Winds of Change Book II Distant Thunder

by RGZ Archer

Kai has assembled his team, and the group of seven must now race against both Cyclonia and time itself to prevent a weapon of unimaginable power from falling into the wrong hands. But just whose hands are the wrong hands? Who is their true enemy?

17. The Price of Perfection!

Winds of Change Book II: Distant Thunder

Chapter 17: The Price of Perfection

AN: I'm back! This chapter was a tough one, not because its got lots of battles or tones of emotional dialog (well, it does have quite a bit of that) but because it centers around a concept that gives me a hard time writing, that being time. You'll understand after reading it. I hope this chapter also explains what a few of you have thought to be errors on my part for the last two chapters, and is all around enjoyable. It's time for our crew to grow up a bit more me thinks.

Enjoy!

Also don't forget check out Arashi21's new story: Fighting Wings! Which ties in with the Winds of Change serie, but is told through the eyes of Kestrel, its up to chapter 3 as of last night!

Disclaimer: I do not own Storm Hawks, and never will, also I do not own anything related to Legend of the Dragoon or Legend of Zelda, or Code Lyoko. They are the property of Asaph "Ace" Fipke and made by Nerd Corps Entertainment, Sony Entertainment, Nintendo and Moonscape, however I DO own Kai, Rose, the Shadow crystal, the Wasps, and this story.

Shadow,Griffy and Nagera are the property of ShadowQueen25

Tigger belongs to Mrs J Black

Marina is Star Wars Nut's

Rondana was made, and is owned by MissDedodakes

Scarlett is the creation of Love Flame

Time stopped as Piper looked back and forth between Shadow and Kai.

"But they…I…they're dea.."

Biting her trembling lip, Piper asked the million gold (they don't use dollars people) question.

"Shadow, Kai….is that…is that really you?"

Kai and Shadow looked at each other, then back to the bluenette.

"Uh, yeah, unless you're looking for someone else with those names, it's us," Kai answered teasingly.

Shadow was about to reply herself, but was prevented from doing so when a blue bolt struck both her and Kai both to the ground.

"I was so…I thought…I mean, I though I had…." Piper didn't say another word, instead she tightened her grip on the two friends she had glomp tackled to the floor.

"Piper, as much as I am enjoying this, I can't breathe!" Kai shouted with a whisper.

"Amazon…strength….crushing…spleen…someone…help!" Shadow squeaked.

It took a second for Piper to understand what they were saying, but when she did she jumped off the two, flushing red.

"I'm sorry! Here let me help you!"

Shadow and Kai both shot her frightened looks before nodding, and accepting her help getting up.

"Aw, such a cute little moment, but WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE EXPLAIN WHAT THE HECK JUST HAPPENED!" Rondana shouted from behind the others, startling them.

Kai coughed in his hand before giving a nervous chuckle.

"Uh, a miracle?" He offered.

"Oh no, no, no, no. You know something, and you are telling us what. Don't think I forgot what you said back in the tower. You got some splaining to do boy!" Piper shouted with an accusing finger pointed.

Kai looked to Starling for ANY form of assistance, but only got an apologetic shrug. "You did promise."

Groaning, Kai looked at the map Piper had dropped for a moment.

"Ok, how about this. We head for the NEXT terra, and when we land I will tell you, sound good?"

"WHAT!"

Kai cringed.

"NO WAY! NO! You are not getting out of this. When we get to the next terra you'll just say 'we don't have time for that' and sweep it under the rug," Tigger said, putting her hands on her hips.

Groaning, Kai turned to the girls.

"Ok fine, but we have to get AWAY from this terra soon. I don't want to go through that ordeal with the wasps….again," Kai said with a shudder.

"Again?" Tigger asked. Like the others, she still hadn't figured out what had happened.

"Yes, again. Look, its complicated, just get us away from here. Land somewhere and then we'll talk ok?" Kai pleaded. For once not just trying to get out of answering questions, but actually thinking about something aside from himself.

The safety and preservation of his ship.

"Ok, we'll move, but I'm going to make sure you don't try to run out on us. Starling, you and Rondana keep an eye on him," Tigger said with a grin.

"Hey, who put you in charge?" Kai demanded.

Six pair's of angry eyes silenced the lone male with little more than a gulp.

Five minutes later found Kai pacing around the girls cabin.

Rondana was standing in front of the hatch, while Starling watched from sitting on her bed, offering her friend silent support.

"Did you have to take away my staff?" Kai asked, still upset at the turn of events.

"Yes! We didn't want you making a run for it. Same reason we took your lock picks, slicer blade, skimmer keys, and boots," Rondana replied crossly.

Kai had be pretty upset about most of those, but the boots he felt was unjustified, since the floor was rather cold as he had come to learn since this journey had begun.

"And don't even try complaining about the floor being cold. I told you, if it's too cold, just sit on one of the beds," the irate young woman replied as soon as she saw Kai's mouth open.

"I could knock her out and hotwire a skimmer….but then Starling would still take me down. DANG IT! Why? Why out of all the Sky Knight's on Atmos did one of the only three that can kick my butt in a fight have to be here?!"

During the entire time, Rondana had paid close attention to the rooms other two occupants. She knew the reason why Tigger had 'volunteered' herself and Starling, but was disappointed at how the other two were acting.

Starling was obviously feeling upset at seeing her friend in such distress, but for some reason she didn't do anything about it.

"If she was controlling her reactions, then she wouldn't let her face show what she was thinking. It's almost like she's…lost?"

Suddenly, everything snapped and collapsed on Rondana like a ton of bricks.

"HOLY SWEET MOTHER OF!"

The realization was too much for Rondana. Not only did it make sense and explain quite a bit, but it also threw all of their plans out the window and into the grave.

"Its not that she doesn't, or that she doesn't know she does. It's that she doesn't know what to do!"

The entire time Rondana had thought that Starling was just a very good actress, which still being true, was not the case here. Several snippets of previous conversations came together to form a picture in her mind.

An extremely ugly picture.

"Kai said that they first met when she became his babysitter because she was orphaned and needed the money. If her parents died when she was ten, and she raised herself until she went to the academy when she was sixteen, then she was never taught what to…ARGHH I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS! She's older than anyone else here, except maybe Marina, and she never had anyone give her the…." Looking up over at Kai, Rondana followed the train of thought straight to its horrible station of realization.

"And she raised Kai pretty much after he turned five…which means that neither one of them….oh come on, cant someone cut these two some slack? They've been through enough already; they don't need THAT at this age!"

Before she could slam her head into the wall, Tigger's voice called out over the intercom.

"Ok, we've found a safe place to land. Since I KNOW for a fact that me, Starling and Kai can get the ship fixed in under two days, repairs will start TOMORROW! So don't even think about trying that one Kai!"

Rondana was surprised to see Kai snap his fingers in disappointment and mutter something under his breath.

"Rondana, Starling, make sure the prisone….I mean, please make sure Kai doesn't try anything when we unlock and open the door ok?" Tigger asked from outside.

Rondana smirked as she pointed Kai's own staff at him and motioned to the wall.

"You heard her, hands where I can see them."

With a snort, Kai turned and faced the wall with his hands behind his head.

"Anyone tries to frisk me they wake up next week in my usual spot," Kai replied dryly.

"In your dreams boy," Piper replied with a smirk as she and the others entered.

Chuckling, Kai shot back.

"Hmm not a bad idea actually."

Gaping, Piper was about to 'attempt' a quip when Starling spoke up with a sigh.

"And people wonder why I keep saying that Billy Rex should never be allowed to have kids."

Kai turned and was about to reply when he caught sight of the others faces.

Sighing, the older teen moved to the middle bunk (which happened to be Starling's, though she was now standing with the others) and sat.

"Let's get this over with. I'll try to answer your questions as honestly and to the best of my abilities as I can. But I ask that you respect my privacy, and keep in mind that I know where each and every one of you lives."

"Was that a threat?" Marina asked, slightly amused by the teens frontal act.

Kai shrugged. "Make of it what you want."

Seeing that things were not starting off well, and now having a somewhat better understanding of things, Rondana cleared her throat.

"Very well then, but remember that we are risking our lives out here. We need to know what is going on. We all know that the Council is after you, Piper has…a better idea, and while I know you don't want to talk about it, we have a right to know. We're your friends Kai, for heavens sake, we're not going to sell you out. But if expect us to trust you, you have to trust us first."

The others looked at Rondana strangely, but decided to let her go first, as she did have a point, and was the closest one to him at this point, as they had yet to forgive him for various reasons.

Groaning, Kai laid back to hit his head on the wall behind him.

"What happened to doctor's oath of not causing pain to others?"

"That's only with patients, and stop trying to change the subject please. Something is not right with your story. I might not know everything about your past, but I know for a fact that your bounty can't have anything to do with any of your so called crimes."

Piper, Shadow, Marina and Tigger all looked at Rondana in shock, but the woman's eyes were fixed on the other two, waiting to see their reactions.

Sure enough, there it was, a slight nod, but it came from Kai, not Starling, much to her amazement.

"Time for a history lesson girls," Kai said with about as much energy as a guy on death row.

"Oh come on, we deserve to know Kai! You got to find out about MY issues, fair is fair!" Shadow said, speaking for the first time since arriving.

"That's what I'm getting to. If I didn't explain this first though the rest won't make any sense," Kai defended.

"Oh yeah? Try us?" Piper said confidently.

Shrugging, Kai sat up and crossed his arms.

"Fine. They're after my heart. Happy?"

Silence

"Very funny Kai, not quit with bull and get to the horns. What is the Council after? What did you do?"

"Actually, he's…telling the truth I'm afraid."

Everyone turned to look at Starling, whose face now showed a mix of shame and grief.

"Mind running that by me again? They're after his heart? Why? The guys no Casanova," Marina asked in confusion.

"Hey!"

The girls ignored Kai's 'hurt' outburst and continued to focus on Starling.

"Not that heart, his literal heart. Though it's not as important now, not anymore I'm afraid." Starling replied.

"Ok, I'm lost. Someone want to tell me what in the name of Oblivion is going on?" Tigger asked, pushing up her glasses.

"I told you that you wouldn't get it. Look, let's make this as clear as can be alright?" Kai asked as he got up and walked over to Piper's storage trunk.

"Hey! Sit back down! And stop going through my things!" Piper shouted, ready to charge the poor boy.

"Relax Piper, I'm not going to read your diary about your dreams of 'you know who' I just need to borrow…this." Kai said holding up a familiar instrument.

"My crystal scope? Why?" Piper asked, still not happy about the boy going through her stuff, (or knowing about her diary and its contents.)

"To show you this," Kai replied flipping the instrument on and moving it across his chest.

Sure enough, the instrument gave off a weak chirp. About the same as it would with a dead Lunar crystal.

"Ok, that's it. What is going on here? I know your heart is fine. I've done enough X-Rays on it to know. Heck, I've seen it twice trying to stitch you back together. What does this have to do with the Council being after you?" Rondana asked, thinking that Kai was trying to change the subject again.

"I told you that you wouldn't understand. It's really all Rose's fault though if you really want someone to blame."

"Kai, stop going around in circles and tell us what is going on, please?" Shadow pleaded.

Switching the device off before dropping it back into the trunk, Kai fell back onto the bed with a thump.

"My body's not the same as you guys…girls….and I don't mean like that! Piper, Rondana, I tried telling you before, I'm not human, not anymore."

"So then what are you? You look human enough to me," Marina stated.

"Same to you your highness," Kai fired back.

"ENOUGH! Kai, what are you talking about!" Tigger demanded.

"If you want to be specific, I guess you could call me an 'old breed'. But the closest to me now would be the Raptors, though they've changed quite a bit over time," Kai explained.

Rondana's eyes widened.

"So that's why he distances himself from her….why cant those two just catch a little break?"

"Before you cut me off, let me explain. I search for, and destroy dangerous Ancient artifacts. Not all Ancient artifacts. It just so happens that most of them fall under that category. For the most part though, and only with very few exceptions, I only destroy things that fall under one of the Unholy Three."

Piper, sensing that something was in the air sat down beside him.

"Unholy Three? What, or, who are they?" She asked curiously.

Holding up his hand, Kai counted off as Starling spoke.

"Hidden, Forbidden, and Holy."

Seeing that the others didn't understand, Kai elaborated. "Things that are Hidden would be military bases, weapons, you know, the bad stuff." Seeing that the others at least grasped what he was talking about, Kai continued. "Forbidden is…a bit difficult to explain, but I believe you ran into it on the desert. Remember the Wasps?"

Piper's eyes widened.

"You mean that…you've come across those things before?"

Kai shook his head. "No, never seen them before, but they fall under that category."

Piper felt herself turn green.

"Forbidden is right. I can't believe people would ever…."

"Then Holy would be anything that is religiously linked correct?" Marina asked, beginning to understand the world this young man was coming from.

"Yeah, they're the rarest, but can cause the most trouble since they can…influence people better than any crystal," Kai added tensely.

Marina knew what Kai was talking about, as it reminded her of the 'power' the Sage crystals, as well as the Tri-Force crystals had over her people.

And that wasn't even counting what the crystals could actually do, just their mere existence.

"Ok, so what does this have to do with…" Tigger asked, trying to keep the conversation on track.

"The Ancients were very proficient in many things Tigger, but their specialty was war. The 'Forbidden' artifacts are for the most part…living things. Living things that were experimented on for the sake of creating new weapons, Bio Weapons."

Shadow blinked. "Like the Virage?"

Rondana and Starling were the only ones to notice Kai's flinch.

"Especially the Virage," he muttered under his breath before looking back up to continue. "Yes, right on target Shadow. But more importantly, as you all now know, humans weren't the only creatures to live on this planet."

"Oh come on, you couldn't have known that elves were real before meeting Schaeffer," Tigger replied dryly.

Kai smiled sadly. "Actually, I knew that they did exist at one point, just not that there was one still living. And their not the only ones. Most mythological creatures have some grain of truth to them," Kai said honestly.

Tigger snorted. "Yeah, like Trolls, Mermaids, and Werewolves."

"Wallops, Aquarians, and Blizzarians," Kai said suddenly.

Everyone stared.

"You're joking right?" Rondana asked.

"No, but their not the same, not anymore. Like I said, humans were not the only species to live on the planet. But because of their warlike nature, many of the other intelligent species avoided contact with them. Or at least they did until the Darkest Day."

Biting her lip, Piper asked a question that had been bugger her for many years, and now saw a chance to get it answered.

"Do you…do you know what happened?"

Kai looked over at the young teen girl with a sad smile.

"Yes, and no. I know what happened that day, I've seen it for myself, but I don't know what caused it."

"What do you mean?" Piper asked confused at how it could be both.

"If she lets me, I can see Rose's memories when I dream. I asked her to let me see what happened that day, and she allowed me to see it once." Kai paused for a second, but Piper saw the look that crossed his face. "I saw…so many people…just disappear forever, so many wiped off the face of the planet, like it was nothing. Every sight, every sound, every sent, every sensation that Rose's host had that day was mine to experience, but her host didn't see what caused it to happen. It's one of the things I've been searching for while out here dungeon diving, what caused the Darkest Day," Kai explained.

"Ok, what does this have to do with what you were talking about earlier? Tigger asked.

"As I said, most of the intelligent species hid themselves from humans, knowing their nature and what would probably happen. But the Darkest Day…it…removed almost nine tenths of the worlds population from the map. Human or otherwise."

Rondana was able to pick up on what Kai was getting at.

"Crossbreeding," she said suddenly understanding what he was getting at.

"What?!"

"You are correct Rondana. Trolls, Mermaids, Werewolves, and Elves might not live any more, but their decedents still do."

Tigger, Marian and Piper could only blink, Starling herself had never heard this and was just as amazed, just better hiding it,

Rondana however, was intrigued.

"But how could that happen? Cross species is impossible, that's a basic science known from grade school."

Kai grinned. "Not always. Remember Odd? He was an Oni, and he had a daughter by a human woman. I think those species came from humans, or were humans that had been changed somehow. Besides, there is plenty of proof, some of it is even here right now," Kai said, his grin growing by the minute.

"Let me guess, you?" Marina asked dully.

To the shock and amazement of everyone present, Kai shook his head.

"Yes, but not what I'm talking about. Shadow, Starling, could you come here for a second?"

The two looked at each other, then to Kai before moving to the center of the room.

Hopping up, Kai walked around so that he was behind them and wrapped one arm around each of their shoulders.

"Notice anything these two have in common? Something that you've seen within..oh…the last two hours?"

Starling and Shadow both looked at the person whose head was perched between their shoulders with raised eyebrows.

"Come on people, use your eyes. What do they have in common?"

"Their both…human?" Piper tried.

"Mostly true, but not entirely. Next!" Kai replied.

"Both are female humans?" Marina tried.

"While true, it has nothing to do with this actually, next!"

"There is nothing else similar about them Kai! Starling is almost four inches taller than Shadow, she's several years older (Starling raised a warning brow at this) they don't even have the same build! Shadow's balanced over all, but Starling's mostly leg. They have no common ground between them other then gender and species!"

"Their eyes."

Kai's grin grew even more.

"Piper got it," Kai said with a sing a song voice.

"What? Oh come on, what does it matter if they both have green eyes? That's so minor that it's," before Tigger could continue, Piper spoke up.

"Schaeffer's eyes are the same shade of green…come to think of it, so's Aerrow's," Piper added.

"Very good Piper, you're on the right track, keep following it. What else do Aerrow, Starling and Shadow have in common?" Kai asked as he let go of the girls and walked back to the bed to sit, while motioning for Starling and Shadow to go back to whatever.

"Aerrow and Starling are both Sky Knights…but Shadow's not…Kai, help me out here, what is it?"

"Meh, you were pretty close there actually. Elves have green eyes as a dominate trait. Any kids they have, and any kids those kids have, and so on will always have green eyes. It's their blood mark."

"Wait a minute, are you trying to say that I'm an elf?" Shadow asked, unconsciously reaching up to touch her ears.

"Not quite, but your mom or dad was the descendent of one. The gene pools so diluted though that you have normal human ears, but the eyes, and the power remains with you."

Everyone's eyes widened at this.

"Your telling me, that every Sky Knight is!....wait a second, what about Harrier? His eyes are blue, and he still has a signature move?" Piper pointed out, remembering the life size poster she had of Harrier when she was little.

Kai's face spread into the widest grin that any of them had ever seen, including Starling, who had watched, and been part of the greatest defeat the Interceptors had ever faced, all from Kai and a deck of cards one rainy Saturday.

"Harrier has blue eyes and blond hair, sound familiar?" Kai asked happily.

"Blond hair and blue eyes? Werewolves had blue eyes if my memory is right, but not blond hair. The only mythical creature I know of that had blond hair was…" Piper's eyes nearly fell out of their sockets as she fell to the ground, shaking with laughter.

"Piper? What's going on? What is it?" Shadow asked, worried about her squad mate.

"Harrier is…he's..AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Harrier's a what? A pain in the?"

"Shadow!"

The young girl rolled her eyes at Kai before looking back at Piper.

"HARRIER'S A MERMAID!"

Eyes wide (again) everyone looked to Kai for confirmation.

Grinning like a mad man, Kai nodded. "Merman technically, he's a descendent, not one itself, that would be the Aquarians who are the closest," Kai clarified.

Now everyone had various images in their mind, some funny others scary, but all resulting in deep laughter, all aside from Marina who had never met the man.

The laughter continued until Tigger remembered the point of all that.

"But what about you? What do you have to do with the Raptors?"

Frowning, Kai was about to respond when someone else decided to cut in.

"That would be my doing I'm afraid."

The room's seven inhabitants looked to see an eight standing before them.

"Rose? What are you talking about?" Piper asked, feeling oddly comforted by the woman's presence.

"Just as with the other species who joined with humans due to their small numbers, Dragons too intermingled with humans at one point."

"Ok, there is no way that could have happened. Dragons are cold blooded rept," before Rondana could finish, Rose cut her off with a hiss.

"We are NOT cold blooded, we are warm blooded. Just because we lay eggs does not make us completely different. There are mammals that do so as well, and you know it." Seeing that she had the others attention, she continued.

"Just as the Elves and the Oni, we Dragons have the ability to manipulate energy to alter our appearance at will. As time passed, our kin adapted to their surroundings and became the creatures you know as Raptors, though there were several exceptions. There are some who walk the Atmos now who carry diluted Dragon's blood. Just as the descendents of Elves can hear the Song of Wind, these people can hear the Dragons Cry."

"Dragon's Cry?" Starling asked, having heard Kai mention the phrase once or twice, but never explain it before.

"Yes Starling, the Dragon's Cry. Tell me, have you ever heard anything when using you special move? Or when you saw Aerrow use the Lightning Claw? Even Suzi when she uses Diamond Dust?"

Everyone looked around, but only Shadow and Starling seemed to give it any deep thought.

"I've heard something in the past, but it never sounded more than maybe a breeze or the wind blowing," Shadow offered.

Starling however narrowed her eyes.

"At first I only heard the wind, but for the last few months I found myself hearing a woman singing, but I can't make out the words."

Rose nodded before speaking. "That would be the Song of the Wind that you are hearing. As your powers increase, the song will become clearer. When you can hear the song in its entirety it means you have reached the limit of you affinity."

"So that's what the song I heard in the cave was? Schaeffer using her powers right?" Shadow asked, putting the pieces together in her mind.

Smilling, Rose nodded.

"Hold on, I never heard any singing when Aerrow, Starling or Suzi used their moves, but I know that I heard something back at the Arena, and again at the Phoenix Den with Kai, what was that?"

Rose's warm gentle smile became slightly mischievous at this point.

"Think about it Piper, you're a bright girl."

Shadow's eyes lit up.

"The Dragon's Cry! Piper! You have Dragon's blood!"

"Is that true? Kai, do I have Dragon's blood?"

Piper was surprised to see the teen blink in surprise.

"I…didn't know that actually…oh what, you think I know everything? I'm not a magic eight ball," he said crossing his arms in defense.

"You are correct child. You are one of the Dragon born. Though there is only one other that I know of, that being Scarlett."

"SCAR'S A DRAGON!"

Rose rolled her eyes.

"No, she has Dragon's blood in her veins, same as you. She's not a Dragon, there is a difference. The blood mark is the same as the Elves. Didn't you think it strange how few humans have orange or gold colored eyes?" Rose asked with a bored tone.

"So that's what you meant when you said you could contact me, Scar and…wait a sec, that doesn't explain how Kai is able to speak with Lark?" Piper said, not thinking before speaking.

"WHAT!"

Kai and Rose both cringed while shooting Piper annoyed glares.

"You're in contact with Lark! Whose side are you on?!" Marina asked as her hands went to her hilts.

"I'm on your side! Come down!" Kai shouted.

"I think you had better explain this very carefully Kai," Starling demanded.

Watching closely, Rondana saw the flash of hurt pass through the boy's eyes before he spoke. Knowing that even though Starling's tone wasn't exactly without cause or warrant, the boy felt like she had stabbed him in the back.

"He actually thought she wouldn't be upset by finding out something like that? The only reason he would think like that would be if he…"Rondana shook her head to clear the thought. Now was not the time.

"Kai, perhaps you should allow me to explain this?" Rose offered.

Nodding, the boy pinched the bridge of his nose and seemed to be going deep into thought over something.

"Five years ago, Starling led a scouting mission to terra Ulara. And before anyone says anything, no, it is not a myth, it exists. It has been my home for the last two thousand years, so I know it to be so. Now, as I was saying, the Council was afraid that Cyclonia was going to launch an offensive at the time, and wanted to have every option available to them. So after searching through the archives they found what they were looking for. A crystal with power comparable to the Aurora stone."

Rose smirked at Starling's shocked expression.

"Oh yes, we found the mission report Starling. Kai required a specific map from the archives many moons ago, and while there, decided to see what else he could find. The result was the document Arygyn showed you on terra Deep, as well as the sealed mission report. Operation Black Light, am I correct?"

Everyone turned to Starling in confusion.

"Starling? What is she talking about?" Piper asked in a worried tone.

Sighing, Starling looked up at the others with a sad expression before speaking.

"The Council wanted to insure victory from the outset of the war. At first they wanted to use the Aurora stone, but they knew that the people would never allow it, as the Aurora stone is the symbol of Free Atmos, and is known to be the most powerful crystal ever discovered. To use the crystal of light in war would in the eyes of the people, make them no better than Master Cyclonis."

"So…they sought an alternate, a crystal that was just as powerful, but that nobody knew about," Piper said in a hushed, horrified whisper.

Starling nodded sadly.. "We knew what would happen if the Council found it, which is why we decided to destroy the crystal if we found it, and report that what we found was either a destroyed building with nothing, or we were unable to find anything at all."

"But something happened, right?" Marina asked at seeing Starling's expression.

Nodding, the woman continued. "We were ambushed. Dark Ace and a squadron of ace talons captured my squadron while myself and Kai were searching the area."

Everyone looked at Kai with questioning faces, prompting him to explain. "I managed to talk my way in to her letting me tag along. She didn't think the myths were true, so she let me. If she knew half of what would happen, I'd been stuck cleaning the base again."

"I tried to fight them myself, but I didn't know Dark Ace was present at the time. I managed to hold him off, but I can't fight him and a squadron of Lark's personal guard at the same time. I was…incapacitated. When I came to, several Sky Knight Squadrons had come to our aid and freed us. Something, I'm still not sure what exactly, led me through the temple where I found Kai and Lark battling. I never found out exactly what happened while I was unconscious though," Starling added the last bit thoughtfully.

"What happened was simple. My current host saw what was happening, but was in no condition to do anything about it. Her time was nearly up and she was actually going to look for her replacement at the time. She evidently found Kai and led him to my temple, which turned out to be a very good thing," Rose explained.

"Depends on your point of view," Starling muttered, though only Rose was able to hear it.

"Apparently, Lark had found an ancient artifact known as a Siphon crystal. It allows a person without energy capabilities to draw crystal energy from crystals, or individuals. Her intent was to drain my crystal and claim my powers for herself."

"Woah, that would have been pretty bad huh? Could you imagine Lark with all of Kai's powers? Good thing he was there huh?" Shadow said cheerfully, trying to break the room's tension.

"Shadow, Lark did succeed for the most part. I…failed to stop her," Kai said with a defeated tone.

"What are talking about? You stopped her, that's why you got the crystal and powers, and she doesn't. You saved your friends, and everything turned out ok right?"

Starling, Piper and Rose all looked away, knowing things were about to turn ugly. Later, everyone present would compare the next five minutes with being trapped inside of a blasting furnace.

"I FAILED SHADOW! FAILED! Lark had already absorbed three fourths of the Shadow crystal's power before I got there. Where did you think all her powers came from? Have you ever even fought her before?!" Kai demanded.

"Kai, calm down," Starling pleaded.

"NO! Don't you guys get it!? IT'S ALL MY FAULT! If I had been just a little faster, if I had been just a little stronger, things wouldn't be as bad as they are! The Blizzarians wouldn't have been forced from their homes! Free Atmos wouldn't be struggling just to survive! If I had been just a little stronger, THE INTERCEPTORS WOULD STILL BE ALIVE AND THE NIGHTMARE OF MESSA WOULD NEVER OF HAPPENED!" Kai shouted in rage.

The others, still to stunned to speak could only listen as Kai continued.

"Lark has three times as much power as I do, THREE TIMES! She just doesn't know how to tap it correctly or for long periods of time. Star, you saw her deflect Aerrow's Lightning Claw yourself, so you know what I'm talking about. Her ability to fly, change a crystals structure at will, their all because of ME! Heck, where do you think the knowledge of all those horrible inventions came from?! Their Rose's memories, which SHE STOLE! It's why I work so hard, to prevent it from happening again!"

About to go into another triad, everyone was shocked to see Starling rise from her spot, march in front of Kai, and slowly raise her arm.

Slap

Head still turned away, Kai spoke. "It's all my fault Star…Suzi's father, the Blizzarian's home terra, the Interceptors, MESSA!"

"Kai! Listen to yourself! You're not to blame for what happened! Is this what you've kept from me for the last five years? Is this why you've been trying to kill yourself? Trying to atone for their deaths?" Starling demanded.

"I'm…trying…to make sure it never happens again Star."

"Cut it out Kai. I know you, I've known you since before you could even spell my name, don't lie to me!" Starling hissed. "You're trying to get yourself killed, but you're trying to do it in a way that will make it look like your helping others."

Everyone else watched the exchange in silence. This was one can of worms nobody could have predicted being opened.

"You are not to blame Kai, Let It Go!"

"IT IS MY FAULT! HAVEN'T YOU LISTEND TO A WORD I SAID! Lark has access to thousands of years worth of weapons designs, thousands of years worth of military strategy and political experience. All her plans, each and every one of her success are because I was too slow and weak to stop her in time." Kai said, his tone getting softer with each syllable.

"Yes Kai, you are right."

Everyone turned to Piper in shock.

"Because you, a FOURTEEN year old boy, lost, alone, and on an unknown terra, hiding from THE DARK ACE and a SQUADRON of ROYAL BODYGUARDS failed to take down a thirteen year old girl who had been trained by TWO Sky Knights since she was FIVE, you are to blame for everything that's happened since." Piper snarled.

"She's right Kai, you aren't to blame for this. How could you have known? I'm sure that you tried your best," Rondana offered calmly.

"It happened, when I could have stopped it…it's still my fault, my burden to bear, and my mistake to fix," Kai said, still not believing them.

"Ok, let's change topics now. What does this have to do with the Council?" Tigger asked, feeling horrible for bringing all this about.

"The Council needed an escape goat to pin the blame on, so they picked me. Starling and the other Interceptors were too well known, and of too much value at the time, but I was nothing, and I still had the Shadow crystal. Weakened or not, they still want it, along with the Serpendry crystal that is forming inside me."

"Ok, now that I don't get. How can your heart be a crystal?" Marina asked, finally finding something she was interested in.

"It isn't, at least not yet. While most crystal's are naturally forming, the more powerful ones are either Soul crystals, which trap creatures or beings, like the Shadow crystal did Rose, or the Oracle crystal did, or they form from a creatures heart. Serpendry crystals are from Dragons, Fathom crystals come from Leviathan, Hanzo crystal's are from Tangu, so on and so forth," Kai explained.

"Ok, but…how?" Marina asked, still not getting it.

"The heart, like the rest of the body is composed of minerals. After the creature dies and all the water from the heart evaporates, the remaining minerals condense into a crystal of great power, usually ten times greater than a high level strike crystal," Kai further explained.

"But you said that the Council doesn't need you anymore, why would that be?" Piper asked, remembering their prior conversations into Kai's past.

At this Kai's shoulders sagged.

"They wanted me for the Serpendry crystal because Raptors are too far evolved from Dragon kin to make them anymore. I was the last source of Serpendry in all of Atmos….but now…I'm not."

The others looked from one another trying to decipher the cryptic message, but Kai knew that only one person in the room had all the pieces to do so.

"Rinjiin," Piper said softly.

Kai nodded sadly.

"Rinjiin? Who is Rinjiin?" Starling asked.

"I thought all the Sky Knights knew? It's why they…or dear God…we…" Piper's eyes became wide as she turned to Kai with a fearful look, which much to her dismay, he nodded sadly to confirm.

"Piper? Piper? What's going on?"

Moving over to the bed Kai was sitting on, the young teen pulled up her legs close to her chest and started shaking. The others were able to make out some sniffling sounds, and figured out that she was crying.

"It's all my fault," Piper said as her body started to spasm.

"Godo grief Kai, is your guilt contagious or something?" Rondana wondered.

"Piper! Not you too!" Tigger pleaded.

"But it's true! The Council renewing Kai's bounty, them no longer having any need for Starling, it's my fault!" Piper cried out.

"Jeeze whats wrong with you people? Piper, could you please tell me what in Naru's name you're talking about?" Marina asked her friend, slightly worried about everything that was going on.

Choking back the tears, Piper looked up and swallowed.

"Ab..abo…about a year ago…we..we were swept up by a storm…it…it blew us all the way to Sky's Edge..and…we were attacked by a Dragon." Taking a deep breath to compose herself, Piper continued. "Only it wasn't a real Dragon, it was a ship made to look like one. The ship belonged to a man named Rinjiin, who claimed to be the last Dragon Knight. He…he had…a clutch of young Dragons that he was protecting at the time…"

"What does that have to do with?" Before Tigger could finish, Rondana made the connection.

"The Council was after Kai because at the time he was the only known source of Serpindry on Atmos, but after you guys found the clutch of young Dragons, Kai was…"

"No longer needed, and thus expendable," Kai finished darkly.

"It was my idea to get the Sky Knights to help take care of them, so of course we went through the Council to get their help," Piper said before breaking into a fresh bout of tears.

"Look, Piper, I don't blame you. You had no idea of knowing how bad the Council really was back then. My bad luck's as much to blame for this as your innocence at the time," Kai said, trying to cheer the girl up a bit.

"So…you're….pretty much…." Shadow asked sadly.

Kai looked up and Shadow with a face completely devoid of any emotion, but she was able to see the cold fire burning in his eyes.

"I'm rubbish, immaterial. No longer needed for the Council to continue their goals but too much of a loose cannon for them to ignore. I know too much and I'm not under their thumb to control, so I must be…dealt with accordingly."

Silance

"Now you see why I didn't want to drag any of you into this mess? Why I don't accept help unless I have no other choice? I'm branded as a traitor, and anyone who helps me will have the same mark against them, meaning that you would have to live a life on the run, or face the Council's punishment for treason."

Again, the room was filled with silence, until Shadow spoke up.

"What is the Council's punishment for treason?"

Nobody wanted to answer it, so the one person who had nothing to gain or lose did.

Rose

"As the Council operates under Maritime regulations, it would be the same as if someone committed treason as a member of the Navy, which would be…death….by the gallows."

Shadow's eyes widened.

"They can't pin that on you! It's not even your fault!" Shadow shouted in both anger and alarm.

"They can, they will, and they have tried. Why do you think I only go to Rondana for treatment? It's because she and Jim don't keep medical records. That way they can't be punished for helping me. It's why I live alone, it's why I work alone, and it's why the Murks, along with every other outlaw on Atmos trusts me, because they know I wont turn them in, cause I'm in the same boat they are."

As they listened, each of the girls reacted differently. Tigger felt terrible for opening so many deep wounds in someone that considered her a friend, while Piper on the other hand was trying to find a way to undo the damage she had caused. Marina was the only person to actually become angry out of them, as she was able to recall the calm, almost caring masks that the Council wore when negotiating with her and the League. She made a mental note to be much less forgiving and a great deal more demanding in future dealings with the old men.

The other three however were in varying points of worry over their friend.

Shadow now knew beyond a doubt that her so called 'brother' was indeed such. Maybe not by blood, but they had enough similarities to overlook that at this point. She was also worried because now she knew full well how cold and petty the Council could be. As scary as what she had learned today was, the thought that at any time she could be in Kai's shoes frightened her even more.

Starling, now at last having the complete picture was a mess. She didn't know if she wanted to slap Kai again, or to hold him tightly begging for his forgiveness.

"If only I hadn't taken him that day. Stupid Starling! Stupid! What were you thinking!? You knew the rules, you knew the regulations! This is the cost for breaking them!"

While all this was happening, Rondana watched the others expressions, trying to gauge how they were taking the news. It had been a bit of a shock to her, but since she had faced similar issues in her life, it didn't take as long to get over the shock. She was more interested in how this development would affect the others.

One in particular.

Starling

She knew that the woman could make or break both this mission, and the boy.

"I have a question."

Everyone looked up at Rondana, surprised at how little all this seemed to faze her.

"Well, two really. First, what happened back at Rocky Falls? The ships calendar says that today is three days ago, and I know you change the calendar every morning, so it can't be that you forgot."

Kai of course groaned before speaking.

"And what's the second question?"

Rondana smirked.

"Why did you give yourself a pink stripe?"

Kai's eyes narrowed in confusion.

"What are you talking about?"

Walking over to her bunk, Rondana pulled out the same mirror she had used to let Kai see Starling while he was on the floor, and held it up to him.

"You've got a pink stripe about an inch wide on your left side," she said innocently.

Grabbing the mirror and holding it to the side, Kai's eyes widened before he let lose a roar of anger.

"THAT BLASTED ELF! WHY COULDN'T SHE JUST LET ME GO IN PIECE!"

The other's, now curious gathered around.

"She's right, you do have a pink strip…Kai…are you..uh…do you like."

Glaring at Shadow, Kai snorted. "I did not do this to myself, its Schaeffer's fault."

"It's Schaeffer's fault you have a pink," Kai cut Tigger off.

"It's not pink ok, it's just…lightish red," Kai defended.

"You know, back on Gerudo, we have a word for that," Marina said with a smirk.

"Really? What is it?" Kai asked hopefully.

Marina's smirk grew wider.

"We call it, pink," Marina replied before chuckling. The others of course found it to be pretty funny as well and joined her in laughing.

Now red as a tomato, Kai was about to let lose a 'fiery Dragon's tongue' when something stopped him. The other's just continued laughing; with only one person noticing that Kai was holding back his 'displeasure' and its reason.

"Great, now I need a dye job too. Blasted elf," Kai mutered.

"Why don't you just use a Chroma crystal?" Piper suggested.

At this Kai's shoulders slumped even further, and Starling broke into another fit of laughs.

"Kai can't use Chroma, they…don't help him blend in very well," she explained.

Seeing that the others didn't understand, Kai held out his hand.

"Anybody got one on them?" He asked exasperated.

Piper, now recovered from the 'pink stripe' nodded and went to her foot locker.

"Here, you can use mine," she said holding it out to him.

"You know how a Chroma works right?" Kai asked.

"Yeah, it changes your hair color," Piper answered as if it were common knowledge.

Kai shook his head. "It changes your hair color to match your elemental affinity. Aerrow's is lightning, so his turns light blue, get it?"

The others, though not quite understanding the part about affinities, had all seen Aerrow use the Lightning Claw at one time or another, and Piper herself had seen him use a Chroma, so she got the jest of it. So they all nodded.

"Well…I….don't…have one…not naturally anyway, so they…well, it's easier just to show you," Kai said with a groan as he took the Chroma from Piper's hand.

The effect was instant, and was met with gapping jaws.

Kai's midnight black hair was now a bright, snowy white, with an even more noticeable pink stripe still in the exact same place.

Piper tried to look away as she held in her laughs, as did most of the others.

The only exception was Shadow and Tigger who had burst out laughing at their poor friend.

"Glad you find it funny, I'll remember what to give you next month," Kai threatened, but his tone held no malice to it, more like he was trying to cover what was left of his pride.

Putting the crystal down, Kai took a deep breath. "As for the calendar Rondana, your right, and so is it. Today is the day we landed on Rocky Falls, today is three days ago."

That stopped the laughs cold.

"That's impossible! Time travel can't be done, and even if it could be we would see ourselves from right now, creating a paradox," Tigger said in confusion.

"I told you it was complicated. Schaeffer's tower was equipped with a telaporter system that could do much more than transfer matter to another place. It could send energy, or, in our case, memories back in time."

Piper, trying to digest all this looked up with a fearful expression. "So then…that means…I…I killed you and Shadow?"

Kai nodded. "Yes, you did, but it had to be done. The tower had to be destroyed Piper. You did what any Sky Knight would do. You followed your orders and did what was in the better interest of the majority, for that, I thank you."

"Hold the phone! If Piper killed you and Shadow in the explosion, how are you here now?" Tigger asked before gasping. "The tower! We still have to destroy it!"

Kai chuckled. "Relax; it's all taken care of. As for me and Shadow, Piper didn't kill us; she killed the us from three days from now, which no longer exists. So in essence, she didn't do anything to us," Kai said with a smile, trying to reassure the young teen that everything was ok.

"I have a headache," Shadow complained with a moan.

"Look, I'll try to make this as simple as possible. The tower transported our memories, our thoughts, and our feelings, everything that makes us, us, from then, to three days earlier, which is now. These are our bodies from three days ago, with our memories from three days from now, get it?"

The others scratched their heads.

"No?" Shadow said cringing.

"No you don't understand it, or no it's not simple enough?" Kai asked blankly.

"No means we trust you," Starling clarified, resulting in the others nodding in agreement.

"But if this is three days ago, then wouldn't that mean that the tower needs to be destroyed still? It's still standing right?" Marina asked, hating this whole time loop thing.

"How on Atmos did Link ever get used to this?" She wondered in the back of her mind.

"I'll take over, if you don't mind that is," Rose offered from the back of the room, causing Shadow and Tigger to jump.

"Stop doing that!"

"What? I never went anywhere. It's not my fault you forgot about me," Rose said with an almost too innocent look on her face.

"Go ahead, I'm too tired to go on any more," Kai said collapsing on his side onto the pillow.

Clearing her throat, Rose looked towards Kai. 'This matter is especially important to you, unless you forgot about what happened during the fight with Shadow."

Several seconds passed before Kai sat up like he had been pricked with a needle.

"You mean when she was trying to knock my head off with that giant slab of metal some idiot called a sword?" Kai asked.

Rose smirked while a darkness crept over Shadow's face, hiding it under her hairline.

"This may come as a bit of a shock to you, but this was not your first journey to Rocky Falls, nor was it the first time you met Schaeffer. And no, I am not just referring to Kai, I am referring to all of you," Rose said firmly.

"I ask that you please wait until I am finished before asking any questions, as I believe it will explain everything quite a bit if you hear me out." Seeing that everyone, including Kai was silent, she continued.

"We first arrived on this terra several months ago, though none of you would remember it as being any different than three days ago, because it was the same. The Cyclonian's attacked, and Shadow was…taken over and controlled by the terra's curse." Rose was careful to keep things from being too specific, just the basics here. It was not her place to explain the curse Shadow carried; just that she was taken over.

"That first time…, Kai set off the charges to the tower, destroying everything on the terra except for myself and Schaeffer."

Everyone turned to Kai with gaping expressions of fear.

"To be fair on Kai's part, he was the only one left at the time. He tried to save you to the best of his abilities, but there were just too many of them. We were overrun, and defeated," Rose said solemnly. "Kai would never, under any circumstances harm any one of you as long as he is in control, remember that."

Everyone was still shocked by the recent turn of events, so much so that they could only continue listening to Rose as she spoke.

"After several weeks, Schaeffer and I devised a way of altering this, by sending our memories back to before the point of us reaching the terra, and trying to change the outcome."

"But if that is true, why didn't you tell us before Rose? I could have come up with something better," Kai asked with an edgy tone.

"I would have if I could have Kai, but the process didn't transfer all of our memories, and it took up so much of my energy that I had to rest for awhile before I could even make contact with you."

"So…the reason Kai's powers are so unstable now, is because you've been using them to reset time, and drained them?" Marina asked out of curiosity.

"Somewhat, but I had no idea that frequent use of them would have that affect until after Arygyn informed all of us at the Phoenix Den. It had never been a problem before, but none of my past hosts used them as much as Kai does, nor had my crystal ever been tampered with as Lark did five years ago. We were careful to only use just enough since my powers do regenerate, but Schaeffer's no longer can. That's why she didn't use them as much as she wanted to in the fights."

"Fights? So you sent us back more than once?" Kai asked, suddenly remembering little bits and pieces from his fight with Shadow.

Flashback flash

"It's nothing personal Shadow, but I can let you win!" Kai shouted as he switched holds and pulled her arms around so that he was behind her.

"I will not allow you to defeat me again Kai!"

For a brief moment, Kai's eyes jumped, but he did not release his hold. Feeling Shadow pull her arms open, he knew that she would quickly break his hold at this rate.

Opening his eyes, Kai was surprised to find that he was not on the ground, but actually 'hovering' about two feet above it.

"What the?"

"I do hope that is not your best. Last time that might of worked, but not anymore."

Face twisting into a snarling grin, Shadow laughed.

"So, you still have some fight left in you? Good, I have a few grudges that I can work out on you from the last time!"

"You never used any of those before, but Starling has! I can still take you down!"

"You should feel honored, you will be the first to fall by this blade in over four thousand years. Fitting, that one who helped seal me away ultimately ended up being the same one to free me, don't you think?" Shadow asked as she hefted the sword to her shoulder.

Flashback flash end

"So that's what she meant. I thought she was confusing me with someone else," Kai thought before looking up. "How many times did you use it?"

Rose let out a deep sigh.

"Three times before the final attempt. So four in total. The first one was of my own choice, but the other two aside from the final one were all your doing," Rose answered with a frown.

"What?! Why would Kai make three return trips and not remember anything?" Tigger asked. "Just when I think I'm starting to catch up to things, she throws that out there?!"

"Kai initiated the second and third return trips because…the outcome was…unacceptable to him. After finding out about the return program, he used it to reset everything so that he would have another chance. The reason he doesn't remember them however, is because I took the memories to shield him from them. He would have been unable to function properly if plagued by those thoughts and memories, so I did it to insure the success of the mission," Rose stated simply.

"You had no right to tamper with my memories!" Kai shouted in anger.

"Oh believe me; you should be thanking me, not yelling at me. I doubt you would ever sleep another night in your lifetime if I hadn't. Keep in mind, you are MY vassal, I am not YOUR tool child."

"Ok, so I take it something bad happened right?" Rondana asked, trying to cool things off.

"Yes, Rondana, something bad did happen. Though Kai survived the second and third attempts, not everyone else did. Kai refused to allow a single one of you to die, unless it was himself, which the final time almost turned out actually."

"What do you mean?" Starling asked, shooting Kai a look he couldn't quite place.

"What I mean is, that pink stripe is the only reason he's alive right now. Each time we reset the clock, the curse became stronger, making Shadow even more powerful than the previous attempt. That was our last shot. Whatever happened was the way it would be."

Seeing that the others didn't understand, Rose continued. "Kai used up so much energy fighting Shadow, that he was hardly able to move. As a result, a large I beam fell on him, and nearly crushed him. He was dead set on making sure Schaeffer made it home however, and used his energy to open the portal rather than heal himself. So Schaeffer gave what little power she had left to him so he would survive the return trip," Rose explained.

Kai lowered his head as the memory played across his mind for the thousandth time.

Flashback

Forming two blades of energy from her hands, Schaeffer sliced the beam into three before kneeling down to the shaking teen.

"Your wound, it's," Kai cut her off.

"No time, we've got to get you out of here!" Kai shouted.

"Kai, I…I'll try to help you as best I can, but I don't think I have enough energy left to…heal that much," Schaeffer said sadly, paying no mind to the tower collapsing around them.

Flashback end

"Since the tower was destroyed after the return program was launched, but before the tower itself was scanned, it was lost in the time stream and could not be reformatted. That is why we do not have to worry about destroying it again, as it simply ceased to exist within time," she added.

As everyone tried to absorb this information, Rose disappeared into thin air, leaving the crew of seven alone with their thoughts, trying to figure out where to go from here.

End chapter 17

AN: So? How was it? I've been itching to get this out, but I can only type so fast. I wish my muse would type for me, as this story would have been done months ago if she could.

Since the last few chapters have been combat themed, I decided some character development was called for this time around. Now, next chapter won't be AS gloomy, but it will still have a bit of a shadow to it. This is a dark story, I realize that, but my goal is to make it as realistic as possible, and in war, not much is really positive. I promise that things will be balanced however with plenty of humor, and a little bit of this and that. I'm practicing on the other emotional spectrums with my other works, which if you read, you'll understand what I'm practicing on.

Oh, and anyone want to take a guess at what Rondana discovered observing Starling and Kai? It'll play an important part in the girls 'plans' for them later.

That's all I got for now, I hope the chapter wasn't too bad or depressing, I tried to work some good humor into it to balance it out.

Be on the lookout for chapter 18: A Time to Fight, a Time to Heal! Soon!

Till next time, Ja Ne!