Spoilers: Not much again...

Disclaimer: Bizzare Saga is copyright of Jordan and Calvin. All art, characters and scenario are joint projects by Jordan-chan and Calvin-sama ~ (Project Alternate Reality) Also, I`ve used some Final Fantasy things so – Final Fantasy is copyright to Square-enix.

Author`s Note: It`s my turn now (selkie_boi) Hope you liked chapter 7. We`re both sorry for all the delays, but we`ve been busy. Sorry! Ok, this time we find the gang in the Ezembark Labyrinth, which they are led into, in order to get the shard. Nitney is the newest character and we`ll be seeing a lot more of her. Oh, yes a lot more! Ok, so here it is – Chapter 8. Enjoy!

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'The hardest person to know is yourself....' --- Paine [Final Fantasy X-2]

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Chapter 8 ~ The Labyrinth, the Sphinx and Confrontations

The girl teared her eyes of Calvin and turned to a huge door engraved in the wall. It had funny slots all round it and wierd patterns all round it. The shrine girl fubled in her robe pockets and brought out a shining, glimmering sphere. It was blue and looked like it was containing a tornado of clouds.

"I should be letting you in her, you all know that don`t you?" the girl said as she inserted the sphere into the hole in the middle of the door.

"Yes, we do" Rosu said staring at the door facinated. The girl twisted and turned the sphere, like she was opening a safe.

"And you all know that we will all be imprisoned until we die if I am caught?" she fired back still rotating the object.

"Y, yes...." Cally said still blushing and staring at her long fair hair. She turned round, her hands still fumbling. Her crimson eyes focused on Calvin.

"What?" she said blushing. Calvin looked at his feet.

"Goodness sake....." Karyuu and Leah murmured in unison. They looked at each other and giggled.

"Erm....what`s your name? I don`t mean to be rude" Calvin said bowing low.

The girl looked up again. "I`m Nitney. I`m the Shrine keeper" she said returning to her door.

Finally, Nitney finished fiddling with the door and let go of the sphere. She stood back and watched along with the rest of them. Fen, Rosu, Calvin, Leah and Karyuu all gasped as the engravings started glowing an eerie blue light, the same as the sphere. The temple floor rumbled as the huge door slid up and opened fully revealing a blinding light. It finally dimmed down revealing a hedge of the deepest green.

"Welcome to the Ezembark Labyrinth!" Nitney said brightly her blood-red eyes gleaming.

"Wow!" Fen said his tail wagging like a dog`s. The group stared at the hedge as though it was something marvellous.

"It`s only a hedge!" Karyuu exclaimed giggling. Leah grinned. The two were the most mischeivious of the gang and also the most fun-seeking. Nitney glared.

"Wait, did you say Labyrinth?" Rosu said looking worried.

"Yes, yes. But it is only a maze. No feinds. If you are really intent on taking the shard I`ll lead you to it. Follow me" the shrine girl said stepping through the door.

"I bet that`s not all she wants...." Leah whispered to Karyuu and thumbing to Calvin. Karyuu clamped his hands over his mouth to stop the laughter as the rest moved in. Karyuu made a funny noise behind his hands as him and Leah walked into the maze. As they all stepped in and disappear a shadowy figure emerged from behing a statue inside the temple.

The figure limped over to the door. It walked in a peculiar way and it`s arms and legs were differnet lengths. It was a Button. It`s freakish smile was spread along it`s face and it`s careless sewing was done in differnet colours. It`s button eyes were looking at the door.

"Take it" another voice said. It belonged to another shadowy figure that appeared in the doorway at the other side of the room. In the torch-light, his fase showed scars and evil, sharp eyes. And on top of his head was a top hat. He carried a cane and wore black colours and leather.

And this time, the man had a different item in his left hand. It was a tiny ragdoll with ragged sewing and buttons attached for eyes. Like a mini- Button. It jumped out his hand and tottered accross to the larger Button. It reached out a frayed hand and touched it`s bigger form. Immediatly the human size Button screamed a twisted scream and blew up in an explosion of material. A high pitched, child-like giggle echoed in the room as the small thing jumper extremly high for it`s size and snatched the globe in the door.

The heavy stone door stopped glowing and slammed to the floor, making a little 'click' to notify it`s closure. The evil little ragdoll wandered over to it`s owner and handed it the sphere. He reached out and took it and taking the doll with him aswell.

"Now we have the prince....." he said grinning in the dim light "Me and my new waepon......." The doll cackled it`s evil laugh as the tall, slender man walked out the shrine doors, to do what he had to do next.

+

Nitney led the gang down a long hallway of hedges and they trudged along behind her. Leah and Karyuu were still giggling. Rosu had Karyuu`s sword in his hand and had a little blowtorch out. He was cutting little dents it the blade.

"We can put the shards into these slots. They`ll also power up you`re sword. Here" Rosu said handing Karyuu back his sword. It had a gleaming white crystal in one of the dents. It was Rosu`s shard.

"Thanks" Karyuu said, his face red from laughing. Leah was now fiddling with the flower on her head. She growled and pointed her wand at it. An explosion sounded and in a second Leah`s hair was changed. She now had middle length dark brown hair. It had little braids every here and there. Also on top was a big white sun hat with little blue and red braids round the brim.

"Much better!" she exclaimed as Fen laughed. "What?" she said.

"Cool hat!" Fen joked. Leah shot him a death-glare. They all kept walking.

They came to a crossroad. Nitney stopped and turned to them. Calvin had been chatting to her all the way up the narrow passage and she was chatting back.

"Ok, everyone go right, there`s a trap down that way" she said nodding to the left. She kept walking and chatting. The rest followed. They walked and walked through the Labyrinth until a female – like roar echoed through the maze. Nitney`s red eyes widened.

"A...a....a feind? There was none last time!" she exclaimed. She really looked worried. Calvin, Rosu, Fen and even Karyuu and Leah all looked attent.

"Swords everyone..." Karyuu mumbled drawing his new dented sword. Leah took her wand out, Calvin his new guns, Ross his sword and Fen turned itno a half-wolf. The animalistic roar sounded again and seconds later, a woman walked round the corner. She had a slim build and she wore a tiny top and tiny shorts. But she wans`t an ordinary woman.

She had furry lion-like legs and paws. Her hair was silver and she wore a tiara. Her eyes were cat-like and she had large grey wings. She spoke in a soft, eerie voice.

"I am the Sphinx. I ask you a question. Wrong, death for you. Right, I`ll let you past. But I have been sent here to collect a prince. Which one is it?" she said. She stared at them all. Nitney let out a terrified squeak. She held her fancy staff tightly.

"I am the prince. What of it, woman?" Calvin said regally. He stood in front of Nitney.

"Then, I`ll skip the question" she said and in the speed of light she punced at Calvin.

"Get her!" Fen shouted jumping towards her. He blocked her path and the two wrestled on the floor. Fen let out a howl and her bit into the Sphinx deeply. She screeched and stood up. He gazed at Fen and he suddenly froze. She then tooked up and Fen was telekinetically thrown up in the air.

Calvin drew him guns. He ran and shot at her and then with his superhuman abilities, jumped extremely high and flipped over her. Still firing he landed and the Sphinx roared and Karyuu and Rosu moved in too. They hacked and slashed away at her with their swords. She roared and looked up to the sky.

"Cosmic storm! Arise!" she roared and immediatly, the sapphire sky vanished and was replaced by a starry night sky. A hole opened up in the stars and suddenly, huge boulders and rocks came falling from the air. They crashed down on the labyrinth one after another and caused a huge mushroom cloud of dust to blow upwards. The gangs screams rang through Ezembark as the portal closed and the last boulder dropped.

Multiple explosions rippled through Nitney and Leah as they watched in horror and eventually, nothing could be seen but white. The white dimmed down and there, lying on the floor was Calvin, Karyuu, Rosu and Fen.

"No!" Leah shouted raising her wand and pointing at the Sphinx. The feind- woman just laughed at Leah and winked.

"You cannot harm me little girl. Just go away and leave me to get the prince, would you?" she said as Leah raised from the floor as though invisible hands were holding her up. The Sphinx then clicked her fingers and Leah was shouting in pain as yellow bolts surrounded her. Nitney screamed too, terrified that all this was happening to her and her new friends.

She raised her gold staff above her head and shouted "Cure!". A blinding light shone and Karyuu stood up, uninjured. Fen, Cally and Rosu also stood. Nitney then resorted to hitting the woman with her staff.

"Buggar off!" the mystical being yelled as she threw Nitney aside. She landed in a heap on the floor. Calvin went to tend to her.

"Let her go!" Karyuu growled ferociously, pointing his sword at the woman`s neck. Leah was still cought in the spell and Karyuu sent a huge blow of his sword racing to the feind`s stomach. Her yellow eyes widened as she put off the spell and crouched to the floor. By now, the stars from her other spell had worn off and the blue sky returned. Karyuu flew up into it then plunged down to meet the shaking Leah.

"It`s ok....." he whispered to her in his arms "I`ll always stay by your side..." Leah had a tear in her eye and she huddled as close to her friend as she could. As the two sat hgging each other, Rosu and Fen ran towards their enemy. She stood up and spread her wings.

"Now, you shall all die!" she shouted as she raised her hands to the sky "Cosmic Storm!"

"Here we go again!" Rosu warned Fen. Nitney stood up again, Calvin at her side. She raised her staff once more and cast a bubble round each of her companions. They sky rumbled with thunder and it split open again, revealing the stars. This time, lightning bolts crashed down and immediatly after, the barricade of meteors fell on the maze again. The ground below them shook as the rocks crashed onto it and on top of the gang. This time, they were protected though.

But they were wrong. The Sphinx clicked her fingers again, through the crashes of meteors and immediatly, Leah and Karyuu`s bubble burst. They screamed as a rock toppled down on them. She repeated again and Nitney and Calvin`s one burst.

"Quickly! Before she does it to us! .........No!" Rosu said as his bubble burst and he was bombarded with rocks. Only Fen was left. In the split second that the woman clicked her fingers, Fen transformed and pounced on her. He opened his jaws and clamped them round her neck. Then he slaughtered her. She fell from the sky and collapsed in a heap. Suddenly, the ateroids stopped and the sky returned. The Sphinx was defeated. Little globules of light escaped her disappearing body.

"Pyreflies?" Fen murmered as the woman disappeared and the specks faded into the sunlight. The rest all groaned and Fen turned to se them all. Calvin was helping Nitney up and Karyuu and Leah were huddled together not moving. Rosu was standing up and stretching his neck.

"Karyuu? Leah?" Fen said walking over to them. They didn`t move.

"Why aren`t they moving?" inquired Calvin "Are you guys ok?"

Finally, Karyuu stood up. "Ouch...." Karyuu said as Leah stood up too "Is everyone ok?"

"Yeah we`re fine. Are you?" Nitney asked. She had a concerned look on her face.

"I`m fine. Thanks to Karyuu..." Leah said looking at her friend. He blushed.

"It was nothing" Karyuu said. Leah went over and hugged Karyuu tightly. He returned in and then they all turned to look at Nitney.

"Where are we to go now?" Rosu said "The hedges are destroyed" He was right. There were craters in the ground and the hedges were smouldering. They had huge gaps in them too.

"I am truly sorry!" Nitney cried "I did not know of any beasts! Someone must have put them in!" Calvin hushed her and said it was ok. He laid his hand on her shoulder. Leah and Karyuu giggled again.

"I will have to heal you all! That is my speciality. White Magic." she said raising her wand. She did another healing spell and they all felt brand new and refreshed. "Now, this way if you please. We are nearly there"

+

They walked another half an hour until they reached the centre of the maze. There, on a elaborate blue pillar, the Earth Shard floated.

"There it is!" Rosu cried in a childish voice. Karyuu grinned and went to reach for it.

Suddenly, with no warning at all, a huge spotlight flooded over them all. By now they sky was a pinkish colour, nearly night. They looked around for the lights source and gasped.

A huge zepplin was hovering above them, it was huge. It`s massive shadow was creeoing over the green hedges and the spotlight shone brightly on the group. And on top of the gleaming white blimp, was a dark figure. He jumped down from in and landed beside them. Immediately after, a tiny ragdoll sized figure jumped down after him and landed on his shoulder.

"Hello. Miss me?" the man said. He wore black trousers and a black coat over them. He also had a tophat on his head and carried a cane. It was the Button Man.

"You!" Calvin sneered at him as the ragdoll cackled in a high pitched voice.

"Like my new friend?" the slim man asked as the doll hopped down from his shoulder and toddled over to the gang "He`s called Voodoo Button"

Right enough, the doll had a twisted smiling mouth and two buttons for eyes. A mini-Button. But this one had pins sticking out of it. One red, one blue, one yellow and one white. It cackled again.

"Let me explain how it works" the Button Man said in a bored, posh voice "It is simply a miniature Button. A little Button to help me. A henchman if you like. What I do is stab it with these here elemental pins" he showed them another pin, this time a black headed one. He whistled for the doll and he sharply peirced it with the new pin. It was surrounded by a dark light and then it stopped and giggled again in the freakish voice.

"Now I have inserted Gravity magic into him. Mind being a guinnea-pig?" he said as he ordered the Voodoo Button to attack. It ran up to Calvin and touched him. Ice crystals swirled around him and they exploded in a huge burst of frost.

The blast was so great that everyone but Calvin and Nitney were propelled through the hedges in different directions. They flew through and landed a huge distance away. Leah and Fen went to the west and Karyuu and Rosu were sent flying to the east.

The Button Man recalled his little doll and took out his cane. He slipped off the top and adjusted it a bit. It doubled as a gun. I was a thin machine gun.

"Now, get in the zepplin. You too girlie" he sneered pointing the gun at Nitney and Calvin. They hugged each other and looked at each other. They had only just met and they were getting whisked away against their will.

"Move. Now!" the man snapped at them. Yet still, they did not move.

The Button Man snatched the Shard from it`s pedstal and aimed his gun at Nitney.

"Why do you need that? You only want me!" shouted Cally.

"Well.........let`s say I`m planning something for your Daddy" he replied. Calvin`s eyes widened.

"What have you done? What are you going to do?" Calvin spat. Nitney sobbed silently. "If you even touch my father I`ll...."

"I believe he is on my side. Through a little persuasion of course..." the Button Man said with a bored look on his face. Calvin yelled and took out his guns.

"Leave my family alone! Leave my friends alone! Leave me alone!" Calvin said so loud that some birds flew out a bush. By now the sky was red, night- time. It matched Nitney`s slightly damp eyes.

Calvin aimed his guns at his enemy. The man looked offended. He sneered and loaded his slim machine gun.

"You are challenging me? Fair enough. Your father did say dead or alive...." the Button Man said.

Suddenly with no warning at all, Nitney stepped in front of Calvin. Her white robes shining in the spotlight, her crimson eyes vivid and tear- stained. Her staff shone gold in the light also and in Calvin`s opinion, she looked beautiful, with an essence of innocence. The patterns around her robe cuffs where so detailed and her blonde hair was so silky and soft- looking.

"If you shall fight him, you shall fight me too" she said plainly. Her grip on her staff tightened.

"If I must..." the cruel man sighed. He fired his fun once at Nitney and she fell. At once, Calvin leaped into the air firing rapidly at the Button Man. He grunted as the bullets grazed him. He turned around to Calvin and shot his gun. The constant patter of more and more shots being fired. Calvin dodged the shots and fired a few rounds of his own guns.

Nitney stood up again and ran up to the preoccupied man and dealed a blow to his head. He yelled and turned to her. Again she whacked him with her staff. This bought Calvin enough time to reload. But he didn`t. Instead he put the guns back in their pouches and his eyes went redder than Nitney`s. His skin went pale, his nails grew and his insisors were replaced by two sharp fangs.

"Calvin?" Nitney gasped. The Button Man whistled for his Voodoo Button and it punced on Nitney. She screamed and beat it with her rod.

Calvin hissed and sprung on the man. Something clattered off the floor. The shard, he had dropped it.

"No!" he said scrambling for it. Cally grabbed his shoulders and jumped high in the air. He flung him on the floor and stamped on him.

"You little......freak!" the Button Man said as he kicked Calvin off him. Calvin bounced back and swiped furiously at him. The man`s skin tore and blood seeped out of it.

"I told you before! Stay out my life! Leave me alone!" he yelled as he swooped down on the man. He screamed as the vampire bit his neck. Calvin sucked the blood and threw him away after drinking, like an old towel. The Man lay quivering. Calvin turned back to his normal self and went to tend to Nitney. She was still screaming and beating the evil creature.

Calvin shouted at it and it turned around. It looked at him and he stopped. Frozen. Still. Petrified.

Nitney screamed and raised her staff. A brilliant white light filled her eyes and a huge sound filled the air. The sound of pure energy. Then there was silence.

+

A ray of brilliant white light burst throught the maze. Karyuu and Rosu gasped. They only regained consciousness seconds ago.

"What`s going on?" Karyuu said. Rosu gazed at the site. They were lying on a heap of hedges and rubble. They had dust all over their clothes. They were ruined.

"I don`t know" Rosu said in his worried, childish voice. His chocolate brown eyes were lit up by the beam.

"What? Where`s Leah? And Fen?" Karyuu exclaimed. He had feelings for Leah. Leah the Magic Turnip.

Rosu shrugged and beckoned for Karyuu to follow. Karyuu spread his crumpled wings and took into the air.

"You head into the middle! Help Calvin! I`m going to find Leah!" he shouted from the air. Rosu did a little solute and took off at some speed to the middle of the maze, a clear path now made from the earlier blast. The beam was still blaring.

+

Elsewhere, Leah and Fen were also running. But they were not trying to get to someone. They were getting away from someone. Or something to be exact. A huge beast that Fen identified as a Chimera was chasing the two down the narrow, winding labyrinth pass. After the blast, they had been flung into him and he wasn`t very happy.

A chimera was a fearsome beast. It had three heads, one bull, one eagle, and one ram. It had a purple stomach and furry lion legs. It`s tail was a snake and it had steam escaping it`s jaws. It was running at a frightening pace and Leah sreamed as she ran.

"That`s it!" Leah yelled. She about turned and faced the feind.

"Leah? What are you doing?" Fen exclaimed stopping and dragging her on onwards by her arm.

"No! I know how to defeat them!" she said wisely. The beast reared up and faced the two. Fen took a sharp intake of breath as Leah held her wand forwards. Her wand glowed an eerie blue colour and a small puddle of water appeared beneath the chimera. Then, an explosion of water flew upwards, damaging it. Then Leah`s wand went red. A burst of flame shot out the tip and burnt the chimera`s left eagle head.

"Bite it`s tail!" she yelled at Fen, who transfromed. Leah shot a burst of ice at the bull head and a bolt of lightning at the ram.

"Now!" she screamed and Fen jumped and bit the snake. The beast roared and fell to the floor, dead. Pyreflies escaped it`s body too and again, it disappeared.

In a burst of leaves, Karyuu flew through the bush.

"Sorry, my wing`s damaged" he said. His wing was bleeding slightly. "Are you guys ok?"

He went over and hugged Leah. Then he turned to Fen and smiled at him.

"We`re fine. What`s going on though? Where`s Calvin and Nitney?" Leah said.

Karyuu looked scared and the bright light from the middle shone on his young, lightly tanned face." I don`t know. But we need to get there. Let`s go!"

The three started running towards the light source. 100 metres away, Rosu was nearer to the light. His little helmet bobbed up and down and his dungarees dropped clumsily over his shoes.

In the middle Nitney`s shouting and the Button Man`s cursing were drowned by the roaring of the spell. Nitney shrieked and the light itself seemed to explode outwards. The maze srembled as the spell cut off and died.

Silence.

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"Are you ok?" a soft voice said. Nitney`s head was spinning like she`d been thrown against a wall repeatedly. She groaned and opened her left eye slightly. Standing there was Leah. She had changed though. Her hair was normal again and it was dark, glossy and combed, about shoulder`s length and she had a large floppy, decorated hat in her small fists.

She had a tank top on, a sleeveless one, light green in colour and she had various bangles round her wrist, including beads. She had a tiny pair of khaki shorts with a huge brown belf on. The shorts were nearly taken up purely with pockets. Finally, she wore big, fluffy snow boot that were balck. She looked different.

"How are you feeling?" she asked Nitney. They were in a small hut that had two beds, a cabinet and a little chair and stove. It was cozy. Nitney shut her eyes and answered.

"Sore" she said trying a painful smile. Leah giggled."Where`s the others? How is Calvin?" She sat up and groaned. She flopped back down.

"He`s fine. He woke an hour ago. He`s only a bit bruised. The Button Man escaped just after you were knocked out with the shard" Leah said. "We got to you and took you out. The Shrine is destroyed. So is the maze. What did you do anyway?"

Nitney opened her eyes fully and sat up with extreme pain." I asked for the gods` help. I have practised for years, to heal and pray. That is the most I can manage."

Leah smiled. "You were brilliant" The cloth flap at the door opened and Karyuu stepped in. He too had changed clothes. He had a sleeveless top, white with blue rings at the hips, neck and shoulders and he had shorts on, blue in colour. But on top of the shorts, fastened on, was the baggy bottoms of trousers [** Like Riku (Kingdom hearts) **] they matched his shirt. But on the trousers had little yellow and blue lines up the side.

"Hi. How you feeling?" he said in his young voice. He smiled as he laid some yellow flowers on the desk.

"I`m........Ok" Nitney said taking a sniff of the flowers "Thanks"

"From Calvin. He`s still wore out. I`ve got a plan now. We`ll get Rosu to take us to the next town and we`ll get the Shard off the Button Man and send it to you." Karyuu said seriously.

"No" Nitney said her crimson eyes full of life now "I`m coming. I`m in your team now" Karyuu grinned.

"Ok then, we set off in two days. Thank you for your help!" Leah said as she smiled and left the house. Karyuu left too leaving her to slepp.

Nitney lay smiling. She thought Calvin was so cute sending her flowers. She felf proud to be helping now. The newest member.............

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Music for this chapter – Simple and Clean (Remix / Intro) ~ Kingdom Hearts

Well, hope you liked the chapter! Slightly longer and with more action. Hope there wasn`t too much action though. Ok, we saw two relationships with the characters – Leah and Karyuu, and Calvin and Nitney. More on that in later chapters...... Also, some costume changes. Cally will draw some art and I`ll put a link to them, ok?

Ok, next time, it`s Calvin`s turn and Ttosc maked a crucial decision, while Rosu swaps weapons and decides to get rid of the know-it-all attitude. Also, some more on Calvin`s past and possibly an appearance by Shota. Keep reading!

Comments and Criticism welcome