I wanted to get this chapter written and up before the weekend was over so here it is! Thanks to all my lovely reviewers and I hope you all enjoy the eigth chapter of "Twist in Time!"

Disclaimer: I own nothing

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"Sit down" said Draynor. Vent and Aile were in Draynor's office, only a mile away from MMHQ. It had dark green walls and very comfortable looking chairs. There were vairous pictures hanging on the walls, and there was an oaken desk. Draynor sat as his desk, while Vent and Aile sat across from him. "Now then," Draynor looked at the pair, "Tell me exactly what happened today."

"Why do you want to know?" Aile asked, making her suspiscion clear. Vent didn't entirely trust him either. Especially after what had happened the last time they had encountered Draynor.

"I just simply need to know. That is all. It won't affect anything. After all, it can't be easy being the only two human Maverick Hunters," said Darynor smoothly.

"Well..." Vent hesitated.

"Many of the Hunters gave us the cold shoulder," piped up Aile, "And there was one hunter, Bomber Lizard, who tried to challenge us to a duel."

"Tried?" Draynor pressed.

"Well Giro stepped in but..." Aile trailed off, suddenly aware of the 'this isn't a good idea' look that Vent was giving her.

"Anything else?" Draynor asked. Both of them shook their heads. "Very well. You're both dismissed."

"Well he would have kept us there untill we gave him what he wanted!" Aile shot. Vent had just snapped at her for sharing the details of the previous day with Draynor. She and Vent didn't argue as much as they used to, but there were still times like these that they had their disagreements. They were both alone in the debreifing room and Megamerged. They had just been assigned a mission and were now waiting for Commander Signas and the others.

"But still! Sempai didn't even trust him! That should have been an indicator for you to keep quiet!" Vent shot right back.

"Look, I trust Draynor just about as much as you do, alright? Besides, you used to a blabbermouth yourself!" Vent blushed as Giro, Signas, X, Zero, and Axl came in.

"That was years ago! And besides..."

"Alright, break it up you two," said Giro. Both of them became silent as X, Zero and Axl came up behind them. Signas stood in front of them and began to debrief them on their mission.

"You've got to be kidding! What Maverick, or anybody else for that matter, in their right mind would come out here!?" Aile could feel the cold even through the Model X's armor. The best way she could describe that area they were in was that it was an arctic wasteland. She was fairly certain that if it wasn't for the armor, she would have frozen to death by now.

"I'm with Aile on this one. Its freezing out here! I'm suprised my circuts aren't frozen solid yet!" Normally reploids like Axl weren't affected by the cold that much. But there were extremes like these where they were affected.

"Quit complaining. The base isn't far from here and it'll likely be warm there." Zero sighed. Axl could be such a kid sometimes.

Vent couldn't help but sympathize with Aile's statement. He was pretty sure that Giro was feeling a similar way, being a reploid from a different time and not all that different from a human as a result.

"Let's get moving. The Maverick isn't getting any closer!" X said.

As the group made their way across the barren, frozen landscape ("I thought you said it wasn't that far Zero!" Aile snapped), Aile noticed that X was deep in thought. She ran up to him,

"Hey! What's on your mind?" She asked curiously.

"Nothing." X said just a bit too quickly, snapping back to reality. Aile narrowed her eyes suspisciously. She'd seen one other person act like this...

"Thinking about a girl?" It wasn't Aile but Zero who said this as he came up behin them.

"N-no!" X protested. Aile and Zero both had knowing smiles on their faces.

Vent, meanwhile, couldn't shake the feeling of foreboding. It was too quiet, he felt as if something was going to happen at any moment.

What happened next was a bit confusing. A swarm of moth Mechaniloids had suddenly swooped down out of nowhere. Vent, along with the others, managed to take out a few of them before one of them knocked him off balance, causing him to fall over. But instead of landing in snow and on solid ground, he went right through the snow and into a hole!

"VENT!" was the last thing he heard Giro and Aile yell out before he fell out of range of their voices and not long after, slammed hard into the ground and his vision went black.

Memories...Of his mom and that terrifying attack that had taken her life...

"Vent..."

Of Aile, who he had grown up with and was chosen by the Model X along with him...

"Vent..."

Of his sempai Giro, who had raised him and Aile and of the battle where they were sure he had perished...

"Oi! Vent! Wake up!" Someone shook him. Vent groaned and opened his eyes. When he did, he saw Axl over him. How did he wind up here?

"Same way you did. I fell," said Axl, reading his mind.

"Where are we?" Vent sat up and looked around. The first thing he noticed was that he was no longer Megamerged, with the Model X nowhere in sight, likely still with Aile. He and Axl were in some sort of gigantic cavern. Looking up, he saw light way up high from the opening he had fell through.

"Feeling alright?" Axl asked as Vent stood up, and brushed himself off, "It looks like this cavern goes deeper," Axl continued, "Wanna check it out?"

"Might as well," Vent looked up again. He had fallen quite a ways, "I don't think we'll be able to get back to the surface any time soon."

The tunnel went deep underground. The path was rocky and Vent felt himself quickly tire from constantly having to climb up and down the numerous boulders. He slipped and fell a few times, espescially places where it was mysteriously wet.

"Hey, I think I see something up ahead," said Axl. Vent looked up to see a light at the end of the tunnel (no pun intented). As he and Axl approached it, it grew brighter untill it looked like the source was just over a fairly large pile. Climbing it while trying not to slip, Vent looked down when he reached the top. He couldn't help but gasp slightly at what he saw. Axl was just as amazed.

The light seemed to be coming from a statue. A fairly big statue of a large dragon on a pedestal. The dragon looked noble, its wings spread, and its position was much like that of a proud lion surveying its kingdom. It was like an incarnation of pride, noblity, and majesty in dragon form. In the pesdestal itself were several holes, like there was something that was supposed to go there.

But that wasn't all. Standing in front of the statue was a teenage girl. She had head length red hair, and wore a very simple kimmono. She wore a headband in her hair and was facing the statue, seemingly unaware of Axl and Vent. She was at the same time simple, yet elegant.

Then she spoke without turning, her voice like a soft melody, "I have been waiting for you, Inheiritor. Come down with your friend. The world is in grave danger and we will need your strength among others."

Vent took a few moments to process this, "Are you...talking to me?" He asked cautiously.

"Of course Inheiritor, come down. We need to talk."

"Why is she calling you 'Inheiritor?" Axl asked Vent in a wisper.

"No idea, but lets go." The two slowly made their way down. Vent did his best to not slip on the rocks, lest he fall and crash on the ground again. He didn't think it was a particulary good idea to do that twice in a day. He jumped off the pile as did Axl when he was close enough to the ground. The girl spoke again without turning,

"My name is Tatiana. I am a maiden of this shirine."

"Shrine?" Axl asked.

"Yes the shrine of the Time Dragon."

"Time Dragon?" Vent asked confused.

"The one who guards the crystals. It is the duty of us maidens to watch over and tend to the shrine and care for the Dragon's statue, so that he may continue to watch and protect the crystals." She paused for a moment. Axl and Vent said nothing as she turned around. She had forest green eyes, their depths portaying her wisdom and maturity, despite her age.

"At the beginning of time itself for this world," Tatiana began, "Several crystal were formed from what remained from the world's creation."

"The time crystals, right?" said Vent suddenly. Tatiana smiled, while Axl looked at him in disbelief,

"How'd you know?"

"She said that this was a shrine dedicating to protect crystals. Those were the only crystals I could think of that would need guarding."

"Yes," said Tatiana, still smiling, "It just so happens that an ancient dragon, taking refuge on this world after his own was destroyed, discovered the crystals. Realizing the danger they posessed, he knew at once that they required protection. As time wore on, the dragon realized that his time was coming to an end. He supposedly kidnapped several young maidens, leading to those stories you hear of dragons who steal away young girls. In truth, they had come with him of their own free will. These girls became the first maidens of the shrine he had built for the crystals' protection.

"He built a shrine way down here!?" Axl exclaimed.

"He needed a place that was discreet. And this was one of the best he could find. After the maidens swore to forever to protect the shrine, he encased himself in stone, so that he would last as long as the earth that stone came from. For centuries, countlesss maidens have served here, making sure that the stone never once dulled, that no crystal strayed from its keeping place." At that moment, both Vent and Axl realized that the pedestal was meant for holding the time crystals! "We maidens were rewarded of course. We were rewarded with longer life, and the ability to recive premonitions of the furture among other powers. I have been expecting you two for a while now."

"So what happened? The crystals aren't here anymore," said Vent.

"A solar storm."

"What!?" Axl asked confused.

"A solar storm caused the crystals to vanish and scatter across this world."

"One more thing, why did you call me 'Inheiritor?'" Vent asked.

"Because," Tatiana began, "That is what you are. One of many Heirs to a great power. Use that power wisely." Vent got the feeling that was all he was going to get from her. She suddenly glowed with a mysterious aura, "Your fellow Inheiritors among your other friends are waiting for you. But before you go, I tell you this: Find the crystals before the evil ones do. Once you have found them all, bring them back here, so that the Dragon may watch and protect them once again. Also, watch for Silvera. If you are ever lost, Silvera shall point you in the right direction."

"What's that supposed to mean!?" was the last thing Axl said before he and Vent were engulfed in light. For a moment, they both thought that they saw the dragon, the one the statue supposedly was, rise up and let out a tremendous roar, a proud roar, as if it was approving of their mission. Then the world went black for both of them.

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I'm going to have some mild romance in this story (Not yaoi or yuri! I hate that stuff!) but that's only because I've been reading WAY too many romance fics and want to try my hand at it. I absolutely love dragons, hence the reason that I wanted to include one in this story. Certainly going beyond your typical crossover, aren't I?

I reeeaaallly hope I didn't over do it in terms of fantastical explanation in this chapter, but the purpose of this chapter was to explain the time crystals' backstory. Tatiana is an OC of mine so I own her.

In the next chapter, a new antagonist appears, but is it really a foe?

R&R!