It was a hazy afternoon in Caupie, the capital of Pandora.  Brigitte's training session at her temple had just let out for the day.  Janus ran out the temple door, and down the hill as fast as he could.  He always hated Brigitte's stupid training sessions, and never stayed around her temple longer than he had to.  He didn't like being in Pandora in general.  It was just about as far away from his homeland, The Kingdom of Zeru, as you could get.  There was only one good thing about the entire stupid country, and that was that The Five Torches Inn was there.  That was where Fenadeir Fisher worked.  He was one of Janus's good friends, even though they fight a lot.

     Janus walked through the streets of Caupie until he reached the Five Torches Inn.  He went inside and called to Fenadeir.  He didn't get an answer, so he started to look around.  Finally he heard people talking upstairs.  He ran up the stairs and saw Fenadeir talking with some black haired girl.  He was made that he was getting ignored, so he kicked him.

     "Why'd you do that for, you little brat?!" growled Fenadeir.

     "You were ignoring me!!!  I kept calling you and calling you, and you never answered!  You have to answer me!" answered Janus.

     "Can't you see I'm busy?" shouted Fenadeir.

     "You mean with that girl?  Who the hell is she anyhow?!"  demanded Janus.

     "My name is Shanella...," whispered the girl.

     "I didn't ask you!!!" hissed Janus.

     "Janus, she's my new girlfriend," said Fenadeir.

     "Get bored with that other girl already, Fish?" asked Janus.  "She didn't even make it a week!  Neither did the girl before her, and the one before that..."

     Fenadeir pounced on Janus and put his hands over his mouth to shut him up.

     "WILL YOU JUST SHUT UP!!!!  Don't say that now!!'" hollered Fenadeir.  "Don't listen to him Shanella... he's just crazy."

     "You should forget about him, Fenadeir ...  you have to pay attention to me now," said Shanella.

     Fenadeir obeyed.  He let go of Janus, and went back to Shanella.  As the left to check out another part of the Inn she turned around and stared at him sinisterly.  Her cold whitish blue eyes locked with his blood red ones.  She smirked menacingly and he felt a chill run through him.  There was something wrong with that girl... something hideously evil.

     "Get away from her, Fish!!  She's pure evil!!" shouted Janus.

     "Would you shut up!!  Stop being so jealous!" growled Fenadeir.

     "Pay not attention to him.  I don't want you to get bitter... Fenadeir," commented Shanella in a cold and soulless voice.

     Janus knew that Fenadeir wouldn't listen to him so he left the Inn.  Once he was outside he heard someone calling him.  He turned around and saw Lebauer running over to him.  She noticed that Janus looked worried, and angry.

     "What's wrong, Janus?  The training session wasn't too hard today.  You barely got hurt at all this time,"  asked Lebauer.

     "It's not that...  It's Fish.  He's got a new girlfriend, and there's something just not right about her.  She seems evil." answered Janus.

     "Evil?  Like how?" questioned Lebauer.

     "Her voice is really cold and soulless, like a demons.  Her eyes are really weird, and barely have any color!  She doesn't even want me to talk to Fish!" replied Janus.

      "Hmm... that reminds me of a demon I heard about a couple hundred years back.  It was a female spirit that sleeps for a hundred years only to awaken to feast on the soul of a man who falls in love with her in a graveyard.  Then she goes back to sleep.  She was called... Banshee," explained Lebauer.

     "Maybe Shanella is Banshee?  Maybe she's come to Pandora to eat," thought Janus out loud.

     "I'd watch out for your friend there.  He's probably her next meal.  She'll eat his soul, and he'll become a zombie.  You know... zombies always eat the flesh of their former friends and family.  He'll come after you if he becomes a zombie! Mwah ha ha ha!" remarked Lebauer.

     Lebauer bent her fingers into claws and moved them like she was going to pounce on Janus.  Janus looked unimpressed, and was far to worried to find it funny either.  She saw how dead serious he was, and stopped.  He wasn't ever any fun when he was serious.

     "Geesh, lighten up, Janus!  So you gotta go fight a Banshee maybe.  It's not the end of the world,"  declared Lebauer.  "Just hope you aren't too... late."

     Before Lebauer even had a chance to finish what she was saying Janus had already gone back inside the inn to find Fenadeir and see if Shanella was Banshee.  He looked all around the Five Torches Inn, but he couldn't find a trace of either of them.  They were gone.  They must have left out the back way.  If Lebauer was right, and Shanella was Banshee, then there was only one place where they could've gone, The Caupie Cemetery.

     Janus quickly transformed into Guardian Shadow, and dashed out the back door of the inn.  He ran as fast as he could down the roads of Caupie which lead to the Cemetery.  He'd already wasted so much time talking to Lebauer, and searching for Fenadeir that all he could do was hope he wouldn't be too late.  He should've never let them leave alone.

     Finally Janus turned down the final road, and reached the Caupie Cemetery.  He looked in horror as he saw Fenadeir down on his knees in the middle of the cemetery with his eyes closed.  Above him Shanella hovered slightly as she held onto his head.  He could see that she was draining an energy from him.  She looked even more pale than he did, and her black hair fanned out all raggedly.  He had to act fast if he wanted to save his friend.

     "Banshee!!!  Stop it right there!!" shouted Janus from atop a tombstone.

     Shanella stopped what she was doing for a moment and looked up at Janus.  The evil smile crossed her face once again.  Her almost while blue hint eyes flashed.  She dropped Fenadeir, and he collapsed to the ground.  Janus stood on the tombstone with his arms crossed.  She floated over a little closer to him.

     "Love is a scared force which binds two people who care about each other together.  You've taken advantage of Fenadeir's constant puppy love so you can devour his soul.  I won't allow you to do this to one of my friend's who I care about!  Banshee, your time has come!  I, Guardian Shadow, will destroy you!" announced Janus.

     "Guardian... Shadow, interesting.  A Guardian... and a young one.  You could never control a Guardian's power at such a young age.  I'll wash down your friend's soul with your blood!!!" hollered Banshee.

     Banshee charged Janus, and he feel off the tombstone.  As he got to his feet she transformed her arm into a sickle blade.  She slashed at Janus and nicked his shoulder as he tried to dodge.  He took out a short black pole, and formed the Shadow Scythe.  As she attacked again he stopped her blade with the handle.  He tried to overpower her, but was too weak and got shoved over.  He screamed as she slashed him across his unprotected back several times, slicing through the thin Guardian costume.  She kicked him over, and raised her sickle hand high in the air.  As she started to thrust the jagged blade at the wounded guardian, he grabbed his scythe.  Her hand stopped just short of stabbing him.  Janus had driven the pike end of his scythe deep into her chest.

     "Damn... you" growled Banshee.  "DIE!!!"

     She concentrated her powers to heal her bleeding wound, and snapping the blade end off the Shadow scythe as she did so.  She grew the nails of her non-sickle hand into long, deadly blades as Janus got to his feet.  She whacked him a couple times across the face with them, cutting him badly and knocking him back down.  As he got to his knees she put one of the razor sharp nails against his throat.

     "Little Guardian Brat... face it... you've failed.  What a pathetic warrior you are!  You shall pay for your failures with your life!"  shrieked Banshee.

     Janus closed his eyes almost as if he had accepted defeat.  He raised one hand above  his head, and pointed at Banshee.  She watched him in confusion, and he stayed in this position.

     "Dark... Blast!" exclaimed Janus.

     A blast of concentrated Shadow energy shot through Banshee's chest, tearing her apart.  She screamed and wailed as it shredded her body until all that was left was a pile of gel-like slime and shreds of fabric and hair.  Janus lowered his hand and slouched over.  He caught his breath for a few minutes, before going over to Fenadeir.  He was still lying on the ground where Banshee had left him, and Janus thought he might have been too late.  Finally Fenadeir started to wake up.  He had only been stunned by Banshee so he wouldn't struggle with her.

     "Uhhh... my head hurts.  What happened.. to me?  To you?"  moaned a confused Fenadeir.

     "Shanella was a demon named Banshee.  She was trying to eat your soul in the graveyard.  She stunned you, but I stopped her before she got your soul.  We fought and I killed her.  That's basically it,"  explained Janus.

     "You know this kinda stuff never happened to me before I met you!"  shouted Fenadeir.

     "What?!  Are you blaming me for it?!  I just saved your life!!  I nearly got killed too, and this is the thanks I get?!"  growled Janus.

     "Why should I thank you?  When was the last time you paid your tab at the Five Torches?!"  demanded Fenadeir.

     "Stop being so petty!  I don't know why I even helped you!  Stay here with all the dead people!  I should've let you become a zombie!"  hissed Janus.

     Janus turned to leave and left Fenadeir on the ground.
 
     "Hey, Janus, where are you going?  Wait up!" shouted Fenadeir.

     Fenadeir chased after Janus as he walked away.  Janus continued to ignore him for awhile, but soon they started fighting again.  Janus knew he'd saved Fenadeir... now their rival friendship was just like it always is.  Everyone needs a little tension in their lives.