Tales of Evangelion

by redemption2

Chapter 9 is here! Action,adventure,drama,and something no one expected. If you liked Chapter 6, you'll love this! New author profile update too, please examine.

8. ToE CH7

Tales of Evangelion CH7

The Grip of the Ice Queen

The three pilots hung back on the fourth Riehard, following the other three towards the northwestern continent. The rocky islands around it were capped in white. They came within view of an odd round building in blue and gray on one of the smaller islands. Z-Skit: Renegade Problems.

Shinji's, Asuka's, Lloyd's, and Collette's heads.

Shinji: (surprised look)

Asuka: (normal look) What's up with you Shinji?

Shinji: (panicing) I what? (looking depressed) I was just wondering what that round building was.

Collette: (surprised) Round building?

Lloyd: (wincing) Oh that's the Renegade base. They're bad news.

Collette: (smiling) So that's the Renegade base? It looks like the one in Sylverant.

Asuka: (grinning slyly) So why they bad news? They been kicking your asses all over the pace?

Lloyd: (downcast) No it's not that. It's just first they tried to kill Collette, then saved us.

Shinji: (surprised) Really?

Lloyd: Then they tried to capture me, and then we found out that their leader, Yuan, is a part of Cruxius. He's an angel too, and now we don't even know if he is loyal to Cruxius or not.

Shinji: Wow. You've had it rough. It also sounds pretty confusing.

Asuka: Not as confusing the Commander's plans.

Shinji: (wincing) Point.

The four Riehards passed the base with little trouble, and soon arrived on the mainland, which was covered in white. They decided to land. The group looked around. On the left in the distance was a large city, and on the right was nothing but a cold wasteland.

Lloyd turned left, "I guess that's Flanoir."

"Yep, sure is. I'd recognize it anywhere. It's a great place for sightseeing." Sheena said.

"Have you been there before?" Regal approached.

"Once.... I was sent here for treatment after...after...." Her eyes turned dark.

"You don't have to say anymore, Sheena. I think we already know." Collette placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Thanks."

The others said nothing for a second until someone giggled. Lloyd began to turn. "Hey, what's going on over th...agh!" A glob of white powder hit his face and slowly fell off. He spit. "Hey! Who threw that?"

Asuka gave her patented Don't-suspect-me-I'm-too-cute look as she shoved a snowball into Shinji's hands. The boy tossed it in the air, playing with it with a large grin on his face. "I can't believe it! Snow! Real snow! I've never seen snow before!" He said.

Lloyd and Genis looked down and gripped a bit of the frozen stuff in their hands. "This IS snow! It's so cold!" The swordsman said.

"It's so cool!" Genis grinned.

Asuka snatched Shinji's snowball in midair and slammed it at the boy. Genis was knocked down. "Hey!" Asuka used the innocent look again and Shinji just grumbled.

Asuka couldn't hold it in anymore, she started to erupt in laughter. "Hahahaha! Hey Lloyd, you've got snow in your hair."

"So it was you!" Lloyd balled some snow in his hands. "Well then, take this!" He cocked his arm to throw, smiling evilly when he was hit by one in the back of the head. He dropped the snowball and whirled around. Collette stuck her tongue out at him and tossed a snowball into the back of Genis's head. The half-elf landed face first in the snow. The children started to laugh. "Hey Genis, you okay?"

As the magical boy lifted his face, they realized he was laughing too. "This is awesome!" He picked up a snowball like the others. "Now who should I kill?"

All five of them poised to attack each other, still laughing. Suddenly the laughing stopped when they each were hit in the back of the head by a snowball. Presea leaned on her axe examining her glove with a small smile on her face, and Rei looked out into the distance with her hands behind her back with the left corner of her mouth turned up. "Wondergirl! You threw that!" Asuka grumbled.

"You have yet to prove that."

"Your hand is dripping wet! That's proof enough for me! Get her guys!" Asuka prepped her arm while Shinji and Genis slowly took aim.

Lloyd and Collete were still staring at Presea, who's smile widened as she lifted the blade of her axe from the ground, revealing a pile of snowballs. "Uh-oh!" Lloyd began to throw the snowball at her, but she swung her axe over her head and spun it around to meet the pile. The flat of her blade hit the pile, sending a barrage of snowballs into the five children, knocking them on their backs. Lloyd staggered up as Presea put her Axe away. The swordsman grabbed a giant handful of snow and molded it. "Why you! Take this!" He hit her in the shoulder. The first shots were fired, and soon a full fledged snowball fight came into being.

"They seem to be having a good time." Regal said watching them.

"Lloyd can act so immature sometimes." Sheena crossed her arms.

"Come on, what's wrong with a little fun now and then. I'd join them if these weren't my good clothes." Zelos grinned.

"Lloyd, Genis, and Collette have never seen snow before. Sylvarant doesn't have icy places, we only have desert, even in the northernmost continent." Raine saw a snowball coming at her, and she swatted it down with her staff. "We have to remember that they are still young, and deserve to have fun."

Rei, miraculously unhit by the chilled projectiles, joined the group. "We do not have snow on Earth either. Ever since Second Impact, the climate changed enough to cast the world into an eternal summer. That was before the three of us were born."

"Hmm?" Sheena stared into the snowy mist and saw some shadows. They approached and became clearer. Four people in giant blue and yellow penguin suits. "Who are they?"

"That is a good question. I have never seen the like." Regal answered.

The four people in costume smiled as they waddled up to the snowball fighting group. Everyone stopped throwing snowballs. Noticing her chance, Presea slipped away to the adult group. The one who appeared to be the leader spoke. "Hey, looks like you're having fun! Can we join you?"

"Um, sure thing. We're okay with that, right guys?" Lloyd asked.

Shinji shrugged, Collette nodded, and Asuka let out a "Hell yeah!"

"Then let's set the rules of the game. There are none except for the first one." The lead one sneered. "The losers pay with their lives!"

"You're joking right?" Asuka crossed her arms.

"I'm quite serious. You have defiled our sacred ground with your foolish games. You will now face the wrath of the Penguinists! Prepare to die!" BATTLE SCREEN!

Lloyd, Collette, Shinji, and Asuka vs. 4 Penguinist. Lloyd opened it up today. "Let's go all out!"

Collette pulled a Magic Lens from a pocket and raised it high in the air. "Here!" The Penguinists were scanned.

3680/3680 HP

145/145 TP

AA: Ice

Weak: Fire

Str: Water, Ice

Asuka raised her blade to her face as a blue ring wrapped around her. Shinji and Lloyd charged the first two Penguinists. Shinji's Lightning cards slapped one Penguinist silly, until he bent over to guard. Lloyd neared the second Penguinist, but was stopped as he threw two snowballs at him. Then he got close enough to do a few strong melee cuts.

The third Penguinist had a hard time choosing its target, and the fourth just stood there, waiting to fill in a spot if one of the others died. Collette closed her eyes and became ridged. A holy light enveloped her. The third Penguinist found its target in her, and threw four snowballs at her. Two missed, one didn't faze her, but the other made her flinch. "I can't concentrate." She backed away and started again.

The third Penguinist backed up and rushed forward on its belly, ready to slide into Asuka. A split second before, Asuka finished charging her ability. "Freeze! Chilling Drive!" She slammed her ice saber into the Penguinist's head and a pillar of ice rose out and headed towards the first Penguinist. It didn't do any damage to either of them. "What the hell?!" She was impacted by the moving Penguinist and she flipped over it. She whirled around and started slashing the annoying creature, but it still didn't take damage. "Why isn't it working?"

A voice called out to her from a distance. It was Zelos. "Your attacks are ice, and they have an affinity to it. Switch your weapon! Here, use this Sand Blade!" A long brown sword landed in the snow next to her, and sand poured out of it on impact. "Thanks!" She grabbed the hilt of the sword and flung the other one away. She tested it out on the head of the opposing Penguinist. Sand covered its face as the blade cut into it. "Me likey!" She continued to hack her way through the offensive creature.

Shinji couldn't break the guard of the Penguinist as it crouched down. When his normal combo was up, there was a quick pause, and the Penguinist took full advantage of it. It reached into the snow and pulled out a giant snow boulder and rolled it over the boy. He was crushed by it three times before the Penguinist let it roll off into the distance. "That really hurt." He charged it again. Three slaps of his electrified seals and then he pressed two on at once. "Shock Seal!" It flinched. Shinji prepared to take another shot, but the Penguinist went on defense again. The boy flashed white. "Time to activate!" He held up one of his cards to the sky. "Teleport Seal!" In a puff of smoke, he appeared behind the Penguinist. He slapped a card on its back, breaking the guard. He attached two more cards, and then slapped one on quite hard. "Drain Seal!" He drew some TP from the enemy. He used it again, but instead he flashed white. "Well this is new! Life Seal!" He took some HP from the enemy as well. The Penguinist turned towards him.

Lloyd was having an easier time of it. He slashed and spun around on his toes. Then he jabbed the second Penguinist at blinding speeds. "Sonic Sword Rain!" The last thrust pushed the Penguinist backwards slightly. It decided to throw some snowballs at him again, but Lloyd wasn't about to take that. He jumped high into the air. "Rising Falcon!" The snowballs missed him by inches as he soared down, undercutting the Penguinist. He quickly turned around and slashed its back. Then he flipped forwards into the air, gaining altitude with each rotation. "Psi Tempest!" In doing so he cut through the creature five times, but landed with its back towards it. Four snowballs landed squarely on his back, shattering his guard. He turned black. "Okay!" He spun around and shouldered the Penguinist, and jumped into the air as a blue lion's head appeared. He slashed downwards creating a shockwave that hit his Penguinist and Shinji's. "Hunting Beast!" Shinji's Penguinist was knocked to the ground, while Lloyd's disappeared.

Now that one of the other Penguinists were out of the way, the fourth and final one joined the battle, sliding into Lloyd. Collette finished the final parts of her prayer. "Oh holy one, cast your purifying light on these corrupt souls! Judgment!" Rays of light rained down vertically from heaven randomly as everything turned black. The new Penguinist got hit in the motion of sliding, and was stopped in the act. Shinji's Penguinist was struck, and was vanquished. "How's that?" Not wanting to get in Asuka's way, she went to attack the new one. A few up and down Chakran cuts, and she jumped backwards. She bounced two red balls with yellow spikes at the enemy. "Para ball!" They hit their mark and lightning struck the Penguinist from above on contact.

Asuka was having fun toying with her opponent. But she knew it was time to cut the crap. She raised her blade from the ground and created a shockwave that did three combo hits. "Demonic Thrust!" She stabbed the enemy, pushing it backwards. She was about to use another Drive attack, but she flashed white. "Learn something new everyday! Rolling Thunder!" She raised her blade to the sky, and with both hands swiped it straight down, releasing a ball of electricity that triple hit the enemy. It went into a dizzy spin. She powered up a red ring. "Who ordered the extra crispy?! Flaming Drive!" She slammed her sword into the ground and a pillar of fire launched towards the Penguinist. The Penguinist tried to counter by rolling a snow boulder at her, but it just melted. The Penguinist was no more. "Heh. Death becomes you." She saw the others hacking away at the final Penguinist. She flashed white again. "And now for something completely different. Falcon..." She jumped into the air and disappeared into a cloud. She came out of another cloud above the Penguinist and divebombed it. "Warp!" The slash landed the final hit of the battle.

As the others gathered two Penguinist Quills and a Sage, Asuka gave the final words of the day as she brandished her sword in front of her face. "Did you really think that you could take down an Angel killer?"

Asuka twirled her blade in her hands, then sheathed it as she walked up to the awaiting group. "Thanks for the saber, Zelos. It worked great. I guess you can do something good once in a while."

Both Zelos and Sheena were opening their mouths, but nothing was coming out. "Sheena? Zelos? Are you two sick? Should I cook up something?" Shinji blinked.

"Ikari, I believe they are impressed with your and Soryu's performance." Rei stated blankly.

They nodded slowly. Sheena stepped forward towards the boy. "H...h..." She grabbed him by his collar. "How did you do that?!"

"Huh? Hey! Woah! Take it easy! What do you mean?"

"I'm talking Teleport Seal, Shinji. I don't even know that one. Plus you learned two attacks in one battle. TWO!"

"So what? So did I." Asuka stood straight and proud.

"Just what was that anyway?" Zelos finally found his voice. "I mean, the Elemental Drives were cool, but where'd you pull out Rolling Thunder? That's like my own Hell Pyre, only with electricity. And Falcon Warp? No one can move that fast!"

"Sheesh Zelos, why are you freaking? I learned Sonic Sword Rain and Super Sonic Thrust in the same battle. It's not that big a deal." Lloyd said.

"Even so, you'd think we'd hear of attacks like this beforehand." Sheena said as she realized she still held the boy up.

Shinji dusted himself off as Raine made a hypothesis. "Perhaps it's because of their background?"

"What do you mean Professor?" Collette put her hands together.

"Well considering that they come from an unknown world may be a factor, but I believe it's because of their professions. You were fighting on the front lines of a war in giant pieces of magitechnology if I understand what you've told us correctly. Such experience must have given you great abilities, and enhanced with your new Exspheres, they can only get better."

Shinji looked at the purple orb on the back of his hand. "Well I guess that means these things are working."

"I feel twice as strong." Asuka flexed a muscle. "I could probably whip you in a third of the time, Shinji."

"Hmm, Asuka whipping Shinji. That would be funny. But personally, I'd rather she do it to me instead." Zelos grinned with hearts in his eyes. Sheena and Asuka shot looks at him. "Oh crap, death glares! Did I say that out loud?"

"Very loud!" Sheena smacked him hard towards Asuka.

"Perverted dumpkoff!" Asuka pulled out a roundhouse kick, sending him skidding on the snow.

He got up slowly. "Agh, I got snow in my nose!"

Asuka flipped her hair and dragged Shinji by the arm. "Come on, let's get moving."

In the field, the party was changed around to include Lloyd, Genis, Asuka, and Rei. They turned towards Flanoir and marched forwards. They saw a Blobbo heading towards them, but a skit popped up before it could attack. Z-Skit: Feeling the Exspheres.

Shinji's and Lloyd's faces.

Shinji: (downcast) Hey Lloyd. Does the Exsphere always feel like this?

Lloyd: (confused) What do you mean?

Shinji: When we fought, I felt the power my Exsphere was giving to me, but I felt something else along with it. I think it was the person that this Exsphere was.

Lloyd: (normal) I see. Well I'm sure everyone's different, but you're probably right. The personality of the person who made the Exsphere still exists. When it gives you its power, it also shows its personality through subtle feelings. You should ask what the others feel.

Shinji: (normal) I think I will. Thanks. Um, hey Lloyd....

Lloyd: (smiling mock salute) How do I feel with mine? (Normal) This is my mother's Exsphere. She was murdered when I was around three years old. Though I never really knew her that well, I can always feel her, protecting me. It's kind of hard to describe, but it's really only a feeling that a mother's protection is.

Shinji: (thinking) I see.

Lloyd: Hey, I gotta go talk with Regal for a bit. (leaves)

Shinji: Could that be what mine is?

The entire crew trudged forward. The blobbo was only patrolling, so it turned around and went the other way. Lloyd and company sidestepped its path and continued to close on Flanoir. Then he noticed something to the left. "Hey! A discussion pad!"

As they turned towards it, Shinji leaned over towards Genis. "What's a discussion pad?"

"Lloyd always goes to these things for some reason. Basically a friendly chat between two people. Unfortunately they can get kind of embarrassing. Whatever you do, don't ask Sheena about her experience by Mizuho."

"I won't."

They continued to carry on towards the discussion pad, when a Blobbo ambushed them out of nowhere. BATTLE SCREEN!

Lloyd, Genis, Asuka, and Rei vs 2 Rouge, a Ranger, and a Sorceress. For this battle, Genis opened. "Let's get this over with."

Lloyd rushed in headlong, and Asuka was about to follow him, but the half-elf caught her attention. "Asuka, try this." He tossed her a Magic Lens.

She shrugged and turned towards the Ranger. She raised the item to the sky. "Hmph." The Ranger was scanned.

2120/2120 HP

0/0 TP

Asuka decided to make him the target of her attacks and she jumped into the air. "Falcon..." She disappeared, then divebombed the Ranger. "Warp!" The Ranger grunted at the hit.

Lloyd did his opening move as well. "Rising Falcon!" He cut the first Rogue and clipped the second.

The Sorceress began charging red, as Genis charged blue. "Take me on with magic?"

Rei began to pray towards the heavens. Halfway through her charge, she flashed white. She began an even longer charge.

Lloyd got stabbed in the back by a Rogue while he was slashing into the other. His guard was broken, and he was basically a punching bag. Asuka took notice, and she sent the Ranger into a dizzy fit. She flashed white and charged dark blue. "You really need a bath! Soaking Drive!" Once again she plunged her blade into the ground. A pylon of water leapt from the crack and moved towards the Rogue slashing Lloyd in the back. It forced that Rogue to flinch long enough for Lloyd to Psi Tempest himself away.

Genis was able to get his spell off first, and aimed it at the Sorceress. "Drown! Spread!" The Sorceress was launched into the air as an explosion of water blasted from below her feet. She was hit five times before she came back down to the ground. Needless to say, the Sorceress never got to finish her spell. Genis then started charging a red spell.

Rei started a spell chant. "As the sun governs the day, you hold the night. Lend me your power to protect those I care for most! Crescent Cage!" The background became dark, and a reflection of a white crescent moon appeared below Asuka's feet. Her defense stat was boosted, and the Ranger she was facing was in the dark side of the crescent moon. He was suddenly enveloped in complete darkness. He grunted in pain three times and was flung out onto his back on the fourth hit. The moon disappeared. Rei began to charge a white ring as if nothing happened.

Asuka, though stunned at what just happened, decided to try and finish the Ranger off. The damage was halved as he slowly got up. He kicked her in the shin. That made Asuka madder, and she slammed her sword hard against him, but the Ranger guarded. "Won't work!" He said.

Asuka payed no mind, as she raised her blade high in the air. The Ranger brought down his guard as he prepared to kick her again. The girl sneered as she drew the blade down with both hands. An electrical ball appeared on the tip of the blade. "Rolling Thunder!" The blade cut into the opponent, and the electrical shock the ball gave made him give up the ghost.

Asuka turned towards the Sorceress, who just finished a brown charge. When Asuka turned she cackled. "End of the line!" A small burst of rocks erupted from the ground under Asuka.

That hit forced her into a black cloud. "Big mistake." She said as she charged in Over Limit mode.

Lloyd made an attempt at the first Rouge again. He spun in the air, slashing the enemy four times, and speared him when he landed. "Tempest Thrust!"

The Rouge took the hits from the spiral slashes, but blocked the thrust. "What's wrong?" he taunted. Lloyd resumed his melee slashes while the second Rouge decided to move in again.

"Get him! Flame Lance!" Genis finished his spell, and it was a doosey. The second Rouge was pierced by a giant sword of flame. It exploded, taking out the first Rouge, and severely damaging the second.

Rei finished charging her spell. "You need help. Double First Aid." Lloyd and Asuka regained health.

Asuka charged the troublesome Sorceress. The enemy tried swinging her staff in defense, but it just bounced off of Asuka, who payed it no mind. She sneered as she did three sandy melee cuts. She immediately linked it into a shockwave and stab. "Demonic Thrust!" The Sorceress grunted as the last breath was taken from her.

Lloyd decided not to play games anymore as he did a 1 HP slash. He flashed white. "All right." The unison attack began. He leapt into the air and divebombed the Rogue. "Rising Falcon!"

Asuka jumped up and disappeared into a cloud. She appeared in another cloud and slammed the enemy. "Falcon Warp!"

"Ground Dasher!" Genis raised his Kendama and the earth underneath the Rouge cracked and shook as multiple rocks erupted from the fissure.

Rei complimented Genis with an earth attack of her own. "Quake!" The ground opened wide, and the Rouge fell into the hole. Then it closed up quickly, shooting him and multiple rocks into the air.

Asuka and Lloyd glowed. "Eat this!" She cried. "Confused?" She and Lloyd jumped into a cloud. A cloud appeared to each side of the enemy. Lloyd dove out of the one on the left, and Asuka out of the one on the right. They both disappeared into another cloud where they landed. A big cloud formed above the Rouge's head. And Asuka and Lloyd dove straight down at him, shoulder to shoulder. They both called out the attack at the same time. "Falcon Claws!" The Rouge grunted his last grunt as the battle ended.

As they picked up some Rice and Bread, Asuka spoke. "Who else wants to be turned into a bloody pulp?!"

"Ew!" Genis winced.

"Please save the violent speech for the next battle." Rei said calmly.

"Damned Wondergirl." Asuka huffed.

Back in the field map, they took a few more steps towards the discussion pad. A Z-skit option came up. Z-skit: Combo: Lloyd and Asuka. There weren't any monsters in sight, so it began.

Lloyd's and Asuka's faces.

Lloyd: (happy) All right, Asuka! That was beautiful!

Asuka: (happy) What do you expect from the best?!

Lloyd: As long as we keep going on like this no one will stop us!

Asuka: (innocent) I'll lure them close with my charms (devil's smile) and tear them to bits.

Lloyd: (pull-back afraid) Woah, take it easy. You're scaring me!

Asuka: Who's the next victim?!

Lloyd: H...hey, quit looking at me like that! Aaahhh! (disappears)

Asuka: (happy) You're almost as easy as Shinji!

With a few more steps, they arrived at the discussion pad. The scene immediately lapsed into a Skit with someone no one would ever expect.

Lloyd's and Kratos's faces.

Kratos: (normal) ...

Lloyd: (surprised) It's Kratos!

...What're you doing?!

I'll leave him alone.

Lloyd: What're you doing?!

Kratos: It's you. I was just looking at the sky.

Lloyd: (angry) Don't lie.

Kratos: (disbelief) ...Hm, then how about I was scheming how to get rid of those that are in Lord Yggdrasill's way. Now are you satisfied?

Lloyd: ...

Kratos: (normal) You seem well.

Lloyd: (disbelief) Wh...what?

Kratos: (curious) Lloyd, don't be so trusting. There maybe those close to you who are malicious.

Lloyd: You're talking about yourself.

Kratos: (disbelief) Hm. We'll see. Be ever judicious.

Lloyd: ...

Kratos: Now I shall excuse myself. (leaves)

Lloyd: I forgot to ask what "judicious" means.

Everyone seemed a bit quieter after that skit. They all turned towards the city of Flanoir and headed towards it. They went out of their way to avoid the monsters, but one Blobbos dove at them.

Lloyd, Genis, Rei, and Asuka vs 2 Ice Spiders, and a Penguinist. Rei was the one to open the battle this time. "Engage according to operational parameters."

Rei began to charge a holy spell while Asuka and Lloyd dived into battle. Genis dug into his pocket and pulled out a Magic Lens. "Here!" He scanned an Ice Spider.

3780/3780 HP

0/0 TP

Weak: Ice

"Huh, that's weird. An ice type weak against ice. Oh well." He charged up a light blue attack.

The Penguinist threw four snowballs, and Lloyd was hit by all four. He blocked two, but when he tried to slash the closest Spider, he was caught by the second two. Asuka began to hack at the second enemy spider. It crouched down and raised its defenses. Her blade bounced off its armor with minimal damage. After her main combo was up, she was about to start another, but the spider took the opportunity to chomp on her leg. That only made her angrier. "Demonic Thrust!" The girl's shockwave sliced through the creature and she drove her blade home. The spider slid back a few feet.

Lloyd ignored his spider and looked towards the Penguinist. He jumped high into the air and slashed down upon it. "Rising Falcon!" The Penguinist ducked as Lloyd whirled around against him. Lloyd sliced his sword against the ground and created a shockwave. "Demon Fang!" The Penguinist took the hit and his guard was broken. He repeated the exercise. "Demon Fang!" He slammed his sword into the spine of the giant penguin. "Sonic Thrust!" The creature was pushed away. The swordsman pursued.

Genis called out his ability. "Cool off! Ice Tornado!" The first spider, which turned its attention towards Lloyd, became surrounded in a whirlwind of blue powder. It was blown into the air and hit five times. Asuka's spider was pushed into the whirlwind near the end and it took some damage as well. "Found your weakness!"

Rei flashed white. "Such power!" Her charge became even longer.

Asuka pulled back from her opponent and raised her blade to her face. A red ring surrounded her. "Who ordered the extra crispy? Flaming Drive!" Her sword met the ground and a pillar of fire erupted. It exploded towards the second spider, flipping it on its side.

Lloyd was ready to swing his sword into the Penguinist one last time, but he flashed white. "Okay!" He swiped a shockwave and plunged his sword into the creature's chest. "Demonic Thrust!" The last hit destroyed the Penguinist.

Genis finished another light blue charge. "Get him! Icicle!" The first spider was struck by a sharp piece of ice, and was destroyed. "Hey, not too bad!"

Asuka's spider kept guarding, and she couldn't vanquish the darn thing. Suddenly, Rei started a prayer. "Ruler of the day, giver of life, show us your powers and strike those that oppose us! Solar Flare!" Three beams of light cast from above in a pyramid with the spider in the middle. Asuka stood in one, and Lloyd in another. Their attack stats were raised. The three beams closed in on the spider, causing three minor hits. When they combined, a flaming spark erupted around the Ice Spider and it was vanquished. The battle ended and she did the closing sequence while two Blue Quartz were picked up. "Resistance was foolish."

The team took a few more steps towards the walls of the city. They reached it.

-Flanoir-

A: Enter

B: Leave

A: Enter

Welcome to Flanoir, the snowy city. A place where the streets are all covered with slush from the constant snowfall. The buildings are in a beautiful old style, and the views are very scenic. The travelers were cold, tired, and hungry, so they decided to stop off at the inn, which was the first building on the left. Everyone was still oddly silent as Lloyd approached the front desk. A young man spoke to him. "Welcome to Flanoir."

"Yeah hi. I need two rooms. One for a group of five and the other a group of six. Do you have anything like that?"

"Yes we do sir. Our recent renovations have dramatically increased our capacity. But due to the renovations, our prices have been raised to 500 Gald per room per night."

"Th...that's expensive!"

"I'm afraid there's nothing I can do, sir. Would you still like the rooms?"

"Don't worry about it, Lloyd." Genis said as the swordsman looked over his shoulder. "We can always go and fight that dumb dragon in the Earth Temple a few more times. It's always fun to tease him."

Lloyd chuckled. "Yeah, you're right. Okay, we'll take the rooms."

"Very good sir. Your quarters require some small preparations first, so please wait in the lobby until I get everything ready. I will return momentarily." The man left and went upstairs.

The group spread out in the lobby, slowly trying to break their monotonous silences with meager things. Collette walked up to Lloyd and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Huh? Wha?" The swordsman was startled.

Collette smiled goofily. "What'cha doing?"

"Me, I was just thinking...hard." He downcast his eyes.

"About what Kratos said?" She sat down next to him.

"Yeah. He wasn't talking about himself when he said there were traitors among us, was he?"

"I hate to admit it but I don't think so."

"Was he lying to me? To throw me off?"

"He's been right so far. Like with Mizuho and the Riehards."

"And that's what scares me. He just can't be right about this, he just can't be!" He put his head in his hands.

Collette found herself putting an arm around the young man. "It's okay, Lloyd. We'll work through this, together. All of us. We'll prove Kratos wrong, okay?"

In another part of the room, Asuka watched the two and their motions. "Dammit." She turned towards her cup of tea on a coffee table, and noticed a hand place another cup on the table. It was Shinji's hand. He just stayed quiet like everyone else, in a dark mood. "Shinji, we have to do something about this."

"What are you talking about, Asuka?"

She ignored him for a moment and whispered loudly across the room. "Psst. Hey, Ayanami. Get over here. It's important. I don't care what you're doing. Drop it and get over here, now!"

The Earthen Chosen blinked for a moment, then walked over to sit across from the two. "What is it that can possibly demand so much attention?"

"Look at them all. Every single one of them is scared and complacent. If you took all of their depressions and put them together, they'd equal the idiot over here."

"That was uncalled for, Asuka." Shinji grumbled. "Even so, so what?"

"They've been like this ever since we met Kratos again. You heard his words as plain as I did."

"You've been thinking about that too?"

"How can I not? We're directly involved in it!"

"I'm not following."

"Shinj-idiot, will you use that brain cell for once in your life? We're the newcomers. We're the least well known of the group. When Kratos warned Lloyd about there being some traitors, who do you think they'll suspect first? It's us, Shinji."

"That is a very logical assumption, Pilot Soryu."

Asuka ignored Rei's compliment. "So we have to do something, anything to make them see that we're trustworthy."

"We've battled side by side with them. Isn't that enough?" Shinji blinked.

"No, not enough. Fighting for survival is necessary, but to really show your trust, you have to go out of your way to do something."

"Am I correct in assuming that you already have some idea of what to do?" Rei asked.

"As a matter of fact, yes."

"Why do I have a feeling I'm not going to like this?" Shinji gulped down his tea.

"Shut up, idiot! Anyway, what we're going to do is tonight we'll sneak out and get some supplies. We'll head to the Temple of Ice and clear the way for the others. We'll take out the traps and monsters so they have a clear shot at Celsius."

"I knew I wouldn't like this. That's way too dangerous!"

"Not really. With you as a cook, and Wondergirl as the magical healer our stats will be safe. With you and me as physical attackers, we can jump right into anything. And with me and Ayanami as spellcasters, we can take out the really tough opponents from a distance."

"But we're only three people. Don't we always fight as a group of four?"

"We'll make an exception. We can do it. We never needed anyone before, with Eva. What's different now?"

"The absence of a skyscraper-high robot, that's what!"

"Do you want them to trust us or what?"

"Of course I do, it's just...."

"Then we're going. No more whining, Third Child!"

Shinji grumbled into submission. "Ayanami, please talk her out of this."

"That would be a futile effort, but I am also inclined to agree with her. Though the danger is real, her strategy is sound. If this will achieve the goal of mutual trust, then I suggest we do so." Ayanami said blankly.

"Great. Guess I'm outvoted."

"We'll leave at midnight, but first..." Asuka turned towards the rest of the group. "Hey everyone! Shinji says we need more foodstuffs. We're heading out to find a store. Can we borrow some cash so we can stock up?"

All of the others looked towards Regal. Raine spoke to him. "Well? You are our financial manager, Regal."

"Yes, I believe we could do that. We also need to stock up on Gels, Magic Lenses, Panacea Bottles, and Life Bottles. I'll give you 100,000 Gald. That should be enough to get everything and more. Just don't blow the extra, we'll need it later."

"Ok, thanks. Let's go Shinji. Ayanami, you too." Asuka grinned as she took the money from Regal. The other two pilots just trudged behind her. Asuka turned around and smiled sweetly when she got to the door. "We'll be back in a jiffy!"

They exited when the receptionist came in again. "Your rooms are ready."

Shinji trudged behind Asuka next to Rei. "Why are we doing this again, Asuka?"

"Idiot! We need supplies!" The girl spun around. "We're the advance team, so we need to split our cargo. If we get the maximum amount of items that we can carry and split them up evenly, then we'll all be good for assaulting that Ice Temple."

"So you basically lied to them."

"Not at all. We need foodstuffs and everything that Regal said, but we'll just split it all up evenly."

"Great. So where are these stores anyway?"

"I don't know. Do you, Wondergirl?"

"I do not. Perhaps we should ask one of the locals where...."

They passed a little girl next to a cart. She spoke sweetly to them. "Hi, would you like some fresh veggies? This is the only place you'll find them in town!"

The pilots looked towards the child as she pulled off the cover of her wagon. It was filled with different varieties of produce and a few select spices and meats. Shinji and Asuka fell over. "I believe we have found what we were looking for, Pilot Soryu."

She got up and rubbed her head. "I can see that. Sure we'd like some, little girl. What do you have?"

"Yay! My first customer of the day! We've got some delicious imported strawberries, some in-home grown cabbage, oh and these beef strips are divine! We also have...."

Shinji smiled as he looked into the bag. They practically bought out the entire cart and still had half of their money. Asuka waved goodbye to the little shopping girl. She waved and called out to them. "Thanks, nice people! Stop by again! Don't forget that the Goods shop is right in the center of town! See ya! Bye bye!"

They turned and walked into the center of town. "Well she was rather nice!" Asuka smiled.

"Will these ingredients be satisfactory, Ikari?" Rei asked the boy.

"No problem. I could probably make 50 dishes out of this stuff right here. Combined with the rest back at the hotel, we're talking 100 meals."

"Perfect! I just love your cooking anyway!" Asuka accidentally put a lot of emphasis on "love" and immediately regretted it. Shinji turned to look towards her in surprise. "Um, that is to say...." She put on her annoyed face. "Your food is palletable. Just don't make the same thing every day like you normally do. It loses its flavor after a while."

"Um...okay. Shouldn't be a problem with everything we've got." Shinji continued to walk on.

"Clueless idiot." Asuka said below her breath.

"Ikari, Soryu. I believe this is the Goods Store." She stood at the entrance to a wooden building.

Asuka looked up at the sign hanging over the door. It was in the shape of a bottle and had the words "Goods Store" written on it. She rolled her eyes at Rei. "You're good." They went inside.

Zelos dived onto his bed. "Aw yeah! This place rocks! It reminds me of home! The bed, the decoration, even the smell reminds me of my mansion!"

The entire crew was in the men's bedroom, relaxing and talking. "This is a rather high quality hotel. I am quite impressed." Regal smiled and rubbed his chin.

Sheena smiled softly as she put up her injured legs. "I'm not surprised. This is one of the greatest tourist spots on Tethe'-alla. It's a really beautiful place, especially when it snows at night. I remember the last day I was here, finally allowed to leave, I went to the outlook near the Martel Cathedral during the night. It was snowing and it...was...so...so..." A tear ran down her cheek. "I never thought I'd see this place again. Now here I am."

'Woah, Sheena's crying?' Lloyd thought. "I'm sorry Sheena. If I had known that this place would have stirred so many memories, we would have stayed somewhere else."

"No, it's okay. Thanks for bringing me here. Though many of the memories of this place I hate, there are a few good things too. Now that I have all of you with me, I can create brand new memories. I mean look at all the stuff that's happened to us so far! Fighting Cruxius, subduing Volt, getting the other summon spirits, it's all exciting, and to be honest a bit fun! And now with our new friends, the Earthlings...."

"Speaking of which, I have noticed that Rei, Asuka, and Shinji have not returned." Presea interrupted.

Genis looked towards her. "That's true. I hope they didn't get lost. Think we should look for them?"

Suddenly they heard a sneeze from the other side of the door. It opened revealing Rei and Asuka carrying bags, and Shinji rubbing his nose. "Okay, who's been talking about me?" He said and smiled slightly.

"Oh good, there you are. We were worried that we had to go and find you." Raine spoke.

Asuka and Rei dropped their bags on a bed. "Nah, we were ok. It just took us a while to find everything we needed." The redhead smirked. "Oh, here's the change, Regal." She walked over to the burly man and handed over the money in her pockets.

He looked down at the amount. "Only 2,500 Gald? I thought you'd have more left over than this!"

"You wouldn't believe the prices on some of the stuff around here. 22,700 Gald for a Black Onyx charm? No thanks! Even the regular items seemed rather highly priced. This city is a damned tourist trap!"

"I see. Next time, I'll take shopping duties. I have a knack for negotiating prices." Regal smiled.

"Yeah. Sorry." Shinji rubbed the back of his head.

"We should get to sleep. It will be a long day tomorrow." Raine said as the girls turned towards the women's bedroom.

"Yeah. I suppose it will be. Goodnight everyone. Get some rest for once in your life, Shinj-idiot."

"Ja vol, mein furor." Shinji grumbled.

Asuka ran up to him and hit him in the back of the head hard. "Say that again and I'll send you to Germany with my fist!" She turned around and stormed out of the room. Once outside she smiled. 'Now how did he learn that?'

Inside, Shinji was rubbing the back of his head. "Ouch!"

"You want an Apple Gel, Shinji? That one looked like it took a lot out of you." Genis pulled one out of the pack.

"No thanks, I'm used to it. But I really thought she'd like that joke. I guess she hates Hitler pretty badly."

"Who's Hitler?" Zelos asked.

"Basically he was a radical leader who caused the second of Earth's three greatest wars."

"Oh."

"Still that's quite a bump on your head, Shinji!" Lloyd chuckled.

"I'll be fine by tomorrow. Hey, you don't happen to have anything to write with, do you? I should write down not to say that line around her anymore."

"You keep a list?" Regal asked.

"If I did, you'd have to fell and entire forest just to make enough paper. This is just for the big ones."

"I have something." Regal pulled a pen out of his shackles. "I expect that back, it's one of my favorites."

"No problem there. You'll get it tomorrow morning. Until then, goodnight everyone."

"Gnight."

"Night."

"Yawn Night."

Shinji opened his eyes. 'It has to be around midnight now.' He stood up and placed the pen and paper by Lloyd's bag. 'I hope they get this.' Shinji searched through Lloyd's bag and found the item he was looking for. 'Sorry, Lloyd.' He then took up his own bag and quietly opened the door. 'Asuka better be right about this.' He blocked the light so Genis wouldn't get it in the eye and slipped into the hallway. The two other pilots were already outside, with their own packs on their backs. Asuka was tapping her foot menacingly. "I'm late aren't I?" Shinji whispered.

"Yes you are. Did you leave the note?"

"Yes."

"What about the ring? Did you get the Sorcerer's Ring?"

Shinji held out his hand, and in it was the Ring. "Yeah. I still feel bad about taking it."

"Heh. It's necessary. You explained it all in the note, right? Then put it on and let's go." She held out her hand to him.

"Um..." He blinked.

"Well? Put it on me!"

"Should I get down on one knee too?"

Asuka's face went Tomato Red and a vein popped out of her forehead. "IDI..."

Shinji's hand clamped over her mouth. "Shush! You'll get us caught! You want it so bad? Then you can put it on." He shoved the ring into her palm. He jumped backwards to avoid the repercussions of holding her mouth.

To his surprise, Asuka only muttered and slid the ring on. The three quietly exited the hotel, and soon, the city.

Lloyd was shaken out of bed and pushed to the floor. "Ugh!" He grunted as he hit.

"Lloyd! Lloyd get up!" A young voice said.

"Ungh. Wha?" Lloyd blinked as his eyes focused on Genis, who was hovering over him.

"Lloyd! The Earth travelers are gone!"

"What? Gone?!" He sat up straight. Apparently everyone had gathered in his room. "What time is it?"

"A couple of hours after dawn. I woke up first and saw Rei's and Asuka's beds empty." Raine spoke with worry in her voice.

"Shinji's gone too!" Genis was panicking.

"That's not all. It seems they have taken just under half of our necessary items." Regal said, examining his pack. "Although I can't be sure without checking yours as well, Lloyd."

Lloyd picked up his pack, which was sitting right next to him and opened it up. "Yep, looks like half my stuff is missing too. At least..." He shuffled the contents, then again, faster and faster. "He took it! He took the Sorcerer's Ring!" Lloyd stood up quickly, and a sheet of paper fell off of his back to the floor. "We have to go after them! Do we still have the Riehards?"

"Got them right here, along with the EC and those weird plug thingies." Zelos held up the Wing Pack.

"Good, then we can catch up with them! They must've been the traitors!" Lloyd gripped his fists tightly.

"Lloyd, calm down. That doesn't make sense!" Collette spoke up.

"She's right." Sheena folded her arms. "First off, why take only half of our supplies when they could have taken them all?"

"Second, why would they leave us with a mode of transportation that we could easily follow them with?" Raine nodded.

"Third, why would they leave their Entry Plugs with us when they said it was necessary for them to have them?" Zelos got out of his bed.

"And fourth, why would they leave this note?" Presea picked up the paper from the floor.

"Let me see that." Lloyd took the note from Presea. "Dear Lloyd and Friends...,"

Dear Lloyd and Friends,

I hope we didn't scare you all with our sudden disappearance. We heard what Kratos said, and we feel that you still can't trust us, so we're going to change all that. We're going to clear the way for you in the Temple of Ice. We'll take out the traps and unlock the doors for you. That's why we took the Sorcerer's Ring. It seems to be the key to unlocking all these dungeons that you've been to.

If you've noticed, we've taken half of the supplies, but that's so we can work better on our journey. Even so, we don't have enough stuff, so we'll use the extra money that Asuka failed to give to you to get the rest when the stores open. We'll meet you at the Ice Temple. Asuka, Rei, and I hope this will be enough to earn your trust.

Goodbye for now,

Shinji Ikari.

"Dammit! Those idiots don't know what they're in for!" Lloyd slammed his fist into the bed.

"We have to stop them before they get too far." Sheena balled her fists.

"Wait, there is still a chance we can catch them. The stores just opened. If we hurry, maybe we can find them at the shopping section." Raine said.

"Then what are we standing around here for? Grab your gear and let's move!" Zelos jumped up and slung his stuff over his shoulder. Everyone followed suit, and soon they were checked out for the day.

"Everyone split up and cover the city. Ask anyone and everyone if they've seen them. Ask twice if you have to. Let's go!" Lloyd cried. The crew split up. "Dammit! Why'd they have to go and think that they needed to earn my trust? They already had it!"

Shinji and the girls arrived at the entrance to the Temple. They went inside. There were a few icy stalagmites around the entrance. Some Penguinists, Ice Spiders, and two other unknown creatures were guarding the entrance to the cave itself.

"So, you think they know yet?" Asuka smiled.

"That is most probable." Rei answered.

"Then we should hurry, or else they might fly the Riehards over here and find us before we're finished."

"Don't worry about that, Asuka. I bought us some time. I wrote that we were going shopping for extra stuff when the stores opened. They'll be scouring the city for a while."

"Hmm, not bad Third Child, not bad." Asuka smiled back at Shinji, and he turned red. "Now, let's plow the road." She walked into a bird's vicinity. BATTLE SCREEN!

Genis found an old lady standing on the side of a pathway. "Excuse me, ma'am!"

"Oh my, you seem to be in quite a rush young man. What's the hurry?"

"I'm looking for my friends. They've gone missing! Have you seen them? One's a really quiet girl with my color hair."

"I haven't seen anyone with hair like yours before."

"Ok, so you haven't seen Rei. How about Asuka? She's a real loudmouth with golden-red hair."

"Mind your manners, son. I'm sure she wouldn't want you talking about her like that. Unfortunately, no I haven't seen her either."

"Great, just great! Okay, last try. Shinji's a depressed looking guy with brownish-black hair."

"I'm so sorry. I haven't seen any of them."

"Perfect! JUST PERFECT!"

"It's okay. Calm down. I'm sure you'll find them eventually. There's probably someone around that has seen them. Don't give up."

"Thanks. Gotta go!"

Shinji, Asuka, and Rei vs. Ice Warrior, Feather Magic, and Ice Spider.

Shinji opened the battle. "This'll have to be done quickly." He targeted an Ice Spider. A left swipe, a right swipe, and a forward slap from his cards electrify the target. "Seal Barrage!" The creature gets hit by five more inscribed cards.

Asuka raised her sword and charged a red ring. Rei pulled a Magic Lens out of her pocket. "Activate." The Ice Warrior was scanned.

4320/4320 HP

0/0 TP

AA: Ice

Weak: Fire, Lightning

Str: Water, Ice

Soon, Rei was in a holy charge. Asuka finished her spell. "Who wanted the extra crispy?! Flaming Drive!" Flames erupted from where she struck the ground, straight towards the Feather Magic, but it also caught the Ice Spider off guard.

Shinji got a few more melee hits in before the spider crouched down and guarded. "Teleport Seal!" He raised an inscription card to the sky, and he was instantly behind the spider in a puff of smoke. Unfortunately so was the Feather Magic. It turned towards him and flapped its wings. The wind creature created a whirlwind ball that Shinji was unable to protect himself from. "Agh, agh, aaaaahhh!" The final hit was critical damage. "That was stupid of me."

Asuka charged the Feather Magic and leapt into the air. She cut upwards with her sandy sword and thrust into the creature's chest, knocking it to the ground. "It looks like you don't like that!" She watched Shinji vanquish his eight-legged opponent with a Life Seal. The Ice Warrior took a large swipe at her that knocked her to the ground, but she flipped onto her feet before she stopped sliding. "That thing is strong! Ayanami, stop your spell. We need you to cover that Feather Magic. It's weak against Earth. Shinji, stay behind that Ice Warrior! It's too powerful to face head on. It's weak against your cards, so approach it like that." Asuka retreated a distance from both monsters and charged another red ring.

Shinji slapped the Feather Magic, but the damage was minimal. "Wrong choice then?" He switched targets and aimed for the back of the Ice Warrior. It turned around at the last second. "Woah! Seal Wall!" A green and yellow barrier of cards surrounded him as the Ice Warrior pulled its sword back. Light blue circles encompassed the blade as Shinji's defense faded. "Huh?" The creature let loose its icy fury. Shinji took heavy damage and was flung on his back. He was slow getting up, blinking red.

"Shinji! Ayanami, hurry up!" Asuka called, seeing the spectacle.

Rei continued charging her brown ring. "Almost there."

"Fine!" Asuka dropped her spellcasting and reached into her pocket. She threw an Apple Gel over to Shinji. "Try this, idiot!" Then she resumed her spell, only to have it broken by the feathery shots of the Feather Magic. She charged the opponent, slicing more damage into it, bringing it to surface level.

Rei finished her spell and called it out. "Quake." The ground swallowed the Feather Magic and spit it back up again with rocks in its wake. Asuka continued to slash it until it was no more. She jumped back and charged red again.

Shinji got up and ran towards the Ice Warrior. It tried to take a short swipe, but the boy dodged it. It pulled its sword back again, and Shinji took the opportunity. "Teleport Seal!" He was behind the creature, and he instantly set upon eliminating it. Two melee attacks later he defibrillated the creature. "Shock Seal!" It sent the seemingly invincible creature into a dizzy fit. Shinji took full advantage of it and got in two more behind the back attacks along with an electrifying Barrage Seal.

Asuka finished her charge. "Fried ice anyone? Flaming Drive!" The Ice Warrior was toast. The battle ended with a grab of some Blue Quartz. "My wrath is unparalleled!"

"In and out of battle." Shinji muttered.

"What was that, Third Child?!"

"Ow! Cut that out!" Shinji slapped together a Sandwich.

Zelos walked up to a young man who was pacing. "Yo bro. Can I ask you something?"

"Hmm? Yeah, sure."

"I'm looking for three people that were traveling with me. I wondering if you saw them."

"Hmm? Sure, I'll try. What do they look like?"

"The boy of the party looks like a stick with brown hair. The other two are real beautiful girls. One has a pale-blue mop on her head, and the other has a lighter color red than mine."

"Hmm? Blue? Red? You're the only person I've met with red hair. And I'll be honest, I haven't really been paying attention to people around me. I've been trying to figure out why my girlfriend didn't like the gift I got her."

"Oh? What'd you get her?"

"A Bigfoot Claw."

"Dude, that's a gift for guys. Get her a charm bracelet or something, something that reflects her character."

"Oh. Now that I think about it that was pretty stupid huh? Thanks. And sorry I haven't seen anyone you're looking out."

"Don't worry. I'm sure someone has."

Shinji, Rei, and Asuka vs. 2 Ice Spider, 1 Penguinist.

Asuka started the battle off as she charged headlong. "Bring them to their knees!" Shinji followed her lead as Rei began a holy charge. Asuka jumped into a cloud and dived into the Penguinist from another. "Falcon Warp!"

An Ice Spider decided to crawl towards Rei, but Shinji took up blocking position. He slapped the creature three times and then electrified it. "Shock Seal!" It became paralyzed. The second spider turned on the boy and spit a web net over him. It did damage and slowed his movements.

The Penguinist chucked snowballs at Asuka, but she just batted them down with her sword. She dug her sword into to the snow and created a shockwave. After it hit the creature three times she dug her sword into it for a fourth hit. The Penguinist was no more. She turned towards an Ice Spider and began to charge a blue ring.

Shinji was caught between the alternating mandibles of two Ice Spiders, each taking turns nipping at his legs, not giving him time to attack. Rei finished her chant. "As the sun governs the day, you hold the night. Lend me your power to protect those I care for most! Crescent Cage!" The world turned black around the participants in the battle. Shinji's defensive abilities were raised as a crescent moon appeared under his feet. The Ice Spiders were enveloped in darkness.

Asuka took matters into her own hands. "Frozen treats! Chilling Drive!" An icy blast erupted from the ground in front of her and it hurtled towards the enemies. It hit the second Ice Spider as both continued to get pummeled by the dark sphere. "Hate that don't ya?"

The first Ice Spider disintegrated in the cage, while the second was tossed out of it at Rei's feet as the world returned to normal. With one swing of her kendama, the creature was to never get up again. Rei finished off the battle while getting a Penguinist Quill for their troubles. "Operation complete. Mission result is total success."

Another Shinwich (that's Shinji Sandwich) and they were on their way again.

Sheena entered a weapons shop and talked to the man at the front counter. "Excuse me sir."

"Yo, how can I help you?"

"I'm looking for three people. I was wondering if anyone by the name of Shinji, Asuka, or Rei came in here."

"No one by those names came in here. But I did see some flashes of odd colored hair go by my window."

"What?! That could be them! When was this?!"

"Last night, right after sundown."

"Dammit. That was when they went shopping for food."

"Sorry I couldn't be of service. I'd offer you a charm, but I don't have my customization store open yet."

"Thanks anyway. I've got to go."

"Don't give up!"

The three pilots entered the cave. They heard some water dripping in the distance. Asuka stepped forward. "Huh, for a temple this doesn't look like much."

"Hey, Asuka, look at this!" Shinji pointed to a large metal bowl with a glowing light inside of it. "Raine told me about these things. They're supposed to switch the properties of the Sorcerer's Ring."

Asuka walked up to it and dropped the ring into the ball of light. "Then let's try it out." She pulled it out again. "Wow, it's cold."

"It is most likely that it can freeze anything instantly." Rei observed.

"Good, then let's test it on you."

"Asuka!" Shinji defended.

"Forget it, you're a block of ice as it is already. Let's go."

They continued up a small rocky path and they ran into a Penguinist horde. BATTLE SCREEN!

Something caught Raine's eye, and she ran into an open area of the plaza. "Amazing!" She smiled widely as she stared at the three ice sculptures in the center of the area.

A man walked up to her. "The ice sculptures are incredibly beautiful this year."

"Astounding. Who were the craftsmen?"

"No one knows. They just appear during the night once a year with three huge ice blocks and start cutting."

"What are these sculptures of?"

"The one on the left is entitled 'Pac-Man.'"

"Strange spherical creature."

"The middle one is of the Wonder Chef."

"What accurate detail! They even made the fork evenly spaced."

"And the right one is of the monster 'Bigfoot.'"

"A what?"

"A what?" Asuka blinked at Rei.

"The Monster List identifies it as a Bigfoot."

"Looks worse than my uncle's sheepdog. Let's go!"

Shinji, Rei, and Asuka vs. 2 Penguinists and a Bigfoot. Shinji started it off this time. "They aren't getting any prettier." He reached into his pocket and raised a Magic Lens to the sky. "Go!" The Bigfoot was scanned.

6120/6120 HP

38/38 TP

AA: Ice

Weak: Fire

Str: Ice

Rei charged a holy spell while Asuka jumped into the air and targeted the Penguinist on the left. "Falcon Warp!" She was upon the Penguinist in less than a second.

Shinji aimed for the other Penguinist, but it slid on its stomach at him. He flinched as it hit him. The Penguinist got up and Shinji slapped it a few times with his cards. "Seal Barrage!" His shock therapy began to work. "Life Seal." He recovered some of the damage he lost from the hit.

The giant white and grey creature slowly stomped its way towards Rei. Asuka ignored that fact as she continued to hack at the Penguinist in front of her. She raised her blade above her head and an electric sphere developed on it. She brought it down on the enemy. "Rolling Thunder!" She turned and slashed normally four times. The Penguinist was gone.

Bigfoot came close enough to Rei to launch an attack. It stuck out its impossibly long tongue and licked her. Rei pulled out of her holy charge. "You disturbed me." She tried to move away, but she was unable to escape. Asuka ran up behind the creature as it sat down hard, creating a shockwave that knocked Asuka down while Rei recovered in midair.

Asuka got up slowly as the Bigfoot stood up and started to turn around. Asuka dug her blade into its side and it stopped turning as it flinched, its black eyes replaced by a giant X. "Rolling Thunder!" She brought her charged blade down upon the creature. "Ayanami, what's taking you so long? Use your abilities!"

"Something...is wrong." Rei blinked.

The man by the sculptures explained. "A Bigfoot is a strong creature is around this area. It is very dangerous. Somehow its tongue can lock the abilities of whoever it licks, that is if it doesn't make that person dizzy."

"So this creature's tongue can Stun or Curse an opponent. Is there any cure?" Raine asked.

"A magic healer can cure it, but so can a Panacea Bottle."

"I'll have to remember that."

Shinji's Ice Spider guarded. "Teleport Seal!" He broke the enemy's guard with two swipes, and defibrillated it. "Shock Seal!" The creature was no more. He turned towards the Bigfoot as it slammed a paw on top of Asuka. "Asuka! Ayanami help her!"

"I cannot use my abilities. This creature has done something to me."

"You'd better do something or I'll end up under this things stinky ass!" Asuka growled as she pushed the paw away. "Shinji, draw it away!"

Shinji dove for the creature. He slapped it twice and drew some TP with a third slap. "Drain Seal!" The creature opened its mouth towards him. "Woah! Teleport Seal!" He appeared behind it and the tongue licked air. "That was close!" He pushed it away slightly with a Seal Barrage. Rei was able to escape.

"Keep it up, Third Child!" Asuka said as she jumped backwards and charged her red ring. "Fried ice anyone? Flaming Drive!" A pillar of lava blew towards Bigfoot while Shinji continued hitting it. The attack did extensive damage and the creature disappeared.

The battle ended, and Asuka finished the thought. "What's with you today, Ayanami?"

"Unknown."

Shinji created a Rice Ball.

Shinji walked up the pathway a little farther, until he got a good view of the entrance. Something sparkled and he looked up. Asuka turned towards Rei. "Okay, Ayanami, what the hell is wrong with you?"

"That creature must have done something to me. I cannot call upon my magical or holy powers."

"So fix it."

"I do not know how."

"Well we can't go into battle with you just swinging that toy around. Let's see if some of the items will work." She and Rei dug into the pack. When Rei's hand brushed up against a blue bottle, it glowed. The blue-haired Chosen raised the pulsating bottle. "Isn't that a Panacea Bottle?"

"I believe so. Does this not cure physical ailments?"

"Yeah, I think that's what the vendor said. Drink up!"

Rei thinks differently of it for a moment, but finally gives in. She pops the cork and downs the potion. "I believe the taste is similar to one of blueberries."

"Like I care about that. Can you use magic yet?"

A white ring encircled the Chosen. "Let me test it. Double First Aid!" Shinji and Asuka recovered HP.

"Yeah, you're back to normal." She gets up and slings the pack over her shoulder. "Let's go!" She noticed a certain stick-boy missing from the pack and turned around to find Shinji staring at an outcropping above. "What's so fascinating, Shinj-idiot?"

"What?" He snapped out of his trance, "Oh well, there's something up there. It looks like a flower, but made out of what looks like metal. Think we should take a look at it?"

"Why not? We need to explore this place before the others get here, so why not start with that flower? It looks like there's a cave entrance up there. Let's head up."

They continued on the path until it split into a fork. There a wildcat pranced around. Asuka smiled at it. "Aw, a kitty. How cute!" It took notice of them and charged straight at them. Another cat appeared next to it, and as they got closer, the pilots realized that these weren't cats, and they weren't cute. BATTLE SCREEN!

A realization washed over Raine's face. "Oh, that's right! Have you seen three children around this area named Shinji, Asuka, and Rei? I'm trying to find them. They're around fourteen years of age and have a foreign accent."

"No one has come by this area with that description ma'am, but then again, I haven't been here for very long this morning."

"Very well. I must move on then. Hopefully I'll return next year for the new sculptures."

"I hope you find what you're looking for."

Shinji, Asuka, and Rei versus 2 Lobo.

All three pilots stayed away from the giant blue-gray wolves. "We're not gonna like this!" Shinji said. He pulled out a Magic Lens. "Activate."

7800/7800 HP

260/260 TP

AA: Ice

Weak: Fire, Lightning

Str: Water, Ice

"Stay on your toes!" Asuka cried as she charged up her red circle. Rei charged a holy spell, and Shinji waited for one of the creatures to make the first move. The first one did as it slowly stomped towards the group. Shinji decided to charge the enemy, and he dodged as one of its front paws jabbed out against him. "Fried ice! Flaming Drive!" Asuka targeted the second Lobo and soon it was enveloped by fire.

Shinji swiped his cards at the wolf, but it was so tall that he missed half the time. He jumped up and attacked with two simultaneous cards. "Shock Seal!" The giant creature flinched. "I'd say that's a weakness." The boy landed right as the creatures jaws lashed out towards him. Shinji was damaged by the attack three times and was sent onto his back. He blinked red as he slowly got up.

Asuka aimed at the first Lobo and charged. She cut upwards into its hairy chest, then jump-slashed, and finally speared it in the nose. She lifted her blade up high and it charged with electricity. "Rolling Thunder!" She swiped her sword down and the Lobo took four hits of electrical damage.

Shinji decided to join the fight and turned towards the first Lobo. After a melee hit he used Shock Seal and it went to its knees. The second Lobo chose him as a target and moved behind him as he battled beside Asuka. It raised its head up to the sky and an icy wind surrounded the giant wolf. Both Shinji and Asuka were blown sky high. Asuka hit the floor while Shinji recovered in midair.

Rei finished charging her spell as the first Lobo began to bite Asuka. "Cleansing light. Solar Flare!" Three spotlights formed around the second Lobo. The first spotlight came into contact with the first Lobo, and a small fiery blast made it disappear permanently. The spotlight also disappeared. The final two converged on the second Lobo and a larger blast erupted from the light.

The second Lobo recovered as Asuka got up. She began another mystical red charge. Shinji jumped towards the creature as a large paw shot towards him, knocking him down again. "This is getting chaotic!" He got up as the Lobo attempted to bite him. "Teleport Seal!"

Asuka brought her blade down. "Fried ice. Flaming Drive!" Asuka's attack stopped the Lobo in mid-turn, keeping it from going after Shinji.

The boy teleported again and swiped three of his cards at the creature. "Seal Barrage!" He vanquished the creature that gave him so much trouble. Even so, they did not receive any items for their battle. Shinji knelt down with his hands on the ground panting. "What kind of evil are those things?"

Collette entered a charm and jewelry shop. She came across an old man. "Hello sir."

"Greetings young lady. Have you per chance heard of Penguinist Gloves? They're quite a good item to have, and nice and warm. You look like you would benefit from such a pair, with those pale slender hands of yours. If you can bring me three Penguinist Quills, I'll make a pair for you."

"Oh, well I'm afraid I don't have any Penguinist Quills on me. I'm actually on a mission to find my friends. Have you seen any girls dressed like me this morning?"

"I haven't been here for less than five minutes I'm afraid. Ask the merchant woman over there."

"Thank you sir. I'll be sure to find those Quills." She went in search of the clerk.

The pilots made it to the upper exit of the cave. There, they took a break. All three ate some refreshing Gels, and restored themselves. They looked around and noticed a small passage, guarded by a group of insects. They walked towards them. BATTLE SCREEN!

Shinji, Asuka, and Rei vs. 2 Ice Spider

Asuka started off the battle. "Is this supposed to scare me or something?" She jumped into a bank of clouds and dived into the first Ice Spider. "Falcon Warp!" She turned her attention towards the second spider, and began to slash it up.

Rei began to charge a brown spell as Shinji drove forward. When Asuka's strike made the first Ice Spider jump, he took advantage and began a relentless assault. Two left swipes, one right, and a Seal Barrage of five straight to the face. It began to guard itself, and Shinji just kept pounding it over and over again.

Asuka's spider guarded as well. She raised her blade up in the air. "Rolling..." The spider lowered its guard and shot a web in her face. "Agh!" The attack never completed. She swung at it madly, but it guarded again.

Rei took care of the rest. "Earthen powers awaken. Quake." The ground opened up under Asuka's spider and it dropped down. The crack spread out in between Shinji's spider's legs, but it slammed shut, spitting rocks and Asuka's spider upwards. Both spiders disappeared in a puff of black smoke. Asuka picked up a Blue Quartz as Rei closed the battle. "Such pathetic battles are meaningless."

Collette found the merchant woman in the charm shop. "Excuse me ma'am."

"Oh hello. Welcome. How can I help you?"

"I'm looking for three people I'm supposed to be traveling with. Two of them were wearing similar clothes to mine. Have you seen anyone like that?"

"Did one have pale blue and the other have golden-red hair?" The lady sneered.

"Yes, that's them? Were they here? When was it?"

"That red-haired girl was a real annoyance in my shop! Calling my store a rip off just because I sell rare Black Onyxes at the advertised price. They came through last night and scared off half of my customers."

"I'm sorry she caused you so much trouble. But they didn't come here this morning?"

"Thankfully no."

"Darn. Okay, thanks for your help."

The piloting crew found themselves facing a large crevice in the path. Shinji blinked as he thought aloud. "Can we jump it?"

"Inadvisable. We would not be able to get a good hold on the opposite side, and also that large icicle will not allow us the correct height necessary." Rei analyzed.

"Stupid icicle, dripping water all over the place. It probably created this ditch in the first place." Asuka grumbled.

"Dripping water? Hey, that's it Asuka! Use the Sorcerer's Ring. Freeze the water!"

"Would that work?"

"Well it couldn't hurt, could it?"

"That's a good point. Let's try it." Asuka pointed the ring at the droplets falling from the icicle. She squeezed the ring and a puff of cold white air came out of the center. It made contact with a water droplet in midair. More droplets collected and froze together, more and more until cube of ice was formed in the air. It dropped into the crevice, creating a bridge. "Well, what do you know? It worked!"

"That does not make sense. How could ice droplets create anything more than a ball of ice? Unless formed in a container, ice will freeze spherically in midair." Rei was genuinely confused.

"How can a ring freeze water? It doesn't matter as long as it works. The ring is magic, so maybe it likes making things cubic instead of spherical."

"Let's not dwell on it and keep moving what say?" Shinji finally broke up the conversation. They crossed and rounded a corner, sloping downwards. On that corner was a bird. They walked into it. BATTLE SCREEN!

Presea went all the way up to the Church of Martel. She entered and looked around with a slightly desperate look on her face. The pastor came up to her. "Dear child, you seem to be troubled. Is there something the Goddess Martel and her servants can help you with?"

"Pastor, three important members of my group have disappeared. I must find them before any harm is done to them."

"Oh my. Come with me dear girl, and I shall gather the attendants. We shall pray to Martel for their return." He turned towards his followers and started to walk towards the benches.

"My apologies, Pastor, but I cannot stay to do so. Every moment that I waste decreases the likelihood that I shall find them. I must continue my search. Farewell."

"We shall pray for your journey, dear child. Fare thee well."

Shinji, Asuka, and Rei vs. 2 Feather Magic and 1 Ice Warrior.

Shinji started off the game as he charged the Ice Warrior. "Stay sharp everyone."

Asuka raised a Magic Lens to the sky before she charged her red ring. "Hmph!" The Feather Magic was scanned.

3580/3580 HP

68/68 TP

Weak: Earth

Str: Wind, Lightning

Rei began to charge up a holy spell as Asuka finished hers. "Who ordered extra crispy? Flaming Drive!" The Ice Warrior was enveloped by a flaming pillar, but it managed to swipe Shinji with its very cold sword. Asuka charged the first Feather Magic.

The boy recovered in midair and landed next to the creature again. He slapped two cards on the Warrior's red eyeball and cried out "Shock Seal!" The creature was electrified and it was sent to the snowy floor. Shinji still continued to pound it and pound it, and pound it again. Even though the damage was halved, the Ice Warrior disappeared before it could launch an attack. Shinji took no notice as the second Feather Magic flapped up behind him. It shot some sharp feathers into his back. "Grah!" He grunted as his guard was broken. "That really hurt."

Asuka jumped high into the air and slashed down on the creature. She lifted her blade up as a normal one, but swiped down with an electrified one. "Rolling Thunder!" The Feather Magic didn't even flinch. "Oh crap." She decided to attack hand to hand again, and it did some more powerful damage.

Rei chanted her prayer. "As the sun governs the day, you hold the night. Lend me your power to protect those I care for most! Crescent Cage!" A white crescent moon appeared beneath Shinji's feet, raising his defensive status. The Feather Magic he was fighting became enveloped in a dark sphere, getting hit three times, then shot out for a fourth hit on landing.

Shinji attempted to fell the Feather Magic, but his attacks were reduced to 1 HP a hit while the creature blinked red. "Oops. Bad choice?" Shinji made a tactical retreat and Rei stepped up to the creature. She swung her kendama at it twice and it was destroyed.

Asuka took three more swipes at her own Feather Magic, and the winged beast was taken down permanently. She took to closing the battle. "Did you really think you could kill an Angel killer?"

Lloyd was stressed and annoyed as he ran through the town. "Damn! I've looked practically everywhere and still there's no sign of them!"

His mad dash attracted the attention of one man with a backpack. "Excuse me there!"

Lloyd slid to a halt. "What is it?"

"Do you by chance have any Celsius Tear?"

"Celsius Tear? What's that?"

"A Celsius Tear is a rare..."

Shinji and company followed the path down to another cave entrance. They walked into the cave, where there was only a small rock overhang overlooking the larger cave. At the very edge of it was a metallic blue flower.

"Is this what you saw, Ikari?" Rei asked.

"It has to be. It's the only thing around here. The metallic shine must have caught my eye."

"Okay then. What is it?" Asuka asked.

---A Celsius Tear is a rare type of flower that only grows in dark and very cold conditions.---

"It appears to be some type of flower, Pilot Soryu."

"I know that already, Wondergirl!"

---But it's very dangerous. They say that it can freeze absolutely anything.---

"Maybe we should take it with us? I bet Professor Raine could identify it." Shinji smiled.

"That's a good idea. You actually came up with something useful today, Shinji!" Asuka grinned. "Go ahead and pluck it."

---You should only touch it with Penguinist Gloves.---

"Why do I have to pick it?"

"Because it was your idea."

Shinji grumbled. "Fine." He slowly reached his hands towards the plant.

---Without them, the plant will freeze your skin until it burns.---

He grasped the stem of the plant with both hands. He let out a howling scream. Asuka forcibly separated his hands. "Shinji! Shinji! Are you all right?"

The child looked down at his hands. They were bleeding at the palms and blistering at the fingers. He didn't respond as he stared at his injuries.

"Oh my God! Look how much you're bleeding! We've got to get you to town!" Shinji didn't respond, and continued to stare at his hands. "You're in shock! What the hell is that demonic thing?" She wrapped her arm under the boy's arms and lifted him up. "Come on! We've got to get out of here!"

"Wow, a Celsius Tear is that dangerous?" Lloyd asked.

"Yes. And that's why it's so rare. I'm a collector of flowers. If you find some Celsius Tear, I would gladly buy it from you."

"I'll keep that in mind. Hey, you wouldn't happen to have seen three children

walk past here? Two girls with matching clothes and a boy that was dressed like me?"

"Did one of them have strangely blue-colored hair?"

"Yes! That was Rei! Where'd you see them? When?"

"I saw them heading towards the city limits at first light."

"First light?! That was a few hours ago! Crap!" Lloyd dashed off to the front of the Inn to meet the others.

"Ayanami, how are we going to get past that thing?" Outside of the cave, the pilots had their backs against a wall, spying a birdlike creature around the corner.

"It will instantly notice us if we attempt to walk around it."

Shinji shivered. "So...cold."

"That's it! Shinji, you are a genius sometimes!" Asuka grinned at the boy, but he made no response. "We'll use the Sorcerer's Ring and freeze it! Even if only for a moment, we can slip by. Rei, you lure it over here and I'll chill it."

"You are aware that if this fails, then we will be in great danger."

"If we don't get Shinji out of here, then he'll be in more danger. Do it!" She gripped the shuddering pilot tighter.

"Understood." Rei scooped up some snow and formed it into a ball. She then took aim at the bird as she stepped out of their cover. The icy projectile hit its right wing and it turned around and dove towards her.

Asuka sat Shinji down. "Don't die on me." She jumped out between the bird and Rei and squeezed the ring on her finger. "Hrah!" The bird stopped moving forward and turned blue. Upon seeing the result, she lifted Shinji up again. "Let's go." They ran past the bird.

The group reassembled in front of the inn. Each of them shook their heads as Lloyd arrived asking, "Did anyone find them?" The swordsman grumbled. "I was afraid of this. Who has that note?"

"I do." Presea pulled it out of her hip pack.

"Let me see it, please." Lloyd took it out of her hands. "'Even so, we don't have enough stuff, so we'll use the extra money that Asuka failed to give to you to get the rest when the stores open.' Agh, I should have seen this coming! They had all the time they needed to grab supplies while they were out the first time. That's why they were so late! He put that line in there to get us to waste time in searching for them, and we fell for it. We've got to head out to the Ice Temple, now!"

The others nodded in agreement and they made their way towards the city limits.

Asuka carried Shinji over the ice bridge they made before, and froze an insect to get past it. She stared at the cave entrance. "Please don't tell me we have to dodge all the monsters in there just to get out of this pit."

"Pilot Soryu, there is another way." Rei stood in front of a solidified stream. Asuka dragged Shinji over to it. "This must lead to the solidified lake near the entrance. Perhaps we can slide down it."

"It's better than nothing! You go first."

"I shall." Rei jumped onto the ice and slid out of sight.

Asuka sat down on the beginning of the ice flow and brought the stunned boy into a tight grip on her lap. "Don't take this the wrong way, Third Child. Here we go!" She pushed off and grabbed a hold of the boy as they slid down. Upon hitting the bottom, they spiraled around. They hit the snow covered ground quickly and Asuka flopped on her back with Shinji on top of her, meeting eye to eye.

The red-head gasped as she looked deep into his eyes. They were completely glazed over. He spoke in a whisper to her. "Asuka...what am I touching? I can't feel anything...in my hands."

A tear rolled out of her eye. "Shinji!" She stood him up and held him close as she dragged him out of the way, after freezing another bird. She rested his hands on her arm. "Shinji, this is me you're touching. Hold on to me, hold on to that thought and stay strong. I'll get you some help."

"We must hurry." Rei ran up to them.

Asuka nodded as they exited to the field. They began to traverse the long distance to Flanoir, turning to avoid all the monsters that came by. A Stomper appeared to their right and charged them.

Lloyd ran out into the field. "Who knows what trouble they've gotten themselves into."

"Lloyd stop!" Sheena called out to him. "We'll take the Riehards!" She floated her machine in front of him. "Hop on! This will be quicker."

Lloyd mounted the craft and held her waist as they waited for the others to board their respective crafts. Once that was completed he raised his hand into the air. "Let's move!" They took off low to the ground.

The problem with Riehard flight is that you can't see monsters on the ground, but you can hear sounds. Regal straightened. "I just heard something. It sounded like screams, coming from directly below us."

"That could be them! Sheena, Zelos, Presea, Genis, continue on to the Ice Temple. If you don't find them, come back this way. Everyone else come with me." Lloyd jumped off of the back seat, followed by Regal, Raine, and Collette.

"This thing is huge! This is exactly what we don't need!" Asuka cried, holding Shinji in her arms. She stared up at a giant snow worm as it opened up its toothy mouth.

"This thing is called a Sliver." Rei pulled out a Magic Lens and scanned the creature.

12000/12000 HP

0/0 TP

Weak: Fire

Str: Water, Earth, Lightning, Ice, Dark

"We cannot defeat it as things stand now, Soryu. We must retreat."

"Right!" She hefted Shinji up. "Let's run for it."

Rei dashed away from the creature with Asuka and Shinji slowly following behind. The Sliver dove underground. Its body erupted from the snow, blocking Rei's path. "Impossible!" Asuka and Shinji reached near her vicinity as its head reared up to the left of her. It slammed into the blue-haired Chosen, tossing her away.

The shockwave knocked Asuka back and Shinji fell down. Asuka got up as fast as she could. "Rei!" The Sliver's gray-blue head reared up, and revealed Rei flat on her face. The menacing creature turned its attention towards the being directly in front of it, a young boy lying on the ground with his eyes open. It pulled its head back farther. "Oh God! Shinji!" Asuka got up and dived for the boy. She picked him up and tried to move him, but the creature launched its attack. A steady stream of icy air blasted her back. She ducked down and held the pilot close to shield him from the damage. "I'm not going to lose you, Shinj-idiot. You're one of the only ones I have left." The Sliver's power continued to beat on her back. "Aaaaaaahhhhhh!"

Rei pushed herself up, and her eyes locked on the scene in front of her. Asuka reared her head back and screamed in pain. Rei reached out a hand towards them. "Asuka! Shinji!" The creature stopped its attack, and Asuka slumped over the boy she was protecting. Both were unconscious. Rei got up to full height. "No. No!" She pulled out her Kendama from behind her back. "You will suffer for that! Hrrrraaahhh!"

She charged the beast head on, ready to swing its head at the worm, when a red flash slammed it in the side of the head, knocking it away from her. "Rising Falcon!"

A streak of blue and white came down directly on its head. "Eagle Fall!"

Four red balls with yellow spikes landed on it, and it was struck by lightning. "Torrential Para Ball!"

Lloyd, Regal, Raine, and Collette landed around Rei. The swordsman and leader turned towards her and smiled. He and the others drove towards the giant eyesore. Lloyd tapped his sword lightly at the creature. "Okay!" The Unison Attack started. He jabbed the creature rapidly. "Sonic Sword Rain!"

Regal swiped his legs at the creature three times. "Triple Kick!"

"Ray!" Raine created a ball of light in the air and its discharges struck the creature four times.

"Hammer Rain!" Collette launched her Pow Hammer into the air and it split into multiple hammers. Half of them struck the Sliver. "Lloyd!" She said as the two flashed white.

They both raised their hands to the sky and spoke in unison. "Stardust Rain!" Tens of five-point stars stormed from the sky, either hitting the evil worm directly or bouncing off the ground and hitting on the second chance. The Sliver disappeared.

Lloyd finished off the battle. "You made a big mistake attacking our friends."

Raine immediately ran for the two unconscious pilots, with the others not too far behind. The professor looked them over quickly and shook her head. The Riehards approached and Sheena called out. "We couldn't find them at the Temple of Ice! We did find some footprints that went away from the...oh great hammer of godly thunder!" She immediately landed the Riehard and jumped off. She took one look at them and she trembled. "G...get them on my Riehard! Hurry! I'll take them to the doctor in Flanoir!"

She was instantly up in the air and maxing out her speed. The others boarded the three remaining flying machines. "Sis, what happened to them?" Genis looked up towards his sibling, noting the tears she was shedding as they took off.

"They were almost taken...into the grip of the ice queen."