Chapter One
A young man looked out the window closest to him and sighed. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. Zip. His life was empty now. Day after day he stared out this window hoping that something of importance would happen, something that would give him purpose once more, but day after day the sun set on another uneventful day and he hoped that the next day might bring something worth writing about.
Sighing, he closed his eyes and looked away from the window, focusing on an open book in front of him when he opened them again. He put down the pen he held in his hand onto the open journal and dropped his head into his hands. He had had this book for the past six months, and he had yet to write anything in it. Granted he had gone to school and graduated with top honors, but that didn't mean anything to him.
There had been a time, years ago, when he would have been able to fill up this journal within a few days, a day when he had had four of the most important people in his life, his best friends, his brothers, and four people that he would always trust with his life. But those days were over, had been for years. Now, he was alone, his life devoid of purpose. One day, just sort of seemed to blend into another, a never ending pattern of the same thing day after day.
He looked at the only picture to have ever graced his desk, a picture that had been there since the day he had moved here. He studied the five smiling faces in the picture. They had all been so happy that day. They had beat Talpa and had saved their world from an unspeakable evil that the mortal world had never truly known had existed. Even days later, people had forgotten that something weird had happened.
Everyone, that was, except for the five young men that had risked their lives to stop it. It was something that he would never forget for the rest of his life. Those days had changed him, and he would always feel the affects of it. He felt a punch of something in his chest as he looked at the picture. He missed the other guys so much. He wished that he could pick up the phone and call one of them, but what would he say? Things were different now, and he didn't know if he could bridge that gap anymore.
A flash of something in the corner of his eye had him abandon that thought and rush over to the window, but he turned away very disappointed when it was nothing more than a reflection of the sun in a passing car window on the road below. He remembered a day when a flashing light would have meant something completely different, and it would have been up to him to be on the ready to fight it, to protect the mortal world from an evil they could scarcely imagine. With a half-hearted yank, he pulled the shade down and plunged his apartment into darkness.
As he sat in the dark, in his mind's eye, he could see himself and his friends as they fought against Talpa in that final battle. It was the battle where they would have won or lost everything. He could see Ryo, so powerful in his Inferno Armor as he took on Talpa, and the rest of them battling the foot soldiers. And then, the moment of truth when the spirit of Virtue had invaded Talpa. Even now, he could remember what Ryo had said to them. "The soul of Virtue is taking over Talpa! Slash him! Get it over with!" He had been so willing to do anything to stop Talpa, but hurting one of his best friends just wasn't in the picture. They had all been hurt enough by that point, and he was not going to cause anymore.
But it was quiet child-like Sai that would put their thoughts and worries into words. "We can't. We-we might hurt you." Even then, he could hear the tears in Sai's voice. And then came the mighty bear-like Kento to add his opinion in. "And we're not taking that chance!" But, as always, Ryo was prepared, and his words sparked them into the action of having to do whatever was necessary to save their world. "Just do it! If we miss this shot, the Dynasty will rule our world forever!" He couldn't remember if he had said anything at that point, but as second in command, it was up to him to make the final decision.
And as he ran towards his friend and struck, he hoped and prayed that he was not killing his friend, and that they Ancient One would be able to save Ryo. And thankfully, thanks to Yuli and the Jewel of Life, his wish was granted, and they were all able to make it home in one piece.
But after that, after the battle was over and the armors were gone, and they returned to normal life, what was there for them? Sage, Sai, and Kento went back to their families like nothing had ever happened, and Ryo and White Blaze stayed with Mia, but what was for him? His parents had gotten divorced right after he was born, and he had never really met his mother, her career seeming more important than her son. His father, a famous scientist, had died of a heart attack in his lab while Rowen had been busy fighting against Talpa and the Dynasty.
Mia had offered to let him stay with her, but he had declined, not wanting to intrude anymore in her life than he had done during the war. So, after shedding many tears saying goodbye to his friends, he had walked away to start a new life. Those first few months had been the hardest, wanting nothing more than to run back to Mia's house and tell her that he had changed his mind, beg her to let him stay with her, as he knew she would with open arms, but he never did, and day after day, it got a little bit easier.
Sure, he missed his friends like crazy, but they all had their own lives to live, and they would all go different paths. The last time he had seen any of his friends had been when he had been invited to Mia and Ryo's wedding. All of them had looked so happy, so he had put on a front, pretending to be happy as well, not wanting them to see the truth, that he was miserable. Not long after that, he had graduated from Shinsha University as valedictorian, with a degree in Astronomy, but none of them had been there to see it. He had purposely told none of them about it so that they would not make a big fuss about it. He had found it a bit ironic that he went to the same school that Mia taught at, but she had no idea that he was a student there.
But as he had made his way across the podium to get his diploma, he had thought that he had caught a glimpse of one of the guys in the sea of faces, but when he looked again, they were gone. Rowen had just chalked it up to his imagination. There was no way that the guys would have known about his graduation in time to be able to be there. After all, that was the way he had planned it. He didn't want any fuss made over him.
During the war, he had had no problem sharing all of himself with his friends, but once the war was over, he didn't think it was as necessary to share himself, and so he started keeping part of himself secret. It wasn't long before he lost contact with Mia and the others. That had led him to where he was now, living in an apartment all alone, doing the same job his father had once done, following in his footsteps. He could honestly say that this wasn't the path he would have chosen for himself, but he had thought it was a path that his father would have had wanted him to take.
Granted, over his life, he really hadn't had much of a chance to get to know Hirotoshi Hashiba. As soon as Rowen had been of an age to fend for himself, Hirotoshi went back to his science fulltime, leaving the house before Rowen got up for school, and come home long after Rowen had gone to bed for the night, if he even came home, his father usually crashing on a cot in his lab. Once in a while he would see his father on the weekends, but that usually didn't happen very often.
So at a very young age, Rowen had learned to fend for himself and not have anyone in his life that cared about him, and so the time with his friends had been something different, having people in his life that cared about him, and wanted to make sure that he was okay, and it took him a while to get used to it, but now, it was back to just him, and he wanted to say that he was okay with it, but if he were being truthful with himself even now, he still missed it.
In the midst of his musings, Rowen fell asleep, his head settled precariously on one of his hands. And that night, for the first time in months, Rowen dreamed. He dreamed that he was in this long tunnel, pitch black with only little crystals every so often imbedded in the walls, giving off a slight glow. There was something about this place that put him on edge, and he immediately tensed up, as if looking for a fight. It was one time since the battle with Talpa had been over that he truly wished that he still had his armor. He could hear screaming and moaning coming from all around him, and could feel the hair on the back of his head sticking straight up from the sound. He wondered how the hell he had gotten here, and how he would be able to get back home.
As he looked around some more, he eyes narrowed in suspicion. Now that he looked around a little bit more, this place was starting to look familiar, and he did not like what he was seeing; a place he never wanted to see again. This place looked like the Dynasty. Hell, it even gave him the same on edge feeling that he had gotten all those weeks when he and Ryo had been on their mission to save their friends. Now he really wished that he had the added protection still. He would not feel comfortable until he had the added protection of his armor around him to support him. His eyes never stopped moving as he continuously scanned the area around him, as if waiting for Dynasty soldiers to appear and attack him.
As if responding to his thoughts, he heard a clanking sound behind him and he whirled around to see Dynasty soldiers blocking the corridor behind him. As he dropped down into attack mode, his heard this sinister laugh echo around him and the soldiers parted to let a figure through. Rowen's eyes narrowed as he got his first glimpse of the figure. He looked like Talpa, only he wore blood red armor where Talpa's had been grey. Had Talpa found some way to return? Rowen looked at him in shock. He thought that he and the other Ronin's had destroyed Talpa at that final battle. Had he found a way to survive like last time? Was he back to try and take over the mortal world again? Would he and his friends lead the fight again, or would a new team be called?
As if responding to Rowen's thoughts, the figure laughed again, a sound that reminded Rowen of fingernails down a chalk board, and it took all that he had inside him to not throw his hands up over his ears to block out the sound. He was not going to show any sort of weakness until he found out what this person wanted. "So my pathetic Ronin whelp, you wonder who I am. Well, I will tell you in time. I want my name to be the last thing you hear before you die." This statement was punctuated by a sword being let out of a sheath, moving so closely to his head that Rowen could feel the breeze from it as it moved past his ear.
Rowen jumped back slightly to avoid ending up as an ornament on the end of the figures' sword. "You move quick, little Ronin, but not quickly enough. You and your friends are going to die. Call it a payment of sorts for killing my mentor Talpa." His eyes flashed a demonic icy blue at this. Rowen looked at him in disbelief. After all this time had passed, now he wanted to try and take over the mortal world?
"Yes weakling." He laughed once more darkly. "I planned this just perfectly. You wonder why I waited so long? Simple. Before, you were strong. You had the armor protecting you. But now, now you are weak. Your armor is gone. You have no chance to standing up to me. I will defeat you easily, and then the world will be mind for the taking!" Rowen clenched his hands tighter, feeling his nails biting into his palms. He might not have the armor anymore, but he would still fight until his dying breath. That was what being a Ronin Warrior all was about.
He could feel the power surging through him now, reminding him of what it had once been like to have the power of the armor surging though him. "Too little too late, powerless Ronin." The voice taunted him. "Perhaps with the power of the Ronin armor you might have had a chance to defeat me, but alas, you don't. I would have desired a chance to come up against Hariel's Inferno armor, but you will not live long enough to warn your friends before they have the chance to stop me. And now, little Ronin, you are about to meet the same fate as the Dark Warlords before you. When you see them, tell them Lord Rajah sends his regards!"
Rowen did not see the sword swung in his direction until he heard the clang of metal upon metal. His eyes flew up to see a staff braced against Rajah's sword. A very familiar staff. He looked up into the knowing eyes of Lady Kayura. She was dressed in the armor of Anubis as she had worn during the final battle. "Run, Rowen! Run far from here and do no stop! You must warn the others before it is too late!" She implored him. She pushed him back with one shoulder, stepped in front of him pushing him back from Rajah. "Go now Rowen. I can hold Rajah back, but you must warn the others."
As Rowen turned to run, Kayura's words echoed through his brain. "War is upon you once more, Ronin Warriors. You must be ready to fight. The mortal world is depending on you!"
Rowen woke up with a start, nearly falling out of his chair where he had fallen asleep. At the last second, he was able to keep himself from falling over. After a moment, he stood up and walked over to his bathroom to splash some water on his face. As he stared at his reflection in the mirror, he wondered if that dream had been just that, or was it a warning that something more was coming. Not some thing. Some one. Someone who was set on finishing what Talpa had been stopped trying to do; take over the mortal world and enslave it for all eternity.
As he made his way over to the desk, he stopped suddenly as he saw the object sitting on the surface, and he almost did not want to touch it, believing that it was not there, that it was all still part of his dream. But as he got closer to it, and his fingertips reached out to touch it, he knew deep down that it was not a dream. His dream had been a premonition, warning him of the evil that was coming. He picked it up and held it tightly in his hand, and willed the armor to form around him, and in the blink of an eye it was there. "Rowen of Strata!"
Deep inside, he felt the bond between him and the power of Strata reform, and he knew he was ready to fight. He willed the armor away, and made his way over to his phone. He waited only a moment after the other person answered. "Ryo, its Rowen. We have a problem." Moments later, he grabbed his keys and headed out the door.
As the door closed, two figures appeared in the empty apartment. "He is going to warn the others." Lady Kayura said to the male figure beside her dressed in the garb of the Ancient One. "Yes, there might still be time." Said Anubis. They stayed around a few more moments before slowly disappearing back to the Nether Realm to prepare for the new battle ahead.
RWRWRW
Ryo watched as Rowen paced the length of the living room. It had been a long time since he had seen his friend like this, the last time being during the war, but then, they had both been on edge, always watching and waiting, watching for the Dynasty to make their move. Those days, Ryo had never known what might happen, and so he had learned to trust his senses and his instincts to act first, and then after everything was said and done, he would be able to stop and think about what he had done. He could honestly say in those days, there wasn't much he had done without thinking about it first, if there had been any at all… if he remembered correctly, that was.
His thoughts had always been consumed in saving the other Ronin's from Talpa's capture, and battling against every warlord that came their way, and then, of course, there was the armor of Inferno and how it made him feel every time he used it, and then worrying about his friends when he had it on, leaving them defenseless and powerless. Even when he was battling, some of his thoughts would always be on them, making sure they were okay. That was when he was always thankful that he had White Blaze with him, so that he could trust him to look after the other guys. As if responding to his thoughts, White Blaze looked up from where he was laying on the other side of the room, laying in a beam of light coming from an open window.
After seeming to read the look on Ryo's face, he got up and stretched, lithely making his way over to Ryo. He ran his hands in the silky fur, feeling the powerful muscles hidden underneath. His gaze though, was still on Rowen, watching him pace back and forth. Ryo could see by the stance of his body that whatever he had to tell him wasn't good, but he had yet to talk. He had just looked at Ryo as he had answered the door and said 'Call the others' so now they just waited for the others to arrive.
It was amazing how over the course of a few years how a person could change, and yet, it could only take one thing to bring them right back to where they had been before. That is where it seemed that Ryo was at this very moment, watching Rowen pace the length of the living room. He had said nothing since his arrival, just pacing in the exact motion that was all too familiar to Ryo. For it had been him all those years ago, in the exact position that Rowen was in, as he debated and thought to himself on how to get his friends back from the clutches of Talpa and ultimately win the war. As he looked at Rowen, he suddenly got a glimpse of what his friend must have thought all those years ago as he watched him pace back and forth, wearing a hole in Mia's carpet.
It had been a shock to Ryo when he had gotten the phone call from his wayward friend earlier that afternoon. He had not spoken to him in almost a year, ever since his wedding to Mia. They had all been there that day to celebrate the special occasion, but it had been obvious to Ryo that even then there had been something bothering the former warrior of Strata, he had all but seemingly cut himself off from his friends months before, and it was safe to say that it had been a shock to Ryo to see Rowen there, and after the ceremony he had seemed to disappear before Ryo had had a chance to corner him to see what was going on with him. So now, seeing him pace the floor had all his unanswered questions rising to the surface, and he was bound and determined to get them answered before he let Rowen slip from his life once more.
Making his way over to Rowen, Ryo set his hand on his shoulder to get his attention, and maybe to stop him from pacing a hole in the floor, a quick retort that quickly died on his lips once he saw the look in Rowen's eyes. This was as serious as it came, and it even had Ryo's guard up. The look on Rowen's face reminded him of … the war.
He could see one of Rowen's hands forced down deep in his pocket and he grabbed it, pulling it out with difficulty and almost gaped at what he saw in his friend's hand. "I knew it. I had a feeling." He looked at the armor globe held tightly in his hand, the white of his knuckles showing how tightly his grasp was. He could feel Rowen's gaze boring into his own tiger blue eyes. "What is going on Rowen?" He asked, the tone of leader slipping back so easily. It was a tone that none of the Ronin's had ever been able to deny, and he knew it was one that would force Rowen to give up his secrets.
But this time, it didn't work. Rowen just nodded his head, the briefest glimpse of a smirk crossing his face, indicating that he understood what Ryo was trying to do, and said one word. "Wait."
While they waited for the others, Ryo studied his friend. Physically he looked the same, if not a little tired, and concern rose for him.
There had once been a time when he would have known everything there was to know about the genius of the team, but it seemed that time had ended years ago, and after everything had been said and done, Rowen had removed himself from their lives. It was not something that Ryo had agreed with. His life before his friends had been a lonely one.
He had lived with his elderly grandparents up in the mountains with his pet White Blaze. His mother had died in childbirth with him, and his father was dead. His grandparents had been good people, but being as how they were older in years, there was not much that they had been able to do for their only grandchild, and so Ryo had spent much of his time alone growing up.
That was, until he had found White Blaze. He had been out in the woods surrounding his grandparent's house, and he had stumbled across the tiger caught in a trap. Well Ryo had done the only thing he could think of, and had rescued the tiger, expecting it to quickly run away, but surprisingly, it had stayed with him. Now Ryo had never been one to consider a tiger as a pet, they being wild animals and all, and usually dangerous, but there had been something about White Blaze that had drawn him right from the start, and so he had decided to take a chance.
Looking back on it now, it was almost like fate that had brought boy and tiger together, and he could safely say it was definitely one thing that had shaped Ryo into the man he was now. The other times had been when he had first found the armor, and of course, the day that he had met his friends; his brothers, which now brought him back to Rowen.
It had been a shock to Ryo and the other guys the day Mia had come home from her day of lecturing at Shinsha University and told him what she had found while sitting in the staff room on her lunch break; Rowen's name on a list of those getting ready to graduate, and him as valedictorian at that. She had been surprised first that he was going to school there, and second that he had managed to do it without her or the others figuring it out.
Of course, it brought up questions as to which no one had the answer to. Why had he never told any of the other guys what was going on? Why would he keep something like that to himself? There had been so many unanswered questions running through Ryo's mind, and he had been very disappointed that Rowen would not have wanted to have his friends there to see him graduate. Was he ashamed of something?
Of course, Sage when he mentioned it to him had calmly told him Rowen always had an explanation to everything, and so of course, there would have been a reason as to why they had not been invited, but Ryo had not believed that. There was no excuse for not being invited, and so he had worked even harder to make sure they were there to see it. He had felt such pride for his friend as he had walked across the stage to receive his diploma that it had been hard to not cheer as loudly as he could, though he was more than sure that Rowen would have been able to hear Kento, Sai, and Yuli as they cheered. His eyes narrowed on the picture hanging on the wall of Rowen's graduation, and he wondered how long it would be before he noticed it.
Speaking of Mia, he could hear her putting around in the kitchen, trying to give him space to try and talk to Rowen, but that was something that was going nowhere fast. He felt like he was just meeting him again for the first time, and he had no idea what to say to him. He could hear Mia in the kitchen puttering around in the kitchen, trying to keep busy and give Ryo a chance to talk to Rowen, every so often hearing her talk quietly to herself. He knew she was just as curious as he was a lot of unanswered questions on the tip of her tongue as well.
Leaving his side, White Blaze made his way over to Rowen and butted his head against the side of Rowen's leg, as if trying to get the others attention.
Rowen finally stopped his pacing, and looked down at the large feline for long moments, as if in a discussion. Rowen finally sighed and raised one of his hands to his face to brush back his hair, and Ryo's eyes narrowed as he saw the tremor that Rowen tried hard to hide.
He looked at Ryo for a brief second, as if acknowledging what he had seen, and then he looked back down at White Blaze. "You ready for this boy?" His voice was hoarse. "It's not going to be easy."
A low rumbling was heard coming from the large tiger, and something resembling a smile crossed his face once more. "Yeah, I know. You can handle it." He reached out and scratched the top of the tiger's head and listened to the loud purrs fill the room before his gaze met Ryo's again. "It's starting again Ryo." He told him. "The Ronin Warriors are going to be needed to save the Mortal World once more."
Both of them dropped to battle ready as the front door to the mansion flung open with a crash, and in an instant, the dark blue and white metal under armor of the armor of Strata formed around Rowen, protecting him from whatever was coming at them.
Ryo cursed silently to himself that he had yet to regain his armor and he stood next to White Blaze for sort of protection. What sort of leader was he when he couldn't protect his team mates? He saw Sage, Sai, and Kento stop at the edge of the living room, their eyes opened wide in shock as they took in himself and Rowen, their gazes mostly focused on Rowen being dressed in his under armor, a sight he was sure that they never expected to see again. He knew they would have questions that would be answered in due time, questions that only Rowen would know the answers to, he hoped.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Rowen relax enough to banish the armor, leaving him only in his clothes once more, his eyes still on his friends. He stepped forward just slightly as if to approach them, and was forced back as Sai launched himself at Rowen, grabbing the other boy into a very tight hug.
Sage and Kento joined the hug moments later. Ryo stood and watched them; feeling tears of joy fill his eyes at the sight of his friends at long last together again. He saw Mia join him, tears also filling her eyes, and he grabbed her hand and held it tightly in his.
Only for a moment though as he felt White Blaze nudge the back of his leg as if to go and join his friends. And as he felt the arms wrap around him and draw him in tight, he knew a sense of completion that he had not felt since his friends had been gone. He didn't know who started to cry first, but in the safety of the circle, the tears ran freely as the five of them drew strength from one another once again, the bond between the five flaring to life once more as the call of who they were drummed in each of them, calling them back to a life they thought they had left once before, but one that continuously drew them back into its reaches, but with the torch of spirit sought through five, they would overcome and persevere as they always had before. They were the Ronin Warriors after all.