Fried'rich, as he watched the battle between Imakarum Mirabilis, Hikari Mirabilis, Aptom, and four Guyvers, was grateful for the female Zoalord's appearance. If Guyvers I and III had joined forces with their female counterparts, and all of the evidence from the ongoing battle seemed to indicate that they had, then Hikari's strength would be of great use to Chronos. As would her knowledge of Yukari Fukamachi's weaknesses.

These Guyvers intended to kill me. I will not allow such audacity to go unpunished. Imakarum, Hikari, do what you are meant to do; destroy the Guyvers.

"Your Excellency, a news helicopter is approaching the site of Imakarum and Hikari's battle against the Guyvers," one of Fried'rich's Zoanoid aides, a Neagle, informed him.

"What?!" demanded a Ramochis. "Call them back at once!"

"No, let them be," Fried'rich ordered calmly. "Concealing something like this would only work to our disadvantage in the future. Let them find out; I will see to it that this is turned to our advantage."

XxXxXxX

+Sho, what do we do? I... I'm not sure I can fight her.+

+I'm not sure if I can fight Mr. Murakami, either,+ Sho admitted, clasping Yukari's hand. +I think I might know a way that we could help each other. Maybe if I fought Ms. Murakami...+

+I think that could work,+ Yukari said, squeezing Sho's hand. +I don't really know Mr. Murakami, aside from what you've told me about him. And I know you don't know anything but what I've told you about Ms. Murakami... Still, are you sure we have to fight?+

+I don't know... maybe there is still hope...+

"Murakami!" Sho called, hoping that the two Zoalords would hear him, and that they would stop.

"You should be more specific about who it is that you're addressing, Sho," Ms. Murakami chided from her position in the air to Sho's, Aptom's and Yukari's right.

"You of all people should know that we once shared that name," Mr. Murakami said.

"I'm... I'm talking to both of you," Sho said, looking from one Zoalord to the other. "Why are we all fighting each other? You were both enemies of Chronos, just as much as we were."

"You keep talking, Sho Fukamachi, and yet all I hear is meaningless noise," Ms. Murakami snapped.

"Lord Alkanphel returned us to life after we were killed in our foolish attempt to best that traitor Guyot in single combat. We both owe our lives and hence our allegiance to Lord Alkanphel!"

"Please," Yukari pleaded. "You were my friend - more than my friend - I don't want to have to fight you!"

"You do know that you would be welcomed within the ranks of Chronos, Yukari Fukamachi," Mr. Murakami said, somehow managing to sound reasonable. "There would then be no reason for you to fight against someone you seem to care for so much."

Yukari hung her head. "I can't do that. Chronos is too evil; they've hurt too many people. I could never serve them willingly. Please, try to understand that."

"Then this conversation is over, Yukari," Ms. Murakami hissed.

The next thing that the four Guyvers knew, Hikari and Imakarum had both fired their Crystal Lasers. The impact of the blasts tore apart the roof where the Guyvers and Aptom had been standing.

XxXxXxX

Watching the battle unfold, Fried'rich wondered for a moment just what the discussion that had taken place between Hikari, Imakarum, and the two analogs of Guyver I had been about. Judging from her body language, the female Guyver I had been severely affected by what either Lord Imakarum or Lady Hikari had said.

Whatever that had been.

"The targets are moving from Chiyoda to Chuo to escape from Lord and Lady Mirabilis," the radio-distorted voice of one of his Zoanoid observers reported. "They will arrive at Tokyo bay soon. It's been confirmed that the targets are Guyver I and Guyver III, both, er... sets of them. However, the identity of that new warrior and his relation to the Guyvers is still unknown."

"We will need to know what this new one's connection is to the Guyvers," Fried'rich stated calmly. "Put some of our most diligent research staff onto the task. I want to know everything that is possible to know about this new creature."

Fried'rich decided that he would also speak to Imakarum and Hikari, but after their battle against Guyvers I and III had been concluded. It would not do to distract either of them at the moment, when they were both absorbed in the battle at hand.

XxXxXxX

"Tetsuro, everybody, come quick!" Mizuki shouted, drawing the attention of all of the occupants of the apartment. "Sho and Makishima are on TV!"

"Well, I see they've all met up," Tetsuro said, catching a glimpse of the four Guyvers on the TV screen.

"What do you mean?" Mizuki asked, confused.

"Oh, I see!" Natsuki exclaimed, pointing to the battle on the screen. "There are four Guyvers out there. So, it follows that two of them would have to be Akane and Yukari."

"And the other two are Agito and Sho!" Mizuki exclaimed in sudden realization. "I get it now."

"I just think it's weird that there are suddenly four Guyvers, and two of them are girls," Natsuki said, only half-listening to the commentary from the newscaster.

"I have a theory about how they might have gotten here, but I'd prefer to explain it to everyone. I'm not quite sure myself if it's true, but I'd like to get as many other opinions as I can," Tetsuro said.

"That sounds like a good idea, Tetsuro," Natsuki said, turning back to watch the battle unfolding on the TV screen.

"So, which one of them do you think is Purg'stall?" Mizuki asked, when the lull in conversation grew too long for her liking.

"I'm still not all that sure how to tell Zoanoids apart," Natsuki said. "Besides, those two look so much alike already. Either one of them could be Purg'stall, and we'd never know which one."

"What I'm more concerned about is why neither of them have called the Gigantic yet."

"I don't think Agito can call the Gigantic, big brother," Mizuki said, turning back to look at Tetsuro.

"No, but Yukari could," he said. "I don't know why they would stay in normal Guyver mode to fight Zoanoids that are obviously so much more powerful than them."

"They're definitely at a disadvantage," Natsuki said, worry for the four Guyvers plain in her voice. "Just look at what's happening!"

Even as Natsuki spoke, Sho took an energy blast from one of the white Zoanoids directly in the gut. Then they saw Yukari slammed bodily into Sho from the front, the victim of a piledriver blow from the other white Zoanoid.

Why? Sho? Yukari? Why do both of you seem to be so reluctant to transform into Gigantic mode, even when it's obvious that you're going to lose if you don't? Why can't you fight? What's going on? Tetsuro wondered silently. He decided to ask them when they got back.

Something that would make them hesitate this badly couldn't be good. But what could do this kind of thing to such determined people as Sho and Yukari?

XxXxXxX

As she slammed face-first into Sho, Yukari could hear Ms. Murakami's mocking laughter. She could also hear Akane and Agito firing their Pressure Cannons at the two Zoalords. Pulling herself away from Sho, Yukari looked over her shoulder at Mr. Murakami. He was safely behind his forcefield, the force of both Akane's and Agito's Pressure Cannons not even scratching him.

They probably did make him angry, though, because the next thing he did was fire some kind of horizontal tornado-blast at them. The identical blast that came from behind was probably fired by Ms. Murakami. Akane and Agito were tossed around like leaves in a windstorm; Yukari grabbed Akane's arms to keep her fellow Guyver from being blown around too much.

Out of the corner of her eye, Yukari saw Sho catching Agito as he slammed into him. It was almost the same way that she herself had slammed into Sho, only Agito hit Sho back first. Yukari watched as Sho caught Agito under the arms, then she screamed as the tornado-blast tore across her back.

Through the haze of pain, and the all-too-familiar sharp tingle of the Guyver's regeneration, Yukari could hear Akane and Agito yelling.

"Oh, shit!" Akane screamed.

"We have to escape! Right now!"

Frozen as they were by surprise, it was only Aptom's intervention that saved them. The Lost Unit had grown two long pairs of tentacles; all the better to wrap up the four Guyvers and carry them away before the Incision Waves fired by the two Zoalords could strike them.

"Aptom, you saved us," Yukari said.

"Only because you were both too stupid to save yourselves," Aptom scoffed. "Are the both of you trying to get killed? Cause you have to know that that's what's going to happen if you don't use the Gigantic and fight."

"You're still here, are you Aptom?" Ms. Murakami asked, sounding amused. "I guess you must really want to die, then."

"We might have been willing to let you live once, but now..." Mr. Murakami trailed off, but his threat was obvious.

"Look," Aptom said, starting to get pissed off enough to ignore what the Zoalords were taunting him about. "Do you both want to die without even fighting back?! It's not like you have any choice right now!"

"You don't understand," Yukari said, almost pleading. "The Gigantic's power is overwhelming; if either of us used the Gigantic, then we wouldn't be able to help killing them."

"It... it would be too much like when we fought Dad," Sho said, his voice quavering. "We really could end up killing them."

Yukari didn't say anything, but she silently agreed with Sho. Aptom didn't say anything either, but he thought that the both of them were complete idiots. Two powerful blasts of compressed air slammed into the group of warriors, sending them tumbling through the air. Aptom grunted in pain as his wings were ripped into tatters; Yukari screamed as her left foot was blown off, and Sho screamed as the blast took out a large chunk out of his shoulder.

As the five of them fell, they failed to notice that the Zoalords who had been attacking them were flying straight into their group. Yukari suddenly found Ms. Murakami's arms wrapped around her body from behind, trapping her own arms against her sides.

"Yu-ka-ri," Ms. Murakami singsonged in Yukari's ear. "I'd say I'm sorry to do this to you, my little Yukari-chan, just to make you feel better. But then, we both know that that's not true."

Yukari struggled helplessly as she felt Ms. Murakami's right hand sliding up and over her chest, even as Ms. Murakami's left wrapped fully around her waist and her left hand closed tightly around Yukari's right wrist.

"You will be doing a great service for Chronos, though. You can be certain of that, my little Yukari-chan. Lord Alkanphel wants your Control Medal, and he will have it; just relax, there's no need for you to fight me, my little Yukari-chan."

Am I going to die? Yukari wondered silently, as she felt Ms. Murakami's claws close around her Control Medal. She's really going to kill me; Sayuri-mama's really going to kill me. Why? Why is this happening?