This is my first attempt at writing fan fiction based on the El
Hazard series. Note that it is based on the continuity of the
two OAV series and the second television series "The Alternative
World". It certainly contains spoilers for the first OAV series,
and a few for the second OAV series. At this point, six chapters
are planned. Though I call them "chapters" they are more or less
independent stories (which is what I said about my Sailor Moon
stories, so you're free to believe as much of that as you like).


El Hazard and characters therein were created by Hiroki Hayashi
and Ryoe Tsukimura, and brought to North America by Pioneer LDC.
All the normal fanfic disclaimers apply. I'll give this one a PG
rating.


Language note: "Uso" means "lie." By itself it can mean "That's
a lie."


Ken Wolfe


Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca



El Hazard - Earth Chapter 5 - Fall of Darkness



Ifurita rode in the back with Fujisawa and the baby, her staff
locked away in the trunk. It occurred to her that normally she
would be the one to ride in front with Makoto instead of
Alielle. But right now she was deriving a great deal of comfort
from watching the reunited father and child. She had not strayed
far from them since yesterday when she had placed Ai back into
her father's arms. In these times she felt protective about all
of her friends. But she was astonished at the depth of feeling
that the little girl had now kindled in her. She supposed she
was getting a glimpse of what it was that Fujisawa and Miz felt
for their child.

Ai-chan herself seemed very pleased with the change of venue. A
quick trip to a clinic had confirmed that she was in good health
and had not been mistreated. Other than being rather hungry when
she awakened, she showed no adverse effects from the kidnapping.
She was just very pleased to be back among familiar faces. In
fact right now she was reaching out expectantly towards
Ifurita's smiling face.

This was not lost on Fujisawa. "What is it, Ai-chan? Would you
like Ifurita-obasan to hold you for a while?"

"Sensei!" Alielle said in a scandalized voice. She twisted
around to fix him with a shocked, worried look. "That's not
nice. You should say Ifurita-onesan." She really looked like she
expected the Demon God to exact bloody vengeance for the slight.

Ifurita chuckled lightly. "I dare say I'm more than old enough
to be Ifurita-obasan." She and Fujisawa did the hand-off, as
they had more than once since leaving the apartment. "I'm sure
that's what she'll be calling me one day. Isn't that right,
Ai-chan?" Ai happily joined in the grownups' game of making
strange noises with their mouths.

"Hey, she said your name!" Alielle exclaimed. "She said Ifurita!"

"I heard gi-gi-ga," Makoto said. "I don't think she's beyond
'mama' yet."

"Ma-ma!" Ai agreed.

"That's right," Ifurita said, smiling down at her. "We're going
to see your mama."

The baby's return and anticipation of her reunion with her
mother had put them all in a state something like euphoria. It
was something that not even Ifurita's shocking news could
dampen. Ifurita could not help but also lose herself in the
sublime joy of a family reunited. But she knew full well the
harsh reality they would have to face when this moment of
tranquillity had passed them.

Nanami and the three priestesses met them in the waiting room of
the hospital. Nanami informed them that Miz had just been moved
out of the IC ward. She led them to Miz' new room, warning them
that they may have to wait a while. They all waited outside the
closed door. Those who had not seen Ai since her return
reacquainted themselves as enthusiastically as the decorum of a
hospital ward would allow.

Shortly the door opened and a nurse emerged. She closed the door
behind her and approached the group, smiling. "Good morning,
Fujisawa-san. Is this your daughter?"

"That's my girl," he said, beaming.

"My, what a cutie." Her expression sobered just a bit. "I've got
her settled in," she said softly. "She's awake, but still very
tired. I know she'll be very excited, but try to be as quick as
possible. She needs to sleep."

"Of course."

"And it would be best if you took your daughter in by yourself,"
the nurse added, sweeping the group with a firm but apologetic
glance.

Fujisawa looked a bit embarrassed. "Um, I wonder, would it be
okay to let one other see her?" he asked with a sheepish smile.

"Yes, I suppose so. I'm so happy to hear your daughter was
returned safely, Fujisawa-san."

"Thank you."

It looked like word had spread quickly, Ifurita noted. Most
likely the police knew by now as well. Questions were obviously
going to be asked. Just one more thing to worry about. Ifurita's
introspection was interrupted when she noticed Fujisawa
approaching her. "Ifurita, would you carry Ai-chan in for me?"

Ifurita was at a loss for words, overcome with a whirlwind of
feelings. She had not even considered that Fujisawa's request
might have meant her. Fujisawa had already told Miz that Ai-chan
was safe, had told her last night when she had woken briefly.
But that made this no less special a reunion. "Fujisawa-san... I
couldn't. This is a private moment for you."

"You brought her back to me. I'd like you to bring her back to
Miz as well."

"I..." she had to engage regulators to get control of her throat
back again. Her look of astonishment melted into a smile of
gratitude. "Thank you, Fijusawa-san. I would be happy to." She
regretted just how inadequate words could often be. Fujisawa
handed Ai to her and went to open the door for them. He smiled
at her. "Go ahead," he whispered encouragingly. Ifurita felt
utterly unworthy for this sacred task. But she proceeded into
the room anyway. It was a small private room, much more pleasant
than the IC ward full of its cold machinery. Lights were on but
the curtains were drawn, presumably in preparation for the sleep
Miz would be needing.

Miz' hospital bed was angled up to let her sit comfortably.
Ifurita had but an instant to observe her waiting in anxious
anticipation. She looked as if her daughter's return was still
not a reality she could fully accept. Then she saw them and she
was transformed. "Ai-chan..." Ifurita's eyes devoured her
friend's face with the same hunger that had driven her on the
hunt for Ai's kidnappers. She fixed the sight into memory both
human and inhuman, saved it for a future time when she might
find the words to convey some small part of it. Carefully,
reverently, the Demon God leaned over and placed Ai into her
mother's waiting arms. The scene became one that Ifurita had
seen many times before - Miz murmuring softly to her baby girl,
playing with her, gently kissing her, while Fujisawa looked on
with an expression of utter contentment. Miz' voice was light
and sparkling like spring-water, as it always was at such time.
The only difference was the tears streaming down Miz' cheeks.

When the time was right, Fujisawa sat on the edge of the bed,
and it was the three of them for a while. The two parents made
Ai laugh and squirm with their antics. When Miz' tears were
done, when her joy had settled into quiet contentment, Fujisawa
leaned over and kissed her forehead. "Time to say good-bye,
love," he said very softly. Surprisingly, she just nodded and
handed Ai back to him. Ifurita, who had been feeling more and
more like an intruder, was suddenly the center of Miz'
attention. The Demon God could not have moved or looked away no
matter how hard she tried. "Thank you, Ifurita," she said in a
tremulous voice. "For my life and for hers, thank you."

"Witnessing this sight is all the thanks I could ever ask." Miz
reached out her hand and Ifurita took it. "Your happiness is
mine."

"Before you go, may I ask one more favor of you?" Miz asked. Her
voice was steadier now. But she sounded weary, the excitement
had obviously taken its toll on her barely recovered body.

"Of course, anything."

"From now on I would like for Ai to be your child as well. Would
you consent to be her godmother?"

It was several seconds before Ifurita answered. "Yes, of
course." She wiped a single tear away. "I would be honored."

"Thank you."

Ifurita released Miz' hand. "I should let you get ready for
sleep now. Fujisawa-san, I will await you outside."

"I'll be out shortly," he said, his smile of gratitude matching
his wife's. Ifurita turned and headed for the door. Now out of
their sight, she let her face settle naturally into the cold,
grim mask with which she contemplated the task ahead. Her
goddaughter was born of two worlds, Ifurita would protect both
of them. She would hunt down those who had come to destroy this
one. If she had to find each and every nest, if she had to blast
them all right down to the planet's liquid mantle, she would rid
the Earth of the Phantom Tribe, once and for all.



___****___



Riding into battle in the back seat of a luxury sedan, Nanami
mused. Not exactly the stuff of epic adventure. But of course
fighting the Phantom Tribe had never felt like adventure, not
even in El Hazard. Each encounter with them had simply moved
from wild adrenaline rush to desperate relief at being still
alive. The last one, the one she had walked into of her own free
will, had been the worst, preceded as it was by an eternity of
sick dread. Something like she was feeling right now.

Nanami held hands with Kauru, who took the middle seat. Shayla
sat on the other side, arms crossed. Unlike the other two, she
really seemed to be chomping at the bit, raring to go. The last
occupant of the rear seat - a delivery from Makoto's recent trip
back to El Hazard - sat quietly in Nanami's lap. The
spectacularly maned cat watched the passing countryside with
mild interest. Nanami had often wondered before just how much of
what was going on Ula really understood. The cat did talk, after
all, though her words were simple enough that a skeptic might
pass it off as the mimicry of a parrot. But she obviously
understood enough to accept Makoto's instructions, to come along
and protect Nanami. Since she still absolutely refused to carry
a blade, the cat's remarkable armor was her only means of
protection.

They were not necessarily going out to fight Phantom Tribe. A
'reconnaissance in force' was what Ifurita had called it. That
was just an exercise in semantics, as far as Nanami was
concerned.

Fujisawa slowed down the car. "Here's the place," he said,
pointing to their right. The country road they followed was met
by a small gravel road disappearing into the woods that covered
the foothills rising into the mountains on their right.

"Please proceed," Ifurita said from her place beside him. That
meant she had detected nothing with her 'passive sensors',
whatever that meant.

Fujisawa turned up the road, and soon the rice fields they had
been skirting disappeared in the trees behind them. Almost
immediately the rough road opened into a little gravel parking
lot. It was empty. Fujisawa killed the engine and they all got
out. He opened the trunk for Ifurita and she retrieved her
staff. "That way, I guess," Fujisawa said, pointing to a rough
foot path at the other end of the clearing that wound its way
further up the slope.

Ifurita nodded. "We should be on our guard from this point on.
Ula, if you please." She gestured towards Nanami.

"Okay!" the cat said in her chirpy, clipped voice. Ula crouched
and leaped straight up at Nanami. She stiffened involuntarily.
She knew what to expect, but it was still a shock. The cat's
body distended like rubber as she flew. She did not land on
Nanami so much as envelop her. A second later Nanami's whole
torso was wrapped in orange cat fur... no, wrapped in orange
cat. A cat-head now stuck out of her collarbone, smiling up at
her. It gave Nanami a very queasy feeling. "Nanami warm?" the
cat-head asked cheerily.

"Uh... yeah. Thanks." Ula's unwaveringly bright manner helped
settle Nanami's nerves a little. And having the soft, distended
cat body enveloping her was giving her a... oh go ahead and say
it, a warm fuzzy feeling.

Ifurita led the way up the path. Nanami was not the only one
scanning the woods warily, though her special vision was the
main reason she was here. The others might be confounded by
Phantom Tribe illusions, but at least they had means of dealing
with the enemy. Of course the priestesses had both their lamps
and their blades. Fujisawa carried nothing... but Nanami would
swear she could see his aura with her own eyes. He hadn't smoked
or drank at all in the past four days... in his current state, a
weapon simply would have been redundant.

In just a couple of minutes they came upon it, a little shrine
nestled in the woods. "I assume this is it," Ifurita commented.

"Yes, it is," Kauru said. "I can feel it." She approached the
front of the old shrine building, bowed her head and stood in
silent prayer for a moment before proceeding to the task she had
come here to perform.

They were in a valley on the opposite side of the mountain where
Ifurita had met that other Demon God. Despite what this Erinyes
had said, Ifurita still felt this was the core of the Phantom
Tribe's operations, and their most important nest. But she had
no intention of assaulting the entrance she had located. Again,
in spite of Erineys' words, she assumed that by now it was
defended or sealed or laid with traps. They needed another way
in. Which was when Kauru had made her suggestion: find me a
nearby holy place where I can better focus my power.

Kauru knelt down on the ground and put her hand down upon the
bare earth. She was silent for a moment. "There is a waterway
far below," she said at length. "Not here, further to the east.
It angles in towards the mountain, going even deeper. Its course
is very irregular. It has probably changed its course many
times." She stood up and turned to face the group again. "It has
certainly left many deep natural caverns behind over time."

Ifurita simply nodded. "We will proceed, then. Thank you, Kauru.
Let's return to the car."

Fujisawa drove them further down the road. Nanami wished that
Makoto or Afura could have come as well... they were few enough
as it was, they who would challenge the Phantom Tribe in their
own lair. But somebody had to stay and watch over Miz and the
child. The stricken woman was still not well enough to take back
to El Hazard, the risk of complications was still too great. The
Rostalian doctors could treat a surprising number of ailments
with their herbs and potions, but major abdominal trauma was not
one of them. Nanami did feel grateful for Ula's presence at
least, a side benefit of the quick trip to El Hazard that Makoto
and Afura had made. Makoto had said little of that trip, other
than to mention that Rune had pledged any help she could
provide. Which under the circumstances was unfortunately not
much of anything.

She can offer us a bolt hole, Nanami thought grimly. A place to
go back to if we fail.

Kauru had to get out and feel the earth below her two more times
before deciding upon the best area. Fujisawa parked the car at
the edge of the wooded foothills again, next to a shed that no
doubt belonged to the nearest of the rice farms that covered the
valley floor. He said the farmers would be well used to hikers
and such using the space. By this time it was late in the
morning already, and some of the chill had been taken from the
air. Once again, he found them a path and they walked further up
into the rolling foothills. When they came to a reasonably level
clearing Kauru stopped them again. She put her hand down upon
the sandy soil. "This will be a good place," she announced. The
young priestess looked nervously up at Ifurita. "Did you wish to
try and see it, Ifurita-sama?"

"Yes, I would." Ifurita knelt down beside Kauru and put her own
hand to the ground. She closed her eyes and was still as a
statue for a while. Then she looked back to Kauru. "I confess
this technique still confounds me. I know well how you
manipulate water, but how you can sense it at such a distance
with no active sensors is beyond my understanding."

"I don't really see it," Kauru said. "It's more like I become
part of the water. I'm sorry, it's very difficult to describe. I
could try and teach you, but it would take a long time."

"Too bad it's not something you can attack her with," Shayla
said. "Then she could learn it in two seconds flat." Her
belligerent expression wavered and she looked nervously at
Ifurita. "Uh, no offense."

"None taken. You are correct, it is only forms of attack I can
integrate in that way." She stood up. "Kauru, please take us in."

Kauru also stood. "Everyone, please gather closely around me."
The petite young priestess practically disappeared behind the
group pressed around her. It was hard to believe such a
diminutive package could unleash the elemental forces of nature.
But Nanami had seen her power, had seen her move the waters in
ways both colossal and delicate, and do it with confidence. They
were in good hands. That made Nanami feel just a tiny bit less
apprehensive.

She first detected it as a low rumbling, more felt through her
feet than heard. Like a subway train approaching. Then all of a
sudden it was upon them. Water erupted out of the earth all
around them, enveloping them. It formed a whirling globe all
around the group, lifting them from the ground. It felt like
standing upon rubber. Off balance for a moment, Nanami
involuntarily put her arm out, brushing it against the
shimmering bubble of water that enveloped them. It was like
sliding her hand across a frictionless rubber surface. It was
cool to the touch, but her hand did not come away wet, as if not
a single drop of the water was willing to be diverted from the
course Kauru had set for it. Nanami had heard her and Miz
talking about this, something to do with manipulating surface
tension.

The earth that had been below their feet crumbled and distended,
the water parting it, pushing it aside. Nanami shivered,
thinking of the sort of force it was exerting. She had no doubt
this innocent looking water could crush them like bugs just as
easily as envelop them in this protective pocket of air. She
kept her arms close around her, resting them against the
comforting warmth of the cat-armor.

The earth swallowed them up and they descended quickly. Only now
was it apparent that the water bubble around them was glowing
with a shimmering blue light. It dimly illuminated the earth and
rock that swept past all around them. Their little envelope of
air expanded and compressed as they took their winding path
down, slipping through fissures and forcing their way through
layers of softer minerals that the water had found coursing
through the massive blocks of hard granite. Their descent became
slower and more tortuous as they descended, as if even the
remarkably animated water was finding it difficult to force a
path for them.

Finally they broke out into a great tunnel filled almost to the
top with gently flowing water. "This is the river," Kauru
explained. "Our progress will be much faster now." Indeed it
was. Especially when the tunnel would make sudden, unexpected
plunges that would leave Nanami's stomach up around her neck, as
if here the water had broken down to another stratum. But none
of this seemed to take Kauru by surprise, she guided them
swiftly and smoothly through every twist and turn. They were a
little globe of phosphorescence gliding through the utter
blackness of the tunnel. Rock that had not seen light since
before dinosaurs tread the earth slid by around them,
illuminated by the water priestess' power.

"We are approaching the base of the mountain," Kauru announced
at length.

"At last," Nanami said. She was beginning to think they were
going to the center of the earth by now. "We must have gone
miles."

"I concur, we are close," Ifurita said. "Kauru, begin probing
for openings."

"Okay." Their progress slowed. It looked like Kauru was just
letting them flow with the underground river now. The level of
the light increased. Nanami supposed this was because more of
the water was now under Kauru's control. They had explained the
theory to the rest of the team before they left. They were
hoping the Phantom Tribe had opened their caves to this river as
a water source. That opening was what Kauru's enchanted water
was now probing for. Cutting their own passage would risk
detection, they wanted to avoid it if possible.

A frown creased the water priestess' brow. "Something's wrong,"
she said just before Nanami could ask. "The water further ahead
is becoming agitated. Like its course is suddenly being changed,
its flow restricted." She shook her head. "Like there's a rock
slide or something, but it's odd."

"No sign of openings yet?" Ifurita asked.

"No. We are in solid granite now. I could not force an opening,
at least not quickly."

"If you could tell me which way, I could make us one," Fujisawa
said, cracking his knuckles.

"I don't want to risk using active sonar if we can help it,"
Ifurita said. "Kauru, proceed slowly."

"Yes, Ifurita-sama." She looked more apprehensive now, as if
spooked by whatever it was she was sensing further ahead. Nanami
found herself squinting, peering into the inky blackness ahead
of their little envelope of light.

"Somebody's using power nearby," Shayla snapped, making Nanami
jump.

"You're certain?" Ifurita asked.

"Yeah. Kauru's water was masking it before. But I'm sure now."
She went down to a crouch. "It's up ahead."

"I see something," Fujisawa said, squinting into the darkness
ahead of them.

"I see it as well," Ifurita said. "Kauru, stop us here. See if
you can give us more light there."

Nanami also looked down the tunnel, knowing they were depending
on her to see through any illusions the Phantom Tribe may try to
use. As Kauru's light extended further down the tunnel,
something did emerge from the darkness. She should confirm that
this was not one. "It's like there are stalactites and
stalagmites up ahead."

"That's impossible," Fujisawa said. "There couldn't be, not in-"

"They're growing!" Nanami exclaimed. "They're merging!"

"Like a cage," Shayla said. "Damn, they know we're here. How the
hell are they doing that? Are you sure it's not an illusion?"

"Not if Nanami sees it," Ifurita said. "I am sending out a sonar
pulse." She didn't need to explain the implications of this.
They were discovered, stealth was no longer an issue. "There is
a tunnel five meters to our right and slightly up. Fujisawa-san,
can you manage that?"

He was already rolling up his sleeves, a crooked grin on his
face. "Just get me to the wall and I'll take care of it."

"Kauru, up there please," Ifurita said, pointing above. They
ascended to the top of the rough tunnel and broke the surface of
the water. Nanami now had the curious sensation of walking upon
water. The gummy surface held her in place solidly. The rock
closed them in tightly, there was barely room to stand.

"Right." Without further preamble, Fujisawa wound up and slammed
his fist into the solid rock wall before him, a move that for
most people would have resulted in nothing but a shattered hand.
But it was the brittle rock that shattered spectacularly, great
huge chunks breaking away and slipping below the surface of the
water. Nanami winced. She knew he was practically indestructible
in his current state, but it was still painful to watch. He
attacked the wall with a dizzying barrage, more and more
pulverized rock falling down in his wake. In short order he was
standing within the beginnings of a very rough little tunnel.
Ifurita flew in behind him and started clearing out the biggest
rocks, rolling them out and letting them sink into the river.
"How'm I doing?" Fujisawa asked her.

"Fine. Keep going in that direction."

"Can't you do this faster with your staff?" Shayla called. As
usual, inactivity was making her impatient.

"The risk of collapsing the tunnel is too great here," Ifurita
answered, rolling yet another boulder into the water. She turned
back into the tunnel but stopped halfway. Her expression
suddenly showed alarm. She cocked her head as if listening for
something. "Fujisawa-san, please stop for a-" But Fujisawa had
already stopped his mad assault on the end of his growing
tunnel. He must have felt it too.

Shayla was looking about wildly. "What the-"

"Kauru, get the others below the surface, you can protect them
there!" Ifurita said sharply. Kauru was complying even before
Ifurita was done. Their feet dropped out from under them and the
three of them slipped below the surface, enveloped once again in
the bubble of water.

"What is it?" Kauru asked in a shrill voice.

"Earthquake..." Nanami answered. Of course the two natives were
the ones who had picked up on it even before the Demon God with
her enhanced senses. Anybody who had lived in Japan all their
lives knew the signs instinctively. Even here enveloped in this
enchanted water bubble Nanami felt it in her bones. She became
painfully aware of the millions of tons of rock quivering over
her head.

"It can't be-" Shayla was interrupted in mid-sentence again,
this time by the ceiling crashing through the surface of the
water and rushing down to squash them.

Kauru screamed and threw her arm up, her ring glowing like a
white-hot sun now. The water around them glowed with brilliant
incandescence. It was not enough. They were being squeezed
against the floor of the tunnel, the immense slab of rock
inexorably flattening their little bubble of air.

Streams of fire flared around Shayla, arcing between the crimson
jewels in her headband, belt and leather wrist braces. Her arms
shot up and blue-white spears of fire shot through the water and
exploded against the rock. It shattered, huge pieces of it
tumbling down around them.

"Damn, who's doing this?" Shayla rasped, looking around as if
expecting to see the enemy appear.

"Nobody is doing this!" Nanami snapped. "It's an earthquake and
it's not over yet!" She could still feel it, the waves of
subsonic vibration washing through her.

"Like hell. Somebody's using power again, it's way stronger this
time."

Nanami looked about in panic as more boulders broke the surface
and tumbled down through the water all around them. Somebody was
causing this? Oh God, what about the others? Another shock hit
and she looked up into a roiling mass of white bubbles. The
thing that had made them swept them aside just as quickly, not a
great long slab this time but a sharp boulder coming down on
them like a guillotine. Shayla's fire was barely sparked when
the rock sliced through their little bubble of air. Its
shimmering, distending surface pushed Nanami one way and her
friends the other way. The sharp rock hit bottom between them,
inches from Nanami's foot. Her half of the air pocket instantly
collapsed into a million bubbles. This fact registered on
Nanami's mind an instant after she took in a lung full of water.
She flailed madly, any coherent thought blasted away by the
simple fact that she could no longer breathe. Somehow her limbs
were rocketing her to the surface. No, not her limbs. Stubby
orange cat-legs furiously pumping. Her head broke the surface.
She gagged and sputtered, unable to get anything past her
flooded windpipe.

Something else was choking her now. Two hands around her throat.
It was too dark to see who. She lashed out blindly, connecting
repeatedly with something.

"CALM DOWN!" Ifurita's voice was deafening. Nanami was
paralyzed. Then something horrible happened. There was something
alive in her throat, something trying to slither out. It vomited
out of her mouth and turned back into water. She threw back her
head to scream... but suddenly her fear and revulsion just did
not matter anymore. All that mattered was that she was sucking
in one blessed lung full of air after another. The horrid
wheezing sound was the most beautiful thing she had ever heard.

"Your lungs were full of water," the shadow in front of her said
with Ifurita's voice. "I had to manipulate the water molecules,
get them out."

"Are you okay, Nanami?" Fujisawa's voice, nearby.

"Got separated..." Nanami gasped.

"We will find them," Ifurita said. She grabbed the staff
floating nearby and its globes began to glow. So did the water
around them. Nanami felt it take on the rubbery consistency of
the air pocket. She whimpered.

"It's okay," Ifurita said gently, holding her tightly. "I'll
protect you." The shimmering air pocket slipped below the
surface, bearing the three of them down into the water. Nanami
opened her eyes again. The floor of the tunnel was now littered
with rubble. The water was murky now. The light of Ifurita's
animated water cut through clouds of floating sand, throwing
crazy lines of light and shadow all over.

There was something else which had changed now. "It's over,"
Nanami breathed.

"Yes, the tremors have stopped," Ifurita confirmed.

"It wasn't tremors."

"I know, I felt it too. Somebody caused this."

"There they are!" Fujisawa said, pointing. Nanami looked.
Another glowing bubble of air was rapidly approaching their own,
two familiar figures held within it. But something was wrong.
The bubble was too small, and seemed on the verge of collapsing.
The smaller of the two figures within was clinging to the other
for support. They came more sharply into focus as they
approached. The two pockets of air met and merged.

"Kauru!" Nanami released the tight grip she had on the Demon God
and went to help Shayla lay the barely conscious girl down on
the bottom of Ifurita's protective blanket of glowing water. The
side of her shirt had been torn away. The exposed skin was
bruised, swollen and burned in places. "God, what happened?"

"I had to blast another rock point blank," Shayla said, her
voice full of suppressed anger and remorse. "It backfired, she
took the worst of it. Told her to break for the surface, but she
wanted to look for you, thought you might have been buried. I
don't know how she held out so long."

"We've got trouble," Fujisawa said. Nanami followed his gaze and
saw it immediately.

Shayla cursed. "Just like that damned cage." It did indeed look
just like the spikes that had grown into the columns that barred
their path. Except now they were growing out of the walls all
over the place. The sharp stone spikes were closing in on them
from all sides, they were even breaking through the rubble that
littered the floor of the tunnel.

"We are leaving," Ifurita announced. Immediately, they started
accelerating back up the tunnel.

"I could blast those things!" Shayla said, her jewels already
flaring to life.

"Not quickly enough," Ifurita said flatly. "I know what this is,
we cannot fight it, not here."

"You know what this is?" Nanami asked. "Is it some weapon from
El Hazard?"

"In a manner of speaking. It is Erinyes."

"She could do this?" Nanami looked all around them, but there
were no more of the inexorably encroaching spikes. Whatever that
was, they were rapidly leaving it behind.

"I have never seen any such weapon. But judging by the level of
power being used, it could only be a Demon God. It was she who
detected our approach."

"She must be out of her mind, causing an earthquake," Fujisawa
said. "Don't they live in caves?"

"It was very localized," Ifurita said. "This is a formidable
weapon, especially for those dwelling deep in the earth. I have
fought other Erinyes units before. They have a limited ability
to integrate new attacks, I've seen them use a variety of
weapons. But never anything like this."

"The priestess of the earth." Shayla sounded like she was
talking to herself. But now she saw she had everyone's
attention. "Afura told me about it. One of those old books she
reads said there used to be a fourth major school of the Great
Priestesses. A priestess of the earth could control rock like we
control fire, water and air. But even if they existed there
haven't been any for centuries, not since before the Holy Wars
at least."

"Erinyes is at least nearly as old as I am," Ifurita said. "It
could be that she was exposed to the technique, was able to
integrate it."

"So what now?" Shayla asked. "If we come back down here she'll
just do the same. Even if we get into their caves she can just
collapse it down on us or something. Maybe you'll just have to
blast away at it from above."

"I doubt even I could do that," Ifurita said. "My sonar pulse
detected few caves above us but many far below. They are dug in
even deeper than I had imagined, no doubt thanks to Erinyes'
efforts. It would take all my power to blast away even a small
part of the mountain protecting them. Erinyes has demonstrated
she is willing to defend this place, she would no doubt take
advantage of this fact and attack while I am vulnerable."

"So what are we going to do?" Nanami asked, looking up at the
Demon God.

"Right now we should focus on getting to safety." She looked
down at the priestess of water lying propped up between Shayla
and Nanami. "Kauru, I can take us to where we entered the tunnel
but from there I will need your help to traverse the course you
opened for us. Will you be able to do that?"

The girl smiled weakly and nodded. She was obviously in a lot of
pain. "I can take over from that point," she said in a soft,
strained voice.

True to her word, Kauru fired up her lamp and took them from the
underground river back up to the surface. She looked like she
would be okay, right up to the point where she stepped towards
the car and fell into Nanami's arms.

Ifurita spoke to Makoto on the cellular phone, filling him in on
the results of their mission. Nanami had to suppose it would
have been worse being left behind than going along. Just like it
had been agony for her to wait and worry over her friends when
they had gone to rescue princess Fatora from her brother's
fortress. But they had felt it wise to leave at least one
'native guide' to stay behind with Afura and Alielle. Makoto had
little to report except that Miz was feeling a bit better.

They dropped off Fujisawa and Kauru at the hospital, the former
to visit his wife and child, the latter to receive treatment.
Makoto met them and drove the rest of them back to the
apartment. Afura was okay to keep watch some more and Alielle
was having too much fun taking care of Ai and flirting with the
nurses, so they stayed put.

"I'm headed for the bath," Nanami said as soon as she had her
shoes off. "If anyone else can't wait, by all means don't feel
shy."

"Thanks, but I'm going to collapse for a bit first," Shayla
said, heading for one of the shared bedrooms. That left Makoto
and Ifurita to be alone together for a bit, which Nanami guessed
they would appreciate. Even though they would probably be
talking about nothing more private than their next assault on
the Phantom Tribe. Nanami just couldn't deal with that right
now. She stripped out of her damp, grimy clothes, scrubbed her
equally grimy self and sank gratefully down into the little tub.
She tried to think of nothing except being enveloped in hot
water. Normal water.

She heard the door slide open and opened one eye in response.
Ifurita smiled at her. "If it's not imposing I'd like to wash
and change."

"Sure. Come right in." She closed both eyes again, not to be
unsociable but just because she really was that weary. Nanami
had found from her experiences on El Hazard that one quick brush
with death could leave you just as dragged out as a whole day of
hard labor.

"Are you feeling a little better?" Ifurita asked. Nanami could
hear the soft rustling of her folding her clothes.

"I think I will be, after a good sleep."

There was a slight pause before Ifurita spoke again. "I was
wondering whether you were still bothered by what happened."

Nanami didn't need to ask what Ifurita was referring to. It
certainly wasn't what she wanted to talk about right now. But
Ifurita was just trying to help, she didn't want to be rude.
"Yeah, seeing a little boy nearly cut in half with a knife
bothered me just a bit." She shivered, realizing how that
sounded. "Sorry, I didn't mean..." She just groaned. "Oh hell."

"You will not feel this way forever," Ifurita said mildly.
Nanami heard the rush and gurgling of water as Ifurita filled
the little plastic pail from the tap. "The memory will linger,
but the pain will fade."

"You speak from experience?" Nanami had managed to get some of
the bitterness out of her voice.

"Yes. Both my own and what I saw in others so long ago.
Eventually the boy's face will settle into your mind as a
reminder what happens when we wage war. It would be a blessing
if all people had such reminders, don't you think?"

Nanami made an amused grunt. "That just makes too much sense,
Ifurita. Except there are people who really don't care. Like
those Phantom Tribe bastards who put knives in their own kids'
hands."

"Sadly, that is true."

Nanami just listened to the Demon God scrubbing and rinsing
herself for a moment, while she worked up the courage to ask the
question. "Ifurita... do you think I've been taking this out on
Shayla?"

"No, you have not," Ifurita said flatly. "She fully understands
how you feel."

"I sure hope I haven't," Nanami said. She debated the wisdom of
continuing, but she wanted so much to get it off her chest. "I
mean, at the time she was so calm about it. I hope it didn't
show but I was furious with her. I really thought she has no
feelings at all."

"She is bothered by what happened as much as you are, of that I
am sure."

Ifurita wouldn't say that if she were not sure. For better or
worse, little white lies were not one of the social graces she
had picked up, or maybe had chosen not to pick up. In fact
Shayla had been more belligerent than normal lately, a sure sign
that something was bothering her. And the Demon God had her own
ways of judging people's state of mind, which was probably why
she was there offering words of comfort. Nanami moved up against
the side of the deep tub facing Ifurita and lay her arms down
across the rim. "I hadn't really thought about it before, but I
should be grateful she's even here. This isn't her fight or even
her world, she doesn't need to be here. Neither do Afura or
Kauru."

Ifurita just glanced at her and smiled, then went back to
washing herself. "They are fighting not for this world but for
their loved ones, you and Makoto and Fujisawa. It is the reason
I helped save El Hazard, for Makoto and his loved ones who are
now mine." She sent another quick sidelong glance Nanami's way,
smiling shyly. "Of course all life is precious, but it is hard
to love an entire world. Fighting to protect family is the best
of reasons, I think."

"Family..." Nanami said wistfully. "I guess that's what it's all
about. You know I'm sorry I wasn't there when you brought Ai
back to Fujisawa Sensei. That must have been really something."

Ifurita's expression spoke of thoughts that were as private as
they were cherished. "It was... something I will never forget,"
she said softly. In another moment it was gone and Ifurita met
her eyes again. "I haven't asked, how are your parents taking
all this?"

"Okay, I guess. They did take my advice and move into that
apartment with Makoto's folks, thank God."

"That's good. I doubt the enemy will attempt to take hostages
again. But your peace of mind is reason enough to take the
precaution. Are they worried about you?"

Nanami hesitated before answering. "Of course they knew about
what happened to Miz. But Mako-chan and I, we still haven't told
them about..." haven't told them that we're trying to prevent
aliens from destroying the world in a few days.

"I see. Perhaps that is best." She seemed to spend a second
debating whether to continue. "Makoto and I have been discussing
contingencies. In the worst case, we will try to bring as many
people as possible through the wormhole. We have no idea how
much time we would have, but we might be able to save hundreds,
maybe thousands."

"That's not an option," Nanami snapped.

Ifurita looked hurt. "Of course, I will do everything I can to
make sure it doesn't come to that."

Damn, there I go again. Ifurita looked like she was making ready
to leave. Nanami got up out of the tub. "Stay put, I'll do your
back."

"Oh... thank you," Ifurita said hesitantly.

Nanami's gaze went down to the plug at the small of the Demon
God's back. So, she's still a little self-conscious about that.
"Hey, relax," Nanami said pleasantly. "It's nothing I haven't
seen before, right?" Ifurita looked surprised. Nanami bent over
and lightly patted her back. "You're not the only one who can
read body language, you know."

"I'm sorry, I know I'm being foolish."

"Well, if it makes you feel better I've got a little mole too.
Want to see it?"

Ifurita blushed. "I don't imagine yours is made from
diamondoid-reinforced plastisteel," she said by way of avoiding
the question.

"No, but it's in a way more embarrassing place." She told her.

Ifurita's blush deepened. "Oh... no wonder I have never seen it."

Nanami giggled. "Embarrassing Caucasians is such fun, it's like
watching litmus paper turn color."

Ifurita smiled dangerously. "I think perhaps I shall describe
your mole to Makoto."

Nanami bent down close to her face, returned her grin and did
what was probably the most dangerous thing she had ever done in
her life. "Who says he doesn't already know about it?" She
didn't wait to see how long the expression of wide-eyed shock
lasted, she just kicked the other plastic stool over behind
Ifurita, sat down and picked up the soap. Ifurita had already
tied up her hair, making Nanami's job easier.

She was already scrubbing Ifurita's back when she spoke again.
"Nanami-"

"Joke, Ifurita. It was a joke."

"I knew that."

"Is that why your jaw hit the floor?"

"I was surprised that you would make such a joke."

"Surely you've been hanging around with us girls long enough to
realize there is no topic too embarrassing, at least when there
are no poor, sensitive males about."

Ifurita spoke a bit more hesitantly now. "I just thought it
would - I'm not sure if this is the right expression - would hit
too close to home."

Nanami almost regretted the impulsive jest now. "Yes, that's the
right expression. Anyway, you've seen all his memories so you
must know he and I were never really an item."

"I know that many of the places he took me in our memories were
places he dreamt of taking you."

Nanami chuckled lightly. "Yeah, I knew he had a crush on me back
then. But I had other irons in the fire. Hey, don't tell me
you're worried I'm going to steal him from you. Trust me, that's
not going to happen."

"Actually, I was more concerned about it being the other way
around."

"Oh..." The playfulness was out of her voice now. "I suppose
Makoto told you how I reacted, when I found out he had feelings
for you."

"I have a good idea what happened."

Nanami finished off her work with a bucket of water poured down
Ifurita's back. "Look, the fact is I didn't know you back then.
I was worried about Makoto. I thought he'd fallen in love with
somebody who couldn't return his feelings. I thought you'd end
up hurting him, one way or another. I was wrong. You're the best
thing that ever happened to him."

Ifurita turned about on her stool and regarded Nanami intently.
"You really believe that?"

"Of course. We all believe that. I guess it's because we trust
you. I'd trust you with my life or Makoto's more than I would
anybody else."

Ifurita looked puzzled. "I'm happy that my powers allow me-"

"No, no, that's not it." Nanami sighed. She still wasn't getting
it. "Ifurita, I don't trust you to look after Makoto because
you're a Demon God, I trust you because I know you. You're the
most honest, faithful friend I've ever had. Why do you think
everyone is looking to you to lead us against the Phantom Tribe?
Yes, I know there are all sorts of practical reasons, you've got
centuries of combat experience and all that. But people don't
trust weapons, at least not people with any sense. They only
give that sort of trust to people who have earned it."

She still looked troubled. "Then you do not regret that
Makoto... found me?"

Nanami spread her hands out as if in offering. "Ifurita... I
know what you're asking but how can I answer? Maybe if I'd let
Makoto be my boyfriend back then it would have turned out
differently. Maybe now I'd be his wife and you'd be his best
friend. But I don't know that, so there's nothing to regret."

After a moment, Ifurita's lips slowly spread into a fond smile.
"We are very lucky to have you with us, Nanami."

Nanami squirmed a little under her intent gaze. But Ifurita's
heartfelt words cheered her up considerably. "Damn straight you
are. I'd hate to think where you two would be if I wasn't
looking out for you." She stood up. All this serious talk had
just made her even more beat. She reached for a towel. "But
you'll have to do without me for a few hours now, I'm bushed."

"Would you like me to do your back as well?"

"No thanks, not after I've already soaked. Speaking of which,
why don't you take a dip? I know your muscles don't get tired
but I bet a good soak would help you relax and clear your mind."
Ifurita's face inexplicably fell. Nanami frowned, genuinely
worried. "I'm sorry, did I say something wrong?"

"No, not at all. It's just that I said that same thing to
another... a very long time ago."

The Demon God did not move or lose her sad, pensive expression
while Nanami set the towel aside and slipped into a yukata. "You
mean Erinyes," she said softly.

"Yes."

Nanami had heard more than once the story of how Ifurita had
freed Erinyes from her keylock and how they had become friends.
And she had heard enough about Ifurita's latest encounter with
her to figure out why it would be so upsetting. There didn't
seem to be much Nanami could say that would be comforting. But
she fished for something anyway. "I can't even imagine, somebody
living that long, going to all those places. She must be a
different person now."

"She has changed. I could sense how full of bitterness she is
now. But it is still her, still the Erinyes I knew for that
brief time." Still my sister, she said without saying.

"She gave Ai back to us," Nanami said. "Maybe she's having
doubts about what she's doing."

"That was a tactical move," Ifurita said flatly but not coldly.
"I feel sure that she came to care for human life at some point.
But she no longer does."

"But why is she helping the Phantom Tribe?"

Nanami regretted asking the question immediately, it sounded too
much like an accusation, against somebody Ifurita obviously
still cared about. But Ifurita answered calmly. "She gave me
reasons that made no sense, claimed there were things she
understood that I could not. Something happened to her on their
homeworld." She seemed to finally notice the trepidation on
Nanami's face. "None of you need worry. If I must destroy her to
save this world then I will do so."

"I know. That's what worries me."

Ifurita's sad, grateful smile tugged at Nanami's heart. The
albino woman rose and stepped over to the tub. "I think perhaps
I shall take your advice."

Nanami was glad for what small comfort she was able to offer her
dear friend. She walked quietly into the bedroom, noting that
Shayla had drawn the curtains already. After laying a quilt over
the snoring priestess' sprawled form Nanami set out her own
futon nearby. Not even thoughts of the battle she knew must be
coming could hold off sleep for long.



___****___



The abruptness with which Galus had set the final phase of the
Plan in motion was throwing the whole nest into an unbearable
frenzy. His chosen command center was right in the middle of it.
It was a sprawling office that occupied the entire second floor
of a sumptuous mountain cabin... the one which had not been
booby trapped and abandoned. The view of the valley through the
great, tall glazed end of the steeple roof went unappreciated.
He was focused on the constant stream of calls from his
scattered operatives, the clutch of assistants at his shoulder,
the frantic engineers running out here from the nest far below.
All clamoring for his attention, all trying to tell him about
things that could not possibly be done on time. Some of them
were even telling the truth. But enough of them were lying.
Enough of them were coming back saying yes, by the Great Movers
yes the Master had been right, it could be done and it had been
done. Enough of the pieces were being put in place to make it
work. Things were going well enough that he was only slightly
irritated when Erinyes entered the office unannounced. His
servants all backed a respectful distance from the only
individual who had leave to interrupt the Master's work in this
way.

"Leave us." The others filed quietly down the open staircase to
wait in the rooms below. He stabbed a button on his telephone,
directing calls to his lieutenants below. Galus cleared the room
on such occasions not so much to preserve the secrecy of what
might be said but to acknowledge the woman's right to private
audience. Such niceties were probably lost on the strange Demon
God, but there were others who needed to be reminded of the
importance of their ally.

"What news, Erinyes?" The two of them had long since dispensed
with any formalities, the terms of their relationship were
agreeable and well understood for both of them.

"The Rostalians attempted to enter the nest by way of the river.
It was the fire priestess and the water priestess at the very
least, from the power signatures.  There were probably others. I
was able to drive them away with nothing more than the Earth
Power."

"So, it would appear Ifurita was unable to convince them to
leave."

"She may very well be leading them. Either way, I misjudged
their attachment to this world."

Galus shrugged. "Ah well, it just means we were both wrong. No
matter, it is all the more fortunate I decided to push the
schedule forward."

"I have been monitoring the preparations below," Erinyes said.
"I have concerns. Because so few of the nodes are ready, they
are increasing the yields. This is necessary to ensure the chain
reaction, but it makes the results far less predictable."

"Do you doubt that it will be enough to rid this world of the
humans?"

"Quite the contrary. The surface could become uninhabitable even
for you." As always she spoke without recrimination or reproach,
she simply reported facts. Above all else Galus admired this,
admired her purity.

"Will it be beyond our ability to correct later?"

"No. But you may be facing many more years confined to the nest."

Galus leaned back in his chair and smiled. "We have lived in the
shadows of the human world for hundreds of generations, Erinyes.
A few more years under the surface of this one will be as
nothing. And an even greater cleansing may save work for future
generations. We are building a world whose beauty will last as
long as this sun shines. To those who come after us, this brief
episode with the humans will be a trivial matter best forgotten."

"It is as you say. Nevertheless, at best we are two days from
being able to trigger the chain reaction. The Rostalians have
obviously guessed the importance of this place. I have little
doubt they will be back again within that time. It is likely I
shall have at least one more battle before I can retire to my
hibernation capsule."

Galus raised an eyebrow. It had been a long while since they had
spoken of that. "Even now, when the day of transformation
approaches, you have not changed your mind about that?"

"No. I have told you all I know of the homeworld, all it is
within my power to describe. Even after your long absence you
understand it better than I ever could, it is in your blood. I
have no doubt that you shall one day turn this planet into the
home world's younger sibling. That is enough for me. I am
content to become its silent guardian. Let it be written upon
the face of your new world that I am here to defend it. Those to
come will know they can awaken me should any of the humans' many
cousins ever threaten it again."

Galus gazed silently into the eyes of the remarkable creature
before him. The glowing red sensor which replaced her right eye
was a constant reminder of just what she was. But those eyes had
seen the homeworld, so they were blessed in a way he could not
imagine. He envied her that. Yet still, he wanted these eyes
which had gazed into his to see the wonders to come on this new
world he was creating. He wanted a link with that future.
"Erinyes, one day those who come after us will become one with
this world, and we shall once again call ourselves the Eyes of
the World. May it also be written upon the face of the world
that on that blessed day you shall be woken and given honor?"

Erinyes graced him with a rare smile. She inclined her head
forward and shut her eyes for a moment, her ever neutral
expression looking almost serene now. "It shall please me to
look upon the homeworld's brother for a day, and then to return
to my place where I may sleep at its side."

"So let it be written."

Her familiar look of cold purpose returned. "If there is no
further business I shall return to the nest and await the
humans' next attack."

"It may never come. Our operatives will soon be giving them some
other things to worry about. By the time they can direct their
attention to us again, it will be too late."

Erinyes raised a crooked  eyebrow. "Indeed? Then when next we
speak the transformation shall be underway."

Galus nodded. "Good-bye until then, Erinyes."

"Good-bye, Galus."

He watched her descend the stairs. As expected, Nahato dropped
his cloak the minute she was away. Galus sighed. "You do her
dishonor, Nahato."

The boy bowed low. "The Demon God knows well that I watch for
threats from others, not from her."

"Does her presence among us disturb you so, little one?"

"You have informed me that she can be trusted, Galus-sama. Your
word is law."

Which was about as close to an honest answer as he was going to
get. "She has seen the homeworld, little one. We can only
imagine the wonders to come, but she knows what this world will
become one day. I have seen it in her eyes. She is as dedicated
to that future as we are."

"As you say, Galus-sama." He cloaked himself again just on time
for Galus' anxious assistants to come scurrying back into the
room. There were still a thousand details to attend to. He would
not leave those details in the hands of timid engineers as he
had the last time. With his own two hands would he bring about
the holy transformation and rid this world of the humans for
good.



___****___



Ifurita stared down the large man blocking her path, her cold
eyes taking in those craggy features she had become very
familiar with all those months ago. "What exactly is the meaning
of this, Chief Inspector?"

As she more or less expected, he was not at all intimidated by
her manner. "I thought I was clear. You are being brought in for
questioning in regard to the matter of the Fujisawa child's
kidnapping."

"What?" Nanami forged ahead before Ifurita or Makoto could even
get a word in. "In case you haven't been keeping up with current
events let me bring you up to date Chief Inspector. Ai-chan is
lying in her mother's arms just three doors down this corridor.
If you don't believe me you can come and see yourself, that's
where we're headed anyway."

"I am fully aware of the situation," he continued mildly.
"Though I confess I did not find out until one of my
subordinates happened to speak with one of the nurses who have
been caring for Mrs. Fujisawa."

"Well we were a little involved making sure Ai-chan was okay,"
Nanami said, not sparing the sarcasm. "Calling you was not on
the top of our list."

"Fair enough. I am delighted that the child has been returned
safely. Nevertheless, the fact remains that she was kidnapped
and her mother assaulted. We are still investigating these
matters and we need whatever information Ifurita-san can
provide."

"The Fujisawas and I have already told you everything we know
about the assault and kidnapping," Ifurita said in the same
emotionless voice. "As for the child's return, I explained this
to your subordinate. I was searching for the kidnappers' lair
when my counterpart among them contacted me and voluntarily
surrendered the child to me."

The Chief Inspector's heavily lined face darkened. "You
apparently told the officer that you were flying over a mountain
somewhere when this happened."

"Correct."

He took a step closer to the Demon God and glared down at her,
all pretense of mannered politeness gone. "Let me explain a few
things to you, Ifurita. Last year you came into this country
with some people who had been missing for two years and told us
a pack of well-rehearsed lies. You got away with it because
there was no direct evidence of a crime and the family of the
man who remains missing chose to accept your pack of lies. This
time a woman was nearly stabbed to death, an unidentifiable man
lies in our morgue and a child was forcibly removed from her
home. This time your pack of lies is not going to stand,
Ifurita. We are going to take you downtown and you are going to
sit in a little room with me and some other grumpy men and you
are going to sit in that little room until I am convinced that
you are telling me the truth. And before you ask, the only thing
I am accusing you of right now is lying. That is serious enough
for a potential witness to a crime of this sort. If you do
decide to put aside this juvenile fantasy you've concocted and
come forth with the truth I might consider waiving charges of
obstructing justice."

"Chief Inspector." Makoto's voice had the measured, diplomatic
tone he excelled at. There was just enough hint of nervousness
to suggest he was trying to be accommodating, but not enough to
suggest he was trying to lie. Ifurita felt real pride, knowing
by her other senses just how anxious he was and how hard it was
to hide that. "I understand we're asking you to believe some
rather incredible things. But we are telling you the truth as
best we understand it."

"I've heard that line before, Mizuhara. Sorry, but that's not
going to cut it this time. Your wife is coming in for
questioning."

Makoto took just a moment to compose himself. "Sir, this is a
very difficult time for us. For fear of these kidnappers we are
essentially living in hiding. My wife would like to visit her
goddaughter and go home. Isn't it possible she could answer your
questions at a later time?"

"Well that would be fine if we knew where you were living, but
since you have chosen not to tell us that I have to take the
opportunity to speak with my witness before she disappears
again."

Fishing for sympathy was Makoto's last card and Ifurita could
see that it wasn't going to work. "Very well. I will accompany
you."

Nanami looked about to object, but Makoto waved her down. "I
want to go as well. I can drive her there."

"Thanks, but she'll be riding with us. If you wish to wait for
her at the station I imagine you must remember where it is."

Makoto was openly glaring at the officer now. "Then would you at
least consent to letting me accompany my wife there?"

"It's all right, Makoto," Ifurita interjected quickly. "I'm okay
going by myself. I'll see you when the Chief Inspector is done
with me."

Makoto frowned. "Ifurita, you're sure about this?"

"Yes." They both nodded. Ifurita knew they both understood what
would be happening. And that she would keep her promise to him.
"Please send my apologies to Miz before you leave. Inspector, if
you would lead the way."

They met with a uniformed policeman at the door and proceeded to
the car. "We can store that in the trunk," the Chief Inspector
said, indicating the staff.

"This staff has spiritual significance for me. It is to be with
me at all times."

He snorted. "Funny, I don't remember seeing it when we had those
nice long chats last year. Did you have a change of religion?"

"If you like." She knew perfectly well that his hostility was
calculated. Presumption of guilt seemed to be the common thread
running through constabularies on all planets. This was all
working up to uncovering her complicity in the crimes being
investigated, this complicity being their working assumption.

They drove to the station in silence. Ifurita spent the time
communing with the Voices, reviewing alternatives for their next
assault upon the Phantom Tribe's lair. Today in Miz' room they
were to have discussed how they would proceed. The delay was
annoying, but Ifurita already had a fairly good idea what she
wanted to do. There was also benefit in giving Kauru more time
to recover before taking her into combat again.

At the station they went through the formalities. "I have no
desire to have an attorney present," Ifurita said in response.
"But I do have a special request."

"And what is that?" the Chief Inspector asked impatiently.

"The last time I was interrogated here I was observed by two
individuals who were behind a glass, not readily visible to me."
She would leave it up to them to guess how she knew that. "I
find such observation offensive. If you insist upon observers I
want them to be in the room. If you consent to this, I will give
you my full cooperation."

"I've got no problem with that. Shimada, you're with me."

It was a different room this time, Ifurita noted, one without
the one-way glass. The officer Shimada stood at parade rest in
one corner while Ifurita and the Chief Inspector sat on simple
chairs across a simple table. Ifurita laid her staff on the
table but kept her hand upon it. "Chief Inspector, before we
begin, may I make a brief statement?"

"Have you any objection to our recording the proceedings?"

"None."

The Inspector jabbed the record button on a tape recorder
sitting on one side of the table. He recited the required
legalese then leaned back in his chair. "Go ahead."

"You brought me here to tell you the truth. In fact I have
already done that. Every statement I have made to you and your
subordinates was true. Since you will obviously not take my word
for that, my only recourse is to prove it to you."

"And how do you propose doing that?" the Chief Inspector said,
taking advantage of Ifurita's deliberate pause.

"Like this." The staff flared to life. The two officers jumped
into identical defensive stances.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" The Chief Inspector
started the sentence on Earth and ended it in El Hazard.

Ifurita, the two Earthlings, the table and the chairs were now
in the middle of the suite she shared with Makoto in the palace
of Floristica. One of the servant girls who were assigned to
watch the room at all times walked over from the door and bowed
to Ifurita. They were well used to Ifurita and Makoto gating
people in here, so she showed no surprise. "Good evening, Lady
Ifurita. How may I serve?"

"We won't be staying long," Ifurita informed her. "When we are
gone, you may report to Princess Rune. No message, except that
everybody is well and we continue our operations against the
Phantom Tribe."

"I understand. Shall I bring refreshments for you and your
guests?"

Ifurita turned to the Chief Inspector. "Would you like something
to drink?" There was no reply. "No, we won't be requiring
anything."

"Very good, my lady." The girl bowed again and moved over to the
side of the room where several cushions lay. Ifurita knew she
would bring a cushion for the second officer without being
asked. Which was good. His legs were shaking very badly, they
might not hold out much longer.

Ifurita resisted the temptation to put the tip of her staff
under the Chief Inspector's chin and close his mouth. However
much she was enjoying this, she was not here for fun. "Chief
Inspector, why don't you sit down again and I will continue my
statement." After a few moments he sat down very slowly and
gingerly, as if unsure whether the chair behind him was still
real. By this time the girl had placed a wide cushion on the
marble floor beside his companion. With a smile and a gesture
she encouraged him to sit. It took a nod of approval from
Ifurita before he would actually do it. "I assume I have proven
the existence of El Hazard to your satisfaction," Ifurita
continued. "I have described to you in the past the criminal
activities of the Phantom Tribe on El Hazard. They are now
extending those same activities to Earth. The attack upon Miz
and her child was an attempt to extort our silence, to keep
their activities upon the Earth a secret. Further attacks are
likely, which is why we have gone into hiding. You should bear
in mind that I put myself and my friends at risk simply by
telling you these things. The Phantom Tribe could be anywhere,
could be anyone. I therefore will not be offering any
information on the recent past or likely future whereabouts and
movements of myself or my friends. In all other matters I will
be happy to provide whatever information I am able. That
concludes my statement, Chief Inspector. Were there any
questions you wished to ask?"

His heartbeat was almost back to normal. Ifurita had actually
been worried for a moment. Judging from his weight and anxiety
level he was probably what she had heard referred to as a heart
attack waiting to happen. He spent another minute staring out
the archways that opened onto the room's wide balcony. Outside
the Eye of God was visible in the evening sky, as was a merchant
cutter slowly coming in for a landing in the palace shipyard. He
shook his head and directed his attention back at her.
"Ifurita... where on Earth are we?"

"We are not on Earth. We are in my apartment in the royal palace
of Floristica, on the planet of El Hazard."

The inspector dug a handkerchief out of his jacket pocket and
mopped his glistening face. "Can you take us back?"

"If that is what you wish."

He nodded his head vigorously. "Yes, that is definitely what I
wish."

"Very well." Ifurita took hold of the glowing staff, which still
had the wormhole snared. A moment later they were back in the
interrogation room. The two officers did not look quite so
stricken as they had the first time. The room was exactly as
they had left it, save for the fact that the other officer was
now seated upon an elaborately embroidered cushion.

The Chief Inspector took a moment to catch his breath again
before speaking. "So, then you really are an... that is, you
really are the Demon God, right?"

"That is correct. With the possible exception of the Eye of God
I am the most terrible weapon ever built on El Hazard. I have
destroyed entire nations at the whim of my former masters. I
could reduce this city to ashes if I chose to. " Pause. "I
choose not to. I promised Makoto that I would never resort to
violence except in defense. And to abide by the laws of this
country while I am here. That is why I have allowed you to bring
me into custody when I really should be planning my next attack
against the Phantom Tribe."

He frowned. "Have you been fighting them in Yamanashi prefecture
by any chance?" The transformation was remarkable and
impressive. Minutes after having his whole world turned upside
down he was already thinking like a policeman again.

"If you are referring to the two tribesmen your counterparts in
Yamanashi prefecture found dead in the house of Honda Tetsuro, I
can tell you exactly what happened there."

It took over an hour. He questioned her thoroughly along the
way, which further impressed Ifurita. His queries led to a
discussion of their ill-fated trip to the Kabuki theater, what
Nanami found there and what Ifurita uncovered in her own
investigations. When he excused himself and told her to wait it
was with considerably more of the solemn politeness that he
could switch on and off so effectively. She imagined he must
have gone to indulge in a cigarette or something else to calm
his nerves. His poor subordinate looked as if he had been left
alone with a hungry lion. They waited in silence.



___****___



"Damn, this is taking forever," Nanami said, not for the first
time. Makoto didn't even respond. But she could see that he was
getting worried now too. He had kept trying to tell her that
once Ifurita did what he said she was going to do, it would be
all over. If they had any sense at all they would be more than
happy to get the Demon God out of there. But Makoto's repeated
polite inquiries were being met with equally polite assurances
that his wife was still being questioned. Which left them
cooling their heels out there in that ugly reception hall.

"Well there's one thing for sure, if she really does it then our
cover is blown for good," Nanami commented.

"Maybe not. They wouldn't be the first of the true believers.
Besides our folks there's Hayashi, Professor Fedorov..."

Nanami groaned. "Professor Fedorov. Weren't you two supposed to
have dinner with him yesterday?"

"He left a message, I never got around to returning it."

"God, he has no idea what's going on. None of our friends here
do."

"I know," Makoto said, looking even more anxious now. "I don't
think I could bring myself to tell any of them something like
this."

"Well, that's what Ifurita is probably doing right now. I wonder
how they're taking it?"

"I think we're about to find out." Nanami followed Makoto's gaze
and saw the Chief Inspector approaching. He seemed calm enough.
But one look at those haunted eyes told the story. Ifurita had
done it.

"Nanami-san, Makoto-san," he greeted them. All his earlier
hostility was gone. "I wonder if I might have a word with you in
my office."

"Of course," Makoto said quickly, giving Nanami a look that
asked her not to make any trouble.

She ignored him. "So where's Ifurita? Are you letting her go?"

"That's what I'd like to discuss." She wasn't quite sure what to
make of this. He looked really spooked. That insufferable mask
of calm efficiency, propriety and procedure was gone. It was
like seeing the man for the first time.

He ushered them into a small office enclosed in smoked glass and
they all sat down on the only three chairs available. "Mind if I
smoke?" he asked. They both gave their assent and he lit up. He
took a big long drag from the cigarette as if he really needed
it, set it down and blew smoke high in the air. Finally his gaze
was directed at Makoto. "That's a really nice place you've got
there in Floristica."

"So Ifurita took you there."

"Yeah. We even saw that thing that brought her here... the Eye
of God, right?"

"Right."

The Inspector took a deep breath and blew it out his cheeks.
"That was quite a number you did on us last year. There's no
cover story quite so good as the truth."

"I'm sorry about that," Makoto said anxiously. "It was the only
way I thought we could actually live in peace here."

"I know. Your wife... ah, she is really your wife, isn't she?"

Makoto couldn't keep the smile from his face "Yes, she is."

There was something like awe in his face, like he was imagining
how much nerve a man would need to be married to a cyborg
doomsday weapon. "Anyway, your wife told me all about why you
had to play that little game."

"Did she tell you about what the Phantom Tribe are doing here?"
Nanami asked.

The haunted look came back. "Yeah, she told me all about that.
Rattled off a list of names the length of your arm. A really
scary list of names. Said you even identified the one who was
posing as Honda Tetsuro. You're the one who can do that as I
recall."

Nanami eyed him suspiciously. "Are you saying you believe that?"

"I don't have much choice but to believe it. But the problem is,
I'm not going to be able to convince anybody else."

Nanami sensed trouble. "Why is that a problem?"

His craggy face now looked positively grim. "I just finished
talking to the Superintendent. He's not going to back down on
this. He's ordered me to hold her."

Nanami was just getting ready to rail on him when a sudden
revelation popped her balloon. "You had to tell him what Ifurita
told you..."

"Needless to say I couldn't even suggest that I believed any of
this. What I'm supposed to be doing right now is arranging to
have Ifurita put in a holding cell on charges of obstructing
justice. I shouldn't even be talking to you about it. But she's
as much as said that this Phantom Tribe is going to be up to
something big really soon and she needs to go deal with it. So I
need you to tell me something. If I place her under arrest is
she going to throw me through a wall along with anyone else who
tries to keep her from walking out of here?"

"No," Makoto said flatly. "She will not harm anyone unless she
is attacked."

"Then we've got a problem."

That was when Nanami figured it out. "You want to let her go!"

He grunted. "I really don't think I'm in a position to let her
go. I would simply like to arrange for her to leave here without
anyone getting hurt."

"Well that's simple," Nanami said. "Go tell her we all agreed
she should vanish out of here. She can gate to El Hazard and
then back to our apartment. Tell your boss whatever story you
want."

"No." She turned and glared at Makoto, wondering if he had lost
his mind. "Running would be like admitting she's done something
wrong."

"Makoto, we don't have time for this! If Ifurita doesn't help us
stop the Phantom Tribe then none of this is going to matter!"

"You're right, we don't have time for this," Makoto said. "We
need a quick way to convince the Superintendent that she's
telling the truth."

"But how... oh."

The Inspector sighed heavily. "I was afraid you were going to
suggest that. The Super is being really anal on this one. If I
go up there with a prisoner who's supposed to be in a cell he'll
go ballistic. She'd be better off just disappearing like Nanami
suggested."

"If you get me her staff I can go see the Superintendent myself."

The Inspector really did look surprised to hear that one. "Well,
I'll be damned. Okay, that sounds like a plan. But you two
should go see him yourselves. He shouldn't even know we've been
talking." He butted out his cigarette and stood up. "Oh, and
you'd better come with me to the interview room. I don't imagine
she'll give me her key to heaven's door just because I ask for
it."

Makoto cocked his head. "Her what?"

"Never mind."

Nanami followed them as far as the hallway in front of the
interview rooms, where she decided to wait. Makoto emerged from
the room alone carrying the staff. She followed him, presuming
the Inspector had told him where to go. "How is she?"

"Rather annoyed."

"Well I'm annoyed too. I still say she should have just gated
out of here."

"Nanami, if we do that then there will be a manhunt for her," he
explained patiently as they walked. "Yes we can easily avoid it
long enough to deal with the Phantom Tribe. But what happens
after that? There would be too much explaining to do. She would
never be able to live here again, and neither would the rest of
us. Is that what you want?"

She hated it when he was right. "Fine, let's get this over with."

Makoto explained to the Superintendent's receptionist that he
would like to see him regarding concerns he had about his wife's
arrest. The young woman was too polite or too puzzled to comment
on the great huge walking stick he made a point of leaning
against as if it really were his cane. She disappeared into her
boss' office, and emerged a moment later to tell them he would
buzz her when he was ready to see them.

Ninety minutes later Nanami was ready to start crawling up the
walls. "This is ridiculous," she murmured to Makoto. "We're
trying to save the world and we're held up by police
bureaucracy."

"Well, if worse comes to worst we can catch him when he quits
for the day," Makoto whispered in return.

"What, were you thinking of taking his secretary to El Hazard
too?"

He smiled. "From the look of the officer who was guarding
Ifurita, the Chief Inspector wasn't the only one who went along
for the ride."

"Well, these guys probably work late, we could be here for
hours."

"You have a better idea?"

"Yeah." Without further ado, Nanami got up and casually walked
across the room. She was already opening the door when the
receptionist noticed. "Hey, you can't go in there!" Nanami
marched straight into the Superintendent's office and stood
there. His very miffed receptionist had already run in. "I'm
sorry sir, she just barged in."

The Superintended just raised an eyebrow, showing no other
reaction. "Indeed?" he said pleasantly. "Well, if this young
lady is so anxious to see me then perhaps I'd better hear what
she has to say. Thank you, just close the door please."

The now very puzzled receptionist did as she was told. The
blue-skinned man behind the desk grinned. "I have to imagine
that by now you are thinking, 'I should have known.'"

Which was right on the mark. Of course Makoto hadn't followed
her in here, he was about as impulsive as an old dog. Right now
he would undoubtedly be profusely apologizing on her behalf to
the receptionist. Nanami simply made up her mind that she was
not going to panic. "I would have expected you people to think a
lowly police superintendent was beneath your station. From what
we've seen you only like slaughtering the rich and famous."

The bald tribesman, looking very much out of place in his
tailored suit, did not lose his mild, calm expression. "We do
not discriminate. 'They also serve,' and all that."

"Fine, then I'll tell you the same thing I came here to tell the
man you killed. Let Ifurita go."

"Oh no, I would much rather she leave of her own accord. That
way I can order a manhunt for her and anybody who might be
harboring this fugitive from the law. That would be much more
amusing."

"Who do you think you're kidding? I've found you out. I assume
you heard what happened to Honda's double?"

"I'm sorry, did I give you the impression that you would be
leaving this room alive?"

She absolutely would not panic. "Makoto is just outside that
door with Ifurita's staff, maybe I should call him in here. If
you're lucky he'll just teleport you to the center of the earth
and introduce you to some molten iron." She had no idea whether
he could do that but it sure sounded good.

"My friend may have something to say about that."

She fought the urge to look around for hidden assassins. There
may very well be another one of them hidden nearby, as he
implied. But she couldn't back down now. "If you do anything to
Makoto, Ifurita will sense it. She'd be here in two seconds flat
and I wouldn't want to watch whatever she does to you."

"You propose to trade Mizuhara's death for mine? Are you willing
to do that?"

No, she wasn't. She debated just turning to scream a warning.
But that might force his hand. He hadn't just had her escorted
out, which might mean he didn't want to make that trade either.
"Okay, here's the deal. You release Ifurita and I don't tell
them about you until we're away from here. That's the only way
you're getting out of here alive and you know it." There was no
point saying she wouldn't blow his cover at all, he'd never
believe it.

"And why should I trust you?"

"Because I'd rather not have to try and explain why Ifurita
turned a police superintendent into a greasy stain on the wall."

He actually laughed. "Well, if you'll pardon me for a moment."
He picked up his phone and tapped a number. It took about three
minutes talking to two different people. Then he hung up and
smiled pleasantly at Nanami. "I doubt I shall have time to do
the paperwork to make the release official, but I trust that
won't matter. Just remember, not even you have eyes on the back
of your head. If you decide to double-cross me before you leave,
my friends will ensure that you and your friend pay the price."

"Fine, just make sure your people back off."

"It was a pleasure and an honor doing business with the sister
of Jinnai the Conqueror."

Nanami really didn't care whether it had been an insult. She
just turned around and walked out the door. Makoto stood up as
she approached, looking like he was getting ready to give her a
good dressing down. She flashed her best smile and gave him
thumbs-up. "It's all taken care of. We'll just go pick up
Ifurita and we're out of here."

"Are you serious? What did you tell him?"

"We'll talk about that later."

She kept her word, and so did the superintendent's double.
Eventually Makoto started getting suspicious and she told them.
He was too busy cursing himself for an idiot to be really mad at
her. Ifurita simply thanked Nanami for handling the situation
and left it at that. They soon had other things to discuss.



___****___



Makoto watched as Miz settled into the wheelchair with her
husband's assistance. It was obvious that even this simple
action was giving her a fair amount of pain, however much she
tried to hide it. Her first time getting out of bed had only
been yesterday, after all. He stepped up to her, making no
attempt to hide his concern. "Miz, are you really sure you're up
to this?"

She smiled up at him. "I do wish you would stop fussing, you're
making me feel like a frail old obasan. It's decided, we're
going."

"Okay. Fujisawa-san, are you ready?"

He easily hoisted the two huge, overstuffed knapsacks. "When you
are," he said, his trademark crooked smile back for the first
time in what seemed like ages.

Ifurita walked over to Makoto and handed him her staff. "You're
sure you can find it?"

"I did the bungee cord maneuver yesterday, I zeroed in on it no
problem. Ifurita, are you sure you don't want to come?"

She smiled. "It is best if only people she recognizes go with
you."

He chuckled. "I think she'd have no problem recognizing you."

"True enough. Still, I think it's best this way. I would prefer
to meet her under better circumstances."

He took her hand and squeezed it. "Sure, I understand. Alielle,
I guess it's that time."

"Okie dokie." The little purple-haired Rostalian handed her
burden over to Miz. "There you go, freshly cleaned and fed."

Miz settled Ai onto her lap and smiled fondly at Alielle. "Thank
you so much for taking care of her."

Alielle looked very pleased with herself. "It was no problem at
all. She's like a little angel."

Everyone else was there to see them off. They said their
good-byes to Miz and stepped back to give Makoto some room.
"This is a fixed temporal wormhole, so we'll be back right
away," he explained.

"Enough impressing us with the big words," Nanami said. "You
told us that already."

"Say hello for us," Shayla added.

"I will." Makoto powered up the staff and snared the end of the
wormhole he wanted. There was a flash of light and space warped
around them. When their eyes adjusted they found themselves
standing in a moonlit desert valley. The cool night air slowly
displaced the pocket of air that had followed them from the
hospital room.

"Are you sure this is it?" Miz asked, looking at the steep mesa
wall towering over them. "They all look alike."

"No two mountains are alike," Fujisawa said confidently. "This
is it all right. I guess she got that shield back up." Since
each of the men had only one hand free they each took a handle
and gently pushed Miz' wheelchair into the wall. Ai-chan
exclaimed and waved her arms in delight as the wall dissolved to
reveal a sprawling garden where there should have been solid
rock. It was also night there, but a night well lit by an
artificial moon in an artificial deep purple sky.

They only had to wait a few seconds. The guardian of this place
came flying out to meet them. Makoto felt just a little relief
that the staff detected no weapon systems being activated. She
must have guessed who it was even before she saw them. The Demon
God landed upon the luxuriant grass and closed the rest of the
distance on foot. It felt odd seeing her in that uniform. His
Ifurita's identical one had hung unseen at the back of a closet
since her return to El Hazard. Makoto smiled. "Hello, Ifurita."

She looked just mildly surprised to see them. "Makoto. You look
well."

"Thanks. It's good to see you again."

Her gaze shifted to the Fujisawa family. "Miz, Fujisawa.
Welcome." They both returned her greeting. Ifurita frowned.
"Miz... have you been crippled?"

"My goodness no," she said lightly. "I was in a nasty
altercation, that's all. But I'll be up and about sooner than my
silly men folk think."

Ifurita noticed the baby and smiled. "I take it you had your
wedding after all."

"Oh yes. Our third anniversary is coming up already."

Ifurita's interest shifted to the staff Makoto held. She
suddenly looked very troubled. "Makoto... have you still not
found her?"

"Yes, I did. In fact our own anniversary is coming up."

She smiled warmly. "I'm so glad to hear that. I was afraid you
had come for my help as a last resort."

"In fact we are here to ask you a favor. I know we promised not
to disturb you here, but we don't have anybody else to turn to."

"I hope you have not forgotten my vow never to leave this
place." It was spoken gently, but with a finality that brooked
no argument.

"No, I haven't. I would never ask you to break that vow. We
would just like you to take care of Miz and the baby for a
while. It's not safe for them on Earth right now. But Miz is
still recovering from an attack that nearly killed her. We'd
feel better if  she were with somebody who has the old medical
technology and knows how to use it, just in case. It would be
for just a few days at most."

"And we've brought you enough baby supplies for a month,"
Fujisawa added, giving the knapsack he'd set down a light kick.

"Of course, they are welcome to stay. Miz, I would like to do a
deep scan of your injury. It would not hurt."

"I know, Ifurita did one before I left. I mean the other
Ifurita."

Ifurita put her hand against Miz' side for a moment. "It seems
to be healing well. But you should not strain yourself. The
ground is not suited for this chair, I will bring a litter."

She disappeared and flew back a few minutes later leading
something that looked like a floating chair attached to a small
platform. She helped Miz into the chair, loaded the bags and
proceeded to the residence, floating along the ground at a pace
the men could follow. When it looked like Miz and the baby were
settled in, Makoto thought it was time to have the little talk
he had planned. "Fujisawa-sensei, before we go I'd like to ask
Ifurita's advice about something. I won't be long, why don't we
just meet at the entrance?"

"Sounds good." He probably understood this was also to give him
a chance to say good-bye to his family in private.

"Take care of yourself Miz," Makoto said, waving.

"And you, Makoto. My prayers will be with you all."

Makoto and Ifurita walked back out into the artificial night.
"What did you want to ask me?" she asked.

He just gazed at her for a moment. He saw her with much
different eyes now. Before, her presence had been a draught of
spring-water to a man with a desperate thirst, a tantalizing
reminder of the one who awaited him just out of reach, half a
universe away. Now she reminded him of the Ifurita he knew in
that brief interval between the blessed moment he had freed her
and the horrible moment she had plunged into the Eye of God.
"It's actually something I need to tell you. I don't even want
to think it, but I have to. The fact is, there's a chance we
won't be back at all."

Ifurita looked surprised, if not shocked. "I see. Is Miz aware
of this?"

"She knows the danger we're going back to. She's being very
brave, but waiting for us here is going to be very difficult for
her."

"I understand. I will try to make her as comfortable as I can."

Makoto continued with some difficulty. "If we haven't come back
within a fortnight, it will almost certainly mean that we aren't
coming back at all. I haven't told the others this, but I have
arranged for a Rostalian navy cutter to come here fifteen days
from now. The crew will be hand-picked by Princess Rune, the few
who are entrusted with the secret of this place."

"In that case, I am to explain this arrangement to Miz and
deliver her to the ship."

"I had to make this arrangement, but I'm telling you I am
absolutely not considering it an option. We will be back. You
can count on it."

She nodded. "Whatever it is that you will be facing, I hope for
your success and safe return."

"Then I'll be seeing you again soon. Before I go, there's one
other thing I wanted to ask. My wife... my Ifurita... has told
me that one day she would like to come here to see you. I'm not
sure why, but I think she's unsure whether she would be welcome."

Ifurita pondered that in silence for a moment. "Perhaps she
thinks I resent the fact that my soul mate died to save hers.
She need not be concerned. I always knew I would lose him one
day, I had long since prepared myself. I am content with my
memories and with the task that he left me. Please tell her I
would be happy to meet her."

Makoto smiled with gratitude. 'Thank you, Ifurita. I will tell
her that."

Fujisawa was waiting for him at the entrance. As an afterthought
he took the wheelchair back with him. It did belong to the
hospital, after all. When they returned, everyone was in exactly
the position they were when he had left. Half an hour to him had
been a split second for them. He had used these fixed temporal
wormholes a couple of times before, but he still found it
creepy. "Everything's set. Nanami, did you leave the note?"

"Yep," she said, pointing to the note she had left on Miz' bed.
"She wasn't supposed to be discharged for a week. They are going
to be pissed."

"Well, it can't be helped. I guess we'd better get out of here."

They made their way back to the apartment. Makoto was happy to
see that Kauru was looking a lot better. He had been debating
the idea of sending her back to El Hazard, but he knew she would
have none of it. She had already proven that she could hold her
own. However much he hated putting any of them in danger, he was
glad to have her along.

As soon as they arrived, Ifurita logged in with her arsenal of
laptops, doing another check on her suspected dopplegangers.
Almost immediately, her voice was raised in the restrained
urgency that for her signified alarm. "Alielle, could you turn
on the television please? Switch it to NHK."

Afura was also in the room with them. "Is something wrong,
Ifurita?"

"I think we have just run out of time."

The picture came on and Alielle turned up the volume. It was
some breaking news story in progress, two reporters in a studio
were solemnly sizing up the situation. Ifurita was still
dividing her attention among her six network sessions, so Makoto
went to sit down with Alielle and Afura. Soon all the others
wandered back into the living room, sensing the rise in tension.
Over the next few minutes they watched in relative silence and
bit by bit the whole picture emerged. A long list of very
important people all across the country had not shown up for
work this morning. Most of them were now reported missing. The
country was reeling, everybody was still madly scrambling to
learn if this was a grand hoax, an incredible coincidence, a
vast terrorist operation or something more bizarre.

"Most of the ones missing were on our list of probables,"
Ifurita soon announced. "They have pulled all their operatives
from the field."

"Are they crazy?" Nanami said. "They've practically announced
their presence to the world."

"Which means they no longer care whether their position is
hidden." Ifurita stood up and glanced at the television. It
switched off. The infrared emitters in her eyes had once been
used to communicate with ancient weapon systems, but they had
been easily adapted to emulate remote controls. "The pattern of
disappearances is clear, the earliest ones were from the
furthest points in the country. The Phantom Tribe are all
converging upon the nest that we found. By now they have all
arrived."

"What are they going to do?" Kauru asked.

"We can make some reasonable guesses." Ifurita walked in front
of the television and turned to address the group. "Their
concentration upon geothermal plants and deep mining operations
must mean they somehow plan to unleash the power of the planet's
molten magma. Erinyes' power may also be involved in this. A
long time ago Makoto described to me another El Hazard he
visited in an alternate universe, one where the Phantom Tribe's
plans were successfully completed. It was a cold, dark world in
perpetual twilight. This fits Erinyes' description of their home
planet. It seems reasonable they plan to do much the same thing
here. I had been wondering why they had restricted their
operations to Japan, thinking it could not be simply because
this is where Erinyes had landed on this planet before. It is
unique in that it is a geographically unstable region that
supports an advanced technological infrastructure including
various industries that have done deep tunneling. I believe they
have taken advantage of this and planted devices all along the
country meant to trigger massive volcanic eruptions. If the
inactive volcanoes on the Japan islands were to become active
all at once it would be a disaster far worse than any nuclear
winter. It would make this earth a twin of that other El Hazard."

"Gods preserve us," Afura breathed. "They're all hiding
underground. They're getting ready to do it."

"But they could do it at any moment!" Shayla said. "We can't
possibly get to all those places in time."

"I am hoping we will not need to," Ifurita said. "This nest is
their one place that is in a relatively stable area. It is where
they have retreated to and it is undoubtedly the core of this
operation."

"What if it's just a bunch of time-bombs," Nanami asked. "They
might have just set it all up and run, this place may just be
their hiding place."

"If that is so then there is nothing we can do and they have
already won. This is our only chance."

"Then we'd better take it," Fujisawa said. "I assume we're all
going this time?"

"Yes. We can take Makoto's car and the rental car."

"It will take us nearly an hour to get there," Makoto said.
"Couldn't we use the wormholes?"

"Erinyes would almost certainly detect that," Ifurita explained.
"Just as she would detect if Afura or Kauru moved in by air or
water. Despite the delay, I believe stealth is our best hope."

"Do you know how they're going to do it?" Kauru asked.

"Since there is no Earth technology that could do such a thing,
it must be some artifact from El Hazard, something we haven't
seen yet. Once we break into their nest we may simply have to
start destroying anything that looks suspicious."

"How are we going to get in?" Afura asked. "You've already said
we can't use the entrance you found or the underground river."

"I have an idea about that," Ifurita said. "We should be going,
I can explain once we're there."

An hour later they were driving through a wide valley, the
great, dark mountain looming on their right. Everything looked
so peaceful. These rice fields had been there for centuries.
Makoto found himself wondering if the newly planted crops would
ever be seeing the light of day.

They parked by one of the ubiquitous little shrines and climbed
a path further up into the foothills. "So what was this way in
you told us about?" Shayla asked.

Ifurita brought them to a stop. "I think we might try my idea
about now. Alielle, would you like to proceed ahead?"

She smiled, like she was happy to be sharing some secret with
the Demon God. "Sure. Back in a jiffy." She trotted further up
the rough wooded path.

"Where is she going?" Fujisawa asked. "She shouldn't be alone up
here, those people could be crawling all over."

"She will be remaining within sight," Ifurita said. "We think
her deep sight will work better if the rest of us are some
distance behind her."

"Then she does have the vision!" Kauru said excitedly. "She told
me about it, but I thought she might be imagining it all."

"No, she has not," Ifurita said. "We have done a few crude
experiments. It is very real."

"Would somebody mind clueing the rest of us in," Nanami asked.

"It's a power she picked up the first time she gated over to
Earth," Makoto said. "I had always wondered whether it would
happen."

Nanami slapped her forehead. "Damn, I never even thought..."

"We figured it out some time ago," Makoto continued. "She can
sense concentration of life nearby. She's more sensitive to
complex life forms like larger mammals, most sensitive of all to
intelligent life."

"So she's sniffing them out for us," Shayla said. She cracked
her knuckles. "Fine, whatever works."

"What about the rest of us?" Afura asked. "Do we have some new
powers we don't know about?"

"We've been thinking about that," Makoto said. "If all of you
did, you would think more than one of you would have stumbled on
it by now. The only theory I can think of is that the rest of
you already had a special ability. You priestesses had your
elemental powers, and Ifurita had her ability to integrate new
weapons. Maybe that prevented any new powers from manifesting."
He shrugged. "We still have no idea how or why it even happens,
so who knows."

"How or why it happens?" Afura smiled. "That's obvious. The
wormholes gave you exactly what you would need when you reached
your destination. They are threads of fate woven through the
firmament."

Makoto smiled. "I'd like to believe that too. But it still
doesn't explain why it happens."

"Perhaps it does." Makoto was surprised to hear Ifurita speak.
She usually had little interest in abstract musings of
philosophy, metaphysics or religion. "Afura is suggesting the
wormholes act with some intelligence upon the bodies that travel
through them. One of the few things we understand about these
artifacts is that time is virtually meaningless for them. If
they did harbor some intelligence they could easily see the
future each traveler had in store and prepare them accordingly."

"Well then why don't they make everybody into ultimate weapons
like you?" Shayla asked. "Then they could deal with anything."

"You are asking me to speculate on the motivations and rules of
conduct of whoever created the wormholes. I could not even begin
to do that."

"Wait a second," Nanami said. "Makoto told me these wormholes
are just there, just a part of the universe, like the stars and
the planets. Are you saying somebody made them? Which is it?"

Ifurita smiled in a way that looked both playful and dangerous.
"Perhaps both."

"Oh..."

Nobody could seem to find anything to say. Before long, Alielle
turned around and made her way back down the path. She spoke
with more confidence than Makoto had expected to hear. "Almost
all of them are deep underground, below the mountain. They're
really agitated and nervous, like they're busy getting ready for
something. There aren't any on the surface. But there are a few
near the surface, all around the mountain. There's one group
pretty near." She pointed. "Just over that ridge. I'll be able
to tell you better if we can get closer. But I'm already getting
really bad vibes from them. Mean, hostile, like a mountain cat
with cubs."

"Guards," Shayla said. "That's an entrance."

"Undoubtedly," Ifurita agreed. "Fujisawa-san, could you please
find us the quickest path to where Alielle indicated? Keep us in
cover and stop us just before we reach the crest."

"You got it. Okay kids, single file and don't bunch up." He set
a brutal pace but selected his path well. They had little
difficult climbing or undergrowth to contend with. In a
surprisingly short time they were gathered in front of a great
bare rock that stood upon the ridge surrounded by trees.

"We are going to try and take the guards before they can raise
an alarm," Ifurita said. "I want to avoid use of any elemental
attacks, so this will be knife-work. Shayla, Afura, Alielle,
will you accompany me?" They all nodded. "The rest of you wait
here, I will come back for you. Kauru, if you detect any of our
powers being used pinpoint it and bring the others to us, best
possible speed."

"Yes, Ifurita-sama. Safe journey."

"It will be," Shayla said. She grinned, patting the oversized
knife strapped to her thigh. "But not for them."

Makoto felt his stomach doing flips, watching them all follow
Ifurita's lead around the rock and out of sight. He was
beginning to agree with Shayla that waiting was always the
worst. Nanami had already gone to crouch down on the stony crest
of the ridge just in front of the big rock, presumably so that
she could get a decent view in all directions. It was
distressing how he had become used to seeing her like this,
looking for assassins in every corner wherever they went. It was
probably wearing her out more than she was showing. Makoto
approached her and crouched down beside her. Ula padded silently
along at his heel, as she had been doing since their departure.
"It will sure be nice when you don't have to do that any more,"
he said.

She never stopped scanning their surroundings for a second. "I
don't think I'll ever be able to stop doing this. Not now." They
both spoke in low voices, as if the woods had ears.

"This will come to an end. Things will return to normal."

"So what exactly does normal mean for us these days anyway?"

"For you, I hope it means the worst thing you'll have to worry
about is whether to invest your restaurant earnings here or in
Rostalia."

He could just glimpse a little smile come to her lips. "I don't
like depending on our royal benefactors, unlike some people I
know."

It was a running joke, there really was no need for a reply.
After a moment Makoto spoke more seriously. "Nanami, I'd like to
ask you a difficult favor."

"We're sort of in the middle of something important, Mako-chan."

"It's about that. When we go into their nest, I'd like Ula to go
with you." Nanami finally met his eyes. She looked surprised,
and she obviously understood the implications of what he said.
"Everyone in the Phantom Tribe probably knows who you are and
what you can do. You'll be their first target."

Nanami looked away quickly. He guessed she was thinking about
things she would rather not be. "Well fine, but you just make
sure you stick to Ifurita like a barnacle. I want her looking
after you."

"That's a deal then." He reached down and stroked Ula's
luxuriant mane. "Ula, you're going to go with Nanami, okay?"

"Okay, Makoto." The cat walked over beside Nanami and sat down,
joining her in contemplating the local foliage.

It wasn't long before Kauru and Fujisawa came up and started
hovering behind them. Makoto sent a questioning look Kauru's way
and she just shook her head. She had sensed nothing.

Fujisawa made an annoyed grunt. "Now that these people have
cleared out of the government it's too bad we don't have time to
tell them what's really going on. It would be nice to have a
battalion of the JSDF backing us up."

"Oh right," Nanami said. "They'd probably send immigration
officers down there to tell them they can't stay here without
working visas."

"Oh..."

Their heads snapped around to where Kauru stood looking very
worried. "What?" Fujisawa asked anxiously.

"I don't believe I have a working visa."

The Earthlings all sagged and let out exasperated sighs. "Kauru,
I think we can worry about that later," Makoto said mildly.

"Are these immigration officers truly fearsome warriors?"

"Trust me, they're the least of our problems right now," Nanami
said. "I had documents forged for Alielle, but that was just so
we could get her in the school. The rest of you never stay long."

"We have our duties as the Great Priestesses," Kauru said,
sounding apologetic.

"Kauru..." Nanami shook her head. "Forget it."

"Oh." Like Makoto, she must have figured out what Nanami didn't
want to ask. "If we fall, new lamps will be forged and others
will take our places."

"I wasn't asking that," Nanami snapped. "It's not going to
happen so don't even think about it."

Kauru smiled. "You're right. We are led by the great and
terrible Demon Goddess Ifurita."

"Just remember, she can't do this alone," Fujisawa said in his
perfect gentle, chiding teacher's voice. "You really held in
there our first time going down to that place. Just do the same
thing this time and we'll send them packing."

She blushed under his rough encouragement. "Yes, Fujisawa
Sensei."

They continued waiting in silence. Makoto had only checked his
watch five times by the time Afura came jogging up the trail.
The others came out into the open as she approached. She was
obviously hurrying, but not in a way that suggested there was an
emergency. "We're in," she said. "There were guards like Alielle
said, but we've taken care of them. Everyone's okay. We're quite
sure they didn't get a warning off. But we don't know how long
it is before they will be missed. We should proceed quickly."

They made their way quickly down the slope of the ridge and
through the woods. Before long they came upon a small cleared
area that was up against a stony, low cliff face. A section
where a hole had been bored in the natural stone wall had been
closed off with a chain-link fence covered with stern
official-looking signs warning against the danger of entering.
"Hide in plain sight," Makoto muttered. The fence had been torn
asunder in one place, the wire mesh lying crumpled and twisted
on both sides of the gap. Shayla and Alielle stood waiting there.

"Ifurita's just inside," Shayla explained as soon as they were
within easy earshot, addressing herself to Makoto. "We haven't
had any company so far." She led them to what looked like the
entrance of an old mine... perhaps it had been one. Ifurita came
walking out just on time to meet them there. Seeing her, Makoto
relaxed just a little.

"There is a single tunnel heading down," she announced. "I will
lead us down. Nanami, I would like you to be beside me."

"Right." Nobody needed to ask why. Nanami glanced down at Ula,
which was all the prompting the alien cat needed. She leaped up
and her flattened, distended body slipped around Nanami's torso.
While this was happening Makoto's eyes met Ifurita's for just a
fraction, an exchange likely missed by all. With that she passed
her verdict. She did not like it, but this was his decision.
"Let us proceed." She turned to head back into the tunnel. Then
suddenly everything was changed.

Makoto picked it up first in the body language of his wife, even
before she stopped dead. Right away the three priestesses were
on edge, but they weren't looking at Ifurita. Everyone had
picked up on their sudden alertness by now. Makoto looked around
wildly, trying to find the source of their distress. "What-"

"It's like the first time," Shayla said  in a low voice.
"Somebody's using earth power." Her anger barely hid her
distress. They had been found out.

"Somebody's coming," Alielle warned. The heavy, curved knife she
had brought from Rostalia was in her hand. "I can't tell from
where."

Ifurita leapt over the entire group and landed facing out
towards the torn fence, her staff held before her. A shimmering
transparent globe surrounded her, a shield. Tendrils of fire,
little gusts of wind and a sparkling blue light followed the
three priestesses as they took up positions beside her.

The reason for the sudden disregard of stealth came rising
smoothly out of the ground in front of them. The earth she had
passed through unhindered closed up under her feet again, as if
it had never been disturbed at all. The tall woman in black
calmly brought her own staff into a defensive stance. "Hello,
Ifurita."

"Erinyes." Ifurita's voice was sharp and cold. "So, this place
is important to your plans after all."

"Our plan is complete. But your futile attempt to stop us will
harm those I have sworn to protect. I am here to prevent that,
nothing more." The woman was neither boastful nor scornful.

"You cannot stop us. Together we are more than a match for you.
If you try to hinder us then it will mean your death."

"If I self-destruct right here all of your friends will die."
Makoto saw Ifurita's body tense up for just a moment. So what
Erinyes had said was true. And Ifurita believed she was prepared
to do it. "Go home, Ifurita," Erinyes continued in a gently
imploring tone. "If you love your friends, take them back to El
Hazard. They can forget about this place and live happily there."

"If you believe that then you truly understand nothing about
them," Ifurita said bitterly.

"You are a thousand years too early to be debating human nature
with me, Ifurita," Erinyes said calmly, but with a finality that
said this debate was over. She looked just mildly disappointed
at the prospect of immolating herself with the humans. Said
humans were now shooting furtive glances to the immobile Demon
God. They had all agreed to follow her lead, including the final
decision of when they might need to abandon the mission. He saw
her tighten her grip on the staff and take in a breath. There
was an eternity of silence between two hammering heartbeats.

"Erinyes, I think we need to step outside."

"We are outside."

"I mean really outside."

Erinyes raised an eyebrow, which was about the only indication
of surprise. "Very well. As the challenged I claim right to
choose the venue."

"Acceptable."

Erinyes looked up into the darkening late afternoon sky. Makoto
followed her gaze. Barely visible in the haze, the rising moon
had cleared the horizon. "The far side of the satellite, I
think," Erinyes said.

"I agree that would be best."

Makoto's mouth opened but nothing would come out. He was on the
verge of stammering his objection when he was frozen by Erinyes'
piercing stare. Her horribly mismatched human and machine eyes
locked onto his. Then incredibly she graced him with a knowing
smile. You must be the one, her face said. "I will show her no
quarter," she said in the manner of a private message that made
the others' presence irrelevant. "And I have no care for my own
survival. The most likely outcome in this sort of battle is
mutual destruction. If you have the power to change her mind,
now is the time."

Ifurita turned to hear his verdict. In her lovely blue eyes were
sympathy and apology, but no anticipation. She already knew what
his decision would be. Or thought she knew. "Ifurita..." He
could end this right now, they could just walk away. But he
would never have the heart to look into those eyes again, that
would be a life without meaning. All the things he wanted to say
would take hours they didn't have. "Hurry back."

"Should I be the one to return, I shall not give you another
chance to change your mind," Erinyes said to him. "Death shall
come to you as a bolt from the sky. You will be vapor before you
even know that anything has happened."

Makoto met her gaze without flinching. "I believe in Ifurita."

"So it would seem. Ifurita, I assume you have not had the
occasion to find a wormhole to the satellite?"

"I have not."

"Then we have a long trip ahead of us."

"So we do." Ifurita rose a few feet into the air, and her
counterpart did likewise. She looked back down, but not at
Makoto. "Shayla, I leave the rest in your hands."

She looked even more surprised than the rest of them. But a
moment later she just nodded. "I understand." As if by some
signal none could see the two Demon Gods rocketed straight up
into the sky at the same precise moment. In just a few seconds
they were out of sight, too far away for human eyes to make out.
Makoto was still watching the spot where they had disappeared
when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "She'll be okay," Shayla
assured him. "Come on, let's go."

Makoto looked at her, frowning in puzzlement. "Go?"

"We have a long walk. Their nest is probably a mile down."

Makoto shook his head. "But... we have to wait for Ifurita."

"We don't have time," she said flatly. "Maybe it's already too
late but we have to try. Come on-"

Makoto violently shook her hand away. "But she's going to be
back!"

Shayla grabbed his shoulders and brought his face inches from
hers. "I know she's going to be back!" she shouted. "But by that
time it's going to be too late! Erinyes knows that, why do you
think she's dragging Ifurita all the way to the moon? She
doesn't think we can do this without Ifurita, probably thinks we
won't even try. But Ifurita knows better, that's why she drew
Erinyes away. They need Erinyes more than we need Ifurita."

Makoto felt sick dread like nausea creep through his body. "No,
she said she'd be back-"

Shayla's fingers bit into his flesh and she gave him a sharp,
painful shake. "Of course she's coming back! She trusts us to do
our job, you trust her to do hers. We may need you to mess with
whatever machines they're using. Are you coming or do I need to
get Fujisawa Sensei to carry you?"

Fujisawa came up beside them both. "Makoto, you know Shayla's
right." His hand over Shayla's was gently coaxing her to loosen
her grip on Makoto. "This is what Ifurita intended us to do."

Makoto knew that. Now that it had been spoon-fed to him it was
obvious. This was why she had left Shayla in charge, she knew
the fire priestess would never have just sat there awaiting her
return. It made sense, it made so much damned sense he hated it.
"Okay, let's go."

Shayla stuck a finger in his face. "And you watch your back in
there. If anything happens to you she'll skin me alive." She
turned around smartly and headed straight for the entrance.
"Nanami, I want you up front with me. Don't worry, you see
anything you just point and shout, it'll be dead before the echo
dies. Alielle, same goes for you, you're behind us. Kauru, you
stick with Fujisawa, Afura you're with Makoto." She steered
Nanami into the tunnel, leaving the rest of them to follow in
behind. Shayla and Kauru lit the dark, narrow bare rock tunnel
with their blue lights, from fire and ring respectively. It cut
straight through the rock and opened onto a chamber that had
been given a modicum of comfort with some crude wicker and
bamboo furniture. Makoto only stole a quick glance at what lay
around it. From the look of it most had died more or less where
they had been sitting. The group was already filing through what
looked like a big cabinet against the far rock wall. It had a
false back, leading into another tunnel. Anybody not already
knowing this was an entrance to deeper caves would probably have
never bothered to look.

It seemed to take forever. Some of the tunnel had probably been
carved out by miners a long time ago. Other parts looked to have
been cut more recently by more precise tools. Yet more parts
were very curious, it looked like the stone had been melted away
and reformed into a rounded tunnel whose surface was rippled
like frozen waves. Probably the work of Erinyes' earth power,
Makoto supposed. There was more and more of the latter sort of
tunnel as they progressed. In places the tunnelers had taken
advantage of natural fissures and caverns. Some of the latter
were enormous and breathtakingly beautiful, minerals and
crystals of all sorts shimmering in the priestess' light. That
was not the only light, at widely spaced intervals there were
dim bulbs glowing on each side of the floor, usually marking
each twist and turn. Even with no light at all, with care one
could have traversed the tunnel. Sometimes they walked gentle
slopes, sometimes steep stairways. But the path led unerringly,
relentlessly downward.

The fact that they came this far without being molested brought
Makoto little relief. His mind was consumed by an image of two
Demon Gods flying through space towards an airless, cratered
gray arena of battle.

"These Phantom Tribe critters must be in pretty good shape if
they come up all this way every day," Fujisawa muttered.

"They must have more direct routes, maybe even an elevator
shaft," Afura said. "We've come across a back door. Which is
probably good."

At the next place the tunnel opened up a little Shayla brought
them to a halt and motioned for them to gather together. "Okay,
Alielle says we're getting pretty close to the nest. With that
many of them so close, her senses are getting swamped. She won't
be able to give us a warning until they're right on top of us,
maybe not even then. So we really have to watch. We'll keep this
quiet as long as we can while we're looking for this machine or
control room or whatever. But if somebody does raise an alarm
then we're just going to fight our way into the middle of this
place and start blasting anything that isn't rock."

"That's our plan?" Afura asked incredulously.

Shayla glared at her. "I'm open to suggestions."

Afura shrugged and smiled. "I suppose we will have to just
improvise, as always."

They proceeded much more slowly. A few minutes later, the final
stretch of the tunnel ended in a heavy wooden door dimly lit by
two of the ubiquitous glow bulbs. From the corner they peered
around, it looked to have a little sliding window at eye level.
"I don't imagine they'd be stupid enough to leave that
unlocked," Fujisawa said.

"Or to leave it unguarded," Alielle added.

Shayla grunted in irritation. "Okay, here's what we're going to
do..."

A minute later they were all walking very quietly towards the
door. Nanami and Shayla crept up to it while the others held
slightly back. Nanami very carefully examined the door. She
nodded. It was real and it was locked. Without a word she
stepped back and Alielle took her place. She made her own
examination, looked to Shayla and gave a firm nod. They would
have company on the other side.

Shayla looked back and put up two fingers. She had abandoned the
idea of a nice, quiet entry. They were going to plan B.
Silently, everybody took their positions. Shayla wasted no time.
All with one grand sweep of her arms she called up her fire and
sent it flying against the door. The sound was like a physical
blow slamming into Makoto's face. But he didn't have time to be
stunned, everyone was sprinting and he had to race to keep at
Afura's heel. The black-haired priestess shouted a battle cry
and launched a screaming juggernaut of air into the room even
before Makoto was through the space where the door used to be.
Blue-skinned bodies were scattered and dashed against the stone
walls of the wide cavern. Others burned and others were assailed
by waterspouts that tossed them about like rag dolls. Then
everything went white. He was floating in a featureless world of
pure light. But nothing else changed, the rush of elemental
forces being unleashed and the screams went on. He thought he
heard Nanami screaming directions to somebody. Heat like a bast
furnace tingled his face and suddenly the white light was
displaced by a titanic orange fireball rushing out to consume
them all. But it faded as quickly as it had come, leaving
dizzying afterimages.

A hand grabbed his. "Come on, we're leaving." Afura dragged him
at a run through a roiling soup of smoke and mist. Billowing
clouds of green smoke were rising off the ground all around
them. He thought it might be another illusion until he got a
whiff. He wheezed and hacked but a moment later they were out of
it. After another moment Makoto got his balance back and matched
Afura's pace more easily, so she dropped his hand. They were
running down a winding tunnel now. Makoto finally looked past
Afura and saw why. Fujisawa and Kauru were running ahead of
them. The others must be ahead too. After turning at two
intersections Makoto saw Fujisawa and Kauru turn to wait for
them, beckoning them to hurry. They were about to catch up when
Afura threw up her arms and there was a crack like thunder and a
rippling in the air almost too fast to see. A wind shear, an
attack he had seen her split towering rocks with.

It cut through Fujisawa and Kauru, shearing them in half like a
great scythe.

Makoto screamed. He threw himself at Afura, clawing at her,
still screaming incoherently. His arms were parried aside and a
lightning fast hammerblow sent him staggering. He managed to
stay on his feet, managed to focus on Afura's snarling face.
"Look!" she shouted, jabbing a finger down the tunnel. Makoto's
eyes were inexorably, morbidly drawn to the site of the horror
he had witnessed. He nearly fell again. There were two
blue-skinned bodies, a man and a girl. Two people, four halves.
Bow casters lay wrapped in dead fingers.

"How..." Makoto could only get single words out between great
gulps of air. "How did..."

"When they were ready to attack, maybe they let it slip. It was
just a glimpse, just enough."

"God..." It had looked so real, even as they were tumbling down
in a shower of blood. "How did they do that?"

"We were all over the room when those gas bombs dropped out of
the ceiling. The guards obscured us from each other, gave us a
good reason to leave quickly and gave us something to follow.
Very clever."

Adrenaline was easing off enough to allow coherent thought now.
"The others, the same thing must have happened to them."

"Shayla must have taken off with Nanami and expected everyone
else to follow like we were supposed to," Afura said.

Makoto took Afura's lead and scanned their surroundings. He was
becoming all too aware of their being alone. "So what now?"

"We should follow Shayla's plan, such as it is. Hopefully we'll
run into the others that way too. Care to pick a tunnel?"

He knew which one he did not want to go down. "That one."

Afura smiled crookedly. "Not the one they were leading us down.
Good choice." Makoto chose not to reply.

The first two groups they encountered scurried away before Afura
could even fire upon them. They were men in strange robes,
similar to tribesmen he had seen captured when the Rostalians
had recaptured the tower to the Eye of God. Scientists or
technicians, most likely. It seemed the prevailing wisdom was
true, most of the tribesmen were not warriors or illusionists.
They seemed to be working their way into an area where the
tunnels were wider and better lit with more frequent glow bulbs.
They passed through caves that had been turned into storage and
working areas. But even these were unoccupied. "It seems so
empty," Makoto commented.

"Probably their noncombatants have locked themselves behind
these closed doors we've been passing," Afura said. "Speaking of
which, keep watching behind us."

"Right." For what it might be worth, anyway.

A few minutes later, Afura waved for them to stop. Makoto tensed
up, looking furtively back then turning to peer down the tunnel
Afura was taking them into. But it seemed she was listening for
something rather than watching for something. He caught his
breath. "I hear it," he whispered. It was a very low thrumming,
barely in the range of hearing.

"That way," Afura said, indicating to the right of the tunnel.

"You can tell?"

"This air is so still, anything that disturbs it comes out
clearly."

"That could be what we're looking for," Makoto said. His heart
was jumping again. Whatever the Phantom Tribe was doing, this
could mean it had begun.

Afura's concern seemed to mirror his. "We should get there as
quickly as we can."

"It might be better guarded that way." They had been proceeding
cautiously, Makoto balked at the thought of just plunging
headlong.

"I wasn't suggesting we run."

"Then-"

"Hang on." She grabbed a hold of him and the air whipped her
dark hair up in front of his face. His feet lifted off the
ground. He threw his arms madly around her just on time to
prevent being torn from her grip. He hung on for dear life as
they flew at insane speed down the maze of tunnels. She hardly
even slowed for the turns. If he weren't concentrating on not
losing his dinner he would have shouted at her to slow it down.
They passed by dim blurs that may have been people being blown
aside. There seemed to be a bow wave of wind ahead of them,
bowling over anything in their path.

Something whizzed by his head and ricocheted off the wall.
"Someone's shooting at us!" he gasped. Afura's grunted reply
sounded something like "This must be the place." They had moved
into a very wide. straight tunnel. Now that they were on a level
course Makoto managed to steal a look ahead. They were seconds
away from running into a line of people blocking the path. It
looked like a firing squad. Afura let out a sharp cry and the
dust and debris in the shock wave preceding them became a
whirling vortex, whipped into strobing concentric circles by a
vertical tornado that shrieked like a banshee. Volleys of
projectiles flung their way just added to the maelstrom. Makoto
only heard it when the windstorm slammed into their reception
committee. All he saw was what was stuck to the surface of the
tunnel they passed through. He imagined the inside of a food
processor must look something like that.

They shot straight into a big, roughly round natural cave whose
floor had been cut flat. The nearest tribesmen were swept aside
by their passage. But they were not cut to pieces, Afura had
toned down her invisible battering ram to a mere hurricane.
There were more tribesmen scattered about the dimly lit space,
they were all in those strange long, colorful robes. The thing
Makoto most noticed upon his first glimpse of the cavern was the
big round hole in the floor, which made the cave appear like a
gallery or balcony looking upon something below. What looked
like the top of a big dome stuck out of this hole, its summit
almost coming up to the level of the floor.

The other thing he noticed was the dull thrumming that resonated
through the enclosure. "This is it!" he declared. Without a word
Afura brought their mad flight to an end in a place Makoto
hadn't expected: she landed them right on top of the big, dark
dome. He released his grip on her, looked below and drew in his
breath. "Below us..."

"I know." They could now see what had been hidden by the rim of
the hole. Its wall went about ten feet straight down to meet a
lower floor, a narrow ring of stone into which this great dome
disappeared. It was like this was the very tip of a monstrous
ellipsoid machine embedded into the rock. All along the circular
wall of the shallow pit were pieces of unearthly machinery. It
looked all too familiar to somebody who had spent months inside
the Eye of God. The people who had been tending these machines
had all turned at their arrival, pointing and crying out in
alarm.

"Get down!" Afura shoved down on Makoto's shoulder and he barely
broke his fall, coming down hard on the dome's surface. It
consisted of closely fitted plates of some rough, dark metal. It
vibrated in time with the thrumming noise, and was uncomfortably
warm to the touch. He heard Afura give out a short, clipped
shout and suddenly they were in the eye of a hurricane.
Twisting, turning bodies spiraled up around him, a dozen of
them, now tumbling helplessly up near the natural ceiling of the
cavern. A couple of unlucky ones connected with one of the blunt
stalactites. A moment later the others' luck ran out too. The
timbre of the wind's screaming changed, and it threw them all
back down to the floor at something approaching terminal
velocity. He could not even hear the impacts. Then the rushing
air was stilled, and nothing moved. There was only the deep,
pulsating vibration shaking Makoto's bones.

"Should I destroy those machines?" Afura asked, looking like she
was getting ready to do just that.

"No, wait," Makoto said, shooting his arm up. "Those are just
consoles. They've already done whatever they needed to start up
this thing. We need to destroy the machine."

Afura looked down at the thing they stood upon. "I don't think I
could put more than a dent in this." She spoke loudly over the
waxing and waning noise that Makoto could swear was getting
louder. "Even if it were all that we see. But the rest of it
could be much larger, and it's all embedded in rock."

"I'll go down to one of those consoles," Makoto said. "Try and
link with it."

Afura nodded. She did a quick scan around. "Three entrances.
I'll seal up two of them and guard the third."

Makoto walked carefully down the curve of the dome. He nearly
stumbled when the first of Afura's wind shears blasted the wall
over one of the entrances, sending it tumbling down in a shower
of dust and boulders. The dome's surface was rough enough and
the curve shallow enough that he was able to step straight from
it onto the stone floor into which it disappeared. He stood
there a moment, waiting for the other shoe to drop. He heard
another clap of thunder and another piece of the cavern wall
shatter and tumble to the floor. Then Afura flew off the dome
and disappeared back the way they had come. Makoto stepped over
to the nearest console. It looked much like ones he had seen in
the Eye of God and on other relics from the Holy Wars. But it
had been reconfigured, in fact it looked like it had almost been
rebuilt from scratch. The display was meaningless to him. He
might be able to link with the machine from there but... he
looked along the wall that curved in around the dome to his left
and right. Ah, there. A black cylinder rising at an angle from a
small, featureless machine. A direct link, like the one he used
to link with the Eye of God. He ran around the curve of the dome
to where the machine sat facing it. He ran past a little alcove
and paused. What from above had looked like just an indentation
in the wall actually was the entrance to a low, narrow tunnel.
It angled down, seeming to follow the curve of the part of this
machine that was embedded in the rock below. Perhaps giving
access to other parts of the machine. Well, the terminal should
serve his purposes just as well. He closed the rest of the short
distance to it. Then his heart leapt and a sinking feeling of
dread overwhelmed him. He looked back at the tunnel. It was
another entrance, one that could let enemies in. Or perhaps they
had already-

Pain exploded in his shoulder and he was thrown back. He
screamed, staggering back and tripping on the shallow slope of
the dome. He fell down upon it, hitting his head hard. He was
stunned, but his hand still came up involuntarily to clutch his
wounded shoulder. It felt wet. His vision swam, he thought he
was passing out, starting to see things. But the pain in his
shoulder and head cut through the dizziness, allowing him to
focus on the two figures leering down at him. Galus and Nahato,
both holding curved knives. The taller man's blade dripped
blood. He brought it up between them, as if presenting Makoto
with a gift. "It has been quite some time, Mizuhara." He spoke
softly, it was only because his basso voice carried so well even
in the incessant rumbling that Makoto heard it at all. "But, I
couldn't let you go without returning the favor." He pushed the
fabric of his tunic aside, revealing an old scar just near his
collarbone.

Makoto tried to sit up on the sloped surface of the dome, but
using his arm sent a fresh wave of pain lancing up his shoulder.
He threw his head back and gave full vent to his agony.

"She can't hear you," Galus said, apparently guessing his
intent. "My companions are keeping her busy."

"Galus-sama, should I..." The handsome young boy, now taller
than Makoto remembered him, inclined his head towards where
Afura went.

"Not yet. Watch this one for a moment." He sneered down at
Makoto. "Since his banshee devil woman has killed all my
technicians, I want to check up on our progress." He walked over
to the black, cylindrical stock angling out of the nearby
machine. Still facing Makoto and grinning, he reached out to his
side and placed his hand upon its shiny surface. Little blue
tendrils like veins snaked from his fingertips up his hand and
down across the terminal, appearing to fuse them together.
Makoto blinked away tears of pain and frustration. So this
terminal did link with the machine. And Galus was the one who
could use it.

Galus' eyes went unfocused, but he still faced Makoto, as if
somehow wanting to share this moment. "Oh yes," he purred. "Oh
yes, it is proceeding very nicely. Very nicely indeed." He
dropped his hand from the terminal and his predatory eyes found
their mark again. "You know, very soon that machine will become
red hot. We didn't bother with a cooling system, so it will burn
itself out. No matter of course, we only need use it once." His
eyes were gradually becoming wilder, his sallow face more
creased by his death-mask grin. "But we can make an interesting
wager, Mizuhara. If you try to move from there I will run you
through. Can you lie there and live or will you be roasted? Will
I have your charred, disfigured form to amuse me as my new court
jester or will your seared flesh provide my dinner? Which shall
it be, shall you watch the end of your world at my feet or from
my belly?"

Makoto had to take advantage of his mania. Had to distract him,
keep him from remembering that he had been about to send Nahato
to stab Afura in the back. He spoke haltingly, between winces of
pain. It was only partly theatrical. "At least... let me stand
then. Let me... be on my feet when you kill me."

Galus laughed out loud. He spread his arms wide, holding his
knife high. "Very well then, my belly it is! So much the better,
we can prepare you properly this way! You shall be the main
course at my celebration dinner! Come, little human, on your
feet! Let us see how much of your entrails I can remove before
you fall!"

Makoto gave him a good show, falling back onto the hot surface
of the dome twice before even getting to his knees. He glared
into Galus' eyes the whole time. From the corner of his eye
Makoto could see Nahato fidgeting. His master was having too
much fun, but he could probably see that Makoto was drawing this
out. He would give warning any moment. So it was time to give
Galus his offering. He planted one foot and put both hands on
his knee to lever himself up when an orange missile flew down
and enveloped Galus in a furry corset.

The white haired man staggered, looked down in horror at the
hissing cat-head sticking out of his collarbone. He screamed,
swiping at it with his knife. It was a poor stroke, not
surprising since it was inches from his throat. Ula's mouth
reached out and clamped down on his knife-hand, holding it in
place. Jaws stronger than steel drove razor teeth through sinew
and bone. Galus shrieked, dropping his knife, slamming his free
hand uselessly against the offending head. Then he was choking,
his eyes bulging horribly, and it was only Nahato screaming now,
begging Galus to take his hand away from the thing's head so he
could strike. The boy's horrible shriek followed closely on the
sound of his master's ribcage imploding. Nahato turned his
twisted, tear-streaked face to Makoto. He saw Ula slip quickly
from around Galus' fallen body, but suddenly everything went
white. Of course, Ula would never be able to find him this way,
even if she could make it on time. It would be all over soon.

There was an impact and a gurgling sound. A new voice spoke. It
was a familiar one, but rasping and strained as if each word
came out between clenched teeth. "Don't you try that shit on me,
I can see you just FINE!" The blinding light faded away. Nanami
had a strange rifle gripped in her hands, it looked something
like the one he had stabbed Galus with long ago. She thrust down
on it again and again, each time pushing Nahato a little further
across the floor with the bayonet embedded in his abdomen, as if
she meant to mop the floor with his blood. It wasn't until she
got a satisfying death rattle that she turned her attention to
Makoto. She immediately dropped her weapon, losing all interest
in her kill. "Oh God, Makoto!" She dropped down beside him.
"Don't move, I'll take care of this."

"Knew... you'd get here."

"Shut up, don't talk." She hooked her fingers around both sides
of the ragged tear in his shirt and pulled savagely, ripping it
open. Fumbling just a little, she pulled a white package out of
one of the many pockets in her khaki vest. An adhesive bandage
for a puncture wound, Makoto recalled. Good thing somebody had
thought to bring them. He winced as she applied it. "Sorry," she
said, barely audible.

"Nanami... help me to that terminal."

"Right." He put an arm around her shoulders and she helped him
up. Once standing it wasn't so bad, he walked easily over to the
terminal. "Thank goodness Ula caught your scent," Nanami said.
"We could barely keep up with her."

"Nanami!" Afura floated down into the shallow pit from above,
looking in horror at the bloody scene. "How did you know...?"

"We didn't, Ula freaked and we followed her."

Afura's expression hardened again. "Shayla's holding the tunnel
but we need your eyes again. One almost slipped through, there
may be more. I have to watch here, but I'll hoist you up."
Without even asking leave she took Nanami under the arms and
they sailed up to the balcony.

"Makoto." He looked down at the big cat, who seemed eager to
jump up and envelop him in her protective cloak. He held out his
hand and shook it in negative. "Go protect Nanami."

Her little face fell. "Makoto-"

"DO IT!"

She stepped back, whimpering. But she leaped up onto the balcony
above and ran away without further complaint. Makoto laid his
hand onto the flat round surface of the terminal and made the
connection. He reached out, his awareness merging with the
artificial brain of the living machine. He saw what it saw, felt
what it felt, knew what it knew.

Knew that it was already too late.

He saw tendrils reaching out from there to the devices the
Phantom Tribe had set up in all those mine shafts and tunnels.
Each tendril was a wormhole. Power coursed down them, setting up
sympathetic vibrations that swept up and down fault lines,
setting up a web of feedback loops that was already building to
its climax. He saw a ghostly image of the outcome the machine's
little brain was projecting, a line of volcanoes opening up from
one end of the country to the other, spewing out millions of
tons of smoke and ash to spread out over the globe and blot out
the sun.

Makoto let the voices of panic and despair scream on, but he
refused to listen. The machine could not be shut down, it would
run through its cycle until it ran out of power, there was
nothing he could do about that. Which meant there was only one
solution. He gave the command. A barrage of warnings assaulted
him, not seen or heard but simply shot straight into his heart
as a premonition of certain doom. He surged through them like a
pure, searing laser and the command was executed. Only then did
he examine the consequences of what he had just done. It
explained why he had been forced to crash through so many safety
locks to do it.

He severed the link, came back into the real world. He looked
around for Afura, found her up above him near the edge of the
pit, shooting hurricane blasts out at something he could not
see. Shayla was with her, she noticed Makoto first. She leaped
down beside him. It was obvious she didn't like what she saw in
his face. "Makoto, is it...?"

"I did it. I stopped it from happening."

She could tell there was going to be a catch. "But...?"

He shouted over the rapidly building thrumming of the machine.
"There's nowhere else for the energy to go now. It's going to
explode. Ten minutes, maybe."

Shayla let herself be stunned for just two seconds. Then she
unceremoniously scooped Makoto up in her arms and vaulted up out
of the pit again. That really hurt. She set him down, threw her
head back and shouted. Her voice boomed and echoed like a god's,
as if the elements themselves had spoken. "We - are - LEAVING!"

Everything was motion and fury. Makoto noticed that Alielle was
with them too. She did not look good. She ran awkwardly, holding
her side with her hand, breathing in shallow gasps. Broken ribs
maybe. So, their last moments were going to be spent running
through a sea of pain. He would have preferred to find some
corner to spend them more quietly. But he couldn't blame them
for trying, couldn't bear to tell them it was futile.

The two priestesses cut a path for them, often as not just
shooting indiscriminately ahead even when they could see
nothing. Nanami had little work to do. He saw that she was
favoring a bleeding leg. Probably one of them skinned her with a
bow caster. She noticed him watching her run. "Shayla thought
she felt Kauru use her power somewhere this way," she said
breathlessly. Makoto hadn't even thought to ask. It really
didn't matter, after all.

They fell straight into the trap. It was a huge cavern with many
entrances, left in its natural state save for the beautifully
glowing crystals that had been embedded in the rocks all around.
They must have preserved this cave for its beauty, but now they
were using it as a killing ground. Afura had barely been able to
deflect their bow caster shots with a great sweeping wind shear,
had given them just enough time to dive for cover. But they were
pinned down under a barrage of bow caster fire. There were
scores of hiding places all over the rough bowl-shaped floor,
there could be hundreds of them. Shayla and Afura were arguing
over which one of them was going to go out in the open and keep
them busy while the rest ran. But then a boulder just a little
smaller than a truck came crashing down into the middle of the
cave, bouncing and rolling madly across the jagged floor,
scattering rocks and bodies in all directions.

More tribesmen than Makoto thought there would be jumped up from
all over, turning to face the new threat. It came in the form of
great torrents of water exploding out of all the far entrances.
Some of them ran, some of them just stood there, either stunned
with disbelief or just accepting the inevitable. Probably none
of them noticed the tall man and the short, cyan-haired girl
floating on one of the churning white wave crests, riding it
like surfers. Nor did they notice that the water hunted them
with cold purpose, moved not by mere gravity and momentum but by
the power of will. It swept them all out the lower entrances of
the caves.

By this time Shayla was standing on top of their rock cover,
waving madly. Kauru sent her churning white wave towards them,
depositing herself and Fujisawa on the little island of calm.
"Shayla! We-"

"We're leaving!" Shayla snapped. "And we have to be quick about
it. We'll go up and look for an exit." She looked past Kauru,
frowning. "What the..."

The water was not disappearing as it should when the priestess
of water was done with it. It was now flowing through the cave
like rapids, lapping the edge of their little hiding spot.

"We got lost further up and they had us cornered," Kauru said.
"I opened the river into the caves. I know it was dangerous, but
it was the only way to clear them out quickly."

Shayla snapped her fingers. "Great, that's our way out! Can you
get us there?"

"I'll try."

Kauru formed a little raft of her charmed water and they all
crowded onto it. She struggled to get them up the rapids, but
once in a tunnel they made better headway up the stream.

Finally, Shayla asked him. It would have been so easy to lie.
But he shook his head. "No, it won't be fast enough. We'll never
make it." His sad, sympathetic eyes were locked on her angry,
disbelieving ones.

"We found another exit," Fujisawa offered. "At least we assume
it was one. A big stairway going up as far as we could see. It's
in this direction too."

Shayla looked at Makoto. "How about that, would that be fast
enough?"

No. "Maybe."

"Kauru, that's where we're headed."

The water had already risen to swallow the entrance to the
narrow little stairway, Kauru had to take them underwater for a
ways. It was exactly as Fujisawa said, a stairway going up into
the darkness, its glow bulbs fading into infinity above them.
Kauru floated them some distance up, but the little water
platform abruptly fell from under their feet and Kauru collapsed
into Fujisawa's arms, barely conscious. She had done all she
could. They started to climb, but Shayla suddenly stopped and
grabbed Makoto's arm. "Makoto, this isn't going to work either,
is it?"

"No."

That seemed to be the answer she was expecting. As always, he
had been a poor liar. Shayla seemed to come to some decision.
"Afura, if we get real friendly can you put a wind shield around
all of us?"

"Yes, but I can't fly us all if that's what you're thinking."

"You won't need to, just be ready with the shield." She climbed
back down the stairs past the rest of them. "Everyone, get
behind me and stick real, real close." She faced away from them,
put her hands out before her. Orange fire flared in front of
her, and she was silhouetted by a roaring flame that grew
brighter and brighter. Makoto could feel it heating up the whole
tunnel.

"What is it?" Nanami whispered.

Makoto turned to see that the question had been directed at
Afura. The dark-haired priestess held a surprised frown that
showed both recognition and puzzlement. "It's a plasmoid. A
really big one."

"What's she shooting at?" Fujisawa wondered.

"It's not for shooting at things. It burns away gradually, it's
for flash-heating..." her eyes went wide. "Oh, no."

There was a whoosh of displaced air and Shayla's fire went
streaking down the tunnel. She spun around and leaped right into
the tightly huddled group. "Afura!"

Suddenly they were all lifted off the ground and squeezed in
together. It was like being hit by a wind from all sides at
once. Makoto involuntarily threw his arm up against the
invisible gale but was forced back. The more he pushed the
harder it pushed back. Something came rushing up the tunnel
straight at them. Nanami must have figured it out a fraction
before Makoto did, because just as he was thinking Shayla had
gone to a lot of trouble to kill them all spectacularly Nanami
groaned in a deadpan, despairing voice. "Oh shi-"

The screaming cloud of steam slammed into the spherical wind
barrier that stretched from one end of the tunnel to the other.
The same force that had propelled man into the industrial age
propelled the frictionless globe of charmed air up the stairway
like a musket ball. There was a collective grunt and wheeze as
they were all thrown into the back of their invisible cocoon and
into each other. Just as Makoto's body was reeling at the impact
his mind was reeling with astonishment, over the utter audacity
of what they were doing, and over the fact that it was actually
working. He was just beginning to accept the fact that they
might live when somebody shouted. "We're gonna hit!"

There was another flare of light. Nanami and Kauru were pressed
up against Shayla, so they both squealed at the tongues of flame
that flashed between Shayla's gemstones, mere inches from their
unprotected hides. Then the flames came together and Shayla shot
them straight up the tunnel into the doorway they were rushing
into. It detonated and they flew out amidst a spray of steam and
debris, flew out into the sunshine and down the wooded slope.

The wind shield cushioned their fall, after a fashion. But when
it collapsed everyone fell to the rocky ground, scattering in a
heap. Alielle fell down on top of Makoto's bad shoulder and he
cried out. She just winced, still clutching her side. At least
she had not landed on that side. He levered himself up
painfully, helping Alielle up too. "Hey, are you okay?"

She smiled bravely. "I guess so, how are-"

"Stupid crazy bitch!" Afura was kneeling beside a stunned
Shayla, madly shaking her by the shoulders. Makoto had never
heard her raise her voice at her old friend before, even when
they were sniping at each other. She had finally reached her
breaking point. "Did you even think about what you were doing?
Did you really think that was going to work? Are you insane or
just suicidal?" She was ranting without waiting for an answer,
but a second later it didn't matter.

Makoto had seen films of underground nuclear tests. Being there
was an utterly different thing. All the dust and loose soil on
the ground was kicked straight up into the air by the bucking
ground, but more to the point so were all the people lying
there. Every square inch of his body including his eardrums
ached as if from a hammerblow. He hit the ground again but by
then he hardly felt it. A raging white geyser belched out of the
tunnel mouth and angled up into the gray sky over his head. Then
it was being swallowed up by a looming shadow. The great block
of granite the tunnel opened up onto was about to roll onto
them. His mind was too stunned to register anything other than a
vague sense of irony.

Their new rock ceiling halted just a few feet above his face.
Nearby, the reason for this stood straining and quivering.
Fujisawa's battle aura was a physical thing now, dancing about
him like a golden corona. Everyone huddled in the shadow of
their great huge parasol. Clouds of dust washed through their
little island of calm as the avalanche raged all around them. So
this was why nuclear tests were done under salt flats. Makoto
closed his stinging eyes, hacking and coughing into a hand that
was doing nothing to keep the roiling dust out. "Everyone out!"
Fujisawa gasped. It didn't sound like it was over, but Makoto
scrambled out from under the huge rock anyway. So did everybody
else. They slipped and slid through the undulating gravel,
dodging a few rocks that were still bouncing and tumbling down
the slope. He looked back up just in time to see Fujisawa thrust
the rock up and dive out towards them. If his legs had been an
inch longer they would have been clipped short by the great
thick slab of rock that crashed into the ground. It slid
ominously down towards them, but ground to a halt just a few
feet from where Fujisawa lay panting and coughing.

Makoto staggered to his feet. It was an utterly different
landscape now. The forest that had covered the mountainside
mostly lay in ruins now, just a few sturdy clumps of trees
having been bypassed by the avalanches stood here and there. A
haze of dust hung over everything, they were all still coughing
and wheezing.

When she stopped spitting up dust, Shayla interrogated everyone
in the group as quickly as she could, making sure everyone was
more or less okay. Even Afura just gave a grunted affirmation
that she was still alive. It seemed she didn't feel like railing
on Shayla any more. The anxious, dusty priestess turned her
attention to Makoto last. After he grunted his answer she just
stared at him with a pained expression, as if noticing his
hastily bandaged shoulder and blood soaked shirt for the first
time. She shook her head and sighed. "Oh man, she's going to
kill me when she sees this." She seemed to regret her words
right away. But Makoto managed to give her a smile that said it
was okay. He hadn't stopped thinking of her for a moment, not
since he had seen her disappear into the sky. He looked to where
the moon should be, but there were clouds.

"Shayla." It was Fujisawa, come back down to rejoin the group.
"This whole slope is still going to be unstable, we should get
down off it as soon as we can."

"Good idea. Can you carry Alielle?"

He grinned. "If I had something to carry you in I'd give you all
a ride."

"I think the rest of us can manage." She shielded her eyes with
her hand and peered down into the valley below. "Any bets on
whether our cars got buried?"

They hadn't. But it took several detours around rock slides to
get them out of the valley. By that time they were passing a
stream of speeding emergency vehicles headed back up to the site
of the explosion. Somewhere along the way, Makoto dozed off. He
dreamed of reaching out for a blood-red moon hanging in the sky
like the glowing eye of a malevolent god.



___****___



The silent television added its flickering light to the soft
glow of the ceiling night light. Even at three in the morning
the tireless news reporters were scrambling to tell the world
what little they knew about the strange, apocalyptic events that
had struck the island nation. Makoto had watched enough of it in
the evening that turning the sound up would have been redundant.
Besides, he didn't want to disturb the ones who were managing to
get some sleep.

A shadow came out of the hallway into the living room, resolving
itself into Nanami's smiling face. "Hey. Anything new?"

He shook his head. "Not really watching," he said truthfully,
also in a hushed tone.

She pulled her yukata tighter around herself and sat down beside
him on the couch. "How's the shoulder?"

"Okay. The painkillers help."

"You want something from the kitchen?"

"No, I'm fine."

She frowned at him in disapproval. "You didn't eat much
yesterday."

He looked away. "Really, I'm fine."

She sighed. He was surprised to feel her fingers lightly
stroking the hair on the back of his head. "I know how scared
you are," she said softly. "The rest of us believe in her, you
should too."

He sat rigidly, staring straight ahead. "Miz must be getting
worried. Maybe she'll be able to convince the Ifurita there to
go back to Rostalia with her. She can learn to merge with the
Eye of God, learn about the wormholes."

"She won't need to," Nanami said, still stroking his hair. "Your
Ifurita will bring Miz back to us. Even Fujisawa knows that."

"He's scared too, he just doesn't show it much." It was the
wrong thing to say, but Makoto wasn't paying much attention to
what he was saying.

"You know, the last time we played out this scene you were the
one trying to convince me we would all meet again."

"That was because you were blaming yourself."

"So you really didn't believe it?"

Makoto's love for his childhood friend, his desire not to let
her down again, gave him the motivation to take a little step
out of his quiet misery. He took her hand and faced her.
"Nanami, I'm more grateful than I can say..."

She stopped him with a finger held just in front of his lips.
Her smile was sad and regretful. "But you have to get through
this on your own. Until she returns you stand alone."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be." She leaned forward and kissed his cheek. "Just
promise to let us help you when you do need it."

"I promise."

She left him. He wished he had said more, but he just didn't
have it in him right now. He let his head fall back and closed
his eyes. The anxiety was being gradually dulled by simple
weariness. He hadn't slept since the hospital. The ache in his
now more carefully bandaged shoulder had little to do with that.
As the previous day had worn on his dulled mind had begun to
hatch all sorts of strange fantasies. Even if she were dead, the
Ifurita on El Hazard would eventually learn to use the
wormholes, she would come here one day. He would tell her to go
back in time, wait on the moon, save his Ifurita. Surely it
would be possible. Some time ago he had once played with an
ancient El Hazard computer and tried to figure out what would
happen if he actually did something like that, tried to change a
history he had already lived. He wasn't sure he believed the
answers he got.

Did he have it in him? Could he risk destroying everything for
her?

He had hardly given any thought to what would happen if it was
the other who returned. The plain fact was, he just couldn't
bring himself to care. In an abstract way he wondered what she
would do. Her allies were probably all dead. For a variety of
reasons they were staying in the apartment, but in fact the risk
of there still being living Phantom Tribe left on Earth was the
least of those. Would Erinyes wreak bloody vengeance or would
she just leave? Would she even bother to come tell him what had
become of Ifurita? Nothing would be worse than just not knowing.

The others had been helping him in little, quiet ways. He was
just starting to see that now. Mostly it was just an encouraging
smile or a small kindness, like an offered meal he would
politely refuse. More often than that it was just an acceptance
of his need to be alone. But of course he would never be
alone... not unless he were foolish enough to choose it. Maybe,
maybe one day that would be enough.

He opened his eyes and stared at the television again. It
silently replayed the brief news conferences of the previous
day, men in suits solemnly assuring the country there was no
need to panic and they were doing everything to uncover the
truth. Very soon after the explosion everyone was talking about,
a volcano had come to life at the other end of the country,
forcing the evacuation of a village. It looked like that would
be the only one, but it just underscored how near a thing it had
been. Of course everyone was thinking all these events must be
related, but nobody could imagine how.

All this made him think of the Chief Inspector, who had caught
up with them before they left the hospital. He and Nanami had
filled him in... there was no reason to lie to him any more. Of
course there was little he could do with the information, none
but the poor hapless officer who had accompanied him to El
Hazard would believe him. Makoto mused upon how frustrating that
must be for a policeman.

Of course the first thing he and Nanami had done upon arriving
there was to call their parents, something they had done every
day since going into hiding. He only told them three lies. The
Phantom Tribe had only wanted to rule the humans from the
shadows, not destroy them. Ifurita had wiped them out by
herself. And yes of course she would be back soon she was just
out making sure there were none of the enemy left alive. It was
a delicate game, this hiding in plain sight.

Eventually he did get up and make himself a snack. There had
been another time when not even painful hunger could motivate
him to do something about it. But he remembered how energizing
it had felt to finally let his body's needs win over his soul's
despair. His body had rewarding him, feeding him the energy he
needed to help break out of his slump. He would do the same
again. He was in no worse position than then, after all. If she
did not come back to him then he would have to go find her, it
was as simple as that. If all of time and space stood between
them, what of it?

For now he would focus on more immediate matters. He should
gather Ifurita's research from her computers and pass it on to
the Chief Inspector. Perhaps the Inspector could make quiet
inquiries... they were assuming all of the suspected
dopplegangers had retreated to the nest, but they should try and
confirm it. Makoto walked over to the bulletin board, where the
carefully arranged portfolios were still pinned. He thought of
these dead men and their families who would never know the
truth. Perhaps he should try and tell them something, it seemed
the least he could do. He would have to discuss it with the
others.

There was a rap at the window. He turned to look and was frozen
in place.

She stood on the balcony with her hand upon the glass, a shadow
barely lit by the room's dim light, unmoving. Makoto staggered,
almost fell, overwhelmed by the shock. He made his way haltingly
over to the window, never taking his eyes from her for a moment.
He stood there before her, still unable to believe. Her face was
like a dim will-o'-the-wisp floating outside the window. But
when she blinked and a silvery tear trickled down her cheek the
illusion was broken. She was no ghost. His hand came up of its
own volition, pressed against the glass opposite hers. Her face,
his mirror, held such profound relief. "Ifurita..."

Her dark lips mouthed his name. It finally occurred to him that
he should open the door. His hand groped for the latch, unaided
by his eyes that would not leave hers. He threw the latch and
slid the door aside. His vision swam and blurred but it didn't
matter anymore, she was in his arms and now they were both
softly weeping, giving vent to their relief and joy. He crushed
her to him, burying his face in her silvery hair, felt her cling
to him just as desperately. Her staff had fallen unnoticed to
the carpet. His shoulder muscles quivered with the sharp pain
and he just didn't care at all.

He wanted to see her face again. He moved his hands to her
shoulders. She read the signal and stepped back ever so
slightly. He gazed at her tear-streaked face just an inch from
his. "You're burned," he said in a soft, husky voice. He brought
up one hand and laid it delicately around the darkened, rough
skin on her face.

"It will heal." One of her hands slid up his body and settled
lightly on his bad shoulder. "You've been stabbed."

"It will heal." They both grinned and let out quick, breathy
laughs like sobs. They brought their foreheads together and
stood in a loose embrace. He could see that much of her clothes
had been burned away. What had been jeans and a flannel shirt
hung in black tatters, exposing more burned skin, barely
healing. Once again she had returned to him barefoot and in
rags. "Does that hurt?"

"No. But I can tell yours does."

"I've hardly noticed. All I could think about was you."

She just stood smiling at him for a moment, basking in the
miracle reunion. Barely perceptible in the dim light, he saw a
shadow pass across her face. "Makoto... how is everyone?"

"Everyone's fine. Alielle broke a rib, everyone else just got
cuts and bruises."

"I went to the nest first. It was obvious what had happened,
even from altitude. I feared the worst. When I saw you here, I-"
Her voice choked up. He leaned forward and they kissed. They
held onto it, letting it say what words could not.

Makoto held her close to him, his eyes, his hands, his body
demanding affirmation of her presence. "I... I don't think I'm
every going to be able to let you out of my sight again."

She wiped away his tears with a gentle stroke of her thumbs. "I
feel the same way." She smiled. "I think I shall even have to
wait outside the door when you go to pass water."

"I think we'll be smothering each other for a while." Then the
cold reality of what he must ask her abruptly broke through his
tranquil buzz, disturbing the timeless moment. He could already
see her reacting to the change in his mood. "Ifurita, is Erinyes
dead?"

Her reaction was much stronger than he had expected. She averted
her haunted eyes. "Yes."

He kissed her near one of her glistening, misty eyes. "I'm
sorry. Would you prefer not to talk about it?"

She shook her head, indicating the contrary. It seemed that for
a moment she was gathering her courage. Then she began speaking
in a calm, even tone. "When we landed on the surface I tried
reasoning with her again. In the vacuum I had to open a radio
link. She would not even respond to it. She just stood there,
waiting. She looked like she had... prepared herself. She fully
expected to die, and at best take me with her. I think she would
have waited forever. But I couldn't wait, I had to get back as
quickly as I could, in case you needed my help."

Makoto could sense what was coming next. He caressed the side of
her face lightly. "Oh, Ifurita..."

She nodded, affirming his guess. "I attacked her. As she had
warned, she gave no quarter. It was a very near thing. But their
repairs of her systems were incomplete. Her shield
malfunctioned. It was over in an instant, there... was little
left save her head. I touched her, linked with her. It was only
for a moment, I doubt she was even conscious. I just sensed
feelings, vague thoughts, then nothing."

"So she never spoke to you," Makoto said in a strained voice,
knowing how painful that must be to her.

"She never spoke, but I did sense something in her thoughts
directed at me. I'm not sure I can call it forgiveness, just
understanding. There had been people in her past, friends and
lovers, who she considered soul mates. She understood why I
would do anything to protect you and your world. She felt the
same way."

Makoto was sickened by what occurred to him next. "Did she find
a soul mate among the Phantom Tribe?"

"No. I thought it might be that, what I sensed was very
confusing. Something had happened to her when she was on their
homeworld. I puzzled over it on the long journey back. I'm 
still not sure I understand it properly, but she came upon an
immensely old presence there which she associated with the
entire world. I don't know if it was the planet itself or some
gestalt mind of its inhabitants, I don't know if it even makes
sense to ask the question. Whatever it was, she fell in love
with it. That ancient mind became her soul mate."

"And the Eye of God took her from it," Makoto said.

"Yes. But more than that, it had assaulted her soul mate not
once but twice, wounding it deeply. That she could not forgive.
Before that I think she had felt just sadness at all the follies
of man she had observed, now she felt anger. But even then it
was not really revenge she sought, else she would have taken it
upon Rostalia. She could have razed it to the ground before I or
anybody else could do anything. But it may even have been she
who convinced the Phantom Tribe to come to Earth. She probably
felt they had a better chance of turning this world into a
mirror of the one they had lost."

"Why did she not just go back?" Makoto asked.

"On their homeworld she had put herself into hibernation. I'm
not sure why, I got the impression she had already offered her
world everything she could, further time with her soul mate
would have been... redundant. It was as if she felt she had to
bring something more to offer if she were to return. She would
bring it the story of the new world she had created."

Makoto shook his head in confusion. "This... gestalt mind, her
soul mate, why would it care? You told me about what Erinyes
said, when you brought Ai-chan back. They... it wasn't
interested in colonizing other worlds. It doesn't fit."

"She didn't think of it as a colony, Makoto. After thinking
about it I recognized the sort of anticipation she was feeling
for the world she would give birth to here. I saw it in the eyes
of Fujisawa and Miz when I brought Ai back to them. What Erinyes
wanted was to present her soul mate with a child."

Makoto's mind was numbed at the thought. "A whole planet?"

"Having a child is an option that is closed to our kind, both by
our altered genes and our altered bodies. I think somewhere
along the way Erinyes came to regret that." She smiled sadly,
reacting to the look of anxiety Makoto knew he was unable to
keep off his face. They had only ever spoken of this once, he
had told her truthfully that it did not matter. But secretly he
had worried about how she felt about it. She stroked the side of
his face as if to help allay his fears. "I have a child now,"
she said softly, "Thanks to Miz and Fujisawa. It is more than I
could ever want. I only wish-"

He put a finger to her lips and smiled. "You're right. It's
enough." He kissed her, wanting just to express his affection
and contentment. But she held him more tightly, pressed him
closer. He responded in kind, his body starting the climb up the
enticing path they had ascended together so often. But he felt
somehow this was coming too early. She seemed to sense his
hesitation. They moved slightly apart and she smiled
apologetically. "I'm sorry, I should be more mindful of your
injury."

Yes, there was that too. But he still longed to be close to her.
"Why don't I help you out of those rags? You could probably do
with a bath, too."

"Would you join me?"

"It would be a tight squeeze."

"So much the better." They kissed again, this time more gently.
It was a mutual agreement that this would be a quiet, gentle
moment they would share. Right now what they both needed was
just the comfort of each other's presence.

"Oh my God, she's back!" Makoto jumped at Alielle's outcry,
turned to see her walking quickly towards them. She was still in
no shape to run, so Makoto actually had time to get out of the
way. The short girl wrapped her arms around Ifurita as tightly
as her injury would allow. She buried her face into Ifurita's
bosom and cried like a little girl. Makoto sighed. He pulled the
cord for the ceiling light and the brighter fluorescent bulb
flickered to life. He could better see how much of a mess
Ifurita looked. She shared a brief smile with Makoto then went
back to stroking Alielle's wavy hair. He moved further out of
the way, in anticipation of what was to come. Sure enough the
other women came scurrying into the room. Most were madly
wrapping robes around themselves. Shayla hadn't bothered. So,
that was how she slept. It was nothing he hadn't seen before, he
reminded himself. And she didn't seem bothered... like the
others, the moment she caught sight of Ifurita she cried out and
ran across the room. In seconds they had her surrounded, all
squealing, laughing or crying. He was afraid Ifurita would
become flustered. But incredibly she looked to be more at peace
than he had ever seen her. It was a homecoming, that was reason
enough.

He felt a hand come down on his good shoulder. Fujisawa wore his
trademark crooked smile. "Looks like you'll have to wait your
turn, Makoto."

"As soon as I can pry her loose we'll go pick up Miz and the
baby."

He winked. "I think you can take some time to get her cleaned
up. If she shows up looking like that Miz will have a fit."

Makoto and Ifurita did get their quiet time together, if only
briefly. It was Makoto who took Fujisawa to pick up his wife and
child. Perhaps Ifurita felt this still was not the time to meet
the twin who had been caring for Miz. Makoto did not ask.



___****___



Makoto saw Alielle get up from her cushion and ping her
wineglass with her spoon. She had complete freedom of movement
now, which was good to see. The hubbub at the long dining table
quickly died down, and all eyes were on the smiling girl in her
school uniform. At least it was the right one now... despite all
the sliding windows being moved aside to admit the evening
breeze, everyone was sweating a little from the summer heat.

Alielle cleared her throat. "Good friends never need a reason to
share food and drink. But today we do have good reason for
gathering here. First, we are celebrating Makoto and Ifurita
returning to their beautiful house." She inclined her head
towards the couple sitting opposite her. "Those of us who are
now of both Rostalia and Earth have always been warmly welcomed
here. Just as we are happy for our two dear friends, we are
grateful to have our second home back again. We hope that no
troubles will ever keep us from it again."

Her high, bright voice now picked up an even more cheerful note.
"But just as importantly we are here to welcome our friends and
family here on Earth who have been so kind to us. They have
helped us in bad times so now we would like them to share our
good times. Since this is the first time we have all gathered
together at one time it is perhaps not inappropriate for me to
welcome and acknowledge our guests more fully than we have done."

She looked over at an elderly but hale looking, stocky Caucasian
man. "We are grateful to Professor Peter Fedorov mostly for
helping our friend Ifurita through a very difficult time in her
life. He used his genius and his heart to help her see the thing
that the rest of us already knew, that she is just as human as
the rest of us." There were happy sounds of approval all around.
Ifurita closed her eyes and blushed. Alielle carried on. "Since
then the rest of us have found in him a new friend with many
qualities to appreciate. He makes killer cabbage rolls, plays a
mean game of chess and is the only person we know who can come
even close to drinking Fujisawa Sensei and Shayla under the
table." Fedorov laughed loudest of all. Shayla looked just a
little embarrassed. Fujisawa squirmed under his wife's steely
gaze. Perhaps she had not been aware of these little excursions
her husband had been taking with some of the others.

Alielle's gaze passed over to a middle-aged man with a craggy
face and in a somewhat nicer suit. "Most of us here first saw
Chief Inspector Watanabe's stern face from across a table in a
dreary little interview room downtown. Back then of course he
had every reason to believe that we were nothing but a pack of
very clever liars. For a man so diligent in his pursuit of the
truth it must have been a very trying experience. But I think we
can all attest that through all that he always treated us in a
gentlemanly fashion. After finally coming to share our little
secret he became a steadfast friend and a staunch ally.
Tempering his devotion to the truth and the law with heart and
compassion, he has done much to allow us to continue our
semi-secret lives here in our second home. Not the least of
which was putting in a good word for me last week when my school
wanted to expel me for assaulting a creep who deserved no
better." Even Makoto laughed a little at that one. The unlucky
creep in question was a student who had made some unwelcome
comment about Alielle and her new girlfriend. Despite her still
nursing a healing rib he hadn't had a prayer. But they heard he
would be okay, he was even walking a little now.

She looked now at Makoto's parents. "Most everyone including
myself who has come to know Makoto has come to adore him. When
we first met his mother and father it was obvious to see where
his finest qualities had come from. They have had to endure much
because of the strings of fate that brought their son to our
world. First his disappearance, then the long wait for his
return, and most recently worrying over him when he was helping
us to deal with the enemies who had followed us from our world.
But throughout it all they have been very supportive to him and
very welcoming to all of us. In fact, from what I've heard they
didn't even bat an eye when their son told them he had brought
back a wife from another planet who was ten thousand years older
than he was." Amidst the laughter, Makoto shared a fond smile
with his mother and father. His hand slipped into Ifurita's, and
he felt her squeeze back. It had been a worrying moment for both
of them, when Makoto had presented his alien bride to his
parents. But it was as Alielle said, they had welcomed her
arrival as no less a blessed event than his.

"I myself confess that I adored Nanami from the first moment I
saw her." There was a particular glint in her eyes. "She's sweet
and bright and just too, too adorable for words." Nanami
blushed. She looked something like a deer caught in headlights.
"When I met her charming father and her simply gorgeous mother
it was easy to see where she got her brains and looks. They too
have endured much so that their daughter could come to our world
and help save it alongside her friends. On top of everything
else they have endured the pain of a son gone astray despite all
they have given him. Let us join them in hoping that our world
will one day offer him the experience that will bring this
tragic phase of delinquency to an end once and for all." What
could have been an awkward moment was dispelled instantly by the
knowing smile that Alielle shared with Nanami's parents.
Everyone including them were hoping what Nanami's brother would
experience was a speedy demise. He remembered his own first
meeting with Nanami's parents soon after their return to Earth.
The phrases 'he was the mistake' and 'wish I'd never borne him'
had been heard more than once. But then again, Makoto had been
hearing that since childhood, so in fact not much had changed.

Alielle next turned her attention to the starry-eyed young man
who had been spending all evening excitedly grilling Afura about
everything from Rostalian military history to the geology of
Mount Muldoon. "We have Fleet Admiral Hayashi to thank for the
fame and notoriety we enjoy on this world. Thanks to his efforts
my cute face adorns the covers of millions of manga and millions
of anime box covers all across the country. Of all the old
friends with whom Makoto has become reacquainted, he has been
the only one to realize the truth behind all the stories of El
Hazard he has helped bring to this land. Whether this has more
to do with his sharp wits or his charming gullibility is a
matter of debate. Be that as it may, I am grateful to him for
arranging a thoroughly enjoyable trip to Komike for my
girlfriend and me, we had a wonderful time." Makoto had not
found out about that trip to the comic convention until after
the fact. He still wasn't happy, but he had to admit no harm had
been done. Of course Alielle had brought one of her outfits from
Rostalia to wear. Apparently her girlfriend had come dressed as
Fatora, which was more than a little ironic.

Finally, Alielle looked down fondly at the pretty young girl
sitting beside her. Her Earthling girlfriend was a petite,
athletic looking girl not much taller than her, with bright,
intelligent dark eyes and a ready smile. She wore her short hair
in a pageboy style, and wore the same uniform as Alielle. "As
our class president, it was Ikuko's responsibility to help me
get settled in to my new school. I think being put in that class
was the luckiest thing that ever happened to me. Almost since
the day I was introduced to her we've become inseparable. After
our troubles were done, she was here every day helping nurse me
back to health. Even after she figured out I had been telling a
little white lie about where I came from, she treated me with
nothing but love and kindness. She has made each and every day
I've spent here wonderful." Ikuko reached up and took the hand
that Alielle extended, smiling shyly. She had been a regular
visitor to the house for months now, Makoto and the others had
come to know her quite well. He liked her a lot. She was quiet
and soft-spoken. But her self-effacing nature hid a sharp
intelligence and a strong will. He could almost believe the
story that she had figured out for herself where Alielle really
came from. She had been a stabilizing influence for Alielle,
gently curbing her excesses when she would otherwise let her
capricious nature get the better of her. She had been the one to
prevent Alielle from permanently crippling the boy who had made
the comment about deviant dykes. She even took Alielle's roving
eye in stride. It was hard to imagine a more complete contrast
to Alielle's Rostalian lover.

Alielle released Ikuko's hand and raised her glass high. "So to
all our friends here on Earth who have shared our secrets and
our troubles we say thanks. Now please share food, drink and
companionship with us, tonight and as long as providence
grants us. Kampai!"

"Kampai!" everyone returned, raising high various containers of
sake, beer, wine, champagne, vodka or pop, then either taking
sips or tossing them back as each saw appropriate.

Very quickly the ebb and flow of conversations resumed.
Eventually they became particularly loud and Makoto and Ifurita
just happened not to be in any of them at that moment. "I'm glad
we asked Alielle to make the toast," he commented.

"I agree, it was very nice."

"Too bad you couldn't convince your sister to come."

"She was grateful for the invitation. In fact she suggested we
have a gathering in her stronghold."

Makoto was surprised. In deference to her privacy, only his
Ifurita had visited her fellow Demon God since they had gone to
collect Miz and the baby. "She wouldn't mind?"

"As long as it was only people we trust. There is still much
dangerous technology in her stronghold, she feels responsible
for guarding it. I think we should. She's finished repairing the
main house, and much of the garden has been restored."

"Well, it wouldn't be all of us," he reminded her.

"Not unless you change your mind, dear."

He knew what she was referring to. They had agreed that each of
them would have veto power over bringing anyone through the
wormholes. Makoto still had less faith than Ifurita that any
side-effect of wormhole travel would be beneficial or at least
benign. He had only to think of what Jinnai had done with his
power. True, the power would have been a benign one in the hands
of anyone with an ounce of integrity, but still he was nervous
about the idea. "I'll give it some thought," he promised her.

She smiled. "You are right to be cautious. But sometimes you
should temper reason with faith."

He looked at her suspiciously. "You're being very metaphysical
tonight." He glanced at her wineglass. Half full.

"My first and last," she assured him.

For which he was relieved. "You know, even Afura says it will be
generations before her order can incorporate the wormholes and
the multiverse into their cosmology and theology. Her faith in
them is a personal one."

"As is mine. They brought us together, I know that much."

He grinned and squeezed her hand. They also allowed two worlds
to be nearly destroyed by those who turned them to weapons. But
he kept that thought to himself. "Well, I suppose as long as
Peter doesn't try to see if he can link minds with your sister.
She might misunderstand."

She brought a hand up to her mouth and chuckled. "You know, he
might just try that."

"What, you think that's funny? How would she react if it
actually worked?"

"I think she would be delighted. She enjoyed the glimpses she
got of your memories."

He raised an eyebrow. "Oh? She never told me."

"She was respecting your privacy. But she did say she would like
it if you could teach her more about your world."

Makoto wasn't sure about the idea of another link. He now had
some memories that were rather too intimate to share. "Too bad I
couldn't bring her here and show her around."

"Well, she did say an excursion was not out of the question, as
long as I took her place guarding the stronghold." She grinned,
and continued in a louder voice. "I've been meaning to tell you,
your Ifurita and I traded places last month, didn't you notice?"

"WHAT?" He barely broke his fall with an outstretched hand.
There had been a lull in the other conversations, now there was
total silence and everyone was staring at them.

Ifurita scrunched up her eyes and cocked her head. "Uso."

Nanami was the first to lose it. That opened the floodgates. For
almost a full minute there was nothing but raucous laughter.
Makoto's shock and horror slowly bled away. What indignation he
might feel was swallowed up by Ifurita's glowing, innocent face.

He grinned. "Nice try, but you'd never be able to pull that off."

"I don't know," Nanami challenged. "From where I was sitting it
looked like she really had you going."

"Well, I know something you would know if you were more
observant."

"And what is that?" Nanami asked.

"They've all got serial numbers tattooed on them. Would you like
me to tell you where?"

Ifurita's eyes went wide. "We do...?"

He scrunched his eyes and cocked his head. "Uso."

Things spiraled further out of control from there. The beginning
of the end came when Shayla declared this karaoke night. They
alternated between the couples belting out enkai duets, the
Earthlings doing old Beatles tunes and the priestesses cavorting
to the latest idol singer numbers. Those more reluctant were
brought to the stage with a little help from some liquid
courage. One by one the guests reached the end of their
endurance and Makoto called cabs for them. The house guests
lasted a bit longer before staggering off to their rooms one by
one.

Just when Makoto was thinking things had gone fairly smoothly
all things considered, he felt a tug on his sleeve. He looked
down to see a rosy-cheeked Alielle smiling sweetly up at him. "I
thought you'd gone to bed already."

"I am. Just thought I'd let you know, Shayla's been spiking
Ifurita's drinks."

He sighed. "Oh no."

"I'm sure you can handle it. G'night."

He walked back into the living room, where most of the lights
had been doused and the open windows let in the cooling night
air. Shayla was on a couch with her arm around a more or less
comatose Ifurita, slurring her way through a song, thankfully
without benefit of microphone.

"...What do ya do with a drunken Demon,

"What do ya do with a drunken Demon,

"Run for the hills 'til she gets sober,

"Run for the hills 'til she gets sober... hey 'Frita, c'mon,
help me out here."

Makoto bent over them. "I think I should take her to bed now."

"What, already? What time izzit?"

"It's oh-dark hundred sharp."

Shayla giggled. "Thas' funny."

"Glad you think so." He bent down over Ifurita's other side,
brought one of her arms around his neck and hooked his hand
under her armpit. "Okay, up you come."

"Mm?" Ifurita's eyes were still closed, but she was sort of
standing on her own. He had found on previous occasions that
even when she was comatose certain autonomic functions would
still work after a fashion.

"Nighty night..." Shayla called as he slowly led Ifurita away.
He remembered the first time they found out the Demon God's
bio-filters were permeable to alcohol. Shayla had said something
that upset her and an energy bolt meant for the priestess had
blown a hole in the wall. Since then Ifurita had put internal
encrypted locks on her battle systems that would require the
full concentration of a sober mind to unlock.

"I'm sorry Makoto," she said in very clearly enunciated but
toneless words. Her speech was another thing that got a hand
from her implants when she needed it. "Your mommy and daddy must
think I'm a very irrepressible wife."

"Irrepressible?" Makoto asked.

"Oh. I mean irresponsible, don't I?"

"I guess. Don't worry, they left early."

"That's right. I forgot. But I'm still an irrepressible wife,
aren't I?"

"No, you just trust Shayla too much." He steered her carefully
through their bedroom door.

"Aw, Shayla just wanted me to have fun."

"I'm sure. Come on, here's the bed."

She giggled and wrapped her arms around him. "You going to bed
with me?"

"Ifuri-" she smothered him with a sloppy kiss that she just
wouldn't let go of. She put not much finesse but all her heart
and soul into it, making it very hard not to respond.

Finally she broke away and smiled up at him with heavy-lidded
eyes. "You're trying to seduce me. I can tell you know."

"I'm trying to put you to bed."

"There you see? I knew it."

"Would you please be a good girl and fall back onto the bed so
you can pass out peacefully?"

She cluck-clucked and wagged her finger. "You can't lie to me.
That's what's good about having a male lover." She groped him in
the right place and he grunted. "I can always measure your
degree of... interest. There is a readily available barometer."

"I've never heard it called that before. Anyway, I bet you can't
even get undressed by yourself."

"I can if you help me."

"You have to lie down first."

He had her down to her underwear before he heard gentle snoring.
He laid a blanket over her and went out to see if there was
anything that should be put away or cleaned up. He found Alielle
in the kitchen unloading glasses from a tray. "I thought you
were going to bed."

"I was just putting away anything people might trip over in the
dark."

"Good idea." He glanced over to the living room on the other
side of the open counter. "Where's Shayla?"

"I put her to bed."

He sighed. "I'll have to have a talk with her tomorrow, not that
I think it will do any good."

"I've got a better idea. Tomorrow morning I can arrange for a
major collection of kitchen utensils to come crashing down right
beside her."

He winced, imagining the state she would be in tomorrow. "If
that doesn't teach her a lesson I don't know what will. Did
Ikuko get home okay?"

"Yep. I rode with her and took her taxi back, like you
suggested. Thanks again for inviting her, she had a really great
time."

He smiled. "You know she's always welcome." He wondered if this
was a good time to broach another subject. Alcohol could loosen
the tongue, might as well take advantage of that. "Alielle, what
have you told her about Fatora?"

"I told her that what she read in the manga is true. I'm her
concubine."

"She's okay with that?"

"Sure. It's my job, after all."

Makoto looked askance at her. "Alielle..."

"Okay, okay." She held her arms up, holding off his lecture.
"I... sort of made it sound like it was just my job. Don't
worry, I've got it all under control."

"You think so?"

"Sure. I got the inspiration from an old movie I saw on late
night television. Did you ever see Captain's Paradise?"

Makoto nodded hesitantly. He did recall seeing it years ago. It
was an old Alec Guinness movie about a ferryboat captain who had
a wife at each of his two ports of call. Then it clicked.
"Alielle... this could be a dangerous game you're playing.
Especially since Fatora is involved."

"I wouldn't do anything to hurt either Fatora or Ikuko. I love
them both to pieces. If I broke up with either one she'd be
heartbroken."

Makoto was sure there must be some flaw in that logic, he was
just too tired to find it. "Well, as long as you're all happy.
I'll help you clean up."

There wasn't much left to do. When they were done, Makoto went
back to his bedroom. Ifurita was still sprawled right in the
middle of the bed, where she would no doubt be for a few hours.
At least she didn't get hangovers. Now all he had to worry about
was keeping her from killing Shayla tomorrow.

But he would think of something. He always did.



End Chapter 5



Next Chapter: Forever