Shu stood before them clad in armor none of them had ever seen before, yet they all knew exactly what it was. For the most part it looked very similar to Kongo. Everything from the waist down was the same, only the armor over his hips and thighs hung a little longer than Kongo did. The biggest differences were with the chest plate, shoulder pauldrons, his helmet, and the color. His shoulder pauldrons were twice the size they were on Kongo and the horns that stuck out of them were that much bigger as well. His helmet was also almost identical to that of Kongo except that the horns where even in length and met at the top before jutting out again to either side, behind them an array of spikes jutted from the helmet. His chest plate was also very similar to Kongo’s the only difference was where one side of Kongo reached down to protect his left side, this armor reached down on both sides. The coloring was by far the biggest contrast. Where Kongo had been orange the armor was now a creamy white tinged with yellow, and where Kongo had been brown the armor was a deep burnt orange. Kongo’s symbol still shone on his right breast but it had a shadow of a flame behind it, something none of them could quite get their minds around.

 

              “H…How…” Magma asked turning to look at Touma who had a very similar look to his face, “Touma, that is what I think it is… isn’t it?”

 

              “It has to be,” Touma muttered, “The coloring is off and Shu’s element is not that of fire, yet the helmet has the same decoration on the back of it as if it were the sun and the sheer power it is emitting… it has to be.”

 

              “But it can’t be,” Shin tried to reason, “His element isn’t fire.”

 

              “That apparently doesn’t matter,” Touma shook his head, “Shu is wearing the Kikoutei…”

 

              “Why does it look so different then?” Seiji asked as he and Ryo reached the others on the hill, Katie following a little slower behind them.

 

              “My guess is because it is Shu. The kikoutei we know looks very similar to Rekka, but then it is Ryo that is wearing it. This Kikoutei is imitating Kongo because Shu is wearing it,” Touma tried to reason out.

 

              “So, does that mean that any of you could have worn it?” Ryo asked eyeing his friends.

 

              “In theory,” Touma nodded.

 

              “How do you like my new armor? It is much more powerful than I ever imagined!” Shu laughed as he watched his former friends cower in fear, “My Queen even saw fit to give me a new name, now I am called Kentou, Kentou of Hardrock. Why Kentou you might ask? Because of these…” Shu, or rather, Kentou looked back behind and nodded at someone. A moment later the black form of Byakuen-oh walked up next to him and he pulled out the swords the tiger carried on his back.

 

              “Byakuen!” Ryo yelled and it took Seiji and Shin to keep him from running up to his friend.

 

              “He must have been with Shu from the beginning,” Touma explained as Ryo was dragged back to the others.

 

              “This is so not fair,” Katie mumbled as she kept her position between Shu and the others, “First I have to fight Shin, and now Shu. What is it with me and the people I care about turning evil?”

 

              “Katie,” Shin inched towards her, “Don’t do anything rash.”

 

              “Do you have any other plans?” Katie spat back keeping her eyes on Shu and Bakuen-Oh. Shin looked back at Touma who shrugged his shoulders.

 

              “Planning is pretty much pointless at this point. If we had our armors maybe, but just one on one, Shu is just too unpredictable for strategy.” As if on cue Katie dashed forward her swords raised ready to attack, “And Katie is probably just as unpredictable as well.”

 

              “Katie!!” Shin yelled after her, but this time Ryo was the one holding him back.

 

              “Shin, she’s our only hope. Maybe she can get through to Shu or something,” Ryo hoped as he watched Katie attack and Shu block it as if she were only a fly.

 

              “Maybe she doesn’t have to be our only hope,” Magma stood up and walked past Ryo and Shin who stared at her gapped mouth.

 

              “Magma, what are you talking about,” They both jumped up and grabbed her by each of her arms to drag her back under cover, but she shook them off.

 

              “Ryo, I told you that I could not just sit back and hide or run away if there was something I could do. Now, there is something I can do.”

 

              “Like what? Throw yourself between the two? You’ll be killed!”

 

              “I am not who you think I am, and I am sorry that I lied to you,” Magma backed up and wrapped her arms around her torso. She looked down and Ryo saw a few tears start to fall before they evaporated by the sudden heat that exploded from where Magma stood. They all covered their eyes and when they looked again magma was no longer standing, but floating before them, a large pair of pure white wings flapping slowly to keep her afloat. In place of her clothes she wore a light set of armor similar to what Kayura had worn when she fought with Arago, but a very dark dusty gray that had highlights of red. Ryo thought it resembled cooling lava as it flowed and broke up and cooled again. She didn’t look at them, but turned and headed for the battle.

 

              Magma flew at full speed running into Shu trying to knock him off balance. She jumped back from him and opened the way for Katie to attack. Katie called out her attack and hit Shu head on, yet the attack didn’t seem to hurt him the slightest bit. The two girls looked at each other and nodded. Magma held out her hands and a long bamboo pole appeared. She used it to block and counter-attack Shu’s offence. Katie tried again to use her attack while Magma kept him busy, but just as she thought she had an opening Byauen-Oh ran her down and stood over her growling in her face. Katie quickly flipped her sword over and held it to his neck trying to keep the sharp fangs from getting too close. 

 

              Shu had once again batted Magma away and called Byakuen-Oh back to him. Magma swooped down and helped Katie back to her feet. She then grabbed the center of her staff, snapped it in two and unsheathed a pair of katanas. They took up positions on either side of Shu, but they knew as long as Byakuen-Oh was there they would be able to follow the strategy that Ryo and Seiji had been trying. However, between the two of them, they kept Shu busy and his attention away from Ryo and the others. Magma used her yoroi flare attack, which caused Shu to freeze in place for a short period of time, his power going to a crystal that floated in front of Magma. Katie used this opportunity to use her attack and was able to make a small cut in the kikoutei on Shu’s arm.

 

              “Do you have anything else up your sleeve?” Katie asked as they regrouped.

 

              “There’s my Thunder Strike, but if we can’t hit him it won’t do any good,” Magma replied as she tried to catch her breath.

 

              “Can you do that last one again? I was able to get one hit in…”

 

              “Not enough times to make it worth anything,” Magma suddenly jumped out of the way and Katie was caught by surprise by Shu’s attack. She was thrown all the way back to where the guys sat watching the battle in horror.

 

              “We can’t just sit here and wait for one of them to kill the other!” Ryo exclaimed, “We have to help!”

 

              “How are we going to do that, they at least have a means to fight, we have literally sticks and stones,” Touma was just as frustrated kicking the stones at his feet trying frantically to think of an idea.

 

              “As it is, they will die, and I will not just stand here and watch,” Ryo took off before any of the other three could grab him. However, none of them had any idea of what else they could do so they ran after him, not to stop him but to join him.

              The four troopers took positions around Shu to try and get his attention away from Katie and Magma. Katie had recovered from the blow, but was now limping and using her swords as support. Magma too was using her swords as crutches; she had managed to escape the impact of the last blow, but was still caught in its zone of destruction. Blood oozed over the white feathers of one wing where some debris had caught her and she could no longer use it to fly.

 

              They were losing; they knew that with Shu in the Kikoutei there was no way for them to win.  Katie and Magma looked at each other and nodded, a conversation just within that moment. Katie held out her hands so that Magma could get her foot in them and then Katie launched her into the air. Magma spread out her wings and took in a breath of air to call upon her supreme attack. Angel Attack was something she had never mastered, and never knew from one time to the next what it would do, but she knew it would zap her of any power or energy she had left. She could sense Katie next to her, her swords held so that she could perform her attack one last time. They were going to do it together, and then everything would be over. Ryo, Seiji, Shin, and Touma had already been knocked out, they had not lasted long, and soon they would be able to join them and all would be all right.

 

              Neither of the girls had the chance to do anything before a blinding white light engulfed everything around them.

 

              “YAMENASAI!” The girls fell to the ground painfully, Magma landing on her injured wing and Katie on her injured leg. They couldn’t see who had yelled for them to stop, but they could hear something that they wanted so much to be a sign of hope. Chiming, the ringing of brass rings, rings hanging from an ancient staff that once belonged to a man named Kaosu. Now the staff was in the possession of Kayura of the youjakai. How did she come to be here and now? Did she sense their distress and come to their aid? These questions and more swarmed in Katie’s head and she blinked and rubbed her eyes trying to clear them of the afterimages of the light that still wanted to blind her. Slowly though, the light faded, the lake and the village came back into focus. Shu and Byakuen had gone back to their previous states and were now on the ground unmoving. Katie leaned on an arm, trying to look around without moving too much and finally came to rest on a figure in an intricate looking kimono. She was young, with long dark hair. It was Kayura and she was looking around the battlefield a sad expression on her face. Katie wanted to call out to her, but at the same time felt that if she did that she would be interrupting her. One by one Kayura kneeled by the side of one of her fallen friends and whispered a prayer. This had been the end; they had failed, and had fallen in their attempts. Katie let her arm give out and she collapsed onto the ground and started to cry. She wasn’t sure how long it had taken Kayura to reach her, but when she did she laid a hand on Katie’s shoulder.

 

              “Do not cry Chikyuu,” Katie looked up at her and was surprised to see a smile on her face, “You have not failed, and your friends are not dead.”

 

              “But…” Katie tried to speak but Kayura just raised her hand as if in prayer, mumbled a few words and the shakujou lit up again. When the light faded Katie could feel the pain lessen in her leg. Kayura held out her hand and Katie took it standing. She tested her leg, putting a little bit of weight on it and when it stood, she followed Kayura to where Magma lay.

 

              Magma watched in an oddly detached way as Kayura moved from one body the next. She saw as she said an incantation over Katie and helped her to her feet and watched as they moved toward her. Kayura kneeled down and did the same to Magma, holding the shakujou over her injured wing. She and Katie both held out their hands and helped her up.

 

              “What is going on, Kayura?” Magma asked her wing still a little sore, but usable at least.

 

              “This is all my fault. I am so very sorry.”

 

              “Your fault? But how?” Katie asked as she watched her glide around the battlefield.

 

              “Do you know where you are at?” Kayura asked looking at the two girls.

 

              “They call this place Hayashi,” Magma said tilting her head to one side.

 

              “Yes, they do. But that is not what I asked. Do you know where you are?” The girls looked at each other and then shook their heads.

 

              “You are in the youjakai.”

 

              “That’s impossible,” Magma protested, “I have seen every corner of the youjakai. I have never seen this place before.”

 

              “You wouldn’t have, Magma Angel. When you were here you were linked to Arago, and this place was kept a secret from even him.”

 

              “What is this place then?”

 

              “A safe haven. Demons such as Kenbukyou, who were against Arago and all that he stood for, created this place. They were able to save some of the humans that Arago captured. They had tried to rescue me, and if they had succeeded I would have ended up here as well. The people here now, though, they are the decedents of the original refugees,” Kayura explained, “They do not know about the youjakai, nor about their true history.”

 

              “Then what happened? What is this blackness that is creeping into the country?” Katie asked.

 

              “It is the youjakai, nothing more. The barrier protected this place from the natural effects of the youjakai and created a utopia of sorts. However, something happened that caused the barrier to weaken”

 

              “Kashikoi said that he thought he knew what had happened…” Katie explained looking around for the young soldier.

 

              “Kashikoi? I would like to meet this Kashikoi.” Together they made their way up the hill where they had once hidden and found the young man watching them his eyes wide.

 

              “Is this the after life? Have I died as well?” He asked as the three women approached him.

 

              “No, you are not dead,” Kayura smiled as she held out her hand to help him up.

 

              “But how can one person stop a battle such as this?” He took her hand and gestured to the devastation below.

 

              “That is a long story,” Kayura sighed, “We have a very long history between us, and that is as much as you need to know.”

 

              “Yes, ma’am,” Kashikoi nodded and accepted this, though he was horribly curious.

 

              “Katie has mentioned that you may know what caused the barrier to weaken?”

 

              “Yes,” Kashikoi raised his head and looked back down to the village, “The hut is no more, but something had caused an explosion. We had thought that it had been the cause but had been unsure. I brought these warriors here and Sir Touma thought it had been science that had caused the explosion, that would make sense since science is prohibited.”

 

              “Why is science prohibited,” Katie asked.

 

              “Because it weakens magic,” Kashikoi explained.

 

              “You are not entirely correct,” Kayura interrupted, “It wasn’t just science, though I can understand why Tenku thought that. Science alone will not weaken magic. However when one tries to combine magic and science it does harm to the source of the magic.”

 

              “How does one combine magic and science?” Katie asked becoming more and more lost.

 

              “That’s the basic idea of Alchemy, isn’t it,” Magma asked stretching her wings a little excited that she could understand.

 

              “Alchemy, is that even real,” Katie asked giving the three an unbelieving look.

 

              “You wear a mystical armor and perform attacks that have no scientific basis, and you ask if Alchemy is real,” Magma smirked at Katie who blushed and turned away.

 

              “Do not be embarrassed, there are those in the youjakai who think the same as you, Katie. Here science is seen much as magic is in your world,” Kayura then turned back to Kashikoi, “It was an alchemic experiment then. Did it burn, without burning?”

 

              “How…” Katie started to ask but was interrupted by Kashikoi.

 

              “Yes. The inside of the hut was blackened and everything inside destroyed, yet the hut still stood. Any normal fire would have taken the whole thing.”

 

              “Only alchemy would do such a thing, “Kayura explained to Katie.

 

              “But how can an alchemic experiment here affect barriers to the far north?” Magma asked.

 

              “Because they are the source to the magic in this country. They originally wanted this country to be the same as the ningenkai, but were not able to completely ride the country of the magic from the youjakai so they used the barrier as a filter.”

 

              “So it was the influence from this youjakai that was making the Queen do all this?!” Kashikoi gestured to the battlefield and everything that had happened.

 

              “Yes, and do not worry for your Queen, she is safe.”

 

              “But Kayura, why did you say it was your fault. It’s not like you were the one that conducted the alchemic experiment,” Katie asked turning to the kimono-clad lady.

 

              “I try to come and check on this country often, but had become negligent. It is because of this that everything happened.”

 

              “Ma’am, I do not understand most of what is going on, but I still do not see how it is your fault,” Kashikoi shook his head, “The experiment would have happened regardless if you had checked on us or not.”

 

              “That is true, but I am the one that maintains the barrier. If I had continued coming as I always had then I would have noticed the leakage and been able to fix it before your Queen had to take such drastic measures.”

 

              “You mean there is hope?” Kashikoi looked hopeful, “You can fix everything?”

 

              “Not everything I’m afraid, but most of it yes. The barrier has already been mended and if you have noticed the blackness is starting to fade,” Kayura gestured across the lake which seemed to be expanding by the minute, “I will not be able to bring back those who have died. Nor can I erase from memory all that has happened.”

 

              “This is still wonderful news, I cannot wait till the General and the Queen have been informed.”

 

              “Did you not know?” Kayura blinked at him and then frowned, “General Gijutsu is dead.”

 

              “Dead? But… how?” Kashikoi fell to his knees, he had not known the General very well, and had only dealt with him personally during this latest crisis, but he had always looked up to him and dreamed of serving his Queen by the General’s side.

 

              “Kongo.”

 

              “NO!” Katie and Magma both gasped and turned to look at Shu who still lay on the ground unmoving.

 

              “He was being influenced by the Queen and is not responsible for what he did as… what did she call him? Kentou?”

 

              “What will happen now, Ma’am?” Kashikoi looked up both determination and grief etched onto his young face.

 

              “It will take some time before this country is back on its feet. For now, I must send you back to the palace in the cliff. There you can help your queen to understand what has happened. I will return there myself shortly, but first I must deal with this.” Kayura waved at the battlefield behind her. Kashikoi nodded and stood. Kayura used the staff and lowered it so that it barely touched the boy’s head and then it flashed white and he was gone.

 

              “Kayura,” Katie started but stopped unsure of how to explain her worries.

 

              “There is much we need to discuss,” Kayura turned to face the two girls, “You two will remember everything. There is nothing I can do about that. Are you okay with that?”

 

              “I’m more worried about the others right now,” Katie stated looking over to her friends. Magma followed her gaze, but couldn’t help but be worried more about what they would remember.

 

              “Tenku, Korin, Rekka, and Suiko will not remember everything. However, I cannot say what they will and won’t remember,” Kayura turned to Magma and smiled, “So yes, there is a chance that they will forget that they saw you with wings. You will just have to be careful of what you say until you can figure that out on your own.”

 

              “Wait, so that means that Shin may not remember the past couple of days?” Katie asked her eyes wide with worry.

 

              “That is a possibility, yes,” Kayura nodded, “Is that a problem?”

 

              “No bigger than Magma’s, but still a bit of one.” Magma blinked and watched her friend for a moment before realization hit her.

 

              “You broke up!”

 

              “You and Suiko?” Kayura mused, “That does put you in quite the situation should he forget.”

 

              “Which is worse, Shin forgetting that we broke up, or Ryo remembering that you’re a…. what are you exactly Magma?”

 

              “Ah… that is also a bit of a long story,” Magma blushed a bit and turned back to the guys, “What about Shu? Will he forget too?”

 

              “As for Kongo…” Kayura turned and made her way toward the warrior of justice, “He will remember everything.” Kayura waved her staff over Shu and he started once again to move. “I will give you some time to talk to him alone. The others will wake in a few hours. However, I will have to take Byakuen with me. It was the spirit of Kokuen that caused his betrayal and will be a bit harder to fix. However, he will be waiting on you when you do return home.”

“How will we get home?” Magma asked as Kayura knelt down by the tiger.

 

              “I will send the young soldier back here later with the means to send you home. I hope by then you will be ready.” She laid her hand on Byakuen’s head and then raised her staff and drummed it on the ground making the rings spin around and a light to glow around them. In just a moment they were gone.

 

              Magma and Katie turned back to Shu who was struggling to sit up. They helped him and started to talk about what had happened. Shu told them what had happened to him; how he had made his way through one of the portals with Byakuen but had asked to see their leader, but had been attacked. He and Byakuen had fought back but tried their best not to hurt anyone. However they had both been subdued and taken before the Queen. Byakuen had been taken elsewhere while the Queen talked to Shu. At first Shu remembered arguing with her and trying to get her to let him help her to let the others come and maybe they could find a solution. She kept talking and soon he said he found himself agreeing with her. Even now some of her arguments still sound right even though he knew they were not. Some part of him still thought what she had said made sense. He said that once he had fully sided with the Queen it wasn’t as if he couldn’t control what he was doing. He knew full well what he was doing, but he had decided that the Queen was right and that what he was doing was the only thing that could be done. He had truly believed that he needed to kill his friends.  Magma and Katie looked at each other knowing that this would haunt Shu for the rest of his life, and that it would forever affect his relationships with the others. They both crawled over to him and tackled him in hugs. They stayed next to each other for some time as they talked and discussed about what they would openly tell the others and what they would try and keep a secret. Shu and Katie both tried to convenes Magma to let the others know about her, but she refused. She believed it was better off that they didn’t remember, for then they may start to remember other bad memories they were better off forgetting.

 

             Just as Kayura had stated, the others woke a few hours later, confused and with a lot of questions. To Magma’s relief they did not remember her transformation or the battle; their memory seemed to have stopped just after Shu had showed up. Shin wanted to embrace Katie in relief and give her a kiss. She let him do the first, but head butted him when he tried to do the second. Tears were overflowing and the first of the sobbing was on the verge of breaking loose, but Shin just looked at her confused and hurt, but then slowly the memories started to come back. Tears started to well up in his eyes, but he brushed them away and apologized. Katie hid behind Shu and tried not to look at Shin again. That too would take some time to figure out, they all knew.

Kashikoi appeared some time later with a spell that teleported them back to the palace and the portal room where they were taken back to the small clearing behind Nasuti’s house. Nasuti was there, waiting on them, Byakuen by her side. They both raced forward and hugged their friends, Byakuen tackling Ryo and licking his face. Their world had reverted back to normal and all seemed to be right again.

 

              “Katie, could you come up here please?” Katie looked up from her desk, the bell had rung and she was looking to see which books she would need to take home with her. Her homeroom teacher stood at the front of the room, gathering their own things. Katie was hesitant, the last time she had been called to the front she had been given a lecture, she really wasn’t ready to repeat it. But she stood and made her way to the front with her bag in tow.

 

              “Yes, Sensei.” Katie kept her head down not wanting to look the teacher in the eye.

 

              “Have you seen your test scores yet? They posted them this afternoon.”

 

              “Ah, no, not yet.”

 

              “You should. I am happy to see that you took my warning seriously. I hope to continue to see those type of scores the rest of the year.” The teacher smiled and then picked up her books and walked out of the room. Katie blinked and watched her leave. A few of the other students who were still hanging around came up behind her and patted her on the back congratulating her. Since they had returned from the small break from school she had tried to get more help with her schoolwork, not only from the guys but from her classmates as well. Soon it had become a class project to help Katie pass her tests, and they had been begging her all day to go and look at her scores, but she had been too nervous and didn’t want to look. They all knew how she had done; there was no hiding scores in Japanese schools. She left the room and walked down the hall to where the scores for the seniors had been posted. Her name was easy to find, but she delayed looking down the list reading all of the names until she came to hers. It wasn’t a great score, but it was good nonetheless. She was in the upper half of the class, but still quite a ways below Shin who sat near the top of the list.

 

              “Katie, you coming?” Katie looked back down the hall and saw Shu on his knees looking down the hall at her. He had already put on his shoes and was trying not to step onto the clean floor with them on. Katie nodded and made her way toward the entrance. There she found the others, standing and leaning around the doorway waiting on her. None of them asked about her scores, she was sure they had already gone down and looked, but greeted her and started home. She noticed that Magma and Ryo had their arms wrapped around each other, something even normal Japanese teens don’t always do. Katie couldn’t help but smile and Shu grabbed her hand and pulled her with him to catch up to the others once she had put her own shoes on. She fell into step next to Shin and started talking about their classes. Their relationship was still in an awkward stage but they knew that they would always be friends.

 

              They all settled back into their everyday mundane lives, the battle and events that happened in the small country of Hayashi was added to their past like all the others. However, occasionally, Magma and Katie could still see a glimmer of pain in Shu’s eyes when a word or an action triggered a memory he could not control. When it happened, one or both of them would give him a hug, reminding him that whatever had happened, or will happen they will always be there. Together they will all stand as one to defend their world and their friends, and they will always, always, trust each other.