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Ginga GIRI GIRI! The Universe is in Danger!
By SSJ Heero (http://66.75.107.143/animenext)
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---- Recap ----

[Chibi characters of the six appear in the foreground as scenes from the last episode play
in the background. Though, you can't see 'cause this is text. Haha!]

SSJ: LAST TIME! On GINGA GIRI GIRI!

Amiko: Knives and Cindy fight for like two seconds.

Kensou: It wasn't even a fight- she just shot him... down... there...

(Silence. The guys cringe at the pain. Cindy sweatdrops as she continues.)

Cindy: ...Anyway, after that, Daedalus takes back his ship.

TM: Momo shows up and brings back SSJ, and after regrouping, we try to leave.

Davis: Only then, we were called by the Other World. Kensou and Momo went on ahead as we 
meet the real Mauzel and... Our... friend...

(Silence again.)

Davis: How many more friends are you gonna stick in this, SSJ?!

SSJ: Shut up, I planned to stick him there from the beginning. So anyway, on with the show!

---- Chapter 51: A World's Secret ----

All around was white. Runes and ancient writing lay there upon the hexagonal platform as 
the Five faced Siria Mauzel and Frank Miguel. It was one of the most crucial moments of 
their life, and they never expected to see their friend there. As the Rood Inverse spun 
below, Siria bowed her head and smiled. Her lips opened and closed, with a majestic voice 
coming forth, "I welcome you, Outlaws. Welcome to my home."

The Five paused and exchanged glances. Was this the end of their questions? Was this where 
they will finally get their answers? They turned to Mauzel and stepped forward. The stepped 
forward, towards the center of the platform on which they all stood. They faced Mauzel in a 
line, and Davis recalled their meeting with Black Amiko.

'Above the Six Gods, there is a higher being. Higher than any of the awakened dragons, 
higher than everything- Except Rantmon. It is from her that this world was managed in 
Rantmon's absence. She is directly connected to the world, hidden within its nature. You 
could argue that she is Nature itself. It is her that created me.,' he remembered. "So," 
began Davis. "You're the Master."

Siria smiled again, her eyes sparkling. She spoke again, "Yes, I am. You have many 
questions, I know. But first, let me show you something before we run out of time."

She turned to Miguel, who nodded and turned to his friends, "See the Rood Inverse down 
there? That's where we're headed now." Miguel and Siria turned away, and both of them 
stepped towards the edge of the hexagon. The Five followed, not knowing what to expect.

They saw a flash of light. A stairway of matrix coding appeared at the edge of the hexagon, 
spiraling down and down to the magical symbol. Miguel stepped down it. Syria followed. The 
Crew stepped up to the edge, looking at the stairway. It was quite unclear, and they did 
not know whether to trust its integrity. Still, Amiko mustered her resolved and took the 
first step.

She placed her foot on the first step and concentrated her weight on it. It really was 
solid. She nodded to the rest and followed the rest of the way down. They all followed 
Siria and Miguel a long distance off. Step after step, they came down lower, closer to the 
massive shape. Only then did they realize how far they were from the symbol; they walked 
down many steps, and it seemed it was still far below. It was truly massive.

Still, as the group came closer to the bottom, SSJ noted something with his keen eyes. He 
saw a smaller platform in the middle of the Rood, in the middle of what seemed to be a 
glowing pool of silver. The six symbols for the elements spread around the gigantic pool. 
"What the Hell is this?" he muttered more to himself.

Siria answered him from down below, "It is the mana pool."

SSJ went tense as he continued down. Dumbledore mentioned it; the God of Earth led the 
first wizards to the mana pool... "What is it?"

"It is a pool of mana, simply enough. Mana is the energy used in magic; every spell 
requires a little bit of the mana pool. It has existed since the creation of this world; it 
is the only reason the world came to be. All souls need this pool; mana binds a new soul to 
an empty vessel- a newly created body or a conceived child.

"Yes, the form seen on the physical world is simply particles- Dust, in another term. When 
mana reaches the outside world, it gives off its energy, freezing into very fine solid 
particles. It loses its visibility, and can only be seen by special eyes. Out there, it can 
become many things- ether and chakra, among others."

"So," TM muttered, despite understanding little of what had just been said, "Neji's 
Byakugan are able to see the mana in a human's body."

"Correct," Siria continued after pausing. She turned back and they continued walking down. 
Step after step after step, the gigantic mana pool became even larger.

A thought then came to Cindy, who has been silent all this time. She had been amazed by how 
much of the tranquil liquid lay down there. "Hey," she began. "If a little bit of the mana 
seeps out all the time, will it ever dry up?"

Siria chuckled a bit. Regular people never did have the grasp on infinity and abstract 
ideas common in this plane. "No, it'll never dry up," answered Mauzel. "That is what the 
six Gods are for. Whenever mana is drained, it goes through the Gods. People are born under 
certain elements: Light, Fire, Ice, Earth, Sky, and Darkness, or a combination of any. For 
example, SSJ is of the light element, and gives off a white aura, while TM is of fire, 
giving off a red element. They are most proficient when it comes to mana, abilities, and 
such corresponding to their element.

"So," she continued, "when a person dies, what mana used to bind his soul to his body is 
returned to their corresponding God, and the soul goes to eternal rest. Mana always returns 
after being used, it will never dry up."

During this, SSJ was silent. So, he was a Light element. He was Light... 'No wonder Dark 
called me that,' he thought. Suddenly, remembering Dark, his head jerked up. He spoke with 
a shaky voice, "Hey, what is Dark? Who is he, and who are Black Amiko and Shadow? What in 
the Hell are they?"

Siria looked up at SSJ as she continued down. Her smile weakened, turning into a more 
saddened, fake one. She responded, "Dark... He-"

"Maybe it's best to explain that later, after they understand," Miguel suddenly 
interrupted. Everyone turned to Miguel, who had stopped and waited there. Siria nodded, and 
SSJ went quiet on the matter. He peered at Siria, noticing her visibly distressed face.

'What does she have to do with Dark?' he wondered with tenseness. He looked down upon the 
mana pool. It truly was massive, tremendously dwarfing him and his companions. They were 
then only a few steps away from the end of the long stairs. He looked up and saw the 
platform far above, a speck in the vast white.

Then, he finally stepped on the platform over the mana pool. He looked up at Frank and 
Siria, both of which had stopped by the edge of the pool. His friends reached him then, and 
they all came to the two. They turned to Siria, who motioned her hand towards the silver, 
shining liquid. Her voice echoed through the area, "The mana pool holds a tremendous amount 
of power. Those who drink but a few drops of it would die from the energy released."

Everyone looked down at the pool. 'That powerful, huh?' thought Amiko as she looked at the 
pool. She thought she saw Siria looking at her in a strange fashion.

Mauzel began again, "However, we can have you each drink just enough to bring out your 
latent elements. That would help in your quest."

Everyone exchanged glances. They saw Mauzel produce a small dish, ornately engraved with 
intricate symbols. She scooped it full with mana, and turned to Frank. "Frank," she began, 
"I'll need your help."

The boy nodded, and the five saw him put his hands together. Siria placed the dish before 
them all, and spoke, "Gather around the dish, so we can give you a bit." So they did, and 
after stopping, they heard chanting coming from their lost friend.

'What the Hell is he to this world?!' SSJ screamed in his brain. Then, he heard the sound 
of water dripping. He turned to the dish and saw five individual droplets of the liquid 
floated above the dish. Frank continued chanting in a vague, familiar language. He listened 
harder to the words Frank was spewing.

He suddenly froze. He heard a vague line coming from his old friend's mouth, "lblMana = 
left..."

Source code... Computer source code... 'What the HELL was this world?!' he silently 
screamed.

He suddenly had his attention diverted when he saw the droplet of mana float just above 
him. He heard Siria's soothing voice, "Let it fall to you and flow through you."

They all did. All of the five opened their mouths and the drops of pure energy fell into 
their bodies. Something suddenly cracked in them. Suddenly, from each of the five, a 
tremendous burst of aura set the platform ablaze. There was SSJ's bright white aura; TM's 
flaming red one; Davis' aura of light gray; Amiko's shining emerald aura; and finally, 
Cindy's sparking yellow one. Tremendous energy flowed through their veins. They screamed in 
tremendous pain as their strengths suddenly rose.

Slowly, they stopped screaming. The pain subsided. Their tremendous auras, however, didn't. 
SSJ was sweating and panting when he pulled himself together to stand. He saw his aura 
bursting forth. But he saw TM's, and suddenly he felt completely dwarfed.

TM's red aura was enormous, much bigger than SSJ's puny aura, sticking close to his body. 
TM's aura was different; it flew in every which way, spreading over a vast area. It was due 
to the Blood Sin, he figured.

Amiko then mustered the ability to speak, "What... just happened?" She panted further, 
tired from the ordeal. She was amazed at how much strength she suddenly got. She felt 
better than she ever had been. She turned to Siria.

Siria replied, "More mana flows through your system now. You see, energy, like magic and 
chakra, is formed from the mana binding your soul. If you push your limits and use much 
more than your limit, you will break down the bond between your soul and body, forcefully 
separating yourself from life. This is exactly why you all need more mana in you. Just 
those few drops will increase your power exponentially."

She turned to Cindy and Davis. "It also showed me some interesting elements," she 
continued. "Cindy is aligned with Thunder, a hybrid element. She has two springs to draw 
from, Sky and Earth. And, Davis here has no color affiliation, making his own mana."

Davis grinned. "Thanks to Frank," he stated. Frank grinned at his friend's words. "But," 
Davis continued, "It is troublesome having to rely on these gloves for all my elemental 
magic."

Everyone turned to Davis. Of course, he knew more than he let on. He traveled with them 
while secretly hiding his identity. And even when he revealed it, he only told about the 
world, not who Rantmon was or why he was there as well. Everyone knew what was coming up 
next. The explanation. The Five turned to Frank, and from TM's mouth came, "What the Hell 
is this world all about?"

Their old friend smiled as he can finally explain. He spoke, "First, sit down there." He 
pointed behind them all. They turned about and saw chairs suddenly there. Man, that Frank 
was amazing here. So they sat, and Frank opened his mouth to begin.

"This world... It is not a natural world. It was created by man- namely me. You all heard 
this from my avatar, Rantmon, but we'll get into that later. I created this world, and it 
is unnatural and, in a way, does not exist. This world... It is a computer program on my 
server."

The five, minus Davis, froze. That just came out of left field and hooked them right on the 
cheek, sending them back into the end zone while the shot clock hit zero. It was just that 
disorienting when they heard that. "W-What?!" came from Cindy's disbelieving self. Frank 
just continued, not caring:

"It all began five years ago, in the Real World. My father worked for the government on a 
secret project. Meanwhile, I was working on a large-scale massive, multiplayer online RPG; 
they failed to realize I was in the third grade then. Anyway, while working on the project, 
I came across various notes my dad left behind while he was at work.

"I traced the notes to a secret government server, and learned it was developing a new 
artificial intelligence interface. My father had full access to it, so I took the file and 
found the source code.

"It was a very complex system, pretty damn good for the time. I took an interest in it, and 
behind my father's back, I secretly added my own touches to it.

"Over the years, my works culminated in a completely new AI, one I was sure would topple 
all others. I was sure I created a complex AI that could actually 'learn' things. I felt it 
was capable of learning patterns through trials, and after I had succeeded, I came to 
another conclusion.

"It could learn, but it could not 'think'. It had the power to find patterns and secret 
meanings, but it had no sense of thought or sentience. It could not feel.

"And finally, a year and a half ago, I finally created the perfect AI system. I made data 
sentient. I made data able to move throughout my hard drive on its own will. I was the 
Father of information, able to make it think and feel. I felt proud of my accomplishments 
and glad for the fruits of my labors.

"Then, I saw some of the data leaked through to the internet. The government project was 
still secret, and the government, worse over, my dad, would kill me if they realized a kid 
cracked their code and made it infinitely better.

"I stopped the leak and found where the data had reached- the RPG in development. I paid 
the developers for the servers they were developing it on, and severed the servers from the 
internet so the data could not leak. After looking through the program again, I saw how 
much the data did to it.

"It almost completely changed the RPG, between a fantasy world to a futuristic world when I 
stopped it. It had taken stuff from the internet that it found pathways to, namely, anime 
and video game data from which it constructed worlds in the RPG program. That is why you 
all ran into the familiar anime and video game characters."

Everyone held their breath. So, that was it. That was the answer. Still, Miguel continued 
on, making the chapter more of a history lesson than a chapter:

"I stopped the code's progress, and then I revealed myself to the world as 'Rantmon', the 
name you have me, SSJ, in school."

SSJ sighed and nodded. "You certainly are living up to the name," SSJ remarked.

"Haha. Yeah, so with that, I felt that I could show one person my amazing world. I showed 
it to Davis, which is why he knows the world's basics." Davis nodded as he continued.

"But as the story continued, I saw something else afoot in my world. Some lines of code 
were altered strangely. After working for four years on the code, I could tell when 
something was strange. It was bad, I knew.

"The world started changing bit by bit. I searched through the millions upon millions of 
lines of code to find what was wrong, and found it in one line.

"It was a virus. A virus infiltrated my world. I didn't know how in the Hell it got there, 
but I immediately quarantined it. But, it had tapped into the sentience code for data. So 
then I had a virus which had the ability to think and learn. It escaped from quarantine and 
took over my avatar, cutting me off from control of my world.

"I tried and tried, but only just succeeded in regaining a bit of control. And then, just 
some months ago, the Gates opened over school. I still do not know how it happened, but I 
think the 'alternate universe' theory is the best. Apparently, there's an alternate 
universe that echoes the one on my server, and it was so closely aligned with our world 
that Gates could be made between the two. The code that leaked took the form of an anime 
goddess, Siria Mauzel, and called for anyone close to me to help."

Siria then spoke, continuing from when Frank stopped, "So you three were brought over here 
when the virus closed the Gate. I tried in vain to open any more, so Frank went through his 
code and forcefully opened another one at the urging of Davis, which sucked in Cindy as 
well."

"And that is the story," Frank finally finished. "You all were sent to this world, and are 
tied to the dire events in it. It is extremely important that we cleanse this world from 
the virus, for if not, it might forcefully leak onto the internet and cause major havoc 
worldwide. For your safety and the world's, this meeting is extremely important."

"Important?" Cindy repeated. "Hey, wait a second, you're not going to rely on US to fix 
this, are you?!"

Frank Miguel nodded. Everyone of the Five groaned as he explained, "I still am trying to 
fix the world from my end, and it was hard enough just to get here. I can't do everything 
on my own, so you all will have to help me."

SSJ sighed and took on a serious face. "What do you want us to do?" he asked.

"We need you to defeat my avatar. If he is defeated, the virus's grip on the world may 
relax just enough for me to expel it. After that, I can return to fixing this place."

A silence spread among them all. The story weighed heavily upon them. It was a complex 
story they could hardly believe. But, they were there, and that seemed to be proof enough. 
And as they thought more of the story, they sighed at their huge quest. Who knew so much 
depended on them... They were just a couple of fourteen-year-old kids, plucked from their 
world and placed there, and now the real world needed their help.

They all sighed and stood up. It was a tough job, but someone needed to do it. They were 
too far in this game to give up now. They turned to Frank. Davis answered the call, "I'm 
in, as you know."

"Tch," came from TM. "I'm fighting then, as well."

"Yeah," Amiko followed. "I won't stop now."

"Bah," SSJ muttered. "I have a score to settle with that asshole as well."

"If they're going," Cindy added, "I'm going as well.

Everyone grinned with a newfound energy. Now that they knew what they were up against, they 
were determined to settle this. They faced Frank and Siria and nodded. They all went to the 
stairs and climbed their way back up. SSJ turned to Frank and Siria, "So, about Dark..."

Frank turned to Siria. Mauzel's face noticeably saddened as she answered, "Well, bringing 
you over to this world was no easy task. You all come from another world, so you all were 
massive amounts of data to bring over. I only was able to send half of you first three 
before the connection to the Gate closed. The other halves, your subconscious halves, were 
locked traveling in gates for some time. They touched upon the sentience code, awakening 
inside of the Gates, and arriving at different parts of the world."

SSJ clenched his teeth. "So, Dark is my other half," he muttered. "He literally is me... 
Now I understand why he hates me."

Everyone turned to SSJ. Amiko looked at him with narrow eyes, "And how the Hell can you 
deduce that?"

"Because... I..." SSJ didn't finish. He trailed off without finishing. It was much to 
personal for him to speak with the others. He kept silent and Amiko sighed with frustration.

"So," asked Cindy, "are there any others?"

"No," Frank answered. "I kept the Gate open long enough for all of your selves, Cindy and 
Davis, to go through."

A silence spread among them all. They didn't talk as they ascended the flight of steps. 
Upon reaching the top, they turned about to face Frank and Siria. Frank advised, "Now, with 
your power, you all should be able to find your own strengths. I can guess SSJ and TM would 
use them in their ninjutsu and kenjutsu. Find a use for mana and I'll see what I can do."

Something clicked in Amiko. She stepped forward to the two and clasped her hands together, 
holding it close to her chest. She quickly asked, "Then, make me a magess."

Frank and Syria exchanged glances. The boy put his hands together again and replied, "Okay 
then." He began chanting again as Siria stepped up to Amiko. Siria placed her hand on 
Amiko's forehead.

"That is a good idea," Siria complimented. She then closed her eyes, and a circle built up 
around the two. Winds gathered around them. The rest stood as a powerful wind fluttered 
their hair and clothes. But it wasn't from the two girls, Davis quickly realized. He 
wheeled around and saw a hole in the middle of the whiteness. Blue and black and white 
shone through the hole as the rest turned about to follow his gaze.

Everyone was taken aback, leaping back to Amiko and Siria as two people came forth from the 
hole. Their mouths dropped to the ground upon catching sight of a girl and a boy, both with 
brown hair and quite pale skin. The girl had green eyes and familiar black clothing, 
carrying a staff. The boy wore his black shirt and dark gray shorts, with a very 
threatening blue sword resting on his shoulder. Black Amiko and Shadow TM arrived in the 
purity of Siria Mauzel.

Black Amiko waved with a smile. "Hey again, Master," she casually greeted Siria. But when 
she saw Siria ignoring her, focusing on bringing out Amiko's magic, she frowned. "Oh, come 
on," she complained. "You have a perfectly good magess right here."

The girl snapped her fingers, and immediately, the platform was set ablaze. That was 
something, considering the platform was not flammable at all. Frank noted that and turned 
to Mauzel, "Siria, maybe they weren't split evenly."

Siria didn't answer. She was still at work with Amiko. The winds rushed around them, 
blocking out sound. TM sighed, "Then, I guess I should take care of my guy."

"You can't do it alone, moron," SSJ coldly uttered.

"Heh, it doesn't matter. I wouldn't interfere with your battle with Dark, so do the same 
for me, okay?"

SSJ didn't reply, just rolling his eyes and allowing TM to drop into his battoujutsu 
stance. Shadow chuckled. He was glad to not be based off a coward. Words came from his 
mouth, "I like your style, Flame incarnate. But, sadly, I won't go easy on weaker foes."

TM grinned. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

Black Amiko sighed, sitting down and pouting, waiting for Amiko and Siria to be done. Man, 
she didn't like waiting. And she wouldn't feel right taking down Mauzel while she was busy. 
She was smart enough to do it with the toughest handicap. So she watched Shadow and TM step 
forward, ready to fight each other. "Oh well," Black Amiko thought aloud, "I'll let them 
have the stage for a while."

Shadow dropped his Glacier off his shoulder, letting the blade hit the platform. "Let's 
dance," Shadow muttered, finally serious as he gripped the hilt of his sword. TM grinned 
and tensed his body. He then leapt at Shadow. The battle began.

---- To Be Continued ----

- ENDING SONG: TOOKU MADE - DO AS INFINITY - [1]

so faraway
just faraway
doko made de mo
dare datte  kunou shite  aruiteku

ano oka no chizu sae  (miushinatte)
iroaseteku  kono tokimeki
mikazuki no  komorebi  (itsu no ma ni ka)
boku terashiteru  kono basho kara
hajimete miyou

so faraway
just faraway
doko made de mo
dare datte  kunou shite  aruiteku
night & day
sou sakende  kizutsuitemo
just day by day
ashita o  mitsukeru

---- Preview ----

[The Naruto Main Theme plays in background. The six appear as chibi style, and random 
scenes from the next episode play, though you can't see because this is text. Haha!]

SSJ: Hey, hey, another annoying cliffhanger!

Amiko: STOP IT WITH THE CLIFFHANGERS, DAMN IT!

Kensou: Well, though I wasn't in this chapter, the next one has a fight scene.

TM: My battle with Shadow erupts and ends amazingly!

Cindy: Afterwards, Amiko faces Black in a battle of wits and magic!

Davis: And some other stuff may happen, but SSJ hasn't thought of it yet.

All: NEXT! On GINGA GIRI GIRI! "Undanceable Waltz"

----

Author's Note:

[1] Yep, again, no anime, so I shortened it myself.