OK, my brain is working again. That's good. On with the fanfic.

"Isn't that supposed to be Suhalla?" Mia gasped.

Smoke still hung in the air from the fire that destroyed the desert city. The only sounds coming from the ruin was smoldering wood. There were no cries for help to be heard.

"Everybody's dead..." She whispered.

Garet shook his head. "There has got to be survivors out of all the people who lived here."

Mia wasn't listening. "Who did this? Who could have possibly..."

"Don't tell me... the dragon?"

"This is not a laughing matter, Garet, what the hell is wrong with you? Wait, you mean the dragon didn't do this?"

"Oh, my god..."

Mia huffed. "What do you mean by 'oh, my god?'"

"I mean, oh my god, there's someone alive down there!"

"What?!"

There was movement somewhere among the charred rubble. A little girl, no more than five years old, was busy trying to free herself from the debris. It seemed as if she was having great difficulty in doing so.

Mia didn't hesitate rushing to the child.

"No!" The girl cried. "Stay away from me, or else I'll... I'll..." She remembered that she couldn't move. "Don't hurt me!"

Mia laughed reassuringly. "Nobody's going to hurt you now. Whatever happened, the danger's over. We're going to help you."

Garet tried to move the huge piece of debris. "Oh, man, this is really heavy..."

The girl rolled her eyes. "Some help you are."

Mia cracked up at that. This girl was pretty cool for a five-year old!

Garet wasn't amused. "Hey, we're helping you out here, so at least show a little respect!"

The girl laughed. "All right, if you insist. I'm Karina." There was a brief silence. "And your name is...?"

Mia opened her mouth to answer, but was cut off.

"It's Garet. And she's Mia."

Mia glared at Garet. "You are really pissing me off right now."

Karina laughed. "I must sound pretty happy even though I'm stuck under a wall, and I'm the only one alive. I guess it's because I'm so happy to not have died!"

Mia smiled. "You're an optimist."

"What does that mean?"

Both Mia and Karina turned and stared at Garet in shock. "I'm only five years old, and even I know what 'optimist' means. You are really sad."

Garet looked away in embarrassment, then froze, and slowly stood up. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Mia turned around and gasped. "Sheba!? What the...how did you...Sheba, were you here when this happened?"

Sheba shook her head. "No, I wasn't. But I know who was. It was Lalivero. They did this."

"Lalivero!? Why would they do such a thing!?"

"That's what I'm trying to find out! Are the others with you?"

"No, it's just us." Garet answered. "You haven't seen them, have you?"

"Why, are they lost?"

"Yes. We're trying to find them. We don't know what could have happened to them."

Karina interrupted them. "Are you going to get me out of here or not?"

As the three of them threw their weight against the felled wall, (which didn't make a difference whether or not Sheba was there, because she weighs next to nothing) they continued their conversation.

"So, did you check the direction the hoof prints pointed to?"

"Yeah, we followed them south, and kept going, hoping maybe Ivan would be in Kalay, but every able-bodied man had gone to war against...Lalivero. That explains it!"

Sheba stared in amazement. "Wait, you mean Ivan went to war? I thought he was wimp!"

"Surprised us, too."

Karina laughed out loud. "Well, why don't we work together to find your friends? Besides, I've got nowhere else to go. Can I come with you? Please?"

The three Adepts exchanged glances. Mia sighed. "I suppose."

Karina jumped for joy. "Yay! I'm going to show you my secret spot! That is...if you're brave enough..."

Garet smiled. "Try us."

"Ever seen a real dragon before?"

(Western Angara)

The next morning, Pictu and Piers woke up to a bit of a surprise. They were...snuggling. Instantly, they jerked away from one another.

Ivan and Rona were in pieces, they were laughing so hard. "Hey, lovebirds! Are we gonna get moving or what?"

Pictu lunged at them then fell over.

Piers let out a cry. She was covered in blood. "Pictu what happened? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, it's just a menstrual cramp." She turned around. "Oh! You got some of my blood on you!"

Rona gasped. "THAT'S SO TOTALLY GROSS!"

Ivan pointed out another very disturbing detail. "The blood is on his thigh. What do you think they were doing last night?"

Pictu lunged for Ivan with intent to kill, was seized by another cramp and fell over, again, moaning and clutching her abdomen. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow..." Piers was still concerned. "Is she really okay?"

Rona laughed. "Yeah, I've been through it many times, and I'm younger than her. She'll be all right." She leaned toward Ivan. "We should give these two some space. I think this thing between them is getting somewhere finally."

Ivan cocked his head. "What thing?"

Rona looked at him blankly. "Whatever. Let's go...someplace other than here. Come on." She paused. "There's something that your horse did last night that is...something I need to talk to you about."

Ivan looked blank.

Rona sighed. "I hate doing things the hard way..." She grabbed Ivan by the wrist and started pulling him away.

Pictu was watching the entire spectacle. "Those two are really weird."

Piers shook his head. "I've seen queerer."

Pictu sat upright with a sudden interest. "Hey, I never asked you: How old are you, anyway?"

Piers flinched.

"Okay, so maybe you don't care about telling. Fine with me." Pictu pulled out her sword and ran a small metal disc down the blade, sharpening it. This went on for about a minute, until Piers just had to break the silence.

"What is it with that blade of yours that makes you so attached to it?"

Pictu ignored him.

"Are you mad at me?"

No reply.

"All right, if you're going to be stubborn, I'll tell you. I'm 105."

Pictu turned around. "I'm not mad at you. And don't worry. I won't tell anyone how old you are."

"Well, I told you my secret. What are you hiding from me?"

Pictu shifted uneasily.

"Is this the Kolima thing?"

Pictu froze. Slowly, she turned around. "Have you ever watched a person die?"

"What? No!"

She stroked the hilt of her blade, tenderly. "Blacky gave me this sword. And now Blacky's dead. End of story."

"I see you have something you want to forget."

"And is it any of your concern? No! When did I ask for your opinion?"

Piers sighed. "If you don't want to talk about it, then don't."

"Fine."

"You really do sound angry at me. What did I do, besides save your life twice?"

"You know what? Thanks for your moral support. I appreciate it." Pictu stood up picked up her blade and walked away. The whole time, she was looking away from Piers. "Pictu?" He called after her. "Pictu, what are you...Pictu, what did I say that bothered you? I'm sorry, already!" Five minutes passed. Ivan and Rona have been gone a long time. What are they doing? Five more minutes passed. I have to find Pictu. Pictu was at a spring, splashing cold water in her face. What was I saying back there? I probably broke his heart. What am I thinking about!? It's not like he's my boyfriend...is he? Pictu sat upright. Oh my God. I think I'm falling for him. That's just not right. I have to stop. She turned around to leave...and found herself face-to-face with Piers. Oh, shit.

Piers held up both hands, as if he expected Pictu to attack him. "Listen. Whatever it was I said back there that offended you, I'm sorry."

"Well, don't be."

"What?"

"I was the asshole back there, not you. I'm the one who should be apologizing. I'm sorry."

Piers was a little bit surprised. "How about we're both at fault. Does that sound fair enough?"

"Fine by me." There was no anger in her voice. She smiled. "I guess I can trust you enough to tell you my story. My real mother was a prostitute from Bilbin. My dad...was a customer, I guess. Anyway, my mom didn't want me, so she left me for dead in Kolima Forest. But then Blacky found me. He was sort of like a lumberjack, but not the same thing. Almost every man in Kolima works with wood, so it's nothing out of the ordinary. But I grew up around trees, blades, axes and the old Paul Bunyan tales. His name wasn't really Blacky. It was Samuel Black. But since he was a black man and since it was his last name, we all called him Blacky."

Piers noticed something was different about Pictu. It wasn't the fact that tears were running down her cheeks. It was...something else. Pictu leaned over and rested her head on Piers's shoulder. "He taught me everything I know. While he chopped trees, I used daggers to peel off the bark. But then, I developed a love for swords. I think it was then when I decided that I wanted to become a warrior. So when I turned 14, Blacky gave me this blade here. It was a birthday gift." She snuggled against Piers's chest, listening to the gentle rhythm of his heartbeat. It seemed to soothe her. "For five years, I taught myself how to use this blade. I loved it. But then..." Her voice trailed off. "One day, in the summer, the temperature was really hot and humid, even in the shade. Most of the guys were taking a break from the heat, but Blacky insisted on working. He wasn't a quitter. I tried to convince him to slow down, at least, but he was too stubborn. Then...he just died, right there in front of me. Seconds later, I heard some kind of explosion to the west. The whole sky turned gold. I thought the spirits were out to get me, so...I ran. And I didn't come back. I was too scared to face another day." She was crying hard now. "I came to the eastern shore of Angara, and it was there when...I tried to end my own life."

Piers flinched and pulled away from her. "You did WHAT!?"

"Well, I didn't die. That you could probably guess. I passed out in the water...and I woke up in Lemuria. The rest of the story you already know." She had stopped crying. She was laughing.

Piers smiled. "Hey, I'll spar you."

"No, not at this time of the month. It's a girl thing."

"I understand." (He doesn't. He's a guy.)

Pictu paused. Then, she picked up a stone, and hurled it at a nearby tree. Sure enough, Ivan fell out of it. Pictu huffed. "Ladies and gentlemen, I give you: SKIPPY! THE MOMENT KILLER!"

Ivan turned around. "What?"

Piers was bewildered. "Were you two listening to the whole conversation?"

Rona nodded. "Yup."

Pictu lunged at them.

No surprise to Piers, she fell over from a cramp. "Oh, boy..."

Okay. Now THAT chapter was long. I know this is random, but all I ever wanted to see was: Isaac taking a shotgun, shoving it up Alex's ass, and pulling the trigger. Did I make you smile? MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! NEXT TIME! Let's see...Oh! Nothing much, just a life-or-death battle between Two runeisks, two adepts and most possibly the most dangerous creature on the face of Weyard. UNTIL NEXT TIME, SUCKAS!