Frustrations of The Resistance

     "Oh, no..."

     The Snowglobe Staff decides to simply not work this battle. After all, how does a Yellow Snowball help her? Where is the snowball? There must be something else, right? The Jade Elixir? Gone. Thick Smoke Bomb? Disappeared two turns ago. Turned Tooth? She defends it with ease. Finally, the young Acara looks up at her, those pink wings fluttering so gracefully, that smug smirk so condescending. She knows - there are no more tricks left. Not in this fight.

     "Don't you think this is getting old by now?" She taunts in that familiar voice - a friend turned enemy. The Boss. "You never stood a chance."

     Spotting the Grapes of Wrath in view, she can see this tussle is nearing the end. Even with her Downsize in use, there's no chance at winning. She burrows in combination, avoiding the blunt of the fire attack while still suffering a significant amount of damage. Not that getting dirt in her fur is her favorite pastime, but it works. For now.

     No options are left. She only has 5 weapons left - weapons that Kaia can all defend against. She has no choice but to accept her defeat, once again at the mercy of the Wand of the Dark Faerie.

     ZAP!

     *~*~*~*~*~*~*

     'I never stood a chance...'

     A heavy sigh escaped from the lips of a tattered Grey Acara as she stumbled out, dazed, of the Forgotten Graveyard backgrounds. What was she even thinking? Malum had been hard enough to stop, but through her own perseverance, she managed to beat him... But now, she was completely outmatched. Worse, she knew this - the bliss of ignorance escaped her once again.

     And now, it turns out that he was right. She really did have "the wrong guy". Just what in the name of Fyora was going on here? And how could she defeat her? Why did she even have to defeat her, whom she had come to trust? Whose murmurs she had to decipher, time and time again? Why must she face her, over and over, in a dreary landscape that makes the Haunted Woods seem like a cheery Merry-Go-Round?

     With these questions buzzing about in her mind, she was about to make her way to the Healing Springs for the sixth time this day when she felt her legs give way. Why is everything spinning...?

     "Cedea!"

     That familiar, high-pitched squeak of a voice brought Cedea to alertness at last, managing to catch herself from falling. Only the quickness of reflexes, which could only be learned through the tough realities of the Battledome, could have allowed her to use her Corrosive Spear Wand in time to support her weight. After she was sure she wouldn't fall out in front of her friend, she turned to look at her.

     A normally chipper, excitable and sweet looking Pink Usul. Firb, one of her best friends, and a Neopet she had come to know for years now. The normally optimistic look on her face was marred by her concern for her. This should have comforted Cedea, but all it did was make her feel even worse.

     With the lightning-agility all Usuls possess, Firb scampered to her side at once, using what little strength she had to support hers.

     "It's her again, isn't it?" Firb inquired.

     For some reason, Cedea couldn't reply - she did not have an answer for that look she could see in those cyan eyes, as if she were resigning herself to a fate she was helpless to change.

     "...Well," Firb went on, after a pause, "I guess I can understand why you're trying so hard. It's for the good of Neopia, right? We really can't have someone like that messing up Faerieland when they've already been through so much."

     "I still can't believe it," Cedea responded at long, startling Firb with the fire her normally melancholic voice held, "I don't believe this at all! How could she? As if lying wasn't bad enough, now this happens? What are we supposed to do?"

     Suddenly, she turned towards her friend, her gaze hardened with the strength of her emotions, "What am I going to do? I can't- There's no way, not her..." Almost to convince herself with this, Cedea looked down at the cold, lifeless ground they stood on. Lifeless, and heartless, just like her. "No matter what I do, I can't-"

     "Quitter's talk!"

     "I, what?"

     "Quitter's talk!" Firb repeated, her usual cheeky grin lighting up her face, "You can do whatever you set your mind too!"

     Cedea sighs, "That is too idealistic for this situation."

     Firb shakes her head, her pink bows and fur shaking right with it, "Not really! This isn't the first crisis Neopia has been subjected to! And, sure, you're not the only stronger than average Neopet fighting in the Resistance, but they need you! Neopia needs you. If all of you tough guys were to go and quit, then she could make a mess of Neopia all she wants. We stopped her before, remember?"

     "But..."

     "No buts! We're going!" Sometimes, it was easy for Firb's optimism to irk Cedea, but it only bewildered her this time. Was this Usul nuts? Or is she just too gutsy to get fazed under seemingly insurmountable odds?

     "Going where?" Looking around, there was not much reason to want to be here. As far as Cedea was concerned, the only thing to do here was to fight her, that Faerie.

     "I know you, you know~" Firb replies in her trademark sing-song voice, "The only thing you want to do is fight! When you see an opponent like this, all you can think about is defeating them! And how will you ever defeat her when you give up?"

     Not being able to argue with that point, Cedea simply nodded in response. "You still have to answer my question."

     Firb's grin only widens, "To the Healing Springs, of course! And then, to some NeoShops, just in case you don't get completely healed. I can't tell you to stop fighting, but the least I can do for you is get you fixed up and prepared for the next battle. At a reasonable bargain, of course!"

     Cedea chuckles, and Firb laughs herself. Making a Grey Neopet of all things laugh? Certainly a hard feat to accomplish! But, isn't this what friends are for?

     Seeing no good reason to pause her pep talk, Firb continues. "You'll get her, Cedea! And when you do, we'll all be at our Neohome in Faerieland, cheering for you and waiting your return. Just like we always do!"

     Most miraculous of all, her words even manage to bring a small smile to Cedea's otherwise dreary expression. "Just like we always do..."

     Cedea wasn't really sure why any of this was happening. Why she was here again, or why she wanted to put an end to Neopia's peaceful times. But most of all, she wasn't sure why she had doubted herself to begin with. Was losing so many times in a row that painful, or had it only wounded her pride? Even with a lack of overwhelming strength, she still had her wits about her. And it was her wits and perseverance that always saw her through to the end.

     She was reminded of why she was glad to have befriended the Neopets she had, and what kept her going all of those 35 battles, even without the results she desired. It was not a desire to win, but a desire to preserve. To protect. To honor and save Neopia and Faerieland, the nation within Neopia she had lived in for the last four years of her existence. To protect the Faeries and good natured Neopets of Neopia.

     So what if she lost some battles? She had all a Neopet could want: friends who support her, relatively quality weapons, and most of all, the resolve. And with these ideals in mind, one thing became clear to Cedea as they trekked back to the relative comforts of Faerieland.

     She will defeat that Faerie, no matter how long it takes. No matter how many losses it takes to get there. And she would prove her wrong. She would prove Kaia wrong.

     As long as I don't give up, I will always have a chance.

     The End.