"Not hungry?" Roa asked. He and Etsuo were staring at the dark sea from on top of a strangely curved tree with purple leaves.

Etsuo glanced down at his barely nibbled banana. "I can't stop thinking about Dine. Think it'll be fine?"

"Your mom said it'll be," Roa said as he looked down at the half-eaten carrot in his hands. He tossed the rest of the carrot into his mouth and jumped off of the tree. "Well, I better get going. I need to change clothes and prepare for the festival. Want me to take you home?"

"Think I'll be fine on my own. I see no sight of Satoru," Etsuo said, waving goodbye.

Roa ran across the black sandy beach but came to a stop as a gray-haired young man with fox-like eyes made his way toward him. The young man wore a crimson kimono with golden flame embroidery. The collar of the kimono meanwhile had light brown fur.

"Roa! I see you're alone. Did you finally decide to drop those losers?" he asked, smiling impishly. He held out a hand toward him. "I know you betrayed us, but I'll accept your return to our fold."

"Who are you calling losers?" Etsuo yelled as came running over. He was devouring his banana.

The gray-haired fox boy shook his head. "Seems I spoke too soon."

"Right back at you! Here, catch!" the monkey boy yelled as he flicked something into the air.

"What?" Satoru asked as his eyes widened. The boy stepped back as he saw a banana peel fly through the air. He reached his right hand out and caught the thing in his hands and crushed it. He closed his eyes and chuckled. "Trying to get a hit on me with this? Pathetic. I won't be humiliated by the likes of you."

"Bye, loner!" Roa yelled, waving at him.

Satoru opened his eyes and saw that they were already several feet away. "Hey, when did you get there? Come back here! I wasn't done talking to you!" the boy yelled.

Etsuo and Roa snickered as they raced past some stands selling rock candy. "Seems you've made him mad," Etsuo said, giggling. "Honestly, if he wants to be your friend, he should ask."

Roa slowed down and put his hands behind his head. "Ha! Like I'll ever be friends with a guy like that. He's hurt you and Dine too much for me to do that."

Etsuo looked down and smiled, a luminescent blush on his face. "Thanks for being my friend."

The black-haired boy grinned as he looked back at the dark shore. "I should be the one to thank you. You and Dine were my first true friends." He gazed up at the black yonder. "Before you two came along, I was his friend."

"Oh right, I remember," Etsuo said as he took out another banana from his backpack using his monkey tail. He happily peeled the thing. "You used to be a bully too. You actually gave me a bloody lip. My mommy told me to punch you the next time, who cares what uncle can think. If he tried to retaliate, she'd beat him up with ease. Not that she expected him to." He laughed while Roa gave him a stoic look.

"And so you did. I was so surprised by that punch," Roa said, rubbing his right cheek. "Didn't think such a girly boy like you could hit so hard."

Etsuo pouted and punched him in the shoulder.

"Hey, what was with that?"

"You actually thought I was a girl back then."

Roa snickered. "Well, yeah. You're that pretty. Actually, you're prettier than daddy."

Etsuo nearly choked on his banana. "I-I don't want to be pretty!"

"Then get buff," Roa said, flexing his arms.

The white-haired boy chuckled. "Stop that, you're embarrassing me!"

Roa gave him an impish smile. "Why? Because you lack these guns?"

"Because you got none! You're almost as lanky as me! Now stop that, or I'll run away!" Etsuo yelled, his face bright red.

"Okay, okay, Such a critic," Roa said, putting his arms down and crossing them over his boyish chest. "But in the future, I hope to grow up to be a cool guy, like our uncle Shi! Papa says he's almost as cool as grandpa!"

"I wanna meet him one day," Etsuo said as he peeled his banana some more. "Though my mommy doesn't like him or aunt Selena much. But I want to meet my angel cousins..."

"Your mom only likes one of her siblings," Roa said, chuckling. "She hates my dad too, remember?"

"Yeah, she tells me that I'll become as weak as him if I don't keep up my training." Etsuo sighed. "I hate training. I'm only ten, why couldn't my mommy be more like uncle?"

"Though she does have a point about needing strength to defend yourself."

He smiled. "True. One day I'll be strong enough to defend both Dine and you!"

Roa looked away. "I think you mean I will protect Dine and you."

"That's what I said!"

"You said 'I'... Ugh, this is getting confusing!"

Etsuo chuckled. "I know what you meant, dummy. Just pulling your tail."

Roa grumbled as they arrived at the bridge. "Well, we're here."

He waved goodbye as he stepped into the bridge. "Bye! I'll meet you at the festival!"

Roa watched as the bridge swayed back and forth. Etsuo might've been weaker, but he was actually rather brave. Dine was also braver than him...

***

"Wah, it's pretty!" Skah yelled as he stared at everyone dressed in colorful robes. It was the one time of the year in which everyone wore their colored clothes. Color was hard to come by in Abyssia, so most people only owned one pair of colored clothes, if at all. Not that one could even see most of the color for most of the year with the lack of light.

Etsuo himself wore a black kimono, though that was due to taste. Though he did have a red sash to give it a flash of color.

Roa stared at his father's colorful fan. It was the only color his father had on him. Usually, his dad wore white, much like Etsuo. Most even confused Etsuo as Skah's son due to their white hair, golden eyes, pretty looks, and similar hairstyles. It had to annoy Roa's aunt to have a son that greatly resembled her pesky younger brother.

"Ahh! Sis!" Skah yelled, waving his fan as Rocio walked through the gate of the festival grounds. She had come alone. Like Roa, she wore black robes with a vermillion sash holding the kimono together. Not to mention the golden sticks on her tied up hair and the golden fan in her hands.

"Skah," Rocio said, with stern eyes as she covered her face with her fan. "Why are you wearing your usual clothes?"

"I already look pretty year-round," Skah said, flicking his long white hair back. "If I wore something prettier than what I usually wear, it might be too much for this universe to handle."

"Weirdo," she said as she turned away. She shook her head. "I am not even sure as to why I continue trying to understand you."

"Maybe because I'm your adorable baby brother?" he asked, winking.

She turned away. "Argh. Perhaps I should've waited for Daisaru to get the kids dressed up before heading over here."

Skah chuckled. "Well, you look beautiful today, big sis."

"Thanks, now what do you recommend I play first?" she asked as she gazed at the other stands.

So Etsuo isn't here yet...

"Hey, how is Dine?" Roa asked.

She smiled and pointed her fan at what laid beyond the gate, or rather who. Walking up the hill was Daisaru, with his three youngest kids riding on his head and shoulders. Like usual, he was showing off his broad chest and six-pack. Though he did wear a golden hoodie.

"I don't see Dine, nor Etsuo," Roa said, pouting.

"We're here!" Etsuo yelled, emerging from behind his father as soon as they passed the gate. He wore snow-white fur robes, which looked like a combination between a kimono and a hoodie.

Roa smiled. "You look nice."

Etsuo's face turned red. "Uh, you do too."

"What about me?" Dine asked.

"Huh?" Roa said as a copper-haired girl walked from behind his uncle Daisaru. She wore a pink floral kimono and carried a tiny pink bag. "Who are you, and why do you have Dine's voice?"

The girl snickered. "Maybe because I'm Dine?"

His mouth dropped. "What? You're Dine? How are you not a blob?"

Daisaru smiled. "It seems my wife's elixir proved too potent that she transformed into a girl. Etsuo here almost died out of shock when he walked in to check on her."

Etsuo covered his face with both hands. "So sorry, Dine."

"No worries. You can marry me too to make up for it," she said, giggling.

"What?" Etsuo said, fidgeting. "But..."

Roa glared at Etsuo. "She's my Dine!" he said, hugging her. "Wait, what did you mean by too?"

"You'll be the other one," Dine said before kissing him in the check.

Roa's face turned completely red.

"Seriously? This girl is playing with both our boys," Skah said, narrowing his eyes at Dine.

Daisaru chuckled. "I don't think the boys would mind sharing, they are pretty close."

"A little too close," Rocio said, glancing back at the boys.

Etsuo continued to hide his face behind his hands.

Roa grinned and put an arm around Etsuo. "Of course, we are! He's my bestest buddy!"

"And Dine?" Skah asked with a teasing smiling.

"Dine? Uh..." he looked away. "She's my other bestest buddy..."

"Hahaha," Skah said, covering his mouth. "Well, guess the friend zone it'll be."

"Well, both your wife and you friend-zoned one another, and look how that ended up," Rocio said.

Roa's marched over to Dine and Etsuo and grabbed a hand of each. "Enough about gross stuff. Let's go play!"

"Yeah!" Dine yelled, giggling.

"Let's play capture the fish!" Etsuo suggested.

"Alright!' Roa and Dine yelled. The three vanished into the colorful crowd of people, music, and delicious smells.

***

['Present']

Roa chuckled as he put a hand over his face. "Why do I remember that now?" he asked. He turned away from the window.

Those happy days won't be returning.

"Hey, Roa!" he heard Etsuo called out. The white-haired teen opened the door and peered in. "Are you awa... Ahh, you are. It seems there was a change of plans." He gasped as he saw drops fall to the purple carpet. "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

Roa shook his head. "Crying? No, I simply have something in my eye," he said, wiping the tears away.

Etsuo took a deep breath. "You know your lies may work on the others, but not me. What's wrong?"

"I... I had a dream about Dine..."

The white-haired teen lowered his eyes. "I see."

"She was trying to flee from something, a shadow. I couldn't quite make out what it was... It was as if the darkness had betrayed my eyes. I know it doesn't mean anything, but it made me recall the past."

Etsuo turned around, his hands shaking. "It'll soon be seven years since that fateful day." He closed his eyes. "If only I had been stronger..."

Roa shook his head and picked up his back shirt from the edge of the bed. "We can't wallow in the past now. We got a mission to do. We better contact Satoru about the change of plans."

"Alright," Etsuo said, keeping his head low.

The black-haired teen took out a blue crystal from under his bed. He covered it in a light blue aura, causing the crystal itself to let out an equally blue light.

"Hello?" Satoru asked.

"It's me, Roa. There's been a change of plans. I'll let Etsuo explain to you as I am not sure as to what those new plans are."

"Alright, but hurry up, I'm busy right now teaching this little twerp piano."

"Piano? Why?" the two asked.

Satoru took a deep breath. "I thought up another idea should our plans fail. So it actually doesn't matter if the enemy has changed plans."

"Woah, you're really on top of things," Roa said.

Satoru scoffed. "Aren't I always?"

"Not really," Roa said, rolling his eyes even though Satoru couldn't see the gesture.

"Anyway, get on with it!"

"Alright," Etsuo said. "It seems that the king and the others won't be marching northward anymore. Instead, he and the leader of the northern province, Miyuki, sent another expedition to hunt whatever the creature in the north is. We take it that's your doing?"

Satoru chuckled proudly. "Yes, yes, it is. A magnificent creature that one is. If that's the case, we'll need to delay our plans to take over the capital. No matter, once my subject has destroyed this expedition they've sent, they'll have no choice but to intervene. After all, according to your past information, they've already lost plenty of lives. They surely can't afford to lose more of their forces, especially as they gear up to preemptively attack us."

"That's if your creature manages to defeat them," Roa said.

"Don't worry, I'm sure it will! If not, then we always have this second plan of mine. In the meantime, you two come up with something too. We've already wasted weeks here. Espionage is good and all, but without military action to follow it up with, it's useless for winning this war. Speaking of which, we'll be seeing each other soon."

Roa heard Etsuo gulp behind him.

"What else are you planning?" Roa asked.

Satoru chuckled. "You'll see. All I will say is that we might get our opportunity to take the palace quicker than you two think."

***

[Meanwhile- Near Grand Crater]

Satoru's creature advanced into a mid-size city covered in a crystal-like makeshift spherical ice wall. Strangely there was no one around guarding this city, unlike the others she destroyed. The golem-like creature raised a hand and struck the wall with it, crashing it as if it were an ice cube that had been hit by a hammer. The creature then opened its mouth and shot out a purple energy beam, cutting the sleepy city right down the middle. The areas where the beam hit burst instantly from the sheer heat, unleashing dark flames in all directions.

"Another one down. Why does Master Satoru wish for me to destroy them?" it asked out loud as snowflakes fell overhead. The creature lowered its reddish-golden eyes as a blade ran down its back. "What?"

"Die, monster!" a soldier in light blue armor yelled as ice erupted from the cut.

The creature screamed and shot the crystals back at the soldier, but his armor managed to shield him.

"Where did he come from?" it asked. Suddenly beams of ice erupted from the ruins of the tiny town.

"The town? Wait, was this all a trap?"

"Yes!" a soldier yelled as she jumped into the air and aimed for its head. The creature swatted her away like a fly, sending her crashing into what remained of the ice wall.

It stepped back as several more armored soldiers unleashed beams of ice at it, freezing its feet in place. The creature growled as it swatted away giant blades of ice. It shrieked as they slashed its body, unleashing a tar-like liquid which dyed the snow and ice pitch black.

"Stop!" it yelled as it covered its chest. "Stop!"

"Why is it covering its chest rather than its head?" one of the soldiers asked.

"I'm not sure, but this is an alien monstrosity we're talking about. Its brain or even its organs, in general, might not be where we would expect."

"Hmm, if it's one of those creatures Lady Miyuki talked about in the report, then this thing would need to have a core somewhere. Now, we only need to locate it," a soldier said. He was dressed from head to toe in dark blue armor. In the front, it bore a crest consisting of three swords overlapping with a single blue raindrop on their tips. The creature could tell this young man wasn't a simple soldier. Given the way he walked and talked, he had to be a knight. And not just any ordinary one either.

As if to prove it correct, silver chains burst from the knight's left hand and wrapped around the upper body of the strange being.

"Let me go!" the being yelled into the air. A pillar of darkness shot out of its mouth, going on for miles before finally fading out. Black rain drew the attention of the soldiers toward the sky.

"What's going on?" some of them asked.

As they were distracted by the odd phenomena, the creature attempted to break its chains using brute force.

"Where you think you're going?" the dark blue armored knight yelled, tightening the hold of his chains on it. "Your time has ended, abyssmal. We will not allow your kind to take over Zionia!"

The creature's shrieks caused the heavens and earth to tremble. Its feet snapped, allowing it to move once more while the frozen parts bubbled like hot motor oil. The soldiers kept their distance from it and rose a frozen barrier around the stuff.

"Keep watch over that, I'll take care of it," the knight yelled.

The black liquid making up the creature's main body spread out, giving it a serpentine appearance. It slithered downhill before leaping into the air. Sections of its back spread out from the rest of the body until they formed two enormous onyx wings.

The knight in dark blue armor chuckled as he jumped into the air and flew after it. The winged serpent tried to speed up, but its body was far too large and inexperienced when it came to flying. He appeared in front of the creature in the blink of an eye and grabbed its head. "Where do you think you're going?"

The creature's watery body attempted to drag him into it, but nothing happened.

The thing gasped. "Why aren't you being swallowed into my body like the others who came before you?" the being cried out.

The soldier grinned and caused ice to spread across its head. "Your body is strange. It's practically liquid darkness. Even when faced against the Kuroriku or even my own Mizu no Kin clan, you still managed to win. One can survive within that body of yours for a while, but you gradually absorb their strength until they're but life-less husks. However, up against one such as me who can control both water and darkness, absorption is impossible."

The being cried as the ice spread toward its reddish-golden eyes. "Let me go, please!"

"No. You were merciless when it came to destroying whole towns. You were even labeled the 'Demon of the North' because of such ruthlessness. Yet you expect me to let you go? To show you the pity that you failed to offer others? No way would I do that!" he yelled, crushing its forehead with a single hand.

The thing yelled, unleashing a beam of darkness upon the man, but he was unaffected. "No, no way!"

The young man's sea-blue eyes lingered on the horrified creature for a second before ice spread all across it. He let go of the beast and flicked its head, shattering its body and sending what remained flying several miles away.

A second later, the creature rose from the icy crater it found itself in. Everything felt different. Its vision had changed. It could now see everything around it in 360 degrees simultaneously. If it still had a mouth, it would've gasped. Its entire body had been destroyed. The only reason it was still alive was that its heart had survived.

"A core just like how aunt Miyuki and King Osamu had described," a voice said. It was the dark blue armored soldier. He was squatted over the rim of the crater, watching as the yellow crystal twitched as dark tendrils emerged from it. The vine-like appendages served as legs for the core. "What an odd creature indeed. Now, what should I do? My aunt told me to shatter the core, yet the king said to retrieve it."

"Leave me alone!" a voice erupted from the crystal.

"It can still speak?" the knight said, standing up.

Hundreds of black whip-like appendages emerged from the creature and twisted together to form a coned drill bit. The thing spun around so fast that the wind it produced sent the soldier flying and the area where he once stood was no more.

"Tsk, guess taking it down will be a tad harder than I anticipated." He grinned as he rose from a cylinder-shaped crater which ran for several miles. He winced as his wings began to ache. "Why now?"

He watched as the creature sped away from the crater on spider-like legs. Its core was now covered again in the liquid goo.

I need to get away. I need to find a place to hide until I can heal. No, I need to find Master Satoru, he can help me... Satoru...

The thing stopped as images flashed before its head...

"Huh?" it said. The images of a black-haired boy in a black kimono running ahead of it popped into its head. "What in Abyss was that?"

"Divine Chains of Heaven!" The thing gasped as seven blue chains tore its body beyond repair. Behind it was the knight. The chains had emerged from his armor.

"Gahhh!" the thing screamed, shaking the earth and heavens once again.

"You'll be coming with me. I think there's some information you might harbor that will be vital to us," the soldier said as he yanked the yellow crystal out of the darkness using three chains.

The light of the crystal flickered on and off. "Let... go of me..." Satoru...

**Solar Note: Surprised by the second update today? Chapter was dedicated to ShinomiyaDR, who helped me out last night when I was stuck on the order I should publish the events ^_^. So, what did you think of Roa's past? He was a cute little kid, wasn't he? Though not all that different from seventeen-year-old Roa, huh? Same goes for Etsuo :3. What do you think will happen now that the expedition has successfully defeated the creature?**