Last Time: After a tough struggle, Sakura defeated the Strength Bear and now has the Strength Crystal in her hand. Xander stood by and watched the whole fight, amazed at Sakura's bravery and power. The Kingpin and Doctor Octopus were too late to find the Strength Bear, but are willing to carry on…taking out any competition if necessary. Of course…is there anyone else coming to find the crystals?


Hunt For the Crystals: Episode 5


Sakura stepped out of the shower and put on an old T-shirt and a pair of jeans before heading downstairs. She smelled something…good. But before she walked out, Kero caught up to her.

"I thought YOU were cooking," Kero said. "If that's not you…then who is it?"

Sakura had a pretty good idea. Her father and Tori weren't home, so it could only be one person. Sakura went downstairs and found Lita by the stove.

Lita smiled. "I'm sorry. I was kinda hungry, so…I just threw something on the stove. I hope you don't mind."

Sakura took a seat on the table. "Um…not at all. So…what's for dinner?"

Lita took something that looked very appetizing and put it on Sakura's plate. "Meatloaf. Hope you like it."

Sakura took a bite…and fell in love with the taste. "It's great! Try it, Kero!"

Kero examined the meatloaf suspiciously. "Meatloaf, huh?" He took a small bite…and grinned. "Hey, this IS good! And that's that I usually only eat sweets. It's sure better than anything Sakura's made lately."

"Hey, my cooking isn't so bad," Sakura frowned. Then she smiled again. "But this is really good. Do you cook often, Lita?"

"It's something I like to do," Lita grinned. "My friends just love the way I cook."

Sakura took another bite. "Your friends…Sailor Scouts, right?"

Lita scratched her head nervously. "Well…not lately. It's like we WERE the Sailor Scouts. But there just hasn't been anything threatening the world lately. I know it's been years since I became Sailor Jupiter. I didn't expect this to happen. And neither did they. If they knew this was happening, they'd be right here at my side. But…they're in the United States…completely unaware of what's going on."

"I've been to the United States," Sakura said. "It's a really nice place. And the stories of Americans are greatly exaggerated. They're really nice people…even though they horribly mangle any Japanese anime series given to them. I'm sure your friends would be here with you if they knew what was going on."

"I didn't know if I could handle this alone," Lita continued. "I never went solo before. I mean…it's not the first time I've been alone, but it's been a long time."

"Not the first time? You mean you HAVE been alone before?"

Lita's face fell. She looked very sad. "I've…pretty much lived alone for a lot of my life. My parents…were killed in a plane crash."

"How awful. Both of them?"

Lita nodded. "It's…the one thing I'm deathly afraid of. I've always been afraid of flying since then. I've never even wanted to set foot on an airplane and that's why I was so scared when that Bear threw me into the air."

Sakura nodded mindfully. "I kinda know what it's like. My mom died when I was just three. It's really hard to grow up without a mother. But…I know I have a father and brother who love me, even though Tori doesn't always show it. And I have friends who really care about me."

Lita took a bite of her meatloaf. "Same with me. My four friends have always been there to look out for me." She took a drink. "But…can I ask you something, Sakura? It's amazing what you can do with those cards. When did all that happen?"

"Completely unexpected," Sakura answered. "I just came home one day and found the book in the basement. No one else could open it. I just happened to be destined to open the book."

"That's when you met me," Kero added. "Don't forget that."

"How could I?" Sakura asked with a smile. "The cards got loose and I was destined to seal them and be their mistress."

"So when did everyone else come in?"

"Oh…you mean my friends? Well, Madison knew the day after. She just happened to tape me flying on my first night as a Cardcaptor and I couldn't keep it a secret from her. She's my best friend. I thought she wouldn't believe it, but instead she took it as the best thing to ever happen to her. She really loves to tape me."

"Like she's obsessed?" Lita asked.

"You might say that," Sakura said after a brief hesitation. "It's actually a long story. And…it's kinda personal. I mean…it gets very personal."

"Oh…then I won't ask. What about that Li guy? He's kinda cute."

Sakura beamed. "You really think so?"

"Oh, yeah. Reminds me of my ex-boyfriend…that jerk. Oh, I'm sorry. It's just that I tend to think every cute guy I see reminds me of my ex-boyfriend. So when did you meet him?"

"Back when I went sealing the cards. It was weird. When we first met…he tried to take the cards from me. He thought I was hopeless. But…as time went on…he saw something in me…and decided to help me instead. And eventually…we fell in love."

"You just fell in love?" Lita asked skeptically. "Sounds like a friend of mine. Tied down to one guy."

"You make it sound like it's a bad thing," Sakura frowned.

"It isn't," Jupiter said assuredly. "I think it's a wonderful thing that you found the one you truly love. Not like me…who seems to go through life finding only cute guys that remind me of my ex- boyfriend…that jerk." She took another bite of her meatloaf and picked up her plate. "I'd love to hear more about you, Sakura. The whole card thing especially sounds…cool."

Sakura thought about that. She started to wonder if there was ever a time in her life when she thought being in control of the Clow Cards, now the Sakura Cards, was cool. She knew Madison was ecstatic about it. Li never gave any opinion on the matter, he just went on because it was the way of his ancestors. Sakura, on the other hand, was just a normal girl before this all happened. And the cards had brought a lot of pain into her life. She wondered if it was ever really all worth it.

Sakura shrugged the thought off. She had an idea of how to pass the time with her new friend. "You know, Lita…I have a scrapbook of my days with the Clow Cards. Maybe…I can show it to you?"

"Sounds great."

"Let's go."

Sakura and Lita cheerfully made their way up the stairs and up to Sakura's room. It would be a nice way to pass the time…until the next Crystal Beast appeared.


~--------------------~


"Uh…I don't know, you guys. Do we even know what we're looking for?"

Todd Tolansky, known as Toad, was never the confident type. He was never one to rush right into the face of danger. Yet here he was, in a strange park in Japan, with his three friends, on a mission for Mystique…and Magneto. Together, the Brotherhood of Mutants were off on what was said to be the biggest mission of their lives…whatever their mission was.

His three friends were a little less tense. Lance Alvers, also called Avalanche, just calmly held the cell phone, awaiting any further orders. Pietro Maximoff, otherwise known as Quicksilver, sat on a tree branch, which was the quietest he ever was. He was always the most hyper of the bunch. Then there was Fred Dukes, also known as The Blob, who went to sit on a bench…only to have it collapse under his tremendous weight.

Toad snickered. "Maybe you should lay off the Twinkies."

The Blob angrily picked Toad up by the collar. "Are you laughing at me?"

"Uh, n-no," Toad stammered. "It was j-just a joke, you know?"

This could have gotten ugly…for Toad. Luckily, the phone finally rang. It could only be either Mystique or Magneto.

"This is Avalanche. Go ahead."

"Avalanche? This is Magneto. I trust you all landed safely in Japan?"

Quicksilver dashed towards the phone and took it from Avalanche in the blink of an eye. "We're all here. So what's up, boss? What are we looking for? Something big? Something huge?"

Toad could barely make out a word he was saying. That was Pietro. He always had to speak about as fast as he ran. Maybe that's why he was the unofficial team leader. Unofficial…because the rest of the Brotherhood refused to acknowledge it. They just thought of Pietro as Magneto's pet.

"This is your greatest test and needless to say, failure is not an option. The legend of the eight crystals has come to pass."

"Legend of what?" Toad asked.

"Eight crystals. Ten thousand years ago, there were eight crystals buried beneath the Earth. Those eight crystals have now risen from their burial plots and have assumed the form of eight beasts. Each of these beasts possesses the power of Earth, Wind, Fire, Water, Strength, Speed, Thunder, and Darkness respectively.

"I will give you an ancient incantation. Once any of the beasts are weakened, you shall recite the incantation and restore the beast to its crystal form. Collect the crystals and bring them back to me."

"What are these crystals for, boss man?" Pietro asked.

"Whomever pieces the eight crystals together is granted one wish before the crystals return to their plot from whence they came. Once I piece the eight crystals together, there will be a new era. An era where mutants shall rule and the 'normal' shall perish. We will no longer be oppressed, because the oppressors shall be no more."

"Sounds good," Pietro chuckled. "So…where should we look?"

"You'll know a beast when you see it. Trust me. Good luck, my pupils. I trust you will do me proud."

After Magneto hung up, Toad shook his head and leaped onto a nearby giant Penguin slide. "He makes it sound so easy. I don't know what he's thinking. It's not like those beast things are gonna just come to us."

As if on cue, a huge blur dashed by Toad, nearly knocking him off his perch. He groaned. "Hey, Pietro. You know I hate it when you run by me like that."

Pietro blinked. He was standing in the same spot he was before. "Wasn't me."

The blur suddenly appeared again, this time, the wind knocking Toad off. The blur suddenly began to circle The Blob.

"Hey, what is this thing?" The Blob demanded.

The blur suddenly stopped circling The Blob and finally stopped. It stood right in the middle of the four mutants. It was a cheetah. But it was no ordinary cheetah. It glowed a bright orange and had the image of a crystal imprinted on its back.

"You think this is one of those crystal things Magneto was talking about?" Toad asked.

"No, you think?" Lance responded snidely.

"It's got to be the Speed one," The Blob said. "A Speed Cheetah."

The Cheetah then decided to try and take its leave. It tried to dash off. No one would be able to catch it at that speed…except for one person.

Pietro grinned. "Speed, huh? Speed's my middle name. Watch me take this thing down."

In the blink of an eye, Pietro was off and running. The rest of the Brotherhood could only watch.

Toad tried to lighten the situation. "So…I've heard good things about the sushi here."

"Never mind that," Lance groaned. "Just be ready in case they come back."

Toad shrugged. He could never get as much as a chuckle out of these stiffs. So he just got ready to intercept one of the blurs. Hopefully, it would be the right blur.


~--------------------~


"Eriol, please cheer up."

Madison hated to see Eriol like this. He looked so distraught and it was obviously because of this situation regarding the eight crystals. Madison was ever hopeful. She knew Sakura could handle this. All she wanted was for Eriol to cheer up. That's why she offered to take him out to the coffee shop.

"I can't," Eriol sighed. "I feel so powerless, Madison. I wish I knew where the other crystals are, but I don't. And if we can't get them all, then the world will be in a lot of trouble. What if some evil gets their hands on the crystals?"

"They won't," Madison said assuredly. "For one thing, they need ALL the crystals to get that one wish. And that won't happen as long as Sakura has two of them. And I'm sure we'll find the rest of them soon."

"I hope so," Eriol said, as he took a sip of his coffee. "I can feel something out of balance, but that's about it. I can't sense exactly where the crystals are. They could be anywhere."

Just as he said that, Madison looked out the window just in time to see a tremendous blur passing by. Right behind that one…was another blur.

"What was that?" Madison asked.

Eriol bit his lip. "Our next crystal. Looks like the Speed Crystal."

"But I saw two of them," Madison pointed out.

"Then we'd better investigate," Eriol replied. "And you'd better call everyone and have them meet us at the usual spot."

Madison couldn't help but let out a smile. "And I have a great costume this time. I wonder if she'll like it."

"No one said you had bad taste," Eriol grinned. "I'm sure it looks amazing."

Madison beamed as she dialed that number. Hopefully, Sakura would react the same way to her new costume.


~--------------------~


Toad just stood by on a tree branch, waiting to see if Pietro would come back. The Blob was right below him, waiting for the opportunity to spring into action. And Lance was right by the walkway, hoping to give the Brotherhood a big advantage in case the Cheetah came back.

"So what's the plan?" Toad asked again. "Somebody want to tell me?"

"Just shut up and wait," Avalanche snapped. "I think I hear something."

Sure enough, Toad could see two blurs off in the distance coming closer. Lance made his move. He began to use his seismic powers to raise up the walkway, which would be sure to trip up the Cheetah. The walkway rose and became very rocky. Unfortunately, one of the blurs jumped over the manmade hazard. And the second blur…tripped over it. That second blur…was Quicksilver.

"Hey, don't get ME, you idiot!" Pietro chided. "Get the Cheetah! Here it comes!"

Indeed, the Cheetah turned back and was running towards them. The Blob stood in front of it. "It won't get passed me!"

The Cheetah didn't try to get passed the Blob. Instead, the Cheetah circled him again. Toad saw this as his opportunity to shine. This was his chance to do something right. He lashed out with his sticky tongue and, with pinpoint accuracy, caught the Cheetah on the back. The Cheetah stopped at the sudden contact.

"Hey, I got it!" Toad slurred.

Toad was awfully proud of himself. He had the Cheetah in his grasp and his tongue wouldn't let go. It was just too bad that the Cheetah wasn't ready to stop yet. The Cheetah started running again. And with Toad's tongue stuck to its back…that meant…

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!"

Toad could have sworn he saw his life flash before his eyes. Actually, he saw a lot of things flashing before his eyes. One minute he was in this weird Japanese park. Literally seconds later, he was downtown. There was no way his friends could have caught up to him. Finally, the Cheetah stopped running and the sudden halt loosened Toad's tongue. Toad went flying into a nearby dumpster.

"Yuck! I got Cheetah fur in my mouth," Toad spewed.

"Hold it, Cheetah!"

Toad raised his head out of the dumpster and saw why the Cheetah had stopped. Someone else had arrived on the scene. In fact…many others had arrived on the scene. And leading them all…was a young girl in a very unusual costume, holding up a wand of some sort. Toad didn't know what to make of this.

But if they were going to fight this Cheetah…they would be in for a long night.


Next Time: Sakura and her friends fight the Speed Cheetah. Can they defeat it? And just how many others are watching in the shadows during this fight?


Any comments? Go ahead and tell me what you think by mailing me at AmericanCaptor@hotmail.com and don't forget to review below!