Ronin Warriors: The Fight Goes On
Disclaimer: The Ronin Warriors do not belong to me. Peril is my only original character so far. Please don't sue me, I don't have any money anyways.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Firestar here. This is my first fic, so please go easy on me. Any and all reviews are welcome, including flames. Just try to put something constructive in while your tearing my self-esteem to shreds. Praise will be read eagerly and with tons of enthusiasm. Suggestions on how to finish this story are also welcome, 'cause I don't know where to go from here. Now, on with the story.
Chapter One
It all started a year after the Dynasty was defeated. After the final battle, the Ronin Warriors settled into a normal life, spending a great deal of their free time at Mia Koji's mansion. Although each of the warriors had been offered chances to move away, none had accepted. They, instead, chose to stay together in Toyama. They couldn't stand the thought of being separated.
"Hey, Ryo, where are ya?" Kento shouted. His ash blue hair had escaped the sweatband he wore and short locks hung in his face. He, Cye, Sage, and Rowen were ready to go. They had spent the entire day by the lake that was on Mia's estate and were anxious to get home.
"Where do you think he went?" questioned Cye. His British accented voice was filled with worry. "It's not like him to just wander off and leave us hanging."
"Yeah, you're right, we should go look for him. Make sure everything's all right." Rowen spoke with a slight frown on his face.
Sage nodded in agreement, a lock of his blond hair falling forward to cover one of his piercing violet eyes. "We should split up and look around. We'll cover more ground that way." He turned around and started walking east. The others followed Sage's lead and Kento went south, Cye west, and Rowen headed north.
Rowen had been walking for over a half-hour and there was no sign of Ryo. He mentally debated whether or not he should turn around and head back to the others when a scream pierced the still forest air.
"Ryo!" Rowen recognized his friend's voice immediately. "Don't worry, man, I'm on my way! Armor of Strata, Dao Inoki!" He powered up to his full armor, not even bothering with his sub-armor.
Rowen sprinted in the direction of Ryo's scream and at the same time contacted the others. "Guy's, I found Ryo, but I think he's in trouble."
"We're on our way"
they all sent back.Rowen burst into a clearing and saw Ryo lying half-unconscious in the middle of it. Standing over him was a tall, armored warrior who looked terrifyingly like a Dynasty warlord. Before the Ronin of Life could step in, the warrior kicked Ryo in the head with an armored boot.
"Pitiful, Wildfire, you weren't even a challenge." The warrior's harsh voice was filled with contempt. "I suppose there is nothing left to do but finish you off."
"Hold it, creep!" Rowen screamed, running toward his downed friend. Before the evil warrior could readjust to the new situation, Rowen had placed himself between Ryo and his attacker.
As he took up a fighting stance and drew his bow, he was trying frantically to figure out what was going on. Why did this jerk attack Ryo? And why isn't Ryo armored up? Behind Rowen, Ryo wasn't moving and his arm was twisted under him cruelly.
"Ah, so another Ronin wants to die." The gravelly sound sent shivers down Rowen's spine.
"Who are you and what the heck do you want?!" Rowen's query was met with terrible laughter.
"I am called Peril, Ronin, and I am the Warlord of Destruction. As to what I want, why, only to make my master happy. You do remember Lord Talpa, don't you? He's very upset with you, you know, and you can guess what that means."
"Talpa's dead! We killed him over a year ago."
"You destroyed his body, true, but you couldn't touch his soul. You never stood a chance at getting rid of him."
"Oh yeah? Well we'll just have to take that into consideration the next time we kill Talpa." Rowen raised his bow, knocked an arrow, and released all in one fluid motion. The arrow hit the Warlord dead center in his chest plate, but didn't penetrate. Instead, it skidded across the surface and fell to the ground.
"Hah, is that the best you can do?" taunted Peril. "Your even more pathetic than Wildfire."
Rowen was about to retort when he heard a low moan behind him. "Ryo, are you all right?"
"I-I think so, Ro." Ryo's response was weak and filled with pain.
"You don't sound like it, my friend. Just stay still and let me take care of this jerk." Rowen's voice was filled with concern. He readied himself to strike again at Peril.
"No, wait Ro!" Ryo started to say, but he was to late.
"Arrow Shock Wave!" Rowen fired his sure-kill. It flew straight at the warlord, but when it reached him, the warlord raised his arms and shouted "Wrath of Destruction!" The sure-kill was absorbed into the warlord's armor and transmuted into a sickly-green fireball that the he flung at Rowen.
Ignoring the pain running like liquid fire through his body and his lack of strength, Ryo surged to his feet and pushed Rowen out of the way of the fireball's path. Rowen fell to the ground with a grunt as the air was knocked out of him and blackness teased at the edge of his vision.
Cye, Sage, and Kento were all worried about Ryo. They'd been searching for over 45 minutes and when they couldn't find any sign of their friend, each of them headed back to lake to meet up with the others. Sage was the first to make his way back, followed closely by Cye and Kento.
"Hey guys, any sign of Ryo?" Sage asked. The other two shook their heads negatively. Cye spoke up. "Maybe Rowen had better luck."
Rowen's voice rang into their minds. "Guys, I found Ryo, but I think he's in trouble!"
The three warriors leapt into action immediately and sent back "We're on our way!" They ran furiously in their friend's direction, hoping they weren't too late.
Minutes later they burst into the clearing where Ryo and Rowen were. They were just in time to see Ryo engulfed in an ugly green fireball, unarmored.
He hurt all over. Blood poured from a gash on his temple and ran in streams through his shoulder length black hair. His chest felt like it was on fire and his tiger blue eyes were murky and dazed with pain. His arm was twisted under him, sending waves of pain shooting through his body.
Ryo was vaguely aware that someone was near him but he couldn't fight his way through the haze of pain to figure out who. Then he heard a familiar voice. Rowen! His friend was talking to someone and he sounded angry. What's going on?
Having Rowen near by prompted Ryo to try to lever himself up off the ground. Streaks of pain lanced through his back and he fell back, trying to hold back a groan.
"Ryo, are you all right?" The worry in Rowen's voice cleared some of the fog out of Ryo's head. "I-I think so, Ro." Ryo tried to reassure his friend, but he swore to himself as his voice shook.
"You don't sound like it, my friend, just stay still and let me take care of this jerk."
"No wait, Ro." But Rowen didn't hear him and Ryo saw him fire his sure-kill. I can't let him get hurt trying to protect me! Knowing what was going to happen, Ryo forced himself to his feet and pushed Rowen out of the line of fire. He saw Rowen fall out of the way and looked up just in time to see the green fire coming straight at him. Suddenly, the whole world was on fire and everything went black.
Chapter Two
Rowen lay on the ground, stunned. The image of his leader being swallowed up by the green ball of fire played itself over and over in his mind. There was no way Ryo could have survived that blast without his armor and in the shape he was in. Despairing, Rowen over at the warlord and saw him leaning heavily on his sword. He watched as Peril pulled himself erect and walked slowly towards him.
"Prepare to die, Strata." Peril raised his sword and prepared to plunge it into Rowen's heart.
"No, Rowen!" Sage cried as he saw the sword about to fall. He bounded forward and struck Peril from behind. "Leave my friend alone!"
Cye and Kento were just seconds behind. Cye went to check on Rowen and Kento backed up Sage.
"Rowen, are you all right?" Cye asked with concern etched into his face and tainting his clear tenor. Rowen didn't answer and stared into space with tears streaming down his cheeks. "Rowen? C'mon buddy, you've got to get up and help us fight."
The warrior of life looked at Cye with grief filled eyes. "Cye, its all my fault. I should have listened to Ryo when he tried to warn me," Rowen said bitterly. "It's my fault he's dead."
"He's not dead, Ro. You would have felt him die through your link with his armor. Now we've got to beat this guy and get Ryo some help."
"He's really alive?"
"Yeah. You know I wouldn't lie to you, Ro."
Rowen still didn't look convinced.
"Look, Ro, it's not your fault, but we don't have the time it would take to convince you of that right now. We've got to go help out Kento and Sage fight the jerk who hurt Ryo."
Determination filled Rowen's deep blue eyes.
"You got it, my friend." Cye helped Rowen to his feet and then they both ran to join the fight.
"Hey Sage, need some help?" Kento asked cockily.
"Be careful Kento, he's tough. Look what he did to Ryo."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say, Sage." Kento leaped into the fight with enthusiasm. Cye and Rowen joined them. Together, they seemed to be pushing the warlord back.
"Let's finish this dude!" Kento shouted. He was about to use his sure-kill when Sage yelled at him. "What do you think you're doing?! Don't you remember what happened when Rowen tried that?"
Breathing heavily, Cye asked, "So how are we supposed to beat him?" Before Sage could answer, Rowen broke in. "If we combine all our sure-kills together then I think we can take him out. When he absorbed my attack and fired it back at me it seemed to tire him out. I don't think he could withstand all of our powers."
"All right then, let's do it!" cried Sage.
"Thunder Bolt Cut!"
"Iron Rock Crusher!"
"Super Wave Smasher!"
"Arrow Shock Wave!"
The four attacks were too much for the warlord, the power exploded around him. When the light of the explosion faded, he was lying all but lifeless on the ground, his armor dented and cracked.
The four warriors were about to go and make sure he was dead when a bright light surrounded his body and he disappeared.
"Talpa must have pulled him back to the Dynasty," Sage said, breaking the silence.
Chapter Three
Ryo lay at the edge of the clearing where the blast had thrown him against a tree. When his friends got a good look at him they gasped in shock. He had burns all over him and a deep wound in his side. Blood obscured the right side of his face and it was covered with bruises. Ryo's right arm was lying at a crooked angle and blood was pouring out of a deep cut in his left leg.
Rowen dropped down next to Ryo and felt for his pulse. "You guys, he's barely got a heartbeat. We've got to get him help, and quickly."
Sage knelt down on the other side of Ryo. "Maybe I can heal him." He placed his hand over Ryo's pale brow, covering the place where the virtue kanji would glow. His hand started to shine with a faint light and the light spread to Ryo. The others were starting to think that it would work, but the light cut off abruptly.
"I can't do it," Sage gasped. "He's just too badly hurt. I haven't the power needed. I'm sorry."
"It's not your fault, Sage." Kento spoke for the first time since seeing Ryo. "Is there anyone we can ask for help?"
Cye frowned thoughtfully. "What about Kaurya and the Warlords? Could they be of any use?"
"Maybe, but first lets get Ryo back to Mia's. We need to do something about his wounds until we can get him help. Then we can contact the Nether Realm." Rowen's words were met with nods and Kento carefully picked Ryo up.
"C'mon guys, lets go.
Back in the Nether Realm, Kaurya and the three warlords were fighting for their lives.
"It's at times like these that I wish Anubis was still around. He was the best warrior of us all." Sehkmet's words were spoken through clenched teeth as he took out another Dynasty soldier. He, Cale, Dais, and Kauyra had been fighting since dawn, when Dynasty soldiers had invaded the small village they had built after Talpa had been defeated.
"Stop complaining, Sehkment. We need to think of a way to get away from these soldiers." Cale's deep voice said.
"Guys, I can get us to the Mortal World, but I'm gonna need your power to pull it off."
"Do it, Kauyra, we can't hold them off much longer." Dais parried a sword stroke and crushed another soldier's chest plate.
Kauyra's face filled with strain as she raised the Ancient's staff above her head. It started clanging loudly and a bright light surrounded the four beleaguered warriors. In the next instant, they were gone.
It had been slow going back to Mia's house. The Ronins hadn't been able to travel very fast for fear of handling Ryo too roughly and making his wounds worse. When they finally made it back, they were all exhausted and Ryo was barely breathing.
Cye ran ahead and opened the door to the mansion. He held it open for Kento and then went running upstairs. "Mia, are you up here?"
"Cye? What took you guys so long to get back? I was worried sick that something had happened to you."
"There's no time to explain, you just need to get downstairs. Ryo's been hurt real bad and we need your help."
Mia dropped the cup of coffee she had in her hand and went tearing down the stairs. She reached the living room and saw that Ryo lay lengthwise on the couch. "Is he gonna be okay?"
Sage looked up from Ryo. "I don't know, Mia." A sudden pounding on the door startled the Ronins and they jumped into defensive stances.
"Ronins, let us in. We need your help." The voice sounded familiar.
"Its Kauyra!" Cye shouted and ran to open the door.
When the door opened, Kauyra collapsed in Cye's arms. He carried her inside, followed closely by three exhausted warlords. They were all ushered into the living room where the rest of the Ronins were. There, they sagged into the chairs and onto the floor.
"What are you guys doing here? What happened?" The questions were echoed by all of the guys.
"Talpa's back, Ronins. He attacked our village and destroyed it. We were lucky to make it out with our lives. It took the last of my strength to transport the four of us from the Mortal Realm. As it is, I will not be able to cast any spells for quite some time." She looked terrible with several cuts and bruises covering her body.
"We know that Talpa's back, Kauyra. We met up with one of his warlords earlier this evening."
"What do you mean you met up with a warlord, Sage?" Dais cut in sharply.
"I mean that he caught Ryo alone and seriously thrashed him and then he went after the rest of us."
Cale looked at Sage in shock. "Wildfire's been hurt?"
"Yeah, and badly. We were going to call you guys and see if Kauyra could heal him since the Halo armor doesn't have enough power. I don't know what we're going to do if Kauyra can't cast any spells. He's getting weaker by the moment."
Sage was about to say more when they heard a weak cough. "Guys, what's goin' on?"
Chapter Four
It had been a day since the Ronins had met up with Peril. Ryo had regained consciousness for a brief time after reaching Mia's house. He haltingly told what happened while he was alone, stopping often to rest.
He'd been walking through the woods, enjoying the peace and quiet, when an icy voice had shouted a challenge. He immediately armored up and started fighting a new warlord who called himself Peril. At first the battle seemed pretty evenly balanced, but Ryo made the mistake of using his sure-kill. The warlord absorbed it and fired it back at him before he had a chance to move out of the way.
The attack weakened Ryo so badly that he was easy prey for Peril, who took advantage of the situation and started pounding on him. Ryo eventually became so badly injured and drained that he could no longer maintain the power he needed to wear his armor and it disappeared. After that, it had been easy for Peril to defeat him.
After he finished his story he had fallen unconscious again and hadn't been awake since.
Where am I? What's going on? Ryo thought. He was surrounded by a soft blackness. It was full of peace and comfort and beckoned him to stay wrapped within it.
"Ryo." A soft voice caught the warrior of Virtue's attention. "Ryo, you must come to me. You can't stay here."
The voice was warm and sweet. It called to him.
"Ryo, you are needed. Evil threatens your world, your friends. You can't leave them to fight alone. They can't win without you."
Ryo felt resignation fill him. He couldn't abandon his friends. But he was so tired of fighting, of being alone.
"I know you're tired, Ryo, and lonely, but you must come."
"All right." Ryo's words echoed strangely. "I'll come, but how do I reach you?"
"Just wish it to be so, Ryo. You must wish it with all your heart.
Ryo tried, concentrating hard. At first nothing happened, but then he pictured his friends. He would do it for them. The blackness started to fade away.
Ryo found himself standing in a grassy clearing. A gentle breeze was blowing and carried a faint melody to his ears. It was very beautiful and drew Ryo onwards, entranced.
At the edge of the clearing, a mysterious woman sat playing multiple pipes. Her long brown hair stirred playfully in the wind and when the music stilled, her brilliant sapphire eyes looked up to catch Ryo's gaze. Ryo caught his breath in awe. She was beautiful. Her slim body was draped in a gauzy, powder blue gown. She had a creamy complexion that was unflawed and her pink lips curved in a slight smile.
Most astonishing, however, was the aura of power around her. She fairly glowed with it. "So, Ryo of Wildfire, you have come at last."
Ryo was confused. " Who are you? Where am I? Why did you ask me to come here?"
The woman's smile broadened into a full-fledged grin. "I am Tyrran, young warrior, and I am the Guardian. You are in my demesne. As to the reason you are here, you are to be given a choice. A choice upon which rests the fate of your world."
The Ronin Warriors, the Dark Warlords, Kauyra, and Mia all stood around Ryo with their heads bowed.
"I can't believe he's gone." Rowen sobbed.
Chapter Five
It was dark, and cold. Rain was pouring out of an overcast sky. The night was interrupted with sporadic bolts of jagged lightning interspersed with ground shaking rumbles of thunder. The young man blinked up at the angry sky. He was lying in a dirty alley, trying to huddle up against the old, graffiti covered brick buildings for warmth.
His clothes were little more that rags that hung loosely on his unnaturally thin body. Lank black hair hung in his eyes and hunger gnawed at his starved insides. He couldn't remember how he ended up on the streets or what his life was like before. All he knew was the squalor and bleakness that consumed his life.
Huddled in on himself, he didn't notice the flashes of light that flared at the end of the alley. He did, however, hear the scream that came with them.
Sage wasn't sure how much longer he could hold out. "Ro, any ideas how we can beat this guy?"
Rowen didn't answer as he parried another blow from the warlord. This warlord, the Warlord of Hate, had shown himself shortly after Ryo died over a month ago.
Cye was standing off a bit to the side, leaning over Kento. "Kento, man, are ya all right?"
Kento opened his eyes slowly. "Ohh, what hit me?"
Cye smile with relief. "Geez, Kento, you scared the living daylights out of me. I thought for sure you were dead."
"Me? Dead? Yeah right, and hell's frozen over."
"Ahhhhhhhh!"
Cye and Kento's heads snapped up. "Rowen! Come on, Kento, he needs our help." Cye pulled Kento to his feet and both went running over to where Rowen lay. He was lying at the entrance to an alley, unconscious, with blood trickling from a cut on his cheek. Kento was about to pick him up when he noticed a figure off to his left.
It was a young teenager with raven black hair hanging in his face. His scrawny figure was clothed in rags and he looked terrified. That wasn't what caught Kento's attention, however.
"Kento, come on!" Cye yelled in irritation. He was frantically checking Rowen for serious injury. When Kento didn't respond, he looked up to see his best friend's face gone stark white. "What's wrong?" Kento still didn't answer and Cye followed his gaze.
"What the…" Cye's voice trailed off in shocked disbelief. It can't be. There's no way he can be standing there. He's dead. "Ryo," he whispered.
The kid just looked at him. There was no recognition in his eyes. Only fear.
What's going on? Please, oh, please don't let this be happening. Who are those guys?
Thoughts raced through the teen's mind, driving him closer and closer to panic. The scream had jolted him out of his misery, giving him something more immediate to worry about. He had forced himself to walk to the beginning of the alley to see what was going on. Now, he wished he hadn't.Kento and Cye were jolted out of their dazed reveries by Sage's frantic cry for help. "C'mon guys, why are you just standing there? I could use a little assistance with this guy.!"
Both of the Ronins jerked their heads up in surprise and then rushed to battle the Warlord of Hate, pushing the boy with Ryo's face out of their minds. Kento hauled himself to his feet and joined his comrades. When all four stood side by side, they simultaneously called upon their sure kills.
The boy stood stock-still, frozen in place by the sheer power he sensed coming from the colorful warriors. They seemed familiar to him, but he wasn't sure how. He watched in awe as they blasted away their opponent with their combined attacks. His fear had drained from him amidst the fury of the battle.
The warriors stood tiredly for a moment after defeating their attacker and then turned as one to face the boy. Their faces were filled with incredulity and shock.
Chapter Six
The boy didn't like how those guys were staring at him. He looked up and found his gaze trapped by the deep blue eyes of one of the warriors. The intensity of those eyes was unnerving and it was filled with a mingling of shock, hope, … and guilt?
He jerked his head down, breaking the deadlock that had risen between the two. "Wh-Who are you guys? What happened?" The question seemed to catch the warriors off-guard.
The blond haired guy in the green armor seemed to be searching for an answer for the boy when five new warriors appeared.
"Ronins! Thank the Ancient we found you! There's more trouble. Talpa's launched an attack and-" Kauyra cut herself in mid-sentence when she saw that the warriors weren't paying her any attention. She followed their gazes and her mouth dropped open in shock.
"Wildfire! You're alive! But how? We all saw you die!" Kauyra stopped to draw breath and waited expectedly waited for an answer.
The boy just stared at her in bewilderment.
Later that night, the ronin warriors and the dark warlords all sat in Mia's living room.
"How's he doing?" asked Sage. After the battle, the ronins and the warlords had taken the black-haired youth back to the mansion with them. It was obvious that he didn't have a clue what was going on, but all of them were sure he was Ryo. Their surety ran deeper than just appearances, however striking they might be. Their armors reacted to the boy, telling them that he was definitely the bearer of Wildfire.
Once the boy reached the house, Mia had taken him in hand and found him some decent clothing. When the group had seen his emaciated condition, they had pressed food on him and then placed him in Ryo's old bed when he showed his exhaustion.
It was apparent to everyone that he had been living on the street for quite some time, but what they couldn't figure out was why.
Chapter Seven