Star was standing in front of Nerys's shop with a big grin on her face.

"Mommy! It's Aydub!"

Please, tell me this isn't a hallucination! Not knowing if I had said or thought it, I start to cry as I saw the familiar features of my son, although my mind was telling me that I was seeing ghosts.

Sularin snapped me out of my reverie, "Get him!"

Aydub maneuvered through our grasps and jetted off, leaving us tailing him desperately. Star and Yuki were the fastest, since they weren't carrying anything with them.

I watched the two girls tackle Ay, pushing him to the ground. They're out of hearing distance but I nearly tripped because of what I saw. He smiled at them and suddenly they sprinted back to me, giggling and squealing.

What in Cichol's name just happened!?

"Girls, stay behind but keep up!" I shouted as we passed the two munchkins. They grinned and gave me thumbs up.

Ckika and Sularin were easily outrunning me while Koriko and Hishima cheated and took a short cut.

We went around the town and down what felt like every alley before we finally had him cornered.

"A wall! Ha, we have him trapped!" Ckika screamed.

Just as we thought we had him, he started climbing up the wall. One glance at my spirit and he knew what to do.

"Yes! Now I'm–" Ay never got to finish his sentence as Zeiyo grabbed him.

"Sorry Aydub, but Diya wants you with her."

"Dammit all Zeiyo! Let me go! You seriously don't understand what's going on!" he shouted.

What could have been so bad that you had to tell your mother that you were dead? I thought I would be sad but instead I was angry- no, incensed. A part of me wanted to slap some sense into the boy's head until he apologized and another part of me wanted to smother him in a never ending hug.

Zeiyo floated in front of us, since we were all almost out of breathe.

"Aydub" I started out, my voice was soft, "you're not dead! I'm so happy…AND INFURATED" I step over to him, about to let my body do whatever it needs to. Whether it be slap or hug him- I was voting for the slap though.

Before I knew it, Hishima stood between us and slapped him first. My eyes bulged out of my head and I jumped at the sound of her hand meeting his face.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" she screamed almost at the top of her lungs, clearly, she was angrier than me.

Tears started falling down her cheeks, "H-Hishima, look. I'm sorry just that you –" he tried to say.

"Don't say sorry to me! You've lied to all your family! They all thought you were dead!" she screamed at him, "You should have told them you were alive! They would have protected you!"

"If I would have gone to them it would have caused more problems! If I would have gone there, the Emain Macha officials would have kidnapped them to coerce me into walking to my own execution! Don't you dare tell me what to do because you basically did the same damn thing!"

We all jumped back now but I was the first to rush over, "Aydub, this isn't like you. Now tell me what's wrong."

Placing my hands on his face, I quickly withdrew my hand from his flushed skin. "Aydub you're burning up."

He just shook his head. Something told me that something terrible has happened. Something that Ay thinks is so bad that people are after him.

"Mom, what's going on?" Sularin stepped closer but is at the same time kept her distance, "Why isn't Aydub talking and just shaking his head?"

"Diya, I don't think that this is going too well, I think that–"

Ay let out a tortured scream and pulled his body away, "Zeiyo! Let me down!"

Instantly Zeiyo obeyed and dropped him. I tried to tell him not to let go but it was too late, Ay was already sprawled on the ground. As I moved forward to help him up, the entire family followed to crowd around him.

"Get off!" he shrieked desperately.

He threw us all off and started walking backwards, clutching his head tightly. Before any of us could reach him again, a cloud of black something started swarming around him, like a tornado.

"Aydub! Nooo! Mama, what's wrong with Aydub?" Yuki squealed, latching onto my skirt.

I held everyone close, afraid that the black swarm would spread. "I don't know Yuki!"

That was probably the most truly terrifying sentence that had ever come out of my mouth. And now was the worst time for it to have been said. I don't know... it was always not knowing that was the scariest.

Right before our eyes, the black swarm suddenly settled down and I saw a gleaming, pulsating, almost living armor like something crawling its way up Aydub's body. Something in my mind clicked. I knew that armor, I had seen it before.

"Found him!" A voice called out, "Over here!"

The helmet was almost completely done engulfing whatever was left of Ay when an arrow found its way into his forehead.

"Aydub!"

His body fell and the helmet melted away before it could cover him. Hishima was the first to recover from the shock and ran over to him.

"Aydub? Aydub!"

I looked behind me and saw Craig and Aodhan. Aodhan pulled me up and behind him.

"Get away from Aydub, Diya!"

"Aodhan, what is the meaning of this?" I exclaimed angrily, "You said he was dead!"

"He's a traitor! Look at the armor that just somehow appeared around him!"

As I stared blankly at the glowing, intricate, and dark armor, the memories of the Dark Knight who attacked me came flooding back. I had to make sure.

"Aydub…What is that armor Aodhan?"

My eyes were glued onto my son but I still heard as Aodhan told me, "That's the armor of a traitor, a Dark Knight. By the looks of that armor, he's almost to the top of the ranks."

I cover my mouth. I could feel a cry welling up in my throat; the thought of loosing Ay was almost unbearable and I blurted out before I even thought.

"He…he's not the same, is he?"

Aodhan's hands moved up to my shoulders and he pulled me into a tight hug, "No. The boy you knew is gone forever Diya, I'm sorry."

Hadn't he known how much I loved-no still love- him? If he was having a problem, why couldn't he come to me first? Why would he run away from us?

"Aodhan…What…Why was he running?"

"He obviously forgot who you were, that's what happens when someone converts."

Koriko ran over and kicked Aodhan's leg, demanding, "Give me back my brother!"

Yuki and Star joined in now, I stepped away from Aodhan and from the corner of my eye I saw something black appear out of nowhere.

Everyone jumped back in surprise. A Chaos Knight, complete with the deadly ornamental horns jutting from the sides of his helmet, stood calmly where Ay had previously lain.

"So, a freaking little arrow would kill me huh?" The voice gave it away. It was Ay, and although I couldn't see because of the helmet, I could tell he was smirking, in a way that sent shivers down my spine, and apparently affected the others similarly.

"A-Aydub, w-w-we're…" Aodhan began stammering but Ay cut him off.

"Heh, you what? Now what are you going to do?"

I shot a furtive glance at Aodhan who already had his hand on the hilt of his sword.

A loud greeting came out of nowhere, "Heyo! So these guys causing trouble for you Aydub?"

This maroon/brunette haired boy came out of nowhere and the soldiers got on their knees. Later on, I would learn that he was Silas, one of Ay's friends. The boy nudged them and they spoke up, their voices shaking.

"S-sorry sir, we were only following orders…"

The Chaos Knight let out an 'evil' laugh, "So just because someone is more intimidating you say sir and acknowledge him? Pretty pathetic for the apparent Paladins of Erinn."

Aodhan drew his sword and lunges for the knight, though I could only see my precious son instead of a murderous traitor. "You smug little fool!" he snarled.

"Aodhan, no!" I screamed and grabbed his hand. He looks at me angrily for a second, "Please…I don't want to lose another."

Just by the way his eyes softened, I knew he would do what I asked, "Alright Diya, this is a favor to you". He turned to the knight, "Aydub, if you cause any havoc or disrupt anything, we'll hunt you down and kill you."

He sheathed his sword and walked away. I nodded, giving him tacit thanks. Then Silas sighed loudly and exaggeratedly.

"Ahhhhh! Man, this guy is a lot tougher than I thought!"

He thumped the knight on the back of the head and the helmet fell off, showing the same old face of my son. I smiled. He's still him I thought to myself.

The two boys glanced at each other and they started cracking up, while we all stared at them like they needed straight jackets. I'm sure they did. Who in their right minds found a Dark Knight funny?

Ay looked down. Star and Yuki were banging on his leg.

Yuki started with, "Big brother…" but Star continued, "…are you still…" They give him the cutest eyes, "Aydub?" they ask in unison.

Ay bent over and smiles, hugging them, "Yeah, I'm still me guys. I'm not any different… although I look different, I guess."

The rugrats pulled him into a tight hug and squealed loudly and enthusiastically, "Big brother is home!"

I was sure that he'd gone deaf by now, chaos knight or not. He pulled their arms off his neck and looked over at us. Suddenly, I felt the rage from earlier. Where does my son come from, thinking he can... "You stayed away from us, hiding for weeks. You even had Ckika and Koriko keep a secret like that. Do you realize how worried I was?" I screamed while throwing my hands in the air in frustration.

Inside, I laughed. Even with the Chaos armor, my son still knew that when I shouted then he better assume the position! He bit his lip, "Mom, I'm sorry. Just that they were trying to kill me and…well…you know."

I laughed loudly and jumped on him, "You dork! You worried me so much."

Happily, I buried my head in his armor as he pats my head. The cold armor burned my skin slightly but I figured that as long as Ay didn't go evil, I wouldn't mind. Before I knew it, everyone was on the boy.

Everyone wanted a piece of Ay, the youngest girls started climbing him and pulling his hair as if he's Rapunzel. Ckika and Sul were just poking him, probably trying to irritate him while Koriko jabbed his head and Hishima kissed his cheek. Feeling left out, I started nudging his leg and his eyes began twitching.

"What is it?" he shouted, obviously annoyed.

"Are you alright?" we all asked at once.

He face palms his forehead and laughs, "Yeah! I'm perfectly fine!"

Everyone now started asking-well, more like interrogating him about being a Dark Knight, though I gave all of them the 'if you so much as try to become a Dark Knight, I'll personally slap you back to Novice level' glare. They got the hint but they kept chattering loudly. I saw Kim finally appear.

"So a Dark Knight huh? Been wanting to fight one for a while" she threatened while cracking her knuckles.

Oh no, here she goes again. I face palmed my forehead and shook my head.

"Sorry, I'm not in the mood for a fight. Who are you?"

I stepped up to Ay, admitting that I actually knew her, "Her name is Kim, she's kind of like a new family member." Considering that I knew people in the family who were far more insane than Kim, it wasn't much of an overstatement. It was sad to admit but it was true.

The mini assassin scoffed, "Family member? Puh-lease, I'm just helping grandma here do stuff."

My eye twitched at the nickname and mentally I imagined me telling Ay to beat her up, him doing so, and winning. Ah, mental violence always made me feel better.

"What are you, a fomor?" Ay asked(demanded) and I couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. As if he was able(allowed) to make accusations against fomors considering…

Kim raises Makoto, "Yup! You wanna fight now?"

He shook his head, "No, I don't want to fight right now", he looked over at us, "I'd actually rather go home."

Silas cheered Aydub on first and I tried to glare at the boy to get him to shut up. Aydub just got an arrow through his head, and I didn't need Ay and Kim fighting constantly, which was bound to happen if there was a first time. Before I knew it, however, the youngest girls were cheering him on and Ay started laughing. Something blue/white hit his side and I could see the chilly air puffing out around Ay's hip. He fell on his ground on one knee and grabbed the cold side.

"You want to fight?"

Oh dear god! Please tell me that it was just the armor being retarded and messing with Ay's head. I cover my eyes and shake my head vigorously.

I could still hear all the commotion, the sounds of arrows piercing the sky and Kim crying in pain.

"Agh! You're an archer?" she asked, surprised and angry, her voice wasn't as cocky as it was before.

"Yeah, surprise, isn't it? It's kinda useful when you can shoot five arrows one after the other too!"

I heard Ay grunt as something attacked him. Worried that it might be Kim's wolf, I looked up to see the boys on the ground, knocking up dust, and Kori with the upper hand.

He was shouting, "You gonna stop it!? You've already fought, so stop!" and he punched Aydub.

Ay stared at him for a second, before, "Alright, alright…"

I sighed in relief but I could see Kim trying to leave unnoticed.

Rolling my eyes playfully, I walked over and patted her on the back. She pretended to not care but I knew that she at least felt a bit better. At least enough not to attack him in his sleep, which is all I care about.

"Guess I'll just take my leave then…"

I spun around and stared. Aydub was walking towards us but it looked more like he was being pulled- apparently by air. He flinched for a second before sighing.

"Sorry…" We couldn't help but stare, not really sure what to say. Did my son take drugs or something without me knowing? He quickly stuffed his hands into his pockets and turned his head, "I mean, sorry I caused all this hell."

The youngest girls tugged on Ay's pants, "No need to say sorry big brother", they smiled, "we always forgive you!"

Being the adorable children that they were, they hugged his leg. Ay just laughed and hugged them back, falling for their cuteness, "Thanks you two."

Ckika and Sularin walked over, Ckika said, "You're a freakin idiot, you know that?" with a quick whack across his head, she got her point across.

"You seriously worried us." Sularin crossed her arms and death glared him.

A part of me cried. My daughters were becoming such strong women…at the expense of my son's health. The youngest were going to learn one day, after they realized that their cuteness had the power to control men.

"And let's not forget he was trying to protect you guys" Silas began, "if he did go to you guys, he probably would have killed you. The first couple of his transformations were wild, and he can't remember anything. So you should actually be thankful he didn't go back to you guys."

He patted Ay's shoulder and whispered something. As soon as he got up, Hishima glomped him and kissed him, "Never do that again!"

I had to do a retake, did this girl just kiss my son!?

"Wait a minute! Hishima! Did you just kiss my baby?" I stormed over there, ready to kick anyone's butt.

"Yes I did" she stated casually while hanging from his neck, "He's my boyfriend" she stuck her tongue out and grinned.

For the oddest reason, I couldn't help but laugh. Ay started laughing too, though I'm sure it was for an entirely different reason. Although, a piece of me couldn't help but be a bit sad, for I missed out on a piece of Ay's life, something which I had never before done to any of my children.

I started dazing out until I heard, "…you must be Tarlach, Hishima."

The girl smiled, "Yup, the three lost warriors."

"Yeah…"Ay smiled happily and everyone jumped on him, though, me being a dignified mother, I just stared at Kim while dazing out again.

She was glaring down Ay, and I could already see her plotting an attack. Then my mind drifted back to Tarlach.

I decided.

It was time to finish up this quest for him, because Kristell must have been worried sick about him. As worried as I was about my husband and as much I was about Ay.

Though in all the brain fuzzle, I realized something. Hishima looked nothing like Tarlach- they weren't even the same gender for crying out loud- so where did they get the idea of them being the 3 lost warriors?

YESH! It's not my fault!! Ay is a guy . will stay a guy until I think in g2 but that's her story xD Not mines (it makes sense later). AND Burning ur body is better! Because any other way, ur body might turn into a zombie and want your brain back.
CLASSIC = GOOD!

I dont need to be hiring Zombie Slayers now just because I want your brain . Also, I'll take the brain out before I burn you :D YAY! AND I LOVE YOU BETA READER!!! (i won't say names so no one else can take her :o)

And to Kim, Ay, Sul and everyone xD