by Krystiana
kbrannan@neo.rr.com
Watching the stars fly by at night would never grow tiring. It was, quite possibly, the only thing that kept him sane.
When they five Warriors had recieved their armors, someone had failed to mention how deep the connection went with them. It was true - the wearer of the armor had some of the attributes of the properties... but lifespan was not something they ever thought about.
All five of them HAD lived longer than the average human being... not to mention they stopped aging when they reached about age 22... but their elements all had different life spans.
Yuli, the youngest and one you would expect to live after the rest of them, had died first. He had grown and gotten married to a beautiful woman... but only a year after he and his wife were the victims of a drunk driver. His wife had been pregnant, totalling the loss to three lives.
Mia had aged and died like a normal human. Ryo knew it was coming, and had a chance to get emotionally ready for it, but it was still hard on him. Mia had been something to tied him to sanity and life. He did get over it, but he never looked at another woman after that.
The five Warriors lived mostly seperately... except for Rowen and Sage. They didn't really live anywhere, but travelled the world together, trying to gather as many sights as they could. Sai worked near the ocean, almost always trying to figure out ways to make it cleaner. Kento, as strange as it may seem, worked as a foodbank spokesperson. He wasn't payed well, but he felt that since he couldn't fight he would still help people. Ryo worked in various dojos around Japan, moving once about every ten years to keep people from noticing his failure to age. They were all leading good lives.
Sage, the Light, had been the first Warrior to die. The Light went out. Darkness came.
There wasn't an exact warning. Sage had just told Rowen he felt sick one morning. Everything was darkening to him, almost fading. A few days later, he died.
Rowen didn't say a word for nearly a month. And when he finally did, he asked "why." If their armors stopped them from aging, why did Sage die?
No one could answer.
Four years later, the Fire went out.
Ryo had started complaining of feeling overtired and running out of energy. His exact words to Sai over the phone had been "burning out." Exactly a week after he made the phone call, he was found dead in his home.
Simply a year after Ryo's death, the Water dried up.
The remaining three Warriors had figured it out, that they were dying as their elements might die. They each tried to figure out how they would die and what their symptoms would be so they could prepare the others for the "news." Sai knew it the moment he felt dried up. He drank enough water and got enough liquids, but he felt parched. The doctors had said he died of dehydration.
Rock is hard, but it crumbles over time.
Kento did live longer then the first three, but his time still came. He knew although mountains could be there for millenia, they wouldn't last forever. His suffering had been the worst. His body literally began breaking down. His bones shattered at the slightest jarring and he died in a hospital bed, Rowen right by his side.
Kento had tried to say something to Rowen before he died, but Rowen couldn't make sense of it. He had said, "Strata has always been here, and..." He hadn't been able to continue what he was saying.
Rowen lived for years more, wondering how he would die. He lived on and on, with no one by his side. He lived alone.
But now Rowen knew what Kento had tried to tell him. "Strata has always been here, and always will be here."
The Warrior of Strata closed his eyes. He was immortal. He knew immortality did not bring happiness. You watched your friends die. You watched the world change. You could try to KILL yourself, but you would never die.
Darkness comes to get rid of the Light. Fire will eventually burn out. Water will dry up. Rocks erode away over time.
But the Stars will always be there.
It was painful.
Even more painful knowing that his friends were all up among the very element that kept him alive.
Someday Rowen would figure out a way to rid himself of his armor. He would
truly be among the Stars. He would join his friends again.
-end-