His enraged cry echoed off of the canyon walls. Lone and triumphant in his madness, Burori stood atop the pillar of rock. His vacant eyes poured his malevolence onto the opponent in the base of the ravine. His mouth twisted into a smirk of arrogance as he watched his opponent�s pathetic attempt at an energy blast.

His laughter echoed around the pulsing energy. Grinning darkly, he lifted his hand, revealing his palm. And then, in the very center of that, a green orb grew in brightness and intensity. The power came so quickly to him, building upon itself without effort or thought.

This pathetic weakling could never beat him.

The spinning rays of the kame hame ha began to glow from between his opponent�s hands. Burori chuckled coldly, knowing that his own attack would be ready long before Kakarotto�s. Only one more blast would finish him off . . .

The green orb was effortlessly tossed out of the massive saiya-jin�s hand. It arched closer . . . closer to the vulnerable warrior on the canyon floor.

With a scream of rage and pain and hate, the kame hame ha was unleashed, smashing into and holding off the compressed power of Burori�s attack.

He scowled as he sensed that a second energy and then a third had joined his opponent�s. That brat . . . and . . .

But it didn�t matter. They still couldn�t beat him. Why, with no more than simple nudge, he could splinter their attack and watch as his foes fell uselessly, powerlessly to their knees. He relentlessly gathered his ki for another attack.

Pathetic creatures . . . they don�t know the meaning of true power!

He opened his fist . . .

And then watched in shock as his attack was blasted aside.

What? No! It can�t be!

He caught a fleeting glimpse of Kakarotto�s face as the energy blast hit him square in the chest. His cry of rage tore through the earth as he was forced into the atmosphere of the insignificant planet. The energy tore through his skin, reached into his chest and gripped his heart. The last sound he heard was the explosion of that vital organ. The last thing he felt was the heat of the sun at his back. And then he was swallowed up by darkness and death.

�Gohan?�

He turned and offered Videl a smile. �Videl, what�s going on?�

She sent him a semi-crossed look. �I should be asking you that. What were you thinking about?�

His dark eyes turned back to the night sky. �Something . . .� He shook his head. �Vegeta had mentioned it briefly once. He told me about another saiya-jin legend. It was about a woman cursed with immense power. It was so strong that her ki alone would destroy any normal planet, so she banished herself to a world so massive that she couldn�t destroy it. But, her energy was so great that the planet was turned into a star. Her power was so intense that it caused a dome of flames to surround the world, preventing anyone from coming too close. And there she lives, still, for when she dies, so does the star she created.�

Videl stared at him for a long moment and then, grinning, punched him in the arm. �Gohan! That�s nothing more than a bedtime story about how stars are born and die. Why such a serious expression over that?�

Gohan glanced at her and chuckled. �Yeah, it�s pretty silly, isn�t it?�

She nodded. �Com�on. You�re brother�s roasting marshmallows. You�d better get one before he eats them all.�

�Sure.� But as Gohan stood to follow her away from the rocky cliff�s edge. His gaze returned momentarily to the sky. We blasted him into the sun . . . But . . . what if . . .

�Gohan!�

He turned away from the night sky. With a lopsided grin, he started down the slope, leaving it and his crazy thoughts behind.

Regardless, she sat up in her bed when she sensed the disturbance.

She remained motionless as she felt the body enter the atmosphere. But when she sensed the utter lack of power her eyes widened and she leapt from the bed.

With relentless precision, she calculated the location at which he would collide with Balite�s surface and materialized there instantly. She�d gotten there not a moment too soon. As soon as she�d materialized, the dead weight of a male saiya-jin�s body slammed into her, driving her into the ground.

She clenched her teeth and held onto him. Rock and dust billowed around them, scraping tiny bits of flesh off of her unguarded body. Her fingers slowly unclenched as their descent slowed and then halted. That was when she noticed the existence of sticky blood covering her like a second skin.

With a motion meant to save time rather than show care for his injuries, she turned him over and stared at the gaping hole in his chest. Without thinking, she began to merge with him. He was still drawing breath. She could save him as long as he was still alive.

His glazed eyes twitched once.

� . . . solis . . .�

Her name was a shuddering sigh on his lips.

He did not draw another breath.

She froze, uncomprehending.

I . . . I can�t find his life force!

�Damn you! Take a breath! All I need is one more breath out of you, you moron!� She grabbed his bloody shoulders and shook him. �I can save you with one more breath!� She leaned forward and pressed her mouth to his, forcing her own air into his lungs.

Breathe . . . she begged in frantic silence.

Live . . . Her eyes squeezed shut as she tried to force some of her own life into his limp body.

Damn you, the devil--akuma--can�t die!

She pulled away and sent her palm arching across his face. His head snapped to the side with the blow but he didn�t stir, didn�t blink, didn�t take that one, necessary breath that she could use to save his miserable life.

Solis pulled away.

There on the exposed plains of her training ground--where they�d first met--where she�d first saved him, she stared at him in his death. His blood ran down her face and arms, down her chest, plastering her white sleeveless top to her breasts and abdomen. Her pale eyes couldn�t leave him, even to blink.

�For . . . forgive me. I . . . I�ve failed you again,� she whispered.

He didn�t reply.

He couldn�t.

�I�m one hell of a healer.� Her lip curled up with self-disgust, but soon, that effort was forgotten and flat monotony overtook her.

Pale valleys were carved in the blood on her face, revealing the skin beneath. The clear liquid rand down her face, her neck, channeling across her collarbone. And still, she sat, not caring that she was crying for the first time in her life. She hadn�t even realized that it was her hot tears instead of his blood on her skin.

Empty, gutted, her soul nothing more than a wounded, black thing, she leaned over his body, resting her head near the hole in his invincible chest where his heart had once been, and closed her eyes.

So we were a match after all. That must be why I feel as if I�m dying . . .

Her hand stirred in his hair.

�I wish . . . I could have given you . . . the miracle you . . . wanted so . . . badly . . .�

Her whispered confession tumbled across the glowing plain, unconscious words from a bleeding soul.

Solis stirred as the faint sounds of voices gently pulled her from her lethargy. Her brow creased and her hands twitched. She was remembering . . .

He�s gone. I couldn�t save him, not a second time.

�Hey, I think she�s comin� round. Solis? Solis, sugar plumb, can ya hear me?�

. . . no . . . I don�t want to wake up.

�Solis?�

She ignored them. She focused her mind on the feel of the body beneath her. My friend . . . Unseen by the others, her fingers stroked his hair, grazed his skin, felt a slight shuddering below his ear. Everything in Solis froze. Her fingers slowly moved down his neck, where a faint pulse was fluttering to life. It was as delicate as the butterfly�s wings seemed. It was as elusive as others of her kind and as rare as balm for the soul. She basked in her mind�s frantic imaginings.

She thought, I�m in true madness, now. I�m imagining that he lives . . .

And then the torso beneath her took a massive, shuddering breath.

Her eyes opened.

She stared down at him in amazement. Gone was every trace of blood. Gone was the massive hole in his chest, the pallor of his skin, the utter stillness of his body. Her hand smoothed over his chest in awe, wondering at the flawless skin.

He took a second breath and she jerked her hand away. For the first time, she looked up.

Her gaze met the massive sea of hundreds upon hundreds of drakes who resided on Balite. Each had his or her dark eyes trained on the two saiya-jins. Solis gaped, not knowing what to think of this situation.

She said, �I�m dreaming.�

Audovauld shook his head. �No, dear child. You�re very much awake . . . and alive.�

She turned back to the unconscious male. �But he�s breathing . . .�

Audovauld chuckled. �Well, that was part of your wish, wasn�t it?�

�My wish?� she echoed carefully.

He nodded, his wise, ancient eyes simply staring at her. �You�ve forgotten so soon what we are, Solis?�

Her pale eyes blinked. . . . they had become hunted creatures on the planets that they had lived on . . . Her brows drew together. � . . . Audovauld?�

The drake nodded. �I see you remember now what we are. We could do no other than to grant your boon, Solis, after all that you and your ancestors have done for us.�

. . . after they had become hunted for their ability to grant wishes . . .

Solis said nothing. She could think of nothing to say.

Peppermint gave her a consoling pat on the shoulder. �You can thank us by gettin� busy and producin� the next generation of guardians, if ya know what I mean . . .�

The saiya-jin�s eyes narrowed. She opened her mouth to construct some lively retort to that, when a hand brushed hers. Instantly, she was completely focused on the male before her. His eyes were still closed but his breathing indicated that he was coming to.

She placed a hand on his shoulder. �Bu--� She paused and started again. �Miracle?�

Black eyes were revealed reluctantly from beneath thick lashes. He turned toward the sound of her voice, still wearing the heavy veil of sleep. �Solis?�

She leaned closer. �Yes. I�m here.�

He smiled. It wasn�t a tentative expression as it had been when he�d arrived there. It wasn�t the cruel twist of his mouth that he�d worn during their battle. It was genuine. Real. His eyes finally focused on her. He said, �Solis . . . I can remember . . .�

She waited.

� . . . everything.�

�Alright,� she said. �What�s your name?�

He lifted a hand to her face. �Burori. My name is Burori,� he replied.

Solis watched his face. Was it possible that he�d . . . healed? His eyes remained focused and clear and . . . and she could tell that he did remember. My great gods, what in the hell did I wish for? I wished for . . .

She stared into his eyes. They were no longer uncertain, no longer so innocent. But they were his eyes. This was the man that he was, underneath the chaos of his madness.

I wished I could have given him his miracle.

She swallowed and felt his hand slide into her hair. He smiled. �I also remembered what I was about to do before you interrupted me.�

� . . . what? . . .�

There�s only one way to find out if I�ll be an acceptable mate for Solis . . .

She took in the predatory gleam in his eyes.

What have I done?

He drew her closer.

I�m going to kill those drakes if it�s the last thing I do. Meddling . . . obnoxious . . . bothersome . . . And then her thoughts faded away.

On that barren plain, the two figures were the only break in the monotonous white-gold glow of the tiny planet. The drakes had long since disappeared into their respective homes to debate the length of time that would pass before another guardian joined their ranks.