I have nothing to say, really.

I never thought I'd be gone from here this long. Project A.F.T.E.R.'s gotten to me, I think... not that that's a bad thing.

Anywhoo, I'm here. You're here. Go read. Now.

He lowered the hand with the energy blast, the dark purple ball disappearing. Laughing, he walked toward her.

Botan, still quietly whimpering in unconscious pain, was glowing brighter.

"No, stay away!" Yukina said, unaware of who the visitor was. It was the closest to a command - or a scream - she had ever come.

He ignored her, and held his outstretched, glowing purple hand over the ferrygirl. She moaned louder than before, obviously in more pain.

"Found it, I finally have," he said with a grin.

"Stay away from her!" she yelled uncharacteristically now, shocked at her own words.

Then her gaze turned to the strange Empire demon. A strange sideways eye opened on his forehead. She felt herself get lifted from the ground. She screamed as she was flung backwards to a wall. She screamed again - a burst - as she collided with it, and then she fell to the ground. The scroll that had been hanging on the wall was ruined.

Yodakumo used his mysterious power to lift Botan - still making noises of pain - from where she lay on the floor. "The... Power Circle... inside this girl's body, it is!"

- -

Yusuke was running toward the stairs to Genkai's temple, which looked a lot shorter than normal. He randomly stopped at the bottom. "What's that?" He turned to look at Keiko, who was wearing a hideously ugly green dress. "Keiko, stay here. I'll be right back," he said all in one breath.

He took off running. Keiko stopped like he told her, for some reason out of breath. "Yusuke!"

- -

Botan was slowly floating higher and higher, and she was glowing with blue light. Yodakumo was smiling a very creepy smile, his hand outstretched toward Botan. His hand was growing bigger and then shrinking, and it was glowing the same shade of purple as Barney the dinosaur.

Everything was quiet except for the creepy music. Then Yusuke came into view and screamed, "Hold it!" Then he stopped running and started panting, showing Yodakumo how out-of-shape he was.

Suddenly, he noticed Yukina lying on the ground, unconscious, even though she was behind Yodakumo. Then he noticed Genkai was on the ground too, but she was probably dead rather than unconscious. She was like, a hundred and seven years old, after all.

And then, finally, he noticed Botan floating two feet off the floor.

"Not again," he growled.

Yodakumo turned. "Again, you it is. Can't stand the fact that like a whipped dog, you I–"

"Will you shut the hell up? I'm sick of you talking like fricking Yoda! I hate fucking Star Wars and George fucking Lucas!"

Yodakumo smirked and said louder, "Can't stand the fact that like a whipped dog, you I beat!"

Yusuke gasped and then screamed, "You're dead!"

Keiko came running up from out of nowhere, even though Yusuke had told her to stay put. "Yusuke!"

And then Yodakumo farted a huge, mighty fart. It was so huge, it created a strong wind. Yusuke was able to – barely – hold his ground, but Keiko was blown backwards.

"Keiko!" Yusuke screamed as she very unrealistically fell down the stairs and then died.

Yodakumo used the Instant Transmission technique to randomly appear in front of Yusuke. "Your rightful place you must learn!" he yelled as he punched Yusuke right in the stomach.

Yusuke screamed as he was blown back into the temple. The temple collapsed.

Yodakumo's strange follower used the Instant Transmission technique to appear behind Yodakumo, Botan slung over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "Come, the time has. Retrieved the Power Circle of the Empire have I!"

Yusuke somehow managed to get up. "What the hell do you want with a Power Pellet?"

He ignored Yusuke. "Arrived for us all, the time of the Empire has!" The King of the Empire started to laugh, and then he and his henchman disappeared.

"No... Botan..." And then Yusuke began to cry.

- Kuramastrass -