Disclaimer: The original Phantasy Star games, the Phantasy Star Online series, and all related characters are the creation and property of Sega.

This is a story that was completed on 3-21-2007, and I'm now adding to this archive.

She pressed on, holding her shield closely in front of her face to block the winds. Her skin could stand up to the sandstorm's fury, but she knew her eyes were a different story. She took short, shallow breaths, not wanting to accidently breath in a bunch of tiny sand particles. Alis squinted as she blindly made her way over Motavia's mountains, having no real idea where she was going. Odin had the compass, too, so I can't even be sure which direction I'm headed in! She figured she was still heading east, but she couldn't really be certain.

Alis shook her head again, still trying to come to terms with all that had happened. It was bad enough that they'd blindly walked into an ambush and had half their party captured, possibly killed. And on top of that, that weird lamp had caused this growth spurt, making her - as far as Alis could tell - about 150 feet tall! How would things go from here? What could possibly be done?

She looked down at the pouch on her belt again, where Noah was still safely tucked away. Alis still couldn't get over how, just a half-hour ago, he was a head taller than her, and now she could hold the Esper in the palm of her hand! And all those landrover-tanks and the two spaceships...at her normal size, she wouldn't have had a prayer against any of those war machines, but now a few fireballs from her easily wiped them all out! Alis wasn't sure how that made her feel. Afraid? Empowered? Overjoyed? She was still way too confused to even be sure of her own feelings. And she still had no idea where to go from here.

Then again, these last few weeks, we've all pretty much been crawling in the dark, Alis mused as she pressed on. But the first thing to do is find some way out of this sandstorm, then find out where the others were taken. At least at this size, there's no way anything can stop me. I'll tear the whole planet inside-out, if I have to, until I find them...and that bitch who ambushed us. Alis suddenly had a fleeting vision of that Assassin, now bug-sized to her, being squashed into a pulp underneath the soles of her boot. That thought made her grin widely as she pressed on, and it distracted her so much that, for a while, she walked on over the mountains without realizing they were sloping downward.

Eventually, though, this fact came to light, and Alis cautiously peeked out from behind her shield to see that, indeed, the path before her was slowly sloping downward. It was hard to make out in the sandstorm, especially since she was still squinting, but Alis thought it looked like she was heading down into another strip of land nestled between two mountain ridges. Maybe down there, I'll be protected from the winds somewhat. At least I could catch a breather, Alis thought, realizing just how exhausted she felt. She headed forward again, forcing her way against the sandstorm's winds. Within moments, she reached the edge of the mountainous ridge and jumped down.

After crashing down onto the sandy ground, and probably causing an earthquake that could be felt as far away as Casba, Alis found out that her hunch was right: down here, she was somewhat protected from the sandstorm's unrelenting winds. She sat down and leaned against the mountain ridge, taking a moment to flex her sore limbs and look around. It wasn't long before she spotted the mouth of a large cave. If she were still normal-sized, the entrance would've seemed like a gaping hole in the side of the mountain, but now, she would have to duck and crawl inside.

Alis took a long look around her, trying to decide what to do next. She wanted to head out and find the others as soon as possible. But she was fighting severe exhaustion, and the sandstorm showed no signs of letting up. It probably engulfed the entire mountain range by now. Though she hated to admit it, she was no good to anyone at the moment...too tired to fight and trapped in the heart of a raging Motavian sandstorm.

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Alis got up and walked over to the cave's mouth. With any luck, the inside would be spacious enough to accomodate her mammoth body. If I can just get a few hours of rest, I should be back in fighting shape again, she thought as she got on her hands and knees. By then, this storm will hopefully be over, and I can track Odin and Myau down.

As she crawled deeper and deeper into the cave, it steadily got darker and darker. Eventually, it got to the point where it was almost pitch-black. Sighing again, she felt around in the darkness. Alis felt a solid wall of rock on one side, and a rocky ceiling laden with stalactites was about an arm's length above her. As she felt the wall to her side, she felt a large piece of rock start to come loose. This gave her an idea. Alis took the huge rock in both hands and forcefully yanked it out of the cave wall. Then, she focused what little magical energy she had left and directed it into the boulder. At first, nothing happened, but after a few seconds, her magic kicked in and began heating up the boulder. Almost immediately, it glowed red-hot, and a few seconds later, it was white-hot with incandescence, casting a steady glow throughout the cave's interior.

Looking around, Alis saw that the inside of the cave was quite roomy, even for her. The other side of the cave was, to her, about ten feet away, and though she couldn't stand up to her full height, she could still move about easily. Also, the cave's path continued on for quite a while, possibly lleading out to the eastern side of the mountain range. Well, it's a fixer-upper, but it's a good a place as any to rest, considering how massive I am now, Alis thought to herself.

Her massive size...now that she was safe, the changes she had gone through could finally sink in. In a matter of minutes, she had gone from being a normal teenage girl of average height to a Palman colossus, watching the whole world around her practically dwindle away in the process. At first, she'd been scared out of her mind, mostly because she'd almost been crushed to death in that escape tunnel. But then Alis remembered how easily she'd decimated all those vehicles, despite being exhausted and weak, and how small and puny they had seemed to her before she blew them away. Alis looked down at the glowing boulder...it probably weighed several tons, but she'd yanked it off the wall and held it as easily as it had been a ball.

It's amazing, what I can do now, Alis thought as she looked around the giant cave. I guess I really am a one-woman engine of destruction now. I can't believe Tarzimal had something like this and he never bothered to let us in on it! With this power, I bet I could stomp Lassic flat! She smiled at the thought, once again thinking about how tiny and insignificant normal-sized people would be to her now....

Then she finally remembered there was a normal-sized person with her, still trapped in the pouch on her belt. Whoops, Alis thought sheepishly as she reached down to open it.

So there he sat, helplessly being jostled around whenever Alis made a sudden movement. Even a single step forward threatened to slam him against the inside of the pouch. Thankfully, it was made up of rather soft leather, but still, the sudden, forceful impacts were not pleasant. However, not knowing where Alis was going, or what she planned to do, was far more vexing for Noah. All he knew was that Alis must've rushed head-on into that sandstorm he had caught a quick glimpse of. The plangent, never-ending howl of the winds outside had confirmed his hunch.

I hope she'll be OK. Can even she survive? he wondered, deeply worried about his friend. It's still so unbelievable, what just happened to her. I hope it can be reversed somehow.

Noah had no idea how long he was trapped in there, alone with his own thoughts. He became dimly aware that the noise of the winds died down dramatically at one point, and that Alis seemed to have stopped moving, but he was too deeply lost in thought to notice. Only when the pouch was opened, and faint light poured down onto him, was Noah snapped out of his thoughts.

"What the...." Noah began as he looked up. All he saw in the faint light was two massive fingertips reaching down for him. "Ack! Hey!" he cried as he found himself pinned between Alis's thumb and index finger. The next thing he knew, he was soaring upward at an insane speed, causing a rush of dizziness to overwhelm him. When it finally subsided, Noah could see the outline of Alis's huge face, faintly illuminated, her gigantic blue eyes fixed upon him.

"Sorry about that. Forgot you were still in there for a minute," Alis said flatly. Noah could tell she was trying to speak softly, but her voice still made his ears hurt.

"It's OK. No harm done," Noah said quickly. "So, what happened? Where are we?"

Alis let out a sigh, then launched into an explanation of how she fended off those landrover-tanks and ships after Noah teleported them out, and how she went into the approaching sandstorm to elude pursuit. "And now, I've found this cave I can rest in. But I hate being stuck here when I should be out tracking down the others."

"Alis, you made the right choice," Noah said empathetically. "Unless you get some rest, you won't be much help to anyone, Palman colossus or not. We have no idea where they could be, and you'd just be wasting time and energy if you rushed out right now."

Alis shut her eyes. "I know, you're right," she said defeatedly. "You could probably use some rest too, after using all that magic to teleport me out." With that, she gently set Noah down onto the sandy cave floor, not far away from the glowing, white-hot boulder.

Noah stared at it for a minute as he aimlessly wandered around, feeling its heat envelop him. Her magic's strong enough to do that!? he thought, unsure if he could do the same himself. Sure, Alis was quite skilled with magic techniques, but she was no Esper. And yet, the sheer power of her spells were probably off the charts now!

An eardrum-piercing scream of pain jarred Noah out of his thoughts. Looking up, he saw Alis looming over him, hunched over with both hands on her rear. "Alis, what happened!?" he yelled up to her.

For a few seconds, she just incoherently uttered just about every unprintable word in the Palman language, so Noah guessed she couldn't hear him. However, she stopped swearing after a few seconds and said, "I went to sit down, but I sat on something sharp!" Squinting to get a better look, Noah saw what seemed to be gigantic bones lodged in her butt.

Ouch, that must've been the rib cage of a dragon she sat on, Noah mused. Just another example of how unfathomably huge Alis was now. Alis was eventually able to pull all of the bones out of her butt, then use the last of her remaining magic power to heal the wounds before they could get infected. She dropped some of them carelessly close to Noah, sending up huge plumes of sand. Sighing in relief, Alis cleared away the rest of the bones and sat back down. After a few seconds, though, she said, "Ugh, it feels like my boots are filled to the brim with sand. Better take them off." She then proceeded to remove her white boots, turning them upside-down to empty the sand out of them. However, while she was doing so, she stretched her legs out along the cave floor. She had also taken off her socks, leaving her barefoot. And unfortunately for Noah, she had set her bare feet down quite close to him, and one thing became evident very quickly....

Oh yuck, her feet STINK! Noah thought acidly. The smell was so bad, it made him dizzy all over again. He quickly pinched his nose shut to block out the awful smell. No longer in danger of passing out, he took another look at her foot, and once again it sunk in how tiny he was compared to her. If Alis was standing, he wouldn't even reach her ankle. And right now, with the way she was resting her feet, her toes rising straight up into the air...they rose higher than the governor's mansion. She could easily crush just about any building underfoot. It suddenly made him feel so inferior, so puny....

Noah walked away from her bare feet, closer to Alis herself, hoping to get within earshot of her again. But it was Alis who spoke up next. "I got all the sand out of my boots, but my clothes, my hair...can't remember the last time I felt this dirty. It's gotten everywhere. Too bad we're not on Palma. As I am now, standing under a waterfall's probably the only way I could get a decent shower."

Noah had stopped at her knees when Alis said that. He stared up at her, once again overwhelmed by how her presence loomed over him. She has a point, Noah admitted. The incandescent glow from the boulder only let Noah see part of her face, but it was enough to remind him of how stunningly beautiful she was. Despite himself, he let his thoughts wander, dwelling on what Alis had said, trying to picture what that would look like...Alis bathing underneath a waterfall, looming over all the other creatures like some titanic goddess of legend....

"Noah, what are you thinking about?"

Alis's sudden inquiry jarred Noah out of his daydream and made him look up. She was leaning down and her huge face hovered over him, a look of annoyance etched in her features, her eyes dangerously narrowed.

Uh-oh, thought Noah, on the verge of panic. It looked like she already knew the answer to her own question, and that made him even more nervous. You DO NOT admit to Alis Landale that you just tried to picture her naked, whether she's giant-sized or not. Noah struggled to keep himself from panicking and tried to think of a lie. Unfortunately, nothing came to him. "Uh, er, I-I was...eh..."

"Never mind, I bet I can guess," Alis said dryly, her eyes still narrowed. Noah just looked back up at her, somewhat in shock. "What, d'you really think I haven't noticed? I've caught you staring plenty of times when you obviously thought I wouldn't notice." Noah's mouth fell open as a wave of numbness swept over him. So, she'd figured out he was attracted to her, and either she was completely nonchalant about it...or quite annoyed. Either way, Noah had a feeling he was in trouble. Alis must've seen the fear in his eyes, because she then said, "Well, I guess I should be flattered, really. And it's alright if you look...as long as you don't touch. Got it?"

"Uhh...got it," was all Noah could say.

"Good," said Alis, a faint smile forming on her lips. For a while longer, Alis continued to lean over and stare down at Noah, her expression unreadable. But at one point, she shut her eyes, and appeared to be lost in thought.

"Uh, Alis, is anything wrong?" Noah asked tentatively, wondering what Alis was thinking.

Eventually, Alis opened her eyes again, and asked, "Noah, were you serious before?"

Noah stared up blankly at Alis, not sure what she was talking about. "Uh, you mean, when I admitted that I...um, like you, and...."

Now Alis's face screwed up in frustration. "Not THAT, you moron! I meant what you said to me in that tunnel, before I started growing."

Noah blushed a deep shade of red, and it took a moment for him to find his words. "You-you mean, when I lost my temper and said you were too obsessed with revenge?" Alis nodded, and Noah noticed some of her auburn hair tumble down over her shoulders and dangle around him. But he was more focused on trying to find a way to answer Alis without upsetting her. He wasn't really sure now where he got the courage to lash out at Alis before, but now that she could wipe him out with a mere flick of her finger, it wasn't coming back. Noah wanted to choose his words carefully, lest he push his luck and upset her again. "Well, I, uh, didn't mean to yell at you like that, but, uhm, I-I...."

"Just give me a 'yes or no' answer," said Alis firmly.

Noah let out a resigned sigh. "I didn't mean to be harsh, but yes, I was serious," he finally said.

Alis's features were stony again as she continued to look down at Noah. "And when you said you could tell I've changed since I set out to kill Lassic, were you serious about that, too?"

"Uhh, y-yes, I-I was," stammered Noah.

Alis shut her eyes again. "You're right about that," she admitted. "A kind, gentle girl...I guess that can describe the way I was before. Even though Nero trained me in swordmanship, back in Camineet, I couldn't shake this image of being this little girly goody-goody...." She then opened her eyes. "But like it or not, that's not who I am anymore. My brother - the only one who was always there for me - is dead. Murdered. And I'm going to do whatever it takes to make sure Lassic pays more what he's done. Is that so wrong? To want vengeance for my brother?"

"If you let the obsession rule over you, permanently change who you are inside, it can be," said Noah. "Tell me, your brother...how much did he care for you? How important was it to him that you were always happy?"

Alis stared at him again for a moment. "Very important. He was religiously devoted to bringing me up. He was my entire family, like I've told you, and he did whatever it took to protect me. It's part of the reason he never let me get involved with the resistance cells...he feared I'd get myself killed."

"OK then. So tell me, is it possible that, maybe, he wouldn't want you to be vengeful that it makes you bitter towards the whole world? That he wouldn't want you to lose sight of the person you once were?"

Alis frowned. "I'll never know, will I? He's dead. I'll never be able to ask him."

"That's not the point, Alis," said Noah. "You know that...."

"And what's with the sudden doubtfulness about our goal, huh?" snapped Alis, cutting Noah off. "You KNOW that Lassic deserves death, and worse. You said when we first met that our duty was clear. Why so uncertain now?"

"Oh, our duty is still certain, believe me," Noah replied. "But I believe it's certain because it's necessary to bring light back to the Algo system. Lassic is a tyrant, no question, and has brought suffering to the system. If we're to rebuild, he must be stopped. But as an Esper, I fight this battle because I feel it's necessary to create something that lasts, not to lash out and destroy. I'm sure your brother felt the same way, too."

Alis didn't say anything, but merely regarded Noah carefully for a moment. At first, he thought he had pushed his luck too far, lecturing Alis like this, but her features still seemed neutral. Encouraged, Noah continued. "And you seem to think our troubles will be over once Lassic is defeated, but I can tell you right now that that won't be the case. Killing Lassic won't bring your brother back, anarchy could engulf the Algo system in the aftermath, and...."

All of a sudden, Alis let out a loud yawn, accidently sending a torrent of her hot, sticky breath down at Noah. "Sorry about that," said Alis, sounding a little embarrassed. "I guess I really do need some rest." With that, she rose to a sitting position and looked behind her. "Guess I'm sleeping on the ground, or maybe sitting up against the wall."

"Please, let my words reach her heart," Noah silently muttered. For a while, it looked as if he'd managed to finally reach her, penetrating that brick wall she'd put around her heart. Now, he wasn't so sure. He desperately wanted to see her as the Alis Landale she was before this all started, beautiful within as well as without.

"And it looks like you're sleeping on the ground, too. We left all our camping gear in the landrover," came Alis's voice suddenly, echoing all around Noah.

Oh great, she's right, Noah thought to himself, looking at the ground. The sandy ground looked soft, but hardly comfortable or inviting.

"Well, maybe I can fix that," said Alis. "Brace yourself, little man."

Noah looked up to see Alis's fingers, as thick as the trunks of Palman trees, coming for him again. "ACK! What're you...." he began, but then he found himself being plucked off the ground, carried upward at a dizzying speed. I really wish she'd be more careful when she does this, he thought as he tried to fight off the sense of vertigo.

A few seconds later, Alis set Noah gently down onto her lap. He quickly found himself caught in the folds of her pink skirt. The softness of the fabric was most inviting, and Noah figured that she meant for him to sleep there.

"There you go. As comfy a bed as you're gonna get on such short notice," said Alis.

Noah looked up to face her, her entire upper body looming over him like Corona Tower. "Uh, thanks," he said sheepishly.

"Just don't get any funny ideas," Alis added wryly, glaring at him.

"Uh, right," Noah said uneasily. Was that last remark meant to be a tease of some sort? Could it be possibly she was developing some feelings for him, returning his own? Yeah right. That's just wishful thinking on your part, Noah, he thought, mentally chiding himself. She's still too angry and hurt to really open up to anyone, in any way. And besides, somehow I get the feeling that effeminate guys aren't her type.

Deciding not to dwell on the matter, Noah laid down, allowing himself to enjoy the comfort provided by the soft cloth and the body heat rising up through it. Within no time at all, Noah had fallen fast asleep in Alis's lap. For a moment, Alis stared down at him, thinking of how cute he looked there. Then she leaned back against the cave wall and drifted off to sleep as well.

The musk cat looked through the bars again, trying to figure out just where he was. Right in front of his small cell, across whatever room he was in, there was a cell clearly meant for Algo's humanoid races, but it was currently empty.

Wouldn't they have put Odin and Tarzimal in there? Unless.... He shook his head, refusing to give in to hopelessness so easily. They had to be alive, and he had to find a way out to rescue them. Myau carefully got close to the bars and looked out. On the far left there was an electronic door, Robotcops positioned at either side. Where have you murderers taken them!? he thought furiously. Where are they!?

And then, as if fate was purposely trying to mock him, the electronic door slid open. Being dragged in by two Androcop - deadlier, burlier versions of the Robotcops - was Odin, barely conscious from the looks of it. Myau had to surpress the urge to rashly lash out at the bars again. The mechanoids dragged Odin to the front of the cell, and after typing in a code into a terminal next to it, it slid open. They threw Odin inside with a neglectfulness that almost made Myau explode with fury.

The cell was shut again, and the Androcops quickly left. Once they were gone, Myau called out of Odin, praying he was alright. "Odin! Odin, can you hear me?" A low groan from the cell was the musk cat's only reply. Myau waited a minute or so, then tried again. "Odin! Odin! Get up! It's me, Myau!"

Another grunt came from Odin, but this time, Myau saw a hand rise up to grab the bars, which thankfully weren't electrified. Odin slowly pulled himself up, and eventually his eyes focused on Myau. Myau noticed that he was shivering. Cold, here on Motavia? Wait a minute, that Assassin.... I bet she tortured him!

"Myau, that's y-you, right?" Odin asked in a shaky voice.

"Yeah, it's me," replied Myau. "What happened to you? Did Lassic's Assassin torture you?"

Odin nodded. "Yeah. Kept asking me questions about Alis, wanting to know everything about her. How she fights, thinks...."

His voice trailed off, and then he let out a loud cough. Myau felt his temper rise again. That witch must've beaten him within an inch of his life, and there's nothing I can do about it. He's right there in front of me, but I can't get close enough to use my healing techniques! Once again, he was powerless to help his partner, just like when Odin had been petrified by Medusa.

"She really seems obsessed with Alis, for whatever reason," Odin continued. "At least we can assume that, because she kept asking me about her, that she escaped with Noah."

"That's some good news, at least," said Myau. "What about Tarzimal? Any idea where he is?"

Odin shook his head. "Haven't seen him. And when I demanded to know what had become of him, that bitch almost broke my jaw." He spat a mouthful of blood onto the cell floor.

"She said she was out to capture Tarzimal. She probably had special plans for him," Myau suggested. "At any rate, we've got to get out of here. We can't just sit around waiting to be rescued."

Odin smiled. "Same old Myau. Some things never change," he said, obviously reminiscing about some of the other tough situations they'd gotten into.

I wish I could be as calm and composed as you are, old friend, Myau thought to himself. Out loud, he said, "Come on, Odin, we need to put our heads together and...."

But Myau was cut off by the shrill of blaster fire coming from beyond the doorway to the left. Myau's sensitive instantly recognized the sound of the Robotcops' standard issue laser rifles. However, over the din of their weapons, Myau could hear something else...the booming roar of a weapon he'd never heard before.

Moments later, as quickly as it had began, the blaster fire ceased. And an instant later, the door slid open. The Robotcops had gotten into position, evidently receiving orders transmitted to them. But as soon as the door opened, they were both cut down by a blinding blast that forced Myau to cover his eyes.

When Myau opened his eyes again, he saw something stepping over the smoldering remains of the Robotcops, something...big. As it stepped out of the smoke, Myau saw what appeared to be an extremely tall male Palman. He wore metallic gauntlets, boots, shoulder pads and chest plate over a silky, black body suit, and a long black cape fluttered behind him. With both hands, he held a large, dangerous-looking energy weapon, undoubtedly the one that felled those Robotcops. Myau took a good look at his face...short black hair, piercing brown eyes so dark they were almost black, and what seemed to be mechanical implants of some sort on both sides of his head.

The strange man stepped in between Myau's cell and Odin's, slowly looking from one to the other, as if unsure what to do next. Who IS this guy? What's he doing here? Myau wondered nervously. Is he here to rescue us?

Suddenly, the strange man spoke up. "The Palman has been severely injured, obviously tortured, but he can recover if given time. The musk cat is unharmed," he said in a flat tone, one that sounded almost...mechanical.

"Good. Get the cat out of that box, Wren. I'll free the big guy," came another voice, this one unmistakably a female, probably a Palman female. Myau looked to the left to see a short, red-haired Palman girl apprehensively walk across the room, holding a Robotcop rifle in one hand and hefting a large knapsack in the other. She walked up to Odin's cell, but then Myau's view was blocked by the man she called 'Wren'. He slowly approached, and Myau was certain he heard mechanical joints moving as he stepped closer. Then, he lashed out with his left hand and ripped the bars clean off, only shaking slightly as an electric shock surged through him.

Myau quickly leaped out of his cell and deftly landed on the floor. He glanced up at Wren warily. He's some sort of robot, I'm sure of it! But what's he here for? Who created him? Possibly, this girl....

Myau turned around to see that the girl had ripped the terminal off and was busy trying to hotwire the door's system. A second later, her efforts bore fruit, and Odin's cell slid open. Myau immediately ran to him and used his healing techniques, praying there was still time left for the techniques to effectively work and for Odin to recover.

Once he was done, he looked up to the girl and the robot she called Wren. "Who are you, and what do you want?" he asked warily, never taking his eyes off the gun-toting robot.

"The name is Leli, and this is Wren, a battle android I built to help you fight Lassic," she quickly explained. "We're here to get you out, so come with us if you want to live."