Disclaimer: Yoroiden-Samurai Troopers is copyright © Sunrise and all others associated with legal rights.
Author's note: Here it is, my first Ronin Warriors/Yoroiden-Samurai Troopers story since I moved on from my Seinasu penname back in late 2009. This fic takes place in episode 27 of the TV series. Like… right before the end of said episode, LOL. Fans who have seen the last OVA Message will probably figure out what's going on here.
"A Fleeting Moment"
Gen Masho Rajura wouldn't have noticed her if his instincts hadn't told him to turn around.
The little girl was perched upon the branches of a skeletal tree, one of the few remaining reminders that life once flourished in the otherwise desolated forest. She looked no older than the brat who desperately clung to the sides of the Samurai Troopers. She was garbed in a long black and white cloak, her thick hair was of a fiery color, her skin as white as a ghost, and she wore a large unmistakable crucifix around her neck. During his adolescence, Rajura recalled Christians being persecuted and executed.
Kongo no Shuu's body remained crumpled on the ground next to his feet. The slight rise and fall of his chest every now and again indicated that he was still alive.
"What is a child doing here?" the demon general pondered out loud. He was surprised when the girl, who was yards away, all of a sudden zeroed in on him.
She slid off the branches, yet moments before she could hit the ground, she vanished into thin air.
Turning sideways, he found her now standing just a few feet away, her round face void of emotion. Up close, he saw that she had green eyes.
"I was just watching you," she admitted, those green eyes haunted with unspeakable mystery as they stared up at him. "Now I will know how to get this one later on."
He was perplexed by her words, which contradicted her child-like appearance. Though he had no time to mull over the likes of her. Arago impatiently waited for this trophy.
"Be gone if you value your life," he snapped as he bent down and grabbed the defeated Trooper by his ankles. He hoisted him up until he was literally carrying him on his backside and was prepared to journey back to the Youjakai, back to his master. He had no time to worry about what this girl truly was, despite the fact he knew damn well she was anything but human.
"You shall soon see," the child cryptically remarked, "the dangers of those armors. This world has endured much suffering because of them. They will only devour you in the end."
This caught Rajura's attention. He used his one eye to look at the girl, but she had long vanished from her spot.