"A Battle Won"

JC sat up in bed quickly, gripping the phone tightly. Tammy was crying on the other end and sounded nearly hysterical. He had never heard her talk like that before. She sounded nothing like the strong, attitude-filled Tammy he knew. "What?" he asked. "What's wrong? What happened?" He had to listen closely to her answer because her sobbing made her almost incoherent, and there was what sounded like rain pounding in the background.

"It's Justin," she choked out, willing herself to calm down.

"Justin?" JC paled. "What happened? Where are you?"

"At the docks," she replied shakily, purposely not answering his first question. "I need you to come get us. Quickly," she added.

"Okay," JC nodded. "I'll just get security--"

"No!" Tammy exclaimed, cutting him off. "No security. Justin's not in the best shape and they'll wanna take him to the hospital."

"What's wrong with him?" JC frowned worriedly.

"He's wet and tired from standing out in the rain," Tammy lied. "He needs a warm bed right now, or else he might freeze to death. Besides," she continued matter-of-factly, "if the media got wind of this, they'd eat it up."

JC sighed. He had to agree with Tammy there. Lately, 'NSync's mode of operation revolved around staying out of the eyes of the media. "How about Joey and Chris?" JC asked. "Can I bring them?"

"Yeah," Tammy answered. "But please hurry, JC. It's vital that you get to the docks as soon as you can. We're at Pier Nineteen," she said before hanging up.

JC hung up the phone, a hollow feeling in the pit of his stomach. He hurriedly threw on some clothes and went to Chris and Joey's room. Shaking Chris roughly, JC said loudly, "Wake up, Chris!"

Chris rolled over and groaned. "Don't tell me it's time to go already, man."

"It's not," JC replied, shaking him again.

"Then what is it?" Chris snapped, fully awake now.

"It's Justin," JC replied while walking over to Joey's bed to wake him up. "And Tammy."

"What about them?" Chris asked, throwing off the covers with a yawn.

"They're in some kind of trouble," JC said, smacking Joey on the head.

Joey turned over and looked at JC, mumbling, "You're not Pamela Anderson Lee."

"No shit," JC scowled. "Now get up. We have to leave immediately. I'll explain on the way."

Five minutes later, the three men were in the lobby trying to decide their next move. "How the hell are we gonna get to the docks?" Chris scowled. "We don't have a car, and this isn't some fan fiction story where we can steal the keys to the van from security."

"Why don't we call a cab?" Joey shrugged, still tired.

"Good idea," JC nodded. He whipped out his cell phone and called for a cab. Minutes later, a yellow cab pulled up in front of the hotel and the three walked out. "Where to?" the cabbie asked after they got in.

"The pier," JC answered immediately.

The cabdriver's eyebrows nearly hit his hairline. "You sure you wanna go there? In this weather? There's usually a lot of lightning in that area, you know."

"We're sure," JC sighed. "We won't be there long." The cab pulled off the curb and started to drive through the rain slicked streets of D.C. as JC looked out the window, deep in thought. He wondered why Justin and Tammy were at a pier in the rain at three o'clock in the morning, and what in the world they could have been doing while they were there. "And together," JC added as an afterthought.

"Come again?" Chris asked.

"Nothin', just thinkin'," JC answered.

"Well," Joey chimed in, "you mind explaining to me why I'm riding in a cab to a dark, old pier instead of getting as much sleep as possible, since we're supposed to be up in oh, two hours?"

"I told you," JC rolled his eyes, "we gotta get Justin and Tammy."

"But why do we have to get Justin and Tammy?" Chris asked. He added, "And why are we saying 'Justin and Tammy'? Since when is Tammy ever voluntarily in a three foot radius of him?"

"I don't know," JC sighed. "All I know is that she called me and said that she needed help." He glanced at Chris and Joey. "She was crying."

"Like, real tears?" Joey asked, not able to believe his ears.

"Sobbing," JC replied flatly. He looked at his friends and sighed again. "Look guys," he said, "I know all this is confusing, but we just gotta do this, and I'm sure we'll get the whole story afterwards."

The cab pulled up to the dark and gloomy looking pier. "Kinda contradicts that beautiful scene over there, huh?" the cabbie asked, while pointing to the lights of the Capitol Building, the White House, and the office buildings of downtown D.C.

"Yeah," Chris grumbled, paying the cabbie. "Could ya just wait here? We won't be long."

The cabdriver nodded. "I wouldn't think to leave you in a place like this. I'll be here waiting," he said.

"Thanks," JC said, getting out of the car with the others.

"Hey!" the cabbie called to them. "The door's usually locked, but lovers come up here a lot. There's a hole in the fence about three feet down."

"Thanks!" Joey called, as the three jogged to the gaping hole the man was referring to. They all climbed carefully through it and walked towards the piers.

"She said she was at Pier Nineteen," JC said, steering them towards it. When they got there, nothing could prepare them for the sight they saw. Justin was white as a sheet and shivering, and Tammy was cradling him in her arms, rocking him as if he were a child. It was the scariest, yet most touching, thing the guys had ever seen.

JC ran over to them, Chris and Joey close behind. "Oh my God," he gasped, unable to take his eyes away from Justin, "are you guys okay?"

"For now," Tammy muttered.

"Say what?" Chris arched an eyebrow.

"I mean," Tammy said, backpedaling, "that we're wet and cold, but alive. Not for long if we can't get Justin to a warm area, though."

"What the hell happened?" JC asked. "What are y'all doing here? And together?"

Tammy gestured for Joey and Chris to help Justin to his feet. As they held up a wobbly Justin, Tammy said nervously, "There's no time to explain. We gotta get outta here."

"Why?" JC questioned. "What's the problem?"

Tammy sighed in frustration. "I just said there's no time to explain! We gotta leave now."

"Are we in danger?" JC persisted stubbornly.

"If we stay here we are," she scowled. "Now listen up, Chasez," she continued with a glare, "we have to get outta here as soon as possible, and I'm not gonna die because you feel like playing the stereotypical 'curious white person'. Now move it!"

They headed back to the cab quickly and placed Justin in the front seat, asking the cabdriver to turn the heat up. After they all got in, Joey handed the cabbie a twenty dollar bill and said, "I'll give you another one for every red light you run."

"No problem," the cabbie said happily, slamming the car into gear. It took them a record breaking eight minutes to get back to the hotel.

After getting out of the cab, JC said, "Guys? How's it gonna look with the three of us carrying a nearly unconscious Justin into the hotel?"

"Like he was out getting drunk," Joey volunteered.

"Or might need a doctor," Chris grimaced.

"Right," Tammy nodded. She turned to Justin and started to smack him lightly. "Justin?" she called, trying to bring him into full consciousness.

"Hmm?" he murmured, eyes closed.

"I need you to wake up, hon," Tammy said. "We're gonna just walk through the lobby right quick, then Joey and Chris will carry you up to your room. Just try to walk for me, okay?" Justin nodded weakly as Tammy continued, "How do your legs feel?"

"His legs?" JC questioned. "What's wrong with his legs?"

"They're asleep," Tammy lied smoothly. "Let's go."

With their arms slung around Justin, Chris and Joey entered first, making their way quickly to the elevators. Tammy started to follow, but JC grabbed her arm, holding her back.

"What happened tonight?" he asked, his dark eyes demanding the truth.

"Nothing worth repeating," Tammy shrugged his hand off her arm.

"That's not gonna fly with me, Tammy," JC growled. "And it won't fly with Johnny, either. Now tell me: Why the hell were you and Justin at the docks?"

"I was there to get Justin," Tammy scowled.

"And why was Justin there?" he continued.

"I don't know," Tammy answered truthfully. "You'd have to ask him." With that, she walked off towards the elevators, JC following closely behind.

"Do you think Justin'll be okay?" JC asked after a moment of silence.

"I hope so," Tammy said. The elevator stopped at their floor and they got off in time to see Chris and Joey carry Justin into the living room area of their suite. When JC and Tammy caught up with them, JC told them to put Justin in his and Tammy's room.

After they got Justin out of his wet clothes, gave him a hot bath, and treated his scratches and bruises, Tammy tucked him into her bed. He looked so peaceful then, Tammy just wanted to protect him from everything. As Tammy prepared to leave, Justin called out to her. "T?" he called weakly.

Tammy turned back to him with a smile. "Yeah?"

"Thanks for saving me," he whispered.

Tammy's heart melted as she sat on the edge of the bed. "No problem, babe," she replied with a chuckle. "Anytime." She dropped a kiss on his forehead and gave him a big hug before getting up.

"I've waited a long time for that forehead kiss," Justin yawned, closing his eyes.

"I've missed giving it to you, J," Tammy responded. As an afterthought she added, "J?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

Justin shook his head. "It's okay. Besides, I screwed up, not you."

"No," Tammy insisted stubbornly, "I shouldn't have been so mad at you. It's not like you meant to do it, anyway. I was mad at you entirely too long, and it was wrong. Especially when you tried to apologize." She continued with a sigh, "When I thought I lost you tonight, all I could think about was how I never really accepted your apology and got to make things right with you."

"So you finally forgive me?" Justin smiled softly.

"Yeah," Tammy grinned, getting up and walking towards the door. Just as she reached out to open the door, Justin's voice stopped her.

"I figured out why I was at the docks tonight, even though I don't know how I got there," Justin said casually.

Tammy replied without turning around, "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah," Justin answered. "Don't you wanna ask me why?"

"Why?" she asked, her back still turned to Justin.

"Look at me, Tammy," Justin said quietly. Tammy turned around, noticing that Justin was propped up on one elbow, his familiar grin on his face. In his right hand dangled her necklace, its cracks refracting the moon's rays as usual.

Tammy shook her head in shock. "No…" she whispered, covering her mouth with shaking hands.

"Yes," Justin nodded.

Tammy shook her head again.

Justin nodded his head in confirmation. "It's real," he remarked. "And it's yours."

Tammy didn't want to speak, afraid that this was some sort of dream, or that perhaps the slightest movement would cause the necklace to vanish. Justin gestured for her to come closer. Tammy took a few halting steps towards him, then stopped. Justin held it out, eyebrows raised. Tammy walked towards him and looked at her necklace, her talisman. "Are you sure this isn't a dream?" she asked, her eyes begging him to say no.

He didn't disappoint her. "No dream," he answered, sitting up in bed and throwing the covers off of him. Sitting at the edge of the bed, he told Tammy to sit with her back to him. After she did, he gently placed the necklace around her neck and fastened it.

After the necklace was placed around her neck, Tammy felt the empty spot in her heart fill up, and she finally felt whole again. She felt like her old self, and thanked God, Allah, Buddha, whoever was responsible for it, for this moment. Everything was right again, including her friendship with Justin.

Tammy turned towards Justin and hugged him with all her strength. "Thank you," she whispered into his chest, tears silently rolling down her cheeks.

Justin gently wiped her tears away with his thumb, echoing her earlier gesture towards him. "You're more than welcome," he smiled tiredly, but still happily. "You're family."

That was the most touching thing Justin had ever said to Tammy. "I don't know how I can repay you," she sniffled.

"Don't worry about it," Justin chuckled. "This was my repayment to you. Now we're even."

Tammy nodded, and made him go back to bed. "You've had a rough night," she smiled. Her smiled faded as she continued, "I have to go."

"Go?" Justin asked. "Go where?"

"To see Yasmine," Tammy answered, telling only half of the truth. After she got Yasmine, the others would have to be rounded up so that another battle could be fought.

"When will you be back?" Justin asked, sinking deeper into the covers like a hibernating animal.

"Soon," Tammy forced a smile onto her face, not wanting to worry him. Still, as she walked out of Justin's room, she wondered how much of what she said was actually true.

A minute later, Tammy rapped loudly on Yasmine's door. "What up?" a tired Yasmine murmured as she answered the door.

"We got problems," Tammy said, walking into the expensive suite and sitting on the fold out bed Justin had occupied earlier.

"Where's Justin?" Yasmine asked, confused.

Tammy sighed and said, "Boy, do I have a story to tell." Over the next five minutes, she relayed the events of that night (or morning, if one wants to be specific), including the technicolor lightning bolts.

"What happened to Justin tonight ran completely parallel with my dream," Yasmine gasped.

Tammy looked at her, realization crossing her face. "It sure was," she whispered. "That's what the Elders were trying to tell me the entire time." She instantly felt guilty for her earlier distrust of them.

"Man," Yasmine shook her head, "I didn't have so much as a tiny vision about what was happening to you. I must have been really out of it."

"Probably," Tammy agreed. "Or it could have been blocked by somebody. Or something," she added.

"Tilox," Yasmine whispered, dread spreading throughout her body.

"What?" Tammy scrunched up her face in confusion. "Tilox? That sounds like some kind of venereal disease. Or a virus of some sort."

"Oh he's not a virus," Yasmine laughed nervously. "He's one of Rakshiki's henchmen. And he never travels alone. He usually has his partner, Uriel is her name, with him. Their trademark signal is different colored lightning streaks." She looked at Tammy gravely. "Alone, they are dangerous. Together, they are deadly."

"You know what we gotta do, right?" Tammy looked into Yasmine's eyes.

"Yup," Yasmine nodded. "Let's round up the girls." Taking out their cell phones, Yasmine called Serena, who happened to have Michelle with her, while Tammy called Isabella. Apparently, the other three were already in D.C. and also saw the lightning bolts. Coincidentally, they were about to call Yasmine and Tammy, but they beat them to it.

"Tell them to meet us at the junk yard," Tammy said as Yasmine talked on the phone. "That's where I think the bolts landed."

Yasmine nodded and repeated the information into the phone. After the two hung up, Yasmine said, "Give me thirty seconds to get some clothes on, then let's prepare for a hyper jump."

Minutes later, the two girls were giving each other hugs and wishing each other luck. "Let's do this," Tammy said, her hands clasped in Yasmine's.

Yasmine nodded. "Yeah, let's kicks some ass."

The two girls almost immediately launched into a hyper jump, becoming separated along the way. Tammy landed in a big pile of papers and Yasmine landed about twenty yards away into some old appliances. "Aw shit," she groaned, rubbing her hip. She carefully climbed out of the pile and started to walk around, looking for Tammy, Serena, or any of her friends. After about three minutes of walking around, Yasmine spotted Isabella sitting on an old washing machine, one leg crossed over the other.

"Hey," Yasmine said, walking over to her.

Isabella sent a grin her way and replied, "¿Que pasa? I thought you'd never get here."

"How long have you been here?" Yasmine inquired.

"About five minutes," Isabella said. "I sent out a thought to the others hoping they'd find me, but no luck yet. I was just about to go look for 'em. I got kinda worried that Tilex might have found 'em."

"Tilox," Yasmine corrected.

"Tilex, Tilox, what's the diff?" Isabella shrugged.

"So we are in the right place?" Yasmine asked with a worried sigh.

"Yup," Isabella replied ease. "You don't feel the bad vibes in the air, dog?"

"Yeah," Yasmine nodded. "I feel 'em."

Isabella gestured to the sky, which was full of the earlier colored lightning flashes Tammy had seen earlier. "See those lightning bolts? He ain't third density yet. He's playin' with us now." She added with a scowl, "He should know that I don't like to be played with." She chuckled, trying to hide her fear. "I wish I had a cigarette."

"But you don't even smoke," Yasmine said, rolling her eyes to the sky.

"I know," Isabella replied with a grin, "but I see that I'm lookin' all cool and stuff sittin' on this washing machine, how could I look cooler? I figure that if I had a cigarette in my mouth, I'd look cool, calm, and collect. Ya know," she smirked, "be all John Wayne-like. Everybody's scared of somebody wit' a cigarette in their mouth."

"I'm not," a voice said from Isabella's right.

Yasmine and Isabella turned and saw Tammy walk up with Michelle. "'Sup?" Isabella said. "You ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," Tammy shrugged. As she shrugged, her necklace caught Isabella's eye. "Is that what I think it is?" Isabella asked.

"Yup," Tammy replied with a tiny smile.

"How'd you find it?" Isabella asked, smiling back at her.

"I didn't," Tammy shrugged. "Justin did."

"Justin?" Isabella repeated with disbelief. "How did that happen?"

"Long story," Tammy answered, shaking her head.

"One we don't have time to hear," Serena said, jumping to the ground from atop an old refrigerator. "Tilox and Uriel just went third density, and I'll bet they're looking for us."

"Wrong," a sinister voice laughed from behind them. "I've already found you." The five girls looked up to see a man dressed in all black standing near some old metal appliances. Serena remembered that metal was a good conductor of electricity, a good reason why he surfaced there. Yasmine, on the other hand, recognized him from their trip to the mall. 'I knew there was something weird about that guy', she mused.

"I hope you don't mind," Tilox smirked at them, "but I brought a friend along. Ladies," he said, gesturing to a dark figure that flipped out from behind an old car, "meet my partner and confidante, Uriel."

"The pleasure is all mine," she laughed evilly. "Before we kill you, would you like to volunteer any information about the location of the child? We promise we'll make your deaths much less painful if you oblige."

The five girls took their battle stances and glared back at the two. "Don't celebrate a victory you won't win," Isabella snarled at the two.

Suddenly, much to the girls' shock, Tilox began to sprout eight long, metallic tentacles and grow about two feet taller. "Holy shit," Serena gasped.

"What the hell?" Yasmine frowned.

"Let the games begin," Tilox declared as a bolt of lightning struck him, making his tentacles radiate with electric currents. He drove six of the eight tentacles into the ground forcefully, and the girls saw the ground rise and erode as the metallic extremities came towards them from underground.

"Watch out!" Tammy screamed, diving out of the way as one of his tentacles erupted from the ground right where she was standing. "Spread out!" she commanded, running deep into the junk yard as another one of his tentacles followed her.

Michelle meanwhile, jumped high into the air as one of Tilox's tentacles whipped towards her, and tried to land a flying drop kick onto Uriel, whom she hadn't forgotten about. Uriel merely ducked out of the way and laughed as Michelle fell into a pile of garbage. "Time to take out the trash," she laughed, grabbing Michelle by her hair and pulling her out of the pile. Isabelle snuck up from behind and grabbed Uriel by her head, twisting it around 360 degrees, snapping her neck. "Bet she didn't see that one coming," Isabella laughed, pulling Michelle to her feet as Uriel lay on the ground.

Her laughter died though as Uriel opened her eyes and smiled at Isabella, sending a swift sharp kick into her belly, propelling her five feet into the air and onto an old dresser. Michelle tried to stomp on Uriel's face while she was on the ground, but their foe was too quick and rolled away, jumping to her feet.

"You want me? Come and get me," Uriel taunted, running behind a large pile of discarded kitchen sinks and microwaves.

"Gladly," Michelle muttered, following closely behind. Killing Uriel was gonna be harder than she thought.

On the other side of the junk yard, Serena, Yasmine, and Tammy were struggling just to stay alive. Tilox moved so quick and his tentacles were so powerful. "What's the plan?" Serena yelled to Tammy, dodging yet another tentacle.

"Go for the head!" Tammy ordered, as two tentacles whipped swiftly past her face.

Yasmine quickly leaped backwards as a tentacle came towards her, and tried to use her super strength to contain it. She only succeeded in getting it wrapped tightly around her body, screaming as it started to crush her.

"Don't worry, Yaz," Tammy yelled, picking up an old pipe. "I'm coming!" Tammy's main power was that she could manipulate matter any way she wanted to, and wasted no time transforming the pipe into a long sword by merely running her hand down the length of the pipe, willing it to take the form of a sword. That task out of the way, Tammy ran top speed towards the long arm, which had Yasmine suspended in the air. Jumping high into the air, Tammy swiped at the arm with her sword, chopping it in half.

As Yasmine dropped to the ground, Tammy looked up at the severed tentacle, expecting it to grow back to it's normal length, yet surprised and grateful that it didn't. "Go for the arms!" she yelled to her friends, changing the original plan.

"Gotcha," Serena said. She leapt for one of the arms, crying out in agony as it slapped her to the hard ground. As the tentacle reached down to grab her, Serena kicked straight up into the air with all her might, flying upwards towards the tentacle, and giving a triumphant shout as her foot sliced through it.

"Two down, six to go," she growled, landing smoothly back on her feet.

On the other hand, Isabella and Michelle were doing a bang up job with Uriel. In other words, they were getting banged up as Uriel did all the banging. "This isn't going too good," Isabella grunted to Michelle after they were slammed into a pile of old bricks.

"I agree," Michelle said, climbing painfully to her feet. She looked at Uriel, who was laughing evilly. "Time to finish the job," Uriel smirked, walking towards the two.

"I didn't think my victory would be this easy," Uriel laughed. "I mean really, you can atleast give me some sort of fight."

"Gladly," Isabella said, waving her hand. Instantly, the wind picked up and started to blow Uriel around. Unfortunately, it blew Tammy, Yasmine, Serena, and Tilox too.

"What the hell?" Tammy cried, as she fell to the ground.

"Isabella's taking control of the elements!" Serena exclaimed as the wind picked up even more. An old table flew towards the girls, who ducked out of the way and watched as it hit Tilox in the head. "Now!" Tammy said, running towards Tilox.

Tilox, momentarily stunned by the table's blow, recovered quickly enough in time to see Tammy fly up into the air in an attempt to land a devastating blow to his chest via drop kick. He moved swiftly to the left and watched as Tammy landed smoothly on the ground. Wasting no time, Tilox launched out his tentacle yet again, plunging it into the ground, and having it come up to crush Tammy. For everytime it missed, it would do a swimming dolphin movement, that is, it would come out of the ground, then plunge back under immediately, all while chasing Tammy.

Tammy was just barely dodging each of the tentacle's attempts to crush her, running and jumping with super speed through the piles of junk and rubble. Suddenly, Tammy found herself at a dead end, with the tentacle close behind.

Yasmine, who was about ten yards from Tammy at that point, decided to use her special power of super strength. With a mighty yell, Yasmine punched the ground with all her might, causing the ground to rise and ripple as if it were water that had a wave travelling through it. Once the vibrations hit Tilox, he fell to the ground, and Serena saw that as her chance. 'I better not waste this', she thought, knowing that when they used their special powers, it drained them so badly that it took atleast four hours to completely recuperate.

Using her power of telekinesis, Serena picked up a huge cinderblock with her mind, traveled it over to the fallen Tilox, and dropped it on him, enjoying his cries of anguish. "That won't hold him for long!" Tammy yelled. "Go for the head, Yasmine!"

Yasmine ran towards Tilox, leapt high into the air, and brought her feet down onto his head, resulting in a loud crunching sound. "That's that," she grimaced, wiping off her boots on the ground. "I wonder how Isabella and Michelle are doing."

After Uriel got off the ground from the unplanned wind storm, she threw out her hands in a sweeping motion, sending a powerful fireball towards the two girls, who ducked out of the way just in the knick of time. "Let's get this fight over with," Isabella growled. "I'm tired of her ass already." As she spoke, Uriel dove towards Michelle, tackling her to the ground. As she raised her claw-like nails to rip Michelle's throat open, her mouth suddenly opened in shock, and she tried to say something. Her eyes slowly rolled up into her head, and she collapsed onto a stunned Michelle.

"What the hell happened?" Michelle asked, pushing Uriel off of her and climbing to her feet. She looked at Isabella and the sight nearly made her lose her lunch.

"I don't steal just the fellas' hearts," Isabella chuckled. "Bitches get the same treatment." In her left hand, she held Uriel's heart. "Bet that puta won't come back to life after this transplant."

"That's sick," Michelle shook her head.

"Hey, it saved your life," Isabella shrugged.

"That it did," Michelle had to agree. "Let's go help the others."

"Too late," a voice said from behind them. "We did what we had to do."

Isabella and Michelle turned around to see a bruise-filled Yasmine, Tammy, and Serena standing wearily behind them. "This place is depressing," Michelle complained.

"I agree," Yasmine said. "This time around we got a worse ass-whuppin' than with Shilen."

Tammy sighed. "Let's just burn these bodies and get the fuck outta here." She looked at Isabella expectantly. "Come on, element girl, we need some fire."

Isabella shrugged sheepishly. "I can't," she admitted. "I already used my power." She continued, "If I tried to conjure up some fire, the effort would kill me."

"Oh yeah," Serena scowled, remembering, "you sent that stupid wind storm that almost killed us!"

"So use your powers," Isabella countered.

"For what?" Serena asked. "I can't create fire, I can only move it with my mind." She looked around in an exaggerated gesture. "Do you see fire anywhere? I sure as hell don't. Besides," she finished, "I already used my power, too."

"Tammy?" Michelle looked at her. "Create us some matches."

Tammy shrugged also. "Can't. Used my powers to make a sword." She yawned. "Creating matches would put me in the same condition I was in after we fought Shilen."

"Did anyone not use their powers?" Yasmine asked incredulously.

"I didn't," Michelle said, "but unless you need me to freeze time or absorb your energy, then I'm not too much help."

"Fuck it," Tammy said, exasperated. "Do we have enough inner strength to send them back to sixth density like we did with Shilen?"

Michelle groaned. "I get tired just thinking about it. But," she sighed as an afterthought, "we might as well." The five girls came together and focused their minds on opening the portal to the sixth dimension. After it was open, they tiredly dumped the two bodies in and watched as it closed.

"God that was exhausting," Yasmine sighed.

"Atleast we're still alive," Tammy consoled them.

"I know," Isabella said, rubbing a huge bruise on her arm, "but at what cost? I can barely move. Plus, we almost died. Twice."

"And to think," Serena mused, stretching painfully, "we still gotta find the other demon that's roaming around New York."

"And after that," Michelle groaned, "we have to hyper jump to Japan. It never ends."

"Look guys," Tammy said, sitting on an old chair, "I know you're tired, but so am I. Keep in mind that we were chosen by God to do this in return for a second chance at life. So for that, the least we can do is guarantee that the child will have a chance at a full life. Get it?"

"Got it," the girls answered.

"Good," Tammy grinned. "Now let's get the hell outta here. Dawn's approaching." The girls wrapped their arms around each other's shoulders and walked wearily out of the junkyard, too tired to do a hyper jump for once.