AN: Alrighty... I'm back... After like a day of abscence... Anyway, nothing to say here... This chapter's shorter than the one's before...

Eien Kaosu: Thanks! The battle hasn't really started yet, though it gets put off until later on. I don't really watch Inuyasha, though I guess alot of demon villians/villianesses have raven hair...

Attic-Window: Hien has a bit of a rougher side... He just doesn't display it much. Good to know Hien's getting some fans... Err... Akuji got 'absorbed' into Kronos's conscience.

Seifer leveled his blade with Alex's face. "Enough talk. I have a boat to catch."

"You are not leaving Maple Island."

Siefer smirked. "Alex, Alex! When will you learn... You tell me I can't do something... It just makes me try even harder!"

"Very well. If words will not dissuade you, I will stop you by force." Alex rushed forward. Seifer leaped into the air, flipping gracefully. As he twirled, he brought his sword around so it would slash through Alex as he spun. Still moving forward, Alex dove into the slicing whirlwind. In one deft move, Alex knocked Seifer's sword away with one of his sword, then struck him in the side with the blunt of his second blade.

Seifer coughed blood, but kept smiling vaguely. "As I thought..." Seifer caught Alex under the chin in a vicious uppercut. Alex seemed to float away, skidding to a halt several yards away. Grinning, Seifer plucked Alex's two swords from the ground nearby. Strolling casually over to Alex's prone body, Seifer plunged the swords into the ground next Alex's head. "Have fun with the headache tomorrow..."

XxX

Zale watched as Hien helped Seifer aboard the ship. "Ahoy there, me hearties!" Seifer called, laughing loudly.

Hien rubbed his head sheepishly. "S-Seifer, we need to be quiet..."

"Aye, that we do, laddy-buck!"

"P-please, stop talking like that!"

"But, me hearty! We're off to sail the blue yonder! We have to talk like a sailor too, savvy?"

"They don't tend to talk like that, Seifer." Zale murmured.

Seifer looked surprised. "Really? Well, how am I supposed to talk then?"

Zale sighed, stood, and began tending to the ship. "If we are to leave soon, we must quickly get ready to shove off."

Seifer grinned. "Alright! Now we're talking! So, what do we do first?"

"Raise the sails."

"Oh. And what are those?"

Zale looked incredulously at Seifer. "The big cloths hanging from the mast."

"Oh! Those... Yeah, I knew that! I was just testing you! You passed! And umm... How do you raise them?"

"Pull on that rope..."

XxX

Chase gladly recounted his triumph over the massive yeti. "Then it came charging at me! I threw a couple o' stars but it just got the bastard madder! Then slugged me and knocked my claw over behind it!"

A drunken man saw his que to make a joke. "Heh! Hey, hey! What do you call an assassin without stars?"

The tavern's inhabitants watched him blankly. Chase ventured a remark. "What do you call an assassin without throwing stars?"

The man stared at him, confused. There was a pause, then he said, "I dunno..." and promptly fell out of his chair, fast asleep.

Chase laughed and the others joined in. While the others revelled in the merry night, Chase found his thoughts wandering back down roads he had dared not to follow since he had failed that... test. He thought of his sister, Ayrill, and of his father, the man who had left them to die...

XxX

Alex watched as Zale's ship floated off into the distance. "Dammit. This has gotta be the second time I've failed... Better go tell Aradia. And how did Seifer know about me being Akuji's brother?"

XxX

"Yo, Zale! How's da ship doin'?"

"S-Seifer... You don't have to talk like that either."

"Oh. Man! Am I supposed to talk normal or something?"

"Y-yes..."

"Oh. So, Zale! How's everything with the ship?"

"Fine."

"'Fine!' Yikes. Not much of a talker are you?"

Zale rolled his eyes. "No."

Seifer burst into a huge grin. "Well, don't worry then! I can talk enough for both of us! So one time I was a kid and a snail..."

As Seifer chattered away about the time a snail ate his shoe and he chucked the snail off a cliff, Hien gazed searchingly at the open blue waters. They were in the deep now. He had heard of the rumors of the Doom Flounder, as much as he liked to think they were false, he had a small feeling of ominous doom. A small fin appeared in the water, streaking towards them. "H-hey, Zale..."

Seifer continued talking, though Zale looked up. "Yes?"

"There's something coming..."

Zale hurried to Hien. "What--" Zale stopped and swore heavily. "We've got company!"

The Doom Flounder erupted from underwater, a massive fish the size of many ships combined. Zale reached for his bow just as the fish bore down upon them...

AN: Cliffy there. But anyway, review if ya want... I'm gonna go listen to Seifer's captivating story of how his pet snail ate his homework and the devastating events that take place after. Review please! Don't make Seifer recall the time when---