"Oh, well this is just peachy..."

"What's wrong with Celly?"

"Who cares? As long as she isn't going after us!"

"You wouldn't care, would you?"

"You're one to talk! Traitor!"

"Let's not bring this up again..."

"Shut up!"

"You shut up!"

"No, you shut up!"

"Both of you, shut up!"

"This is your fault, you know."

"Don't try to pin the blame on me!"

"Shut up!"

"No! *YOU* shut up!"

Remy quietly made her way to where Dionysus was watching the goings on with frantic eyes. Celly was standing in the middle of Main Street, ranting and raving with herself. It would have been funny, if the situation wasn't so deadly serious. "Dionysus? Do you know what's going on?"

Dionysus nodded slowly and turned to face Remy. She was shocked by the absolute hopelessness she saw reflected in his eyes. "Ce-ko and her other self are fighting it out, to see who gets control and keeps control. But they are both very stubborn." He turned back to the fight. "If this keeps going, both of them will be lost."

Remy shook her head and silently watched the fight taking place. She wondered if there was anything she could do.

"You've interfered with me for the last time!"

"*Interfered?!? I've interfered?!? You're the one who took over my body, sugar.*"

"You willingly gave it up."

"*Temporary bout of insanity. Now if you would be so kind as to let me back in...*"

"Never! You have imprisoned me for the last one thousand years. It is my turn to walk the Earth."

"*Oh yeah, right. And kill people?!?*"

"If I must. No... make that a definite ‘yes.'"

"*I'll never allow you to do that!*"

"And how will you stop me? We have been over this before. You can never truly be rid of me because I AM YOU!!!"

"*NO! You are someone that I do not need anymore. You are NOT ME!!!*"

"And this is why you'll never be rid of me! Even though you strive, even though you hope, always, ALWAYS you turn to me to take you away from the pain you do not wish to face."

Celly trembled when she heard this, even as she became angry. It was true. It was so true. Every time she did not want to face something. Every time something was too hard for her to bear. She turned to her otherself. She longed to flee. "*No. I'm not you..." her voice trembled. "I can never be you. I was once, but I'm not anymore. I--I'm stronger now...*"

Terra laughed. "Are you now, you pitiful girl? You know that deep inside you long for the freedom that I represent. No cares, no worries, just living any way your hearts desires. You want this freedom, and you cannot deny it."

Celly struggled with herself. Even with the Moderator's help, she could feel herself slipping. She could feel herself losing her hold on her body. Losing her purchase to be free once more. She couldn't fight. She couldn't fight anymore. She never liked it. She didn't want it. Yet, she was always forced to do it. Because she was *good* at it. Her life, filled with dichotomy. She could feel Terra slowly pushing her back. But... it couldn't end this way! If Terra remained free, her friends were in danger. The Game was in danger. Dionysus... was in danger. She pushed back against Terra, who was surprised by the recovery. Celly gathered all the power she could to push against her counterpart. Terra responded in same. They clashed against each other, and neither noticed the massive aura that formed around them, pulsing and flickering between light and dark. "*I won't let you win! I won't! I WILL NEVER BE YOU!!!*"

In a massive blast of energy and light, two girls in fuku stood before each other, swords drawn, ready to kill.

The energy battered everyone against nearby walls, rendering them dizzy, a few bumps and bruises, but otherwise unharmed.

"Shit! There's two of them!"

"We can't fight *two* Cellys! One is bad enough!"

"Losers. You should have joined our side when you had the chance."

"Do I need to kick your butt again!"

"Hey! Back off from her, or I'll take you out myself!"

"Girls! Calm down!"

"Fat chance of that happening."

"I just want to know what the hell is going on!"

"If I have to... I'll take them both on..."

"Maybe we'll be lucky... maybe they'll get rid of each other..."

That was exactly what Celly and Terra proceeded to do. The two identical-looking girls charged each other without a single word. Their battle cries rent through the air, forcing everyone to watch the fight taking place. Steel clashed, throwing up a shower of sparks. This was the battle, the final reckoning between the two personas. Only the outcome of this fight would determine the next path to take. And both girls were prepared to kill--but not die-- to remain on this mortal plane.

"This... this has never happened before... in all of the Council's history..."

"Yeah, well, where Ce-ko is concerned things are hardly ever normal."

"Do you know what's going to happen?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe. And I hope to God that it doesn't."

Their blades crossed again, and pushed back. They danced around each other, testing and trying to find weaknesses. But both were too good. Both were cut from the same cloth. The outcome was hazy.

Terra attacked, rage screaming in her eyes. Celly put up her defense and blocked her otherself. When they pushed apart once more, both were tired, bleeding, and extremely pissed off. Terra casually turned her head and spat out the blood that filled her mouth. "Face it, you will never be able to defeat me. I am the stronger of us two. This is why you always turned to me for escape."

"*Never. I am not that same girl from before. In the end I was able to beat you back. I won.*"

"Won the battle, not the war. You know that you can never truly triumph against me. It is impossible. Even with this splitting of ourselves, there is only one true body between us. One of us will succeed. The other will die."

"*And that one will be you.*"

"Iie. It will be you. This is your destiny. You would not accept me before. You do not accept me now. I am fated to win."

Celly's sight ran red and she charged her counterpart. Their blades crashed and sang tracing blurry patterns in the air as they moved with speed driven by desperation. As her emotions took control, Terra exploited her sloppiness, cutting her across her leg. Celly hissed in pain and with fury, did the same to her other self. She backed off from the fight again.

This is no good! Celly berated herself. She's using my own emotions against me. She knows she can do that to me. I have to win somehow. How do I win? Celly paused, as if a small voice had whispered a thought into her ear. Her mind throbbed and pounded. Celly moaned softly as visions ran through her head again; those awful snatches of her shattered memory. She heard the voice whisper to her again. //I will always be here to guide you, though you may not feel My presence. I am sorry for all you had to endure, but now you are stronger for it. You must face yourself, Celly. Face yourself. Know yourself. Free yourself. Be yourself.// Celly frowned as she heard the words. What did her Creator want her to do? Face herself? She was already doing that. She was facing Terra. Know herself? Nani? If she knew herself, she could free herself? Free herself to be herself? This was too confusing! Celly absently noted that she was defending herself from Terra again. Her body moved on autopilot while her mind grasped at the straws of her situation.

Know herself? How could she know herself? Her head throbbed and pounded with her suppressed memories.

Face herself.

She was! She was facing Terra! She was facing herself, wasn't she?

Know herself.

But how? Terra would not freely offer information.

Free herself.

Free myself from my entrapment... from the burden of my other personas...

Be herself.

Her eyes widened and she smiled, despite the press of Terra's attack and the pounding in her head.

Celly knew what to do.

TBC...