* * * Chapter Three: Revelation * * *
"Tiger! TIGER!" Holly called.
"Holly, it's no use," Hare said bleakly. "He could be anywhere in this mountain range. Statistically speaking, our chances of finding him before the sun sets are…" he glanced at the sun, which already hung low in the sky, "about nil."
"Don't say that!" Holly screamed at him, even though she knew that he was right. Tears of helpless frustration were rolling down her cheeks, and she swirled back around and screamed the blue wolf's name again. Hare and Golem exchanged worried looks.
"Tiger of the Wind, you get back here right now! We need you…please Tiger, you can't abandon us now! Mocchi…Genki…Suezo…!" Sobbing, Holly fell to her knees in the snow and cried out her rage and frustration. She began to pound her fists on the soft snow, her shoulders shaking as she choked out, "Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?" She repeated the word over and over, like some sort of hopeless mantra.
"Holly…" Golem murmured, leaning over and gently lifting her from the ground. Hare slid off of his perch on the giant's shoulder and placed his paws on the girl's trembling shoulders.
"Holly…I have a plan," he told her gently.
Holly stopped sobbing, and she lifted a tear-streaked face to gaze into his eyes. "W-what?" was all she could manage.
"We have to rescue the others, Tiger or no," he said. "I think I can find a way to sneak into Grey Wolf's fortress."
"How?" she asked, and Hare shuddered involuntarily.
"Naga used to send spies to the castles of the other members of the Big Bad Four," he explained. "He kept maps of all the secret entrances and such that his spies found. He wanted to be prepared in case any of them tried to oppose him while he was taking over. I used to look at those maps myself, in case I ever got a chance to escape while he was visiting one of them. I'm pretty sure I can remember the one he had for Grey Wolf's castle well enough to find us a way in."
Holly's face lit up for a moment, then fell again as she said, "But you're not strong enough…"
"Since when?" Hare suddenly snapped, glaring at her. Holly and Golem stared at him, taken aback. "Since when have I been too weak to help out? Ever since you found out I was a kid?"
"What?" Holly stammered. "What do you…"
"Ever since I told you guys that I wasn't an adult, you've been treating me like I was somebody else!" Hare exploded, finally saying what he had suspected for nearly a week. "Okay, so I'm not as old as you thought I was! So I was hiding some of my powers from you because I didn't know how you'd react! But that doesn't really make me any different than I was before, does it? Now all of a sudden I'm 'just a child', too weak to fight anymore? All of a sudden I've become practically useless to you guys. You don't really listen to me anymore, you ignore my plans, and you treat me like some sort of helpless child!"
Hare was the one sobbing now, his shoulders shaking violently as he cried out all of the frustration that had been building inside of him for nearly a week. Holly and Golem exchanged guilty glances.
"Even Mocchi gets to help out, but you won't let me anymore," he said miserably. "I'm just not seen the same by you guys anymore…"
"Hare…" Holly said, gently reaching over to the crying rabbit. Her fingers ran over his cheeks, brushing away his tears, and he looked up at her. "You know…you're not that weak," she told him.
"Then why…"
"We're just worried about you," Holly replied, her smile a little sad. "I admit that I have been treating you a little differently; we all have. It's just that it's a little hard to adjust to such a major change in you. But I know that you're the same as you always have been. You just look a little different now…"
Hare brushed away his tears and looked up at her, then over at Golem.
"If I made you feel like you were unwanted, then I'm sorry," Holly apologized. "But we really do need you, Hare. You're a part of the team, and nothing will ever change that."
"Promise?" Hare asked.
"Yes, I promise," Holly said, smiling. Golem nodded his agreement, and Hare's expression brightened for a moment. Then the rabbit's face became serious again.
"We should get going," he said, looking toward the slowly sinking sun. Holly and Golem nodded, and the three started off toward Grey Wolf's fortress.
* * *
"Ninety-nine bottles of sake on the wall, ninety-nine bottles of sake, take one down, pass it around, ninety-eight bottles of sake on the wall. Ninety-eight bottles…"
"Do you have to sing that silly song?" Genki asked. Suezo glared at him.
"Well, at least I'm doing something," Suezo snapped, "instead of waiting until the baddies decide to kill us."
"That stupid song won't help us out," Genki insisted, getting to his feet. "There's got to be a way out of this!"
"Good luck. We tried everything you could think of earlier. Unless you have another brilliant plan," Suezo mocked.
"At least I thought of something, and didn't just start singing some stupid song!"
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah!"
"Knock it off-chi," Mocchi interrupted. "You sound like Tiger-chi and Hare."
Suezo and Genki both stared at the little monster, much chastened. "Sorry," they both mumbled, and retreated back to separate corners of the frozen cell. After a few moments of silence, a soft mumble came from Suezo's direction.
"Ninety-eight bottles of sake on the wall, ninety-eight bottles of sake…"
* * *
"…Take one down, pass it around, sixty-six bottles of sake on the wall," Victor sang to himself as he stared out into the mountains. The sun was hanging low in the sky, and there was no sign of anything moving out there.
"I'm bored," he groaned. "Bored bored bored bored bored. I wish something would happen…" After a few more moments, his head drooped down and he began to snore.
* * *
"Looks like the coast is clear," Hare informed Holly and Golem as he led them to a certain spot against the ice fortress's wall. He ran his paws over the smooth surface, and smiled as he felt something give. Nodding to the others, he pressed the hidden switch and stepped back as it swung open.
"This way," he said, and led the others in. Golem had to duck his head to fit into the passage, but was pleased to discover that the hallway widened shortly after they entered.
"How will we find where Genki and the others are?" Holly asked.
"I'm…not sure," Hare faltered. "When we rescued you, we used one of your scarves to give Tiger your scent. But…we'll just have to wing it this time."
"Oh," Holly said quietly, and she unconsciously gripped the Magic Stone. Hare stared at her, his eyes lighting up.
"That's it!" he whispered. "Holly, can you ask the Magic Stone to show us the way to where the others are?"
"I don't know, I've never used it like that before," she replied.
"But you said once that the Magic Stone reacted when you met each of us," Hare persisted. "It can't hurt to try."
"That's right," Holly nodded, and she closed her eyes to concentrate. Hare and Golem watched intensely as she quietly bade the Magic Stone to point them in the right direction. Hare quietly gripped his own pendant and prayed that this would work.
For a moment nothing happened, and Holly felt her confidence start to slip. Suddenly it lit up, and the fiery image of the Phoenix flickered inside of it. Holly felt a rush of elation as the bird became a pointing arrow.
"You did it, Holly!" Hare told her, matching her excitement. "Let's get moving!"
The three plunged deeper into the fortress, navigating its frozen halls with the help of the Magic Stone. However, Hare began to get a strange feeling that he'd done this before…Suddenly he froze, his throat tightening as he remembered. Holly and Golem stopped to look at him, confused.
"Hare?" Holly asked.
"My dream…" Hare breathed. "I was here before in my dream! The one where…" he froze, then whirled to face the others and said, "I have to find Tiger."
"What?"
"He's here, I know it!" Hare insisted. "This is exactly where I was when I dreamt about his being killed! He's here right now, fighting Grey Wolf!"
"But Hare…" Holly started to say.
"I have to find him," he said, staring up at her with pleading eyes. "You guys go find Genki and the others; let me look for Tiger. Please…"
"I…"
"Let him go, Holly," Golem spoke up behind her, and his two companions looked up at him, surprised.
"Golem…thank you," Hare said, turning to run. As he left, it called back, "I'll meet up with you guys later."
"Be careful," Holly called, staring after him as he raced off.
* * *
It was just like the dream. Hare could remember every twist and turn in the fortress as clearly as if he had lived in the fortress all his life. When he arrived at a massive door of pure ice, he flung his shoulder against it, forcing it open.
What greeted him was a scene from a nightmare. Grey Wolf was there, slowly advancing on an obviously injured Tiger of the Wind. The blue wolf bled from several wounds on his back and legs, although he had managed to avoid any fatal blows. He watched as his younger brother slowly advanced on him, growling, but unable to bring himself to attack the silver wolf.
"Where is all your strength now, big brother?" Grey Wolf asked, leering at Tiger. His cold blue eyes glittered in the dim light, giving him all the appearance of a demon. Lightning coursed around his horns, and he opened his mouth to call out his final attack.
And Hare screamed at the top of his lungs. "NOOOOO!"
Grey Wolf's head jerked up, and the silver-furred monster stared at the rabbit. Behind him, Tiger gave Hare a look similar to the one his little brother was giving him.
Hare felt the Phoenix's Tear burst into light, and he cried out in shock, stumbling backwards as pure energy coursed out of it.
Grey Wolf screamed as the beam struck him full in the chest and the glowing red flames encased his body. Hare watched in morbid fascination as the silver wolf's pelt seemed to ripple and change colors under the light.
"You idiot, what have you done?" Tiger howled, whirling on the little rabbit. Hare threw him a blank, helpless look, struggling to indicate that he wasn't trying to do this. The blue wolf snarled at him, then jerked his gaze toward Grey Wolf and cried out, "Little brother!"
Grey Wolf howled again, his fur now clearly becoming two separate colors under the magical fire. The beautiful silver fur seemed to be slowly melting away, and both Hare and Tiger gasped as they saw the rich purple shade beneath it. The ice blue eyes flashed gold, then purest crimson, then blue, then gold again, as if unable to decide on a certain color.
Hare stared at the sight, petrified, and even Tiger had frozen, staring at what was looking less and less like his younger brother. The light flashed brighter and brighter, blinding, and the two squeezed their eyes shut. Grey Wolf's scream echoed around them.
Then suddenly the light vanished, and what had been Grey Wolf collapsed in a heap on the cold ice floor. Tiger and Hare stared at the crumpled form for a few moments, stunned, and then finally the blue wolf reacted. A growl escaped from his lungs as he howled, "What have you done to my brother?! What have you done to Grey Wolf?!"
The crumpled form groaned and twitched, then opened dark golden eyes to stare up into Tiger's enraged face.
"What have you done to my brother?" Tiger growled again, glaring down at the sprawled out Cabalos. "Who are you? Where's my brother?"
The Tiger/Naga hybrid smirked up at the blue wolf, despite the pain it obviously caused him to do so. "The name is Kaze, whelp," he hissed.
"What happened to my brother?" Tiger repeated, striking the Cabalos across the muzzle with his claws. "ANSWER ME!"
Kaze ignored Tiger's half-hysterical demands, and instead gazed over at Hare, a leering grin on its bleeding face. "Sooo…you're Master Naga's 'little rabbit,' huh? Not much to look at…but I understand now why he wants you back so badly."
Hare shivered and involuntarily stepped backward. He froze as he felt a presence at his back, and whirled to run, only to stare into Genki's face. The boy stepped protectively in front of the rabbit, and the others took positions between the Cabalos and him as they arrived.
Tiger glared down at Kaze. "ANSWER ME!" he demanded again, lightning dancing around his horns in a warning.
"Think you can frighten me?" Kaze laughed, coughing up blood. "I hold no illusions about escaping from your sorry band with my life. But," he added with a leer, "I'll go ahead and tell you anyway. You might as well find out about my master's genius…"
"What do you mean?" Genki asked, staring at the dying baddie. Kaze just smirked at him.
"Master Grey Wolf is dead. He has been for months," he told them.
"WHAT?" Genki, Holly and Suezo exclaimed in unison. Golem and Mocchi stared at the Cabalos, stunned.
"It can't be!" Tiger growled, striking the purple wolf's muzzle again, sending blood splattering over the ice. Kaze grinned up at him.
"Oh, but it is," he said with a superior smirk. "You see, Master Naga never was very found of that silver wolf, as I'm certain your little rabbit could tell you." He leered at Hare, who had gone totally pale at his words. "Grey Wolf interfered too much with Master Naga's plans…thought that he was a lunatic."
"He is," Hare mumbled, shivering. Holly draped her arms around the rabbit's neck, and he leaned up against her, staring at Kaze.
"Grey Wolf was proving to be a real annoyance," Kaze continued. "He may have even become an impediment to Master Naga's grand ambitions. So Master Naga secretly murdered that stupid silver wolf, and had an illusion cast on one of his most devoted followers to make him look like that fool." Kaze's sneer grew wider, more distorted.
"A illusion?" Holly gasped.
"A very effective illusion, one that fooled even Master Moo himself," Kaze told them, "although some of that can be attributed to my acting skills. With me controlling Grey Wolf's forces, Master Naga has become even more powerful. He needs only one more thing to ensure that his revolt against Moo will succeed…"
He glanced over at Hare, who winced and buried his face in Holly's tunic. The girl glared at the Cabalos, and Genki moved to stand a little closer to them, eyes never leaving Kaze.
"Who would have thought…the damned Phoenix's Tear…could dispel my illusion," Kaze wheezed, his breath coming more slowly now. "I never…thought of that…an oversight on my part. I had thought…I could easily defeat…Tiger…thanks to my being…his 'little brother'…" A sneer came over his face, and he leered up at Tiger, his vision dimming.
"Naga will triumph!" Kaze howled suddenly, then gasped hard, his chest heaving. "The power…the 'little rabbit'…and this world…will belong to Lord Naga!"
"SHUT UP!" Tiger ordered, growling, his golden eyes flashing. The Cabalos leered up at him.
"Never…'brother'…" he mocked, then began to laugh, a horrible, wheezing laugh that resounded off the frozen walls and chilled Genki's blood. Tiger roared, and the room echoed with the explosion from his lightning.
"Still laughing?" Tiger growled at the lost disc. He paused for a moment, then hissed, "I thought not…"
The fortress of Grey Wolf was eerily silent for several heartbeats. Tiger stood with his back toward the others, glaring off into the distance. The only noise that could be heard was Hare's sobbing as he clung to Holly, trembling. The girl wrapped her arms tighter around the rabbit, and then she looked up at the others. No one spoke.
Finally Tiger of the Wind muttered, without turning to look at the others, "Holly. Check the Magic Stone."
An awkward silence fell over the rebels again as Holly quietly nodded. She gently released Hare's shoulders, but allowed the rabbit to keep holding onto her for comfort as she pulled out the Magic Stone. It glowed brightly as she called upon its power, and after a few seconds an image of the Phoenix appeared. It transformed into an arrow, pointing the way. She tucked it back into her tunic and gazed at the others, expectantly.
"Let's go," Tiger growled, and he turned and stalked out of the chamber. The other rebels followed him quietly, and for once Genki didn't race to the head of the group. Instead, he walked close to Holly, keeping an eye on Hare. The rabbit still clung to Holly, and the girl draped one arm around his quaking shoulders as they followed Tiger of the Wind out of the frozen fortress of Grey Wolf.