Gasp... wheeze... gasp... cough... hack... wheeze...

Izlude Tingel dragged his injured body across the corpse-filled hallway which led down to the dungeon. He was dying, and he knew it. Blood from a vicious cut across his chest stained the wall he leaned upon. A fit of coughs assaulted him, and he vomited thick, red liquid. He had thought that pain couldn't get worse, but it did with the bloody coughs. By the time he reached the wooden door of the prison cell, he was barely conscious.

I have to get her out of here, that's the least I can do... No more innocent bloodshed...

With that heroic thought, the Knight Blade slumped against the entrance with a thud.

"Who's there?" The voice of young Alma Beoulve was frightened. Izlude murmured something inaudible, and forced the door open with last of his strengths.

"G-Get out... of h-here..." He managed to say before collapsing to the ground. The blond captive approached him; she unexpectedly helped him sit up against the wall, and wiped blood from his face. Her hands were gentle.

"What happened?" The girl asked slowly.

"...My f-father, no, the d-demon... you must e-escape..." The wounded knight breathed with agony. "I h-have to f-fight, but you... p-please go..." His sharp eyes pleaded to her to escape.

"My brother killed the demon. You can rest now, Izlude. There's nothing for you to worry about." Alma lied softly. Although she was a Cleric, there was nothing she could do to save the young man. Her heart ached for her kind-hearted kidnaper; he had come here to warn her of the danger, despite his injuries.

"G-Glad to hear t-that... so tired..." Izlude was too exhausted to doubt Alma's words. He slipped into unconsciousness, wondering dimly if he would ever wake again.

Wake up, Izlude! Do you want to die!?

The harsh, feminine voice was all too familiar, and the Knight Blade forced his eyes open. He came face to face with Miluda Folles; the beautiful Fencer was kneeling in front of him, her body opaque.

"M-Miluda...? Am I d-dead?" Izlude asked his diseased best friend.

No, but you are very close to joining me. Listen, Izlude, Wiegraf has been taken over by the Lucavi and is fighting Ramza Beoulve...

"Wiegraf... Lucavi? Oh G-God, just l-like f-father..." The handsome knight clenched his weak fists, despair filling his ashen face. He had witnessed the cursed power of the Zodiac Stone when he saw his father change into a monster. Human consciousness was no longer present in the Lucavi, and Vormav had attacked him. Izlude didn't want Wiegraf to turn into such a demon.

The Beoulve is going to defeat my brother.

"Is W-Wiegraf going to d-die?"

Yes. But you prevent it, Izlude. You can save yourself and Wiegraf.

"How!? I'm d-dying, Miluda. C-Can't even s-stand..." Izlude coughed a little more, trails of red touching his lips. The ghost gently wiped the blood away from his chin; her hand was deathly cold but material. Miluda's hand traveled down to the young man's chest and began undoing the front of the tattered garb. Izlude stared at her with confusion as she reached inside his garment and drew out the aquamarine Zodiac Stone from the inner pocket.

Use the Pisces Stone, Izlude. Release its power.

"T-The power is e-evil!" He protested. The blond Fencer shook her head mildly, and rested the crystal in his hands, making him hold it. The stone's coolness soothed his pain as if by magic, and he stared down at it incredulously.

Lucavi is the evil incarnate of the Zodiac Braves. If the wish of the beholder is driven by malice or greed, the stone changes him into a Lucavi. What will you wish, Izlude?

The Knight Blade kept his gaze upon the clear blue sphere, and whispered hoarsely the first thing that came to his mind. "I w-want to save Wiegraf..."

I thought so. Your wish will be granted, Izlude, and the stone will save you, too...

Miluda's voice gradually became distant, and when Izlude looked up, she had dematerialized to just a shadow which hovered in the air.

"Miluda...?"

Make your wish, friend, and please... save my brother...

Izlude felt his best friend's presence fade away. It hurt him to see her go, but he could do naught to keep her. She was dead. The same death was beginning to claim him, too; before breathing his last, Izlude wished upon the Zodiac Stone. It came out as a weak sigh.

Please save Wiegraf...

The young Temple Knight let his eyes close, and surrendered to the all-consuming darkness. The Pisces rolled out of the powerless hands to the floor with a hollow clink. Soft azure light radiated from the magical stone and embraced the cold cell with its merciful glow.

Ramza Beoulve let his other comrades leave the bloody room before him. His eyes were still fixed upon the monstrous corpse on the stone floor. The young blond felt pity and sorrow for the enemy he had just defeated; Wiegraf Folles had been a passionate, honorable foe. Ramza shook his head, and gripped the Aries Zodiac Stone with disgust. The red crystal had taken over the White Knight, feeding upon his desire to avenge his sister's death. Once changed into the Lucavi, the Temple Knight had lost all his humanity. It was a terrible fate for a man like Wiegraf.

Rest in peace, Wiegraf.

The Beoulve gave his last respect to the fallen enemy, and exited the room. As the door closed, he didn't notice the pale blue light that suddenly descend on Wiegraf's body.

So cold.

Wiegraf shivered slightly as he came face to face with the realization of his death. All around him, darkness and chill extended infinitely; he felt hollow and powerless.

I'm dead. Damn that Ramza Beoulve. I almost had him...!

The White Knight cursed darkly, the malice of the Lucavi still engraved in his heart. The evil rage, however, dwindled as the Zodiac Stone's power disconnected from his dead soul. He sighed with depression.

The power of the Zodiac Stone was evil. I wonder if Sir Vormav knew about it?

Wiegraf thought of his superior. Yes, Vormav had to have known of the stone's power; perhaps, the man had been taken over by the Lucavi already. Wiegraf remembered Izlude's comment about his father's sudden change of personality. The thought of his best friend brought another concern to the Temple Knight.

Izlude... he was with Sir Vormav when I felt Leo Stone release its powers. He saw his father turn into a Lucavi... Oh God, if Sir Vormav attacked Izlude...

The White Knight trembled again, this time not from the cold but from fear. He knew that a Lucavi was an unfeeling monster; if Vormav had turned into one, then he would have attacked his son without hesitation. Only rage and thirst for murder were present in those who became a Zodiac Monster. Wiegraf had not been an exception, so he knew well.

Izlude... not you, too!

Wiegraf cried out with misery. It was enough that he was dead himself; he didn't want his best friend to join him in the grave. No, Izlude was too young and innocent to face death by his father's hands. In a spur of desperation, the blond knight screamed out the first wish that came to his mind.

If there is God, please heed my last wish! Don't let Izlude die! If that's too much, then revive me for a few hours so I can save him! Please...

The selfless wish echoed across the darkness, breaking the deathly silence. Wiegraf bit his lips with bitterness, knowing that such request would never come true. Just as he hung his head in defeat, the unexpected miracle descended upon him.

What the...!?

The knight gaped at the pastel azure glow that magically appeared around him. Its rays reached out like hands and embraced him with its warmth. The blue light was similar to the crimson radiance his Zodiac Stone had emitted before turning him into the Lucavi. Yet, this was not a malicious glow like the Aries Stone's . Wiegraf felt holiness from the bluish light.

What is this? So like the color of the Pisces Stone...

Wiegraf remembered the cool color of Izlude's Zodiac Stone. Was this the Pisces' power? As if to prove him right, the light brushed against his ear like soft wind, carrying a familiar voice.

'Please save Wiegraf...'

Izlude?

The White Knight recognized the voice. It was merely a weak sigh, but enough for the blond knight to distinguish his best friend. The murmur refrained over and over as the glow became a sheer sphere which enclosed Wiegraf. The illumination grew brighter, into the sheer flash of bluish white, and trapped the ghost knight in a pleasant unconsciousness.

Sudden availability of fresh air made Wiegraf cough vehemently. Wrung out of the deep slumber, he opened his eyes and gazed up at the stone ceiling of the Riovanes Castle. He was laying where he had fallen after the battle against Ramza Beoulve; his body had reverted to its human state, complete with mauled outfit.

"...I'm alive?" He murmured in disbelief. The memory of what took place in the Netherworld made his head clear. With a start, he sat up. "Izlude. Where is he!?" The White Knight grabbed his sword off the floor, and ran out of the hall. His body no longer ached; he noticed that all the injuries had magically disappeared.

That was the Zodiac Stone's power. What price did Izlude have to pay for such a miracle!?

Wiegraf searched the bloodstained fortress room by room, cursing the building for its size. He didn't find the young Knight Blade, although he found corpses of those who had accompanied him and Vormav in the main dining room.

"Where is he!?" The blond exclaimed in torment. Blindly, he made way to the only place he hadn't checked, the dungeon. The wall of the hallway which led to the prison was still damp with blood; the trail of vivid red led right to the entrance of the cell, which was wide open.

Oh God, this cannot be... Izlude's blood.

Despair weighed down on Wiegraf as he approached the open door. He was afraid to look inside, but stepped into the doorway. He froze right there.

"Izlude..."

The Knight Blade was sitting against the stone wall, his dark-tressed head hung down powerlessly. Wiegraf eyed the vicious cut across his friend's chest and all the blood which had dyed Izlude's green garment scarlet. The Pisces Stone was laying on the ground nearby, unmoving and lifeless.

"Izlude..., no!" Wiegraf stumbled across the room to where the younger knight rested. He caught the downcast chin with a trembling hand, and made Izlude look up. Izlude's pale lips were smeared with blood; some smudged on Wiegraf's fingers. With a pained growl, Wiegraf took the limp body into his arms and hugged it hard, almost violently. "You can't be dead! I don't want your life for mine!!"

In a state of panicked rage, the White Knight didn't notice the small groan which escaped Izlude's red-stained lips. He was oblivious to all the signs of life until Izlude squirmed uncomfortably in his arms, snapping him out of his panic.

"Oww... L-Let go..."

"...Izlude!?" Wiegraf lit up at his friend's voice. He shook the younger knight mercilessly, until Izlude grabbed his hands in self-defense. A pair of dark, sharp eyes were looking at him, very open and alive. They widened in surprise, mirroring Wiegraf's exactly.

"Wiegraf? You are alive? ...Wait, am I?" The Knight Blade asked no one in particular. He let go of Wiegraf's hands, and touched his chest, tracing the mortal wound he had received. It was closed, completely. "I was sure that I died..." The dark-haired young man wandered his gaze to the pale blue crystal on the floor, and narrowed his eyes. "Pisces." He addressed the Zodiac Stone with awe.

The legendary stone remained stationary, any power it had displayed before gone. With a sigh, Izlude rested his head against Wiegraf's shoulder. The two of them were alive, safe. For now, that was enough for them both.