Twisted Reality

Chapter 2

Rowen squinted his eyes, but that did not help him see clearly through the fog. He did not know where the fog had come from. He didn't even know where he was. One moment he was in bed at home, and the next he found himself in a foreign place, wearing Strata and carrying his bow in one hand in this dismal place.

Where was he? How did he get here?

He took slow, careful steps and waved his free arm. The fog swirled and moved about him, but never cleared. "Hello?" His voice echoed all around him, sounding empty, devoid of any life. He felt so very lonely.

Where were the guys? What was this place?

The wind blew, and Rowen's forelock that hung over his nose wafted in the breeze; some of the tendrils catching in his right eye. He blinked twice and pulled it out. Something about this wind tensed his muscles and increased his heart rate.

He decided to go in another direction, hoping that maybe he could soon find out where he was, and how he got there. The fog moved with him, never letting up. Something didn't feel right to him. Normally he would sense any danger, particularly if it was a Dynasty minion, but his inner alarm bells hadn't gone off. Yet, he did not feel entirely comfortable. That sixth sense that something was wrong nagged his inner being.

The wind blew sharply and nearly took his helmet off his head. He seized it by the sides and gripped it tightly. What was that? Just up ahead, he saw a lone figure with their back turned to him. The figure was standing before a large-

'Dynasty!'

The thought sharply echoed in Rowen's mind as his body tightened with the possibility of a fight; the smell of upcoming blood, agony, and desperation to survive. He cautiously stepped forward, readying his bow and aimed it at the figure. "All right, pal. Turn around, nice and slow," he demanded.

The figure kept staring up at the gate, and as Rowen got closer he realized this figure looked very familiar. "Cye?"

The gates slowly opened. Cye turned around and gave a sad smile to Rowen. Light flared out of the gates and surrounded Cye as Rowen looked on in horror. "Good-bye," Cye whispered.

"NO! CYE!" Rowen screamed and reached out for him…

xXx

Rowen's eyes snapped open. He struggled against tangled sheets, kicking and thrashing before common sense awoke and he sat up to untangle himself. He brought up a shaking hand to his face.

The dream. It seemed so real, but what did it mean? Why would Cye willingly go into the Dynasty? Why would he say good-bye? Adrenaline coursed through Rowen and he leapt out of bed – never mind that he was in his boxer shorts – and ran out of the room.

It didn't take him long to get to the stairs. He peered over the balcony and saw Sage's blond head bowed over the coffee table and Cye's reddish brown head bent over slightly, too. Both were entirely focused on a game board. He recognized it instantly. Go.

A deep sigh welled up from his lungs, threatening to push up and out of him. He inhaled through his nose and slowly exhaled out the same way, feeling his ribcage expand and release. Cye. He was still here. Thank goodness.

"Hey! Look who decided to grace us with his presence this morning!" Cye said, cheerfully. His hair was damp, Rowen noted. He came down the stairs and sat on the sofa behind Sage. Sage smiled at him, and bent forward to move a white piece ahead. Rowen leaned forward, intently watching the game, while thinking about that dream he had.

Should he talk to Cye about it?

No. Cye was sensitive these days. It was better to talk to Sage, as soon as he could.

"Ah… so who's winnin'?" he asked.

"Cye is," Sage said, waiting for Cye to make his move.

Rowen blinked, a little in surprise. It wasn't often that Cye was unambiguous in his ambitions, particularly when it came to board games. The older Ronin preferred tea ceremonies and flower arrangement, somehow harmonizing with honeybees, and having only gotten stung once. Rowen would never guessed Cye for being interested in Go, and winning on top of that. It was remarkable.

Cye made his move: a clever trap that captured Sage's remaining black stones and ended the game once he had gained the most territory. He smiled a little, rather sheepishly, and folded his arms under his breast. "Rowen, there is still some food left in the kitchen. Sage put it up for you."

Rowen nodded and got to his feet. Maybe lunch would do some him good. He started for the kitchen, but paused momentarily to glance back over his shoulder to Sage. "Sage, when you have a minute, we need to talk. It's important."

Sage met Rowen's eyes with his own, and after a moment nodded his head. Rowen's eyes held great depths of concern that the bearer of Halo was almost overcome. Somehow, he suspected that Rowen had a dream and it must have been a bad one, enough to shake him up. He excused himself and followed Rowen out to the kitchen.

Cye watched them go, and his own mind turned back to what he had seen in the mirror. Had he imagined it? 'I thought we destroyed him. When we slashed and sliced through him with all of our might, he seemed to disintegrate right before my very eyes. I remember fearing we'd never see Ryo again, but after it was over, there he was, alive and well. We were so very happy, relieved actually, to know that we had won the battle. It was over. Yet, I've been feeling out of sorts lately. I feel as if though I am being watched. '

He put the Go board game back into its box along with its stones and set the game back onto the shelf just under the TV. His forehead on the left side itched again and he scratched it, grunting in annoyance. The itching died down somewhat, but still remained, pestering evidence to its stubbornness.

Cye looked out the window, watching as the rain continued to pour down. A part of him worried that it might flood, because while he could swim in rapid torrents, the others would not be so lucky. Maybe, just maybe it would not come down to that.

He decided to leave the living room and headed down the hall. Kento and Ryo headed off to the training room a half hour ago. He could watch them for a while; maybe participate in some training himself. He reached the doors and pushed them open to find Ryo slashing toward Kento with a practice sword. Kento avoided the slashing by dodging and leaping around. He retaliated his defense by swinging a practice bo staff back at Ryo, trying to deflect that sword.

Cye slipped in and sat down on the bench off to the side and silently watched the two. Kento seemed to be holding his own quite well, but that was expected of the warrior of strength. The only downfall Kento had was his temper when things weren't going quite so well. His face was already somewhat red, but whether that was from the heat of the practice or Kento's rising impatience was hard to tell.

Ryo thrust his wooden sword downward at Kento's head, but missed by a centimeter when Kento dodged to the left. Fast thinking, Ryo twisted half way, swiping his sword up and over. He caught Kento in his shoulder guard, thumping it with enough force to make the warrior of strength stumble back.

Kento slid on his left heel, digging his right foot into the mat to prevent sliding any further. He smirked. "Nice move, Ryo. Should have known you were going to pull that."

Ryo returned the smirk, brandishing his wooden sword for another go. "I'm just full of surprises. Are you ready to give?"

"Kento of Hardrock never gives up!"

Cye smiled. Unable to resist, he chuckled. "Hard-headed is more like it."

Kento's face turned slightly red and he gave a helpless shrug. Could he help it if he was so headstrong? He switched his practice bo to his other hand and twisted his body half-way, swinging the bo behind him to catch Ryo in the knees.

Ryo leaped back, and the bo whished through the air. He cocked one eyebrow up and his lips half twisted upward. "Nice move, Kento."

"That was what I said to you earlier!"

Just returning the favor!"

Cye leaned his elbows against his knees and slightly leaned forward with his eyebrows curving upward and his eyes opening slightly. The ceiling light reflected off them, making his irises appear more blue than blue-green.

'I think I should move and find another spot to sit in,' he thought. Deciding to heed his own advice, he quickly removed himself and hurried over to the left side of the room where a replica of an ancient Samurai armor stood on a pedestal. Kento suddenly crashed up against the wall and fell down onto the bench, exactly where Cye had been sitting only moments before.

"Kento!" Ryo called out, his voice nearly a shriek. He ran over, mentally yelling at himself for getting too hostile in his attack. Damn it, he shouldn't have done that! He hurried over as Kento was pushing himself up off from the bench and rubbing the back of his head.

"Geeze, Ryo… when you get into practice, you really go into it," Kento breathed out. He shook his head.

"Sorry about that," Ryo apologized with a grimace. "Are you all right?"

"Yeaaah," Kento said, and then blinked. "Wait, wasn't Cye here in this spot a moment ago?"

Cye stepped forward with his arms crossed, though his eyes were slightly wide and his eyebrows arched upward as far as they would go. "I had the feeling to move from that spot, and I did."

Ryo and Kento fixed their eyes on him with mouths hanging half-open.

xXx

Sage's brow increased in depth and his lips flattened thinly as he listened to Rowen explain his dream. He noted the Ronin of Life's hands were shaking, rather anxiously and sweat appeared just above his temple. It seemed strange that Cye would willingly walk in through the Dynasty gates.

Dreams were sometimes fantastical, designed by the brain, usually because the dreamer had subconscious feelings about the matter or something influenced the dream. The Ronins sometimes had those silly dreams that did not make sense, but when they dreamt about each other, it was because something really was happening.

Rowen took a moment to pull out his meal from the microwave and set it on the table. He had said everything he could about the dream and could say no more about it. It was just very frightening, confusing, and try as he might he could not brush it off. It seemed just too real.

He watched Sage, hoping that the Ronin of Light would see into his dream and tell him the meaning behind it. Sage was quiet at the moment, his brow knitted in deep concentration. It was these moments that Rowen worried the answer was either not there or it would be the type of answer he did not want to hear.

Finally, Sage spoke in a voice that sought to understand more but denied the attribute of it. "I wish I knew the answer to this, Rowen. There are very many possibilities that the dream could mean, and each one is just as worrisome as the next."

Rowen's breath hitched with a sharp intake. Sage's telegnosis wasn't always so hidden from him. Was it that Sage was just as afraid as he was? He hoped so. Perhaps, Halo kept it secret for a reason, or something kept it secret from Halo. 'Or someone.'

"In the meantime, we should try to keep an eye on Cye, but secretively. The last thing we need is for Cye to feel like we're being overprotective," Sage said. He glanced out the window, watching the rain steadily pour down, still producing that haze that blocked visibility a good distance. Cye was no weakling and he certainly was not a coward. Though his armor was weaker on land, it didn't stop the Ronin of Water from charging into battle. Cye may not have enjoyed fighting and sometimes was quite reluctant, but when he had to do it to protect his friends, he was there for them.

Hopefully, nothing would happen.

xXx

The rain finally tapered down to a medium drizzle by the time it was dusk, and it was when Mia finally pulled into the driveway and parked before the front door. For a moment she sat behind the wheel, collecting her bearings and shoving down her indignation. The nerve of that man! How could it be that he insisted the Ronin armors were a fabrication! On top of that, all her evidence to him only proved nothing more than a fallacy to him. Photoshop stunts and cosplay costumes! Special effects!

She tightened her grip on the steering wheel causing her knuckles to turn white, and she clenched her teeth tightly together. If she never saw him again it would be just fine with her. She took a minute to inhale several times deeply, loosened her fingers off the steering wheel, and unclenched her jaw.

'Might as well head inside and see how the boys are doing,' she thought. Hopefully they hadn't gotten too bored from all the rain. The rain was the reason she was late and the cause of her being stuck with that arrogant man.

She stepped out of the jeep and closed the door, and headed inside her house. Everything seemed normal; no messes here, but it was too quiet. She stepped further from the foyer and into the living room. There they were, all sitting on the sofas, watching TV. She turned her head to the TV and watched as Godzilla lunged for a gargantuan preying mantis like creature. She raised her eyebrows, trying to figure out just exactly what type of creature it was.

"It's a Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism," Cye spoke up suddenly, his eyes never leaving the TV screen. "M.U.T.O for short."

Mia gawked at him, and so did the other Ronins.

"Uh, Cye?" Ryo said, slowly. "No one said anything."

Cye blinked, drew his eyebrows together and pursed his lips. "But…I heard Mia ask about that creature."

The room was silent and everyone somberly stared at Cye. No one spoke or moved the slightest. The environment was heavy with disbelief and shock, and Cye lowered his gaze to the floor. He clenched his fists. 'Am I going crazy?' he asked himself. 'I swore I heard her…'

"Cye, maybe you need sleep," Rowen suggested slowly. He carefully observed Cye's countenance, which seemed to be turning quite ruddy and the eyes darker. Perhaps he shouldn't have said anything, but if Cye was imagining things it meant he needed to rest. Hallucinations often came from those who lacked sleep.

Cye's eyes flashed as he turned to glare at Rowen. He clenched his fists tightly to his sides. He didn't need sleep. He certainly wasn't insane, but now everyone seemed to think he was. "I don't need sleep, Rowen," he seethed through clenched teeth.

Rowen's eyes widened and he inwardly gasped. Was he imagining things or did Cye's eyes just glow red? He looked again to be sure and Cye's eyes seemed to be their normal blue-green color. The thoughts of the dream returned to him and he inwardly tensed. "Maybe I'm the one who needs sleep," he said, lamely.

"Dude, you sleep enough for all of us," Kento said.

Rowen rolled his eyes and threw one of the couch pillows at Kento's head, earning the reaction he'd expect from his friend: an oof and dramatic fall over. He smirked a bit, marveling slightly at Kento's playful antics.

Mia frowned to herself. She studied Cye in wonder. Unable to bring herself to say anything, she simply turned and walked out of the living room. In the kitchen, she poured herself a cup of hot tea and added some milk and sugar, stirring slowly as she gazed out the window at the drizzle.

Cye had correctly answered her own mental questions about the creature, but how he had picked up her thoughts? She certainly wasn't telepathic and none of the other Ronins had picked up on it. It was very strange.

"Mia?"

Mia turned her head. Ryo stood in the door way, looking at her with his lips twisted downward and a haunted look in his eyes. "What is it, Ryo?" She could just about guess.

"Something's going on with Cye," Ryo said. He came closer to her and leaned himself against the counter, settling his arms against the countertop.

"I think you're right, Ryo," Mia said. "Cye took me by surprise when he mentioned the name of that creature on the movie. He… knew what I was thinking."

"I had a feeling something was going on when he did that," Ryo said. He clasped his hands together, rubbing his thumbs in thought. "Earlier, during my training session with Kento, Cye suddenly moved just seconds before Kento crashed against the wall where he had been sitting. He told us he had a feeling to move away from that spot."

Mia furrowed her eyebrows.

"Mia, there's something else. I've seen Cye's eyes turning red when he gets angry."

Mia threw a sharp look at Ryo and her eyes widened to saucer plate size.

xXx