...Just so you know, i hate this chapter.

Writer's block has been such a pest with me. But i know it's because i absolutely despise writing battle scenes, so i tend to procrastinate and delay and not do too well with it all. Meh, but honestly, i had to get this chapter over with. But it kept teasing me... i've been trying to write in more detail lately but it's kind of hard to do that with a fight scene and keep it interesting and fast paced. -needs to work on those skills- So when i reached a certain page i realized i was spending too much time on detail and not enough fight. So that ... really doesn't help. D:

And i apologize for two things: what i just said, and the long wait. Again, i just hate fights. But, luckily, there'll be much more interesting things happening next chapter, i promise! ;o;

...I just had to get this one over with. ono;

Disclaimer: I own nothing of Gash Bell whatsoever. I've state this enough to hopefully get the point through.

Oya, and i'm not sure if the email system is working at the moment (again -w-), so sorry if the review replies come in late.

Lost and Found

7

Complications

I stared blankly as the demon above chuckled a little more, his yellow-red eyes gleaming through the holes of the metal helmet he now adorned. The sun's rays made the metallic headdress glimmer in the light, and I squinted my eyes to try and figure out what could possibly be so special about this simple… thing.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha, Miss Sherry, you look so confused," chuckled Zophise as he loomed over our heads, smirking highly as if he knew something Brago and I didn't, as if he had something very special in store for us. Like a best friend holding a surprise birthday party for the lucky person they had known for years, except this time it wasn't a good thing, I knew that. Instead, I knew it would delay the battle, the real fight, where I would finally see Koko.

"Sherry," Brago suddenly called, and I turned slowly to look into his dark, clouded eyes, and I nodded as he stared at me intently. There was only one way to find out what was so great about this stupid helmet…

"Giganoreisu!" I shouted, and my demon partner raised his arm as the powerful waves of energy gathered in his palm, taking the form of a variety of purple colors, and he shot out the powerful spell of gravity as soon as it grew to be a little less than twice his size.

In a quick swoop, the spell climbed height as it rushed towards Zophise, but my eyes widened when I noticed that the demon wasn't hesitating, he was just floating there, watching with a broad, toothy grin as the energy rushed at him, head-on.

There was an explosion as the Giganoreisu came in contact with the demon, and Brago and I both stared in suspense as the smoke slowly died down, the both of us waiting impatiently. I held my breath as the last bit of dust began to die down, but when the smoke finally disappeared, I released it with a gasp.

Zophise was still standing there, unaffected by the spell, a see-through wall visibly surrounding his body.

"Ha! You're all so foolish!" Zophise cried in glee as he pointed to the small gem implanted in the middle of the silver helmet. "This shield created from the Moon Stone will protect me, I won't have a need to waste spells to block your own! You two will both die here!"

I couldn't help but stare in shock upon what this meant. Somehow he had come up with this strange… shield, where he didn't even need a spell to be cast in order to protect him. Why, how low could this damn demon get? The coward!

"Sherry!" shouted Brago suddenly and I woke up from my trance. Right as I awoke, a Radomu spell was heading strait towards me, but I jumped out of the way just in time, avoiding the explosion created as the pink ball of energy hit the ground, sending pebbles flying in different directions.

Quickly moving to a different position, I held Brago's black spell book close to my chest as I stared up at Zophise and his mischievous expression. "Reisu!" I called, putting a decent amount of energy into the weakest spell we had. Yet as it was our weakest, it was our quickest, and the tiny ball of purple gravity shot out at Zophise in a surprise attack. Again, there was a loud explosion, and we both waited as the smoke died down once more, but before it cleared, a chilling, haunting laughter began to fill my ears…

"Ha, ha, ha, Miss Sherry! Do you really think that your measly spells will be of help? I told you already—this will be your end!"

-o-o-o-o-o-

After Zophise revealed his special little gem, I couldn't have expected the fight to have lasted this long. Well, perhaps I could, but I figured that the jewel's power had to give in sometime or another, or at least Brago and I could have worn down his shields from our attacks enough to cause it to break. No, with the Moon Stone still active, his shields would be new and refreshed each time. There was only hope that it would give in, so Brago and I persisted through.

For sometime now, my demon partner and I had been mostly dodging the bombardment of attacks sent by Zophise, wasting valuable time simply avoiding his weakest spells. Weak as they may be, though, they were still stronger than ordinary mamono spells. Yet while recovering from avoiding his spells, we would send an attack of our own, only to be proven useless yet again from that annoying shield.

"Giganoreisu!" I shouted as I jumped off from a rock, avoiding one of Zophise's attacks. Brago, who was on the same ledge as I, leapt into the air to get closer to where the other demon was hovering, and shot out the powerful ball of gravity from his palm.

Like déjà vu, Zophise was protected from the same, clear shield yet again as he chuckled lowly, obviously amused by the useless attacks we kept shooting his way.

Landing on the solid, rocky ground, I gasped for breath as I stared up in the demon's direction yet again, clutching onto Brago's book and the staff I had carried with me. My hands were beginning to feel moist with sweat, and I realized that we were losing valuable energy by sending pointless attacks after another, over and over again as we drained ourselves of energy. My mouth was beginning to feel somewhat dry and sweat was trickling down my forehead, but I ignored these discomforts and gritted my teeth as Zophise began to speak yet again.

"Tch, didn't I tell you it would be pointless?" he taunted with amusement. "No matter how hard you try, your attempts at hitting me will be fruitless." I could see the smug gleam in his eye through the holes of his helmet as he grinned, bearing his fangs with glee. "You're all so incredibly stupid."

I could feel the anger beginning to rise within me, but then something unexpected happened. There was a small cracking sound that could barely be heard, and then suddenly, the jewel on the helmet Zophise adorned shattered into tiny pieces, and everyone stared in astonishment at the event as the shimmering fragments of the ornament fell.

Being the most surprised out of us all, Zophise blinked for a moment as his mouth hung open, watching the tiny pieces of his precious jewel fall to the ground below, now completely and utterly useless. There was an unsteady pause, and he turned to look back at the ruins that were at least a couple of miles away from us at this point, staring in almost disbelief.

After a moment of unsteady silence, the cruel demon up above turned to look down at us as his helmet suddenly split in two, the metal pieces falling to the ground to meet the fragmented remains of the Moon Stone jewel that had protected him. When the mask broke, the look of pure astonishment was revealed in his expression, which suddenly turned to a fowl scowl.

"Heh, it looks like your precious stone isn't of any use anymore," Brago stated with a triumphant smirk, stepping forward with a deathly gleam in his eye. Hearing him say that, it dawned on me as well of just what this meant, and I too couldn't help but feel that the tables had been turned. We had an advantage now!

"Yes, you have no more shield to protect you anymore, Zophise," I added, bearing my own smirk as well. "The fight can be played fairly now, no more cheats!"

"Tch," the other frowned and his red-yellow eyes narrowed. "You think so, hm? The fight's only becoming more interesting, you have nothing against me!"

"Sherry, cast a spell," Brago called in an annoyed tone, and I knew he was getting impatient. Nodding my head, I held out the black book and took a deep breath, then cast one of our most powerful spells we had.

"Dioga Gurabidon!"

Energy began to rapidly pull together in Brago's palm as the spell began to take shape, and a different assortment of vibrant colors started to swirl together as the overwhelming ball of gravity formed in his hand. My demon partner shot out the spell as it swooped towards our enemy at a quick speed. Yet out of the blue, a voice reached my ears that sent a tug in my heart, and I knew it could only belong to one person…

"Gigarado Shirudo!"

Holding out his hands with a blank expression upon his face, Zophise summoned a swirling barrier of yellow and red, which completely blocked the Dioga Gurabidon and both spells vanished in a large explosion, sending dust flying in all directions.

I quickly shielded my face with my hands to avoid getting anything in my eyes, but the deafening sound of the blast was soon replaced with the echoing sounds of gentle footsteps. My heart began to pound harder and harder as a figure began to come into view through the mounds of smoke and dust, and I raised my head as the silhouette began to come into focus, a sweet yet sinister voice penetrating the silence as well.

"Eh, so you have strong spells too?"

My eyes slowly began to widen at the sound of that overly enchanting voice—a voice that I could recognize any day in any situation you could throw at me, even while delirious. Yet something was different about the soft, gentle sound I was so used to hearing—it was as though a touch of venom had tainted the innocence that was there, causing a string of cruelty to spread and take over. The pounding in my chest was becoming unbearable as the silhouette of the person standing there was revealed to be none other than my dear friend Koko.

I stared back at my friend, holding my breath now as my mouth unconsciously fell open. From within the smoke, two lilac eyes stared back at me, a strange, heart-retching gleam hidden within the once innocent gaze. Koko smirked at me, tilting her head to the side, and an unbearable sadness overwhelmed myself upon seeing this expression on her face.

Yet with the pain came a feeling of relief, seeing that dear Koko was still alive and okay. It would have hurt me so much to see if anything wrong had happened to her, but there was not much difference from the last time I had seen her, despite her hair was slightly longer and curled, and her attire was different. Instead of the plain dress she would usually wear along with her worn out sweater, she was dressed in a short, frilly white dress with a fluffy looking, reddish scarf around her neck. Her boots were also a deep, crimson red, and she stared back at me with the same, hurtful smile that I bore witness to the day she set her town on fire, a haunting memory.

"Bonjour, Sherry," she called, her voice dripping with the evil that had claimed her, and I stared, still not realizing what I was doing, and released the breath I had been holding for an unknown amount of time.

"Ko…ko," I murmured, still shocked that I was still staring at my dearest friend. In truth, I had not seen her for such a long time, it was practically unbearable to go on and not know where she was, or what she was up to, or even be able to talk to her. In spite of it all, I felt elated to see her once again, and the tug in my chest was less heavy, but still….

For however long it was, I didn't keep track of, but one thing I knew, I couldn't help but stare at my beloved friend in shock. This was something I couldn't help, though, it had been so long since I last saw her… what else was I to do?

"Sherry," Koko hummed with a teasing tone, resting the hand which held that accursed book on her hip, "It's been so long, aren't you going to say hello to me? You'll hurt my feelings."

Snapping back to reality, my expression softened and I smiled weakly, though it was important to remind myself that this was not the real Koko speaking here. Koko would never be so bitter and sarcastic towards someone dear to her; I had to stay in control and not let this become too overwhelming. "You look well, Koko."

"Ha, it seems Miss Sherry likes your dress," chortled Zophise from up above, and I felt my blood beginning to boil once more.

"Really?" Koko inquired with that same, unfitting, malevolent grin, twirling about as she inspected the back of her large boots, afterwards glancing back up at me. "I'm glad that it's such a success!"

With that, Zophise began to laugh even more, staring down at us all below from where he remained in the air. "Yes, that's right, Miss Sherry, I didn't force her to wear that. It was her own choice."

I stared, clenching my teeth together tightly as I gripped the staff I held in my hand. "Shut your mouth!"

"Sherry! What Zophise says is true!"

"I said shut your—!" With an appalled stare, I stopped, realizing I was just about to turn around and insult my own precious friend. Inwardly gasping, I took a step backwards and continued to gawk and slightly shake. Koko grinned as she tilted the side of her head to the side, curiously staring back at me with a curt chuckle as she set her hands on her knees.

Up from above, Zophise called back down with his superior laugh, but then an unexpected voice penetrated the air. "You can stop your formalities," called Brago, whom was staring up at the other demon. Turning to look at my demon companion, I stared at him with the same, blank look with my mouth agape. He was glaring up at Zophise, bearing his teeth in irritation. "Let's end this now, Zophise! You've already made us waste enough time!"

"Fine, fine… you're still the same, always in a rush," the mamono mocked as he sighed somewhat, but his cocky grin never left his expression. I continued to stare back at Koko as she chuckled still. What was so funny, I didn't know, but I still couldn't believe what was going on. The fight was starting and I was a nervous wreck; just holding out my hand, one could see the trembling in my fingers—were my fears really that obvious?

When my grip tightened on Brago's book in my right hand, something within me awakened and I was reminded of what was truly going on. Brago and I did not come all this way just for me to stare at my friend that I had not seen in months, we came here to fight so that I would be able to free her from this horrid demon's grasp.

Staring back at Koko, who returned the gaze with a blank, bitter stare, I redirected my attention to her own demon partner—the one that would pay. With a hard frown, I held out the book, and called out the next spell.

"Giganoreisu!"

Right after I called out the spell, I felt myself beginning to shake slightly when Koko chuckled harshly and she held out her own book that began to glow a bright color and cast her own spell, Teoradomu. By the time Brago's spell had collided with their own blast of energy they released, I felt my stomach doing summersaults.

"Oh, what's this? A spell without its usual power?" The enemy demon began to taunt as the smoke from the collided spells faded. He chuckled a bit while Koko joined him, giggling a little as she tucked just a little bit of hair behind her ear.

"Sherry, why do you think Zophise is controlling me?" called the brunette softly, and I couldn't help but stare into her deep, lilac eyes. "He only gave me a chance to change, you know. I went with him on my own free will."

Immediately, I felt something within me break, and I had to hold back the tears from building in the corner of my eyes as I shook my head. "That's a lie! A downright lie! You aren't telling the truth!" Having had such an outburst, I had to calm myself down as I took a few deep breaths, still staring at my dear friend all the while.

"Oh?" The corners of Koko's lips upturned into a sly smile, and she glanced to the side briefly before continuing, her voice dripping with venom—intention to hurt. "How am I lying if it's the real me? You know I would never lie. I know what has been happening with you Sherry, and that's the truth." I froze, heart pounding faster. Koko's expression upturned into a malevolent smile. "It's ironic, isn't it Sherry? We're two friends that have known each other for years, and now we're both on different sides! A little cliché, isn't it?"

I could feel my hands beginning to shake as my friend continued speaking. My ears were beginning to hurt as the thumping of my heart worsened, the heartbeat pounding within my ears, all negative feelings beginning to overwhelm my mind. However, the next words spoken almost made my heart stop completely…

"What's even more funny is that we're both even intimate with our demons!" Koko said with a snickering tone to her voice as she stared at me with an innocent look that clashed to her sadistic tone. I stared blankly, my eyes wide in shock. "Isn't this a strange coincidence?"

For a brief moment, I nearly dropped the black book in my hands. The only thing I could really make out was that I was in deep shock, my mouth hanging open and my eyes shaking, the only thing bringing me back to reality was my sudden gasp and Brago's angry voice penetrating into the air.

"Sherry, don't listen to this woman!"

Blinking and turning to my right, I realized that Brago was no longer by my side, but had instead jumped forward towards where my friend stood, his fist outstretched into the air as he thrust a punch towards my dear friend. No reaction time was provided on my behalf, because as quick as Brago had dashed forward, Koko had already whipped out her own mamono book and had called forth a spell.

"Rondo Radomu!"

Matching both Brago and Koko's speed, Zophise too performed his spell at a quick pace, immediately summoning a green, glowing whip out of his palm that thrashed out and grabbed Brago around his waist, causing explosions to erupt as the darker demon was thrown backwards toward where I stood. Growling, my mamono partner stood up after being thrown a little behind me, and he turned his crimson gaze in my direction.

"Sherry! Get a grip on yourself and don't listen to her!" snarled my companion and I turned to look at him. I was dumbfounded and at a loss of words. Truly, there was nothing that could be said back to Koko, I was bewildered at the fact that she… knew just what was going on.

What scared me though, was not what she said about me, but herself.

She had been intimate with Zophise?!?

Koko…!

"Sherry," teased Koko as she tilted her head to the side, her short, chocolate-brown hair moving just slightly as she grinned. "Why are you so surprised if it's only the truth? Or is it you didn't know about Zophise and I?"

Immediately, I felt my heart quaver, and I stared in evermore shock at the situation. Brago was furious, I could tell by his tense position and how he snarled once more when Koko spoke. It would appear every time the subject between what happened between him and I while my personality was different was brought up, he would get thrown into a bad mood and wouldn't come out of it for at least a day. Not only that, but the emotion stirred within me about this situation was becoming more and more complex.

I was shaking, something that was way too obvious now. Tears were in the corner of my eyes, ready to fall, and all I could do was stand there, bewildered, staring at my best friend, who returned my gaze with an awkwardly contempt expression.

Just then I realized that this fight was going to be much more than I expected to be.

Secrets were about to be uncovered.