Chapter 33

Jude slid down off the winged dragon's back first, then glanced at Genis as the boy jumped down casually. "There's a pen over here," the young doctor said. "I think the dragon should get along with the other wyverns all right."

Silently nodding, Genis took the lead rope for his mount and guided it after Jude as he led the way to a heated stable. Deciding to pay the fee to keep the dragon there himself, Jude handed some gald over to the man and said, "Just treat it like any other wyvern."

The man squinted. "What is that thing?"

"A winged dragon," Jude replied. "You might see more of them soon as well."

Slowly, the man nodded and took the rope from Genis to lead the dragon into a pen.

Jude nodded to Genis and led the way into Kambalar, heading up the main street to the gondola. Genis looked around curiously, but didn't ask any questions, so Jude remained silent, not knowing what to say otherwise.

When they reached the palace doors, Jude bypassed the line of people waiting to see Gaius and showed his ID to a guard. He was waved through, much to the irritation of several people in line. Though he felt bad about taking time away from them, he did have important things to discuss with Gaius.

Genis followed behind, slowing, then jogging to catch up as he gawked at the impressive design of the Kambalar palace. Reaching the throne room, Jude found that Gaius was already meeting with two people from his kingdom. They looked like they came from an outlying ranch in the mountains and didn't seem like they had been having the best time of their lives.

When he spotted Jude, Gaius lifted his hand to silence the man who was speaking.

Jude approached and bowed slightly. "Sorry to interrupt."

"I hope it is important," Gaius said.

Glancing at the two ranchers, Jude nodded slightly. "Yes, sir. Good news at least. First, the portals to the demon realm have been sealed. Lord Ratatosk and Lord Maxwell have successfully formed an alliance to share the mana of all three worlds. Lord Ratatosk's servants, the Centurions will begin working on correcting the mana flow."

Gaius leaned his elbow on one knee where he sat cross legged on the bench that was his throne. "That is good news," he said, "Though hardly worth you coming here personally."

Jude smiled and pulled the lamp from his pocket and approached the king. "After teaming with the researchers from Aselia, we have discovered that combining technology from Rieze Maxia, Elympios and Aselia allows us to create mana, artes, and produce an effect without damaging the supply of mana in the world or spirits." He held the lamp out to Gaius.

The king slowly took it, looked the contraption over and flipped the switch, turning the light on.

Everyone stood in stunned silence.

Gaius turned the lamp off. "You are absolutely certain that this causes no further damage to the world?"

"I have it on Lord Ratatosk's word that this device produces its own mana to create light, in fact, the arte involved uses only a portion of the mana it produces, resulting in it having a positive effect," Jude said.

Closing his eyes, Gaius shook his head and laughed softly. "To think that all the worlds' problems could be solved in a matter of days by something so... simple." He turned the lamp back on and set it on the bench beside him.

Jude suspected he was not going to be able to get it back. Considering that he, Aster, and Genis had taken detailed notes during the creation of the lamp, it was ultimately replaceable.

Gaius turned to look at the two ranchers who had been interrupted. "I hope that this eases some of your worries. The creatures that have attacked your cattle will be dealt with by the monsters soon." He picked up the lamp again and admired it. "And this unattractive contraption is the the salvation of our worlds. I thank you, Doctor Jude Mathis."

Bowing humbly, Jude shook his head. "No sir. I didn't do it alone. Genis Sage of Aselia helped, as did a man named Aster Laker and Altessa, also of Aselia. Aster and Altessa are working on discovering a way to refine this new technology and create new uses for it."

"I should like to replace every torch in the palace with one of these, I think," Gaius said.

"Wouldn't that ruin the aesthetic?" Genis asked. "You've got this whole 'gloomy-doom' theme going."

The two ranchers stared at the boy.

Surprisingly, Gaius cracked a faint smile. "What further adjustments need to be made to this?"

Genis folded his arms and answered before Jude could speak. "Apparently there are impurities in the metal used to make the boosters, which is what causes the health issues in people who use them. Though lower grade boosters can be used for inanimate objects like that. We also need to research more on the key crests. They're kind of ancient and only a few people know how they work."

"They are safe to use?" Gaius asked.

"Of course! The history on them is slightly complicated but they're perfectly safe." He held up his. "I use one."

"What are they used for then?"

Jude glanced at Genis, but it was too late to silence him now, so instead he answered for the boy. "Like lillium orbs."

"I see." Gaius said and lost interest. Or Jude hoped he had.

Genis at least caught on that Jude didn't want Gaius knowing much about the key crests of exspheres and nodded in cheerful agreement. "Anyway. It was nice meeting you and all, but this is my frist time in Rieze Maxia and Jude said he would show me around the city."

Unexpectedly, Gaius unfolded his legs and stood. "Then I shall accompany you," he said. He gracefully handed the lamp to an attendant that shuffled forward and bowed at him. "Place this in my quarters," he said and strode past the two people he had been having an audience with as well as Jude and Genis.

'Great. He's going to grill Genis,' Jude bemoaned internally, but there wasn't anything he could do about it except try for damage control.

...

Emil and Ivar put everything they had into pulling, one on either side of the double doors that slid into pockets in the wall. The doors were supposed to be powered and were currently rusted shut, but the only way forward was through. They had spent the last hour hunting through the research facility's tangled corridors, looking for a lab or a storage room that might have boosters or the metal they had been made from. Mostly they had found empty rooms and cobwebs. There were a few monsters that Emil and Ivar made pacts with, collecting more creatures into their army. For the most part, the facility was built into the side of the mountain, the halls and rooms dark and sometimes with water running in small streams down the middle of the floor.

With an ear splitting shriek, the doors slammed back and Emil toppled onto his rear.

Ivar offered his hand down to help him up. Taking the assistance, Emil dusted his backside and looked to find that the others had already hurried past, following Aster as he recklessly entered the dark room.

"Ah! Yes!" Aster said.

"Did you find it?" Sheena asked.

"I found a records machine. It should have a map of this place."

Ivar cleared his throat. "Lord Ratatosk... I thought about what you said."

Emil silently waited for the man to continue.

Looking at the floor for a moment, Ivar took a breath and lifted his gaze, clenching a fist as he leaned forward. "You're right. I do let that Phony get on my nerves. But you weren't saying I should stop, but that I should use that to my advantage. But how do I do that?"

Waiting a moment for Ratatosk to decide whether he was going to answer or not, Emil inwardly sighed when the Summon Spirit decided to leave it up to him to smooth things over. Again. "Uhm. Well... I suppose not letting yourself get so caught up in being mad at him. Anticipating that he's going to lead you into a trap and slide out of the way right when you start. So... maybe work on a new technique?"

"Can you help me with that, Lord Emil?"

"I'm really not fast enough to imitate that ghost step Jude does," Emil said and lifted both hands in a shrug.

Ivar bowed his head.

"Okay, I've got it," Aster announced.

"Maybe Sheena can help you?" Emil offered. "She's a ninja."

Aster stuck his head out the door. "You two all right?" he asked.

"Yeah?" Emil said. "You figure out where we're going?"

Nodding, Aster held up a piece of paper. "Copied the map I found. We're right here." He pointed at some spot on the map. "We need to go there." He pointed at another spot on the map that Emil didn't see clearly because he moved it away before he could focus his eyes. "So let's get moving!"

Aster took off and Marta hurried after him. "Don't just run off, Aster," she admonished. "You could walk into something and get hurt."

Emil exchanged a look with Ivar and they both shook their heads before following.

The researcher continued to stay in the lead, guiding them back the way they'd come for a short distance before heading down a side corridor they had briefly explored before coming to a cave-in. Emil remembered just as they rounded the corner and came to a stop.

"Oh," Aster sighed and put his hands on his hips.

"Tenebrae," Marta said, "Can you get through to the other side and see if there's anything?"

"I suppose," Tenebrae intoned and disappeared.

Sheena lifted her hand slightly. "Maybe I can summon Gnome?" she offered. "He might be able to dig a tunnel through?"

Aster immediately turned to face her. "I'd love to see that! I never got to work on the Artificial Summon Spirit project though I really wanted to. They kept rejecting my application for transfer."

She stared at him for a moment. "Uhm. Okay..."

Emil shook his head. "Aster's trying way too hard to be cheerful."

"So?" Ratatosk retorted.

"Of course you don't care." Emil looked at a wall and sighed at Ratatosk.

The Summon Spirit sighed as well. "I don't understand. It isn't lack of caring."

Sheena stepped back and lifted her hand, whispering her incantation briefly while Aster and the others watched in fascination. The ground in front of her heaved upwards in an up-welling of earth mana as a giant tenuki with a shovel and a propeller on its head dug free. "Hello Sheena," the Summon greeted cheerfully. "It's been a while! Who needs pounding?"

"Uhm. Actually, I was wondering if you could help us out with a bit of an earth problem." Sheena pointed. "We need to get through to that room, but the hall caved in."

Tenebrae phased in and shook himself. "I'm afraid I couldn't find a way through," he said.

"Oh, hi Tenebrae!" Gnome said. "What're you doing here?"

"Greetings," the Centurion said and dipped his head. "I am accompanying my lord on a mission of utmost importance."

Gnome took a moment to look around and gasped as he looked at Emil. "Lord Ratatosk! I didn't recognize you! I'm so sorry!"

Emil waited for Ratatosk to answer and when he didn't, Emil shook his head. "Um. It's all right." He scratched the back of his head. Gnome looked stunned, blinked once and leaned forward. "Anyway, uh. We need to get through that." Emil pointed at the rubble blocking their way.

Turning to look, Gnome shook his whole body. "I can't do anything with that," he said and looked back at them. "Well, not safely. It's all loose and shifty and it could make the whole hallway collapse." Gnome waddled closer to the rubble. "There's a collapsed wall on that side," he pointed to the left. "It leads into another hallway. I can feel it." He turned to look at them again.

"Thanks Gnome," Sheena said.

Emil nodded.

"Uh... Lord Ratatosk, are you feeling all right?" Gnome asked.

"I'm fine," the Summon Spirit groused.

Gnome giggled and hid behind his spade. "Grouchy as ever, I guess."

"Please don't pick on him, he's difficult enough to deal with as it is," Emil asked. "Aster, you've got a map of this place, can you figure out which way we need to go?"

"Oh right!" Aster said and pulled out his paper as Gnome looked from one person to the next in confusion. "Ah yes! Just a couple turns and we can get there. Maybe a bit more back tracking. North, then east, north at the second intersection, then east again. Then south, outside along this ledge and back northwest."

Sheena pressed her palms together and bowed towards Gnome. "Thank you for your help," she said.

"Uhm. You're welcome?" Gnome looked at them all again and lastly at Emil before diving into the ground and digging away. When he was gone, it looked like the earth had never been disturbed in the first place.

Again, Aster took the lead and started marching off into the darkness, trailing everyone behind him. "That was incredibly fascinating, Sheena," he said. "Though I'm not exactly sure what sort of process you used. Can you explain it?"

Ivar drifted ahead to join them. "It looked like a pretty simple contract formed with the Summon Spirit."

"Oh?" Aster enthused. "So you're saying she produced mana on her own? That would mean people from Aselia are capable of..."

Emil stopped paying attention as Marta and Tenebrae dropped back to walk with him. Her hand slipped into his.

"You seem tired," Marta said softly.

"Extending Milla's spirit world over Aselia wasn't easy," Emil admitted and squeezed her hand. He pressed his lips together for a moment and let out a breath. "I'm worried... So much is happening and there's not enough time and we're out here... I feel like something has happened somewhere else and I should have been there instead."

Marta nodded. "I'm sorry I got so mad earlier."

"You were right to. I shouldn't have kept that from you."

"I'm here now," Marta said firmly and squeezed his hand. "We'll figure something out and-"

Sheena shrieked and suddenly disappeared downwards as the floor crumbled out from under her.

Jogging to catch up with the others, they came to a stop at the edge of a hole. Aster was kneeling holding his light down, but couldn't see the bottom. "Sheena?" he called. "Sheena!"

Ivar shifted from foot to foot. "I'm going in!" he announced and jumped before anyone could stop him. He quickly disappeared into the darkness.

"What happened, Aster?" Emil asked.

"We were walking and suddenly the floor collapsed!" Aster turned to look up at them, his eyes wide and terrified.

"Sheena falls down holes a lot," Marta said. "And Ivar's gone to help her. I think she'll be okay..."

Aster peered into the dark hole again. "Should we... wait here? I don't think there's a way back up..."

"Let's go ahead," Emil suggested. "Ivar and Sheena can take care of themselves. And I have a link to Ivar. I'll sense if he's in trouble." He glanced aside. 'Hopefully he'll try summoning Ratatosk if he does get in over his head...' He offered his hand down to Aster and helped the young man up. "It's going to be okay," he said with confidence he didn't really feel. "We'll all figure this situation out and fix things before it's too late. You aren't the only one working on it, and even if you were, we're supporting you."

The researcher's hand began to shake as he kept his head bowed, hiding his expression.

Marta cupped her hands around theirs, leaning in towards Aster. "You've done so well already, too!"

"But..." Aster wiped his face with the back of his other hand and took a breath, then another. "But it's not enough. Even if we get the boosters fixed, they're still only a piece of the solution. Maybe. I don't even know what to do with them from here. If we can even find any more. We still need to find some way to amplify the mana in the world, but if the booster will cause damage to the World Tree or kill whoever is using it... and the amount of mana needed is so... much." He lifted his head finally to look at Marta and Emil. "I wanted... to help save the world back when I went looking for Ratatosk. I was scared then too, but I'd thought... all I needed to do was talk to him and things would get fixed and I could go back to Sybak and publish a book or something."

Ratatosk closed his eyes and sighed softly, grip on Aster's hand tightening. "I apologize," he said softly, "for my... continued poor attitude towards you. I consider you my friend as well. Even though I know that I will outlive you both, I find the prospect very unappealing. I would like to prolong both your lives as much as possible. I never expected to grow so attached to humans, sometimes I don't know how to cope with that and even Emil often doesn't know how to express..." He opened his eyes to find Aster staring up at him, smiling slightly.

"I forgive you," Aster said. "Friends sometimes hurt each other and they don't mean to. I've said some pretty careless things to Richter, too." He looked from Ratatosk and Emil to Marta and swallowed with a firm nod and placed his other hand atop Marta's. "You're right. We'll get through this together. I'm not fighting alone. I just get so wrapped up in my own thoughts that I forget."

"How touching," Tenebrae interrupted. "That actually brought a tear to my eye." He sniffled sarcastically.

Ratatosk glared at the Centurion. "If you don't shut your face I will reduce you to core state and throw you in a pond!" Tenebrae's ears folded down. "Can't take you anywhere," he muttered and grabbed Aster's hand and Marta's and started walking, heading down the dark hall, dragging them behind him. "You said north at this intersection, right?"

"Ah... yes?"

...

They had broken into a warehouse near the docks after taking hours to escape the sewers and lower levels of the slums. Tiger wasn't big on cleanliness but he really wanted to wash his hands at least. They had found a place in the back corner of the warehouse between a high stack of boxes and the wall to hide. Above, light from the docks glowed through a dusty strip of windows that lined the wall ten feet up. Leaning his head back against the rough boards of the wall and sighing, he almost started to rub his face, then remembered that his hands were dirty and dropped them back to his lap. Alvin and Zelos were nearby, the former pacing around their confined hiding space while Zelos sat on a box, arms folded and looked like he was asleep. Elise had tucked herself in the corner between the wall and a box. He had watched as she fought sleep valiantly for a few minutes, then curled up against the wall with her eyes closed, giving in to her body's need for rest.

Noise startled Tiger and he opened his eyes, realizing he must have passed out as well. He started to get up only to feel a sharp pain in his chest. Slapping his hand over his mouth as he began coughing, Tiger tried to stop his noise when he saw that everyone else was awake as well and now crouching behind boxes. Tears leaked from his eyes with the effort to hold his breath as footsteps approached their hiding place. He had made up his mind to run out and make a distraction elsewhere when someone shouted from outside. Turning and hurrying away, the footsteps retreated and they heard the sound of the warehouse being locked up again.

Alvin, Zelos and Elise relaxed. Tiger curled over his knees, unable to breathe and resumed coughing, his nails biting into the floorboards as he fought for air.

"Tiger - you're bleeding!" he heard Elise say and a hand touched his back.

"Shit," Alvin muttered and he was pulled upright, a gel shoved into his mouth.

He nearly choked on it but managed to swallow before wiping his chin with his sleeve. Distastefully looking at the smear of crimson, he lowered his hands to his lap.

"Are you okay?" Elise asked softly. "I can try to heal you, though I don't know how good my spells will be without Teepo."

Zelos sighed. "Alvin, we need to get him out of Elympios as quickly as possible. This place is killing him." Elise and Alvin turned to look at the redhead as he cautiously climbed atop a box to peek out a dusty window high on the wall. "But it looks like they've called in backup."

Alvin scrambled up the boxes to join him. "Shit. Things just got worse. That's Vance's twin, Cain. There's no getting out of the port past them now. They figured out this is where we'd go." He looked at Zelos, then down at Tiger and Elise.

Turning away from Elise, Tiger started coughing again, using his arm to muffle the noise as best he could. Elise gently rubbed his back in a way that reminded him of his mother. He closed his eyes tightly.

"Maybe it's a poison?" Elise said.

By the time he managed to get his coughing under control, Tiger found that Alvin and Zelos had rejoined them on the floor.

Shaking his head, Zelos said, "It's less of a hurt and more of a 'he's already dead' sort of thing."

Elise's hand stilled on his back.

"What do you mean by that?" Alvin asked. "Why didn't you mention that earlier?"

Lowering his arm, Tiger carefully took a breath and let it out. "I died seven years ago. Some stuff happened in the last few weeks that brought me and a bunch of people back to life."

Zelos nodded. "Something Ratatosk did. Tiger is a manifestation of mana and Elympios is draining him."

"Why did you agree to bring him?" Alvin demanded, reaching out to grab Zelos's arm.

"I didn't realize Elympios would be this bad, or that we would be here for as long as we have been. Besides, he's been helpful."

Tiger stared at the floor, feeling that familiar ache in his chest that told him he was sick again. "Look... Maybe I can run a distraction? Go do something in another part of town that's really destructive and get them all to focus on that while you guys get out of here?"

"But - that might get you killed!" Elise objected.

"Yeah, but I'm already dead," Tiger pointed out, turning to face them on his knees. "It's only a matter of time before I fade away again anyway. Every time I smash something, I feel part of me... go away." He forced himself to his feet and clenched a fist. "I'd rather go down fighting this time! Not running away like I did in Palmacosta."

"You won't last even a minute against Cain in the shape you're in," Alvin said. "He gave me trouble a year ago and I'm pretty sure he's been training since then. Got himself some new sword it looked like."

Zelos was looking at the floor even as he shook his head. "Alvin. I doubt he's got more than half a day left."

Turning to look at him again, Alvin spread his hands. "Oh right, I get it, you're completely fine with letting another one of your friends just die?"

Furious, Tiger stomped his foot. "Don't you say that about Raine!" he said firmly. "She was a really smart lady and knew what she was getting into. She did it because she had to!" He gripped his chest, feeling the amulet Zelos had given him instead of the one Raine had. "And right now, someone's got to get out and tell the others what's going on here." He looked from Zelos to Alvin. "Someone has to get Elise out of here before that jerk gets his hands on her again. I'm not gonna be able to, so I'll just have to make sure that you two can!"

Elise stood in front of him, her lemon-green eyes burning holes into him for a moment before she turned to look at the other two men. "Alvin, Zelos, he's kind of like Milla and Muzet, right? He's dependent on mana, like a spirit, right?"

"Sort of?" Zelos said.

She turned back towards Tiger. "Then I can help!" Elise thrust a hand out, placing her palm on his chest. The air lit up around her like when Genis was casting a spell. But this was different... He felt the energy she was calling pour directly into him instead of turn into something else. The pain in his chest eased, breathing became easier and he felt as if she was putting him back together, piece by piece. Elise lowered her hand and opened her eyes, her palm still touching his chest. "How is that?"

"I..." Tiger clasped her hand and smiled. "Thank you. I feel much better. You're more than an angel, you're a Healing Goddess."

Elise flushed. "If I had Teepo I would be able to do more for you."

"Please tell me Vance doesn't have him," Alvin said.

"No. I don't think so. I think someone threw him in the water when they knocked me out," Elise said.

"Certainly doesn't help us either way," Alvin sighed. He rubbed his eyes with his hand. "Tiger... You're going to die if you face him alone."

Tiger glared and folded his arms. "Well? You got any better plans?" he demanded, then turned away to climb up the boxes to peer through the window. There were twenty soldiers and a young man in black with long black hair and a large sword strapped across his back standing facing the water. A soldier jogged up to the man and saluted. The man turned, revealing a profile that looked much like Vance's rounded cheek and straight nose, though Tiger couldn't tell much more from that distance.

Climbing down, he raised a brow at Alvin who remained silent.

"Is there some way to get onto a ship from the loading dock?" Tiger asked.

"Yeah. But not with that many people on the docks. We'd be spotted," Alvin said.

Tiger nodded and looked at Zelos then Elise. "All right, here's what we're doing. Alvin, you take Elise to where you can sneak onto the ship through the loading dock. Zelos and I will go get cornered elsewhere and make a big enough mess that sword-guy has to come deal with us himself. When the coast is clear, you make a run and hide on the ship. We'll probably only be able to give you ten minutes. Is that enough time?"

"Plenty..." Alvin said, though he looked like the word tasted bad.

Turning to look at Zelos, Tiger continued. "You hang back and save your strength. When you think they've had enough time to get on the ship, you make a break for it with your wings. Fly out to sea and sneak on from that direction. They won't expect that... I hope." He tried to ignore Elise's watering eyes.

"First we need to get out of here, second, where should Tiger and I make our attack? I think it would look more convincing if we made an attempt to run through them," Zelos suggested.

Seeing that he was outvoted, Alvin crouched and drew in the dust on the floor. "Here's the area," he said. "There's an alley here you can use to make it look like you're trying to sneak in but will bottle neck a lot of those guards. Buildings on either side are warehouses, in case you break anything." He glanced specifically at Tiger. "Zelos, when you make your retreat, I suggest going back this way at ground level unless you're surrounded, then take this corner and go up as high as you can. They should lose sight of you that way."

Zelos nodded.

"I am not looking forward to reporting to Gaius. He's going to be angry. Rowan was his Prime Minister," Alvin said and looked up at the ceiling. "If he doesn't know already... My family is going to be destroyed root and branch unless I tell him who wasn't on Vance's side in all this. Not that I'm sure of who was or wasn't either."

"I'm sorry," Elise said.

Looking down at her, he patted her hair. "Not your fault. Vance brought this on himself. Got your rout memorized?" he asked Zelos and Tiger. When they nodded, he wiped his hand across their map and dusted his palms on his pant leg. "Let's go then."

Standing, Tiger stretched his arms over his head and cringed as he made himself cough again.

Elise started to approach, hand lifted but he waved her off and forced himself to ward her off and smiled at her. "I'm fine. Save your strength." He was surprised when she suddenly rushed forward and hugged him.

"I... haven't known you for very long, but I still... think I'll miss you." Elise rested her head against his shoulder. "Thank you."

He swallowed and gently patted her back, unsure of what exactly to do in this situation. She released him and climbed over the boxes blocking them from sight of the rest of the warehouse. Alvin followed with only a lingering glance at him. Zelos leapt over the boxes, leaving Tiger the last to climb over and join them on the other side.

Taking the lead now, Alivn crept through the warehouse, going back to the side door they had used to break in and after checking outside, he slipped out and pulled Elise close as they headed down the alley the opposite direction Zelos and Tiger intended to go.

Zelos quietly pelted down the street, heading away from the docks at first, then moving west a block, then back towards the water.

Reaching the corner to their destination, Zelos crouched down behind the edge of a building and peeked out once before putting his arm around Tiger's shoulders to whisper in his ear. "Three men standing on the other end at the intersection... Are you sure about this?"

He knew Zelos could feel him trembling. Settling for nodding silently, Tiger swallowed.

"Don't go overboard. I'll grab you and take you with me. You're not so heavy I can't carry you," Zelos said. "It'd be a nice gift to give that girl you're so sweet on."

Tiger grit his teeth and turned his head to whisper. "What're you gonna do? Put a ribbon on me and stick me in a box? I'll yell happy birthday when I pop out?"

Zelos choked on his laugh and patted Tiger's shoulder once before straightening.

Giving a thumbs up to the man, Tiger let him know he was ready to start. Zelos nodded and darted around the corner, drawing his blade and running full tilt towards the three soldiers on the other end.

One man saw them coming and went to draw his sword, but too late, Zelos had already stabbed his friend through. Tiger was on the second with a leaping kick that sent the man flying backwards into the wall. He crumbled to the ground and didn't rise again. The third man had enough time to shout, "I need backup!" and made for a hasty retreat towards the docks. They had a straight shot view of the ship they wanted to board, but they also were now in full view of not just eight guards but Cain had turned to look Tiger dead in the eyes.

The eight guards drew their weapons and charged into the alley. Zelos and Tiger hastily scrambled back into their choke point and ducked around the corner.

When the first soldier appeared, Zelos took him out with a quick stab of his sword. Two more made their way in and attacked Tiger at the same time. He ducked beneath one sword and came up with a punch to the man's chin, cracking his head backwards in a way that sounded incredibly uncomfortable, and possibly fatal. Zelos took out the second man as Tiger's opponent toppled to the ground. Dodging around the corpse, he kicked out to sweep the leg out from beneath another soldier.

"We're surrounded," Zelos said, warning him as the swordsman turned around to deal with the men coming at them from the other side.

A soldier broke his guard and left him open to three quick stabs from him and two of his friends who were trying to crowd into the narrow gap between the buildings. He backed away a few steps, got his guard back up, then spun on the ball of one foot, slamming everything he had into his kick. The man he hit sailed backwards out of the alley and took his two friends with him and knocked all three of them into another two men that were crowded behind. His target was undoubtedly dead, the others marginally hurt but regrouping quickly.

Taking the offensive, he sprang into the air and shouted, "Eagle Dive!" and smashed his heel into the face of another soldier, landing in the intersection of the narrow alley and the much wider street. He realized his mistake when he was plowed down from the left by a soldier's bulrush. Leaping to his feet in a backwards spring, Tiger dashed to the side and up the wall of the warehouse to get a better vantage of the battle and choose his next target. He now had nine soldiers attacking him and he could hear Zelos's battle in the alley still raging.

Kicking off the wall, Tiger cocked his fist back and landed a punch in the face of a soldier, crushing him to the ground. He took four hits in the back and dived forward to get away from the men. Rolling to his feet, he saw that the docks area was actually cleared of guards. There was a straight shot to the ship.

"Zelos! I'm goin for it!"

"No-" he faintly heard the Chosen over the sound of his fight. He was already charging for the open area of the docks.

An eerie premonition made him drop and slide across the ground as he passed the last building.

The shining blade of a sword swept the air just past his nose as he went under it. His eyes met Cain's as the young man's black gaze disdainfully narrowed.

Tiger rolled across the pavement and was on his feet just as Cain landed with a downwards stab where he had just been. Putting everything he had into this fight, he crouched, then sprang to the side to avoid an upwards sweep of the sword. Tiger moved around behind the man to get Cain facing away from the ship, in case Alvin and Elise made an appearance.

Following him around with a sweep of his sword to the right, Cain sliced him across the shoulder when Tiger misjudged the man's reach. He jumped back twice, moving like he was going to retreat back to the street.

"Judgment!" he heard Zelos shout. Lightning rained down behind him. At least Zelos was still alive.

Tiger turned sideways as Cain stabbed his long sword at him again, then dropped to the ground and kicked upwards as the blade swept to follow his first dodge. He knocked the blade skyward and pushed off the ground with his hands, launching another kick at Cain's chest, but while he had put effort behind the attack, Cain only staggered back a single step. Slow to move aside, Tiger barely managed to get his head out of the way as the sword descended.

The blade sliced his cheek and into his hair as the tip hit the ground and only the barest edge caught him. Twisting to his feet, Tiger kicked at Cain's chest again and was blocked by the sword. He cocked his fist back and shouted, "Tiger SMASH!" as he sent the blow forward.

Again, Cain blocked with the flat of his blade and slid backwards several feet, but generally looked unhurt.

Taking a running start, Tiger leapt into the air with a shout, driving his heel down towards Cain's face.

Easily moving his blade into position in time, Cain blocked with the flat and slung Tiger aside, sending him crashing into the ground and rolling.

Dazed from the impact, Tiger was slow to get up. He was roughly kicked in the ribs and knocked onto his back. Blinking up as Cain straddled him, he watched the man reach down to grasp the front of his shirt and pull him up. A light on the man's glove activated. Sharp pain shot through Tiger's entire body as he felt like his bones were being sucked out through the pores of his skin. Desperately, he gripped the man's wrist and tried to pry his hand loose, his eyes briefly focusing on movement behind Cain.

Elise fought against Alvin as he dragged her by her wrist towards the ship.

Gritting his teeth, Tiger stared Cain the eyes and kicked as hard as he could at the only place he could reach.

Cain wheezed, face going pale as he crumbled a little.

Tiger shoved Cain away and struggled to his feet. He could feel his whole body falling apart. There wasn't enough mana left to keep his form coherent. With the knowledge that he wasn't going to make it, Tiger rushed in, elbowing Cain in the face, then spinning with a stomp-kick to his foot. Grabbing Cain's long hair in the process, he yanked and brought the man's head down as he raised his knee. Something broke under the impact and Tiger wasn't sure if it was his leg or Cain's face. He followed the man to the ground with another stomp-kick.

Alvin had gotten Elise over his shoulder and was running across the open area to the loading dock. She lifted her hand out towards him, silently crying.

Cain rolled to his feet.

His hand closed over Tiger's face.

Specks of light broke off his body and sputtered like embers in the air as something tore him apart from a microscopic level.

"I'm not done yet!" Tiger growled between his teeth as his last view of Cain's bloodied face faded.