"Dad," asked a small redheaded boy, "do you need me to do 
anything?" 
	
	The boy's father shook his head. "Not today, Archie."

	"Can I open the shipping crates?"

	"No, I can do that."

	"Please?"

	"No."

	"Pleeeaaaseeeee?"
	
	"No."

	"Aww, come on, dad."

	"Fine!" the man snapped. "But don't come running to me when you 
smash your fingers on the crowbar."

	"I won't!" declared the boy, rushing off to fetch a crowbar. 
"I'll go to mom instead!"

	The father, a man named Hershey, sighed.

	Hershey was a patient man; at least he liked to think so. 
Sometimes he even considered himself... mellow. Not that running his own 
business allowed it; being 'mellow' was a fatal weakness in Godiva One 
Plaza. If you wanted to make a profit, he would tell his children as 
they toiled in the shop, you had to be the _best_. 

	And he was the best.

	Hershey had spent a lifetime in Ganache. He'd been born little 
over a click (as Godivians called their 'miles') from his shop, Fanny's 
Whatchamacallit Express. Named after the owner's firstborn daughter and 
said daughter's childhood stuff toy, it was the best-kept hideaway in 
all of Godiva. Occupying prime real estate at the heart of Godiva One 
Plaza, Fanny's Whatchamacallit Express sold fresh foodstuffs from 
anywhere on Mars. If you knew about it, even if only from legend, 
chances were Fanny's had in stock. 

	At the ringing of the entrance bell, Hershey turned his eyes to 
the front of his store, already slipping into sales mode. He frowned at 
the two girls who had entered; one looked to be dressed for a social 
function, but the other was dressed for battle and carried a warhammer on 
her back. A bodyguard perhaps?

	Hershey walked up to the blond girl, figuring she was an easy mark 
for a high-priced sale. Using an accent on any mainland language and 
you could make the most stingy foreigner feel totally self-conscious, 
ensuring at least a guilt-driven purchase.

	Busying himself rearranging items on a shelf, he waited for the 
foreigner to make the first move. He didn't wait long.

	"Excuse me, sir," spoke the blond teen, "but do you recommend any 
foods for traveling? We're looking for something easy to carry but 
reasonably filling."

	"Travel?" He jabbed a calloused finger towards a rack of freshly 
smoked meats and cheeses. "Butterfinger cutlets, 1500 oreo. Pickled 
Gobstopper eyeballs, 2750 oreo. Seasoned Trident hoofs, two for 2200 
oreo, four for 4000 ore-"

	"Um," the foreigner offered a handful of lollipop gild, "how much 
is all that in this?" 

	Hershey frowned. The exchange rate with the mainland was terrible 
nowadays with the war. Still, melted down gild did fetch a decent price at 
resale "Your money no good here," Hershey chided the teen, thickening his 
fake accent as he prepared to charge her astronomically, "this not pauper 
shop. This Fanny's Whatchamacallit Express. Best in all Gana--No!--all 
Godiva!"

	"Please sir," she cast her eyes down, embarrassed, "I know our 
money isn't what you'd normally take, but we're on a very important 
mission-

	"'Mission' you say?" Hershey snorted for effect. "What mission? 
Mission to make Hershey poor?"

	At this point the other foreigner, the one whose battledress and 
weapon had caught Hershey's eye, cut into the conversation. "Yumi," she 
said, "is this guy giving you trouble?"

	The blond turned to the brunette. "He won't take our money," she 
said quietly.

	The other girl frowned. "Why not?"

	"Mainland money no good," Hershey declared, "except as kindling. 
Though an... arrangement? An arrangement could be made."

	The brunette leveled an understanding eye at the merchant. "I get 
it... you want to gouge us."

	Clever girl. "Gouge? No. I demand only fair price. You are rude to 
question honest merchant." Looking up, he saw another strangely dressed 
foreigner enter. This one was a young man garbed in blue, armed with a 
blade. "Tell your friend," the merchant said, pointing to the newcomer, "I 
do not take bad money here. Fanny's Whatchamacallit Express takes only 
good Godiva oreos. Unless, of course, you have exchangeable goods for 
barter."

	"Kyouji," the blond girl called to the blue boy, "he won't take 
our money."

	The 'Tsugiko' girl smirked. "Oh, he'll take our money. He just 
wants a *lot* of it."

	Breaking out of the discussion, the blond looked down and behind 
Hershey. The merchant twisted about to see his youngest son, mouth 
agape, staring wide-eyed at the foreigners.

	"(Archie)," Hershey chastened the youngster, slipping into his 
normal language and tone of voice, "(don't stare. It's rude. You'll 
scare daddy's customers away)."

	"(B-but)," the freckled boy whispered, "(it's _him_)!"

	"(Who)?" 

	"Sir," the young man cut in, gesturing at his own forehead, "do 
you see this jewel?"

	"Yes," Hershey answered glibly; he had spotted the oddity on the 
girls when they first entered, "it fetch good price on market."

	The brunette frowned. "Look, can you drop the act? The accent's 
not fooling us."

	"Alright then," he said, dispensing with pleasantries, "let's get 
to the heart of the matter. Lollipop gild is worthless outside the 
mainland, you can't _give_ it away. But," Hershey held up a finger, 
"since your blond friend here looks so desperate, I'll cut you a break 
and take that worthless money of your hands at a bargain rate of 8:1. 
You will NOT get a better rate, this I guarantee."

	"Daaaaad!" Archie tugged on his father's pant leg.

	"(Archie, not now)!"

	"It's *him*!" the boy declared, speaking in the foreigner's 
tongue. "He's here!"
 
	Hershey frowned. "(Who)?"

	"Mister," started Archie, rushing up to the blue-clad boy, "you a 
Warrior Priest or whatever, aren't you? Right? Right?!"

	"I'm sorry," Hershey began, "my son seems to think you're one of 
Mars' Blessed." He chuckled mirthfully. "You know how children are."

	The boy blinked. "Um... well, they're Priestesses. I'm what you'd 
call a Knight Protector." 

	"You?" Hershey stared at the girls, peppering his gaze with a pinch 
of anger. "You're the Warrior Priests?"

	Yumi nodded. "Yes. We're the Priestesses"

	"Really? Prove it."

	Hershey watched with apprehension as the brunette reached for her 
warhammer, looking all-to-ready to prove a point. Thankfully, the blond 
one stopped her friend with a touch of her hand. Looking about, the 
blond one plucked the crowbar from his son's hands. Grasping it with 
both hands, the pink-clad girl twisted the iron bar into a U-shape. 
Pausing to take a breath, she bent the two ends of the bar until they 
crossed. The final result resembled a crude fish, like one would find 
scribbled in the margins of an idle child's schoolbook.

 	The blond girl offered the hunk of metal to him. "Sorry about this, 
but if you want I can bend it back."

	Hershey studied the bent loop incredulously, then took a half-step 
back as he spotted fingerprints *imprinted* on the iron where the blond 
had gripped it. "HOLY MARS!" he swore.

	Archie touched the former crowbar hesitantly, his fingers dancing 
on its curves. "Whoa."

	"Yumi," said the blue-clad boy tenderly, "your hand."

	Hershey turned his eyes to the blond girl's right hand, where a 
sharp bit on the crowbar had cut a deep sliver between the thumb and 
index finger. "Oh," said the girl absentmindedly, "Ow."

	Reaching to her belt with her good hand, the blond drew forth a 
crystal-tipped wand. Aiming it at the wound, a rush of pink light burst 
forth. It enveloped the wound and, in front of Hershey's very eyes, 
blood flowed backwards into the cut as the skin knitted together. After 
a few seconds, it was as if the injury had never occurred.

	Hershey felt his mouth go dry as he went over the facts: crystals in 
their foreheads, odd clothing, distinct weapons, incredible strength, and 
magic powers. There was only one reasonable conclusion. "Y-you... y-you're 
the.... the-"

	The brunette held up a gloved hand clenched into a fist. Magical 
flames erupted from it, casting a radiant emerald glow onto the 
merchant and his son's faces, filling the front of his shop with its 
warmth. "Actually," she said, a toothy smile on her face, "nowadays we 
prefer the more non-gender specific 'Crystal Warriors' title."

	"(DID YOU SEE THAT)!" shouted an unfamiliar voice. 

	Hershey, the Warrior Priestesses, and his son looked off to the 
side at the open-air entrance to Fanny's Whatchamacallit Express. 
Standing at the front of a small crowd was a local cleric, his finger 
extended accusingly at the trio. 

	"It's them! It's *them*!"

	"(Dear Mars, the rumors were true)!"

	"(It can't be! Two of them are women)!"

	"...just magic, just a trick you know..."

	"Wintergreen's done for now!"

	"(...know, I never believed that prophecy)."

	"I can't believe it, I simply cannot...."

	"Bless you!"

	"...never thought I'd live to see..."

	"Gotta tell everyone...."

	"The Warrior Priestesses have RETURNED!"

	The blue-clad warrior glanced over to his friends. "Looks like 
we're going to get a bigger welcome than we expected."

	"Well," chuckled the green one, "at least we might get some free 
food out of all this hoopla."

	The teens turned back towards Hershey as one.

	The merchant blinked. "Did I say 8:1? I meant 2:1." He gestured to 
a barrel of fresh Apple Jacks sitting near the checkout counter. "I'll 
even throw in the fruit at a discount. What d'ya say? Eh? Eh?!"

	"Or maybe not," sighed the blond.


>o< >o< >o<

The Starburst Crystal
Created by Ardweden

Chapter Forty-eight: The Soft Nougat Center Cannot Hold
		        
By Doublemint

>o< >o< >o<


	The double-doors to the Ganache City Court House, thick plates of 
sturdy iron forged hundreds of years ago by expert craftsmen, slammed 
shut with a bone-rattling clink. It normally took ten able-bodied men to 
shut the barrier to the one-time fortress. Today it took two girls and a 
boy.

	"Oh my God," exclaimed Yumi, resting against the doors, "I'd 
thought we'd never get away from that mob."

	"G... gika," Kit Kat declared nervously, loosening his death grip 
on the blond's shoulder.

	Tsugiko gulped in air, her muscles stiff with acid from the high-
endurance run. "Yumi," she said, smoothing her hair back with a free 
hand, "next time you get the urge to heal people in public, DON'T."

	"What was I supposed to do?" The blond girl asked, surveying the 
building they had taken shelter. "Let them stay sick?"

	Kyouji rubbed his shoulders, checking to see that the crowd had 
only taken his cape. "Dear," he said, looking over to his girlfriend, 
"you can't heal everyone."

	"I can help some!"

	"What about the mission?" asked Tsugiko. "It would take you days, 
maybe weeks, to heal 'some' of the sick people in Ganache. Forget about 
people with old injuries like the Twixs." She paused, eyeing the mixed 
reaction to that name on her friends' faces. "You know I'm right."

	Kyouji sighed. "Tsugiko's got a point; our GOAL is stopping 
Wintergreen. That means getting the shards as fast as possible. We do 
that, the war ends, people stop dying."

	"That doesn't mean we can't help people along the way," Yumi 
declared adamantly. 

	"Random people? Yes." Tsugiko locked eyes with her friend. "Lepers 
and blind beggars in the middle of a crowded market with a mob 
surrounding us? No."

	"Tsugiko!" snapped Kyouji. "We didn't have a choice; half the 
crowd wanted to string you two up as heretic magicians posing as the male 
Warrior Priests. They needed proof, and hitting them with a flaming hammer 
wouldn't cut it!"

	The priestess in question flinched. "Okay, fine." 

	"I just... I just wanted to help them," said Yumi

	"We are," the brunette whispered, "by doing what they won't."

	"Gika!"

	"Uh... girls?"

	The two girls looked over to Kyouji, who merely pointed forwards.

	A dozen security guards stood around the lobby of the Court House, 
with more pouring out of side-doors and stairwells. All had their 
weapons drawn, be it a sword or axe, with shields raised level with 
their chests. Each took up positions in the wide lobby, encircling the 
entrance, and, consequently, the three teens. In the back of the room, a 
string of archers also took up position.

	One guard, dressed in a red vest with silver insignia, stepped 
forward to address the teens.

	"My name is Cosmopolitan, I'm Chief of Security for this 
installation." She paused dramatically. "Lay down your weapons and 
identify yourselves. You have ten seconds to comply."

	The three Crystal Warriors blinked. 

	"Uh," Yumi raised a hand, "hi, my name's Yumi. I---we're the 
Crys... Warrior Priestesses."

	Cosmopolitan cocked her head to the side. "Oh," she said, smiling, 
"why didn't you just say so in the first place?" The chief turned to a 
row of archers at the back of the lobby. "It's okay boys, they say 
they're the Warrior Priestess resurrected! Stand _down_."

	Faster than the eye could follow, an archer unleashed a single 
volley at Kyouji. Faster still was the Knight Protector's response, 
batting the arrow aside with a blue blur of a fist. 

	The chief blinked. "Okay... mind explaining to me how you just did 
that?"

	"She told you," stressed Kyouji, rubbing his right hand, "we're 
the Warrior Priests you all have been waiting for... sorta. See, the girls 
are PriestESSes. I'm a Knight Protector."

	"Right. And, aside from those nice crystals glued to your foreheads, 
I'm supposed to believe that because... ?"	

	"Because Cosmo," came the voice from on high, "*I* do."

	Walking out of a stairwell, a well-dressed man of indeterminate 
age adjusted his business vestment. He had the marks of power about him, 
his fashion and style conveying the polish only a master of politics 
possessed. 

	The only aspect detracting from his carefully constructed image, 
like that of a boy dressing in his father's Sunday best, was a mutilated 
ear. The one on the left side of the man's head was missing a good 
chunk, and, judging by the scarring around the area, the two pieces 
hadn't parted on the best of terms. 

	The chief guard spun around. "Mister Valentine! Please, sir, the 
area isn't secure!"

	"Nonsense," he declared, stepping down into the main foyer of the 
lobby. "Why, I couldn't be more safe from Wintergreen's minions, what 
with these fine young adults here."

	Cosmopolitan would have none of it. "With all due respect sir," 
she jabbed a thumb at the trio, "they can't be the Priests. Two of 
them are little *girls* for Mars' sake." 

	Light smoke rose up from underneath Tsugiko's shoulder guard. "A 
bit hypocritical of you," she growled, "considering you're a _girl_ 
too."

	The chief of guards flashed a wolfish smile. "Right. Because 
you're one to discuss femininity in an outfit like that."

	"Officer Cosmopolitan!" thundered Valentine. "Before you go any 
further, let me remind you who works for whom." He tapped his chest with 
a finger. "I'm the mayor; you run my bodyguard detail. I don't pay you 
to question my orders OR to insult my guests."

	Cosmopolitan glared fiercely at Tsugiko, then abruptly turned 
away. "I'm sorry, sir," she said, "I forgot my place."

	The mayor of Ganache dismissed this apology with a wave of his 
hand. "Don't worry, I understand you had only my best interests at 
heart." He then looked past the security officer to the encircled teens. 
"Stand down, soldiers," he ordered, "they're on our side."

	All around the Crystal Warriors, the guards lowered their weapons. 
Most took the opportunity to better study the alleged saviors of Mars 
standing at the lobby's front entrance. Few were impressed.

	"I most apologize," the mayor began, walking towards the 
teens. "You see, Madam Cinnamon's letter did not arrive until a 
few minutes ago. From the frenzied crowd I saw hovering outside the 
courthouse, I must conclude you've revealed your... presence... to the 
general population." He looked over to the two girls. "I'm sorry they 
didn't understand to your, er, situation. We tend to take our cultural 
lore to heart here."

	Kyouji thought's flickered back to the theft of his cape. "Yes. 
Well, Ganache's a bit," he paused, searching for an inoffensive term, 
"'wilder' than we imagined it might be." 

	Valentine chuckled. "It is lively, isn't it?"

	"That's one word for it," interjected Tsugiko.

	The mayor pointed at the green-garbed Priestess, his eyes narrowed 
in thought. "Let me guess... wears green, speaks bluntly... Tsugiko, 
right?" The girl in question nodded, and the process was repeated with 
the two other teens. "Good," he declared, "then the letter was on the 
money."

	"We have much to discuss this day. I'm eager to hear everything 
you know about the situation on the mainland; news is starting to get a 
bit scarce nowadays and I do *SO* like to keep up. And your adventures 
will be well worth the price of having to sit through another dreadful 
state dinner and ball."

	Yumi frowned. "'State dinner and ball'?"

	The mayor nodded. "Yes, all of Ganache's elite will be there," he 
then added under his breath, "as well as a few... ahem... other guests." 
Valentine beamed a smile at the three. "But that's tonight. First I'd 
like to show you something."

	"What's that?" Tsugiko asked cautiously. 

	"My house."


--------------------------


THREE WEEKS AGO...


	The husband entered the house, followed by his doting wife. 'Good', 
thought the wild man. 'It would be easier if he didn't need to deal with 
witnesses.'

	Darting into the field, the wild man carefully plucked at the 
fruits of the blaubarry field. Disregarding his own safety, he wasted 
precious minutes cramming the first handfuls into his mouth, desperate to 
slake the fire in his belly. Soon he regained his sensibilities and 
returned to his intended task of stealing as much as could.

	Five minutes passed. Then another five. Eyeing the farmhouse's 
backdoor, the wild man turned to make his way into the countryside. He'd 
traveled not a dozen feet when the cry of "YOU THERE, STOP!" echoed 
through the field.

	Fleeing on a sour stomach wasn't easy, a he fact had forgotten 
during his earlier gorging. The farmer's pursuit, joined by the fellow's 
younger helpers, only added to his discomfort. Once in the woods, the 
wild man ducked into a patch of underbrush he had selected for just such 
a contingency. A few moments later, the posse passed by his hiding place.

	Fear kept him huddling in the bushes, waiting to see if the farmer 
and his posse realized his trail ended before it went deeply into the 
forest. After a long half hour, the wild man poked his head out of the 
underbrush and look around. The coast was clear.

	"That was too close, sister," he said, turning to his side, "we 
almost-

	No one was there.

	The wild man blinked away the tears in his eyes. Slowly, he made 
his way into the heart of the forest.

	No one followed him.
 

--------------------------


	Godiva had been settled just over a thousand years ago by 
seafaring explorers from Almond Roca, who had been searching for new 
port to expand their trade. A ship that had been knocked off course by a 
squall happened upon the primal island continent. The ship's captain, a 
woman called Godiva, christened the land in her own name, enshrining 
herself in the annals of history. The discovery of a defendable deep 
water port, flanked along its coast by ghastly tall mountains for 
hundreds of miles, only added to the importance of the find. Soon 
afterwards, the city of Ganache was founded, though at the time it was 
little more than an outpost.

	Then Wintergreen came to power.

	Small enough to escape her immediate notice, Godiva became a haven 
for those fleeing the tyranny of the Dark Queen. The immigrants doubled 
the continent's population in a year, then doubled that number five times 
over by the end of the decade. Unable to maintain itself solely with 
imports, the administration of the colony (it had yet to break away) set 
up a farming program on the outskirts of the Ganache. When the first 
harvest failed disastrously, the colony turned to its native flora for 
substance. New farms, spreading out in circular waves from Ganache like 
ripples in a pond, finally managed to sustain the colony. 

	But it was only after Wintergreen was defeated at the hands of the 
Warrior Priestesses, that Godiva began its meteoric rise to power. 
Untouched by the scouring evil of the Dark Queen's armies, Ganache found 
itself in a unique position to lend assistance to the motherland. 
Funneling goods from distant ports and abundant surpluses from its own 
crops, the colony of Godiva (and, consequently, its counterpart Almond 
Roca) reached new heights of wealth. Money and investments fueled new 
farming settlements as well as the growth of Ganache itself. Lacking 
room to expand outward due to its trademark farms, the city grew upwards 
instead. 

	In order to ensure continued prosperity, the government of Ganache 
interacted greatly with local businesses, almost to the point of the 
two becoming one. Bribery and corruption became hallmarks of the 
government, especially the mayor's office, which had merged with the 
position of governor of the surrounding territory centuries ago. And 
after all that time the accumulation of payoffs, treasure, and 
diplomatic gifts had turned the Mayor's Mansion into a quasi-monument to 
wealth.

	All of which meant Valentine's house was quite posh indeed.

	"Damn," emphatically declared Tsugiko.

	"Giiiiikaaaaaa."

	"I have to apologize," said the mayor, stepping out of the group's 
Binaca-drawn carriage, "we're in the middle of renovating the north 
wing right now. It seems gold pillars weren't the best idea for 
long-term structural support." 

	"Oh," said Kyouji weakly, "that's fine."

	Valentine shrugged. "Well, at least the gardens haven't gone into 
autumn bloom yet. It should come any day now and, if you're still 
around, it'll be quite the show." 

	Yumi blinked. The O-shaped residence was like nothing she had seen 
on Mars, or Earth for that matter. The Starburst Temple had been more 
beautiful with its translucent crystal, but it had nothing on the pure 
splendor of the Mansion. A wealth of colors and intricate designs 
wrapped the building. Unlike the rest of Ganache's buildings, whose 
bright shine seemed to tarnish above the sixth story, this one seemed to 
*sparkle*. The afternoon sun seemed to shine more brightly on it, as if 
it was competing against the golden building. "There's a garden?"

	"Inside the circle. Truthfully it's more of a hothouse." The mayor 
tugged at the sash rubbing against his neck. "Why don't we move inside 
where it's cooler? You can recuperate for a bit before we continue."

	The Crystal Warriors agreed and the group entered the mansion.


----------------


	In short order, the three teens were shown private suites. As each 
began to wash up, a maid came by for their uniforms. The mayor's 
assistant, a dour gentleman by the name of E'star Bunn, had noticed the 
shabby condition of Kyouji's suit and Yumi's dress. Tsugiko, somewhat 
reluctant to do so, added the tattered remnants of her old outfit for 
repair, providing that the hemline be lengthened. It was then explained 
special clothing would be provided for the evening's ball but, until 
then, the teens would have to make do with plainer items. 

	Kyouji, alone in his room, blushed as he examined his new attire. 
"Silk underwear?" he whispered, frowning at the thought. "Doesn't that 
make them panties?"

	'Plainer' items being a relative term.

	After two hours of washing up, the Crystal Warriors gathered in 
the west lobby. Mayor Valentine, his wife, and Mr. Bunn were there to 
meet them. Kit Kat elected to stay behind in Yumi's suite and savage her 
pillow after a good nap on it.

	Valentine clapped his hands. "Let's begin, shall we?"

	Tsugiko, garbed in traditional Western dress for the first time 
since her transformation into a Warrior Priestess, shrugged. "Sure."


-------------------


	The tour group started in the west wing and worked their way 
around the O-shaped mansion in a counter-clockwise direction. Spending 
some time in each of the three available wings, the Crystal Warriors 
were somewhat shocked to find that the interior of the Mayor's Mansion 
was, if possible, more luxurious than the exterior. A thousand years of 
unbroken and (mostly) peaceable transitions of political power in Mars' 
foremost center of trade had garnered unimaginable wealth. 

	Polished suits of armor from Guylian. Rare crystals from the 
depths of the Chupa Chups Mine. Sculptures from Abba Zabba. A visitor 
couldn't help but walk into a room and see a painting or mural by a 
major artists decorating some fixture. And that didn't include the most 
exotic of prizes.

	"Mr. Bunn?" 

	The mayor's assistant strode up to the blond priestess, who had 
separated from her friends following the main walkthrough of the 
mansion.

	"I'm sorry," she pointed at a small sign adjacent to a roped-off 
display of white marble shards dotted with dark brown stains, "but what 
does this say? I don't recognize the language."

	Bunn leaned close to sigh, tilting his head so his bifocals caught 
the light. "Ah, it says: 'The remains of Michael's _He Likes It, He 
Really Likes It_, recovered from the Dark Queen Wintergreen's throne 
room. Circa 375 OSB." The man leaned back. "Odd, no one replaced the 
old-style Almond Roca dating." He frowned. "Well, maintenance will hear 
about *this*."

	Yumi stared at the pottery shards. "This is from... Wintergreen's 
palace? From a thousand years ago?"

	"Yes," the man nodded, "give or take a few odd years."

	The priestess involuntarily took a half-step back. "Is t-there 
anything else you... recovered?"

	"Oh my no," the assistant declared gravely. "Most of the holy 
relics from the war are scattered in a dozen private collections and 
museums across the known world. They _are_ something of a rare 
commodity."

	"'Holy'?" Yumi glanced at the sculpture, her gaze lingering on the 
dirty white fragments, and she paled. The teen turned back to the 
mayor's assistant. "Please, uh, excuse me. I'd like to go and find the 
others. See what they're up to."

	"Of course."


--------

	Kyouji studied at the display before him, or, more specifically, 
the stuffed beast contained within the glass case. Contained within was 
easily one of the most humanoid monsters he had seen on Mars short of the 
reptilian Ranchers.

	It was easily eight feet tall and stood upright. Hunched over as 
if to attack, the creature stared out at its imaginary prey with scarlet 
glass eyes. Its hands were extended outwards, almost brushing the glass 
casing, and fearsome oxy-colored bone knuckles jutted upwards on each 
hand. Teeth filled the creature's maw, which resembled more of a pouch 
than a human mouth. The only thing comical about the monster was its 
skin; it sported patches of gray flesh where thick clumps of brown fur 
had fallen away over the years.

	Kyouji read the odd note beside the horrific display. "Cane - Last 
Chieftain of the Kelloggs. Killed at the Battle of Ganache's Crest by 
Hal Otterman Ween, fifteenth governor of Godiva." Below that was another 
sign. "Rally my children, to the-" 

	"'To the' what?" he asked himself.

	Valentine walked over to the teen. "Can't say for sure what it 
meant," he said. "Though I'd wager it wasn't supposed to be 'Urrrghhh!'" 
chuckled the mayor, sticking out his tongue in a mock death groan.

	"Wait," snapped Kyouji, "you mean this," he pointed to the stuffed 
beast, "was its last words? It could *talk*?"

	"Sure," nodded the mayor, "though I doubt it had anything 
intelligent to say."

	The Knight Protector's attention departed momentarily, drifting 
back to the month before. "Nestling shout?" came the gritty voice, 
riddled with righteous anger. "Then puny humans know Nestling not 
stupid!"

	"Nasty creatures," the mayor gestured to the Kellogg's bony 
projections and unseemly clumps of fur. "I don't know how Ganache would 
have gotten along if we hadn't done away with the lot of them."

	The Knight Protector frowned. "'Done away with them'? You mean 
there aren't any left?"

	Valentine shook his head. "Oh my no! They've been extinct for 
several *hundred* years." He added slyly, "Not that they went easily in 
the end."

	"So they fought back?"

	"Sometimes," explained the mayor, "it was a cycle of betrayal and 
retaliation. There'd be a war, then we'd negotiate a treaty, and the 
status quo would return for a few years. Then the Kelloggs would violate 
our territory or object to the expansion of our farms and the war would 
flare up. Around the time the Grand Canal project got underway, they 
simple attacked en masse. But, in the end, we drove them into the 
mountains and out of our lives."

	Kyouji studied the mayor's prideful expression. "And they just... 
what? Died off?"

	"Can't really say for sure. After a few decades they just stopped 
raiding our new settlements. No one's found any evidence of them in 
nearly forever. Well, aside from the occasional bone or piece of pottery 
once in a while. I figure they ran out of food during the Second Great 
Drought and just plain died."

	"Huh," puffed the Knight Protector, turning back towards the 
stuffed Kellogg. Its fake eyes glared at him with mock rage.

	Valentine checked his pocket watch. "If you'd like, we can pop by 
the kitchen for a few minutes. Grab a snack before you prepare for the 
ball."

	Kyouji thought the offer over. "No thanks, I don't really feel like 
eating anymore. Maybe Yumi and Tsugiko will want something though." 

	"Right then," the mayor said, "off to the south lobby."


------------

	
	"I do *hope* you enjoy yourself tonight," commented the mayor's 
wife with a smile. "It's rare that we have an excuse for fun these days, 
what with the war and all."

	Walking alongside the older woman, Tsugiko's expression grew 
troubled. "I didn't realize Wintergreen had armies this far out."

	"Not yet," she said, shaking her head, "but her navy's been 
harassing the shipping lanes these last few months. Everyone's 
terrified that she'll throw up a blockade around Godiva; _that's_ when 
we'll have to worry about real fighting. Thankfully a deal was arranged 
between the industry captains and the government to reinforce our navy."

	The Warrior Priestess rubbed her shoulder nervously, unused to 
having them bare after all these months. "A sailor on the vessel we took 
over told us about your defenses. He mentioned something about the 
mountain ranges of Godiva preventing a landing anywhere but on Ganache's 
waterfront."

	The mayor's wife nodded. "Yes, the mountains ringing Godiva 
protect us from most assaults. You'd have to march across the land 
starting on the opposite side of the continent. And even if Wintergreen 
got a foot in the door, she'd have to cross the Great Divide."

	"Is that some kind of canyon?"

	The woman smiled. "I suppose you could call it that."

	"So the reason for all those bodyguards at the courthouse was... 
what? Protection against an assassin?"

	"Exactly," the woman said. "We hired Cosmopolitan to head the 
protection detail after heard of Wintergreen using teleporters to strike 
at political leaders on the mainland."

	"I can see how that... would... be," Tsugiko crawled to a halt, her 
eyes drawn to a small room whose door had been left ajar.

	The mayor's wife frowned. "What is it?" She looked at the sign 
aside the doorway. "Oh dear, you don't want to do in *there*. We can go 
someplace more...."

	Tsugiko didn't listen as the older woman trailed on; she was 
fixated on the item that dominated the small room. 

	Golden light sparkled on Tsugiko's stunned face.

	The Priestess craned her head back towards her guide. "Ma'am, this 
is the first thing you should have shown us."


------------------


	In the south lobby, the designated rendezvous for the three tour 
groups, Yumi and Kyouji met up.

	"How'd your tour go?"

	Yumi started to speak, then held her tongue. "Well," she started 
over, "it was... a learning experience."

	"Yes it was," Kyouji agreed.

	"Guys!" Tsugiko's voice rang through the halls. "It's here! They 
have one! They had one all along and we didn't even realize!"

	The two Warrior Priestesses turn towards the direction of their 
friend's voice, a small doorway leading back towards the west wing. 
Seconds later, Tsugiko exited the door and entered the south lobby.

	"You *have* to see it," the brunette said excitedly.

	The mayor's wife waddled behind the teen. "Madam Priestess! Please 
calm yourself!" 
	
	Yumi blinked. "A crystal shard?"

	"No," said Tsugiko, "something better."


-------------------


	It was a monument to man's ingenuity, the perfect definition of 
his imposition of order on a chaotic universe. It stood fearless, 
symbolizing one goal, one intention of purpose.

	Kyouji's eyes rolled off it, unable to comprehend the sight before 
him. "Is that-" 

	"*Yes*," affirmed Tsugiko.

	Yumi numbly shook her head. "No way that's gold, it's gotta be... 
what, bronze? Brass maybe?"

	"Maybe it's brass," mused Kyouji, "maybe it's something else."

	"I don't care, I just want it to be real."

	Tsugiko nodded headily. "It's real Yumi, I see it too."

	"My friends," declared Kyouji, wrapping his arms around the two 
girls, "we have come home."
 
	Dignified silence filled the room.

	The mayor looked to his wife and his assistant, then back at the 
trio of warriors. "But," he said, "it is just a toilet."

	Tsugiko spun around. "It's an *INDOOR* toilet."

	"My God," the blond priestess uttered, "the roll on the floor, to 
the left, is that-"

	"-paper," whispered Kyouji. "Yesssss."


--------------


	One visit to the kitchen later, the now satisfied Crystal Warriors 
gathered in Yumi's room. Their ever-alert guide was waiting for them, 
curled in pile of pillows. "Gi," it chirped in its sleep, before adding, 
"ka."

	"Nice to see someone's relaxed," declared Kyouji, shifting about 
on the chair he sat on.

	Tsugiko pulled aside a window curtain and peered out into the 
hothouse the room overlooked. "What's not to be relaxed about? Clean 
clothes, good food, dancing, and probably some light chamber music." She 
turned back to the Knight Protector, a sly smile highlighting her face. 
"Who knows, we may even get some traveling cash out of this for once."

	Yumi petted Kit Kat. "We've done fine so far on our own."

	The Knight Protector watched his girlfriend. "We still have no 
idea where the crystal shard is located. The mayor had no clue what I 
was talking about when I asked him."

	Tsugiko frowned. "You don't think we can trust Valentine?"

	He shrugged.

	"I think we can trust the mayor," explained Yumi. "After all, Kit 
Kat seemed to get along alright with the him."

	"Speaking of the furball, could you try coaxing a few details out 
of him?"

	"Ka," snored the carret.

	"When he wakes up," whispered Yumi.

	"Great." Tsugiko eyed the animal guide despairingly. "Another time 
we actually need Kit Kat and he's too busy napping." 

	A firm knocking on the suite's door ended the conversation. Yumi 
bid the caller to enter.

	Slipping through the open door, a uniformed man entered the room. 
He was shortly followed by five others, a mix of men and women of 
various ages, who stood a respectful distance behind him.

	Yumi frowned in confusion. "Is something the matter?"
	
	The head mansion attendant stood perfectly erect, a white linen 
towelette hanging from one prone arm. "We were told to take care of all 
your needs and fulfill any requests you might have."

	"Don't you look spiffy." Tsugiko grinned, studying the primly 
dressed man. "Well, I'd like two crystal shards, a million oreos, a 
haircut, a hot shower, a really great sandwich, and Wintergreen's head 
on a silver... No!... on a GOLD platter."  

	"Sadly we're fresh out of severed heads," said the straight faced 
attendant, "and, regretfully, I have no idea what these 'shards' you 
speak of are. I can, however, offer you the services of our in-house 
salon and culinary staff."

	Tsugiko blinked. "Err... and the million oreos?"

	"I did *hope* you were being facetious with that request, but, if 
you truly desire it, I may be able to convince the National Bank 
chairman to authorize an emergency loan. I'm afraid the interest rate 
will be _quite_ severe considering your particular occupation and 
historically brief life expectancy."

	Kyouji ran a hand through his thick mane of hair, personally 
butchered numerous times over the last few months with the edge of his 
sword. "You said something about a salon?"
	
	"Yes. It's quite hospitable."

	Yumi regarded the attendant with a curious eye. "What else can you 
do for us beyond a shower and a shave?"

	"What do you desire? The full services of the mansion staff are at 
your disposal, honored guests."

	Tsugiko grinned. "Cool."

---------------------

	Three and a half hours of showers, shaves, haircuts, sandwiches, 
and general personal grooming later....

----------------------

	Mayor Valentine smiled as he watched the two Warrior Priestesses 
and one Knight Protector descended on the staircase from their private 
floor. "My word, you all look positively *spectacular*."

	Yumi blushed at the compliment. "Thank you."

	"I trust you found our services satisfactory?"

	"More than satisfactory," declared Tsugiko, boasting a newly 
trimmed and styled head of hair. 
	
	Valentine clasped his hands together. "Excellent."

	"I'm amazed how well this suit fits," said Kyouji, tugging at his 
dress coat and Godivian-ethnic sash.

	"Yes," agreed Yumi, sporting an elegantly designed pink silk gown, 
"the dresses for Tsugiko and I are beautiful."

	"Only the best for our honored guests. Now, to the ballroom...."


---------------


	The ballroom, it turned out, was already filled not only with the 
night's official guests but also other people of influence who had 
wormed their way past the doorman upon hearing of an appearance by the 
'Warrior Priests'. Loud and energetic applause greeted the three teens 
as they entered the room, even if the gender of the planet's saviors was 
unexpectedly mixed.  

	After being nearly overwhelmed by clamoring socialites, Valentine 
came to the Warrior's rescue by pushing back the offending patrons and 
escorting the teens to a table protected by, among others, Cosmopolitan 
and a handful of other guards from earlier in the day.

	Once the crowd got over the initial novelty of seeing heroes from 
legend, the three teens found it safe to begin mixing with the other 
partygoers. Kyouji soon found himself surrounded by a small circle of 
rich merchant couples, each of whom were unafraid to ask blunt questions.

	"So you're a Warrior Priest?" asked a blond woman.

	"No," he replied.

	A short, bald man frowned. "No? Why not?" 
	
	"Well, I'm what you'd call a 'Knight Protector'."

	Frowns all around. "But if you defend other knights, why are you 
traveling with the Warrior Priests, er, Priestesses?"

	Kyouji sighed.

----------------


	The mayor tapped his glass with a knife. "Attention. Attention." 
Once the room quieted down he began to speak. "Tonight we have some very 
special guests of honor: the Warrior Priestesses and Knight Protector."

	Applause filled the ballroom.

	Valentine waited until the room quiet. "Or, as they now prefer to 
be known, the 'Crystal Warriors'."

	More applause.

	"Due to the status of our honored guests, I, your humble mayor," 
more laughter filled the room, Valentine continued to speak over it, 
"will allow Mars' Blessed to open the ball instead of my wife and I." He 
turned aside to his wife. "Sorry dear."

	Polite laughter.

	She smiled. "It's alright, you'll make it up to me by sleeping on 
the couch tonight."

	Actual laughter.

	The mayor smiled. "Whatever you say, honey." He turned to the three 
teens. "If you would please...."

	Kyouji frowned. "We have to dance? Now?"

	"Come on Kyouji!" Yumi pulled her boyfriend out of his seat. 
"This'll be fun!"

	Valentine watched as the two teens took to the center of the floor 
and began to dance awkwardly at first, then with more proficiency. He 
turned back to the remaining Priestess. "Would you like a partner?"

	Tsugiko frowned. "No. No thank you."

	The mayor turned to his wife. "Dear?"

	The two walked off onto the dance floor.

	As all eyes turned to the dancing couples, Tsugiko took advantage 
of the situation and made her way out of the ballroom. 

	Yumi and Kyouji danced on, oblivious to their friend's departure.


-------------------


	Walking through the halls blindly, Tsugiko struggled to remember 
the way to the mansion's hothouse. Following a general route to the 
center of the structure, she eventually arrived at her destination.

	Entering the deserted place, Tsugiko stumbled under a tropical 
tree obviously unsuited to the general climate of Ganache. Inhaling and 
exhaling firmly, the teen rested her head against the tree's coarse 
trunk. She closed her eyes, trying to center herself.  

	"I'm sorry, did you make a wrong turn?"

	Tsugiko spun around, scraping her head on the tree as the intruder 
jolted her from thought. "Who is- oh." She spotted a figure standing 
beside a small pond. It was Mr. Bunn. "It's just you." 

	The mayor's gray-haired assistant tore at a small bit of bread he 
held in his hands. Bunn tossed the crumbs onto the water. "The lady's 
room is to the left of the corridor," the adult frowned, "though I 
suspect that was not your intended destination." 

	Tsugiko blew air out her nose exasperatedly. "What's it to you?"

	"Nothing really, I suppose." Bunn turned back to his leisure.

	The noise of insects filled the hothouse. Tsugiko watched silently 
as E'star Bunn sprinkled tiny bits of bread on the water. Tiny splashes 
broke the surface of the otherwise calm pond, further attracting the 
teen's attention. 

	Slowly, Tsugiko found herself wandering over to Bunn's side.

	Underneath the clear ceiling of the hothouse it was impossible to 
make out the constellation in the sky of Mars. Even the light of the 
planet's twin moons was obscured, though this was due more to the oddity 
of both being in the new moon phase of their lunar cycle (a rare 
occurrence) than any interference presented by the dew-stained glass 
panels. This absence of light made it difficult to perceive below the 
dark waters of the pond.

	Tsugiko raised her eyebrows in alarm as she watched the bits of 
floating bread became entrapped by a thin indigo membrane of goo and 
pulled under the surface. "What is *that*?"

	"One of Valentine's pets," the man said quietly.

	"So it's your job to feed it? How-"

	"-pitiful?" Bunn frowned. "No, I do this of my own accord."

	Tsugiko frowned. "Why?"

	"I find it relaxing to take time away for simple tasks," he 
explained, "and it gives me an excuse, however flimsy, to avoid 
participating in these tedious social functions."

	The teen disgusted this information. "Don't like being around 
other people too much, eh Bunn?"

	The adult wrinkled his already worn brow. "Don't make me out to be 
some sort of adolescent misanthrope, pining away for the attention of 
the popular girls. No, I merely prefer to reserve my words to people and 
topics that need attention. Thus my absence from the ball."

	"So," snapped Tsugiko bitterly, "you think I need your attention?"

	"Well," he mused, "judging by the music I hear playing in the 
distance, the dancing has started. And, seeing the way your companions 
acted around one another, I'll hazard a guess and say they've started 
dancing too. They're probably the center of the room's attention, 
considering the novel idea of two of Mars' Blessed finding romance among 
their own ranks." Bunn sneezed, his nose irritated by an errant 
particle of pollen. "Needless to say, such a prospect was too much for 
you to handle, so you slipped out of the room." 

	"Oh," the Warrior Priestess commented sarcastically, "you just 
know me so well. Amazing, especially since we just met this afternoon."

	Bunn shredded more of his bread. "Considering the information at 
hand, I think you'd be better off with someone to talk to as opposed to 
stewing quietly in your own angst in an empty hothouse." He paused. 
"Well, a mostly empty hothouse."

	Tsugiko's posture stiffened. She balled her hands into fists. 
"You're such an ass!" the teen shouted. "Where do you get off saying I'm 
'stewing in my own angst'?! I'm not the one who's spent the evening 
alone, feeding crumbs to freakass jellyfish!"

	Bunn sighed. "Are you just going yell to at me or are you going to 
simply admit you're jealous of your friend Yumi?"

	"No! I won't admit... why you... ERRRR!"

	"I'll view that outburst as you taking the high road of our 
discussion," the dour adult said, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips. 
"So... how long have your friends been involved?"

	Tsugiko turned away from Bunn, focusing her attention on an 
interesting looking tree. "Four, five weeks."

	"Before you left the mainland. Hmmm. So you-"
	
	"-spent three weeks on a ship, watching them go at each other?" 
Tsugiko turned back towards the mayor's assistant. "Yeah, well, it was 
hard at first, but I got over it. I had my shot with Kyouji and I lost. 
End of story." 

	"Somehow I doubt that claim." Bunn dropped the last of his bread 
into the water, then wiped his hands on his dinner jacket. "It must have 
been difficult to keep up a positive front all that time."

	Tsugiko frowned. "Why do you say that?"

	"People like us have a hard time lying, masking false statements 
covered up by a thin veneer of believability and pure-heartedness. We say 
what we mean and we mean what we say. That's why I find it admirable 
you've gone to such lengths for your companions. It's also why I am going 
to give you this bit of advice: don't sacrifice your own happiness solely 
for the sake of others. You'll only end up feeding 'freakass jellyfish' 
while the rest of Mars wines and dines."

	"I... I don't understand," said Tsugiko, feeling her throat go 
dry, "didn't you say you admired me for NOT interfering with Yumi and 
Kyouji?"

	Bunn nodded. "Yes," he retorted, "but that was before you came out 
*here* when you should be in *there*."

	The teen looked down at the pond, unsure of what to say.

	"Now get back in the damn ballroom."	

	Tsugiko blinked, unused to profanity from the elderly adult. 
Frozen, she stared into E'star Bunn's piercing eyes, hazel orbs sunk 
deeply into a wrinkled face.

	"Maybe I didn't make myself clear: get back in the damn ballroom," 
he repeated. "Now."

	The teen turned away and, with a desperate energy, pushed her body 
to the hothouse doors. As she strode to the exit, her heels clattered 
loudly against the stone walkway. 

	"Mr. Bunn?"

	A pause. "Yes?"

	"Why don't you come with me?" She smiled a small smile. "I'll give 
you first shot on the ballroom floor." 

	Light chuckling. "An enticing offer, young lady, but one I'll have 
to turn down."

	Tsugiko frowned. "Why?"

	"You see," he said gently, "I never learned how to dance."

	Tsugiko opened her mouth to speak but no words came forth. There 
was nothing left to say. Smiling sadly, she turned and exited the 
hothouse.  

----------------


	After the initial dance, Tsugiko rejoined the party. For the rest 
of the night she was on and off the dance floor, trading partners often 
as she hobnobbed with Ganache's elite. 

	Kyouji danced a few more times with Yumi and then was forced to 
explain repeatedly why he wasn't a Warrior Priest or Priestess yet
still had similiar powers.  

	Yumi, after dancing with Kyouji, spent most of the night at the 
mayor's table, chatting with either Valentine or his wife. She shared 
tales of the Crystal Warriors' more notable exploits.

	All too soon the hours took their toll on the party guests and, a 
quarter before eleven, most had filed out for the journey back to their 
respective homes.

	The three guests of honor found themselves in the back corner of 
the ballroom, finishing off leftover cake and discussing the night's 
events.

	"I didn't realize how many countries trade in Ganache," said an 
amazed Yumi. "It's amazing how things are on Mars; one day you're in a 
little mountain village that no one ever travels to, the next day you're 
in a city that seems right at home back on Earth."

	"Except for the complete lack of electricity," pointed out 
Tsugiko.

	Kyouji added, "Or the utterly alien history and lifeforms." 

	"Okay," conceded Yumi, "so it doesn't exactly belong back on 
Earth."

	"We know what you meant," said Kyouji. "Mars can be a pretty 
amazing place sometimes. Not that we ever get the chance to sightsee."

	A comfortable silence settled over the table as the teens went 
back to picking at their plates.

	Tsugiko shifted in her seat. "There's something I've been meaning 
to mention for a while."

	Kyouji sipped his drink. "What is it Tsugiko?" 

	The brunette scratched her stomach through the thin silk layers of 
her dress. "Back on the Penguin, during the calms, I had a lot of time 
to think about things between my... er... sparing practices with Boats. 
And, honestly, I've come to the conclusion we've been using our powers 
the wrong way." She paused to see if her friends understood her point. 
They didn't. "Well," the brunette explained, "we nearly always use our 
powers like they were just extensions of our weapons. Yumi has a wand, so 
she blasts things. Kyouji has a sword, so fights melee-style in a ways a 
normal person never could."

	"What about your wings?" asked Yumi.

	"Like I said," Tsugiko continued, "we 'nearly' always fight with 
our weapons. I suppose your bubble shield thingy breaks the trend too." 
She cleared her throat. "Anyway, I think we've been going about it the 
wrong way. Let me show you what I mean."

	Reaching across the table, Tsugiko grabbed a discarded mug. She 
brought the shiny gold thing to her friends, sloshing its half-drained 
contents as she tipped the mouth of the mug so it faced Yumi and Kyouji. 
"Watch."

	Faint green flames curled around Tsugiko's hands, only to vanish 
as they were absorbed back into her bare skin. At first, nothing 
changed. But as the two lovers moved to question their friend it 
happened.
 
	The dark brew began to bubble, then boil.

	"Wow," Kyouji eyed the frothing mug.

	Yumi looked through the rising steam to her friend. "Tsugiko, when 
did you learn how to do this?"

	The brunette shrugged. "Three weeks on a boat, resting between 
shifts, your mind tends to wander to the oddest things." Especially when 
you try figuring out new ways to pay back rude sailors, she added 
mentally. Yumi never had figured out how a few of the crewmen had burned 
their hands.   

	Kyouji studied the mug intently. "What else can you do?"  

	"Not too much," she admitted, "considering I couldn't really play 
with fire on a wooden ship, but it did get me thinking: if I can do a 
little parlor trick like this, what else can the three of us do?"

	"Tsugiko," said Yumi, impressed, "this isn't _just_ a parlor 
trick. You could use something like this a dozen different ways besides 
heating drinks. You could broil food. Melt locks off doors instead of 
smashing them in. Maybe we could even use heated rocks at night for 
warmth instead of risking our position with a fire."

	"Or," mused Kyouji, "you could burn off an attacker's face if they 
grabbed you from behind."

	Yumi paled a bit. "That too."

	Tsugiko set the cooling mug down. "Huh. I didn't think about any 
of that. I guess this means we can do a *lot* more than we have been."

	"Hmm." Kyouji summoned a poppy and held it up. "When Teru showed 
me the past, I saw our previous incarnations use all sorts of tricks we 
still can't do. They could even lend their powers to one another and do 
combination attacks." He sniffed the flower's delicate scent. "Maybe it's 
time we figured out what makes us tick."

	Yumi yawned. "Yes, first thing in the morning."


----------------------


	In her suite, Yumi looked over her newly repaired pink dress with 
her friend Tsugiko. Both girl were still too wound up from the ball to 
sleep, even though each longed to curl up in their sheets and black out 
for the night.

	"They did a wonderful job," declared Yumi, "don't you think so?"

	Tsugiko nodded. "I haven't seen it this bright since you got it."

	"They even patched up that tear I got when we fought the Wallneto." 
She blushed. "Now I won't have to worry about embarrassing myself."

	Tsugiko's expression soured on the word 'accidentally'. Yumi was 
too wrapped up in her dress to notice. "Say," she said, turning to 
Tsugiko, "how's your skirt?"
	
	"Longer."

	"Does that mean you'll wear it now?"

	Tsugiko's mock-glare bored into Yumi.

	A smile. "I guess not."

	Yumi walked over to her dresser, carefully folded the dress, and 
laid it atop the piece of furniture. "How did you like the ball?"

	"Better than I expected." Tsugiko scratched her nose. "It was a 
bit weird wearing something that didn't either totally expose me or 
completely murder my figure."

	Yumi giggled. "I imagine." The image of her wearing Tsugiko's 
original uniform rose unbidden in the blonde's mind. She blushed. "Can 
you imagine me in your old skirt?"   

	"Sure," shrugged Tsugiko, "but after seeing Kyouji wear it, 
nothing would seem overly strange about it."
 
	"True." Yumi ran a hand over her smooth legs. "I don't know what 
I'd do if hadn't been able to cover my legs," she said, adding a 
chuckle. "I mean, what would Kyouji have thought if he... had... 
seen...."

	The blond priestess looked up from her freshly-pressed dress and 
regarded her friend with a curious eye.

	"Yumi," asked Tsugiko, slightly put off, "why are you look-"

	"You never shaved your legs," stated Yumi, her voice filled with 
confusion. "I don't once recall you shaving or waxing, even though 
you've been stuck in a mini-skirt all these months, and yet your legs 
always stayed perfectly smooth."

	Tsugiko smiled guiltily. "Err... you're not wrong."

	Yumi set her dress down on her lap. "Then how-"

	"Let's just say boiling water wasn't the first trick I learned."


	----------

	Over on his suite's balcony, Kyouji stared at the nighttime sky. 
It was a perfect time and place to see the stars. The Mayor's Mansion 
was far enough away from the central city to avoid any man-made glare 
and, as stated before, both moons were darkened in the sky.

	Searching his memory for where various Martian constellations were 
located, the Knight Protector turned his thoughts inward.

	"Nice job standing up for yourself," said the female voice.

	Kyouji blinked. "Thanks," he said to himself.

	"So how have things been going?"

	"Huh? Haven't you been watching?"

	Inside his mind, Kyouji felt Teru shake her non-existent head. 
"I've been in the dark, so to speak, since you left Almond Roca. 
Apparently the Cola Sea's changed since the last time I saw it, being 
filled with the souls of the damned and all."

	Overhead a shooting star fell.

	"What?" asked Kyouji. "Some kind of mystic-mojo thingy?"

	"If you want to be scientific, pretty much." A pause. "Anyway, 
returning to the subject at hand...."

	"Things were fine on the way here."

	"Fine? Just 'fine'?"

	Kyouji felt his cheeks grow heated. "Well, I did make out with 
Yumi a lot."

	The sound of clapping filled Kyouji's head. "Woo! Go team!" Teru 
then coughed and added, "Anything besides that?"

	"N-no!" Kyouji fretted. "We haven't gone that far!"

	A sigh. "_Boys_."
	
	"Oh." Kyouji blinked. "Ohhhh... you mean 'did we talk and stuff'?"

	"*Yes*."

	Kyouji nodded. "We talked a lot. I think we're really getting 
close to one another."

	Teru 'hmm'ed. "If that's the case, why were you sneaking glances at 
Tsugiko before?"

	The Knight Protector leaned off the railing. "I was not!"

	"I said I was in the dark when you were sailing over the Cola 
Sea," chided Teru, "but you *did* get off the boat. And I've been 
watching closely, trying to catch up, only to see you ogling a girl 
other than your girlFRIEND."

	"I did NOT og--," Kyouji started to proclaim loudly before 
catching himself. "I did *not* ogle Tsugiko," he whispered.

	"Yes you did," insisted the dead girl. "Ever since she took off 
that new uniform of her's and put on a dress you kept one eye on her 
whenever she walks by. So, in the future, please try to think of Yumi's 
feelings when- 

	"Hey!" he yelled at himself, resenting the accusation of 
impropriety. "I'm with Yumi and my eyes aren't wandering." Kyouji huffed 
angrily. "Besides, who are you to give me relationship advice? You 
couldn't even admit what you felt to Akie or Mia."

	The song of nighttime insects filled the air.

	Kyouji waited for a reply, stewing in his anger.

	But no reply came.

	"Teru?"

	Nothing.

	"Teru?"

	A gust of wind blew through the mansion garden, rustling the 
carefully planted rows of roses and lilies.

	"Teru," he whispered, "I'm sorry. I didn't-"

	He stopped. The words tasting like cinders in his mouth. Turning, 
Kyouji went back into his suite. He was alone with his thoughts for the 
rest of the night.


	----------


	Meanwhile, in the room opposite Kyouji's, an argument continued.

	"Yumi! It would have burned off your skin!"

	The other girl shushed Tsugiko. "I know," she said, "but you could 
have at least told me!"

	"I thought you knew!" Tsugiko gestured to her hips. "I mean, I 
wore a mini-skirt for god's sake! I couldn't bend over without flashing 
every man, bird, and beast on Mars!"

	Yumi tilted her head up. "You don't think I realize that?"

	"NO!" The brunette stood up. "Besides, what do you have to 
complain about? All anyone sees of you are your ankles!"

	"So you think I'm a prude? I'm sorry if you think that but-"

	"*Gah*! No!" Tsugiko clutched her head, then locked eyes with her 
friend. "Look, all I'm saying is that this whole thing was some kind 
of... I don't know... trade-off. The Temple Spirit took away my modesty 
but at least let me... well," the teen trailed off, her face flushed, 
"you know...."

	Silence filled the room.

	The blond priestess fell backwards onto her bed, sinking into the 
fluff of the feather stuffing. "God, this is stupid." Yumi sighed, 
raised her head, and flashed a small smile at her friend. "I mean, 
listen to us, we're fighting over who has better *legs*."  

	Tsugiko felt a grin creep across her face. "You know, it's almost 
like-"

	"-we're back in Tokyo," finished Yumi. "I know."

	Plopping down on the opposite side of Yumi's bed, Tsugiko rubbed 
her bare feet on the carpet, enjoying the unusual texture against her 
calloused soles. "I like this city. Ganache. It has such tall 
buildings."  

	"That market we were in was... nice," Yumi mused. "People rushing 
around. Business men and beggars buying lunch from the same stalls. Food 
from everywhere a person can imagine and then some."

	"The smell was like nothing I ever, well, smelled. Sort of a mix 
of spices, cooking meat, and the salty breeze of the sea with a hint 
of... garbage?"

	"Wet garbage."

	"Yeah," Tsugiko nodded. She turned her eyes to the lamp at her 
bedside. "I don't think I'll ever forget it."

	"Me either."

	Silence again.

	Bending side-to-side, Tsugiko cracked her spine. "You know," the 
teen said, pulling her hair back, "I can't help but wonder what that 
Harold guy did to piss Kyouji off."

	"I'm not sure either," Yumi replied, sitting up, "he was pretty 
quiet about it."

	Tsugiko twisted around, angling her head towards Yumi. "You think 
it has anything to do with that 'effeminate men' prophecy Boats 
mentioned?"

	Yumi shrugged. "I think people in Ganache were expecting someone 
like Kyouji. As for us-"

	Tsugiko rolled her eyes. "Tell me about it. I had no less than 
FOUR elderly merchants asking why I didn't look as 'butch' as I did this 
morning on the Plaza." She turned to Yumi. "How many did something like 
that to you?" 

	Yumi blinked. "No one."

	"No one?"

	"No one."

	'Of course', thought Tsugiko bitterly, 'why ask the cute, perky 
girl why she isn't a man when you can ask the plain one instead?'

	"Tsugiko?"

	The brunette looked up. "I don't look butch in my new outfit, 
do I?"

	"No, you actually look like a professional soldier."  

	"Really? Good."

	Yumi sighed tiredly. "Are you ready for tomorrow?"

	"To tell you the truth, I'm actually looking forward to it."

	This surprised the blond girl. "Really?"

	"Yeah," said Tsugiko, adding a loud yawn as an afterthought.

	"I agree."

	Tsugiko stood up. "I'll see you tomorrow."

	"Good night, Tsugiko."

	"Good night, Yumi."


--------------------------------


	The next morning, specifically a little after six, the three 
Warrior Priestesses awoke. Months on the road had intimately connected 
their sleep cycle with that of the rising and setting of Mars' sun. This 
day, however, they helped themselves to the luxuries of the Ganache 
Mayor's Mansion one last time.
 
	A quarter past eight, they joined the mayor and his wife in the 
couple's personal dining room. Conversation, for once, delved into 
deeper matters.
	
	"I'm sorry to say this," began Mayor Valentine, watching as the 
Warrior Priestesses dug into the cereal and fruit spread before them, 
"but I've just received word that there's been a development at our 
water production facility in the mountains." 

	Tsugiko sipped her quasi-milk drink. "What kind of development?"

	The mayor exhaled slowly. "It appears that this summer's heat wave 
has melted more snow into water than we originally estimated. We thought 
it would be possible to retain the water but there was a heavy rain to 
the south yesterday, just terrible storms, and several dykes have 
burst."

	Kyouji set down his fork. "What does that mean?"

	"Flooding," declared the mayor, "on a scale we haven't seen 
before. The Grand Canal was designed to handle nearly any flood nature 
threw at it, but it seems that for once we've underestimated Mother 
Nature's ferocity. If I didn't know better, I'd say this was an act of 
fate or some other rubbish."

	"Will we be able to cross over into the mainland?" asked Yumi.

	The mayor nodded. "Yes, if you leave immediately."

	Tsugiko frowned. "Then what are we waiting for?"

	"The Binacas will be here shortly," explained Valentine. "I've 
sent for my best steeds; they should get you to your destination 
swiftly. But until they arrive, please, enjoy your meal."

	Tsugiko stood up and tossed her napkin onto her plate. "We'd better 
start packing," she said to her friends.

	The mayor frowned. "Are you sure?"

	"Yes," said Kyouji, "we can eat later once we're on the road."

	The mayor nodded. "Alright. Meet me in the west lobby."

	"We'll be there," stated Tsugiko.	

	Ten minutes later the Crystal Warriors, dressed in their battle 
uniforms and totting necessary supplies, arrived at the ground floor of 
the west lobby. Mayor Valentine promptly escorted the group outside 
where several tense minutes passed before the Binacas arrived.

	"If you stay on the main artery," explained the mayor, "you'll 
eventually make it to the Grand Canal. The bridge we discussed will be 
on your right-hand once you reach the very end of the regular road. 
Trust me, you can't miss it."

	Kyouji threw his pack over his mount's back, securing it with 
straps connected to the saddle. "I only hope we make it before the 
waters get too high for passing."

	"I wish we had some Cherry Mash," said Tsugiko wistfully, mounting 
the Binaca. 

	"I'm sorry," said the mayor, "if we had known the dams would 
burst then-"

	"-it's alright," assured Yumi, tucking Kit Kat into a saddlebag. 
"We'll make it. We always do."

	Valentine nodded. "I wish you luck on your journey. May Mars bless 
your travels."

	The Crystal Warriors bid farewell to the mayor.

	"Heee-yaaaa!" shouted Tsugiko, prodding her Binaca into movement.  
Her friends followed suit with their mounts.

	After three long weeks, the teens were on the road again.
 

-----------------------


	The journey out of Ganache took little over a hour, during which 
time the Crystal Warriors watched the affluence of the population rise 
to a high tide at the villas of the previous night's partygoers only to 
fall as the carriage worked its way into the territory of the 
sharecroppers, vagrant remnants from the pre-combine era. After staring 
out at the sunburned faces of child and elder alike toiling in the fields, 
the three teens found themselves traveling into the industrial area that 
housed the Grand Canal.

	The Crystal Warriors reached the end of their road; following the 
mayor's advice, they went on to the right, which led to a sudden incline. 
The teens then rode up the slope, taking them to the top of a small 
hill. All the while, the distant roar became far less distant.

	"Oh my," said Yumi.

	"So," Tsugiko mused weakly, "this is the Grand Canal."

	"Giiiiiikkaaaaa."

----------------------------


	The Grand Canal Project had been initiated a little over eight
hundred years ago. It took forty years to find funding and another forty 
years to unify the secondary canal system in all of the outlying combine 
farms. Over the course of a decade, the largest construction project in 
the known history of Mars was undertaken, a massive endeavor resources 
requiring scientific and mystical alike.

	Stretching from the coastal-facing sides of the Godivian 
Mountains, through the outer edge of Ganache, all the way through the 
heartland of the continent, the Grand Canal covered roughly two hundred 
and seventy miles. It fell just short of reaching the Great Divide, 
Godiva's other great landmark. 

	Siphoning off snowmelt and the runoff created by storms colliding 
against the mountains ringing Godiva, the Grand Canal supported over a 
quarter million farmers with its water. Without its precious lifeblood, 
the scarlet landscape of the inner continent would have long ago grown 
barren. Ganache, though dominating Godiva, depended on the inlands for 
its world-famous cash crops.

	Incidentally, not belonging to a Ganache-approved combine 
precluded access to water coming from the Grand Canal under penalty of 
law. Since both local and Grand Canal waters ran in the same channels 
downstream, it was impossible to determine which molecules came from 
local supplies as opposed to the national one. This 'minor' detail had 
long ago driven all but those possessing prohibited artesian wells into 
the hands of the combines long ago.

	Not that any of this mattered to the Crystal Warriors, who now 
overlooked the 'neck' portion of the Grand Canal; the only thing important 
to them was how they were going to cross the quarter-mile stretch of 
raging floodwaters threatening to spill over the artificial riverbanks of 
the Canal.  

	A matter especially important since the last bridge linking the 
'island' city of Ganache to the mainland of Godiva had been totally 
destroyed.


----------------------	


	The Crystal Warriors walked on foot to the maintenance station at 
the base of the ruined bridge. They had dismounted, not experienced 
enough as riders to control their Binacas next to the roaring, tormented 
waters of the Grand Canal. 

	Fighting a haze of river water, the three teens waved 
down one of the workers scurrying about the disaster site. 

	"Sir!" shouted Yumi. "SIR!"

	The worker stopped and walked over to the Warrior Priestesses.

	"What happened?!" Tsugiko shouted, trying to make herself heard 
over the roar of the water.

	"The bridge collapsed!"

	"We see that!" Kyouji shouted. "But how?"

	The maintenance worker shrugged, as if any accusation of 
incompetence ran off his back like the water that poured onto him. "The 
initial flood tore it away!"

	Yumi screamed to be heard, "Tore it away?!" 

	The worker nodded. "It's broken up and scattered along the river! No 
ships are going anywhere now! Commerce is totally shut down!"

	Tsugiko cursed. "We can't get across!"

	"I'm sorry!" shouted the worker.

	Yumi huddled close to the uniformed man, tired of straining her 
voice and her ears. "Is there another way?"

	"No," he replied, "not unless you try swimming, which I strongly 
recommend you do NOT attempt."

	"There's not another bridge? A cargo freighter we could use? An 
abandoned tunnel that crosses the river?

	The helmeted man shook his head. "No bridges, at least none left 
above the waterline. All the runoff channels are in use, and the only 
tunnels we have lead back into the mountains. You could use a boat, but 
no captain in their right mind would try crossing; it'd be suicide! You'd 
have to pay them a ransom to even let you aboard a boat now!"

	With a sardonic smile, Tsugiko turned to Kyouji. "Bet you wish we 
had that loan now, eh?"

	Yumi's expression grew troubled. "Then what do we do?"

	"Go back and wait for the river to quiet down."

	"How long will that take?"

	"A week," the maintenance man estimated, "maybe two. You gotta 
understand, Miss, I've worked here for darn near twenty years and I've 
*never* seen the river get this high! Heck, she hasn't even crested yet 
and she's outdone the last five hundred years of records already!" 

	The blond priest nodded dumbly. "Thanks, I guess."


----------

	A far distance away, the three teens discussed the situation.

	"Well," declared Yumi, ringing out her dress, "we're stuck."

	Kyouji pulled off his soggy boots, each one coming off with an 
audible plop. "Are you sure he didn't mention _any_ way we might be able 
to get across the Canal?"

	Yumi shook her head. "Nothing that wouldn't result in us dying."

	"Great," the Knight Protector rubbed his hands together, "so we're 
stuck."

	Tsugiko straightened up, her armor making squishy sounds as she 
did so. "Well... I think I have on idea on how we could cross the Canal. 
Today."

	Twisting his new 'waterproof' cape, donated to him by the mayor's 
wife, Kyouji looked over to his friend. "What's your idea?"

	Tsugiko explained.

	Yumi and Kyouji sat in silence, glanced over at one another, then 
turned back to Tsugiko and said nothing.

	"Well?" She leaned forward, expectant. "What d'you say?" 

	The blond cleared her throat. "I, uh, think it's a bit... rash?"   

	"Extreme," suggested Kyouji.

	"I thing it's a bit extreme," Yumi smiled nervously, not wanting 
to offend her friend, "but it's certainly... unique."

	Tsugiko frowned. "You don't like it?"

	"I don't like the idea of dying," retorted Kyouji.

	The brunette would have none of it. "Come on, you've done it 
before, not as often as me but *still*."

	"But what about me? What about the supplies?" asked Yumi.

	"That's what the ropes are for. Besides, I tied plenty of knots on 
the Penguin. I could do it with my eyes closed," she declared assuredly. 
"You'll be in no danger."
	
	Kyouji spoke again, his voice beginning to waver. "And if 
something goes horribly wrong, what then?"

	"Yumi could use her bubble shield," Tsugiko suggested. "Besides, a 
little fall wouldn't kill us; we're made out of sturdy stuff." She smiled, 
then added as an afterthought, "Well, except Kit Kat."

	"Gika," the carret chirped indignantly.

	The blond priestess sighed. "It *would* save us a lot of time."

	"Then what's the problem?"

	Yumi shrugged, damp hair clinging to her scalp. "I don't know... 
it just feels like we're cheating. Maybe we're supposed to wait a week 
or two before going on. Maybe it's fate."

	"I don't believe in things like fate, Yumi," declared an adamant 
Kyouji, "not anymore."

	"And what will standing around accomplish?" Tsugiko pointed off 
into the Godivian horizon. "The shard is out there, and, more importantly, 
someone else might be out there looking for it. Someone might have 
sabotaged the bridge and, knowing our luck, it probably wasn't the guy who 
wouldn't pay the toll."

	Yumi considered the facts.

	"Alright," the blond nodded.

	Tsugiko smiled. "Great, now all we need is that rope...."


-------------------


	A wave surged over the north bank of the Grand Canal, exploding in 
a burst of frothy mist. It was not the first wave to do so as the river 
rose, only the latest violent emotion of the raging waters.

	The roar of moving water now swallowed every minor sound, only 
leaving the loudest of voices or noises to accompany it. Thus, it was 
fortunate that the three Crystal Warriors were bound so closely 
together.

	The three teens stood on an elevated platform twenty yards from the
south bank of the Grand Canal. The surface was reasonable dry, and, 
better still, ended in an upward curve. All three were roped together in 
an elaborate network of knots and hoops.

	Yumi and Kyouji joined hands, locking themselves closer than the 
rope around their waist had intended. Tsugiko, meanwhile, tucked her 
hair underneath a makeshift headband. That task done, she twisted her head 
around to speak with her friends. "Ready?"

	Yumi looked to her boyfriend for reassurance, then nodded. "Yes."

	"I'm ready," said Kyouji, giving the blond's hand an extra 
squeeze.

	"Gika," came the muffled squeaked of Kit Kat, tucked safely under 
the shirt of a reluctantly tolerant Kyouji.

	Tsugiko closed her eyes, concentrating. "On three."

	"One...."

	Tsugiko, followed a second later by Kyouji and Yumi, broke out in 
a dash for the river.

	"Two...."

	Springing off the edge of the platform, Tsugiko's emerald wings 
erupted from her back. River mist sizzled as it passed through the 
mystical fire. 

	The rope harness lost its slack as Tsugiko's wings pulled her 
upward and her friends backward. She struggled up into the air.

	"THREE!"

	Kyouji, taking the weight of his girlfriend, jumped off the 
platform using his full abilities and up into the air with the 
underpowered Yumi.

	The Crystal Warriors hung in the air....

	...and began to fall back to the slick pavement, perilously close 
to the raging waters of the Grand Canal...

	...only to rocket upwards as Tsugiko's emerald wings shifted to a 
brilliant tri-color flame and blossomed to nine times their original 
size.

	The trio's course was a rightward leaning diagonal, preferable for 
catching the prevailing winds, instead of the seemingly safer path 
straight across the waters. Tsugiko had reasoned that, at best, her plan 
would carry the group high enough that the three teens would have a 
comfortable margin for landing should they fall short of length, taking 
advantage of the elevation to drift across the canal's width. 

	With the extra flow of magic from her friends, Tsugiko managed to 
carry the group up to the intended height and then some.

	The three Crystal Warriors watched as Grand Canal loomed beneath 
them like a rabid pack of wolves, all frothing at the mouth with 
madness. Then they watched as it got smaller...

	...and smaller, and smaller, and SMALLER still.

	"Oh *hell*!" Tsugiko swore energetically, watching as the ground 
seemed to fall away beneath her.

	"Don't stop! DON'T STOP!" exclaimed Kyouji. "If you stop, we're all 
going to die!"

	"~I'm~ ~not~ ~stopping~!" shouted/sang a wide-eyed Tsugiko.

	Yumi clenched her eyes shut. "Oh! My! God!"

	It was then that the flaming chariot known as Tsugiko reached its 
apex in the sky, hanging in faux weightlessness as their momentum and 
Mars' gravity momentarily canceled each other out.

	The next moment, gravity took over.

	Tsugiko flung her arms back, trying desperately and hopelessly to 
catch some type of drag effect. "WE'RE GOING DOWN!" 

	"GIIIIIIIIIIIII-KKKKKAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

--------------

TWO WEEKS AGO...


	The wild man huddled in the back corner of the tavern, desperate 
not to let anyone see his face. Thankfully, the patrons of the 
establishment had someone besides a stranger to terrorize. 

	"You want a drink, old man?" A big fellow, drunk on power and 
skittlebrau, knocked the village loon to the floor. The loon didn't take 
too kindly to this injustice.

	"Damn you words!" cursed the old man bitterly. "If my master 
Piedmont-"

	The wild man's ears perked at the mention of that name: Piedmont. 
It belonged to the most famous, and infamous, of summoners on Mars. He 
alone had tried to stand up against Wintergreen during the first days of 
her return to power. Tried. 

	"-still lived, he'd make you pay for that insult!"

	The drunk smiled endearingly at the cowering elder. "In case you 
hadn't caught on, old man, your _master_ is dead, which means he isn't 
here to pay off your debts!"

	The elder shook his fist at the bully. "Ooooo... _one day_!"

	The drunk laughed, as did the rest of the bar's patrons.

	Feeling a burst of inspiration, the wild man stood up and came to 
the elder's defense. "Leave the fool alone, can't you see his mind is 
addled with age?"

	"Stay out of this stranger!"

	"That's enough everyone," declared the bartender. "Now either you 
all simmer down or I'm cutting off the drink for the night. I don't want 
any _trouble_ in my establishment, got it?"

	The bartender's threat sobered the drunk's sensibilities. "Right. 
Sure." He turned back to the old man. "I'll be seeing you later."

	With the drunk's attention turned away, the wild man took the elder 
by his hand and dragged him out of the restaurant. Outside, the air was 
chilled yet full of spice, signifying the end of summer and the beginning 
of autumn. 

	The old man was grateful for the wild man's assistance. "Thank 
you! Thank you, kind stranger! These children have no respect nowadays. 
No respect at all." He smiled, his expression one of relief. "How can I 
ever thank you?"

	"You said in there that you were once an apprentice to the 
summoner Piedmont. Was that a lie or-"

	The elder laughed bitterly. "No. No, that was all too true. But I 
am no summoner these days, and all that remains of master's teachings is 
his b-"

	The old man stopped talking, his tongue lingering on forbidden 
words, and nervously eyed the wild man. 

	"The Codex Ares," hissed the wild man, "do you know where I can 
find it?"

	"I... I have n-no idea what you're talking-"

	The wild man threw the elder against the wall of the tavern, then 
wrapped a hand around the old man's neck and began to squeeze. "Tell Me. 
Where. It. Is."

	"I don't *geh!* remember!"

	The wild man grinned fiercely. "So you *do* know where it is...."

	"NO! I prom- I... I... don't know!"

	"You don't _know_ OR you don't _remember_, which is it?"

	The wild man clamped his hand tighter. After a few seconds, the 
old man relented. "O...okay! I'll *geeeh!* tell you!"

	The wild man leaned in. "Where?"

	"A-atop a mountain to the east, at the tail end of the Tootsie Pop 
Range. The one that *urk!* looks like its top was c-cut off. It's hidden 
in a small c-cave at the summit of the n-n-northern face." 

	The grip tightened. "Are you lying?"

	"N-no!"

	"Swear on your master's grave."

	"I... I *huff!* swear on the grave of my master, Piedmont."

	The wild man released the elder, letting him tumble to the moist 
ground like a thin bag of bones. "If you are lying, I'll hunt you down 
and feed you to a Jawbreaker. Understand?"

	"YES!"

	With that, the wild man turned and walked into the night, the 
darkness itself parting as he made his way towards the east. 


------------


	From a distance, it was a fiery comet falling to Mars. A piece of 
heaven sent metal or rock foretelling someone's birth, death, or next 
meal (depending on which sage you consulted). Everyone would agree that 
the strange comet, constantly fluctuating between emerald, sapphire, 
pink, or some mixture thereof, was an unusual sight. But no one would 
guess that, as it fell to Mars, the comet signified the planet's sole 
remaining hope for survival.

	No one would expect there to be people at the heart of the comet. 

	"Pull us up!" cried Yumi, terrified by what she had seen after 
peeking through her shut eyes. "Pull us up!"

	"We're too heavy!"

	Kyouji clung to his girlfriend. "Then glide us down, damnit!"

	The criss-crossed patchwork of canals and farms loomed beneath the 
trio, growing closer with each passing instant. 

	"I can't!" declared Tsugiko, her eyes brimming with tears. "We're 
going in too steep!"

	The winds died away; the atmosphere calm near the surface of the 
planet.

	A curse stuck in Kyouji's throat, a lump. He turned to his 
girlfriend. "Yumi! Make a bubble! Do something!"

	"I'm trying!"

	Tsugiko watched as fields of wild red grass danced under her feet, 
seemingly celebrating her return to terra firma. 

	"YUMI!"
	
	Hundreds of feet became tens of feet, and tens of feet fewer still.

	Tsugiko closed her eyes, unready to leave the world, even with her 
friends trailing closely above her.

	Her feet brushed the stalks of scarlet grass and...

	...slid gently into the ground, protected by a field of pink...

	...only to spring upwards like some cartoon caricature, once she 
sank hip-deep into the pool of pinkness, rebounding into the late morning 
sky.

	The grasses below might have bid farewell had they not been 
flattened into a large circular pattern, their stems broken.

	The brunette gasped, suddenly aware of how she had cut herself off 
from air. She cursed excitedly and looked down to see Yumi and Kyouji, 
each clinging to the other in a moment of expectant death, trailing 
behind her. 

	"Wooooooooooo-hoooooooooooo!" she exclaimed, overcome with joyful 
emotion. "YUMI! YOU DID IT!"

	"W-w-what?" the blond stuttered, opening her eyes slowly at first, 
then all at once. "I... saved us?"

	"Damn right!"

	Kyouji and Kit Kat observed the exchange passively, too shocked over 
their brush with death to say anything. 

	The farms and intricate system of canals fell away.

	The Crystal Warriors rose high, but not quite as high, into the 
Godivian sky. Down below, farm laborers scratched their heads, mystified 
as to how a comet had bounced off the face of Mars and back into the 
heavens. 

	The tri-colored winged Warrior Priestess turned her gaze skyward 
and reached for the clouds. Tsugiko would later swear that she could 
feel the gaseous things tickling her fingertips.

	All too soon the teens hung weightlessly in the sky.

	"Here we go again," gravely whispered Kyouji.


-----------


	The next few hours passed calmly enough as the cycle of jumps 
became routine. Time didn't detract from the uniqueness of jumps; it was 
just, as always happens when humans are around the extraordinary for too 
long, the extraordinary becomes commonplace.  

	Still, for the most part, a bit of excitement remained for each 
phase of the jumps.

	The travel up into the sky was exciting, and even Kyouji had to 
admit the view was something to behold. Hanging in the air was Tsugiko's 
personal favorite moment, evident by the wild grin on her face as she felt 
the almost religious tingle of weightlessness. She, unlike her friends, 
was able to overcome the momentary nausea of the moment. That high point 
also served as the best location from which to literally see the curving 
of the planet's horizon. The fall back to Mars' surface was amazing in its 
own right, mixing the thrill of a roller coaster with an authentic brush 
with death. And Yumi, after swallowing a jolt of her claustrophobia, found 
the sensation of sinking into a pool of her own magic interesting to say 
the least.

	As a side benefit to this mode of travel, the three Crystal 
Warriors gained a new appreciation for the landscape of Godiva. Sadly, 
said landscape was flat and, aside from the occasional row of trees 
shoring up a tributary of the Grand Canal, devoid of anything truly 
interesting. Everything was, as Tsugiko elegantly put it, 'the same damn 
color'. That color being red and its five principal Godivian variations: 
scarlet, crimson, ruby, burgundy, and the occasional field of cherry. 
Only the dusty khaki of the roads broke the monotony, yet, at the same 
time, served to divvy up the farms below into nice, neat squares.

	However, as the hours passed, the Warrior Priestesses traveled 
farther and farther away from the starting point of the cultivated land. 
Thus it was something to celebrate when the ground below began to sport 
more exotic features such as hills and valleys.

	This was not entirely a good thing.

--------------------

	The tri-colored express hurtled to the ground, sinking once again 
into a pool of pink light. This time, however, the pool formed not on
level ground but on the downward incline of a hill. As usual, the Warrior 
Priestesses were ejected from the pool, but instead of bouncing off the 
ground like a superball on blacktop, the actual experience was more akin 
to a stone skipping off a pond.

	The change did not go unnoticed.

	"What the hell was that?" asked Kyouji; jolted out of the silent 
reflection he had entered after the umpteenth jump.

	Yumi looked up at her friend. "Tsugiko?"

	The winged teen frowned as she took her bearings. "I, uh, think we 
changed trajectory."

	"Gika?"

	"Oh no," said Yumi, turning her gaze to the ground.

	All too soon, the tri-colored comet approached the surface of 
Mars. This time the landing site was a rocky outcropping in the middle 
of an abandoned field. 

	Tsugiko shouted, "Hold on! I don't know what's-"

	Too late.

	The teens sank into a pool of pinkness, but instead of bouncing 
Out, the magical vortex spat them into the sky. Holding on for life and 
limb, the group began to tumble through the air. A side effect of this was 
the tangling of the cords that bound them together.

	Fifty feet above their next landing point, a line snagged on the 
crow's beak of Tsugiko's hammer and was shredded.

	With a sickening snap, Kyouji fell away from the group. Without 
his energy, the tri-colored wings sprouting from Tsugiko's back 
flickered and faded to emerald. Straining against the added weight of 
Yumi, her wings gave one last flash of light and disappeared.

	The group fell into the watery field below.

	Adding insult to injury, the teens landing in a field of warheads, 
a bad-tasting water-born fruit known for its tendency to combust 
explosively if even slightly jarred by a foreign object. 

	Hitting warheads at a high speed didn't help the matter much.

	
--------------------------


	The meditation room at Slugworth Manor was consider by some 
authorities to be the definitive example of taste, function, form, and 
spirituality melding together, creating an environment perfectly suited 
to the joining of one's mind with the greater forces of the universe. 
However, to most everyone else it was just a cramped, smoky den of vice
that smelled of cabbage. The master of Slugworth Manor didn't mind either 
opinion just so long as no one said it to his face. He simply found it 
nice place to nap off lunch. 

	So when an attendant at his manor entered the room between the 
hours of one and three in the afternoon, they'd better have a damn good 
reason. This was likely the reason why the servant leaning over the 
slumbering master was nervously eyeing the door. 

	"Lord Slugworth," whispered the servant, just loud enough to wake 
the light sleeper below, "I'm loath to interrupt your... meditations... 
but it appears that three strangely-dressed teenagers have fallen out of 
the sky and are now wandering in the warhead field."

	Slugworth opened his eyes. "Fell out of the sky, you say?"

	"Y-yes sir."

	"I wonder... could it be? No! It couldn't be... could it?"


----------


	After the fourth attempt to wring her sleeves free of water, 
Yumi sighed and acknowledged the fact she would be wet, cold, and sticky 
for some time. "Well," she said, "anyone have an idea about what to do 
now?"

	Tsugiko held up the tattered end of Kyouji's harness. "Looks like 
we're going to have to go it by foot. We could try another rig but, 
truthfully, I feel a little weak on my wings."

	Kyouji nodded, rubbing his healed but still sore arm. "I think 
I've had enough flying for now."

	The green-garbed Priestess sighed. 

	"It's okay, Tsugiko," Yumi said, patting her friend on the back, 
"we got through the fall. Besides, we just cut *days* off walking through 
the countryside."

	Kyouji looked around, eyeing the surrounding field of fat red 
blossoms floating atop the pool of water. "Anyone have an idea how to 
get out of this minefield without getting a face full of fruit?" 

	Yumi shrugged. "Maybe we can try yelling and hope someone at that 
farm down there will hear us."

	Tsugiko inspected a fruit stain on the top of her hand, then, after 
giving it a moment's thought, sampled the jelly. "Uck!" She spat it away. 
"This stuff tastes worse than it smells."

	His ears perked, Kyouji's head darted about, eyes focused on the 
distance. 

	"What is it?" Yumi asked.

	"Wait," said Kyouji, "there's someone coming. Look."

	Stomping safely through the field of exploding fruit was a middle-
aged man dressed solely in a bathrobe. He was a lanky fellow, looking to 
have missed a few meals in his life, and sported a head of peppered hair. 
He also possessed a pair of glasses that twinkled in the afternoon sun. 
After a few minutes of zigzagging his way through the field, he finally 
came up to the wet, goo-drenched teens.

	"Oh my," said the stranger, "you all look a fright. Are any of you 
injured?"

	Kyouji shared a look with Tsugiko and Yumi. "No, we're alright."

	"Let's see... jeweled foreheads, two females and one male, odd 
looking outfits. Yes, you are them, aren't you? And I thought Wonka was 
telling me a tall tale in that letter." The gray-haired man nodded to 
himself and then stuck out a hand. "You know, I didn't expect _you_ of all 
people to end up in my crop."

	Kyouji glanced down at the offering. After a moment's 
contemplation, he gripped the man's hand with his own. "My name's 
Kyouji, this is Yumi and Tsugiko." He felt a tugging on his pant leg. 
"Oh, and the wet furball digging its claws into my left leg is called 
Kit Kat."

	The strange man smiled. "My name's Slugworth, Lord Arthur Wilkinson 
Slugworth, and I believe you need my help."

----------------

	Though reluctant to trust a half-naked stranger, the fact remained 
that the Crystal Warriors were struck in the middle of a minefield; thus 
the three teens followed Slugworth's lead and slowly snaked their way to 
safety.

	"Welcome to Slugworth Manor," proclaimed the landowner, stepping 
onto arid ground with mud-soaked feet.

	Tsugiko sneezed.

	"My dear, you're freezing." Slugworth turned to a servant. "Take 
these children upstairs and clean them up."

	Twenty minutes later, the teens, their wet clothes exchanged for dry 
servant uniforms, again met with Lord Slugworth in the manor lobby. 

	"Well," stated Slugworth, "it's unfortunate that you had to land in 
my warhead crop, considering their key importance to my experiments, but 
the loss of a few plants is well worth meeting you."

	"Please understand," said Yumi, "we didn't mean to your field. It 
was an accident."

	"Don't worry about it, dear; I'll just have to watch my consumption 
of the crop these next few weeks." The Lord of the manor turned to a 
butler dusting a large vase. "Pick up the pace, maggot!"

	Tsugiko frowned. "Why act nicey-nice with us and be rude to your 
servants at the same time?"

	Slugworth blinked. "Oh, that. First you have to understand these 
people," he gestured to the uniformed men and women scurrying around the 
manor, "aren't my servants. Not exactly. They're here as students studying 
whatever might strike their interests from my family's long history of 
research. Many are welcome here for years before I feel they reached their 
limit of what can be gleamed from my ancestors. Sometime these 'students' 
of mine *cough*Maya*cough* overstay their welcome by several months." 
Across the room, a psuedo-maid made an obscene gesture at Slugworth. He 
smiled in reply.

	"Then why not ask them to just leave?" asked Kyouji 

	"Why, that would be inhospitable of me."

	Tsugiko opened her mouth, then stopped; deciding to just let the 
matter go. 

	Slugworth turned back to the teens. "I am curious though, how did 
you get in the middle of the warhead field without setting off any of the 
plants along your path in?"

	Kyouji gestured to the brunette to his left. "Tsugiko can tell you 
everything."

	Tsugiko explained their flight across Godiva, the gradual loss of 
power with each jump, and the subsequent crash.

	"In that case," said the Lord, "perhaps it's fortunate that you 
crashed in my field when you did. If you had traveled any further you 
would have crashed onto the basin of the Great Divide, or worse, smacked 
into one of the canyon walls like a bird trying to fly through a plate 
glass window. Either possibility I am loathe to imagine."

	"This Great Divide canyon," asked Kyouji, "it's big?"

	Slugworth smiled. "I suppose you could call it that."

	"Excuse me." Yumi stepped forward, dressed in one of the manor's 
standard servant uniforms. "Lord Slugworth, you mentioned before a 
research project of yours. Does it, by chance, have anything to do with 
crystals?"

	Slugworth mulled over the question. "I suppose it does, but I assure 
you it is not the Starburst Crystal fragment you seek. Though I do have 
a theory where you may find that particular artifact."

	"Before you tell us," began Yumi, "would you mind telling us what 
your 'research project' is out here? I'm curious."

	Slugworth adjusted his bifocals. "It's a long story, much like my 
family's history in the sciences."
	
	"What do you mean?" asked Kyouji.
	
	"You must understand, we Slugworths are prone to having an all-
consuming, driving passion for one particular thing in life. My father 
was a historian who chronicled the history of this continent. He spent 
years on end toiling in abandoned farm fields, digging up the ruins of 
the lost Kellogg civilization. My grandfather," the old man bellowed 
merrily, "built great sailing ships, here, in the middle of the continent. 
And HIS father spent a life devoted to perfecting necromancy, striving to 
make it accessible to the common man." Slugworth coughed, clearing his 
congested throat, only to reach for a pipe. "I, looking back on these 
sometimes foolish endeavors, instead decided to devote myself to more 
humanitarian matters, acts that improve the lives of all who take part in 
them."

	The old man paused, puffing hungrily on his newly lit pipe.

	Yumi winkled her nose at the smell. "And that would be...?"

	"Blowing stuff up."


-------------

	3... 2... 1...

	With a flare of light, the engine of the missile ignited, spewing 
flames and smoke from its bottom end. Emitting a high-pitched scream, 
the rocket lifted off its launch pad and shot into the sky.

	The projectile sailed into the air, twirling upwards on a lazy 
column of blue-gray smoke. Several seconds after launch, the rocket motor 
began to sputter and die, its fuel payload consumed. The motor section of 
the rocket separated from the payload portion, causing the discarded 
equipment to fall back to Mars as gravity took hold. 

	Next tiny fins sprouted at the rocket's new midsection, designed to 
guide the weapon down to its intended destination. After reaching its 
apex, a crude guidance system consisting of a basic barometric altimeter 
commanded the wings to shift, allowing the now ballistic missile to sail 
on the air to its exact destination.

	Finally, at a height of roughly 1200 feet, a small electrical 
charge, produced as a by-product of a secondary chemical reaction started 
at launch, travels from the tail of the payload portion to the vicinity of 
the nose cone, initiating the weapon's final stage. Explosive powder 
ignites, reacting with the sodium, copper, and barium added alongside in 
trace amounts.  

	The missile exploded.

	'BOOM!' The noise traveled through the air, followed shortly by a 
rapid-fire, 'BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! 
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!"

	A ball of brilliant white light filled the gray afternoon sky, only 
to fade away and be replaced by equally as massive blooms of red, blue, 
and green fire. The three primary colors lingered in the air, punctuated 
with intermittent bursts of white sparkling.

	On the ground below, standing on Slugworth Manor's back porch, the 
audience of five was receptive to the spectacle above.

	"Oooooo!" 

	"WOW!"

	"That was beautiful!"

	"Gika!"

	"Yes," Slugworth nodded, "it is *marvelous*, isn't it? 
Unfortunately, while I've developed even more POWERFUL versions of my 
fireworks, the fuel-weight ratio of the missile prevents me from testing 
them outside the lab." He pointed to the fading trails of smoke. "That is 
as large a rocket as I've been able to launch."

	Kyouji, a happy grin on his face, looked at the eccentric chemist 
and asked, "Wait... are you saying you can't build the rocket light 
enough?"

	Slugworth shook his head. "No, I'm afraid it has to do with the 
missile's fuel. I just haven't been able to develop an adequate source 
of power to launch my city-busters, not even with what I extract from my 
warhead crop." 

	Tsugiko frowned. "City-busters?"

	"Yes," said Slugworth, "the one you just observed was what I term a 
'village-buster'. The scale is based on the amount of people amused per 
explosion level."

	"Oh."

	Yumi touched the Knight Protector's hand. "Kyouji, could you help 
Mr. Slugworth with his fuel problem?"

	The old man stood back, shocked. "You know something of the 
chemical sciences and their laboratory applications?"

	"Well," said Kyouji, "I wouldn't go THAT far. I mean, I got an 'A' 
in my Advanced Chem class, but still-"

	Slugworth would accept no excuses. "Whatever assistance you could 
lend to my experiments would be extremely helpful, even if only to 
converse with another chemist on equal terms. It has been SO very long 
since I've had a decent conversation with another man of science, 
excepting, of course, my dear Wonka's annual dispatch."

	The Knight Protector blushed in reaction to this plea. "I wouldn't 
consider myself a scientist, but... I'll help however I can."

	"Excellent! To the lab!"

	Slugworth began to march back into his manor. Kyouji, not realizing 
at first that he was supposed to follow, delayed for a few seconds. "Oh, 
right."

	"Wait!" Tsugiko called out. "What about your theory about the 
crystal shard?" 

	"There is time for that later, my dear priestess!" shouted the 
voice of Slugworth, echoing from the cavern-like interior of the manor. 
"First we must devote ourselves to the advancement of explosive 
devices!" 

	
---------------------


	As Slugworth and Kyouji toiled in the laboratory, Yumi and Tsugiko 
wandered about the rest of the manor. 

	The two girls found Slugworth 's residence to be a general mess. 
Ancient texts, rare maps, half-assembled rockets, and meal leftovers all 
coexisted in the same room, often with one atop the other. Only the hectic 
actions of the student-servants, who seemed to flutter about without a 
plan or order, kept the manor from collapsing from neglect. 

	Finding a clean spot on the floor to put down Kit Kat, who Yumi had 
carried on her shoulder, the two Priestesses were able to extract a 
general direction of the next shard from the carret. 

	Later, after a bookshelf toppled over on the teens, the two fled 
to the safety of the kitchen. Clean and devoid of rubbish, it served as 
a refuge from the rest of Slugworth Manor.

	The ice cream in the freezer helped too.

	"Here's my beef," said Tsugiko, scooping a spoonful of orange-
colored kiwi-melon flavored dessert from the bucket. "If our powers are 
supposed to be oh-so great, why do always end up winning by the skin of 
our teeth? Why can't we ever just crush our enemies like bugs?"

	Yumi contemplated her spoon. "I wouldn't say we always have close 
calls, at least not since we starting getting a handle on our 
abilities."

	"What about the Britecrawler?" Tsugiko tapped the countertop with 
her spoon as she rattled off a list of names. "Those damn slaving 
Ranchers at Ferrero Rocher. The Jawbreaker in the Taffy Swamps. Clorets' 
Mambos ambushing us outside Guylian. You and Kyouji being put on trial 
by those Nestlings. Hell, even the Twix twins almost killed us before 
we killed-"

	"I get your point," stressed Yumi. "I just think that our powers 
are supposed to level the playing field, maybe even test us on some 
level to see if were worthy of them. Besides, like you showed us back at 
the ball, we just haven't learned to us our powers fully. We need to 
learn... finesse."

	Tsugiko scoped a chunk of ice cream into her mouth. "Mmmhatss 
Muulll." She swallowed her food and repeated herself. "That's bull. If 
the whole point of our mission is to save the *planet* Mars itself from 
Wintergreen, why didn't it give a little more muscle? Why not unleash 
that Walnetto first, then try us out? And why only three Warrior 
Priestesses? Why not thirty?"

	"You have a theory?"

	"Yeah," nodded the brunette. "I think we're being set up."

	Yumi frowned. "'Set up'?"

	"Think about it. We're dropped on a strange planet where we don't 
know who's loyal to who or what country is which. The only thing we get to 
guide us is a ferret-cat and our dead friends upstairs." Tsugiko tapped 
her forehead. "We're given enough power to collect the crystal shards like 
good little boys and girls, and then we die fighting to put Wintergreen 
back in her cage." The teen added sarcastically, "We're single-serving 
saviors. 'Use once, dispose of packet'."

	This idea didn't sit well with the blond. "I don't we're being set 
up, it's just the way Mars chose to do things, like the Wheel of Fate 
people keep mentioning." Yumi shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "And I 
don't think we're going to die. Besides, we might do things differently 
than our past selves. Remember what Kyouji heard from Xocolatl on the 
Penguin?" 

	"It's a nice idea," said Tsugiko, "but that's all it is: an idea. 
We know nothing about the Starburst Crystal or any powers it might have. 
And how are we supposed to steal the shard Wintergreen has, then ferret 
it far enough away so we have time to rewrite the 'Wheel of Fate'?"

	"I don't know," admitted Yumi, "but we'll find a way."

	The brown-haired teen studied her friend's downcast expression. 
Sighing, she slid over the ice cream to Yumi. "For the record, I don't 
think it's a for-sure we'll die against Wintergreen. It could really go 
either way. We might not even HAVE to fight her if this 'rewriting 
destiny' plan works." Tsugiko sighed. "Hell, I want it to work as much as 
you and Kyouji. And even if Fate was setting us up for a fall, the priest 
said Fate died when Wintergreen blew up the Starburst Temple."

	"I know, Tsugiko," Yumi extended a hand over her friend's. "We're 
going to get through this. Together. All three of us."

	The sounds of multiple explosions in the distance startled the 
girls, but such a surprise didn't prepare them for the whole of Slugworth 
Manor to rattle on its foundations. After several seconds of such 
quivering, the house settled down.

	Tsugiko looked at her friend with wide eyes. "What was *that*?"

	"Kyouji," whispered Yumi.

	The two girls turned as for the kitchen door.

	"Eureka!" shouted Slugworth, striding through the kitchen door, 
causing the Warrior Priestesses to grind to halt. "We did it!"

	The man's excited manner was enough to peak Yumi's curiosity. "You 
did what?"

	"We figured out what was wrong with the fuel formula," called out 
the voice of Kyouji.

	An ash-encrusted Knight Protector slipped into the kitchen.

	"Kyouji!" Yumi rushed to hug her boyfriend.

	"It is not perfect," added Slugworth, "due to its instability. But I 
believe, given time, I will be able to refine impurities from the 
process and produce the ultimate solid-fuel rocket."

	Kyouji nodded dully, still a bit off-kilter. "Yes, but perhaps it's 
maybe a bit too unstable?"

	"That's fantastic," she turned to Slugworth, "now what about the 
crystal shard?"

	The scientist frowned, then grinned as the memory came to him. "Of 
course, the Starburst Crystal shard. My theory, which my assistant has 
come to suspect to be true, is that the Godivian shard is located 
somewhere in the Temple of the Warrior Priestess."

	Yumi and Tsugiko blinked. "'Temple of the Warrior Priestess'?" 
they both asked simultaneously.

	"Yes," nodded Slugworth, "it once belonged to a now-extinct order of 
monks that worshipped the original Warrior Priestesses. Trust me, if 
what your friend has told me about the pattern of these shards is 
correct, you will locate it at the temple." He went on, "They built it 
several miles from my manor. Unfortunately, due to the controversy the 
order aroused in the Ganache government, they built the temple as far 
from the influence of the colony's governor as they could. Even my first 
ancestor, who had a special loathing for the people of Ganache, didn't 
dare to go as far outside the city's influence as the order did."

	"Meaning... ?" Yumi brushed ash off Kyouji.

	"They built the temple on the _other side_ of the Great Divide," 
announced Lord Slugworth.

	Tsugiko frowned. "Is that bad?"

	"Bad."

	"How bad?"

	"Very bad," Slugworth held up an index finger, "but I do have a plan 
for bypassing the untold dangers lurking on the Great Divide's basin."

	Kyouji turned to his lab co-worker. "So what's your plan for getting 
us safely through the Great Divide?"

	"Not _through_ the Great Divide," declared an excited Lord 
Slugworth, "rather, we shall go *over* it!"

	Kyouji cringed.

	Slugworth turned around and exited the kitchen; he then made his way 
to a flight of stairs that lead upwards. "Come children, your salvation 
lies in my attic!"


-------------


	The attic, it turned out, was the most orderly room of the manor. 
Slugworth, and his like-named ancestors, used the family attic as a live-
in storage area for items that might be used to further the gains of each 
generation's investigations into the natural world. 

	At the center of the attic, a large something sat covered by a 
tarp. Slugworth, with a flourish of pride, tore off the covering, 
revealing his solution to the travel problem facing the Crystal Warriors.    

	"Behold! I give you the most advanced form of transportation ever 
conceived by the mind of man! Look upon it, ye mighty, and despair!"

	"It's a hot air balloon," deadpanned Tsugiko.

	"Ah," said Slugworth, "so you've heard of my great-great-
grandfather's invention."

	Yumi studied the decrepit looking basket in front of her, eyes 
lingering on the makeshift patches used to repair damage to the ancient 
device. "Something like that, yes."

	The chemist nodded. "Yes, it is something to behold. I once used 
it to test my land-based explosives from the safety of the sky before I 
turned to more benevolent endeavors."

	Kyouji turned to the inventor. "Don't you have something a little 
more... safe?"

	"I assure you the transport it quite safe; the engine is less than 
a year old. I refurbished it myself over the New Year." He paused. "Well, 
I was never able to get the gas burner to behave itself completely, but 
I've piloted the craft enough to coax it into doing what I want."

	Tsugiko eyed Slugworth warily. "And you intend for us to ride in 
this contraption?"

	A nod. "Yes."

	"I can't take it," sighed the brunette, "I really can't. This day 
has been insane, even by our standards." She turned and made her way to 
the staircase. "I'm going to find a bed and go to sleep."

	"That's probably for the best," announced Slugworth. "If we're to 
catch the strength of the prevailing winds we'll need to launch before 
sunrise." He looked over to the two remaining teens. "You'd best get to 
bed. It'll take my assistants and I the better part of the night to 
ready the transport for launch."

	Yumi nodded. "Thank you for doing this for us; we realize you 
don't have any obligation to help out."

	"Believe me," said Slugworth, already at work on the balloon, 
"anything I can do to rid the world of Wintergreen is no burden for me. 
I'd give my right arm to see Mars rid of that damned witch."

	"Good night, Lord Slugworth."

	"Good night Yumi, Kyouji." 


------------------

	Later that night...

	Yumi tossed and turned in her bed sheets, tangling herself between 
various layers of the coarse fabrics. Thoughts of Wintergreen and her own 
conversation with Tsugiko earlier rattled about in Yumi's brain, causing 
the blond girl to experience her first stress-induced headache. Finally, 
Yumi rolled over and admitted to herself she couldn't sleep. 

	With a sigh, she sat up... only to find herself in a completely 
different 
room.

	Going on instinct, she twisted her head to the left.

	"Oh," said a tired Akie, "you're awake."

	Yumi blinked. She was back in her dorm room at Saint Hebereke's 
School for Girls. "Awake? Don't you mean asleep?"
	
	"Whatever." The other girl shrugged. "You're still here. But then, 
where else would you be?" 

	"But that's what I don't understand," said Yumi, frowning as she 
took in her surroundings, "why *am* I here? Nothing bad happened. Not 
like," she halted at the name, "Winis. No one died." 

	Akie didn't respond, she was distracted by a bit of dust dancing in 
the light. 

	"Akie?"

	"So," the older incarnation began, "have you done anything with that 
boyfriend of yours yet?"

	Yumi nodded warily as her double became receptive again and smiled 
as she thought of Kyouji on deck of the Penguin. "Yeah, we've been talking 
a lot, getting to know each other better. It's amazing how much you don't 
know about a-

	"That's nice," interrupted Akie, an action which somewhat surprised 
Yumi, "but I meant physically." 

	Yumi frowned as her counterpart once again focused purely on the 
carnal side of love. "Why do you do that?"

	"Do what?"

	"Bring up sex with Kyouji," she blushed at the thought, "or making 
out with him. Things like that."

	Akie drifted off into her own little world. "I talk too much, don't 
I? I never realized how nervous I was around other people, always trying 
to compensate by being the good girl. Thank God for Mia; I never needed to 
impress her." The dead girl frowned. "But maybe that's because she just 
hated me. I hope not. Mia was nice."

	Yumi leaned across the space between the two girls. "Akie? Akie?" 
She waved a hand over the dead girl's face, then dryly snapped her 
fingers. "Akie?"

	Aside from a sudden sigh there was no change in the girl's posture. 
"Words are meaningless. Then again, so are actions too. But when it's cold 
and dark, they're all we left for comfort. They're all we'll ever have to 
remember in the end."

	"Is that why you won't talk to me?"

	Akie rolled her eyes. "I talk to you," she said, voice exhausted, 
"but so does Kyouji. And Tsugiko."

	Yumi thought this over, reflecting on Akie's recent comments. "So 
you think Kyouji doesn't mean anything he says unless he backs it up 
physically."

	"Sometimes," nodded Akie, "but not always. This one time... I...."

	Yumi locked eyes with her double. "Yes?"

	"I kissed Teru," the dead girl whispered, her eyes darting about as 
if afraid of some impending punishment. When none came, she repeated 
herself more brazenly. "I kissed Teru," she admitted, "in her sleep. No 
one else was watching. No one knew." 

	The dead girl closed her eyes.

	Yumi felt her heart ache as she watched Akie start to gently beat 
her own head on the wall she rested against. "Akie... Akie, why didn't you 
tell Teru how you felt if-

	"Because," she whispered, her eyes growing duller with each passing 
word, "no one was watching."

	The living girl leaned back. "Don't worry, Kyouji knows how I feel. 
I told him. And he loves-

	"It doesn't matter," said Akie. "He'll still leave you in the end. 
He'll still leave you _at_ the end. You're still going to die. Even if you 
run away, you're going to die in the end anyhow. Wintergreen probably 
thinks you're becoming a real threat to her. When she kills you, the only 
thing left for you will be memories. Memories."

	"Akie," began Yumi assuredly, "I'm not going to die. Not here. Not 
on Mars. We're going to get back home."

	Akie turned to Yumi and stared. Then, quietly at first, the dead 
girl began to giggle hysterically. 

	Yumi opened her mouth to speak but found no meaningful words came.

	Akie was totally quiet. Perfectly still.

	"Akie?"

	"I'm so tired," Akie said in a hushed tone. "Nothing ever changes. 
Everything dies. History moves on... but even history has to die sometime 
too." The dead girl titled her head to the side. "I read that once, that 
there's an 'end to time'." She squinted, trying to recall the school 
lesson. "The 'Big Crunch' they called it. How appropriate for Mars."

	Yumi felt the wind leave her voice. Taking a breath, she stood up 
and moved over to Akie's side. "Don't worry," she said, wrapping her arms 
around the cold spirit, "things will be different this time. We're going 
to beat Wintergreen. We're going to get home. Kyouji and I... we're going 
to be alright. Yes we are."
 
	Yumi hugged Akie, trying to soak away her coldness.

	"Your bed sheets," the dead girl said, looking over Yumi's shoulder, 
"they're a mess."

	"Does it matter?" asked Yumi. Holding onto Akie, she drew away and 
smiled, looking into the other girl's eyes. "We can clean them up togeth-"

	Suddenly Akie stood up, filled with a foreign vitality, and threw 
off Yumi like a sack of potatoes. She sent her future incarnation crashing 
to the floor, tripping over her own feet until she landed in a tangle of 
limbs. 

	"Let's do it!" Akie shouted, her long-unused voice cracking under 
the strain. "We don't have time to waste! Life is all about the little 
things but you have so much important stuff to do too!"
	
	Yumi cringed in pain, her right elbow sending shooting pains up her 
arm. "W-w-what?"

	The dead girl grabbed a discarded sheet on the floor. Come on, let's 
get to... to...."  

	Frowning, Akie looked down towards Yumi. "What we're we just doing?"

	Yumi was speechless.

	The dead girl sighed and turned around. Slowly, she reassumed her 
age-old position on her bed. 

	"You look tired," Akie whispered, "maybe you should go back to 
sleep. Sleep is good... not that it matters in the end." 	

	Yumi closed her eyes.

	"Gaaaugh!" she gasped, springing upright in bed. Frightened, her 
eyes darted about the room.

	Yumi was back in Slugworth's Manor.

	She was awake.

	Yumi stood up, casting off sweat-soaked sheets. Glancing at a 
sandglass atop her nightstand, she estimated it to be a little after three 
in the morning. She glanced back at her bed. 

	No way she could sleep again tonight. Not after that.

 	Looking around the cramped room, Yumi went about dressing. That task 
done, she quietly made her way downstairs. 

	Yumi spent the rest of the morning putting the image of a deranged 
Akie out of her mind. 


------------------



	Before dawn the teens assembled outside Slugworth Manor. Overnight, 
the scientist and his assistants had moved the pieces of the transport out 
of the attic and onto the back lawn. After briefly laboring to attach the 
carriage section to the balloon, the team began to ready for launch. The 
lift section, filled with the necessary hot air after the ignition of the 
burners, now floated several feet off the surface, held down only by 
several restraints nailed into the ground.

	Munching on breakfast, the Crystal Warriors loaded themselves into 
the basket. Slugworth soon joined them, the scientist being the only 
person aboard knowledgeable in working the craft's controls. Kit Kat, 
being as easily scared as he excited, was confined to a spacious carry 
case for the duration of the flight. 

	An hour before dawn, the balloon launched.

	The quest for the penultimate crystal shard was on once again.


-----------

	
	The first hour passed slowly in the balloon, as the transport 
leisurely drifted northeast toward the Great Divide. Still tired from the 
short night, the Crystal Warriors huddled down under blankets and napped 
lightly.

	Just before dawn, Slugworth awoke his passengers.

	"Wake up," the chemist tapped each of the teens with his boot. 
"You're going to want to see this."

	Tsugiko, ever the morning person, struggled to her feet. "What is 
it?" She rubbed her bleary eyes.

	"Look around."

	The teens did so. "I don't see anything special," said Yumi.

	Slugworth smiled. "Then look *down*."

	Kyouji peered over the side of the basket. "This had better be-"

	The Knight Protector froze.

	"Whoa," whispered Tsugiko.

	Below the Warrior Priestesses, the ground had disappeared.

	"What is this?" asked Yumi.

	Over the horizon, the sun rose.

	"The Great Divide," replied Lord Slugworth.

	The passengers aboard the balloon blinked as their eyes adjusted 
to the new level of lighting. Once their eyesight did adjust, however, 
they saw the land below them in all its fullness.

	Gentle light from the morning sun washed over the valley, 
illuminating the cavernous space below. At first, everything appeared to 
be simply low-lying land. Gradually, however, the outline of the terrain 
became more apparent.

	The Great Divide was just that, a divide. A canyon was merely a 
narrow chasm cut into the planet's bedrock by natural forces, usually 
flowing water. Both landforms had sharp drop-offs, where the land was 
level with the ground one instant and then dropped miles downward the 
next, but that's where the similarities ended.

	The land below the floating balloon was sloped on both sides, 
slanting downwards at roughly a sixty-degree angle. The two halves of 
the Divide, over which the group now floated, were coated in a dense 
layer of primordial scarlet jungle. The plant growth served to gentle 
the otherwise rugged appearance of the land, turning waves of 
overlapping rock face into gentle swells of biomass. Try as they 
might, none of the Warrior Priestesses were able to pierce the foliage 
that coated the top level of the forest.

	In the center of the Divide, the two halves of the landform ran 
together and then abruptly fell into a sharp, nearly vertical downturn. 
The abyss at the heart of the Great Divide lived up to its name; not even 
the rays of the sun penetrated to its bottom. Only long, tenuous vines 
stretching across the gulf dared bridge the two sides of the Great Divide.

	Yumi broke her gaze away from the abyss, feeling dizzy as she felt 
herself drawn into its seemingly infinite depths. 

	"It's really something," observed Slugworth, "isn't it?"

	Tsugiko nodded dumbly. "It's... I've never seen anything like it."

	Kyouji looked over to the girls. "I don't think we have anything 
like this on Earth, at least nothing I've ever heard off." He turned to 
Slugworth. "Has anyone ever gone down there?"

	The chemist nodded. "Once, many MANY people dared to transverse 
the basin of the Great Divide. Few returned alive, fewer still 
unscathed. Now no one journeys down there."

	Lord Slugworth stared off into the distance, his aged face veiled in 
light. "It's somewhat ironic that at the center of a land that is arrogant 
enough to consider itself the center of civilization, that has the 
audacity to turn its meadows and forests into farmland solely for profit, 
there lies a last great wilderness. A 'Heart of Darkness' that neither 
farmer nor merchant will dare try to exploit for personal profit."

	Silence filled the basket as the balloon sailed on, traveling 
faster towards its destination as the sun's rays heated the ground, and, 
consequently, stirred the winds.

	Finally, as the journey neared its conclusion, the balloon's 
occupants found the will to speak.

	Yumi turned back to the chemist, who was busy working the propane 
burner. "Mr. Slugworth, I noticed a family portrait over your fireplace, 
and, well... I was wondering-"

	-what happened to my boy?" The old man lowered his gaze, mind 
drawn back to the past. "He left, my dear, for greener pastures."

	Tsugiko, brushing back her wind-strewn hair, glanced back at 
Slugworth. "Where did he go?"

	"The sea, of all places," he explained, his voice tinged with 
bitterness and regret. "It was hard after the wife passed on. My boy and I 
got into a fight over his future and, after I stupidly said things I 
didn't truly believe, he just slugged me across the jaw and left. Last I 
heard he was working his way to the mainland on some cargo vessel."

	"Barry," sighed Slugworth quietly, "whatever became of you my boy?"

	Kyouji, frowning, turned to the Lord. 

	"Hey!" shouted Tsugiko. "We're at the end!"

	The balloon approached the walls of the Great Divide, massive 
slabs of rock encrusted with plants that clung desperately to its life-
giving presence. Heating the gasses contained above, Slugworth added a 
measure of comfort to the transport's distance from cliff face below.

	"I'll set her down there," Slugworth pointed to a nearby open field. 
"With your powers, you should be able to cut your way through to the 
temple. I'll return for you at exactly this time tomorrow morning; a day 
should be more than enough to retrieve the crystal shard."

	Yumi squinted as she studied the surrounding countryside. "The 
temple? Where is it?"

	Slugworth pointed to a large upwelling in the landscape little over 
a mile away. "Do you see that hill in the distance?"

	"Yes," said Kyouji, turning back to the balloon's pilot. "So the 
temple is behind the hill?"

	"No, it *is* the hill."


----------------------

ONE WEEK AGO...


	The mountain loomed above him like some great granite god, jutting 
into a sky that it had no chance of touching, regardless of its desperate 
efforts to do so.

	The wild man was gone; his mind calmed with a new sense of duty, 
turned towards thoughts of vengeance and parted family. 

	He was hungry, but, as he mentally reviewed his meager stores, 
chastened himself for his discomfort. His money was gone and there were 
no villages from which to pilfer supplies. If he were to reach the top 
of the mountain, he'd need to hunt. All he had left was a single long  
dagger, one stained with bitter memories. 

	Firm in his determination, the man took his first step forward. All 
that was left to challenge him in this world was the mountain and the 
promised prize it held in its maw. That, and vengeance, was all he had 
left to live for.

	The man nodded to himself. Vengeance would do.


----------------------------


	The Temple of the Warrior Priestesses. 
	
	"Giiiikaaa."

	Yumi felt a chill run up her spine as she looked upon the ruin. 
The temple was taller than any structure she had seen upon Mars; indeed, 
it seemed to equal in height some of the 'shorter' skyscrapers she had 
grown up around in Tokyo. Width-wise it was unequaled in her memory, 
stretching nearly to the edge of her field of vision in either direction. 
It stood aloof and remote, seemingly separated from the outside world. 

	"Wow," whispered Kyouji.

	It was a truncated pyramid, just shy of being a full pyramid by a 
few stories. A few more of the blocks would have added the needed levels 
to the temple. Though how anyone could get blocks of solid stone four men 
wide and two men tall in such a remote place was beyond her. 

	Tsugiko whistled. "How in the world could _this_ be here? How could 
they _forget_ about something this *big*? This thing would be a Wonder of 
the World back home."

	No wonder they had thought it had been a hill; size aside, it was 
choked in an array of scarlet red moss, with similarly colored vines that 
sported pale orange leafs. Here and there, sky-blue mushrooms poked out of 
a collapsed pocket of siding, some of the fungi the size of a full-grown 
butterfinger. From the sky, it had seemed to fit in perfectly with the 
surrounding landscape. Feral, yes, but nothing out of the ordinary.

	"I don't know," Kyouji shook his head, "but Slugworth did tells us 
of the legends surrounding this... thing. Plus, it _is_ in the middle of 
nowhere; the last farm we saw must be at least fifty miles away. I don't 
think there are any settlements this far out."

	It must have taken years to build this, decades even. Amazing, 
even considering the extinct order had to have used magic to accomplish 
the feat. They *must* have used magic.

	Kyouji looked down to Kit Kat. "Well furball, is the crystal shard 
here or are we just wasting our time?"

	"Gika!" The carret ran around in a circle. "Gika! Gika! Gika!"

	Tsugiko turned back towards the temple. "It's here alright."

	The green-garbed priestess tore her eyes away from the monument, 
looking back towards her friends. "How are we going to find the entrance? 
I don't see any stairs. And there has to be at least a thousand years 
worth of plant growth coating this thing. It'll take me hours to burn us 
this stuff away."

	Yumi took a step back.

	Kyouji frowned. "I don't know, maybe there's a marker for the-"

	"Look," commanded the blond, gesturing to the platform atop the 
structure.

	"What?" asked Kyouji, turning to his girlfriend, then back to the 
temple. 

	"Someone's up there."

	Tsugiko looked up, squinting to force back the sudden wave of nausea 
brought on by the illusion the massive temple was tilting forward against 
the cloudy sky. "I don't see any... wait."

	Far in the distance, atop the Temple of the Warrior Priestesses, 
stood an elderly figure garbed in a pink-blue-green robe, leaning heavily 
upon a tall staff. Kyouji and Tsugiko barely made out the figure before he 
or she turned about face and walked out of sight.

	Tsugiko looked over to her friends. "Who the hell was that?"

	"I don't know," replied Yumi, "but I think we know where the 
entrance is located."

	"Great," sighed Kyouji, "MORE flying."

 	
	-------


	The Crystal Warriors didn't bother with harnesses for the 'bunnyhop' 
up to the temple's roof; instead, Tsugiko took each of her friends up one 
at a time in her arms. An embarrassing situation arose on Kyouji's flight 
up when Tsugiko overestimated the surface traction at her landing point 
and the two friends ended up skidding across the planet-choked roof. 
Kyouji was thankful that Yumi hadn't seen the ungraceful poise the two had 
ended up in, as was Tsugiko, though only after first thanking God that she 
was wearing her new uniform as opposed than her old microskirt. Scraped 
skin covered in sticky moss wasn't something the brunette ever wanted to 
deal with.

	After the three gathered atop the temple, they carefully made 
their way across the slick surface. Fifteen minutes of searching revealed 
a partially obscured stairway leading down into the temple. The reason the 
teens had sighted the entrance was not skill or luck but rather the dense 
piles of human bone ringing the stairs. 

	"Hold on," said Tsugiko. Reaching into the small pack Yumi carried 
with her, the brunette retrieved an unlit torch donated by Slugworth. 
Wrapping her left hand around the oily rag, the green-clad priestess 
concentrated as she had two days previous in order to boil a mug of ale. 
The torch ignited with a 'poof', causing Tsugiko to jerk her hand away. 
Waving the light forward with her right arm, she said to her friends, 
"Okay." 

	"Here we go," breathed out Kyouji.

	The stairway was wide enough that three men could stand shoulder-
to-shoulder and still leave a few inches to spare. The passageway the 
entrance led to was considerably narrower, leaving just enough room for 
the three teens to advance one at a time.  

	Yumi, to her credit, took this in stride. Conscious of their 
friend's discomfort, Tsugiko, who lead the trio, and Kyouji, who brought 
up the rear, didn't dawdle with their pace.

	Tsugiko peered into the darkness ahead. "This is less a corridor 
and more a secret passage."

	Yumi laughed nervously. "Tell me about it."

	After several minutes following the winding passageway, the group 
came to a fork in the road.  

	"Three passages," said Tsugiko.

	Kyouji frowned as he looked over the brunette's shoulders. "Wait... 
I think there's an inscription above each opening."

	The green-clad priestess extended the torch towards the slime-
covered etching. Brushing the covering aside with a free hand, Tsugiko 
was shocked as her eyes fell upon the design. "It's me!"

	Yumi frowned. "What?"

	Tsugiko repeated the cleansing above the two other openings. The one 
to the left revealed a primitive pictorial of a blond woman in a pink 
dress. The one to the right showed a woman in a blue dress, sword held at 
the ready. 

	Tsugiko looked between each drawing. "What does it mean?"

	"I think," said Yumi, "that whoever built this temple wants us to 
split up and go down designated routes."

	"That's stupid!" huffed Tsugiko. "It's as good as walking into a 
trap."

	Kyouji gripped the hilt of his sword. "So... which way then?"

	"Straight," declared Tsugiko, making the decision for the group.

	She walked forward, followed by her friends. As Kyouji attempted 
to cross into the passage marked for Tsugiko, he hit his head against an 
invisible barrier. "Ow!"

	Tsugiko called back, "What is it?"

	"There's some kind of forcefield," explained Kyouji, "it's like I 
ran into a wall."

	"It's probably to make sure we all go where they want us to go," 
added Yumi.

	A long pause. 

	"So we're going to split up?" Tsugiko stared into the darkness.

	Kyouji shrugged. "We don't have much choice in the matter, do we?"

	"Here," the brunette hand her torch backwards, "use this to light 
up the second one in Yumi's pack. Kyouji, you keep it."

	Yumi frowned. "Don't you need a light?"

	A soft green glow began to emit itself from Tsugiko's fists. 
"Don't worry," she said, "I've got my own light." 


--------------


	Once the three were prepared, the Priestesses divided up and 
journeyed down their separate passages. 

	Tsugiko found herself going down another narrow, cramped pathway 
seemingly leading to nothing. Without the comfort of her friends, the 
brunette felt a twist in her heart as she heard every little noise in 
the darkness. Urging her fists to brighten, she quickened her pace.

	Eventually Tsugiko came upon the end of the pathway and the passage 
opened up into a large room. Carefully, watching for any movement, the 
Warrior Priestess reached for her warhammer. Walking slowly, she began to 
explore the seemingly empty dark room.

	Behind her, the teen heard feet shuffling.

	Tsugiko spun around, her battle aura unfolding with a plume of 
emerald flames. She raised her hammer for its first strike and-
	
	-found not a horrible monster, but merely an old man leaning 
heavily upon an oversized staff.	

	"Hello," whispered the old man, "I have waited for your return 
Warrior Priestess. It has been a long, long time since we last saw one 
another but my exile was well worth a sight of you."

	Tsugiko frowned. "Who the hell are you?"

	"I am Bubblicious, member of the Order of the Blessed Priestesses, 
founder of the same. Once I was advisor to kings and was a sage among 
men, but then I was shown *true* wisdom." He leaned his veiny head back 
and nodded to himself. "Yet I am still Bubblicious."

	Tsugiko loosened the grip on her hammer as her brain did the math 
on what the man had said earlier. "But that would mean you'd be... over a 
_thousand_ years old."

	The feeble man nodded gently. "Yes," he replied, his voice barely 
above a whisper, "and by most standards I am remarkably well preserved 
for my age. Would you not agree?" 

	"How?"

	"Faith," he answered. "Faith, powered by an unshakeable will, 
rooted in my love of you."

	This took the young woman aback. "Of me?"

	"Yes. Love of you and your companions." He smiled fiercely, paper-
thin skin draw back on black teeth. "Otherwise what reason would we have 
had to build this monument?"

	Tsugiko had no solution to the ancient man's rhetorical question. At 
a loss for words, she stood silently for a moment before arriving at the 
obvious inquiry. "The crystal shard... do you have it?"

	"Yes, but you cannot yet have it."

	The hammer-wielding girl frowned. "Why not? Aren't you supposed to 
worship us, do whatever we say?"

	Bubblicious chuckled. "Heh heh, of course. I would do anything for 
you Great One, and I have. My life has been dedicated to you and your most 
holy mission. Nevertheless, you and I are part of something far larger 
than ourselves; we belong to Mars and Its Wheel of Fate, and because of 
that fact it is my duty... nay, my destiny... to ready you for the final 
battle."

	Tsugiko breathed out slowly, releasing the creeping fear in her 
heart. "And how would you go about doing that?" 

	The ancient man closed his eyes. "Love. Faith. Will. These things 
are the gifts of Mars, borne by the hands of Mars' Chosen Three. Unless 
you can bear these gifts, any victory you achieve would be hollow." His 
eyes opened. "History has shown this fact to be all too true."

	"How are you going to 'ready' us?"

	"OH... HELL!" shouted the voice to the left.

	"HELP!" cried the voice to the right. "SOMEONE HELP ME!"  

	Tsugiko whipped her head about. "Yumi? Kyouji?" She focused on the 
elderly man. "What's going on? TELL ME!"

	Bubblicious sighed. "Your friends are in danger, deadly danger. 
Unless you act now, both will die."

	Tsugiko paused. "'Both'?"

	"The path to the other Priestess lies to the left," he pointed to 
a darkened pathway that the teen had overlooked during her exploration, 
"and the Knight Protector to right," another path pointed out. "Each are 
on opposite sides of this temple. You have only time to save one. Chose 
wisely."

	Emerald fire filled the chamber as the Warrior Priestess raised her 
hammer high above the elderly man. "I think you're the one in 'deadly 
danger'. NOW TURN OFF WHATEVER YOU'RE DOING OR SO HELP ME, I'LL-!"

	"I cannot stop what has been started here; it is beyond my doing. 
Now, time is running out for your friends," the ancient paused 
dramatically, "and threatening an old man will *not* help them."

	Tsugiko laughed. "Right. Like you'd kill one of the 'Chosen Three' 
when you've spent the last thousand years worshiping us and waiting for 
us to come to you."

	Bubblicious's eyes grew cold. "While my heart aches at this 
misfortune you bring upon your friends, my spirit is gladdened to know I 
am fulfilling the will of Fate in this test."

	"You... you mean-"

	Again, the screams echoed through the chamber: "YUMI! TSUGIKO! I 
NEED YOU, NOW!" and "KYOUJI! KYOUJI HELP ME!"

	"You must choose: save the man you once loved, or the friend you 
have known most of your life. Whatever your choice, carry through with it 
quickly. Time is almost up."

	Tsugiko stepped back, tears welling up in her eyes.

	"Well? What will it be?"


-----------


	Kyouji screamed again, his voice hoarse, "HEEEELLLP! SOMEONE, HELP 
ME! I'M TRAPPED IN HERE!" He added futile strikes on the stone walls, 
desperate to attract attention. 

	Slowly, grinding noisily all around him, the walls of the room he 
had wandered into tightened around him. Nothing he could throw at them, 
be it poppies or his sword, could do any damage. Runes inscribed on the 
stone rebuffed his strength, turning blows that would have dented solid 
iron into meatless strikes that ached down into his bony knuckles.

	"It can't end like this, it _can't_," he said to himself, rubbing 
his sore hands.

	The walls shuddered and began to close in. 

	"YUMI! TSUGIKO! ANYONE! HELP MEEEEEEEE!"

	The room swallowed him.


----------    


	Tsugiko tore down the hallway, angry green flames trailing behind 
her. Each second that passed by resounded in her brain, as if some 
antiquated clock was lording over mind. Ticktockticktockticktock...

	Turning a corner, she came to a dead-end, or so she believed at 
first. As the flames encompassing her cast light upon the far wall, 
Tsugiko made out the outline of a sealed doorway. She rushed to the 
portal.

	"HEY!" she cried, banging on the door. "I'M HERE!"

	"TSUGIKO?! TSUGIKO, THANK GOD!" came the reply.

	"STAND BACK!" 

	Taking a step back, Tsugiko readied her enchanted warhammer and 
swung as hard as she could, pivoting on the ball of her foot as she 
picked up momentum. The blow shattered the stone covering on the door, 
instantly freeing up a man-sized hole out. 

	The brunette dropped her hammer and stuck a hand into the hole. 
"Come on! Grab my hand!"

	The command was instantly obeyed and Tsugiko promptly hauled her 
friend out of the collapsing room. The two tumbled to the ground.

	"Thankyou," muttered her companion, "thankyouthankyouthankyou!"

	Tsugiko smiled sadly. "It's alright Yumi, you're out now."

	The blond girl started to hyperventilate.

	"Stop! Yumi, calm down!" urged Tsugiko. "Don't let it get hold of 
you! You'll only hurt yourself!"

	Yumi nodded dumbly and closed her eyes. Concentrating, she tried to 
calm herself, to calm the fear in her heart. After a few minutes, her 
breathing came under control.

	"I thought I was going to die," she huffed nervously. "The 
walls... they were closing in... and I couldn't stop them!"

	Tsugiko patted her friend on the back, eliciting a shudder as the 
fresh memory played itself out again. "Dear God," the blond whispered, 
"it was a nightmare. A nightmare."

	Tsugiko started to cry.

	Yumi, her face red, looked up. "W-what's the matter?"

	"I... I could only save one of you."

	"Huh?"

	"The keeper of the temple, Bubblicious," she spat out the name, 
"he had both of you trapped. He said I... I only had time to save one of 
you. I'm sorry." She sniffled. "I'm so so sorry."

	"Kyouji," the blond whispered.

	Yumi stood up, legs wobbly. "Come on! We've got to go!"

	The blond girl rushed off, blindly walking down the dust filled 
hallway before beginning to sprint. Tsugiko followed behind, repeating 
over and over the same apology. 

	 
	-----------

	Groaning, Kyouji opened his eyes and came face-to-face with the 
floor. Picking himself off the ground, the Knight Protector searched for 
his torch for several seconds before realizing the light level in the 
chamber was higher than it should have been. In fact, it was bright 
enough to make out a space nine or so feet in diameter. 

	Kyouji cupped his mouth and shouted, "HELLO?"

	"Hello," came the reply.

	Kyouji spun around and came nose-to-nose with a decrepit old man. 
"Gah!" the teen hooted, stepping back.

	Bubblicious smiled. "Still as observant as ever, my dear Teru." He 
cocked his head to the side, pressing the flesh into his staff. "I'm 
sorry, it's... Kyouji now, right?"

	The Knight Protector blinked. "Y-yeah." His hand dropped to his 
sword. "Who are you?" 

	"I am Bubblicious," declared the creepy old man, "member of the 
Order of the Blessed Priestesses, founder of the same. Once I was 
advisor to kings and a sage among men, but then I was shown *true* 
wisdom. Yet even now I am still Bubblicious."

	Kyouji paused, then nodded. "Okay... and why are you here?"

	"I am to prepare you, to judge you worthy of success and of the 
Starburst Crystal shard." The tiny man turned to his side. "*They* will 
test you."

	Two figures stepped forward, flanking the old man.

	"Yumi? Tsugiko?" Kyouji looked to his friends. 

	"Kyouji," declared Tsugiko in a deadpan tone, "if you want to live, 
don't hold back."

	Yumi sighed despondently. "I close my eyes to rest... to rest a rest 
that will never come... and what do I see when I open my eyes? Lies."

	"Tsugiko? Yumi?" asked Kyouji, alarm bells going off in the back of 
his head. "What are you both talking about?"

	Tsugiko unhooked her hammer off her back, as she did so Kyouji 
realized that the brunette was wearing her old microskirt uniform. "I 
can't help myself; so please, for Yumi's and Tsugiko's sake, fight with no 
regrets. You can't kill the dead."

	Kyouji's heart froze as the realization dawned on him. Staggering, 
he took a half-step back. "You... you're...." 

	"Ashes ashes," sang Akie, "you're going to fall down."

	The hammer-wielding Mia frowned grimly. "Damn it! Kyouji, for the 
last time, draw your sword!"

	"You are a curiosity," declared Bubblicious. "You made the choice to 
try and alter yourself in this new life. Now I must see if you are still 
worthy of your mantle."

	Akie and Mia raised their weapons.

	"Oh *damn*," cursed Kyouji.
    

--------------


	Tsugiko eventually caught up with Yumi, finding the girl slumped 
against a corner, unsure of where to turn. With the brunette's advice, 
Yumi, pulling her friend along by the hand, found the way to the chamber 
where Tsugiko had conversed with Bubblicious. From there, the two girls 
followed the path to Kyouji.

	Yumi stopped. "Huh? A dead end?" She turned to Tsugiko. "Did we 
make a wrong turn somewhere?"

	Tsugiko cast her gaze down, ashamed to look at her friend. "N-no. 
This is the right way." She leveled a trembling hand at the 'wall'. "S-
see? There's a covering over the door."

	The blond girl squinted in the darkness, then nodded. "I see."

	Raising her crystal-tipped wand, Yumi unleashed a torrent of energy 
at the stone seal. The rock didn't have to buckle under the force of the 
pink priestess's attack; it merely melted away into nothingness. Before 
the surrounding area had even begun to cool, the blond Priestess rushed 
through the opening, oblivious to the searing heat of the charred rock. 

	Tsugiko slumped against a wall, waiting for the anguished cry that 
seemed inevitable.

	"TSUGIKO!" cried Yumi, causing the brunette to flinch. "COME IN 
HERE! COME ON! KYOUJI'S OKAY!"

	Tsugiko's head shot up. "What?"

	Scrambling over the opening, the green-garbed Priestess blinked away 
the bits of dust in her eyes. Inside the narrow room, she saw an elated 
Yumi. Kyouji was nowhere to be seen.

	"Where-"

	"Look!" Yumi pointed to a whole in the floor at the far end of the 
room, beside which an abandoned torch burned. "He must have fallen through 
this whole to the floor below! He must have!"

	"Yumi...."

	The blond girl crouched on her knees. "KY-OUJ-I!" she called down 
the hole. "Kyoujiiiii! It's me, Yumi! Can you hear me?"

	No response came.

	"KYOUJI! WE'RE UP HERE!"

	Tsugiko walked over to Yumi. "Do you... do you really think he 
fell down this hole?"

	"Sure," quickly answered Yumi, "what else could have happened?"

	The green Priestess said nothing.

	Yumi moved forward towards the hole. Tsugiko reached down and 
grabbed the blond by the sleeve of her dress. "Where do you think you're 
going?"

	"Down to Kyouji," the blond girl replied, as if the answer was the 
most obvious thing on Mars. "He's probably hurt."

	Tsugiko bit her tongue. Feeling her heart beat rapidly, the well-
armored girl quickly said, "And how do you plan to get back up? At least 
let me... carry you down."

	Yumi frowned. "You can use your wings in a space that small?"

	"I can try."

	Yumi remained unconvinced.

	"Well," mused Tsugiko, "at the very least I should be able slow 
down our descent."

	"Like a parachute?"

	"...Sure, like a parachute."

	Yumi nodded. "Alright," she stood up and opened her arms to 
Tsugiko, waiting for the other girl to embrace her, "let's get going."


-----------


	Dodge. Swipe. Jab. Blast. Dodge. Dodge. Jump. Swipe. Duck. Dodge. 

	Kyouji sweated fiercely under his Knight Protector uniform, 
quickly growing tired from the sustained assault by the back-from-the-
dead duo of Akie and Mia. They were unlike any enemy he had every fought 
in his time on Mars; indeed, it was if he was trying to fight the rising 
tide. Neither his sword nor his flowers seemed to hardly faze them.

	In the back corner of his mind, the only part not totally devoted 
to surviving the one-way battle, Kyouji idly wondered if this was how 
the likes of Clorets or Krackel viewed the Crystal Warriors during the 
heat of battle.

	Jab. Blast. Dodge. Boom. Jab. Jab. Swipe. Duck. Blast. Jump-

	Mia's warhammer brushed against his belly, punching the air out of 
Kyouji and sending him sprawling to the floor. Barely conscious of the 
world outside his shell of pain, Kyouji nevertheless pushed himself on, 
dodging Akie's beam of pink death yet again.

	"Why. Can't. You. Stop?"

	Mia readied her hammer. "I'm sorry Kyouji, but this is beyond me. 
He's pulling my strings and nothing will cut them."

	"*Huff* *Huff*." Kyouji gulped in the air, willing the oxygen to 
his burning muscles. "I can't keep up with-"

	Akie sighed and blasted the Knight Protector across the 
chamber. Eyeing the agonized Kyouji, she shook her head. "This is a 
strange dream," she said aloud.

	"This is no dream!" hissed Mia.

	"But Mia," the blond giggled, "'life is but a dream'. Remember?"

	Both girls began to glow with their respective magics.

	Mia readied to throw her hammer, setting up the first half of a 
combination attack. "MOVE! MOVE NOW!"


-------

	A few hundred feet above, an emerald comet was falling from the 
sky for yet another time that day. 

	"Toooooooooo faaaaassssssst!"

	Tsugiko mumbled an incoherent oath that would have made Boats 
proud. Her head was ricocheting between Yumi's and the rapidly moving 
surface of the stone shaft, causing the teen no end of pain. Moreover, 
despite her best efforts, it seemed her wings just didn't work well in 
an enclosed space. Or work at all for that matter.

	Glancing down, Tsugiko spotted a bloom of light at the bottom of 
the shaft. The end was quite literally near for their little journey.

	Biting down on her lip, the Warrior Priestess concentrated one 
last time on the sputtering flame issuing from the ridges of her shoulder 
blades.

	Instantly, light consumed the girls.


-------	


	Kyouji finally willed himself off the floor. Opening his one 
unswollen eye, he focused on the two girls across the room. Blindly, he 
raised his sword in a defensive posture. 

	Pink and green light washed through the room.

	Five things happened next, each event instantly in succession of 
the previous one. All occurred within the space of seven seconds.

	The center of the ceiling, where the vent was located, exploded in 
a flume of green smoke and rubble. Tsugiko and Yumi, the real Warrior 
Priestesses, landed hard but thankfully none too fast. 

	Mia threw her flame-drenched hammer at Kyouji and the trajectory 
of the weapon carried it directly through where the living Priestesses 
would now stand to their feet. Akie blasted the warhammer with a burst 
of pink light, adding her magic into the already super-charged weapon. 
Both dead girls were oblivious to the arrival of their living 
counterparts.

	Yumi and Tsugiko stood up, expelling dust from their throats with 
a fit of coughing, totally distracted as they recovered from the fall 
from many stories up. By happy coincidence, they had landed facing Kyouji.   

	Kyouji, with his one unswollen eye, watched helplessly as the 
warhammer zeroed in on his friends. He tried to shout a warning, but his 
voice wouldn't materialize. 

	And at exactly seven seconds, time stopped. 

	Kyouji blinked. The world was awash in bluish tones, overwhelming 
all other coloration in the chamber. Looking up at Tsugiko and Yumi, he 
saw them clutching their mouths, frozen in mid-cough. Glancing past them, 
he took note of the uber-enchanted warhammer, its speed slowed to a 
snail's pace. 

	Standing deliberately, Kyouji placed a hand on the wall behind 
himself for support. Blinking warily, the Knight Protector felt 
something slick dance on the skin of his hand, buzzing at the tips of 
his fingers. Turning about, Kyouji drew his hand away from the wall and, 
to his surprise; a chunk of the wall came with it. 

	Looking down, Kyouji spotted his sword. Picking it up generated a 
second cloud of powdered stone, this one caused by the tip of the blade 
scraping along the surface.

	Walking, Kyouji began to make his way toward Yumi and Tsugiko. 
Then he stopped as the image of the female Twix flashed across his 
vision. He forced himself to fight the Knight Protector Imperative, to 
think the situation through, but it was hard because he felt so very 
tired, completely out of energy.

	Gods, he was tired.

	No. He had to concentrate.

	The hammer! Don't touch the girls; go for the hammer!

	Treading carefully on the stone floor, Kyouji made his way up to 
Mia's warhammer. Raising his sword, he struck at the weapon with the side 
of his blade. Each strike knocked the weapon a little farther our of its 
intended path. 

The blue light around Kyouji began to bleed away into darkness.

	Frowning, Kyouji pounded away at the hammer. He kept hitting the 
hammer as his fingers went numb, then his hands, then his arms. Finally 
the omnipresent cry at the back of brain died down, satisfied that the 
girls would be safe. 

	Sword still gripped in his hands, he fell to his knees. He black out 
before he hit the floor. 


---------


	Yumi stifled a scream as she exited the shaft, having little 
capacity to vocalize anything as a burst of green flame enveloped her, 
causing her body to violently lurch against gravity. Her dangerous 
momentum canceled out, Yumi might have landed gracefully if not for her 
utter disorientation exiting the shaft. As it was, she was lucky to not 
break a leg as she and Tsugiko landed soundly on solid rock.

	Involuntarily, she gasped for air. A mistake. The plume of debris 
trailing out of the shaft had coated the girls, polluting the air they 
had both breathed in. Bringing her hands to her mouth, Yumi felt her 
throat burn as the need to purge that throat overwhelmed her. She 
coughed raggedly and-

	BOOOOOOOM!

	-was knocked to the floor, tackling Tsugiko in the process, as a 
sudden wind rushed around her. Thankfully, it had the side effect of 
pushing away any lingering dust. Hacking, she began to clear her throat-

	BOOM!

	An explosion rocked the chamber. Regaining her composure, Yumi 
looked around and found... herself.

	She held her breath, only to be betrayed by her own body. She fell 
over sputtering. Her vision clouded up, completely obscured, as hot 
tears welled up in her irritated eyes.
 
	Yumi blinked repeatedly, trying to focus her senses again. When 
she managed to look up she saw two girls standing side-by-side, girls who 
looked exactly identical to herself and Tsugiko.

	"W-what the heck," she sputtered, "is going on?" 
    	
	Her double giggled. "You're asleep too?"

	Yumi frowned. "...A-Akie?	
	 
	"Hello Yumi," said Mia, her stomach a mess of sword slashes, "it's 
good to meet Tsugiko's friend."

	Yumi gaze fell down to the ground. "Kyouji!" She crawled to her 
boyfriend's side, whipping out her wand as she swooped down. Immediately 
a soft pink glow effused the unconscious Knight Protector.

	"What happened to him?" she demanded.

	The two dead Warrior Priestesses shared a long look. "It wasn't our 
fault," said Mia, "we weren't in control."

	Yumi frowned. "'In control'? You did this to Kyouji?"

	"We're sorry," said Mia, "but it was Bubblicious's weird magic that 
made us do it."

	"Magic," whispered Akie. "It's magic that we're together again." 
The dead girl wavered side to side for a moment, then turned to her 
friend. "Once we find Teru," she said, her voice colored oddly, "let's go 
visit Patty. She might have dug up something on how to get into 
Wintergreen's castle."

	Mia frowned. "Akie, please don't say-"

	"I'm not sure how she did it," continued the blond, "but Del 
really cooked up a good stunt this time." Akie giggled softly. "Imagine 
think all that time had past, stuck in my dorm room of all places. But 
it was so *real*, like that hallucination Teru had when Turtles spiked 
our supplies with Cheerios."

	Mia looked away, not wanting to see her friend in this light. "What 
happened to you, Akie?" she asked in a hushed tone.

	The dead girl giggled. "Nothing silly," she flashed her friend a 
smile, "it's just I'm happy we got the last crystal shard. Now we can 
finally put an end to this madness and go... go back...."

	Akie frowned.

	Mia turned around. "Akie?"

	"I'm sorry, Mia," the blond said, he voice returning to its original 
whisper, "but what were we just talking about? I can't seem to remember."

	The other dead girl bit her lip, turned, and walked away.

	Tsugiko walked up to the gathering, brushing her mane of dust-
coated hair into order as best she could. Eyeing the unconscious Kyouji 
and Yumi, as well as a giggling Akie, she turned to the only person left 
capable of talking to her. 

	"Hello me," said Mia. 

	Tsugiko 'humph'ed. "'lo loser."

	"Hmm," mused her past incarnation, "nice to see I don't hold a 
grudge for long."

	Tsugiko frowned. "You told me to commit suicide," she said in a 
whisper, not wanting to chance Yumi overhearing.

	"No," her double replied in as quiet a tone, "I didn't."

	Tsugiko's eyes bugged out. "You opened a chasm in the earth for me 
to *jump* into, for God's sake! How is that not telling me to-"

	"Hey!" Mia held up her hands. "I just offered it to you; you were 
the one who had to jump into it."

	"Oh my," Tsugiko hissed, "what a _big_ difference."

	"Hey, I had to do _something_ once you started to have *that* dream. 
And who better to help you cope with horrific failure than a past 
incarnation of yourself? Plus that chasm wasn't even real, it was a total 
metaphor." She paused, and then added quietly for only their ears. 
"Besides, I was worried you might do something... drastic... in the waking 
world. I needed a test."

	Tsugiko looked to her side, checking on her friends. Sure that Yumi 
was still preoccupied with Kyouji, she went on. "I _wouldn't_. You're me, 
you know how I am."

	"Uh-uh," the dead girl wagged a finger at Tsugiko, "it's like you 
say: we aren't the same person. Still, I know you'd never jump in; you'd 
only get pissed." 

	"Then why-"

	Mia smiled. "Reverse psychology, stupid." 

	"Kyouji!" shouted the blond priestess. "It's me, Yumi!"

	Mia slowly turned back to her counterpart and whispered, "We'll 
talk later about-"

	"Right," Tsugiko snapped tersely.

	The brunette walked up to her friends. "Why's Kyouji unconscious 
this time?"

	Yumi shook her head. "Someone named Bubble-something used a spell to 
make an illusion of our past selves."

	"Hey!" shouted Mia. "I assure you I'm the real thing. Sorta." She 
looked away and added in a softer voice, "Except for the lack of blood, 
bones, and other juicy fillings." 

	"Huh?"

	Light chuckling filled the chamber. "Heh heh. You performed well 
Knight Protector, VERY well indeed. You honor your friends with your 
actions."

	Three glares met the ancient man's return. Akie merely eyed him 
warily. Only Yumi expressed confusion. "Who are you?"
	
	"Greeting Great One," the elderly man whispered to her. "I am 
Bubblicious, member of the Order of the Blessed Priestesses, founder of 
the same. Once I was advisor to kings and a sage among men, but then I 
was shown *true* wisdom. Yet even now I am still-"
	
	"- Bubblicious you're a _BASTARD_ even after all these years!" Mia 
summoned her hammer and leveled it at the sage. "I should smash you where 
you stand after the stunt you just pulled!"

	"Hello Mia," chirped the diminutive man, "it's nice to see you 
too."

	Akie stepped forward to calm her friend. "It's alright." She 
squeezed her shoulder. "As for you," she turned to Bubblicious, "how did 
you summon us here? Where's Teru?"

	"She is still residing in the Knight Protector's jewel. It took a 
thousand years of pooling the land's magic to create _two_ shadow bodies, 
the ones you now wear, and had I tried for three you would not have lasted 
long enough to perform the test." The old man sighed tiredly. "I _am_ 
sorry, but this was the only way to know if her successor was ready." 

	Mia zeroed in on the ancient. "Patty would _not_ have approved."

	"Heh," Bubblicious smiled, "Patty didn't approve of a lot of 
things, one last trick isn't that big of a deal." 

	"Excuse me," interrupted Tsugiko, "I'd hate to butt in on this 
little reunion but could someone tell where is the crystal shard. See, 
I'd like to get the _hell_ out of this MADHOUSE!"

	"Of course." The sage looked back at the dead girls. "I am sorry, 
but your time here is done. Rest in peace."

	Mia frowned. "What's that-"

	She, along with Akie, vanished. At the same time, the jewels on 
Tsugiko and Yumi's foreheads twinkled momentarily with light.

	"My," he mused whimsically to himself, "it feels like only 
yesterday I...." He shook his head. "No. The past is past." Bubblicious 
turned to Yumi, who was still tending to Kyouji. "One test remains and 
on your shoulders does the burden lie."

	Yumi frowned. "Me?"

	Bubblicious turned about face. "You are stronger than you know, 
Great One. Now you must call upon your strength to save yourself, your 
lover, and your friend."

	Tsugiko would have none of this. "I. Don't. Think. So."

	Emerald flames engulfed the brunette, only to sputter and die away 
as quickly as they came. Pale wisps of green smoke lingered in the air.

	"Tired?" asked Bubblicious.

	Tsugiko breathed out as slowly and steadily as she could, but the 
occasional tick of exhaustion betrayed her front. The sage looked again 
to Yumi. "This room, and the temple at large, have sealed themselves off 
from the outside world." He clenched a hand into a weak fist. "Only the 
air in this chamber remains, and when that is gone," he opened his hand, 
letting the fingers dance as they unwound. "Poof."

	Yumi stared at old man, then nodded. "What do I have to do?"

	Bubblicious, leaning on his staff for support, pointed to the 
ceiling. "Reach... for the sky."

	With that declaration, the old man disappeared; there one minute, 
gone the next instant.

	Yumi stared into the distance, then looked back to her friend. 
"Come over here."

	Tsugiko did so. As she kneeled by the blond priestess, the 
brunette asked, "What are you going to do Yumi?"

	The blond concentrated on the slumbering face of Kyouji, then, her 
heart firm in its judgment, redoubled the grip on her wand. Placing her 
right hand atop her left, she raised the crystal-tipped weapon to the 
sky. Silently, pink light erupted from the wand.

	The blast vaporized the stone ceiling, destroying the rubble that 
would have otherwise crushed the trio. Cracks radiated outwards from the 
widening bore of light, weakening the rest of the structure.

	"Yumi!" Tsugiko screamed.

	A bubble of pink wrapped around the three, protecting them from 
the dust and other debris rained into the chamber. The cracks in the 
ceiling widened and the whole of the room groaned sickeningly. Streams of 
sweat poured down Yumi's face as she poured herself into the pink blast.

	The protective bubble around her began to flicker.

	"Oh God," the blond girl whispered, "the whole thing's coming down 
on us. We're gonna be _trapped_."

	"No Yumi," yelled her friend, "we're gonna DIE if you don't do 
this!"

	The temple itself shuddered and wheezed, ancient stone grinding 
upon itself, and fell inwards.

	Kyouji turned in his sleep, giving voice to his dream. "Y-yumi?"

	Yumi _pushed_.


-------

 
	The Temple of the Warrior Priestesses quivered, rocking to its 
foundations as its underside gave way and disappeared. All the strange 
birds, animals, and even the insects the three Crystal Warriors had 
spotted upon arriving fled the area, abandoning nest and hovel.

	With a scream that would shake a battle-wary warrior to their 
core, giant cracks appeared in the superstructure of the temple. Stone 
walls that had stood vigilantly against the weathering of a millennium 
shuddered and began to crumble, the motion inducing a sudden eruption of 
spores from the flora that veiled it.    	
 
	All at once, the temple fell inwards, imploding like a souffle...

	...only to halt its inevitable fall as pink light erupted from the 
dying temple, pouring out of every crevice and crack.

	For the second time that day, the Temple of the Warrior 
Priestesses fell, this time _upwards_. With the cry of the collapsing 
rock drowned out by a roar of raw magical energy, the crumbling debris 
ascended skywards, pushed so by the force of a rapidly expanding pink 
bubble of epic proportions.   

	At the center of the turmoil, ground level to the floor of the 
valley, the Warrior Priestess known as Yumi gave one last push and 
willed the now exploding temple to _get out of the way_. 

	And it did.


------


	Tsugiko was speechless, her mouth agape as she stared into the 
crimson-orange haze of the setting sun. Her mind refused to believe what 
she had just seen, even with natural light streaming onto her face and 
with her hair dancing in a gentle wind.

	"Wow," she whispered dumbly.

	Tsugiko shakily turned to her old friend. "Yumi, that was... 
Yumi?"
	
	The blond priestess snored loudly in reply.

	"Yeah," the green-garbed girl nodded, "I feel the same way."

	With a sigh, she set her head down. Darkness came instantly.
	 

------	

THE PRESENT...
	

	His hands were bloody again, the fingernails torn beyond 
recognition by the rocky outcropping he clung to. Every ten feet or so 
he had to stop and wipe away the lubrication, lest his grip loosen at an 
inopportune moment and send him plunging to the chasm below.

	After all these weeks, his journey was almost complete. Soon... 
the book would be his, and with it power, the only thing he craved for 
in this world besides vengeance. He laughed to himself, in a little while 
he'd have both.

	Pulling himself atop the summit, the man took a moment to admire 
the view. Simple joys were all he had left beside vengeance; perhaps not 
enough to hold him back from the brink but enough to slow that descent.

	The cave entrance was where the old man had told him it should be. 
Haltingly, he limped into the darkened place. Summoning a bit of yellow 
lightning in the palm of his hand, he groped his way along, keeping 
another hand along the wall of the cave lest he somehow become lost in 
its depths.

	Soon he found himself in a small chamber at the cavern's end and 
there, sitting atop a crudely carved edifice, was the Codex Ares.

	"Oh yessss," he whispered excitedly, "it's mine. All _mine_."

	"Really?" asked a mocking voice. "But why would a dead man have 
need of such knowledge?"

	The man's blood grew cold, icing his heart with the frosting of 
defeat. It wasn't fair; he was _so_ close. "*No*," he swore at himself. 
"_NO_!"     

	A laugh. "Yes," said the woman.

	The man placed a hand on the edifice, whole-heartedly wanting to 
meet his end with some dignity. At least for his sister.

	"So," said the man, closing his eyes, "it _was_ a trap, wasn't it? 
The man in the bar, he was a plant. You... you knew I would do anything 
to get here, to get the book."

	"Mother always said I knew how to amuse myself. Then again, it was 
a bit easy when it came to you."

	He sighed. "Congratulations Wintergreen, you win." 

	The Dark Queen raised an eyebrow under her mane of limp green 
hair. "What's this," she asked, voice somewhat intrigued, "no begging? 
No plea for mercy? Not even a last, desperate grab for the book? How 
disappointing."

	"What's the point? I know well enough to know you show no mercy, 
so there's no point in begging like some dog." He laughed bitterly. 
"Besides, even if the book was real, it wouldn't save me."

	"Oh, that book _is_ the real Codex Ares." Wintergreen chuckled. 
"Your death would be all the more sweet if you died within the reach 
of your last hope for vengeance."  

	"You won't kill me," he declared, tone almost mocking.

	"Why would you think a silly thought like that?"

	"Because," the man opened his eyes, "killing me would end my 
suffering. _That_ would be mercy, and, as we both know, you show *no* 
mercy to anyone. Least of all your enemies."

	"Hmm." Wintergreen thought this declaration over, causing a sly 
smile to slowly pinch at her cheeks. "Clever. And what do you propose I 
do instead of me smiting you here and now?" 

	"Let me fight them," he whispered, "even though it'd end in my 
doom. The only thing I long for in this world is to see the Knight 
Protector _scream_ for mercy. Him or the girls, it doesn't matter. I 
just want to hurt them."

	"But aren't you forgetting that letting you live to fulfill your 
deepest wish would be merciful?"

	"Letting me live *would* be mercy," he admitted, "but equally so 
would be killing me now." He laughed bitterly. "Either way, it doesn't 
matter, I'll still be dead in the end. It doesn't matter if it's at your 
hands or at their hands."

	"And either way you win a moral victory over me."

	A shrug. "I suppose."

	Wintergreen paused, silently thinking over her options. The most 
minor choices in life were always so difficult, she thought to herself. 
Choosing what shoes to wear, what brandy to have with dinner, which world 
leader to assassinate next. "Very well," she declared, "take the Codex and 
come with me. Your death has been... postponed. For now."

	Haltingly at first, then with greater confidence, the man reached 
for the Codex. His fingertips caressed its leather covering, sensing 
every bump and crevice on the stained hide. Carefully, the man lifted the 
Codex and huddled it against himself. 

	Wordlessly, the master and servant turned and made their way out 
of the small cave, their way lit by the sickened glow of green flames 
radiating outward from the Spear of-

	The Dark Queen stopped. "Twix?" 

	"Hmm?"

	"When we get back to the castle, take a bath." She wrinkled her 
nose. "You stink."

	"Yes, Your Majesty." 


--------


	A little before three in the morning, Kyouji woke. His stirring 
brought Yumi and Tsugiko out of their respective slumbers.

	The temple, the great and wide monument that had appeared as a 
hill from their skyward vantage, had been reduced to loose ring of 
rubble radiating outwards.

	"W-w-what happened?" stuttered the Knight Protector.

	Tsugiko stood up. "Yumi."

	Kyouji turned to his girlfriend. "Yumi? You did this?"

	"I... I couldn't have," the blond girl whispered, her one of 
disbelief at the destruction surrounding the group. "I couldn't have 
destroyed the temple."

	"But Yumi," said Tsugiko, "I saw you do it."

	A figure suddenly appeared in front of the Warrior Priestesses.

	"Congratulations," said Bubblicious, a broad grin painted on his 
gray-skinned face, "you passed the trials."

	"That's great," retorted Tsugiko. "Where's the shard?"

	The ancient man reached into his robe and produced the item in 
question. He levitated the cerulean crystal over into the brunette's 
waiting hands. 
 
	The old man sighed wistfully. "My long trial is at an end. I have 
waited for so long, alone, yet I am glad I have accomplished the task 
entrusted to me by Fate."

	Bubblicious began to slowly fade away, his light whisper growing 
lighter still as he did so.

	"What shall my next life be like? Will I be rewarded for my duty?" 
He shook his head. "I never sought reward, only...." The old man looked 
at Tsugiko. "If only Patty and I had had time, we... might... have-"

	Bubblicious was gone. Only the howl of the wind marked his 
departure from this world.

	The three teens stood silent, unsure what, if anything, they 
should say. After a few minutes, Yumi turned to Kyouji. "We should get 
back to camp, if it wasn't crushed; it feels like a storm's brewing."

	"Right." He nodded, and then looked around. "Which way is that?"

	In the distance, a cry of "Gika" was heard.

	Tsugiko fingered the crystal shard. "I'm gonna go out on a limb 
and say that way."

	Yumi and Kyouji walked away, making their way through the rubble-
strewed landscape. Tsugiko stood behind, watching the couple slip their 
hands together.

	The brunette looked up into the starry sky. 

	"It's always about choices," she whispered, "and living with those 
choices." Tsugiko bit her lip. "But, damnit, in the end it just doesn't 
seem fair sometimes." 

-----------


	"What d'ya mean it ain't fair?" A surly and slightly tipsy Bos'n 
"Boats" Berry thumped a finger on the tabletop. "I can't help it if I 
drew a good hand! It's the way of the game!"

	"Yeah," agreed the one-eyed man opposite him, "but the 'way of the 
game' doesn't usually give a man four inside straights in one sittin'!"

	Boats stood up, grinning at the prospect of a good brawl. "Are you 
making an accusation, mister?"

	The man with the eye-patch stood up, meeting Boats' gaze. "Maybe I 
am, maybe I ain't."

	Boats reached for the chair he had sat on. Slowly, with the other 
man's attention drawn towards his face, he grasped the chair's back and 
readied to-

	"HEY!" shouted the tavern's owner. "You break one more chair tonight 
and I'll throw you and your crew out of here!"

	The bos'n frowned. "Aww. I paid for the last three, didn't I?"

	"Put. The. Chair. Down."

	Reluctantly, like a child having to give back his puppy to the 
pound, Boats released his hold on the chair. The one-eyed man chuckled as 
he watched this go on.

	"Well," Boats turned to his shipmates, a gaggle of men who infested 
half the bar, "what d'ya boys say about that? Did this _gentleman_ here 
just laugh at me?"

	A rousing cry of "Aye!" filled the tavern.

	"So," said the other man, "you're finally gonna make something out-"

	The piercing sound of a horn filled the air.

	Boats looked to his men. "What's that racket?"

	Someone opened the tavern's door, revealing a commotion outside. 
People were rushing about, holding buckets in one hand and weapons in 
the other."

	The men inside the tavern rushed out, heading for the nearby 
docks. Boats and his card partner pushed their way to the front of the 
crowd. In the distance, at the edge of the nighttime horizon, a crimson 
glow tinted the sky.
	
	"Great Mars," swore the one-eyed sailor, his wispy hair flaying 
against the prevailing winds coming off the ocean, "fire ships!"

	A great commotion broke out among the half-drunk sailors, fear 
suddenly overcoming any calming affect from the night's intake of booze. 
Boats turned about and shot a fist into the air, demanding his crew's 
attention. "Come on boys, we've got to save the Penguin!"

	The sailors, following Boats' lead, sprinted for their ship.

	"Somebody's coming," he shouted, rallying his men, "and if they 
want a fight, damn it, we're gonna give they'll one never forget!"

	
 
------------------------------------


        Author's Notes:

	Dear God, it's done.

	Word of advice, never EVER try to write a 170k in a week. I feel
so incredibly burned out now. I don't think I'll be able to look at 
this chapter again for a long time without wincing. Writing is nice 
and all, but editing eighty-odd pages by hand is a pox upon your soul.
If I do write for Starburst Crystal again, and I might in the ending 
queue, I'm going to do a 50k (maximum) chapter. 

	If any potential writers of SC feel scared to follow up 
multiple 80k+ parts, don't be. If you can only write a 30k part then
that's what's you're gonna write. SC was built on small chapters, it's 
time to get back to basic here.

	And now to the notes...

	My main push in this chapter was to have the Crystal Warriors get
the penultimate shard. My second agenda was to play with the character's
powers and see what they could do. 

	Twix's power upgrade through the Codex Ares was, I felt, a logical
step. The Twixs have always summoned as a pair and, with one dead, the 
male Twix probably can't do much anymore. Since 2 Twixs weren't enough 
to kill the CWs, 1 underpowered Twix wouldn't stand a chance. The Codex
is meant to give the male Twix an undefined edge. How much power he has
and what he can now do is left entirely to future authors' discretion. 
Wintergreen took Twix back onboard because he'll serve as a weapon 
against CWs. He's dead either way, but, to Wintergreen, at least this 
way he serves a useful purpose.

	I tried to make Ganache seem like a Roman-esq trade empire. It's 
far enough away from Wintergreen's domain that it hasn't yet been 
attacked, but it's still big enough to be the main push once the Dark
Queen gets off her continent. As you saw at the end of the chapter, 
the softening up of Ganache has begun.
	
	The genocide of the Kelloggs is modeled on the elimination of the 
native peoples of the Americas and Australia by foreign colonists. 
	
	I fudge reality a bit on the Grand Canal, mainly because I needed 
to have the CWs on the move in a fast way. The extent of the canal and 
the farms it feeds is roughly the width of the state of Iowa. 

	The quasi-resurrection of Mia and Akie was not meant to EVER 
HAPPEN AGAIN. Bubblicious mentions that it took a thousand years of 
pooling magic (through the temple) in order to build the inhuman bodies
the two girls use and, even then, they lasted maybe ten minutes before 
going *poof*. 

	The attack on Ganache by fire ships was meant as 
something of a cliffhanger. My reasoning for this is as follows: the 
CWs, after getting back from the temple, will have not only have to 
travel BACK to Ganache, but then will have to spend at LEAST 2 weeks
on a ship going back to the mainland. That's too long a time just 
to skip over and, on its own, would be a bit boring sense we already
spent on sea journey on pure character development. I feel (and this
can be overruled/ignored by the next authors) that having the CWs 
running a blockade back to the mainland would be an exciting thing 
to write/read. Again, and I can't stress this enough, if you want 
to write for SC and also want to ignore the blockade/attack 
completely, feel free; it's your chapter(s).

	Brownie points to those who spot the pop culture reference in 
the sculpture Yumi looks at early on. Extra points to those who spot 
the musical reference Hershey's son is name after.
	
	I gave Mars two moons. I don't know exactly if this is grounded 
in continuity but neither I, nor my prereaders, knew of any text that 
contradicted my statement. I didn't include this in the story, but I 
imagined as the moons based on the two M&Ms from the commercials. You 
know, the small red one and then the big yellow one? Future authors, 
don't feel compelled to stick to this idea. 


	Now for thanking my prereaders. 

	Thanks to Nicolas Juzda for spending ten hours prereading my 
rough draft. I may have had to correct my horrendous grammar/spelling/
word verity by hand but he had to ID each error from raw text. His 
advice was influential in leading me to totally rework the dead 
priestesses appearances. God bless you.

	Thanks to Nathan for his tips on the haggling and the whole canal
situation, as well as his tips for editing various lines. Without him,
much logic would be absent for this chapter. It would also be about 20k
longer and much more boring to read.

	Thanks to Greg Sanders for reassurances on certain scenes and his 
advice on the actions of various characters. 

	
	Lastly, I'd like to give thanks to Ardweden for creating Starburst 
Crystal and being the Admin she is. Her advice was vital in the 
formation of this chapter's plot.



	Here's the candies used:

 

Arthur Wilkinson Slugworth --- Godivian inventor; character from 
                               Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
Bubblicious                --- Ancient (and now dead) keeper of the 
                               Temple of the Warrior Priestesses; 
                               type of bubblegum
Kelloggs                   --- Extinct (?) native species of Godiva; 
                               cereal brand company
Neapolitan                 --- Chief Guard; tri-flavored ice cream
Oreo                       --- Godivian currency; chocolate cookie



	I did something different with the officials of Ganache, 
referencing candy-oriented holidays instead of merely candy

	Ganache Officials:

Valentine                  --- Ganache's mayor, Popular greeting card 
                               holiday
Mr. E'star Bunn            --- Mayor's assistant, play on "Easter 
                               Bunny"
Halloween                  --- Genocidal Ganache mayor, an American 
                               holiday centered on candy




FINAL SCORE:
Doublemint       --- 2
Sacred Temples   --- 0