Agent Xond entered the dark hold with much less trepidation than his superiors, snatching a glowstick from its bracket and igniting it without pause. Ignoring the Ghidora's fantastic bulk, his sharp eyes fell immediately on the Keeper, who yelped and turned away from the offending light.

"Where's your sister?" Xond snapped.

"I don't know," the other replied defensively, shading his eyes, "I'm not her keeper!"

"I abhor puns. Now tell me where to find Xandra."

"Well could you turn that off? You're gonna disturb the big guy!"

"Hmph." They were again plunged into darkness. "I'm a busy man, Keeper. If you don't produce your sister very shortly, I could do something unpleasant."

"What," the Keeper was derisive. "Like leave your card and a message?"

"Who's here?" Xandra asked. Now, Xond had had nerves of steel even before he'd trained as a deep-cover agent on Earth, but her soft question emerged from the inky blackness practically right at his elbow. A combination of surprise that his sharp senses had been so easily overcome and the looming presence of Ghidora made him overreact just a tad.

"AUGHH!" the spy whirled, snapping the glowstick on with one hand and drawing his needle ray with the other. Xandra flinched, but otherwise didn't react when she found a weapon and a blazing light thrust in her face, gleaming eerily off of her coppery eyes.

"Again with the light!" the Keeper whined, shielding his face again.

When he saw that it was the girl, he turned the glowstick off and pocketed his gun again. "We need to talk."

"What…" she asked shakily, "Y-you're not going to apologize?"

"When our Prince visited the hold earlier, you mentioned something about an Earth Guardian to him?"

"Um, yes, but what…?"

"Because I already have forty men down there, and I would sure as hell like to know if there's anything endangering them!"

"Well, it's not… you see, it isn't…" Xandra looked at the ground. "I don't think it really… is… anything."

"Xolarus is going to make his announcement in two hours; it wouldn't be wise to make our move without knowing everything the Earthmen have to use against us, would it?"

"Well, no, but… did the Prince ask you to…?"

"Nope, it's called taking initiative. I'm a bit superstitious, you see, and I think you know more about this Guardian of yours than you've told our liege. Now hurry up and spill it, I still have to go down and bag him a bride!"

"Hold on a second!" Xandra had regained her balance. "I don't have to tell you anything if the Prince didn't order you here… and besides, it was just a dream! I probably couldn't remember everything if you put a gun to my head."

"Huh." Xond snappedthe needle-ray projector back to his hand and pressed its sharp snout into the bottom of her chin. She started to pull back, but a wiry hand gripping her shoulder put a stop to that. "Well, we'll see. Tell me everything."

At first, Kaori had been nervous to the pitch of terror about actually entering the abode of Ms. Sakaki, that shadowy realm of mystery and wonder. What would the home of a girl that was so cool and tough actually be like? She'd walked alongside her towering friend in a daze, not even attempting to make conversation. (Which, with Sakaki, worked out well enough.)

The first shock came when she was shown to Sakaki's room. The furnishings were soft and frilly, the lighting muted, the windows open to let a cool autumn breeze billow light curtains. Oh, but the feminine quality of her room was less of a surprise than the feline quality. Cats everywhere! Posters, models, plushies and even a few drawings that, while lacking in technical skill, showed that her heart had gone into them.

"W…whoa…" had been Kaori's first response. Then, to allay Sakaki's sudden embarrassment, "This… is great!"

"There isn't much to do here," Sakaki said apologetically, "Um, drink?"

"Huh? Oh! N-no, thanks."

They'd settled down to read, Sakaki lying on her stomach on the bed, Kaori sitting alongside against the side-table, paging through a magazine. As time passed, she realized with a sharp feeling of relief, very nearly disappointment, that there would be no test. She had never really approached Ms. Sakaki because she didn't consider herself worthy; what could small, timid, awkward Kaori do that could compare with her might?

But then… why should Sakaki demand that her friends be as incredible as she? Why, she'd be all alone! On that realization's heels came the slightly depressing feeling that she'd wasted all those years of High School… a simple "hey, wanna hang out?" might have changed her destiny forever! Ah, well. She was with Ms. Sakaki now, and that was enough.

For Sakaki's part, she was just relieved that her guest was content. Heck, content? Perhaps "rapturously happy" would have been a better description. Her friend must have been terribly lonely, especially after such a frightening event…

Over time, Kaori was filled with a strange feeling of peace and security, certain that nowhere on Earth was as safe as here with Sakaki. It was nearly two hours later when she finally spoke again. "Say, Ms. Sakaki?"

"Hm?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Have you ever been in lo-?" And then Kaori was interrupted by a doorbell. Of all the--! She bottled up her annoyance and followed her host to the door. Sakaki's parents were evidently also out; it was no wonder she'd been eager to have Kaori over.

"Hello, is Ms. Nanashi Sakaki in?" The visitor on their doorstep was a small, clean-cut man in a business suit and sunglasses. As soon as she saw him, Kaori felt ill at ease; was it his pasty complexion? Prematurely silver hair? The fact that he carried himself like a man who's packing? Perhaps it was just that she couldn't see his eyes.

"Yes," Sakaki replied shortly, still standing in the door.

"…well?" he asked awkwardly. Though it was hard to tell through the sunglasses, Kaori was sure his gaze shifted to her chest for an instant. "Oh! It's you!" He flashed an official-looking badge at her. "Special Forces. I have a few questions for you, Ms. Sakaki."

"Yes?" she prodded quietly, without letting him in. Clearly, Sakaki was getting the same bad vibes from this strange fellow.

"Have you, recently, had any close encounters of the third kind?"

Sakaki stared at him for a few seconds. "Er… no."

A small silver device that looked like a water pistol appeared in his gloved hand. "Wrong!" he cried triumphantly, "This is an alien abduction! Put your hands in the air and nobody gets probed!"

"Are you serious?" Kaori asked sharply.

The stranger pointed his weapon at her feet and, with a ridiculous dew-dew-dew-dew-dew! sound, a blue beam leapt out and made a patch of carpet burst into a shower of sparks. Kaori screamed and leapt back to stare in shock at the tiny guttering fire on Sakaki's floor. "Deadly serious."

Now, there was still had a glimmer of hope. After all, the guy was a good three inches shorter than Sakaki, was certainly not a body-builder and stood within in easy reach. If Kaori's idol decided to fight back and save the day, it was just possible…

Sakaki raised her hands.

"People of Earth… I am your new ruler. My name is Xolarus and I am the crown prince of Planet X, a dark world hidden from your primitive detection by the mass of Jupiter! We are superior aliens, here to build a peaceful, scientific civilization on Earth. Unless this world's powers unconditionally surrender, in four hours we shall unleash the invincible space monster King Ghidora to obliterate the city you call Tokyo!"

"Aw, man," Tomo groaned, "It's always Tokyo!" Yomi swatted her.

"Oh, but enough about such depressing matters. As part of the conquest of your world, I shall choose my bride from among your women! So, ladies, by your primitive calendar, I am a Virgo, and…"

There was a blast of static as the signal was re-hijacked. "That was a hoax," a government representative said flatly. "Ignore him and go back to your lives." The screen fuzzed over one last time and then thenews was restored. "…with two heads are a common sight near Birth Island, which has been dubbed 'Hell on Earth' by environmentalists…"

"Well. That was strange…" Yomi commented.

"Yomi, what's a Virgo?" In spite of the fact that Tomo had just asked a question, both paused so that Osaka could make a bubble-headed comment… but she didn't take the opportunity. They glanced back to the couch and saw that their friend was already by the door with her satchel packed, struggling with her shoelaces.

"Where are you going?" Yomi asked.
"Birth Island," Osaka replied, looking at her oddly. "Didn't I just tell ya?"
"You're not seriously… didn't you hear what the news guy said?"

"No, what?" Without waiting for an answer, Osaka stood and started to limp out the front door. "Sorry to eat and run, but I hafta go save the world."

"Save the…? Would you listen to yourself!" Incensed, Yomi followed her outside in stocking feet. "And don't you need the egg?"

"Oh… right. Heh!" Osaka turned on her heel and started painfully back into the house. "Thanks! If you hadn'ta stopped me, I'da made it ta Fukushima before I even noticed…"

"Osaka…!" Yomi started to follow her back in, but paused at the door. "How are you going to get there, huh?"

"I figure it'll work itself out," Osaka replied easily, hobbling past her again with the egg. Yomi didn't notice, concerned as she was with other matters, that it had grown to nearly the size of a softball.

"Can't argue with that logic," Tomo said.

"Shut up, you!" Yomi took Osaka's shoulder, drawing her up short. "Hey! Listen to me, Ayumu. What do you think you're doing? You couldn't make it four blocks, let alone two hundred miles! And what do you mean, save the world?"

"Didn't you see? The alien-"

"Alien? Oh, come on, be rational for a moment. A guy paints his face blue and goes on television saying he's going to take over the world. Are you going to take him seriously?"

"Why would an alien paint his face blue?" Osaka asked.
"Yeah, she has a point," Tomo added.

"Stay out of this! Osaka… assuming you don't get lost, even if you make it to Birth Island, you'll die. It's radioactive!"

"It doesn't matter…" Osaka's serenity was fraying. "Look, I've got the Guardian of Earth here, and it's my job--Tomo, what are you doing?"

Tomo had put the back of her hand to Osaka's forehead, intending to make a crack about her health, but then recoiled in genuine surprise. "Holy shit! Osaka, you're hot!"

"Tomo, you know I don't swing that way!" Osaka admonished.
"Wha…? Hey! Neither do I, I meant…!" Tomo defended furiously.
Osaka gave a look that might have been sly if it were a little more focused and aimed at anyone in particular. "Suuure…" She straightened suddenly. "Yomi, you too?"

Yomi withdrew her hand. "Tomo's right, you're burning up! Are you sure you're feeling all right?"
"Well, come to think of it, I have been feeling a little ooky lately…"
"You should lie down," Yomi said firmly.

"But I have to get the egg…" Osaka protested, trailing off when the taller girl took her by her shoulders. "To… Birth…"
"Please," Yomi said. "You're sick, your leg's hurt and Birth Island isn't going anywhere. I'll tell my mom you're not feeling well, and…"

Face to face with Yomi's certainty, doubt billowed through Osaka's eyes like a cloud of dye in water. She turned to Tomo and spoke in a very small voice. "You don't think I'm acting crazy, do you?"
When, instead of laughing uproariously and saying something like, "You were always crazy!", Tomo just looked uncomfortably to the side, it was almost more than Osaka could bear. "But-! I'm not-!" Uncertainty filled her voice. "I'm not insane!"

"We don't think you are," Yomi soothed, smoothing her hair back. Suddenly, the prospect of presenting her friend to her mother in this state was less appealing; for all her gentle motherliness, Mrs. Mizuhara had a dim view of people who didn't have both feet on the ground. Odds were, she'd just think Osaka was trying to get attention. "Listen, do you want to go for a walk at the park?"

Osaka stood perfectly still for a few seconds, then looked at the ground. "S-sure."

"We'll just get our shoes and join you out here, okay?" Yomi said, then grabbed Tomo's arm and dragged her into the house. Before the wildcat idiot could protest, she leaned in and hissed, "Get Chiyo on your cell phone and tell her to meet us at the park!"
"What do we need her for?"
"Chiyo's the one person who can talk sense into Osaka when she gets these weird ideas. And for God's sake, act normal!"
"Normal? Godzilla attacked, aliens are invading and Osaka thinks she has the Guardian of Earth in an egg! What the hell is normal?"
"First off, aliens are not invading, and secondly… figure it out!"

"'Figure it out!'" Tomo mimicked as she dialed one-handed. "Sheesh, what a moron..."