Author's Note: Merry Christmas everyone! Here is the third and final Christmas special in the Wasteland Project. I have been sitting on this plotline for a long time. And here we are. I knew what I wanted to do with Saki ever since about 2015. It was AnOrdinaryRiceball's idea for this to be posted on Christmas. Now, I have nothing against Saki. This is just for the sake of the story. I enjoyed how this story turned out. It took so much and the story just kept coming out. I already know how to close out this year with this fic. Stick around for that next Wednesday. For now, Happy Holidays and enjoy the Christmas special!

Halo Twenty-Two: Saki:

More calamity keeps bleeding out of the city's wounds. Kita still refuses to talk. It's like she doesn't care about what happens to her. Or maybe…

She's afraid of something.

However, that's not the focus right now. Something way bigger is about to happen.

October 10, 2015

Saki walked up to the cashier. Tonight, she was going to cook dinner for her and Masaomi tonight. Nothing lavish, just some curry. She picked out some beef, onions, carrots, potatoes, soy sauce, and a good selection of root vegetables. The whole time, Saki had an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. She couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was about to happen to her today.

"What would like for dinner tomorrow?" Saki asked last night. Masaomi looked over at her.

"Why do you ask?" he asked. His girlfriend shrugged.

"Just felt like cooking tomorrow," she said. Masaomi lifted his head.

"Just make whatever," he said. Saki frowned.

"Come on," she said. Her tone demanded that he give her a better answer. Masaomi rested his head back on the floor.

"Fine," he said. "Let's have curry again tomorrow night." A sharp sense of bitterness filled his mouth as he started to remember that he said this before. Wait… What day was this?

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Yes…" Masaomi forced himself to say. "I can't really think of anything that I would want."

"Okay," Saki said. "We'll have curry for dinner tomorrow then." She said it in a way to give him the chance to change his mind. Instead, her boyfriend smiled.

"Yeah, that will be great," he said. "I love you."

"I love you too," Saki said.

"Excuse me," a woman's voice said back in reality. Saki looked up.

"Huh?" she asked.

"That will be 3380¥," the clerk said. "Are you feeling okay, miss?"

"Oh… Yeah, yeah," Saki said. "How much was it again?"

"3380¥," the clerk said again.

"Oh, right," Saki said. She reached into her wallet and pulled out her money. The cashier counted up the cash. She went to give the girl her change.

"No, keep the change," Saki said. The cashier put the money back into the cash register.

"Thank you, have a good day," she said.

"You too," Saki said with a bow. The clerk bowed before the girl turned and walked out of the store. Saki had just made it outside when something caught her attention. A girl in a long black silk dress and an ornate matching chocker stood inches away. Her long black hair was held up into two pigtails. That red halo above her head gave Saki an indication that she was no angel. The girl started to slowly back away.

Too late as the girl looked up and saw her. She perked up and clapped her hands together.

"Hi!" she said in a cheerful tone. Saki subtly started to look for an escape. The girl ran towards her and grabbed her by the hands.

"I'm so glad to see you again!" she said.

"Uh… I don't know who you are," Saki said. The girl broke into a huge grin.

"I'm Yuuko!" she said. "I have been waiting so long to see you again." Her face looked so angelic, but Saki knew better. She listened for the city around her. As long as she could hear the city…

"What are you talking about?" Saki asked. Yuuko grinned.

"Aw, you don't remember me yet, do you?" she said in a baby-like voice. "That's too bad. I've been dying to meet you." The deity pouted.

"I've been so bored since I got here," she said. "My Daichi wouldn't let me have any real fun. I couldn't do it yet, he said. You would wreck the game, he said." Yuuko held out her arms and twirled around as she spoke. The whole time, Saki took a listen around her. The deity frowned as she turned back to the girl.

"He was still mad about the last time I went ahead and killed without asking," she said. The deity's mood perked up.

"But now, things are different," she said. Yuuko roughly grabbed Saki by the hands.

"So here's the deal," she said in a low voice. "I get to kill you. Yay." Her target blinked at her.

"Kill me? Why would you do that?" she asked. Yuuko giggled.

"Why?" she asked. "Why? Why?" Her face came within inches of the other girl's. She grabbed her by the cheeks.

"Because you're the way," she said. "And it's fun!" It was then Saki noticed that everything had gone quiet around them. When she turned her head, all of the people had disappeared from the streets. There were no signs of life in the city. Saki broke away from her grasp, turned, and ran. Yuuko threw back her head, laughing.

"That's right! Run little bunny! Run!" she shouted. The deity vanished into thin air.

"What would you do if I were to die?" Saki asked three nights ago.

"No more!" Masaomi was quick to say. "I am not going to have this conversation with you!" Saki lifted her head off the pillow.

"Masaomi?" she asked. He closed his eyes and sighed.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I've had so much on my mind." Saki frowned as she tried to reach out to touch his shoulder.

"Don't! Please," Masaomi pleaded. Saki drew back her hand. His lower lip started to tremble.

"I don't want you to die," he said in a hoarse whisper. Saki gave him a sympathetic smile as she pulled him into her arms.

"It's okay," she whispered. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm not going to die. I promise." He doesn't believe her. Saki knew this deep inside.

"Please don't let me go," Masaomi whispered. Saki kissed him atop his head. She wasn't one to really show her emotions, but faint memories of what happened in the past might be the thing to break her.

Saki ran looking for safety. There were no people around. Even her footsteps didn't make a sound on the ground. She knew that she should get out of this dimension and get back to her apartment. Of course, she knew the way back. Somehow, something didn't feel right about this city.

Saki turned her head when she heard giggling. Yuuko floated behind her with a chainsaw in hand.

"Say hello to chainsaw-kun!" she yelled. She cackled as she pulled on the string. Saki turned and took off running. It didn't help that the buildings and streets started to look the same. Calling for help was out of the question. Her phone had no service. Of course, no one knew where she was either. The shopping trip was going to be a surprise for her boyfriend. Speaking of which…

Saki looked down and noticed she still had the groceries in her hand. She had forgotten that she had been holding onto them. Saki didn't know whether to laugh or shake her head. However, that moment of peace didn't last long.

Bang!

Saki jumped out of the way in time. Bang! Bang!

"That's a right little bunny!" Yuuko shouted from the top. "Run! I can see you!" Bang! Bang! Bang!

Yuuko stood on the roof, laughing with her sniper rifle. She looked through the scope, tracking Saki's every move. She had been waiting for weeks to do this. The deity always went for the chase. However, this was a special case. She was going to have to go all out for this. Yuuko counted down the rounds in her head.

"I'm going to let her run for a bit before I get to the good parts," she said to herself. Yuuko looked through the scope again.

"Got ya!" she said. Saki ran further down the empty street.

Bang! Bang!

In the days before the tenth, Masaomi became overprotective of Saki. He reasoned that he couldn't let her die again.

"What are you talking about?" Saki asked three days ago. Masaomi sighed and rubbed on his head frustrated. He couldn't explain it to her, not just yet anyway. She'd probably think he was crazy.

"Please… Just trust me on this," he said.

"Okay…" Saki said. She tried to understand, but that's hard to do when he won't tell her anything. Even Mikado won't give Saki a straight answer.

"He has his reasons to protect you," he said. "I'm not saying this because I'm sure of it. You just have to trust him on this."

"Why wouldn't he tell you about me, hm?" Yuuko's voice echoed in Saki's head. The girl froze.

"He was trying to protect me," she said.

"Oh? Where was he when you got kidnapped and had your legs broken?" the deity asked.

"He froze," Saki said without missing a point. "But I was the one who put myself in that situation."

"What about when you were in the hospital?" Yuuko asked. "He tried to avoid you for months."

"He came to see me," she said.

"What about all of the times you died?" the deity asked. Saki turned around with wide eyes.

"I died?" she asked. Yuuko floated in front of her with a can of pepper spray.

"Yes!" she shouted. She pushed down the top of the spray bottle.

Yesterday, Masaomi insisted that they spend the day together. By now, Saki gave up asking questions.

"What about Mikado?" she asked.

"He'll be fine. Anri's staying with him today," he said. Masaomi pulled her into his arms.

"It's going to be fine," he said. It was more directed to himself. Saki caressed his left cheek.

"I understand," she said. "We'll stay in for the day." Masaomi bowed his head.

"Thank you," he said. They didn't do much yesterday. Masaomi wouldn't let her out of his sight.

"Let's turn our phones off," he said.

"What? Why?" she asked.

"It will be fine," Masaomi said. He pulled out his phone and showed her the screen.

"See? I told everyone that we would be in for the day," he said. "No one is going to bother us." The boy turned off his phone.

"See?" he asked again. "Give me your phone." Saki gave it to him without saying a word. Masaomi turned off her phone.

"There," he said. "Now both phones are off."

"Are we going to do take-out today?" Saki asked. Masaomi thought about that for a moment.

"We'll just eat here," he said. "We can cook together." By now, Saki couldn't think of an argument anymore."

"Fine," she said. "We'll do that." Masaomi pulled her into his arms for another hug.

"I love you so much," he whispered in her ear. Saki didn't need to say a word. She just put her arms around him.

Saki managed to duck away from the pepper spray started running again. Yuuko clicked her tongue.

"Come back here!" she barked. This chase started to get boring. She wanted to get serious now. A little smirk crossed her face.

Saki didn't know how long she had been running. The streets and buildings looked the same. She didn't know where she was going. All the girl knew was that she had to get back to the apartment. Saki knew how to get back in this place, didn't she?

Meanwhile, the pieces came together in Yuuko's head. She had just the thing to break her prey before killing her. The deity closed her eyes and took a listen. Footsteps running west. Yuuko opened her eyes, smirking. Already, she had the little bunny where she wanted her. Just let her keep running until she reaches home. After all, what would be more terrifying than dying in what you think is the safest place in the world?

Yuuko reached into the empty air and pulled out her kit. She figured she would give Saki a couple more minutes to get home before the main event began.

"Five… Four… Three… Two… One."

Yuuko took a breath and vanished into thin air.

Meanwhile, the girl kept running as she tried to remember how to get home. She looked ahead and saw a familiar building. Her heart started pounding in her chest.

"There is it!" Saki said aloud. She started to pick up her pace. If she could just get to the front door and get inside, she would be safe. It felt like a long shot, but she had to try. Saki took a breath and pushed herself to keep running. She ignored the cramping in her legs. Adrenaline alone was what powered her. Her apartment was just a few feet away. She could reach the doorknob. She just had to get there. She just had to get inside. Saki already had her key in her hand.

She now stood in front of the door.

"Does he really love you?" Yuuko asked. Saki looked up.

"What?" she asked.

Bam!

Saki dropped straight to the ground. She struggled to remain conscious from the blow to the back of her head. Yuuko walked up next to her and grabbed her by the neck. The deity vanished into thin air with her.

Around three in the morning, Saki looked at her phone. How many of these videos has she made now? Six? Yeah, she was going to go with that. She couldn't stop. Someone needed to hear her. Maybe she knew this was coming all along. Who could say? She had to make this latest recording quick. Masaomi was going to be up in a few hours. He already saw one of her videos. Masaomi urged her to delete it. He wouldn't take it if he found out that she was still making videos. He said that he was fighting to keep her alive.

Saki opened up the video app on her phone and hit record.

"Hey, it's me again," she said. "I can't help but feel that today is going to be my last day." The girl rubbed her forehead.

"I don't think I can explain it," she said. "I just can't get rid of this sinking feeling." Saki glanced over at Masaomi still asleep in bed. He turned over at one point. Saki silently breathed out.

"Good, he's still asleep," she whispered. The girl breathed out.

"I need to focus on this. He wouldn't understand. But I have to do this. What was I saying again? Oh yes. I don't know what my last words would be. I don't know what I plan to do this morning. It's been quiet lately. Too quiet. It's like the calm before the storm. It feels like the city is waiting for something to happen. I feel like I won't make it through the day somehow. I don't want to think about how or why. My boyfriend is afraid that I am going to be killed somehow. At this point, I don't know what to think anymore. I keep remembering myself dying and it's been getting worse lately." Saki rubbed her forehead again.

"I know it all sounds crazy," she said. "I don't know what to make of this. I don't know what's real anymore. I don't even know why I keep making these videos." She laid down on the floor.

"I didn't think this was a good idea anyway," Saki said. She sighed.

"Oh well, I will delete this later," she said. She hit stop on her recorder.

Moments later, Saki slowly came to. Her head was still throbbing from being hit earlier.

"Oh good, you're awake," she heard over her. Yuuko came into her line of vision. The deity broke into a huge grin.

"Well this was fun but unfortunately, I'm gonna kill you now," she said.

"Why?" Saki asked. Yuuko raised her eyebrow at her.

"Why what?" she asked.

"Why are you doing this to me?" the girl asked. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. She found herself lying on the floor of her living room. This psychotic girl dragged her into the apartment and laid her down on the floor. A wave of dread made her stomach turn.

"I already told you," Yuuko said. "You're in the way. And this is fun!" She threw back her head and laughed. The deity leaned down to her prey's face.

"Tell me something," she said. "Does Masaomi-kun really love you?"

"What? Of course he does!" Saki said. She pushed herself up to be sitting. Yuuko smiled and shook her head.

"Does he really?" she asked. "Then why isn't he here protecting you?" Saki froze. She tried to think of something to say, but no words came out. Yuuko all but laughed at her.

"Does he even know where you are?" she asked.

"No…" Saki admitted.

"Was he there when you woke up?"

"No."

"Then where was he?"

"I… I don't know. He's probably with Mikado."

"So why isn't he with you?"

"I don't know."

Yuuko folded her arms across her chest and chuckled. "Just as I thought." By now, Saki rose to her feet. She shook her head.

"It's not what you think!" she shouted. Yuuko had an amused look on her face.

"What am I thinking?" she asked. Saki just stared at her. Something wasn't right. Why did this all feel familiar? Yuuko smiled like a hungry cat.

"Catching on? Is it making sense now?" she asked. Saki shook her head.

"This can't be," she said.

"What?" the deity asked. She looked like she was ready to fly through the roof. Her kit appeared by her side. This was it. Here was the main course.

Flashes of memory jumped in Saki's head. They've stood here before. She says the same things too. The girl took a step back.

"You're lying!" she shouted.

"Am I?" Yuuko asked.

"You're lying! I don't believe you," Saki said.

"Can you prove that?" the deity asked. The girls stared at each other silent. Yuuko stepped closer.

"If he loves you so much, call him to have you rescue you now," she said. The deity pulled out Saki's phone. The girl's eyes widened. When did she get time to get that? Yuuko tossed the phone to her.

"Go on," she said. "Do it. Call up your little boyfriend to come and save you." Saki stared at her at first. Yuuko gestured her to take the phone.

"Go on," she insisted. "Take it." Saki reached forward and took the phone. Yuuko watched her with a smile on her face. The girl dubiously stared at her for a couple of minutes. She finally looked down at the screen. Her stomach dropped. She looked up see Yuuko giggling at her.

"Oh! That's right! I cut off the service to your phone!" she shouted. Yuuko threw back her head and started cackling. Saki stared at her with big eyes.

"It was you," she said. Yuuko stopped laughing and eyed her.

"Me what?" she asked. Saki's hand shook as she held her phone. The deity stared intently at her. She waited for her to say it.

"You… You killed me before, didn't you?" Saki asked. Her phone dropped to the floor. Yuuko now had a creepy grin on her face as she started clapping.

"Congratulations! You figured it out!" she said. She twirled around, laughing. The color drained from Saki's face. Her head screamed at her body to move, but it seemed like she had gone frozen. Yuuko leaned in close to her face.

"Can you feel it?" she asked. "Can you feel all of the times I killed you?" Saki's body went stiff. She screamed in agony. Yuuko looked like a deranged smiling cat.

"Ah yes! Feel it all! All of the times I shot you dead!" she shouted. Saki could feel multiple bullets ripping through her body. Each invisible shot hit her in the lungs, heart, abdomen, throat, arms, legs, shoulders, eyes, and head. Her screaming became chocked up in her pain. She tried in vain to get away. The hail of invisible bullets wouldn't let up. Saki managed to stagger over to the kitchen. Suddenly, the bullets stopped. Saki whirled around to see the deity staring at her.

"Oh? What's this?" Yuuko asked. Saki froze as an invisible iron grip closed around her throat. She grasped for her air as she clawed at invisible hands.

"You feel that, right?" the deity asked. "That's me choking the life out of you! Remember?" Saki could barely hear what she was saying. When she managed to open her eyes, a confusing image appeared in her head. Masaomi stood in front of her with a manic grin on his face. When did his hands get so big to strangle her like this?

Please… Masaomi-kun… Stop!

Saki straggled backwards from the kitchen. When she dragged to the ground, she could breathe again. But Yuuko still wouldn't let up on her. Saki scrambled to her feet and took off running towards the hall. By now, going out the front door didn't help. Saki's best bet would be to lock herself in her bedroom. She made it halfway to the hall when she felt like she had been stabbed in the chest. Saki let out another loud gasp.

"Oh yes!" Yuuko said behind her. "The classical stabbing death. A favorite of mine. How many times did I stab you again?" Saki couldn't answer. The invisible blade went into her body with ease. Each time hurt worse than the last. Her lungs, heart, abdomen, throat, arms, legs, shoulders, eyes, and neck weren't safe. Still, Saki couldn't give up. Even though she fell to the floor, she tried to drag her body towards the bedroom door.

But Yuuko wasn't done.

"Five… Four… Three… Two…" she said. Saki let out a loud scream at the door. Yuuko grinned like a hungry wild cat.

"One!" she shouted. Yuuko turned around to see Saki lying on the floor at the bedroom door. An invisible bat had been coming down on Saki's body. She didn't have it in her scream anymore. Yuuko took her time walking over to her prey. Saki had tears in her eyes. The deity grabbed her by the hair.

"Feel familiar?" she whispered. "That's you getting beaten to death." Saki just whimpered in pain. Good, still conscious. Yuuko chuckled to herself.

"Good, you're still with me," she said. "I wouldn't want you passing out before we got to the good part." Saki glanced over at her.

"Heh," Yuuko said. She tossed Saki to the ground. The girl wasn't going to give up yet. Her captor had her trapped in this apartment. That still didn't change her will to live. Saki wasn't going to give up just yet.

She pushed herself to her feet. Yuuko raised her eyebrow. She already knew how this was going to end. The deity counted down in her head for the grand finale. She vanished into thin air.

Saki ran to the front door. She had to get out of here. If she could just get outside and get to the neighbors maybe she could get help. It was a long shot, but she had to try. Saki took a breath and ran faster down the hall.

"And where do think you're going to go?" Yuuko asked. Saki tried to ignore her.

"There's no point in trying to escape!" the deity said. "Even if you were to make it outside, you are still trapped in my world." Her hostage was just a couple of feet from the door. She would not listen.

"You might as well give up," Yuuko said. "I've already won. No matter where you go, you're going to have to die. So do us all a favor and die already. If he really loved you, you wouldn't be in this predicament in the first place. You're just holding us up by living. So give up already. And besides…"

"…You would still be alive if you weren't involved with me."

Saki froze in her tracks as her eyes widened. There was no way. Masaomi stood in front of the door with a cold smirk on his face. He held a large hunting knife in his hand. This couldn't be real. This couldn't be—

A sharp pain ripped through Saki's chest. She barely made a sound as she connected the dots. She didn't even need to look down. "Masaomi" smirked like a demon as he yanked out the knife.

He plunged the knife into her chest more times than he could count. The knife plunging into the Saki's chest was the only sound to fill the silence. The pain became too much for her body to bear. She couldn't even focus on anything else. Her vision went in and out of focus with each stab. Her blood started dripping from her mouth as it pooled in her throat. "Masaomi" ignored the blood hitting his face. Speaking of which, his face looked like an oni mask. He meant to have her dead. The knife struck her in the neck and chest over and over. Her top was stained a bright crimson. Tears streamed down Saki's face. This was going was how it going to be. This was how she was going to die again. Dying all by the hands of a monster wearing her lover's face. All of the happy times she and Masaomi spent together. Her vision slowly began to dim. Saki couldn't even feel the knife going into her body anymore. She only had one more thought before she took her last breath.

I love you, Masaomi-kun.

On the last day of summer, Saki turned to Masaomi in their bed.

"I love you," she said. Masaomi lifted his head with a confused look on his face.

"Huh? What brought this on?" he asked. She smiled and shook her head. He couldn't help but smile back. The boy reached out and caressed her on the right cheek.

"I love you too, Saki," he said. That moment in time felt perfect. Nothing could come between them. Not even annoying calls from his friends and gang members. It was just them. Saki wished that it could go on forever.

Yuuko looked down at Saki's floor through Masaomi's eyes. The girl was practically butchered. Her eyes looked so empty. Dried tears mixed with the blood on her face. Still, something was missing. The deity sneered with Masaomi's face.

"Your pretty little face. It's a shame I have to ruin it," she said in his voice. With a wave of her hand, the knife turned into a baseball bat. "Masaomi" grinned as he brought the bat down on Saki's face. The crunching smack left a smile on the boy's face. Each whack felt better than having an orgasm. The deity laughed at her handy work. When she was done, she turned the bat back into a knife. Yuuko looked down at her "art". Now, Saki's face looked like a smashed-up mess of blood and pulp. "Masaomi" chuckled to himself.

"That makes me feel so much," he said as he turned back into Yuuko. Still, she wasn't done yet. The neighing of her horse reminded her of such. Almost here. Time to wrap things up. She turned the bat back into the knife. Yuuko took one more look at the body. All of the damage of the previous timelines should show up any time now. There was just one more thing to do.

Yuuko pulled out his phone and made the call.

Masaomi had been uneasy all day. Today was the day. Saki had only been gone for a few minutes and she hadn't called or texted him. Mikado placed his hand on his. His best friend whipped his head around.

"Just call her," the tadpole boy said. Masaomi was about to respond when something else about his friend caught his attention.

"You look so pale. Are you okay?" he asked. Mikado shook his head.

"Don't worry about me," he said. "Saki needs you. Just call her! Please!" The blood vessels in Mikado's left eye had burst. Masaomi thought about taking his friend to a doctor, but the tadpole wouldn't hear it until he called his girlfriend.

"Alright, alright," Masaomi said. "I'll call her." He pulled out his phone.

"Huh?" the former Yellow Scarves shogun asked.

"What?" Mikado asked. Masaomi showed him his phone.

"I got a missed call," he said.

"From whom?" Mikado asked. His friend shook his head before he hit play on the voice message.

"Masaomi-kun, help me!" Saki's voice shouted on the message. "She's trying to kil-!" Screaming came through the other line before the line went dead. The color drained from Masaomi's face as he turned to Mikado. The tadpole boy didn't need to ask any questions.

"You go to her!" he croaked out. He didn't have to tell him twice. Masaomi bowed and took off running to home.

Masaomi made it to his apartment. His heart sank when he saw the door wide open. Against his better judgment, the boy ran inside. Masaomi stopped in his tracks when he made it to the living room. He covered his mouth and gasped as he looked so pale.

"No…" he said. Saki's lifeless body lay battered and bruised on the floor. Blood covered her skin and clothes. Her limps were broken at odd angles. Her face was bashed in beyond recognition. Masaomi sank to his knees, sobbing. The thing he had feared the most happened. He had only been gone from her for twenty minutes. How could this have happened?

"Saki!" Masaomi whimpered. The tears wouldn't stop falling as he hiccupped a sob. He froze when he heard cackling. The boy looked up to see a girl in a long black dress sitting on his couch with her legs crossed. She stopped laughing and smirked at him.

"Hello, Masaomi-kun," she said. "It's so nice to meet you—again." The boy felt his leg trembling.

"Do you do this?" he asked in a trembling voice. "Do you kill her?"

"Yes," the girl said without missing a beat. Rage started to boil beneath the surface.

"Why would you do that?!" Masaomi shouted. The girl chuckled.

"She was in the way," she said. She leaned forward.

"We have plans for you after all," the girl said.

"What the hell does that mean?!" Masaomi asked.

"You'll see," she said. The boy now looked confused.

"Who the hell are you?!" he asked. The girl rose to her feet. She could hear the neighing of a horse getting closer. The galloping made her heart pound against her chest. It took her all not to scream out loud.

"Allow me to introduce myself," she said. The girl whistled and held out her right hand out to her side.

"What are you doing?" Masaomi asked. Suddenly, the ground began to shake. The boy jumped to his feet, looking around.

"What the hell?!" he yelled. "Is that an earthquake?!" The galloping grew louder and louder. Suddenly, there was a sound louder than bombs ripped through the air. Masaomi covered his ears and ducked down. A giant ring of fire ripped open through the air. A massive horse jumped through and landed on the ground. The impact was strong enough to shake the ground. Masaomi could barely remain standing. When he looked up, he couldn't believe what he was seeing. The horse looked like it was covered in black armor. Lava and fire looked like it was leaking out of the cracks in its body. He could see the fire in its eyes as the flames danced, no, were the mane and hooves. The girl had a wicked smile on her face as she took the reins.

"My name is Yuuko," she said. "I am the horseman of war!" She smiled as she cuddled up to her fiery dark horse.