* * * Chapter Two: Rematch * * *
"How is he doing?"
Holly looked up at Genki slowly, her soft bronze eyes wavering.
"I really can't tell you for certain. I've managed to stop the bleeding, as least, but…he's really torn up. I hope that he'll be okay…"
Her gaze was drawn back to the blue wolf's figure, and she sighed dejectedly. Golem was standing watch over the unconscious Tiger of the Wind, his solemn gray eyes misted with tears. Nearby, Mocchi stared at the lupine monster, his wide eyes tracing over the layers and layers of makeshift bandages that the rebels had wrapped around their friend's wounds. Suezo was studying them as well, watching for places that the blood had managed to seep through the cloth completely, signaling that it was time to change them. Fortunately, the bleeding seemed to have finally slowed to a stop, though for how long he couldn't be certain.
"Damnit! I feel so powerless right now!" Pixie swore, slamming her clenched fist into the palm of her other hand. Fiery red bangs draped over her flashing gray eyes, and she bit her lip angrily. Big Blue glanced over at her, the stoic expression on his face flickering for a moment.
"You did all you could, Master Pixie," he reassured her. The female monster tossed a glare in his direction, one that softened after a bit, although her eyes still glittered with anger– not directed at the ice giant, but at herself.
"If I knew more about healing…but I never became very good with that skill. I'm a hell of a lot better healing myself than I am at healing others. If I'd learned more…"
"There is no time for regrets, now. You did all you could. That is enough."
"Golem's right, Pixie," Holly said, nodding at the stone giant in thanks. "You've done all you could, and we appreciate it. Thank you for your help."
"Yeah," Genki agreed with a nod, "without you here, Tiger would be in even worse shape. So don't worry about not doing enough…"
Pixie nodded, but her gaze drifted back to Tiger's body once more. The other rebels followed her gaze silently, each quietly hoping that what had been done would be enough. Hope was all they had left, so they clung to it.
"…We need to get moving," Pixie said at length, and all eyes turned to her. She clenched her slender hands into shaking fists, the long nails digging unnoticed into her palms as she continued, "We can't let Naga do as he pleases. He has all he needs, now, to start planning his own assault on Moo…"
"Hey, but isn't that a good thing?" Suezo interrupted, looking around at the others. "I mean, if he and Moo are busy fighting each other, then won't that mean that we'll be safe for a while? After all, that pixie said that Naga wasn't gonna come after us, and if Moo's forces are busy fighting with his…then…"
His voice trailed off under the cold stares of his friends. Pixie's eyes were frosted steel as she glared at the eyeball monster, and a vein was beginning to stand out on the side of her forehead.
"I can't believe that you would suggest anything like that," she hissed, voice dripping with venom. Gesturing at the unconscious Tiger, she spat, "Look at what Naga has done to your friend; an experienced warrior! Are you really foolish enough to see something like that and still believe that he will continue to leave you alone for long? Do you honestly think that you can trust his word? Trust me, he will only leave you alone as long as it suits his purpose to do so."
"And he still has Hare," Genki piped up, his face shadowed by his unruly bangs. "That monster has one of our friends right now, and doing who knows what to him…"
"He isn't going to kill him, that much we can say for certain," Pixie added, although whether or not she said this to reassure the boy was unclear. "Your little rabbit friend appears to be the only one who can utilize that crystal Tear of his, so if Naga wants that power, he needs both of them. He probably won't have the guts to take him to Moo to be 'changed', either. That would be too much of a risk for him, since Moo automatically senses and amplifies a monster's natural abilities when he turns them into baddies. So until he can figure out some way of controlling Hare, or how to take those powers from him, he should be safe…as safe as any prisoner could be, at any rate."
Big Blue nodded in solemn reply, and the seven rebels sat in silence for a little while. At length, Genki got to his feet, and all eyes turned to him as he pulled on his skates again.
"I'm going," he said simply, his clear eyes sweeping over the small band. "Pixie's right: we have to get him now, before he's able to hurt anyone else. I said…I promised Hare that I wouldn't let Naga hurt him ever again. I'm going to keep that promise."
"Mocchi come too, chi!" Mocchi said, standing up at once, his normally innocent wide eyes unusually grim as his hands balled into fists. Genki looked over at the young monster and nodded, then turned back to the others.
"Anyone who doesn't want to face Naga, can stay here and look after Tiger. We won't be gone long: wait for us a few days, then move on if we don't come back. We'll catch up with you later…"
"Genki, wait. There's no need for us to split up," Pixie interrupted, reaching out for the boy's shoulder. When everyone turned to stare at her, she looked toward Big Blue and said, "Big Blue, you can carry the wolf easily in your arms, am I right?"
"Yes, Master Pixie," Big Blue replied, automatically leaning to pick up the lupine monster as he spoke. Sensing where this conversation was headed, Golem intercepted the ice giant, and took Tiger carefully in his own arms as he shook his head at the other giant monster.
"Golem will watch over Tiger," he rumbled. "Tiger is Golem's friend."
Pixie nodded in curt agreement, then turned to face the others as she said, "If he carries your wounded friend in his arms, then we won't have to leave anyone behind. If Tiger has revived by the time that we reach Naga's castle, then he may be able to help. If not…then Golem should still be able to protect him during the fight. From what I've seen of your tactics, that appears to be his specialty…"
Golem felt his face flush slightly, but his eyes were solemn as he nodded acknowledgement. He weighed Tiger's motionless body in his palms, holding him carefully. Holly climbed into the giant's hands, and she took Tiger's head and rested it gently in her lap: she was there to make certain that he wouldn't slip out of Golem's grasp accidentally as they ran, even though the chances of that were slim. Suezo hopped onto the stone giant's shoulder, and as he steadied himself, Pixie and Big Blue exchanged a glance. The ice giant bent and scooped Genki and Mocchi into his own arms: it would help them to conserve more energy. Pixie alighted on his shoulder, and all eyes turned to her as she pointed the way. Then they were off; the heavy soles of the two giant monsters' feet digging into the shifting sand as they moved toward Naga's fortress.
* * *
"…Come now, open your eyes, my little rabbit. You have to face me sooner or later."
Hare refused to answer the reptilian: he hugged his knees to his chest and kept his face down, letting his ears droop over his face and hide his expression. He was not going to cooperate with this monster; no way. Never mind what might happen to him because of his refusal to listen: that didn't matter. Nothing mattered now, not even his own life.
* Especially not my own life… *
"Well, it doesn't really matter if you listen right now or not. Sooner or later, you will have to obey me…"
* You wanna make a bet of that, you slimy creep? *
Despite a nearly overwhelming urge to spit this out just to see the look on the reptilian's face, Hare bit his lip and kept silent. As much as he hated Naga, he still was terrified of him. His heart was pounding wildly against his ribcage, and part of the reason that he didn't raise his gaze to stare his captor right in the face was because he was certain that the sight would make him start screaming. Start screaming, or thrashing wildly and struggling to get away, accomplishing nothing except making a fool out of himself and giving Naga something to laugh about. Naga had always found the pain and fear of others amusing, and had always been especially amused by Hare's fear in particular.
Naga stared down at the little rabbit huddled in the shadows near the base of his throne for a little while longer, then got up. Something glittered at the reptilian's wrist, and he glanced down at it with a possessive smirk. The small crystal of faintest blue was not glowing with its normal fiery light; instead, it remained as lifeless as any other jewel, pretty and sparkling and utterly useless. Try as he might, he simply could not get the Tear to react for him. Not that it mattered, since he had someone who could use its hidden powers to further his own ambitions. Never mind that that someone was currently turning a deaf ear to him; sooner or later, the little rabbit would come around.
With thoughts of future victories surging through his mind, Naga departed his throne room. The massive doors of black marble swung shut behind him with a click, signaling that their latch had caught. Not that he worried about his 'guest' going anywhere in his absence. There was no way that he could escape without his magic, and nowhere for him to go if he did.
Hare kept his face buried in his lap until the echo caused by the huge doors closing had died completely away. Only then did he raise his head, brown eyes shining with a dull, resigned hopelessness. His fingers strayed reflexively to his neck for a moment, then paused as they brushed up against cold metal instead of the soft fabric he was used to wearing around his neck. Gone, too, was the familiar sensation of a slight warmth resting against his chest. He had never thought that he would miss having the Phoenix's Tear hanging around his neck, but he did now. As much as wielding its powers had brought him sorrow and pain for most of his young life, it had also been something that occasionally brought comfort to him as well. Its presence had come to represent his freedom from Naga, just as the heavy collar that hung around his neck in its absence was a symbol of oppression.
Still, there was no time for sad reflection now. That part of his life had come to an end, and since he had every reason to believe that the friends he had come to know and love during those all too short months of freedom were dead, there was no sense in thinking about it. All he could do now was wait for the end. Perhaps, if he was lucky, he might be able to bait the reptilian into losing his temper, and provoke him into murdering his 'little rabbit' in a rage. True, that would hurt for a while, but it would also be a release from everything. There was nothing left for him to live for, so why should he fear dying?
* * *
"…Grrr…uggghhh…uhhhnnn…"
Suezo's eye widened in surprise, and he whispered loudly, "Holly! Holly! Look!"
Holly glanced down, and her bronze eyes wavered with a mixture of joy and sympathy as she noticed a brief stirring beneath the eyelids of the head she still cradled in her lap. She quickly moved to support the lupine monster's head a little more as he stirred again, her fingers stroking his pelt –the parts of it that weren't covered by bandages– with an infinitely gentle touch. Sensing the movement of his precious burden, Golem glanced down at her with anxious eyes.
"Tiger is waking up?" he half-asked, half-pleaded. At the sound of his voice, Big Blue glanced over his shoulder at them, and Pixie arched an eyebrow as she glanced back from her perch on the ice giant's other shoulder. In his arms, Genki and Mocchi scrambled to climb up to get a look of their own. Finally, Pixie sighed in exasperation, reached down, and plucked the boy off of his feet, hauling him onto Big Blue's shoulder. As she reached down to help Mocchi clamber up, Genki nearly fell off of his perch as he leaned forward for a better look at his friends.
"Is he better yet? Is he okay?"
"Tiger okay-chi?" Mocchi echoed.
As if in response, the blue wolf let out a pained cough, his entire body jarred slightly by the grating sound. He winced, and slits of gold appeared as his eyes opened a little bit, shimmering in the light from the blazing sun. He groaned once more, shutting out that blinding light again as he flinched backwards, and his body tensed as he attempted to stand up. His legs refused to support his weight, and every bruised muscle in his body shrieked in agony, forcing him back down. Holly carefully slipped her fingers under his head, and Tiger's eyes opened a sliver again, glittering as his gaze fixed on the girl's anxious face.
"Tiger, are you okay?" she asked, her voice shaking with concern.
Tiger appeared to ignore the question entirely; instead his steely gaze swept from side to side, scanning the faces of those around him. It didn't take the rebels long to realize exactly what he was looking for, and Holly's bronze eyes shone with pity as she bowed her head, letting her short bangs fall over her face. Suezo again began to study the sand far below his perch on Golem's shoulder, and the stone giant gave the others a helpless look. Genki balled his hands into shaking fists at his side and gritted his teeth, while Mocchi wrapped his tiny hands around the boy's arm, seeking comfort. Pixie and Big Blue showed no obvious reaction; they simply glanced at one another silently, regarding the blue wolf as he continued to scan the small group, looking more frustrated with every moment.
"…Tiger…" Holly breathed at length, raising misty eyes to catch the lupine's own. Tiger took one look at her face and automatically understood. His lips curled as a snarl rumbled in his chest, and his golden eyes flashed violently.
"…How far to Naga's fortress?" he asked at length. There was no need to ask as to whether or not that was where they were headed; it was as obvious as the awkward silence that hung over the eight rebels.
"We're not too far away," Pixie informed him, brushing sweaty, flame-red hair away from her face as she glanced in the direction they were headed in. "We've been moving toward it for nearly a day and a half; with any luck we'll arrive there before sunset. Once we get close enough, we can rest until nightfall, and break in tonight. Hopefully, our attacking while it's dark will afford us a bit of an edge…"
"Then why are we still standing here?" Tiger asked, his golden eyes harsh as they bore into the female monster. Pixie grimaced slightly, but she made a signal with her hand, and the two giants nodded in unison before resuming their pounding over the sand. Suezo nervously scanned the horizon: from what he could tell, they would soon be out of the desert and heading into the mountains. According to Pixie's description, that was where Naga kept his castle, and the eyeball monster swallowed to relieve the unbearable dryness in his mouth. This was not something he was looking forward to, no sir…
* * *
"How is Lord Naga doing? Is everything going according to plan?"
Night Flyer narrowed her eyes in distaste as she turned to face the genie monster, her wings rustling as she folded them behind her back.
"Lord Naga is currently busy planning our next move," she hissed, curling her ruby lips just enough to let the gleaming tip of one of her tiny fangs catch Bajarl's eye. "He's in his private chambers right now, pouring over our maps. I suggest that you do not interrupt him; it would not be in your best interests."
Bajarl got the hint: he recoiled slightly, narrow eyes widening for a moment, though a teasing grin remained on his face. Raising both hands in a gesture of surrender, he said, "Whoa, whoa, okay, okay, back off, Night. I'm not going to bother him any. You're the one I wanted to talk to, anyway."
"What about?" Night Flyer snapped, arching her eyebrows at him. "I warn you, Bajarl, I have no time for any of your silly games right now. Lord Naga is not the only one that needs to prepare…"
With that, she attempted to march past him, but the genie monster quickly moved to block her way. Reaching out with one hand –he had not reverted to his smaller form after the battle– he caught her slender wrist. Night Flyer whirled to give him a look that should have withered him where he floated, but he merely grinned at her again, although this time his smile seemed a little more gentle somehow.
"What is wrong with you, idiot?" she hissed, baring her tiny fangs again in a scowl as she yanked her arm roughly away. Bajarl recoiled again, this time with genuine alarm in his eyes, and he regarded her carefully as he backed up. She waited for an explanation of his behavior, and when she realized that none was forthcoming, she snarled again and stomped off, the talons on her feet clacking against the marble floor.
Bajarl watched her go with a strange expression on his broad face. After a moment, he shrugged and made a sound that might have been a sigh, then turned in the opposite direction and started his rounds.
* * *
"There it is," Pixie said.
The comment was not really necessary, nor did anyone need to ask exactly what it was. The building rose above its surroundings, its dark towers reaching into the night sky in what might have been deliberate mimicry of the jagged peaks that flanked it on either side. A frigid breeze howled through the mountains, and Pixie smoothed back her flame red hair even as the wind tore at it, and the chill cut into her body with a thousand tiny knives. Big Blue was not affected by the cold, but their other companions were, although the sight of Naga's fortress before them silenced any complaining that they might have heard otherwise.
"Let's go," Genki said at length, and the boy sprung out of Big Blue's arms, Mocchi directly behind him. Pixie nodded, and she turned to the others as Golem bent down to allow his passengers to disembark. Holly crawled out of the stone giant's protective grasp, Suezo hopped down from his shoulder, and all three of them looked at their other companion in worry. Tiger of the Wind ignored their stares; deliberately stalking past them in such a way that the bandages wrapped around his chest and shoulder did not hinder his movement. He could feel the stares of the others, feel their worry and doubts about him, and his golden eyes narrowed in poorly concealed anger. How dare they doubt his ability to take care of himself in a fight!
Yet, in a dark corner of his mind, something nagged at him, reminding him that they were probably justified in that doubt.
He had failed. That thought somehow hurt Tiger even worse than the dull throbbing that sharpened each time he moved his leg slightly. Hare had needed his protection, and he had let him down. Naga had defeated him –defeated him all TOO easily, in the blue wolf's opinion– and then recaptured his 'little rabbit' right in front of him. Tiger had been completely powerless to stop Naga…just as he had been unable to prevent Moo from capturing his little brother what seemed like an eternity ago.
Shaking his head to rid himself of that disturbing parallel train of thinking, Tiger glared at the others impatiently, golden eyes gleaming with frustration. He was eager to get started with this, although he kept arguing with himself just why this mission was so important to him. Revenge, that was all it meant to him, really, he was certain of it. Vengeance for his little brother, a chance to finally settle the score with the one who had murdered Grey Wolf, then used deception and trickery to use his victim's position to further himself. So what if he'd already fought Naga once and lost: his revenge was all that mattered, and the only reason that he was here.
He stalked forward, and the other rebels could only follow as he approached the massive doors. As they walked, Pixie and Suezo continued to scan the area, hoping to spot any baddies before they could be unpleasantly surprised. None came into view, but that was hardly enough to assuage their fear of ambush.
"Doesn't look like there are any guards," Suezo whispered at length.
"Not yet," Pixie conceded, turning to face the ornately carved doors, energy flickering around her hands, "but there will be; count on it." Pointing toward the entrance, she shouted, "LIGHTNING!"
"LIGHTNING!" Tiger called as well, summoning his own attack.
The two blasts of pink and blue electricity lanced toward the entrance and struck in the same area, blowing the doors right off of their hinges. As the smoking doors fell to the floor with a resounding crash, the other rebels sweatdropped in unison.
"Maybe we shoulda knocked," Suezo joked weakly, his pupil a single dot in his wide eye.
"Master Pixie, I could have taken that door down for you," Big Blue added. Even the ice giant was sweating slightly, staring at his master in mild surprise. Pixie just smirked, and followed Tiger as the blue wolf stepped through the opening they had created.
"I don't get it, I thought we were going to sneak in," Suezo complained. "Doesn't blasting the door down kinda defeat the whole purpose of sneaking in at night?"
"Let's just get moving," Genki replied, stepping through the hole. The others quickly followed. Golem and Big Blue were forced to duck in order to fit through the still smoking entrance, and even then the others heard a dull thud behind them, followed by a muffled curse from the ice giant. Pixie shook her head slightly, a smile flickering over her face for a moment.
"I warned you not to come. Pity you were too dense to listen."
Night Flyer surveyed the group from her perch over the doorway, even as they all jerked and whirled around, searching for her. Suezo was the first one to spot her, but she did not appear to be the least bit concerned as they all glared up at her sitting figure. Her cold green eyes swept over them, and widened slightly as they rested upon Tiger's snarling face, although her startled expression did not last more than a breath.
"Oh, so you managed to survive, did you?" she commented, arching one eyebrow at the blue wolf. "And yet you still chose to come here, knowing that you could not possibly win. You poor fool: Naga will not be so gentle with you this time…"
"Heh. They won't even get to Lord Naga," Bajarl guaranteed, appearing behind the searchers with a puff of reddish smoke. They whirled to face him, then Pixie cursed as she glanced back up at where Night Flyer remained perched over the doorway, recognizing at once how serious the situation was. The hybrid regarded her coolly, making no move to attack, even as Bajarl moved a little closer to the rebels.
"Do you think that you can finish them off quickly?" she asked the genie monster, her tone both mocking and half-bored. "I would hate for Lord Naga to come down here to see what all the ruckus is about."
"Don't worry, I won't disturb him," Bajarl replied, winking up at her. "Besides, his private chambers are too far from here. He shouldn't hear a whole lot, and even if he does, this'll only take a few moments."
So saying, he reached down and unfastened the pot still hanging at his side. It floated up in front of him, and the eight searchers tensed as the genie monster smirked confidently at them. The lid lifted, and Bajarl began to laugh as a whirlwind streaked toward his opponents, who scattered in all directions to avoid the attack.
"Not this again! Can't you think of anything a little more original?" Suezo shouted, even as he dodged out of the way. He winced as the winds roared past him, crashing into the entrance and obliterating what remained of the already ruined doors.
"Why? This works just fine for me," Bajarl retorted, still grinning as he motioned for the torrents to spread further across the room. Suezo screamed in fear, and quickly latched his tail around a pillar, pulling himself behind it as the winds tore at his body. Night Flyer cried out and leapt from her perch, flapping her wings furiously to keep from being sucked in.
"Do you mind? You almost took me instead of those rebels!" she screeched, glaring down at Bajarl. The genie monster grinned stupidly up at her, not caring in the least about how angry she was.
"Everyone hang on!" Pixie shouted over the roar of the hurricane, hair whipping violently around her face as she clung to a thick pillar, pulling herself around so that the thick column was positioned between her and the center of the raging winds. Around the chamber, the others were following her example, and all of them hung on for dear life as the tornado continued to howl from the pot's center.
"I don't want to do this anymore; I want to go home!" Suezo whined, panicking as he felt his grip slip a little.
"We've gotta do something!" Genki insisted, glaring at the genie monster from his temporary cover. Mocchi cried out in agreement, squeezing the boy's leg.
"But what can we do?" Holly asked, looking over at them from the cover of Golem's arms. The stone giant tightened his grip on one of the columns and nodded solemnly, gray eyes stern.
"If we can destroy that stupid pot of his, then I could wipe him out easily!" Pixie hissed. "But…"
"Let me try, then," Tiger interrupted, his voice carrying over the sound of the roaring winds. The others swiveled to face him as best they could, and Genki cried out in horror as the blue wolf stepped out from behind his pillar. He shouted in protest, his cry joining with the others' shouts of warning, words that went unheeded as Tiger stepped forward, golden eyes fixed on the smirking Bajarl.
"Well, this is interesting," Night Flyer commented airily, watching the lupine monster with interest. Bajarl just laughed mockingly, and the genie monster tilted his pot slightly until the center of the whirlwind was lined up with Tiger. The magical gale howled, gaining force.
"Damnit!" Tiger snarled, digging his claws into the black marble beneath him. His fur tossed wildly around his body, and his golden eyes narrowed in hatred as he glared up at the genie monster. Several of his bandages were coming unraveled, and they disappeared as they were swept into the shadowy depths of Bajarl's pot. His claws dug small furrows in the marble floor as he began to slip forward, drawn closer and closer to the laughing genie monster.
"Whatever did you think you could do?" Bajarl taunted, smirking as the blue wolf was pulled toward him.
Suddenly Tiger's head jerked up and Bajarl's eyes widened as he spotted the grin on the lupine monster's muzzle. Electricity was dancing around Tiger's horns, and too late Bajarl understood what his plan was. The genie monster screamed in agony as lightning surged into his body at point-blank range, and the magical tornado died away as his smoldering lost disc clattered to the floor.
"You did it!" Genki cheered, scrambling forward to congratulate the lupine monster. The other searchers scrambled out from behind their cover and surrounded them, and even Pixie and Big Blue were smiling. The only one who wasn't happy with this turn of events was Night Flyer, who floated above the group with a look of shock on her face.
"They defeated Bajarl?" she gasped to herself, her voice soft with wonder. Then her green eyes narrowed, and she muttered, "Well, that fool wasn't worthy of being one of Lord Naga's finest, anyway. Good riddance."
She made a few quick gestures with her hands, and a dim light the same dark green as her flashing eyes pulsed into being, forming around her slender fingers. Glaring down at those gathered beneath her, she launched her attack with a scream of "GIGARAY!"
The eight rebels jerked their heads up in unison, and Suezo immediately screamed in fear as the emerald beam surged down toward them. Pixie grimaced in anger, and swept up her hands, holding them out as if she planned to catch the energy beam.
"WALL OF FIRE!" she commanded, and yellow-pink flames arced from her glowing palms, stretching into a barrier. The green streak of light crashed into it, sending sparks flying everywhere, and Suezo cried out again as one of the sparks seared into his tail. Golem and Big Blue hastily grabbed their more vulnerable friends and shielded them with their arms until the clashing energies died away.
Then, with a battle cry, Night Flyer swept down to meet them, green energy surrounding her gesturing hands. Emerald-tinted electricity lanced down upon them, and the eight rebels scattered again, Golem pulling Holly out of harm's way. Tiger and Pixie launched their attacks, and the pixie hybrid dodged both, answering their assault with a fireball.
"I'm in the zone!" Genki called, skating forward with both hands balled into fists. Night Flyer sidestepped him, calling another bolt of lightning in reply, but the words died on her tongue as Mocchi suddenly crashed into her back. A few feathers fell out of her wings, and the hybrid whirled to glare at the little pink monster, baring her fangs in a snarl as she sent a blast after him. Mocchi rolled into a ball and bounced directly into the air, letting the fireball strike the ground where he had stood, and when Night Flyer glanced up in surprise, raising one hand to shoot him down, Tiger took his chance.
"AAAAAUUUGGGHHH!"
Night Flyer dimly realized that she was the one screaming, not one of the rebels as she had thought at first. Her own voice was unrecognizable, filled with pain and shock, and she lurched forward, clutching at her stomach. Blood dripped from twin gashes in her chest, and she looked up to see Tiger standing nearby, his horns covered with the same sticky substance. The other rebels appeared to be just as stunned as she was; the two humans were gaping at the blue wolf, and the little pink monster was nearly frantic with fear. Suezo's pupil had become a single dot again, and his mouth was hanging open. Even the two ex-baddies appeared to be a little stunned.
"You'll…pay!" Night Flyer gasped, and then leaped into the air. Her bleeding wings beat desperately as she forced herself to move upward, her destination already in mind. Tiger glared up at her, and suddenly launched another attack. This time the hybrid was unable to even scream as the bolt tore into her back, and it took all her strength to keep from plummeting back down to the floor so far beneath her.
"She's getting away!" Suezo cried.
"Forget her, let's just keep going!" Pixie ordered. Turning to Genki, she asked, "Do you have any way to locate your little friend quickly?"
"Y…Yeah," Genki stammered, hastily yanking a tattered piece of red cloth from his backpack. Holding it out to Tiger, he started, "Can you…"
Tiger interrupted him by growling curtly, "I remember what that dumb bunny smells like, thank you very much!" Whirling away, he sniffed the air a few times, then glanced back over his shoulder and jerked his head slightly, signaling the others to follow him. Then he was off, his nails clicking against the cold marble floor, and the others could only scramble to keep up with him. As they ran, Suezo noticed something strange about the blue wolf's shoulder: some of the bandages had come undone, and he thought he could see a fresh red stain slowly forming on the white bandages. But Tiger's mane kept sweeping over the area, blocking his view so much that the eyeball monster wasn't really certain if he had seen it or not.
* * *
"…Naga…Lord…Naga…"
The reptilian monster paused in his work as the pained gasp reached his ears. The charts spread out before him crinkled slightly as he rose, slowly turning around to study the speaker with cold yellow eyes.
The pitiful figure that dragged herself toward him bore little resemblance to her former proud self. The pixie hybrid's beautiful wings were shredded and useless, little more than a dead weight hanging limply from her broken back. Several feathers were missing, and others fell in showers as she lurched forward. One of her antennae had been snapped clean off, and the other hung crazily to one side, barely attached to her forehead anymore. Slender, bloody fingers clawed at the black marble floor, and Night Flyer's anguish-filled green eyes wavered as she looked up at her master.
"Forgive…me…my lord," she choked, tears running down her bruised face. "I have underestimated…those rebels…I will not allow them to take me off guard again…please forgive me for this defeat…please, Lordship…"
Naga regarded her silently, his face expressionless. Even as his yellow eyes burned into the pixie's broken figure, she managed to drag herself closer to him. Entire body shaking with the effort, she reached up and wrapped her arms around his waist in a desperate embrace.
"Naga…my beloved…Lord Naga…" she whispered, wavering verdant eyes veiled by her long eyelashes. The musky scent of his body filled her nostrils, and she quivered both with pain and excitement as she allowed her arms to tighten around the reptilian's thick, sturdy waist. She wept, letting her tears fall upon the silently standing Naga's chest, reveling in the contact. Finally…finally, after all this time, she was holding her beloved master in her arms. This was something more than the moments where he would gaze into her eyes and ask her to be careful: more than the sudden, brief embraces he occasionally surprised her with from time to time. Here, and only here, in the safety awarded by the snake's presence so close to her, this was a glimpse of the happiness she was searching for. This was her everything…
Naga was making no move to comfort her; his arms hung relaxed at his sides instead of wrapping around her body, pulling her closer as he had in all-too-brief encounters before. His cold yellow eyes remained staring forward, and he did not gaze down into her stained face, so filled with love and devotion to him. When he finally spoke, it was a single word that he hissed, one dripping with venom and hatred.
"Failure."
Night Flyer's half-closed eyes shot open, tears still trickling from them as she stared up at her master's emotionless face in dull shock. He continued to glare sternly forward, dark eyes unreadable, even as a dull radiance began to glow under the pixie hybrid's tanned skin. Her form began to shrink and twist, and Night Flyer let out a long, agonized wail of pain and grief as she frantically clung to the snake monster's body.
"Lord Naga, please! Save me!" she begged, clawing at his arms and chest with fading hands. The reptilian did not respond, and his face remained indifferent as he stood there, letting the dying pixie clutch at his body. Cold yellow eyes glittered in the dim light from her shifting form, until finally her grasping hands were no longer able to grip his body anymore. Soon, the dull radiance had faded completely away, and Naga abruptly moved at last, slithering over the cold floor, ignoring the new lost disc that still cooled in his chambers completely as he left the room, his face scarlet with ill-concealed rage that was not caused by the pixie's defeat. Instead, his outrage was caused by the fear that he would lose one of his precious tools to the rebel intruders, and he hissed under his breath as he moved, heading for where he knew the invaders would go…
* * *
The huge stone doors swung on their hinges again, and Hare quickly lowered his gaze back down to the jet-black marble beneath him. He bit his lip in suppressed fear and anger, emotions that he didn't want to reveal to Naga. His eyes flinched shut involuntarily, and he tensed himself for the confrontation that was certain to come…
"Hare!"
The rabbit's ears pricked up in shock: that was NOT Naga's voice that had just called his name. Opening his eyes, he raised his head, and a soft gasp escaped from him. Without realizing it, he began to tremble, although not from fear, and his wavering brown eyes filled with tears.
"Gen…Genki?" he called, his voice weak and trembling as badly as his body. Then, as the boy ran into view, waving at him and frantically calling his name, he shrieked, "Genki!" and tried to run toward his friend, temporarily forgetting the heavy metal collar fastened around his neck. He quickly remembered, however, as the short chain pulled taut and yanked him back to the ground with a bone-jarring crash.
"Hare!" Genki screamed, taking the steps up to the platform where Naga's throne stood two and three at a time. He skidded to a stop and fell to his knees next to his friend, clear eyes wavering with fear as Hare stared back up at him. The others pounded up the stairs a moment later, and Holly sucked in a gasp as she saw the thick metal collar around Hare's neck.
"Oh Hare…what did they do to you?" she breathed, crouching down beside Genki and stroking the rabbit's tangled fur. Seeing the expression on her face, Hare quickly tried to assuage her fears.
"Not a whole lot," he said, attempting to smile reassuringly. "Naga didn't seem to be all that interested in hurting me: he just chained me up here and kept trying to convince me to join him. I ignored him, naturally, and for some reason, he didn't try to beat an oath of loyalty out of me…I'm all right, really."
"He probably doesn't want to risk hurting you so badly that you can't use the Phoenix's Tear for him," Pixie snarled. Her glittering gray eyes were fixed on the metal collar and chain, and narrowed slightly as the sight brought back unpleasant memories. Noticing the expression on his master's face, Big Blue grimaced in anger, and suddenly reached down and seized the chain, snapping the metal with a quick twist of his fingers.
"…Uh…thanks…" Hare stammered; it had startled him a little how quickly the ice giant had moved, and the ease with which he had twisted the chain to pieces was a little unnerving. Still, it felt great to be rid of the collar, and Hare rubbed his neck slightly as he added, "Thanks a lot, Big Blue."
A smile flickered over the ice giant's features for the barest second, then his gaze turned to his master as she whirled around, scanning the throne room for any signs of a baddie trap. Suezo and Tiger were also scanning the area, and the eyeball monster sighed in relief as nothing threatening came into view.
"We should get out of here now," Tiger snarled, turning to face the others. Pixie nodded in agreement, her face grim.
"But what about the Phoenix's Tear?" Genki asked, indicating Hare's bare neck. The rabbit glanced over at him, unconsciously rubbing his aching neck. Holly winced, noticing where the collar had dug into his skin a little, and averted her gaze at once, turning her attention to the others.
"We can't just leave the Phoenix's Tear here," Tiger snarled. "I don't like the idea of something like that in Naga's claws…"
"You baka," Pixie snapped. "Don't you remember why Hare was kidnapped in the first place? He's the only one who seems to be able to use the Tear: if Naga were able to, we'd all be dead right now. So without Hare to use it, the Phoenix's Tear might as well be a shiny stone for all the good it's gonna do Naga."
"Okay…so we get Hare out, then deal with Naga later," Tiger conceded, growling a little. His golden eyes glittered with frustration; he hated the idea of retreating now, while they were currently holding the advantage over the baddies. But still, he privately admitted that this was the best choice: his shoulder was beginning to throb again, and he wasn't certain how much longer he could hide the fact that blood was seeping through his bandages from Holly and the others.
"Here," Genki said, handing Hare his kerchief, "put this on, and then we'll get you out of here. We can worry about getting the Phoenix's Tear back from Naga later…"
"I suggest that you worry about me now, fools!" a raspy voice bellowed from the doorway. Massive doors crashed shut, a dull metallic clunk signaling that the lock had caught, sealing the searchers inside the echoingly large throne room.
If Naga's face had been scarlet with rage before, it was purple now, and he came at the rebels, not with his claws, but with his Evil Shot technique. They tried to evade it, but Naga's throw was low and accurate, and his outrage further sharpened his aim. The blast went off directly as the edge of the group, and while the reptilian had deliberately thrown it in such a way that it would not affect Hare, the other eight rebels were knocked in all directions and into the black marble walls and pillars.
Holly's body hit the wall first, knocking all the breath out of her, and her head followed a moment later, sending black waves of stars across her eyes, and leaving her stunned and unable to draw in air. She lay there in pain, trying to gasp, as with a tiny part of her mind she heard the meaty thwack of Suezo's slamming into a pillar a few feet away from her.
Holly shook her head to clear her vision, and the movement must have cleared something else as well, for suddenly she could breathe again. She pulled in a long, cool gasp of air, coughed, and pulled in a second, then looked up, trying to make her mind work again.
Naga stood with his back turned to her, stiff with anger. Hare huddled against the side of the black marble throne, his face white with terror and shock. There was a gleam of crystal at the reptilian's wrist.
"I may need you to control the Phoenix's Tear, little rabbit," Naga hissed, "but I have no use for your worthless friends! I am going to kill those fools, and as for you–"
His hands shot out and he seized the quivering rabbit by the shoulders before Holly knew what he was doing. In the next instant, he threw Hare against the hard marble throne, where he lay limp and boneless. As the reptilian turned, Holly saw his face.
It was no longer purple, or even scarlet. It was its normal shade, and as controlled as if he was talking about inconsequential rumors with his allies. And when he spoke again, his voice was controlled, too, and so cold that it might have frosted the marble. Holly shuddered, and Hare hid his head in his shaking arms.
"I am going to kill them," Naga repeated. "But I am going to do more than that. I am going to annihilate them. I am going to destroy them so completely that nothing of them will remain to show that they ever existed. And I am going to take my time about it."
He smiled.