I don't own Ronin Warriors.
Chapter 6
Ryo and Maria walked through the city, trying to find their friends. The two were quiet, not really talking much as they walked. They haven't been attacked since Ryo rescued Maria from certain death and while Ryo was uncertain about this, Maria knew that Talpa had gotten what he wanted and separated the Ronins. She now feels even more guilt than she has ever felt in her entire life.
"Maria!"
Maria snapped her attention to Ryo, who had stopped walking and was staring at her. "I'm sorry, what did you say?" Maria asked.
"I asked if you were ok. You weren't talking for a while and you seemed distance."
"Yeah, I'm fine. I just thought you were mad with me and didn't want to talk with me."
"I'm not mad." Ryo walked over to Maria, putting his hands on her shoulders. "I was just worried when I saw those soldiers surround you."
Maria was shocked about what Ryo said to her and she had to control herself from getting emotional. "You…You were worried about me?"
"Of course, you're my friend. I care about you."
Tears weld up in Maria's eyes as she launched herself onto Ryo, hugging him tightly. Ryo was shocked by first but when he felt her body shaking, Ryo wrapped his arms around her, rubbing her back. "Hey, it's ok."
"I'm sorry," Maria said, her voice cracking as she pulled away from Ryo. "It's just been so long since somebody cared about me."
"What are you talking about? Don't you have a mom and dad who love you?"
Maria shook her head. "No. My life has been terrible and I don't know who to trust anymore."
"You can trust me."
"Don't say that."
"Why not?"
"You'll hate me when you realize what I've done."
Ryo pulled away and then cupped Maria's face in his hands, wiping the tears. "Maria, you're my friend. I could never hate you."
Maria stared at him for a moment, internally deciding if he was telling the truth or not. "Do you promise?"
"I promise."
"Ryo, I…I have something to tell you."
"What is it?"
"I-"
"Ryo! Maria!" The two turned around to see Cye walking towards them.
"Hey, Cye," Ryo greeted, walking over to him. "I'm guessing you haven't seen the others."
"No, you two are the first I've seen. Maria, are you ok?" Cye asked when he saw the distraught look on Maria's face.
Maria gave him a reassuring smile. "I'm fine."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure. We should go and find the others." Maria walked off, leaving Ryo and Cye behind her. Ryo and Cye stared at each other before hurrying after her.
"Did something happen?" Cye quietly asked Ryo.
"I think something is bothering her. She seemed scared to talk to me and she thought that I would hate her after she tells me what happened," answered Ryo.
"She doesn't think that, does she?"
"I've tried to reassure her that I won't be she seemed unsure, almost scared."
"I hope it's nothing bad. She seems like a really nice girl."
"Yeah, she is."
"Guys, I see Sage!" yelled Maria. "He's getting attacked by soldiers!"
Ryo and Cye ran over to where Maria was standing and sure enough, Sage was holding himself off against soldiers while White Blaze was protecting Mia and Yulie.
"Cye, let's go!" Ryo ordered, charging over to help Sage, with Cye following suit.
Sage was dealing with the army in front of him but one of the soldiers got a hold of him from behind, holding the Ronin in his arms. Two other soldiers appeared in front of him, weapons ready. They charged at Sage and before they were able to strike Sage, Ryo and Cye knocked them down. Sage was then able to get out of the grasp of the soldier holding him and flip him over. The three stood back to back as the army surrounded them.
"Are you ok?" Ryo asked Sage.
"I had it under control," said Sage. "But thanks."
Cye let out a small chuckle.
As the three were taken down the army, Maria headed over to Mia and Yulie. "Are you two ok?" Maria asked them.
"Yes, thanks for helping us escape back then," said Mia.
Maria smiled at her. "You're welcome."
"You also found Ryo and Cye!" Yulie cheered.
"Actually, Ryo and Cye found me. Get back!" Maria pushed Mia and Yulie back as she lifted up her hand, making the soldier coming at them freeze in his spot. Maria lifted the soldier up then threw him back into his buddies, taking out a handful of them.
"Thanks," said Mia. "Again."
Maria opened her mouth to say something when suddenly, more soldiers surrounded the group. White Blaze growled and Maria got into a fighting position. Before any of the soldiers could attack, they started falling to the ground one by one. Maria was confused by this until she saw Rowen and Kento appear from the fallen soldiers.
"Kento! Rowen!" Sage yelled as he punched a soldier in the face.
"Come on, save some of the fun for us," Kento said as he started kicking and punching soldiers left and right.
"Are you three all right?" Rowen asked.
"Yes, we're fine," answered Mia.
"Good." Rowen stood beside Maria and together, they fought off the small army that was advancing towards them. Finally, the Ronins and Maria were able to get rid of the army of soldiers and had regrouped.
"How did you find us?" Ryo asked Kento and Rowen.
"We heard all the smashing and bashing," answered Rowen.
"Good thing we got here or else we would have missed all the fun," commented Kento.
"Now we know another way to get Kento's attention besides food," stated Sage.
"Hey!" The group laughed as Kento glared at Sage.
"Now that we're back together, it should be easy to get into the Dynasty and take down Talpa," said Ryo.
"Wait, does anyone find this weird?" asked Cye.
"What do you mean?" Kento asked.
"I agree with Cye," said Rowen. "Talpa hasn't tried to split us up before. For the past few weeks, he'd just been sending his Warlords to fight us but now he seems more tactically, like he somehow knows how to get to us."
The guilt was coming back to Maria. All of this had started because of her and she knew she had to say something about it.
"How could Talpa have known how to get to us?" Sage asked.
"Yeah, it's not like he sent a spy or anything," agreed Kento.
Maria flinched at that and was now starting to worry what the group would think of her. Ryo did promise her that he wouldn't hate her but she was starting to think that promise would break. But…what if he does stand up for her? Gathering up her courage, Maria looked at the group, her friends, and decided to tell them. "Guys, I have something to tell you." Everyone turned their attention to Maria, who was slightly shaking from fear and nervousness. Taking a deep breath, Maria started talking. "I know why Talpa has been changing and how he knows what to do to fight against you."
"Really?" Yulie asked.
"It was me. I've been telling Talpa about you for the past few weeks. That's how Talpa knew about your fighting techniques."
How will the Ronins react to Maria's statement. Find out in the next chapter. Please review!
