The atmosphere in the dark and empty park had taken on a rather tense and dark feeling that could be sensed in the air that separated the two dueling pairs. Soubi took a short moment to take in a chest full of the cool night air as he fully assessed the situation.

"So…you have your orders?" Midori was standing in a relaxed stance as he replied in a calm serious tone while slipping his hands back into the pockets of his loose jeans.

"Yes; and you know that we can't just turn them down." Soubi then delicately pulled his small glasses from his face and put them in his pocket before replying in a cool voice.

"No, I suppose you can't." The fiery pink haired girl then suddenly leapt forward to be in front of her Sacrifice in an offensive stance.

"Come on Midori! Let's get this over with!" Midori then gave a determined nod to his partner before taking her hand in his, causing their matching names to light up in the darkness.

"Alright! We declare this to be a battle of spells." Without a moment of hesitation, Soubi pulled Ritsuka into him, tucking him safely under his arm, before replying.

"We accept." With that, the battle radius erupted from the center of the clearing, engulfing both units as well as their two uneasy spectators. Ai and Midori then joined both hands and pull themselves into each other as they spoke.

"We are Breathless, so fierce it's impossible to breath." Soubi then raised a large hand straight out in front of him as he began his attack, never being fond of the introductions that were part of battle etiquette.

"Incinerate. Tiny sparks erupt into dancing flames that engulf the body." The spell swept up a whirlwind of flames that surrounded Soubi and Ritsuka where they stood, before whipping away across the clearing.

"Ai! Don't try to block it head on! Deflect it!" The pink haired girl gave a quick nod before going to work as quickly as she could.

"Deny! Blow away the flames to nothing!" A strong wind then whipped all around the park causing the flames to fade away to nothing. Soubi gave a chuckle at this as he gave the girl a slightly condescending look.

"Looks like you've gotten a little faster Ai…but you still can't protect Midori." This already got the girl flustered and she showed it clearly on her face.

"Shut up!" The green haired boy then took a step forward to place a hand on his Sentouki's shoulder and speak to her in a calming voice.

"Ai, don't listen to him. He knows how to get to you but you can't let him. You are stronger than he thinks and I know you will protect me." This raised the girl's spirits and she was able to put on a determined face before turning back to face Soubi.

"Alright! Fracture! Break apart the very earth and tear my enemies to pieces!" The ground then began to rumble and shake beneath Ritsuka's feet. He clung on desperately to Soubi's strong arms as he tried to keep his footing. Soubi remained silent and still, staring at the buckling earth as he waited to time his defense just right. His keen eyes then quickly picked up the sight of more dramatic shifting of the ground. In that instant, he figured out the spell to use and raised his hand to cast it just before the ground got a chance to fall completely out from beneath his Sacrifice.

"Release. Empty the gravity from the space and keep us safe from the unstable earth." Just as commanded, a small glowing bubble quickly encased both Soubi and Ritsuka, allowing the ground to fall out from beneath them and leaving them standing right where the ground had been. Ai gritted her teeth in anger at the clever defense.

"Damn it…"

Meanwhile, on the outskirts of the clearing….

Emma and Regina watched on in stunned silence at the strange scene unfolding right before their eyes. They could each even feel the tension in the air that filled the battle area that they had become entrapped in. After the first few minutes of the battle, Emma finally turned to Regina with a bewildered expression.

"What the hell is going on over there? Is that magic?" Regina shook herself from the shock of the situation to turn to Emma with her arms crossed and her brow furrowed in a puzzled manor.

"I'm not entirely sure. It seems like magic, but not like our magic or any that I've seen in any of the realms I've been to. It's different…stronger somehow." Emma's fur covered ears then perked up to a stand as she stumbled upon a realization.

"Wait! So…does this mean our magic will work like normal here? I mean, you did some kind of something with all that water last night." Regina then took a short moment to think and consider the possibility.

"I'm not sure if our magic will work here at all, let alone like it does at home. I still don't know how the room got soaked last night, I told you that, and I told you that I don't think I even did it. Magic doesn't work that way."

"Well where else would the water come from your highness?" Regina gave an annoyed scoff at the blondes' sarcasm.

"I told you…I don't know!"

"Ok, ok….but…" Emma's thought quickly trailed off as her gaze became locked on the battle happening before them. Her eyes grew wide and her thoughts became flustered as she made a realization.

"But what Emma?!" The blonde then turned to the queen with an expression of curiosity and terror.

"What happens to the loser?" Regina hadn't thought of that and so quickly turned her gaze back on the battle with the same terrified and worried expression.

"I…I don't know…"

Meanwhile…

"Just keep it together Ai! You can do this." Soubi couldn't help but to chuckle as Midori did his best to calm his shaky partner. He also couldn't help but to rile her up just a little more.

"Yes, let's see if Ai really can protect Midori….Shatter. A barrage of needles to pierce the skin in a thousand places." Ai was determined not to lose and so was quick to defend.

"Defend! Nothing will reach here!" Soubi then gave a cocky grin as thousands of shinning shards and needles broke through the girl's defense to rain down upon the green haired boy, earning him a thick collared restraint around his neck.

"Ahnn!"

"Midori!" Ai quickly ran to her Sacrifice's side as he fell down onto one knee.

"I-I'm fine Ai…just end this."

"R-right." Ai then stood from her place and took up her offensive stance once more, now more determined than ever.

Meanwhile….

Emma and Regina could hardly believe what they were seeing. The battle was nothing like what they had expected. Emma, more than anyone, was starting to really worry about how this might end.

"Regina…did you see that?" Regina had now completely dropped her normal regal and negative demeanor and was now only genuinely worried about the situation.

"Yes…it seems like some sort of chain or restraint. My best guess would be that it's a manifestation of damage taken." Emma's expression was stern as she let everything sink in but she was quick to snap back into a slightly frantic state.

"Well we have to do something! We can't just sit here and watch this; one of them could get hurt." Regina was then quick to revert to her natural tone of aloof sarcasm once more.

"Well what would you suggest we do Miss Swan? We can't just run blindly into something we know nothing about."

"I know…I don't know what we could do. But we have to do something…"

Meanwhile, back in battle….

The pink haired girl was completely fired up and ready for her next attack.

"I'm not going to lose to you this time Soubi! You're just a dirty adult with a different name!" Soubi then shot the girl a fiery gaze.

"We shall see."

"Demolish! A shockwave that destroys everything in its path!" Soubi's eyes grew wide as he saw an immense wave of light begin to bubble and roll as its power built. He hadn't truly expected the young girl to pull off such a strong spell. He then gritted his teeth as he thought as fast as he could for a defense, but was not sure if one would even hold. He gave a quick glance over his shoulder to Ritsuka.

"Ritsuka….are you ready?" Ritsuka gave a determined nod before replying.

"Yes." The shockwave then suddenly broke free and began thundering quickly towards Ritsuka's small frame. Soubi quickly held up a hand in defiance.

"Dissolve. A million firefly's will melt away the crashing wave."

As commanded, millions of small bright lights flooded the area and met up with the wave halfway in between the dueling units. Soubi held firm as the force of the attack pushed back against him, until suddenly the lights burst all at once and disappeared as the wave pushed its way through. The wave then began to roll along its path once more.

At the edge of the clearing, Emma could no longer hold back her feelings and concerns.

"Regina! We have to do something!" Regina was just as worried, but was held back by her logical thinking that they could do nothing.

"We can't Emma! We can't do anything!" Emma then let out a low growl in her throat in frustration.

"No! You won't do anything! And if you won't do anything….then I will!" Before Regina could even react, Emma took off running at full pace towards the small fragile boy that they had really only just met. Regina quickly panicked at the sight, but all she could seem to do was call out to the fiery blonde.

"Emma!"

The sound of the queen's call reached all the way to Soubi and Ritsuka's ears, and they each whipped their heads around to see Emma barreling towards them on one side and a powerful attack on the other. Soubi immediately panicked, not knowing if he could do anything to stop the girl or the attack.

"Emma! Get out of here now!"

Soubi's words feel on deaf ears as Emma just kept running until she finally reached Ritsuka. She was too out of breath to speak and upon seeing the shimmering wave was only feet away, she did the only think she could think of and wrapped the small boy tightly up in her arms and held on tight.

"E-Emma! What are you doing?!" Ritsuka did his best to try and struggle free and push the woman out of the way but he simply wasn't strong enough.

"I…won't let…you get hurt…"

Before anyone could do anything else, the attack finally landed on its mark hard with a glowing explosion. Soubi could then only listen to the barely audible screams and wait on baited breath for the smoke to clear. From the edge of the clearing all Regina could see was some sort of explosion engulf the spunky sheriff. The sight was finally enough to light the fire within her and she immediately began to run towards the scene. By this point even Ai and Midori were not only completely confused as to who had run into the middle of a closed battle, but were slightly worried as to what had happened.

As the smoke began to settle, everyone was watching on intently waiting for the outcome. After a short moment the dust finally settled and Regina was the first to react to what she saw.

"Emma!" She then quickly ran to where the blonde now laid on the ground with a chained collar locked around her neck and two more around each of her wrists. Ritsuka was already sitting on his knees at Emma's side, in a state of shock as he tried to utter his thoughts.

"I-I…don't understand…I don't know…"

Regina ignored the boy completely as she fell to her knees and took the blonde's limp unconscious body up into her arms. She couldn't seem to find any words to say and even more concerning, was suddenly overcome with a flurry of strange feelings that she had never felt before and couldn't understand. All she could do in that moment was pull the blonde's body closer and tremble. Soubi on the other hand, was the first to notice that there was something else going on in the current situation. He remained calm, as not to worry anyone, as he saw the ground around Regina begin to shake slightly and pebbles start to levitate ever so slightly off the ground around them. He took a quick second to subtly motion to Ritsuka to step away from them, which he did very slowly and quietly, getting a strange sense of danger from the woman. He then slowly approached the woman, completely ignoring the battle at hand, and gently placed a large hand on her shoulder before speaking in a very soft and calming voice.

"Regina…I'm sure you are confused right now and are feeling things you've never felt before, and that's ok. Emma is going to be just fine, and that's a promise; but right now I need you to take a deep breath and calm down." Soubi waited for a reply but received only silence. "I know this is hard to understand but I will explain everything later. Right now it's very important that you calm down and get back to the edge of the field." Again she said nothing, but this time she silently stood from her place with Emma held limply in her arms and began to walk away. She was quickly stopped however by the feeling of Soubi's firm grasp on her shoulder.

"Regina…Emma has been restrained, she has to stay here; but you need to get clear." The queen then finally shot Soubi a fierce burning gaze before speaking in a low and terrifying voice.

"I'm not leaving her." Soubi knew when he just couldn't win, so he released his grasp and allowed Regina to go back down to her knees with Emma still wrapped in her arms.

"Ok. Just stay right there then." Ritsuka then finally snapped out of his stunned silence and ran to Soubi's side to cling back onto him.

"Soubi….what's going on?"

"I'm not positive…but this isn't the time to explain anything. We have to finish this so we can get out of here." Ritsuka then put on a determined grin.

"Then finish it. I order you to win, now." Soubi gave a small smile as he pulled the boy closer and caught his lips in a quick but passionate kiss.

"Understood." Soubi then turned his attention back to the baffled looking duo across from them.

"Implosion. Tear apart the very cells of my enemy."

Soubi's words were quick and fierce and sent a blinding light racing across the meadow at lightning speed. Ai quickly raised a hand to try to defend, but the attack landing before she could utter a single syllable, leaving Midori completely restrained.

"Ahh!" Ai quickly ran to her partner's side while Soubi raised a hand to stake his claim.

"Victory." With that final word, the battle field broke apart and collapsed around them.

As the field collapsed, all the restraints from both units shimmered and disappeared. Soubi remained focused on Breathless until they both stood their feet.

"Now go. Run back to Teacher." Midori gritted his teeth slightly as he spit his reply.

"He won't be happy about this Soubi… about any of this."

"Run along."

Ai and Midori then did as they were told and walked away with their tails between their legs. Soubi was then able to turn his attention back to his guests. Just as he turned around to check on the women, Emma gasped back into consciousness as she shot up to a seated position. Regina on the other hand let out a loud gasp of her own as she clenched her chest, as if she was waking from a dream. Regina and Emma then both stood to their feet and brushed themselves off before looking to Soubi with puzzled expressions. Emma was the first to speak with her furry ears pressed firmly against her head.

"Ok…what the hell just happened?" Soubi took a deep breath before answering.

"Ladies…that's a very long story."

TBC