 
Gateway to Thera

Book Three of the Adventure Chronicles

by

Jeffrey Allen Davis

Smashwords Edition

Copyrighted Material

©2014 Jeffrey Allen Davis

This book is a work of fiction. Places, events and situations in this story are purely fictional. Any similarities to actual persons, living or dead, are purely coincidental.

All rights reserved.

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

This book is available in print at most online retailers.

Cover Art by Andy Borders

Cover Layout by Timothy Johnson

Christian Fiction

http://jeffreyallendavis.wordpress.com

http://gcdpublishing.wordpress.com

Unless otherwise noted, all Bible verses are quoted from the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible.

To my amazing wife, Vickie.

You are my living fantasy.

"Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost." 1Corinthians 2:3

PART ONE

Prologue

Sunday, 9:35 P.M.

Sean Wilson accompanied his friend, Ben Shalley, into the old, abandoned warehouse near the boat docks of Sera, Missouri. They were supposed to meet with him tonight . . . the Renegades' strange benefactor. The man paid them well, and to do something that they enjoyed doing anyway . . . spying on the members of Adventure, the group of teenage martial artists who had been responsible for the incarceration of the Renegades some time back.

"I don't get it," said Sean. "This guy's obviously a dirty, old man who wants this Shawna Weston."

"So," asked his leader as he smoothed his jet-black goatee, "what is it that you don't understand?"

"Why are we involved in this?"

"Jamie used to date this Shawna Weston."

"Yeah," mumbled Sean, "the key words here are 'used to.' Why should he care if we nab his ex?"

"You know how sentimental Jamie is," explained Ben. "I've no doubt that he still carries deep feelings for the girl, and I intend to exploit that weakness. Taking her will cause him a great deal of pain, and that will cause him to make a mistake. And, if we get paid to cause him to make this mistake, all the better."

The only source of light coming into the hall in which they now stood was the moon, shining in a single window at the far end. The shadows stretched toward the two youth.

Sean jumped. "What was that?"

Ben sighed in frustration. "Your own breathing, idiot." He glanced back at Sean. "You beat people, steal and sell drugs for a living . . . but a dark warehouse scares you?" He shook his head and walked faster toward the office.

Sean, who had been looking back in the direction from which they had come, turned back around to see his friend several feet away. "Wait up!" he yelped as he burst into a run.

"Hurry!" snapped Ben. "I want to get this over with before you soil yourself."

"This guy's not normal, Ben! He gives me the creeps and I don't know why!"

The two arrived at the door to the office. Turning the knob, Ben discovered it to be locked. "That's odd. He said that he'd be here."

"He probably found that he couldn't control his aging bladder," commented Sean. He looked nervously around, as if expecting some vicious beast to leap out of the shadows at them.

An old, but strong voice from within the office said, "Enter. The door is unlocked." As the voice said this last word, the two adolescents could hear a click within the knob, and then they watched as the door opened.

Ben stepped calmly inside, followed by his shaky friend. The silhouette of a man sat in a chair across the dimly lit room. Other than a long beard and, perhaps, a robe, little of the man could be seen. He barely moved. Only his slightly raspy breathing indicated that the figure was alive, at all.

Looking around the door, they saw no one who could have opened it. Ben spoke. "How did you do that?"

"My counsel is mine to keep, young one." The door slammed shut.

Ben did not like that answer. Deciding to not press the issue, he moved on to the issue at hand. "Why did you send for us? Are you ready for us to take the girl?"

"Soon," replied the man. "But, for now, I want you to gauge the members of the group, one at a time, to see just how skilled they are. I want to know if I will get much trouble from these . . . children."

"We weren't planning on showing ourselves this soon."

"It would happen eventually," stated the man. "I don't see the point in waiting. They will not know where to find you, anyway. Since you know about the original members of the group, start with the people who have joined since it moved to Sera."

Ben narrowed his eyes and asked, "What do you gain by us fighting them?"

"I assume that they will attempt a rescue of the girl after you have taken her. Their leader will do it out of the love that he still feels for her. Some members still consider her a friend, and the rest will do it out of respect and love for their leader. I simply wish to know how much preparation to take." The man gestured toward the door, mumbling something beneath his breath. It opened as he said, "Now, be gone."

Ben and Sean turned and took their leave. As they exited the building, Sean asked, "When are we going to take her? I'm getting tired of the games this guy keeps playing!"

"For right now," replied Ben, "we're going to follow his instructions. There's something special about that old man. I don't know what it is, but I will find out."

* * *

The old man stood at the window, looking out over the river that ran behind the warehouse. The door to the room opened and a man dressed in a brown leather suit with metal studs covering the shirt entered. "The hirelings have gone, Tarent," he announced.

"Good," answered the old man.

The younger man moved to stand beside his employer and inquired, "Why do you always look out this window?"

"I like the view," was the answer.

"The Mother World isn't what you'd expected, is it?"

Tarent turned to look at his friend. "What ever is?"

"Are we going to get the girl soon? We mustn't tarry with the wedding."

Tarent held his hands aloft. A silk, white glove covered each. He gently removed the garment from his left hand, revealing startling, dull-green scales and short, black claws. "Soon . . ..

Chapter One

Tuesday, 3:00 P.M.

Max Lee Adams pushed the lawnmower across the yard of his neighbor, a gruff old woman by the name of Mrs. Boyles. She paid him for his work, on occasion, but he still mowed her lawn for her when she didn't, simply as a good deed.

"You missed a spot," called the old woman from her front porch swing, gesturing toward an area of un-mowed grass roughly the size of the base of the lawnmower.

"Thanks, Mrs. Boyles," answered Max with mock cheerfulness. Then, below his breath, he mumbled, "She's eighty years old, can't hear her doorbell, but can still spot a small patch of uncut grass twenty feet away from her." He mowed the spot, then pushed his lawnmower into his yard and replaced it in his shed.

This was one of those occasions when she didn't pay him. He walked to the front door of his house, where his mother, Marie, met him. "Run up to the post office and check the mail," she said, handing him the key.

"Okay," said Max. Noting that she had her hair in curlers, he asked, "Are you going out with Barry tonight?"

Her eyes widened. "Where've you been? Barry and I haven't been dating in two months."

As he burst into a run for the small brick building, which was only about a block up the road from his house, he mumbled under his breath, "Maybe if you had a two minute conversation with Steve and me every once in a while, we'd know what was going on in your life."

He stopped at the front door to the post office and pulled it open. Entering, he strolled up to his post office box and inserted the key. There was no mail, so he closed and locked the box, then put the key in the front pocket of his denim shorts and walked toward the door.

Stepping onto the sidewalk outside, Max found his way blocked by an adolescent whom he didn't recognize. He was roughly 5'9", and was rather thin. He was wearing black denim jeans, and a pull-over black T-shirt under a blue denim jacket. Max smiled politely, then started to step around the boy, but the stranger moved to intercept him. "Excuse me," snapped Max.

"You're Max Adams," spoke the stranger, "aren't you?"

"Yeah," replied Max, "and you are?"

"I'm Sean Wilson," the boy introduced himself. "Recognize the name?"

"No," stated Max bluntly. "Should I?" In truth, the name did sound familiar, but he didn't know where he had heard it.

The boy smiled and said, "Well, I have been on the news before. Your friend, Jamie, and his group know all about that."

Max suddenly realized where he had heard the name. "Wait a minute! I know! That jacket has a big R sewn into the back of it, doesn't it?"

Sean smiled again. He turned around to show Max the letter.

"Well, I'm really pleased to meet you, but I couldn't possibly care less about your little argument with Jamie. He's my friend, but he never wanted me involved in that part of his life." Max looked around cautiously to make sure that none of Sean's comrades were present. "If you'll excuse me, I have to go and call my girlfriend. She's expecting me." He started to walk past the Renegade, but found himself cut off once again. "'Ya know, you're really startin' to bug me."

"You already are involved in the war, kid," stated Sean. "You joined Adventure. Guilt by association." He smashed his left fist into Max's face, knocking him backward.

Max brought his right index finger across his lip, examining the blood that wiped onto his digit. Glaring at the Renegade, he said, "Okay, it's your funeral."

Sean swung his right fist in a wide arc, trying to strike Max across the face with the back of his hand. Max ducked the attack and retaliated with a strong, straight kick to the stomach with his right foot. As Sean doubled over in agony, Max brought the right side of the same foot across his face, knocking him to the ground.

Max looked down at his subdued opponent, a mixture of curiosity and amusement showing upon his face. "And you guys are the ones that gave Jamie and the others so much trouble in Jameston? Did ya get out of practice in jail, or what?" He turned with a chuckle and began walking toward his house. After taking a few steps, he turned back to the Renegade and said, "Thanks. I had been in a pretty bad mood, but now I feel much better!"

* * *

George sat on the upstairs deck of his parents' house. He was trying to meditate but, as usual, he was getting bored with doing something that he just didn't understand. There was just no way that he could ever clear his mind of all thoughts. After all, every time he closed his eyes, Yoshi's face popped into his vision. Climbing to his feet, George opened the sliding glass door that led into his parents' upstairs bedroom. Stepping in, he closed the door behind him and headed down the stairs that ended in the kitchen.

Mr. and Mrs. Tanner weren't home at this time. They had driven to the Bluff for a banquet that was sponsored by the Park Service, where Mr. Tanner worked. Yoshi was supposed to visit for a night of Mel Brooks movies. George had put a pizza in the oven and now took it out.

As he set the pizza on the top of the stove, a thud echoed from parents' bedroom. He took off the oven mitt and tossed it on the counter, then walked cautiously up the stairs. As he stepped into the bedroom, George was startled to find two men in blue denim jackets sitting on his parent's bed.

"Who are you?," snapped the young kensai. "How'd you get in here?"

"Climbing trees into open bedroom windows is one of our specialties," commented one of the boys, a blonde-haired adolescent.

"We're here to bring a message from Ben Shalley," answered the other.

"Who?" demanded George.

"The leader of the Renegades," replied the first boy with a sniff. "Don't tell me you've never heard of us."

"I've heard of the Renegades," stated George. "But you're way outta your turf. What's your message?"

The second boy, a bit taller than the first, stood, running his fingers through his bright red hair. Walking up to George, he said, "We've come to tell you not to get involved in our war. You weren't in Adventure when this started, so it's not your concern."

"Jamie and the guys are my friends," said George. "I'm sure that I can speak for all of the new members when I tell you where you can stick your message."

The red-haired boy lunged at George, who dodged to the side and kicked him in the face, knocking him onto his back. George barely had time to turn to the blonde Renegade before that one had kicked him across the face, sending him sliding backward through his parents' open bathroom door.

Climbing to his feet while shaking his head to clear it, George noticed his mother's broom standing next to the sink. Grasping it with both hands, he turned around and growled, "Before, it was two-to-one odds, but now, I think you're the ones who are outnumbered."

* * *

Yoshi's car pulled into the driveway of her boyfriend's house. After shutting the car off, she climbed out and shut the door.

The kunoichi was surprised to hear a commotion coming from the second story of George's house. Dashing for the front door, she grasped the doorknob and pushed the door open. Stepping inside, she watched in shock as two teens, one after the other, rolled down the stairs, each hitting the kitchen counter with a painful THUD. Yoshi looked up at George, who was coming down the stairs, a broom handle in his right hand.

The two adolescents had noticed him too. They leaped to their feet and ran out the sliding back door onto the first floor deck. At this time, Yoshi noticed the Rs on the backs of their jackets. "Renegades!" she exclaimed as she, then George chased them outside.

In desperation, the two delinquents leaped from the deck into the river below. George looked over the side and yelled, "Go give that answer to your leader!"

"What were they doing here?" inquired Yoshi.

"They came to tell me to stay out of your war."

"Great," mumbled Yoshi as she slammed her open palms down upon the rails of the deck. "I thought that we had seen the last of them." Looking sadly at George, she added, "It would appear that our night together has been cut short. I need to call Jamie."

* * *

Alexandria Rhee and Shawna Weston walked down the street toward the home of Max Lee Adams. Alexandria was spending the day with Shawna, and the two had ridden with her mother into town to get some groceries. Bored, they had decided to visit Alex's boyfriend, who lived merely three blocks from the store.

"So," inquired Shawna with mock disinterest, "how's Jamie?"

"You see him on Sundays," replied Alex.

"He avoids me in church," stated Shawna.

"He never smiles anymore," said Alex thoughtfully. "When I first met him, he seemed serious, but he was also happy. Now . . .."

"One person shouldn't be able to make another person so happy."

Alex looked at her seriously. "Max makes me that happy."

"But nobody's ever loved me like he did."

"Like he still does. Don't tell me you broke up with him just because he loved you too much."

Shawna started to say something, but stopped as a girl in a blue denim jacket stepped out of the antique shop in front of them. Alex started to move around her, barely noticing the dark-haired girl, but she moved to intercept her.

"Excuse me," said Alex.

The girl smiled. "I'm Traci Bundy."

"Who?" asked Shawna.

"I just wanted her to know the name of the girl who's gonna bust her up."

Both girls looked at their antagonist and, in unison, said, "Huh?"

Traci looked at Shawna. "You broke up with Jamie Raleigh, and you never really joined Adventure, so you're not really a part of this. You can leave."

"Oh, gee," mumbled Shawna sarcastically, "aren't you so kind."

"You don't want a piece of me," barked the girl. "'Sides, Ben told me I'm not s'posed ta hurt you."

"Ben . . . Shalley?" demanded Shawna.

"That's him."

"You're a Renegade?"

"And proud of it."

"Boy, have you got your priorities messed up."

Alex looked back and forth between the two girls in confusion. Finally, she snapped, "What in the WORLD are 'Renegades?!'"

"You're about to find out," replied Traci as she reached out, grasping Alex by the hair and jerking her head back. "Painfully."

Chapter Two

Tuesday, 5:46 P.M.

Alex attempted to control her rising temper. "I will give you to the count of three to let go of me, or I am going to rip your arm from its socket," she growled between clenched teeth.

When Traci simply chuckled, Alex started counting, "One . . . Two . . ."

"THREE!!!" finished Traci as she flipped Alex over her shoulder and to the hard pavement. Alex's rage-filled eyes glared up at her opponent, who seemed taken aback by Alex's reaction.

Alex's foot shot upward, slamming into Traci's chest. Traci stumbled backward, releasing her hold on Alex, who flipped effortlessly to her feet, whirling to face her opponent.

Traci narrowed her eyes at Alex and charged, but was once again caught off guard by a well-placed kick, which found its mark just below her neck. Falling backward, she caught her weight on her hands and slammed both of her feet into Alex's face, then leaped back to her feet.

Traci reached to the back of her belt, pulling out an eight-inch hunting knife. She stepped toward the younger girl, who flipped backward, bringing both of her feet against Traci's chin, knocking her off of the sidewalk.

Alex looked down at Traci and said, "I don't know who you Renegades are, but tell your Ben person that the new members of Adventure are here to stay!"

Traci climbed unsteadily to her feet and turned, stumbling away.

* * *

Jamie opened his eyes with a gasp as a short bell sounded in his room. He hadn't intended to fall asleep when he'd laid down to read.

The phone rang again. Knowing that his parents weren't home, the young ninja rubbed his eyes and answered it. "H . . . Hello?"

It was Yoshi. "Jamie? What is the matter?"

"Nothing," mumbled Jamie. "Just fell asleep reading."

"Well, we have a problem."

"What?"

"George was attacked in his house tonight by Brad Whitman and another Renegade."

Jamie sat up, now wide awake. "Are you sure it was them?"

"Quite sure," replied the young kunoichi, her voice sounding as if she were insulted by Jamie's last question.

"How'd he do?"

"He fared well," she replied with a chuckle. "They jumped off his back deck into the river to get away from him."

"I guess we'd better call a meeting," sighed Jamie. "If the Renegades are in Sera, we could all be in some serious trouble."

"I'll call the others," offered the Yoshi. "Goodbye."

After hanging up the phone, Jamie sat with his knees bent and pulled up under his chin. "Dear Lord, give me strength."

* * *

Ben sighed as he looked at the four teens now standing before him. He paced the length of the motel room, examining each of them. The right side of Sean's face was badly bruised. Brad and Raymond were drenched, their faces covered with cuts and bruises. Traci's bottom lip was cut and swollen, but no longer bleeding.

"Well," said the leader of the Renegades. "Being in a town full of people who don't have to be fought to get them to submit to us has really made you four soft."

Traci's face flushed in anger. "I was the one who got stuck with one of the new members who just happened ta be walkin' with that girl you told us not ta hurt! I was keeping my eyes on her to see that she didn't interfere!"

"Whatever," snapped Ben. Looking at the other three, he inquired, "And what about you three?"

Sean pulled the ice pack away from the side of his face. "Jamie simply has a knack for finding skilled friends."

Ben smacked Sean across the face. "You are supposed to be more skilled than them! Your careers are causing people pain." He turned away from them and walked toward Mike Noddingham, the Renegades' enforcer. "I am planning to start a branch of the Renegades in this part of Missouri, but I dare not if we can't put that group of theirs out of commission!"

"Send me out next," pleaded Mike as he looked down at his nearly six-foot leader. "I won't be beaten as easily."

Ben smiled, remembering the fateful battle between the two rival groups some years before, seeing Mike kicking the prone Dave Isaac repeatedly. "No, I suppose that you won't."

* * *

Louis kicked the bag repeatedly, keeping his attacks in rhythm with the song Too Legit To Quit, which was sounding from his speakers. His parents were shopping, so he had the time to practice to his favorite tunes while cranking them up full blast.

Again and again he struck the bag. Between the thumps on the kicking bag, he became aware of his phone ringing. Turning down the volume of his stereo, he answered it, his breath heavy.

"What took you so long to answer?" asked the voice on the other end of the line. It was Max.

"I was practicing and couldn't hear you through the music." Louis straightened his red sweat-pants.

"I just thought that I'd call you and tell you that Jamie is organizing a meeting of our little 'club' tomorrow at the pavilion near the boat dock at noon."

"Why?"

"Because the Rene . . .." His voice was abruptly cut off.

"Hello?" Louis hit the buttons on the phone receiver. "Max?" Nothing.

Hanging up the phone, he picked it back up to find that there was no dial tone. Turning around, he walked to his door and stepped out into the hallway and peered into the darkness. As his eyes adjusted to the lack of light, the shape of a large human came into view near the top of the stairs, which led down to the kitchen. It was a male, nearly six and a half feet tall and well-muscled. The figure stepped into the light. Louis could see that he was well-tanned, probably of Hispanic descent. "Who are you?" he asked.

"Name's Mike Noddingham," answered the intruder.

"The name doesn't exactly ring a bell," remarked Louis.

"I've come to hurt you," stated the Renegade bluntly.

"Huh?"

"Let's just say that you picked the wrong friends, and now it's caught up with ya."

The two assumed defensive stances. "I'll give you first shot," laughed Mike. "Any attack that you think can knock me down."

Spinning 360 degrees, his right heel smacked the larger boy's jaw. Finishing his move, Louis looked up to see . . . to his horror . . . that Mike hadn't even flinched.

"Not bad," muttered the gang member as he rubbed his jawbone. "Now, it's my turn . . .."

* * *

"Louis?" said Max, confusion registering upon his face. "Louis?" He hung the phone up, then tried redialing it to get a fast busy signal.

"What's wrong?" inquired Alex, who had just arrived with Shawna before he had made the call. Shawna had been rubbing her foster-sister's back, which was aching from her fight with Traci.

"We got cut off," answered her boyfriend. "I don't get it."

Shawna's face suddenly registered a shocked realization. "You know, Louis is a new member of Adventure, too."

The three exchanged alarmed glances and, without another word, charged out the front door, hoping that they could run the four blocks to their friend's house before anything bad happened.

* * *

Louis rolled down the stairs and hit the floor with a painful THUD. He started to climb to his feet, but Mike was upon him before he could do so.

Grabbing the prone boy by the hair of his head, he pulled him to his feet, then slammed his face into the nearest wall. The wood groaned under the pressure as Louis could feel blood steadily flowing from both nostrils. "How does it feel to pick the wrong friends?" demanded the Renegade. He threw Louis across the kitchen and into another wall. Advancing, he was suddenly stopped by one of the kick boxer's front kicks, which connected to his nose. A crack signaled that it had broken.

Taking the advantage, Louis leaped from his feet, spinning in the air and bringing his right heel across the Mike's face, sending the Renegade sprawling backward and onto the floor.

A voice could now be heard yelling outside. "LOUIS!!!" Mike climbed to his feet as Max, Alex and Shawna charged in the front door. Max leaped at him with a side kick. Mike was sent sprawling backward and slammed his head into the sink.

The larger teen shook his head to clear it just before Alex kicked him in the gut, doubling him over. He frantically tried to punch her, but his clumsy attack was blocked and she punched him in his already broken nose, shooting a bolt of pain into his head and causing his eyes to fill with tears.

"Shawna!" yelled Max. "Get Louis out of here!" Another of his kicks sent Mike slamming into the back door.

In a moment of clarity, Mike jerked the door open and plunged outside.

"Let him go!" ordered Alex as Max seemed about to run after him. "We've got to find a way to call an ambulance for Louis!"

As Louis saw that Max and Alex had the situation in hand, he realized that it was safe to collapse out of exhaustion . . ..

Chapter Three

Wednesday, 11:59 A.M.

Jamie looked around at the group of adolescents standing before him. Dave stood next to him. The sound of the river flowing nearby did little to calm his nerves, considering the reason they had come to Water's Kiss.

Yoshi, George, Max, Alexandria, Steve, Jeremy, Pete, Zack, and B.J. stood before him, the latter five obviously curious about the reason for this meeting.

Jamie glanced at Max. "How's Louis?"

"His mother said he's really weak. That big ox bruised his ribs but didn't break anything," answered the tae kwon do practitioner. "Thankfully."

"What's this all about?" snapped Jeremy in irritation. "I was hopin' that we'd be comin' up here to go swimmin' or floatin'."

"This is a bit more important than that," answered Jamie. "It would appear that the Renegades have decided to follow us to Sera for a shot at payback." At this, most of the original members of Adventure gasped. Even Dave's eyes widened in shock.

Jamie continued. "They've been attacking the newer members of Adventure . . . I suppose to gauge the skill level of our new companions." Jamie smiled at Max, Alex, and George. "They have found their skill level quite high."

Then, Jamie's face darkened. "But Louis, regardless of his level of experience, was nearly beaten to death by Mike Noddingham."

"Just what kind of mess have you gotten us into?" demanded Jeremy.

"Hey, dude!" declared Dave angrily. "You knew what you were gettin' into when ya joined! You knew about the Renegades!"

"I didn't expect'em ta come up here," replied Jeremy.

"George said that the message that they gave him . . . before he chased them into the river . . . was that they wanted those of us who didn't fight them in Jameston to stay out of it," stated Jamie. "So, if any of you want out now . . .."

"They don't scare me," piped Max. "And I've been through too much with you guys just to quit now."

"And I don't wanna be constantly worried that my baby's gonna get hurt," said Alex, her right hand patting Max's cheek. "I'll have to be there ta protect'im."

"Yoshi's fight is my fight," commented George, his arm around his girlfriend's waist.

"And I'm not going to let my little brother have all the fun," chimed Steve. "Count me in, too."

"Well," muttered Jeremy, "I ain't gettin' killed fer you guys." He turned to walk away. "When the ninja invaded, my life was in just as much danger as any of you. But I have nothing ta do with this."

Jamie had expected as much from Jeremy. "Okay," said the young ninja, "I guess he's out."

"Well," asked Zack, "what's the plan?"

"Until we know where they are basing their operations in our area, we really can't do anything," replied Jamie.

Dave continued his cousin's thought. "So we just let it be 'business as usual,' 'till they make another move."

* * *

Jamie and Dave rode in Jamie's 1985 Chevrolet Cavalier toward Dave's home. Dave looked at his cousin and asked, "So, are ya still goin' ta Deck's little costume party, tomorrow night?"

"I suppose," answered Jamie. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"I figured that, since Shawna'd been invited and all . . ."

"What?!" interrupted Jamie. "Shawna's coming?"

"Yeah," replied Dave, dumbfounded. "I thought ya knew."

"No."

"Well, she is still Deck's friend, even if some of us don't much like'er anymore."

"But she can't stand him!" groaned the young ninja.

"Aw, c'mon!" boomed Dave. "Ya can't run from'er forever. You did tell'er you could be friends with her."

"I don't even have a costume," mumbled the leader of Adventure. "I don't know why he decided to have a costume party in July, anyway."

"You fully expected ta go before you found out about Shawna. Don't use the costume thing as an excuse." Dave thought for a moment, then said, "If anything, wear yer ninja suit. It'd fit the medieval theme of the party."

* * *

Jeremy walked down the long road toward the cabin in which he and his father lived. His mother had left them for various reasons, the least of which was not because she had hated living in the woods without electricity or running water.

As Jeremy approached the cabin, which was well hidden within the heavy forest, he noticed that his father's car wasn't present. "Dad musta' gone into town," he thought aloud.

"Must've," added a voice from behind a nearby tree.

He approached the pine as a tall, Hispanic boy wearing a blue denim jacket stepped out from behind it. The boy's nose was bandaged and he had a black eye. "Who are you?" asked Jeremy.

"I'm Mike Noddingham," replied the other as four more adolescents stepped out from various hiding places.

"I like yer last name," commented the young Robin Hood fan.

"I don't," said Mike. "I hated the Sheriff."

"Good man!" smiled Jeremy. Looking around at the jackets of the five teens, he said, "I suppose yer all Renegades."

Mike smiled as he stepped menacingly toward Jeremy. "You got it."

"Well, you don't even have ta be here. I quit Adventure."

Mike shook his head as he grabbed Jeremy's collar with his left hand, balling his right hand into a fist. "That's too bad."

* * *

The phone rang.

Yoshi stepped into the hallway. Picking up the receiver and placing it to her ear, she said, "Hello?"

"Yoshi?" sounded the voice on the other end of the line. It was Shawna. "I was hoping you'd answer."

"What do you want, Shawna? Jamie is in the shower, and I do not think that it is a good idea to be talking to you when he gets out."

"I was walking home from the store a little while ago and I noticed that this strange man was following me," replied Shawna. "I tried calling Max's house, because Alexandria was supposed to be there, but his mother said that they'd gone swimming. I'm really scared and you were the only other person I could think of to call."

"I thought that you did not want anyone to protect you?" said Yoshi, a slight amount of contempt in her tone. "Is that not why you broke up with Jamie?"

"I knew that I shouldn't have called you," snapped Shawna.

"Look," stated Yoshi. "Jamie would want me to help you if I could." She thought for a moment. "Was he wearing a denim jacket?"

"I think it's safe to assume that he wasn't a Renegade," responded Shawna. "He was old. He had a long, gray beard."

"Why would an old man be following you?"

"An old man following who?" asked a familiar voice from the direction of the bathroom. She turned around to see Jamie, wearing a pair of jeans and an old T-shirt and toweling his still damp hair. He added another question. "Who are you talking to?"

Yoshi silently cursed herself for not hearing him get out of the shower. "Uh . . . George," she stuttered. Jamie's eyes narrowed. He knows that I am lying, she thought, but was relieved when he didn't press the situation.

Turning to walk back toward his room, the young ninja said, "Tell George I said, 'Hi.'"

"I'm going to let you go, now," stated Shawna. "That was too close. Please, whatever you do, don't tell Jamie any of this."

"Good-bye," said Yoshi as she hung up the phone.

Walking into Jamie's room, she found him sitting on the side of his bed, polishing his ninja-to. She remembered hearing him tell Dave that he was going to use it for his costume the following night at Deck's party. "Penny for your thoughts," she said meekly.

"What did she want?" asked the young ninja without looking at his clan-sister.

"What are you talking about?"

Jamie sighed and stopped wiping the white cloth along the blade. Looking up at her, he stated, "You are a very skilled fighter. You are very intelligent, funny, dexterous . . . the works. But, you share one bad trait with me."

"What is that?"

"You're a pathetic liar."

She calmly sat next to her clan-brother. "She was scared."

"Of what?"

"She said that she had been followed home from the store by a strange man."

Jamie clenched his teeth. "She has nothing to do with this. If Ben or any of those other jerks harm one hair on her head . . .."

"It was not the Renegades," interrupted Yoshi.

Jamie's eyes narrowed in confusion.

"She said that it was some old man."

Chapter Four

Thursday, 11:00 A.M.

Yoshi spread the peanut butter along the slice of bread as she hummed a slow tune to herself. Jamie's father sat on the couch, reading a western novel. Jamie was cleaning his room.

As she replaced the lid on the peanut butter jar, she noticed the sound of a car approaching. Looking out the kitchen window, she saw a gray 1986 Pontiac 6000 pulling into the driveway. She frowned, noting that it was Jeremy's father's car. She watched as Jeremy stepped from the car and ran to the front door. "Jamie" she called as she walked to the front door, "the coward is here."

"Who?" called the young ninja.

Yoshi didn't give Jeremy a chance to knock before she answered the front door. "Yes?" she inquired impatiently. She noticed that his face was badly bruised, a cut protruding from his bottom lip.

"I can't stay long," stated Jeremy, his voice cracking. "I just wanted you to know that I wanted back in."

Yoshi was surprised. "What made you change your mind?"

Jeremy rubbed the side of his face. "Let's just say that they don't care if I've quit or not." The horn sounded from the car and he added, "Gotta go. See ya at Deck's party tonight." He ran to the car and got into it.

Jamie walked out of his room as the Pontiac drove away. "Was that Jeremy?" asked the young ninja.

"He had to leave," replied Yoshi. "He just stopped by to tell us that he wanted back in."

"Huh?"

"Apparently," she whispered this, so that Jamie's father wouldn't hear, "the Renegades got to him and did not care that he had quit."

"How bad was he beat up?"

"Not too badly," she replied thoughtfully. "I suppose that Mike wasn't the one who assaulted him."

* * *

Violin music played over the CD player as Jamie watched Dave and Laura (dressed as medieval peasants), Buster and Amy (wearing matching karate gis), and Max and Alexandria(a vampire and his French maid victim) slow dancing in the living room of Deck's home. His friend's dwelling was rather odd. On the inside, it appeared normal. But, on the outside, it looked like a miniature castle, complete with a working drawbridge. Surrounding the castle were several booby traps, covering the ground all the way to the road, but leaving certain safe paths to the house. Deck had given Jamie and his friends a map so that they wouldn't set off the traps when they dropped by for a visit. Jamie, as well as most of the others, had memorized the map thoroughly.

The location of the house, a dirt road near the river, was a secret, as well. The tree line kept it hidden from those who were not looking for it. Certain city officials knew where it was, as well as Sly and the members of Adventure. Deck liked to keep it that way. Fewer people bothered him.

Jamie sat quietly in a kitchen chair that he had brought into the living room. He made a note of the guests at the party. With the exception of Louis, whose parents insisted that he was still in no condition to be social, every member of Adventure was here. Laura, Amy, Leslie, and Sly were present. Shawna had shown up, as well. She wasn't wearing a costume at all, opting to simply dress the way that she always did. She wore a pair of denim shorts and a Tweety T-shirt.

Jeremy had arrived, dressed as Robin Hood, something that didn't surprise Jamie. Yoshi had been right about his appearance. His face was bruised and his lip cut.

Shawna walked over and seated herself in a chair beside Jamie. "Hi," she said.

"Hello," replied Jamie without emotion.

"Nice costume," she commented, gesturing toward his ninja suit.

"You've seen it before," announced the young chunin, his emotionless voice still not changing.

"You know," presented the young honor student, her voice now irritated, "we don't have to act like this. We can still be friendly toward one another."

Jamie looked at her, his eyes now narrowing in anger. "Shawna, every time that I look at you, I feel pain. Every time that I think about the fact that I can no longer hold you, or kiss you, or even tell you that I love you, my heart feels like it's being torn in half." He balled both hands into fists and fought to control his rising voice. "I don't go around you during the week, and I don't sit near you in church. I can't be friends with you, because I can't handle the pain of being near you."

The young ninja suddenly felt a pang of guilt as he noticed tears beginning to well up in his ex-girlfriend's eyes. "I see," she mumbled as she climbed to her feet and walked out the front door.

Jamie closed his eyes and sighed in frustration. He felt someone sit in the chair that Shawna had just been occupying. He looked over to see Alexandria. "What happened?" she asked.

"I snapped," replied the young ninja with another sigh.

"She still loves you," stated Alex.

"Yeah right," he muttered sarcastically. "She has a funny way of showing it."

"She just needs some time. She'll come around, sooner or later." Patting him on the shoulder, she climbed to her feet and said, "Maybe I should go talk to her." She walked to the front door and stepped outside.

Jamie sat there, rubbing his eyes with his right index finger and thumb. He found himself thirsty. Climbing slowly to his feet, he started to walk toward Deck's refrigerator.

The song that had been playing, a slow love ballad, ended, and everyone heard Alex screaming outside. Jamie and Max were the first out the door. As they leaped from the porch, Jamie noticed that four men were roughly dragging Shawna into a Chevy Blazer about fifteen yards away on the dirt drive that led to the gravel road.

Alex had seen them when she came outside and ran to help but, not being familiar with Deck's yard, had stepped into a noose trap. She dangled helplessly as the men pulled a kicking and screaming Shawna toward the waiting vehicle. "Cut Alex loose, Max!" ordered Jamie as the young ninja burst into a full run toward the Blazer, leaping over the traps in his path. He was too late, though. Before he got within fifteen feet, they had pulled her into the vehicle and sped away.

"What's goin' on?" demanded Deck.

Jamie leaped into his car, followed by Dave, Laura, Yoshi, and George. "We've gotta get her back!" yelled Jamie as he started the engine. Amy, Buster, Max and Alex leaped into Buster's minivan and Zack, Sly, Pete, Jeremy, Steve, Leslie, and B.J. leaped into Sly's van. The vehicles flared to life and shot off down the gravel road after the kidnappers.

* * *

It wasn't hard to follow the dust-trail of the Blazer down this dirt road, which turned out onto the paved road that led toward the old warehouse. Here, Jamie stopped his car, climbing out and looking around to see if he could see any taillights. He saw none, but he did find fresh black marks on the road that headed toward the warehouse. Jamie climbed back into his car and headed the same way.

The three vehicles came to a stop in front of the old building. The Blazer was here, parked in front within plain view. Jamie leaped from the car followed by his passengers, then the passengers of the other vehicles.

The front door to the building opened and several figures stepped out, followed by two boys and a girl that Jamie recognized as Mike Noddingham, Sean Wilson, and Traci Bundy. "Hey, Jamie," called out Sean. "Long time, no see."

"Not long enough," replied Jamie, his teeth clenched in anger. "Where's Shawna?"

"Inside," replied Traci. "She's really spirited. That must be what attracted ya to her."

"Where's Ben?" demanded Buster as he flipped out a pair of his nunchaku.

"He didn't feel like playing tonight," replied Mike. "But I hope we'll do."

Dave glared at Mike and punched his own palm. "You'll do nicely."

Jamie instructed Amy, Laura, B.J. and Leslie to lock themselves in Sly's van, telling Sly to lock himself in with them as an extra means of protection.

"Are you kidding?" snapped Leslie. "I could rip him in half!"

"Just do it," said Jamie calmly.

Leslie followed the others with a sigh.

Each group moved into an attack formation. Without a word, they charged each other . . ..

Chapter Five

Thursday, 8:32 P.M.

Jamie slammed his foot into the chest of the closest Renegade, knocking him from his feet. He could hear the sounds of his friends battling the gang members all around him. Once he had moved to Sera, the young ninja had hoped that he would never have to fight this gang again. So much for hoping . . ..

A Renegade punched Jamie in the back of the head. Finding himself more angered than hurt, Jamie whirled around and slammed his left foot across the other's face, knocking him to the ground.

Impatiently, the leader of Adventure yelled, "Yoshi, George, Buster, Max, Alex, Steve, come with me! The rest of you, keep the Renegades off our backs!" Turning to face the building, he charged the front door and leaped from the ground, kicking it and knocking it from its hinges. The seven teens charged in to find several figures that were dressed in white robes with hoods, their faces covered with black masks and their hands covered with black gloves. Each wore a black belt about his waist, from which a scabbard containing a short sword hung.

An old, black van stood in front of a set of loading doors twenty feet from where Adventure had entered. Next to the van stood two males. One was a young adult who was wearing some kind of leather shirt with metal studs and a scabbard with a beautifully crafted short sword. He was handing the second one, whom Jamie recognized as Ben Shalley, a small, black bag. When the two saw the young heroes, Ben jumped into the driver's seat of the van and started it as the other man pulled a lever to open one of the loading doors. Tires squealed as the vehicle shot out of the building.

A voice from above caught the young ninja's attention. "JAMIE!!!" The young ninja eyed the ledge that ran around the top of the room. There, he saw Shawna, struggling in vain to get free of an older man with a long, gray beard who wore a black robe that was covered with a number of strange symbols.

"SHAWNA!!!" he yelled as he broke into a run toward the stairs.

The old man began barking orders. "Stop them! Slay them!" The robed figures, along with the leather-shirted man, circled the seven adolescents, pulling their swords as they did so.

Jamie, frustrated at being blocked from the stairs, pulled his own ninja-to from its sheath at his side as his friends moved into a defensive formation.

* * *

Deck's motorcycle sped into the parking lot of the warehouse. He came to a stop next to Dave, who was grinding two Renegades' faces into the dirt. "Deck!" exclaimed Jamie's cousin. "What're you doin' here?"

"No time to explain," replied Deck as he punched a charging Renegade, knocking him from his feet. "Where's Jamie and Yoshi?"

"Inside," replied Dave as he butted his two victims' heads together.

"Then so am I," yelled Deck as he turned his bike toward the building, preparing to ride in through the open loading doors.

Sean and Pete squared off. Pete's eyes looked over his opponent, noting every flinch . . . every nervous breath.

"Been a long time," remarked Sean. "I guess it's time ta take care of unfinished business."

"You never could beat me," smiled Pete. "What makes you think that you can now?"

"I've gotten better since 'Old Man's Creek.'" Sean smiled. "I've been looking forward to a rematch for a lo-o-o-ng time."

* * *

Jamie blocked attack after attack. He brought an army, the young ninja realized. He knew we'd come after her. He smacked one of the swordsman in the back of the head with the flat of his blade. How long has he been watching us?

Looking up to see what the old man was doing with Shawna, he saw her stomp on his foot. The man howled in pain and let her go, so she lunged toward the stairs. The man searched through his robe frantically, producing a foot-long stick. Pointing it at her, he yelled a single word, "Sleep!" Shawna fell to the floor, unconscious.

"How did he . . .?" blurted Jamie, but was interrupted when the man pointed the stick at the garage door, proclaiming, "You will get no more help from outside!" The door began to lower . . ..

* * *

Deck raced at the garage just as the door was closing. Desperately, he leaned far to his right, hoping to go under the closing door. He leaned too far and the bike fell over. It, and its former passenger, slid under the door just before it closed.

Deck rolled to his feet next to Yoshi as she slammed one of the robed figures' face into a wall. "Deck!" she exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"Are you kidding?" demanded the big man. "I've gotta stop your friends from telling anybody how to get ta get t'my house. Now that the location's not a secret anymore, everybody'll be visitin' me. Nosy neighbors . . . insurance salesmen . . ."

One of the figures stepped toward the two, his sword drawn and a guttural hiss escaping from its hood. Deck smiled as he pulled Dragonfire from its place in his holster. "Stupid idiots! Bringin' swords to a gunfight!" He pulled the trigger, shooting the antagonist in the chest. A greenish liquid exploded from the wound.

"Green blood?" inquired Yoshi incredulously.

Steve ducked behind a group of barrels, grabbing desperately at one of the fallen antagonists' swords. He took in his surroundings, attempting to look logically at everything that was happening.

He was standing near a closed, plate-glass window, which looked out upon his friends who were outside, battling the Renegades. He couldn't really tell which side had the upper hand.

The old man had made Shawna fall unconscious with but a single word. He had gestured toward the garage door, and it had closed of its own accord. Logic has gone out the window, Steve realized.

Buster performed a 360 degree spin, bringing his right foot off of the floor and slamming it across the faces of three charging warriors. All but one crumpled to the floor, but he soon followed when Buster slammed the shaft of his nunchaku across his face.

Max and Alex stood back to back. Jumping off the floor, she brought her right leg straight outward, catching a charging figure in the face and flipping him onto his back with a painful THUD. She caught the next attacker in the stomach with the same foot, sending him to his knees in pain. Balling her right hand into a fist, she struck him across the face. He fell to the floor, but she felt a sharp pain run up her arm. "Ugh!" she exclaimed as she grasped her right wrist.

"What's wrong?" inquired Max as he jump spin kicked two attackers from their feet.

"These guys feel like they have solid-steel jaws!" muttered Alex between clenched teeth.

"Deck! Yoshi!" yelled Max. "We need some cover over here!" The two ran up and stood guard over the young couple, fighting off attackers as Max examined Alex's wrist. "I think you just sprained it. I just wouldn't punch anyone else for the rest of this fight."

"Thanks," she said with a smile as she kicked a charging attacker who had gotten through Deck's defense and was about to attack Max from behind.

Deck was looking around frantically. "What are you looking for?" inquired Yoshi.

"That idiot made me drop Dragonfire and I didn't see where it fell!" growled the big man, gesturing to the robed figure whom Alex had just kicked.

"We'll look for it later," proclaimed Yoshi as she kicked another charging attacker in the face. "For right now, just use your sword."

"Oh, yeah," mumbled Deck. "Blade." He whipped his two-handed sword from its sheath and cut down two charging figures with one swipe.

George jabbed the shaft of his bo staff into the gut of an attacking figure, causing him to double over in agony. He brought the shaft straight upward between the figure's legs, flipping him backward and to the floor.

Jamie fought his way toward the stairs that led to Shawna and the old man. He glanced up, confused, as the man drew two coins from the pocket of his robe and placed them on the floor. Then, confusion turned to amazement as a bright light shot up from them, etching a glowing, rectangular shape that was about seven feet high. The man picked Shawna up from the ground and stepped into the shape, followed by the man in the leather shirt. As Jamie reached the base of the stairs, the old man stepped back out, this time without Shawna. He leveled hate-filled eyes on Jamie.

"Of course, I am very angry at you for attempting a rescue," declared the man. "That was a foolish mistake on your part, and it will cost you." He pointed the stick at the barrels behind which Steve was standing.

Jamie realized that Steve was highly intelligent, but could sometimes miss the obvious. He was standing behind five barrels of TNT. But he appeared to realize this when the six inch wicks protruding from each of the barrels flared to life at the old man's gesture.

"Steve!" yelled Jamie.

"No problem!" yelled Steve. "It's like a candle! All I have to do is . . .." He closed his thumb and forefinger over one of the wicks, but found that, not only did it not stop burning its way to the barrel, but it also hurt, as well. "YEEOWW!!!"

Jamie looked around frantically. Then he started giving orders: "Steve . . . Out the window!" Then he turned and gestured toward the rectangle through which the two men had escaped with Shawna. "The rest of you! Through that . . . that . . . glowing thing!" He charged the stairs, with his friends in hot pursuit. He was at least pleased to note that they had dispatched all of the robed figures. He didn't like the idea of leaving the unconscious ones here to die, but he had to worry about the rest of Adventure first.

* * *

Pete kicked Sean in the stomach. When his opponent doubled over in agony, he spin kicked him across the face and knocked him to the ground. "You have gotten better! It's a lot easier for you to hit the ground, now!"

Dave performed a pile driver, knocking his unfortunate opponent unconscious. Climbing to his feet, he turned to see Mike Noddingham standing some ten feet away, eyeing him with a slight amount of amusement in his eyes.

"You were the best," chuckled the Renegade. "Or, at least, I always thought ya were."

"I owe ya one from Jameston, dude," muttered Dave as he began to circle his former friend cautiously.

"Ya know, none of this had ta happen," stated Mike. "Ben would've gladly taken you in as a leader in the Renegades. I would have accepted a partner."

"Sorry, dude," replied Dave. "I like ta fight, but I don't like ta hurt people who don't deserve it!" The two started to charge one another when a chair came flying through one of the plate glass windows on the front of the warehouse.

Both of the large teens looked in confusion at Steve as he leaped through the windwo and ran toward them, screaming, "RUN FOR COVER!!!"

Without a thought, Dave turned and leaped behind Sly's van, followed by the rest of Adventure, with the exception of Steve, who leaped behind a large tree. The Renegades crowded behind the Blazer.

* * *

Jamie stood next to the glowing door as each of his friends ran through it. Deck, whose fighting had taken him farther from the stairs, was lagging. He was just now reaching the top of the stairs. He could see that Jamie was going to wait for him. "Go on!" ordered the big man. "I'm comin'!"

Jamie leaped into the shape. Deck came to rest beside it, looking longingly toward the floor below, where he caught a glimpse of his gun. "Dragonfire," he cried.

Jamie's upper torso reappeared and grasped him by the back of his shirt. "Come on!" yelled the young ninja as he frantically pulled his friend into the door.

* * *

The explosion blew Buster's minivan sideways. Dave peered out from behind the larger van. Seeing the building in flames, the front half now non-existent, he leaped from his cover, screaming, "JAMIEEEEEEE!!!" He charged toward the building as it collapsed. The large teen would have kept going, had it not been for Pete, Sly, Leslie, and Zack tackling him to the ground.

Mike and the rest of the Renegades climbed quickly into the Blazer. He started the vehicle and backed out of the parking lot. Not quite what we had planned, he thought as he watched the flames continue to envelope the building and realizing that half of Adventure had been inside when it had exploded, including Jamie. But, it works just the same.

"Lemme go!" boomed Dave as he struggled to free himself of his friends' grips. "We gotta get'em out!"

"Let it go, Dave," said Zack, tears overflowing. "There's no way they could've survived that."

Dave finally quit struggling, looking up at the building in sorrow. Laura knelt next to him, tears pouring from her own eyes. She embraced her boyfriend, who buried his face in her stomach and sobbed as he had never sobbed before.

Chapter Six

Thursday, 9:20 P.M.

The last of the fire let out a hiss as it was smothered by the water from the fire truck. Dave sat on the hood of Jamie's car, watching the firemen look through the rubble of the old warehouse, expecting to see them pull a couple of blackened ninja-tos from the smoking heap.

He glanced over at Steve, who was laying on a stretcher, having been knocked unconscious by the force of the blast. They were loading him onto an ambulance to take him to the hospital in the Bluff. Leslie was arguing with one of the paramedics because he was telling her that he wasn't going to allow her to ride with her still senseless boyfriend to the hospital.

Laura walked up and sat next to the big teen, putting her arm around his waist and resting her head upon his shoulder. Dave cursed himself for letting anyone, especially her, see him cry. He had always been the tough guy . . . the one who could take anything. That had all changed.

"Ya know," mumbled the big teen, "before Jamie started learnin' that ninja stuff, people always used ta pick on 'im and bully 'im."

"I know," replied Laura. "He told me."

"Ya got any idea about who used ta protect'im?" inquired Dave, his voice beginning once again to crack. He didn't wait for an answer. "Me. I was the one who always used ta protect 'im, and now he's dead, 'cause I wasn't there ta help 'im!"

Laura pulled away from him and looked him square in the eye. "Dave Isaac, I don't ever want to hear you talk like that again!" She placed each of her hands on one of his shoulders. "You had no way of knowing that this would happen, and Jamie was the one who picked the people to go into the building with him, anyway. I'm sure he's the one who feels guilty right now."

Dave started to say something, but stopped as a fireman walked up to the two. "Excuse me, Dave Isaac?"

"Yeah," muttered Dave.

"I am afraid that we can find no trace of anything in the wreckage," said the man. "The explosion . . . vaporized nearly everything in the building."

"What?" piped Laura.

The fireman shook his head. "All my years with the volunteer department, and I've never seen anything like it."

"Ya mean that there isn't even enough left ta tell if they were even in there?" inquired Dave.

"We found some bone fragments. They're being sent to Jeff City for DNA testing."

"But some or all of 'em could've gotten out?"

"If they did, I'd think they'd be around here somewhere." The man took his hat from his head. "I'm sorry, but I really don't think that they had enough time to escape the building." He turned and walked away.

Dave put his face into his hands and began to weep again.

Chapter Seven

Friday, 6:17 A.M.

"Ugh," mumbled Max. "What hit me?" He opened his eyes to see the early morning sky. The sun was rising in the east. The sound of running water could be heard a few feet away. Sitting up, he placed his hand to his forehead, feeling a cut over his right eye. He pulled himself weakly toward the running water until he came to the bank of a spring. Dipping his hand, he splashed some of the water on the cut, then over his face in an effort to remove the grogginess.

The shocking memory of the battle suddenly flooded his mind. He remembered the fight . . . the old man and his helper taking Shawna through the glowing door . . . he and his friends following them as they fled an inevitable explosion. That was the last thing in his memory before waking here.

Looking around, he realized that he was in a forest clearing. The spring flowed up from the ground next to where he was kneeling, moving off into the distance and out of sight beyond the trees.

Jamie, Alex, Buster, George, Yoshi, and Deck were scattered about the clearing, unconscious. There was no telling how long they had been out. Crawling over among his friends, he gently shook Alex. "Wake up, beautiful," he whispered.

His girlfriend opened her eyes and looked at him in confusion. "What happened?" she inquired as she slowly sat up.

"I'm not really sure," replied Max. "But we need to figure out where we are."

The two set about rousing the rest of their friends.

* * *

Jamie cupped his hands together and dipped them into the cool, clear water of the spring. Bringing them to his lips, he drank deeply.

"Where d'ya s'pose we are?" inquired Deck as he worked his sore shoulder muscles.

"Your guess is as good as mine," replied Jamie as he looked around the clearing.

"Well," muttered Buster, "I guess it's safe to say we're not anywhere near the warehouse."

"I did not expect us to be," stated Yoshi. "Not after going through that 'glowing thing,' as Jamie called it."

"What was it?" wondered Max aloud as he tore a piece of his vampire cape off and made a sling for Alex's wrist.

Yoshi sighed and shook her head. "Magic?"

"I don't believe in magic," stated Jamie as he walked over to stand among his friends. "There must be some other explanation."

"The chunin of the Funakoshi ninja clan doesn't believe in magic," commented Deck with a chuckle. "How do you explain all that stuff you can do, like hidin' in shadows, and disappearin' in clouds'a smoke."

"Each of these things can be explained scientifically," replied Jamie. "In Feudal Japan, the ninja wanted people to think that they were supernatural. But now, it's just like any other illusionary magician. The magic isn't real, but you never tell others how you do it."

"Look up there!" exclaimed Buster in amazement. He was gesturing toward a figure that was flying toward them. As it came closer, the teens and adult could make out what seemed to be a monkey with wings!

The creature landed in a tree just above the group. "Greetings from Tarent the mage," it said, its voice screeching like that of a bird.

"Who?" inquired Max.

"Tarent wishes for me to tell you that you were foolish to follow him here to get the girl," continued the creature. "For this misdeed, he will allow you to be trapped here for the rest of your miserable lives."

Max crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. "Here?"

"But," said the creature, ignoring him, "he has stated that how long those lives are depends on you."

"How so?" demanded Buster.

"If you make no further attempts to save the girl, he will not kill you."

Jamie exploded in rage. "You tell that old MONSTER that he's going to have to do alot more than make threats to keep us from getting Shawna back, do you HEAR ME?!!!"

"Then you have sealed your own fates," squawked the creature as it took to the sky.

"We've landed in Oz," muttered Buster as he fidgeted with the silver cross that hung from his neck.

"Well," asked Yoshi, "what now?"

"It flew off in that direction," said Jamie, still watching as it disappeared into the distance, "so we head that way, too."

Chapter Eight

Friday, 9:42 A.M.

Steve sat straight up with a start. Looking around, he realized that he was alone in a hospital room. A sudden pain in his head told him that he had sat up too quickly. Rubbing his temples with his forefingers, he groaned in pain.

The door to the room opened and Leslie walked in. "Hey," she said happily, "you're awake!" She walked up and embraced him.

"What's wrong with my head?" inquired Steve.

"The doctor said that you have a mild concussion," explained his girlfriend.

Looking up at her, he asked, "What about Max and the others?"

Leslie's eyes filled with tears at the mention of Steve's younger brother's name. "They didn't make it out."

"Were there any bodies?"

"The firemen said they found some bone fragments and sent them to Jeff City to test," answered Leslie.

Steve took a deep breath, held it for a moment, then released it. "I've got to get out of here!" he exclaimed as he climbed out of the bed, grimacing in pain.

Leslie replied, "You're not going anywhere until your head stops hurting."

"I've got to get to that building," explained Steve. "If not for me, for Max."

Leslie sighed. "Okay, I'll call Sly and see if he'll come and get us."

"Thanks."

* * *

"I'm surprised they let ya out," said Sly as his van carried Steve, Leslie, and himself toward the now destroyed warehouse. "What's so important that ya have ta come back here?"

"You guys have no idea what happened inside of that building last night," said Steve. "You didn't see the strange men in robes with swords. You didn't see the strange guy in studded leather armor. And, most importantly, you didn't see the weird, old man with the magic wand who put two coins on the floor and opened a glowing door, through which he and his friend took Shawna."

Leslie and Sly exchanged concerned glances. "I think that you shouldn't have left the hospital," commented Leslie. "That explosion must have caused more injury than we thought."

Steve continued. "Jamie told me to jump out that window last night. He and the rest of the guys were closer to the portal than I was, so they were running toward it when I got out." He looked back and forth between the two, noting their genuine looks of concern. Narrowing his eyes angrily, he said, "I'll prove it to you when we get there."

The van pulled into the parking lot and stopped. Steve leaped from the vehicle and looked around. Jamie's and Buster's vehicles were still here, some fifteen feet away from where the building had stood.

Steve ran toward the rubble, dodging crime scene tape that had been stretched around the remains of the building, and began his search. Leslie and Sly joined him. "What're we lookin' for?" inquired Sly.

"Two coins," answered Steve.

The three looked for about ten minutes before Leslie finally said, "I found one!" Steve and Sly both walked over to examine the gold coin that was in her hand.

"What's so special about it?" inquired Leslie.

"I believe that I can answer that," replied Steve. "This is one of two coins that formed a base for that portal. But even if you two don't believe me about them escaping through a glowing door, you still have to realize that this coin was unscathed by the fire. This proves that there is something special about it." He gestured around. "I mean, the explosion brought the building down!"

"But you said there were two . . .." began Sly.

"I don't know where the other one is," interrupted Steve. "Maybe the Renegades came back to make sure that the leader of their enemies, as well as half of the rest of their enemies, really were dead." He frowned.

"What?" inquired Leslie.

"One thing doesn't make sense," replied Steve as he pinched his bottom lip, something that he always did when deep in thought.

"What's that?" asked Sly.

"Very few people know where Deck's house is. Only the rest of Adventure, the necessary town officials, and the three of us, to be exact. Now, it's not exactly town policy to give out the location of a house that the owner doesn't want to be found." Seeing confusion on his two companions' faces, he continued, "How did the Renegades know how to find us?"

Chapter Nine

Friday, 5:30 P.M.

Zack, Pete, Jeremy, Steve, Leslie, Sly, Laura, and Amy stood under the late afternoon sky near Water's Kiss. The sound of the river filled their ears as they waited impatiently for Dave to arrive and tell them why he had called them here.

The big teen walked up to the group. "Thanks fer comin', dudes and dudettes."

"What's this all about, Dave?" snapped Jeremy.

Dave took a moment to gather his thoughts. "Even though Jamie and the others are gone," he said shakily, "we still have to worry about the Renegades. We can let what's happened tear us apart, or we can pull through and fight back with everything we got."

"Don't you think it's a bit early to be worrying about the Renegades again?" asked Leslie.

"Nope," replied Dave seriously. "They're celebratin' right now . . . probably. They realize that we've lost five of our number, includin' our leader. If they wanted a time to get a hold on Sera, this is it."

"Dave's right," voiced Pete. "Since we didn't take them seriously, it took them a matter of a couple of weeks to really get a hold on Jameston. We can't let ourselves get disorganized and let 'em do it here, too. Do you think that the others would want to know that they had died in vain?"

"What do we do first?" inquired Jeremy.

"Well," answered Dave, "I s'pose we should see where everyone stands with us."

Zack was the first to comment. "Jamie was my cousin, for cryin' out loud! I'm still in."

"Jamie was my cousin, too," stated Pete. "I'm in."

"I saw it happen, first-hand," said Steve. "They're going down."

"Although I haven't been a member up until now," uttered Leslie, "Max was very dear to me. And I want a part in bringing his killers to justice."

Laura took Dave's hand in her own. "I go where you go."

"Shawna was more like a sister to me than a cousin," said Amy, speaking at last, her voice filled with an almost unnatural rage. "And I loved Buster more than any other human being in the world. They'll pay for what they've done."

"I wanna join, too," said Sly. "Jamie'n Deck were my friends and actually treated me like I had some sense, even when I didn't show it."

"I guess I'm still in," stated Jeremy.

A voice from behind Dave caught the big teen off guard. "Count me in, too." He whirled around to find Louis. "You guys and Jamie and the others have been my friends since I got here."

"You feel up to it?" asked Dave as he noticed that Louis still had many of the bruises from his fight with Mike.

"I heal quickly," was the reply.

"Okay," said Pete, "I guess it's time to pick a new leader."

"Well," commented Zack, "I guess I always just kind of figured that Dave was Jamie's right hand guy, ya know? Like the second in command?"

"Yeah," agreed Pete. "Dave should be our leader."

"Dudes," muttered the big teen, "I don't really think I have the smarts ta lead."

"On the contrary," disagreed Steve. "You know a great deal about tactical offense and defense."

"Yeah," chimed Leslie. "And you're alot smarter than you think you are."

"Okay," said Dave. "I guess I'll do it." He put his right hand out. "We've suffered losses, but we haven't lost the war. Jamie, Max, Alexandria, Deck, Shawna, Yoshi, Buster and George'll be remembered." As the rest of the group of adolescents placed their own right hands on top of his, his voice changed, gaining a seriousness that his companions had never heard him possess. "Now, there's only PAYBACK!!!"

* * *

Ben sat at his desk, writing in his log book about the arrival of twenty more Renegades from Jameston. He was interrupted by Mike as he entered the motel room.

"I didn't hear you knock," grumbled the leader.

"Sorry," said Mike. "This seemed pretty important and I guess I fergot."

Ben looked up at his friend and sighed. "What is it?"

"Our ears in Adventure gave me some really unexpected news."

"Oh?"

Mike's face showed a mix of humor and confusion. "Well, they didn't break up when they lost half their number."

"They didn't?" Ben's face took on the same look.

"Their ideals have changed, though," smirked Mike.

"How so?"

"Well, I was told they are planning to get down and dirty with us."

Ben chuckled. "'Down and dirty?'" His chuckle became a hearty laugh. "I think not."

"They want revenge," smirked Mike, his voice cracking with chuckles, as well.

Ben stopped laughing. "Who have they picked to replace Jamie as leader?"

"That's the funniest thing," remarked Mike. "They picked Dave!"

Ben climbed slowly from the chair and walked to the window. Looking out at nothing in particular, he inquired, "And what's so funny about that?"

"Dave?" spurted Mike between fits of laughter. "He's tough, but c'mon. He's an idiot."

"Dave isn't the imbecile that you think that he is," commented Ben. "He has common sense that's far beyond the little sense that you have in that rock on your shoulders."

Mike stopped laughing. "You really think he'll be a good leader?"

"Yes," stated Ben bluntly. "And, to make matters worse, Dave doesn't know when to quit. Jamie would have been easier to handle, simply because of the code of honor that he possessed. Dave has no such code. He would just as soon break our necks as look at us."

"Should we try ta take'im out?"

"For the moment, in memory of Jamie, Yoshi and their honorable friends, we will allow the members of Adventure a few days to mourn." Mike started to protest, but Ben silenced him with an upraised hand. "During this time, we will interview the people who we have selected from this town to join us. One advantage that we have over our opponents is the fact that they are selective about the people whom they allow to join. We, however, are not." Ben was correct. If they were vicious, and enjoyed money, then he'd give them a chance.

* * *

Dave sat in his room, awaiting a phone call. The phone rang and he answered it. "Hello?"

"Dave?" The voice belonged to Steve. "Leslie told me that you wanted me to call you."

"She told me about yer little theory 'bout the coins," explained Dave. "I just thought that, until yer feelin' like yerself again, maybe you shouldn't get too involved in this whole thing with the Renegades."

"I am quite myself, Dave," snapped Steve. "I have always tried to put everything into a logical perspective, but I simply can't come up with a logical explanation for a glowing door or a magic wand. I know that it sounds crazy, but wouldn't it be nice to be able to hope?"

"Dude," said Dave with a sigh, "things like that just don't happen."

"I know what I saw. It doesn't matter if you believe me, or not. When we fight the Renegades, I'll be the one looking for the other coin, and if I find it . . .."

"You got one o' the coins?" interrupted the big teen.

"Yes. Didn't Leslie tell you?"

"She was in a hurry when she called." Dave closed his eyes. Glowing doors. Magic wands. It all seemed so fantastic . . . so unrealistic. But he wanted to believe. He wanted to believe more than anything.

"Dave? Are you still there?"

"Yeah," muttered Dave. "Can you bring the coin over here? I wanna take look at it."

"Sure."

Chapter Ten

Friday, 9:30 P.M.

Jamie dropped his armful of twigs and branches into the pile that was being amassed to keep the fire burning. The group had traveled all day without eating more than blackberries that they had found in the forest. Still not seeing any sign of civilization, they had decided to camp for the night. Jamie, Buster, and Max were gathering the wood while George and Deck had gone hunting for food. Jamie had lent Deck the use of his crossbow, although Deck had told him that it would be easier to kill an animal with his bare hands than to shoot it with Jamie's "peashooter."

The sounds that surrounded them in the darkness were both comforting and disturbing. Some sounds were familiar. An owl somewhere nearby would remind them of its presence from time to time with a loud hoot. Crickets played their chorus all around them. But some sounds only feigned familiarity. The group had heard a howling a thankful distance away. The howl seemed more primal than anything that Jamie had ever remembered. They definitely didn't sound like the coyotes that lived in the woods of Sera.

Jamie sighed as he seated himself next to Yoshi. The two girls had been left to watch the fire while more fuel had been gathered for it. The young ninja looked into the depths of the flame, a memory pushing itself to the front of his mind. He could see, as he remembered running through the glowing door, that the two bottom corners of it were made up of two gold coins. He hadn't gotten a chance to examine them, but, then again, the warehouse had been about to explode.

He thought about Shawna and all of the things that she had said to him about his constant heroics and about how this was part of the reason that she had ended their relationship. Now he had followed her to, by all appearances, another world to save her. He supposed that this wouldn't exactly change her opinion.

Alex's voice brought him back to the present. "Thinking about Shawna?"

He looked up at her, sitting on a log on the other side of the fire. "Yeah," he mumbled, lowering his gaze back to the fire.

"Don't worry," said Max. "We'll get her back."

"Maybe," was all that their leader could say.

Yoshi looked at him, sisterly compassion showing upon her face. "I know that I have not exactly gotten along with Shawna since the two of you separated," she said, "but you are my clan-brother and, no matter how foolish I think that it may be to attempt to rescue someone who has hurt you as much as she has, I will help."

Jamie looked up at her. "Is love foolish?" he asked. "If George were to break up with you, then get himself into danger because of your past, wouldn't you try to help him?"

Yoshi didn't say anything. She just looked quietly down at her lap.

"Hey, guys!" called a deep voice from the forest. Jamie looked up to see Deck and George entering the clearing. Deck was carrying a large buck over his shoulders, followed by George, who was carrying Jamie's crossbow.

Deck dropped the deer upon the ground. A bolt was piercing the side of its neck, which had also been slit. Its eye appeared swollen, as well. A slit ran up it's abdomen where the two hunters had obviously gutted it before moving it.

"Jeez," muttered Alex. "You mutilated it. My dad doesn't ever tear'em up that bad when he goes hunting."

"Well," replied Deck, "yer dad probably don't use a crossbow that shoots bolts that are smaller'n pencils, either."

"Why's it's eye swollen?" inquired Max.

George chuckled. "Well, I shot it in the side of the neck, then Deck jumped out of the tree that we were hidin' in onto the poor thing's back. Then he slugged it with a good right hook . . ."

"It was still fightin' back," interrupted Deck. "I had ta get it t'stop somehow." King Arthur's descendant pulled his boot knife from his boot and began to skin the deer. Jamie was thankful that Deck had decided to dress as a Scottish tracker for his party.

"So you punched it?" inquired Alex. "How barbaric."

Deck grinned. "Hey," he said. "'Least we're eatin'."

"It's legs look strange," commented Yoshi.

Jamie examined them. They seemed more muscular and more bent than a normal deer. "What is that thing?"

George looked at Deck. "It looks like a deer, but it moved like a rabbit."

Deck was busy gutting it. "It jumped up at the branches of a tree near us to get leaves to eat."

Alex let out a sob. "We're never going to get home, are we?"

Max put his arm around her. "We'll find a way."

"Yes," added Buster. "All we have to do is find this man who has Shawna and make him send us back."

Yoshi placed her hand comfortingly on the girl's shoulder. "We will keep you safe."

Deck and Max found three thick sticks and used them to make a spit on which to cook the meat. Jamie watched them without emotion. His stomach growled, but the thought of eating did not appeal to him. Looking up into the sky, he wasn't even shocked to find that the constellations didn't resemble those to which he was accustomed . . ..

Chapter Eleven

Friday, 9:45 P.M.

Steve, Jeremy, Pete and Dave sat on a picnic table in Dave's front yard. The former three huddled over the big teen's shoulder as he held the coin, examining its strange inscriptions.

"Looks valuable," commented Pete.

"I should say that there's something special about it," replied Steve. "It survived an explosion that destroyed all the other metal in the building." He shook his head. "There's not even a char on it."

"But if there were two . . ." started Dave.

" . . . I think that the Renegades probably came back to the building to examine it and to be sure of our comrades' demise," stated Steve. "They probably found the other one."

"And if we find this other coin," asked Jeremy, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "we can open this door of yours and bring them home?"

"Precisely," returned Steve.

Dave shook his head. "I can't believe this, dude." He handed the coin back to the genius.

Steve took the coin, closing his right hand around it into a fist. "As I stated over the phone, you don't have to believe me. The way I see it is that we're going to be fighting the Renegades, anyway. I will personally look for the coin. If I find it, and it doesn't work, or if I simply don't find it, then at least we've taken care of our antagonists." He smiled. "But, if we do find it, and it does work, then we'll have my brother back, your cousin back, and all of our friends back."

"Fine, dude," muttered Dave. "It's yer pet project, though."

"No problem," chimed Steve as he and Jeremy turned to take their leave.

Pete sat upon the picnic table and rolled his head around, releasing the tension with a series of pops. "I really wish that Jeremy'd take a bath more than once a week," he whispered to the big teen.

Dave sighed as he watched Steve and Jeremy walk off up the road, the moonlight shining down upon them like a spotlight. "I dunno," he muttered, "I think that we're all so used to his smell by now, that we'd all freak out if he started takin' baths regularly."

"Whaddya think 'bout the coin?" asked Pete.

Dave shrugged with a sigh. He thought about Jamie . . . about how his cousin always used to look at things logically. This whole glowing door thing didn't seem very logical, that was for sure. Turning to look at Pete, he instructed, "Go an' call the rest of Adventure. Tell'em that we're gonna have a meeting tomorrow at noon."

Chapter Twelve

Saturday, 5:50 A.M.

Jamie and Deck had taken the final watch. The sun was starting to rise in the east, slowly brightening the encampment. Deck sat about five feet from the young ninja, stirring the coals of the fire and singing the chorus of Danny Boy. Jamie kneeled over one of the logs upon which he and his companions had sat the night before. Lord, he prayed silently, I seem to have gotten us into a most interesting predicament. Yesterday, I was in such utter confusion, that I forgot to speak with You, and I pray that You'll help me to avoid doing this again. I pray that You will keep us all safe and help us to find our way home. He thought about a certain girl who he had followed here, as well as her captors. I pray that You'll watch over Shawna and keep her safe. And I pray that You'll help me to control my temper once we finally catch up with this Tarent.

I praise You for our lives and our safety.

Then, he whispered aloud, "In Christ's Name I pray. Amen."

"Huh?" inquired Deck.

"Nothing," mumbled Jamie as he turned and sat upon the log. "Just finishing my prayer."

"Didja say one fer me?".

"I mentioned us all," replied Jamie as he unsheathed his ninja-to and began polishing it. "Although you could pray for yourself. He'd hear you."

"Not much of a prayin' person," muttered Deck. "Never have been."

"Maybe that should change," stated Buster, who sat up and stretched with a yawn.

"Welcome back to the world of the living," commented Jamie.

Buster rubbed his eyes as he responded, "Is that what this is?" Then he turned to kneel over the same log and begin his own prayer.

Jamie glanced over at Alex, who had cried herself to sleep. Max lay next to her, having let her use his cape as a blanket.

"I expected Alex and Max to both be upset about us bein' stranded," commented Deck. "Max seems to be handling it pretty well."

Jamie nodded. "Alex is really close to her family." He looked up at Deck. "Max and Steve practically raise themselves."

After rolling his head around on his shoulders to loosen it up a bit, Jamie rubbed his tongue along the front of his teeth. I need to brush them, he thought. Badly. Rubbing his right hand over the stubble of what had begun to grow on his cheeks, he realized that he needed to shave, as well.

"I wish I had some soap," muttered Jamie. "I'll bet I smell like Jeremy, right now."

"Nope," mumbled Max as he sat up in the place where he had been sleeping next to Alex. "You have to go about a month without bathin' for that." He stretched. "And I'm fine about us being here." He gently shook Alex. "Wake up, pretty girl."

Looking up at him, she smiled and said, "Good morning."

A scream suddenly pierced the morning air, awakening the other two from their slumber.

"What was that?!" exclaimed George.

"I don't know," replied Jamie as he leaped to his feet and charged off in the direction of the noise. "But I'm going to find out."

The other six followed their leader into the forest.

Chapter Thirteen

Saturday, 6:02 A.M.

As Jamie sped through the forest, he became aware of the sounds of several voices up ahead. He stopped running, now moving as quietly as he could. The training he had received by his late sensei in this area was not wasted. Not so much as a crunching leaf gave away his movement.

He turned to look for his friends. He saw them moving through the brush toward him. Motioning for them to be quiet, he moved slowly forward.

After a few moments, the young chunin came to the edge of a clearing, hiding behind a large tree. Within this area, several hooded figures danced around an ancient, stone altar in the center of the clearing, chanting in an unfamiliar language.

A woman was tied to the altar. Jamie searched through his vest for his glasses. After putting them on, the young ninja could make out that she had long blonde hair and that she was wearing some type of a blue robe. Around her waist was a belt from which hung a large pouch and several smaller pouches. The girl had fine, chiseled cheek bones. Her eyes were slightly slanted, although not in the same way as Yoshi's. Her skin looked pale and delicate. As she struggled against her bonds, she opened her mouth and issued another blood-curdling scream.

Deck, Buster, George, Max, Alex, and Yoshi arrived and crouched next to their leader. "What is going on?" inquired Yoshi at just above a whisper.

"I don't know," replied Jamie in the same tone.

"Looks ta me like their gettin' ready t'sacrifice her," stated Deck.

"It sounds like they're speaking Latin" commented Buster as he removed his two pair of nunchaku from their places upon his belt.

Jamie removed his ninja-to from its sheath and watched as Yoshi did the same with one of hers. He chuckled quietly at the sight of a barmaid with a sword.

"What is so funny?" she asked.

"Nothing," he replied as he turned back to the clearing.

One of the figures, the tallest at a little over six feet in height, danced to a stop on the far side of the altar. Producing a wickedly jagged dagger from his belt, he started saying something in the same strange language in which his companions were chanting.

Then, he reached his gloved hand up and pulled back his hood. The members of Adventure and their friend gasped. The head was hairless, covered only in green scales. The creature's mouth was much wider than that of any human's. A forked tongue protruded from between its razor sharp teeth. Fixing its blood red eyes upon the girl, it said, finally in English, "Our master demands a blood sacrifice of one of the order of Merlin." He held the dagger aloft, preparing to plunge it into the helpless young woman, who closed her eyes and screamed once again as the other figures stopped dancing.

Without a thought, Jamie pulled a four-pointed shuriken from his vest and hurled it. The star buried itself deep within the creature's chest, causing it to screech in pain and drop the dagger.

Leaping from the forest, the young ninja thundered, "LET'S GET'EM!!!" The rest of his companions followed suit and charged at the hooded beings.

Leaping from the ground, Jamie brought his right foot straight out and slammed it into the chest of one of the creatures, knocking it back into two of its companions.

The one who had been struck with his shuriken was now pulling the star from his chest. The front of the creature's robe was soaked with a green substance.

"They're the same things that we fought in the warehouse!" Jamie exclaimed as he kicked another one in the face, knocking it from its feet.

"Good!" thundered Deck. "I owe'em fer the loss'o'my gun!"

He grabbed one as it ran by, slamming his fist into its face. Howling in pain and dropping the unfortunate creature, Deck started hopping up and down, swearing and holding his now sore right hand with his left.

"Oh, yeah," called out Alex with a chuckle. "Don't punch any of them in the face!"

"Now ya tell us!" growled Deck with a grimace as he unsheathed his massive sword, striking down three of the creatures in one mighty sweep.

Buster slammed one of his nunchaku against the head of one of the creatures. Swinging the other pair upward in an arc, he smacked the creature in the chin, knocking it to the ground, unconscious.

Hearing the girl screaming once again, he looked toward her to find the first creature again coming toward her with the knife. Knowing that he could never reach her in time, but seeing Yoshi within striking range of the two, he yelled out to her.

"I am on it!" she exclaimed as she leaped over the altar, slamming her right foot into the creature's chest as she did so. He was knocked back a few feet, but kept his balance.

The creature glared down at Yoshi, growling and pulling a short sword from beneath its robe. "Strange human!" it bellowed. "I warn you that I am the greatest swordsman of the Crechaw!"

"The what?" asked Yoshi as she ducked a quick swipe from the creature.

"I will feed your eyes to the buzzards, human!" it thundered as it swung at her again.

"As appetizing as that sounds," began Yoshi as she pulled her second ninja-to from its sheath, "I am afraid that I will have to decline." She thrust her right blade toward the creatures stomach, but it was blocked with a forceful parry that sent painful vibrations into her teeth . . ..

Max jumped from the ground, striking out with his right foot and knocking one of the creatures from its feet. It fell backward, impaling itself upon a large dead oak branch that was lying upon the forest floor.

He looked toward Alexandria to make sure that she was faring well. He found her spin-kicking three of them across the face in one motion.

Two of the creatures caught her from behind, knocking her to the ground. One of them held her pinned as the other pulled a short sword from its sheath on its belt.

Yelling in rage, Max charged the latter and leaped from his feet, his momentum carrying him, foot first, into the sword-wielding monster. It was knocked backward, dropping its sword, and landing upon its back with a THUD.

After kicking the other creature to knock him away from Alex, he snatched the sword from the ground. "So," he boomed, "you were gonna stab her with this, huh?!" He plunged the blade deep within the antagonist's chest, its green blood exploding out. "How's it feel?"

Looking up, he noticed Alex leap onto the other creature's back and club it over the head with a large rock. The creature's eyes rolled back into its head as it fell to the ground.

Fighting to catch her breath, she looked at Max, whose face was pale, and asked, "What's the matter?"

"I just killed something," was his reply, just before he doubled over, gagging on bile.

Deck took down two more of the creatures with one swipe of his two-handed sword. All around him, his friends were battling the strange creatures. He was thoroughly enjoying himself, feeling as if he were living in one of his role-playing games.

A voice from behind caught his attention. "Please untie me!" He turned to see the girl on the altar. "I can be of assistance!"

"Don't see how," he muttered, "but I'll cut ya loose." Swiping steadily with his blade, he severed the four ropes that were holding her down. He then watched in wonder as this lovely creature climbed to her feet upon the altar and yelled a couple of strange words, extending her hand and pointing at one of the creatures. It's eyes bulged and it fell to the ground.

"How . . . How . . .?" gasped Deck, hardly believing his eyes.

The girl looked at him and cocked an eyebrow. "I am a prophet, of course."

Yoshi performed a back flip, bringing both feet into the creature's chin. The creature stumbled backward, but still remained standing.

The creature attempted a downward stroke, but Yoshi narrowly dodged to her right and avoided the creature's blade. She started to swing one of her own swords upward, but the creature was too quick and sliced her across the right leg. She gasped in pain and fell to one knee.

"Now, you die, human!" exclaimed the creature as it reared back with its sword.

In a last ditch effort to stop the creature from ending her life, Yoshi shoved both of her ninja-tos into its gut. A look of surprise registered upon her opponent's reptilian face as it dropped its sword, her blades dislodging from it as it fell backward.

Looking down at the creature, she said, "I believe that you were mistaken."

Jamie, having just struck down the last of the creatures, rushed to his clan-sister's side, putting his arm around her and helping her to walk back over to the rest of their friends.

"He was pretty good," remarked Yoshi with a chuckle.

"The best swordsman of the Crechaw," stated the young woman who had been on the altar. "I would say that you are very good!"

Yoshi looked up at her with a smile. "Some have said so."

"What's a crechaw?" asked Max.

"A magically altered human," replied the girl. "They were a creation of Tarent of Skull Keep."

"Tarent!" snapped Jamie. "He's the one who has Shawna! Where can we find this Skull Keep?"

"Oh," stated the girl, "you don't wish to go there. Tarent is the baron of a small area about two days' march to the south. He has proclaimed that anyone who enters his tower without permission will be put to death." She looked around suspiciously at the tattered teens and their adult friend. "Everyone knows about Tarent. What is your story?"

"All I know is that this Tarent-guy has taken a person who is very dear to me," said Jamie, "and I intend to get her back."

"I see," murmured the girl.

"What's your name?" asked Alex.

"Oh, my word!" exclaimed the girl. "How rude of me." She composed herself, straightening her robe and the pouches upon her belt. "I am the prophetess, Elvara Winterbreeze, daughter of the weapon smith Darian Winterbreeze."

"I'm Alexandria Rhee," said Alex as she shook Elvara's hand. "And this," she gestured at her boyfriend, "is Max Adams. These are our friends . . . Jamie Raleigh, Yoshi Funakoshi, Buster Goodman, George Tanner, and . . ."

" . . . Deck Pendragon," interrupted the big man as he took her right hand and kissed it, "at your service."

Elvara smiled shyly and used her left hand to stroke her blonde hair behind her ear, which the members of Adventure could now see was pointed.

"What is the matter?" she asked, blushing as she noticed them staring.

"Your ear," stuttered Max. "It's . . . it's . . . pointed!"

Her eyes narrowed in confusion as she folded her arms across her chest. "Haven't you ever seen an elf before?"

Chapter Fourteen

Saturday, 6:12 a.m.

"An elf?" Alex, her eyes focused on the alien woman, could barely get the question to move past her lips.

"Yes," replied Elvara, mildly annoyed.

"Just where are we?" demanded Yoshi.

"Near the village of Freestone," stated the elf. "That is where I live. I was on my way there when those crechaw captured me. Are you lost?" Looking at Yoshi's leg, she exclaimed, "Oh, my! How can you stand the pain?"

"I have a high threshold for pain," muttered the kunoichi, "And I have a great deal on my mind at the moment."

Elvara knelt before the female ninja and, pulling a vial from one of her smaller pouches, poured a clear liquid on the wound. As it began to fizzle, she pulled a clean, white cloth from the larger pouch and wrapped the kunoichi's leg.

"Thank you," stated Yoshi.

"As I told this handsome gentleman here," said Elvara, gesturing toward Deck, "I am a prophet. Medicine is part of the profession."

"So you're kind of a doctor," asked Deck.

Elvara looked at Deck. "That is a secondary function. My primary task is to give others messages from the Risen Savior."

"Okay," gathered Jamie aloud, "we're near this Freestone. Where is that located?"

"In the southern forests of New Camelot," stated the maiden with a chuckle. "You really are lost, aren't you?" She stopped chuckling and looked at Alex. "From where do you originate?"

"Aurthur, Missouri," replied Alex.

"'Missouri?'" inquired the prophet. "Where is that?"

"Earth," said Jamie as he finally turned his gaze from the elf maiden and looked toward the south.

"Earth!" exclaimed Elvara. "You are from the Mother World?!"

"The what?" asked Buster.

"The Mother World." The elf thought for a moment. "That would explain a great many things."

"We have to find this Tarent," stated Jamie seriously. "If he doesn't return Shawna . . .."

"He's taken a girl?" inquired Elvara, one eyebrow raised.

"Yes." Jamie's impatience was evident.

"Was this girl devoted to the The One True God?" asked Elvara.

"She follows Jesus Christ," was the young ninja's response.

"The One True God. Follow me to my father's home so that you can clean up and get some food," instructed Elvara. "There, I will tell you a story . . ."

Chapter Fifteen

Saturday, 7:00 A.M.

Pete looked at his watch. He hadn't been able to sleep much the previous night, so he had decided to go for a quiet walk around town. He had hoped to find a few members of the Renegades out this morning so that he could release some frustration. He had been walking around for about forty-five minutes when he had seen John Bowers, Sera's high school basketball team captain, and his friend, Freddy Jenks, walking toward the Moonlight Motel. It had seemed odd to see these two out at this time of the morning, so he had decided to follow them.

Pete stopped beside the building, peering around the corner and watching as the two knocked on the door to cabin six. After the door had been opened and they had entered, he crept from his hiding place and moved slowly toward the window to this room. The shades were open and he could make out voices within . . .

* * *

Ben stood before the five new initiates. He was pleased to note that they all seemed in fairly good athletic condition, but he wondered why there weren't more. "Sean," he muttered. "Are these the only ones who answered our word on the street idea?"

"Uh," began Sean, " . . . yeah."

"Why?" inquired Ben, his arms folded across his chest. "The money didn't seem to make a difference?"

"The teen-agers of Sera seem to have a great deal of respect for Adventure."

"Oh?"

Sean sighed. "They did save them from a ninja clan."

"I see," said the leader. Looking at the five adolescents standing before him, he noticed John. Moving to stand before the basketball player, he commented, "You don't exactly look like Renegade material. Why do you want to join us?"

"Dave Isaac stole my girlfriend from me and made me look like an idiot in front of the whole school," replied John. "I just wanna get'im back."

"Revenge is a dangerous motive," stated Ben calmly.

"Isn't it the reason you're here?" asked John.

"Very good point," replied Ben. "You're all in."

* * *

Pete realized that he had found the Renegade's base of operations in Sera. He walked calmly away from the motel. He could hardly wait until the meeting at noon so that he could tell Dave the news.

Chapter Sixteen

Saturday, 7:45 A.M.

Jamie had never seen a cottage like the one before which he and his friends now stood. It was about the size of the house in which he and his parents had lived before they had purchased the mobile home. The dusty tan color was accented by a white trim that ran along the corners of the house. Hanging over the door was a plaque with the inscription "Darian Winterbreeze, Weapon Smith".

Standing next to the cottage was a smaller building, which was the same color. A steady stream of smoke arose from the chimney and the steady sound of metal striking metal could be heard coming from within. "My father's forge," stated Elvara as she noticed the group looking at the building curiously.

"A forge?" asked Deck.

"Yes," answered the elf-maiden. "I told you that my father was a weapon smith." She beckoned for the teens to follow her as she approached the smoking house. "Father?" she called.

The clanking sound stopped, then a thin man with white hair and the same pointed ears as Elvara stepped out of the door. "Daughter!" he exclaimed as he opened his arms.

Rushing forward, the prophetess threw her arms around the old man. "I missed you so much!"

Max asked, "Just how long have you been gone?"

"I have been away, studying, for nine moons," said Elvara as she pulled away from her father. "But where are my manners?" She gestured toward the group of adolescents and said, "I was attacked in the forest by a group crechaw, but these kind travelers came to my aid." She introduced each of them. "I was hoping that we could give them shelter for the night, as well as some food."

"Of course," stated the man. He walked up to the group. "Nothing's too good for someone who has saved my daughter's life!" Looking around, he said, "Which of you is in charge?"

Everyone pointed to Jamie, so the man extended his hand to the young ninja. "Darian Winterbreeze."

Jamie shook Darian's hand.

"You look like you've traveled quite a distance," remarked Darian.

"Longer than you know," muttered Max.

* * *

Darian spooned stew into the wooden bowls before his daughter and her guests. The aroma of the stew was pleasant, but Jamie was in no mood to eat.

"You said that you'd tell us a story," said the young ninja.

"Are you not hungry?" asked Elvara.

"Not really," replied Jamie. "I still haven't quite gotten over the weird rabbit-deer hybrid that I ate for dinner last night."

Elvara stared at him blankly. "'Hybrid?'"

"Never mind." Realizing that he was being rude, Jamie tasted a small spoonful of the food. The moment that it touched his tongue, the succulent taste made his body realize just how hungry he really was. "I can eat and talk at the same time," he stated before shoveling another spoonful of the stew in his mouth.

"Very well," chimed Elvara. "The story of Tarent is rooted in the very history of our world."

"Which is?" asked Max as the sound of glass breaking came from the next room.

Everyone turned to look toward the sound in concern.

"Oh, don't worry," commented Elvara. "My father is a wonderful weapon smith and cook, but he's rather clumsy with most other things." She ate a spoon full of the stew, then said, "Now . . . our history. Our world's history is tied into that of the Mother World, which is your world. You see, Earth, as you natives call it now, was once a place of magic, just like ours. The elves of Caledonia paid tribute to many dark forces, until Merlin brought the worship of Christ to our lands. My ancestors converted to Christianity nearly fifteen hundred years ago, much to the chagrin of our queen, Morgan LeFaye."

"Morgan LaFaye was an elf?" inquired Yoshi.

"All elves of our world are descended from the peoples of Caledonia," was Elvara's reply. "You knew of her?"

"The stories left out the elf part," stated Buster.

"Where did they say that she was from?" Elvara's eyes narrowed in confusion.

"Caledonia," declared Deck.

"But the people of Caledonia were all elves," said the prophet.

"There weren't any humans there?" asked Alex.

"You speak of elves and humans as if they were a separate species." The elf maid shook her head.

Max ran his fingers through his short, blonde hair. "They're not?"

"Of course not! I may look somewhat different than you, but that does not make me any less human!"

Buster shook his head. "That Jerry Norton guy would sure feel uncomfortable here," he muttered, remembering the leader of the Ku Klux Klan who had kidnapped Jamie's nieces and nephew a few weeks earlier.

"Uh . . .," interjected Jamie, "your story?"

"Well," continued Elvara, "the greatest of our order, Merlin, who was the prophet who advised King Arthur, was concerned by some of the Britons' interests in trying to explain everything but remove the Father from those explanations. The Great God of Heaven gave him the ability to see what the future would hold for the civilized world, should they continue to attempt to remove Him from their reasoning. He found that, in time, our God's enemy would corrupt this knowledge into even more false religions.

"In an effort to leave the chaos that he knew would occur, Merlin searched through the far reaches of space for a world to which he could take those men and women who wished to flee the coming religious wars. He found it and named it Thera. He then began the ten year process of moving the settlers." She sipped at her glass of wine. "The first people to be moved were those in Camelot, and the people who settled this region were from there."

"Why are there no records of any elves in our history?" inquired George.

She raised an eyebrow. "There are not?" She shook her head. "As the centuries passed, I suppose that we have simply become myth."

"And ears are made of cartilage, which eventually decomposes," piped Max. "Which is why no elf skeletons exist."

Elvara looked at Yoshi. "I had assumed that you had ancestors who had Elven blood."

Yoshi shook her head. "I am Japanese."

Elvara's eyes narrowed. "Japanese?"

"What does this all have to do with Tarent?" asked Jamie.

"Well," sighed Elvara as she sipped her wine again, "Thera wasn't the Promised Land that Merlin had hoped. We could not escape the consequences of our First Parents' transgressions. Merlin came to accept that he had been led here for a different reason . . . one that has yet to be revealed. Many falsely professing believers came through, as well. Tarent was born three-hundred years ago to one such false believer. Tarent spent his childhood being groomed to be a prophet, although all evidence points to the idea that he never wanted to be one. His father merely wanted the prestige that he thought would come from having a child who studied under Merlin, himself."

"This was three centuries ago?" inquired Buster.

"Yes," answered Elvara. "The path down which fate has led Tarent has extended his life. And some wonder if Merlin is dead even now."

"What does Tarent want with Shawna?" asked Jamie.

"Well," explained the elf maiden, "Merlin knew that Tarent and his father were false believers. He refused to teach him. Without a second thought, Tarent dedicated his life to our Lord's enemy. He sought out a warlock to train him. His new teacher required a blood pact, so he slaughtered an entire village—including his own family—in the name of the Evil One. After years of training, he was also charged with killing Merlin."

"You said that some people think Merlin's still alive," reasoned Buster. "So, Tarent failed."

Elvara nodded. "He was no match for Merlin. His teacher punished him for his failure. According to legend, this punishment was the most severe torture that could ever be given to a wizard. He cursed him to slowly evolve into a mortoque."

"What's a 'mortoque?'" asked George.

"It is a reptilian horror that dwells within the badlands to the south of Tarent's barony," she replied. "They are mindless killers that live only to feed, so one can imagine why it is such a curse for a man who values his intellect as much as Tarent to be turned into one."

She set her glass on the table and looked Jamie in the eyes. "Every curse has an escape clause. The one that was given to Tarent was that, if he could find a woman from the Mother World who is a Christian prophet, marry her and then consummate their marriage, then he will be freed from his curse."

"Are you saying that Shawna is a prophet?" demanded Jamie.

"Apparently so," returned Elvara. "Only the most powerful of wizards can even look into your world, so Tarent was never expected to fulfill the escape clause. But, apparently, the dark one has surpassed all of our expectations." Her gaze continued to penetrate Jamie. "Now, what you have to decide is this: Knowing that this Shawna may be the one for which Tarent has been searching, and knowing that the wizard will do everything within his power to end his curse, including wiping each and every one of you from existence, is she still worth retrieving?"

Jamie's gaze never faltered. "I can't speak for my friends, but I would fight to my dying breath to save her."

"That is good," whispered Elvara. "Because you very well may."

Chapter Seventeen

Saturday, 12:10 P.M.

The barn of Donnie Isaac, unused for its original purpose, made a suitable, makeshift meeting place for what was left of the group called Adventure. Leslie, Laura, Amy, and Sly had just been accepted into the group. As the four took their places in the line, Dave began to speak.

"Dudes and dudettes," he said, his arms folded across his broad chest, "I don't want any questions about this, I just want ya to listen." He cleared his throat. "Steve believes the Renegades have some kinda' coin, maybe that the old guy who'd kidnapped Shawna paid them with, and, when we tangle with'em, I want you guys ta look for it." He gestured toward the young genius. "Steve has one that he found in the rubble of the building. Look at it, memorize it, and if ya find one like it, give it to'im. Got it?"

The rest of the group, although confused, agreed. The four who knew about Steve's theory didn't seem to understand why Dave was taking it so seriously, but they didn't press the issue. Each examined the coin, then returned to his or her place in line.

"Now," continued Dave, "Pete thinks that he's found where the Renegade's are stayin' here in Sera."

"They're in the Moonlight Motel," he stated. "When're we gonna go kick their butts?"

"What'd ya see when you were there?" asked Dave.

"Well," thought Pete aloud, "Ben and Sean were there, and so were five guys from our school who were joinin'."

"Only five?" asked Zack. "I figured they'd have alot more."

"Most of the people our age respect Adventure for saving them from the Waruiyatsu," said Leslie.

Dave scratched his right cheek with his left hand. "We move in Monday morning, at dawn."

Chapter Eighteen

Saturday, 5:30 P.M.

Jamie felt better than he had since he'd arrived on Thera . . . at least physically. He had bathed and shaved, and Elvara had even been able to get them all some neat wooden-handled tooth brushes. She and her father had been able to pretty much find clothing to fit each of them, and Yoshi was delighted by the fact that Elvara was a tomboy, so she had pants that would fit the kunoichi, as well as Alexandria. They weren't exactly Levi's, but they'd do.

It had taken the group most of the rest of the day, taking turns at a spring that ran behind Darian's cottage, to get themselves cleaned and presentable. By late afternoon, Yoshi had repaired the various rips in Jamie's ninja suit that had been sustained since their arrival on this strange world.

Deck had found himself the hardest to fit for clothing. Amassing the gold coins from the money pouches of the crechaw that they had defeated that morning, Max, Alexandria, and the large man had set out for town, with Elvara as their guide through the crowded afternoon streets.

The village was unlike anything that the three earthlings had ever seen, outside of old fantasy movies. The buildings were all one story, with the exception of two town houses, which were both owned, as Elvara told them, by the mayor.

Stepping onto the porch of Peter Singlethorn, Tailor, Max produced the coins, fifty in all, and gave them to Elvara. The way he looked at it, the elf maiden knew more about the currency of this world, and she would be less likely to be taken in by a fraud.

Inside the shop was a man who was carrying an armload of red cloth from one side of the shop to the other. "Excuse me, Mr. Singlethorn?" said Elvara.

"Elvara Winterbreeze!" exclaimed the middle-aged, balding human. "I haven't seen you in . . . How long has it been?"

"Around ten moons," she replied as the man set the load on a shelf. "I've been away studying."

Turning back around to face her, he asked, "What can I do for you, young lady?"

"I need to have some clothing made for someone."

"Well, show him in," smiled the tailor.

"Deck," she called. The big man entered the building, followed by Max and Alex.

"Oh, my," remarked Peter. "You are a big one, aren't you?"

"'Been told so," stated Deck.

"This could take a while," said the tailor as he wrapped the tape around Deck's rather ample waist.

Max looked curiously around the shop. "You girls can go and look around the village, if you want," he declared. "I'll wait with Deck."

Alex gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "We won't wander too far," she chuckled as she and Elvara turned and walked out of the shop.

"Well, young man," asked the tailor of Deck. "What is your favorite color?"

"If I don't answer this correctly," inquired Deck sarcastically, "am I gonna be shot off a bridge and into a deep pit?"

"Pardon?"

"I don't think he's a Monty Python fan, Deck," commented Max.

"'Monty Python'?" questioned the tailor, his eyes narrowed in confusion.

"Never mind," muttered Deck. "Color don't matter."

The man set to work looking for various materials to begin the process of making Deck's clothing. "Perhaps we can go over some styles."

Deck shrugged. "I've got some time."

As the tailor disappeared into the back room, Max walked up to the big man, who had taken a seat on a stool. "I've been thinking."

"'Bout what?" asked Deck.

"Well, I got this short sword from one of those crechaw that we fought this morning, and since you know about how to use swords, and all . . .."

"You want me to teach you how ta use it," Deck finished the lad's statement.

"Yep," replied Max. "I figured that my tae kwon do might be useful here and all, but I didn't think that it'd be enough. Jamie's already said that he'd teach Alex and me how to throw those knives of his."

"No problem," said Deck. "I'll teach ya."

A man walked into the shop. "Peter, guess what?" he demanded.

"What?" inquired the tailor.

"You know that muscle-man, Jordon?" asked the man. "The one who's friend said that he would pay twenty gold pieces to anyone who could stay in the square with him for more than three minutes?"

"Yes."

"Some girl who was with the black smith's daughter. . . she couldn't be much older than twelve . . . has taken him up on it!"

Max and Deck eyed each other in terrified amazement. "Alex!" they exclaimed in unison as they bolted for the door.

Chapter Nineteen

Saturday, 5:35 P.M.

Elizabeth's opponent let out an echoing moan of anguish as he fell to the ground.

"Good job, sis!," cheered her little brother, Kevin Raleigh, as he pumped his fist into the air, nearly dropping his ice cream cone.

"It's all in the wrist," stated his sister as she climbed down from the stool that sat in front of the video game, following Kevin over to sit with their cousin Jessica, and Pete Raleigh and Dave Isaac. The three youth had never had any trouble coming to Shorty's Pizza by themselves before but, since their Uncle Jamie had gone to Heaven, as their grandmother had said, Dave had become a bit more protective of the three.

"Guess what, Dave!" exclaimed Kevin cheerfully.

"What's that, little dude?"

"Elizabeth beat her high score!"

"That's awesome, dude," replied Dave as he sipped his soda through a straw.

"Yeah," remarked Jessica. "The only one who ever did better at that game than Elizabeth was Uncle Jamie!"

Elizabeth smiled. "He could kick real butt and electronic butt." She looked down at the half-melted sundae that sat in front of her. "I miss him."

Dave patted her on the shoulder. "We all do."

Pete had been looking out the window, when he tapped Dave on the shoulder and exclaimed, "Dave! Look!"

The big teen looked out the window to see five figures walking into the parking lot of the small restaurant. Lead by a teen-ager that he recognized as Brad Whitman, each wore a blue-denim jacket with a large R sewn into the back of it. "Under the table, kids," instructed the leader of Adventure. "Stay outta sight. Pete'n' me got a score t'settle."

* * *

Brad liked this part of the job. Shorty, the man who owned this restaurant had refused to pay the Renegades' insurance tax. Now, he had been appointed to bring some guys to bust the place up.

The gang members entered the building. Looking at Shorty, who was pulling a pizza from the oven behind the counter, he said, "Hey, mister Tiny! We just came by t'get yer insurance money."

"That's Shorty!" snapped the owner. "And I already told you that I'm not paying you little delinquents anything!"

"No prob', Bob," stated Brad. "My friends and I'll just have us a little fun in yer arcade!" He nodded to one of the four Renegades who were with him, who walked calmly through the large wooden door that led to the eating area and video game room.

Shorty grabbed the phone from the wall. "I'm calling the police!"

Brad whipped out a butterfly knife as one of his companions picked up one of the candy machines from the floor and smashed it through the large window in the front room. Pointing the weapon at Shorty, he ordered, "Put the phone down!"

Suddenly, the Renegade who had been sent into the other room came flying back into this room. Brad looked at the door to see Dave Isaac and Pete Raleigh walk calmly through it.

Dave looked at Brad, an unnatural rage burning within the big teen's eyes, and declared, "Payback begins now!"

Chapter Twenty

Saturday, 5:42 P.M.

One of the other four Renegades, the one who had helped Brad throw the candy machine through the window, lunged toward the two members of Adventure. Pete slammed his right foot into his opponent's gut, causing him to double over in pain. Rearing back with his right fist, he slammed it into the Renegade's face, knocking him to the ground.

The next Renegade to charge the two felt himself scooped up into Dave's powerful arms. The big teen hurled him over the counter. The Renegade landed at the base of the table where the crust was prepared. The jarring of this piece of furniture dropped a sack of flour on his head.

"I CANT SEE!!!" bellowed the gang member as he lunged over the counter, tugging at the flour sack. Dave caught him and threw him through the shattered window and onto the sidewalk outside.

Pete leaped from the floor, bringing the top of his right foot across another Renegade's face, knocking him backward and into a wall.

The door to the eating area and arcade opened and Jessica entered the room, carrying the straw from Dave's citrus soda. Sensing a chance to even the odds, the remaining Renegade underling lunged toward her. Quickly placing the end of the straw to her mouth, she blew through it, sending black pepper flying into the antagonist's eyes. He screamed in pain, rubbing his eyes vigorously, as she brought her right foot up into his groin with all of her might. The Renegade dropped to his knees in pain, being sent into unconsciousness by one of the young lass's well-placed kicks to the face.

Brad swung his right fist at Dave, who caught his wrist and twisted his arm behind his back. Slamming the Renegade head-first into a wall, the big teen thundered, "Tell Ben that Sera ain't gonna be taken as easily as Jameston wuz. He's dealin' with a different Adventure this time, and we play fer keeps!" He pulled Brad away from the wall and hurled him out the window. The four Renegades who were still conscious climbed to their feet and burst for the street.

Looking down at Jessica, Dave muttered, "I thought I told ya ta stay under the table."

"Sorry, Dave," smiled the youngster, "but I figured that you needed a woman's touch."

Dave crouched next to her. "Joke all ya want, but this is serious. Yer uncle would've never willingly put you kids in danger. And I'm not any different."

She nodded with a frown.

Chapter Twenty-One

Saturday, 5:47 P.M.

Max and Deck pushed their way through the crowd toward the town square. They finally broke through so that they could see what was happening, coming out next to Elvara. Alexandria was standing on one side of the wooden stage, smiling at a large man who made even Deck seem small. This man was standing on the side of the clearing opposite her. The man was looking at Alex with a most confused expression upon his face.

A smaller man stood between the two, his face having the same look. The man yelled out to settle the crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen, this young lady has accepted Jordon's challenge! But she is a woman, so he will only attempt to remove her from the clearing. He will not try to harm her."

Elvara wrung her hands in distress. "I cannot believe this!"

"Me neither," muttered Deck. "If that guy hurts her, then we'll have ta carry two kids back't yer father's cottage, cuz Max'll be the next one in the square!"

"What should we do?" inquired Elvara.

Max chuckled. "Bet on her."

* * *

A timekeeper signaled the beginning of the three minutes. As Alex approached Jordon, she was pleased to note that he still had that confused look on his face. Good, she thought. He underestimates me.

The man lunged at Alex, swinging both arms at her in an effort to grab her. The young lady slid upon her back between his legs, bringing her right foot up into his rear, adding to his momentum and nearly knocking him from his feet.

The man looked at her, shocked by what had just happened. Looking at his little friend, who was obviously the brains of the two, he yelled, "What do I do now?"

"If you hurt her, you'll have the entire crowd chasing us, you idiot!" exclaimed the man. "Just try and catch her!"

"I don't want to hurt the pretty girl," mumbled Jordon as he turned to face Alexandria.

Alex found herself pitying the bigger man. The smaller man was obviously taking advantage of him because of his slowness.

The timekeeper called, "Two minutes to go!"

Looking around, she saw Max and Deck standing with Elvara, cheering for her. She waved just before she ducked, deftly dodging another one of the big man's slow attempts to grab her. Sweeping her right foot outward, she tripped Jordon, knocking him onto his back. Leaping to her feet, she danced quickly to the other side of the clearing, coming to stand next to the smaller man, who stood roughly two inches taller than her, as the big man slowly climbed to his own feet.

"Get up, you great oaf!" yelled the smaller man as the timekeeper called out that there were thirty seconds remaining.

"Shut up, creep!" exclaimed Alex as she slammed the back of her fist into the smaller man's face, knocking him backward and from his feet.

Jordon moved slowly and warily toward Alex. She smiled and performed a somersault, rolling between the big man's legs. The time keeper called "Time!"

Max ran up to his girlfriend, throwing his arms around her. "Congratulations!" he exclaimed. "But, I could'a done better."

"Oh, really?" asked Alex with a smile.

Deck and Elvara walked up to the young couple. "I"m glad ya didn't get hurt," said Deck.

"Gee," replied Alex, "I didn't know you cared!"

"Are you kiddin'?" grumbled Deck. "I didn't wanna have ta pull Max off'a that guy!"

Jordon's manager approached the four. Holding his nose with his left hand, he handed Alex twenty gold coins with his right, muttering, "You won these, fair and square."

"I think you're scum for what you do with that poor man," stated Alex as she snatched the money from him.

"Look," said the guy, "it works out well. He's got the brawn . . . I have the brains. At least we both eat."

"You don't have to treat him so harshly," she proclaimed.

"Maybe not," mumbled the man as he handed four times as many gold coins to Elvara as he had given Alex.

"What are those for?" demanded Max's girlfriend.

"Max told me to bet on you," replied the elf. "The odds were four to one against you." She smiled. "Your young friend has a great deal of faith in you."

"Yeah," muttered Max. "But I didn't really expect you to place a bet. We need to teach you about Earth sarcasm."

* * *

Jamie sat at the base of a large oak tree that stood on the bank of the spring, staring at the cool water of the spring as it rushed by. "Jamie!" called a familiar voice from the woods. It was Yoshi.

"I'm over here!" he replied.

Yoshi walked out into the small clearing. She was wearing her new ninja suit. Jamie marveled at his clan-sister's skill. He had known that she had done well in Home EC her freshman year of high school, but he had never realized that she could sew so well. The suit was different than the one that she had left on earth. That one had been black, like his. This one was gray, but she had paid great attention to detail, having even done a good job with the arm gauntlets, which her mother had told him, many years before, were a tailor's headache.

"What do you think?" she asked as she turned about, modeling the suit.

"Very impressive," replied Jamie with a thumbs up. "Especially without a sewing machine."

Yoshi tossed Jamie's own suit to him. Until now, he had been wearing an old pair of black pants and a white shirt that he had borrowed from Darian. "Thanks," he said as he climbed to his feet and walked to stand behind some bushes, so that he could change. "Where're my tabi?"

"They are at the cottage," she replied. "I couldn't copy them, so I have been forced to wear these high soft boots, as Darian calls them."

Jamie looked down at his sister's black foot coverings. "They don't look bad with your ninja suit."

"I know," muttered the kunoichi. "I just don't feel as comfortable without the split-toe."

The two continued their conversation as they headed toward the house . . ..

Chapter Twenty-Two

Saturday, 7:22 P.M.

Pete had been sitting in his bedroom, playing a video game on his television, when he had received the phone call. The sinister voice on the other end had told him that the Renegades were going to strike at a place in Aurthur that Jamie had held dear. He had called Dave and the rest of Adventure, and the group had gotten together to think of what it was to which the person had been referring.

Amy had been the one to figure it out, but it was too late by the time they had arrived to stop the Renegades from setting fire to the First Community Church of Aurthur, Missouri.

There had been no sign of the street gang when they had arrived, just a blazing inferno. The pastor and his wife and three daughters were there, weeping in anguish.

Dave had just watched the blazing church building, his rage matching that of the fire that he was witnessing, thinking of ways to punish the people who had strummed up the courage to commit such a heinous act . . ..
Chapter Twenty-Three

Sunday, 6:30 A.M.

Jamie finished his prayer, then climbed to his feet. He had just gotten back from a morning bath at the creek, when he had felt compelled to speak to the Lord. He sighed and looked around the upper room of Darian's cottage, which was serving as a bedroom for all of them. Walking over to the backpack that Max and Alex had purchased for him the day before (how they got the money, he didn't know or care to know), and opening it, he stuffed some extra clothes and food inside of it.

Everyone was up and getting ready to set out on the two-day journey toward Skull Keep. Deck and the others had heard in town the previous day that Tarent was planning his wedding on Wednesday. This was an event that the young ninja had every intention of stopping.

Darian had offered the group two horses, which they had gratefully accepted. Deck had purchased three more in town. None of them knew how to ride very well. But Skull Keep was a two-day trip by horse, not on foot.

The young ninja fastened the belt of the scabbard of his ninja-to around his waist as Elvara entered the room. "I have decided to accompany you on your journey," she stated.

Jamie was shocked. "I thought you told us that it would be really dangerous."

"It will be," said the elf. "I have grown rather fond of all of you and I don't want to see any of you get hurt. A prophet may come in handy."

He shrugged. "I wish we had a prophet to help us with stuff back on Earth."

Elvara cocked an eyebrow. "If we save this Shawna, then you will."

* * *

Everyone stood outside, preparing the horses.

Max and Alex were planning to share a horse, and Alex had already grown attached to the horse that they were going to be riding. "I'm gonna name her Zohi," stated the girl. The name was pronounced Zowee.

"How do you spell that?" inquired Max.

"Z-O-H-I," replied his girlfriend.

"That's not how you spell it," muttered the lad. "That's Zohigh."

"Hey," snapped Alex playfully, "I named it and I'll spell it's name any way I want."

Jamie climbed unsteadily onto his horse. The rest of the group followed suit. "Don't worry," explained Elvara. "You'll get used to riding them before long."

"Shawna had always wanted me to go horseback riding with her," muttered the young ninja. "I wish now that I had."

Jamie and Buster each had horses to themselves, Max and Alex shared a horse, as did George and Yoshi, and Deck and Elvara.

"Come back to me safely, my daughter," instructed Darian.

"I will, father," replied his daughter.

Jamie looked down at Darian. "You've been so good to us. If there's anything we can do for you . . .."

Darian wiped a hand across his eyes. "Just protect my daughter."

Deck nodded. "You got it."

* * *

The teens had entered the edge of Tarent's barony at dusk. As Elvara pointed out, there were only three villages in his barony, and only one of those villages stood in their path. The group had decided to stay here and purchase the rest of the necessary equipment for their journey.

The streets were empty and quiet. The only indication that the village was not deserted was candlelight in some of the windows and smoke billowing from the chimney of the largest building in the town, the inn.

"Careful," mumbled Jamie as he and his friends climbed from their horses in front of the Wayward Inn. "As that . . . monkey-thing . . . pointed out, Tarent knows that we followed him here and, since this is his realm, we're outlaws here."

"Cool!" exclaimed Alexandria. Looking at Max, she chimed, "Just like Bonnie and Clyde!"

"Tarent makes the laws here," explained Elvara. "If he finds us, he will have us put to death."

"Just like Bonnie and Clyde!" mocked Max playfully just before Alex slapped him on the shoulder.

"What are the chances that these people will turn us in?" asked Buster.

"There is no love lost between Tarent and his citizens," explained Elvara. "I've heard of no bounty for you, so they will probably leave us be if we do not cause any trouble."

The group entered the inn to find that there were ten patrons sitting at three different tables, and two more patrons at the bar. The innkeeper was whistling some strange tune as he cleaned some mugs with a white cloth. Everyone within stared cautiously at the adolescents and their two adult friends as they entered the building.

"Friendly people," whispered Jamie to Yoshi as the group made its way to the bar.

"Considering the law here," she commented in the same whisper, "I would assume that the people mistrust any strangers."

The eight each took a seat at the bar. "What'll it be?" inquired the barkeep, still eyeing them suspiciously.

"Rooms," answered Deck.

"One gold a night, per room," muttered the man. "Baths and meals included."

Elvara paid for eight rooms and meals for each of them. The food was good, a wild boar having been killed by a hunter earlier that day. Jamie, Buster, Max, Alex, and Deck had each drank water, while George, Yoshi, and Elvara each drank ale. After inquiring about the reason Deck had refused ale, the elf was surprised to find out about his ulcer, caused by too much drink when he was learning his trade in Scotland some years before.

Buster looked around the room at the other patrons. "All the people here look like travelers."

Jamie shrugged. "Makes sense. I'd expect that anybody who lives in the town has probably gone back to his home by now."

Apparently bored by the quiet chatter, Max began looking around at the other patrons. Looking to his left, he noticed that one of the customers at the bar was an attractive, young adult woman who was sitting two seats away from him. She had long black hair, and a frame similar to that of Yoshi's. A short sword hung at her side. But what caught his attention the most was her flute. "Are you a musician?" he asked her, hoping that she was more friendly than the rest of the patrons.

"Among other things," she replied with a smile. "I entertain for pay, although nobody seems interested tonight."

"I am," stated Alex. Handing her two gold pieces, she said, "Play something."

The girl smiled and picked her flute up from the bar.

"What's your name?" asked George.

"Drielle," replied the entertainer as she brought the flute up to her mouth. "Drielle Nightsinger." She began to play.

At first, although lovely, none of the group recognized the melody. But, then Max caught some similarity to an earth tune and started singing. Alexandria's jaw dropped. He sang beautifully. Looking around, she noticed that the rest of her friends seemed just as shocked as she was.

* * *

After a few songs, the group decided to turn in for the night, each going to his or her room. Max lay quietly in his bed, just having completed a bath. The mattress was filled with feathers, unlike the spring-filled ones to which he was accustomed back home. It was quite comfortable, though. At least it was better than the wooden floor upon which he had slept the previous night.

So why could he not sleep? He could hear the steady snoring of Deck in the next room. But he had heard that the night before in Darian's cottage and he had slept fine.

It's us being in this horrible place, he thought. He closed his eyes and shook his head, tears welling up. Not just Tarent's barony. This whole blasted planet. I miss Mom and Steve. He opened his eyes and looked heavenward as his eyes overflowed. "God?" he whispered. "I wanna go home." Then the strength that he had been forcing upon himself for the past few days broke and he wept himself to sleep.

* * *

Jamie opened his eyes with a groan. Looking out the window, he noticed that the light of dawn was just starting to fill the sky. After climbing from his bed, he dressed himself in his ninja suit, then walked to the door to his room and opened it. Stepping out into the hallway, he made his way to the top of the stairs and looked down to see several armed guards, dressed like the man that Jamie had seen with Tarent in the warehouse.

One of the men was speaking to the barkeeper. "Their leader would have been a little under six feet tall, in his mid to late teens . . . brown hair . . . blue eyes. He had a short sword with a black-braided handle and may be wearing spectacles. There were three girls with the group, and one of them was an elf. Seen them?"

Deck came up to stand by Jamie, followed by Elvara. "What is happening?" inquired the elf-maiden.

"Some guards are looking for us," replied Jamie.

Looking back at the men below, Jamie was surprised to see the female musician from the previous night running up the stairs toward them. "Run!" she mouthed. Then Drielle jerked forward and fell into Jamie's arms, a crossbow bolt protruding from her back. Jamie eyed the soldier who had shot her, now reloading his crossbow, in rage.

The young ninja set her body gently upon the floor as Deck pulled his sword from its sheath. Then, the three turned and charged down the stairs.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Monday, 5:32 A.M.

Jamie was pushed to the side as Deck leaped headfirst into the five soldiers who were coming up the stairs. This succeeded in buying some time. The young ninja leaped onto the railing of the stairs as he noticed Elvara close her eyes and begin praying. He sprung from the rail and landed on the first floor. Pulling his ninja-to free from its scabbard, he spin-kicked the first guard to lunge at him.

Deck grinned at his predicament. The five guards whom he had attacked were holding him from being able to swing his sword. Each of his arms was being held by two of the warriors, while one of the guards had both arms wrapped around the large man's neck, trying in vain to choke him.

Deck swung both of his arms together, slamming the four guards who were holding them into each other. As they fell to the floor in a daze, he grabbed the last of the men from his back and, swinging him around to face the big man, roared in his face. The man paled, and then Deck hurled him across the room. The guard crashed into an empty table.

Elvara completed her prayer and pointed her hand at the chandelier. The flames leaped from the candles, landing near two of the men. They began screaming in terror as the flames sprouted feet and began chasing them. The men charged out of the door of the inn, the running flames hot on their heels..

Jamie turned to see three archers crouching near the fireplace, their short bows loaded and ready. Each launched their arrows at him, one after another.

The young chunin snatched the first out of the air with his right hand, the second with his left, and the final one struck the wall behind him. The men's jaws nearly hit the floor. One of them dropped his bow and pulled his short sword, charging at the young ninja. He attempted a downward swipe, which Jamie easily ducked. Spinning the arrows in his hands, he shoved the tips into the man's legs. The antagonist howled in pain and dropped to the floor, his sword clanging as it landed next to him. Jamie kicked the man across the face and knocked him unconscious.

* * *

Max and Alex came out into the hall to find Buster, George, and Yoshi coming out of their respective rooms, as well. "What's going on down there?" demanded Max.

"Sounds like a fight to me," replied Buster as he pulled both pair of nunchaku from his belt.

"Well, we figured that," snapped Max. "But who's fightin'?"

The group ran to the top of the stairs, to find Deck, Jamie, and Elvara battling several men in studded leather armor. Looking up at Buster, Alex said, "Quick! Go to the stables and get our horses and meet us out front! We'll see what we can do t'help Jamie and the others." The group charged down the stairs, Buster kicking a few of the men before charging out the front door.

Max pulled a dagger from the shoulder belt that he had purchased the day of Alex's fight with Jordon. Hurling it at one of the guards who was chasing Elvara, he missed his mark and it hit a bottle of wine behind the bar, shattering it. "Darn!" he exclaimed as he charged the man. Leaping from his feet, he brought his right foot out and slammed it into the side of the man, knocking him backward and over the bar.

"Thank you," said Elvara.

George and Yoshi stood back to back. George slammed the shaft of his bo into one of the guards' face. The man grabbed his mouth just as George kicked him in the stomach, causing him to double over in pain, then slammed the staff into his back and knocking him to the floor.

Yoshi parried a sword thrust with her left ninja-to, then swiped at the man's gut with her right. The man looked in shock at his tattered, but bloodless leather shirt, giving her just enough time to end the confrontation with a well-placed kick to the head.

Jamie spin-kicked one of the guards over a table. Whirling around, he noticed Alex standing near him, facing off against a guard who dwarfed even Deck. Both of the teens looked at each other, then Jamie reared back with his right fist, and Alex her left, and both struck the man square in the face at the same time. Then, using the same momentum, they spun around and Jamie brought up his left foot, and Alex her right, and both kicked the man squarely in the face. He stumbled backward and fell to the floor as the two victors gave each other a high five.

Deck grabbed one of the guards and hurled him into four of his friends. Wrapping his huge hand around the face of another of the guards, he slammed the back of his head into the wall next to the front door. As the man fell to the floor, unconscious, the big man looked out the door to see Buster waiting in the street with the horses. "Jamie!" he yelled, "Preacher-boy's got the horses outside!"

"Then let's get outta here!" ordered their leader as he gestured toward the door. After waiting for the rest of their friends to clear out of the building, Jamie and Deck charged out and leaped onto their horses.

As they hastened toward the forest at the southern edge of town, Jamie rode up along side of Buster and asked his student, "Didn't the guards have any horses?"

"Yeah," replied the kensai, "but I cut them loose before I ever got our horses. They took off in the other direction."

The group could hear the curses of the guards in the town behind them as they entered the forest.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Monday, 6:15 A.M.

The dawn light began to slowly illuminate the area around the Moonlight Motel. Dave had instructed Pete to lead half of the group to the back door to cabin six, while the big teen approached the front door with the other half. Trying the doorknob, he found it locked, so he stood in front of the door and kicked it open. Lunging in, they all met in the middle of the bedroom. There was no sign of the Renegades.

"I thought ya said they were here!" thundered Dave to Pete.

"They were," he replied.

"They don't seem to be here now," stated Leslie.

Steve looked around curiously. "Where's Jeremy?"

Louis's eyes narrowed at a light beeping rhythm that had just begun. "Shut up for a minute, guys!" he ordered as he followed the sound to the bed. Looking underneath, he found a digital clock that was connected to some red cylinders. The timer read eight seconds. "IT'S A TRAP!!!" he exclaimed. "LET'S GET OUTTA HERE!!!"

The teens burst out the front door and leaped behind a garbage dumpster. The room exploded with a thunderous BOOM!

Dave and the rest peered out from behind the dumpster. The room had been demolished, and it had taken half of the building with it.

"Well that's somethin' ya don't see everyday," commented Jeremy with a chuckle.

"Yes," remarked Steve, "but we've been honored enough to see it twice in one week."

"How the SAM-HILL'D they know we were comin'?" thundered Dave.

"'Guess you were right, Steve," said Sly.

"Right 'bout what?" demanded Dave.

"Steve thinks we've got a traitor in our group," explained Leslie.

"And you didn't say anything sooner?!" snapped Pete.

"I wasn't sure," replied Steve. "I didn't want us to get too worried about it if it wasn't true."

"Well," mumbled Jeremy, "yer indecisiveness nearly got us all killed."

Dave started to say something, but was halted when a live grenade landed at his feet. Without a word, the big teen angrily picked up the grenade and hurled it into the nearby swimming pool. The explosion brought a shower of water down upon the group.

"Looks like they're still nearby," muttered Zack.

Looking around frantically, the group realized that several adolescents, twenty-five in all, were moving out into the parking lot, each wearing a blue-denim jacket with a large R sewn into the back of it.

One of the Renegades stepped forward, followed by another. Dave recognized them as John Bowers and Freddy Jenks. John spoke. "Well, I guess I should thank you, Dave. By stealing Laura from me, you made me hate you enough to join the Renegades. And who would have thought that Ben would have put me in charge of the Sera branch?"

"You?" chuckled Sly. "A leader?" He started laughing. Looking at Dave and still laughing, he said, "We should just let'em go. With John Bowers in charge, they'll destroy themselves within a month."

"That's a month longer than they're gonna last," boomed Dave. "Fight us, John." He smiled cruelly. "If yer man enough!"

Without another word, the two groups clashed. Dave was ruthless with the Renegades that he fought, breaking noses and limbs to get to John.

Pete slammed his foot into a charging Renegade's face, knocking him flat onto his back. Another one of the delinquents punched him across the face, but he spun with the momentum, bringing the back of his own fist against the side of the Renegade's face as he came back around. The antagonist swung his fist again, but Pete caught it and slammed the heel of his right foot into the kneecap of the attacker, dropping him.

Sly came up behind a Renegade who was attacking Laura and kicked him in the groin from behind. The delinquent groaned in pain as he dropped to his knees. Laura picked up a rock and slammed it into the gang member's head, knocking him senseless.

"Thanks," she mumbled begrudgingly.

"M'lady," replied the scoundrel as he feinted a bow. Then, more seriously, he added, "Maybe you should hide in my van with Amy."

Freddy Jenks circled Louis warily. "I owe you one from that night with Max," he muttered as he held his fists in front of him.

"As I recall from the beating that I gave you," corrected Louis, "you owe me about ten."

Freddy lunged angrily, but felt Louis's knee in his gut. Air exploded from the bully's lungs, but he recovered quickly.

"Why don't you just give up?" inquired Louis.

Freddy didn't say anything. He simply charged the young man again, and, this time, felt Louis's right foot in his stomach.

Grabbing the bully by the hair, Louis slammed his head into the side of the dumpster, knocking him unconscious. Staring down at his opponent, he muttered, "You're not tough enough to be a bully".

Steve, Leslie, and Jeremy faced four Renegades. Jeremy notched an arrow and shot it, nailing the sleeve of the jacket of one of the Renegades to the outer wall of the motel.

The other three charged them. Leslie grabbed two of them by the throat, one in each hand, and slammed their heads together.

Steve punched another, nearly spraining his wrist. This one stood in a daze as Steve snatched a stick from the ground and smacked him across the face, knocking him to the gravel.

Dave approached John. "Dude," he proclaimed, "I hope ya can do more than just beat up girls."

"I have every intention'o kickin' yer tail like you never had it kicked b'fore," commented John.

"Well," said Dave, "let's give ya some incentive. If I win this fight, I'm gonna make sure that you'll never be able t'fight again."

"Big words," mumbled John with a fake shudder.

"Bigger FIST!" exclaimed Dave as he punched John in the face, knocking him from his feet.

John landed on the ground and looked up at Dave, who walked menacingly toward him. John's cockiness melted into terror as his eyes took in his enraged, bloodthirsty opponent. "WAIT!" he begged.

Ignoring him, Dave picked him up by the collar of his jacket and slammed him, face-first, into the side of a van, watching in satisfaction as John slid to the ground in a daze.

Flipping his prone opponent onto his back, Dave reared back with his right fist. "One good shot in the nose," whispered the leader of Adventure, "and it'll be where yer brain's s'posed t'be." As John's pain-filled face looked up at Dave, his eyes registering sheer terror, the big teen continued, "Ya shouldn't'a gotten involved in all this, dude."

"Dave, STOP!!!" The big teen turned to see Laura, her eyes filled with tears. The rest of his friends had dispatched the other gang members. "Don't kill him, please! He's not worth it!"

"They all deserve t'die, Laura," muttered Dave angrily. "He cheapened our friends' deaths by joining the Renegades t'get to me."

"Would Jamie kill him?" asked his girlfriend.

This question caught the big teen off guard. What had caused Jamie to begin attending church but his guilt over the lives of the Warui ninja that he had taken? No, Jamie wouldn't kill John. Looking down at the basketball player, he mumbled, "Yer lucky, dude."

John's eyes closed in relief. As Dave started to rise, he noticed an envelope protruding from the pocket of John's jacket with ADVENTURE written on it. He grabbed it, but decided not to read it when he heard the sirens approaching. Laura embraced him as two police cars entered the parking lot.

Four officers climbed from the vehicles. One of them, Buster's father, asked, "What is this?"

* * *

After a long and confusing explanation, the police had taken the Renegades into custody for extortion, the destruction of private property, and possession of narcotics. The members of Adventure had been reprimanded for disturbing the peace. Mr. Goodman had reminded Dave that Adventure could easily cross the line that the Renegades had.

Now, the big teen sat alone in his bedroom, the late afternoon sun shining in on him. Pulling the letter that he had found from his pants pocket, he opened it and began to read:

Dear Dave,

I suppose that, if you are reading this letter, then you have defeated the members of our group that I left in your pathetic little town. It doesn't really surprise me, seeing as how I knew that John wouldn't make a very good leader. But I figured that I would give him a test.

You can rest easier, though. If you defeated John and his underlings, then you won't hear from us anymore. We have decided that the life in a tourist town just isn't for us.

Sincerely,

Benjamin J. Shalley

Dave crumpled the paper in his hand and hurled it angrily at the wall opposite him. "It ain't gonna be that easy, Ben," he muttered.

Picking up his telephone, he dialed a number. Sly answered. "Hello?"

"Dude," said Dave. "Do ya feel like takin' a little road trip?"

"To where?"

"Jameston."

* * *

Ben sat, watching the nightly news in the Renegades' house. Sean and Mike were present, as well. The journalist was speaking of the events in Sera this morning.

"The twenty-five youth were taken into custody for the possession of narcotics, destruction of private property, and several counts of extortion. The opposing group, which identified itself as 'Adventure', was given a reprimand for disturbing the peace, but was released for its help in apprehending the fledgling street gang before it was given a chance to grow, as its parent gang has reportedly done in Jameston, Missouri."

Ben pointed the remote control at the television and clicked the off button.

"I told you that we couldn't count on that John Bowers," muttered Sean.

"I didn't," replied Ben.

"How come ya didn't leave one'o us ta take charge'o the new chapter?" inquired Mike.

"I didn't expect, or even want, the new chapter to fare well against Adventure," stated Ben bluntly. "I simply wanted to give Dave the blood that he was craving." He walked to the refrigerator, pulling three cans of soda from it and tossing one each to Sean and Mike. "The way I see it is that maybe his craving for revenge will be settled by this event, and he won't come looking for us."

"You're scared of him, aren't you?" asked Sean.

"I fear him more than I ever feared Jamie."

Mike took a large gulp of his beverage, then demanded, "And what are we s'posed ta do if those guys do decide ta follow us?"

Ben seated himself on the couch next to Sean. "Then, at least we'll be fighting them on our turf."

Chapter Twenty-Six

Monday, 8:30 P.M.

Within an hour from the time that Jamie and the others had fled the village, they had slowed to keep themselves, and their horses, from tiring too soon. The rest of the day had gone by uneventfully.

It was now night. In the field in which they were now traveling, no vegetation grew. The ground was littered with stones of various sizes.

"What a depressing place," remarked Alex.

"You would find it even more depressing if you knew what happened here a century ago," stated Elvara.

"Tell us," said Yoshi, her arms wrapped tightly around George's waist.

"Well," began the elf-maiden, "some of the Knights of the Round Table at that time, who served under Levarius Pendragon, entered this field on their way to attack Skull Keep. You see, Tarent had kidnapped Levarius's younger brother, Jared, for use in some heinous experiment.

The prophetess cleared her throat, pulling a water skin from her belt and taking a drink, then continued. "The knights met some of Tarent's magical warriors in this very field. Despite their superior training, Levarius's warriors were no match for the wizard's magical soldiers. The heroes met their ends here." She looked around at the landscape. "Some say that these are not rocks or stones on the ground, but the bones of the fallen knights."

"That's freaky," mumbled Alex with a shudder.

Elvara looked at Alex, an eyebrow raised. "'Freaky?' I do not understand."

Max made a low moaning sound, like the sound of a zombie from a stereotypical zombie movie.

"Stop it!" snapped his girlfriend. "You know how much that bothers me!" Alex was not a fan of zombie movies, having an almost phobic reaction to them.

Deck's horse huffed in exhaustion. "Maybe we'd better stop fer the night," commented the big man.

"Wh . . .what?!" demanded Alex. "HERE?!

"Why not?" asked George as he, then Yoshi climbed from their horse. "Don't let her story scare you."

"Yes," added Yoshi, "the dead cannot harm you, only the living."

"Hey," argued Alex, "we've seen alot of other weird stuff since we've been here!"

"We'll set watches," stated Jamie with a sigh.

"What about water for the horses?" inquired Buster as he climbed from his own steed.

"They must rest for a time before they may have water," commented Elvara. She produced three brushes from her saddlebag. "Yoshi, can you and Alex assist me in brushing them?" She handed them each a brush, then began brushing the horse that she and Deck had been riding. "Who is a good girl?" she whispered as she worked.

* * *

Max performed his morning stretches. It was still rather early and the sun wasn't showing any hint of light. Buster, who had just ended his shift, rolled himself in his blanket with a sigh.

Max jumped to his feet and kicked at the air with a quiet "kiah!" He looked over to see Buster looking at him. "What?"

"I was just wondering why you haven't woke Alex up," said Buster. "She's supposed to watch with you."

Max spin-kicked the air. "She was really freaked out by Elvara's story. I'll let her sleep until the sun comes up."

Buster nodded. "How are you handling things?"

Max punched the air, then looked at Buster. "What do you mean?"

Buster sat up and rolled his head around on his neck, feeling the tension popping within. "Alex has cried herself to sleep pretty much every night that we've been here." He looked Max square in the eye. "I haven't seen you shed a tear."

Max lowed his head. "I miss my family. But I can't let her see that."

"Why?"

"She needs me to be strong."

Buster shook his head. "She needs you to be human. She needs you to be fourteen. We're all scared. It's okay for you to show it." Without another word, he laid back down and rolled over.

Max looked at Buster's back and sighed. Was he right?

* * *

The mage sat in his study, looking over the Book of Shadows that he was planning to give to his bride as a wedding gift. He did not know what would give him more pleasure . . . to be rid of the curse or to do so by corrupting one of the Creator's chosen prophets.

A knock at the door caught his attention. "Enter," called the old wizard.

The door opened and the swordsman whom he had taken with him to the Mother World entered. "Tarent," he said, "I have come concerning the off-worlders."

"What of them, Talon?" replied Tarent.

"I wish to take a unit of crechaw out tomorrow to intercept them."

"You think they can make their way here safely?" asked Tarent.

"They seem more resourceful than most," declared the swordsman.

Tarent sighed and shook his head.

"Master," pleaded his servant, "the wedding mustn't be interrupted."

The wizard sighed again and nodded begrudgingly. "Very well. Take some of the crechaw out tomorrow afternoon along the road to the north."

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Tuesday, Noon

Dave threw his army backpack into the van. Sly stood next to the big teen, looking in confusion at a map of the southern part of Missouri. "What's wrong, dude?" asked Dave.

"How far'd ya say this Jameston wuz?" inquired Sly.

"'Bout two hours," replied Dave. Seeing that Sly seemed to be having problems finding Adventure's town of origin on his map, the big teen added, "There's only one turn between here and there."

Dave had been surprised that so many members of the group had decided to go With the exception of B.J. (who Dave hadn't invited) and Louis (whose parents were still a little protective of their son after the Klan incident), everyone was here.

As Sly closed the back door to the van, Amy's red sports car pulled up. Laura climbed out of the passenger's seat and sprinted up to Dave, throwing her arms around him.

"Come t' see us off?" he asked with a smile.

"Come to join you," responded Leslie as Amy grabbed their suitcases out of the back seat.

"Woah," said Dave as he gently pushed her away, keeping his hands on her shoulders. "This is going to be dangerous."

Amy ignored him and walked up to the van, dropping the cases on the ground and opening the back door.

"You're not going on this mission without me, Dave," snapped Laura. "If you don't let us ride with you guys, we'll just follow you in Amy's car."

"I could lose ya," interrupted Sly.

"In your dreams," commented Amy as she tossed the suitcases in the back of the van.

Laura put her hands gently on each side of Dave's face, forcing her to look him in the eye. "I love you. I'm going to be your conscience."

He sighed in defeat. "Fine."

"Where are we gonna stay while we're there?" inquired Jeremy from the back seat.

"A friend of ours has a place there," replied Pete. Remembering Jeremy's fascination with the sixties, he added, "You should like her. Star's a hippie."

"Who's Star?" inquired Steve.

"She's a friend of ours who was a little older than Buster," responded Pete. "Her real name is Maria Gonzalez. Star is her nickname."

"A hippie, huh?" asked Jeremy with a grin. "Is she cute?"

"Really cute," responded Pete. "So cute, that she has a former army guy for a boyfriend."

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Tuesday, 8:02 P.M.

A slight breeze blew through the camp, causing the campfire to dance shakily. Crickets chirped at the edge of the forest and Jamie could almost convince himself that he was merely camping in the woods near his home in Sera.

Almost.

Since it was still early, no one had gone to bed yet. Elvara was preparing them for the inevitable battle with the wizard that would take place the following day. "The keep is rarely heavily guarded," she was saying, "because Tarent believes that no one is brave enough to come this far into his personal lands without his permission. However, we probably shouldn't just walk up and knock on the front gate."

"I say we just charge the place," suggested Deck heartily.

"Good idea," stated Alexandria sarcastically. "They'll fill ya with so many arrows that we'll have our own, personal, walking pin-cushion."

Jamie wasn't really listening to the conversation, although he knew that, as leader, he probably should. He was just lost in thought about what they would find inside the keep.

A slight noise caught his attention. Looking up, he noticed that Yoshi had heard the noise, as well. The rest of the group was still lost in an argument with Deck as to why storming the keep wasn't a good idea.

"Shhh!" whispered both ninja.

The sound could now be heard again, this time more clearly. It was the sound of twigs snapping. Each member of the group climbed quietly to his or her feet, the only sound being made was the sound of their unsheathing weapons.

An arrow shot into the clearing, being caught in Yoshi's right hand just before burying itself into the side of Buster's head. "Thanks," he mumbled nervously.

"No problem," replied the kunoichi.

Ten crechaw, wearing their normal, hooded robes, charged into the clearing, swords in hand. With them was the man who was with the wizard in the warehouse.

One of the attackers swiped his sword at Jamie's neck, but the young ninja ducked the attack and slammed his right foot into the creature's kneecap. The reptilian screeched in agony and fell to the ground, holding his wounded leg.

Jamie was struck with an idea. "Try not to get them bloody!"

Deck looked at his friend in confusion, then, with a shrug, turned his sword around so that he could bash the attackers over the head with the flat of the blade . . ..

Yoshi kicked the blade from the hand of one of the creatures. Screaming in rage, the creature lunged at her, but she used its own momentum to flip it to the ground, ending the confrontation with a well-placed kick to the head.

George slammed his foot into the side of a reptilian's face, knocking it to the ground. Jumping onto its back, he locked his right arm around its throat and squeezed until the creature passed out from the lack of air.

Elvara pointed at two of the creatures. The two creatures stopped and eyed her in confusion, then dropped, unconscious, to the ground.

Buster slammed his nunchaku into the gut of one of the creatures, causing him to double over in pain. After sweeping the crechaw's feet from under him, he jumped onto its back and wrapped the chain of his weapon around its neck, pulling with all his strength. The creature struggled in vain to breathe, its eyes bulging, its tongue protruding from its mouth, its tail flapping helplessly. Finally, it stopped struggling and he let its head fall, unconscious, to the ground.

Max looked for his girlfriend. He found Alex about ten feet away, kicking one of the crechaw over a tree stump and knocking it unconscious. To his horror, he saw Tarent's human warrior sneaking up behind her, his sword held ready in his right hand.

Without a thought, he whipped one of the daggers from his shoulder strap and, in the same motion, hurled it at the man. He was relieved when it buried itself in the man's right shoulder, causing him to cry out in pain and drop his weapon.

Alex turned around and saw this just as Max charged the man, leaping from his feet and slamming his right foot into the warrior's chest.

The man, who was easily as tall as Deck, was knocked back a few steps, but kept his footing. Dropping to the ground, he grabbed his sword and rolled to his feet. "A challenger?" chuckled the man, as he now held his sword in his left hand, his right arm dangling uselessly at his side. "This should be amusing." He looked down at Max, the humor never leaving his eyes. "I suppose that you should know the name of the man who is going to kill you." He bowed. "Talon . . . at your service."

Max pulled his own sword from its sheath and assumed the battle stance that Deck had taught him. "Like I care," he muttered sarcastically, hoping that he sounded less scared than he really was. The fact that Talon was forced to fight with his left hand gave the boy a small amount of comfort.

Talon roared in rage as he swung his blade at Max, who parried attack after attack. I'm not going to get anywhere like this, he thought to himself. Jump-kicking the warrior in the face, he knocked Talon off balance. Leaping from the ground, he brought his left foot outward and kicked the warrior in the chest, finally knocking him from his feet. Then, closing his eyes, he shoved the blade straight down, hearing the man scream, then a sickening THUD.

Opening his eyes, Max was horrified to see Talon laying face down, crimson soaking the grass around his head. He ran from the clearing, gagging on bile. He finished just in time to see Alex approaching him.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Not at all," muttered her boyfriend as she knelt down and cradled him in her arms.

* * *

The crechaw who had survived the battle had been bound and gagged near the edge of the clearing. Jamie had told them that, if they tried to escape, or if he even suspected that they wanted to escape, he wouldn't hesitate to send them to be with their fallen comrades. Thus far, they had given the group no trouble.

They had been stripped of their robes. It was Jamie's idea to use the robes of the reptilian men to get into the castle. Since the crechaw wore masks with their hoods, it seemed as if Jamie and the others could get in without attracting any undue attention.

Deck looked at Max, who was laying with his head upon Alex's lap. "'Time fer payment on those lessons I been givin' ya."

Max looked at him in puzzlement. "I didn't know that you were going to charge me."

"Actually," stated Deck, "I just wanted the dead guy's armor. Since you were the one who killed him . . ."

"Don't remind me," groaned the lad. "Just take the armor."

Deck climbed to his feet and pulled the armor from the corpse.

"Let's all get some sleep," ordered their leader. "We need some rest before tomorrow. Buster and I'll take first watch."

"What about the bodies?" asked Alex.

Jamie looked at the fallen crechaw all of who had been dragged to the edge of the clearing. "You're right." He climbed to his feet. Motioning for Deck, Buster and George to follow him, he began the tedious process of moving the bodies farther away from the camp.

* * *

Skull Keep was a large, dark-stoned structure. It seemed that, no matter how sunny the day had begun, the closer to the keep that the group rode, the gloomier it seemed to get. Elvara said that this was because of the fact that the location of the keep was so close to the Badlands.

When they were almost in sight of the castle, the eight climbed down from their horses and tied them to a dead tree. "Are you sure they'll be okay here?" inquired Alexandria, stroking the mane of Zohi lovingly.

"I'll make sure of it," replied Elvara. Chanting a few words, the prophetess pointed at the horses and they disappeared.

"Where'd they go?" demanded Max.

"They are still here," returned the elf-maiden. "They are simply invisible." She reached out and stroked the horse that she and Deck had been riding.

Approaching the front gate on foot, the group noticed that it was guarded by two men in armor similar to that which Deck now wore under his robe. Jamie examined the robe that he wore. I hope this works.

Alex looked at Deck and Jamie and asked, "What if they ask for a password?"

"They won't ask fer a password," replied Deck. "They only do that in movies."

The men stepped forward. Jamie looked around to see if any other guards were watching them. He saw none. One of the men asked, "What's the password?"

Deck and Jamie looked at one another in shock. Turning back to the men, Deck motioned for the two men to come closer. As they did, he whispered, "The password's 'ouch.'" He then slammed their heads together, sending them into unconsciousness. After propping the men up against the wall, the big man pulled the gate open and stepped inside, grabbing two more guards and slamming their heads into the wall.

The rest of the group crept through the gate and jogged toward the doors that actually led inside of the building. Opening them, they stepped into a large hallway. Tapestries lined the walls on both sides, depicting scenes from dragons battling one another, to strange, dark ceremonies. The group paid little attention to this, continuing to walk onward.

"How are we going to find out where the wedding is?" asked Alex.

Suddenly, a robed figure that Jamie realized was another crechaw stepped into the hallway from another corridor up ahead. Looking at them, he screeched something in the language of the reptilian people.

"He says that all of the crechaw are to be in the great hall for the ceremony," whispered Elvara.

"Tell him that we'll follow him," instructed Jamie.

She did so, and the creature noddad, then turned and walked off down the hall. The group followed him.

* * *

The hall was everything that Jamie had expected. It was large, with an altar and a strangely dressed man standing at the back wall. An organ stood against this wall, with a crechaw seated at it. Two doors stood in the back wall, one on each side of the altar. The room looked a little like a gymnasium, with all of the wedding guests sitting on stone seats that were up to five levels from the floor. The young ninja looked around to find that there were about thirty guests, all of which were either the wizard's warriors or the crechaw. The group of disguised adolescents and their friends were led to the third level and they seated themselves.

"Seems kind of empty," commented Alex in a whisper.

"Who's he going to invite?" asked Max quietly.

The reptilian musician began playing. A door to the left of the altar opened, revealing Tarent. He was wearing a black robe that was decorated with many arcane symbols. The old man approached the altar and stood before the priest, who said ritualistically, "One half of the circle."

The other door opened and Jamie caught his breath. Shawna stepped out of this doorway and walked to stand next to Tarent. She looked simply beautiful. Her face was elaborately made up, and her shoulder-length hair was styled in many loops and curls on top of her head. She wore a red robe that was decorated similarly to that of the old man.

"The other half of the circle," stated the priest. Then, he began, "Friends, we are gathered here today to witness the union of the wizard, Tarent, with the Mother World sorceress, Shawna."

The priest continued. "Are there any here who can think of any reason why these two should not be wed?"

Jamie leaped to his feet. "I can!" he exclaimed. "This girl is being wed against her will!"

"Yeah!" shouted Max as he jumped to his feet, as well. "Besides, she Jamie's girl!"

The young ninja threw the robes off to reveal his ninja suit. The rest of his friends followed.

The hiss of thirty unsheathing weapons echoed throughout the chamber. Tarent glared at the young ninja. "Well, it would seem that I have underestimated you all," he said. "I will not make the same mistake twice." Looking around at the guests who surrounded the young heroes, he ordered, "Kill them."

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Wednesday, 12:03 P.M.

The group battled its way through the crowd of attacking guards and crechaw, attempting to get to the floor below. Jamie caught a glimpse of Shawna, who seemed to be more confused by this turn of events than anything. The young ninja reached the floor just as Max and Alex did. A guard approached him menacingly, but Jamie kicked the guard's sword from his hand, sending it flying. Jamie then kicked the man in the gut, causing him to double over in pain. The hilt of his ninja-to caught the man in the back of the head, sending him to the floor.

Max sliced his way through the guards with his sword in an effort to reach Jamie, followed by Alexandria. The latter was calling out to Shawna, who didn't seem to even recognize her.

Jamie watched in frustration as Tarent grabbed Shawna by the wrist and charged back through the door from which he had come. The priest followed them, and so did the young ninja, Max, Alex, and Buster.

* * *

Deck had found that he had bitten off a bit more than he could chew. Elvara stood behind the big man as he was slowly backed out the door through which he and his friends had come.

"Quick!" ordered Elvara, gesturing toward a set of stairs to their right. "Up there!"

Deck shoved one of the crechaw back into its companions and the two charged up the steps. They came out on the roof, followed by five crechaw. "Great plan," the big man muttered as he tossed one of them to the ground below. "Now we got nowhere t'run!"

Elvara had run to the roof edge to look down and see how far up they were. "Excuse me!" she retorted. "I had no idea that they would lead to the roof!"

One of the creatures charged Elvara. She moved to the side and watched as the pitiful thing ran right off the edge.

* * *

George and Yoshi stood back to back, fighting off the guards who were swarming them. George slammed the ends of his bo staff into the guts of two side-by-side, charging men at the same time. He then brought the ends upward and smacked the attackers in the faces, knocking them from their feet and onto their backs.

Yoshi, her twin blades moving in perfect unison, blocked attack after attack. Taking note of the fact that they were outnumbered nearly five to one, she asked her boyfriend, "How are you faring?"

"Terrific," muttered George as he smacked the top of his right foot across the face of one of the guards, knocking him to the floor. "Gettin' a little tired, though."

"Cheer up," she chimed. "There are only ten still conscious."

At this, ten more guards ran in the main door. "You were saying?" asked George sarcastically.

* * *

The four adolescents rounded a bend to find Tarent, Shawna, and the priest beginning the ceremony again in the middle of the hallway.

"Hurry!" the wizard was ranting. "I do not know how long my guards can distract them!"

"Not long enough," Jamie yelled as he pulled a shuriken from his vest and hurled it at the wizard, burying it in Tarent's shoulder. The old mage cried out in pain as Shawna and the holy (unholy?) man watched in shock.

"Get Shawna under some cover!" ordered Jamie to the other three. Buster tackled her to the floor, shielding her with his own body as the priest turned and charged further down the hall.

"Coward!" exploded Tarent as he pointed his hand at the running man. The ground opened at the priest's feet and he screamed as he plunged into the crevice, no thud ever signaling that he'd hit the bottom.

Two more guards rounded the corner, being quickly engaged by Alex and Max.

Jamie knew that he couldn't give the mage a chance to cast anymore spells. The young ninja attacked Tarent savagely. He allowed the rage that he had been feeling since the night that they had arrived here finally burst free. Punch after punch, Jamie put all of his strength forward to make this man suffer.

"STOP!!!" exclaimed a familiar voice from behind the young ninja. This brought him forth from his bloodlust. Looking down at the old mage, he found, to his horror, that the man's face was swollen and bruised, blood running from both nostrils and from his lips, dripping onto his beard and the blood-red amulet that hung from his neck. The only thing holding him up was Jamie's left hand, which held the collar of the wizard's robe.

Turning around, Jamie could see that Max and Alex had dispatched the two guards and were now looking in horror at Shawna, who was standing over Buster's unconscious body, her hands glowing with a bright red flame. Her eyes were filled with rage as she dictated, "Release him or die."

Jamie could feel tears welling up within his eyes, then run unchecked down his cheeks. "Shawna . . . no," was all he could manage to say.

A chuckle from the mage pulled Jamie's focus back to him. "How ironic," muttered the old man weakly. "The girl for whom you traveled across space itself is now going to kill you in order to defend her kidnapper, thanks to my most powerful charm."

"Release her!" demanded Jamie, his right hand forming once again into a fist.

The mage chuckled again, spitting blood from his mouth, and letting it run out over his beard. "Only my death can free her. But you must ask yourself this: Since I am the only one who can send you and your friends home, are you willing to strand them here? If you kill me, you are trapped here forever. Let me live, and I will marry this girl, and she will kill you."

Jamie looked at Alex and Max, who were looking at one another, as if trying to agree upon something without using words. Looking back at their leader, they said in unison, "KILL THE CREEP!!!"

Shawna pulled her hand back in preparation to throw the fire. Jamie closed his eyes and whispered, "Forgive me, Lord." He then slammed his fist into Tarent's throat at just the perfect angle. The young ninja could feel bile rising in the back of his throat as he dropped the dead mage to the floor, then whirled around in preparation to dodge Shawna's attack. To his relief, she looked in confusion at the wizard, then fainted.

Jamie approached Buster, who was beginning to regain consciousness. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," muttered Buster as he held his forehead, "Why'd she attack us?"

"Tarent was controlling her," replied Max.

Jamie helped Buster to his feet. Turning about, he walked over to stand next to Shawna's unmoving form. Caressing her cheek with his right hand, he felt a twinge of pain over the fact that she had almost killed him. It built to guilt when he remembered that he'd just killed a man to release her.

Suddenly, the ground began to shake violently, and a chandelier fell from the ceiling, crashing into the body of the dead mage. "What's happening?" demanded Max.

"I don't know," replied Jamie as he threw Shawna's limp body over his shoulder, "but I think that we'd better evacuate the castle immediately!"

The group ran down the hall and found Yoshi and George finishing off the last of the guards in the room where the wedding had started. "What is happening?" yelled Yoshi, now trying to hold her balance on the shaking floor. Pillars began to fall all over the room.

"I killed the mage," replied Jamie. "Then this started!" The six conscious teens charged with their comatose friend out the door and down the hallway, toward the front gate, the room collapsing just as they exited.

"Where's Deck and Elvara?" inquired Buster, his hand instinctively straying to the cross that hung from his neck.

"They were backed out the door during the battle," George returned. "We lost sight of'em after that."

"They'll have to take care of themselves," stated Jamie.

* * *

As Deck had dropped the last of the crechaw, the building had begun to shake.

"What's happenin'?" demanded the big man.

"Jamie and the others must have slain the mage!" replied the prophetess. "His magic held this castle together, and now it is falling apart!"

"What are we gonna do now?!" exclaimed Deck.

Elvara grabbed him by the back of his studded-leather armor and the two burst into the air . . ..

* * *

The group ran toward the exit to the castle, rubble falling down all around them. Alex was the first to charge out the door, followed by others in quick succession. They kept running until they had cleared the outer wall and ducked behind two boulders that stood some thirty feet away.

There was a thunderous BOOM, then the teens looked out to find the castle and wall replaced by a pile of smoking rubble. "I hope Deck and Elvara made it," remarked Alex.

"We did," said Elvara as she and Deck floated harmlessly to the ground.

As the others accosted the two with greetings, Jamie crouched next to Shawna, who was starting to regain consciousness. "How are you feeling, sleepy?"

Shawna opened her eyes and fixed them upon the young ninja. Suddenly, recognition dawned on her face. "Oh, Jamie!" she exclaimed as she threw her arms around him. "I almost killed you!"

Jamie returned her embrace gladly. "You weren't in your right mind."

"But I would have killed you and not even thought twice about it, just to save that old monster!"

Jamie pulled back and stared her in the face. "It wasn't you."

"AHEM!" came a voice from behind the young ninja. He turned to find the rest of his friends watching them.

"As touching as this moment is," stated Elvara, "I want to get back to my father's home to let him know that I am okay."

Jamie nodded in agreement as he climbed to his feet. The group walked up the road to find that their horses were still in place, but that Elvara's invisibility had worn off. Each seated him or herself on his or his and her horse. Jamie looked down at Shawna, who waited on the ground patiently for someone to offer her a ride. The young ninja offered his hand to her. She accepted and he helped her onto his horse.

Looking around at all of his friends, Jamie said, "Well, it would appear that we're not going to be leaving any time soon." The young ninja could swear that he heard Deck mumble "YES!" beneath his breath. Jamie continued. "I suppose that, while we're here, we should make the most of it." Holding out his right hand, he asked, "Who's with me?"

Shawna placed her hand upon his, followed by Deck, who slammed his hand down heartily. Elvara gently placed her hand over his, then Yoshi, George, Buster, Max, and then Alex. The leader of the group boomed, "There's a strange, new world out there, just screaming for Adventure! Let's give it some!"

The group turned their horses about and rode northward . . ..

Interlude

Wednesday, 1:00 P.M.

Donnie Isaac parked his SUV behind the hospital. Dr. Monroe, who was in charge of the morgue, had asked him to meet with him. He was surprised to see a Sera police car parked here. The Bluff was forty-five minutes out of their jurisdiction.

He made his way to the back door and pulled it open. Stepping inside, he felt a chill run up his spine. The temperature was at least fifteen degrees lower in here than it was outside. Following the signs, he made his way down the stairs and into the basement, where he was even more surprised to find Mark Goodman waiting outside of the door to the morgue.

"Sheriff!" said Dave's father. "Small world!"

"It's just 'deputy' now," returned the other man as he shook Donnie's hand. "Did the doc ask to see you, too?"

Donnie nodded. "He said it had to do with something that was found in . . .," he sighed, " . . . the warehouse wreckage."

Mark nodded, clearing his throat. "That's what he told me, too. I tried to get my wife to come, but she's become really distant since Buster and the others . . .."

The door to the morgue opened as Mark trailed off, unable to finish the sentence. Donnie understood. He had lost a nephew in the same explosion. Both were thankful for the interruption.

Doctor Victor Monroe was a short, middle-aged man with a slightly pudgy belly and wide eyes that seemed to miss nothing. He looked around nervously and then asked, "You told nobody else of this visit, right?"

Donnie shook his head and Mark said, "Only my wife."

The doctor looked around quickly again, then motioned them inside.

As the two walked past him, Victor took one final look around and then followed them inside, shutting the doors and locking them.

"Now what was so important . . .," began Mark.

"I got the DNA samples back from the lab in Jefferson City," interrupted Doctor Monroe.

Donnie narrowed his eyes. "What samples?"

"They found bone fragments in the wreckage," interjected the deputy. "We sent them there so we could get some closure."

Donnie nodded uncomfortably. "What were the results?"

Victor pulled a handkerchief from his lab coat pocket and wiped his brow nervously. Walking over to his work table, he lifted a white towel to show the two men some of the fragments. What was there looked to Donnie like a bottom jaw. He felt nauseous, thinking that it could feasibly belong to his nephew.

"Before I tell you the findings and point something out to you, I want you both to understand that I'm not prone to flights of fancy," explained Victor. "I don't believe in fairies or little green men from Mars."

Donnie's gaze met that of Mark, both sharing the feeling of confusion. "Okay," said Donnie slowly.

Victor picked up the jawbone and held it out toward the two men. "Would you say that this is large enough to belong to a human being?"

Mark shrugged. "Of course it is."

The doctor reached into a bowl on the table, then held out his open hand. Donnie looked into the palm to see what appeared to be a needle-like tooth. "What's that?" he asked.

"I pulled it from the jaw," stated the doctor nervously. At the other two men's puzzled glances, he added, "Both sets of jawbones that were brought in had multiple sharp teeth."

Donnie snatched the tooth from the doctor's hand, causing Victor to jump. "Are you serious?" demanded the vet.

Victor nodded. "A . . . and that's not all," he added. "According to the DNA report, these jaws are a mixture of mammal and reptile DNA."

Mark's eyebrows raised. "Are you on the sauce, Doc?"

In exasperation, Victor grabbed the report and handed it to the deputy. "Look for yourself!"

As Mark looked over the papers, the doctor said, "In fact, none of the fragments were completely human!"

Donnie reached out and set his hands on both of the doctor's shoulders. "So the kids may still be alive?"

Victor eyed the vet in disbelief. "That's what you're taking away from this conversation?" He pulled away from Donnie. "Don't you see? There was some kind of mutant life form in that warehouse the night of the explosion!"

"He's right," commented Mark. "The report does say that. Human DNA and some kind of reptile. Varanidae?"

"It's the carnivorous lizard family that includes the Komodo Dragon," explained Victor.

"Why aren't there government whack-jobs going through the site?" asked Donnie.

"We . . . uh . . . didn't report the whole truth," responded the doctor. "Mariah Meadows, the specialist who did the testing, thought it wise not to do so."

"Why?" asked Donnie.

Victor chuckled nervously. "Let's just say that we don't want to trade our lab coats for straightjackets."

PART TWO

Chapter Thirty

Wednesday, 2:00 P.M.

Brad Whitman sat at the table near the back of the 8-Ball Pool Hall in Jameston, Missouri, a small, glass straw in his hand and a small mirror with a white powder sitting upon the table in front of him. He sat with his back to the door, not even hiding what he was doing. Looking around, he could see that many of the patrons had noticed his possession of the narcotic, but they all knew better than to say anything. In Jameston, ratting on a member of the Renegades was not good for one's health.

* * *

Falcon Sanders sat at the bar in the pool hall, drinking a draft root beer. Michael Peters, the owner of the local hang-out had a secret recipe that had been handed down from his father, which was one of the few things about the hall that kept it open. The young mechanic looked around the room, taking note of the out-dated video games, the lop-sided pool table, and the leaky ceiling. Michael would be able to afford to make the necessary repairs and changes, were it not for the high protection tax that he paid to the Renegades.

Falcon noticed Brad Whitman, one of the higher ranking members of the street gang, sitting at a back table, sniffing cocaine. As with many of the other members of the gang, he had nothing against breaking the law right out in public, seeing as how not even the new sheriff seemed to have the courage to arrest one of them. If only Sheriff Goodman hadn't left to follow Jamie and his friends up north . . ..

The door to the room opened and a large, adolescent male entered the room, followed by two girls, and two more males . . ..

* * *

Dave approached the old pool hall, followed by Laura, Leslie, Sly, and Steve. It hadn't changed a bit since he had last seen it four months earlier. The same country music played from within . . . the same smell of Michael's homemade root beer permeated the air.

Taking hold of the knob, the leader of Adventure opened the door and entered, followed by his four friends. He had left some members of his group to watch the van, but these four had insisted upon accompanying him. The room was the same smoke-filled room that he remembered, with the same patrons that he remembered. Most importantly, it had the same Renegade regular that he remembered. Brad Whitman was in the same place in which he always sat when using his drug.

Walking slowly across the room, Dave came to stand behind the street gang member, who didn't seem to notice the big teen.

Taking Brad by the back of the head as he was sniffing, Dave swatted the powder-covered mirror off of the table. The Renegade cried out in anguish as his drug spread into a small cloud that settled on the floor.

"Hey, dude," chuckled Dave as he pulled his victim by the hair of the head away from the table, dumping him to the floor, "long time, no see."

"DAVE!" wailed Brad, his anguish replaced by stark terror. "What are you doing here?!"

"Just came by ta tell ya ta tell Ben that Adventure's back in town," muttered Dave as he picked the mirror up from the floor and tossed it into a nearby garbage can. "Be seein' ya'all around." The five teens turned and exited the building.

* * *

Star pulled the pizza from the oven. It was her favorite: Pepperoni and hot peppers. She had only known one other person who had liked the latter on his pizza, and that was Jamie Raleigh, her old friend who had moved to Sera three and a half years earlier. Setting the pizza on the kitchen table, she ran her right hand through her shoulder-length hair (which was now red, but that was no guarantee that it would be this color tomorrow) as she inhaled the aroma.

She was startled by a knock on the door. Walking into the living room, she looked out the front window to see Dave Isaac, Pete Raleigh, Zack Isaac, and six other adolescents whom she didn't recognize.

Opening the door, she threw her arms around the big teen. "Dave Isaac, ya big lug, how've ya been?" she inquired excitedly.

"Kickin' butt and takin' names," replied Dave enthusiastically. "Same as always."

"Come in, you guys," she said as she pulled away from Dave and embraced the other two former Jamestonites. Then, looking at the other six, she asked, "And who are these guys and gals?"

Dave introduced Sly, Leslie, Jeremy, Steve, Laura, and Amy, then the group seated itself in various places around the living room.

"So," began Star, "where's Jamie, Buster, and Yoshi?"

Dave's face darkened. "They died in an explosion a week ago, tomorrow night."

"What?!" demanded Star, her as big as eyes saucers.

"Jamie's ex-girlfriend got kidnapped by the Renegades," explained Pete. "We chased'em to an old warehouse in Sera and fought'em outside while Jamie took Buster, Yoshi, and three of our other friends inside to get her back. Steve went in with them, but he got out one of the windows before the explosion."

"What caused it?" asked their friend.

"There were several barrels of a highly explosive agent within the building," stated Steve. "Probably TNT."

"The Renegades were planning on starting a branch of their gang in Sera," said Zack. "But we stopped'em."

"So," commented Star, "this isn't a pleasure trip, is it?"

"Oh yeah," said Dave quietly, a dark smile playing on his lips. "What we're gonna do t'the Renegades is really gonna be a pleasure."

The sound of a vehicle outside caught their attention. Looking out the window, Star saw her boyfriend getting out of his truck in the front yard. "Falcon's here."

The mechanic walked in the front door and immediately approached Dave, holding out his hand in greeting. "How're ya doin', Dave?"

"Been better," replied the big teen as he shook his older friend's hand heartily. "And you?"

"I just saw a big guy, 'bout yer height, terrorize Brad Whitman in the 8-ball," responded Falcon with a chuckle.

"You were there?" asked Sly.

"Yep."

"Why don't I cut this pizza I've got in the kitchen and we can catch up," remarked Star.

Pete thought for a moment. "If it's got hot peppers on it, I think I'll pass."

* * *

The group ate the pizza, with everyone but Star picking the peppers from his or her slice.

"So, when's the wedding?" asked Zack.

Star reached out and took Falcon's hand. "We haven't set one yet. Really, the only thing we've decided is that he's going to move in here afterward."

Falcon chuckled. "It's for the best. You have a ton of space in this house your grandma left you and I live in the back room of my shop."

"What were ya plannin' on doin' here?" inquired Star of Dave.

Dave gulped down his glass of cola, then answered, "We were hopin' ta lay low fer a couple'a days while waitin' fer Falcon here t'get in touch with some'a his people and get us some explosives."

"I think that can be arranged," stated Falcon. "I have some favors I can cash in."

"Can't pay much," added the big teen.

Falcon held his hand up. "Please. It'll be payment enough ta just see the Renegades hurtin' for a change."

"You guys can stay here as long as ya need," stated Star cheerfully. "As Falcon just pointed out, I have plenty of room."

"'Appreciate it, dudette," said Dave.

Chapter Thirty-One

8:20 P.M.

The campfire did little to warm Shawna. She had been brought to this strange world by an old man who had hypnotized her into agreeing to marry him. She had forgotten all about her life on Earth, all about her friends, and all about . . . him. When she had come to her senses after the wizard had been slain, Jamie's face had been the first that she had seen. Even though, the last time that they had spoken, he had hurt her feelings a great deal, she had been overcome with pangs of guilt about the fact that she had almost killed him, the one person in the world whom she had ever loved.

Now, they were sitting around a campfire, trying to figure out what they were going to do next. Jamie, even though he had been sharing a horse with her since they had left the ruins that had once been the wizard's keep, hadn't spoken two words to her in over three hours. Yoshi was treating her even worse, not even acknowledging her when she spoke. Obviously, the only reason that Yoshi had taken part in her rescue was because of her love for her clan-brother.

"Are there vampires on Thera?" Alexandria was asking Elvara.

"Of course," returned the elf-maiden.

"Vampires don't exist back home," stated George. "At least not in the sense of undead ones."

Elvara glanced at him, astonished. "They are extinct?"

"Huh?" asked Max.

"The vampires of Thera can trace their roots back to our time on the Motherworld," commented Elvara. "I had always thought that some had stayed behind."

"We've always been told that they don't exist," said Alex.

"The enemy of our Creator hides his influence well, doesn't he?" remarked the elven prophetess as she chewed on a piece of dry meat.

"I say that we should go vampire hunting," declared George.

"This reminds me of one of those nights when we're all together but just can't decide how to keep ourselves from being bored," muttered Jamie.

"Yeah," boomed Deck cheerfully, "but vampire huntin' and goblin slayin' weren't ever options before!"

Shawna was tired of listening to the conversation. Climbing to her feet, she started to walk away from the fire. "Where are you going?" asked Yoshi.

"Since I started having to answer to you," snapped Shawna sarcastically, "I suppose that I should tell you that I'm going for a walk. Got a problem with that?"

"The woods here are dangerous at night," said Jamie.

The Motherworld sorceress turned to look at the young ninja. "Don't act like you care." She then turned and walked out of the clearing.

Behind her, she could hear Alex say to Jamie, "Don't get up. Maybe I should talk to her."

Darn it, Alex, thought Shawna, I wanted him to follow me. She walked for about five minutes, finally coming to a tree that had been knocked over. Seating herself upon it, she examined the robe that she wore as she waited for her foster-sister to catch up with her.

"Penny for your thoughts," offered Alex as she approached.

Shawna looked up at Alex, tears filling her eyes. "I don't even remember getting this robe," she sobbed. "I have all of these weird words in my head that I was taught by Tarent, but I don't know what most of them do." She looked at the ground, her face filling with shame. "Except the one that I spoke when I was going to kill Jamie."

Alex seated herself next to her friend. "He doesn't blame you for that."

"He sure does act like he does." She ran her fingers through her blonde hair. "He won't even speak to me. Nobody will, except you, Max, and Deck. Even this Elvara person won't speak to me. She's the only person that I can talk to about this magic that I know, but she seems to be afraid of me."

"You know why, don't you?"

"I know that Tarent told me that I had the potential to be more powerful than any other wizard on this planet."

"Elvara says that God's chosen you to be one of His prophets. But Tarent taught you evil magic," explained Alexandria. "You can't use them both, so she's wondering which one you'll choose."

"What makes anyone think that it's my choice?" asked Shawna.

The conversation was interrupted by the sound of footsteps approaching. "Max?" called Alex. There was no answer. "If that's you, it isn't funny."

"It's coming from the wrong direction to be from the camp," said Shawna as she climbed to her feet.

Three crechaw stepped into the clearing, each armed with a short sword. "I knew that we couldn't trust the human girl," screeched one of them.

"Yesss . . ." hissed another. "Let us make a meal out of her for betraying Tarent."

Chapter Thirty-Two

Wednesday, 8:30 P.M.

One of the crechaw put the blade of his sword next to the tan skin of Shawna's neck. "Wizard or not," it screeched, "her throat will slice easily enough."

An anger exploded within Shawna that she could not control. Wrapping her right hand around the blade, she yelled a single word, "ELEKTROS!!!" Her hand began to grow a bright blue. The crechaw, his eyes locked on the sight in terror, did not even have a chance to let go of the weapon before streaks of electricity shot from her hand, plunging through the blade, and filling the creature with crackling energy.

Alexandria slammed her right foot into the bottom of the second crechaw's chin, shoving its head backward and knocking it senseless. Spinning 360 degrees, she brought her other foot across the remaining crechaw's face, knocking it off balance. Pulling a dagger from her chest strap, she buried it in the reptilian's chest. The creature looked at her in shock, then fell to the ground, dead.

Sure now that the first lizard man was dead, Shawna released her hold on the blade, dropping the creature to the ground. Turning toward the unconscious one, she pointed at it and the blue energy shot from her finger, blasting it and ending its life.

Alex looked at her in horror. "It was unconscious," she managed to whisper.

"It would've woke up," replied Shawna. "Leaving it tied up here would've been worse. Otherwise, we would have been forced to drag it around with us . . .."

"Okay," mumbled Alex, "I get it." She looked at Shawna's hand. "Neat trick."

"It was just another one of those words that Tarent taught me," replied Shawna as she stared down at the creature whose life she had just taken.

"You mean you didn't know what it would do until you cast it?"

"No."

"Then why did you grab the crechaw's sword, if you didn't know that it'd be a good conductor of electricity?"

Shawna thought for a moment. "Maybe I know what the spells will do subconsciously." Looking down at the hand that she had wrapped around the blade, the fledgling sorceress realized that she had grasped the sword too tightly and had cut a deep gash in her hand. "Ouch," she muttered.

"Can't you heal it?" asked Alex.

Shawna looked at her friend in utter confusion. "Should I be able to?"

"I dunno," stated Alex. "With all the other stuff you can do . . .."

"I guess that the only really powerful spells that Tarent taught me were hurting spells." Shawna shuddered uncontrollably. "I've never liked the idea of hurting anybody, at least not seriously."

"Let's go back to camp," suggested Alex. "Maybe Elvara'll tend to the cut."

* * *

Jamie was getting worried. As if sensing his growing uneasiness, Elvara said, "Do not fear. I believe that your loved one is more than capable of defending herself. And, if she is not, then Alex can."

The sound of footsteps approaching the camp caught everyone's attention. Climbing to their feet, each pulled his or her weapon, and Elvara began to pray.

The bushes parted and Alex and Shawna stepped into the clearing. "Gee, guys," muttered Alex sarcastically as she noticed her friends' weapons, "thanks for makin' us feel welcome."

Jamie sighed in relief as he noticed that Shawna seemed to be okay. As he put his ninja-to away, the rest of the group followed suit. "Have a nice chat?" he inquired shyly as he seated himself next to the fire.

"Would'a been nicer if we hadn't been attacked by crechaw," stated Alex bluntly as she seated herself next to Max.

"What?!" demanded Jamie and Max in unison.

"There were only three of them," said Shawna as she took a seat between George and Elvara. "I took two and Alex took one."

"That's my girl," chimed Max as he kissed Alex on the cheek.

"You killed two?" asked Jamie of Shawna, shocked.

"Yeah," returned Shawna. "I know a few attacking spells, or had you forgotten?" Jamie's heart fell as she said this. He looked at the ground, not wanting to meet her gaze any longer. Apparently noting that she had just said the wrong thing, she mumbled, "I'm sorry, that wasn't the way I wanted to say that."

Elvara looked down at the Shawna's hand. "Can't you heal it?"

"No," spoke Shawna quietly, her eyes still glued to Jamie's unmoving head. "Tarent only taught me attacking spells."

Elvara pulled a cloth from her belt and wrapped the wound. "The difference between what Tarent gave you and what you already have from God is that you do not have to be taught how to call on the Lord," suggested the elf. "He is already with you."

"Thanks," mumbled Shawna. "But I don't really feel Him right now."

Jamie cleared his throat. "Let's all get some sleep. We've got alot of travelling to do before we get back to Darian's cottage."

Chapter Thirty-Three

Thursday, 7:26 A.M.

The early evening sun shone down upon Dave as he sat upon the top of Falcon and Star's two-story house. The big teen had an impressive view of the surrounding area, noting that he could see for blocks around. He could even see the medium-sized home of Traci Bundy and her mother, several streets over. Dave thought back a few years to a time when they were all about to lose their innocence . . ..

* * *

Dave knocked on the door to his girlfriend's house, wondering curiously why she had called him over here this late in the afternoon. He had been having a rough day, having already thrown Ben Shalley out of Jamie's house for actually having the nerve to come and ask them to join his street gang. He supposed that seeing Traci's face would melt away some of the anger.

A female's voice called out from behind the house. "I'm back here, Dave!"

"Be right there, dudette!" was his response. Walking around the side of the house, he found Traci sitting in the swing on the back porch. "How's it goin'?" he said cheerfully.

She glanced down at him, a look of firm resolve upon her face. "Come sit next to me," she instructed as she patted the spot beside her.

Dave walked up the steps and sat where she had indicated. "What's up?"

"Ben Shalley and I have been talking," stated Traci. "He wants me to join the Renegades."

Dave looked at her in shock. "Yer not seriously considerin' it?!"

"Do you have any idea how much money I could make doin' some of the things that they do?" She looked up at him, her love showing plainly in her bright blue eyes. "How much we could make? We could start saving up and, when we graduate from high school, we could get married."

Dave shook his head sorrowfully. "I may not be the smartest guy in this town, Traci, but I know right from wrong. What Ben'n his friends wanna do with that gang of theirs is wrong. Jamie knows it . . . I know it . . . and you know it."

A sound from the side of the house caught the big teen's attention. Standing, he looked off of the porch to find four Renegades walking around the side of the house. One of them, whom Dave recognized as Brad Whitman, stepped forward. "We had hoped that you'd reconsider, seein' as how Traci's with us." Two of the delinquents wielded baseball bats, the other two were unarmed. "'Fraid we can't let ya off that porch, now."

Dave felt his heart snap. Looking back at Traci, he noticed that she was looking at the four in shock. She met the big teen's gaze and said, "Dave, I didn't know . . ."

Dave shoved the pain from his heart and replaced it with rage. "Save it, dudette," he roared as he leaped from the porch and into the four Renegades.

One of them swung his bat at him, but he ducked and retaliated with a strong uppercut to the chin, causing the delinquent to drop his bat, and knocking him back into Brad. Snatching the dropped weapon from the ground, Dave slammed it against the head of the next two to charge him. After that, he grabbed Brad by the collar and pulled him roughly to the steps to the porch. "So," he growled, "ya can't let me off the porch, huh?" He slammed his former friend's head against the bottom step, knocking him unconscious.

Dave then looked up at Traci, who was watching all of this tearfully. "You've chosen yer side, dudette." He turned to walk away, dropping the baseball bat and muttering, "I hope it wuz worth it."

* * *

Dave was brought from his memory when he heard something moving behind him. Turning around, he noticed Star climbing out of an upstairs bedroom window . . . the same one that Dave had used to get to the roof.

Without saying a word, she seated herself next to the big teen. Finally, she spoke. "Falcon's friend said that he'd have the explosives for ya by tomorrow. Are ya sure ya want'em?"

"Yep," replied Dave. "I was gettin' tired 'a stayin' here and not doin' anything."

"You've only been here since yesterday," stated Star. Dave said nothing, so the two sat in uneasy silence.

Noticing the house at which Dave was staring, Star said, "She's not the same person you used to love."

"I know."

"She'd kill you now without even thinking twice about it," added Star.

"I know."

"Any regrets about your choice?"

The big teen thought for a moment. "Even back then, I knew the Renegades were wrong. I couldn't'a traded my principles fer a girl." He gestured back toward Star's house. "I have Laura, now." His lips parted into the first genuine smile of happiness since he'd gotten to Jameston. "And she tops Traci in every way."

* * *

Traci lay on her bed, a silk, blue robe covering her fit form and a towel wrapped around her head. She flipped quietly through her junior high yearbook.

Oh, the memories.

Dave was in town. Somehow, she had known this even before Brad had wobbled in the previous afternoon babbling about it. What a sight he was! But, then again, Dave had always been aggressive. This was one of the things that had attracted her to the big teen before the Renegades had been formed. But they were just kids then. Had she really been so lovesick that she had wanted to marry him?

She was looking forward to seeing her ex. The whole time that she'd been in Sera, she'd not spoken with him once. Of course, he probably wouldn't have wanted to speak with her, anyway. He had a new life. And now, he wanted revenge for Jamie's death, something for which she, as a Renegade, would be blamed. No matter. His love for his precious morals had been stronger all those years ago than for her. She had to admit to herself that, by giving up their relationship because of the war, he had caused her a great deal of pain. It was a pain that she could still feel, even though she'd only been a child then.

Looking over at her nightstand, she saw her favorite knife, a butterfly knife. She knew that Dave had brought his current girlfriend with him to Jameston, although she couldn't be sure why he had done this. It didn't matter. All she knew for sure was that she was going to enjoy seeing the look upon his face as she buried the knife in this Laura's back . . ..

Chapter Thirty-Four

Friday, Noon

The group approached the home of Darian Winterbreeze. The noon sun was blocked by a thick cloud cover. Jamie climbed down from his horse, helping Shawna down afterwards. "George, you and Buster help me put the horses in the stable," he instructed. "The rest of you go in and give Darian a happy greeting."

The young ninja and the two kensai led the horses into the stable, Jamie tying his horse in the stall next to Darian's own purebred. After tending to the horses, the three walked back to the cottage.

The smell of stew assaulted their nostrils as they entered. The rest of the teens and their adult friends had already made themselves comfortable, but Jamie didn't see Darian. "Where's your father?" he asked Elvara.

"I do not know," replied the elf-maiden. "He apparently didn't go very far, because the stew is still warm. He probably went into town for something. He should be back soon."

"Does he like to walk?" asked George.

"Sometimes," was her response. "Why?"

"His horse is still in the stable."

* * *

The group, with the exception of Shawna, ate heartily. They now sat in front of the fire as rain now poured down outside. Deck was just finishing his fourth helping of the rich stew. "I like a man with a healthy appetite," smiled Elvara.

Trying to take her mind off of the events of the past few days, Shawna knelt in a corner, away from everyone else. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she began to pray, Lord, help me. I'm so confused. I don't know how much of me is in here . . ..

She was cut off by a vision . . ..

* * *

The girl stood before a gravestone. Darian's cottage was nearby, and she saw a large group of people standing around it, their words barely audible at this distance. All she knew for sure was the fact that she could sense a feeling of victory coming from them, but it was a shallow victory. And she knew that what made it shallow was the person who was buried in this grave.

Kneeling down, the girl began to look at the inscription on the tombstone . . ..

* * *

Shawna sighed in frustration as an approaching horse interrupted her prayer time. She climbed to her feet and followed everyone to the door.

"Maybe it is my father," said Elvara hopefully.

"He didn't take his horse with him," replied Buster.

The group watched as a horse rode slowly into sight. It's single rider wore a white robe, the hood covering its face. "A crechaw!" exclaimed Alex.

The group stepped outside, the rain beating almost painfully down upon them. The horse came to a stop about thirty feet away. After dropping a small basket onto the ground, it turned and rode back toward the south.

Jamie started to walk over to the basket, but was halted by Shawna's words. "Don't bother." She extended her hand outward, then dropped it quickly to her side. As she did this, the basket lifted into the air and floated rapidly to her hand. The group walked back inside.

Opening the basket, they were horrified to find a bloody, elven ear, as well as a scroll and a map. Jamie weakly pulled the note, which was covered with spatterings of the crimson substance, from within and opened it. "I can't understand their language," he muttered.

Elvara took the note and read: "'To the murderers of Tarent the mage.

"'I have the old weapon smith. If you ever want to see him again, then follow the map and the directions upon it that I have given you. I will expect you in two days.'"

Elvara dropped the note to the floor, shuddering uncontrollably. "My father . . ."

Deck comforted her in his large arms. "Don't you worry," he said, "we'll get'im back."

* * *

Jamie sat upon a thick blanket beneath the old oak tree that stood upon the bank of the spring that ran behind Darian's cottage. Elvara had looked at the map and said that she figured that it would take the group a little over a day to reach the place that the kidnapper had marked. She was nervous about the location, having noted that it was on the other side of a mountain range to the east. Sub-freezing temperatures made traversing them a dangerous proposition. The few explorers who had tried in recorded history had either been forced to turn back or had never been heard from again. What waited for them there was anybody's guess.

Jamie quietly polished his ninja-to. The rain had stopped earlier, but the sky was still overcast. He found himself thinking quietly of home. He wondered if Steve had told anyone about the glowing door and, if he had, if they had believed him. He supposed that the official story would say that they had died in the explosion. But the lack of their bodies, as well as the skeletons of several lizard men, would probably put some doubt in this.

Jamie was brought back to the world at hand by the sound of footsteps approaching. "Hello, Shawna," he said without looking up.

"How did you know it was me?" she inquired.

"I don't know," replied Jamie simply.

Moving over next to the young ninja, she seated herself upon the blanket. "I just want to know," she said, her voice shaking, "if you could have gotten out of the building before it exploded without going through the portal, would you have?"

"Why?"

"I just want to know if you would've still come to this world to save me."

"There's no correct answer to that question," stated Jamie, still wiping the white cloth along his blade. "If I say no, then that means that I don't care about you as much as my own life. But, if I say yes, then you get angry with me for playing the hero again."

"There is a correct answer to the question," retorted Shawna. "The answer is whatever you feel is correct."

"That's not true." Jamie sat the ninja-to across his lap and looked her square in the eye. "The correct answer is whatever you think is right, isn't it? And, unfortunately, I am not a mind-reader, so I don't know what to give you for an answer."

"Oh, you make me so ANGRY!!!" exploded Shawna as she climbed to her feet. Looking down at the chunin of the Funakoshi ninja clan, she said, "You've changed so much since we broke up. You don't have the same look of love in your eyes. I don't know if it's still in your heart, but, if it is, you're sure hiding it well." Turning back to the cottage, she stormed off.

Chapter Thirty-Five

Friday, 5:30 P.M.

Sean Wilson walked down the front steps from the house that he and the rest of the Renegades used to store a quantity of their narcotics. The house was used mostly for heroin, but there was some cocaine in it, as well. Tonight, he was the last to leave, so he had just finished locking up.

As he approached his 1992 Ford Escort, he looked back at the house. Ben had been pleased with the deal that they had gotten on the heroin. Of course, their supplier was afraid of them, and his life apparently meant more to him than money.

He was completely caught off guard when the house exploded, flipping his car, and throwing him skidding across the street.

* * *

Dave watched the scene with satisfaction as he noticed Sean spew forth a mouthful of profanities. "One down," he muttered as he and his friends turned and walked back down the alleyway.

Chapter Thirty-Six

Friday, 7:30 P.M.

Dave sat at a table by himself, drinking a mug of Michael Peters's root beer, and thinking about another time that he had been in the 8-ball four years earlier . . .

* * *

"'Gimme' another, dude!" called Dave to Michael as he sat at the table with Yoshi and Jamie.

"Do you not think that you have had enough?" inquired Yoshi. It had been six months since Yoshi's parents had been murdered at the hands of the Waruiyatsu. Tanemura had continued her training along side of Jamie, although Jamie had, within a few weeks, completed his training after Yoshi had moved in with her great-uncle.

"I just broke up with Traci," replied the big fourteen year-old. "I'm tryin' t'drown my sorrows."

"It's not like it has alcohol in it," stated Jamie. "Michael'd never serve beer in here."

"The worst you are going to do to yourself is force yourself to have to run to the restroom more often," said Yoshi dismissively.

"I know, dudette," Dave whispered as he looked sadly at the empty mug that sat on the table in front of him.

Jamie looked at his cousin with pity in his eyes. "Dave, I tried to warn you about Traci. Before you moved here, she had a different boyfriend every week." He shook his head. "She was never serious about anybody."

"I know, dude. I should'a listened to ya."

Yoshi gently placed her hand over Dave's. "You have your whole life ahead of you. You will find someone who is truly worthy of your love."

Dave gave her a half-hearted smile, "Thanks. I don't need anymore greedy girls. Traci don't care what she has ta do t'get what she wants. Just like any of the Renegades."

"I do not think that anything will come of this street gang of theirs, anyway," said Yoshi as she nibbled on a fry. "I mean, you cannot tell me that you actually take Ben's decree of war on Adventure seriously."

"Ben's a nut-case," boomed Dave. "I tried t'tell that ta Jamie back when they were still friends. And I wouldn't put anything past'im."

The door opened and Star walked in. "Hey, Star," called Jamie as he motioned for their older friend to join them.

She walked hurriedly over to the table. "Guys, Sheriff Goodman sent me to get you and bring you to the hospital in the Bluff. Ben and some of his friends caught Jack Middleton behind Vancil's store in town and nearly beat'im t'death."

The three looked at her in shock. "Of course," mumbled Yoshi-as the four exited the local hang-out, "I have been wrong on one or two occasions."

* * *

Dave looked around the room. Not much had changed since then. The outdated video games had been replaced with different outdated ones, but that was about it.

The rest of the members of Adventure seemed to be enjoying themselves. Jeremy, Steve, Leslie, and Sly were enjoying a game of pool, while Pete and Zack sat at a table near his, playing some card game. Amy and Laura sat at a table across the room, near the door, talking. Dave hadn't had much time to talk to his girlfriend since their arrival in Jameston two days earlier. He had really wished that she hadn't demanded to come along, fearing that she would get hurt.

As he watched the two girls, Amy rose from her seat and approached him. Gesturing at an empty chair that stood next to him, she asked, "Is this seat taken?"

"Help yerself, dudette."

"Why are you ignoring Laura?" she asked.

"What makes ya think I am?"

"She told me."

Dave sighed. "I have alot on my mind, okay?"

"She should be on your mind," retorted Amy. "I'm the one whose boyfriend is dead, and she's the one mourning for the loss of hers!"

"S'pose I have been kinda' avoidin' her," mumbled the big teen.

"No better time to start talkin' to her again than the present," commented the young lady.

Dave climbed to his feet and walked over to Laura's table as Amy walked over to join Pete and Zack in their card game.

Sitting down next to his girlfriend, Dave said, "Hey, gorgeous. What's a good-lookin' babe like you doin' in a dump like this?"

She smiled shyly at him. "I'm waiting for a good-lookin' guy to sweep me off my feet."

Dave chuckled. "Well, wait no longer, dudette."

"Why?" she laughed. "Are you going to take me to him?"

"Funny," muttered the big teen as he took her hand in his.

Laura looked him in the eye. "Why are we here, Dave? Haven't we hurt the Renegade's enough?"

Dave returned her gaze. "Laura, I love you, but before you came along, I guess that the person who I cared 'bout most wuz Jamie. He and I used t'be like brothers. Before he started learnin' that ninja-stuff, I used ta take up for'im. I mean," he added, "we were only kids then, but other kids could be mean.

"But, once he started gettin' good at that stuff, he didn't need me ta defend'im, anymore." He looked down at the table. "S'pose this is the last chance I'm gonna get t'do it."

The big teen looked her in the eye. "Don't worry. When this is all over, we'll go home and try an' put things back ta the way they were."

Laura looked over Dave's shoulder and her eyes widened. He turned to see Sean Wilson leading nine Renegades into the arcade. "Please don't fight tonight, Dave," she pleaded with him. "Just give me this one interlude."

"Okay," mumbled Dave as he kissed her.

"Oooohhh," squealed Sean as he approached the table, "Traci'd be so jealous." Then he thought for a moment. "Maybe I should go an' tell her. Make'er get outta Ben's room long enough ta come here and gut this rival."

"Laura's not a rival, dude," muttered Dave between clenched teeth. "Traci gave up her chances a long time ago."

Sean leaned upon his arms over the table. "Up for a little fight?"

"Not t'night," replied Dave angrily.

Sean looked genuinely shocked. "Wh . . . what?"

"Got a promise t'keep."

Sean looked at Laura, his smile returning. "Oh, I see. This ball'n'chain here has you whipped."

Dave glared at the Renegade. Looking back at Laura, he found her glaring at the delinquent, as well. "You have my blessing," she proclaimed to her boyfriend.

Dave smiled and looked back at Sean. "Know somethin', dude?"

"What's that?" asked the Renegade.

"Props can be dangerous!" chimed the leader of Adventure as he grasped both of the delinquent's arms and pulled straight out on them, dropping his face onto the table with a loud THUD!

The rest of Adventure ran into the fray, pulling Renegades off of their leader. Steve struck one of them across the face with his right fist, sending him flying back into one of the video games. Then he gasped in pain and grabbed his wrist.

Sly stood between two of the delinquents. He ducked as one took a swing at him and accidentally knocked his fellow Renegade unconscious. "Thanks, pal," remarked Sly as he slammed a root beer stein against his attacker's head.

Two of the Renegades, each wielding a knife, approached Leslie menacingly. Snatching a chair from nearby, she slammed it across the first one's head, shattering the wood as she did so. As this unfortunate Renegade hit the floor, the other jabbed straight out with his blade. Leslie dodged to the right, and the knife found its mark in the wall behind her. Grabbing the attacker by the back of the head, she slammed it into the wall, just above the knife. He joined his companion upon the floor.

Dave picked up his table and charged with it into three more of the Renegades, catching them and pushing them backward until they slammed into a wall. Another Renegade was unintelligent enough to swing his fist at the big teen, who caught it easily. As Dave squeezed, his opponent went to his knees in pain. "Are ya hurtin'?" asked Dave with a chuckle.

The delinquent nodded.

"Do ya want me ta end it for ya?"

Another nod.

Dave slammed his free fist across the delinquent's face, knocking him unconscious. "Glad ta oblige," he chuckled.

"Dave, look out!" screamed Laura.

The big teen turned around just in time to dodge a knife attack by Sean, dropping onto his back to do so.

Laura was in a panic. Looking at Jeremy, who had an arrow ready in his bow, she demanded, "Do something!"

Jeremy took careful aim with his bow and fired.

Dave was starting to climb to his feet, when an arrow sailed overhead, embedding itself in the wall, and causing him to fall back onto his back in order to avoid being hit. Looking over at Jeremy, he yelled, "What gives?"

Jeremy looked at him, his eyes wide, shrugging his shoulders.

Sean leaped at Dave. Rolling out of the way, he watched in satisfaction as the Renegade's blade buried itself in the floor where he had just been laying. Dave was now on his knees as he slammed his right fist into Sean's gut twice, then slammed it into his face. The delinquent was knocked unconscious.

Climbing to his feet, Dave was nearly knocked back to the floor as Laura wrapped her arms around him, kissing him over and over on the lips.

After the affection barrage had ended, the big teen looked at Jeremy. "You're normally a sure-shot with that thing," he remarked. "What happened?"

Jeremy looked at his bow in confusion. "Guess the string needs tightening."

"Sorry about your place," said Pete to Michael Peters, who was looking out from behind the counter in awe.

Then Michael broke out in laughter. "A broken chair and a few knife and arrow marks in the walls and floor? Well worth it to see the Renegades get stomped for once!" He pointed at Jeremy's bow. "You guys being in town to fight them is the only reason I let you guys even bring weapons in."

Looking at Steve, Dave said, "Lemme see the coin."

Steve handed it to him, and Dave took a napkin and a pen from the bar and began writing a note.

"What'll we do with'em?" asked Sly as he looked at the unconscious Renegades.

"I got an idea 'bout that, dude," replied Dave.

* * *

Ben looked up at his friends, not quite knowing just what kind of a reaction to have about this spectacle. The nine Renegades that had gone with Sean to the 8-ball, as well as Sean himself, were bound and gagged on the very sidewalk where the Renegades had caught Jack Middleton some four years earlier and nearly beat him to death. Each of them was only wearing his underwear and had the words, "I fight lousy," written across their chests in what appeared to be chocolate syrup. Each looked at their leader in shame. A single note, written upon a napkin, was tied around Sean's neck.

Taking hold of the string that connected the note to his friend, Ben snapped it easily. Opening the napkin, he read it:

"Hey, Stupid Ugly Dude,

"They just don't make bad guys the way they used to, do they? Just thought I'd give you our ultimatum. Steve says you got this coin from the remains of the warehouse. It should be gold, with a picture of a door on it. Give it to us, and we'll leave you in peace. Otherwise, the Renegades won't be controlling Jameston much longer.

Dave Isaac"

Ben crumpled the note. So you want the coin, do you? he thought to himself. I wonder what's so special about it that you would chase us all the way here just to get it?

Sean let out a grunt to catch his leader's attention.

Looking down at his former pupil in disgust, the leader of the Renegades declared, "Oh, stop whining!"

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Saturday, 6:00 A.M.

Ben examined the coin that Mike had found in the remains of the warehouse when searching for survivors. With the exception of the strange etchings that were on each side, it appeared to be a simple, golden coin.

"Why the sudden interest in the coin?" inquired Traci, who was laying, fully clothed, next to him on his bed.

"Dave chased us all the way down here from Sera just to get it," replied Ben.

Traci sat up and wrapped her arms around his neck, playfully brushing her lips against his. "Don't worry about it," she mumbled. "If you wanna get'em off our backs, just give it to them." She gently kissed him.

He returned the kiss, then replied, "I don't want to give it to them until I know what's so important about it." He smiled at her, pulling gently from her arms. "And you are quite a distraction."

* * *

Dave, Sly, and Star entered the Jameston Gym, an old hang-out of Dave's from his days of living in the small town. The smell of sweat assaulted the nostrils of the three. Dave didn't seem to be bothered by it, but Sly and Star wrinkled their noses at the odor.

"I don't see how you can stand this," muttered Star.

"Are ya kiddin'?" boomed Dave. "Brings back memories!"

"And what pleasant memories they must be," groaned Sly sarcastically, his nose wrinkling at the body odor that filled the room. "Ick!"

"Why're we here, anyway, Dave?" asked Star.

Dave looked around the large room and saw a familiar face about twenty feet away. Gesturing at the adolescent who he had spotted, he said, "That's why."

The group made its way across the room to find Simon Wilson, sweat covering his well-muscled chest, at the bench-press. He had it set at 260 lbs., and was lifting it with ease.

"Gettin' weaker, are we, dude?" inquired Dave.

Simon looked up at the members of Adventure and smiled. Sitting up, he boomed, "Hey, Dave Isaac!"

"Been a long time, dude!" exclaimed Dave as he took Simon's hand and shook it heartily.

"Hey," whispered Sly to Star, "what gives? I thought this guy was a Renegade."

"Only in name," explained Star. "He's Sean Wilson's twin brother, but the two act way different." She was right. He was a little less than six inches taller than Sean, almost standing head to head with Dave. He was, however, a gentle giant who disliked fighting in all of its forms. He had only joined the Renegades because his one minute younger brother had opted to join. He never really knew anything about what they were doing.

"Are you sure we can trust him?" asked Sly.

"We're gonna find out," replied Star.

Simon and Dave were still conversing. "So, where's Jamie?" Simon finally asked. He was met by dark gazes from the three. "What?" he asked defensively.

"Jamie, Yoshi, and Buster died in an explosion in Sera with some other friends of ours, dude," muttered Dave.

Simon appeared shocked. "How . . . wher . . . when?"

"Nine days ago," responded Sly.

"Why?" asked Simon, his eyes lowered in shame, as if knowing what Dave was going to say.

"Ben and the others kidnapped Jamie's ex-girlfriend and took her to an old warehouse in Sera," began Star. "Dave and some of Adventure fought the Renegades outside the warehouse, while Jamie took some of the others inside to get her back. It blew up with them inside."

Simon took a shuddering breath. "No . . ." he whispered weakly. "They wouldn't do that. Ben didn't hate Jamie enough ta kill'im. I knew that they were goin' ta Sera, but they said that they were goin' for Tanemura's funeral."

"This has gone alot farther than hatred, dude." Dave put his right hand on Simon's left shoulder. "Ben's takin' this war too far. He followed us t'Sera and killed seven of our friends. Somethin's gotta be done about'im."

"What can I do?" mumbled Simon.

"There was a coin in that building that we think that Ben took," began Dave. "I really can't explain why we want it, but if you can help us find where it is, we can leave Jameston without anyone else gettin' hurt."

Simon sighed. "I'll see what I can find out."

* * *

Simon listened quietly over the extra phone in the kitchen while his younger twin talked to Ben Shalley from his bedroom.

"Are ya gonna give'em the coin?" Sean was asking.

"Of course not," replied Ben. "At least, not until I can figure out what it is that is so special about it."

"How are ya gonna do that?"

"An old antique dealer friend of mine from the Bluff is coming by my house the day after tomorrow to look at it and tell me just how valuable that it is."

There was silence, then Sean asked, "Have you given any thought about how Dave got explosives?"

"That didn't really take much thinking," replied Ben. "Everyone knows that Falcon Sanders has a few friends from his couple of years in the army." There was a chuckle from Ben's end of the line, then he continued, "But I've sent Mike to Falcon's garage to make sure that he doesn't supply our enemies anymore."

Simon placed the receiver back on the wall jack, then burst out the back door, making a run for Falcon and Star's house.

* * *

Dave lifted the coffee table as a warm-up exercise. He wasn't even breaking a sweat. "Maybe I'd get more out of it if somebody wuz sittin' on it."

He was interrupted by a knock at the front door. The girls came out of the kitchen, where they had been making cookies, while the other guys came from one of the bedrooms where they had been playing video games.

Dave opened the front door to find a frantic Simon. "What's'a'matter, dude?"

"The coin's at the Renegades' main house on Spencer Street. Some guy's comin' ta appraise it, or somethin' like that, on Monday."

"Well," muttered Star, "ya didn't have ta run all the way over here just t'tell us that . . .."

"That's not all!" interrupted Simon. "You've gotta get t'Falcon's garage! They're gonna do somethin' to'im!"

Star, her face ashen, dropped the bowl that she was carrying, chocolate chip cookie batter flying everywhere.

"Steve, you, Jeremy and the girls stay here," ordered Dave. "If the Renegades've figured that Falcon's been helpin' us, then they might try somethin' here, too."

"I'm goin' with ya," snapped Star. "If they've hurt Falcon . . .."

"Fine," stated Dave. "C'mon!"

* * *

Falcon closed the hood of the blue 1989 Pontiac Sunbird. He and a friend had finished putting the motor back in earlier. He had stayed behind this afternoon to service the engine.

The sound of movement from his office caught his attention. "Who's there?" he called. There was no response.

Walking to the door, he opened it. Suddenly, Mike Noddingham was standing directly in front of him. As his gaze met that of the Renegades' enforcer, he felt a sharp, agonizing pain in his gut . . ..

* * *

Dave and his friends found the front door to the garage locked. Backing away from it, the large adolescent charged and slammed into it full force, knocking it from its hinges. The group followed him into the building.

"Falcon," called Star, but she heard no response. There was no sign of him.

Dave approached the office warily. Looking around the workroom, he saw that the receiver to the phone, which was a cordless, was sitting on top of a blue 1989 Pontiac Sunbird that was in the garage.

The big teen turned the key and heard the door unlock. Slowly turning the knob, he pushed the door open. Looking inside, his face turned white. He backed away from the office.

"What?" demanded Star as she ran forward.

Dave caught her and said, "I can't let ya go in there, dudette."

She looked him in the eye, both of her own beginning to overflow. "No . . .!" she cried as she buried her face in his chest.

Sly had been watching this with a horrified curiosity. He walked by the two and peered into the office, nearly choking on bile when he saw what was inside. Dental records would be needed to identify the body . . ..

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Saturday, 5:24 p.m.

Jeremy looked around to make sure that no one was in the kitchen. Satisfied that he was alone, he quietly picked the receiver of the telephone up and dialed the seven digits. He could hear it ring on the other end, then a familiar voice answered. "Hello?"

"It's me," he whispered.

"Why didn't you warn us about the attack on our heroin house?"

"Look, Ben," retorted Jeremy. "Dave knows that there's someone leakin' information to ya. This is the first chance I've had ta call ya without someone around."

"That is understandable."

"If Dave figures out that it was me who told you how ta get ta Deck's house, he'll blame me for Jamie's death."

"Of course." There was a short pause, then he said, "I thought that you were a crack shot with that bow of yours. Sean said that you missed Dave when you shot at him in the 8-ball."

"I expected him t'get up faster than he did."

Suddenly, there was a clicking sound, and then Jeremy heard nothing. "Hello?"

"Of all of us, I can't believe that you'd be the one who'd be the traitor," came a familiar voice from behind him. He whirled around to find Steve, Leslie, and Amy standing behind him, Leslie holding the cord to the phone jack.

Steve, who had made the comment, held Jeremy's gaze with a mixture of anger and sadness.

"I . . . I . . ." stuttered Jeremy.

"I knew that you always liked new experiences, but I had no idea that you'd betray a person who actually considered you one of his best friends!" snapped Leslie.

"It was supposed ta be exciting to switch sides," confessed Jeremy. He looked down at his feet. "They paid me pretty well, too."

"You killed Buster and Jamie, you MONSTER!!!" exploded Amy.

"I didn't lead them into that warehouse," returned Jeremy.

"But you led the Renegades to Deck's house!" Amy raged on. "If you hadn't, we wouldn't have ever gone there!"

Jeremy sighed and started to step around Steve, who moved to intercept him.

"You're not going anywhere until Dave gets back," declared Leslie.

"You can't keep me here."

"We'll see about that," replied Steve as he slugged his old friend across the face, knocking him unconscious.

* * *

The paramedics pushed the bed cart into the ambulance. Blood soaked through the sheet that covered Falcon's lifeless body.

"We were supposed to be together forever," sobbed Star.

"Don't worry, dudette," said Dave as he comforted her in his massive arms, "we'll get the guys who did this."

Star pulled away from him, the tears suddenly ceasing to flow. "I wanna help," she muttered, clenching her fists together. "I'll make them pay!"

* * *

Steve opened his eyes. He had called the garage about a half an hour earlier to hear the bad news. He had told Dave about discovering that Jeremy had been the traitor. Dave had told him that he and the others would be home as soon as they finished giving their reports to the sheriff. Steve had been given the charge of watching Jeremy, who had been bound and gagged. Unfortunately, he had dozed off and had failed to notice Jeremy slip out of his ropes and sneak out the door.

Steve swore. "Jeremy's gone!"

The girls came out of the various rooms of the house where they had been waiting for Dave and the others' return. "How did he get away?" demanded Leslie.

"I dozed off," .groaned Steve. "I haven't been able to sleep since Max . . .."

"Now's not the time to point fingers," said Leslie.

"Let's go look for him," stated Amy. The group agreed and, leaving Laura behind to tell Dave what they were doing, charged out the front door.

* * *

Jeremy was exhausted. He had been wandering the bad part of Jameston in an effort to find any Renegade so that he could get some help. He hadn't any luck.

Suddenly, the sound of a vehicle approaching from behind caught his attention. Whirling around, he saw a familiar Chevy Blazer slowing down. The passenger's side window rolled down to reveal Ben Shalley's face. "What seems to be the problem?" asked the leader of the Renegades.

"Dave and the others are on to me," replied Jeremy. "Steve, Leslie, and Amy caught me talking to you over the phone. That's why we got cut off."

Ben shook his head in mock sadness. "That's too bad. You've outlived your usefulness to us." He produced a pistol from his trench coat and aimed it at Jeremy's head . . ..

* * *

The three of them were growing tired. They had been running for a little under an hour up and down the streets of the bad part of Jameston. They hadn't yet been successful in their efforts to locate Jeremy.

"You think he found some of the Renegades and went to see their leader?" asked Amy.

"I don't know," replied Steve. "I suppose that it's a possibility. They would be the only ones that he knows here now. He can't exactly feel safe with us anymore."

"I can't believe that Jeremy'd do something like this," muttered Leslie. "He always seemed rather amoral, but I never thought that he'd go so far as to turn on his friends."

"Jeremy likes new experiences," explained Steve. "I suppose that being a villain seemed exciting for him. I guess that it explains why Mike Noddingham didn't hurt him as much as he did Louis."

The sound of sirens caught the attention of the teens. The car of the chief of police raced by, nearly hitting Amy as it did so. "Hey, you moron!!!" she exploded. "Why don't you learn how t'drive!"

"You think that they're going t'Falcon's garage?" inquired Leslie.

Steve pinched his bottom lip between his right thumb and forefinger. "I thought that Falcon's garage was back that way," he stated, gesturing in the opposite direction of where the car had just sped.

"Maybe we should check it out," suggested Amy.

* * *

The scene was sickening. If it hadn't been for the black T-shirt with the red dragon on it, the three adolescents would never have been able to recognize their traitorous friend.

An elderly woman had witnessed the shooting from her house and had called the police. The sheriff had gone from one murder site to come to the scene of another. He had told Steve and the others about Falcon, including his gruesome demise. They had left the scene of Jeremy's death to return to Star's house, discovering that Star, Dave, and the others had returned.

There was no conversation between the adolescents for the rest of the night. They sat in silence, pondering the events of the day. Events that had succeeded in changing things a great deal . . ..

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Saturday, 8:43 P.M.

The night sky was overcast as the group made its way up the mountain. Since few people had ever traveled this mountain, and fewer still had ever been to the other side, there were no roads here. The slick, rocky surface prompted the young heroes to lead their mounts, rather than ride upon them.

The air had begun to grow cold hours before, forcing the adventurers to bundle themselves in furs that Elvara had brought along from her cottage. By nightfall, the temperature was well below the freezing point, and mountain winds buffeted them. It was then that the snow had appeared. As it blew around them, they could feel its icy fingers touching them, chilling them to the very bone.

Finally, they spotted a cave among the rocks and took shelter. After Deck started a fire, Elvara pulled out the map.

The group waited as the elven sorceress examined their predetermined path. Finally, she spoke, her tone showing that she was fairly sure of herself. "I believe that it should take us approximately four hours to get around the mountain in which we now find ourselves."

"Small mountain," mumbled Shawna.

"Quite," returned Elvara. "It is the smallest of this chain."

"I suppose that we should leave at sunrise," suggested Jamie. "We want to make the cave where we're supposed to meet the kidnapper by noon."

"If the weather doesn't get any better, then we won't be able to tell when it's dawn," mumbled Buster.

The group divided into four watches, then went to sleep.

* * *

During the final watch, Max and Alexandria sat holding one another for warmth. The blizzard hadn't ceased yet, causing Max to wonder if they were going to be able to leave when they wanted.

A clinking noise echoed from deeper in the cave, snapping them to attention. Alex climbed to her feet and peered into the darkness. Max joined her, hoping to see what had caused the sound.

Clink!

"Maybe we'd better wake everybody up," suggested Alex. The two walked about, bringing their friends forth from their slumber.

"What?" demanded Deck.

Clink! Clink!

"That's what!" snapped Max, pointing deeper into the cave.

"Let's check it out," boomed Deck enthusiastically as he climbed to his feet and stretched.

"That may not be such a good idea," muttered Elvara. "Many travelers have come into these mountains, never to be seen again."

"What, ya wanna live ferever?" demanded Deck.

"Sounds good t'me," replied Alex.

"You guys're no fun," muttered Deck as he pulled his two-handed sword from its sheath and started off toward the noise.

"We shouldn't get separated," declared Shawna. "Maybe we should go with him."

"Agreed," said Jamie. "We don't know what's waiting for him down there."

The group ran to catch up with him. Shawna touched the tip of Deck's sword and whispered, "Flame." A bright blue fire burst into existence upon his blade, giving the group a light source.

They walked for a short time before they noticed light up ahead. Shawna whispered, "Extinguish," causing the flame to die. They came to a large cavern, some fifty feet by seventy feet. Another tunnel on the opposite side of the room continued through the mountain. The floor of the cavern was littered with gold coins, and a wooden chest stood in the center of the chamber.

"Whoa!" exclaimed Max. "Look at it all!"

"Be careful guys," instructed Jamie as the group stepped slowly into the cavern.

As the last of them entered the cavern, the coins on the floor vanished. "It's a trap!" exclaimed Deck as the group whirled back toward the opening from which they had just come, only to find that it had vanished! "What the . . .?!"

The chest began to shift and mold itself until it had taken on the form of a large, humanoid beast. It stood roughly eight feet in height, towering even Deck easily. Rows of razor sharp teeth filled its mouth. The creature was covered with a clear, crystal substance and its inner organs could be plainly seen . . . its skeleton . . . its stomach . . . its beating heart.

The creature opened its mouth and let out a blood-curdling scream. It was mealtime . . ..

Chapter Forty

Sunday, 4:32 A.M.

The group circled around the creature. "What is this thing?!" shouted Jamie to Elvara.

"I have never seen anything like it!" returned the elf-maiden. "Please keep in mind that few people have ever traveled these mountains and fewer still have ever returned to tell the tale!"

"Maybe it's friendly?" hoped Buster aloud.

The beast charged Jamie, who ducked and rolled out of its way.

"That would have been too optimistic," said Buster, "wouldn't it?"

"The bigger they are, the harder they fall!'" yelled Alexandria as she charged the beast, leaping from the ground and slamming her right foot into its crystal-clear chest. The creature didn't budge, but she fell to the ground with a painful THUD!!! She rolled out of the way just in time to avoid having it step on her head with its massive, clawed foot.

"I believe that saying was created by an overly optimistic idiot," muttered Yoshi as she pulled her ninja-tos from their sheaths, ducking as it swung its massive fist at her. She hacked the creature in the abdomen, knocking off a chunk of the beast's hide. The hole filled itself back in the blink of an eye. "Excellent!" she exclaimed. "It regenerates!"

"I wonder if it can regenerate a hole arm!" exclaimed Deck as he swung his massive blade, severing the beast's right, upper-torso limb. Sure enough, the arm grew back in an instant.

"Does that answer your question?" chided Buster as he leaped onto the beast's back. "Maybe blunt weapons'll do the trick!" He slammed the shaft of one of his nunchaku into the creature's head. The blow shattered the hard wood of the weapon.

The beast grasped Buster by the back of his leather shirt and tossed him at Jamie, Shawna, and George. "Catch me!" he exploded just before he slammed into Jamie, knocking the young ninja back into the other two.

"Darn it, Buster!" yelled Shawna. "I was about to cast a spell!"

"Sorry," replied Buster, "I'll tell him to throw me in a different direction next time." He regarded her sternly. "Be careful about what kind of magic you cast!"

Shawna narrowed her eyes at him. "I don't need a sermon right now!"

Max hurled a dagger at the creature, but it swatted the missile away as if it were a fly.

"You're never gonna hit anything with one of those!" snapped Alex, who was standing about ten feet behind the creature.

"Oh, you're so funny," grumbled Max. "S'pose we'll have to revert to the old standby." The two charged the creature from opposite sides, each performing a flying sidekick as he and she approached. There was a satisfying CRUNCH as they hit at the same time, cracking some of the creature's ribs. Jamie noted with no small amount of relief that the creature wasn't regenerating the wound.

The beast, however, was not pleased. Lashing out with surprising speed, it grasped Max by the throat and lifted him from his feet. He gasped for air as the creature roared in rage. Alexandria cried out in anguish as she slammed her foot into the creature's back, right where she had just kicked it to break its ribs. The creature, not dropping Max, roared again and slammed the back of its fist against her face, knocking her from her feet.

Jamie, Yoshi, George, and Deck all started to charge the creature, when suddenly, a high-pitched voice filled the cavern as a small, reptilian creature flew into the room. "Heads up, people!" shouted the little thing. It was about one and a half feet in length, and its body was covered with purple scales. Its bright blue wings carried it to the back of the beast. Inhaling a huge gulp of air into its sharp-tooth filled, lizard-like mouth, it exhaled, covering the back of the beast with a large flame. The monster howled in pain and dropped Max to the floor.

Max, still gasping for breath, ran to Alexandria's side to see if she was okay. She smiled up at him, a thin trickle of crimson running from her nose.

The purple creature coughed, "Fire! It doesn't like fire!"

Elvara called aloud for "holy fire." Jamie's heart leapt into his throat as the blade of his ninja-to burst into flame. Nearby, Deck, Yoshi and Max were also suddenly bearing flaming swords.

Jamie hacked the monster's left arm from its shoulder and, much to his pleasure, it didn't grow back. Yoshi sliced off the other arm. Deck went for the right leg. The beast fell to the floor, roaring in pain.

"This is for back-handing my girlfriend, jerk!" exclaimed Max as he buried his blade into the creature's back. Pulling it out, he noted with shock that the beast was still moving!

He jumped back as Shawna exclaimed the word, "FLAMESTRIKE!!!" Suddenly, huge flames leaped from her hands, covering the creature with their ferocity. After the spell had ended, all that was left of the creature was its skeleton.

Deck, Max, Alexandria, George, and the little purple thing shouted out in victory. Jamie sighed. Looking at Elvara, he asked, "Could you please take the flame off of my ninja-to so that I won't burn my scabbard when I re-sheath it?"

"Oh, yes, of course," replied Elvara.

After the spell had been removed from all the weapons upon which it had been cast, the group gathered around the little purple creature. Elvara kneeled down and touched it. "A dragon," she said in wonder. "I have never seen a friendly one."

"The name's Pidgit," smiled the little creature. "I'm a drake. We're all friendly."

"Well," said Deck, "thanks fer your help. How'd ya know it didn't like fire?"

The creature looked at him, its eyes filled with mild annoyance. "Hmmm . . . Let's see. Creature's made of ice. Fire . . . ice. Fire generally hurts ice, right?"

Deck sighed. "We'd better get movin'. Sun's probably up by now."

"Gee," muttered Pidgit, "you don't come here very often, do you?"

"Why?" demanded Deck.

"The sun won't be visible on this side of the mountain for another six months. The cloud cover's too strong."

"Then what time is it?" asked Yoshi.

"I don't know," replied the little drake. "I left my watch in my other wings."

"What is a watch?" inquired Elvara.

"It's a device used for telling time on Earth," explained Shawna.

"You know about Earth?" demanded Buster.

"The Mother World?" The drake seemed taken aback. "Doesn't everybody?"

"How did you get a watch from there?" asked Jamie.

"I've been there several times," said Pidgit matter-of-factly.

"How?!" all of the Earth-worlders demanded in unison.

The drake didn't answer their question. Instead, he mumbled, "Boy, you guys need to switch to decaff. Maybe I'll come back when you guys stop being so demanding!" With that, he vanished, but his voice could still be heard. "You'll know how to get home soon enough. But two of the Motherworlders won't be going back."

"What do you mean?" demanded Yoshi. "Come back here, you little cretin!"

Elvara closed her eyes. "That was another prophet."

* * *

The group exited the cavern on the other side of the mountain about ten minutes later, having cut a great deal time by going through it, rather than around it. The blizzard had ceased, but the sky was still overcast and would be, if the drake had been correct, for another six months. The air was frigid.

The group traveled for four hours until they arrived at the location of the cavern where they were to meet their mysterious antagonist.

"Okay," began Jamie. "We don't want to just rush in there. It could be a trap."

Deck pulled his sword and charged in.

"He is not much for strategy," commented Yoshi, as the rest of the group followed him in, "is he?"

Though there were no torches on the walls of this new tunnel, it was illuminated. A soft, white glow filled the tunnel and grew progressively brighter as they continued. Finally, they exited the tunnel into a large cavern. It was about fifty feet by one hundred feet. The light was coming from a glowing orb that hung some seventy-five feet overhead. The cavern was filled with water, in the center of which was a small island. On it was a large stone table, upon which lay the form of Darian Winterbreeze.

"Father!" exclaimed Elvara as she started to run forward.

"Wait!" exclaimed Yoshi. "This is too easy!"

"I must get to my father!" retorted the elven sorceress. She stepped out into the water-covered ground and sank until only her head was showing. "It would appear that I have been a bit hasty."

The rest of the group lowered themselves into the water.

"Ugh, this is COLD!!!" groaned Alex.

The group swam toward the island. Jamie felt a growing uneasiness as he moved forward. There was something wrong with this whole picture.

They made it to the island without incident. Jamie looked around cautiously as they climbed onto the island.

Elvara leaned over her father. Other than a few scratches and bruises, he appeared fine. He was, however, unconscious. "Father," she said gently.

The weapon smith slowly opened his eyes. "Elvara?" he whispered weakly.

"Yes, father," replied the sorceress. "We are all here."

Suddenly, Yoshi pushed past the elf to cross her blades over the weapon smith's throat. "Who are you?" she demanded.

Jamie was shocked. "Yoshi, what's gotten into you?"

"Look at his head and tell me that you don't see something wrong," she instructed.

The young ninja looked at the old elf's head. He looked as if he'd been treated well. Every hair was in place, both eyes were there, his nose, his mouth, his pointed . . .. "His ears! They're both there!" he exclaimed as he remembered the ghastly sight in the basket with the map and note.

"Very perceptive, young ninjas." The voice came from Darius, but it was not his. It was the voice of something far more sinister.

"Ninja," stated Jamie as he pointed the tip of his ninja-to toward the prone elf's gut. "The proper plural form of 'ninja' is 'ninja'."

"Forgive me if I do not visit Earth very often," muttered the man.

"Where is my father?" demanded Elvara.

"Let's just say that he was quite a meal, although the muscle was a bit tough to stomach," chuckled the male elf.

Elvara paled. She opened her mouth, but no sound came forth.

"Enough of this!" exploded the man as his form began to shift, the bulging of his arms as they mutated snapping the ropes like thread. "I will now give your pathetic little band of adventurers a real challenge!" He continued to grow . . . wings sprouted from his back, his neck lengthened, his skin turned to green scales. He stepped off of the table, now crumbling under his weight, and into the water as he continued to grow. Finally, when he had reached his full height of about sixty feet, he looked down with reptilian eyes and smiled. His voice filled the cave, shaking it and threatening to drop the stalactites from the roof of the cavern. "I am Belial! I was the one who trained Tarent in the black arts . . . but, foremost, I am a DRAGON!!!"

"Gee," muttered Max, trying to cover the terror in his voice, "like we hadn't figured out that last part!"

"Insolent pup!" roared Belial. "You will be the first to die!" With that, he began a great intake of air . . ..

Chapter Forty-One

Sunday, 8:50 A.M.

"Quick!" exclaimed Shawna. "Leap for the water!"

Each of the young heroes leaped from the altar, diving into the frigid lake. Jamie could sense the room brighten from above. The fiery blast of the dragon's breath lasted several seconds but, as the water was so cold, it only succeeded in heating what was around them to a pleasant warmness.

Leaping to his feet, the young ninja looked around. Everyone seemed okay.

Deck was smiling. "A DRAGON!!! he was exclaiming with glee. "I get t'kill a dragon!"

"Boy," muttered Max sarcastically as he shook the moisture from his hair. "I'm glad you're happy."

"Now I know why that little dragon was so annoying," boomed Deck as he pulled his two-handed sword from its sheath.

"Why's that?" asked Max, a touch of humor in his voice.

"Cuz' it wuz like you."

Max raised an eyebrow.

The dragon's voice now filled the cavern. "I find you Earth-creatures amusing. Even when faced with your own deaths, you continue to joke."

"Maybe you should let us know when we are faced with our deaths," commented Yoshi.

"When you look at me, you see your demise!" exploded Belial.

"Do not flatter yourself," she muttered. "If you are so powerful, then turn yourself into a mouse."

"What kind of a fool do you take me for?!" thundered the dragon.

"Do you have to ask?"

Jamie looked at Yoshi. "A mouse?"

"Hey," she whispered, "it worked in that story that Uncle Tanemura told us!"

Shawna exclaimed the word, "FLAMESTRIKE!!!" and covered the beast with flames from her hands. The creature merely laughed.

Deck sliced a gash in the creature's foot. With a painful roar, Belial's massive head lunged at him. Deck dodged to the side just in time to avoid being caught in it's huge jaws.

Deck and Max each shoved his sword into the creature's neck, but this apparently had the same effect as a mosquito to a fully armored adventurer. Their blades held fast, however, and the creature pulled himself back to his full height, lifting them along with his head.

"YAAAAAHOOOOOOO!!!" yelled Deck as he straddled the dragon's neck.

Max climbed on behind him. Looking down and seeing his friends on the floor below, he mumbled, "I'm beginning to see why Alexandria and Jamie don't like heights."

"MAX!!!" screamed Alex. "Get down from there!"

"Whaddaya want me t'do," returned her boyfriend in exasperation, "JUMP?"

"Do not worry!" called Yoshi. "The water will break your fall!"

"Shyeah right!" exclaimed the frantic young man.

Elvara stared up at the creature who had murdered her father, her eyes fixed on it with a glassy stare. Tears of sadness turned to anger as she pressed her lips together in firm resolve. She tore her gaze from the dragon and moved to one of the walls of the cavern. Calling up to Deck and Max, she yelled, "It might be a good idea to jump!" She placed her hand upon the wall and began praying.

Looking at Shawna, Jamie demanded, "What's she doing?"

Shawna's eyes furrowed as she looked at the elven sorceress's mouth, trying to decipher words that she could not hear through the dragon's roars of rage. Suddenly, she yelled, "Everyone stand around me!" When they looked at her blankly, she practically screamed, "NOW!!!"

Jamie and the others ran to her, crowding around her as she held her hands up. "SHIELD!" she exclaimed. Suddenly, a dome of pure energy formed over the party.

"What's this for?" asked Alex.

"You'll find out soon enough!" was the response.

Elvara finished her praying and looked up with satisfaction as the cave began to tremble. Small stalactites began to fall from the ceiling, striking the ground all around her. She didn't notice, her rage toward the creature who had killed her father filling her mind . . ..

"Crud!" snapped Max as a large stalactite fell past the two heroes. "What's goin' on down there?"

"Down there?!" returned Deck as he held on to the neck tightly. "What's goin' on up here?!"

The creature shook its head violently, causing the two young heroes to slide farther down its long neck. The head then moved around to face them. "That elven wench has started a cave-in. I may die, but all of you are coming with me!"

"Aw, SHADDUP!!!" boomed Deck as he slugged the dragon in the eye with his right fist, causing Belial to wince and pull back.

"You just punched a dragon," muttered Max incredulously.

"Yeah, and it felt it, too," returned Deck.

"But, you just punched a dragon."

Suddenly, a huge boulder came down from the ceiling and clubbed the dragon's head, the force of the blow nearly jarring Deck and Max from its neck. The creature fell to the water below.

Jamie looked worriedly at Shawna, who was still concentrating upon keeping the dome erected. She was beginning to tire. Beads of sweat ran down the front of her face, already beginning to soak the top of her robe.

"Look!" exclaimed Buster.

Jamie whirled about to see the dragon's head splash into the water, causing a large wave to wash over Shawna's dome. Deck and Max belly-flopped into the water nearby, but Jamie's heart leapt into his throat when he noticed that they were not moving. Elvara waded to them as quickly as she was able.

The shaking stopped.

Shawna dropped the dome and fell to the water, exhausted. Jamie was over her in an instant, lifting her head above the surface while Alexandria and the rest of the group checked Deck and Max to see if they were okay.

When Shawna did not regain consciousness, Jamie lifted her completely out of the water and held her in his arms. "Shawna, are you okay?"

She sighed and weakly opened her brown eyes. Looking up at the young ninja, she didn't say anything. Instead, she reached up and gently caressed his right cheek.

Max came to consciousness to find Alex's face looking down at him. "I'm dead," he mumbled.

"What?" she asked blankly.

"Only in heaven can there be such beauty," was his response.

Alex smiled. "Well, I know I'm a catch, but I'm no angel." She helped her boyfriend to his feet.

Deck jumped to his feet as he awoke. "Where's the dragon?" he demanded.

"Dead," replied Elvara.

"Oh," muttered the big man. "Well, I'm gonna take a trophy." He walked over to stand by the head of Belial, pulling a dagger from his belt as he did so. He then set about cutting one of the smaller back teeth from the creature's mouth.

"Yuck," muttered Yoshi.

"What's so yuck 'bout it?" asked Deck. "I'm gonna make me a necklace outta this tooth!"

Yoshi shook her head. "My response does not change with your reasoning."

Suddenly, the sound of many feet moving down the tunnel toward the young heroes filled the chamber. An army of sixty crechaw entered the cavern. "Why can't we just have a little peace?" groaned Max.

One of the creatures stepped forward. "We have come for the Motherworld sorceress! Give her to us and you will live!"

Shawna looked up weakly from Jamie's lap. "No!" she cried. "He's sent them for me!"

"Who?" demanded Jamie.

The girl didn't respond to his question. She just said, "I can't go back! Please don't let them take me back! I don't want to forget you again!"

Jamie gently helped her to her feet. Pulling his ninja-to from its sheath, he turned to face the army. Closing his eyes, he whispered, "Heavenly Father, give me strength." Opening them, he called out to the crechaw, "You'll have to kill me first!"

"With pleasure," hissed the creature as he pulled his sword from its scabbard. His companions followed suit.

Suddenly, the room was filled with a blinding, white light. The crechaw screamed in pain.

The temperature began to rise to a more comfortable level.

The sound stopped abruptly, leaving a ringing in Jamie's ears. The light vanished at the same instant. The young ninja looked around at his surroundings. He and his friends were standing on a muddy road. The morning sky was still overcast, choking the light from the sun. The horses that the group had left in the first cave were here, tied to a dead oak tree. No sound—not even the chirp of a cricket—could be heard.

"Neat trick," muttered Deck to Elvara. "Now where are we?"

Elvara looked at him in astonishment. "I did not do this."

Jamie looked at Shawna, but she was too weak to have been able to do it.

"What about this dragon-prophet we met?" asked Alex. "Could he have done this?"

"Yes, I suppose," said the elven prophetess. "But I don't understand why he would have sent us to the Dark Lands."

"The what?" asked Max.

"The Dark Lands," replied Shawna. "It's the most dangerous place in Tarent's realms." She looked around and shuddered. "His experiments have corrupted anything natural here." She looked at Jamie. "Even herbivorous animals will cannibalize each other."

Deck chuckled. "So the rabbits have big, sharp teeth?"

"Again with the Monty Python references?" asked Max.

Jamie looked at Shawna. "You said that 'he' had sent the crechaw for you. Who did you mean by 'he?'"

"I was scared that it might have been Tarent," replied Shawna weakly.

"Tarent's dead," stated Jamie as he put his arms compassionately about her. "He can't hurt you."

She rested her head upon his shoulder. "But why did they want me?"

Elvara suddenly started to cry. Deck put his massive arms around her. "What's wrong?"

"My father . . ." she sobbed. "My father is dead."

"It'll be okay," mumbled Deck with surprising gentleness. "I'll take care o' ya.'"

Shawna's eyes widened as a thought hit her. "Tarent had another tower here in these Dark Lands. I know about it because he and I were supposed to go there to complete the final part of the escape clause of his curse." She shuddered at the thought.

"What's your point?" asked Max.

"Maybe we can find some answers there as to why the crechaw seem so interested in me."

"Do you know how to get there?" asked Jamie.

"Yes," she replied. "Tarent magically placed a map of this entire continent in my memory."

Jamie untied the horse that he and Shawna had been riding and said, "Then what are we waiting for? To Tarent's tower!"

Each of the members of the group climbed on his or her horse. "How far is it?" asked Yoshi.

Shawna looked around. "We want to travel to the south. There's a small village on the way. We need rest."

Jamie thought that he could hear thunder in the distance. When it continued at a steady beat he narrowed his eyes to listen."Do you hear that?"

Everyone listened. "Sounds like horses're comin'," declared Deck. "Lots of'em."

Jamie looked in the direction of the sound. His eyes widened as he saw about a hundred horses with riders approaching over the empty plain. They were at a distance of about three quarters of a mile. "Are they friend or foe?" he wondered aloud.

Shawna looked in the direction of the horsemen, circling her hands around each of her eyes as if holding a pair of binoculars. "They're . . . not alive!"

"WHAT?!" exclaimed Alex.

Shawna looked at her and explained frantically, "They're zombies! Zombie's on horseback!"

Elvara looked at Shawna. "Zombies? I do not know that term."

"Walking dead guys!" yelled Shawna. "Tarent made them to patrol the Dark Lands!"

"RIDE!!!" exclaimed Jamie as the group headed in the opposite direction of the zombies.

The group rode hard for about ten minutes. The zombies seemed to be moving at an unnatural speed, gaining on the heroes quickly. Jamie called back to Shawna, who had her arms wrapped tightly around his waist, "Which way are we heading?"

"We're going in the right direction," she replied, "but I don't think that it'll do us much good if we become zombie food!"

As they rode hard, trees began to spring up around the road upon which they now traveled. Within minutes, they were riding through a forest. The canopy of the tree tops barely let any light through.

"Oh, this is much better!" yelled Alex.

They came to a three-way fork in the road and stopped. "Which way?" demanded Buster, looking back in the direction of the zombies, who had not ridden into sight yet.

"We should split up," suggested Shawna suddenly. "They won't follow all of us."

"What are you, nuts?! snapped Max.

"How do you know?" asked Elvara, ignoring Max's outburst.

Shawna shook her head. "I just . . . know."

"Okay," ordered Jamie loudly as the thundering sound of hoofs echoed from too close behind them, "Shawna said there's a village on the way to the tower! We'll regroup there first thing tomorrow morning!"

After Buster uttered a quick prayer, Deck, Max, Alex, and Elvara took the left fork. The young preacher, George, and Yoshi took the right fork. And Jamie and Shawna took the middle fork.

Jamie and Shawna rode for roughly five minutes before Jamie asked, "Can you see if any of them are in sight?"

The young ninja could feel Shawna turn around. "Yes," she replied nervously.

"How many?"

"All of them."

"What?!"

"They must be after me, too. I'm putting you in danger!"

The road exited the forest, moving, once again, through a grassy plain. Jamie's eyes widened. Up ahead was a ravine that stretched forward about fifteen feet. The horse skidded to a stop in front of the crevice, which stretched to the left and the right as far as he could see. Rocks broke free from the edge and fell into the shadows below.

Turning about, Jamie started to usher the horse to go back the other direction, but he could see the undead horsemen exiting the forest. "It just can't be easy, can it?" he muttered. He could feel his heartbeat thundering in his chest as the zombies approached.

Then, Shawna said something that took the young ninja off guard. "Jump it."

"What?!"

Shawna loosened her grip around his waist to take his right hand with his. "What do we have to lose? We could actually make it. But if we die, then let's die together."

Jamie ushered the horse toward the zombies about thirty feet. As the horse turned back around to face the crevice, the young ninja closed his eyes. What's the worse that can happen? he thought to himself. I get to meet God? He could feel Shawna's grip on his hand tighten.

With a loud, "Hyeah!," the young ninja ushered the horse forward. The animal gained speed as it went, as did the young ninja's heart.

Then came the leap.

Jamie leaned low over the horse's neck, Shawna clinging tightly to his waist, and closed his eyes. Would he ever have a chance to go home again? Would he ever see his mother or father again? Or Dave? Would he die here, at this moment, without any of them knowing the grand adventure upon which he had embarked for this lovely creature who would share his fate this day?

Jamie's eye's remained closed. Then, after what seemed an eternity, the horse landed on the other side of the crevice, jarring Jamie's teeth as, he realized, he had unconsciously clenched them during the jump. The horse ran onward about thirty yards before they stopped and turned to find that the zombies weren't attempting to jump the crevice. With a sigh of relief, they turned and continued southward.

Chapter Forty-Two

Sunday, 4:00 P.M.

Dave sat on the front porch of Star's house, thinking about the events of the past couple weeks. He hadn't known Falcon very well, but he had seemed like a nice enough guy. All he knew was that the mechanic's death had hit Star hard. The formerly cheerful young woman had now taken on a very dark attitude, telling Dave that she WAS going to join Adventure in the battle with the Renegades the following morning. Dave had told her that it would be dangerous, and he had pointed out to the former pacifist that she knew nothing about combat. This hadn't swayed her decision in the least.

The front door to the house opened and Laura stepped outside. "What are you thinkin' about?" she asked as she seated herself next to him and rested her head upon his shoulder.

He put his arm around her and said, "Tomorrow morning."

She frowned. "What time does it start?"

"Nine o'clock," was the reply. "We have t'stop Ben from givin' that coin t'that dude. If he does, then we'll never get it."

"Why are you worried about that dumb coin?" asked Laura. "You're starting to sound like you believe that story of Steve's."

Dave shook his head. "I wanna believe."

"What, that Jamie and the others aren't dead, but that they went through some magical doorway?"

Dave thought back to the years when he and Jamie had lived in Jameston. He thought about all of the wisdom that Mister Funakoshi had given the group of children as they were growing up. "Jamie's teacher once said somethin' that seems t'fit here."

Laura cuddled close to him and asked, "What's that?"

"'You can live for forty-days without food, four days without water, four minutes without air, and four seconds without hope.'"

Chapter Forty-Three

Friday, 5:37 P.M.

Deck, Elvara, Max, and Alex entered the small village of Last Hope. The town was a single street with tattered buildings on either side. They had passed a few fields of some kind of a crop that Elvara did not recognize. The people moved hurriedly down each side of the path, carefully avoiding eye contact.

"I hate it here," commented Alex. "Nobody's friendly, at all."

Max shook his head. "If I lived here, I'd move."

Elvara glanced at him. "This is all these people have ever known. Many of them don't even realize that there's a larger world out there."

As they came to a stop in front of the inn, Max said, "Maybe someone should tell them."

Elvara climbed from her horse. "Now that Tarent is no more, perhaps I could make a missionary journey back here to give these people the hope of the Risen Savior."

They passed the reigns of the horses off to the stable-boy, giving him a few coins for his trouble. Then, they entered the inn.

The people looked up from their mugs of ale as the three warriors and their elven companion made their way toward the bar. "Barkeep!" thundered Deck. "We need rooms!"

The innkeeper, a rotund man with a balding spot on top of his head, glanced up from the book at which he was looking and said, "There's no need to yell. I can hear you just fine." Then his expression softened. "How many rooms?"

"Four," replied Deck.

"Why do we need four?" asked Alexandria.

"One fer Elvara, one fer me," replied the big man, "and one fer each o'you."

"Max and I can share a room," retorted Alex.

"The kids don't sleep together," responded Deck.

The barkeep looked back and forth between the members of the group. "Well, how many?"

"Two," snapped Alex. "We want to make sure that there are enough rooms left for Jamie and the others if . . . when they get here."

Elvara glanced at Deck and blushed. Looking back at Alex, she suggested, "I will share with you and Deck will share with Max."

Max's gaze settled on Deck. "This should be fun," he muttered.

The innkeeper reached under the counter and produced two keys. "Rooms five and six. They're upstairs, across the hall from one another."

"Have any other strangers shown up today?" inquired Elvara.

The man appeared terrified to even speak to the elven prophetess. "Uh . . . yeah. T . . . two guys and a girl. Strange looking girl, too. Attractive, but she looked as if she had elven blood. S . . . slanted eyes, and all."

"What rooms?" asked Max.

"Seven, eight and nine."

Deck could feel his stomach rumbling. "What time's dinner?" he asked.

"Start serving it in about a half an hour," was the man's nervous response.

* * *

Jamie ushered the horse to a stop in front of the inn. Looking around, he noticed several of the villagers staring at the young ninja and his sorceress companion. "Friendly people," he commented with dry sarcasm.

"These people have spent all of their lives living in a place where monsters are commonplace," explained Shawna. "Can you blame them?"

"I suppose not."

A young boy with filthy, blonde hair and tattered clothing walked up to the two, as they climbed down from the horse. Fixing his bright-green gaze upon Shawna, he didn't say a word.

"Are you the stable-boy?" inquired Shawna, her voice friendly in the way that one normally talks to young children.

The boy nodded. Reaching into one of the pouches upon her belt, the young wizardess produced three gold coins. Handing them to the lad, she said, "Here. Make sure that our horse has plenty of oats and water."

"The stable and food fee for a horse is only one drakda," squeaked the boy. "The other outsiders gave me more, too."

Jamie looked questioningly at Shawna. "A drakda is half a gold," explained the girl. Looking back at the boy, she said, "Those would have probably been our friends. How many have shown up tonight?"

"Two groups. One had two men and a woman. The other had two adults and two kids."

Shawna rested her hand on the boy's shoulder. "Good. And don't tell anybody else about the extra gold. Maybe you can use it to buy yourself some decent clothes in the morning."

The boy smiled and, taking the reins, led the horse around to the back of the inn.

* * *

Deck, Yoshi, and the others sat at a large table near the back of the common room, next to the fireplace. Since it was summertime, there was no fire, but Yoshi felt the coziness, nonetheless.

Deck was complaining about the length of time that the food was taking to be served. "We're hungry warriors!" he was exclaiming. "We need FOOD!!!"

"Keep your pants on," responded the barmaid, an attractive young woman with a flowing, black skirt and white blouse.

Suddenly, the room went completely quiet as the front door opened to reveal Jamie and Shawna. The two walked up to the bar and said something to the barkeep, who, after Jamie had given him a gold coin, gave them two keys and gestured toward the table where the seven friends were sitting. They looked toward the group and smiled, then walked over to join their friends.

"Hey, Jamie!" exclaimed Deck. "We thought that the zombies followed you, since none of'em followed any of us!"

"They did follow us," replied Shawna. "All of them."

"How did you get away?" inquired Elvara.

Jamie and Shawna exchanged glances before Jamie replied, "We jumped a ravine. The zombies didn't."

The barmaid walked up to the group and placed plates of cooked beef and potatoes in front of them. As she turned to walk away, Deck grasped his fork and started to plunge it into the meat, when Elvara smacked him on the back of the hand. "We must pray first."

"Huh?" muttered Deck. "But . . . but . . .."

"No arguing! It is only through God's Grace that we have survived thus far." She turned to look at the young preacher. "Buster, would you do the honors?"

Each of them bowed his or her head. Buster began to pray. "Heavenly Father, we thank You for these gifts that we are about to receive . . .."

* * *

Jamie stood on the front porch of the inn, looking up at the strange constellations that filled the night sky over Thera. The door opened and Shawna joined him. "Beautiful night," she commented.

"Yep," was his response.

"Can you pick out any of the constellations?" she asked.

"Nope," replied Jamie. "But, then again, I can't ever pick out any of the constellations on Earth, either." Looking at her, he asked, "Do you know any of them?"

"Actually, the constellations of Thera are the same as on Earth," explained Shawna. "You're just looking at them from a different angle."

"Really? Where's Pisces?"

"Your birth sign is right there." She pointed to a cluster of stars in the eastern part of the sky.

"And where's your birth sign?" asked Jamie.

"Taurus is right there," she replied, pointing to the west. "They're exactly opposite of each other." She looked at him, their eyes locking.

"You don't really believe that astrology stuff, now," he whispered, "do you?"

"Many mages use it to predict the future," returned the girl. "Why shouldn't I?"

"You're not many mages," declared Jamie. "You're a Christian."

"Am I?" she asked, tears building in her eyes. "I'm not so sure anymore."

"Listen to me," he said. "Tarent could do alot of things. But he couldn't change your heart. That belongs to Jesus."

"Trying to hide it from me, eh?!" exploded a voice from behind the inn, interrupting their conversation. The two started and left the porch.

The stable boy was standing behind the building with the innkeeper. The older man was grasping the boy roughly by his right arm. "Please," whined the lad, "you're hurting me!"

"You ungrateful whelp," chided the man. "I took you in when you had nothing. No home. No food. But when those strangers give you money, you keep it from me!"

Jamie had heard enough. "The boy wears rags!" he snapped. "Shouldn't he deserve the right to buy descent clothing?"

The man and boy looked up at Jamie and his wizardly companion in shock. "The boy owes everything to me! He doesn't even deserve to eat, but I give him charity!"

Shawna walked up to the man, her brown eyes flaring. She held her hand up in front of his face as each of the fingers started glowing bright red. "You listen to me, you great, fat oaf! If I ever hear of you taking money from this boy, or harming him in any way, I will come back here and turn you into a squirrel and fry you!"

The man's eyes opened wide with fright and he turned and charged in the back door of the inn. She looked down at the boy and asked, "Did he take your money?"

The boy shook his head. "He hadn't yet when you came."

Shawna smiled. "What's your name?"

"Ryan," answered the boy.

"Ryan what?"

"I don't have a last name."

"Well, Ryan, why don't I take you to the tailor and get you some clothes tomorrow morning? I don't think the innkeeper will try anything before then."

The boy returned her smile, giving her a nod.

Jamie shrugged. "Can you really turn somebody into a squirrel?"

"No," muttered the young sorceress as she kissed him on the cheek, "but he didn't have to know that."

* * *

George lay sleeping comfortably, when he was brought to consciousness by the lightest touch upon his forehead. Opening his eyes, he could make out Yoshi's form in the dimly lit room, her face just moving back from having kissed him lightly above the eyes. "What's wrong?" he asked as he rubbed his eyes and sat up.

"Nothing," she replied. "I just could not sleep. I see that you were sleeping soundly. I am sorry to have awakened you."

"That's okay," he said with a smile. "I was just dreamin' about you, anyway."

"Was it a pleasant dream?"

"Any dream with you in it is pleasant."

Yoshi smiled and kissed him. When she leaned back, he could see the worry in her eyes.

"What's wrong?" he asked as he folded her hands in his.

"I do not . . . know, really," was the reply. "I am afraid. But, of what, I am not sure."

George wrapped his arms around her and she rested her head on his shoulder. "Don't worry," he assured her. "No boogieman is gonna get you."

She chuckled and then, within a few moments, was dozing contentedly.

Chapter Forty-Four

Monday, 5:30 A.M.

Shawna opened her eyes with a groan. Why am I awake?

A knock sounded from the door.

Ugh. That's why.

She climbed to her feet and put on her night-robe as she moved to answer it. As she opened it, she found the little stable-boy standing in the hall, his face a mask of panic.

"What's wrong, Ryan?" she asked.

"Some soldiers are downstairs looking for you and your friends," replied the boy. "When they found out that you were staying here, they killed the innkeeper for hiding fugitives. They've got the log and are looking to see if they can find what rooms you're in."

Shawna's brows furrowed. "How many are there?"

"Eleven."

Grasping her backpack and wizard's robe from the dresser, she took the boy by the hand and ran across the hall to Jamie's room. She beat upon the door until the young ninja, his hair disheveled by a night's sleep, opened it. "What?" he mumbled.

"Some soldiers are here," replied Shawna. "And they're looking for us."

Jamie opened the door and let them come inside. As he grabbed his glasses from a nearby table and put them on, Shawna immediately pulled off the robe, showing her blue nightgown. Covering Ryan's eyes with his left hand, and his own with his right, he asked, "What are you doing?"

"Changing into my wizard's robe," replied the sorceress. "Sorry if my body offends you."

"Oh, please . . .," groaned the young ninja.

"We don't have time for this," snapped Shawna as she pulled her robe down over her head. "We've got to get the others."

Suddenly, there was a knock upon the door. "We are soldiers of the baron! You are under arrest for murder!"

* * *

Yoshi looked down at George with a smile. She had slept for about six hours in his comfortable arms, thankful that he was too much of a gentleman to expect more than cuddling.

Since she couldn't go back to sleep, she had climbed out of the bed and now prepared to head back to her room.

A banging sound down the hall caught her attention. Her eyes widened as she heard the man's voice, "We are soldiers of the baron! You are under arrest for murder!"

Moving over to the bed, she whispered, "George, wake up!"

"What?" he snapped as he sat straight up.

"Tarent's guards are here," replied Yoshi.

The young man swore as he climbed from the bed.

The banging started upon their door, now. "We are soldiers of the baron! You are under arrest for murder!"

* * *

Talarius banged upon the door a second time. "We know that you're in there! Open this door at once!" There was still no answer. Backing away from the thick, wooden door, he kicked it with all his might, knocking it open.

One of his four men, a younger soldier by the name of Caleb, entered the room first. Suddenly, the shaft of a staff came out from behind the door and slammed itself into his gut, knocking him backward. The captain and his men pulled their swords from their sheaths and charged in.

They found an adolescent boy, roughly seventeen years of age, standing in the room, still wielding the staff. "Okay," he muttered. "Who's next?"

"There is only one of him," declared the captain. "Take him."

A voice from above caught the men off guard. "I believe that you need to learn to count." Suddenly, a girl swung down from the rafters in the ceiling, slamming both feet into the captain's face. The captain staggered back a few steps and rubbed his hand across his nostrils. He found spatters of crimson upon his fingertips as he examined them. She had broken his nose.

Looking up at the two people whom he was supposed to arrest, he examined the girl. Her eyes were slanted, leading him to believe that she had elven blood. But this was the only thing elven about her. Her lithe, young body was well-muscled, her hair dark. "You have been told that you are under arrest," mumbled the captain. "Are you going to come peacefully, or do we have to take drastic measures?"

"I guess that you're gonna have to take drastic measures," replied the male.

"Very well." The leader of the soldiers looked at his men. "Kill them."

* * *

The captain looked down the hall toward the other group of soldiers. They had already entered the room which they had chosen. He turned to look back at this door, repeating his identification, "We are soldiers of the baron! Open this door, immediately!"

The mocking voice of an adolescent male came from within, "'Not by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin.'"

This is the boy that the master warned us to be on our guard when arresting? thought the captain.

A female voice came from within, speaking to the owner of the first voice. "Chinny-chin-chin? How shallow."

"Good point," came the first voice. "Maybe I should let them in." At this, the door was knocked from its hinges, landing upon the captain's second in command with a painful THUD! Standing within the doorway was an adolescent male who stood about 5'10" and wore a black outfit with matching boots that each had two toes. He stood in a fighting stance and drew his sword when he saw the guards. "Welcome," said the youth.

A blonde girl moved to stand next to him. The captain immediately recognized her as the girl who had been betrothed to Tarent. The soldiers had been told to take her alive, at all costs.

Suddenly, a door down the hall opened and a large man and a teen boy stepped out. The door across the hall opened and a young adolescent girl and elven woman entered the hallway. They all drew their weapons.

"Slay them!" exclaimed the captain as he drew his own sword. He watched as the younger adolescent boy kicked one of his men in the face.

The first boy, the one who had kicked the door down, leaped into the hall and swung his strange-looking short sword, catching one of the soldiers in the head with the flat of the blade, knocking him unconscious.

The large man fended off two soldiers with his sword. Catching one of his opponents by the wrist of his sword-wielding hand, he slammed his head into that of the soldier, knocking him unconscious.

The elf gently touched the other guard who was attacking the large man, muttering a word. This guard simply fell to the floor, senseless.

The guard who was under the door started to climb to his feet, when the sorceress touched the door and said, "Cover." The door wrapped itself around the soldier.

Turning back to the big man, the captain was terrified to see the blade of the warrior's huge sword swinging about to find his neck. There was a sharp pain, and then darkness . . ..

* * *

Yoshi swept the soldier's feet from under him. He started to rise, so she slammed her right foot across his face, knocking him unconscious. George was pleased that his girlfriend was doing well, although it didn't surprise him.

Of course, the young man was doing a fairly good job of holding his own. He slammed the shaft of his staff into a charging soldier's gut, knocking the wind from him.

Spinning around, he performed a 360-degree spin and brought the shaft against the soldier's head as he completed the turn.

The two had dispatched all but the leader of the men. He stood in the hallway, aiming a crossbow at Yoshi. "We were told that the only one who had to be brought back alive was the Mother World sorceress. The rest of you are worth the same, alive or dead."

Suddenly, Buster flew into view from the side, his flying sidekick slamming into the man and knocking him from his feet. The crossbow bolt shot out from the weapon and Yoshi's head jerked to the side as she was knocked from her feet.

"Yoshi!" exclaimed George as he and Buster were at her side in an instant. He gently turned her head toward him, painfully expecting to see the bolt piercing her skull. She smiled up at him, her teeth clenched around the wooden missile.

Buster sighed with relief. "Thought I'd messed up majorly this time."

Yoshi spat the bolt from her mouth. "Please," she chuckled, "I could have caught that one with my eyes closed!"

A voice came from the doorway. "We've got to go. There'll be more of them." George looked up to see the rest of his friends. The voice had been Shawna's.

Jamie stepped forward. "What happened?"

George helped Yoshi to her feet as she replied, "Nothing. I am fine."

"Then let's beat it b'fore more o'those soldiers show up," thundered Deck.

The stable boy walked in. "I got your horses waiting for you downstairs," he offered.

Shawna looked down at him, sudden compassion showing upon her face. "What are we going to do with him? The innkeeper's dead, so he'll have nobody to take care of him."

Elvara kneeled down, brushing the hair away from the side of his head to reveal pointed ears. "I knew it! He's part elf!"

"I am?" asked the boy, his voice filled with confusion.

"Didn't the innkeeper ever tell you what you were?" asked Shawna.

"All he ever told me was that I was a little whelp," replied the boy.

Tears came to Elvara's eyes as she embraced the youth. "Then you shall come with us," she stated. "If anything, I will take care of you."

"Huh?!" demanded Deck. "I mean, I like the kid an' all, but doncha think a dead wizard's tower's just a little dangerous t'be takin' a kid to?"

"We can't leave him here," retorted the prophetess. "If you don't think that you can handle it, then I will keep him safe."

"'Course I c'n handle it," muttered the big man.

"Let's go," ordered Jamie as he, then the rest of the group, turned and plunged down the stairs.

Chapter Forty-Five

Monday, 8:58 A.M.

Dave looked at his watch. Looking back, he saw the rest of Adventure, ready for battle. Star was here, as well. So was Laura. Dave hadn't wanted her to come, but she had insisted.

The big teen looked around the yard of the house that served as the Renegades' base of operations, absent-mindedly noting that they kept it clean and trimmed. He could almost picture a member of the gang mowing the lawn in his denim jacket.

Dave took a deep breath, then released it. This was it. For better or worse, this ended within the next few minutes. He had to get the coin. If there was any chance that Jamie could still be alive, then he was going to see to it that he got him back.

Looking at his watch, he saw the time was 9:00 am.

"Adventure," he said. "Let's get'em."

* * *

Sean and Mike were playing video games when they were startled by a knock at the front door. "See who's there," said Sean. "I'm close t'beatin' my high score." He could hear Mike mumble angrily at his request, but decided not to press it.

As Mike approached the door, he called out, "Who is it?"

"Pizza delivery," replied a voice from outside.

Mike looked through the eyehole. "There's a pizza delivery guy outside."

"Did you order a pizza?" asked Sean.

"No."

"Did Ben?"

"I dunno."

Sean's eyes narrowed in confusion just before the door was knocked from its hinges, landing upon Mike with a painful THUD! A tall, young adult wearing a Roy's Pizza jacket entered the room, walking over the door. The members of Adventure ran around him.

"What the . . .?" demanded Mike.

"Shaddup!" ordered the first guy as he jumped up and down upon the door. "We don't like guys who refuse delivery!"

"I'm gonna kill you when I get this door off'a me, dead man!" exploded Mike.

"'Name's Sly," grinned the man, "an' what makes you think Ah'm gon' let you git this door off ya?"

Dave entered the house. "Where's Ben?" he demanded of Sean.

"Find'im yourself," muttered Sean as he leaped from the floor, performing a 360-degree spin in mid-air, and lashing out with his right foot toward the big teen's head.

Dave caught it with ease and pulled outward, dumping the Renegade onto his back. He put his foot over Sean's throat, motioning for Pete to join him. "I'm gonna go look fer yer scumbag leader, dude." He said to the Renegade. "I'm leavin' my friends here ta keep ya occupied 'till I get back."

Pete kneeled down next to the delinquent, taking a dagger from Dave and putting it to his enemy's throat. "Try t'get away. Please."

Dave looked into Ben's bedroom, but found it empty. Ditto for the kitchen and two more bedrooms. He looked out the back door to find Ben speaking with a middle-aged man with graying hair and a bald spot in the back of his head. The big teen gently opened the door a small amount and listened to the conversation . . ..

* * *

"It's not for sale," repeated Ben. "If there's nothing special about it, then why should you want to buy it so much?"

"It's just a rare coin," replied Mick as he turned the coin over and over in his right hand. "I do deal in antiques, you know."

"Nevertheless," continued Ben, "it's not for sale."

"Yeah, dude," came a voice from the side as the back door to Ben's house opened to reveal a large teen that Ben recognized as Dave Isaac. "That coin's stolen property."

"Hey," said Mick defensively, "you didn't say anything about stolen goods. I'm strictly legit, Ben."

"It's a pity," replied Ben, his face the typical cold mask. "I hadn't planned on giving you too much information." He pulled a dagger from his belt and whirled around behind the man. Placing the dagger to Mick's throat, he looked at Dave. "I just wanted you to know that Mick has a wife and three children, who love him very much. And, if you hadn't decided to visit today, they'd still have a father." He drew the blade quickly across the horrified antique dealer's throat.

As the unfortunate man gasped for his last breath, the leader of the Renegades released him and hurled the dagger at Dave, who dodged to the side as the blade flew by his head, burying itself into the door behind him. "You cold MONSTER!!!" exclaimed the big teen. "I knew you were crazy!"

Ben shrugged. "People often confuse genius with insanity. What makes the Renegades different from Adventure is the addition of genius. Jamie was an intelligent leader, but he was far from a genius. And now," he smiled as Dave moved closer to him, "Adventure's in real trouble." He brought his foot across the big teen's face so quickly that Dave didn't even see him move . . ..

* * *

Sly sat upon the door, playfully insulting the Renegade beneath it. "So, bright-eyes," he chuckled, "where's a guy learn t'be an enforcer? Is there a special school for it, or do ya get your degree from a Cracker Jack box?"

Suddenly, a clicking sound from behind caught Sly's, as well as his friends', attention. Turning, he saw five more male Renegades standing just outside the doorway. An attractive young girl with dark hair stood in front of them, leveling a pistol at his head. "I think that your team lost about ninety percent of its I.Q. when your friends got killed in the warehouse. I can't believe that you didn't even post a guard outside." She smiled at Sly. "You're a cute one, too," she said seductively. "Too bad you picked losers ta hang with." She narrowed her eyes at him. Get off the door."

Sly put his hands up in defeat. Climbing to his feet, he backed off of the door.

Traci pointed the gun at Pete. "Turn'im loose," she instructed. "Toss the knife over there." Pete backed away and threw the dagger into Ben's aquarium.

Mike climbed to his feet and smiled at Sly. "All bein' an enforcer takes is the right talent." He then balled his left hand into a fist and slammed it into the Sly's gut, causing him to double over in agony.

The other Renegades, one of which was armed, moved into the house. The armed one placed the barrel of the gun to Pete's head.

Traci walked over to stand in front of Laura, who eyed her angrily. "So," conversed the female Renegade, "you're Laura Blanton. Dave's changed his tastes. He's actually goin' for respectable girls now." She put the barrel of the gun against the cheerleader's chin. "He may love you, but I'll bet he had more fun with me."

Sly knew that Laura was getting angry. He could see her trembling. "Don't give her an excuse, Laura," he mumbled. "That's just what she wants."

"Quiet!" ordered Mike as he slammed his fist into the Sly's gut again, causing him to drop to the floor, coughing painfully.

Traci continued her cruelty. "You see," she was saying, "I've always enjoyed physical relations as much as Mike enjoys hurting people. I live for the pleasure, and Mike lives for the blood." She turned and looked at Star, who was now sitting upon the floor. "I'm sure he really enjoyed what he did to poor Falcon."

"You . . .!" exclaimed Star as she started to climb to her feet.

Traci quickly turned the gun toward her. "Now don't try anything stupid." She giggled. "I wasn't really wanting to get you angry enough to do something. I was hoping to get the bimbo here mad enough to do something."

Sly looked up at Laura, noticing her quietly snatch what appeared to be a pencil from an end table that stood next to her. "You have," she declared as she buried it in Traci's arm. The female Renegade howled in pain as she dropped the gun.

At this distraction, Sly slammed his fist into Mike's groin, causing the enforcer to double over in pain.

Pete caught the other armed Renegade by his gun-wielding arm. Shoving his open palm into his assailant's elbow, he watched in satisfaction as the Renegade wailed in pain and the gun clattered to the floor.

Steve grabbed a nearby Renegade and slammed his head into the back of Ben's open grand piano. He then slammed the lid shut, knocking his opponent unconscious.

Leslie grabbed a Renegade and shoved his head into the aquarium. She held it there for several seconds as he thrashed about. After she pulled his head up, she slammed her fist into his face, knocking him senseless.

Zack grasped the Renegade that was standing the closest to him and ran him, head-first, into the screen of the television. The screen didn't break, but the Renegade was knocked unconscious. "Hey!" screeched Zack. "That's not fair! The screen always breaks in the movies!"

Laura broke the pencil off inside the Traci's arm. Traci turned and glared at the cheerleader. "I'm gonna kill you for this!" she exploded.

Laura jabbed the broken part of the pencil into Traci's leg. It didn't go in, but it did distract the Renegade long enough for Laura to ball her right hand into a fist and slam it into the other girl's face with all her might, knocking her antagonist unconscious. Laura grasped her own wrist and grimaced in pain.

Sean kicked at Pete, who ducked and swept his opponent's legs. As Sean hit the ground, Pete slammed his fist across his enemy's face, knocking him cold.

Sly noticed the last of the Renegades turn for the door. Realizing that he might get help if he escaped, he clothes-lined him as he charged by, flipping him onto his back. Sly dropped, elbow first, on the Renegade's head, sending him to join his unconscious friends.

* * *

Dave hit the ground, hard. This wasn't how it was supposed to happen. The good guys were supposed to beat the bad guys, get the coin, and at least get a chance to try to open this portal of Steve's. Dave had never been beaten this badly, not even by Mike. He could feel the blood from his nose. He could feel his left eye beginning to swell.

Ben stood over the big teen, who was trying to climb back to his feet. The leader of the Renegades chuckled as Dave weakened and fell back to his knees. "Oh, Dave. You could have been the best. I would have gladly accepted you as our enforcer. Mike just doesn't have your spirit."

Dave spat blood in Ben's face.

Ben smiled as he used the back of his sleeve to wipe off the spittle. "But, maybe I was wrong to think that you could cut it. Maybe I was wrong to think that you could actually play with the proverbial big boys. I think that, if Jamie could see you now, even he would be disappointed in you. I would have thought that you'd have put up more of a fight than he did." He grasped Dave by his shoulder-length, dark hair and, pulling back his right fist, asked, "Any last words?"

Dave glared up at Ben. If I die here, we'll never get Jamie back. "Yeah," replied the big teen. "Yer fly's open." Ben looked down at his own groin just in time to see Dave's fist slam into it. The Renegade leader doubled over in agony as Dave continued the assault. He punched him in the gut, then the face, then the gut again. Then, he performed a final uppercut, sending the Renegade leader sprawling backward and onto the ground, unconscious.

Dave stumbled over to the dead antique dealer and pulled the coin from his hand. Walking over to the back door, he opened it and stepped inside. Turning to look at the senseless Renegade leader, he said, "Fer all yer brains, ya ain't got a bit'o common sense. I can't believe that you fell fer the old 'fly's open' thing!" He laughed and continued on through the kitchen.

* * *

Star picked Traci's gun up from the floor and placed the barrel of it to Mike's head. "You killed Falcon," she whispered menacingly.

"Star, don't," said Laura. "Don't lower yourself to their level."

"Why?" asked Star, her eyes still boring into those of the Renegade enforcer. "What good does it do for any of us to be good?"

Amy kneeled beside her. "Jamie's a good example of a hero," she began. "What would he do if he were here?"

"I loved Jamie," replied Star. "But he could be a real wimp sometimes." She sighed, then seemed to realize that she was holding a gun. Holding it between her thumb and forefinger, she handed it to Amy. Then, she turned and slugged Mike across the face.

* * *

Coming to stand in the living room, Dave was shocked to see the signs of a fight. "What happened?"

"Traci showed up with more Renegades," explained Pete, who was sitting on Sean Wilson's chest. "No big deal."

It was now that everyone looked up at him. "Oh, Dave!" exclaimed Laura as she ran forward and embraced her boyfriend. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, dudette," replied the big teen. "It only hurts when I laugh, talk, move, and blink."

Steve stepped forward. "Did you get the coin?"

Dave was returning Laura's embrace. "Yep, but we're gonna have ta try yer little experiment at Star's house. The cops'll probably get here any minute, an' I don't think it's a good idea fer us ta be here when they do."

Chapter Forty-Six

Monday, 9:30 A.M.

Lightning filled the overcast sky as they approached the tower. Even though it was mid-morning, the sky was so dark as to make it seem like midnight. The tower, which was about three hundred feet tall, stood ominously before them. As Jamie looked at the ancient stone structure, his heart was filled with dread. The feeling that something horrible was going to happen continued to force itself into his heart.

"So," asked Alex, looking up nervously at the tower, "what should we expect in there?"

"If I remember correctly," returned Shawna, "Tarent just kept his journals and experiments in this tower. I don't believe that there were any troops here, per se. He never figured that anyone would be foolish enough to come this deep into the Dark Lands.

"So, it'll be empty?" boomed Deck. "That won't be no fun!"

"We didn't come here with the purpose of fighting," explained Shawna. "We came here to figure out why his men are still chasing us even after his death. I'm hoping one of his latest journals will shed some light." She looked at Ryan, who was sitting upon the horse with Buster. "Besides, a battle probably wouldn't go over too well with the little one here."

The group was now within a hundred feet of the front gate. Jamie motioned for them to dismount, and they did so. After tying the horses to a nearby dead tree, they walked toward the tower.

Jamie looked around, noticing that there were several large stakes sticking up from the ground all around the base of the tower. "Why are these here?" he asked Shawna.

The young sorceress shrugged. "I was never told about them."

"I believe that I can answer that," stated Elvara. "Legends speak of Tarent's younger days when he'd pick a villager from that town that we were in and have him impaled upon one of these stakes."

"Why?" asked Max, his brows furrowed in disgust.

Elvara narrowed her eyes as she said, "It was supposedly his favorite meal-time activity."

Buster was the next to speak, his right hand straying up to his cross as he did so. "You mean . . . he watched them die while he was eating?"

Elvara simply nodded. "He felt that their agonizing last moments fed his magical power."

"That reminds me of a man who lived on Earth during the fifteenth century who went by the name of Vlad Tepes," commented George. "He used the whole stake thing, too. People ended up calling him Vlad the Impaler."

The group arrived at the front doors. Jamie examined them, each of which stood approximately twenty feet tall. "How do we open them?" asked the young ninja. At this, the large, rusted portals creaked open, seemingly of their own accord. "Well, I guess that answers my question."

"Let us not waste anymore time," commented Yoshi as she walked past her clan-brother and entered the building.

"I don't like this," muttered Buster. "It's too easy."

"Yeah," agreed Deck. "I wanna fight!"

The group cautiously entered the tower. The bottom floor was empty of anything but dust. One door stood to the right of the group, and another straight ahead. A flight of steps started here, as well. The stairs circled the inside of the tower, going all the way to the top. Jamie looked up and groaned, knowing too well that he was inevitably going to have to climb them.

Deck walked to the door to the right and kicked it open. Jamie looked past his friend to see a kitchen. "Nothin' important in here," muttered Deck.

Buster walked to the other door and opened it. It simply led outside. "Didn't the wizard have a dungeon?" asked the kensai.

"He didn't need one," replied Elvara. "He was swift to kill any who opposed him." She glanced around. "Besides, this was not his primary residence. He had Skull Keep for that."

"Well," asked Max, "where to now, fearless leader?"

Jamie sighed, trying to keep his heart from beating too fast. "Up," he stated weakly.

"Do not worry, brother," remarked Yoshi playfully. "I will hold your hand every step of the way."

"Funny," he mumbled as he stepped nervously on the first step and began the long climb.

After about five minutes, the group came to a door. Jamie looked through the keyhole to find what appeared to be a laboratory. "It's his lab," remarked the young ninja as he turned the doorknob. The door opened with a creak.

Shawna moved past him to enter the room first. It was clean, as though there had been somebody here recently. Jamie looked around at the various jars and beakers that lined the shelves, disgusted by the grotesque contents that ranged from lizard tails to elf eyes.

"Do you use this stuff in spells?" asked George.

Elvara's face darkened. "Tarent must have used these things for his witchcraft."

Shawna swore. "There's no sign of his journal!"

"It doesn't matter," muttered Jamie. "We've still got two hundred and fifty feet of more stairs to check."

Shawna spotted something across the room. She walked over to kneel in front of a large, wooden chest. Unlike everything else in the room, it was plain and unadorned.

Shawna tried to open it, but the lid wouldn't budge. Deck walked over to stand next to her, pulling his sword as he did so. Rearing back, he bashed the hilt into the top of the chest, smashing the old wood of its lid.

"Thanks," commented Shawna.

"Don't mention it," replied Deck.

Shawna peered inside, her eyes widening as she did so. Reaching in, she produced the Tweety shirt and blue-jean shorts that she had been wearing when she had been kidnapped. "What are these doing here?"

"Maybe he was saving them for you," said Alex.

"He and I must have entered Thera here." Shawna shook her head with a shudder. "I was so out of it when we arrived, I don't even remember it."

Ryan was standing just inside the doorway. "Shawna!" he piped. "I just saw someone moving up there around the top of the stairs!"

The group ran back out onto the stairs. Jamie looked up, but didn't see anything. "Are you sure?" he asked the lad.

"Yes," was the response.

"Okay, guys," ordered Jamie. "No more stops until we reach the top."

Chapter Forty-Seven

Monday, 9:40 A.M.

"So, like," asked Dave, "what do we do with'em?"

Steve turned each coin over and over in his hands. "The guy just put them down on the ground, and it just . . . opened." He sat the coins down on the floor, about a foot apart. Nothing happened.

"I told you this was a waste of time," commented Laura.

"A door would be a bit wider than that, wouldn't it?" asked Leslie helpfully.

"I suppose so," replied Steve. He began to slowly move the coins apart. Eighteen inches. Twenty-four inches.

"Nothin's gonna happen," stated Zack.

Thirty-six inches. Suddenly, blue energy began to fizzle around the coins. Steve jumped back as blue light shot up from the two coins, connecting in the middle to form a vertical rectangle that was approximately seven feet high.

"Of course," mumbled Zack, "I have been wrong on one or two occasions."

"What is it?" asked Star in awe.

Steve moved closer to it. "Be careful," he heard Leslie say, but he wasn't really paying attention. He stuck his hand out in an attempt to touch it, but it passed right through!

"Did my hand come out the other side?" he asked.

"Nope," replied Pete.

Steve stuck his head through. There was a short flash of blue light, then he was inside of a circular building with a set of stone stairs winding their way up the wall. Pulling his head back through, he exclaimed, "It's a portal to another world! I was right! Jamie and the others are still alive!"

Dave moved past him and stuck his head through. It disappeared for a short time, then Dave drew it back and said, awestruck, "You're right, dude! I can't believe it!"

Pete looked back and forth between his two friends. Finally, he exploded, "Well, what are we waitin' for? Let's get some camping supplies from Star's shed and go in after them!"

Chapter Forty-Eight

Monday, 9:48 A.M.

Jamie and the others finally reached the top. They passed a door on their left about twenty feet back and directly in front of them was a set of double-doors that stood eight feet tall. Jamie and George pushed the double doors open easily. They stepped out onto the roof of the tower, followed by Shawna, Ryan, and Yoshi.

"Shouldn't we check this door before we go out there?" asked Alex, gesturing back toward the door that they had just passed.

Suddenly, the double-doors slammed shut, separating those who had gone onto the roof from the rest of the group! Jamie could hear Deck banging upon the door from the other side.

"Ssso," hissed a voice from the shadows of the roof. "The ssseeds that I planted have brought you here. I thought that they would." The young ninja whirled around to see the form of a man materialize from the shadows surrounding the spire of the tower. He wore a tattered, black robe with the hood covering his head, and a blood-red amulet hung from his neck.

"Who are you?" demanded Jamie. "And what do you want with us?"

"That is sssimple," replied the man as he reached up and grasped the sides of his hood with green, scaly hands. "I want you all to die ssslow, painful deathsss!" He pulled the hood back to reveal the face of what was once a man. A tattered, gray beard was falling away in clumps, leaving patches of scaly, green skin. The right eye was still that of a human, Jamie noted, but this was overshadowed by the reptilian slit eye that replaced the other one. Rows of razor-sharp teeth filled its mouth, causing the person/creature to talk with a whistling lisp.

Shawna gasped in terror. "Tarent!"

Chapter Forty-Nine

Monday, 9:50 A.M.

Deck banged on the doors in vain. "Jamie!" he called.

"It is futile," stated Elvara. "There is magic holding the door closed."

"What do you suppose is happening to them out there?" asked Alex.

Suddenly, the other door opened, and walking human skeletons began pouring out onto the steps. Looking up toward them, they—about twenty in all—began climbing the stairs.

"More moving dead guys!" exclaimed Alex in panic. "I hate moving dead guys!"

"You think we love'em?" asked Buster as he pulled his good pair of nunchaku from his belt and assumed a defensive stance.

* * *

The old wizard laughed wickedly. "Did you really think that you could kill me ssso easssily?" he asked tauntingly.

Jamie was shocked. "How . . .?"

"I have thisss," stated the old mage as he clasped the amulet that hung from his neck in his scaly, right hand. "Being the ssstudent of a warlock hasss itsss advantagesss."

Jamie looked at Shawna, who was eyeing the old wizard in terror. He looked back at Tarent and declared, "You won't have her again!"

"Is that ssso?" chided Tarent. He looked past Jamie at Shawna. "It'sss not too late, Shawna." He held out a claw-tipped hand toward her. "Come to me and we will overcome thisss curse, then I will train you to be so powerful that even Merlin, himssself, will fear you."

Shawna's eyes revealed her inner conflict as she took a hesitant step toward the old mage.

"Shawna!" yelled Jamie. "Don't listen to him!"

She stopped and looked at Jamie without recognition.

"Remember the power that you felt as you used the magic!" growled Tarent. "We will claim the entire populace of Thera as our subjectsss!"

"They'll fear you!" interjected Jamie. "That's not what God wants!" He stepped toward her and took her hand.

"Don't listen to him . . .!" raged the wizard.

"God is about love," interrupted the young ninja as he focused on the conflict in her brown eyes. It was more than a battle between her heart and altered mind. It was a battle for her very soul. "God loves you," he whispered. Then he added, "I love you."

"Jamie?" Tears flowed from her eyes as she threw her arms around him.

Tarent swore loudly and Shawna was suddenly flung away from Jamie. He watched helplessly as she was thrown against the outer wall of the tower, next to the doors. Black energy coiled around her wrists and ankles, holding her in place.

"Very well . . . Chrissstian," sneered the mage at her. "If you will not help me, then you will die! But not until you've watched those you love sssuffer!"

Jamie charged the wizard and leaped from the ground, extending his right foot into a flying sidekick. The old man pointed a finger at the young ninja, who suddenly found himself floating toward the edge of the roof. "All too easssy," muttered the wizard.

Jamie was now over the edge. He looked down in horror at the stakes sticking up from the ground 300 feet below. Suddenly, a squeaking voice exclaimed, "I've gotcha!'" A small, purple dragon flew down from the spire and grasped him by the back of the vest.

"Pidgit!" exclaimed the young ninja. He looked over to see George and Yoshi engaging the sorcerer in combat. Looking back down, he nervously asked, "Are you sure you can hold me up?"

Pidgit chuckled. "We'll find out as soon as your friends make Tarent lose his concentra . . . YIKES!!!" Jamie felt himself fall, but Pidgit held him fast, the little drake's wings flapping furiously to keep them both aloft. The young ninja could feel his little friend beginning to lose his grip . . ..

George's bo slammed into the mage's face, sending him sprawling backward on his rear. He glared up at him, sneering as he shoved his right hand into a pouch on his belt, producing six silver balls, each about the size of a golf ball. He leapt to his feet and tossed them into the air and each of them expanded to the size of a softball and began orbiting his body.

Yoshi lunged in for an attack, but both of her blades were blocked as two of the orbs hit her attacking swords. A third one slammed into her face and knocked her into George.

Shawna wept bitterly. Her head swam with visions of the gray-bearded man and the brown-haired boy (Jamie?) who had just told her that he loved her. Mixed in were a very dear, dark-haired girl (Amy?) and a pretty southern belle (Alexandria? What is a southern belle?). There was a Japanese girl (Yoshi? What does Japanese mean?). There was a dark-haired boy (Buster?) whose faith impressed her.

Faith in what? The boy (Jamie?) had told her that someone else loved her. What was the Name? J . . .. What was the Name? JE . . .. If only she could remember the Name. JES . . .. What is the Name?! JESU . . .. What is His Name?! JESUS!!!

That Name! It is Love, Joy and Peace! It is Mercy and Forgiveness! It is SALVATION!!!

Through the chaos within the confused girl's mind, the Name . . . JESUS . . . shown as a beacon in the fog. Her tear-filled eyes looked Heavenward and she cried out, "JESUS, HELP ME!!!"

Immediately, the swirl of chaos ended. Jamie, Yoshi, George and little Ryan were in danger, and Tarent had set himself against the Risen Savior.

The young prophetess looked at her wrists as the darkness that had dared to attempt to bind a follower of Christ was vanquished.

She dropped to her knees and began to pray . . ..

Pidget succeeded in getting Jamie to the edge of the building before he lost his grip. The teen grabbed the wall and lifted himself onto it. He glanced at the little drake. "Thanks."

"No problem," replied Pidget. "I'm gonna go hide with the elf-kid."

Jamie watched the little creature fly to a pile of rubble, behind which Ryan had hidden.

George spun his staff fluidly, trying to get through the wizard's magical defenses. Each of the orbs moved to block his attacks, but he was keeping three, sometimes four of them focused on him.

Then Jamie joined the battle. Between the two males, they had all six of the orbs busy.

Yoshi kicked the mage in the gut with all her might, causing him to double over in pain. She watched with satisfaction as George slammed his bo staff into Tarent's back, knocking him onto his hands and knees.

The old wizard roared in rage. Lashing out with his right hand, he clawed Yoshi across the shoulder. The claws cut deeply, leaving a bleeding gash. The old mage was surprisingly strong. The impact sent her sprawling backward. She slid to a stop next to Shawna.

Climbing to her feet, Yoshi, grasping her bleeding shoulder, demanded, "How does an old man get to be so strong?"

Shawna responded. "As he's completing his transformation into a mortoque, the curse is augmenting his strength. But it's also making him lose his intellect."

Yoshi looked back toward the wizard just in time to see him backhand George, knocking him back into Jamie. Both teens hit the floor with a painful THUD!

Yoshi helped her boyfriend to his feet. His eye was red and would probably swell, but, other than that, he appeared fine.

The wizard howled in rage and swept his right hand outward, creating a force that knocked the standing teens from their feet as a bolt of lightning split the stormy sky, bathing the scene in its white light. Tarent then approached Jamie, and, raising a glowing hand toward the prone teen, exclaimed, "And now ninja, you DIIIIEEEEE!!!"

* * *

Alex didn't know how much longer that the five of them could keep this up. They were unable to harm the skeletons. No sooner would they knock one down, than it would be standing again.

One of them tackled her to the floor. She looked around frantically for Max, but found that he had his hands full with three of the undead creatures, as well. While the first was still pinning her to the stairs, another moved up and raised a rusty short sword above its head. She closed her eyes, expecting the sharp pain that would end her life.

Then, she heard a strange, shattering sound below. She risked opening her eyes to find the skeleton that had raised the sword gone. Standing where it had been, was a large adolescent male with shoulder-length, brown hair, who wore a red headband over his brow. The big teen grasped the skeleton that was pinning her down. "Dave!" she exploded, her fear replaced with joy.

"Ya look like ya could use a little hand, dudette!" joked the big teen as he tossed the second skeleton from the stairs to the first floor 300 feet below. He turned and helped her to her feet.

"How'd you get here?" she demanded.

"It's a long story," replied Dave as he backhanded another skeleton, knocking it from the stairs. "Get alot'o anorexic dead guys in these parts?"

"Not many," commented Alex as she kicked another of the creatures, knocking its head from its shoulders and sending, at least the head, flying off of the stairs.

All around her, the pretty young girl could see her friends, both the ones who had been with her in the warehouse that night on Earth and the ones who had stayed outside, throwing the skeletons to the first floor.

After Deck smashed the head of the last undead warrior into a wall, he turned to Dave. Grasping the big teen's hand and shaking it heartily, he boomed, "Dave! How'd ya get here?"

The big teen started to answer, but was interrupted by Elvara's voice. She was touching the double doors. "The magic that was holding the doors shut has been dropped! The wizard who cast the spell must be occupied!" Looking at Dave and Deck, she ordered, "Open it!"

Without a word, the two of them moved to the doors and began pushing them open.

* * *

The wizard was gathering lightning from the dark clouds above his tower into his left hand and channeling it through to collect in his right hand. Jamie looked about frantically for a way to avoid the upcoming attack. I am so dead, he thought fearfully. Suddenly, the double doors opened. Charging in, Max performed a shoulder-roll and, as he came to a crouching position, hurled a dagger at the mage. It caught him dead center in the chest, sending him screaming backward. His right hand swung upward wildly, shooting lightning into the spire and dropping a ton of rubble down upon him.

"You hit him!" exclaimed Alex in awe.

Max looked at the pile of rubble in shock. Then, he finally exclaimed, "I hit him! I actually hit him!" He wrapped his arms around Alex, picking her up from the ground in the excitement.

Jamie looked up. "DAVE!!!" he exploded as he jumped to his feet, being met with one of the big teen's bear hugs. "Let . . . ugh . . . me go . . . Dave!" he gasped as his cousin released him. He looked around to see Laura accosting Shawna, Amy kissing Buster, and the rest of Adventure accosting the rest of the people who had been in the warehouse that night.

The young ninja then turned to look at Star. "Star?" he asked in confusion. "How'd you come to be with them?"

"It's a long story," she muttered.

Jamie hugged her, then turned to Steve. "So, you got them to believe you about the coins, huh?"

"Yes," replied Steve. Then he cocked an eyebrow in mock arrogance as he asked, "Did you ever have any doubt?"

Jamie looked around. "Where's Jeremy?"

Dave sighed and started to say something, when he was interrupted by the sound of movement in the nearby rubble.

Jamie turned to look at the pile, which was shifting. Suddenly, the top of the rubble rolled away to reveal a green, reptilian humanoid that stood fully seven feet tall . . . and wore the wizard's amulet. The creature's long, pointed tongue licked the air from between its razor-sharp teeth. A foul, green liquid ran from its mouth, and the same liquid dripped from its claws. It roared in rage as it struggled to free its legs.

"Tarent's completed the transformation!" exclaimed Shawna.

Jamie and Dave looked at one another in horror.

"What is that thing?!" demanded Zack.

"Why don't we just run?" suggested Alex.

As if to answer her question, the remaining part of the spire collapsed, burying the exit.

Alex looked heavenward. "Oh, come on!"

At this point, the tower lurched. "What now?" thundered Deck.

"The old man's lightning's damaging of the spire must have compromised the superstructure of the building," explained Steve.

"Try explaining that in common English," suggested George.

"The building's gonna fall," translated Star.

"Will that amulet still protect him in this form?" asked Jamie of Shawna.

"I don't see why not," replied the Mother World prophetess.

"Then we have to get it off him." The young ninja looked at Deck and Dave. "The thing looks pretty strong. Do you think that you two can each pin an arm while we get someone who's quick," he looked at Max, "to pull the amulet off of it?"

Deck and Dave glanced at one another, then, in unison, said, "No problem."

"There is one thing," stated Elvara. "Whatever you do, don't let it claw you or bite you."

"Why?" asked Dave.

"In order to kill its prey, the creature releases a toxin from its teeth and claws that kills swiftly."

"I'm glad we know 'bout this," remarked Deck.

The two larger males moved around to either side of the creature as it slowly pulled its first, massive leg from the rubble. They moved closer to it as Max approached it from the front.

Jamie pulled a shuriken from his vest in preparation to throw it. Yoshi did the same. He noticed that her hair and face were drenched in sweat. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"I am fine," replied his clan-sister. "Just somewhat tired from the battle, that is all."

The creature swung its claws at Deck and Dave, one hand at each. They both deftly dodged the creature's attack and grasped its arms, pinning them behind its back.

Max leaped onto the thing's chest, using his feet as leverage against the beast as he tugged at the amulet.

"Ya wanna snap it up, dude?" suggested Dave. "This guy is kinda' strong."

"Its . . . coming!" exclaimed the youth as the cord that was holding the amulet in place snapped, throwing him to the ground at Jamie's feet. The amulet slid across the floor, to be picked up by Ryan. Both of the ninja hurled their shurikens, burying them deep into the creature's chest. The creature broke free of Dave's grasp, shoving him to the ground. It then broke free of Deck's grip, picked him up, and held him over its head.

"Gee," muttered Max, looking up in shock. "It is strong."

The mortoque pulled its other leg free as it hurled Deck at the group, who scrambled to avoid getting hit. Deck hit the ground, hard. Elvara was at his side. "Are you okay?" she asked. "Did it claw you?"

Deck groaned as he climbed to his feet. "Yes and no."

Alexandria charged the beast and leaped from the ground, slamming her right foot into it. It stumbled backward as she performed a cartwheel to leave its range.

Jamie lunged forward and pulled his ninja-to. He swung with all his might, cutting a large gash into the creature's gut. In retaliation, the creature swung its claws at the young ninja, who ducked easily.

He rolled out of the way in time to see Yoshi standing by the doors. She eyed the creature. The building lurched again, but she kept her balance. Jamie looked back toward Tarent and noticed that the monster's struggle to free itself from the rubble had brought it to the very edge of the roof. Looking back at his clan-sister he saw that she noticed this, as well. She smiled as she said, "I will see you next fall, Tarent." She then charged the creature. Leaping from her feet, she slammed her right foot into the creature's chest, right where Max's dagger protruded. The beast stumbled backward and roared in rage as it fell to its death upon the stakes below.

The tower lurched again as more rubble from the spire fell to the floor. Suddenly, there was a blinding white light. The light grew brighter and brighter until it drowned out the view of the tower. Jamie could feel the floor beneath his feet soften. Finally, the sound of the collapsing tower stopped and the light faded away to reveal Elvara's father's cottage and forge-building.

"How . . .?" started George when his girlfriend collapsed into his arms. "Yoshi!" he exclaimed as he slowly lowered her to the ground.

"I feel so . . . strange," whispered Yoshi weakly.

Elvara kneeled next to her and examined her shoulder. "Why didn't you tell us that he clawed you?" she demanded.

"He . . . hadn't completed the transformation at that point."

"If he has the claws, then he has the poison," stated Elvara.

"Can't you do something?!" wailed George, his voice cracking.

Elvara shook her head, tears welling up in her eyes. "The mortoque's poison is magical in nature. That is why it spreads so quickly. If she had told us sooner . . .."

"Then she's going to die?" interrupted Alex incredulously.

"I am afraid so," whispered the elven sorceress as the tears began to stream down her face.

Jamie dropped to his knees next to his clan-sister. "Yoshi . . .."

Yoshi looked up and smiled weakly at George. "The 'boogieman' did get me."

"No, Yoshi," cried George, tears flowing steadily down his cheeks. "Please don't leave me."

She weakly raised her hand to caress his cheek. "George, you have made me happier than I have been in a long time. We have shared something very special." She smiled, sweat and tears running down her own face. "A part of me will always be with you."

She looked up at Jamie, who was crying steadily, as well. Taking his hand, she said, "Thank you for being my friend when I had no others, my brother. I wish that it could have been more."

Yoshi outstretched her other hand and beckoned Shawna closer. Shawna knelt sadly next to the kunoichi. "Shawna, please forgive me for the way that I have treated you. I understand that you fear love, because it is so easy for someone whom you love to hurt you." She took Shawna's hand and placed it over that of Jamie. "Jamie will never hurt you. The two of you mean so much to one another. Please don't run away from your feelings, or you will always be miserable." Jamie looked up at Shawna to find her tearfully returning his gaze.

Yoshi released their hands. Looking at all those around her, she continued, "You are all my family. I love each and every one of you. You have been there for me in times of great distress, and I ask you now to please not grieve for me. I am going to see my parents again . . . as well as Uncle Tanemura." She closed her eyes and huddled closer to George. "I am cold," she mumbled weakly. He wrapped his arms more tightly around her. "I am coming, mother . . .."

Yoshi took in one final breath and released it.

And her family wept.

Chapter Fifty

Monday, 1:00 P.M.

". . . We commit our sister to the ground," declared Buster tearfully as he and the rest of Adventure stood over the grave of Yoshika Funakoshi. "Ashes to ashes . . . and dust to dust." He closed his prayer book.

Shawna kneeled down next to the grave marker, which Deck had fashioned, and placed a pretty, yellow flower next to it. She didn't know what it was, it being native to Thera, but Elvara had said that it was one of the flowers that was typically used in a funeral ceremony. She stood and backed away to watch the rest of her friends do the same. After George tearfully placed his flower over the grave, Jamie knelt and placed a white cloth with the letter A etched upon it over the grave. She could hear him whisper, "Goodbye, 'sis.'"

The group separated. Shawna walked down toward the stream, but stopped at an old tree stump and seated herself upon it, looking up at the cloudless sky.

The group was going to be leaving in the morning to return to Earth. Shawna was looking forward to getting home. They had already decided upon a story to tell as to where they had been. They were going to tell the authorities that they had been kidnapped by the Funakoshi's ancient enemy . . . the Waruiyatsu. They had barely escaped and Yoshi had been lost in the attempt.

Shawna realized that she was being watched. "You can come out," she called. "I know you're there."

An old man wearing a long, white robe stepped out of the woods. He approached the girl and seated himself upon the ground next to her. "I figured that you knew about me," he said.

She smiled. "Yes, and I know that you were the little purple dragon, as well, Pidgit." Then, her face lost its smile, replaced by anger. "Or, should I call you Merlin?"

"You are very perceptive," declared the old prophet.

"I just want to know one thing," stated Shawna. "Why didn't you deal with Tarent yourself? If you had, then Yoshi would still be alive."

Merlin sighed. "I know that this is difficult for you . . .." he began.

"DIFFICULT?!" interrupted Shawna. "It's heart-breaking!"

The old mage sighed again. "All I can say is that I can see into the future . . . as can you, when God wills it. I know that everything that has happened has happened for a reason."

He shook his head. "I envy you for your faith. My belief in God doesn't come from faith."

She looked back at the old prophet. "Any belief in God has to have something to do with faith."

"Not if you've seen Him," replied Merlin.

"What?!"

The old man touched the cross that he wore about his neck. "I was born in the highlands of Caledonia in the year 3 BC . . . I think." He stopped. "Or was it 4 BC? It is so hard to remember after two millennia." Looking at her and noting the impatience chiseled upon her face, he continued. "I was raised in a pagan religion, but I knew that there had to be something else. When I had completed my magical training, I began searching for the creation of our world of Earth. My visions brought me to a far-away land known as Israel.

"I arrived in time to watch an execution. There were three men who were being crucified. Two of them were thieves, but, from what I could get from the locals, the other was being executed for claiming to be the Son of God. I watched, transfixed, for the hours that it took for Him to die."

"You saw Jesus crucified?" asked Shawna in awe.

"Yes," replied Merlin. "Nothing could have prepared me for the power that I felt when Christ gave up His Spirit. As the clouds rolled in and thunder filled the sky, I could barely stand from the sheer energy that was released. I remember a guard saying that, surely, the Man that they had killed had been the Son of God, and I whole-heartedly agreed with him."

"Wow," responded Shawna.

"I followed the Christian movement for many years after it started," continued Merlin. "I was finally converted to the Christian religion when I listened to the sermon of a reformed Pharisee who had changed his name from 'Saul' to . . ."

"Paul!" exclaimed Shawna. "You met Paul?"

"Quite an impressive man," commented the old mage. "But not as impressive as Jesus, Himself. But I gave up my prior training so that I could learn from this man on a level that was equal to everyone else." He winked at Shawna. "Earth legends still call me a wizard, but I haven't used that word to describe myself in over nineteen-hundred years."

"Two thousand years old?" whispered Shawna. "Are you ever going to die?"

"Yes," replied the old man. "According to Scripture, only two men have ever been taken to Heaven without dying. God will allow my life to end in His good time."

Shawna thought for a moment. "If you could see into the future, then why couldn't you prevent Yoshi from dying? You saved Jamie."

"Yoshi's death has still to serve a purpose," explained Merlin. "You may not see it yet, but you soon will."

The old prophet climbed to his feet and began to walk back toward the forest. "By the way," he said as he turned to look at the girl. "Tell Deck that his ancestor would turn over in his grave if he knew about half the things that he did." He turned back toward the trees.

Shawna watched the man disappear into the forest, then she climbed to her feet and turned toward the stream . . ..

* * *

Jamie sat at the base of the large oak. Thoughts of his adopted sister filled his mind. Something that she had said when she had heard of his acrophobia played itself there.

"A ninja who is afraid of heights? I have never heard of anything so ridiculous!"

Looking up at the thick branches of the tree, Jamie made a resolution. He climbed to his feet and jumped from the ground, grasping the lowest branch, and then pulling himself up. He did this to several more branches, finally seating himself upon a branch about thirty feet from the ground and leaning back against the tree. Looking down, he nervously mumbled, "I don't believe this. She's dead, and I'm still accepting her stupid dares."

* * *

Shawna approached the clearing next to the creek. Without thinking, she looked up, nearly passing out from the sight. Jamie Raleigh, the acrophobic ninja, was sitting on a thick tree branch about thirty feet from the ground.

She took a step toward the tree and moved her right hand downward in an arc. The next step was about a foot from the ground, the next two feet, then three . . ..

* * *

Jamie shook his head sadly as the gentle, summer breeze blew through his hair. Although he had hoped to always avoid it, he was now the jonin of the Funakoshi ninja clan. He knew that the members of the clan who had opposed his membership wouldn't approve of this, maybe even believing that the young ninja had killed Yoshi to take her place. He sighed, fearing that this might cause a civil war within the clan.

He was suddenly aware of blonde hair moving up toward him from the right. It was Shawna.

"Hello," she said, smiling shyly.

Jamie looked down, but saw that she was standing in thin air. Having grown accustomed to this sort of thing on this world, the young ninja replied, "Hi." He gestured at her feet and commented, "Neat trick."

"It's a simple trick," she stated. "I can hold you out here, too."

"Uh, no," muttered the young ninja hastily. "You know how I feel about heights . . .."

"I wouldn't drop you," retorted Shawna playfully.

"I'm sure you wouldn't mean to, but . . .."

"I held you, me, and a horse aloft the day before yesterday," bragged the girl. Then she added, "Okay, God did that."

"Oh," mumbled Jamie. "So that was how we made that jump."

"Yes," she replied as she held her hand out toward him.

Jamie sighed in defeat as he took her hand and rose to his feet. He closed his eyes and slowly stepped off of the branch. Then he was floating with her in mid-air.

"See," explained Shawna. "As long as we're in physical contact, you won't fall."

Jamie shuddered. But he realized, as he looked into her beautiful, brown eyes, that his nervousness had nothing to do with his fear of heights. "Uh," he stuttered nervously, "was there a reason that you came out here?"

Shawna cleared her throat, but kept his gaze. "I've been thinking about what Yoshi said."

Jamie shuddered at the name of his late clan-sister.

She continued. "She was right about me. I didn't break up with you because of your constant heroics. I suppose that, since the Waruiyatsu invasion, I've just come to accept the fact that you can take care of yourself." She reached her free hand up to his face, caressing his cheek. "I was scared for me. I have never dated anyone who had treated me well . . . then you suddenly came along. It was as if I knew that it couldn't last." She took her eyes from his. "So, I ran away."

"There's nothing to be afraid of," said Jamie.

"I know that, now," stated Shawna. "It's just that I didn't before. But I'm through running. I'm going to embrace your love . . .," she met his gaze again, " . . . if it's still there."

Jamie smiled. Bringing his free hand up to push back the hair that the slight breeze was blowing across her face, he brought his lips toward hers and they met. It was a feeling that both of them had missed, for which both of them had longed for the past six weeks. Jamie could feel Shawna drop her free hand to her side, bringing up a gust of wind that blew around the young couple, sending them gently spinning in place, like a romantic music box charm. The young ninja forgot all about the fact that he and the woman that he loved were floating thirty feet above the ground, and slowly beginning to climb . . ..

* * *

Buster was standing outside of Elvara's house talking to Dave and Max when Dave looked up into the sky in the direction of the creek. Suddenly, his eyes widened. "Whoa, dudes!" he exclaimed, pointing up in the direction of his gaze. "Check that out!"

Buster turned and looked up to see Shawna and Jamie, kissing one another as the two floated above the tree-line, where they stopped and hovered, spinning slowly in place.

"He must be enjoying it," commented Max.

"Why's 'at, dude?" asked Dave.

"'Cause he's not freakin' out about the height."

Epilogue

Tuesday, 10:00 A.M.

Jamie packed all of his weapons away into the backpack that Alex and Max had bought for him when the group had arrived upon this strange world of Thera. It would be the only thing that he was taking back with him to Earth to remember his adventures here. He looked across the living room at the pile of ninja weapons that Yoshi had brought. He was leaving them here, so they would be closer to their owner.

The front door opened and Shawna, wearing her Tweety shirt and denim shorts, entered the cottage. She put her arms around the young ninja's waist and said, "Everyone's ready."

Jamie returned her embrace. "Are you sure you don't want to stay?" he asked playfully.

"I was born on Earth for a reason," replied Shawna with a smile. "God put me there for a purpose, and I don't believe that He'd want me to stay here. Besides," she smiled and kissed him, "my place is with you."

He returned her smile and then, throwing the backpack over one shoulder, turned with his free arm around her waist as the two exited the house.

Outside, they found the members of Adventure standing before the glowing portal. "Everybody ready to go home?" he asked as he and his girlfriend approached.

Deck turned and looked at Jamie, his face unusually serious. "I'm not goin' back," he stated calmly.

Jamie had expected this.

Deck continued. "Elvara an' me . . . we're gonna get married an' raise this rugrat." He playfully rubbed the hair on Ryan's head. Then, the big man looked in the direction of the lone tombstone that stood next to a tree about three hundred feet away. "Besides, I think she needs a friend t'stay with her."

Jamie took Deck's hand and shook it heartily. "You know, you may never get to come home." The group had decided that, when the last was back on Earth, one person on each side of the portal would snatch a coin to close it, thus ensuring that it could never be opened again. This way, they couldn't fall into the wrong person's hands on either world.

"I know," responded Deck. "But I never really belonged there, ya know? I can be a real blacksmith here."

The young ninja watched as Zack, Pete, Star, Buster, Amy, Laura, Dave, Steve, and Leslie each gave their farewells to the big man, his fiancé, and his adopted son. He then watched as George quietly shook the big man's hand.

"Take care of her," muttered George quietly as he glanced over at Yoshi's grave.

"I will," replied Deck.

George stepped through the portal.

Alex and Max stepped forward, leading their horse's reins. "Take good care of Zohi, Elvara," instructed Alex.

"Don't worry," replied the elf as she embraced Alex, then Max.

Max handed his backpack to Deck. "My sword's in here. Don't think I'll be needin' it on earth. Alex's and my daggers are in here, too." He shook Deck's large hand, then the two young martial artists entered the portal, leaving Sly, Jamie and Shawna.

Sly shook Deck's hand. "Now, who'm Ah gonna git t'pick up girls with me?" he joked.

Deck looked at Jamie with a smile.

"Forget it," snapped Shawna protectively as she wrapped her arms around the young ninja. "He's taken."

Sly chuckled and stepped through the portal.

Jamie sighed. "Are you sure you won't come back?"

Deck shook his head. "I've finally found where I belong." He and Jamie had one last friendly handshake, then the big man hugged Shawna as Jamie embraced Elvara.

Shawna kneeled down next to Ryan. "You take good care of your new Mommy and Daddy."

"I will," smiled the boy as he embraced this young woman who had changed his life for the better.

Finally, Jamie followed Shawna through the portal. There was a flash of blue light, then he stepped out behind her on grassy ground. Looking about, he realized that he and his friends were next to Old Man's Creek in Jameston's city park.

Turning back to the portal, the young ninja knelt down and took hold of one of the coins. He could barely make out Deck's large form on the other side of the portal taking hold of the other coin. The big man held his free hand aloft, holding up three fingers. Then he dropped one, then another. Finally, he dropped the last one and he and Jamie each picked up their respective coin.

As the portal slowly began to close, Jamie stood and said, "Goodbye, Deck Pendragon, descendant of King Arthur."

He thought that he could almost hear a voice from the other side of the portal as it closed say, "Goodbye Jamie Raleigh, jonin of the Funakoshi ninja clan."

Jamie turned sadly to look at his friends. Star smiled. "I know what'll make ya feel better," she claimed.

"What's that?" asked Jamie.

"A pizza."

He smiled, despite himself. "With hot peppers?"

"Of course," chuckled Star.

"Hot peppers?" groaned Shawna as she put her right arm around the young ninja's waist. "Yuck!"

The group turned to walk toward the exit to the park, their hearts heavy with loss . . . the loss of a wonderful friend named Yoshi.

THE END

About the Author

In 1989, when Jeffrey Allen Davis was fourteen, he started a recording on his parents' VCR to get a horror movie about a Ouija board. It captured the movie that came on Showtime after it, as well. That accidental recording, a ninja movie that starred Michael Dudikoff, grabbed his imagination and the shadow warriors have been hiding there ever since. Over twenty years later, he still enjoys watching a good ninja movie.

Davis lives in St. Charles, MO, with his wife, Vickie, his daughter, Kaitlyn, and two stepchildren, Jayson and Breeanna.

Visit him online at his blog.

Also available

From Jeffrey Allen Davis

Lily's Redemption

A Christian mystery thriller exploring the dangerous effects of pornography, it is available in paperback, Kindle and Nook editions.

Invasion of the Ninja

A group of teenage martial artists defend a southern Missouri school from an invading ninja army.

Klandestine Maneuvers

The members of Adventure, along with some new faces, face an influx of racists who have come to Sera to terrorize the town's only African-American family, the Robertsons.

The Ultimate Failure

A new Christian gives a police statement regarding his friend's suicide. A free flash fiction.

Coming Soon

The Search for Yoshi

Shawna's nightmares lead Adventure back to Thera, where we are treated to a flipped "damsel in distress" story and our heroes are forced to seek out and battle a witch who may be descended from the Old Testaments' priests of Ba'al.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Jesus, my Blessed Savior.

Thanks to Karen Griffiths for all of her input.

Thanks to Sam Campbell.

Thanks to my mother, whose heart knows no bounds.

Thanks to my hard-working father, who has already gone Home.

Thanks to my beautiful wife, Vickie, for her support during the long hours of writing. Thanks to my daughter, KK, for the calming effects of her hugs. Thanks to my step-son, Jay, for reading–and enjoying—the original version of Book One. Thanks to my step-daughter, Bree, for reminding me that I have to laugh every once in a while.

Thanks to D. Issac, B. Goodman, E. Griffiths, A. Emmons, T. Thompson, D. Middleton, S. Black, J. Don Davis, L. Isaac, K. Corbett, E. Hall, J. Hall, L. Ringstaff, J. King, J. Decker, W. Clardy, D. Goodman. You've all been lifelong influences.

