Hey, I hope you like this story but do keep in mind that it is in no way related to my other story, Play a Little Longer. I hope to get that updated soon, but I had just watched, "The Message" and was struck with this idea…a way to continue it, if you will. It's only supposed to be a one-shot, but if I get enough fans, I MIGHT consider expanding it…

Also, if I expand this story, the READERS will be a major help to it. Tell me any and all ideas that you have and who knows, you might see it incorporated into it!

Beginnings and Endings

Months had past since their last battle, a battle with a young woman who had gifted them with new powers and new armors. They were well equipped for a battle they sincerely hoped would never come to pass.

However, that was not to be. Four months had passed now and scars had faded, energy was replaced, and understanding of the new armors had made them strong. That hadn't made them strong enough.

New demons had invaded their dreams and before long, invaded their realm. Too late did they realize that the Youja-kai had fallen, as well as all the Mashos. They had no idea where Kayura had fled and it was clear she had fled since no remains that could be hers were found. So they entered the battle blind, not knowing what they were facing…or what would come from their first battle of this new war.

All had gone well at first. Their first demon was about to fall, it HAD been dying, it SHOULD have died. But then it did something no one expected. It possessed Cye, slowly killing the bearer of Torrent as it healed itself…

Then Cye had gotten better…that was because Sage had healed him. Pleased with its new abilities, the demon continued to reside in Torrent's body, wreaking havoc that very day as it pronounced another battle…to the death.

^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~

"It ends now." Ryo whispered, his throat hurting with the minimal effort it took. This demon was strong, too strong…they had barely been able to wear it down enough to almost kill it the first time, each of them going hoarse from shouting their attacks so often. Then it had possessed Cye, but they hadn't known until Cye had been healed. Now it seemed like they would truly die.

Ryo put the hilts of his twin Fervor Swords together, his hands shaking with the process. He hid a cough as he took a step forward, summoning the last of his strength. Cye just stared at him, the demon that controlled his movements amused at Ryo's last attempt.

"Ryo, no!" Sage yelled from behind, sensing the energy that would go into the attack. Sage was the most perceptive of the group; he knew that Ryo would die if this attack was launched…and that even the demon, while residing in Cye's body, might die. That meant that Cye would die too. But Sage could barely stand, let alone continue the battle…he was so tired…

Rowen, having heard the distress in Sage's voice, focused his swirling vision, trying to find out what might have caused the blond to shout in fear. Kento lay near the building, having never moved since the demon had last hurled him into that building. He saw also how tired Cye was, that the demon had overused Torrent's ability…then he also felt the last summoning of energy and turned his swirling vision to his leader and friend, to see Ryo leap into the air and summon his sure-kill…

"Flare…Up…Now!" Ryo yelled with as much conviction as when he had started. He brought the swords down on Cye with enough force to shatter the skull. And indeed, that is what it seemed to have down, for Cye crumpled under the attack…only to reveal that his trident had been up and ready. It had impaled Ryo as he landed; it would kill him, or at least seriously injure Ryo for the attack he chose to deliver…if he had not died already with the energy he expended.

A moment after Cye's link vanished like Kento's, Ryo pitched forward. Shortly afterwards, the link that had connected the four other warriors to Ryo vanished as if fire had eaten it away, leaving only Ryo's shell of a body as a last testament to the great leader he had been.

A dark shape seeped away from the crumpled form of Cye, probably for the last minute that his heart still beat, his lungs still pulled in air, and the last thought crossed his mind. It formed into the abysmal shape of the demon that had struck each down and now it turned its greedy glare to Rowen.

Rowen saw it through his foggy vision and raised his bow to protect himself. At all costs, there should be no more death today…he had to keep the demon at bay.

The demon smiled cruelly and licked its sharp, pointed teeth that were permanently stained red from the blood of its victims.

"You will die next, Strata…then Halo and the Mortal Realm shall be mine for the taking." It advanced one step, and then stopped. "But I shall let you shiver in fear while you bury your brothers-in-arms…though that task may prove too difficult…" His voice was growing muffled; it was becoming so hard to distinguish his voice among the roaring in his ears. Rowen felt himself pitch forward as he lost his connection with this world and slipped into darkness.

The last thing he heard came from a different voice, a gentler one that offered comfort. "Oh, Rowen…you used too much energy…just like Ryo…"

Sage held the blue haired boy close to his chest, crying for his four lost brothers. He couldn't believe it, he was all alone in the world now…they were dead, and he was left behind.

The last link that he had shared with Rowen brushed away like wind kissing a feather, blowing it into the wind. With tears in his eyes, he looked up at the demon that only laughed at him and vanished.

"Damn it all!" Sage yelled, slamming a fist into the road. He was angry now, yes, but he also knew that the hurt would be unbearable when the anger finally fled…

He heard a soft sound, like a glass marble falling to the ground and looked down at Rowen once again. The armor of Strata was gone, concealed in its tiny orb by Sage's foot. Sage cupped the last remnant of what had been Hashiba, Rowen close to him and pocketed it; he then knelt down and picked up Rowen's shell of a body. He would carry it over to his other friends…Mia would be here soon and a proper funeral could then continue on her property.

When Sage reached his friends, he went about the task of collecting their kanji orbs, adding his last to the small collection he had. Absorbing the slight warmth four of them still had, he looked around the ruined town square, trying to find a place to put them until new people could claim the heritage of the Yoridon Armor…and he was glad to give up the curse that was silently attached to the armor.

Seeing a statue of a heifer standing at the entrance of the library, he decided it was as good a place as any other. He approached it and was slightly struck to realize he had seen it before…in the morning paper actually. It was an ancient Greek artifact, supposedly that of Io, a maiden who Zeus had loved. To curse her for this fact, Io had been changed into a heifer and pursued for a long time, tortured by Hera. Sage smiled sadly, knowing that he had obtained this knowledge only from Rowen.

Bending down, he slipped the five yoroi between the heifer's front hooves, saying his last mental goodbye to the friends he had known since he was fourteen…six years of memories that would soon be buried with the shells of those who had died today.

Sage slowly stood, forcing the dizziness away from his mind. He had to accomplish this…he couldn't die yet, even though every step was taking up more of the little precious energy he had retained.

Suddenly, alarm bells rang in his mind…something was terribly wrong…someone was behind him…they would attack! It couldn't be that demon again, he had promised to wait… 'But when has a demon kept its promise before?' Sage questioned himself as he slowly turned around to face his certain doom. The only comforting thought he had at this was the fact that he would be with his friends sooner than he thought.

However, when Sage turned around, he was surprised at what he saw. Nothing was out of place, there was no enemy awaiting him…just the heifer, with a slight glint beneath its front hooves that was none other than the five yoroi.

Sage slowly turned, determined to finish the task that was needed…the burial of his friends. As he turned, though, he caught a flash of movement. Immediately stopping and looking at his surroundings again, he could find nothing out of place…but wait, wasn't the heifer facing the southwest, not the southeast?

Sage examined the scene for a while longer before shaking away the encroaching blackness on his vision once again. He was exhausted from the battle; exhausted to the point that once his task with his friends was done…he would probably die in his sleep. He knew it was depressing, but he also knew that this lack of energy could cause serious hallucinations…such as a marble cow "switching" directions on him.

He turned back towards his friends and smiled in relief to see a familiar van driving up. Sage could just barely see the driver, a woman in her late-twenties with long brown hair that was flying out behind her with the speed at which she was driving.

So close…Just a little longer and then I can sleep. Sage thought to himself, his vision blurring on him just at that thought. As he was distracted though, he ignored the footfalls of a creature approaching him from behind. However, when the sound was directly behind him by the sound that it was becoming clearer and closer, he turned, and gasped in shock.

A heifer stood behind him, looking up at him with doleful eyes. It had golden tipped horns and slowly chewed its cud.

Where did this come from? Sage thought, confusion displayed widely across his face. That was nothing compared to the shock when the heifer, which was obviously as real as life, slowly shifted.

The brown and white hair on it receded until there was only long, chestnut hair on the figure's head. Pale skin formed and the heifer stood up on its hind legs, forming into shapely legs and a well-defined torso. Finally, a sheer white toga fell into place, covering her body slightly from prying eyes. She blinked slowly and then looked up at him with the same doleful eyes.

"You…you…" Sage stuttered, completely at a loss.

The young female just nodded, a tear squeezing out from the corners of her eyes. Her right hand tightened on something and Sage looked down to find out what the object was.

It was a short but lethal dagger with a gold handle similar to that of the horns that he knew had once rested upon her head.

"I am sorry." The woman finally said softly as she loosened her grip only slightly on the dagger. At first, Sage thought she was apologizing or feeling sympathy for the loss of his friends…but then when he saw her raise the dagger at him with a determined glint in her eye, he knew what she meant. She had meant to kill him.

"Who are you?" Sage rasped out, his throat closing down on his air supply even as he strained his hearing for Mia's jeep. For the thing that had once seemed so close, his hearing told him it was far away…or could it be that the roaring in his ears deceived him, making her seem further away then she really was?

"I am Io, a Greek maiden. I was brought through time to bring a message from the gods of Ancient times." Io paused, giving Sage a chance to let the words sink in.

The only thing he could think of, however, was how nuts this young maiden might be. The Greek gods had never existed…they were created by the people of ancient times to give name and face to the mysterious powers of the universe.

The Greek maiden, Io, obviously didn't think she was crazy for she raised the dagger again and before Sage could protest…plunged it into his side.

Sage gave a gasp of surprise as his mouth fell open and his hands flew to the wound. Without his armor, the blade had easily sunk in and the blood was seeping through his hands. It stained his shirt that he had been wearing and ran down his hands and still, all Sage could do was stare at the maiden before him. Io had cold, relentless eyes as she watched him slowly lose the last toehold he had in this world.

Slowly, his knees gave out on him and he sunk to the ground with a moan. Still, his eyes were locked upon Io and he opened his mouth for one final thing. "Wuh-why?"

She stared at him, her eyes softening only slightly. However, he continued to hold her gaze and she soon broke, kneeling beside him and placing a hand to the wound that wouldn't close, not in this lifetime.

"I'm so sorry, but it must be done…you must realize true power now. Don't worry, the pain won't last much longer…"

Slowly and gently, she helped lower Sage to the ground, closing his eyes with a delicate touch of her hand. His breathing slowed and soon, she felt him pass away from his body. Now, she thought, I have to act quickly now, before the spirit world call becomes too great!

Quickly but gently still, she lifted Sage's body and brought him over to the others. She placed them all in a line on the ground then stood at their feet as she recited the message she was forced to memorize. As she recited, her hands rose from her side and a yellow light was emitted from them.

Demons rise to the North

Magic sails in from the South

Careful, you're being surrounded!
To fight, you first must die…

The light spread from her fingers and surrounded the five warriors. It forced their bodies to stand and by the raising of the hair on her neck, she knew she had also called their five spirits back from the spirit world call. They surrounded her, asking her what she was doing, why did they need to return? "Listen to the poems, my heartlings." She whispered between the verses of the poem, her teeth clenched as wave after wave of magic assaulted her.

The end of the beginning

The beginning of the end

To fight your next demon,

You must be born again.

"The gift of the gods from all the ages, past, present and future have been bestowed upon you, Ronin Warriors! Accept it and finish your last task!"

Then the world went black.

^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~

Sage gasped and sat bolt upright in bed, his chest heaving and his head spinning.

Where am I? Where am I? He thought frantically, his eyes scanning the familiar settings quickly before finally coming to rest.

He heaved a sigh of relief, recognizing the room in which he was in…it was the room Mia had let him have, the one he shared with Rowen and right next door would be his other friends…

'Rowen.' Sage thought suddenly, remembering the vivid dream. It was still so clear, the fact that they had been utterly beaten by a demon that had only promised to come back and finish the job…it had been so clear, watching his friends die and holding Rowen in his arms as he too, faded…

Sage pulled back the covers on his bed and walked back over to the bed across from him, knowing by instincts other than sight that this was where Rowen's bed had to be. He reached the bed and stretched out his arms, searching for the blue-haired warrior that he knew would have slept through anything, including a few whimpers he might have made during the nightmare.

However, his hands greeted nothing; the bed was messed up as if someone had recently slept in it, but no Rowen was there.

Panicking slightly as he remembered his dream, Sage quickly went to the door and yanked it open, ignoring it as it squeaked. Have to get it oiled…he dismissed it and quickly walked to the next room where Ryo, Kento and Cye would be sleeping…if this dreamland wasn't becoming a nightmare.

However, when the door opened, four heads snapped up as one and looked at him. A soft smile graced each face and Sage could see that they were all troubled about something, but he dismissed it.

"Oh, thank god." Sage said softly, leaning heavily on the doorframe. The others didn't comment…in fact, they seemed to be relieved to see him as well. "You would not believe the dream I just had…" Sage started in an attempt to break the ugly silence growing between them. He was about to explain it in its entirety when Cye's shaky voice interrupted him.

"You mean a dream where all of us died in facing a demon?" Cye's voice was whispered compared to the quiet of the room but it struck a note of fear in Sage and he shivered. Slowly, he nodded agreement. Cye took a deep breath then locked eyes with the warrior of Halo. "We all had the same dream…and to tell the truth, we really don't think it was a dream after all."

^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~

So, what did you think? Is that a big enough cliffhanger to get some reviews? I sure hope so! Don't be afraid, just click on the little button below that says "Submit Review". I take flames and fans, signed and anonymous, just PLEASE tell me if you like it or not!