The Nightmare Returns


Ryudo walked up the path, still holding Elena in his arms."Man, how much
further? I've been
walking for hours." He felt Elena stir in his arms and looked down at her.
She was fast asleep.
Ryudo smiled a bit and looked around. He saw a large, shaded spot under a
tree. He walked over
and leaned Elena against the trunk of the tree in the shade. Ryudo turned and
saw a small stream.
He walked over and kneeled at the edge of the stream. Ryudo cupped his hands
into the water and
brought them up to his face. Ryudo began to drink the cool water in his
hands. Ryudo cupped his
hands in the water again and splashed some water on his face. Ryudo then
noticed something bright
shine in his eyes. Ryudo looked infront of him and saw a bright, golden
reflection in the water.
Before he could make out the shape of it, it disappeared. Ryudo looked up,
but didn't see anyone
or anything. Ryudo then saw a golden feather float down into the stream.
Ryudo hesitantly took
it out of the stream and looked at it closely. It resembled pure gold as it
reflected the sun's
rays. Ryudo felt the warmth of the feather in his hands."Wow! That must have
been some bird to
have feathers like this," stated Ryudo as he continued to stare in awe at the
feather. Ryudo put
the feather into his pocket. Before Ryudo could stand up, two hands touched
his back gently.
Ryudo was caught off guard and he jumped a bit. Ryudo slipped on a wet rock
and fell forward
into the stream with a big splash. Ryudo heard laughing as he moved his wet
bangs away from his
eyes. Ryudo then saw Elena laughing at his wet form."I'm sorry, Ryudo. Are
you alright," asked
Elena between laughs. Ryudo missed her question as he quickly jumped up and
ran over to Elena.
"Elena, you're awake! How are you feeling?" Elena smiled at him as more water
trickled down his
face."I'm fine, Ryudo. A little sleep was all I needed. Heheh, but I think
you could use a good
dry off." Ryudo looked down at his saturated clothes."Oh, right. But, we
should get back to the
others." Elena nodded."Right, I almost forgot, let's go." Ryudo and Elena
began to walk up the
path again. Ryudo heard a pair of wings flap behind him and he looked back
towards the stream.
'I wonder if it was that bird again,' said Ryudo mentally as he touched the
pocket the feather
was in."What's the matter, Ryudo? Is something following us," asked Elena as
she eyed Ryudo.
Ryudo shook his head and turned his gaze back to the path ahead of him.

~*~*~*~*

Brandan and the others were still cutting their way through the brush."Well,
only a few more
trees and I think we can get the van by," said Brandan as he wipped the beads
of sweat off of his
forehead with the back of his hand."Good, my arms are killing me," stated Jim
as he helped Becky
push against a large tree trunk. Just then, Becky stopped and tapped Jim on
the shoulder."What is
it?" Becky pointed behind them."Look behind us." Jim and Brandan turned and
they just stared
blankly. All the trees and such were sliced into smaller pieces and piled
neatly by the side of
the rode. Brandan then turned and pointed infront of him."Hey, guys, now look
in front of us."
All the trees were sliced and piled like the others. Flash was standing in
the middle of the rode
with a big grin on his face."How did Flash do that," asked Becky. Brandan and
Jim just shrugged.
"I don't know what or how he did it, but he saved us three hours of work.
Now, let's use that
time to find Ryudo and Elena," said Brandan as he ran to the van, followed by
Jim, Becky, and
Flash.

~*~*~*~*

Ryudo and Elena were still walking up the path."Man, that river was longer
than I thought. It
dragged us pretty damn far," said Ryudo as he turned to Elena."I know, and
this heat isn't
helping much, either." It was about 90 degrees and the trees were becoming
fewer and fewer,
providing less shade. The sun then began to disappear. Ryudo and Elena looked
up to see large,
black clouds in the sky engulf the sun."Well, it might be a bit cooler now,"
said Ryudo as it
began to pour rain really hard. Elena's bangs drooped into her eyes and she
turned her head toward
him."I'm cool now." "I can see that," said Ryudo as he laughed a bit as he
put his hand behind
his head. The two continued walking, trying to ignore the rain. The rain
began to lighten up.
Ryudo looked up,"Hey, I think it's stopping. It should be easier now." No
sooner had he finished
his statement, it began to hail small ice balls."OOWWWWW!!!!! Hey, what
the..," yelled Ryudo as a
large hail stone hit his face. Elena covered her head with her arms,"Ow!
Ryudo, from now on,
don't say anything else that could jynx us." Ryudo covered his head as
well,"Sorry! Quick, let's
make a run for it!" Elena nodded and the two ran up the path. The two kept
running until the
heard a horn beep infront of them. They looked up to see the van stop and the
door opened. Ryudo
and Elena ran in. Elena's clothes were only damp, but Ryudo was saturated.
Becky then ran over
and hugged Elena."Elena, I'm so glad you're alright. I was so worried." "I'm
fine, sorry to make
you worry," said Elena as Becky let go. Brandan put on a smirk and went over
and hugged Ryudo.
"Oh, Ryudo, I was so worried about you," said Brandan in a high voice,
mocking Becky. Jim and
Flash laughed. Brandan let go of Ryudo and took a step back. He then noticed
his shirt was wet.
"Man, Ryudo, you're soaked," said Brandan as he rang out the moist part of
his shirt."Y-y-yeah,
I-I k-k-know," Ryudo stuttered as he began to shiver."Oh, Ryudo. I told you,
you should have
dried off when you had the chance," said Elena as she sat him on the couch.
Brandan winked at Jim
and Flash who only smirked and headed into Jim and Becky's room. Elena helped
Ryudo slide his
shirt over his head. Becky took the dripping shirt and walked into the
bathroom. She put it on a
hanger and placed it on the neck of the shower head so it could drip-dry.
Becky then walked into
her room. Brandan, Ryudo, and Elena looked towards the room as they heard
Becky yell."JIM, WHY IS
FLASH LAYING ON THE FLOOR?" "MAYBE HE DOESN'T WANT TO SLEEP ON THE CHAIR. LET
HIM SLEEP ON THE
RUG. HE'S NOT BOTHERING YOU, YOU'RE ON THE TOP BUNK!" "I MIGHT TRIP ON HIM!"
"NO, YOU WON'T! YOU
TRIP ON ME EVERY MORNING. I STILL DON'T KNOW HOW YOU DO IT, EITHER!"
"ALRIGHT, FINE. LET'S JUST
GO TO SLEEP!" "NIGHT, BECKY. NIGHT, FLASH." "NIGHT, JIM. NIGHT, FLASH."
Brandan and the others
just sweatdropped. Elena snapped back to reality as she heard Ryudo's teeth
chattering. Elena
leaned behing the couch and grabbed a large, thick blanket. She wrapped it
tightly around Ryudo
and sat next to the left of him. Brandan sat down in the driver's seat and
began to drive. When
Elena still heard Ryudo chattering, she wrapped her arms around him and held
him tightly. Ryudo
rested his head against her chest as she began to move her hands up and down
his arms. Brandan
stole a glance and smiled to himself. A few hours past, when Brandan stopped
not too far from
Liligue. Brandan looked at his watch and saw that it was 11 o'clock. Brandan
got up and
stretched a bit. He looked over at the couch and saw Elena and Ryudo fast
asleep. Elena was
resting her head against the back of the couch, while Ryudo had his head on
her lap with Elena's
hand resting in his hair. Brandan smirked and went into his room to get some
sleep.

~*~*~*~*

The next morning....

Elena stirred as rays of light hit her face. She slowly opened her eyes.
Elena stretched her arms
out. She looked down and saw Ryudo still sleeping on her lap. Elena smiled as
she ran her fingers
through his hair. Ryudo sighed and smiled a bit. Elena smiled warmly at him
as Brandan strolled
out of his room. Brandan walked towards the front of the van and stopped in
front of Elena.
"Morning. How did you and the 'Ice King' sleep," asked Brandan sleepily.
Elena smiled at him,"I
slept just fine. I think I can say the same for Ryudo. I would like to get
dressed, but um....,"
said Elena as she pointed down at the sleeping Ryudo."Not a problem." Brandan
took a hold of
Ryudo's shoulder and pulled him off the couch. Ryudo leaned up after he was
so rudely awakened by
his fall. Ryudo looked at Elena who pointed to Brandan. Brandan smirked and
got into the driver's
seat. Ryudo stood up and stretched."How are you feeling, Ryudo," asked
Elena."Just fine, thanks
to you." Elena blushed as she stood up and walked into her room. Ryudo sat
back on the couch and
looked at Brandan driving."Hey, Brandan, how long before we get there?" "Not
much longer."
Brandan turned his head for a second and looked at Ryudo."Say, would you wake
up the others and
make sure they get up?" Ryudo nodded and walked into their room. Brandan
heard some loud bangs
and then some shrieks of horror. Ryudo then strolled out with a smile and
walked into the
bathroom. Ryudo then walked out with his shirt and headed back to the couch.
Ryudo sat down as
Brandan turned and looked at him. The two just exchanged smirks and chuckled
at eachother. Becky
and Jim came staggering out of the room followed by Flash who wasn't fased at
all. Elena opened
her door and watched them with a confused look on her face. After about an
hour of driving, the
van pulled into the town of Liligue. Brandan parked it by the inn and got out
of his seat."Well,
here we are, ladies and gentleman......and short people, the city of Liligue.
Please exit the van
and no pushing," said Brandan as he opened the door and walked out. Becky,
Jim, and Flash walked
out behind Brandan. Ryudo and Elena trailed behind. Ryudo leaned over and
whispered into Elena's
ear,"Is he always like that?" "Unfortunatly, yes," Elena whispered back."Hey,
guys, get out here.
There are some guests that want to see you," yelled Brandan from outside.
Ryudo and Elena walked
outside, already knowing who was waiting for them. Millenia was standing next
to Jack and waiting
patiently for her friends. Elena walked out first, followed by Ryudo.
Millenia walked up to her
friends with a big smile on her face."Hi, Elena. Long time no see!" Elena
nodded,"I know. It's so
good to see you again. How have you been?" Millenia smiled and hugged onto
Jack's arm."I think I'm
doing pretty good." Ryudo stepped out from behind Elena. Millenia smiled at
him and hugged Jack's
arm tighter."Hi, handsome. How've you been?" Ryudo chuckled embaressedly."I'm
fine." Ryudo then
noticed Jack."Hey, Millenia, who's that?" She smiled slyly,"Meet my new
boyfriend, Jack." Jack
chuckled a bit,"Hey!" "Hello, nice to meet you," said Elena. Ryudo just
nodded and Jack did like-
wise. Millenia smiled evily at Elena,"I see you're having the life, Elena."
Elena just smiled.
Brandan then stepped forward,"I hate to break up this reunion, but we have to
get ready." Millenia
looked at Brandan and then turned back to Elena."Ok, we'll talk later. See
you later, Elena!"
"Later," Jack replied as he walked away with Millenia. Everyone waved
good-bye and started to get
ready. Everyone was on the stage setting up or doing some other job, except
Ryudo. Ryudo was
sitting on top of the van, undoing some ropes. Ryudo was taking out a large
knot when he heard a
small bang. He looked up and saw the monorail. He looked closer and saw
someone standing and
looking out over the monorail. It was Elyssa. Ryudo jumped off the van and
walked over to her.
"Hey, Elyssa, is that you?" Elyssa turned her head and looked down at
Ryudo."Well, look who it is.
Ryudo, how've you been? Haven't seen you and the others in a while." Ryudo
shielded his eyes as he
looked up because of the sun."What are you doing up there, Elyssa?" "I like
high places. I enjoy
looking out over the land. If there's a high place, I'm usually there,"
smiled Elyssa."What are
you doing in Liligue," asked Ryudo. Elyssa turned all the way around to face
him.

"Nothing really important. Just passing through. Say, how's Elena?"

"She's fine. We just got lost the other day."

"Really," said Elyssa not so suprised.

"How long you staying here, Elyssa?"

Elyssa took a step forward on the monorail track and jumped off and landed
right in front of
Ryudo. He jumped back a bit because he had never seen a person make a jump
like that and land
perfectly on their feet. Elyssa noticed and smiled.

"Few days, I think. I'm heading to Carbo after this."

After that statement, Elyssa turned toward the exit."Sorry, but I have to get
going. I have some
business to attend to." 'Hopefully I find the seal and maybe Raven as well,'
she said to herself
mentally."Oh yeah, tell Elena I said hi and I'll see her later," said Elyssa
as she began to walk
away. Ryudo watched her but closed his eyes when something bright flashed
into his eyes. When he
opened them again, Elyssa was gone. Ryudo looked around curiously, but Elyssa
had vanished. Ryudo
then saw feathers float down to the ground where Elyssa was standing. He took
out the feather from
his pocket and picked up another one from the ground. He looked closely at
the feathers. They were
exactly the same. Ryudo then looked up into the sky."I don't think these were
a bird's. Maybe,
they were......Elyssa's. But it can't be......can it....?" Ryudo's thoughts
were interupted when
Brandan yelled to him,"Hey, Ryudo, stop spacing out and come on! The show's
starting!" Ryudo
snapped out of his daydream and ran to the stage."Coming!" Ryudo looked back
one last time and ran
to the stage.

~*~*~*~*

After the show........

Elena and the others were sitting at a table in the inn, waiting for their
dinner. Brandan turned
to Ryudo as he took a sip of water."Say, Ryudo, what were doing before the
show. You seemed a bit
preoccupied." Ryudo swallowed his water and looked at Brandan."Nothing
really, I saw Elyssa. What
she was doing here, I don't really know." Elena then looked at Ryudo,"Elyssa?
I wonder why she
didn't come and join us?" Ryudo turned his gaze to her."She said she had some
business to attend
to. She also told me she was headed for Carbo in a few days." Elena's eyes
lit up,"Really, oh wow.
I hope she can meet Father Carius!" Brandan folded his hands together and
placed his elbows on the
table. He then rested his chin on his hands."You know, Elena, this was
supposed to be a suprise,
but I think know is the best time to tell it. Our next stop is in Carbo. We
weren't supposed to
play there for a while, but I pulled some strings." Elena's eyes lit up even
more."Really?! Thank
you so much, Brandan. You're the best!" Brandan chuckled,"Yeah, I know!"
Becky and Jim laughed,
"Aww, Brandan, you're so nice," said Becky with a smile."Hey, Ryudo, better
watch him closely. He
just might beat you to Elena," said Jim as he laughed. Brandan and Ryudo just
smirked at them.
Elena smiled,"I'm so excited, I can't wait!" "Let's hope you can wait till
tomorrow when we leave.
Everybody got that?" Everyone agreed. Then the waiter came and everyone began
to eat their food.

~*~*~*~*

Much later that evening.....

Raven hovered above Liligue with Shadow close behind him."I know it's around
here somewhere. The
most obvious place would be in a cave, but there's nothing like that around
here." Raven looked
around once again. He didn't see anything that cought his eye."Humph, my
patience is growing
short. Shadow, do you have any ideas?" Shadow looked at his master and then
looked down at the
town. He turned his head from left to right slowly, scanning in every little
detail. Shadow was
about to give up when something caught his eye. Shadow squinted his eyes to
get a better look.
It was a trap door. Shadow turned to Raven and growled."What is it? Did you
find something?"
Shadow lifted his arm and pointed below him at the trap door. Raven followed
the automata's
finger and spotted the trap door. Raven smirked and chuckled evily to
himself."Good work. A
tunnel, very clever. I have to say, those fools had some brains. Come,
Shadow." Raven floated
down to the door and Shadow followed. Raven landed gracefully and quietly
right in front of the
trap door and Shadow landed behind him. Raven bent down on one knee and tried
to open the door
without making a noise. To his surprise, it opened easily. Raven stood up and
turned to his
companion."Seems a bit odd that they left it opened. Wait one mintute. This
door was locked,
but someone opened it. I have a good guess who. No matter, we can still get
what we need."
Raven then walked down the stairs in the trap door. Raven looked behind him
when he reached the
bottom only to see that Shadow wasn't following. Raven frowned and lifted his
right eyebrow.
"Shadow, why aren't you following? Is someone there," asked Raven as he eyed
the automata.
Shadow just stared at his master for about five seconds and then slowly made
his way down the
steps. When Shadow finally reached him, Raven continued onward.

Raven and Shadow traveled the long path, slowly going deeper and deeper below
the Earth's crust.
Every monster that lived in the tunnel made sure that they weren't seen. They
all knew Raven
had power, far beyond theirs. Every so often, a monster would run ahead and
warn the other
creatures in the tunnel. Raven was aware of every monster present. He could
sense their every
move, but didn't want to waste his time or dirty his hands on such worthless
rubbish. Raven
and Shadow finally reached the deepest point of the tunnel. Raven slowly
approached the path
right on the side of the Granacliff. Raven approached the edge and looked
over the side,
trying to view the bottom."Hmmm.....I've never really noticed how deep the
Cliffs are. Granas
must have been desperate to go suicidal. But, is she really dead? That girl
showed a likeness of
her and she did say she was.....Oh well, as long as I find the Key, nothing
can stand in my
way." Raven then turned his head to face Shadow as he heard him growl."All
right. Let's go."
Raven then turned all the way and walked to the end of the path. Raven and
Shadow then entered
the 'seal' room. Raven looked around the room. He then noticed the seal and
strolled up to it,
followed by Shadow. Raven stopped right in front of it and placed his hand on
the broken seal.
It began to glow red and all the events of the Tongue played in Raven's mind.
When the images
stopped, Raven lowered his arm and stepped away from the seal."Hmmm....very
interesting. Anyway,
I need it's power. SHADOW!!!" Shadow lowered his head and a red arura
surrounded his body. After
about five seconds, Shadow turned into a beam of red light and shot into the
seal. The seal
turned red and all the pieces joined together into a whole again. When the
light disapeared, the
seal was in one piece but Shadow was embedded in it. Raven smiled as he
looked at Shadow."Yes,
now, Shadow!" Shadow's eyes glowed red. The whole room began to shake. The
seal then glowed a
light blue. The seal then began to disappear by turning into small particles
of light. Raven
closed his eyes and pushed his chest out a bit as he absorbed the particles
into his chest.
After the entire seal was gone and Shadow returned to his normal self, Raven
slowly opened his
eyes and smiled."Heheheh, I can feel this power. I love it! Shadow, wanna see
a test run?"
Shadow smirked. Raven laughed a bit as he eyed one corner of the room
consealed in shadows.
Raven chuckled to himself and lifted his arms a bit so that they were level
with his shoulders.
Raven also spread his fingers a bit so his hands looked like claws ready to
grab something.
Raven squinted his eyes and grayish smoke swirlled around him. As the smoke
swirlled higher, it
floated above Raven and began to take the shape of his hands. Raven's pupils
disappeared as his
eyes turned blue. Raven then clentched his fists and the smoke hands did
likewise as the hands
attached themselves to Raven by creating tails of smoke on each hand that
swirlled around his
arms. Raven smiled as he moved the smoke hands towards the shadowed corner.
Raven then moved his
own hands in a grabbing motion, and the smoke hands did likewise. When the
hands returned into
the light, three chameleons were in their grip, squirming to break free.
Raven then opened his
hands, making the smoke hands drop the monsters. As the monsters landed on
the floor, Raven
opened his glowing eyes a bit wider and stared at the monsters in the eyes.
The chameleons'
eyes began to glow in the same manner, all remained motionless. Raven smiled
as he slowly
clasped his hands together. The smoke hands began to clasp around the frozen
monsters who
were still hypnotised. When the hands closed all the way, they slowly lifted
into the air,
bringing the chameleons with them. The chameleons screamed in pain and
aggony. Then, the
sound of ripping and breaking was heard. When the sounds stopped after about
five seconds, Raven
opened his hands, and the smoke hands did also. Three skeletons fell from
their grip. Every piece
of flesh was gone from the chameleons. All their organs were still attached,
but were now spread
out and entangled with eachother on the floor in blood puddles. Blood also
dripped to the floor
from the fingers of the giant smoke hands. Raven squinted his eyes again
until they were almost
completely shut. All the smoke disappeared and Raven's eyes returned to
normal. Raven smirked
and turned to Shadow who slowly clapped his two claws together."Thank you,"
said Raven as he
put one arm over his chest and the other behind his back and bowed to the
automata."Come let's
go. Our work is still incomplete." Raven and Shadow then left the same way
the entered only
at a quicker pace. When both were out of sight, a figure jumped off of the
ceilling where he was
hiding. It was Jack, only he had large bat wings with small fingered claws at
the tips of his
wings. His wings were larger and fuller than Millenia's, which meant he was
faster than her.
Jack looked at where the seal used to be and then turned his gaze to the
carcasses of the
monsters Raven killed. Jack looked down and sighed as he shook his head back
and forth. He then
walked out of the room and approached the Granacliff. Jack opened his large
wings and took off
into the night sky, which was slowly approaching dawn. Another visitor was
also present. Tsunami
had her golden wings outstretched as he hovered a bit higher than the path on
the other side so
she could see into the room. She was not too pleased with the events that
just occuired. She
then closed her wings around her body. Her wings disappeared to reveal a pure
white dragon
covered in gold armor like a horse. The dragon had purple spikes along its
back and a sort of
diamond-like indentations around its eyes. The dragon only had hind legs with
two squarish,
clawless toes on each foot. The dragon had large white wings that could also
be used as front
legs. The dragon gave a quick and loud roar. In one flap of its powerful
wings, the
dragon took to the sky like a breath of wind and disappeared into the night
as well.