Previously on Doerai: Dawn of the Darkness...
"No... Don't be sad... Please, don't... I... I... I just don't want you to be sad, Hitomi."
Hitomi perked up, brightening a little.
"It's been a while since you called me by name..."
"Yes..." He seemed upset. "My apologies, mistress."
"No... I'm happy..." Hitomi smiled sadly, stroking the top of his head.
There was no response other than his suddenly heavy breathing.
"Torikki-kun..."
Hitomi's eyelids lowered and she brushed her lips to her tanuki's furry forehead.
"Don't worry... I promise I'll lift that curse... No matter what I can do..."
She held him close. Torikki's oddly colored eyes were half open and dazed.
"Mistress..."
He shut them, cringing into her shoulder. Hitomi sighed.
"We'll get through this..." she whispered, half to herself. "Torikki-kun, I... I..."
"I promise that we will."
Torikki whimpered softly.
"Oh, mistress Hitomi..."
(Footage: As the opening begins, we can see a crystal-colored bird flying across the screen.)
Habata itara modoranai to ittte
(You say if you could fly, you would never come back)
(Footage: Nick and Akemi can be seen on the edge of the Burned Lands, looking into the sky towards the Floating Islands.)
Mezashita no wa aoi, aoi ano sora
(You aimed for that blue, blue sky)
(Footage: Nick stares towards the heavens, wondering if Yuki and Doremi are doing okay. During the instrumental, we pan into the sky. After about a second, Hitomi and Utau cross paths, and the Doerai: Dawn of the Darkness logo appears on the screen.)
"Kanashimi" wa mada oboerarezu "setsunasa" wa ima tsukami hajimeta
(You've yet to remember "sadness", just now began to grasp "pain")
(Footage: Hitomi can be seen walking forward with Torikki happily trotting by her side.)
Anata e to daku kono kanjou mo ima "kotoba" ni kawatte iku
(Even the feelings I held onto for you are just now turning into words)
(Footage: Torikki looks up at Hitomi with a sad look on his face. This causes Hitomi to giggle before reaching down to pet Torikki.)
Michi naru sekai no yume kara mezamete
(As you awaken from the dream of an unknown world)
(Footage: Doerai looks out over his lair, laughing softly. He then jams his staff into the ground and turns it, causing a dark energy to blind the screen.)
Kono hane wo hiroge tobitatsu
(Spread your wings and take off)
(Footage: Akemi looks skyward, her hands joined in a prayer. She then throws her arms out and smiles, and sparkling angel wings sprout from her back.)
Habata itara modoranai to ittte
(You say if you could fly, you would never come back)
(Footage: Doremi can be seen posing with her hand on her forehead. Quick cut to her performing an Ojamajo Storming Spike against the Destroyer.)
Mezashita no wa aoi, aoi ano sora
(You aimed for that blue, blue sky)
(Footage: Yuki can be seen posing with her hands on her hips. Quick cut to her performing an Ojamajo Twilight Rain on a collection of shadow creatures.)
Tsukinuketara mitsukaru to shitte
(If you break through, you know you'll find it)
(Footage: Akemi can be seen posing with her hands locked together. Quick cut to her performing an Ojamajo Crystal Cannon against the Golem.)
Furikiru hodo aoi, aoi ano sora
(So try until you break free to that blue, blue sky)
(Footage: Nick can be seen posing with a peace sign focusing towards the camera. Quick cut to him performing an Ojamajo Arrow of Light against the Dragoon.)
Aoi, aoi ano sora
(That blue, blue sky)
(Footage: Quick flash of Doerai's lair on the Floating Islands, Doerai looking downwards.)
Aoi, aoi ano sora
(That blue, blue sky)
(Footage: Cut to Nick, Akemi, Hitomi, and Utau looking up towards the Floating Islands. Quick jump cut to them racing towards the islands, their hands all intertwined, and Doerai watching from afar as the song ends.)
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(Even in the brightest light, there is always a little bit of darkness.)
YukiShinoya444 and S.P.D. Gold Ranger present:
Doerai: Dawn of the Darkness
Story Created: November 9th, 2008
Summary: AU. In the end, there is only a new beginning. The story continues as Nick and his friends go through another set of experiences... And what of the others?
On Today's Episode: As the heroes' troubles continue... Nick soon realizes the true danger of his situation with the other girls, and especially Torikki, himself. Puzzled, he sets out to solve these mysteries... Maybe even with some help from an unlikely source...
Authoress' Notes: This time, I will do the odds and Nick-kun will do the evens! Wai~
Disclaimer: ...Shouldn't it be obvious by now we don't own anything? (by S.P.D. Gold Ranger: EXACTLY, Yuki-chan.)
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Phase 12: Through The Rain and Into The Mist
"How much further is it?" Akemi wondered.
"It shouldn't be too long now," Hitomi answered, Torikki bounding along behind her. "The Floating Islands are only about a day's walk from where we are now."
"We'd better hurry it up, then," Nick noted. "I'm not going to let Doerai spread anymore of his madness."
"Don't say it, girl..." Torikki warned Akemi, knowing what she was about to say.
Akemi just nodded. "I just hope that Dragoon thing doesn't decide to pay us a visit..."
Almost as if on cue, the Dragoon popped out of the lava flows nearby, and boy, did he look mad.
"That must be my cue," the lava monster growled.
"Didn't I tell you not to say it, girl?!" Torikki yelled, causing Akemi to back off.
"HEY!!!" Nick shot back. "Don't you DARE talk to my girlfriend like that!!"
"Will you two knock it off?!" Hitomi exclaimed. "We've got bigger problems right now!!"
Nick was already in battle stance, the seven Majokai Crystals spinning around him. The green witch apprentice didn't waste any time in transforming into his super form and charging for the Dragoon.
Every strike the Dragoon attempted was easily dodged or blocked by Nick, who countered by striking back every chance he could.
"Come on, boy," the Dragoon taunted. "I know this isn't your full power. You can stop holding back."
Nick perked up at this. "What exactly are you talking about?"
"You're holding back. Why not show me your full power?"
Nick growled at this. Of course I'm holding back. My full, unrestrained power might be too much for me to handle. If I lose control of my power, I might hurt someone I love... I don't EVER want to do that to Akemi. And Mori-chan would probably find some way to punch me from the spirit world...
"Don't be a chicken, boy. Show me your true power."
Nick looked back at Akemi, who was smiling brightly towards him. No. I won't lose control. For her sake.
Nick turned back to the Dragoon, a wide grin on his face. "All right, then. You want my full power? Just a warning: you asked for it!!"
The Dragoon, despite his taunting, actually looked surprised at Nick's proclamation. He obviously didn't think that Nick was going to take his bait.
Hitomi seemed to pick up on the Dragoon's expression, and giggled.
Nick held his hands into the air, and the Majokai Crystals appeared around him again, all seven of the jewels glowing with an otherworldly light. Each of the seven crystals shot a beam of light into Nick, covering him in an immense rainbow glow.
When the light cleared, Akemi was the first to notice Nick's newest transformation.
"Is... is that really Nick?" Akemi wondered.
Not much had changed as to Nick's physical appearance. The only differences that could be noted was that all of Nick's now-golden hair was sticking straight up, waving in the wake of the immense energy aura surrounding him. Also, Akemi noticed that Nick's eyes had become a sharp ruby red instead of the usual emerald green that accompanied his super form.
"You wanted to see my full power, right?" Nick teased, his voice very deep now. "Just remember that I warned you."
"What happened to otou-san?" Utau wondered. "I've never seen him with this much power before!!"
"My god..." Torikki growled. "That boy was holding back this whole time..."
"He was holding back that power?" Akemi wondered, having fallen to her knees at the immense magical pressure that Nick was radiating. "Why was he doing that?"
Not wasting a single second, Nick flew forward and smashed into the Dragoon, carving a hole through his stomach. Not content with just that, Nick performed a u-turn and slammed into the Dragoon's left hand, forcing it to collide with his right hand. Nick took this opportunity to charge forward and slice right through both of the Dragoon's hands.
"You're unarmed now, buddy," Nick joked, taking this moment to fly forward at superluminal speeds and slam his knee into the Dragoon's face, causing it to fall back.
Not wasting any time, the Dragoon reformed its hands from the lava below and reached out for the crystal witch.
"Not again..." Hitomi stated, rather exasperated.
"NICK!!!" Akemi screamed, frozen in her spot.
"Not this time!!" Nick exclaimed, flying towards the Dragoon's hands and kicking them away from his girlfriend. The emerald witch apprentice retaliated to this by firing off a supercharged Ojamajo Arrow of Light that struck the Dragoon in the eye.
"You're much more than I expected, boy, but this is where it ends."
With that, the Dragoon reached out and snatched Nick, holding him close to his evil-looking eyes.
Nick, however, wasn't scared in the least. "Shouldn't have done that, buddy."
"And why's that?"
Nick took this chance to break free of the Dragoon's grip, crumbling his hands once again. Nick then flew to the Dragoon's chest and punched as hard as he could, jamming his fist in there. Akemi was the first to notice that Nick's aura was increasing rapidly... and somehow flowing into the Dragoon from where he'd been struck.
"What's he up to?" Hitomi wondered.
Just then, everyone noticed that Nick's aura was billowing out of the Dragoon, who seemed frozen in his spot. Nick retracted his fist and brought his hands back.
Determined to finish his opponent, Nick charged forward one more time, kicking the Dragoon into the air with surprisingly little effort.
When the Dragoon started to fall back to the ground, Nick let his collected energy loose in the form of a massive aura blast that literally disintegrated the Dragoon. Hitomi could only look on in surprise, as did Akemi, but Utau acted as if she'd seen this kind of power before.
"GO, DAD!!!" Utau exclaimed.
His job done, Nick floated back to the ground with the others and disengaged his super form, only to nearly fall flat on his face in his exhaustion.
"Nick!! Oh, my god, are you all right?!" Akemi exclaimed, rushing up to catch her falling boyfriend.
"Yeah, I should be fine," Nick stated a little weakly. "Drawing on all that power just drained a lot of my energy."
"That's good," Akemi replied, leaning in to kiss Nick. "I was so worried about you for a second."
Nick nodded, returning his girlfriend's kiss, then looking over at Hitomi, Utau, and Torikki.
"By your surprised looks, I take it you've never seen me do that before?" Nick teased.
"I had no idea you were holding that kind of power back," Utau noted. "THAT WAS SO COOL!!!"
"I can't usually use that much power because I'm worried that I'll lose control and go berserk just like I did back in the Well of Souls," Nick explained. "Whenever I go super, I usually only absorb a certain amount of energy from each of the crystals so I don't overload myself. The reason I don't usually go into that form is because if I lose control of myself, I might hurt someone I love. And after everything that's happened, there's no way I'm going to let that happen again."
Hitomi couldn't help but nod in affirmation as Nick pulled Akemi close to him.
"I don't want anyone else to lose their lives in this madness," Nick explained. "Doerai's not going to have his way if there's anything I can say about it."
"Truer words have never been spoken, Nick," Akemi noted. "We're all with you until the very end."
"Now let's go find the Floating Islands and kick Doerai in the face!!" Utau exclaimed.
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"So, they actually made it to the Floating Islands."
"They're very persistent, Master Doerai," the mysterious boy stated. "I could have told you that. What shall we do about them? Should I go out and stop them?"
"No need," Doerai responded. "Let them find us, and we will take care of things ourselves."
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"Wow," Akemi stated as she gazed upon the sight that lay before them. "Guess they weren't kidding when they said they were floating."
"Gals and guy, welcome to the Floating Islands," Hitomi explained. "These hundreds of islands are all that stand between us and Doerai."
"Wait a minute, HUNDREDS?!" Nick exclaimed.
"Be patient, boy."
"Don't you start biting me again, Torikki-kun. I just want to know: are there REALLY that many islands here?"
"Unfortunately," Hitomi responded. "We're gonna have to split up, because all I know is that Doerai's hideout could be on any one of these islands. Let's go, okay?"
With that, all four teenagers split up and headed off to search the Floating Islands.
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Nick continued looking around, not having much luck in locating Doerai's lair. "ARGH!!! This is pointless... I'm WAY too lost..."
"That's SO like you, Nick-kun!!"
Nick spun around at this proclamation. There they were, clear as day.
"Doremi-chan? Yuki-chan?!"
"Well, who did you THINK it'd be, Nick-kun?" Yuki giggled, her transparent form shining brightly in the sunlight that bathed the Floating Islands.
"Ah, you haven't really changed much, even in the afterlife, Yuki-chan," Doremi responded, holding the black witch close to her.
"Girls, how'd you get here?" Nick wondered.
"Just 'cause we're dead doesn't mean we can't help you, Nick-kun!!" Yuki exclaimed.
"Whatever works for you two," Nick replied, only for Yuki to float over and kiss him on the cheek.
"I figured I should say this when I had the chance. Nick-kun, I'm REALLY sorry for all those awful things I said about you. I never meant for you to get involved with all this..."
"It's just like he said," Nick responded, being very careful to choose his words around the black witch. "Destiny can be very cruel sometimes."
"I can see you and Akemi-chan are getting rather chummy lately," Doremi giggled.
"I made a promise to Momoko that I'd protect and love Akemi, and you two know that I don't break my promises," Nick responded.
"That's good to hear," Yuki noted.
"Well, this is all well and good, but we need to find Doerai," Nick stated, his fists tightening. "I'm not going to let Doerai spread anymore of his madness."
"The problem is, we have no idea where his lair might be," Yuki stated. "But we'd be happy to help you look, Nick-kun!!"
"I'd like nothing better, Yuki-chan," Nick replied. "Now let's move."
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Next time:
Phase 13: Floating on Our Darkest Secrets
As the party continues to explore the Floating Islands in hopes of reaching Doerai's lair before it's too late, Nick, Yuki, and Doremi have a talk about recent events, and Akemi learns of the REAL relationship between Torikki and Hitomi...