The girl's breathing was shallow. Her eyes remained shut, as they had been since she contracted this mysterious disease. Every so often she let out a painful whimper or turned slightly. She rolled onto her back, brushing the bed sheet away. The man at her bedside stared downward, his eyes filled with concern. He reached down to pull the sheet back up, but quickly withdrew his hand when she thrashed violently, as though suddenly slipping into a nightmare. A few seconds later, she calmed, returning to a still state. He reached down again, and this time she made no response as he brought the cover to her neck. "Rollo," he whispered, brushing a lock of hair off her face. "I see your sister's condition remains unchanged." He whirled, placing a hand on the sword at his side. "Wintergreen!" Spear of Mint in hand, his spectral visitor returned his cold gaze with a sly grin. "Now, now, Krackel. Is that any way to greet a guest? I'd think twice before drawing that blade, if I were you." As if on cue, the girl behind him suddenly arched her back as she let out a strangled gasp of pain. Wintergreen's smile grew as he took his hands from the sword, clenching them into fists at his sides. "That's better." The man's gaze from her ghostly form to Rollo's face, then back. "What do you want with me?" he asked bitterly. A chuckle emerged from the sorceress. "Just what I was hoping you'd say..." * * * * * The Starburst Crystal by Ardweden Legend Ten: Sour Feelings by Brett Schimmel * * * * * "Tictac's minty fresh breath can eat through almost anything. Now, hand over the Shard!" "Never!" Kyouji declared, pointing his sword towards the Twixes. Light from the setting sun glinted off his blade as he posed, the very embodiment of a heroic knight. Until Yumi spoke up from behind. "We won't give the Shard to you!" "Gika!" Kit Kat hissed from its position on her shoulder. "Fine then! We'll just have to take it!" Male Twix declared. He and his twin pointed towards the saviors of Mars, simultaneously declaring, "Tictac, go!" The serpent reared it's head back, snapping forward towards Kyouji. It's sharp jaws would have ripped him apart, had he been there. Instead, the beast's reward was a line of poppies down its snout, thrown by the Knight Protector leapt backwards. No sooner had that happened then Tsugiko sprinted forward, hammer held high. One good blow between the eyes was certain to cripple its fighting capabilities, if not kill it. She swung vertically, confident in her aim. Just before contact, however, Tictac's head was forced to the side by a ray of pink light, and hammer struck the ground with a disappointing thud. She shot a cold glare at Yumi, but the other Priestess seemed to miss it, concentrating on her magic assault. Grumbling, she turned back towards the beast. And her anger changed to surprise as it brought its tail around, casting a shadow over her as it dropped forcefully. Dirt and small rocks were driven into the air as the tail landed on the spot she had been an instant ago. "Tsugiko, you have to pay attention!" Kyouji said as he landed, standing her back on her feet before turning to face the monster once more. Meanwhile, Tictac turned back around with its jaws wide open, its green breath emitting from its throat. Just as it was about to exhale, though, a pink blast of light struck it fully in the mouth, causing it to hiss in pain. Kyouji and Tsugiko, meanwhile, attacked the creature's flank simultaneously, but neither seemed to do any damage. The Knight Protector's blade bounced right off its thick scales, and while the Priestess' hammer connected solidly, it took no notice, instead continuing its assault on Yumi. "Watch out!" Kyouji shouted as a cone of green breath erupted towards her. She held up the wand in fright, and for a moment he feared the worst. Then he saw the monster's breath part as it came in contact with a pink hemisphere in front of the Priestess. "Thank goodness," the Knight Protector whispered as he turned about. "What the-! Tsugiko! What are you doing?!" "You were able to hit it before with your poppies!" She called as she climbed the serpent's neck. "The head must be the weak spot!" "You've got to be kidding..." Kyouji muttered as Tictac took notice of the Priestess, wildly swinging its head from side to side. He swung once more in a futile attempt to get the being's attention. Yumi met with considerably more success, pelting the monster with minor blasts. It hissed as it charged towards her, forgetting about the Priestess on its back for the moment. Meanwhile, Kyouji followed alongside, tossing poppies at it's lower jaw. They stuck, but were little more than needles to the beast. Blast after blast of pink light collided with Tictac, as Yumi attempted to injure it; instead, she only seemed to anger it. She sidestepped as it neared her, but it turned on a dime, its tail sending Kyouji sprawling. "Ugh!" He ground as he tumbled backwards, landing on his stomach. Quickly he was back on his feet, dashing towards the Priestess as she faced the beast down. "Yumi! Look out!" She dodged again, but the beast's reaction time was uncanny. She watched in horror as its jaws opened wide. And then it hissed in pain as Tsugiko brought her hammer down over its head with a loud crack. It thrashed violently, sending her flying. "Tsugiko!" Yumi shouted, ignoring the monster as it fell, unmoving to the ground. She and Kyouji hurried to where their friend had landed. "Are you okay?" "I think so," she replied, rubbing her head. She was bruised slightly, but otherwise unhurt. "Don't be so reckless in the future," the Knight Protector lectured as she shakily rose to her feet. "You could have gotten hurt!" "I'm a Warrior Priestess, Kyouji," she reminded him with an angry glare. "I can fight as well as you can." "That's beside the point!" "Stop it!" Yumi shouted, interrupting them both. "We've got other things to worry about!" "Like us?" They looked up to see the Twixes hovering a few feet above their heads. "Or like Tictac?" "Your monster is dead," Tsugiko said. "You're next." Male Twix sniggered, while his sister raised an eyebrow at her comment. "Dead, you say? Tictac? That's... amusing." "What do you mean?" Kyouji asked, gripping his sword. "Tictac isn't a monster you can get rid of that easily." She gestured behind them. "Behold!" They turned in shock to see Tictac crawling out of the skin it had just shed. Its scales were now a deep red, instead of their previous green color. Oddly enough, behind it followed two tails, that had somehow fit into the skin of the single tail it had before. "You've got to be kidding," Tsugiko muttered. The twins laughed gleefully at the heroes' shock. "Well, do you think you can win again?" female Twix asked. "Against a more powerful version of Tictac?" male Twix added. "We won't let you win!" Yumi retorted, causing further laughter from the twins, before they pointed at the heroes in unison. "Go forth, Tictac!" male Twix ordered. "Finish them off, once and for all!" female Twix cried. Tictac hissed in anticipation, staring at the three as it swayed from side to side, almost hypnotically. Slowly its jaws parted, wisps of red seeping out. "Watch out!" Yumi shouted, realizing what was happening. The group scattered as a flaming blast emitted from the red Tictac's mouth, scorching the ground where they had stood. Kyouji recovered the fastest, rushing at the monster in an attempt to strike before it could act. His charge was broken when he was forced to dive to the side to avoid its twin tails, as it sped towards Yumi, the first target it saw, moving faster than it had before. Yumi ran sideways, firing blast of magic as she went. Tictac twisted to follow, and Tsugiko cursed as its tails lashed at her, forcing her to dodge away from the beast. "Yumi, what do you think you're doing?!" she yelled angrily. "No, she has a point," Kyouji said, running up beside her. He took her by surprise, grabbing her hand and forcing her to run with him. Tsugiko was about to protest when he spoke, "Look, the monster is too large to maneuver that well from a standstill." She followed his gaze to where Tictac was struggling to keep up with Yumi, and failing. "If we can keep this up, it won't be able to attack with its head! We only have to worry about the tails." "But we can't attack either," Tsugiko pointed out as they circled Tictac. "Sure we can," Kyouji dropped her hand, reaching into his cape. He pulled out a handful of poppies, tossing them at the monster's head. "We just need to use long-ranged attacks." Which I don't have, Tsugiko added mentally. She followed behind the Knight Protector, her hammer held uselessly in her hands. She watched Kyouji pelt the beast with poppies, while Yumi blasted it from the opposite side. Her mind raced; there had to be something she could do! It didn't take long, either. Tictac had apparently caught onto their plan, and lashed out with its tails. And concentrating on attacking, the others failed to notice. "Look out!" Tsugiko dove towards Kyouji, tackling him to the ground as a tail passed over them, narrowly missing. He winced as they landed, and she heard him gasp in pain. "And you were telling me to be careful," Tsugiko told him as she rose to her feet. "Never mind," Kyouji responded, gripping his side as he stood. "What about- No!" "Yumi!" Tsugiko shouted desperately. Some distance away, the Priestess lay on the ground, unmoving. The serpentine creature almost seemed to grin as one of its tails wrapped around her, picking her up. "I've got to..." Kyouji began, sprinting towards the beast. He immediately stopped, wincing as pain shot up his side. "I'll save her," Tsugiko said as she ran past. "You stay here." She ignored his protests, straining to reach Tictac before it could... No! She could already see the flames seething from its mouth. There was no way she could make it in time. But she had to. If she didn't, Yumi would... "Tsugiko, what are you doing?" Kyouji shouted from behind her. She felt a sudden burst of speed as green flames ignited from her hands and feet, wrapping around her body. "Tsugiko, stop!" Kyouji ignored the pain in his side as he desperately hobbled after her. "You have no way to get close enough... You'll get killed!" "I don't care!" she yelled as the fire intensified, unsure of whether he could even hear her or not. Even if her crystal shattered, even if it meant losing her powers, and even if she didn't always get along with her roommate, she couldn't afford to lose Yumi. Or Kyouji. They had been brought to this world together, and they were going home together. She'd make sure of that. Tictac noticed her, redirecting its breath attack. Kyouji watched in amazement as wings of green fire sprouted from her back. She jumped to a height much greater than he could have, even with the enhanced strength. The monster barely had time to look up before Tsugiko plummeted, striking a resounding blow with her hammer. It reared back in pain, dropping the unconscious Yumi. Not giving it a chance to recover, Tsugiko fought onwards, swinging at its head from various angles as she floated in mid-air in front of its face. Its scales were tough, but she could sense it weakening greatly. A few more hits would finish it off. And then she was falling, her green flames vanishing as her powers gave out. "Tsugiko!" Kyouji shouted as she hit the ground hard. He continued his slow run, trying to ignore the pain in his side. Tsugiko's head spun. She tried to concentrate as she pulled herself to a sitting position. And then she found herself staring at the fire in Tictac's open mouth. Desperately she called to her inner self for her power. She needed it now more than ever! But it didn't come to her, she threw her arms up defensively as Tictac exhaled, her eyes snapping shut. "Spiral Wing!" Tsugiko's eyes opened at the sound of the voice, just in time to see Tictac split down the middle, revealing its slayer. The man was tall and muscular. Clad in dark green armor and wielding a sword more than twice as wide as Kyouji's... with one hand. He strode slowly towards Tsugiko. Smiling, she started to rise. Then stopped when she found the point of his sword directed at her throat. By now, Kyouji had caught up, and stood a few feet away, his own blade at the ready. "Krackel, why are you here?" one of the Twixes asked. "To collect the Shard," the armored man ordered, without taking his eyes from the Priestess. "Don't-" Tsugiko began, but was cut off as he inched the blade further. "Do it, if you want her to live." "Let Tsugiko go first," Kyouji demanded. To his surprise, he did. "You idiot!" female Twix screamed as Tsugiko rose, backing away a few steps and hefting her hammer. "Now, give me the shard," he repeated calmly, ignoring the twins. "Not so fast," Kyouji countered. "If you're working for Wintergreen, we can't-" Despite the weight of his armor, Krackel moved swiftly, holding Yumi's unconscious body with his free hand as he placed the sword to her throat. "One more time. The Shard. Now!" Kyouji visibly winced as he removed the artifact from beneath his cape. He held it up so they could all see. "You'll let Yumi go?" "I will." "Fine," he grimaced as he tossed the crystalline object. Despite holding onto Yumi, he was able to move his hand enough to catch it without dropping her. "Excellent! With the Shard and one of the Priestesses, we'll regain Wintergreen's favor for sure!" male Twix cried. "You promised to free her!" Tsugiko yelled. "He lied. Didn't you, Krackel?" female Twix nodded at him. His calm expression changed into a smirk. "Of course." "Damn you!" Kyouji screamed, swiftly tossing a poppy. The armored man's reaction was swift, as he effortlessly batted it away with his blade. Seizing the opportunity, Tsugiko rushed at him, skidding to a halt when the Twixes chanted, summoning a number of weaker critters in front of both her and the Knight Protector. "We can't lose this chance," male Twix explained to Krackel. "We'll hold them off while you escape," female Twix added. "Just don't forget to tell Wintergreen that you couldn't have done it without us!" Krackel nodded. Tsugiko and Kyouji watched helplessly as he fled, taking Yumi and the Shard with him. * A short distance away, Riesen watched the battle from his hiding spot, an amused grin on his face. "So, the Twixes are trusting Krackel, are they?" He chuckled as he turned away from the Twins, slowly heading in the same direction Krackel had gone. * "Kyouji, stop!" Tsugiko pleaded. He ignored her again, forcefully dragging himself along as he hobbled along. The battle had ended some time ago; the Twixes long since retreated. "Kyouji!" she cried again. "I'm fine!" he insisted, ignoring the pain in his side. "I'm sure that man came this way! If we hurry, we can still..." He fell forward. Tsugiko rushed to his side, forcing him to stop. "You're injured. We need to rest." "Forget my injuries! Yumi can heal them when we rescue her. "We just need to do that, first!" "And then what will you do? In your condition, you can't even walk! How do you expect to fight?" "But-" "We're stopping here. You try to go on, and I'll..." She lifted the mallet threateningly. "Fine," he shuddered as he remembered how much it hurt the first time she hit him. "But we can't stay too long." A short while later, he collapsed from exhaustion. * As Kyouji fell into his slumber, Yumi woke from hers, only to find herself tied to a tree in a large forest with no other sign of life around. "Hello?" she ventured, gasping as she heard a rustle under a nearby bush. Perhaps it was some wild animal? Maybe calling out like that had been a bad idea. Then the creature emerged. "Kit Kat!" * "I see. So you had her, and she escaped?" Wintergreen's voice was as cold as ice. "She was much more powerful than I had expected. I greatly underestimated her," Krackel replied. "However, I did manage to secure the Shard." "Show me," she ordered. Krackel reached into his pocket. His eyes widened as his hand closed around empty air. He stared in confusion at Wintergreen's spectre, who held a bitter expression on her face. "You don't have it?" "I- I don't understand! How could I have los- I mean, how could she have-" "Impudent fool!" Wintergreen shrieked, raising the spear over her head in anger. "Do you think I am not aware that you let the Priestess go? A man as famous as you doesn't underestimate opponents, no matter how week they seem. Mark my words, you are going to regret this." The sorceress raised her hand, and behind Krackel, Rollo screamed in agony. For the first time, Krackel's eyes displayed his fear. "Stop! Don't hurt her," he begged. Wintergreen smiled. For all his courage and fearlessness, this man was still easily broken. "You should feel blessed that I am granting you a second chance, Krackel. But remember: if you try to betray me again, it's the end for your sister." Her laughter echoed around the chamber as she faded away. Krackel clenched his fists in anger. Next time, he'd have no choice... * "Kit Kat, you're safe!" Yumi smiled at the furry creature. She would have scooped it up into a hug if she wasn't tied to the tree. "Gika!" It replied, a red object falling from its mouth as it spoke. Yumi blinked. It was the Cherry Shard. "Kit Kat? When did you-" Soft foot falls interrupted her, and quickly she was silent. Slowly she turned her head. "Having some trouble, miss?" "Riesen!" * * * Author's notes: It's been a long week -_- I hope people aren't too upset at my introducing a new villain so soon, but I felt a villain who wasn't completely evil would be a good addition (er... no pun intended <:) ). Thanks to Ardweden for prereading. Twice :)