Note (10/24/06): This site has been around for seven years now, and they still can't get their e-mail system to work right. This chapter has been reposted so that the email alert will actually go out. Hope you guys receive it this time.

Second Note (11/7/06): After receiving several reviews complaining about it, I fixed the djinn's broken English and had them speak normally instead. This doesn't change anything in the story, but I thought some of you guys might like it better.

Hello again! Before you guys read any further, I'm going to ask that you go back and re-read the second half of chapter 9. I've made a couple of edits to it, as it was rather rushed. There's no real significant change to the story (the dialogue is all still the same), but I just feel it flows better. Let me know what you think.

As for this chapter... well, the first thing you'll probably notice is that Ivan is conspicuously missing from the character list at the beginning, even though I said in chapter 9 that this chapter would have him in it. The reason for this is quite simple: this chapter was originally supposed to be two distinct scenes, and Ivan would appear in the second one, but the first scene got so huge that I decided it would probably be better off as its own chapter. I hope that doesn't bother too many people.

Still, though, I have to apologize for this chapter taking so long to get out. I suppose the blame can be placed at least partly on the fact that I am a TA for a class here at Brown this year—which is quite an enjoyable job, if a bit time-consuming—but that's not really the only reason... I have to admit the lack of a deadline this time around made me rather lazy when it came to actually sitting down and writing. So I apologize for that, and I'll try my best to make sure it doesn't happen again.

But anyway... how many of you did I scare with the summary for this chapter? ;D I'm really not going to say anything about that here, because I don't want to give anything away. Before we get to the chapter, though, anonymous reviewer thanks go out to RandomReader, Insanity Team! (A.k.a. Violet), Maverick 22, alex staszewski, and Kodoku. Now, here's chapter 10!

chapter ten
Isaac and Mia
sheer desperation

Isaac staggered back, grunting as the Storm Lizard continued to press its advantage, raining powerful blows down onto the young swordsman that he was only barely able to stop. The giant green reptile was easily nine or ten feet tall, and it was taking all of Isaac's strength to block the creature's strong swipes with his sword. The uneven sand of the Suhalla Desert made it difficult for him to get his footing, and Isaac knew that without some sort of distraction to take the Storm Lizard's attention off him, he wouldn't have any chances to strike back with an attack of his own.

Fortunately, though, Isaac knew that soon, the distraction he needed would be coming. He knew that despite the Storm Lizard bearing down on him, behind and on either side of the creature, Garet, Ivan and Mia were all charging their psynergy—the two boys readying attacks, and Mia performing a spell to heal any injuries that the monster might have inflicted on him. Soon, one of the two boys—probably Garet, as the Storm Lizard seemed to easily shrug off any spells that Ivan threw at it—would attack the beast from behind, causing it to turn around and divert its attention away from Isaac. That would give Mia a chance to heal him and give Isaac a chance to attack the monster from behind with a powerful spell of his own. It would probably bring the Storm Lizard's attention back to him, but Isaac knew that he would be able to hold off the monster's attacks long enough for Garet or Ivan to blast it again. He had been doing so for the entire battle, after all.

It had been a rather risky move, perhaps, to tell his friends to surround the creature, but Isaac knew that it was the best plan they had. There was no telling what sort of psynergy the giant lizard possessed, and grouping together only heightened the chances that the monster might use some strong spell to take out all four of them at once. Furthermore, surrounding the monster made sure that Iodem would be protected—the scholar had little if any fighting ability, but if he stayed a safe distance away from the battle he could not be attacked. What was most important, though, was that surrounding the Storm Lizard made it impossible for the monster to attack any of the Adepts without turning its back on at least one of them. Powerful though the creature was, it couldn't possibly put full force in any of its attacks while it was getting blasted from behind.

That fact was especially helpful for Isaac, because despite the power he had against the wind-aligned Storm Lizard, the Venus Adept knew that the landscape put him at quite a disadvantage. The sands of the Suhalla made it impossible for him to summon an effective earthquake, and without some sort of ceiling above him, he couldn't cast his Spire spell, either. That left Isaac with only his Ragnarok and Gaia techniques, and neither of those would be effective against the giant reptile when it was so close—he simply didn't have enough time to concentrate and prepare the former with the monster attacking him constantly, and the blast of the latter could easily do just as much damage to him as to the lizard at such a close range. He could only really use his sword against the creature, a fact that wasn't exactly comforting considering the beast's size and strength.

Truthfully, though, Isaac found that he didn't mind putting himself in such a risky position. He knew the danger that he was in, to be sure, that a single mistake in this situation could mean dreadful consequences, but... somehow, it didn't seem to matter much to him, because as long as the Storm Lizard was attacking him, as long as he had the creature's attention... Mia couldn't be put in danger.

He knew well that Mia could fight. She wasn't as strong as him, perhaps, but she was still a skilled combatant, and she could hold her own against even the toughest of monsters. All the fighting ability in the world, however, meant nothing to Isaac with Ivan's prediction constantly in the back of his mind. He didn't dare allow Mia to fight, didn't dare allow her to put herself in a situation where she could be hurt. He had to keep her out of harm's way, had to make sure that there was no chance of Ivan's prediction coming true.

But it was difficult, as Mia didn't know the danger she was in, and Isaac had no intention of letting her find out about it until he was sure that it had passed. He wanted to protect her, wanted to make sure that she didn't have to fight, and for the past few days, he had tried his best to do so whenever a monster attacked them. And he had succeeded for the most part, but for how long could he keep it up before she started to wonder what was going on? Mia was as much a part of the group as any of the four Adepts, and for that reason she couldn't possibly see his sudden desire to keep her from fighting as anything but odd. What if she asked him about it? What would he say to her?

The Mercury Adept was about ten yards off to his left now, helping to surround the Storm Lizard, but she was not attacking the monster. In fact, Isaac had told her specifically not to do so. As their primary healer, he had explained to her before they had run towards the giant whirlwind that the creature had created, she needed to keep herself safe so that she could heal from a distance any injuries her companions sustained. If she didn't attack and instead focused on aiding her friends, the Storm Lizard wouldn't consider her a threat, and it would instead be much more intent on eliminating the three boys who kept attacking it from behind. It was a sensible plan from any angle, Isaac knew, but still... he had to wonder if perhaps Mia was suspicious of it. How would she react, he wondered, if she found out what he was doing? Would she feel hurt? Or would she understand?

Still, though, Isaac had far more important things on his mind at the moment than Mia's feelings—most notably, the giant Storm Lizard trying to kill him. The monster was relentless in its assault, striking at him with such speed and ferocity that Isaac had no hope to block every one of the creature's attacks. Even as he parried a swipe from one claw, he found himself with no time to do anything but dodge the other. Without any chance to attack, Isaac could only wonder one thing as he continued to duck and weave under and around the monster's blows: why hadn't Garet and Ivan helped him out yet? They knew the plan, didn't they?

The Storm Lizard struck again, and once again Isaac caught the creature's claws on the edge of his blade. This time, however, the monster's blow was a little more powerful than he had been expecting, and he was forced to take a step back to balance himself. With his attention focused fully on the monster in front of him, Isaac had no way of noticing the dip in the sand where his foot landed. The sudden lack of ground beneath him caused him to stumble backwards, and despite a few more steps to try and stay upright Isaac couldn't keep his balance and he tripped, falling back onto the sand.

He scrambled into a sitting position as he tried to get up, but the Storm Lizard covered the short distance now between them in a single step, raising its arm for a swipe that Isaac knew he wouldn't be able to block or dodge. Fear shot through him as he raised his sword vainly; he knew he couldn't stop this attack. He squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the pain he knew was coming—

—and then suddenly snapped them open again as the Storm Lizard let out a deafening roar, arching its back in pain. Relief flooded through his body as he got up and the creature whirled around, trying to find its new assailant... but his relief turned to horror as he noticed that there was not a scorch mark that should have been on the lizard's back from a lightning bolt or stream of flame; instead, there were several large, sharp icicles embedded in the thick scales, gleaming in the harsh sunlight. And as the Storm Lizard roared again, Isaac could clearly see that it was not glaring at Garet or Ivan as it should have.

It was staring directly at Mia.

Pure terror consumed him as he followed the Storm Lizard's gaze to where the blue-haired girl was standing. He wanted to yell her name, but the word seemed caught in his throat. He wanted to shout out a warning to her, wanted to tell her to get away and let him and the other boys handle this monster, but one glance at her expression told him that she wouldn't listen. Even from a distance he could see that there wasn't even a hint of fear on her face. Pure determination was etched into every facet of her expression as she stared down the giant reptile, her staff at the ready.

The Storm Lizard would be upon her in the time that it would take him to ready a Ragnarok or Gaia spell, so that left Isaac with only one course of action. "Garet! Ivan!" he shouted as he turned to face the two boys, who were glowing crimson and violet, respectively, with the built-up energy of the spells that should have been the ones to hit the monster. "Help her out!"

Unfortunately, neither of them would be able to distract the Storm Lizard from its new target. Garet was the first to act, his sword wreathed in flames as he sent a blistering stream of fire at the monster just as it started to make its way over to where Mia was standing. Had the lizard stayed still, it would have been hit dead-on, but Garet couldn't direct his spell after he had released it and the monster's sudden advance caused the flames to pass harmlessly behind its back. Ivan then attacked, the air around him crackling with electricity as he raised his arm and pointed his staff at the Storm Lizard's back. There was a flash as a lightning bolt shot out of the staff's tip, followed by a second and a third. His aim was true, but the wind-aligned monster didn't even flinch even as the bolts crashed into its scales. It simply kept advancing on Mia, who continued to stand tall, seemingly not at all disturbed by the fact that she was about to take on a creature that was easily twice her size.

It was only when the Storm Lizard was directly in front of Mia that Isaac's brain finally kicked back into gear, frantically screaming at him that he had to try and help her out as well, had to keep Ivan's prediction from coming true. But even as he began to ready a Ragnarok spell, the monster raised its arm, and Isaac's concentration was instantly lost. He felt his breath catch in his throat as the Storm Lizard brought its arm down in a deadly swipe, but Mia was ready. Glowing blue, she nimbly dodged out of the way of the creature's claws, then swung her staff, sending a hail of icicles directly into the monster's chest that caused it to roar in pain.

For an instant Isaac felt a surge of hope, a confidence that Mia would be able to hold off the Storm Lizard's attacks, but then the monster struck again, and once again the fear consumed him. This time the Mercury Adept seemed to realize that trying to dodge the creature's attacks was a dangerous idea, and instead she raised her staff with both hands, trying to block the monster's claws from reaching her.

But Mia was not as strong as Isaac was, and she couldn't hope to stand against the Storm Lizard's powerful blows. Even though she successfully blocked the lizard's swipe with her staff, the sheer strength behind the attack sent her spinning around, leaving her back turned to the monster.

And Isaac could only watch in horror as Mia, as if in slow motion, whirled around just as the Storm Lizard struck with its other arm. There was no chance for her to block or dodge out of the way of the swipe, nothing to lessen the damage from the monster's sharp claws. She didn't scream, even as the claws cut through her torso and sent a shower of blood flying through the air. She barely reacted at all. For a single, agonizing moment, she simply stood there, a shocked, almost glazed look on her face, and then she fell.

It was as though Isaac's entire body had gone numb. He wanted to scream Mia's name, wanted to run to her side and heal her, wanted to send the most powerful psynergy he knew flying at the monster that had hurt her, but his body didn't seem to want to move. He could only stare straight ahead dumbly, his brain trying frantically to convince him that he must have been seeing things, that what he had just seen had to have been some sort of illusion. It could not have happened, Mia couldn't possibly have...

The scene before him, however, refused to change. Mia continued to lay motionless in the sand, small patches of dark red dotting the ground near her crumpled form. The Storm Lizard arched its back and let out a roar, triumphant that it had felled one of its adversaries. It lasted only for a second, however, as before the creature's roar even ended a stream of flames appeared out of nowhere and crashed into the back of its head. Growling murderously, the lizard whirled around and was immediately met with a powerful plasma bolt to the face. Its triumph forgotten in an instant, the Storm Lizard roared again, this time in fury, before stomping towards the area where Garet and Ivan were standing.

"Isaac!" Garet's yell brought the Venus Adept to his senses as he turned to face his friend. The redhead was standing side-by-side with Ivan now, the two of them both in battle-ready positions and glowing the colors of their respective elements. "Go help her!" he frantically screamed over the Storm Lizard's thunderous footsteps. "We'll keep this thing busy!"

Isaac didn't need any further encouragement. Tearing his eyes away from what was undoubtedly about to become a heated battle, his heart thudding painfully in his chest, he quickly turned to where Mia lay and sprinted across the sand faster than he had ever run before in his life. As he approached he could see the gashes in her dress, could see the blood spilling out and staining the pale azure a dark red. She lay on her side, one hand covering her injury, her crystal-blue eyes wide open and fixed dead ahead... but she was breathing, albeit raggedly. She was alive!

"Mia!" Isaac yelled breathlessly as he reached her side and immediately kneeled down in front of her, rolling her slowly onto her back so that he could heal the wounds on her stomach. Was she even conscious? He couldn't tell, but that question was answered a moment later, as her eyes suddenly moved and met his.

"I-Isaac..." she gasped fearfully, clearly unable to speak at anything above a whisper. Her chest rose and fell unsteadily as she drew in and let out several shuddering breaths, each one more painful than the last, and her entire body trembled as she transfixed him with a gaze filled with mortal terror, tears of pain coming to her eyes. "It... i-it h-hurts..." she whispered, clutching at the torn, bloodstained fabric of her dress. "Isaac..."

"It's all right," he whispered softly, breathlessly, more to reassure himself than Mia. "It's going to be all right." And it was, wasn't it? She was still alive... so that meant he could still heal her, that meant he could still keep Ivan's prediction from coming true. Closing his eyes and trying his best to concentrate despite the fear threatening to consume him and the loud sounds of fighting coming from behind him, he drew upon every last bit of psynergy that he had and focused it all into the most powerful healing spell he knew. His hands began to glow golden as the healing energies flowed from the earth and into him, his body a conduit for the life energy of the world underneath his feet. Slowly, carefully, he moved Mia's hand aside and placed his own hands on her stomach, and let the healing spell go to work. The golden glow covered her wounds, slowly but surely beginning to mend the torn flesh.

But her wounds were deep, and Isaac's power was only so much. Even as his psynergy continued to fill her body, he could feel under his hands the full extent of the injuries she had sustained, several internal injuries that would take a long time to heal... but it was a long time that he didn't have. He had to heal her now, before she...

Breathing heavily, Isaac forced even more power into the spell, more than what he knew was probably safe for him. And yet the wounds beneath his hands still refused to yield, still continued to mend themselves at an agonizingly slow pace. Under his hands, he could feel her breathing growing fainter and fainter, could feel her body weakening... No!

"Hold on, Mia," he breathed softly, even as fear continued flooding his senses. "Y-you've got to, Mia, hold on..."

"I-Isaac..." she suddenly whispered faintly, nearly breaking him out of the concentration required for the spell. Keeping his hands locked in place, keeping the healing energies steadily flowing into her body, he slowly turned his head. She was staring directly into his eyes, her body still trembling, her own sapphire eyes pleading with him. Help me, they were saying, help me, Isaac, please...

And then she drew in a long, shuddering breath, let out a sigh... and was still.

Isaac could have sworn that his heart stopped beating at that moment.

Immediately the psynergy flowing through him stopped, immediately his healing spell was forgotten. For a long moment he just stared at her unmoving form, breathing heavily, his mind refusing to believe the sight he saw before him... She couldn't be, just couldn't be...

"M-... Mia?" he finally asked softly, fearfully, a sense of panic growing in his gut as he reached out and touched her shoulder, shaking her lightly. But she lay motionless, her eyes wide open and frozen in a ghastly, terrified expression.

"Mia," he repeated, louder this time as he shook her again. "Mia, come on..." The panic inside him was growing now, sending an icy, numb feeling through his chest and up his arms even as he continued to shake her, trying in vain to somehow awaken her. His voice was rising uncontrollably now; his whole body was trembling wildly. "Mia. Mia! Y-you... you can't... Mia!" But still... there was no reply.

"No!" Isaac suddenly screamed. She couldn't be... he had to still be able to do something! Breathing heavily, Isaac summoned his psynergy again, drawing upon even more power than before. Some forgotten part of his mind yelled at him that he could easily hurt himself trying to do this, that it was unsafe for him, but Isaac had long stopped caring about his own well-being. All that mattered now was Mia.

His arms and hands burned golden as the new psynergy coursed through them, and he grunted as he placed his hands on Mia's stomach again, forcing as much healing energy as he could into her body. But even as the spell took effect, even as her wounds continued to close, Isaac could feel under his hands the very truth he was trying so hard to deny. He couldn't feel any blood flowing through her veins, couldn't feel any life sustaining the girl underneath him...

But he ignored that, too, and continued summoning healing energies from the earth, his breathing now harsh and ragged. She couldn't... he had to still be able to save her. He had to be. And even after her wounds closed completely, even after he knew there was no point in sustaining the spell, he continued pouring his psynergy into her body, hoping beyond hope that she would just wake up, wake up and end this nightmare...

What finally stopped him, though, was not exhaustion, nor was it one of his friends. What finally stopped him was a voice in his head, a voice that he normally only heard in response to his own call... the voice of one of his djinn.

"Master Isaac..." he could hear the small creature squeaking, mournfully. "That is not going to work..."

"SHUT UP!" was Isaac's only reply. He continued his healing spell, but now that there was a voice to fight his denial, icy feelings of fear and doubt were slowly starting to creep up his body. What if his djinn was right... what if Mia wasn't going to wake up no matter what he did...?

"Please stop..." came a slightly lower squeak, another djinni. "Master Isaac is going to hurt himself..."

"I don't care!" Isaac responded mentally, tears now coming to his eyes despite the furious, wrathful expression on his face. "I don't care what happens to me. I'm going to bring her back!"

Still, though, no matter how much he wanted to deny it, Isaac knew his simple healing powers weren't going to do anything to save Mia. There had to be some other spell, some other power his djinn could lend him to help bring her back. "Flint!" he called in his head as he ceased his healing spell, sending the first djinni that he had bonded with the mental equivalent of an accusing glare. "There has to be some spell that can save her. Tell me!"

For a long, agonizing moment, there was no response from any of his six djinn. Finally, though, another voice resounded in Isaac's head, a small, timid voice that he recognized as Flint's. "Master Isaac..." the small creature said,"I know how you feel about Miss Mia, but... you cannot perform that spell," the Venus djinni squeaked softly, clearly afraid of Isaac's fury.

"What do you mean I can't perform it!" Isaac mentally screamed, his body shaking with rage now. "That's why I have you! You're supposed to help my psynergy!"

"It is not safe," Flint explained softly, sadly. "Even if the spell succeeds and you revive Miss Mia, you... you may not live..."

"I told you, I don't care what happens to me!" Isaac screamed. How dare his djinn tell him that there was a way to bring Mia back and then refuse to tell him what it was!

"Master Isaac, Flint is not lying!" another djinn's voice suddenly cut in angrily. "The spell you wish to perform is very dangerous. If it fails, you and Miss Mia will die!"

"So what, I should just not try, then?" Isaac fired back just as angrily, his heavy, labored breaths starting to shudder now as the tears continued to fill his eyes. "I can't just leave her. I can't just give up! I have to at least try to save her!"

Once again, Isaac's six djinn were silent for a long moment. This time, however, it was Isaac who broke the silence. "Please, you have to help me," he pleaded desperately, passionately, blinking away the tears in his eyes as best he could as he stared down at Mia's lifeless form. "You have to! You're the only chance I have!"

Finally, Flint spoke. "If... it is what you really want..." the djinni said softly, and suddenly Isaac felt a surge of hope, "we will help."

And then, Isaac could feel the power of his djinn flowing through his body as the knowledge of a new spell suddenly implanted itself in his brain. His djinn had taught him new powers this way before, but still Isaac knew he would never get used to that feeling, that sensation of not slowly learning a spell but suddenly just knowing. Only a moment before he had been helpless, there had been no hope... but now Isaac knew exactly what he had to do.

"Thank you..." he whispered mentally. Then he turned his eyes to Mia, whose sapphire eyes were frozen wide open lifelessly. For a moment, he just stared at her. Then he closed his eyes, and began the spell.

As with his healing powers, the new spell drew upon the life energy of the earth, but this time the technique was more complicated, as the new spell did not draw the energy into his body but instead slowly formed a glowing, golden circle in the air around both him and Mia's form that was much harder to maintain. Still, he persevered, his breathing heavy. It was difficult, but Isaac knew he would rather die than give up this chance to save her.

The glowing circle around him and Mia widened as Isaac pushed more and more energy into the spell. Slowly, it expanded vertically, becoming tall enough to reach down to the ground and rising over his head to form a golden dome of psynergy that covered the two of them completely from the world. Specks of psynergy that seemed almost like feathers slowly started to fall from above him as the dome completed itself, as it began to pulsate with light. And then, as he felt the power of the spell come to a peak, Isaac slowly raised his hands as the light within the golden dome grew brighter and brighter and then—

There was a bright flash, and Isaac opened his eyes. And even though the new knowledge that his djinn had given him had told him to expect it, still Isaac was surprised by what he saw. The world around him and Mia seemed to have faded away, replaced by an emptiness broken only by those featherlike specks of psynergy that seemed to be floating everywhere around him. Mia's body still lay motionless in front of him, but she seemed to have faded, too, seemed to have faded into an eerie black-and-white version of herself.

Neither of those things, however, were what got Isaac's attention at that moment. What got Isaac's attention was an object floating above Mia's body, round and about the size of his fist. It seemed to be made up of millions of tiny psynergetic sparkles, all of them a clear, crystal blue, like her eyes, like her element, like her. It spun lazily in the air, every so often releasing a few sparkles that floated up and away and into nothingness.

Her soul, the new knowledge told him.

Every living person's body, Isaac now knew, contained a soul like this, a spirit that defined a person and gave the body life. Within the body, the soul was safe and secure, unable to be touched by even the most powerful of forces. Once the body was no longer able to sustain itself, however, it would shut down, releasing the soul it contained into the outside world. Without a body to contain it, the soul was frighteningly fragile—even the slightest gust of wind could damage its structure. Even now, as Isaac watched Mia's soul float in the emptiness around him, he knew that it was ever so slowly deteriorating, knew that the small sparkles it was releasing were pieces of her spirit that would never be recovered.

Still, though... there was hope. In his desperation, Isaac had healed Mia's body completely, and once again it would be able to sustain itself if he could only return to it the spark of life that had once been there. But her soul had been damaged by exposure to the outside world, and without a complete soul her body would never start functioning again. That, Isaac knew, meant he would now have to perform the most difficult part of the spell. In order to revive Mia, in order to repair her soul... he would have to give her a piece of his own.

Flint had not been lying—it would be an exceedingly difficult process. Within his body, Isaac knew, his soul would regenerate and repair itself if given time. But if he wanted to revive Mia and live to tell her about it, he would have to be extremely careful. If he didn't give her enough of his power, her soul would remain broken; if he gave her too much, he would kill himself. It was dangerous, but it was the only chance he had to bring Mia back, and Isaac knew that to save her he would do anything.

So once again, Isaac focused his power, but this time he drew not upon the life energy of the earth but upon the life energy within himself. His mind was exhausted, however, from the many powerful spells he had already used to try and revive her, and more than once he found himself faltering as he tried to complete the spell. He closed his eyes, his breathing labored as he tried to concentrate, but his mind didn't seem to want to cooperate. The power of the spell kept flickering and dying before he could complete it, and even as he tried again and again Isaac felt fear creeping up his body, fear that even after doing so much to try to save Mia he wouldn't be able to bring her back.

But Isaac couldn't fail now, not when he had this one chance to revive her. He opened his eyes again, but this time instead of fearfully watching her sparkling, deteriorating soul he turned his gaze to Mia herself, to the girl that meant so much to him. Why, he wondered, had it taken him until now to realize just how badly he had fallen for her? He had been trying to deny it to himself over the past few days, but there was no point in doing so now. He loved Mia. He had probably fallen in love with her a long time ago. And he couldn't lose her now, now that he knew just how badly he needed her.

So he tried again. And this time, as he focused his power into the spell... he thought of her. He thought of her compassion, how she could always be a friend and shoulder to lean on whenever his quest seemed like too much for him. He thought of her smile, the way such a small gesture could evoke such strong feelings within him, the magical way she had smiled at him only a few days ago, when he had told her she was beautiful. He thought of his affection for her, how he must have been falling in love with her the whole time he was with her without ever fully realizing it. All things, he knew, that he would never experience again if this spell failed. All reasons, he knew, why he had to bring her back.

And this time the power of the spell did not flicker and die. This time he could feel the power within him beginning to coalesce, and as he opened his eyes Isaac could see that the feathery specks of psynergy floating in the emptiness around him had reacted to his spell. They were no longer floating lazily through the air, but had instead started to slowly, purposefully circle around him and Mia. Taking this as a sign that the spell was working, Isaac focused his power further, a spark of hope igniting within him as he realized that he could do this, that he was strong enough to save her.

Slowly, Isaac could begin to feel the swirling life energy within him concentrating, focusing itself. At the same time, the telltale golden glow of his psynergy appeared on his body, this time not on his arms and hands but instead directly over his heart. This was it, Isaac realized, as the golden glow grew brighter, as the life energy within him concentrated into a single point directly under it. This was his chance, the only chance he had. Closing his eyes, he took a slow, deep breath... and then let the pieces of his soul flow out of him.

The tiny golden sparkles flowed out of the glowing spot above his heart in a stream, moving forward before joining the featherlike specks of psynergy in circling around him and Mia. And as more and more sparkles joined them, as Isaac let out more and more of his soul, they started to spin faster and faster, the circle starting to shrink. Soon, Isaac was no longer inside the circle of swirling sparkles and feathers; instead, they surrounded only Mia.

Finally, Isaac felt that he had let out enough. The flow of sparkles from his heart stopped, and he turned his attention to what was now a whirlwind of gold surrounding Mia. As he focused his power on it, the whirlwind continued to shrink, rising up into the air and forming a spinning sphere around Mia's soul. As the golden particles closed in on it, the crystal-blue sparkles started to spin as well, and soon there were not two spheres of sparkles but one, blue and gold swirling together.

All at once the sparkles flashed white, and for a moment Mia's soul hung there, neither blue nor gold but a deep sea-green. It was only for a moment, however, as soon after the color faded, reverting to the crystal-blue he knew so well. Isaac let out a breath, hope surging within him as he realized that there was only one thing left for him to do. He was almost there. He had almost saved her.

Once again he focused his power on Mia's soul, and once again the crystal-blue sparkles began to spin. And slowly, very slowly, it began to descend, moving back towards Mia's body where it belonged. Faster and faster it spun as Isaac concentrated the very last of his power, as he focused every fiber of his being on pushing those tiny little sparkles of Mia's being back into the girl he loved. They were inches apart now, they were almost touching, and then the sparkles touched her heart and—

Mia suddenly gasped, as though she had just emerged from a very long time underwater, and the world suddenly returned to normal, once again she was surrounded by sand. She sat up, her chest heaving with deep breaths, looking around wildly as she clutched her dress, trying to determine what had just happened to her. Finally, her crystal-blue eyes settled on him. "Isaac?" she asked breathlessly, fearfully. "W-what's going on?"

But he could do nothing but smile broadly at her, pure relief and joy flooding his body and robbing him of his voice. Mia was back... she was alive. He had saved her. He wanted to throw his arms around her, wanted to hold her close and feel her heart beat against his chest, but he was suddenly aware of just how very tired he was, of an exhaustion that seemed to not only consume his body but his mind and spirit as well. He could barely move, could barely keep himself upright, but he hardly cared. Mia was alive, and that was all that mattered.

"Isaac?" Mia repeated when he did not reply, a slight expression of worry making its way onto her beautiful face. "A-... are you all right?"

But Isaac couldn't reply; he didn't have the strength. He just smiled at her for a moment longer, and then, closing his eyes, he let out a breath and fell face-first into the sand.

Cliffhanger! Okay, not really, we all know Isaac's not dead. You would've figured that out from a peek at the character list for the next chapter, anyway. :P

But yeah... don'cha just love semantics? Honestly, I'm very surprised more people didn't pick up on the fact that just because Ivan said that Mia was going to die didn't mean that Isaac couldn't bring her back immediately afterward. Especially since Isaac does have a Revive spell in the game. :P As it stands, Gravaja Umbros is the only reader who correctly guessed what was going to happen in this chapter. A cookie to you, sir. :)

Speaking of that, though, I hope that Isaac's sudden learning of the Revive spell didn't seem too much of a deus ex machina to anyone. To be honest, I was just going with the game's mechanics on that one, as Isaac does need four Venus djinn to cast the spell. Still, though, did that seem realistic to you guys? Let me know in your reviews. Also, I know I took quite a bit of liberty with the way the Revive spell actually looks and works, but I like it. What do you guys think?

Anyway... yeah. This scene got huge. Even by itself it's the longest chapter I've written so far for this story, clocking in at six thousand words. It's not much of a conversation, I suppose, but I don't think you guys will mind too much. :P Remember, though, that if you see any problems with this chapter, don't hesitate to let me know. Obviously, this is one of the most important events in this story, so I want to make sure it's perfect.

I'm sticking with the no-deadline plan for now, but I will try harder with the next chapter, I promise. :) So until next time...

Please review!
-TheOneAndOnlyT

next chapter: Isaac, Mia and Ivan