think I’m dead.”

“Dead?” Jenna asked.

Jenna nodded.

“Well then how…”

Jenna cut her off.

“I don’t know, someone is keeping me here, but I haven’t found out who yet.”

About that time, the gate at the end of the hall opened up, and a red demon wolf stepped through.

“Not those again….” Jenna said.

“What?” Jenna asked.

“Right, you don’t remember anything, do you?” Jenna shook her head.

“Those are Shade’s servants.”

“Not anymore Jenna, his lordship wishes to let himself be known to you. If you would come at once.”

Jenna stepped forward.

“I will.”

Jenna leaned over next to Jenna.

“Are you sure that’s wise?”

Jenna smiled.

“I’ll be fine.”

She turned to the guard.

“Take me to him.”

The guard opened the cell, by pushing a small wheel set close to the ground.

Jenna stepped forward, and the wheel spun again, locking the new Jenna inside.

The guard led Jenna out of the chamber.

It didn’t take too long for Jenna and the guard to reach the chamber that the apparent leader of this gang inhabited,

When she walked in, Jenna saw what looked like a dog, but it had been burned.

“Shade.” Jenna thought.

The dog was staring into a blazing fireplace.

“Leave us.” It said.

The demons nodded, and exited the room.

There was a long pause before he spoke again.

“How are you doing Jenna?”

“Who are you?” Jenna asked.

The dog laughed.

“What, do you not recognize me?”

He turned around.

Jenna gasped.

“Do you have any idea what it’s like down there, do you?” He said, walking over to her. “Do you have any idea how horrible, how painful it is there?”

He stopped right in front of her.

“…but that’s alright, because now I’ve got you…”

He put his head next to her ear, and nuzzled her.

Jenna shivered.

“NO!” She thought. “No it can’t be you, it can’t…”

He smiled.

“…and you’re worth waiting for…”

“NOOOOOOOOO!”

Chapter 6

Balto slowly opened his eyes.

His head was pounding.

Balto groaned, and sat up.

“I… I feel horrible…”

“You should.” Aazule said.

“Why?” Balto asked.

“That thing… that was a guardian.”

“What’s a guardian?” Balto asked.

“Guardians are the creatures that are responsible for keeping the dead that are condemned to hell, in hell.”

“Oh.”

Balto paused.

“Oh God!”

“What?” Aazule asked.

“It all makes sense now.”

“What? Balto, mind enlightening me on this one?”

“If one of the condemned were to be-friend one of those guardians… would he be able to just leave?”

“Well…” Aazule paused, and thought about it for a moment. “I suppose if someone were able to be-friend one of those horrid things, then… yeah, he probably could.”

“That’s what I was afraid you were going to say.” Balto said.

“Why does it matter?” Aazule asked.

“I think I know who is holding Jenna back, and if I’m right, we’ve got to hurry, HURRY!”

Balto started to run.

“Wait… Balto…”

Aazule watched him vanish over the hilltop.

He sighed and closed his eyes.

“Rushing into this is not the way to do this, it’s too…”

Aazule opened his eyes.

“… aw hell.”

He took off running.

“Balto, wait!”

It was later in the day when Balto and Aazule finally stopped.

Aazule was out of breath.

‘Balto… you.. you should… should slow down.”

Balto looked around him.

“This should be a good place to spend the night, lots of trees to break the wind…”

Aazule too looked around.

“Yeah, I suppose this will do.”

Then Balto heard a song drifting through the dense trees.

“What is that?” Balto asked, quietly.

“I… I don’t know…” Aazule said, stepping forward. “It… it has the voice of an angel.”

Balto slowly began to walk forward.

He followed the voice through the forest, until he came to a clearing.

The clearing was dark, but in the center was the most beautiful creature Balto had ever seen.

He knew he shouldn’t, but he felt drawn to her, as if she were some kind of shield that would protect him.

This beautiful creature was making the music, by humming.

Balto had lost Aazule in the forest, so he was alone now.

He stepped tentatively into the clearing.

It was a dog, a gray and white dog, with three triangles of fur that ran from above her eyes, up to the top of her head.

“Like Jenna…” Balto thought.

The dog continued to sing her alluring song until Balto got right up next to her. Then she opened her eyes and smiled.

“Hello Balto.”

Balto took a step back.

“How.. how do you know my name?”

She smiled again.

“I know a lot of things, things you yourself may not know, but which you need to learn.”

Balto couldn’t explain the attraction he had to her. It wasn’t the same as he and Jenna, but… purer.

She smiled again, at the lack of a response, and looked at the snow.

As Balto looked on in awe, large silvery white wings flowered out from her back, and sat on her shoulders.

The clearing was ablaze with bright white light now, almost so bright that Balto had to look away, but he couldn’t.

The light dimmed a bit, and the dog looked up at Balto and smiled.

“Are… are you an… an angel?” Balto asked.

She laughed softly.

“Something like that.”

Balto didn’t know what else to say.

She walked over to him, her silvery wings fluttering with the slight breeze.

“Balto, My name is Mia.”

“Nice… nice to meet… to meet you.” Balto said.

“I know you have questions Balto, so I’ll answer some of them. I’m a guardian, but not like the one that you fought today, I’m with you, with Aniu.”

She paused.

“Balto… I don’t know whether I should tell you this or not, but… I’m, here because Jenna is in trouble…”

“What kind of trouble?” Balto asked. “Is she hurt?”

“I don’t know.” Mia said.

She sighed.

“Balto, someone from Shade’s side broke the rules, how, I don’t know, not even Aniu does, but he did, and now… well, now he has Jenna.”

“Who is he?” Balto asked.

“I don’t know that either.” Mia said, “but it’s not Shade.”

“So why are you here again?” Balto asked. “I thought Aniu couldn’t have any direct involvement.”

She can’t, under normal conditions…” Mia said, “… but these are anything but normal. We have to restore the balance of the world, otherwise it could fall apart.”

“Wow…” Balto said.

“The stakes are a bit higher than you thought, hm?”

Balto shook his head.

“If I lose Jenna, the world can fall apart for all I care, I’m…”

He sighed.

“I’m nothing without her…”

“I know.” Mia said. :I’m here to help you, to do my best to insure that you don’t lose her, but we must hurry, her future is extremely uncertain…”

“What do you mean by that?” Balto asked.

Mia sighed again.

“The Jenna that you know and love, and the one that was created, cannot co-exist, if they meet… well, I don’t know what the consequences will be, but they can’t both live.”

Balto sighed.

“I knew it was going to come down to something like that… I don’t know what to do.”

He paused.

“I don’t want to kill the new one, because I’ve grown to like her, and… and care about her, for her… but… at the same time… I can’t lose Jenna, the one that I knew.”

Mia put her paw on his shoulder, and Balto felt a sting of warmth travel over his entire body.

“You’re right Balto, you have a hard choice to make, but don’t worry about that right now, if we don’t find her soon, it won’t matter if they meet or not.”

Balto nodded.

“You’re right, we need to get going.”

Balto started to walk away, then turned. Mia was still standing in the clearing.

“Aren’t you coming with us?” Balto asked.

“Is… is Aazule with you?” She asked uncertainly.

“Yes.” Balto said, “he is, why?”

She sighed.

Mia’s wings folded back into her back, and she turned stark white.

“Whoa,” Balto said, “how’d you do that?”

Mia laughed.

“It’s not hard, well, not for me anyway.”

She walked over to Balto.

“I think it’s better