As morning light crept across the horizon of the vast Ice plain, the search party was already full of activity. A great deal of snow had fallen that night, making the search effort that much more difficult. Reinforcements from the Fire moons had arrived during the night, but the deep cold of the Northern plains was hampering their efforts to help. The morning light seemed bleak as it rose to greet the group.

"No, Jade." Graveheart sighed as he looked at her image on the communicator.

"Don't sound so heavy hearted." Jade replied. "You'll find them. If you need reinforcements from Rock, let me know."

"I will." Graveheart nodded. "Thank you."

"Graveheart." Blaze's voice called out as he approached the group. "Are we going to go look for my prince, or just stand here and waste time talking to your queen?"

"We are departing now." Graveheart responded. "Are you sure your men can handle the freezing temperatures the storm brought last night?"

"Don't insult me, Rock hound." Blaze sneered. "Nothing will keep us from finding Prince Pyrus."

"Woah-oh, cool down Blaze." Femur interjected has stepped in between them with Cryos.

"Yes, please." Cryos looked toward Blaze. "I am sure no insult was intended. Graveheart is only concerned for the well being of your men."

"Yes, that's all I meant." Graveheart nodded. "And if your up to it, we gladly welcome the help of you and your men."

"Of course." Blaze backed down slightly.

"Well then." Cryos sighed heavily at the tensions still in the air. Even after three years of being in the Alliance, they were still having trouble working together. Pushing aside doubts about the stability of the Alliance, he began walking toward the low flying craft they would use in the search.

"Lord Cryos." A tall and young Ice soldier approached the group and kneeled before Cryos.

"Yes?" Cryos turned toward the soldier. A rare expression of surprise came over the king's face as the soldier stood to address him. "Jaren?"

"Yes, my King." Jaren gave a small smile.

"It is good to see you again." Cryos extended his hand toward the young soldier. "I thought you were still on the outer patrol squadron?"

"I requested leave as soon as I heard of what has happened to Lady Zera." Jaren clasped Cryos's hand firmly. "I just arrived in camp."

"My daughter will be glad to see you again after so long." Cryos spoke with a small smile as he appraised the young man before him.

"Graveheart, looks like General Gala's party found something." Femur interrupted the reunion.

"Come then." Cryos motioned toward the hover craft.

"Who's the soldier who's all chummy with Cryos?" Femur asked as Cryos and Jaren walked out of earshot.

"I've only heard Cryos mention Jaren a few times." Graveheart shrugged. "Apparently Jaren and Zera knew each other in early childhood."

"Funny." Femur raised an eyebrow. "Zera never mentioned him."

"Cryos said that when the alliance started to form, Jaren joined the fleet, and Zera had other things that occupied her time." Graveheart responded.

"Like a certain flame headed…" Femur began but was interrupted.

"Are you going to talk all day?" Blaze glared at Femur for the suggestion he made about Pyrus.

"I'll take my cruiser with some of these Ice soldiers and meet you at the site." Femur started to walk away from the group as Graveheart started walking toward Cryos's ship.

"Coming with us, Captain?" Graveheart questioned Blaze.

"Fine." Blaze would rather be with a Rock hound and an Ice flea than with that fat toad on his cruiser. "But I'm piloting."

"Where?" Pyrus spoke in a groggy whisper as his eyes began to open. As his eyes focused on the reflective walls of the cavern, the memories of the day before seeped back into his mind. A puzzled expression crossed his face, however, as he realized the cavern they were in was now filled with the morning light. Perhaps they had been closer to the surface last night than they had speculated in the darkness. A small movement brought his attention to the sleeping princess beside him. Her expression was so different from the anguish it had show last night. A still calm had come over her as the first wave of the Drach'mar had passed. Too exhausted to care, she had trusted Pyrus enough to simply fall asleep in his arms. He smiled slightly as he pondered how such an odd situation had come to end much of the tension that had always existed between them. Now, they were finally more like friends than enemies. As carefully as possible, he inched himself away from her. He knew the embarrassment she would suffer if she awoke in such an awkward situation with him. The fact that he knew her that well made him chuckle slightly. The chuckle caused her to stir and turn toward its sound.

"Where?" Zera asked as her eyes fluttered open.

"Rise and shine, princess." Pyrus smirked. "Its about time you got up. I've been waiting for ever!"

"Oh really?" Zera sat up halfway. "Then why haven't you made breakfast yet?"

"Because its not in my job description." Pyrus laughed. "Besides, you're the female. You're supposed to do all the cooking."

"Bah." Zera pushed him over with a punch to the shoulder. "At least what I would cook would be edible."

"Ya, for lava-dogs." Pyrus laughed again at the scowl on her face as he sat up again. "Anyway, looks like we are next to the surface."

"Wrong again, genius." Zera smirked as she stood up and pointed at the light source. "Those are just tunnels that lead up to the surface. The light reflects off of the Nanzyte and travels down those shafts."

"Well we are close though." Pyrus stood as well, but soon found himself back on his knees with a startled gasp.

"Pyrus?" Zera turned to the sound and rushed to his side. "What ever is the matter?"

"I'm not sure." Pyrus shook his head. "I just felt weak all of a sudden, and then my legs gave out on me."

"Looks like the deep cold of these caves are effecting you more than we thought." Zera grabbed the heating blanket, but its energy cell had run out sometime during the night. "Damn."

"Its alright." Pyrus smiled at her curse. It still sounded funny coming from her. "We just might have to slow the pace a bit."

"I could just carry you." Zera snickered as she offered him a hand up.

"Sure you could, Zera Warrior Princess." Pyrus laughed as she helped him to his feet. "After the strength you showed last night, I wouldn't doubt that you could."

"Last night…yes…" Zera downcast her eyes as Pyrus leaned on her shoulder for support.

"Oh, sorry Zera." Pyrus nearly hit himself for making a joke about the ordeal she had gone through last night. "I understand if you just want to forget about it."

"Thank you." Zera looked up at him. "Thank you for being there."

"Anytime, Zera." Pyrus smiled warmly at her, and he knew that he meant what he said.

"That's not good." Femur shook his head at the pile of debris the search party stood around.

"Do you think they survived?" Graveheart questioned.

"If they did," Gala replied. "we had best find Lady Zera and Prince Pyrus before they do."

"You heard him, double your efforts!" Blaze commanded the Fire troupes as they walked away from the wreckage of the Beast ship. "I want them found now!"

"What was that?" Zera paused in her steps and tilted her head to the side.

"What?" Pyrus leaned on the wall as they stopped.

"Shh." Zera hushed him as she continued to listen. A faint sound echoed off of the tunnel walls.

"I heard it that time." Pyrus raised an eyebrow and came up closer behind her.

"Sounds like it is coming from ahead." Zera took a few steps forward, then paused as the sound came again. "We are near an exit tunnel, I'm sure of it."

"Noise from outside?" Pyrus questioned.

"No, still to far I think." Zera replied as she thought. "Stay here, I will be right back."

"Zera, wait!" Pyrus argued, but Zera was already gone around the next bend in the tunnel network. With a long sigh, he decided to enjoy a much needed break to catch his breath. Zera's stubbornness still annoyed him, but her courage also never failed to impress him. For a moment, his breaths paused as his lungs labored to gather the thin oxygen from the tunnel air. He found himself unable to push himself off of the wall as Zera approached with a less than happy look in her eyes. "What is it?"

"They found us." Zera said as she looked back over her shoulder with a glare back to where she had come from.

"They?" Pyrus thought for a moment. "The search party?"

"No." Zera looked back at him with a look of concern as she surveyed his less than well state of being. "It is a squadron of Beast Drones from that ship that shot us down. They are heading strait for us.

"What!" Pyrus blinked. "Great, just great."

"How are you doing?" Zera approached him.

"I've been better." Pyrus smirked. "But I can still kick some drone butt."

"You don't look that well." Zera eyed him before looking back down the dark tunnel.

"I'm fine, really." Pyrus huffed. He watched as her face brought on the look of deep contemplation. "Zera, what is it?"

"I must go." Zera stated without emotion.

"What?" Pyrus tried once again to force himself from the wall with no avail. "What do you mean, go?"

"I must go and lure the Beast Drones away from here." Zera said again as she kept her eyes on the dark corridor.

"Alone?" Pyrus blinked. He pushed himself away from the wall with as much strength as he had left. "I don't think so. I'm coming with you."

"No." Zera turned her eyes to him with such determination and meaning in them that he lost what little breath he had for a moment. "We only have one shield generator and pistol. Besides, you are to weak. You will only slow me down."

"Nonsense." Pyrus began, but was quickly cut off as Zera raised a finger and placed it across his lips.

"You can not withstand the Beast in the state you are in." Zera continued.

"Look, I'm fine." Pyrus refused to back down as he pulled her hand away from his face. "I'm not going to let you use yourself as live bait."

"There is no other way." She paused for a moment to look at him, deeply considering and already regretting what she was about to do.

"There is always another way." Pyrus replied, his concern for her more obvious than he would have liked.

"Not this time." A small smile came over her face as her mind raced with all they had been through together. The smile quickly faded as she came to grips with what she must do. She knew he would never back down. "I wish there was another way. Forgive me."

"For what?" His questioning glance into her eyes was quickly replaced by one of shock and mass confusion as she pulled his face down to hers and pressed his lips to hers. Fighting the oddity of it all at first, the grip she had on him tightened as she deepened the kiss . Without fully understanding why, he stopped resisting the kiss and lost himself in it. The cool spirit of her filled him and sent his mind reeling with the strange sensation. In every second that passed, he found his soul aching for more. To her own surprise, Zera felt his warm and gentle arms wrap around her and pull her closer to him as he returned the kiss with a fiery passion. Feeling him return the kiss only saddened Zera, for the true reason behind her kiss would soon be revealed. Though, with in the deepening of the emotion behind it, she began to question what her true reason really had been. She slowly backed out of his arms, both of them looking to the other for an explanation.

"Pyrus…I…" Zera couldn't bare to look into his eyes so she lowered her own to the ground. Pyrus had been genuine in the kiss. She felt its impassioned truth burning a hole in her spirit.

"Zera…What…" Pyrus's mind was still in a tumbled chaos, unable to fully deal with or understand what had just happened between them. Then he felt it. A great feeling of cold and weakness came over his body, causing him to slide down to his knees. He eyes went wide with shock as he realized what she had done to him. Nanites. An anger came into his heart for her. He had let his emotions loose for her, found a desire for her in that kiss, and she had betrayed him with it. "Zera…what…why?"

"Forgive me…" Zera choked back the tears that formed in her throat at the sounds of betrayal in Pyrus's voice. She knelt down beside his weakened body and placed her pendant around his neck. She opened the pendant and looked at it for a long moment. "The signal should work now. I will lead the Beast Drones away from you and the search party will locate you. I will head for the surface as soon as the Drones have been taken far enough away."

"Why Zera?" Pyrus looked deeply into her eyes as she finally brought them up to look at his face.

"I am doing what must be done." Zera barely got out over a small sob starting to rise in her voice. She caressed his check again, knowing he would be too weak now to bat it away if he didn't want it there. The small wells of tears in her eyes caused her to turn away from him. The confusion and anger in his eyes were all to obvious to her. As she started to leave him, something inside of her made her pause. What she did next shocked her as much as it did him. She took his weakened face in both of her hands and drew him into another kiss. Despite the meaning behind it for her, nothing was returned from his almost lifeless form. She truly hated herself for what she had done to him, and she knew that nothing would ever be the same between them after this day.

If she lived that long.

Without another word, she turned on the shield generator on her belt and ran down the dark corridor. Pyrus was left to contemplate if that kiss had been real or to make sure she had implanted enough nanites to keep him from interfering.

"My King, look." Jaren pointed at the ship's scanner.

"Zera's pendant beacon." Cryos sighed in relief.

"Altering course and alerting the other search parties." Jaren responded without being asked.

"They must be near the surface then." Graveheart smiled at Cryos.

"They are not the only ones." Blaze broke the happy moment and pointed toward the ship's scanner as several void-energy signatures appeared.

"Drones." Cryos glared at the scanner as the ship turned sharply and headed for the source of Zera's beacon.

"What am I doing?" Zera questioned herself in a shaky voice as she headed down the tunnel toward the sounds of the beast drones. They were heading strait for her and Pyrus. If she did not get them to turn the other way, Pyrus would be an easy target in his condition.

"What did I just do?" She spoke in a hushed whisper, taking a small pause to lean against the tunnel wall. Though her intentions were well meant, she regretted it with every breath she took. With the intention of saving him, she had betrayed him. The fact that he had returned the kiss with a passion that continued to vibrate up her spine only caused Zera more confusion and grief.

"What will I do now?" Zera sighed heavily. Only hours before they had finally allowed themselves to truly become friends. Now all that had been destroyed with the worst betrayal she could imagine. Though her heart wished to gain an understanding of the kiss he had returned, she knew she would not soon be able to face him. She was not sure if she would ever have the courage to face him.

Courage.

"I am doing what must be done." Zera said as she pushed herself away from the wall and focused an angry glare down the tunnel. Even if it meant never seeing Pyrus again, she would do anything to protect him. She would lead the drones away from him. She would fight them until her last breath caused her to stop. She would do what had to be done. With that last bit of encouragement to herself, she stood up strait and turned on the shield generator on her belt. Dropping the supply bag to the ground, she took the small pistol in her firm grip. Rounding the corner, she came face to face with the Beast drones. Glaring at them with an emotional fury, she let out a guttural howl of defiance.

"Come and get me, if you dare."