Jaid: Come on, Jad. Just tell me!

Jad: Why don’t you ask Naga?

Jaid: Fine. Naga, where’d you go?

Naga: We visited the old Sith temples. Well, at least the ones that are still standing.

Jad: Remind me never to do that again.

Naga: Hey, I was trained there, y’know! Heck, I even built a couple of those.

Jad: *turns to Jaid* Next time, tell him I get to choose the vacation spot.

Jaid: Whatever….

************************************************************************

Relena groaned and opened her eyes. Her head hurt badly. Slowly, she sat up and blinked, trying to restore her senses.

What is wrong? She thought. Why can I not see…? Relena gulped as she realized that she was imprisoned in complete darkness; and not just a normal darkness. This one carried whispers of The Evil Shadow into her mind. Gritting her teeth and clutching the sides of her head, Relena shook.

"Stop it!" She cried. "Erian, dolboth arie!"* The shadows seemed to quiet and recede. Relena gasped for breath and leaned against what felt like a cave wall.

* * *

"Dorothy!" Sally cried, shaking the Elf. Dorothy’s eyes had glazed over again, and she was shaking, muttering in Elvish.

"Dorothy!" Sally tried again. The Pheonix roared, then placed a gigantic, shadowy, clawed foot on the stone ground and rose up out of the lava stream.

"Daria, te yamas! Te yamas!"** Sally cried. Dorothy blinked and stood, allowing Sally to drag her away. Jaran followed.

* * *

"It is getting brighter." Hiiron murmured, shielding his eyes. Indeed, the light from the crystals had becomes so bright, that even when Trowa closed his eyes, the light still pierced through his eyelids. He swallowed. He remembered how exhausted Midii had become after the use of her crystal. What if this had effects on all of them?

All of a sudden, the light receded and Trowa and Hiiron looked anxiously to where their friends where. They seemed all right…but they were changed.

All wore pure white robes and silverish armor. They held swords with silver hilts and blades that looked like their crystals. Their eyes had change as well, becoming the brilliant colors of the gems they had worn. And in one voice they spoke in an ancient tongue: "Ir ya gama Aljin?" ***

"What did they…?" Hiiron looked confused. Trowa shrugged, his green eyes wide. The dwarves behind them began to murmur.

Again, as one, the chosen ones repeated their question and stepped forward, down the stairs of the dais and down the hall. The warriors and the dwarves made way for them.

"All right." Hiiron commented. "That has to be the oddest…" He stopped as they heard a cracking noise. The egg he had found began to rock, as cracks rapidly formed.

* * *

"Keep running!" Sally shouted. "There is no way we can fight that."

Jaran’s hand was gripped tightly onto his sword pummel, as if he wished he could fight the Phoenix.

"Where do we go?" Dorothy asked. Sally had never seen her so shaken. "The Phoenix can pierce our minds; there is no hiding from it!"

"Do not lose your wits!" Sally ordered. "Follow me!"

* * *

"Is it hatching?" Hiiron asked, awed. He stepped forward and Trowa grabbed his arm.

"Don’t." he said. "We know not if it is friendly."

"Duo told us that it was not harmful." Hiiron insisted.

"To non-humans." Rorco said, with a wry note to his voice. Another dwarf spoke up.

"It can only bind itself to non-humans."

"Oh." Hiiron blinked. "Then…?"

"It will not harm you." Rorco said. "But it is not prudent to approach a Cave Kavu too soon after it is hatched."

"Ah." Hiiron stepped back a little. Trowa let go of his arm.

* * *

Alisqua entered the dim room. Aljin sat there, his eerie green glow the only bright light in the room. She bowed respectfully.

"You have failed me." He said. "You let Treize escape."

"Not on purpose, my lord." She looked up. "He was-"

Alisqua was cut off as Aljin’s ghostly hand was held out.

"My lord?"

"Your staff, woman." He said curtly. Alisqua blinked.

"But-"

"Give it to me!"

Alisqua slowly handed it over. Aljin took it in his hands.

"At last." He murmured. "At last I can take physical form." He lifted his hooded head. "But you Alisqua, I fear, will never have that pleasure again."

Alisqua’s dark eyes widened and she stepped back in fear. Aljin gave a crackled laugh and swung Alisqua’s staff in a mighty blow, picking her up and throwing her against the wall. She slumped, her neck broken and was dead before she hit the ground.

Aljin walked over. "You failed me too many times." He whispered. "But now, vengeance is mine!"

He broke the dark crystal from off the staff and began to laugh as his body absorbed it. The green aura turned black, until the darkness consumed him. The dark cloud entered Alisqua’s body and it stood, the head hanging at a sickly angle. Aljin laughed again, enjoying the strength of his new body. Picking up the staff, he said in a queer mockery of Alisqua’s voice, "You did however, provide me with a comfortable housing until I can regain my true form! But now, it is high time I dealt with Treize and the rest of the chosen ones."

* * *

Dorothy stiffened and stopped suddenly. Sally did as well. Jaran looked at the two women in confusion.

"No." Dorothy whispered.

"We are too late." Sally murmured, fear showing in her blue eyes. Jaran looked confused.

"What do you mean?" he asked. Sally turned to him, a tear slipping down her cheek.

"It’s Aljin." She whispered. Jaran’s eyes widened, and he took a step back. Sally nodded sadly.

"He has regained the dark crystal and his old powers."

* * *

"Whoa." Hiiron took a step back. "How did something so large fit into…that?"

"One of the mysteries." Rorco smiled. The Cave Kavu was enormous, having to crouch in order to not hit its head. Blinking its black eyes, the Kavu swung his head down to inspect the tiny beings it shared the room with.

Who are you? The Kavu softly growled, but the others heard the voice more in their minds rather than with their ears.

Rorco stepped forward and said something in dwarvish and held out a hand. The Kavu bent down and touched the dwarf’s hand with its snout, then looked up again and gave a low, rumbling growl.

The doors opened and three people entered the room. One was a tall woman, with wheat-blonde hair and blue eyes. She held a simple white and blue staff in her hand and she wore brown leggings, a white tunic and a sky blue cloak that was now stained and dirty. A sword was strapped to her belt, as were several pouches.

Behind her was a man. He too wore brown leggings and a white tunic, as well as a chain-mail shirt. His sword was in his gloved hand.

The third was an elf-maiden, dressed in the green-gold armor of her people. Her braided blonde hair fell nearly to her feet and her face was smeared with blood and black liquid, now dried. A broken arrow was in her calf.

The two groups stood for a moment, staring at each other. Then the Kavu snorted and bent down, looking at the doors.

"He wants to get out." The Elf whispered.

"He’ll have to break the doors down first." Trowa said. The Kavu looked at him, then at the woman and growled almost regretfully.

Out of the way. They heard and accordingly stepped back. The Kavu set it’s shoulders against the stone doors and with a groan, knocked through them and through the frame. The others closed their eyes and held their breaths as boulders rained down. When the dust settled, they saw the Kavu, waiting for them. It motioned to them.

Come. It is safe here no longer. Then it turned and began to walk.

"It’s going the wrong way." The man said. "We just ran from that direction."

"Why?" Hiiron asked. "And why are you here? Not prisoners, I think."

"No." the woman shook her head. "We were sent here. But I do not think we have the time to explain. A Phoenix is down there and I fear…" she paused, looking at the Elf, then lowered her voice. "I fear that my companion cannot go back."

Hiiron looked at Trowa. "So," he said. "Any ideas?"

***********************************************************************

*Father, help me. Even though Erian is the name of the Creator, it can mean several different things, including the more personal note with which the Elves often use.

**Dorothy, we must flee! We must flee!

***Are you here, Evil One?

Jaid: Um, just thought I would mention that…I GOT THE LORD OF THE RINGS DVD!!!! ^__^

Jad: …That was completely irrelevant.

Jaid: Quiet. I’m so happy! Except for the fact that I have to wait till November to get the one with all the cut scenes. *sighs* It’s not fair.

Naga: Who said life was fair? You think it’s fair that I’m forced to be your muse?

Jaid: Nobody asked you. It was a rhetorical statement, stupid.

Jad: Please R&R! Or e-mail if you want. Jaid loves e-mail!

Jaid: Yes I do! ^_____^

Naga: *mutters* Somebody save me please.