Chapter 7 - Journeys

Location: Cerlias, Andrai. 
Time: AD: 230 Year of Xanthia XII

	 
	Sethani-Ri was still not totally sane as Yeliashi examined the almost deathlike state her Sen'tai was in. The 
warrior held the young head in her hand and totally ignored the presence of the healer as she went about her work. 
Yeliashi had absolutely no idea what had happened to her patient, only that some experience had caused her to totally 
block out everything. A block that was so complete that not even Sethani-Ri was able to get through. The only thing that 
Yeliashi had been able to determine was that the shutdown had been caused by a complete panic. The source of that fear 
had literally driven the girl into some sort of mental coma that was beyond her ability to overcome.
	It took her a while to admit, but she could do absolutely nothing about the girl's condition. With that realisation 
she made the girl as comfortably as she could and turned her attention to the warrior who was still desperately trying to 
bring she Sen'tai back.
	"Sethani?" Yeliashi tried gently to get the Highborn's attention.
	Sethani-Ri continued to ignore her as she stroked the young face, mumbling quietly to herself.
	"Sethani-Ri? let her go?" 
	Still no reaction, so Yeliashi took a deep breath and gently tried to separate Sethani-Ri from the Sen'tai. The 
reaction of the Highborn was instantaneous. Yeliashi was violently thrown to the floor as Sethani-Ri instinctively reacted 
to the threat against her injured Sen'tai. Sethani-Ri hissed in a warning tone at the intruder before returning to her stroking 
activity.
	"By the?" Yeliashi swore to herself as she eased herself off the floor. She was getting damned too old for this 
sort of thing. She looked at the Highborn still protectively crooning to the girl, and nodded. Sethani-Ri was acting purely 
on the instinctive level and as such Yeliashi had no hope of trying to get the Highborn to release the girl of her own will. 
Yeliashi considered for a moment what the best course of action was to be. Did she try and force the two apart, or did she 
try and let Sethani-Ri care for her Sen'tai until the Highborn came back to her senses? Joinings with alien species were 
rare and always impossible to predict. Yeliashi hated to think what would happen if she tried to force the issue, so she 
slowly retreated from the Joined pair and returned to the next room.
	"Well?" a large, well dressed Highborn said.
	"Cali-Ai," Yeliashi bowed low before her Emperor. "You honour us with?"
	"Enough of that!" the Highborn snapped. "Tell me what is the matter with my grand daughter and her Sen'tai!"
	"Sethani-Ri," Yeliashi began. "Is suffering from whatever has happened to her Sen'tai. That at least I know 
about, and can treat. However, her Sen'tai is another matter all together! I have absolutely no idea what is wrong with the 
girl, or how to treat it."
	"Sethani Joined with an alien species - it is possible that this is some sort of reaction to that?" A smaller man 
behind the Emperor said.
	"To be honest I have no idea," Yeliashi wrung her hands. "We have never encountered this species before, and 
the Joining was never supposed to take place outside of the Highborn. Apart from the few that have taken place, we still 
have no really experience of what happens when such a link occurs. I am sorry my Lords, but?"
	"How bad is the danger they face? Will they be okay?"
	Yeliashi shook her head sadly. "I do not know my Lord. Sethani-Ri is in no danger, unless her Sen'tai's 
condition worsens, but unless a way can be found to break the barrier that her Sen'tai has erected..." She looked at Cali-Ai. 
"If the barrier is not broken, and soon, then the NEED of the Joining will kill them both."
	"Then do it, Karethi!" the small man order.
	"Don't you think I haven't tried!" Yeliashi spat out in a bitter anger. "Sethani-Ri is like a daughter to me!  I 
CAN'T do a thing!" She stopped for a moment and with an effort managed to calm herself.
	"Leave us," Cali-Ai ordered gesturing for the Karethi healer to leave.
	Yeliashi's head shot up with astonishment. "My lord? that would not be advisable. I need?"
	"Karethi," the smaller man said with disdain. "You have already said you can do nothing, so go. The Highborn 
take care of our own. This is beyond you. Leave."
	Yeliashi shot a glance back at the room, in which the two Joined still were. She knew she could do little for 
them, but the thought of leaving?
	"Go!" Cali-Ai ordered.
	"My... Lords," she bowed and left.
	"That Karethi gets more insolent all the time," the smaller man stated in an annoyed tone.
	"Yeliashi has served by grand daughter well for a Karethi. Let her have a little leeway, D'ai."
	"Perhaps, but she is rapidly approaching the point where her age makes her of little use, especially now that 
Sethani-Ri is Joined."
	"That may be true but you will respect her position until then. Do I make myself clear?" Cali-Ai looked at D'ai 
for a moment. The Highborn's attitude to the Karethi was well known, but now was not the time.
	D'ai lowered his head in acceptance, then he spoke. "My Lord, since the Karethi cannot do anything in this 
matter, may I have your permission to summon the Initiate Shai-an and his Joined from the White Tower? He may be the 
only one who can keep, especially as his Sen'tai is also of alien birth."
	Cali-Ai's eyes flashed with anger at the mention that name, and it took him a moment to calm himself. 
	"Shai-an was exiled for the rest of my reign. I will not..."
	"My Lord," D'ai broken in. "I know how you feel, but he truly may be the only one who can help your grand 
daughter. Please... let me summon him..."
	Cali-Ai's hand clenched, but he knew he had no real choice. "Do it."
	D'ai bowed and left.
	"Damn you Sethani," Cali-Ai swore as he wiped the moisture from his eyes. "Don't you dare even try to leave 
me as well... Don't you dare..."

Location: New York, USA. 
Time: AD: 2030 23 March 01:45

	Kelly wrapped herself closer to Sam as the two of them danced to the pulsating retro-music. Her hands were 
more than liberal in the areas that she groped as the dance progressed, and she thoroughly enjoyed it. Sam seemed to be 
enjoying it to from the way that her hands seemed to be slipping around the place, but she had made no other comment as 
they came to the end of yet another dance.
	As the music began to single the start of yet another song, Kelly unwrapped herself from her partner and led her 
off the dance floor towards one of the quieter areas of the club.
	"Sam," she said huskily. "We need to get back. My patience is gone, and this dancing is only making it worst."
	Sam laughed. "Gods girl! Can't you ever think of nothing else but sex!"
	"At the moment - no," Kelly answered as her eyes wandered over the loose fitting dress her companion wore.
	Sam raised an eyebrow and her eyes twinkled with amusement. "I don't think Loria is going to quite want to go 
yet. She seems to be?"
	"Stuff it Sam," Kelly said. "I NEED to go."
	"You're insatiable!" Sam exclaimed. "Okay, but we need to tell Loria. She would hang us both if we just left."
	Kelly nodded her agreement. "Okay, but let's do it now. I don't want to wait any longer than necessary."
	Sam shot her an exasperated look, and was about to say something when people on the dance floor suddenly 
began screaming.
	"What the hell?" Kelly began.
	"Get back!" Sam yelled and tackled Kelly to the floor as something like a wave or distortion of rippling energy 
flowed from the centre of the dance floor. People who were touched by the energy fell screaming to the floor and they 
seemed to writhe and change as the energy corrupted all it came into contact with. 
	"Keep down!" Sam hissed as she pressed the two of them down against the floor. The distortion passed over 
them touching everything about a meter from the ground. Kelly watched in revulsion as people, chairs, walls began to 
change. A woman opposite them held up her hands to her face screaming as her flesh blackened and fell off. She seemed 
to go insane and start ripping frantically at her face, all the time screaming. Her hair and eyes fell to the floor as she 
continued to tear at her flesh.
	Kelly screamed and struggled beneath Sam. She was nearly hysterical as the woman and other people continued 
to rip their own flesh off from their bodies. Overwhelmed by the stench and the insanity of the horror around her, Kelly 
tried to push Sam off her. Sam was screaming something at her and holding onto her for dear life, but Kelly was passed 
sanity. She thrashed like a wild animal and tore at the girl trying to hold her down.
	Sam shouted with pain as Kelly's nails tore at her face, and the insane girl tried to break away. However, she 
still managed to pin the girl down as the influx of energy finally began to dissipate. Raising herself up Sam slapped Kelly 
hard across the face. The shock at the sudden pain cut Kelly's scream off and the girl went silent as her mad eyes locked 
onto Sam's face. 
	The screams of the people corrupted by the distortion also began to fade, and gradually be replaced by 
something much more bestial as the hunger of the Unlife began to awaken in them. Slowly those who had been corrupted 
by the release of energy from the Plane of Death began to rise from where they had fallen and began to seek out the living 
warmth that HAD to be consumed. Howls of unholy need began to sound throughout the club as hollowed, burning eyes 
sought out ANY sought of the warmth that would fill the NEED within them.
	A young man who somehow had managed to survive the initial madness, suddenly ran screaming for the exit. 
Sam and Kelly turned instinctively to watch as the movement drew their eyes. The movement however drew the attention 
of others, and with gibberings of unholy joy the young man was tackled and bought to the ground by a number of things 
that had once been people. Kelly uncomprehendingly watched as the gibbering forms literally fought each other insanely 
as they consumed any part of him they could reach. Kelly could not even wrench in revulsion as horror froze her 
completely.
	Fortunately, the young man's agony did not last for long as he passed out. Kelly felt a scream building in her 
chest as her watched the ex-humans ripped the man apart with howls of unholy pleasure. Sam felt the scream building in 
Kelly and stuffed her hand over Kelly's mouth.
	"Don't you idiot?" she whispered into the terrified girl's ear.
	The sound of Sam's voice somehow bought Kelly back to the reality of the situation they were facing. The 
thought of dying like that young man killed off her terror utterly.
	"Wh?" she forced her voice to be calm. "What? what are? we?"
	"Going to do?" Sam whispered back. "Fuck knows? Keep very still and quiet?"
	The sound of another couple of panicking survivors drew the attention of the unliving horde and as quickly as 
their savaged bodies could take them they followed. The woman that had been opposite them staggered to its feet and it 
caught the scent of warm life. Slowly the thing turned and it's red eyes focused on the two girls laying opposite from it. 
The hunger and need for that warmth overcame it and gibbering with glee it threw itself at them.
	"FUCK!" Sam screamed and jumped off Kelly. Her scream and the gibbering of the ghoul attracted the attention 
of others and they rushed to feed on the warm flesh. Kelly shrieked as the Sam met the mad rush of the first ghoul head on 
and with the deadly grace of a dancer fired off a kick that crushed the creature's head throwing it back.
	"RUN!" Sam grabbed the shrieking Kelly and half dragging her bolted for one of the exits as fast as she could. 
Their panicked flight bought a host of excited howls from a number of the ghouls as they threw themselves after the 
running, living flesh.
	"THERE!" Sam yelled as she dragged Kelly and threw herself against a fire door. The door held for a moment 
as sobbing Kelly threw her weight against it as well. The door smashed open at the combined weight and a wailing alarm 
began to fill the air as they bolted out of the club into the small side street beyond. The ghouls threw themselves after the 
two, but they were much slower as Sam and Kelly bolted down the street as if their lives depended on it - which of course 
they did.
	Of the time that followed Kelly remembered little. Always running, twisting one dark street and then the next, 
following Sam as the insane gibberings of the pack began to fade behind them. Finally, her strength, and the rush from the 
fear could sustain her no more and she virtually collapsed to the wet street.
	"Kelly!" Sam yelled as she broke to a halt and moved to the panting form of the other girl.
	"I?" Kelly tried to speak.
	"It's alright Kelly," Sam knelt down and hugged the weeping, exhausted girl to her. "I think we managed to lose 
them."
	"Wh? What?" Kelly tried.
	"What happened?" Sam finished. "I have absolutely no idea. Something turned those people into? 
something? Perhaps it was these Lucifer Hawks, perhaps something else?" With that her face twisted in a dark grin.
	Kelly saw the dark grin, and compared Sam's calmness with her own dread. "How can you be calm, Sam?" she 
gasped out. "After what just happened? all those people?"
	Sam looked down at Kelly's deadly pale face and her eyes held an age that seemed to overwhelm Kelly. 
	"I have seen far more things than you can ever image Kelly," she said in a soft voice. The note of finality to the 
comment and the expression in her eyes spoke of something beyond Kelly's understanding, and it left her unnerved.
	"I?" Kelly began and Sam suddenly put her finger to her lips, and slowly turned around. Kelly felt her heart 
jump in her chest as Sam stared into the darkness.
	"What," her voice sounded unnaturally loud in that errie stillness. "What is it?" she whispered.
	Sam glanced down at her momentarily with an annoyed expression in her eyes. "I don't know? I thought I 
heard?" Her eyes turned back to scanning the darkness.
	Kelly waited for a few seconds before whispering, "I don't see anything."
	"No?" Sam whispered back, "but I think we had best leave this place and tell someone about those things. 
They will be out into the city by now."
	"You say it so calmly," Kelly muttered as she got to her feet.
	"How else do you suggest I handle it? Come on - I don't like this place, it's..." she broke off and her eyes went 
back to scanning the darkness.
	"Sam..." Kelly moved closer to the red head. "If you're wanting to scare me, you're doing a good job..." Her eyes 
followed her lover's and looked down the route from which they had come. The darkness, which once had seemed to be 
just... well... dark, was now something else. It... it seemed... to be moving almost. Kelly drew in a sharp breath and 
tightened her grip on Sam. The blackness seemed to be alive, churning, whispering, and slowly moving towards them.
	"Christ....." Kelly whispered in a strangled voice. "What the fuck is going on with tonight...."
	"Games..." Sam muttered. "Moves and countermoves..."
	"Games??" 
	Sam pulled Kelly slowly backwards, always keeping an eye on the encroaching darkness. Kelly looked behind 
them, and with a strangled sound pulled Sam to a halt.
	"Sam... look..." she managed to get out.
	Sam jerked her head around, and her eyes narrowed. A tall asian looking woman stood there, watching them.
	"Well... well..." the woman said with a smile. "Now, what exactly do we have here?"
	Sam did not answer but simply returned the woman's glare.
	"Ah," the woman in a humourless tone. "Two little children who have lost their way..."
	Kelly shuddered at the expression on the woman's face. She pulled the younger girl behind her and glared back 
at the woman.
	"What do you want?" she said in a surprisingly calm voice.
	The woman smiled and stepped forward. Kelly pulled Sam further behind her as the woman stopped a meter of 
so away from them. The woman looked at the Kelly and then Sam and her expression became amused.
	"Lovers," she commented. 
	The whispering darkness was now almost upon them and the woman looked again at the two girls. The darkness 
paused as if waiting for a judgement.
	"They are no use to me," the woman said and turning walked back into the darkness. Sam and Kelly where left 
alone, surrounded by a whispering nightmare. A nightmare that was real.
	"Sam..." Kelly pulled the younger girl to her in a tight embrace. She wanted to say so much, wanted to do so 
much, but now... She slowly bought her lips down on Sam's and gave the other girl a kiss that she hoped would say 
everything she had wanted to. She tried to block out the whispering darkness that slowly engulfed them and concentrated 
everything on that kiss.
	Sam's lips were soft and slightly salty and Kelly pushed down hard as Sam returned her kiss with a passion. The 
whispering darkness was all around them now, and Kelly could feel the freezing caresses as it seemed to be pulling the 
heat from her. She began to feel light-headed as if, something vital were being pulled from her. She pushed down her lips 
harder and put everything that she was into her kiss. Sam's lips absorbed it and greedily sucked for more. Kelly felt a dark 
warmness begin to fill her. She knew she was dying but...
	Sam suddenly broke the kiss and whispered, "wow... you ARE good..." 
	Kelly's eyes popped open and she looked incredulously at the red head. The girl had a lopsided drink on her 
face.
	"What??" Kelly forgot about the darkness, and glared at the girl.
	Sam smiled, and then looked at the freezing swirling darkness that caressed them. She held up her hand and the 
darkness curled towards it and swirled lovingly around the pale flesh.
	"You are mine," Sam said. "Nothing here will ever heart you."
	Kelly felt the freezing caress of the darkness touch her skin, but there was nothing menacing in it. It was 
almost... like a soft kiss...
	"Come on," Sam held out her hand. Kelly looked at the grinning girl.
	"What... What is going on?" she said.
	"Its letting us go Kelly," Sam said mysteriously. "I suggest we leave now... Unless of course you wish to stay 
here?"
	"NO!" Kelly shuddered. She had no idea what the hell was going on, but somehow they were going to live.
	"Then lets go," Sam took her hand and pulled Kelly to her.
	"Where... where are we going?" Kelly asked.
	"I don't have the foggiest idea," the young girl replied. "Fun isn't it..."
	Kelly shot her a look. The red head was actually enjoying this!
	"You're mad!" Kelly said.
	"Yes," Sam said with a smile. "I am, but you love me still the same - don't you?"
	Kelly did not know what to say, so she just followed her strange lover as they walked off into the whispering 
darkness. It seemed as if the two of them walked into an endless shifting void of emptiness. Only the quiet sounds of the 
living darkness that surrounded them had any meaning. To Kelly it appeared as if they walked into almost a somehow, 
greater or... different... older darkness... It did not make sense... but she felt that she had returned to something almost 
primeval.
	After what seemed to be an eternity of walking through the shifting blackness, it slowly began to fade and the 
cloying darkness began to be replaced by... trees?? Kelly did not comment, after the events of tonight she was willing to 
accept virtually anything. Undead, demons, sentient darkness, and now a giant forest. If she was mad, at least it was 
consistent.
	The ground was soft and dry, but somehow dead. The only things that were living, were the huge, ancient black 
trees that seemed to be in every direction that Kelly looked into the murky half light. The twittering darkness still flowed 
around them, but it was less pronounced as it seemed to be blending naturally into everything that surrounded them.
	Sam breathed a relaxed sigh of contentment as she looked around the silent, forest. Her relaxed nature and calm 
tone seemed to suggest to Kelly something...
	"Home," she blurted out. "You're home..."
	Sam looked at her almost startled, then she smiled wistfully. "No... my home is.... gone.... but this..."
	"What are you Sam?" Kelly looked at her. "You aren't.... human are you."
	"Human?" Sam almost laughed. "Why would I want to be a human?"
	The darkness seemed to swirl with amusement around the two of them. Kelly almost pulled back with...
	"Kelly..." Sam said with a calm look in her eye. "I will never harm you, you belong to me now." Her eyes shone 
with amusement and she walked a few paces back. She pulled the straps from her dress and let it fall to the ground, 
revealing the slim pale skin form beneath. She looked at Kelly for a moment and then lay down. 
	Kelly's heart was thumping as she looked at the unnaturally white skin and the short red hair that fell down the 
girl's neck. The living darkness twitted with amusement and something else as it lovingly touched the white form. Kelly 
swallowed - demon, vampire, goddess, devil... Whatever the pale girl was, Kelly... needed her... Even if it cost her her 
soul... Her clothes fell to the ground and almost as if she were an innocent virgin she hesitated... then she joined her pale 
lover on the dead, soft forest floor.

Location: Tokyo, Japan. 
Time: AD: 2030 27 March 13:04

	 Rally listened to the endless discussions with something almost like disgust. For the last 3 days the delegates of 
the world's major powers had been doing nothing more than rake up the remains of the past, instead of focus on what they 
had come here to do in the first place. The lessening of the entities attacks, and the confusion that had been caused by the 
death of the American President had only helped to run a promising beginning into molasses. Countries, rather than facing 
the reality of the situation, chose instead to descend into the familiar rituals and positioning that saw nothing being done. 
	Unusually for what Rally expected of Reece, the man had stayed quietly in the background, letting the situation 
grow increasingly worst. Indeed, it seemed to Rally that the man somehow wanted it to descend into confusion, and this 
unnerved Rally even more. However, what horrified Rally more was that her ability to fight the Lucifer Hawks, the worlds 
ability to fight them was growing steadily to be more of a joke as time passed. The loss of Katsumi, AMP, Alex and Yuki, 
the scattering of her remaining members to the four corners of the world. It dismayed in a way nothing else could. The 
only good news that had come was the lack of any entity activity, and this too Rally took as a mixed blessing. If they 
attack now, there would be little strength to stop them, but for some reason just know to themselves they had held back. 
Apart from a few appearances here and then the only major incident had been a blood curdling report from New York, a 
few days ago. A report of unliving corpse attacking people in a major inner suburb, and that incident had not "felt" like the 
work of entities. Rally did not know what was going on anymore. The best she could do was hope and pray that 
something, anything would happen which offered some sort of hope in this madness.
	None of the news on the other fronts was much either. With the loss of both Alex and Yuki - Mana, Kiddy, 
Lebia and Nami were literally travelling nearly non-stop. Nami had had some success with the Magician's Guild. They had 
managed to provide a force of 15 Adepts, who had even been able deal with a number of Lucifer Hawks. They were the 
best however, that the Guild had been able to provide. They had nowhere near the power that was required to mid-level 
entity, not to mention someone like Katsumi. Those 15 were however, the only magical force at Rally's disposal. Both the 
Clan and the Brotherhood still refused to have anything to do with Rally's efforts. Jamie still blamed the Japanese, and 
Rally, for the loss of her "granddaughter", and was killing any efforts which Rally made to get their help. As for the 
Brotherhood... They were playing their own game.
	As the current delegate droned on, Rally shifted through the report that Nami had made before she left for 
Australia. Nami had finished what she could to help the Chinese government. With the force of Adepts at their call, the 
Chinese were probably the country best off, but they had not been happy about Nami leaving. The others were in a similar 
situation. Lebia was stuck on her own trying to help the EU develop more effective gravaton weapons for general 
deployment. The member countries had already deployed and trained over 5000 men in their use.  That force however had 
already been dispatched back to their home countries as defence against any entity incursions. With the successes 
however, had come the same problems as Rally was experiencing now - the lack of entity action. The momentum, the 
need for positive action had slowly down as governments no longer began to be in immediate threat. Oh, they still 
demanded the services of the ex-AMP "consultants" but when it came to spending the large amounts of money that these 
projects needed, then it was another story.
	Kiddy and Mana's report was even worse. The US government was virtually paralysed by infighting between its 
three main parties - the Democrats, the Republicans and the Imperialists. The death of the President who had been able to 
almost mystically weld the three into a cohesive force had meant a shattering of that alliance, and the infighting was now... 
messy. The US military had been placed into the delicate position of having to take independent action, and according to 
Mana's report where beginning to "like" it. Rally shuddered at the possibilities in that word.
	To put it simply - with the exception of a few cases the world was going to hell in a basket and she could do 
bugger all about it.

	Captain Hidoshi looked at the reports on his desk, and he too had a sinking feeling - but for a completely 
different reason. Hidoshi had always thought he understood his commander. Understood him as much as any man was 
able, but the last few weeks... Reece had shifted from a man who seemed to be always in control, to a man who was 
almost always preoccupied by something. He seemed to be deliberately ignoring what was happening around him, and 
concentrating solely on something that Hiroshi was not even aware of. Hiroshi was left trying to pick up the pieces.
	 
Location: ??. 
Time: ??

	Kelly wondered alone and contented through this strange timeless land of shifting darkness and huge trees. The 
soft insane twittering and loving caresses of her lover's minions caused her to laugh. They were almost continually with 
her now, and she had almost as much fondness for them as they obviously had for her. It was them that had showed her 
something of the strange marvels of this twilight world, the wonders that Sam had called her "collection". Things like 
huge ancient cities of pink marble and crystal that glowed gently in the murky light, or huge towers that seemed to stretch 
up forever. Towers in whose wall Kelly had seen imbedded galaxies. Crazy things...
	A soft wet pair of lips brushed the back of her neck and a pair of dark arms wrapped themselves around her. 
Kelly smiled and leaned back into the black softness of Lloth's well-developed form.
	"Found you..." the ex-Demon Goddess whispered into her ear as she gently nibbled at her ear.
	Kelly did not answer, but simply sighed in pleasure.
	"What are you doing?" Lloth asked as she continued to taste the ear.
	"Exploring," Kelly answered. "Sam said that once she had collected things which interested her. Things that 
were still scattered through out this place."
	"Why?" Lloth finished on the ear and turned her attention to Kelly's neck.
	"I want to get to know Sam..."
	Lloth's head lifted and she laughed. "Don't even bother, my little flower. You only see what she wants you to 
see - she is what she is."
	"But..."
	"Child," Lloth kissed her face. "She lets us share something of what she is, but never try to understand her. It is 
like trying to understand emptiness, an utterly pointless act. Simply be glad that she lets us share this much of her... and 
each other... Mmmm... Tasty..."
	Kelly hissed with pleasure and the liquid darkness swirled in pleasure as the two sank to the forest floor.

	The high school student screamed in terror and ran as that.... woman once again appeared in front of her. The 
woman smiled, the hunt was always more fun when the prey ran. With a gesture she sent the gibbering darkness after the 
young girl again. The woman sniffed the air at the exotic smell of the girl's terror and then once again began the hunt.
	The horrified girl ran as fast as her exhausted legs could carry her. She could hear the whispering of the 
darkness as once again the _things_ started to chase her. Her heart was pumping in her ears so loudly she thought it was 
going to burst. Why... why had this happened to her? She had left school only a few hours late, running home to get back 
before her parents began to worry. It had been getting dark and she had begun to run, when she had first heard them... 
Footsteps... Single unhurried footsteps following her. She had begun to worry then... The tales and warnings of her parents 
had come back to her - so she had sprinted towards home. She had turned a corner and run straight into the woman. At 
first she had been winded but relieved it was a woman. She had even tried to apologise, but the words had died in her 
mouth when she had seen the hungry look in the woman's eyes. It was then that the true horror had begun. 
	The girl forced her lungs to drag in more air, but they were burning and she could hear the footfalls slowly 
following her again. She stumbled and almost fell. The gibbering amusement sounded close behind her and somehow the 
fresh terror got her to her feet. She tried one last dash, one final effort to escape the.... THUD!
	She smacked right into another body about her size. The two of them were smacked to the floor. The girl the 
student had run into cried out in pain as she hit the pavement hard. The student was luckier, she landed on the girl. The 
two off them lay sprawled on the ground. The student was too stunned for a moment to think. She face rested against 
something that was warm, soft and.... warm... She breathed, and a strange perfume filled her lungs. The smell made her 
feel...
	"Hey!" the girl said. "Watch where you are.... Ahhh..." Her voice hissed in a strange way and the student 
realised where her face had landed.
	"YAAAH!" her face shot up as the terror once more returned.
	"Are you okay?" the girl tried to recover her wind, and her modesty. Her face however was concerned as she 
tried to steady the quivering student.
	"Ru.. Run!" she managed to say. "Get away!! Please!!"
	"Shhh," the other girl said with a smile. "I'm okay, but you don't look to peachy... Is something wrong..."
	"Please..." the student begged the other girl. "Run away.... I..."
	"Hush," the girl pulled the shuddering student to her. "It's alright... hush..."
	The student felt the warmth of the girl as she held her, and slowly she felt the terror began to fade.
	"Shh..." the girl said. "Everything will be find. Do you trust me? Do you want me to help you? Will you accept 
me... and my price..."
	The student was too exhausted and frightened to do anything but cling to the girl. She knew she was going to 
die, knew that she had condemned this other girl to death as well, but... she needed that warmth and comfort. If she were 
to die then at least it would be with...
	"Well, well," a mature female voice said. "Two for the price of one. Good, this hunt has been fun."
	The student quivered and gripped tighter to the girl. The girl's arms closed protectively around her and helped 
her as she stood up.
	The woman watched with a growing hunger as they two girls stood up. The life force of the innocent girl was a 
succulent dish, and the other... The woman stopped. The other girl had no aura.
	"Hello again," the young red head said with a smile as she easily held the student protectively to her.
	"Again?" the woman said with a cold humour. "I don't think so... You and your little friend..."
	"Bing bong!" the girl said with a mocking expression. "Wrong! You see this little one is under my protection, 
and you..." The girl's face twisted in a gleeful expression. "Well, you are... pretty pretty..." She giggled.
	The woman's expression became uncertain. This girl... something... The woman's glance moved to the amused 
twittering darkness.
	_KILL_ the woman commanded.
	The girl giggled again, and the darkness twittered with more amusement.
	__KILL__ the woman COMMANDED!
	Gibbering the darkness rushed at the girl and slowly began to caress her. The woman smiled.
	The girl giggled again, and she sighed lovingly as the gibbering darkness caressed her.
	"Naughty..." the girl laughed as the darkness twitched playfully at her clothing. The darkness cowered at the 
playful reprimand, and then slowly, more gently touched the girl.
	The woman's eyes bulged as she felt true shock for the first time in centuries. _KILL_ KILL_ 
KILLKILLKILLKILLKILL!!!!
	The girl giggled insanely. She face was gleeful as she turned to the woman.
	"You stupid bitch," the girl said in a playful voice. "You can't command them to kill me... I AM the Darkness... 
and you... You are amusement..."
	The woman slowly backed away in horror, as the whispering insanity suddenly became much... richer...
	"No..." she said as the gibbering horror slowly began to move towards her. "NO!!" she screamed and turned and 
fled.
	"Have fun..." the red head said to the darkness as it gleefully went after it's new playmate. IT wanted FUN... 
and...
	"Children..." Samantha sighed in a loving voice and then turned her attention back to the high school student 
nestled in the protection of her arms. Her smile grew and she slowly raised the girl's chin.
	"It's safe Helen, the darkness is gone."
	Helen looked up with wide eyes. She was almost sorry... The other girl made no effort to release her and Helen 
was quite happy to stay for a little longer in the protection of those warm arms.
	Samantha smiled and slowly she backed away and gently released the girl. Helens face was still pale, but her 
eyes were sad as the other girl released her.
	"No Helen," the other girl said with a sad smile. "Not yet. You are 15 now are you?"
	Helen nodded, she was still exhausted and she felt light-headed. Her emotions were running high... They 
demanded... Stirrings... Needs... Desires...
	"Not yet..." the other girl wished in a promising voice. "Will you do something for me Helen?"
	"Yes..." Helen's lips trembled and she almost took an involuntary step forward.
	"On your 17th birthday - if you are still a virgin I will come..." the girl said with a rueful smile. "If you want me 
Helen, then wait for me... Okay..."
	"Yes..." Helen whispered still trying to fight the surges.
	The other girl came closer and then soft, warm, salty lips kissed Helen's hard, and a hand caught the girl as her 
knees melted away.
	"A promise..." a soft voice whispered warmly in her ear and suddenly Helen was let go. She hit her bed as her 
emotions surged crazily. It took a moment but she managed to recover enough to open her eyes. She was in her own room. 
The lights were on and she was on her bed. Slowly she sat up. Had she had a dream...
	Her tongue moistened her lips... The bittersweet salty taste of the other girl's silky lips still lingered on her own. 
No... it had not been a dream. It... it had happened.
	"A promise..." Helen whispered and closed her eyes. A warm smile come to her lips. "I promise..." she 
whispered again. "I WILL wait for you..."


Location: Cerlias, Andrai. 
Time: AD: 230 Year of Xanthia XII

	The procession of guards and caravans passed silently into the ancient ruins as the storm broke overhead. The 
already fading light of the day began to quickly vanish as the black clouds overhead cut out the little light that was still 
available. The initial guards to enter the ruins quickly dismounted and drawing their blades spread out to ensure that the 
old Waystation was inhabited by nothing that would constitute a threat to their Highborn masters. The lead of the 
procession threw back the hood of his travelling cloak and looked at the still solid stonework of the ancient keep. The 
think walls, and palisade were overgrown, but were still more than protection enough. He gestured for the company to stay 
alert while the Karethi surveyed the ruins and ensured that it was safe. 
	The large cat like enshi they were riding growled their annoyance as they had to stand in the biting wind. The 
Highborn ignored the sounds as he watched the Karethi return from their patrol.
	"Well?" he demanded.
	"All is secure Lord" the ranking guard bowed.
	"Good," he turned back to the company. "Dismount!" 
	At the company, Karethi and Highborn alike obeyed. The rest of the soldiers moved into the still standing 
central hall and began to strip the enshi of their war gear. The lead Highborn dismounted his own enshi and passed the 
reins over to one Karethi. Turning he strode over to the largest of the two caravans that his company was escorting.
	"How are they?" he asked the Highborn attendant who climbed down from the caravan to speak with the Lord.
	"The same as always my Lord," the female replied.
	"Has the Sen'tai's condition changed?"
	"No Lord."
	"Very well," the Highborn paused for a second. "I will post Highborn to watch over you. This is no place for a 
Sen'tai, but if Sethani-Ri is able she might wish to join us."
	"Sethani-Ri will not leave her Sen'tai Lord." the Highborn stated firmly.
	The Highborn nodded and left. He had expected as much, but at least Sethani-Ri was calm enough to be able to 
react with reason. The Emperor's power had at least been able to that much. The warrior hated to think what this trip 
would have been like if Sethani-Ri had been locked into the instinctive behaviour she had shown when her Sen'tai had first 
fallen into this condition.
	Giving the order to his Highborn troops with regard to the caravans he turned and walked back towards the 
ancient hall. He needed to check on progress of the rest of his company. From the looks of the storm overhead they might 
be here for more than just tonight, and if the storm caused the Ford of Shiion to flood over, then that might be even longer. 
Silently he cursed the luck that had forced him to take this route, but with the trouble in the Borderlands...
	He nodded an acknowledgement to the Highborn sentry's salute as he entered the ruined hall. He looked about, 
the circular construction was typical for a pre-Imperial style. It was sturdy and properly manned would provide more than 
adequate protection.
	The violence of the storm was fortunately for all of them directed quite some distance away, even so the 
backlash that hit the ruins was still more than enough to make them all glad that they had found this place. The caravans 
had been draw close to the shelter of the central hall for shelter. Highborn stood protectively huddled against the storm's 
anger watching the caravans, as the remainders were sheltering in the hall.
	The Karethi sentry leaned against the ancient walls of the gatehouse as he tried to get some protection from the 
fury of the biting wind. Every so often he would venture out of the protection of his sheltering nook and look as best as he 
could out into the pouring rain outside. The full darkness of the night was now upon them, and with the light of the moons 
lost behind the storm clouds he could make out nothing beyond a few feet. He had his duty however and he would...
	"I did not expect that I would be having company tonight..."
	"Yaa!" the sentry exclaimed with shock and surprise as a voice spoke immediately behind him. He spun and 
drew his sword, prepared to attack whatever it was that had spoken. The stranger watched him with an amused expression 
in his eyes as the guard challenged him.
	"Who... Who are you?" the guard demanded as he held the weapon at the ready.
	The stranger took a step forward. "A Traveller," he stated simply.
	The guard immediately recognised the emphasis on the noun and he stumbled back dropping his sword to the 
ground.
	"For..." he stumbled out the words. "Forgive me...."
	The Traveller made a dismissive gesture. "Do not fear me noble Karethi, I startled you. Your reaction was 
exactly as it should be. You should not apologise for fulfilling your duty."
	"I..." the guard tried to get over his shock at meeting one of these almost legendary beings.
	The Traveller seemed amused at the Karethi's discomfort and waited while the guard tried to compose himself.
	"Ahh... Lord," the sentry was not certain how one addressed these beings. "How may..."
	"Calin," the Traveller broke in. "My name is Calin. I am no Lord, and have no desire to be one."
	"Ahh... Calin... How may I serve you?"
	Calin grinned even more. "You could start by inviting me in. This storm is getting annoying..."
	"Sorry... of course... Welcome," the sentry backed away as the Traveller passed through the gate and shook the 
excess water off his cloak.
	"Are you alone?" the sentry asked.
	"I Travel alone," Calin answered. "My kind usually prefer it that way."
	"Ahh... yes..." the sentry thought for a moment. "Perhaps you would like to follow me... Calin... and I will take 
you to the commander."
	Calin bowed his head slightly in agreement and followed the sentry away from the gate towards the main hall. 
As they cross the courtyard, Calin stopped and frowned.
	"Calin?" the sentry queried
	Calin frowned as he looked at the two caravans. The lost and pain of a Sen'tai Joining was instantly recognisable 
as the surge of emotion from the dominant bonded member washed over his mind. It was so intense that he had to shield 
against its strength. Once he was shield he was still amazed at the strength of the emotion that was generated by the Bond.
	"Who... Who is in that caravan?" he demanded of the sentry.
	"I.. I am sorry..."
	"Who?" Calin commanded.
	"Lady Sethani-Ri and her Sen'tai..." the Karethi said before he could stop himself.
	"Take me to them," Calin commanded. 
	"I..." the sentry spluttered. "My Lord, I cannot do that!"
	Calin ignored the sentry and started walking towards the caravan. The strength of this Bond was incredible! He 
had to see... 
	The Highborn guarding the caravan moved to stop him, but he simply froze them with his Will. He had to 
satisfy his curiosity and he had no time to play with these mortals. The enshi growled in acknowledge of his presence but 
offered no resistance as he passed them to climb above the caravan and enter within.
	He almost staggered as the surge of emotions washed over him as those within reacted to his presence. He had 
to slam his mind shut as that pain almost threatened to knock his own personality off balance.
	"YAAA!!" an enraged hissing Highborn threw herself at him, almost knocking him over, as one of the Bonded 
he had sought out leaped to protect it's partner from the intruder.
	Calin was actually pushed back a few feet before he was able to get a hold on the enraged Highborn. He held the 
hissing Highborn for a moment while he examined her. The waves of rage, hate and loss that flowed from the Highborn 
indicated the strength of the Bonding this one had. As the dominant partner in the Bond, the Highborn was trying to kill 
him, trying to stop him from harming her Sen'tai. Calin extended his Will and the Highborn slipped into a dreamless sleep. 
Calin gently lowered the Highborn girl to the floor and turned to examine the other member of the Bonding.
	He moved forward and looked at the Sen'tai.
	"Kaerila!!" Calin cried out in shock as he saw the face of the figure lying unconscious on the pallet. Shaking he 
slowly sank to look at the face of his sister's ancient Companion. His hand reached out and gently touched he slack face, 
and that impossibly coloured hair.
	"Kaerila..." he whispered. Somehow, impossibly she had returned and Bonded with a Highborn. She... whom 
his sister had... He forced the ancient history behind him, what was passed was passed. He looked again at Kaerila. What 
had happened to her? What had driven her into this state? The Kaerila that he had known had faced NightDrakes with out 
even blinking... and now...
	He once more touched that slack face. Something, some horror had driven the girl deep into herself. He looked 
at her for a moment and then slowly extended his Will. He entered the frozen wasteland of the girl's mind. The frozen 
darkness was terrifying, even to him. He could not see what had caused his damage, the girl's mind was completely closed. 
He could repair the damage, or be better to say remove the damage, remove the memory. His Will warmed the frozen 
blackness, soothing, warming, and removing. The girl moaned and her body shuddered.
	"No..." she muttered. "No..." she spasmed as if in pain.
	"Return," Calin commanded, sending his Will bright with power into that frozen darkness.
	"No..." she cried. "Pain...."
	"Return," his voice, drawing on the power of centuries.
	--You heard the twit... Return Alex-- a soft voice said. --The Games isn't over yet. --
	"Return," Calin repeated.
	"No, no, no... Please..." the girl moaned.
	--Return little one. I haven't finished with you yet-- the voice simply said.
	Alex's eyes shot open and she gasped in a rush of air. Her eyes were wild as she looked around the room.
	--You are mine, Alex. You dance to my will, you, Yuki, Sethani-Ri, Katsumi. You will play the Game until the 
end, the very end--
	"No," Alex said into the darkness. "I will not."
	Something giggled in her mind.
	--You already have, just as you always will--
	"No!"
	--Hate, love, anger, fear, compassion. You are loved child, embrace it-- the voice giggled  --Mine... MINE--
	"NO! NO! NOOOO!!"
	"Kaerila! Kaerila! Stop it!" Calin shook the hysterically screaming girl and then finally ignoring every protocol 
about Sen'tai, slapped her hard across the face. The impact knocked the girl back down in the pallet but the screaming 
stopped and slowly, as if she was just waking up the now sane green eyes focused on Calin
	"Sethani!" Alex cried out as she recoiled from the huge figure leaning over her. "Sethani!! Help me!!"
	Calin was surprised at first by the fear in Kaerila's face as she cowered against the wall. What was she doing? 
He would never harm her, so why was she acting like this? He tried to react out and reassure her that everything would be 
all right, but she just pulled...
	"HARRRAAA!!" 
	Calin was thrown forward as a large weigh threw itself at him from behind, and the enraged partner of the girl 
clubbed his head with whatever came to hand. Such was the strength of the attack that Calin was even stunned for a 
moment before he was able to recover himself. He stood up and brushed the attacking Highborn away.
	"Sethani!" Alex cried out as the warrior was throw heavily against the wall. Desperately she tried to use her 
power to attack this  being, but once again it just slipped through her fingers. So, she did the only thing she could, she 
jumped to attack the thing herself.
	The sight of Kaerila rushing to attack him, caught Calin by surprise and she landed a few blows before he 
grabbed her arms.
	"Kaerila!" he tried to reach her., "It's me Calin, don't you remember. It's me Saertila's brother! Kaerila..."
	"Let me go!" Alex struggled against the impossibly strong arms. "Sethani!"
	"Kaerila..."
	"Let me go!"
	"Kaerila, its me..."
	"Kaerila?" Alex tried to overcome her panic and focus on what the stranger was saying.
	"Yes... Kaerila - don't you remember..."
	"My name is Alexandra," Alex tried to be calm, tried to hold in the fear. The... nightmare... that had driven her 
temporarily insane was not here. She was safe... safe.... Not hide... Not run...
	"Kaerila..."
	"I am not Kaerlia, please..." Alex begged. "My name is Alexandra. Let me go... Please..."
	Calin saw the pale girl's face, the one he remembered so well... Saw the barely held fear shining out of her eyes. 
Slowly be let the girl go and stepped back. She did not remember him, or anything else. Somehow, she just did not 
remember him. When the stranger stood back Alex rushed over to the slumped form of Sethani. The Highborn groaned 
but still reached out as she sensed the smaller form of her Sen'tai leaning over her.
	Calin's watched the Highborn and her Sen'tai  as they looked at each other. His lips tightened in anger. Who 
would DARE to interfere with a Traveller? Who had DARED to reduce that old, confident Kaerila that he remember. to... 
this... a scared, mortal girl?!? His eyes flared, whoever it had been would pay... His rage turned cold. He could feel the 
presence of the other Highborn close around the caravan as they began to react to his presence. He needed answers, and 
these Highborn were the ones to provide them. He turned and pushed passed the kneeling mortals towards the exit. The 
two girls did not even notice the door slamming shut.
	"Sethani?" Alex hesitantly touched her. "Are... are... Mmmm!!"
	Sethani-Ri dragged her Sen'tai into her arms and clamped her lips to the smaller form. Silvery tears flowed 
down her cheeks as the relief... and love... she felt at her Sen'tai's recovery... Emotion, rush, joy, sensation... Sethani-Ri's 
eyes suddenly widened... Fire, ice, need, desire... Alex eyes stared... Fire, calling, light... Two shared minds, two shared 
souls, swirled... pulled... The Joining between them opened... Ice, fire, sensation... Sethani-Ri's body shuddered, and a faint 
growl came from the depths of her throat. NEED erupted through her form, the Joining DEMANDED, instinctive... Fire, 
ice... The growl deepened, and Sethani-Ri's body shuddered, convulsed... changed...
	Alex was lost. Fire and ice burned through her mind, everything that there was... Fire and ice... She did not fell 
the body that embraced her shudder... Did not feel it change, harden... Fire and ice... A growl, deep, and demanding 
sounded somewhere beyond her conscious. She did not feel the lips, suddenly become coarser, more demanding... 
	Ice... her back pressed against something cold. Hands, coarse, touched her skin. Fire... Their touch was harsh, 
needing.... Sensation... Air... Another predatory growl deep with a NEED rumbled loudly in her ears. It drowned out the 
protest of shredded fabric. Crawled hands, urgent with an instinctive demand tore lines of fire against her skin as they 
shredded the barriers that keep the completion of the Joining's demands away.
	Air... cold air... Hands... Fire...
	A growl of triumph rumbled deeply from above her as a muscular, heavy form suddenly lowered itself on to 
her, pinning her beneath it.
	Fire... Calling... Swirling... Fire...
	A mouth demanding, needing... Hands moving... moving her... Fire...
	"ARRRR!!" The triumphant growl burned through her mind.
	PAIN!! PAIN!!!
	"YAAAHHH!!!" Alex suddenly screamed as the thing that Sethani-Ri had become forced its way into her. 
PAIN! DEMAND! NEED! The force of the Joining could not be denied...
	"ARARARAR!!" The heavy form thrust in, out, in, out. Hands held the smaller form tighter as the movements 
became stronger, more pronounced, as the instinctive need to mate carried everything away.
	Alex was drowning in a sea of need, pain and desire. The instinctive commands of the Joining held them both 
utterly. The pain flared in increasing rhythm as Sethani-Ri slammed into her, harder, deeper, faster... The fire built, 
growing... The growls of pleasure, and need building... Growing, building... Harder... Growing... Faster...
	"YAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Alex and Sethani-Ri suddenly screamed in tandem as the tide broke, and a rush 
of hot warmth explored into the body of the convulsing smaller Sen'tai. The heavy form of dominant member of the 
Joining collapsed across the naked form of its mate. The demands of the Joining had been realised in its ultimate form. 
Sethani-Ri lay panting as slowly sensation began to return. The Highborn could feel the soft, sweaty form of Alex 
shuddering with the aftermath of the mating crushed beneath... his... own...
	The door to the caravan slammed open and Highborn and Traveller piled through the door, moving in response 
to the two pairs of screams that they had heard clear outside. 
	"Hashita..." one of the stunned Highborn muttered as the silvery haired muscular Highborn, rose from the naked 
girl and turned to face them.
	"GET OUT!" He commanded. His voice carried the power of the Emperor, and the Highborn automatically 
obeyed. They're instinctive response to the blood of their rules compelling them to do as told. The only one who did not 
move was Calin.
	"Name of the Lady..." he swore in shock. He knew that the Highborn were able to just once, at the extreme 
demand of the Joining able to change sex, but never, never had he actually seen the supposed process at work. 
	"Seth... Sethani..." a small voice whispered from the pale girl.
	"Oh Lady..." Sethani-Ri whispered in a heart broken voice. He knelt down to the shivering girl. "Alex..." he 
tried to say something, anything that might...
	"Sethani..." the tearful green eyes and white elfin face looked up at him. "Why... why...." the voice cracked.
	"Alex... Sen'tai... I..." he reached out a hand but stopped as his Sen'tai shuddered and tried to back away. 
"Lady..." he whispered. "Sen'tai..."
	"Curse you!" Calin swore with venom as he reached for the Highborn. He would KILL this...
	A hand as hard as iron grabbed his and threw him out of the way like a child.
	"So," Charon said. "It looks like I will be transporting more than one now. I really do wish SHE would have told 
me..." 

		*		*		*		*

Location: Tokyo, Japan. 
Time: AD: 2030 2 April 17:34
	 
	"Yuki..." 
	Yuki stirred as a soft voice whispered in her ear.
	"Yuki-chan..."
	Yuki felt a mouth nibble at her ear, and the soft voice blew in her ear.
	"Wakey, wakey... Yuki-chan..."
	Yuki's brown eyes opened and she rolled over. Someone was laying on the bed next to her. A familiar scent 
filled her nose and her heart filled with joy.
	"ALEX!" she cried and threw herself at the red head on the bed next to her. She held the slender body tightly to 
her, and tears flooded down her eyes. "Alex... Ales..." she whispered. 
	"Alex" giggled, and Yuki went cold at the unholy, insane sound.
	"No quite Yuki-chan," the voice said. "Mmmm... Tasty.." Yuki shuddered as the "girl" in her ears nibbled and 
licked her ear.
	"Ahhh," the girl looked down at Yuki with a pout on her white face. "Don't be like that. I came all the way just 
to see you as well."
	Yuki could only whimper in fear as empty, black eyes stared. The girl smiled and the black soulless Darkness 
contained in those inhuman eyes was suddenly gone. Sapphire, sparkling blue eyes looked at her and then the girl just 
suddenly was not there any more. Yuki drew in a few deep breaths, trying to calm her fear.
	"Yuki-chan," a voice said from the other side of the small white room. Yuki started with disbelief as the "girl" 
seemed to walk slowly out of the wall. "I bear good news Yuki-chan. Alex has returned!"
	Yuki bolted straight up at the news. Fear, disbelief, everything that the "girls" presence generated, vanished at 
that news. Her heart began to pound and a daft grin erupted on her face.
	Samantha smile twisted slightly in a malicious expression. "Yes, Yuki-chan. She and her lover have returned..."
	Yuki moved form the bed, lost in happiness at the news the "girl" had bought. Alex had return! She was coming 
back to her! She clapped her hands together in joy. It was only then that the rest of the girl's statement hit.
	"Lover..." she repeated dumbly.
	"Oh yes," the girl's grin grew. "She's been quite busy you know. A wife and soon to be mother."
	"Mother..." Yuki said.
	"Yip," the girl nodded. "Not that she exactly had much say about it, but that's beside the point now, what's done 
is done."
	"But... but.." Yuki's mouth did an impression of a goldfish.
	"But?" the girl raised an eyebrow.
	"You... promised..." Yuki spluttered.
	"Promised that she would be back?" the girl leaned against the wall and crossed her ankles. "Well, she is. The 
only thing that's changed is that someone picked up the pieces of her mind before you did..."
	"NO!! NO!! NO!!!" Yuki screamed out in anger. "SHE IS MINE!!! MINE!!! MINNNEE!!"
	"Not at the moment," Samantha said with a shrug. "She belongs to her husband..."
	"NO!" Yuki hissed with a furious rage. "SHE IS MINE! I will MAKE her MINE!"
	"If you say so," Samantha said. "But you aren't going to have any luck with her husband around."
	Yuki clenched her fists and a cold, murderous rage set on her face.
	"Oh, Yuki..." Samantha said with a delighted voice. "You are quite the little vixen aren't you... Yes, you could 
make Alex yours that way, but I don't think she would appreciate it that much do you?"
	Yuki's body began to glow an unnatural fashion as her power began to response to the rage that filled her.
	"It really is not a good idea Yuki..." Samantha was left talked to thin air as the enraged Yuki teleported. 
	"Oh well..." Samantha sighed dramatically. "I guess you will find out. Killing Sethani-Ri will only make your 
little friend, even more nuts than she is currently and...."
	"That was obvious," a voice commented. "Not like you at all."
	"Moves are moves," Samantha replied. "They don't all have to be subtle."
	"Interesting point of view," the voice mused. "I prefer hidden ones."
	"But you don't play the Games," Samantha remarked.
	"No, but I can watch the players. Or at least those who interest me, and the hidden moves are always, so much 
more fun."
	"Times change, as do tactics. Nothing is fixed."
	"No..." the voice mused. "Nothing ever is. I have been considering if I should Play, I might do while well."
	"Play? You?" Samantha shorted.
	"What does that mean?" the voice asked. "Why should I not Play?"
	Samantha just rolled her eyes.
	"Well, if that is your opinion then maybe I will play a Game; a very specific Game. A Game just for you..."
	"Now hold on..."
	"Yes... A very special Game... Just for you, my dear..." the voice faded.
	"Play it if you wish," Samantha commented. "But watch out for the thorns. You could get stung."

	It was extremely rare for Charon to give free rides, especially to mortals, but in this case he was glad. 
Performing this service for HER would hopefully take HER attention away from him, and let him get on with his usual 
business. SHE had already done far more to him than he had ever dreaded and he hoped like hell that after this SHE would 
forget him for a while at least. 
	The two mortals were silent in the front of the boat, watching dumbly as the horrors of the Abyss rolled past on 
either side. Charon had from long experience of dealing with mortals spellbound them, so that they would be completely 
unaffected by anything which in normal conditions might have driven them mad. Now all they could do was sit and listen 
to the wash of the unholy waters as the boatman guided the timeless ferry to its ultimate destination.
	Charon let his mind wonder, another habit that this cursed form had given him, and looked out onto the endless 
blackness of the Styx. Once he had been the pure, simple ferryman, moving endless back and forth on the cursed River. 
Now however he was bored with that role. The curse that SHE had put on him with this? flesh? made him restless, 
made him need far more than he once had. He looked now at what he did as mostly pointless, he had to? experience far 
more that this existence offered. He signed heavily, maybe? once this was done he would? leave?
	"Getting pensive old friend," that dreaded voice said from beside him.
	"YAA!" Charon nearly fell in the deadly waters as SHE giggled at his shock.
	"If you really want to abandon this life then be my guest," Samantha smiled warmly at him. "All that will 
happen is that one of your minions will simply take over your role and I will have a new Charon to tease. I won't stop 
you."
	"I?" Charon did not know what to say. Was SHE teasing him again, as a preamble to destroying him or?
	"Really," Samantha laughed. "Why would I want to destroy you old friend? You have always been most 
courteous in our dealings, and you have always taken my jokes well. If you want to develop yourself then do so. I gave 
you this form as a gift. You can either take advantage of that, or not." She shrugged and patted his hand, "the choice is 
yours."
	Samantha turned and walked over to stand over the spellbound forms of Sethani-Ri and Alex. She smiled and 
her head turned back to Charon.
	"You know this Game has really been quite exciting, I'm almost sorry that this chapter of it has to come to an 
end. What do you think Charon?"
	"Ah?" Charon hated this. She was starting it again. "The past is the past, just let?"
	"It go," Samantha finished. "Yes, besides if I get bored I can always redo the story. Ok, Charon - I agree. This 
chapter will come to the end that I have planned, and I'll stick to the rest of the Game." She looked down at the two silent 
figures. "A pity..." 
	Charon was about to speak when suddenly SHE, and the two mortals vanished. He looked at the empty spaces.
	"Do not worry Charon," HER voice floated across the deadly water. "I am satisfied with your service. I will 
leave you alone..."
	Charon almost felt like smiling.
	"...For now... hehehee..." giggling the voice faded completely.

Location: Tokyo, Japan. 
Time: AD: 2030 4 April 21:58

	People out in the open swore as the storm finally broke overhead and icy rain poured down onto the streets of 
Tokyo. The bitter wind tore down narrow streets causing havoc. People ran to try and find shelter as the lightning played 
in the black sky overhead.
	Flying high in amongst the storm clouds Katsumi laughed with wild abandon as her power tore into the natural 
weather patterns causing this outrage of nature. Katsumi had had enough of Ganossa's obsessions. She and a number of 
the Lucifer Hawk Clan Elders had decided to take matters into their own hands. Now was the time to strike, now while the 
pathetic peoples of the Earth were in bickering confusion. Now, while there was no one power enough to stop them.
	Katsumi drew Medium and held the black blade out. Overhead the swirling clouds broke just long enough to let 
the blood red light of the moon shine down on her and the Demonic weapon. Katsumi smiled with triumph and her body 
began to glow a dark, sick red.

	"BY THE DARK MOON,
	BY THE LADY THAT CALLS THE NIGHT,
	LET THE WAY BE OPENNED,
	LET THE DARKNESS COME!
	BY BLOOD SINGING,
	BY BLOOD CALLING,
	I CAST DOWN THE GATES,
	AND OPEN THE WAY WIDE!!!"
	  
	Katsumi shrieked the words of the spell into the howling wind. A massive explosion of power erupted from her 
and shaped by the words of her spell, tore and savaged at the barriers of this world. Slowly, ever so slowly the threshold 
between the realities of Nemesis and Earth began to erode and breech. Katsumi looked on with a triumphant laugh as a 
sick, black void began to steadily grow.
	"CHEYENNE!!" she screamed. "WATCH YOUR CITY DIE!!!"

	Reece smiled as he felt the boundaries surrounding this threshold world begin to thin and break. His 
manipulation of Katsumi, and the other events had been without flaw. His plan was now reaching a critical point, a point 
which would be the culmination of ages untold of work. If he was successful then he would become HE. HE would be a 
Master of a Domain! Only two things threatened his success - Alexandra Shadow, and WHATEVER had dared to kill his 
minion. His smiled slowly faded as he thought about this unknown factor.
	Alexandra Shadow was a known problem, for which his rather inventive solution was also known. At least it 
would be when he could find her. Unlike these foolish mortals, he did not count any enemy dead until he personally had 
shredded their corpses with his own hands. He knew that somewhere that Darkness cursed bitch was still alive, and that 
she was the only mortal capable of wrecking his plans.
	The WHATEVER was a different problem. He could not plan against something for which he had no 
information. The WHATEVER had destroyed his minion as easily as he could have, so it was as powerful as him at the 
very least. What was even worst was that the WHATEVER had seemed to have taken a insidious pleasure in interfering 
just at the worst moment possible. That meant that the WHATEVER knew his plans, and was deliberately interfering. His 
eyes when hard as the rage began to build. WHY? WHY? Was IT INTERFERING!!
	His body began to shift slightly as the control of his form quivered under his rage. With a sharp inhuman hiss he 
clamped his control on his rage and formed his body to reshape. Now was not the time for that insanity. He must wait, 
wait until the WHATEVER once again took a hand in his affairs? then? He smiled again, then he would show them the 
error of their ways - personally.

	Sam looked at the sleeping figures of Alex and Sethani-Ri curled together on the bed. This was perhaps a bit 
obvious even for her, but then Yuki was not exactly the sort for a subtle statement. She dismissed the spell that Charon had 
bound them with and walked out of the bedroom into the main part of the deserted caf‚. She looked out of Labyrinth's 
shop front. The sheet rain was hammering into the plate glass windows causing them to shake. Sam shook her head.
	"Katsumi," Sam said faintly. "No style..." She went over to the counter and took down a small cup.
	"Coffee, my Lady," the waiter who suddenly appeared from nowhere said.
	"Thanks," Sam offered the cup to the man, who filled the cup and then promptly vanished.
	"Could have done me one," Lloth said as she came to sit down beside Sam.
	"How's Kelly doing?" Sam asked.
	Lloth giggled. "Still wondering around... your.. ahh... playhouse."  She held out her hand and a similar waiter 
appeared.
	"Copy cat," Sam muttered as Lloth took the coffee the man offered, before he too vanished.
	"Bitch to you too," Lloth smiled.
	"I see Katsumi is hard at work," Sam commented.
	"Yes," Lloth looked out at the building storm, and the growing portal above it. "Crude work," she commented 
with disgust.
	"Well, she is only a child," Sam shrugged.
	"That's still no excuse," Lloth looked at her. "The way she is going she is going to collapse the entire boundary 
around this world, and that could be very? messy."
	"It's their world," Sam commented. "They can destroy it if they want."
	"Sam," Lloth tilted her head. "You can't start to play with a world and then let it be destroyed, just because you 
can't be bother to lift a finger to help it."
	"You want to stop it, then stop it."
	Lloth sighed, sometimes Sam could be so? childish. She made a slight modification in the boundaries that 
Katsumi was currently trying to shatter.
	"That will alter the outcome you know," Sam said.
	"Perhaps," Lloth took another sip of coffee. "But at least it will be cleaner."
	"And that from the Lady of Chaos. HA! You have sure changed your tone!" Sam laughed. "Besides, it would 
not have mattered if you did anything or not. There are at least 4 other Gods and 2 Tsumani Demons that have interest in 
this world. If you hadn't interfered they would have."
	"Oh?" Lloth said slightly surprised. "I knew that Ca'eli and the Demon Chtul were interested in this world, but 
not others."
	"Well, it is a threshold world," Sam said. "That is bound to generate interest from a number of quarters, 
especially with the... results of my little lesson with the Council."
	"The scavengers trying to get hold of loose Domains," Lloth nodded.
	"Well they are in for a big disappointment," Sam finished her cup.
	"And why is that?"
	"This Domain is now mine," Sam stated. "And any interference will be dealt with appropriately."
	Lloth put her coffee down, hard. She was stunned. "Domain!?! YOU!"
	"Hmmm," Sam stretched her arms. "So?"
	"But? but? You have NEVER claimed?"
	"A Domain before?" Sam finished for her. "I have, just not in a VERY long time."
	"So why now!?!" Lloth half screeched.
	Sam's lip curled at the noise. "Because I have plans for this place."
	"Plans?" Lloth noticed the curl in her lover's lip and lowered her voice. "What plans?"
	Sam yawned. "I'm tired."
	"What plans?" Lloth repeated softly.
	"I'm going to regress it of course," she said.
	"Regress? Sam you don't mean?"
	"Yes, take it back to the Prime state so to speak. I want to see if I can ultimately recreate my home, my REAL 
home," Sam stood up.
	Lloth went utterly cold. Recreate the PrimeVerse?
	"I tried to do it once before, but? someone I thought who loved me? stopped it," Sam's face became faintly 
sad and her voice became almost a whisper. "Erith corrupted her, and she betrayed me. I would have forgiven her even 
that, if only she had come back? but in the end?"
	Lloth was paying no attention to the muttering. Her mind too shocked to even comprehend what? Sam? was 
going to do. EVERYTHING that there was had originated from the PrimeVerse - EVERYTHING. If? if it was reversed 
then EVERYTHING would be gone, not destroyed, just gone. If Sam succeed then only she would be left? no one and 
nothing else would be.
	"Well, enough of the past," Sam finished. "Things here are going to get extremely interesting in the next few 
hours. Katsumi has opened a bit more of a Pandora's box than I think she suspects. Nemesis, Chtul, Ca'eli - they will all 
make a move?"
	The door to Labyrinth banged open and in burst Yuki. As the lights were not on she did not acknowledge the 
presence of anyone else in the room. Yuki threw the jacket that she had been using to cover herself and closed the door 
shut. So far she had managed to avoid the MPs and others that had been sent after her.
	"Hello Yuki-chan," Sam said. "How are you?"
	"YA?" Yuki spun with surprise and threw a ball of blue fire at the intruder.
	"You're getting much better Yuki-chan," Sam said as she caught the ball of energy and started playing with it.
	"You?" Yuki hissed. "Where IS SHE!?!" 
	"Safe and sound," Sam said. "Upstairs in fact? Hey Yuki-chan wait a minute."
	Yuki was running towards the stairs when Sam appeared in front of her and grabbed her by the arm.
	"LET ME GO!!" Yuki yelled with rage and tried to throw Sam to one side. "I MUST GO TO HER!"
	Sam sighed and ignoring the kicks and swearing pulled Yuki back to the counter and sat her down. 	Sam 
smiled and put a cup on coffee into Yuki's hands.
 	"Drink this," she said.
	"NO! I?"
	"Drink."
	"Thank you," Yuki said with a calmer smile and took a sip. 
	"That's better isn't it," Sam drew up a stool and sat beside Yuki. "We need to talk child, talk before you decide 
what it is you are going to do. I told you that you had the right to make a choice, a choice that would affect both the future 
of your world, and that of potentially of many other..."
	"Samantha, stop this!" Lloth suddenly burst out. "You are giving her no choice at all! You have already decided 
what is going to happen! Your plan will DESTROY EVERYTHING - you can't..." Her voice was choked off by a 
annoyed glance from Samantha.
	"You are like... her," Samantha said. "She did not understand either. She came from my Realm, she saw the 
Beginning, but she did not understand. I saw it, and I understood."
	"What do you mean? Understand what?"
	"I caused it," Samantha giggled in a way that made Yuki's calmness begin to fade away.
	"You caused what?" Lloth asked.
	"IT," Samantha replied. "My interference caused IT to happen."
	"What is IT?" Lloth pushed.
	"IT, of course," Samantha looked exasperated. "The Beginning - IT?" she saw the blank faces and sighed. 
"The PrimeVerse was dying, falling into itself. Everything was ending - feeding the Darkness to the death gave birth too. 
That was what I foresaw - the survival of nothing. To survive, I had to stop that ultimate death. So, I caused IT?"
	"IT? you?" Lloth spluttered as the red head giggled at her reaction. "You caused EVERYTHING?"
	Still giggling Samantha shrugged, "not intentionally. I had been trying just to stabilise and stop the destruction. I 
had even hoped that something might be left? but things got slightly out of control. IT was the result. Where originally 
everything had been ONE, now everything was scattered. Order, Chaos, Change, everything was messed up. With every 
Cycle it is getting worst, and if I don't do something soon then it will remain scattered forever. I will never be able to di?"
	A sound on the stair caused Yuki to look up, and the sight of the figure standing there caused her to throw 
coffee, stool, and almost Samantha aside as with a yell of desperate need she ran at Alex.
	"ALEX!!!" Yuki screamed out and ran up the stairs.
	Alex saw her and something within her broke. "YUKI!!"
	"Oh brother," Samantha said as the two girls collided in the middle of the stairs and much crying and kissing 
followed.
	Lloth looked back at Samantha. She did not know what to believe, or what to do now. The scowling red head in 
front of her was either the Creator of EVERYTHING, trying to destroy EVERYTHING, or simply joking. She did not 
know which.
	"Sam?" Lloth tried. Sam was still staring at the scene of the two girls on the stairs. "Sam!" Lloth tried again, 
but the red head was ignoring her.
	**SAMANTHA!!* Lloth yelled in a VOICE that shook the room.
	Alex and Yuki hung onto each other in fear as the power of the VOICE assaulted their senses and caused the 
glass front of Labyrinth to shatter. Cups, plates and other assorted items fell to the ground as the VOICE dissipated.
	"Hmm?" Sam turned to Lloth. "What?"
	"What are you planning, Samantha?" Lloth stared at her. "Are you?"
	"Oh love," Sam said with a slow grin. "Come here." She held out her arms and Lloth's dark expression and fears 
suddenly vanished. She grinned and jumped happily into Sam's arms.
	"Shhh?" Sam said. "Just forget about what I said okay?"
	"About what?" Lloth sighed contentedly. 
	"Exactly," Sam said and kissed the black face.
	Alex opened her eyes as the after affects of that surge of power from the black woman faded. Nothing seemed to 
be real anymore. How long had it been since she had held that warm soft figure in her arms? All the impossible events, the 
pain, abuse and fear that had happened , was it real? She tried to completely let herself go and embrace all the warm and 
comfort that was radiating out from Yuki, but too much had happened. She was no longer the same person who had 
once? Hot tears streamed down her face. She pulled Yuki tighter to her. Why could she not let it all go? Why could see 
not embrace her lover with the same?
	"Because you are no longer a child," Samantha said softly from the bottom of the stairs.
	"Wha?" Alex opened her eyes and blinking she tried to focus on the figure. Her heart stopped.
	"You have been through pain, love, terror, fire and darkness," the figure who looked almost exactly like her 
said. "You are a child no more, my daughter?"
	"You?" Alex hissed as the horrible memory of that soft voice came back to her. "It's YOU?"
	"In the flesh," the red head giggled. Her amusement caused Alex to shudder as the insane sound caused far more 
darker memories to surface. She saw the smiling young form of the human girl standing at the bottom of the stairs and 
knew the insane, corrupt power that looked out of those green eyes. Before her was a POWER, one that had no conscious, 
sanity or feeling. A POWER who? was her? Mother? Alex felt sick, and her face reflected it. Slowly she disentangled 
herself from Yuki and keeping a wary eye on that? beast she stood up.
	"Well?" Samantha said. "Aren't you going to say hello?"
	Alex said nothing, what do you say to the ultimate insanity.
	"Anything you want," Samantha commented. "It will have all been said before."
	Alex swallowed, "why?"
	"Why not?" Samantha said with a laugh.
	Yuki slowly got to her feet. "Alex?" she tried to put her hands back around her lover.
	Alex was just turning to her when a rush of fear washed over her. She swayed.
	"Sethani?" she whispered. Instinctively she barged her way passed Yuki, pushing the girl out of the way as just 
an obstacle to getting to her Joined. All thoughts and concerns apart from Sethani were thrown from her mind.
	"Alex!" Yuki cried out and ran up the stairs after her.
	"Another coffee?" Sam asked Lloth.
	Sethani-Ri stared blankly around at the totally alien room that he was in. It felt totally... wrong, everything felt 
totally wrong. He looked wildy around, where was she? He could barely felt her his Joined through the link. It's usually 
strong presence was... blocked. He tried again, reaching down the bond of the Joining. He fell almost immediately into 
soul numbing darkness, a darkness which was so totally encompassing that he was completely lost. The sensation was 
almost like drowning as the darkness slowly pulled him in. It wanted his warmth, his life. It wanted... Sethani-Ri panicked.
	"Sethani!" Alex screamed in a desparate voice as she ran into Yuki's bedroom. Her eyes focused immediately on 
the gasping form and with a cry she ran to him. 
	"Sethani! Sethani!" Alex grabbed the convulsing form and shook him. "Sethani!"
	"Dear, dear..." Samantha said as she stood opposite Alex, watching as the Highborn slowly died.
	"Stop it!" Alex screamed at the monster. "Leave him alone!!"
	"Me?" Samantha said with a hurt expression. "I'm not doing anything to him - you are."
	"What do you mean??" Alex cried out. "Save him! Please!"
	"Hmmm," Samantha scratched her nose.
	"PLEASE!" Alex screamed.
	Samantha grimaced. "Okay, okay. There's no need to shout..."
	Sethani-Ri suddenly opened his eyes and Alex almost cried with relief.
	"It's stupid to try and touch the soul of one of mine, you know," Samantha chided the shivering Highborn. "Most 
unpleasant things can happen, but Alex is partly yours now - so I've decided to allow you to touch hers. Alright?"
	Neither of them were paying any attention to her. Alex was crying softly over Sethani-Ri who was trying in turn 
to comfort her. Sam looked up at the entrance to the bedroom at the white faced form of Yuki standing, watching.
	"Storm clouds brewing," Sam muttered.

		*		*		*		*

Interlude - Love Betrayed! The Beginning.

Location: Talisson, Order's Realm
Time: ???

	 Samantha picked at her food while she watched Kay and Erith, Supreme Master of Law, in Talisson laugh as 
they danced gracefully across the floor. She did not mind that Kay was spending so much time with their hosts, in fact it 
was a great help as Samantha was more or less stuck in her research. The two of them had come to this reality at the 
invitation of Myrith, the wife of Dalios. Kay had been more or less friends with the Greater Goddess for well over 2 
Cycles. So, when Myrith had invited Kay to Talisson, Samantha had more or less tagged along - and they had been here 
ever since.
	Samantha pushed the offered food aside. She had no need for it so why bother. The music to which the court 
was dancing was also a slight too? stayed for her tastes, although Kay seemed to be enjoying it. She wondered if she 
should show these Lords and Ladies that other melodies existed, but decided against it. The last time she had tried to 
introduce something that did not fit in with these Lords worldview Erith had thrown a fit, literally. She giggled slightly at 
the memory drawing dark glances from the Lords Dalios and Thay who were sitting a short distance away. Sam stuck out 
her tongue at them and glared right back.
	"Pathetic child," Dalios commented to Thay and they turned their attention back to the dance.
	"Better a child then a?" Samantha commented under her breath. Gods, she hated this place? It was so? 
boring! If not for Kay and the fact that the static nature of this reality offered a good choice for research, she would have 
left along time ago. She looked back at the prim and proper figure of Dalios and a small came to her face as she imaged 
what the "whiter than white" God would look like buried head first in the ooze of the Abyss. Sam giggled at the thought of 
the God with his ass waving about in the air as Demons? 
	"Be silent infant!" Dalios shouted as enraged he stormed to his feet. "I have just about had enough of your 
ravings! Now, be silent or by the Creator I will make you!"
	The music came to a shuddering halt, and everyone turned to see what had enraged the Noble Lord stood 
threatening over the smaller girl.
	Samantha bubbled with mirth and then exploded into laughter. "You? hahaha? make? hahaaha? me? 
Haha?" Tears ran down her face as Sam laughed almost hysterically at the thought.
	The hysterical, mocking laughter struck Dalios like a hammer. He did not know quite what to do - never, ever 
had someone dared?
	"Sam?" Kay cursed lightly and turned to her frowning dance partner. "Forgive me my Lord, I must see to?"
	"The fault is not yours my Lady," Erith said with a slight bow. "It is? hers?" his voice was thick with distain.
	Kay said nothing, but somehow she did despair at times. This was not the same person she had originally 
Bonded with. Ever since they had fled the PrimeVerse, Sam had become increasingly? odd - that was the best word that 
Kay could think of. It was difficult to put a word to a being of either Sam's age or power. Kay supposed that gave the right 
for Sam to be more eccentric than anyone else but even against the standards of their original race, Sam was being? odd.
	"You little..." Dalios was glowing as he struggled to restraint himself. 
	"Sam, please!" Kay rushed over and interposed herself between Sam and the enraged Dalios. She was not afraid 
of what the God would do to Sam, but the other way around. These entities had no idea of the power that either Kay or 
Samantha commanded. Kay by herself could have easily bested any of the beings here, and she was...
	"You didn't need to leave your so entralling dance partner to look after me," Sam said in the long dead tongue of 
their people. "Huh, it's not exactly as if I need any help."
	"Sam..." Kay pleaded. "Don't start. We are their guests, and Erith has..."
	"Oh," Sam said. "Erith is it now - well, of course I would not want to atagnose _Erith_." The word came out like 
an drawn insult, and Kay's face went hard.
	"Don't insult him Sam," she said. "Erith has been a good friend to me, it's not like you are around much..." her 
voice faded.
	Sam saw the hurt in Kay's eyes and she sighed. "I'm sorry Kay, I just seem to have a lot on my mind recently. 
I'll do better I promise." A mischievous look came to her face, and she grabbed Kay's hands. "Come on, let's do something 
exciting - just the two of us. We can leave this place and..."
	"I can't just leave Sam," Kay stopped her.
	"What?" Sam was surprised. "Why not?"
	"Erith said..."
	"Erith, Erith, Erith," Sam pulled back her hands angrily. "That's all I ever hear from you. Well Erith can take a 
hike. You ARE MINE!" The courtroom shook as Sam's voice rose.
	"Is that..." Kay was stunned. "Is that all you think I am?!? Some property of yours!!"
	"Of course not!" Sam snarled. "But you are more mine than that..."
	SLAP!
	Sam was shocked and could only watch dumbly as Kay burst into tears and fled. She raised her hand to her 
pained cheek. Kay had slapped her... What... 
	"Kay!" she ran forward but Dalios suddenly intervened and threw her back.
	"Leave her be," he exclaimed with digust in his voice. "She is worth far more than you will ever be!"
	"Get out of my way," Sam began to push past him but the God held her.
	"One more time, Dalios," Sam spoke slowly. "Get out of my way, I won't ask again."
	"No you won't," and with contemptable ease he threw the small girl's body across the hall.
	Sam smashed into the floor some distance away. She bounced twice before she sat up and touched her bloodied 
mouth. A cold smile of antipation broke over her face as slowly she got up and slowly dusted herself off.
	Dalios held a white flaming sword in his hand and 5 great, glowing pillars of light stood next to him as he 
watched what the small girl would do.
	Sam smiled as she began to imagine how Dalios would amuse her. The ways in which she could... Her fingers 
twitched in anticipation. "Oh Dalios..." she giggled. "Playtime is..."
	"STOP THIS!" a clear voice rung out across the room. "Dalios stop this at ONCE!"  
	Myrith came stalking into the room to stand in front of her husband.
	"How dare you!" she raged at him. "How dare you insult my guest like that! Apologise! NOW!"
	Dalios did not answer. He looked hard at the red head and then with a snarl turned and stalked off.
	"Dalios..." Myrith sighed, then she turned and walked over to her friend's lover. "Forgive my husband, please 
Lady Samantha. His behaviour was completely unacceptable! I beg your forgiveness."
	Sam's smiled faded, and she felt disappointed, cheated. She didn't have an excuse now to amuse herself with 
Dalios, and if she took it out on Myrith then Kay would never forgive her. She sighed and smiled back at Myrith.
	"Don't worry, Lady Myrith," she grinned. "I'm not insulted."
	Myrith saw the friendiless in the offered grin and slowly returned it. "Thank you, Lady Samantha. I..."
	Sam kept the friendly expression on her face as Myrith began to speak. She imagined what exquisite fun it 
would be to have Dalios watch powerless while Samantha "amused" herself with his wife. The more she thought about it, 
the wider her grin got.
	Myrith was surprised that Kay's lover was so open and friendly. Every one seemed to regard her with loathing, 
and a slight fear. However, she was almost completely the opposite. Myrith knew the expression on the pale girl's face was 
genuinely happy. She remembered the warnings that Kay had given her about Samantha, about how the girl could be 
extremely dangerous at times, but that was true of all them here and they got along as a group.
	"Lady Samantha," Myrith continued. "Don't take Kay's words to heart. She really does love you, but... well, she 
needs to be shown that."
	"Perhaps?" Sam said thoughtfully. It was at this time that she noticed that Erith was missing. He had gone after 
Kay. Sam's expression grew dark - these White Lords were really beginning to get on her nerves. Her  fist clenched 
involuntarily as she imagined what she would have due in the "good old days" when someone dared to challenge her will. 
However, with the establishment of the Balance between the Lords of Order and Chaos she could do nothing.
	Balance, stability, peace - she hated it. The whole stupid concept had begun with this current Cycle when the 
Great Lords of Order and Chaos had chosen to establish a Balance between them. Both sets of deities while so intrinsically 
opposite had agree to co-exist at least as far as they could. While Samantha did not officially hold herself as one of Chaos 
- others did. If she eliminated one of these White Lords then everything would plunge into absolute anarchy, and that was 
something she did not quite want - yet. However, that did not change the current situation. She had to do something about 
these?
	"Excuse me," she said to Myrith. "I believe I have some? business I must attend to." She bowed her head 
slightly to hide the raising disgust on her face and then marched off.
	Myrith watched as the red head walked quickly away. That was a bit abrupt, she thought to herself. She had not 
seen the rage that had been showing in the girl's eyes but she had felt something emanating from the girl. Something? 
rabid. Myrith shivered, perhaps Kay had been right - perhaps somethings were best left alone.

	Samantha stalked down the halls of the White Palace tracking the aura of the White Lord. It was plain that he 
had been following Kay, as Samantha could sense her familiar presence as well. Samantha knew that Erith and Kay had 
already left the palace. Kay was heading for a certain place that was extremely special to her, and Erith was close behind. 
Sam walked over to one of the windows looking out from the White Palace onto the land of Talisson beyond. Outside it 
was a cool darkness. A warm wind blew through a forest rich with greens, and highlighted by the many scattered lights of 
Order's creations that dwelt there. Sam took a breath of the warm, rich air and her black rage slowly faded. She smiled, 
Kay was free to do as she wished - she always had been.
	"You are mine, Kay," Sam whispered. "But it is not a prison. If you wish a dalliance then so be it." She looked 
down at the forest and sighed. A moment later she was slowly walking in among the trees and then with a whoop she was 
running. The huge, ancient trees streamed past as she ran and ran. Some of the forest dwellers fled as she ran passed, while 
others just ignored her.
	"Wheee?" Sam cried as she came rushing to a halt by a clear forest pool. Water flowed playfully into it from a 
waterfall. Sam walked up to the rocky edge of the pool and looked in. The water was perfectly clear, and in the light of the 
stars she could see small fish swimming in the depths. She splashed the water and giggled as they swam panic fashion to 
the rocky bottom. She was just about to see how they would react to a small fireball, when something beyond the trees 
caught her attention.
	"My, my," Sam whispered as she caught sight of large numbers of small lights flittering in a chaotic fashion 
among the darkness of the tree canopy. Her ears picked up the sound of faint singing, coming her way. She slowly backed 
into the darkness and stood back to watch.
	The faint, drunkenly swinging lights finally came to rest hovering over the water. Sam smiled, these lights were 
nothing more than small fairies - one of the myriad creations of the White Lords. They fluttered nervously about the water 
before finally settling. Their small voices sang with a sad chorus that spoke of the brief nature of their lives, death and the 
short joy of being. Sam listened to the sure, strong voices and smiled. At least these White Lords could do something 
right, she thought to herself. Slowly she moved forward into the light of the small open glade. She hummed gently a 
melody that she knew would put the skittish creatures at ease. She let a slight white aura radiate from her body as she 
carefully stood in the centre of the glade.
	The fairies were entranced and taking to the air swirled around her singing in tune with her melody. Sam 
laughed at the sight of the swirling lights around her and held out her arms as she slowly turned keeping in pace with 
them.
	"Well, looks like Erith was wrong," a sharp voice suddenly said.
	The small creatures suddenly broke off and with a frightened sound they doused their lights and fled off into the 
darkness. Sam slowly let her arms fall as she turned to face Erith's brother Ga'elin.
	"What do you want?" she asked as he strode into the glade.
	He smiled and a white radiance reflected over his form. "I said that my brother was wrong about you."
	Sam pulled a face. "Let me guess it was something along the lines of - that I am a chaotic, insane influence who 
is way to good for someone like Kay?"
	"More or less," the White Lord laughed. "But I wonder what he would have said if he saw you just now."
	Sam looked at him with a curious expression. "Your brother loves Kay doesn't he?"
	Ga'elin's radiance suddenly vanished and a look of surprise came over his face. "You know?" he blurted.
	Sam shrugged. "It would not be the first time that someone has fallen in love with her."
	Ga'elin was silent, then he spoke, "and you? don't mind?"
	"I mind, but Kay is free to do as she wishes. If she finds him annoying she can always stop him, or destroy 
him?" she giggled slightly at that thought. "She has done that before as well?"
	"Oh," was all Ga'elin could think of saying. He looked around at the glade. "I've never been here before, but it 
really is quite an attractive place - or then perhaps it is the company?" He looked down at Sam.
	"Are you trying to come on to me?" she asked.
	Ga'elin moved closer and he touched the white face. "And if I am?" he said.
	Sam swatted the hand aside and stepped back. "Sorry, but I am not quite that way inclined."
	Ga'elin caught her hand and pulled her to him. "Are you sure?" he said. "I can?"
	"Yes," Sam said resisting the pull. "I am sure. Now would you please let go."
	Ga'elin stood for a moment undecided then he let her hand go. "I'm sorry you feel like that," he said. "I have to 
admit that I have always found you? well? attractive every since I first saw you."
	"Well, that's just the way I am," Sam said rubbing her hand.
	"Well then I apologise for any embras?"
	"Forget it," Sam broke it. "I'm not a child, and beside you are certainly? more approachable then the rest of 
your group."
	"Well," he said with a smile. "Order does not have to be as inflexible as my brother seems to think it is. We do 
at times have to bend a little bit."
	Sam giggled. "If your brother bent a little bit, he would snap."
	"Yes," Ga'elin smiled. "I have often thought that of him, but I think he will be like that forever."
	"Forever... No, I don't think he will be," Sam commented before turning back to look at the pool. "Nothing is 
forever, not even beings such as yourself."
	"I don't suppose so," Ga'elin shrugged. "And somehow I find that thought comforting. I do not think that the 
thought of living forever and continuing without end would be something I could live with. I have seen the passing of 2 
Cycles, and in that time I have literally done and been everything I can. Continuing would mean nothing to me. I might get 
older and more powerful, but in the end that would mean nothing It would not do anything for me, I..." He broke off and 
shook his head. "Sorry, I did not mean to go off into a deep examination of my life's purpose. It's just that... I feel I can talk 
to you..."
	Sam tilted her head. "Don't tell me you are falling for me, because I..."
	Ga'elin lifted his hands. "I know," he sighed. "I know."
	Samantha looked at him. "You understand more than you know Ga'elin. Life without end is not something to 
desire, not something at all."
	"It sounds like there is a story behind that comment," Ga'elin said.
	"Not one you want to hear, my Lord," Samantha replied slowly. "Not one you want to hear."
	Ga'elin's shoulders slumped slightly when he heard the tone of dismissal in her voice. "As you wish, my Lady." 
He bowed slightly and turned, but before he walked away he looked back at the slender being and said, "I will win you, 
my Lady. You will be mine I promise you." He smiled and then faded into the silence of the forest.
	Samantha did not say anything. The path of the future was as clear as it was saddening, but she would not 
interfere? even for Kay. Born of choice and free will the future would not be what Ga'elin imagined. She looked around 
sadly at the great forest, at the dark trees and the clear pool. A long time from now all of this would be gone, consumed by 
her darkness. She thought for a moment, and then sent a summons, a summons that could not be ignored.
	Flittering through the forest the small lights came. They did not move drunkenly this time, but with strength and 
purpose. As swiftly as they could, the small creatures descended on Sam. The glade sparked with first dozens, then 
hundreds of small singing, fluttering creatures.
	"I have a proposal for you," Samantha said.
	"?."
	"Yes, I am that one," Samantha acknowledged.
	"?."
	"No, this time I tell the truth," Samantha commented darkly. "Listen?"
	"?."
	"?."
	"?."
	"Silence!" Samantha commanded.
	"<FEAR><SILENCE>"
	"Better," Samantha approved as the lights came to a complete halt. "Now, watch?" She sent them an image of 
the future.
	"<<FEAR><FEAR><HORROR><REVOLSION><HORROR>>"
	"It will happen," Samantha said dryly. "I will be forced to take action?"
	"<<FEARFEARFEAR>>"
	"I offer you a sanctuary, a place of protection?"
	"<<FEARFEARFEAR>>"
	Samantha waited while the little creatures sorted themselves out.
	"?.." they finally offered.
	"Why?" Samantha looked around. "So that something will remain? A keepsake of what once was?"
	"?.."
	"Sentimentality, a whim, call it what you like."
	"?.."
	"The sanctuary will be a mirror of this place, almost."
	"?.."
	"You will live, that is more than can be said of others. Decide."
	"?.."
	"No more debate. Decide -yes or no."
	"?.."
	"So be it," Samantha said. She turned and walked back into the darkness of the trees.
	Behind her the waterfall twinkled playfully into the now dark, empty and silent glade.

	Kay stood on the black cliff and looked out onto the desolate land below her. A huge red and dying sun loomed 
in the sky overhead. A hot and dry wind played with her hair as she looked out onto the ancient dying world. She smiled 
sadly, as she remembered how this world had been when it had been young. She had had friends here, good friends. The 
Elian had been a vigorous and playful race, and Kay had enjoyed watching over them as they had grown and developed? 
She smiled as the old memories came back to her. 
	"Rtoi, Hajsili, Djlin?" Kay whispered names of old travelling companions only she now remembered. 
Memories like so many others, of times long dead and gone. She sighed as she looked over the dead world. It almost 
symbolised everything. Immortality of this kind was something that only the insane would desire. She had seen so many 
Cycles now that she had long since lost count. They just seemed to flow one into the other. Multiverses came and went 
and she did not even notice. She remembered what Sam had said about the price when they had first looked out onto the 
result of the EVENT.

<<	"We survived didn't we," Kay asked her lover.
	"Yes, we did," the red head replied.
	"And the price?" the dark eyed girl asked.
	"Power, life, continuity. What do you feel Kay?"
	"I don't know... separated, untouchable, alive..."
	"Our place is gone, Kay. We do not belong here. We are alien to this creation, to this reality. Can't you feel it..."
	"Yes..." the girl whispered. "Immortal, unchanging, forever. I will love you forever. Do you hear me.?" Her dark 
eyes flashed with the light of insanity. "Hahaha! I will love you forever!" >>

	"Forever..." Kay whispered. Only with the passage of endless Cycles had she truly understand what those words 
had meant. She and Sam literally did not belong here. They COULD NOT die. Nothing not born of the PrimeVerse, not 
sharing the same origin as her could harm her. In everything that there was, in everything that there would ever be, only 
one thing could possibly affect her - Sam. Likewise the only thing that could affect Sam was her, in theory anyway.
	"Maybe it would have been better to accept my fate and pass on with the others," she muttered. "I could have 
ignored her, like the others, and simply gone down fighting. At least? at least it would be over. I'm not like Sam, I can't 
imagine facing a true eternity of life unending. I would go truly mad..."
	"Like her?" a voice said from behind her.
	"No," Kay turned to face Erith. "She is not mad my Lord. She just... has a..."
	"What?" Erith said with a faint smile. "A totally different perception of reality from every other being? Even 
you?"
	"Sam's Sam, my Lord," Kay said uncertainly. "She has always been...."
	"Darkness," Erith said and he stepped closer. "My Lady, you defend her because she is both your friend and 
your lover, as you should. However, in doing that you also miss what all the rest of us see. It is not just we of Order who 
see her this way, but even the Lords of Chaos regard her as... rabid. Some have even spoken of her as a threat to that which 
all of us have wokred so hard to put in place." His face went hard, "and if that is true then we will act to remove..."
	"NO!" Kay went white and her voice shook. "You MUST never speak of things like that Erith! Please!" She 
looked at the White Lord's implacid face. "You cannot even comprehend WHAT SHE is capable of. If you even tried to 
threaten her..." She shook at the thought. She had seen what Samantha was really capable of, and by Eldarien she NEVER 
EVER wanted to see that... insanity ever again!
	Erith frowned, "you fear her..." he whispered. "You are really afraid of her, aren't you?"
	Kay could not think what to say. She was confused. She wanted to deny what Erith was saying, but at the 
sametime she knew he spoke the truth. She was afraid of her lover. Afraid of what she had, or rather what she was 
becoming.
	Erith saw the hurt confusion in Kay's blue eyes and he pulled the slender form to him. At first she resisted slight 
and then slowly melted into his arms.
	"Lady... Kay..." Erith said slowly. "I..."
	"Ahhh," a voice softly giggled from behind them. "Isn't that sweet?"
	Kay went suddenly cold, and she pushed herself from Erith. She swallowed and then turned "Sam... I..."
	Samantha smiled and she ran her hand through her fieary hair. "I thought I might find you here," she said and 
her tone became amused. "Both of you."
	Erith's face drew dark and he moved to stand in front of Kay. "What do you want?" he said coldly.
	"Me?" Samantha's face took on an innocent expression. "Nothing. Why do you ask?"
	"Sam..."
	"Really Kay," Samantha chided her lover. "I thought you were angry with me, so I came to apologise. But you 
are busy so I will... Boy!" Sam suddenly broke off and looked out at over the dead desert stretching out below them. "This 
place has really changed hasn't it?" She turned to Kay and laughed. "Do you remember the fun we had here with Rtoi, 
Kay? I swear that..."
	"Sam!" Kay had had enough. "Why won't you talk to me? Don't you care?"
	 "Care?" Samantha said, with a confused expresssion. "About what?"
	"About me!!" Kay yelled, bitter pain in her voice.
	Sam looked at her and the green eyes locked with the blue. "I have always cared for you Kay, but your fate is 
your own. It always has been. At the very beginning I promised you that you were free to Bondmater with me, or not. That 
promise still stands. You must do as you will." She shrugged and smiled coyly looking at Erith, "or with whom you will."
	Kay was silent, she did not know what to say.
	"Just never fight me Kay," Samantha said softly.  "That I can not forgive anyone, not even you."
	Erith's eyes began to glow with a slight golden aura as his power reacted to the soft menace in the girl's voice. 
Samantha looked at the White Lord, and her mouth twitched in faint amusement.
	"If you looking to marry Kay, my Lord, then maybe I should take Ga'elin up on his offer," her eyes twinkled 
with humour at Erith's expression. "Then we can all be one big happy family. Wouldn't that be fun!" Sam rubbed her 
hands together in glee as she finished.
	Erith's expression was at first slack mouthed, and then slowly it began to change. The golden light in his eyes 
turned slowly into a blazing white. His frame shook with a rage that threatened to consume his mind. Ga'elin... How... 
DARE...
	"And then after this Cycle passes and you are all dead, me and Kay can get back together," Sam smiled sweetly 
at the shaking White Lord. "What do you think?"
	"...." Erith growled and he raised a fist. His eyes were incoherant with rage as all he wanted to do was rip that 
sickly sweet smile and... He stepped forward.
	"Or maybe we could do a foursome," Sam giggled. "Well Erith, sweety..."
	With a scream of murderous rage Erith sprang to attack the giggling teenager.
	"Erith," Kay simply said and the White Lord was frozen in place by a brush of a power that completely 
emasculated him. He raged helpless against it, as Kay exerted a slight wisp of her power to hold the enraged Lord.
	"Oh Kay," Sam sighed disappointedly.
	"Samantha is only trying to provoke you, my Lord," Kay commented coldly as her frozen blue eyes glared 
contemptously at the red head.
	"Me? Provoke, the Great and Mighty HighLord of Order," Samantha giggled. "Sweet little Erithy, never!" She 
walked over to the frozen form and patted his face. "I wouldn't do that to little sweety sweety..." She giggled mockingly 
and brushed Kay's hold of him contemptously aside leaving the White Lord free to act.
	"Sweet little baby," she said as she held her arms open to the White Lord. "Come to me..." Samantha's eyes 
were a black void of insanity.
	"Erith!" Kay said desperately and tried to rush to the trembling Lord, but a power vastly stronger than her's froze 
her in place.
	"Erithy, Erithy, Erithy..." Samantha rocked back and forth giggling as she called.
	Erith took one look at the utterly insane giggling figure before him and his white hot rage was frozen with utter 
horror. He backed away instinctly from that offered embrace.
	"Awww..." Samantha complained. This was too much, she WANTED to PLAY. She did not care about the 
consequences. The Balance could go and take a flying... Erith was... She giggled and a cold wind fluttered her hair.
	Erith and Kay moved closer together, drawn instinctly for protection as the blood red light from the dying sun 
overhead suddenly darkened. Kay watched in horror as the giggling girl _called_.... things... into existance. For the first 
time, she truly recognised what it was that her lover had been becoming. There shining in the ancient red head's black, 
insane eyes was the same gibbering corruption that had destroyed the PrimeVerse. Corruption that had finally found it's 
home, in the... SOMETHING... that Sam, no, Samantha had become.
	Things twittered softly in the growing darkness. Things that lived only for the warmth of their Mistress's whims. 
Things utterly alien, and utterly insane as their Mistress; things that waited for her word. Samantha whispered lovingly to 
them and they twittered gently in response.
	Samantha looked at the two figures thoughtfully. Their terror was quite exquisit and the her minions twitter in 
pleasure as they savoured it.
	"Oh, you don't really need to worry," Samantha said to them with a smile. "I'm not going to hurt you. I just 
wanted to see how you would react." She giggled at the expressions on their faces.
	Kay stared at her uncomprehendingly. What the hell was this... thing...
	"Well," Samantha said brightly. "That's my amusement for this evening so..." She made a grandious gesture and 
they were back at the White Palace. 
	"Kay," Sam said. "Are you coming? I thought that you mine like to..."
	"No...." Kay's voice was little more than a terrified whisper as she cringed back against Erith.
	Sam looked at the form of her terrified lover pressing against Erith and she smiled. "Oh... I see. Well then, I'll 
see you later." With that she turned and walked off down the corridor.
	"In Eldread's name..." Kay whispered as she tried to come to terms with the... thing... that had just happened. 
That... had been Samantha's idea of fun?!? She remembered the Corruption that had been shining out of Samantha's eyes...
	"Erith..." she whispered as she remembered what that Corruption had done to her own home. "We are all going 
to die... Everything..... She'll destroy it ALL, just for fun..."