Opening in mid-swing, in the midst of the battle with the Brunei brothers that concluded the eleventh episode of Kyoko Hikawa's fourteen-volume fantasy manga epic, this twelfth entry in the series sees Izark's true nature once again revealed, as one of the brothers tries to incorporate his power, but is transformed into a monster, and then destroyed instead. Somewhat heartened by Mr. Clairgeeta's assertion that it is not power that makes a man evil, but the uses to which he puts it - "If one is attracted to the World of Darkness, he’ll generate darkness. If he chooses the World of Light, he’ll generate light" - Izark, Noriko and their companions fall in with the dissident scholar and his other rescuers, and the entire company embarks on a sea voyage to the country of Donya, where they hope to find shelter in the independent "city of light," Ennamarna. Running into trouble in the nearby town of Lango, the companions eventually do manage, with the help of Doros and his chimos, to make it to Ennamarna, where they are reunited with Gaya and Zena, Duke Jeida and his sons, and Agol and Geena Haas. But unbeknownst to them, they are being pursued by evil seeress Tazasheena, determined to rise in the esteem of the wicked Lord Rachef...

It stands to reason that I would greatly enjoy this episode, as I'd been hoping Noriko and Izark would be reunited with their erstwhile companions for some time now, and I did. The opening scenes were action-packed and exciting, not to mention a little terrifying, and after all of the trials and tribulations through which Noriko and Izark have come - all of Izark's insecurities about who and what he might be, and Noriko's fears about her role in transforming him - and their knowledge that their friends must be aware of their true identities, the warm welcome they receive at the end of this volume was particularly heartwarming. The idea of the World of Light and the World of Darkness offered great promise here - no doubt it will play an important role in the development of the story - and the stage seemed set for the final showdown. I was reaching for the thirteenth almost as soon as I'd set this down... ( )