It was Satoru's idea that Hikaru and Lantis have a
match. The pressure and stress and all the worrying were
clearly taking its toll on his little sister. It turned out
to be a good idea. At least it allowed all of them to take
their minds off the crisis at hand.

     The elder Shidou focused on Hikaru and was once again
awed by her. Ever since she was a little girl, he knew--no,
*believed*-- there was something special about the youngest
member of the family. She kept on surprising him at every
turn. Even as a child, she exhibited advanced eye and hand
coordination uncommon in others her age. The pattern
continued as she grew, learning new skills quickly. So
quickly, in fact, that her prowess in kendo exceeded his
and that of his brothers when they were all her age.

     When Satoru found out that Hikaru became the goddess
of another world, he was truly shocked. But upon further
reflection, he realized that it was just another
affirmation of his beliefs about his little sister's
capabilities. The elder Shidou cleared his mind of stray
thoughts as he approached the site of the match.

     It was decided that Lantis and Hikaru were going to
spar on the lawn. It made sense. Out here, the combatants
need not change into attires appropriate for the dojo. At
this point, they had to be prepared. Who knew when the
aliens would attack?

     Lantis was already there when Satoru came out. The
black armor-clad warrior from Cephiro nodded to Satoru when
he saw him. The elder Shidou sat down cross-legged on the
grass and wondered what they were going to use for weapons.
He implied that the match would be a swordfight and that
they were to use shinais. Perhaps Hikaru was going to bring
one out for Lantis.

     Satoru watched the Cephirean did some basic stretches,
alternately rotating his shoulders and neck. He eyed Lantis
as he reached back and retrieve a black object. Upon closer
scrutiny, it appeared to be a hilt of a sword. Satoru's
eyes widened when a bright light exploded out of the hilt.
When he blinked, Lantis was already holding a sword, which
was glowing intensely. He began to perform sword kata.
Satoru watched intently, not recognizing the style at all.

     "Pretty cool, eh, Elder Brother?"

     Satoru jumped in surprise upon hearing Hikaru's voice
so close to his ear. He didn't sense her approach at all.
It was very disconcerting. "Hikaru, you scared me!" He
fixed his little sister with a reprimanding glare.

     "I'm sorry," was her reply but her mischievous grin
belied her remorse. She was clearly excited. "I don't know
if you know, Elder Brother, but this is going to be the
first time Lantis and I are going to cross swords."

     The elder Shidou gazed at his sibling. She was wearing
jeans, white high cut rubber shoes and a red shirt. And no
weapon. Satoru frowned. "Where's your shinai? And Lantis'
for that matter?"

     "We're going to fight with our real swords, Elder
Brother."

     "Absolutely not!"

     "Elder Brother, if it ever comes to a fight with the
aliens, we need to be prepared to fight a *real* battle."

     The other scowled. He didn't like it one bit. He
realized though that he was being protective. The idea of
using real weapons made sense. Besides--

     "Besides, Lantis and I are trained swordfighters."

     "Very well, but remember to be careful. No stunts."

     "I promise," Hikaru said but there was a twinkling in
her eye and a ghost of a grin threatening to spill out. It
was clear that the girl was fighting to keep her expression
in control.

     "I mean it, Hikaru," Satoru admonished sternly.

     "Oh, don't be such a square, Elder Brother," the
redheaded teenager said, already walking towards her
opponent. "I promise to be careful. Besides, Lantis won't
hurt me. Won't you, Lantis?" The last question was phrased
in Cephirean. She turned her attention to the magic
swordsman and smiled playfully at him.

     Lantis had already stopped his kata, watching the
Pillar with amusement. "I won't what, exactly?"

     "Hurt me."

     Lantis snorted. "I won't hurt you...much."

     "I'm appalled! You swore to protect me," the Pillar
said, holding a hand to her chest in mock dismay.

     "If you get hurt, it will be your own fault. Now, come
on. Let's do this," Lantis said, mirth still clearly
visible in his eyes. He decided he really liked this
playful side of Hikaru. Who knew that a Pillar could
actually know how to have fun?

     "Oh, very well." Hikaru stretched out her right hand
and in burst of flame, her magnificent fire sword
materialized. She glanced at Satoru and saw his amazement.

     Satoru shook his head. He would probably never get
used to seeing his sister do that no matter how many times
he saw it. At any rate, it was his first real good look at
the weapon she was wielding. It seemed very clumsy compared
to the katana, and a bit longer. It looked to be a
broadsword with a golden tip and very elaborate cross
guard. Hikaru swung the sword a bit as she squared off with
Lantis. For his part, the Cephirean was holding his sword
with two hands in front of him, his eyes carefully watching
the other combatant. It was one of the many basic ready
stances.

     Without warning, Hikaru charged. Again, Satoru was
astonished at the speed in which she moved. The swords
connected again and again, too numerous for the elder
Shidou to count. All in less than two seconds. With one
final block from Lantis' sword, Hikaru did a backwards
somersault, landing nimbly on her feet.

     Although neither combatants appeared short of breath,
the tall swordsman seemed to be the more harried by the
initial encounter. It appeared that Lantis had not expected
the ferocity that Hikaru put into match. Hikaru seemed to
have noticed this too; she was smiling confidently,
obviously pleased with herself.

     Once again, they squared off, both moving in a circle
opposite each other, sizing each other's defenses. Hikaru
attacked again. The swords crossed repeatedly, each
connection giving off some sort of bright energy and a
thunderous report. Hikaru was everywhere, twirling and
swirling, swinging and striking, jumping and tumbling, here
and there. It was clear that Lantis was an accomplished
swordsman. Better than anyone I know, Satoru thought and
yet he was having great difficulty blocking and parrying
the other's sword. It became clear that Hikaru was backing
him up against the high wall that fenced the Shidou
property.

     Lantis realized this too. In the split second where
his sword was not in contact with Hikaru's, he leapt
upwards onto the wall just in time to avoid the latter's
double-edged blade, which was swinging laterally and would
have cleaved him in two had he been where he was.

     The redheaded teenager also leapt backwards when she
realized that her target was no longer there. She readied
herself anticipating an attack that she knew would come
from above. When a whole second passed and no attack came,
she frowned in disappointment at the swordsman who was
standing at the top of the wall.

     "Hey, no fair! Come down here, Lantis," Hikaru said in
a manner akin to a child asking another to come down and
play.

     Lantis was clearly winded this time and took a moment
before answering. "Just a moment," he paused, raising his
hand and taking a deep breath. "Princess, you've got to
take it easy. You're like a whirlwind. But I'm not through
with you yet."

     Hikaru lowered her sword and eyed her opponent
skeptically. She knew all of Lantis' magic attacks.
Predictably, Lantis raised his sword straight up into the
air and cast his spell in a thunderous voice. "Lightning
bolt, come forth!"

     Satoru's eyes widened in alarm for the umpteenth time
as the sky directly above Lantis instantly darkened and
within a second, a bolt of lightning did streak downwards
toward his sword. The moment it touched the tip of the
blade, the swordsman lowered it, aiming it at Hikaru.

     "Hika--" Satoru began but before he could complete it,
he saw his sister raise her left hand as if the mere action
would ward off such an awesome attack. To his eternal
amazement once more, the streaks of burning light just
splashed harmless at the area in front of Hikaru's hand.
Only belatedly did Satoru notice the silhouette of a sphere
that surrounded his sister. Hikaru had erected some sort of
shield against the attack. He took a deep breath of relief.
He realized that Lantis would never truly hurt his sister
and that he knew that she was capable of protecting
herself. He looked up at Lantis and saw a twinge of
disappointment cross his features.

     "My turn," Hikaru said.

     "Uh oh," Lantis replied, his eyes widening.

     The Pillar raised her sword and cast her spell but in
a softer and gentler voice. "Lightning bolt, come forth."
As before, several fingers of lightning raced down and
touched the tip of Hikaru's sword, igniting it. She then
aimed it at Lantis. For his part, the swordsman braced
himself, putting his sword in front of him.

     Satoru knew what to look for and was already aware of
a similar shield now surrounding the swordsman. However,
the lightning bolts that struck the shield did not splash
harmless over it. Instead, the deadly fingers of
electricity continued to streak out in all directions,
seeming to embrace the magic shield. Lantis' knees began to
buckle under the strain of keeping the integrity of his
shield intact.

     The elder Shidou swept his eyes back at his sister and
realized that she was continuously feeding energy to the
lightning that was relentlessly eating away at the other's
defenses. Satoru was about to shout out a warning but it
turned out to be unnecessary. Just as Lantis' shield was
about to finally give way, Hikaru called off the attack,
lowering her sword. The sky immediately brightened, the
dark clouds vanishing, leaving absolutely no trace of its
ever having existed at all.

     Lantis dropped his arms wearily, his sword retracting
into the hilt. He was sweating profusely and shaking his
head. "You have truly become very powerful, Hikaru," he
said as he hopped down from the wall.

     "I'm sorry. I hope I didn't overdo it," Hikaru said,
rushing to his side.

     "No," Lantis waved away the apology. "I'll...recover.
Tell me though; you weren't using the full extent of your
powers in that attack, were you?"

     Hikaru looked at him, hesitating to give her answer.

     "Just tell me the truth. I promise I won't get upset."

     She shook her head.

     "Just as I thought. I'm just glad I'm on your side,"
the swordsman managed a weak smile.

     "You better!" the redheaded teenager replied, grinning
at the other's comment. "You kno--"

     "What?" Lantis asked as he noticed the abrupt change
in Hikaru's expression.

     Satoru also saw his sister suddenly tense and rushed
towards her. "What is it?"

     The blood seemed to drain from Hikaru's face. She was
silent for awhile, her eyes glazed. When she finally spoke,
it was a deathly whisper. "Umi and Fuu are being attacked."

     * * * * *

     "Raptor's Nest, this is Eagle One. Target helicopter
is on final approach to Subject Two. Requesting instr--wait
a minute...there seems to be activity going on--holy shit!"

     * * * * *

     "Jesus Christ! Raptor's Nest, Eagle One and Two are
down! Repeat, Eagle One and Two are down!" said the pilot
of the helicopter carrying Bravo Team as he jerked upwards
on his stick, attempting to put some vertical distance
between him and the aliens.

     "Copy that, Bear Two. Deploy Bravo Team immediately.
Repeat, deploy Bravo Team immediately."

     "Roger, Raptor's Nest," the pilot replied
breathlessly. "Hold on, guys," he yelled back towards the
Marines. He veered the chopper sharply.

     The Marines looked at each other and drew grim
expressions. "Lock and load, Marines!"

     "Huuuyah!"

     * * * * *

     Mr. Ryuuzaki's eyes widened as he witnessed a total of
seven people jump off a helicopter hovering twenty meters
over his front yard, twist in midair and began firing their
deadly weapons at two American jets.

     "Daddy! Get down from there!" Umi cried as she
launched herself into the air, tackling her father to the
floor. Just then a beam of blue energy crashed through the
window where he was standing just that second ago.

     Mrs. Ryuuzaki chose that moment to enter the living
room upon hearing the ruckus. "Gods! What happened?"

     "Malor! Get my mother down!"

     Malor grabbed Mrs. Ryuuzaki's shoulders and dragged
her downwards after muttering a hasty apology. He looked up
at Umi who was still holding her father down. "What now?"

     "You stay here with my parents. I'll go down and--"

     Mr. Ryuuzaki shrugged Umi's arms off his back,
surprised at her strength and speed. "You will do no such
thing, Umi Ryuuzaki!"

     Umi whipped around and glared at her father. "I will
do what it takes to make sure that those creatures out
there will not harm the people that I love." With that she
rose. With one last look down at her prone father and a
flick of a wrist to remove errant blue hair from her
shoulder, she walked out the room.

     Mr. Ryuuzaki's growing terror became evident on his
face. His only daughter was walking out to certain danger.
He turned his head and fixed imploring eyes at Malor.
"Malor, that's my only daughter. My wife and I will be safe
in here. Please go and protect Umi."

     Malor seemed to hesitate for a moment but resolve soon
replaced his reluctance. "Very well, but you must protect
yourselves. Is there a place in this house where you can
hide in? It would be best if it is under ground."

     Mr. Ryuuzaki turned his eyes towards his wife. She in
turn replied, "Yes, there is--our basement." She faced her
husband. "Let's go, my love."

     With a nod, Ryuuzaki crawled towards his wife and
together they walked out with their bodies bent over so as
not present themselves as targets. Just as he passed Malor
he layed a hand on his shoulder. "Malor, my daughter."

     "I pledge you my life that she will not be harmed,"
Malor said and locked his eyes onto the other. "She is a
warrior, your daughter. She will prevail."

     This old man was asking him to trust a 14-year-old
girl to prevail against an entire group of alien invaders
who he had just witnessed easily dispatch two American
fighter jets with awesome weapons of destruction! Mr.
Ryuuzaki could only nod, a look of resignation in his eyes.
There was nothing left to say. He had never felt so
helpless in his life. He led his wife out of the room.

     The wizened Magic Knight watched until they were
safely outside the room. Malor closed his eyes and reached
out to the Pillar, sending her a desperate message. It was
a short message. There was no time to send a longer one.
Umi now needed his help.

     * * * * *

     "I can't believe you did that!" Joan Rumsen nearly
screamed. "Don't you dare walk away from me, Colonel
Biggs," she hissed threateningly as the object of her rage
walked past her.

     Biggs whipped around and growled, "Or what?"

     Joan was taken aback. She wasn't used to non-cowering
males. She silently cursed Bill for her complacency. "What
you did back there was a violation of human rights!"

     "In case you didn't notice, that *thing* in there was
not human. Second, *it* was already dying. You said so
*yourself.*" It was an effort to keep his voice calm, in
spite of the impatience he was feeling. "Now, if you will
excuse me, I have to make a very important report." With
that, he walked off rapidly before the other was able to
get in another word.

     "Aaaargh! That man makes my blood boil," Joan muttered.

     "Calm down, Joan," Bill's familiar voice came from
behind her.

     "How can I calm down? Bono would still be alive were
it not for his interference. The truth serum he injected
could very well be lethal to his kind."

     "You don't know that for sure," her partner said
soothingly, placing his hands on her shoulders.

     Joan shrugged the hands off, turned around and
narrowed her eyes at Bill. "Whose side are you on anyway?"

     "You're side, of course, I just--"

     Joan held up a hand to silence him. She rolled her
eyes and strode past him towards the makeshift clinic that
held her erstwhile patient. "I'm going to do an autopsy.
Man, if I find out that it was the truth serum that killed
Bono, Biggs is *really* gonna to get it in my report."

     "Here we go again," muttered Bill as he followed Joan
inside.

     * * * * *

     Masaru and Kakeru stared aghast as Fuu whizzed past
them like a hurricane to attack the aliens. They could not
have stopped her even if they tried. In the space of a
single second, she was already able to cut down two of the
invaders.

     However, the aliens appeared to be equally as fast.
That one second was enough to galvanize them into action as
they began to bring their weapons to bear on the Wind
Knight. The Shidou brothers glanced at each other and, with
a battle cry, burst out of their hiding place, their swords
drawn. The weapons which were aimed at Fuu began to move in
unison towards the brothers. Their eyes widened as they
both realized at the same time that although they were
successful in getting the attention of the aliens, it was
not the kind of attention they wanted.

     "Oh shit..." Kakeru muttered under his breath as he
skidded to a stop a few meters away from the nearest alien
whose trigger finger was already squeezing what could only
be the firing button of his weapon.

     "Winds of protection!"

     Both brothers hunched with their eyes shut tightly and
jaws clamped together in anticipation of great pain that
would accompany their deaths. When after a second passed
and they still felt nothing, they slowly opened to their
eyes and saw that they were indeed still alive. They turned
around just in time to see an alien fire quickly at them
before dashing off somewhere. Before they could once again
cringe, the beam they knew would fry them splashed brightly
just in front of them.

     "What's going on?" Masaru asked, tentatively extending
a hand to the point in space where the beam hit.

     "It's some kind of protective force field," Kakeru
uttered in wonder. "But who--?"

     Sudden movement registered on both brothers'
periphery, drawing their attention. They gaped in wonder as
Fuu deflected beam after beam from the aliens' weapons
using just her sword, continually drawing nearer to them.
She moved with such grace and fluidity to rival any
ballerina.

     "Go Fuu!" Masaru cheered. She was going to cut the two
aliens down in a matter of seconds.

     "Something's not right."

     "What are you talking about? Fuu's gon--"

     A third alien, the one that fired at them before
running off, suddenly jumped in behind the two that were
firing at Fuu. He was holding a small flashlight-like
device and aimed it at her.

     Kakeru's eyes widened in alarm. He knew intuitively
that Fuu Hououji was in grave danger. He felt a jab of pain
in his heart knowing that there was nothing he could do to
help her.

     * * * * *

     Fuu focused on another beam of energy that streaked
towards her. She deflected it as easily as the previous
dozen or so, taking just one more step nearer the aliens.
For a split second she wondered why they have not backed
down. It was illogical to stand one's ground when the
attacker is bearing down on them, impervious to their
weapons. Unless...something nagged at the back of Fuu's
mind...

     Just as she was about to make that last step to close
in on the invaders, a figure jumped in and fired a bright
light straight into her face! It was a trap! She was taken
by surprise but in the back of her mind, Fuu realized that
the weapon did not fire something she would have been able
to dodge or parry. Instinctively, she leaped out in a
tangent in an effort to avoid weapon fire she was sure was
going to follow.

     When the Wind Knight tried to open her eyes she felt
sharp, jabbing pain shoot out in all directions inside her
head. It felt like her skull was going to explode and she
almost dropped her sword with the need to wrap her hands
around her head.

     The pain, in addition to her inability to see, caused
her to stumble, twisting her ankle in the process. She was
going down but she instinctively tucked her body and rolled
neatly on the ground.

     "Winds of protection!" She cried out, willing a force
field to form around her. It was only then that she dropped
her sword and curled up in a fetal position, her head
cradled in her hands.

     "Listen to my voice," a low, guttural voice, like one
would hear coming out of a voice recorder whose batteries
were dying out, came through to her.

     "Wh-who are you?" The sharp pain in her head began to
subside, to be replaced by a dull throbbing ache.

     "You will obey my command," the voice insisted.

     "Get out of my head!" Fuu screeched out in rage. A
single tear rolled down her cheek as she shut her eyes
tightly, desperately trying to will away the pain and the
voice. She realized that the bright light was from a mind
control device. If the aliens think they can control her in
any way, they've got a surprise coming. Caldina prepared
the Magic Knights and made sure that they were no longer
susceptible to any form of mind control.

     Nevertheless, knowing that the aliens would not be
able to control her held little comfort for the Wind
Knight. She still felt helpless against the throbbing pain
in her head. She felt them draw closer. It won't be long
before they totally subdue her unless she got herself
together.

     There were too many depending on her. She could
not...would not fail! "Hikaru!" She mentally called out to
her dearest friend. She was the only one who could help her
now.

     * * * * *

     "I'm not sure this is wise, Hikaru," Satoru said, his
hands on his little sister's shoulder. She was agitated and
he was trying to calm her but he'd probably be more
successful trying to calm a raging storm. "You'd be playing
into the hands of these aliens who want to capture you."

     "What would you have me do, Elder Brother," Hikaru
asked, staring unflinchingly into her brother's eyes, "just
stay here while the invaders harm my best friends? *Our*
brothers?"

     A portal began to form a few steps on Hikaru's left,
much to Satoru's surprise. "Wha--"

     "Lantis, go to the portal," Hikaru said in Cephirean
without taking his eyes off her elder brother's. "It leads
to Fuu. Go first. I'll follow."

     Lantis, who had been standing behind Hikaru,
hesitated. "What about Umi?"

     "We'll go to her after we help Fuu. Besides, Malor is
with Umi."

     The magic swordsman glanced at Satoru for a moment and
then heaved a sigh of resignation. He walked the few steps
towards the portal. He glanced back at Hikaru just before
he entered.

     Hikaru turned her face away from her brother and gazed
at Lantis. "Please take care," she whispered to him, her
eyes pleading. Lantis gave her a half smile and then
disappeared into the portal. The Fire Knight turned back to
her brother. "Lantis is on his way to Fuu's. I'm going too
but I want you to come with me."

     Satoru dropped his hands from Hikaru's shoulders and
nodded his head sadly. "Very well," he said resignedly, "if
you have to go into danger, I might as well be there to
help you. I'll go get my sword." Satoru began walking
briskly back into the house. "When did she become so
stubborn?"

     "I heard you, Elder Brother," Hikaru whispered to
herself and smiled as she watched her big brother disappear
into the house.

     * * * * *

     "It's not working," Rogo growled, giving Crata a
passing glare.

     Crata shrugged. "It worked on the one human we tested
it on."

     "Well, apparently it doesn't work on all humans. Or at
least, not on this one," the team leader said, tossing the
hypnotic device in disgust. "Quick! Stun her. We'll need to
get her back. You!" he said, pointing to a member of his
team, "signal the helicopter to pick us up."

     "Yes, Sir!"

     Crata fired several stun shots at the prone figure but
the beams kept splashing harmlessly against a form of force
field. "Dammit! She's got some sort of protective shield
surrounding her."

     "You leave her alone!"

     "Yeah, you bitch! Fight someone your own size!"

     Crata glanced at the two human males at the distance.
She fired a shot at them causing them to jump back in
surprise. Unfortunately, the beam did not penetrate their
shield either. It did, however, stun them to silence. Crata
smirked.

     "Is that all you've got, bitch?" one of the males
taunted.

     The technology expert growled. The silence was too
short-lived. "Don't mind them," Rogo said. "If we both
fired on the shield, perhaps it will give way."

     "But if it did give way, won't the double the beams
injure the girl?"

     "It's a chance we have to take. C'mon, let's do it!"

     Both Rogo and Crata aimed at the girl and fired
successive beams. In the beginning, the shots just splashed
against the shield. But on sixth try, the protective shield
visibly collapsed in sparks.

     "Hey, you big bullies!"

     "Don't you dare touch her, you bastards!"

     Rogo spared a momentary glance at the two males. He
cast his eyes downwards towards the girl and reached out
his left hand to grab her arm. As both he and Crata lifted
her, he stretched out his right arm, aiming his weapon at
the noisy humans and fired without even looking.

     "Looks like our two noisy friends have lost their
shield," Crata observed, a menacing gleam appearing in her
eye. "Alpa," she said turning to a fellow Ramarian warrior
who was standing watch nearby. "Take them out," she ordered
as she helped Rogo drag the girl towards a clearing.

     "With pleasure," Alpa responded, a feral grin on her
lips. She lifted her weapon and took aim. "Better run while
you still can, boys." She fully expected them to run for
cover. So when the two humans rushed towards her bellowing
their battle cries, she was taken by surprise. She aimed at
the one on her right and fired. At the last moment both
humans leaped sideways but not before hurling their swords
towards her.

      "What the--" Rogo and Crata turned back after hearing
the gurgling cries of their colleague. Alpa was already on
the ground, two swords deeply embedded in her chest. "Damn
those humans!"

     "I'll take care of them," Crata said between gritted
teeth as she unceremoniously dropped the girl's arm she was
supporting and shifted her weapon to her right hand.

     "Crata! The helicopter will be here any second," Rogo
called out but the other continued walking away. "Crata!
Come back here. That's an order!"

     "Should I go after her, Sir?" asked the other warrior
sent to signal the helicopter.

     "No. Stay here with me and help me get this girl on
the helicopter when it arrives. Crata can take care of
herself," Rogo replied, the uncertainty in his voice
belying the verbalized confidence.

     * * * * *

     "Kuu! Are you all right?" Masaru asked as he rushed to
the girl's side. Fuu's sister had been hiding at the side
of the house, under some shrubs.

     "I-I'm okay. But Fuu! She's been captured," Kuu cried.

     "Don't worry, we'll go get her," Kakeru declared
confidently.

     "You don't say," Masaru said, eyeing his younger
brother dubiously. "They outnumber us and they have weapons
while we don't. I suppose you have a plan."

     "Um...no but I'm working on it."

     As both brothers were talking, Kuu happened to look
behind and saw one of the aliens slinking behind them.
"Masaru! Kakeru!"

     Both brothers whipped around in time to see the
invader raise her weapon. "Move!" Both brothers jumped,
half-carrying Kuu between the two of them. They hit the
ground hard a couple of meters away from where the beam
impacted.

     "You can't escape me, humans," the alien sneered as
she rushed towards them.

     "Oh no," Kuu gasped as she looked up and found the
barrel of a strange-looking weapon a few inches from her
face.

     "Uh uh uh," the alien sneered, shaking her head at the
Shidou brothers who tried to get up. "It's over."

     Lantis suddenly burst into the clearing and raised his
sword into the air, his voice thundering out a phrase in an
unrecognizable language.

     "What the--" the alien barely moved her head towards
the direction of the intruder when a bolt of lightning hit
her squarely in the chest and quickly engulfed her entire
body in electrical energy. She was thrown back, her mouth
open in a bloodcurdling scream. Masaru, Kakeru and Kuu
watched as she rolled three times on the ground before
coming to a stop. Her body seemingly broken, continued to
spasm as a few more fingers of electricity arched here and
there.

     They looked up as Lantis knelt before them. He placed
a hand on Masaru's shoulder, his eyes querying.

     "We're all right, Lantis," Masaru said, understanding
the question in the other's eyes. Lantis nodded. The magic
swordsman glanced at Kakeru and noted that his eyes were
widening in alarm.

     "The alien is getting up. How could she have survived
a lightning bolt?" Kakeru asked in wonder.

     Lantis stood and whipped around, his cape swirling
behind him, to face the enemy he thought he had already
dispatched.

     * * * * *

     Fuu began to stir. She didn't realize she had lost
consciousness. She slowly opened her eyes and it dawned on
her that she was being held up on either side by the
aliens. She carefully remained still. She didn't want alert
them. She still felt groggy though and her vision remained
blurry.

     The Wind Knight heard heavy, whirling sounds from
behind and guessed it to be the helicopter the aliens were
waiting for. *Oh no!* She had to do something. But she
still felt weak. The aliens began moving to face the
inbound craft.

     Without warning, an explosion erupted in the far wall
of the Hououji compound. *Now what?* One of the aliens
barked an order to the other as they both whipped around,
dropping her in the process. Fuu looked up to see a swarm
of heavily-armed soldiers wearing mottled battle gear flow
through the gaping hole on the wall.

     Slowly, excruciatingly, the teenager began to crawl
away. It would not do her good to be caught in the
crossfire which immediately began in earnest. The aliens
had crouched down and began firing their energy weapons,
effectively silencing all return fire from the soldiers for
the moment.

     She kept one eye on the aliens and another on the
terrain in front of her as she inched along. One of the
aliens, the one who appeared to be the leader, barked
another command at his companion. He then stopped firing
his weapon and turned to face her.

     *Uh oh!* Fuu's eyes widened in panic. The leader aimed
his weapon on her. "No! Winds of--"

     The Wind Knight screamed as she felt agonizing pain
race through her limbs as she was fired upon. *Must not
lose consciousness...must...fight...must...*

     * * * * *

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