Starlet and Phoenix both shifted to different angles in front of the hideous mutant before them. Lich glared at them darkly, licking his lips as he stared at them. Starlet was disgusted by the beast, and readily drew her sword. Phoenix unfurled her wings and began to hover in the air.

"Disgusting freak…" Starlet scowled. "You'll pay for all the humans you made suffer."

Lich merely grinned his drooling smile. "You two look tasty… It's been a while since I had chicken. Perhaps I can have a bit more fun with you, however, before dining…" He spoke this last part looking at Starlet.

"Just give up!" Phoenix exclaimed. "You already look terrible."

However, to this, Lich smiled even wider. A small chuckle eminated from his throat, dark and slow. Hearing that, both Starlet and Phoenix began to grow a bit nervous, and looked to each other tensely. "Oh…not half as terrible as I'm going to look." The monster sneered. "And not half as terrible as you will when I'm finished with you… I have a little surprise for you and the rest of your esper friends…I have been hiding my true power this entire time."

Both female espers raised their eyes at this.

"What?"

Lich grinned wider. "Yes, little meatballs… I didn't want to use it, of course. I can only do it once, and it's a permanent change. However…seeing as you are the strongest opponents I'll ever encounter, and after you're gone I'll have free reign over this planet forever, I might as well show off my true stuff right now." Lich grinned and snickered even more, balling his hands into fists and bringing his arms down to his sides. Phoenix and Starlet continued to look on in puzzlement, wondering what he meant by all of this. Lich arched his fat head downward, and while still drooling filled his eyes with malice and power, and hissed with joy.

"My true power lies in death, you fools! Now see me when I no longer am dependent on this worthless flesh!"

Then, much to the shock of both female espers, the creature suddenly reached over and dug both of its claws right into the middle of its head. Yet rather than send out blood, green flame erupted from the wounds as his talons pierced his own skin. Both Starlet and Phoenix were shocked, but not nearly as much as they were when Lich began to pull his arms apart. Very slowly, the monster began to rip the skin and flesh right off of his head. The moment he did, the green flame burned up all the blood and remains that were left behind. He ripped it off of his skull…down to both ears…down past the jaw…and past the neck. As he held half of his flesh in either hand, the flames stopped "cleaning his skull", leaving nothing but the toothy bone face of the monster. Much to their shock as well, his eyes were nothing more than dark holes in the eye sockets with single red lights coming out of them. Only a new light appeared in his previously damaged socket, giving him two.

Lich continued to rip the flesh off his body, bathing himself in flame as he did so. He ripped all the way down his torso and arms, past his waist, and finally his legs. When he was done, he stepped out of his flesh like it was nothing more than a pair of pants, and then tossed the flaming remains of his skin and muscle aside. He continued to burn for a moment longer, but as the last remains of his blood disappeared what he was beneath was revealed. His entire skeletal frame was all that was left of him now. But it was misshapened and disproportionate, made of large, cruel-looking, thick bones that covered him and fortified him like armor. His legs were still small, but solidly built enough to support him. Most of all, his massive forearms now showed that on each finger he had a large bone claw, which extended only farther as he burned. His jaw reattached itself, even though there was nothing left to reattach it to, and his knocked out tooth regenerated. He continued to move and hold himself together as if the flesh was still there, but was now nothing more than whitish-gray bone. He grinned his tooth-filled maw, more ferocious than ever, at the two espers. Both of them were horrified, both at his physical appearance…and, more importantly, the fact that they could feel Lich's power increasing dramatically.

"Like my Z Transformation?" The thing hissed. "I've grown stronger than all of you together. My power is double what it was in my flesh form. But enough talking…let's see a demonstration."

With that, Lich shot forward. His speed was blinding, too much for either esper to react to and nearly too much for them to even gasp at. Before they knew what had happened, Lich was upon them, and gave an uppercut to either one of them to send them flying into the air in agony. As both of them recoiled and were cast skyward, the creature's massive speed enabled him to jump into the air after them, surpass them in seconds, and then bring his fists down on both of them to send them both crashing back to the ground again.Both screamed in pain as they fell back and connected hard against it. Lich himself touched down a bit later, grinning all the way.

Starlet grit her teeth, and got up and began to swing her blade at the monster. But his bones were stronger than anything yet. Hitting him with the sword left no affect on him whatsoever. Phoenix also stood up, and clawed viciously at the bones. But aside from inflicting a few minor scratches, it was all futile. Realizing their ineffectiveness, both espers shot away and glared at the skeletal Fiend, trying to figure out a new attack plan. After a moment or so of pausing, Starlet had one. She tore forward, spun, leapt slightly into the air, and aimed a powerful kick right for the monster's face. Lich merely grinned and stood still, waiting for it to come. Moments later, the blow connected…and Lich's head moved an entire millimeter. Both female espers were justly overwhelmed.

Lich seized the esper's foot a moment later, and swung her around with a boastful laugh. Once he was aimed at Phoenix, he released her flabbergasted sister, sending her flying at Phoenix. The flying esper couldn't react, and soon the two collided and fell to the ground in an injured heap. Lich turned to them, crossed his arms, and laughed his head off at the both of them in a hideous voice. The two espers rolled on the ground for a moment over each other, both moaning. But then, the bruised and battered Starlet once again focused on her enemy. She rose once again, andlunged for the Fiend of Earth. Her sword was drawn, and she focused her power. She would make the weapon slice through him this time. She promised herself she would. Lich grinned and waited for her to come, never moving. At last, Starlet was in range, and swung her blade at the Fiend. At that, he extended a single arm, straight as a board, and intercepted the blow.

A tiny fragment of bone was knocked off…and Starlet's sword shattered into pieces.

Starlet gaped in shock. She had never heard of anything strong enough to break stone. But her thoughts soon turned elsewhere as Lich shot out a massive hand and grabbed her around the throat. Her neck was totally encompassed by the monster's fist, and she gaped and grasped for her neck, being throttled by the creature. Lich glared at her in amusement for a moment, and licked a long serpant tongue, the only flesh left on him, over his razor sharp teeth. Then, the creature smashed his other fist three times into Starlet's body, causing her eyes to shoot open wide and her mouth to open in a silent gagging expression, struggling to call out in pain but being unable to. Then, satisfied for the moment, Lich tossed her away like so much garbage, discarding her body to crash into the ground again.

He soon saw that Phoenix was getting up again as well, ready to shoot in and assault the monster. Lich grinned again at this, and merely extended his palm out at the flying esper.

"Terra-ject!"

As Phoenix began her flight, shooting in to attack the monster, a column of rock erupted from the ground right in front of her. Before she could react, she smashed headlong into the rock column, knocking her instantly senseless. Her flight ended abruptly, and the flying esper moaned and collapsed to the ground. Lich crossed his arms again and laughed hideously.

"Heh! Who would have thought tenderizing meat could be so much fun?"

Odin glared down at Kary, moving around her. She encircled as well, but looked much more confident this time. Apparently, she had recovered nicely from the last battle. That wasn't too good of a factor in Odin's opinion. He had been planning something that utilized fear…but it wouldn't work if she was this relaxed. He tightened up and prepared for a heavy fight, hoping he could even stand up to the Fire Fiend. At length, he finally stopped pacing and drew the Zantetsuken.

"Let's get this over with." The blade shone before him.

Kary only smiled wider as well. "Yes…let's. And this time, esper, I've got more than a match for you. As good as your own little sword might be, I can do you one better." Saying that, the Fiend reached over her shoulder, grasped the handle of her own blade, and drew it out in a flash before her. Odin had never seen a blade like this before. It was long and thin, had practically no hilt at the handle, and was curved slightly. She placed both hands on it and held it in an upright position as opposed to Odin's more upfront stance. The blade gleamed much more intensely, like it was wrought out of flame. It seemed to nearly be a living fire. However, the part that truly disturbed Odin is what he sensed…Kary's power had taken a dramatic upswing.

"What do you think?" Kary cooed. "It's called the Pyrosuken. It's a blade made out of flame with an atom edge. Griever himself forged it for me. It's far superior to whatever blade you could use against me."

Odin remained dark, not betraying any emotion. "It's not the weapon the warrior chooses. It's the strength of the warrior that uses it."

Kary merely grinned more darkly. "In that case…this battle will be even easier than I thought."

With that, the Fire Fiend lunged forward at Odin. Quickly, the esper brought both arms up and crossed his own sword in front of him. The two weapons collided in a burst of power, molten fragments blasting off of Kary's own sword. One of them touched Odin's armor, and the spot hissed and grew hot as the fire burned it. Odin, on his own part, felt a terrible rush of pain within his arms and shoulder as he buckled under the pressure of Kary. She had grown much stronger indeed. Her own sword aided her strength. His chances of victory, he realized, had diminished considerably.

Abruptly, Odin broke off from the attack, and swung his blade over his head as he lunged forward at Kary. She deflected two of the blows, then intercepted his blade on the third one and swung her arms down to push both blades to the ground. Both warriors closed in, both trying to overpower the other, and standing shoulder to shoulder. But after clashing only a moment, Kary grinned and headbutted Odin. The smack felt like a stone hitting his skull, and the esper tumbled back. The Fire Fiend rushed in, and jabbed with her own blade, attempting to end it. But Odin righted himself and spun, avoiding falling to the ground and avoiding two jabs. He whacked the third one aside, and then came forward again. With all his strength, he attempted four different blows against Kary. However, it was no use. The Fire Fiend met his speed perfectly, and his increase of strength was just as futile as if he was acting normally. Griting his teeth, he attempted one more strong blow. But Kary merely crossed her own blade in front of her and stood perfectly firm when he collided. He tried pushing for a moment, but the Fire Fiend held him back with barely any effort. Seeing the futility, he broke off again and slashed once again at the Fiend. She blocked the first two blows, intercepted the third in a downward swipe, and then spun forward while keeping his blade down to smash her elbow into his chest. Odin emitted a slight cry of pain and stepped back. However, as he did, he heard a crack from his metal armor. After backing up, he looked down, and sure enough, a small fissure was now in his breastplate. The dark esper began to sweat, both from tiredness as well as nervousness.

"Come now, warrior esper…" Kary mocked. "You can do better than this, can't you?"

Leviathan tried desperately to contain his fear as the massive serpentine horror slithered toward them. Greenish drool dripped from its mouth and its beady eyes glared at them hungrily. Ogopogo was actually gasping, and nervously beginning to pull back. Leviathan noticed he might run for it. The esper couldn't very well blame him. Running seemed a good idea to him too. Yet he forced himself to be brave. He had to be, like the others were…for Palad.

At last, the snake like esper lunged forward with the fastest strike he could muster. He closed his mouth and aimed his arrow like head straight for the nearest part of Kraken's body. The creature patiently waited, merely chortling as Leviathan came. Leviathan tried to increase his speed more, trying to make sure he got in a hit, and already fearing Kraken was ready for him at this speed. But he could not. As he finally closed the distance, abruptly Kraken's tentacles shifted. The scaly flesh in front of him formed a loop instead, and before Leviathan could stop himself he slid half of his body right into it. Immediately, Kraken constricted, and soon Leviathan winced as he felt the hard coils close around him. He had gone right into a trap.

Moments later, he looked to his side to see Ogopogo making his own belated attack. He too tried the same tactic, but his fear made him slow and put less power into it. Kraken had no trouble sweeping his tentacle around and seizing him as well. Leviathan grit his razor teeth, and struggled to use his powerful muscles to wriggle free. But it was useless. Ogopogo, for his part, once captured, didn't even try to escape. He merely lapsed back into terror, and shuddered in panic at what had happened to him. Abruptly, the tentacles shifted, dragging both espers up and hauling them in front of Kraken's hideous face. Leviathan continued to try and break free for a moment, but then both looked to him.

The thing grit its own teeth, of which there appeared to be only eight. "Oh, come on. That was far too easy. Fine. I'll just wring the life out of you little worms right now."

Immediately, Leviathan and Ogopogo felt their lungs and insides crushed as Kraken contracted his tentacles. Writhing in agony, the two flailed about wildly in the clutches of the creature. Kraken's hideous laugh boomed over them both as they twisted in pain. Leviathan himself clenched his teeth and grinded them. He felt his bones begin to bend underneath the pressure and strain. He struggled to break free, but it was no use. Kraken was holding on too tight. He couldn't escape. He felt as if his body was ready to crack. Hislungs began to starve for air, and he began to flip out more wildly, struggling to escape.

But abruptly, Leviathan snapped out of it. He forced himself to gain control of his body at once. He wasn't getting anywhere. This thrashing wasn't doing anything. He was just using up his air. He had to think of something else. Suddenly, it hit him. In his panic, he had forgotten all about his ability.Immediately, he bellowed out using his last bit of air the name he gave his own move.

"Contra-cycle!"

With that, Leviathan focused, and began to shift his body. It seemed to compress all around him. The organs within his body seemed to stretch, and the skeleton began to shrink down. His body dramatically shrank in diameter and increased in length, all within a fraction of a second. The move was so fast that it surprised Kraken as well, so Leviathan wasted no time. Now loosened, he rapidly slid his body out from the circular coil, and instead began to loop his own body several times around the nearest tentacle. Ogopogo, on his part, continued to writhe in agony for a while. He panicked more, and it nearly cost him. Yet somehow, he managed to see what Leviathan was doing, and a moment later did the same move. He slid free of Kraken, and nearly ran away. Yet on seeing Leviathan's actions, he quickly began to do the same.

Kraken, shocked at how his prey had suddenly freed themselves, was dumbfounded for a moment. He looked down in puzzlement at the two smaller creatures as they wound around two of his tentacles. Leviathan paid no attention, just coiled himself as fast as he could. Once he had done so, he promptly constricted his own body as hard as he could. He grit his teeth again and sweat and strained under his own force, pulling himself in the most death-crushing grip he could muster. That done, he opened his mouth full of teeth and chomped down on Kraken's scales as hard as he could, struggling to pierce him. Ogopogo soon finished tightening himself around Kraken. He watched Leviathan's actions afterward, and hesitated in fear for a moment. But in the end, giving a little whine, he too bent his head down and bit as hard as he could into the Fiend. Both did so for a few moments, contracting themselves tighter and tighter, biting as hard as they could, waiting for blood to start rushing out or some sound of pain.

Instead, once all was done, the thing merely guffawed.

"Is this supposed to hurt?"

Leviathan sneered in frustration. He was right. He wasn't doing anything. Kraken's own tentacles weren't being compressed at all by his choking move, and all he was getting for trying to bite the thing was a severe toothache. He wasn't leaving a dent in the beast.

The Water Fiend grinned his toothless mouth and began to raise his other five tentacles. "Here, let me show you how a true Contra-cycle is done."

Immediately, Leviathan and Ogopogo were grasping nothing. In an instant, Kraken shrank and enlongated his own tentacles, then pulled them out from under them. He did the same with the rest of his tentacles, and a moment later, thin coils swarmed both espers. Leviathan gaped in panic as they came, soon finding coil after coil wrapping around his body, and quickly beginning to tighten. Ogopogo, for his part, had taken enough. Yelping in terror, he dove down into the tentacle mess even as they tightened right behind him. Soon, like a worm in dirt, he desperately was wriggling around within them, trying to avoid being caught.

Leviathan caught this, however, and realized thatOgopogo was doing the smart thing. Kraken was overwhelmingly stronger than both of them combined, but even he couldn't grasp them when they elongated themselves. Before the tentacles around him could tighten further, he quicklyslipped out of the coils, and then dove into the mass of tentacles around him. Sure enough, Kraken grunted in annoyance, and struggled to catch them. But Leviathan didn't stop moving. Along with Ogopogo, he circled around in Kraken's mass so quickly that the Fiend couldn't find them.

Leviathan was grateful that he was alive, but knew he couldn't rest. Even as he ran, he struggled to look for a weakness on Kraken. If he couldn't find some spot where he could do some damage, then all he was doing was delaying the Fiend's victory until both he and his brother lost the stamina to maintain this form and speed…

"You're not finished already, are you? I'm barely warmed up."

Starlet panted and held a fresh talon wound against her shoulder. As for Phoenix, she looked much worse for wear too. Many of her beautiful feathers were now ruffled and torn. Lich Z merely grimaced at them evilly. The monster wasn't showing any fatigue, but now the two girl espers were covered with bruises and minor injuries. Starlet felt her own strength rapidly fading. She felt like some of her bones were broken. Phoenix at least was beginning to anticipate and avoid Lich Z's Terra-ject attacks. Starlet had no such luck. Her own strength was fading, and the monster could attack her at any time. She was weaponless and ineffective at causing the monster pain. In this form, she wondered if the thing even could feel pain.

Lich Z snickered at them. "You're just tickling me, meatbags. I'm hardly even working up an appetite. At least try to make me tired. You'll be easier to digest that way."

Starlet continued to breathe hard, and scowled at the monster. If she was going to die, she did not want it to be at the hands of this arrogant pig. The Four Fiends disgusted her. She would have preferred to be killed by anything other than them. She looked back to Phoenix for a moment. The firebird had her eyes closed and was breathing slowly, looking like she was still attempting to catch her breath. Starlet sighed inwardly. That meant she had to lead the next assault. So be it.

The esper turned back to Lich, and lunged at him again with everything she had. Everything she had was diminished at this point, but she still tried her best. The Earth Fiend bellowed laughter at her attempt, and brought back one of his clawed fists, meaning to deck her the moment she got close enough as before. But Starlet was using her brain now. She reached the Fiend just as he brought his fist in front of her. Rather than go right into it, the esper abruptly hopped in the air and landed on his bony knuckle. The hideous grimace before her turned to surprise as she used her newest platform for leverage, launching herself into the air, doing a smooth somersault, and then landing behind the Earth Fiend. Lich Z merely gaped in astonishment, not expecting the move.

Starlet didn't waste a moment. She spun around and chopped the creature once in the neck with her palm, and then reared back and kicked furiously at the back of his head and spine. She put all her strength into it, scraping and cutting her feet against the beast as she did so, desperate to make the monster feel any lasting damage whatsoever. But it was useless. Her blows barely budged the thing, and after a moment Lich Z was laughing again. Spinning around, he smashed his clawed fist into the side of her head, ripping a gash in her cheek and sending her flying backward, soaring through the air. Still laughing, Lich Z turned to face her, leapt after her, and caught up with her still flying body. He smashed his foot down hard on her middle, knocking all the wind out of her and sending her flying straight down to the ground. She landed hard, and immediately the Earth Fiend pinned her under his huge foot.

The hideous red-eyed skull glowered down on its victim for a moment. Starlet, for her part, writhed a bit in pain, wincing and rolling her head, struggling to get her senses back. But just as she did, Lich Z began to press down harder on her. The weight was crushing, and immediately she felt her two lower ribs snap.

"AAH!" Starlet screamed in agony.

"Heh-heh!" The monster chortled. "Thought you were pretty smart, honey? Well, now I'm gonna squash you into jelly. I think I'll spread you along your sister's wings for a nice bloody trea-"

"Pyrimshad!"

Both Starlet and Lich Z looked in confusion to the source of the new sound. Starlet recognized it first. It was Phoenix, screaming it. The firebird was in the air now, her beautiful wings unfolded and glaring at Lich Z. A fire was in her eyes, and a radiant light was all around her, shining as brilliant as the sun. To Starlet, she appeared to be enveloped in flame. After a moment, however, the esper realized her eyes weren't playing tricks on her. She was enveloped in flame. A flaming bird had formed around Phoenix. Her eyes glowed brighter and brighter, glaring with righteous anger on the Earth Fiend. Finally, Phoenix gave out a mighty call, and released her move. A giant bird of fire came rushing toward the Earth Fiend.

Lich Z laughed terribly once again. Keeping Starlet pinned, he turned his body and balled his hands into fists as the flaming bird went toward him. Starlet felt the air around her grow hot. The light grew brighter and more blinding as it rushed forward. A mighty wind went over her and Lich Z. But the Fiend merely laughed. "You fool! Puny little attacks like this can't hurt me anymore! I'm invincible!" With that, the horror reared back a fist, and prepared for impact.

The shadow of flame maintained the shape of Phoenix, seeming to cry out as well. In time, its cry drowned out Lich Z's laughter. Starlet continued to watch, waiting to see what would happen next. At last, the flame reached the Earth Fiend. Laughing hard, Lich Z swung his fist as hard as he could into the flame image. On doing so, the flame immediately burst apart into fire, and Starlet reared back as flaming fragments rained down around her. A rush of heat roared by her head. She shielded her face with her arm a moment, closing her eyes to avoid it. But it passed quickly, and over it all she heard Lich Z bellowing in laughter. A moment later, however, to her surprise, the foot left her body, as Lich Z continued to shout. She was freed. Confused, she unshielded her face and opened her eyes, looking at the area around her that had now returned to normal. Lich Z was further in front of her now. At that moment, she suddenly realized the Earth Fiend wasn't laughing.

He was screaming in agony.

The monster writhed terribly, bellowing an endless stream of foul curses as he held the hand he had struck the bird of flame with. To Starlet's shock, much of his arm was now blackened, presumably damaged badly by the fire. But most shocking of all was his hand. Closer to the impact point, the bones appeared to melt into a greenish sludge. Where his hand had been was now only a smoldering, green-glowing stump, dripping bits of goo and hissing. Starlet, overwhelmed with surprise, quickly raised to her feet as fast as her body allowed her. Lich Z was actually hurt!

The esper looked back to Phoenix, who had changed. Now, the fiery esper was on the ground, her wings bracing her, and panting hard. It looked like she had just had all strength drained out of her, and she couldn't move an inch. As Lich Z continued to writhe, Starlet called out to her. "Phoenix! What was that?"

"For…a moment…" Phoenix gasped between breaths, struggling to keep herself up and her eyes open. "I…realized…my power… That attack…came to mind…when saw you…in trouble…"

Starlet blinked in amazement. Phoenix may have just won the battle for them. But as she did, she looked back to the Earth Fiend. To her fear, he was calming down. He stopped running around, and was lowering his arm. His screams had died down considerably. Quickly, Starlet turned back to Phoenix. "Can you do that attack again?" She almost frantically asked.

"Can't…remember…" Phoenix ruefully gasped back. "Besides…attack…drained…strength…"

Starlet, feeling a fresh cold sweat break out on her body, slowly turned back to Lich Z. The monster had stopped moving now, and now clenched his remaining fist hard as he gnashed his razor sharp teeth. His own eyes were burning, seeming almost to radiate red flames of their own within his head. All of his overwhelming hate, rage, and evil was directed slowly at the two of them now. Even the ground began to shake in his fury.

"You…BITCHES! DAMN YOU!" The thing roared in absolute fury. "NOW I'M PISSED! No more playing around! I'll beat you to death right now!"

Snarling like the demon he was, Lich Z lunged forward with renewed and multiplied rage.

Odin and Kary clashed their blades together again. After holding a moment, they broke off again. Kary swiped at Odin three times. Each time, Odin managed to parry the blade back, but each time sapped his strength and sent more pain throughout his body. Even the most basic defensive move hurt now. His own stamina was beginning to fail. What more, several more bruises and gashes were on his exposed skin. His body was covered with sweat from strain. He was beginning to break…

Giving out a furious grunt, Odin launched three slashes of his own at Kary, trying to answer back. But the Fire Fiend blocked each one nimbly. She didn't even bother parrying until the last blow. When she did, she threw Odin aside and quickly swung her blade at his neck. The warrior esper barely had time to snap back and react to the hit, rearing back while keeping his feet planted on the ground. Regardless, the blade still sliced open his cheek. The blow felt like fire. The sword, he realized, was burning hot, and seared his flesh as it cut into it. He ignored the now searing pain across one half of his face, and swung back forward with Zantetsuken and another attack. Still, Kary had enough time to cross her own blade in front of her and guard.

Odin clenched his teeth in fury at the Fiend. Kary, for her part, merely grinned back. The Fire Fiend wasn't entirely unmiffed. Her brow looked wet, and now two beads began to roll down the sides of her head. But the small signs of exhaustion weren't enough to weaken her. They were just invigorating her. If anything, the malicious fire in her eyes was rekindled, and she seemed more passionate than ever.

"Yes!" She boomed. "Keep it up, esper! You're actually entertaining me a little!"

Odin merely sneered, reared back, and swung his blade at her head again. She simply blocked it, and Odin went back and began to swing his sword around his head while approaching her, trying to get a glancing blow in. But Kary was able to parry these hits as well, and moved back as he approached. Snarling, Odin leapt back, braced himself into a squat, gave another war cry, and shot at her. This time, he tried aiming his helmet at her to strike her in the head. Kary hesitated a moment, but then lowered her blade. As Odin came in range, she abruptly brought her knee up and slammed it right into his throat. Instantly, Odin's wind was cut off. He abruptlycut offhis attack, and fell to the ground on all fours. He grasped for his throat as blood dribbled from his mouth, struggling to catch his breath. Kary looked down on him and snickered a moment at his misfortune, but then reared her foot back and smashed him in the face.

The warrior esper was ripped off the ground, carried back through the air, and then dropped flat on the ground thirty feet away. He hit hard, and the ground gave a bit from his impact. Pain rocked throughout his body. Odin gave a little yell, just to release the pain, but then sprang back to his feet. However, he noticed that he was slipping. He was barely able to come back this time. As he went back on his feet, he felt dizzy, and his muscles, sword, and armor felt heavier. It took more effort to get himself going as well. He recognized this feeling. He was losing his strength. His power was dropping. He had been giving Kary everything he had for too long, and now he was failing.

Kary lunged forward, and in an instant was right before Odin. Odin, his senses now dulled from exhaustion, actually shot back a moment and raised his sword. But Kary didn't fight. She merely grinned wickedly at him and stood before him.

"You're getting slower, esper." She mocked. "And you're blows are getting rather meaningless. I don't think I'm going to get anymore entertainment out of you." She reared back her head, raised a hand to her mouth, and faked a yawn. "Ho-hum…I guess I'll just have to finish you now."

Odin's eyes expanded a bit, but he said nothing. He clenched his teeth again instead, tightened his grip on Zantetsuken, and struggled to summon every last ounce of strength he had. He had to beat her! If he couldn't even handle Kary, they didn't have a prayer against the others. But already, he was beginning to realize the unfortunate truth…they could not win this battle.

"YAH!"

Odin barreled forward, putting everything he had into his next sword swing. But sadly, he knew it was already less than his previous maximum. Kary never stopped smiling as she battled the meaningless blow away. But rather than play with him this time, she spun around instead, following through with the hit, and then stabbed Odin right through the shoulder. The blade seared straight through his arm and emerged the other side. The esper's eyes expanded, and he gave out another roar of pain. His flesh began to burn and roast around the wound, giving a foul smell. Kary laughed insideously, ripped her blade out, and slashed Odin right across the belly. A line of flame burned across his torso, and the warrior esper cried out again and fell to his knees. The injuries and burns sapped his strength. His sword seemed to get ten times heavier, and he collapsed, barely able to hold himself up.

"Ha!" Kary laughed, and then gave Odin a powerful uppercut right to his agony-lined face. The blow connected hard, and Odin felt his teeth loosen as the hit struck him. In an instant, he was ripped off the ground again, and went sailing backwards through the air. Only this time, the blow was far more intense. He sailed a hundred feet…two hundred feet…far beyond the level of the battlefield, out to the nearest hill surrounding them. Only then did he drop like a stone. When he landed, a small tremor was sent through the ground. He didn't cry out this time. His body was motionless and silent by then.

Kary, ever grinning, raised her palm and held it in a cup shape. "Now to finish you!" She cackled. As before, a great ball of red light began to form in her hand. It condensed and grew larger and larger, becoming a ball of flame, burning bright and rippling the air around her. She sneered at the space beyond the hill.

"Cut this one, esper! Macro-pyrobol!"

With that, Kary hurled her ball of fire energy straight to Odin's location. Nothing moved on the other side of the hill. Nothing ran from the incoming attack. For a moment, Kary thought that the warrior esper might still cut it in half, might still be able to fight a bit longer. But he did nothing as the ball came closer and closer. A moment later, the flaming orb too vanished behind the hill. The sky seemed to turn dark, and a ripple of intense, burning heat ran over the entire battlefield. A brilliant blast of light exploded from over the hill, and a column of fire arose from beyond it. Kary beamed victoriously at the sight, eagerly awaiting the aftermath.

The fires did fade after a moment. Now, all that was left of the hill was a large, blackened crater. There was no sign of a body or remains, just black ash all around, with sizzling smoke rising from it.

Kary cackled again. The esper had vaporized. She had watched carefully. He hadn't escaped in time. He was right there when the attack hit, and he never ran when it exploded. There was nothing left. Now, she turned around and faced the other Fiends.

"One down, four to go."

Kraken grit what few teeth he had in annoyance. Despite the smaller size and weaker stature of the foes he faced, he still couldn't grasp onto them. His own Contra-cycle attack was utterly ineffective against their own lithe, slippery bodies. Ogopogo and Leviathan were literally using Kraken's own body as a hiding place to keep away from the monstrous Water Fiend.

As for Leviathan, the beast was madly striking his arrow-like beak at Kraken every chance he got, hoping to inflict some damage. For his effort, he was getting a scarred beak while Kraken was getting some scratched scales. What more, every time he stopped to focus long enough to perform a decent hit, the Fiend would nearly seize him. Neither side was giving an inch. Ogopogo was being even less effective, his own blows being far more erratic and less focused. They weren't getting anywhere at this rate, and Leviathan was beginning to tire of staying in his elongated form and keep moving. He couldn't keep this up for more than a few more moments.

This isn't working… He thought. Dang…I need to learn more. I'm still too weak as is! I'm close… I know I'm close… I can feel the power inside me. The words are on the tip of my tongue. If I could only focus a bit longer…if I only had a little more time! Come on, Leviathan… Think… You have to do it here… Just think of it… Concentrate…

As the esper continued to whip around the Water Fiend, he struggled to think again. Despite having to use his brain to keep moving, he tried to meditate a bit, to dig in and let his inner power out. It was nearly impossible here, but he had to focus…he had to try. Yet even as he began to do so, immediately, another fouler, gruffer, meaner voice suddenly echoed faintly in his head. It was like a whisper on the breeze, but he could definitely make out words…

…Heh…s'll get…em…

Abruptly, Leviathan stopped meditating and opened his eyes in surprise. Was this what he thought it was? Was he…actually reading Kraken's mind?

He had little time to focus on it, for at that moment, as both Leviathan and Ogopogo were crossing their elongated bodies right in front of Kraken, the Water Fiend abruptly recoiled his tentacles and returned them to their original positions. At the same time, his huge mouth suddenly opened as wide as it could, and he belowed a new attack.

"Aqua-ject!"

With that, a massive burst of water suddenly erupted from the Water Fiend's mouth. It was huge, filling the entire beast's maw. But what more, the moment it came out, it increased in speed. It altered shape, and compressed to form a thin disk. Leviathan didn't know this, but the water was pressurizing itself in mid-air, condensing into a strong, powerful, razor-sharp surface. In short, it was becoming a blade of water. And as Leviathan and Ogopogo passed, the blade of water shot down right in between them, catching their sides on either end of it.

"ARGH!" The two espers screamed in unison. Abruptly, their own Contra-cycle cut off, and they reverted back into their previous lengths. The disk of water turned red for a moment before cutting into the ground and dissipating. It had sliced into their own scaled bodies like they were nothing. Now, a large red cut on either of their bodies poured out blood. It was deep on them both, and either esper collapsed to the ground and began to writhe in pain.

Kraken closed his mouth and boomed a hideous deep laugh at them. "Heh-heh! Thought you could do that forever, eh?" He snickered. Leviathan and Ogopogo merely continued to writhe. "That's a pretty nasty cut." The Water Fiend chortled. "Here…let me put some pressure on it!"

With that, Kraken enlongated his tentacles again, and extended three to either esper. This time, he began to wrap all three tentacles several times around their entire bodies, covering the spaces where any vital organs could be. Once that was done, he quickly began to crush once again. This time, he wrung all the air out of their bodies, compressed their organs, began to crack their bones, and generally started to squeeze the both of them into nothingness. They couldn't writhe or scream this time. All they could do was lay helplessly in his grasp and look agonized.

Kraken laughed at the two of them again. "Little-bity worms out of dirt…" He mocked. "Let's see if we can't put you back in."

With that, Kraken laughed even harder as he smashed both of their bodies repeatedly against the hard ground, trying as hard as he could to smash and fracture things while squeezing the life out of them. Leviathan and Ogopogo could do nothing but helplessly look tortured as they were smashed again and again against the ground, beating craters into it and leaving bloody streaks from their progressively more-smashed-in faces…

"Damn it! Where is she? I need to get out!"

Wyvern's anger echoed against the walls of his prison, but other than that did nothing. The esper grit his teeth in rage and angerly smashed his tail against the wall. He had a slight ability to sense power too since his incident with Jadea, and he could sense that the others were gone. He knew there was only one place they would be going, back down to the dark world. He didn't know what they were doing there, but he knew they'd run into trouble. And if they did, he had to be there. For the past thirty minutes, he had already been psyching himself up as he wondered if they were fighting the Four Fiends now. As he did, he began to progressively think more about his own progress, and was now believing it was better for them just to take the Four Fiends now, believing he could deal with them. However, it didn't matter now, for he was still stuck in the blasted hole.

Wyvern reared his head over to Bahamut. His brother hadn't moved an inch, and hadn't reacted to anything. "Well, aren't you upset, Bahamut?" He called out to him.

The esper did not reply. He stayed motionless in his current position.

Wyvern felt himself grow a bit irritated with him at that. "Can you at least tell me what's going on!" He shouted.

No response.

"Ugh!" Wyvern exclaimed. For the first time ever, he was growing annoyed with his brother. What was he doing anyway? Why was he reacting to this whole situation so calmly? Surely he had to see the others were gone. Surely he had to see that they were probably starting the fight now, or at least had encountered one Fiend. And surely he had to know Crusader was far overdue on letting them out. Yet he was just sitting there?

Wyvern turned and sneered overhead. A bit of rock was what was keeping him from fighting. A bit of rock was what was keeping him from striking down the Four Fiends himself. One small stone that Crusader could budge without effort was the only thing holding him back. He wished Bahamut would react a little. Then maybe he could help him move this stone and let him out sometime before…

Suddenly, it hit Wyvern.

Of course… How could I be so stupid!

For months he had been blasting the rocks in the cave to nothingness. His power had only continued to grow since then. How much different was the rock overhead? Surely he could obliterate it in the same fashion, couldn't he? It was definitely worth a try.

Quickly, Wyvern planted his feet on the ground. He craned his neck skyward, straight up overhead. He wanted to put a lot of effort into this. He wasn't sure if he could get through it in one blast, and if he didn't cause an eruption the entire prison could cave in on him. With that in mind, Wyvern quickly began to focus, resummoning the old strength from before. As so many times earlier, he felt the power in his body rising. He felt the words begin to come to mind and roll out, and the powerful blast within him began to generate and burn. The cave slowly began to be illuminated with orange light as the fire within Wyvern's stomach burned and began to glow out from his mouth. But he continued to focus, adding more power to it this time, putting as much power as he possibly could into it. Accordingly, the light grew brighter and brighter. The shadows vanished in the cave. Bahamut's meditation was totally illuminated. And far up the rock tunnel he was in, Wyvern saw the small disk of rock covering the opening. It was time.

"Pyrin!" Wyvern shouted, and immediately a concentrated ball of fire energy erupted from his throat. It was much stronger this time. While still focused, it burned more brightly, and even Wyvern had a hard time focusing on it. A small hazy trail of fire was left behind it as it went up and up and up toward the ceiling. Wyvern closed his mouth and watched it, seeing it connect. Immediately, his world became blinding white, and the sound of a fiery explosion went off. Crying out in a bit of eye-stabbing agony, Wyvern recoiled and shielded himself with his arms as the huge explosion rocked overhead. Hot wind rushed over him, whipping his wings back furiously. Bahamut, for his part, didn't react, even as pebbles and dust were blasted over him and Wyvern. He continued to meditate, while Wyvern shielded his eyes and waited for the aftermath to cease.

Wyvern could see the glare of the explosion even beneath his eyelids. However, even when he felt the winds die down, the explosion fade, and heard the few rocks left slowly clatter to the ground, he still saw bright light. After a moment, the esper relaxed, and slowly turned his head to the sky, seeing what he had done.

In all honesty, he was shocked at his own power. He had done more than blasted a way out. The prison was obliterated. There wasn't even a rock tunnel left. All that was there now was a massive crater in which Wyvern and Bahamut were deep in the center. A few pebbles still fell to the ground, clattering off from the edges, but the large blue sky with the bright golden sun was now beating down on them. Wyvern winced a little in it, unaccustomed to such light. However, he soon burst into a grin and began to laugh out loud. He felt the breeze of Ultima Nexus. He relished the warmth of the sun beating down on him. He was free, and he had done it all by himself. He barely felt like he had used any power at all either! He still had plenty to spare.

Then it's true! Wyvern thought with amazement. I must be the strongest esper by far! I've transcended Odin! And I'll bet I transcended the Fiends too! Heh! Nothing can beat me now!

Immediately, Wyvern took off into the sky. He was pleasantly surprised again. The slightest take-off leap now propelled him thirty feet into the air, and as he beat his wings he felt them effortlessly move in the sky. This was amazing! He snapped his head back around and looked down to Bahamut.

"Come on, Big B!" He shouted. "Let's go! The others are already gone!"

Bahamut didn't move an inch. He continued to sit on the ground, not moving in the slightest.

Wyvern frowned. "Come on! Get off your butt!"

Bahamut didn't reply. He acted as if Wyvern wasn't even there.

The red esper scowled. He turned his head over to the crater mountains, and gazed longingly at them. Then, he looked back to Bahamut. He had never gone anywhere without him. It didn't seem right to leave without him. Regret made him want to stay there. However, a new voice was in him now. It told him to stop waiting for his brother to tag along all the time. If he wanted to waste time in the bottom of that hole until all the humans or their siblings were dead, he could. But Wyvern wouldn't. Bahamut was probably waiting for Crusader to make his release official. Wyvern wouldn't wait for her. He had bigger things to do. There were Fiends to annihilate. Besides, he figured, Bahamut hadn't trained at all while down in that hole. He'd just get in the way if he came this time. No…he figured it was better if he went by himself and cleaned the floor with the Four Fiends.

"Fine. Stay here." Wyvern spoke at last, still hesitating a little. "…I'll bring you back a deer."

With that, Wyvern turned to the mountains and took off. Using his new increased speed, it took no time for him to reach them and make his way down the other side to the portal.

As he vanished in the distance, Bahamut merely sat any continued to meditate, not seeming to notice a thing.

To be continued...