ground? That might be devastating enough to smash the skeleton clown to smithereens.

Closing his eyes gently, Guile balled his right hand into a fist and pulled it back slowly. He was similar to a tiger, ready to pounce on its prey when opportunity struck.

"Still trying to attack? Don't be silly, nyak-nyak-nyak!"

That voice alerted him. Skelly should be nearby.

"I will never let you harm the children!" Upon saying that, Guile snapped his eyes open, letting out a battle cry as he threw a straight punch. "Tremor Fist!"

BAM!

His fist hit Skelly on his sternum. On collision, a number of cracks became visible on Skelly's rib cage.

In less than a minute, the fissures on Skelly's body spread wider and branched off in all directions. It only took a few milliseconds until Skelly's skeleton completely shattered. The bone fragments rained down, forming a pile of trash upon landing on the ground. Soon, Skelly's skull fell off as well, adding to the heap of broken bones.

Bouncing away from the mound of his own bone fragments, Skelly's skull yelled, "Nyak-nyak-nyak! Once I've found a replacement for my skeleton and fixed my skull, I'll be back!" And with that, it hopped all the way into the depth of the forest.

It was over at last.

At this, Guile realized that his adrenaline had worn off. He felt like a huge boulder was pressing his entire body, in addition to the stinging pain coming from his left ankle and his blistered body.

Suddenly, things went from bad to worse. Feeling like there were some knives stabbing his right elbow from the inside, Guile winced and grunted, beads sweat trickling down his temple.

I think I have stretched my arm too hard by using Tremor Fist.

He clutched his right elbow with his left hand, hoping that the pain would subdue. Unfortunately, it did not ease the pain even a bit.

Forget about it! Guile thought, releasing his right arm. He had something more important to do than worrying about his injuries. Besides, he knew that his wounds would not kill him.

With his right arm hanging limply, Guile hobbled towards Draggy and Pip and asked, "Are you all right?"

"Yeah," Draggy said, smiling and waving a paw. "Draggy and Pip are okay."

"It's over?" Pip asked, looking at Draggy, before turning to Guile.

Guile nodded and smiled. "Both of you are fine... I am glad." As those words left his lips, he slowly slumped to the ground.

"Guile!" Pip called out.

Smiling at Pip weakly, he said, "I will rest for now. Do not worry; I will be fine by tomorrow."

"But you're hurt so badly!" Pip cried out. "And your foot is bleeding! So much blood!"

Guile gasped. It seemed like he could not hide the fact about his injured ankle forever.

"Listen to me, you two. I have something to tell you," Guile said.

Pip let out a 'huh', while Draggy nodded.

"My foot… I cut it. If I didn't, Draggy would still be starving."

Shocked, Pip and Draggy gasped.

"Oh, no! Don't tell me that-"

Draggy quickly interrupted, "Draggy ate Guile's blood?"

Guile nodded. "I am sorry, but I cannot stand seeing you starving and hurt."

With tears were welling in their eyes, Draggy and Pip asked, "Why?"

"Because you are very kind to me," Guile muttered, smiling. "I appreciate your company very much, and to show how grateful I am to you, I am willing to do whatever I can to ensure your well-being."

"But why?" Draggy and Pip asked again.

Guile's smile faded as he remained silent for a while. Telling why he grew to like those two critters would result in him crying, because they were like his own children.

"I can't tell," Guile whispered.

"Why?"

It appeared that Draggy and Pip would not stop until he spoke up. Now, he was thinking that doing the best to answer the 'why' question would do well.

"I grew up in a hell. Or something like that," Guile murmured and closed his eyes. "That's all I can say."

Pip shuddered at Guile's remark. "Yikes! Hell?"

"Is it something bad?" Draggy asked.

"It's something scary, Draggy!" Pip replied, trembling a bit.

"Yes, and I am certain that you won't want to hear about it," Guile said, opening his eyes gently.

"Eh…" Draggy tilted his head to the side, his wing-like ears wilting. "Draggy feels sorry for asking."

Guile let out a 'never mind' and smiled.

"By the way…" Draggy looked around. "If Draggy can eat Guile's blood and feel full, can Guile eat Skelly's bones and feel better?"

"What?" Pip asked, his eyes widening in shock.

"They are still around?" Guile asked.

"Yeah," Draggy replied. "Guile wants those bones?"

"Yes," Guile answered. "I… No, I mean, all of us can convert the useless parts from a being into absorbable data."

"Really?" Pip asked.

Guile nodded. "And they can heal injuries."

"Good!" Pip clapped his hands. "You really need that."

Draggy and Pip ran away and disappeared from Guile's sight for a moment, before returning with a pile of broken bones cradled in their paws.

"Put them down in front of me," Guile ordered.

"Okay." Draggy and Pip dropped the heap of bone fragments down to the ground in front of Guile.

Guile reached out his left hand. As his palm touched the mound of wrecked bones, he closed his eyes and concentrated. Soon, he could feel something warm coursing from his fingers to his entire arm.

"This feels great!" Guile said as the warm sensation traveled to his left shoulder and spread to his entire torso, head, and the rest of his limbs.

It was only a matter of a second until all the dull and sharp pain on Guile's body faded in the warmth.

Opening his eyes, Guile supported himself with both of his hands before rising to a standing position. Now, he felt like he had just reborn.

"It's all thanks to you," Guile said, turning to Draggy. He then crouched and petted Draggy's head. "Ari must be proud of you."

"Really?" Draggy asked, blushing.

Guile smiled and nodded, before turning his attention to Pip. "Although your talkativeness sometimes goes too far, I appreciate you for spending your time with me."

"I just like seeing people happy!" Pip said aloud, bouncing around like a ball.

"Er, what should we do now?" Draggy asked. "Guile doesn't look sleepy. Pip also doesn't. And Draggy has slept enough."

ooo