Disclaimer: I do not own anything I could be sued for

Yami didn't know what was going over her, but she didn't like it. "Wha…what is this?" she asked herself as Citlec pushed himself closer putting a hand on her head. "I…what is this feeling…I'm having? I…I can't stay like this!"

Shoving herself out of the picture, Yami retreated into her mind. "No! No! I don't understand!" she screamed. However, this forced Ley into Citlec's arms.

"Huh? Someone is…" Ley thought to herself as she felt Citlec on her. "Someone…Nagiciam?…No…OH GOD!"

"Mmmff!" Ley cried as she realized what was going on. Trying to pull back, Ley forced her head backwards, making Citlec let go in shock.

Stumbling backwards, Ley and Citlec both looked at each other in silence for a minute as both of them tried to make sense of what had just happened.

"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

"Citlec! I'm so sorry! Yami must have switched out on me or something! I didn't mean to…er…!"

"Ley I didn't know Yami had switched! I'm sorry! I didn't mean for that to happen!"

As the two continued their feeble apologies at the same time, White stared annoyed at the two. "Now I'm confused…" he thought lamely. "Ley likes Nagiciam, Nagiciam likes Ley. Yami likes Citlec and Citlec hated Yami, and now likes Yami. Yami hates Citlec, and Citlec likes Yami. Nagiciam hates Yami, Ley, and Citlec, and agh! Now I'm really confused!"

"Oh gods!" Ley cried as she turned. "Nagiciam!"

But he was already gone.

Realizing Nagiciam saw, Citlec sighed angrily and struggled to stand. "Damn it…"

***

Sohac sighed as he stood outside of Nagiciam's door, Ley beside him.

"Open the door Nagiciam! Please!" Ley cried as she knocked on it softly. "Please, please, I can explain!"

"There's nothing to explain Ley!" an angry shout responded. "I saw you Ley, I saw the both of you together! How can you 'explain'?"

As the pleading and shouting continued, Sohac could feel his temper rising.

"OPEN THE GODDAMN DOOR!" he yelled finally.

Silence swept over the two others as Nagiciam slowly unlocked the door with his magic.

"Thank you. My job here is done." And with that, Sohac turned down to the hall and disappeared.

"Nagiciam…" Ley said sadly as tears streamed down her face.

Nagiciam was sitting up on his bed, his wand in hand and his grip was tight. The other gripping the sheets on his white bed as if to tear the cloth apart. However, his face held an expression of hate, frustration, and sadness at once. It was terrible to see. "What do you want?" he growled.

"Nagiciam…" Ley began sadly. "I…I'm sorry…"

Scoffing and turning his head, Nagiciam scornfully said, "For what? For what Ley? For breaking my heart? For making out with Citlec? For what Ley? Tell me!" Then getting up and walking angrily until he was right in her face, Nagiciam burned his eyes into her. "TELL ME!"

"I…I didn't mean to! I don't love Citlec at all! How can you say this?"

"You have no idea what I go through to be with you Ley! No idea at all!" Angrily, Nagiciam turned and ran a hand through his hair. "Damn it…"

Staring at Nagiciam, Ley vainly held back tears. "I don't…" she whispered. "I don't…ask him yourself! I don't love Citlec, Yami does!"

"How do I know it wasn't you? How can I tell anymore? I don't even know who you are Leyline."

At this, Ley could only break down and cry. "Nagiciam…!"

But then Yami took over.

As the tears stopped and a wave of anger flooding over her, Yami stood up slowly keeping her head down. "How…" she began. "How DARE you say that to Ley!"

Suddenly, Nagiciam felt the air rush out of him as Yami flew at him and pinned him hard against the wall. "You bastard!" she screamed in his face as Nagiciam squirmed to get away. "You think Ley would just dump you for someone else! You're clueless! You moron! Idiot! Fool!"

Slowly opening one eye, Nagiciam said sadly, "But she doesn't…"

"Shut up!" Yami glared as she raised her fist. "How dare you make Ley cry! You're gonna pay for that!"

Quickly, Nagiciam closed his eyes waiting for the pain to come.

But it never did. Instead he dropped to the floor.

"What?"

Opening his eyes again, Nagiciam gasped in shock as he stared at Yami. She had one hand in the air, ready to punch, but the other, the other had had grabbed Yami's hand and was holding it back.

"Yami!" Ley's voice cried as she struggled for control. "You can't! I won't let you hurt him!"

Inside their mind, Yami glared at Ley who had both hands gripped onto her one fist and pulling back. "You idiot! Don't you realize that Nagiciam can hear our thoughts this way! You're the moron!"

"NO!" Ley cried as more tears fell out of her eyes. "I can't let you! I won't let you!"

"He hurt you or have you forgotten that!" Yami screamed. "Forgive and forget! That's always been your pathetic way of life! He should pay for what he did and said! He needs to be punished for this! Give me one reason why I shouldn't!"

Nagiciam could only stared as he watched Ley and Yami struggle for control. They were right; he could hear everything. And what he heard shocked him greatly.

"I can't hurt him! You can't hurt him!" Ley cried. "Because I…"

"Because you what?" Yami sneered. "Because he's your friend and you care about him? Because you have a friendship?"

Ley shook her head as one eye turned silver and the other remained gold. "It's more than that!" she cried as a tear fell out of her eye. "I…!"

But at that moment Citlec came running in interrupting Ley. "Wait!" he yelled as all eyes turned to him. "Listen…Yami, Ley, go outside. Nagiciam and I have to talk."

***

Ley and Yami stood outside, both eyes closed. Inside their mind, an argument was brewing.

"I can't believe you're going to let him get away with that!" Yami screamed. "He made you cry! And all for a stupid misunderstanding! What a dork!"

Ley shook her head sadly as she sat in their mind on the ground, her arms hugging her knees. "I…I know…I know he hurt me and I realize that was wrong and he was being stupid for it Yami, but…I think he had a good reason."

"Good reason? What 'good reason'? You think that…" but as a realization dawned upon Yami, she suddenly stopped her eyes wide. "Oh…that reason."

Ley grinned as she looked up at Yami. "So…do you understand? I may not be as strong as you Yami, but I don't want this to go on any more. I'm sure Citlec and Nagiciam feel the same way."

Yami nodded. "Yes…so do I."

***

"So…you didn't mean to…?" Nagiciam asked slowly as he sat down on his bed.

Citlec was pretty badly hurt. He had cuts and bandages all over him and his hands were completely covered in quickly ruining cloth. "Yeah." He said slowly. "I don't love Ley Nagiciam…" then seeing Nagiciam's annoyed face, he quickly added, "And I never will although there's a lot to like about her! But…no. I don't feel for her the same way as Yami…"

Nagiciam nodded sadly. "I…I was an idiot…" he mumbled. "I never should have…"

Trying to comfort him, Citlec gently landed a hand on Nagiciam's shoulder. "Hey come on…it'll be alright. It's almost guaranteed that Ley will forgive you. The one I'm worried about is Yami."

Nagiciam grinned as he stared up at Citlec. "Aren't you worried that she'll take your head off if you do something wrong?" he asked playfully.

"All the time."

Both laughing for once in what seemed like for a long time, Nagiciam and Citlec both pictured running from Yami while she had her wires over her head, chasing down Citlec for leaving the laundry out in the sun.

"I see you're all feeling better."

Turning to the voice at the open door, Yami grinned back at the two with her golden eyes. "I just came in here to say that I'm sorry Nagiciam…I was wrong."

Nagiciam stopped laughing and nodded as he smiled at her. "Apology taken." He said happily. "Where's Ley?"

Yami only shrugged. "She said she was tired so she went to sleep in our mind. I'm all that's left if you don't care."

"Not at all." Citlec said. "Not at all."

***

"WHITE!" Otes roared from his chamber. "Where are you?"

Hurriedly, White came forth from the hallway. "Yes father?" he asked. "What is it?"

Otes growled angrily as he gripped his forehead and rubbed his temples. "Get…my medicine…now!" he snarled.

Quickly, White got up and ran over to the king's dresser where the pills were hidden. Taking out one and handing Otes a glass of water poured from the pitcher by the bed, White handed both over to Otes who looked at it angrily.

"How many more years do I have to live with this crap?" he muttered as he drained both. "When I find the paradise, I should wish for these goddamn headaches to be cured rather than for power." Then not looking at White, Otes asked, "Have the reinforcement elves that were coming been eliminated?"

"Yes father. We have also sent a fake message to the elf kingdom to assure them of their…safe arrival."

"Good."

"Father?" White asked timidly as he shuffled his feet for a moment.

"What?"

Looking down, White quickly mumbled, "Well I was just wondering two things? Permission to speak freely?"

"Only if it's important."

Nodding, White began. "I wanted to know…who is the other door anyway? I mean…I know Ley is the first key and the door…but who is the other?"

Otes grinned. "The one who is closest to the door." Turning to White, Otes said, "White, tell me…who have you seen that is with Ley the most?"

"Nagiciam."

"And who does she got to he most often? And who looks after her and is very protective of her?"

"Er…Nagiciam for both I suppose." White concluded. "But the paradise says that we need to sacrifice Ley and the other key…!"

Otes glared at White. "You're going off track White." He growled.

White nodded urgently. "But this was the other thing I was worried about!" he protested. "I mean…we don't really have to sacrifice Ley do we? Just for power over the kingdoms? Surely your daughter isn't worth that!"

Otes said nothing as he turned away.

White stared at his father shocked. "I…I can't believe you!" he gasped. "You're going to kill Ley…for something that's not important? For something that you don't even deserve anyway…!"

But he was cut off as Otes suddenly drew his dagger from his side and slapped White across the face with his blade, making a small cut on his cheek.

"It's more than that!" he screamed. "I have to do this! To get her back to me! I won't let anything separate us! Not you and not death! Even if it means sacrificing Ley…"

White said nothing as he didn't turn his head and was silent. "I…I can't believe you…" he glared. "I can't believe this! And after all this time I was doing your dirty work, and protecting my sister, you were just going to kill her in the end! You…BASTARD!"

That did it.

With a raged cry and not thinking about what he was doing, Otes twisted his dagger and slammed it into White's shoulder. Instantly, blood flew everywhere, showing both Otes and White.

"Y-…y-you…!" White stammered. "H-how…could…y-y-you…?"

As the realization hit him, Otes gasped and instantly pulled his blade back. "White!" he cried. "Gods! I didn't mean…!"

But angrily, White shoved Otes away as he struggled to stand. "No…" he growled. "I'm going…going to tell…"

Otes stared shocked at his son, the dagger gripped tightly in his hands. "You…you wouldn't dare ruin my plans…!" he snarled. "I'm your FATHER!"

"I have NO father…" White snarled back.

But that cost White too much.

Otes frowned sadly as he stared at White's body now lying on the floor, blood running everywhere and small gasps coming from one of his broken lungs. "You…you may be my son…" he glared. "But I can't let you tell Ley what's going to happen. I'm sorry…forgive me."

And with a graceful step over his son, Otes left the room, leaving White to die.

"Now I know where the temple is…I just have to get there."

***

Ley, Nagiciam and Citlec were all sitting out in the courtyard where White's attempted murder was unknown. Or at least for now.

"Hey I wonder when I'm going to see other elves?" Citlec asked the group. "I mean, I thought reinforcements would have been here by now."

Ley nodded. "Yeah, it has been a long while. And I haven't seen any other dragons around either. It seems like everyone left."

"How strange…" Nagiciam muttered looking away. "She's right. Not many dragons and elves have been here, and in fact, no one has seen any sign of the elf reinforcements. This is beginning to worry me."

Suddenly, a cry came out form the castle.

"ATTACK! THE DRAGON'S ARE ATTACKING!"

"WHAT?!"

Instantly, Citlec and Nagiciam looked at Ley who shook her head. "Attack?" she whispered. "No one was given an order to attack…what's going on?"

But then, ten Spellcaster soldiers swarmed out of the palace and instantly surrounded Ley.

"What the hell's going on!" Citlec cried as spears and arrows were lowered. "What is the meaning of this?"

As if on cue, Neo stepped forward and said firmly, "Forgive me Nagiciam, but there has been an attack on the inside of the castle. The dragon king, Otes has already slain several of our men and he is making his way to the Great Hall to the king. We have to take Leyline."

Nagiciam glared and bowed his head a bit. "Where are you taking her?"

"As a hostage."

"A hostage!" Nagiciam cried. "You can't! And what about Hitomi? And Master Sohac?"

Neo shook his head. "I have to…for the sake of our kingdom. Hitomi is safe, and Sohac is on his way to stop the dragon. But he won't last long against the king."

Stepping forward, Ley looked at neo straight in the eye as the arrows and spears shifted to her. "Where is my brother?" she asked calmly. "Neo, tell me."

Neo shook his head sadly. "We don't know…" he said gently. "No one has seen his since the dragon called him to his side. However, we have looked into the Mirror Wall and it seems that he…"

Ley stared as a thought dawned on her. "He…?" she whispered urgently.

"He's dead."

Shocked, Ley slowly sank to the ground. "Dead…?" she choked. "No…no…"

Walking up to Ley and dropping down to her, Nagiciam gently but firmly grabbed Ley into a tight hug. "I'm sorry…" he whispered to her as she made sad muffled sound in him. "Let it out Ley…just let it go…it's alright. I'm here and I won't let them hurt you."

First, small sobs only came from Ley as she buried her head into Nagiciam's chest. Then small cries. And finally, full tears and complete cries emitted from Ley as she cried for her brother. "It's not true!" she yelled as Nagiciam gently rocked her and held her close. "It can't be! It's a lie! It just…can't…be…true…!"

Neo could say nothing as he stared down at Nagiciam. Finally, one soldier must have gotten fed up with the crying, for he yelled, "What the hell is she crying for? One more bastard dragon dead is all for the better! We all should have known that they were back-stabbing freaks who want nothing but what is good for them!" Pointing his bow and arrow to Ley, he continued with, "I say that one more whore dragon dead the better!"

But before he could fire, the soldier saw nothing but a slash of silver and a blinding light as he stumbled back in pain. His hand had been cut off. "WAAARRGH!"

Citlec stood in front of Nagiciam and Ley, his eyes flashing and his sword raised. "Don't you dare!" he yelled as the other soldiers turned on him. "No one hurts a friend of mine!"

But before anyone could do anything, a huge eruption came from the castle, blowing a hole in the side of the palace, showing Otes, covered in blood with a bloody dagger in his hand. Spotting Ley, Otes quickly stumbled over the rubble to get to her, a mad look in his eyes shone.

Another cry was heard from inside the castle as well. "The king! The king has been shot! Get a healer over here now!"

Nagiciam gasped as he stood, taking Ley up with him. "Master…!" he gasped. "It…no…no…!" Then forgetting all else, forgetting he was a mere apprentice, forgetting who he was and what he was doing, Nagiciam flew for White. "You killed my master you BASTARD!" he shouted. Along with him, the other soldiers took their attention off of Ley and Citlec and dashed for Otes.

However, Otes showed no signs of concern that a small army of eleven was coming for him. Instead, he merely raised a hand and bright white electricity sparkled from it.

Seeing what was going to happen, Ley quickly ran for Nagiciam. "Get down!" she cried as she grabbed onto Nagiciam pulling him down. Citlec ran for Neo and grabbed him as well.

"WHITE LIGHTNING!"

Instantly, a blast of electricity came from Otes's hand as he grinned insanely. The blast flew towards the remaining soldiers. The blast hit the first soldier and ripped through him, shattering his body while the blast kept going to the next soldier and the next, frying them all horribly before every part of them was incinerated, ensuring incredible pain before they died. As their cries of death filled the air, Ley, Nagiciam, Citlec, and Neo stared in shock at the horror.

"Father!" Ley cried as she called to Otes. "What are you doing? Stop!"

But Otes said nothing as he continued to walk towards them, a grin on his face. Then stopping right in front of Nagiciam and Ley, Otes held up one hand as Nagiciam placed himself in front of Ley, shielding her.

"Aw…isn't that cute." He glared. "But I have no time for games. You will come with me Ley to the temple of Wish where I can be granted what I deserve."

"Forget it jerk!" Citlec cried getting up. "You're going to pay for what you did!"

Otes only snickered at Citlec sword. "Fool." He said angrily. "Don't play games with me. You know full well that if you make any move on me, I'll kill this man here and now. I don't suggest you try it. Especially since my daughter has taken such a liking to him."

Nagiciam, Citlec, and Neo gasped as Ley hung her head a bit. "He…He…!" was all Nagiciam could say to Ley. "He…!"

Ley nodded. "I told you my father was never much of a father. And now that I see this…I guess it really is true."

Getting up, Ley stared at Otes right in the eye. "You killed White didn't you? And the Queen and Neeces?" Ley asked sadly as she stared at him.

"Well I sort of did and didn't." Otes replied grinning madly. "Because I hit him in the shoulder. And about the Queen and her slave…well that was White's doing."

"What!"

"That's right." Otes grinned at the shocked faces. "He killed them. And you know why?" Staring at Ley again, Otes's grin got even bigger. "To save you. All to save you."

Ley felt herself grow weak as she stared into her father's eyes. "How…?" she whispered angrily. "Why? What are you going to do?"

Otes closed his eyes and shook his head. "Too many questions." He said. Then turning for a quick second, he threw his hand out making another White Lightning at the soldiers who were trying to sneak up on him.

As more screams filled the air, Otes turned back to Ley and grinned. "You see?" he said happily. "He knew I would find the key to the paradise. He knows me well. And he should. I'm his father after all. But when I did find it, I was amazed. But White had stopped me from continuing. So we made a deal. He would help me find the second key if he would do my bidding. And he agreed. Said if I laid a hand on you, he'd kill me. But we both know that didn't happen now did it?"

Ley sunk a bit. "And so you made him kill everyone I order to get to the key and in order to protect me." she said sadly. "Is that it? And who is the key that you found?"

Otes began to chuckle as he opened his eyes wider. "The key…" he said eagerly. "The key was so close to me all the time. And I never even knew it. Don't you understand Leyline? The key is you! You are my secret to getting into the paradise and fulfilling my wish!"

Ley gasped as she instantly fell back into Nagiciam who caught her. "Me!" she whispered. "But I'll never help you to grant your wish! You may be my father, but you killed my brother! I hate you!"

Nagiciam swore softly as he gripped Ley to him. "Ley…run…!" he heard himself whisper. "Go now!"

But Ley wasn't listening.

"Ha ha ha…" Otes laughed. "Ley that's the first time ever in your life you've said you've hated someone. And ironically, it's your own flesh and blood. How strange."

"Shut up!" Citlec yelled behind them. "You're not taking Ley to the paradise crap or whatever!"

Otes grinned. "Oh yes I will…after I make an extraction of sorts…"

As she gasped in realization, Ley's eyes grew big. "You…you can't!" she choked. "If you do this…then…then I'll die!"

Otes grinned as he held up his hand, magic flowing and sparkling from it. "Exactly."

Suddenly, a bright flash of light flew everywhere as everyone was blinded for a second. When the smoke cleared, Nagiciam lay on the ground by himself.

"Wha…what?" he whispered as he got up. "I…I'm so weak…what happened?"

Otes grinned as he stared at Nagiciam, Ley in his arms. "Just a insurance that you won't be coming for me anytime soon." He grinned. "I've got what I want. And now, to fulfil the rest of the prophecy. When one key is at the temple, then the second key will follow. But for now…so long Nagiciam."

And laughing, Otes pushed two great blue wings from his back, and with Ley in his arms, he flew off into the sky.

"LEY!" Nagiciam cried as he stared up at the blue figure fading away in the distance. "LEY…LEY…LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEYYYYYYY!"

Sadly, Citlec stared at Nagiciam as he dropped to his knees, covering his face with his hands and only cried.

"…Whu…What happened?"

Turning to the voice, Citlec and Neo stared as they saw,

"YAMI!"

Yami turned to face the two, annoyed. "Yeah so?" Then as a realization dawned on her, Yami gasped. "Wait…where's Ley? I can't feel her inside me…where is she!"

Citlec only shook his head. "Otes took her. She's gone to the temple with him. We don't know where she sent either." Turning more serious than before, Citlec asked, "Hey Yami, what did Ley mean by when Otes said he was going to make an extraction of sorts?"

Yami sighed and rolled her eyes. "Don't you get it?" she asked lamely. "Ley and I are connected. We're literally each other. If we're both separated, what Ley meant was that we won't last more than at least a day apart."

"Won't…last…long?" Citlec repeated slowly shocked. "But…but…that means…"

Yami nodded. "It means that in a day, Ley will die as well."

"What…what are we going to do?" Citlec asked sadly. "We can't just stand here waiting for everyone to die! We have to do something!"

Yami nodded. "Yes I know. The king isn't dead yet. In fact, he should be alright. I can sense his energy and it seems to be fine. There's nothing I can do about the ones we've already lost though."

Neo nodded. "So what now?"

"Well…now…we have to go to the temple." Yami said flatly. "And now is the time when I become the path to there."

Citlec nodded. "Alright. But what about…?" Looking at Nagiciam who was still crying, Citlec sighed. "We can't just leave him here."

"But we can't take him either."

"What!" Citlec gasped as he turned to Yami. "We can't do that! He has to come with us! He…and Ley…!"

Yami nodded. "I know that. I know. Believe me I know. But don't you see? If we take him to Otes, it's what he wants! Didn't you hear? Otes said that once the first key is taken, the second one is sure to follow. That's what he wants us to do! Don't you get it? If Nagiciam is guaranteed to go to the temple after Ley, then Nagiciam is the second key to the temple!"

"But the path…"

Yami only snickered and tossed her hair. "Obviously the fool doesn't know about me. He may get to the temple yet, but he won't know how to get to the entrance. He'll be close though. With that White Lightning…" Shaking her head, Yami shrugged. "Well, I guess this means we've got to get going. I'm going to go get my…threads… and some gear. Heh heh…time for some blood. Finally! You pick up Nagiciam and meet me over at that mountain base alright? Neo, go see if you can help the king."

Citlec could only nod as Yami began to walk away. "Blood?"

Shaking his head trying to focus on his friend, Citlec slowly walked over to Nagiciam who was crying loudly still as Neo left him. "Nagiciam?" he asked softly. "Don't…you want to…go help Ley?"

Nagiciam angrily pounded the ground making Citlec jump in surprise. "What's the point?" he asked. "I failed her…she's going to be killed…and this is all my fault! Master…Master is dead…the King is injured…Ley is gone and she'll die anyway…what's the point?" Then getting up and cuffing Citlec, Nagiciam screamed in his face, "Citlec! Just kill me! Just do it! PLEASE!"

But he was only rewarded with a punch to the face.

Sprawled out on the ground, Nagiciam was silent as he stared listlessly up at the sky.

"Are you insane!" Citlec screamed at Nagiciam as he stared down at his lifeless body. "You are a fool! Don't you get it? Your master isn't dead! Not yet! How easy do you think it is to try to kill a Spellcaster? It's not easy for crap! He's still living you moron! And Ley…will you really give up so easily?"

"I…" was all Nagiciam found himself saying.

"Nagiciam!" a familiar voice cried from the castle.

Slowly getting up and looking towards the direction from where the voice came, Nagiciam gasped. "Master!" he cried.

Struggling to stand, his robes torn and bloodied, Sohac's hair was messy and one arm was torn to pieces. Deep cuts riddled his body and his wand was no where to be seen. "I…I can't believe a…student of mine…would give up and let someone he cared for die!"

Nagiciam could only stare in awe as Sohac painfully made his way to them.

"You…I trained you to the fullest extent of my powers…" Sohac glared. "And this is how you repay me? By lying down and letting the enemy get away? Forget about everything I taught you Nagiciam. I always knew you were a fool."

At this Nagiciam grew angry.

"Just wait a minute!" he shouted back. "I did train under you and I learned many things from you! I know how to change the weather, read the stars, and cast countless spell for healing and for war! And I've figured out many things on my own too! In fact…" Forgetting he what he was doing, Nagiciam stood defiantly. "I bet I could defeat you in a duel!"

Sohac grinned as he stood and wiped a bit of blood from his mouth.

"Very well. Fight me then. Fight me to the finish."

***