A/N I thought I had put this in... Sorry my dear readers. Um, is there anyone who would be intrested in being my Beta? I won't need one until after this fic is up, but I might afterwards. If you want to be the Beta let me know in your review. By the way this won 3rd place in a righting contest and my teacher wants me to publish it. The characters where changed for the contest. What do you guys think? Is it good enough for it?

Key

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Memories

//Dragon's telepathy//

/Phoenix telepathy/

End Key

Chapter 17: The Battle that Determines the War

They broke from the tunnel and into the cool, crisp night air. Kaze flew swiftly upon large wings. He wanted to get them to the city as quickly as possible. Their friend needed their return to be as soon as he could get them there.

He could see an army of dog people below. Jen's chances were 1 to 100,000,000. She might not live to see another day. The odds were against her. Boy were they against her. But he wasn't going to give up on the girl just yet. After all, she never gave up on her friend.

// Antauri. Take one of my feathers now. Just in case there isn't time later. // Kaze called back without taking his attention off where he was going.

Antauri plucked one of the white feathers and placed it in the bag that held the blood and tear. He clutched the bag tightly to him. It now contained all the objects that Chiro's survival depended on. He wasn't about to let go of it, and he didn't want to drop it. That's why he clutched it so tightly.

Atsui was still in her human form. Something caught her attention. She stood up, her hair and kimono fluttered about her in the wind. Kaze made no protest to having her stand on him.

Atsui raised her left hand and summoned an arrow. The other hand stayed limply at her side, and a bow was summoned to it. She raised the bow and put the arrow in place. She aimed the arrow and fired.

It struck the wing of a giant bird. The bird screeched as it fell from the sky, taking its caninadon rider with it. There were many more of those birds flying toward them. And they seemed to have not noticed their comrade fall from the sky. That, or they just didn't care.

Atsui summoned another arrow, knocked, aimed, and fired it. She repeated this process many times. She needed to get ride of those birds and riders. They could cause trouble for her group if they were to get close enough. She wasn't about to allow that to happen.

Mandarin watched as the birds were shot down. He realized it was a good thing Jen had told them to take the phoenix with them on Kaze's back. Jen herself would have been virtually useless in this situation. And by staying behind she was slowing the army down to give them time to escape. But… would she be able to get out of there in one piece?

Funny. It was almost as if Jen had foreseen what was going to happen. She had sent them off knowing she might not survive. Had she foreseen what needed to be done? Is that why she sent Atsui in human form?

Maybe she had. Maybe she had not. But all they could worry about now was getting to the city. They couldn't worry whether or not Jen foresaw what was going to happen. They could only trust that she knew what she was doing and that she'd come out of it alive.

Jen allowed a small smile to creep onto her lips. She knew they were going to need Atsui in human form. She had foreseen it when she had dozed. She knew they were going to make it to the city on time. As for herself, she knew nothing.

Shortly after Antauri had spoken the arm attacked. Jen merely brandished her blood stained dagger. She wasn't going to back down!

Using what little psychic ability she possessed she put barriers on all the exiting tunnels. Only the one where the army was coming from was left untouched by her. The battle had begun. And this was the one that was going to determine the outcome of this war.

A thought crossed her mind as the caninadons charged at her. Why were these dogs attacking? What had the felinadons done to them? Nothing, as far as Jen knew. Then it hit her. They wanted the land the felinadons possessed. They wanted the feather dragon and phoenix. They wanted Kaze and Atsui.

Jen's eyes narrowed fiercely. They weren't going to get what they wanted she wasn't going to allow that. Not now. Not ever.

Jen flung herself forward and slashed with her dagger, slitting throats and stabbing hearts. She knew where the vitals were; she did, after all, work in a clinic. She did her best to dodge any attack that came her way, but some hit home. They cut her dagger holding arm in an attempt to slow her, which of course didn't really work. She was much too determined to pay attention to the wound.

She was slashed across her collarbone. She was cut on the cheek. Many cuts and small gashes began to decorate her small form. That didn't discourage her, as it would have others.

She was but a lone girl fighting an army. She wasn't about to back down. There wasn't going to wave a white flag. She was going to give it her all!

She called upon the massive power inside her. The Power Primate. It surrounded her lifting her into the air. She floated to the ceiling of the dome. "Primate's Ocean!" She released her power. It flowed through the tunnels like water, destroying all in its path. It gushed out of the cave and down the side of the volcano, destroying the army that waited below.

Jen fazed through the ceiling of the dome and floated above the volcano's top. She was going to save her friends from the birds and their riders. There was nothing else left for her to do.

"Look!" Atsui called to those who rode with her.

They all looked at what the phoenix wanted them to see, even Kaze. Hovering above the volcano was a green, glowing light. It resembled a star in the nighttime sky. It almost seemed to blend in with the ones that sparkled across the sky behind it. Only this one had a greenish glow instead of looking like a sparkling diamond.

"The Power Primate!" Antauri exclaimed.

"Jen…" Mandarin whispered. He knew Jen was the only one who could be controlling the power.

"Spears of Wrath!" Jen's voice echoed through the night. Spears of energy launched themselves through the air and struck the birds and riders. The birds screeched in agony and fell to the ground below.

The green star flickered, it was dying. The star fell, fazing through the volcano and back into the dome below. Where its light died out.

"JEN!" Mandarin shouted. His little sister might not be alive. It tore him apart to know he might have just seen her die. He wanted to cry, he wanted to scream. She might be lost to him forever.

Jen floated to the floor. The moment her feet touched the ground the flickering power vanished. She collapsed on the floor, no longer having the strength to hold herself up.

Darkness began to creep in, darkening her vision around the edges. She was bleeding to death. But to Jen that didn't matter. What did matter was that Chiro was going to be all right. The help he so desperately needed were on their way.

Me: This was a rather cheesy chapter wasn't it? Maybe very Mary Sue. I suck at fighting scenes. So please no flames. Flames will just be used as a source of entertainment. I like FIYA!

Icefire: Enough talk! Get on with the next chapter!

Me: whines I'm going, I'm going….