"Well, this won't do." The Prince growled at Aysu, who had begun walking towards his fiancé. "This won't do at all. Ceren, go deal with our interruption." Prince Dominic commanded his sister, who sighed irritably. The Prince turned on the priest. "I have to ask that you be patient a minute, and we'll be right there." He said with an authoritative smirk. The priest nodded submissively.
"Don't be ridiculous! Innya's coming with us!" Aysu yelled as she reached out to her companion. "Right, Innya? Come on, let's get out of here."
"But Aysu..." Innya stuttered.
"Don't bother arguing! You're coming with me whether you like it or not!" Aysu barked at her friend.
But then the Prince came up, grabbed Innya by the arm and dragged her away from Aysu. "Get her, men." He commanded. Then a large group of guards came forward and charged at Aysu and Kurogane with swords and spears drawn. Kurogane swiftly drew his sword and instantly took out about half of them with movements too fast for the eye to see. Then Aysu swung her whip, which sliced apart the rest of the Prince's men.
"Heh. Too easy." Kurogane boasted with a grin.
"Enough games. This ends now." Aysu stated as she slowly approached Innya and the Prince.
The Prince smirked. "I fully agree." Then he held out his right hand, and into it materialized the feather. Aysu and Kurogane's eyes widened with surprise, as they both brought their guard up.
"Hand that over. It belongs to the Princess." Kurogane growled.
"But it doesn't appear that way, does it?" The Prince smirked. "Ceren? What are you doing? I thought I told you to take care of these people." He turned around to look at his sister, only to see her throw one of the chairs from the wedding at his head. The chair broke apart upon impact, sending Prince Dominic to the ground along with the pieces of wood. The feather fell from Dominic's hands, and Ceren picked it up.
"Stupid brother.... This is the last time you will ever tell me what to do!" Ceren exclaimed. Aysu, Kuroane, Innya and Desya stared with shock. "Now that the feather is mine, I will rule this kingdom! And now you can die, bro-" Ceren stopped as a gunshot was heard and pain filled the chest of the Princess. Blood trickled down her chest from the fresh wound she had just received, staining her elegant dress. She looked down at her brother, who was now sitting up, and still holding the black handgun that was used to shoot his sister.
"How amusing.... Forgive me, dear sister, but anyone who betrays me must die." The Prince said with an amused smile. Ceren then fell to the ground, dead. Dominic collected the feather as he stood up, with blood flowing down the side of his face, and onto his white suit. "What a mess she caused.... Now I have to change clothes when we resume the wedding."
"How presumptuous of you." Aysu stated.
"What a bastard.... Killing his own sister." Kurogane muttered through gritted teeth. Aysu didn't respond. Innya and Desya just stared.
**********
"You!" Syaoran exclaimed as he instantly moved in front of Sakura protectively.
"Syaoran-kun..." Sakura whispered with a sad expression. Fai got into a ready position, while Mokona sat on the wizard's shoulder.
"The feather is nearby. I can feel it." The copy Syaoran said with an unchanging expression and an empty voice as usual. Then he suddenly summoned his sword, and busted a whole into the side of the tower with an attack of flames. He then jumped through it, and headed in the direction of the gardens.
"Wait! Come back here!" Syaoran yelled as he too jumped through the hole in the tower and chased after the copy of himself.
"Syaoran-kun!" Sakura called out, though it was unclear which one she was calling for.
"Sakura-chan." Fai said as he held out his hand to her. "Let's go." Sakura took hold of the magician's hand, and he lifted her into his arms, as he jumped out of the tower and followed the two Syaorans.
**********
"Now, where were we?" The Prince paused for a moment. "Ah, yes. Aysu, you and your strange friend are next."
"Take your best shot." Aysu said confidently, though deep down she knew that if the Prince used the feather - which he most likely would - then she wouldn't stand a chance. After all, Aysu had no idea how to fight off magic.
"Wait! Dominic, it doesn't have to be this way!" Innya said as she ran up to her fiancé.
"Oh? Then what do you propose we do?" The Prince inquired.
"I'll get them to leave, and if they promise to never bother us again, will you let them live?" Innya practically begged.
"Sorry, Innya, but that's not an option." Aysu stated loudly. "I came here to get you, and I'm not leaving until you've come to your senses."
"As for me," Kurogane started. "I'm in this too deep to back down now. You're coming with us, and that's final."
"Will you all just stop?!" Desya yelled out. Everyone turned their eyes to Innya's brother, who had been silently observing up until now. "Stop trying to tell Innya what to do. Can't you see how much pain it's causing her?" All eyes were on Innya now, who was nearly in tears.
"Oh, please...." Aysu said. "You're one to talk aren't you big brother. Innya told me that the only reason she agreed to this wedding was because you said she had to. What's making her sad is the fact that she knows the best thing for herself is to come with me, but she loves her brother so much that she can't choose between the two of us."
"What's your point?" Desya demanded.
"You say you care about Innya, but you're just thinking of yourself. If you really want what's best for Innya, you'd get her out of this damned place! At least that's what the real Desya would do!"
Suddenly a gunshot was heard, and then Aysu was pushed by Kurogane who yelled, "Look out!" The bullet went through Kurogane's armour and pierced his left shoulder.
"You idiot! What the hell was that?!" Aysu yelled at the samurai.
"Yell at me later, and keep your guard up now." Kurogane commanded.
"Tch! I don't need to be told that..." Aysu muttered, feeling a little embarrassed.
"My patience with you two has run out. It's time for you to die." Prince Dominic stated as the feather in his hands started to glow.
"No, stop!" Innya shouted.
But before the Prince could do anything, a large amount of flames came down from the air towards him. Dominic quickly moved out of the way, avoiding the flames, which caused an explosion where they met the ground. Everyone looked up to find the source of the attack. Then the figure of a young boy could be seen, as he flew through the air and landed not too far away from Prince Dominic.
"You...!" Aysu, Kurogane and Innya all exclaimed in unison as they gazed upon the copy of Syaoran.
"Finally, I've found it. Now give me the feather." The heartless being demanded.
"I don't think so. This feather is mine, boy." The Prince replied.
"I see. Then I must eliminate you." The copy Syaoran said as he slowly began to approach the Prince.
"WAIT!" The true Syaoran yelled as he too descended from the sky, followed by Fai and Sakura. "I won't allow you to continue any further!"
For a while, everyone stood in a silent dead-lock. With so many foes, no one dared make a move without careful consideration.
"Damn... This is going to get messy." Aysu muttered. Then a gunshot was heard and the copy Syaoran dodged a bullet that came from Innya's direction. All eyes turned to the Prince's fiancé, who's expression had undergone a tremendous change.
"You're the one who tried to kill Desya...." Innya stated in a voice that echoed with pure rage. "You monster....I'LL KILL YOU!" Innya screamed as she ripped off enough of her wedding dress to be able to move, and started shooting at the young boy. The copy Syaoran dodged every bullet with incredible speed and agility.
"RAITEI SHORAI!" Syaoran exclaimed as he appeared behind his copy. Flames spouted from his now materialized sword, and shot towards the other Syaoran. Using Fai's magic, the image created a shield of magic, which defended him from Syaoran's attack. Innya shot a few bullets, but those were also deflected by the shield.
In the meantime, Prince Domenic used the magic of the feather to manipulate the ground, turning pieces of earth into a group of large golems. On the Prince's command, they charged at the rest of the intruders. Aysu and Kurogane doged the golem's punches and kicks with little difficulty, and used their respective weapons to slice away parts of the golems. However, no matter how many times they attacked, the golems were put back together by the power of the feather.
"Damn... we can't go on like this!" Aysu muttered.
"Hey, Kuro-poooo! Aysu-chaaaan!" Fai echoed out. "Rather than attacking the golems, don't you think you should take out the one holding the feather?"
"What did he just call me...?" Aysu muttered through gritted teeth, and a furious expression.
"I can figure that out for myself, you bastard! It's not as easy as it looks! Now either do something yourself or shut up!" Kurogane yelled at his friend.
"But... I'm protecting Sakura-chan here." Fai said with a smile. As if on cue, a group of the Prince's soldiers came charging out towards Sakura and Fai. Fai picked up the princess and began dodging assaults from the soldiers. After a while he placed Sakura on the ground, stole a spear from one of the soldiers and began fighting back.
"DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE!" Innya screamed out as she furiously shot at the young boy who had killed her brother. Not a single shot hit him, and he responded by throwing flames and spells at the young assassin. Innya could dodge the flames, but the spells were another matter. The wounds she had received so far weren't severe, but things could get bad if the fight continued in this way, both for her and the true Syaoran.
"Innya-san... We need to work together in order to win this!" Syaoran called out.
"Screw off; I don't need your help! This is my fight, so just stay out of the way!" Innya yelled. In an instant, she reloaded her gun, and took aim at the copy Syaoran. However, the image disappeared. Before Innya could respond, he appeared behind her, sword raised, and brought it down.
"Innya-san!" Syaoran exclaimed.
Innya's eyes widened with shock, as she found herself gazing upon a familiar scene. The blood of her brother was once again being spilt, as the boy's sword tore through his body with ease. "DESYAAA!" Innya exclaimed as she caught her wounded brother just before he fell to the ground. "Desya! Hang on! Please....Please don't die! DESYA!"
All other activity stopped. The Prince's focus turned to his struck servant. Aysu and the group of travelers stared with worry at their friend, and the copy of Syaoran simply paused to observe the scene.
"Innya... There's.... nothing to... cry about." Desya managed to say. "I... love you. All I wanted... was to be with you..."
"What are you talking about? You're my brother, of course we'll always be together." Innya said through heavy tears.
"Innya... I can no longer... lie to you." Desya continued. "I am not... your brother. I am his clone... he was killed... by that boy..."
"What..." Innya's eyes widened with shock, and her body froze as she took in what was just said.
"But even so... I still... loved you... and I wanted to be... what Desya was to you... Innya, I'm... sorry..." With those last words, Innya felt Desya's body go limp as his life fadded away.
"DESYAAAAAA!" Innya cried out as tears flooded down her face, and she tightly embraced the last remains of her brother.
"Just as I said. This wasn't the real Desya." Aysu said with no emotion whatsoever.
"What a useless servant." The Prince said, while stepping forward. "All he needed to do was follow my every command. Yet he succumbed to foolish emotions and got himself killed. It's hard to believe that such a perfect creation failed like that."
Innya's eyes filled with rage. "Don't you... DARE INSULT DESYA LIKE THAT!" In an instant, Innya raised one of her guns and shot at the Prince. He dodged, but then the copy Syaoran appeared behind him.
"The feather will be mine." The copy Syaoran said as the blade of his sword caught fire, and he brought it down upon the Prince. Domenic used the power of the feather to create a shield, which defended against Syaoran's sword, and then used it as a counter attack. The Prince's own energy, as well as that which was used against him, shot at the copy Syaoran, slightly wounding him and sending him flying.
"Don't get too confident!" Innya shouted as she shot the Prince in the shoulder, now that he had been distracted. The Prince let out a cry of pain and fell to his knees, but that was not the end. Aysu ran up and swung her whip at the Prince, who tried to dodge, but still got his left arm cut off. Prince Domenic screamed in agony as he fell to the ground with blood pouring from his wound.
The copy Syaoran moved to finish off the Prince, but then Innya appeared in front of him and started shooting at the boy. "Don't think I'll let you get away!" Then the true Syaoran approached the copy as well, and the two became engaged in a swordfight, while Innya shot her guns from a distance.
"I'll end this now!" Aysu exclaimed as she once again swung her whip at the Prince. Using what little strength he had left, the Prince created a shield to protect himself.
The Prince was now breathing heavily, and he had become very pale from the blood loss. His eyes had widened, and his expression had changed almost to the point of insanity. "No...No one but me will have the feather! I'll use the feather to rule this world... I WON'T LET ANYONE FOIL MY PLANS!"
But at that moment, Fai stepped forward. "Sorry, but I'm afraid we can't allow that... Your Highness." Fai said with a grin as he held up his index and middle fingers together to gather magic there, and used it to disable the shield Prince Domenic cast. Then Kurogane and Aysu stepped forward as well.
"Okay, buddy, time to hand over the feather." Kurogane said as he put his sword to the Prince's throat.
"N-no.... Leave me alone... I refuse to give up the feather!" The Prince stuttered. He raised his hand that held the feather in an attempt to use magic, but nothing happened.
"It seems that the bullet Innya shot into you was poisoned." Aysu stated. "Between that and your lost arm, you can't fight anymore. Now this ends for real.
The Prince whimpered and quivered with fear.
"Wait." A female voice came from behind. Aysu, Kurogane and Fai turned around to see Sakura standing not too far away. "There's no need to kill him. All we need to do is take the feather from him, and we can all leave."
"As you wish." Fai said with a smile. Kurogane sighed in submission.
"Speak for yourselves." Aysu said to the group of travelers. "This guy's done more than I can forgive. Take the feather if you want it so much, but don't think you'll be able to stop me from killing him."
For a moment Sakura and Aysu simply stared at each other. Then Sakura diverted her eyes to the ground. "I see. Then at the very least, would please wait until after we have left?"
"Whatever." Aysu replied. But then she and the two men with her suddenly sensed the inhuman presence of the copy Syaoran, and then the Prince was cut in half by the young boy who seemed to appear out of nowhere.
"What the hell?!" Kurogane exclaimed, as he turned around to see the real Syaoan lying on the ground, covered in wounds while Innya, also wounded, was picking herself up.
The copy Syaoran went to take the feather, but Aysu swung her whip at him, causing the boy to jump back. Fai took Sakura into his arms, and moved away from the fighting. Kurogane engaged the fake Syaoran in a sword fight, while Aysu simply waited for an opening to strike with her whip.
"You bastard....STOP IGNORING ME!" Innya shouted as she held up her left hand, and in it was the feather.
"Innya, what the hell are doing?!" Aysu exclaimed.
"This is what you want right? Well, come and fight me for it! You killed my brother.... And for that I will destroy you!" Innya shouted at the image of Syaoran.
"She's crazy..." Kurogane muttered.
The fake Syaoran, hell-bent on accomplishing his goal, accepted Innya's challenge and headed in her direction. As he grew near, Innya once again started shoot at the boy, who continued to dodge as always. He swung his sword, and flames shot out in Innya's direction. Innya jumped, but then she felt a rush a pain as that Syaoran's sword pierced her leg. Innya was taken aback that Syaoran had actually thrown away his weapon for a chance to kill her. As she fell to the ground, Innya could see the young boy coming up to her, with his hand raised and surrounded by magic symbols. Innya knew she was in no position to defend herself in that off-guard moment. But then a person appeared in front of Innya, and received the blow instead. Innya stared wide-eyed at the back of Aysu, as the fake Syaoran's hand went right through her body, splashing blood on Innya.
"AYSU!" Innya shouted from the ground where she fell with Syaoran's sword still in her leg.
The fake Syaoran's eyes widened, as he was surprised to have struck a different opponent. Aysu smirked as blood flowed from her mouth. "Damn it... I really screwed up this time.... Forgive me, Desya..." Then she held up a black gun which was identical to Innya's white guns at the copy Syaoran's forehead and shot.
(Desya 15 years, Aysu 17 years)
"Here Aysu, take this please." Desya said as he handed Aysu a black handgun.
"This looks like Innya's guns." Aysu said as she took the gun from Desya and looked it over. "Stupid. You know I don't use these. This should be for Innya."
"No, I want you to have it. In case you find yourself in a tight spot, this can be your ace in the hole." Desya said with a smile.
"You doubt my skills?" Aysu said while eyeing Desya.
"Of course not! It's just that... I worry about you and Innya all the time. It would make me feel much better if you carried this around."
"Hmph! What a ridiculous waste of sentiment." Aysu scoffed.
"Well... At the very least, it can be... a birthday present." Desya said shyly.
Aysu's face went red and her anger flared. "How did you find out when my birthday is?!" She shouted as she shoved the gun at Desya's throat.
"W-well... Innya told me..." Desya said carefully.
"That little brat..." Aysu muttered as she released Desya and tried to regain her composure. "Well, in any case, I have work to do, so I'll be leaving now."
"W-wait! Aysu, I was hoping to ask... a favour of you..." Desya called out nervously.
"Oh? Like what?" Aysu asked curiously.
"Aysu, would you please stay with Innya and me forever?" Desya said with a more firm expression.
"Huh?!" Aysu exclaimed, taken aback. "Why the hell would you ask something like that?"
"Well, it's just that both Innya and I enjoy having you around. And I think that you're a good influence on Innya, and I know she needs you. But you can be so unpredictable at times, so I want you to promise me that you'll always stay with Innya at the very least."
Aysu's eyes narrowed as she observed Desya closely. "Is this really just about Innya?"
Desya hesitated for a moment then said: "It's just that... I have a feeling I won't be around for too long. And I want to make sure things are taken care of in case something happens to me. And besides that... I really like you."
Aysu's eyes widened with shock and her face became red and flustered at the unexpected confession. "What... Desya, that's..." But before Aysu could regain her train of thought, Desya had moved up against Aysu's body and placed a soft kiss on her lips. The two stood there together for what seemed like an eternity, until Desya pulled away from Aysu. The assassin stared at Desya with wide eyes and an unusually childish and innocent expression.
Desya smiled timidly. "Happy Birthday, Aysu."
(End)
The force of the point blank assault sent the image Syaoran back a few steps, removing his hand from Aysu's abdomen. Both fighters began to fall towards the ground. Aysu was caught by Kurogane, who had rushed over to the scene, followed by Innya and the rest of his friends.
"Hey woman, are you alright?!" Kurogane shouted as he and Fai examined Aysu's wound.
Just behind the copy Syaoran, a long black dimensional break appeared, and from it came a tall man with black hair and glasses.
"It's Kyle-sensei!" Sakura exclaimed.
"Yes, that's right." Kyle said with a smirk. "Unfortunately, I'm only here to pick this guy up, and take him back with me." The doctor explained as he picked up the copy Syaoran.
"Wait, you bastard!" Kurogane shouted.
"Until we meet again." Kyle said as he retreated into the break between dimensions with the image of Syaoran.
The group of travelers remained in silence, as they digested what just happened. They knew that if Kyle had showed up, then Fei-Wang was moving his plots forward. However, their thoughts were interrupted by Innya's sobs.
"Aysu... Aysu... Say something, please...." Innya called out through tears. She attempted to mend Aysu's wound, but to no avail. The wound was fatal.
"Innya... Would you shut up already..." Aysu replied in a voice that was no more than a whisper. "After all.... I'm just a fool who let my feelings get the better of me..."
"Please don't talk like that, Aysu." Innya sobbed.
"No... It's true. After my parents sold me... in order to get the money they needed to leave our poor village, I swore I would never grow attached to anyone ever again... But I let you and Desya get close to me... And now look at me..."
"Oh, Aysu, I'm so sorry!" Innya said to her friend.
"Don't apologize Innya... It's not your fault. I once made a promise to Desya that I would stay with you always, if he couldn't... But it looks like I let him down... I let both of you down..."
"Aysu..."
"Forgive me, Innya... But it looks like... I'm off to see Desya... Farewell... My friend." With those last words, Aysu's body went limp.
For a long time, Innya sat on the ground with Aysu's corpse in her arms. The group of travelers simply watched her, waiting for the young girl to say or do something. The events that took place while they were there weighed heavily upon them. Innya had lost her best friend, and witnessed her brother die twice. They knew her life would never be the same again.
"Innya-san..." Fai said quietly as he stepped towards the assassin. "How about we get your wounds treated?"
"Why? What's the point? I've got nothing now.... Why should I even continue living?" Innya replied without so much as looking at the magician. "Why... Why... WHYYYYY!"
"Innya-san, please calm down!" Syaoran called out.
"Screw off! Stay away from me! LEAVE ME ALOOOOONE!" As Innya screamed, the feather in her hands began to glow. The light became so bright it seemed to consume everything within sight.
"What the hell's going on?!" Kurogane exclaimed.
"Her emotions are running wild, and the feather is reacting to them!" Fai explained. "At this rate... The world we're in now will be completely destroyed!"
"We have to stop her!" Sakura cried out.
"It's.... Too late..." Fai stated regrettably. "Mokona! Hurry up and get us out of here!"
"O-okay..." Mokona replied as wings came out from its back, and magical symbols appeared around it. The white creature's mouth opened, and consumed the group of travelers before disappearing itself.
**********
"Yuko, what happened?" The black twin of Mokona asked the Space Time Witch.
"The girl was simply too fragile. She couldn't accept the misfortunes that had come to her, and lost her mind."
"Is Innya dead?"
"Yes. The power of the feather completely destroyed her, along with that entire world. It, and the people who lived there no longer exist, and the feather has been lost forever."
"Why, Yuko? Why did that have to happen?"
"It was the only possible result.... When Innocence and Anger clashed."