Legend of the Kokoro

Episode 11-Inspiration

"The poem that I'm about to read is entitled 'A Quarter for the Homeless', which was written by one of my students last year," Mrs. Rose announced to her seventh period class. She was currently teaching her College English course.

Mrs. Rose could tell that most of her students were squirming around in their seats slightly, anxiously waiting for the bell to ring so that they could leave her classroom. Among the few students that were paying close attention were Rowen and Roxie, who were patiently waiting for their teacher to start reading the poem. Mrs. Rose cleared her throat for a moment before she started reading:

" 'A quarter for the homeless. Homeless man on the side of the road. Road to nowhere. Nowhere but that one cold place. Place where I can dream. Dream about the days of gold and women. Women now only pitch coins in my cup. Cup of coffee these days is like the Rolex I once had. Had it all but now it's gone. Gone is a nice word for nothing. Nothing is what she left me ten years past. Past is where I wish I was. Was it all something I could have kept. Kept pushin' a little further until I broke. Broke is my title these days. Days when I find shelter under a newspaper. Newspapers knew it was gonna happen. Happens that no one told me though. Though I lost it all I am not depressed or sad. Sad would only be wasting what I do have. Have you got a quarter for the homeless?' "

"That was an excellent poem, Mrs. Rose," Roxie confessed.

"Thank you, Roxanna," Mrs. Rose replied. "Can anyone identify the technique being used here?" Rowen's hand immediately went up in response to Mrs. Rose's question. "Yes, Rowen?" Mrs. Rose asked.

"That particular author used the wraparound technique, which involves starting the next line of a poem with the last word from the previous line," Rowen explained.

"Very good, Rowen," Mrs. Rose replied. "I have one last poem I'd like to read to you before you leave today. It's called 'Map to Forgiveness', which was done by another one of my past students." Mrs. Rose picked up a second piece of paper from her desk and started to read from it.

" 'There was a shortcut at I'm Sorry. I must have missed that turn. I traveled down the long and windy road of Stubbornness instead. I traveled around Circle of Stupidity, got lost on the Avenue of Pride. I didn't see the detour at It's My Fault. I was looking for the sign that says It's Yours. I missed the sharp right at Forgive Me, and ended up on the Highway of Pain. I got off the exit at Remorse, and traveled through the town Too Late. There was a shortcut at I'm Sorry, but I must have missed that turn.' "

Mrs. Rose paused for a moment as she looked up at her class. "What do you believe the author was trying to express in his work? Anyone?" Mrs. Rose noticed that Roxie had her hand raised. "Yes, Roxanna?"

"I believe that this poem could be the author's way of apologizing for something he might have done in the past," Roxie revealed. "He could have done something that resulted in losing a good friend and it probably took him a while to realize that it was his fault, and not his friend's."

"That's quite a conclusion you came to, Roxanna. Anyone else?" Mrs. Rose asked the class. Just then, the bell rang, ending the class. As everyone got up from their desks and started to gather their belongings, Mrs. Rose announced, "We'll continue this discussion tomorrow. And don't forget, your poetry assignment is due at the end of the week. Feel free to experiment with the writing techniques we went over in class. Have a nice day, everyone."

"This is probably going to be our easiest assignment ever," Roxie admitted as she and Rowen left the classroom together. "Writing poetry is a piece of cake. Don't you agree, Rowen?" Rowen was completely silent, lost in his own thoughts. "Rowen!" Roxie shouted, bringing Rowen back to reality.

"I'm sorry, Roxie. What did you say?" Rowen asked.

"Don't you agree that this poetry assignment is going to be easy?" Roxie repeated.

"Umm... yes, Roxie, of course. Piece of cake," Rowen muttered out loud as the two friends continued walking down the hallway to their lockers...

"I absolutely abhor poetry!" Rowen confessed to Cye and Ryo. The three friends were outside on the soccer field, all dressed in T-shirts, sweat pants, and sneakers. They were all working on their pushups, along with the rest of the teenage boys in their Physical Education class.

"Save the chitchat for the locker room, Rowen!" Coach Zettler shouted.

"Sorry, Mr. Zettler. It won't happen again," Rowen quickly apologized.

Coach Zettler walked in front of his gym class and blew his whistle. "All right, everyone! I want ten laps around the soccer field! No cutting around the corners of the field or you're doing extra laps! Now go!"

Some of the boys groaned as they all got up and started to run around the soccer field. "Mr. Zettler is so strict! How can you stand him, Ryo?" Cye asked curiously.

"Believe me, Cye, he's not as bad as you think," Ryo replied as he, Cye, and Rowen ran around the first goal post, followed by the rest of the class.

"Not to interrupt, but can we focus back on my problem?" Rowen asked a bit impatiently.

"Sure, Rowen," Cye replied as they finished their first lap.

"What I don't get is how can a genius like yourself have a problem with such an easy English assignment?" Ryo asked curiously.

"That's the thing, Ryo. I don't know why poetry is so difficult for me," Rowen confessed. "I understand all of the writing techniques that are involved, but when it comes to actually writing poetry, it's like my brain freezes up or something. I'm lucky to be able to pull off a C."

"Well, if you want, maybe Ryo and I can help you with this poetry assignment," Cye suggested as they started their third lap.

"This is a first for me. Normally, it's you guys asking me for help with homework, not the other way around!" Rowen remarked.

"Hey, there's a first time for everything, Rowen," Ryo pointed out.

Rowen was silent for a few moments, thinking it over as they continued running. "Okay, we'll do that. How about both of you come over tomorrow after school?" Rowen asked.

"I can't, Rowen. I have soccer practice, remember?" Ryo reminded Rowen.

"Oh, yeah. That's right. How about you both come over around five tomorrow for dinner?" Rowen asked.

"Umm... sure, Rowen. You're not... cooking, are you?" Ryo asked cautiously.

"No, I'm not, Ryo. My mother will be cooking dinner. She has off from work tomorrow," Rowen revealed.

"That's very good, Rowen. No offense to you, but the first and last time you tried your hand at cooking, we almost died from food poisoning!" Cye remarked teasingly.

"Do you have to bring that up again, Cye?" Rowen asked a bit angrily as Ryo tried hard to muffle his snickering.

"I'm sorry, Rowen. I'll help you out tomorrow," Cye apologized.

"So will I," Ryo added as the three friends finished their fourth lap around the soccer field...

"What is it, Devaki?" Dulcea asked as her servant hobbled into her throne room.

"Lady Dulcea, I need to speak to Strata right away," Devaki revealed as he bowed to Dulcea. "I need to discuss an important plan with him."

"Very well, then. Strata, come forth!" Dulcea commanded. Almost instantly, Strata entered the throne room.

"You called for me, Lady Dulcea?" Strata asked as he bowed respectfully to Dulcea.

"Devaki wishes to speak with you, Strata," Dulcea explained.

Strata turned around towards Dulcea's servant and asked, "What do you want with me, Devaki?"

"I need your help in capturing a rare creature that will soon be arriving on this planet," Devaki explained.

"What kind of creature, Devaki?" Strata asked curiously.

"This creature goes by many names, Strata, but on Earth, it is known as a sphinx," Devaki revealed.

"A sphinx? You mean they're real?" Strata asked out of surprise.

"Indeed they are, Strata. Sphinxes are immortal creatures whose sole purpose is to travel to different worlds and gather as much knowledge as possible," Devaki explained. "Only one sphinx exists in each galaxy, and the sphinx inhabiting this galaxy arrives on Earth every one hundred years. According to my calculations, the sphinx is due to arrive at Lake Biwa in Japan two days from now."

"I see, Devaki. But why do we need to capture this sphinx?" Strata asked curiously.

"As I mentioned before, the sphinx has a vast amount of knowledge that we can use to our advantage," Devaki explained. "This creature has witnessed several great battles and wars in its time, including Talpa's first invasion of the mortal world. It must have witnessed the creation of the nine Ronin armors, so it would know the key to destroying them once and for all."

"If everything you say about this creature is true, Devaki, it would be well worth it to capture the sphinx for our own personal use," Dulcea admitted.

"It will be worth it. I promise you that, Lady Dulcea," Devaki confessed.

"All right, Devaki. I'll assist you with capturing the sphinx," Strata finally agreed...

"Thanks for dinner, Mrs. Hashiba," Ryo replied as he and Cye started to follow Rowen upstairs to his bedroom.

"It was delicious," Cye admitted.

"Thank you, boys," Mrs. Hashiba confessed.

"This way, guys," Rowen announced as he opened the door to his bedroom and walked inside, followed by Ryo and Cye.

"Rowen, have you even tried to work on your poetry assignment at all?" Cye asked curiously as he sat down on a wooden chair at Rowen's desk.

"Yes, I did, Cye. I've been trying for the past five days, but I came up with absolutely nothing," Rowen revealed as he sat down on his bed, while Ryo sat on a second chair in the room.

"You know, maybe if you try clearing your mind of everything, it'll help you concentrate on this assignment of yours," Ryo suggested. "Do you have any other homework due this week, Rowen?"

"Not anymore, Ryo," Rowen explained. "I already finished all of my homework, except for this poetry assignment, of course."

"I agree with Ryo about clearing your mind of everything. What about meditating? Have you tried that at all?" Cye asked. To his surprise, Rowen didn't answer him at all. He was staring out of his bedroom window. "Rowen? Didn't you hear me?" Cye shouted loudly, bringing Rowen back to reality.

"I'm sorry. What was that, Cye?" Rowen asked as he looked over at Cye.

"You know, Rowen, this is the first time I've ever seen you look vacant!" Cye remarked with a slight smirk.

"I'm sorry about that, Cye. I promise that it won't happen again," Rowen promised.

"What's so interesting that you decide to stare out the window instead of listen to us?" Ryo asked curiously as he got up and walked towards the window.

"It's nothing, Ryo. You don't need to get up!" Rowen lied as he nervously watched Ryo peer through the slightly open blinds.

Ryo noticed that one of the windows of the neighboring house was directly across from Rowen's bedroom window. He gasped slightly out of surprise when he saw Roxie pass by the window. "Oh, I see what you've been doing, Rowen," Ryo muttered out loud as he turned away from the window.

"What has he been doing?" Cye asked curiously.

"Looks like our friend here has been spying on his neighbor, Roxie!" Ryo announced. "Her bedroom window is right across from Rowen's."

"I haven't been spying on Roxie, Ryo!" Rowen denied as his face turned beet red. "I would never invade her privacy like that!"

"Then what have you been doing?" Ryo asked curiously.

"Roxie knows that my bedroom window is parallel to hers. Sometimes, we talk to each other from our rooms when we have the time, rather than use the telephone. We usually just discuss homework assignments and any upcoming tests we have."

"So, why didn't you just ask Roxie for help instead of getting us involved?" Cye asked curiously.

"She does live right next door to you, Rowen," Ryo pointed out.

"I can't do that, guys," Rowen muttered out loud.

"And why not?" Cye asked.

"Because... I might have led Roxie to believe that I'm a decent poetry writer," Rowen reluctantly admitted.

"Excuse me? You what?" Ryo asked out of shock.

"I can't believe you would lie to Roxie about something like this," Cye admitted.

"I know, Cye. I didn't mean to lie to Roxie. It just. came out that way," Rowen explained.

"You are going to tell her the truth, right, Rowen?" Ryo asked.

"Of course I'll tell Roxie the truth," Rowen assured his two friends...

"Just a little bit more..." Devaki muttered to himself. Dulcea's hunchbacked servant was sitting at a table in his laboratory, tightening a screw on a pair of small black binoculars. "There we go. Perfect!" Devaki admitted as he held up the binoculars and looked through the eyepieces to make sure it was working properly.

As he looked around the room with the binoculars, Devaki noticed a large patch of dark blue metal enter his laboratory. Devaki looked up from the binoculars at Strata, who was standing next to the table. "Glad you could make it, Strata," Devaki admitted as he got off of his stool. "I have some tools for you that'll assist you in capturing that sphinx tomorrow."

"What kind of tools, Devaki?" Strata asked curiously.

"First, there's these binoculars," Devaki explained as he handed Strata the black binoculars he was working on earlier.

"What do I need binoculars for, Devaki?" Strata asked suspiciously. "I'm only going to be a few yards away from where the sphinx is supposed to land, according to your calculations."

"These aren't ordinary binoculars, Strata. You see, besides possessing a vast amount of knowledge from many worlds, the sphinx has great powers as well. One of these powers is invisibility, which is what the sphinx uses so it can observe what's going on without being seen," Devaki explained. "With the binoculars, you will be able to see through the sphinx's shield of invisibility. You will also need this special rope."

"What's this for?" Strata asked as Devaki handed him a long, thick black rope.

"This special rope will ensure that the sphinx will be caught," Devaki explained. "Besides invisibility, the sphinx possesses great strength and would be able to break through normal ropes and chains. This rope will bind all of the sphinx's powers, allowing you to capture it, Strata. There's one more thing. You're going to need help capturing the sphinx, so bring some of Dulcea's arcanes with you to Lake Biwa tomorrow."

"I'll do that, Devaki," Strata muttered out loud as he left Devaki's lab with the binoculars and rope...

"Let's see... I can probably use this quote here," Roxie muttered to herself as she jotted some notes into her notebook. She was sitting at a table in the school library with an open library book spread out in front of her.

Roxie was a bit surprised to see a tall shadow coming from behind her. She turned around and smiled a little bit when she recognized Rowen, who had a few books under his arm. "Hey, Rowen. What brings you here?" Roxie asked in a whisper.

"I'm just returning some books that I borrowed," Rowen explained as he walked over to the desk and handed his books to the librarian on duty. "What about you, Roxie? What are you doing here?"

"Just doing some reading for our English term paper," Roxie explained as she continued writing in her notebook.

"That's not due until next month," Rowen whispered as he sat down next to Roxie.

"I know, Rowen, but it never hurts to get an early start," Roxie pointed out. "I finished reading this book, and I'm just copying down some quotes I plan to use for my term paper."

"So, what book did you choose for the term paper?" Rowen asked as he looked down at the open book that Roxie was copying her quotes from.

"It's called 'Brave New World', by Aldous Huxley," Roxie replied.

"I remember reading that book. I found the author's grim prediction of the future very interesting," Rowen confessed.

"You definitely got the 'grim' part right, Rowen," Roxie admitted. "For a book written in the nineteen-thirties, some of Huxley's predictions are starting to come true, especially when it comes to cloning. I found it kind of eerie that he would predict a world where nearly everyone's an identical clone of each other, promiscuity and taking this drug they call 'soma' is an everyday part of life, and things that we would consider normal, such as reading books and having children, is considered primitive."

"Yeah, I know," Rowen muttered out loud as he stared down at the table. "Umm... Roxie? There's something I need to tell you. It's about this poetry assignment."

Rowen waited for some sort of response from Roxie, but he didn't hear a word from her. He lifted his head to look at her and gasped slightly when he saw Roxie with her head lying on the table and her eyes closed. Rowen quickly realized what was happening to Roxie.

"Come on, Roxie. Wake up," he whispered as he gently shook Roxie's shoulder. Suddenly, Roxie moaned slightly as she slowly opened her eyes and looked up at Rowen. "Roxie, did you have one of those visions?" Rowen whispered. Roxie silently nodded her head. "Tell me, what happened?" Rowen asked.

Roxie glanced over at the librarian, who was sitting nearby. Without a word, Roxie stood up from the table and motioned for Rowen to follow her. Rowen quickly got up and followed Roxie into one of the long aisles of books. "Sorry about that, but I didn't want to risk the librarian overhearing our conversation," Roxie revealed.

"I understand, Roxie. Now, tell me what you saw," Rowen requested.

"It was Strata, and he's up to no good," Roxie explained. "He and some odd- looking white zombies are attacking what looks like a sphinx."

"A sphinx, Roxie? Are you sure?" Rowen asked curiously.

"Of course I'm sure, Rowen. It looked just like that stone statue of the Sphinx at Giza, Egypt," Roxie replied.

"Do you know where this is going to occur?" Rowen asked.

"It's going to happen along a large lake west of Ogaki," Roxie explained.

"A large lake west of Ogaki... sounds like Lake Biwa, the largest freshwater lake in Japan," Rowen muttered thoughtfully.

"One thing I don't understand is how can a creature such as the sphinx actually exist," Roxie muttered out loud.

"I don't exactly understand it either, Roxie, but one thing's for sure: if it involves Strata, it can't be anything good," Rowen confessed. "We better get to Lake Biwa as soon as possible."

"Right, Rowen," Roxie agreed as she followed Rowen to the exit...

"Stand ready. The sphinx will be arriving any moment now," Strata announced to the six arcanes standing below him. He was standing in a tall tree overlooking Lake Biwa, while the arcanes were hiding behind a row of bushes. The arcanes were tall, bald, ghastly-white creatures, all wearing dark gray sleeveless robes and boots. Each arcane was armed with a lasso of the black rope in one hand and a spear in the other.

"Hmm?" Strata murmured to himself when he saw a dark speck in the sky through his binoculars.

Is this the sphinx that Devaki spoke of? Or am I just seeing some sort of bird? Strata thought to himself.

Upon lowering the binoculars, Strata realized that the speck he saw had completely disappeared. He looked through the binoculars again and found the speck again. Strata gasped when he realized that the flying creature he saw was much too big to be a bird. "There it is!" Strata gasped out of astonishment as he watched the huge creature land on the shore of the lake.

The creature had the body of a lioness, large white-feathered wings attached to her back, and the head of a female human. The human face was tan in complexion with shoulder-length black hair, golden yellow cat's eyes, and a gold band around her head.

"Wait for my signal," Strata instructed the arcanes as he loaded an arrow in his bow and aimed it carefully at the sphinx, who was taking a drink of water from the lake. With her back turned towards him, Strata fired the arrow at the sphinx. The golden arrow struck the ground just a few feet away from the sphinx, exploding into a ball of yellow light.

Startled by the unexpected flash of light, the sphinx was caught off-guard and became visible to Strata and the six arcanes. "Get her now, before she recovers!" Strata shouted. The arcanes nodded silently as they ran towards the stunned sphinx, her eyes still closed tightly.

One arcane threw his lasso at the sphinx's head. The massive creature gasped when she felt a thick rope tighten around her neck. She opened her eyes and growled angrily when she saw the arcane holding the rope that was around her neck. The sphinx quickly stood up on her hind legs in an attempt to fling the arcane away from her. Instead, two more arcanes lassoed both of her forelegs, preventing her from striking any of them.

"Quick, secure the wings!" Strata shouted when he saw the sphinx starting to take off in the air. One of the remaining three arcanes quickly threw his lasso around the sphinx's wings. With her wings tied tightly together, the sphinx came crashing down to the ground below. "We've got her now. Tie her up!" Strata ordered the six arcanes.

The arcanes all nodded their heads as they quickly went to work. Three of the arcanes wrapped the ropes tightly around the sphinx's muscular legs and massive wings, while the other arcanes attached the loose ends of the ropes to the ground with heavy metal stakes and chains. Suddenly, the sphinx let out a loud, shrill cry that sounded like a combination between a lion's roar and a hawk's screech...

"This is definitely the same lake I saw in the vision I had earlier," Roxie admitted as she stepped onto the sandy shore of Lake Biwa.

"It's been so long since I've been here last," Rowen, who was in his sub- armor, muttered aloud as he gazed out at the body of water spread out before him and Roxie.

"You've been here before? When was that?" Roxie asked curiously as she looked at Rowen.

"During the long battle against Talpa and his Evil Dynasty, the spirit of the Ancient led me here in order to discover the spirit of my armor," Rowen explained. "Ironically, this is also the very place where the others solved the last verse of the poem I told you about, revealing my location in outer space."

Roxie was about to say something when she noticed some slight movement on the opposite shore. "Rowen, look! Over there!" Roxie announced as she pointed at the other side of Lake Biwa.

"It has to be Strata," Rowen muttered thoughtfully. "We better check it out. Hang on, Roxie."

"All right," Roxie replied as she wrapped her arms around Rowen's neck. In just moments, a hollow sphere of dark blue light encompassed Rowen and Roxie and lifted them a few feet in the air. Roxie tightened her grip around Rowen's neck slightly as they rocketed across the freshwater lake, just inches away from the water's surface.

"There he is!" Rowen announced when he recognized his evil clone on the opposing shoreline, standing next to the sphinx that Roxie described from her vision.

"Tighten those ropes!" Strata ordered the arcanes. As he watched the arcanes pull the black ropes even more taut, Strata spotted a small dot of dark blue light coming from the lake. "Hmm?" Strata murmured to himself as he turned around and stared out at the lake. Strata looked through the binoculars and scowled angrily to himself when he saw who was in the distant orb of dark blue light.

"It's Rowen of Strata, and that annoying kokoro of air is with him. I don't know how they discovered our plan, but they won't live to stop me!" Strata quickly dropped the binoculars, grabbed his bow, and fired a bombardment of arrows at the dot of dark blue light.

"Rowen, look out!" Roxie shouted.

Rowen looked up and saw the several incoming arrows heading towards him and Roxie. "Hold on!" Rowen instructed as he used his willpower to steer the orb of dark blue light back and forth, avoiding most of the arrows. A few arrows barely nicked the orb, but that didn't slow down the two friends.

"Let's see them try to avoid this!" Strata muttered angrily as he loaded another arrow in his bow. "ARROW SHOCK WAVE!"

"Oh, no!" Rowen gasped when he recognized the massive blast of yellow energy heading towards him and Roxie.

From the shore, Strata watched as his attack apparently found its target, resulting in a huge explosion and a massive column of water rising high above the surface of Lake Biwa.

"Ha! They're finished!" Strata admitted boastfully with a sinister chuckle. He abruptly stopped laughing when he saw the dark blue orb emerge unscathed from the column of water.

"It can't be! They shouldn't have survived!" Strata gasped out of shock as the orb landed on the shore just a few yards away from him.

"Roxie, take cover," Rowen instructed, pointing at the nearby forest.

"All right, Rowen," Roxie agreed as she quickly ran over to the bordering trees.

"I don't know what you're up to, Strata, but you won't get away with it!" Rowen proclaimed as he held up his clenched fist.

"Armor of Strata! DAO INOCHI! I'm warning you now, Strata. Only one of us will walk away from this fight," Rowen announced as he took out his bow.

"Well, what you waiting for? Let's get it on!" Strata retorted menacingly.

In just moments, a shower of golden arrows rained down on both Rowen and Strata. Roxie, who was watching everything from behind an old oak tree, gasped slightly when she saw three of the arcanes sneaking up behind Rowen with their spears drawn.

"I have to stop them before they get to Rowen," Roxie told herself as she concentrated on the three pale creatures. "WHIRLWIND!" The arcanes struggled to walk through the powerful wind, but one by one, they each got picked up by the intense winds and thrown into the nearby lake. "That should take care of them," Roxie muttered to herself.

She turned her head and looked at the massive sphinx restrained by the thick black ropes. After a few moments of staring at the mythical creature, Roxie started experiencing feelings of guilt and pity towards the sphinx, who was struggling against her bindings.

"That poor thing. She shouldn't be tied up like that," Roxie whispered solemnly as she headed over to the sphinx, being careful to avoid some of the stray arrows from the ongoing battle between Rowen and Strata.

The sphinx slowly lifted her head when she heard footsteps approaching and growled a warning. "Take it easy there. I'm here to help you," Roxie assured the sphinx as she reached for the rope around the sphinx's neck. She never noticed the three remaining arcanes sneaking up on her from behind the sphinx.

The sphinx spotted the three arcanes in the corner of her eye and, using her tail, knocked the arcanes into the water. Roxie heard the screams and turned towards the lake just in time to see the remaining arcanes hit the water with a huge splash.

"Muchas gracias," Roxie replied as she finished untying the rope around the sphinx's neck and started working on the rope securing the sphinx's left front paw...

"Had enough, Rowen of Strata?" Strata asked sarcastically as he panted a bit, with numerous beads of sweat running down his face. Both warriors were starting to show signs of fatigue.

"No way!" Rowen proclaimed in between gasps of air, his face soaked in perspiration. "I'll never give up to the likes of you!" Suddenly, Rowen noticed a massive shadowy figure standing behind Strata. "What the..." Rowen murmured under his breath as he took a few steps back.

"What's the matter, Rowen of Strata? Giving up already?" Strata asked sinisterly, unaware of the huge shadow standing behind him. He withdrew an arrow from his quiver, loaded it into his bow, and aimed the arrow at Rowen's unprotected face. "Prepare to say goodbye to this world!"

Before Strata could fire his arrow at Rowen, he suddenly felt the presence of something standing behind him. He turned around and gasped loudly when he recognized the sphinx, completely free of her restraints. She was staring down at him with anger burning in her golden yellow cat's eyes.

"Oh, great!" Strata muttered angrily under his breath as the sphinx lifted one of her massive paws. Before she could strike him, Strata teleported away. "This isn't over, Rowen of Strata! We shall meet again and finish what we've started!" Strata's voice echoed.

"I'll look forward to that day," Rowen muttered out loud. He heard large footsteps and saw that the sphinx was approaching him. Uncertain whether the creature was good or evil, Rowen cautiously reached for an arrow from his quiver.

"Rowen, don't hurt her!" Roxie shouted.

Startled from hearing Roxie's voice, Rowen stopped what he was doing and looked up at his friend, who was sitting behind the sphinx's massive head. "Roxie, what do you think you're doing?" Rowen asked suspiciously as Roxie climbed off of the sphinx's back.

"It's okay, Rowen. She's on our side," Roxie revealed as she approached Rowen.

The two friends looked back up at the sphinx, who was sitting on her hind legs, like a cat would. The sphinx bowed her head deeply and spoke in a deep noble voice, "My thanks to you, Rowen of Strata, for saving my life."

"You... you can talk?" Rowen stuttered out of astonishment.

"Of course I can, Rowen of Strata," the sphinx replied as she raised her head.

"How do you know my name?" Rowen asked curiously as he put away his bow.

"I recognize the armor that you're wearing as the true armor of Strata," the sphinx explained. "Although that imposter that attempted to capture me wore armor similar to your own, I sensed the aura of evil surrounding it and knew it couldn't be the real Ronin armor of Strata."

"How do you know about Rowen's armor?" Roxie asked curiously.

"Many years ago, I witnessed the death of an armor shell belonging to a evil demon and the birth of nine new armors, including your own, Rowen of Strata," the sphinx revealed. "It was shortly after the defeat of this evil demon by the hands of the guardian of your world. It was the greatest battle the world had ever seen between the forces of good and evil."

"She's definitely telling the truth, Roxie," Rowen verified. "Our armors were created from Talpa's armor, along with the armors of the four Dark Warlords, by the Ancient. Until his death, he was the guardian of our world."

"His spirit still watches over you, Rowen of Strata, along with the four other Ronin Warriors," the sphinx added. "I even know of the kokoro that resides inside of you, Roxanna Rodriguez."

"How do you know about all of this?" Rowen asked curiously.

"I visit your planet every one hundred years. During my visits here, I collect vast amounts of an item that I consider to be of great value," the sphinx explained.

"And what is that?" Roxie asked.

"I collect knowledge," the sphinx revealed. "I've witnessed many of your planet's historical events over the centuries."

"Do you think that maybe that's why Strata and those strange creatures were trying to capture the sphinx?" Roxie asked Rowen.

"That's a possibility," Rowen agreed. "I'm sure that Dulcea could find a way to use that knowledge to her advantage."

"Excuse me for so abrupt, but I must be going now," the sphinx interrupted as she stood up on all fours. "I shouldn't stay here. That imposter might come back for me. Also, I must explore your world and see for myself what has changed in a hundred years."

"We understand," Rowen replied.

As Rowen and Roxie started to walk to the forest, the sphinx shouted, "Rowen of Strata! Before you go, may I have a word with you in private?"

"Well, I don't see why not," Rowen replied.

"I'll be waiting by the main road, okay, Rowen?" Roxie asked.

"All right, Roxie," Rowen agreed. As Roxie disappeared into the forest, Rowen approached the sphinx and asked, "So what did you need to speak to me about?"

"In exchange for your heroic deed, Rowen of Strata, I wish to give you something," the sphinx revealed.

"Thanks, but I can't accept anything," Rowen declined.

"All I have to offer you is the knowledge I have gathered over the centuries," the sphinx explained. "Before I leave, perhaps I can offer some advice on a certain problem you're experiencing."

"What problem?" Rowen asked, although he knew what the answer was going to be.

"You seek inspiration, don't you, Rowen of Strata?" the sphinx asked.

"Yes, I suppose I do," Rowen reluctantly admitted.

"There is no shame in that, Rowen of Strata," the sphinx told Rowen. "Over my numerous visits to this planet, I have seen many great literary and scientific minds struggle with their works due to their conflicts with inspiration, such as Albert Einstein, William Shakespeare, Edgar Allen Poe, and Leonardo da Vinci.

"Inspiration is a very strange thing. It affects different people in different ways, and also comes in many different forms. To some, inspiration may be a place, a fond memory, a cherished possession, or even a person that they deeply care for. Rowen of Strata, you need not look far for your inspiration, for it's much closer than you think. Do you understand now?"

"I do understand some of what you've told me, but not all of it," Rowen revealed.

"In time, you will understand everything I've told you. I'm afraid I must leave you now," the sphinx announced as she stretched out her wings.

"Before you go, can I ask you something?" Rowen asked.

"Certainly," the sphinx replied.

"How are you able to observe all of these historical events without being seen?" Rowen inquired.

"I have been blessed with the power of invisibility, Rowen of Strata," the sphinx explained. "There was only one other time when I have been seen by mortal eyes, and that was almost five thousand years in a country called Egypt. Until we meet again, Rowen of Strata." With that, the sphinx took off in the air and soon vanished before Rowen's eyes...

"How dare you fail me, Strata!" Dulcea shouted angrily. She was sitting in her throne, with Devaki standing by her side, staring out at the five Ronin clones in the room. Dulcea's eyes were focused on Strata, who was standing in front of the other Ronin clones, with his head bowed down in shame.

"My apologies, Lady Dulcea. If Rowen of Strata and the kokoro of air hadn't intervened." Strata started to explain.

"Silence!" Dulcea interrupted loudly. She looked over at Devaki and asked, "Is it possible to track down that sphinx, Devaki?"

"I'm afraid not, Lady Dulcea," Devaki reluctantly admitted.

Dulcea's expression turned grim as she looked back at Strata with her piercing dark violet eyes. "Get out of my sight, Strata! I'll deal with your punishment later!"

"Yes, Lady Dulcea," Strata replied solemnly as he turned around to leave the room.

As he passed the other Ronin clones, Wildfire remarked, "Way to go, Strata!"

"You have made a disgrace of yourself, not to mention the rest of us!" Halo added with a hint of venom, with Hardrock and Torrent snickering sinisterly.

"Stop it!" Dulcea commanded loudly. The Ronin clones immediately kept quiet upon hearing Dulcea's words. "I've had enough of your childish bickering! I want all of you out of here, now!" Dulcea ordered. All five Ronin clones silently nodded their heads as they filed out of the throne room...

"Come on, Rowen. You can do this," Rowen told himself. It was late at night, and Rowen was sitting at his desk with a pencil and a blank sheet of paper spread out in front of him. After a few minutes of complete silence, Rowen groaned loudly out of frustration and slammed his closed fist on the top of the desk.

"This is hopeless! I can't think of anything to write! I wish I knew what the sphinx meant about my inspiration being closer than I think." Rowen closed his eyes for a few moments, thinking hard about something to write, but he couldn't come up with anything. As he opened his eyes, Rowen muttered to himself, "I just need to clear my head. Perhaps some fresh air will help me."

With that idea in mind, Rowen stood up, approached his window, and reached for the cord to open his blinds. Before he could finish opening his blinds, Rowen noticed the lights coming on in Roxie's bedroom. Roxie entered the bedroom, wearing a bathrobe over her nightgown. Rowen watched Roxie as she took off her robe, hung it on a hook on her bedroom door, and turned off the lights.

"What am I doing?" Rowen asked himself as he slowly walked away from the window and back to his desk. "Roxie's my friend. I shouldn't be staring at her like that." Suddenly, Rowen was surprised when words and ideas started coming to him like an opened floodgate.

"So, that's what the sphinx meant," Rowen realized as he sat down at his desk and started writing...

"Nice job," Mrs. Rose replied as one of her students handed in his poetry assignment to her. She looked up at the rest of students and asked, "Who would like to read their poem next?"

"I'll go, Mrs. Rose," Roxie volunteered as she willingly raised her hand.

"Go ahead, Roxanna," Mrs. Rose instructed.

Roxie stood up from her desk, walked to the front of the classroom, and turned around to face her fellow classmates. "My poem is called 'The Head of the House'," Roxie announced to the class. She cleared her throat a bit before she started to read from the piece of paper she was holding in her hand:

"A man's head is a house. The brain, the attic, where memories, locked away, are released by an unexpected visit. The mouth, the downstairs living room, where thoughts and good conversation come out and can change a life forever. The nose, the kitchen, where good smells arise and trigger tremendous sensations and thoughts. The ears, the doors, where news and good company enter your happy home. The skull and hair, the insulation and roof, where terrors from the outside are blocked to never enter. The eyes, bedroom windows, where children gaze at the stars, and contemplate their dreams."

"Good work, Roxanna," Mrs. Rose admitted as some light clapping filled the room.

"Thank you, Mrs. Rose," Roxie replied as she handed her paper to Mrs. Rose before returning back to her desk.

Mrs. Rose looked up at the clock hanging above the classroom door and realized that there was only five minutes left before class ended. "We have just enough time for one more poem. Who would like to go last?"

Silence filled the room for a few moments before Rowen hesitantly raised his hand and announced, "I'll do it, Mrs. Rose."

"Okay, Rowen. Come on up here," Mrs. Rose instructed. Rowen nodded silently as he got up from his desk and approached the front of the classroom. "Whenever you're ready, Rowen," Mrs. Rose told him.

"All right," Rowen muttered under his breath as he turned to face the classroom full of students. "My poem is entitled 'It Wasn't Like This Yesterday'." Rowen took in a deep breath before he started reading his poem.

"No, it wasn't like this yesterday. The sky was pale and gray. The wind was cold and flowers slept, and music was far away. It wasn't like this yesterday. My dreams were kept at bay. Today, I found, to my surprise, the sky an azure blue. The wind was warm, the flowers abound, and music, loud and true. No, it wasn't like this yesterday. Yesterday, there wasn't you."

"That was an excellent job, Rowen," Mrs. Rose confessed.

"Thank you, Mrs. Rose," Rowen replied. Just then, the bell rang, ending class for the day.

"For those of you who haven't read their poems today, you'll be going next Monday. Have a nice day, everyone," Mrs. Rose announced as everyone gathered their things and left the classroom.

"I enjoyed hearing that poem you wrote for class, Roxie," Rowen confessed as the two friends left the classroom together. "That was very clever of you to compare the rooms of a house with certain portions of a person's head."

"Thank you, Rowen," Roxie replied. "I like that poem you wrote, too. You must have put a lot of thought and consideration into your work. I had no idea you were such a romantic at heart."

"Umm...thanks, Roxie," Rowen stuttered as he felt his face growing hot with embarrassment.

"I have to go to my locker. I'll see you later, Rowen," Roxie revealed as she headed down a separate hallway.

Thank you, Roxie... for being my inspiration, Rowen thought to himself with a small smile on his face as he headed down the hallway...TO BE CONTINUED