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.

Slowly, gingerly, Odin tried to get up, his strength returning to him. He felt a pair of hands grab him underneath his shoulders, trying to get him to rise faster. "We haven't much time," he heard a girl's voice say. "More Robotcops are sure to be on the way. We need to move now if we want to escape." Odin looked behind him, seeing the panicky face of a young, red-haired Palman girl. Her eyes were filled with cold fear, but there was also a determination to master it.

The door slid open again, and a few more Robotcops stormed inside. But the man called Wren turned and fired his weapon. His blaster shots easily pierced their armor, and they quickly fell. "Soon there'll be too many to fight. We have to go. Here, I think this stuff is yours." Leli thrust the knapsack into his arms and opened it for him. Inside was his laser blaster, laconian axe and mirror shield.

Odin didn't know who this girl was, or exactly what she wanted with them, and was a bit weary of trusting her so readily. But following her was better than staying in that cell. He gathered up his gear and followed the girl, her big companion taking point.

The door led to a long hallway, and as soon as they stepped out, more Robotcops approached from the right. Wren fired his rifle again, and disposed of the Robotcops as easily as the last squad he blasted away. Wish I had a weapon like that, Odin thought to himself. Out loud, he said, "Just who are you, and who's this guy?"

"He's not a 'guy'. This Wren is some sort of machine," stated Myau.

"The musk cat is right. He's something I've spent weeks building, but the end result was obviously worth it," said Leli as Wren cut down a few more Robotcops heading their way. "This way," she ordered. "Your landrover and hovercraft were taken and left in the hangar where the fighters and landrover-tanks are kept. If we can reach them, we should be able to get out of here."

"Uh, where is 'here', exactly?" asked Myau.

Leli was about to answer, but then they heard more Robotcops closing in from behind. Wren slowly turned to face them, but Odin beat him to the draw. He aimed his own laser blaster and began firing away, bringing up his mirror shield for cover when the Robotcops returned fire. Leli used the rifle she took and tried to help, but her aim was terrible, leaving Odin and Wren to take care of most of their attackers. She's obviously not cut out for battle. What was she thinking, getting into a situation like this? He couldn't help but wonder what had possessed this girl to try and break them out of this place, when they were complete strangers to her. What did she want?

Soon enough, they had disposed of all opposition, and continued their trek through whatever place the Assassin had imprisoned them in. Odin noticed the hallways were brightly lit, but there were no windows whatsoever. Could they be underground?

Then, Odin remembered something else. "Wait a minute, there was an old man who was captured along with us, an Esper. He must be locked up somewhere in here, too."

Leli turned to face Odin and shook her head. "Sorry, according to the information I intercepted, you and the musk cat were the only prisoners taken here. There was talk about an Esper being captured, but I couldn't find out about where he was taken. Sorry, but I'm sure he's not here."

Myau spoke up again. "I ask again, where exactly are we?"

"This is part of a secret munitions factory, mainly for building more Robotcops for use here on Motavia. It's about a mile east of Paseo, past that huge field of antlions," Leli replied. Odin couldn't help but notice how her voice trembled slightly. "Most of it is underground, including that brig you were holed up in," she finished, confirming Odin's suspicions.

Myau had more questions for Leli. "And why did you free us? What is it you want?"

"To help you kill Lassic," Leli said simply. "I've heard all the rumors that've been floating around Palma for weeks, about how a small band has been travelling all around the Algo system looking for a way to beat him, and last I heard, they were supposed to be on Motavia. So I stowed away on a commercial flight, and soon after I arrive, I intercept some transmissions about some captured rebels. Eventually, I found this place, and decided to have Wren bust you out."

Odin looked ahead of them, to where Wren had taken point as they advanced further through the underground facility. Myau had said this man was some sort of machine, and now that he had time to think about it, he could indeed hear the faint sound of mechanical parts moving coming from him. Odin didn't like to think that his escape and his freedom relied on some machine, not after he had seen too much pain and suffering caused by the legions of heartless, murderous Robotcops running amok throughout the Algo system. It made him more than a bit weary of Wren.

However, for some reason, the face of this robot was hauntingly familiar. He felt he had seen that face before, but couldn't recall where....

Eventually, they came across a door on the side of the hallway, and Wren suddenly stopped in his tracks. "These stairs are the quickest way back to the ground level," he said in that flat, mechanical voice as he thrust the double doors open. "Once there, it won't be much longer until we reach the hangar. We should then be able to escape easily."

Odin said nothing, still not trusting this machine. But following him and Leli was still better than him and Myau going off on their own. The four of them began ascending the stairs. As they were, Leli spoke up again. "Forgive me, but, you're Odin, right?"

He turned his head back to face her. "Yes, I am. How did you know?"

"My fiance was in one of the resistance cells, based in Abion, and saw you on occassion," explained Leli. "But his cell was wiped out soon after yours was. He looked up to you, you know...."

Odin looked up the stairs at Wren, who was still taking point. Now I know why he looks so familiar! He must've been from one of the cells! As he thought about it further, he realized that one of the rebels in Abion did look a lot like this robot did, with a brutish physique and short, black hair....

"So when I started designing Wren, I decided to make him resemble my fiance," said Leli. "He-he meant everything to me, and filled me with hope. I-I'd never have found the courage to help the cells if it wasn't for him. I just hoped that-that the last thing Lassic would ever see was his face, right before a blaster shot cleaves him to two."

Odin looked at Wren again. Sure, he may look like him, but you can't copy the soul. It's just another heartless machine underneath that exterior.

"It really is...a remarkable piece of work," Myau said suddenly.

"Thanks," said Leli. "It's my one real talent. I was never good at fighting, so I tried to help the resistance with my talent for robotics and engineering. I've been at it since I was two; science sort of a heritage in my family."

"Is that so?" asked Odin.

"Yes. My father was a respected scientist too, until Lassic got a hold of him. Let those priests following that alien religion corrupt him...."

Odin suddenly felt numb. He had a feeling he knew who Leli was talking about. "Leli, your father...you mean...?"

"You knew him as Dr. Mad," Leli said dryly.

Odin stopped dead in his tracks, guilt clawing at his heart. They had killed the father of the girl who had risked everything to rescue them. Myau found his voice before Odin did. "Leli, p-please, forgive us. I-I...."

"No need to apologize," said Leli in a flat tone. "You did the right thing. He wasn't really my father anymore, anyway. He ceased to exist when those priests corrupted him with their dark religion...."

Myau let out a heavy sigh and shook his head before the four of them continued up the spiral staircase. "So much pain and suffering has plagued our system all these last few decades, for too long...." muttered the musk cat.

They finally reached the top of the staircase. Wren exited first, throwing open the double doors and mowing down a half-dozen Robotcops waiting for them. "My internal scanners indicate that several squads of Robotcops are converging, from all directions. We must flee quickly before we are overwhelmed by sheer weight of numbers," he said, the nonchalance of his tone belying the urgency of their situation.

"You heard him, let's move," said Leli forcefully. "Wren, take point again."

"I'll cover our rear," said Odin, arming his laser blaster again.

And so, they continued following Wren as they ran to the hangar, where their landrover was hopefully still parked. Odin's heart hammered in his chest as they ran, but that sound was dulled by new, deafening noises that echoed all around them: large, pumping pistons, the hiss of several welding units being used at once, the hum of conveyor belts. It was obvious that Leli was right about this being a secret Robotcop factory.

As if sensing his thoughts, Leli spoke up again. "The hangars are further down, near the end of the complex. We're right next to the main assembly areas," she explained. "They mostly use slave labor in the construction of more Robotcops, mainly the native Motavians," she added bitterly.

The thought of the Motavians being used for slave labor, when most of them were already struggling just to survive on this harsh world, made Odin's insides boil, threatening to undo the disciplined calm he tried to maintain. It was a sentiment Myau obviously shared. "Then we've got to find a way to put it out of commission!" cried the musk cat. "There must be a way to...."

"We can't. Not right now, much as I'd like to," said Leli quickly as they turned a corner, where more Robotcops were waiting. More were approaching from behind as well. But Wren easily dealt with the ones around the corner, while Odin picked off the ones from behind. "We can come back later, once we find your friend Alis Landale. I'm sure SHE'LL be able to put it out of commission PERMANENTLY, after what's happened to her."

"Uh, what do you mean by that?" asked Myau, confused.

"Oh, guess you didn't hear, being locked up and all. Well, I learned something interesting after I starting intercepting transmissions. You wouldn't believe me if I told you right now...you'll have to wait until we catch up with her," replied Leli.

Odin wanted to know what she was getting at right then and there, but more Robotcops emerged from a door they had just passed, and he was forced to focus on them. Leli tried to pitch in, and this time some of her shots found their mark. "So, just who is this Alis Landale, anyway? What kind of a person is she?" asked Leli as they kept up their barrage.

Odin turned to look at Leli. "W-Why do you ask?"

"Because of all the rumors I heard. About how this one girl was planning to kill Lassic all by herself, and wouldn't stop until one of them was dead," Leli answered as she kept up the barrage. "Hearing those rumors made me realize I couldn't keep wallow in self-pity, doing nothing. Made me realize that if this girl found the guts to stand up and fight, I should too."

This kid sure has guts, at the very least. I'll give her that, thought Odin as he cut down the last Robotcop coming their way. And I guess we could use an engineer, too. They turned around, following Wren again. But this battle robot of hers, I just don't know....

"The hangar is just ahead," announced Wren coolly. Odin glanced ahead, and sure enough, he could see a large, open doorway, and a few landrover-tanks beyond it. But at that moment, a new threat emerged from a small door up ahead. Masked sorcerors poured out, and immediately negan casting their magic and hurling fireballs at them.

But Wren was ready. He held up his forearm, and instantly, some sort of transparent barrier extended from it, creating a sort of bubble shield that stood between them and the sorcerors. When the fireballs touched it, they either dissipated completely or lost most of their energy as they passed through.

Also, the barrier didn't seem to keep them from firing back. Wren was on the offensive immediately, picking off the sorcerors one by one. "A sort of anti-magic barrier. It's taken me weeks to perfect it," explained Leli. "But it requires a lot of power to maintain, and I don't know how effective it'd be against Lassic."

Myau nodded. "But all your effort is paying off now, that's for sure. We owe you one, Leli."

"Thanks," Leli said uneasily as Wren's rifle punched a hole through the last masked sorceror. "Looks like the coast is clear. Let's get out of here, and fast."

They all ran into the vast hangar. Odin quickly spotted their landrover, which had their hovercraft on top once again. It was parked in a long line of landrover-tanks, and nearby, several fighters were grounded as well. "Don't worry. Wren and I sabotaged every single vehicle here to guarantee we'd make a clean getaway," said Leli. "Thankfully, your friend Alis wiped out almost half of the tanks and fighters that were kept here."

"How!? Just WHAT happened to Alis anyway!?" demanded Myau.

"I told you, I'll explain later," said Leli. She then ran to the left, toward a wall-mounted terminal. "We'd better shut this blast door, just to make sure no one comes after us while we start up the landrover."

Odin watched Leli closely. But as Leli made her way to the terminal, Odin noticed something out of the corner of his eye. A lone figure was making its way toward the hangar, approaching slowly....

And he felt his insides freeze up again when he saw who it was: the Assassin.

But while Odin was temporarily stunned, Wren moved with a swiftness that he didn't think was possible of a machine....

The next few seconds seemed to pass by in slow-motion. The Assassin raised an outstretched hand, no doubt planning to unleash a volley of ice blades. At the same instant, Wren raised his forearm again to erect his special energy barrier. But the barrier spread out too slowly, and Leli wasn't with Wren and the others. She didn't even see the Assassin was coming after them....

"Leli! LOOK OUT!" shouted Myau. But his warning was too late. Most of the icy spikes shattered harmlessly against Wren's barrier, but it hadn't extended far enough to protect Leli...and as she turned, one of the ice spikes lodged itself into her chest. She didn't even scream as her body collapsed limply to the floor.

Wren began firing at the Assassin as he edged closer to Leli, to ensure his barrier would keep her from getting hit again. Myau was at her side almost instantly, clawing at the ice shard, trying to pull it out. Odin ran over to the terminal while firing back at the Assassin, and when he reached it, he hit the button to close the door. Odin and Wren kept firing as the door was closing, but all their shots bounced off her strange suit, but luckily, her ice shards kept shattering whenever they hit Wren's barrier.

At last, the door shut completely, and Odin blasted the terminal as soon as it did, hoping it would somehow keep the Assassin from following them. He turned back to where Leli had fallen, seeing Myau perched on top of her and Wren stabding over her, an ice shard covered with blood in his hand.

"My healing techniques aren't working!" Myau cried frantically. "There's some energy, some power from that ice spike that's blocking my magic! I can't save her!"

"Her vitals are fading fast. She's going into shock," said Wren. "We haven't the necessary resources to treat her injuries."

Odin surpressed the urge to yell at Wren for being so calm and knelt beside Leli. "Leli, c-can you hear me? We're...."

"It's alright," Leli said quickly. "I'm g-glad that I was at least able...to-to do s-something. Listen, don't worry about m-me, just take your landrover a-and go. Find your friend A-Alis, help her beat Lassic...."

She then looked up to Wren. "W-Wren, I'm a-as good as dead, I know. You are now to f-follow the orders of Odin and his friends, a-as you would have mine. Do whatever you c-can to help them win. That's your p-primary directive...."

"Acknowledged," said Wren coolly.

"Leli, stay with me!!" cried Odin, but Leli didn't speak up again. "Leli! LELI!!"

"It's no use," muttered Myau softly and sorrowfully. "She's gone."

"There's nothing more we can do for her. We must flee and regroup with the rest of your force," said Wren, walking past the dead body of his creator and heading for their landrover.

That blasted machine! How can it be so unfeeling, after its creator just got murdered! Odin thought acidly as he reluctantly followed Wren.

In no time, the landrover was started up, just as the Assassin managed to open the blast doors again. I just hope Leli was right about those landrover-tanks being sabotaged, Odin thought as the landrover sped up the ramp leading out to the surface. Soon enough, they were barreling full-speed across Motavia's sandy surface, away from the Robotcop factory. There were no windows in the back of the landrover, so Odin couldn't see what the factory actually looked like. But out the side-window, he saw a whole bunch of antlion pits, arranged in such a way that from above, they looked like an arrow pointing northwest. I know where we are now! A good distance east of Paseo, like Leli said....

"There's a good probability that your comrades are still hiding within the mountain range where you were ambushed," Wren suddenly stated. "The most logical course of action would be to begin our search there."

"Fine. Whatever," spat Myau, obviously feeling the same frustration that Odin did: yet another brave soul had died at the hands of Lassic's followers, one they'd been powerless to save.

Wondering whether or not Alis was awake, Noah pulled out the magic lamp, lit the flame, and looked around. He was still sitting in the vastness that was Alis's lap. He then looked up, seeing that Alis was leaning back against the cave wall, almost at a 45 degree angle. Though it was hard to make out her face from his vantage point, it looked like her eyes were still closed. She was still fast asleep.

Great, what am I supposed to do? Just sit here in her lap, waiting for her to wake up? he thought. He was wide awake now and couldn't possibly go back to sleep. And now that he was up, he wanted to start tracking down the others. But without the landrover, that would be a problem...unless he could wake Alis, who could easily cover plenty of ground. "Alis!! Hey Alis, wake up!!" Noah yelled from her lap, but she didn't so much as stir. He kept on yelling, but nothing came of it. Great, she can't possibly hear me, Noah realized. I guess I'll have to climb up to her ear and yell into it.

Noah wasn't too fond of that idea. Any sudden movement on Alis's part could throw him off her body. But the alternative was to sit around and do nothing, waiting for her to wake up, and that wouldn't do. Now that they had both had enough rest, it was time to find their friends. And so, after letting out a heavy sigh, Noah stood up and looked up.

Noah watched as Alis's chest slowly rose and fell with each breath she took. The light from his lamp made her diamond armor sparkle, and Noah noticed how slippery it looked. He doubted he could climb up that way. But the only other way to climb up to her head was via her arms, and for that he'd have to drop over ten feet to the ground to start at her hand. Noah shook his head as he let out another sigh, then wearily walked across Alis's lap.

He carefully climbed up past Alis's belt buckle, and soon enough, he was ready to start climbing up her chest plate. Noah timidly reached up to feel the hard, diamond surface, certain that it would be too slippery. But to his surprise, he found that there was enough friction went he slid his fingers across it. And when he began to climb, he found there was enough friction between the diamond and his boots as well.

Part of Noah had hoped it'd be impossible to climb up Alis's chest, so he could give up the venture altogether. But now, there was no choice to go forward...and up. He took a deep breath, and started to cautiously make his way up Alis's upper body.

Doing so made Noah once again feel like an insignificant bug compared to her. Each time Alis's chest rose and fell when she breathed in and out, it became obvious again to Noah how her most minute movements could have dire consequences for him. More than once, the sudden movement threatened to make him lose his balance and slide down. Plus, the fact that he had to hold his lamp in one hand complicated matters. But Noah forced himself to press on, trying to keep from looking down, focusing on his goal: Alis's face.

Although he had his reasons for doing this, and although the whole situation was beyond weird, he found the whole venture a bit...exicitng. He wanted him and Alis to get closer, and though this is hardly what he had in mind, he was certainly getting an up close and personal view of her now....

Eventually, Noah was more than halfway up her upper body, stopping when he reached her breasts. Not only was the path upward a lot more steeper at that point, but he was more than a little bit hesitant to go across THAT area. What's wrong with you? It's not like you're being a pervert. There's almost two feet of diamond separating you from those...parts, Noah thought, chiding himself. Then again, Alis won't care. If she wakes up and sees me crawling around THERE, I'm a dead man.

But regardless of that risk, it was simply too steep to climb any further. Noah thought he'd have to go back down, but then, in the light the lamp provided, he saw some of Alis's long, brown hair spilling down, over to his right. He took another deep breath, then inched his way over to her hair. Noah realized he'd have to put away his lamp and climb upward in the darksince he would need two hands, that and he'd set Alis's hair on fire. After grabbing onto several strands of her hair, Noah extinguished the lamp's flame, and darkness enveloped him again.

For over a minute, Noah cautiously climbed up in the dark, using Alis's hair like rope. It feels so soft.... he mused, but quickly shook his head, refusing to let himself be distracted. Thankfully, it was a quick trip, and the 'ground' beneath him soon levelled off, allowing him to stand.

Noah carefully let go of Alis's hair and took out the lamp again. He was standing on her shoulder pad, and was now right in front of Alis's face; her head was tilted to the side, and her chin rested over her collarbone. He was definitely close enough for her to hear him, so he took another big breath, ready to call out again.

But fear of being thrown off Alis's shoulder as she was roused made him hesitate. That, and the fact that, despite himself, he was taken in by the close-up view of Alis's gorgeous face. Her beauty was maddening to him, at any size, and she looked so peaceful, so serene, while she was sleeping. And to top it all off, with the way her head rested, Noah could easily reach up to her lips...possibly even to steal a kiss. What am I thinking!? That's not what I'm here for!! he thought vehemently, frustrated by how these thoughts kept creeping up. And yet, he couldn't tear his eyes away, couldn't bring himself to wake Alis up and ruin this picturesque scene....

Noah had no idea how long he stood there, staring dumbly at her face. But eventually, he was shocked out of his dreamy stance when Alis's eyes suddenly snapped open, and in a booming voice, asked, "Well, are you gonna try and steal a kiss or what?"

"Aaahh!!" Noah screamed in surprise, stumbling backward and almost falling off her shoulder. But before that could happen, Alis reached over and snagged Noah between her thumb and index finger. She hoisted him off of her shoulder and dangled him in front of her face, which, from what Noah could tell in the pale lamplight, had her usual stony, neutral expression.

"Were you enjoying the view?" asked Alis, her tone once again neutral as well.

"I, err, uhh," spluttered Noah. "Ummm, eh, h-how did you k-know I...."

"I was just starting to wake up when I felt something tug on my hair," said Alis flatly. "You're lucky. My first impulse was to brush away whatever was on me, but then I realized it had to be you. I decided to see how far you thought you could go," she finished with a wry smirk.

"Oh. Uh, OK," Noah said sheepishly.

Alis's eyes narrowed, and that wry smirk grew into a menacing, twisted smile. "You must have a really bad memory, Noah. Didn't I tell you before that it was OK to look, as long as you didn't touch?"

"Uh, um, y-yeah," Noah replied, more than a little bit nervous about where the conversation was going.

"And didn't I tell you not to get any funny ideas?" Alis continued.

"Errr...." was all Noah could say. He was getting more and more nervous by the second.

"And yet, you go climbing all around my body," said Alis, her smile turning into a frown. "I hope you enjoyed it, little guy. 'Cause you're gonna be spending plenty of time thinking about what you did wrong...in my stomach!"

"I'll be...WHAAA!?" screamed Noah unbelievingly. But sure enough, Alis tilted her head back just as she lifted Noah right over it. Then she opened her mouth wide. With the lamplight that was still flickering, he could clearly side the inside of her gigantic mouth, her massive, writhing tongue, the pearly-white teeth that could easily grind him into powder.... Alis slowly lowered him closer to her open mouth, driving Noah out of his mind with fear. "ALIS, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!! THIS IS INSANE!! HOW CAN YOU...." But Alis apparently ignored his pleas for mercy as her mouth came closer and closer. And then, just as Noah was sure she was about to drop him into her mouth....

"Phhhhhhhht!"

Alis then closed her mouth and stuck out her tongue out at Noah, blowing a raspberry at him and causing huge globs of her spittle to get all over him. Noah had no idea what she was planning, his mind still numb with fear, but then he heard the raucous sound of Alis's deafening, thunderous laughter.

"Ha ha ha ha! You totally fell for it!" beamed Alis, now smiling broadly at him. "You REALLY thought I was about to eat you, didn't you!?" Then she laughed again.

Noah grumbled as he wiped the spittle off of his face. Looking down again, he saw Alis smiling wickedly up at him again, reflecting a mood that was completely opposite of his. She then lowered her hand, bringing it up to her face, letting Noah sit down in the palm of her hand. "In the name of all that's holy...what was THAT for!"

"Oh please Noah. You're the one who pretty much said I need to lighten up and stop being so downtrodden. So I figured this was the perfect opportunity to play a little prank," said Alis, still smiling.

Why does her idea of fun always involve scaring me half to death? Noah thought dejectedly, his heart still hammering in his chest.

"But don't think you're off the hook completely," said Alis, her tone suddenly a bit more serious. "Just WHAT were you doing climbing up my body like a little bug, anyway?" Noah let out a nervous sigh, then quickly explained that he just wanted to wake her up so that they could begin their search. "Oh, so that was all?" asked Alis coyly.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Noah.

"Oh, just that I know you're hopelessly infatuated with me, and somehow I get the feeling you enjoyed all of that," replied Alis.

Oh sure, I really enjoyed running the risk of falling to my doom, and then having you pretend you were about to eat me alive, Noah thought acidly. Out loud, he said, "Please, Alis. You know I have more self-control than that."

"I dunno. You looked ready to steal a kiss there for a moment."

Noah scowled at Alis, even though he doubted she could make out his facial expression. She's taking the knowledge that I care for her, and is using it to tease and torment me mercilessly, he thought. Somehow, I think I liked the revenge-obsessed Alis better.

"Well, I'll forget about all that for now. I guess you're right, we should get moving," said Alis, snapping Noah out of his thoughts. "I'm all rested up, but now I've got another problem."

"What's that?" asked Noah in a concerned voice.

As if to answer his question, a booming grumbling sound echoed throughout the cave. "I'm...hungry," said Alis simply.

Noah's face fell. That was another problem he hadn't even considered: how could Alis possibly get enough food at her size, especially on Motavia? "Maybe it's time we try using Tarzimal's lamp, to see if the effects can be reversed."

"Aww, I was kind of hoping to raise some more hell at this size," Alis said, sounding a bit disappointed. But she carefully lowered Noah to the ground, next to some of the crumbling dragon bones. "These bones are probably best to test the lamp on, being organic matter and all," Alis suggested.

Noah nodded as he raised his magic lamp up, letting the light be cast over a large rib bone. She's probably right. And she made some interesting points before. Just HOW can cells possibly work normally if they're supersized? he wondered. But now wasn't the time for scientific curiosity. He held Tarzimal's lamp in his other hands, aimed it at the large bone, and pulled the trigger.

Nothing happened. No bright beam of light, nothing.

"Wha!?" exclaimed Noah and Alis in unison. Noah pulled the trigger again and again, but each time, nothing happened.

"Oh that's just GREAT!" cried Noah. "Now there's no hope of getting you back to normal!"

"Maybe it's just broken," suggested Alis. "If only I weren't so big...I bet I could fix it. I know a thing or two about electronics."

Noah looked up at Alis. "Or maybe Tarzimal knows how to get it working again. Most of the circuitry inside it looks pretty new, so he must've built it himself."

A slight scowl formed on Alis's face. Noah figured it was because he suggested Tarzimal could do something better than she could. But Alis spoke up before he could dwell on it, saying, "Then I guess it's all the more reason to go and find him. We should head out right now. But...there's still the fact that I'm REALLY hungry right now...."

Noah frowned. "Well, there's only one thing I can think of that can feed you at your size. But I have a feeling you won't like it...."

Alis moved at what was, for her, a leisurely pace, but for Noah, it seemed she was going almost as fast as the landrover. But at least she wasn't purposely trying to scare her passenger to death this time. Noah looked up at the cloudless Motavian sky, admiring the serene beauty of the stars and the three moons, from his vantage point atop Alis's head. He sat there, his hands firmly gripping several strands of her hair.

This is a lot less claustrophobic than Alis's pouch, that's for sure, he mused. Still, I wish she'd have let me sit on her shoulder. I wonder why she wouldn't let me. Alis had said it'd be safer for him on top of her head, since he could hold onto her hair, but Noah got the feeling Alis didn't want him anywhere near her face at the moment. Did she really think he was THAT tempted to steal a kiss?

As Noah thought about this, Alis trudged onward, heading in what she figured was northeast, possibly toward Paseo. Noah was right, I don't like this idea. At all, she thought, sickened by what circumstances would force her to do. But after this is over with, I can finally get on with tracking everyone down. Then Tarzimal can fix that thing, and I'll finally be able to make it back to Palman. Then Lassic will be mine. It still infuriated her that she had been so close to her goal, but then they had fallen prey to such an obvious trap. But with some luck, she might be in a position to finally finish what she started.

Then she remembered Noah's lecture from earlier. Could he have been right? she silently wondered. But she instantly dismissed the notion, almost shaking her head, but thankfully remembering Noah was perched up there. No, I have every reason for wanting Lassic dead, for not letting ANYTHING get in my way....

Alis stopped dwelling on her plans for revenge when she finally came to what they were looking for: the edge of a whole expanse filled with antlions. The large, nauseatingly hideous creatures were spread out all across Motavia. Oftentimes, their territory strecthed for almost a square mile, impeding the progress of anyone travelling on foot. Until her party had gotten their landrover, much of Motavia was impassible because of the antlions.

But now, they seemed so tiny and harmless to Alis as she looked down at them. The antlions propped their heads up from their pits, snapping their jaws wildly as if to threaten her, but all Alis did was chuckle. At her normal size, the antlions seemed almost as big as her old house, but now they looked no bigger than Myau's head to her. Just like everything else, they're practically nothing to me now, Alis mused. She was beginning to like her newfound size and power more and more. She hoped she'd have the opportunity to put it to good use soon.

She stared down at the antlion again, disgusted that she was even considering doing this. But her stomach grumbled yet again, reminding her of just how hungry she was. Alis sighed, telling herself it was either this or starve. She carefully knelt down, hoping she didn't jostle Noah too much, and reached into the sand pit. The antlion tried to retreat into its pit, but Alis's gigantic, powerful fingers effortlessly dug into the sand. She pulled the antlion out of its home, then stared at the writhing bug.

It flailed its legs uselessly as Alis held it in her firm, unbreakable grip. Might as well get this over with, Alis thought dejectedly as she watched the antlion squirm in her hand. She reached for the bug with her other hand and started to rip apart the hard exoskeleton covering its back like a shell, exposing its vulnerable fleshy insides. Once again, Alis marvelled at how strong she was. Before, it took all her strength to get her sword to penetrate that exoskeleton of theirs, but now one finger was enough to rip it off completely.

The antlion writhed even more, making Alis decide it was best just to rip off its head. It still squirmed for a few moments longer, but then its decapitated body lay still in her hand. Alis looked at the bug's fleshy, exposed body, its fluids oozing onto her hand, and disgust welled up all over again. But it was this or nothing. So she pinched her nose with her other hand, closed her eyes as she brought the antlion's body up to her mouth, and bit down into it.

The instant it hit her tastebuds, Alis had to fight the urge to throw up. She succeeded, and forced herself to eat as much of the antlion that was edible. Its legs were snapped effortlessly between her massive, rock-hard teeth, its underbelly mercilessly ripped to shreds. Before she knew it, she had devoured practically the whole antlion.

Even though she still felt like she was ready to hurl, Alis decided she had to eat as much as possible, and keep it down, if she was to have the strength to find the others. After wiping some body fluids off her face, she reached down for the next conical pit, ready to pull up another antlion....

Wren was busily driving the landrover, having volunteered since he required no sleep. Myau wondered if this unfeeling machine could really be of any more use. Both he and Odin wished they could just ditch the android. They were now essentially his masters, but they wanted nothing to do with him. Only out of respect for Leli's dying wish did they decide to have Wren accompany them.

"How long have we been driving around?" Myau asked the android in a grumpy voice.

"Approxomately 1.2 hours," Wren replied matter-of-factly. "We've been driving across the field of antlions encircling most of Paseo, and are currently several miles northwest of Uzo. We should reach the mountain range within another hour at our current velocity."

"Yeah. Whatever," said Myau testily. You better hope Alis is a lot more accepting than I am. She has every reason to hate battle anrdoids, he silently added.

"Hold it," Wren suddenly said. "I believe it will no longer he necessary to track down Alis Landale."

Odin turned his head to glare at Wren. "Why is that?" he asked.

"Because she's directly in front of us. Now you can see for yourself what Leli was referring to," Wren said.

Odin and Myau turned back to the windshield, wanting to see what Wren was talking about. Even with all three of Motavia's moons providing light, it was still a bit difficult to see clearly. But there was something a few hundred feet ahead of them, something incredibly big....

As they got nearer and nearer, Myau and Odin were able to make out just what it was...or rather who. Myau's jaw dropped from shock as Wren brought the landrover to a halt about fifty feet away from the massive figure. There, squatting in the middle of the huge field populated by antlions, was their friend Alis, who had somehow grown to monstrous proportions.

"Uh...words fail me," Odin said at length, staring up dumbly at Alis while she bit into another antlion.