Story: Ethen (Dragon's Roar Story Arc)
Chapter 1 (A Fluttering of Dragon Wings)
Ethen brushed the blood away from his eyes. It had came from a gash on his head. He looked up at the large dragon form in front of him. To the untrained eye, there was nothing there. But as it launched itself into the air, its large wings clipped a lamppost which was snapped like a twig. All around them, the street of normally busy Tokyo was deserted. People had mostly fled the scene as some unknown massive force had punched through buildings, flipped over cards and uprooted trees. To Ethen, who was a ghost agent, the large dragon hovering in the air glaring at him was all too visible.
He took a deep breath. The next exchange would finish this. He spread his hands out and found within him the power hidden within. It was sluggish, and unbending, but through sheer willpower, he coaxed it to his bidding. His eyes opened just as the dragon roared and started to dive straight for him. 4 summoning circles opened around him, and from their depths, 4 forms rose up from the circles, as if emerging from a pool of water. Ethen had summoned Riya Amagasaki, Sasuke Sarutobi, Mahamayuri and Lady Suzuka to battle!
Mahamayuri raised one slender hand languidly, and the dragon was suddenly hit from above by a concentrated shower of rain with deceptively heavy force, forcing it down to the ground. A lean ninja in a light blue shirt, Sasuke was laughing even as he leapt into the air, hands flickering too fast for the eye to follow as multiple shurikens flew from his hands at the dragon.
Lady Suzuka and Riya, both raised their swords above their heads. One was a famed warrior known for her skills with the katana, and her big heart to protect others. The other, a heavenly being and demon princess known both for her beauty and her love for humanity. With a mighty slash, both blades cut down and an invisible wave of force arced out and hit the dragon. With one last roar, the dragon flickered briefly, and then disappeared into nothingness. It was over.
Ethen slumped down in exhaustion while his 4 daemons clustered round him in concern. "You will be alright dear!" whispered Mahamayuri as she traced a slender finger down the gash on his head.A wave of soothing healing force flowed around all of them as she spoke and Ethen's bleeding stopped. But his power was also ebbing as well and they couldn't stay.
"Take care, Ethen!"
called out Riya even as they all waved goodbye. Then one by one, all of them flickered and faded away into nothingness as well, the last being Sasuke with a cheery wave. Then all that remained was Ethen sitting on the ground amidst a blasted and broken street.
Ethen was too tired to move for a while. While the bleeding had stopped, he had exhausted his spirit energy and was mentally drained. He leaned back against the broken lamp post and closed his eyes. Then he sensed rather than felt two small hands wrap themselves around him through the back of the lamppost. He know who it was without even opening his eyes. She couldn't fight, but had been with him since he first awakened his power. She was also the only one who could materialise at will without any effort or call from him at all…
"Mira, how are we doing …" He said softly, eyes still closed.
"I think that was the 87th dragon … Ethen." A soft bell like voice replied from behind him.
"You are tired, you really should rest, Ethen." Mira admonished him gently even as she kept her arms around him. She always knew what she was feeling, and mirrored his emotions. Right now, she was trying to soothe him to sleep and rest because she was concerned about him, just as he was concerned about the destruction being wrought on the people of Tokyo.
"I can't rest, there's more of them out there, I can hear the destruction they are causing in Tokyo." He said quietly even as he finally opened his eyes and looked up into the sky.
Amidst the dark forbidding clouds which have been ever present since that time, more shadowy dragon flying forms were flitting in and out. One year ago, Emporor Sutoku had arisen from his sleep and ever since then, those dark clouds had been ever present in the air.
"You shouldn't strain yourself too much, this is not your fault! You can't be everywhere and save everyone…" Mira intoned softly. Her name meant mirror and she mirrored Ethen's emotions too well sometimes. She knew what secretly tormented him. He felt somehow responsible for everything that had happened since Sutoku's rise …
"It is partly my fault. After all … I descended from his bloodline… He is my family's founding ancestral father… " He said a bit bitterly.
He sensed Mira's arms releasing their hug on him. He looked down from the sky and found Mira in front of him looking a bit angry. Just as his bitterness emerged over his heritage, she mirrored it and directed it back at him.
"It is NOT your fault! Sons should not be responsible for the sins of their fathers! Besides, you are doing more than your fair share in helping to defeat the dragons corrupted by his evil power…" Mira snapped even as she admonished him with arms akimbo. It always surprised him a bit when Mira got angry because she was so gentle most of the time.
Nevertheless, it made him feel better, even in spite of himself. He grinned back up at Mira, sprang to his feet and walked forward quickly, catching her by surprise with his mood swing.
"Let's go, Mira! We have rested enough. There's many more dragons yet!"
Mira broke into a smile as she looked fondly at his back. Her master was ever the optimist, and usually didn't stay depressed for very long.
"Wait for me, master!" She called as she hurried after him …