A/N: (re-poast!) I'M ALIVE! Sorta, yeah, um, apology will be at the bottom of the chapter...
XP
"Azerath, Metriom, Zynthos!" Raven yelled, the instant she saw the velvet green and blood red colors together in one spot. But Judora's snake had seen her, and it had raised up a barrier around the woman, who merely swept around, a smile on her face which made Raven burn with the longing to kill her.
"Oh good, I was hoping you'd get here in time." She said smoothly, but suddenly, her expression faltered as her eyes flicked over the rest of the Titans, pilling in from the hall into the large room, each in their battle positions, ready for Raven's word or plan. "It can't be." She whispered, loosing her composure for a moment, before gathering it back up and glaring. "So you were able to help out your little friends, were you?" She hissed menacingly.
"Let them go, Judora. You know you're no match for me." Raven hissed.
However, Judora's smile returned, and she stepped away to make sure Raven saw the alter behind her, completely devoid of either Malchior or Rorek. "Surrounded by your friends and allies, I know that any spell I might perform swiftly, even with Shinigami at my side," She patted her snake lovingly, "Wouldn't be able to kill you. I also know you've taken precautions so your friends will be able to resist my string technique. I know they are more powerful now, I know that you have gained new allies, and I know that if I tried to fight you, I would most certainly loose because I am not as skilled at bruit force and raw force as you are, on my own. Knowledge is power, my dear, a power that I possess in great abundance." She then raised a hand into the air, and waves of black and green began to surround her being, the force coming at them in the form of an impossible wind. "Taeb Na Muz Coklana Rulb Trigon." She chanted, and a huge blast of her power shot at them. But not before both Raven and Chire'ni pulled up barriers to block it.
"What's she playing at!" Demanded Blackfire scathingly. But Raven realized the answer to that all too late.
She let Chire'ni handle the blast and used her own magic to protect herself as she flew foreword, but Judora's snake had been performing the teleportation spell just as Judora was blasting them, and the only thing Raven saw was her smirking face before she flew through thin air in an attempt to tackle Judora down.
The wind stopped as abruptly as it had come, leaving everyone a bit surprised.
"You sure do like to talk a lot, we should have attacked the moment we got in!" Blackfire shouted.
"On a normal basis, I would agree. But attaching a woman like that dead on is a foolish mistake. She had a barrier around her the entire time, a powerful one, and if anyone save Raven tried getting too close her snake would have you the moment you were near enough." Chire'ni responded.
"Oh…" Blackfire shut her mouth.
"If you want to see your pets before they die, I'd suggest taking the door to your left. Might want to try and hurry it up too, it's almost nightfall." Judora's voice echoed, and then faded with a cruel, cold laugh.
"Come on! We've got to get her!" Terra cried out, running to the door.
"NO!" Raven exclaimed, grabbing her before she touched it.
"That could be a trap!" Zacroma exclaimed, running forward. She pulled a veil from thin air and then splashed the water that was in it onto the door. Suddenly a very basic, but nonetheless dangerous circle glowed in bright blue, and seemed to shatter away. Terra gulped.
"Thanks, sorry." She said.
"We know it is a trap, no matter what we do, so what do we do?" Asked Chire'ni.
"Uuuuuh, no clue." Beast Boy and Cyborg said.
"But we can not merely leave! Nor do nothing! Rorek and Malchior are in trouble, we must think of something fast!" Starfire exclaimed.
"And splitting up would be a bad idea as well." Chire'ni put in.
Raven's mind was reeling, the longer they stayed put, the more time Judora had to merge, and kill, Malchior and Rorek, which would then ultimately result in the resurrection of Trigon, more powerful than ever before. And this time, she didn't have the souls of her siblings to help her. They wouldn't survive, and she…
"There's no time." She hissed, blasting down the door. "I'm going." She said simply. And without another word, nor backwards glance, she barreled through the door, and woe be to any creature who planned to stop her.
Chire'ni and Zacroma were the first to run after her, and she imagined the rest would be coming as well. She knew she was playing into whatever trap Judora had set out for her, she had a good idea that there was a very slim chance she'd reach the end before Judora completed the ritual, and she knew that once she did get there, whatever was waiting would probably both kill her friends, and force her to revert. But…
She couldn't help it. All she could think about was Malchior and Rorek, the thought of them in such danger, the knowledge that they might be killed any moment, taking away the ones she loved and giving her the one she hated more than anything else, she had to try, she had to. She couldn't just stand around and discuss a plan of action, she couldn't wait for something to happen. She loved them, she loved them more than anything else, and she couldn't stand the thought of loosing them…again.
Raven stopped abruptly, so suddenly that Chire'ni nearly knocked her over, swearing in drow no doubt. But then she saw what Raven saw, and stopped abruptly mid-swear. Zacroma gasped, and slowly the rest of the titans also stopped, gawking at the scene before them.
"What the heck!"
Blackfire's pronouncement was adequet, as that's all anyone could really think at the moment. The first thing one noticed when stepping onto this scene, was the bright light, originating from the center of the room somewhere on the ground, but then you saw what the light was showing, and the strangeness of the light gave way to the strangeness of what it illuminated. Demons, hundreds of demons, lesser demons, normal demons, and even one or two higher demons littered the floor before them, and the trail seemed to continue on down the large hall, farther than the light reached, which was far indeed as this light seemed to have a radius of about 100 feet.
This was what Judora had in store for them, this was what was suppose to slow them down, no doubt. And it very well would have, it might have killed off some of the Titans, if there were any still alive.
For a few moments, all they could do was stare in wonder, but then Raven blinked, focused on the light source, and gasped. She ran over to it, and picked it up. "I don't believe it." She breathed, as Chire'ni (shielding her eyes with magic no doubt) and Zacroma ran over, followed by the rest. "It's the bottle, the one in my dreams!" She exclaimed.
Blue crystal with alabaster stone carved in the form of a woman for the set and handle, the bottle had very little water in it, but that water was what was shining so brightly most couldn't look directly at it. But there, beside the bottle, was something that Zacroma picked up. A piece of white cloth.
"You're going to need that, I think." Zacroma said.
"Okay, what is going on?" Blackfire burst.
"We'll let you know as soon as we do. But I think our white clothed friend is the one who killed off all the demons." Answered Robin.
"Alright." Raven said, putting both cloth and bottle into her belt. "Let's go." They ran.
Their footsteps echoed from the marble floor, to the walls and ceiling, making it sound as though there was a thousand of them, running through the trail of carnage as fast as any of them could, some of them took to the air rather than stay on foot, able to move much faster that way, Raven being one of them.
She considered transforming, but thought better of it. That was probably what Judora was hoping for. Had their friend not cleared the way, Raven would have to just to stay alive herself, she didn't even want to think about what might have happened to the others. Likely, Judora was counting on the gauntlet to leave her exhausted,
And friendless.
But without it, surely, surely they would get there in time. They had to, Judora wouldn't have, couldn't have planned on this.
Please, please let us not be too late. Raven begged.
They came to a set of doors engraved with snakes, and Raven blasted them open, not caring what might be on the other side.
Judora's hands were raised in the air, power in the form of green and red was emitting from her body, twisting into the dome-shaped force of the spell she was casting. Raven didn't need to be able to see through it to know that Malchior and Rorek were there. She shouted her power chant the next moment and threw it at Judora, just as her snake's head turned around and let out an unfathomably loud hissing sound.
The spell was deflected with a barrier, and the next moment it seemed as though Judora just slipped out of the spell she was casting, and her snake took her place, coiling and uncoiling, as waves from it's own body replaced the one's Judora had been using. The woman herself whirled around, a look of shock on her face as she surveyed them all standing there, readying themselves to go after her. "How—" She began, but Raven wasn't going to give her the chance to distract them again. She charged, and the rest followed suite.
It seemed to happen in slow motion, suddenly a group of demons rose, on Judora's command most likely, but Raven all but ignored them, she flew over the one trying to stop her, and came after Judora, power flowing through her body, anger, rage, building up inside. "Necronam, Hesbureck, Mortix!" She shouted, not really knowing what she was doing. The force of her blast hit Judora's shield like a hammer, and smashed it, sending the woman a few feet back and to the ground.
"How, this can't be possible, how did you get here so fast! Why is everyone still alive! This isn't suppose to happen!" Judora shrieked, but Raven ignored her.
Right now, it was the snake that was important, it was the snake which had Malchior and Rorek trapped, it was the snake she had to focus on. Raven gathered the power she still had from the chant, and released it on the serpent.
Not expecting it, the snake let out a shriek and was knocked back, breaking it's concentration, and then the spell. Raven moved in swiftly, and began to unwind the powerful waves of magic, lacking direction in mid-spell, and probably more dangerous left to itself than the actual spell would be. It was complicated, a much higher brand of magic than she could ever really hope to reach, but she refused to give up, she refused to…
And then, it clicked, she broke it apart, the dome shattered, the spell was vanquished, and she…was in trouble.
"Here! Over here! Keep them down, kill them all! What's the matter, they're just humans!" Judora was shrieking as Raven slumped to the floor, heart beating and her brow beading with sweat. Something from behind grabbed her, and at first she thought it might be Malchior or Rorek, but they were in front, and this was definitely not their pair of arms. She struggled, but too late, the demon had flung her somewhere, and she had just enough time to realize that she was on top of a circle, a very complex circle, and radiating with power she'd never felt or known of before, but then Judora was there, standing over here with an hourglass in her hand, looking livid.
"I cannot hope to defeat you as you are, surrounded by friends, and we cannot hope to kill your friends as they are now, with you close by." She said, opening the lid of the glass. Raven tried to stand up, but something grabbed her, and held her down. She looked, and found that the very blood used in the markings was keeping her in place. "But separate you from them, and I win." She said, smirking as she poured sand into her hand.
"No!" Raven choked out. Was this some sort of teleportation spell? If she was going to be teleported, probably to another world, then…
"Amhluki uv hyna, damb hu ni zarr. Vulzelb hu baeht!" She chanted, spreading the sand over Raven.
"Necronom, Hesbereck—" She tried, but the words became stuck in her throat when she looked down, and saw the circle was becoming a vortex, a vortex that she was falling through. "HELP!" She cried out.
"RAVEN!" A familiar voice shouted. Raven saw Judora's face turn around as she prepared a spell, she was getting farther away.
"Oh no you—what!" Raven was falling, she could hardly see what was happening above her. Something falling towards her, a shock of something silver and…a white cloak, getting farther and farther away.
The world became black.
XD
Raven's face tensed, she tightened her eyes, relaxed them, and tightened them again. She could feel herself breathing, that was a good sign, and she could also hear someone else breathing. Also a good sign as she recognized the hard cool, not terribly comfortable surface she was currently using as a pillow. She took a deep breath, and her eyes fluttered open.
The strong arms already wrapped around her form gave her a squeeze, and she pulled herself up, and found her royal blue eyes staring into a set of piercing violet ones, framed with cream-colored skin, and shocking silver hair, which looked as though someone had found out how to make a wig out of mercury, and keep it from falling off or getting onto anything. Almost cautiously, she took some of it in her hands and felt it. It felt like hair, yes, but perfect hair, soft and smooth. And she could part it and find the individual strands. It acted like hair, but it didn't look like hair.
"Malorek?" She whispered, not daring to believe it.
"Yes." He answered. His voice, the same tone, and pitch of both Malchior and Rorek's voice, but with something else, something a little…more. He brought his hand up and caressed her head, running his fingers through her hair as well. He bent his head down more and kissed the red jewel on her forehead. "Though, this isn't exactly the situation I had imagined." He said, frowning up at the ceiling.
Raven sat up and looked around at their surroundings, the memory of what had happened coming back to her like a wave. It looked like they were in some sort of building, a building where the room they were in was probably the only room that could fit anyone in it. Meaning that it seemed the entire building had collapsed, there was even a chunk missing out of several parts of it, but the only place where you could see the outside was in a corner of the ceiling, and all she could see through that was darkness.
She tried to listen, but all she could hear was wind, the place was still and silent, and that unnerved her.
"Where are we?" She asked.
Malorek shook his head, "No idea. A ghost town is my best guess. You passed out before we passed through the clouds, we fell from the sky, and I was barely able to grab you and pull up into the air in time to keep us from crashing into this pile of rubbish. So I only had a glimpse of the rest before I decided taking cover would be a good idea until we know more about what happened. But if we're somewhere on earth, all we need to know is where and—"
"No, that spell was too powerful, and Judora's, unfortunately, too wise to have sent me anywhere short of another planet entirely." Her hands shook and she buried her face in them, "We can only pray that the others will be able to fight off Judora, at least make her teleport and give us time to get back while she formulates a new plan." She said.
"They will." He assured her firmly, taking her hands and making her look at him. "Listen, Judora doesn't know about Zacroma being half-angel, so she probably thinks the Titan's protection comes from you, but that's not entirely true. So long as Zacroma stays alive, that protection won't waver in the slightest. At least not enough to allow demons an upper hand. And you know, it's possible that Zacroma only has to touch a demon for it to disintegrate, I don't know. All I know that, whatever happened, Judora was not expecting it. Something in her plans went wrong, so it's likely we'll have time to get back before anything serious happens." He told her.
Raven sighed, and nodded. Yes, there was hope. There was that white cloak, their friend. Surely he or she must have the power to stave off Judora's attack, at least for a while, please.
Malorek pulled her into his arms and held her there, caressing her back and resting his chin on the top of her head. "Listen, it's going to be alright, I promise. Whatever happens, we'll go through it together. I lost you once, I'm not going to let that happen again. Wherever you go, I will follow, I will be there for you no matter what." He whispered.
"I love you." She whispered, clinging to him tightly. Something surfaced in the back of her mind, something she'd put off thinking about. "I love you, I love you, I love you." She repeated, tears falling down her face.
"I know, and I love you. My sweet Raven." He said, petting her hair tenderly. He brought her face up to his and pressed his lips to hers.
A shock of electricity seemed to run from her lips all over her body, causing her eyes to open wide in shock for a moment. It felt as though the earth were moving beneath her, it was like nothing she'd ever experienced before. But at the same time it was…familiar. The hallow feeling, the one where it seemed something was missing when she had kissed either Malchior or Rorek, it was gone. The feeling of his soft lips working her own lovingly, it felt whole and complete.
She was so surprised, that for a moment she forgot to kiss him back, but she shook herself of that, and pressed in. A whole new shock seemed to run through her, but one she was causing herself. She felt his hands travel up and down her back and sides, so she slipped her hands beneath the bunched cloth of his scarf and began to massage the back base of his neck.
Neither of them were very willing to cease, but mutually, they agreed it couldn't go on any longer. They had a responsibility to take care of. This could wait until later.
They parted, a little grudgingly, but stood up as a whole. "What now?" Asked Raven.
"Find some intelligent life, and figure out where we are, and how to get back as soon as possible." Malorek answered.
"Good id—"
BAM!
"Um, I know the initial reaction to hearing a loud booming noise would be to investigate and see what Beast Boy or Cyborg has done this time, but as we are not on our own world anymore…" Malorek trailed.
"I know but what if—"
"MIGHT WANT TO RUN!" Exclaimed a man, suddenly falling into their room through the crack in the roof. "She's pissed now! Oh f333, no exit!" He exclaimed, just as three of his buddies came in.
"We can't go back! She'll see us!" a burnet exclaimed, just as an inhuman shriek pierced the air, causing both Raven and Malorek to clutch their ears and screw their faces up in pain.
"Who's 'she', and what exactly is going on!" Malorek yelled.
"You been hiding under a rock man! Sh, sh," He suddenly said, pressing his finger to his lips. They were all silent, watching the hole of the ceiling intently. Something seemed to pass over it, but it was so swift and the whole so small, it was hard to make out exactly what it was. There was silence for a long time, and then they heard 'her' shriek again, but it was at such a distance they were most likely safe.
"Good, she didn't see us." Said another, this one a girl by the looks of it.
"What's going on?" Raven asked again.
"It's been 7 months since the last time, The Demon's come back of course." The girl elaborated.
"You'll excuse us for being slow, but we're not exactly from around here, you see." Malorek said.
"Ah, let me guess, you're from one of the few lucky colonies that's so well hidden it has yet to see The Demon, eh? Alright, we'll fill you in. This is Cross Hope, and here is the one place The Demon tries to avoid at all costs. But every seven months she's summoned back here to do battle with the sorceress who rules over this city. I'm sure you know the rest of it." She said.
"Actually, no, on both accounts. We're from another world entirely, so we have no idea what's going on. We got dropped here by our own villain back home, hope we aren't a bother." Malorek answered calmly.
The two were then gawked at for a moment, but that soon passed. "Alright, I guess we get to act as tour-guides! But best you don't get us into trouble with your ignorance. Goody. Okay, here's the deal. The Demon and The Sorceress do battle every seven months, that's the only time The Demon comes to Cross Hope, all other times she's out rampaging the rest of the world, and has been for the last few decades. The Demon, however, usually looses and high tails it out of here." One of the other guys stated.
"So is The Sorceress the reason The Demon avoids this place?" Raven asked.
"Oh heck no, The Sorceress only wins her battles because the demon is weakened by The Cross. Everywhere she hits is usually turned to ashes, but here, we usually only get spots of damage, such as this area, until The Sorceress comes out to do battle. However," Raven could make out a frowning expression in the darkness, "It's been getting worse, she's been here two whole days, and the battle hasn't even begun yet. The Sorceress repairs some of the damage, just to keep the city up, but that's only so she has something to rule over I'll bet." He told them.
"The Demon, The Sorceress, and The Cross, wonderful." Malorek said sarcastically, "Unfortunately, we have to get back to our own world as quick as we can, or we'll have a snake taking it over and killing all out friends to resurrect a demon lord."
"Malchi-Malorek!" Raven exclaimed, exasperated.
"Whatever, just don't expect any help from us. The Sorceress usually finds and destroys any attempts to build space shuttles, especially after Gethsemane 01 got away. And she's been keeping tabs on the Moon Colonies as well. She doesn't make it obvious, but everyone knows she's got agents there, sabotaging things and keeping the place in disarray so they can't focus too much on getting more people up there and out of The Demon's reach. It's a mess, good luck getting anywhere. It's only a matter of time before The Sorceress finds you too, she'll have you for lunch."
"She can try." Malorek muttered. "Raven, how week do you think this Sorceress might be after she and The Demon battle it out?"
"Depends on a few things. For one, the power of this Sorceress and the power of this Demon when she's around The Cross. It also depends on if The Demon is a full demon, or even our definition of one for that matter. But it sounds like she is if this cross is a point of powerful rosary. And, if The Demon's a High Demon or a Lesser one, though I don't like the odds that's giving me, if she's been able to throw an entire planet into turmoil and fear by herself, she's probably very powerful. My own chances against her would, most likely, be slim. That is, unless this planet knows nothing of rosary." She said, directing the question to the others.
"What? Think we're stupid? We've got beads, silver crosses, and holy water out the kazoo, it doesn't effect her at all! A priest could be laden with thousands of beads, silver, and having been doused in Holy Water, and she would still go after him and rip him to shreds like any other human." The girl snapped.
"Then are you sure it's a real demon?" Asked Raven, crossing her arms and frowning.
"Well, if she isn't she's doing a really good impression of it." Said a guy over on Raven's left. "Big bat-like wings, ram horns, and a tail with an arrowhead on the tip. Lots of long black hair, and fangs too, with paper white skin and claws on both hands and feet." He told them, shuddering at the memory. "That's what they say anyway, you don't get close enough to see them without them ripping you apart, really. But some bodies have been found drained of blood, so we know she's got a vampire nature, though I don't know if that's demonic or not. Think she could be a cross?"
"No, demons were the original blood-suckers way back when. Half-demons and forth-demons evolved into vampires, that's why they're called Dark Angels sometimes. It sounds like a real demon, a high class one too." Raven considered, running fingers through her hair. (A/N: Just so you know, all that isn't fact I picked up from somewhere, it's my own version and explanation, SO BACK OFF!) "Ever tried trying to figure out why The Cross effects her?" She asked.
There was a hallow sort of laugh. "Can't go near it! The Sorceress has guards all over the lake, it's on a small island by the way out in the middle, so you can neither fly to it, boat to it, or swim to it under water. They say The Sorceress herself is around that area, but no one knows, it's just roomers." A male voice said, and he brushed his hair back, looked up at the ceiling hole for a moment, and then back at Raven, "Say, you sure know a lot about demons…"
"Priests and priestesses know a lot about demons, as do most mystics, if you want to get far." She answered airily. She wasn't about to tell them she was half demon.
"You magic users? Splendid! Why didn't you tell us!" Exclaimed the girl, her voice pitch suddenly high, yet still dripping with a bit of sarcasm.
"Calm down, Shila, they don't know, alright!" Hushed the man next to her, putting his hands on her shoulders.
"What, what's wrong with that?" Asked Malorek.
"Magic is forbidden to anyone who aren't direct agents of The Sorceress. She'll be after you. Sorry, mates, but this is where we say goodbye." He said, and the entire group began to move away from them.
"What?" Raven questioned.
"If we get caught with you, we'll be in trouble as well." Answered the girl, and they all jumped out the whole, leaving Raven and Malorek without another word.
They looked at each other, "That was, abrupt. At least we know what's going on." Malorek said.
Raven frowned, "I don't like the feel of this." She muttered. "Let's see about finding The Cross, if we can get past The Sorceress's guards,"
"Which we will." Malorek said with a rather indignant sniff.
"Then maybe we can help these people." Raven continued.
"Right, hero work again, Raven we have to work on saving our own world first before we—"
"And just how are we going to do that without a bit of help?" Raven snapped, starting to feel irritated. It was bad enough she was suddenly having to adjust to Malorek Rechior without being thrown into another world which had been repeatedly screwed over, it seemed. Having it's own evil sorceress to deal with as well as a rampaging demoness. "We don't know how Judora got us here, and we have no idea how far away from Earth we are, or if we're in the same galaxy, we could very well be in a different dimension! The sooner we help these people, the sooner we get help! That's the only thing we can do." She told him.
Malorek shut his mouth, "You're right, okay, just calm down." He said soothingly, gathering her up in his arms. Raven felt herself tense up, and she pulled her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly as a wave of emotion was fighting to get out. "We'll get through this, trust me." He told her.
I wish I could. She thought. But how did he know if they'd ever be able to get back in time? How did he know that, if/when they did get back, they wouldn't walk onto a situation like the one that occupied the planet they were currently on?
Raven let the tears seep out of her eyes, and she began to cry, unable to stop herself. Malorek stroked her hair, kissed the top of her head, and just held her until it was all released.
XP
A/N: Well, first thing's first, the apology, here goes, (Big breath): I'MSORRYI'MSORRYI'MSORRYI'MSORRYI'MSORRYI'MSORRYI'MSORRYYYYYYYY! I HAVE BEEN A BAD AUTHOR, A VERY BAD AUTHOR, I CRY IN SHAME AS I HAVE BEEN FAILING MISERABLY MY AUTHOR DUTIES! I APOLOGIZE TO THE WORLD I'M SORRY (Yeah, like the world reads my fanfiction, haha)! I SHOULD DROWN MYSELF IN MY OWN SINK, SHAVE MY HEAD BALD, AND BATH IN TURKEY FEATHERS AS PENNANCE EVEN THOUGH THAT WOULDN'T DO A SINGLE THING TO MAKE THINGS BETTER IN FACT THEY WOULD MAKE THINGS WORSE BUT I'M STILL VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY SORRY!
Alright, now, second order of business, the explanation: Okay, firstly, I didn't exactly get carpel tunnel in my hand, no, it was kinda different, more like the entire muscle had given out and was screaming at me for using it so much, so I had to stay off the keyboard anyway for a really long time. Good news is, it's gone and there's no permanent damage to my hand, bad news is, I still can't write as much as I use to. The reasons for this are, 1: Mom's getting annoyed with me shutting myself up in my room all the time, so I have to go outside for something at least once a day. 2: Job hunting is killing me, and I need another job because I need a bigger paycheck and 4 bucks an hour babysitting does not cut it. Now, as for why I've been taking so long, part of this is because I decided I was going to try and finish the rest of the chapters before I began to post them, yeah, that worked. I've found that I can't concentrate on something unless there's a driving force behind it, namely reviews. So I do have other chapters written, when I post them, however, depends on when I finish the next chapter. Also, I'll probably want to re-read some of this just to make sure I know where I'm going.
As an apology, I might see about writing another one-shot like Forever Yours, but I don't know, I just seem to have lost my inspiration for this, and the depression factor is getting high because I feel really guilty about going for so long without updating. I'M A FAILURE! I PROMISED MYSELF I WOULD FINISH THIS AND NOW LOOK AT ME! ONE LITTLE DETOUR AND I'M OFF FOR MONTHS!
Okay, yeah, so, there are a few things you guys could do to help: Leave nice long reviews including guesses and suggestions about what's going to happen next. And talk to me, I NEED SOMEONE TO COMPLAIN TO ME ABOUT IT ALL! It's Friday night, and my AIM screen name is Rhea Hiryuu (gasp), so I'll probably stay on till I go to bed, which is usually around 3:00 in the morning. So yeah, just pop up with something like, "Hi this is (so-and-such) from I'm here to badger you about Spellfire. YOU ARE A VERY BAD AUTHOR FOR MAKING US WAIT SO LONG!" TALK TO ME! I'm feeling lonely, I have no one to talk to, I need someone to talk to, besides my brother (who probably wouldn't read Spellbinder/fire if I tied him to the computer chair and glued his eyes open), and hopefully get back into my Spellfire kick! Because I have some really good stuff for the finish and it would be a complete shame if it all went to waste, so yeah. Help?