A Different Take

I wish I owned the Ronin Warriors but I don't.

Chapter 12

After Talpa realized that Anubis betrayed him. His eyes glowed and he gave an order, "Close the Castle Gates. By my command, close the Castle Gates."

The city is now covered by a green miasma that is thick so no one can see very far.

The Ronin Warriors found a sporting goods store to take refuge in so that they can take care of the wounds and tie up the warlord that happened to fall unconscious.

Anubis woke laying down he went to touch his head, he saw his wrists tied up. He still touched his head to feel bandages. 'They take me captive and heal me. Why, when Talpa would never do the same.' and his thoughts showed on his face.

"Confused on the rope or the fact that you have bandages?" Sage asked since he was watching him.

"The bandages, Master would never heal his captives." Anubis said softly.

"Humph, we don't do things like Talpa, if we did we would be just as bad." Sage said a little angered. Then Anubis heard his stomach growl, and it seemed Sage did as well. "So you're hungry let me get the others." then Sage went off and the tiger looked at Anubis.

"Hehe, nice tiger." Anubis said since he remembers the tiger attacking him a lot. White Blaze snorted and continued to watch him. "How badly did my armor tighten? I guess I will be last to eat."

Then the other Ronin and normal people came into the room that he was in. They were carrying wrapped food and clear canteens.

"Sorry about that, we had to find more so that you could eat as well." Mia said handing out the food to everyone including Anubis.

"Thank you." Anubis said before looking at the two items she gave him, one was in clear wrapping and the other was in metal. "How does one open this?"

"That's right, you don't know how. Here let me show you." Ryo said giving Anubis an apologetic smile. "See this, you grab this and grab that, pull gently and it's open. Go ahead it's just a tofu burger."

"Burger? What is it?" Anubis asked then he took a small bite to taste it and then ate it with more trust that it will not poison him.

"How was it?" Ryo asked with a smile from Anubis inhaling the burger.

"Different, never had tofu like that. Now how do I open metal wrapped one?" Anubis asked holding the foil wrapped rice ball.

"See the tab, now split it and pull on it and take out your rice ball." Ryo said laughing a little.

"You are happy that I need your help to eat." Anubis said as if he was with the other warlords.

"No, just that you're eating modern food when all you have had was from over four hundred years ago." Ryo said not noticing the undertone, but another did.

"You do that with the other warlords, don't you Anubis?" Rowen asked after Anubis was done with the rice ball and trying to open the water bottle.

"Do what? Blast this canteen." Anubis said pulling at the cap.

"Ask about something, but instead of being angry but kind of jokingly." Rowen said then he had enough of seeing Anubis and the water bottle fight told him how to open the bottle.

"Well, I have been with the others for four hundred years so we do do that." Anubis said after taking a drink and trying to remember what he told Ryo in the matrix, his head hurt so badly. "Did I say something to make you take me captive?"

"Huh, what makes you ask that?" Ryo asked in surprise. "Don't you remember telling me that you have kids?" with that question the others eyes widened and Anubis paled.

"No, I do not. I was in to much pain. The thing I do remember was talking until I passed out but not what." Anubis said looking at the floor.

"So how many and are you married?" Ryo asked before Sage asking, "What does Talpa want with our world?"

"Sage's question I can answer first, to take it over. The Nether World is not fairing so well, the crops are dying and there have no births for seventy five years, but this world is fruitful and the birthrate is high. And I am not married, I have seven children." Anubis said not noticing their looks.

"So that's why you saved me." Yulie said losing all fear of the tied up warlord.

"What did Cale mean when he said it wasn't my death he was after?" Mia asked surprising Sage.

"You and Yulie are on the capture alive while the Ronin are to be killed. On how I know your names, having the Ronins yell them it was not hard to learn them." Anubis said upon seeing the surprised looks on the two he named.

"Does the woman take care of the children?" Kento asked remembering that in the history books women did things that deal with children.

"No, I take care of them," Anubis said then making a decision about how he has children when they think he didn't birth them. "When the other parent died, I had to take care of them. It is the same with the others."

"Now that we know that they will not kill the two. Now when Ryo and Anubis is healed we will assault the castle." Rowen said looking at the others, Kento just looks happy that there will be a fight.

"As if, Master Talpa has closed the castle gates. I cannot see how you did not notice this." Anubis said looking at them trying to figure out how he knew.

Several days later Ryo was no longer bruised, but Anubis is not healing as fast as the others, because he is not in the base armor. The base armor speeds the healing and enhancing the reflexes and natural abilities.

"Damn, I would heal faster if I was in base armor, but they would attack if I did something like that." Anubis said softly to himself while the others was sleeping or looking for food.

White Blaze just looks at the warlord, the tiger knows that Anubis thinks that he will attack since White Blaze has in the past when Anubis attacked the Ronins, and gets closer to the warlord.

"Did you just move?" Anubis asked the tiger when he saw Yulie no longer nestled against the tiger.

Few days later Anubis was healed enough for them to move deeper into the city so that they can get rid of Talpa.

"Embarrassing, riding side saddle." Anubis muttered as they walked deeper into the green miasma, he is riding White Blaze since they tied up his ankles to make sure that he doesn't run.

"Hey, what's up with the fog?" Ryo asked looking around.

"We are in the moat, and it is not fog it is miasma." Anubis said getting their attention.

"Do you have to speak like that?" Sage asked darkly.

"Come on, he answered Ryo's question." Cye said since he didn't talk to or around Anubis.

"Okay, now we know. Now we do have to keep moving." Ryo said in a commanding voice.

All of a sudden White Blaze starts to growl and then roars at something ahead.

"Huh, White Blaze, what is wrong?" Ryo asked tiger.

"We must be close to the wall." Anubis said hoping that he will be trusted by them or escapes them so that he doesn't get punished as bad, but the plan they made does not have this in it.

"Okay, how do you know of this? I know about the moat with no water and the stone wall with no stone from my grandfather." Mia stated looking at Anubis.

"When the gates are closed they are formed, the moat of miasma and the wall of black mist protect the castle. If you want to battle Master Talpa, you will have to follow the mist to a gate and open it." Anubis answered calmly, trying to remake his plan. He knows if he starts to call Talpa anything else they will not trust him as they are doing now.

They walked to the wall and saw that indeed there was a wall of black mist.

"Are you kidding? This couldn't keep out a mouse as well the Ronin Warriors." Kento said once he had a look at the mist.

"Go ahead and try, that mist will attack if you get in too far." Anubis warned making Kento laugh.

"I will." Kento said going into the mist wall.

Two minutes pass and then Kento comes flying out of the wall.

"Wow, Anubis was right, the mist attacked him." Sage said surprised that Anubis gave the right information.

"Surprised that I gave the truth?" Anubis asked Sage with a smile.

"Well, when Kento gets up we can look for a gate." Ryo said as Kento gets up from his sudden flying lesson.

"What was those beams of darkness?" Kento asked looking at Anubis.

"What the wall is made of, the darkness of the world condensed into that." Anubis said as the group starts looking for the gate.

Inside the castle...

"Anubis betrays us. See how he answers them." Talpa said while looking at the picture.

"He looks like he is trapped by them, I can see the ropes binding him." Cale said trying to get Anubis out of this fire.

"And he is out of armor, so they must have made him talk." Sekhmet said as well.

"If he has betrayed us, we might get him back if we brought him back to the castle." Dais said hating himself but it must be said.

"No, he will be treated as like the Ronin. Dais, I want you prevent the Ronin Warriors from entering the Castle." Talpa said to Dais.

"I have a plan to stop the Ronin Warriors, I know how to destroy them." Dais said while thinking that he could warn Anubis as well.

"Oh, carry on." Talpa said softly as the other warlords look on in horror as Anubis is set on a death sentence.

"I must be allowed to open the castle gate." Dais said bowing to the one that ordered one of them to be killed.

"Have you lost your mind!" Talpa yelled out in anger. "You are asking me to open the gates and let them enter?"

"Yes, then they will walk straight into my trap. Inside it will be easy to control the power of their armor." Dais said going on a hunch that the armors are connected somehow. "I will be waiting for them, and I will crush them with the Nether Spirits."

"Hum, your plan has merit. Use your power and the Nether Spirits to destroy them once they are inside the gates. But be warned, you must not fail or your punishment will be severe." Talpa said to the warlord.

"Trust me, and I will not disappoint you master." Dais said with a smirk.

Back with the Ronin Warriors...

"Why is the moat disappearing?" Anubis asked aloud so that the others know that he doesn't know either.

"I don't know but we can find a gate faster." Ryo said before Kento just leaping onto a building to take a look around.

"Hey guys, take a look there are four gates and look at the castle in the sky." Kento said as the others climbed up with White Blaze and the two humans and Anubis looking at the sight.

"Why is the Castle in the sky?" Kento asked looking at Anubis.

"I no not the reason, maybe he likes it? In the Nether World the castle is on the ground." Anubis said giving the truth.

"Dudes, I think this is a trap. Anubis, do you think maybe Talpa did this?" Rowen asked hoping that it was not.

"Maybe, I know that this is not his plan. But I do know who would, Dais. But what is he up to." Anubis said looking at the gates.

"Well, Mia Yulie, stay here. Even if Talpa doesn't want you dead, it is safer out of the city." Ryo said looking at the two that have no protection.

"That is true, but I will continue." Mia said looking at them, "Besides Anubis, who else knows about the Dynasty, I do."

"No, you two leave the city, so that the soldiers don't find you." Ryo said looking hard at them.

"But they have my parents, I want to fight." Yulie said looking upset.

"You do know that the soldiers can go out of the city, it will be safer for them to be with you." Anubis said trying to figure out why they don't want them to follow.

"Okay, we will follow you to the gates then we will leave, but be safe." Mia said holding onto Yulie.

So they walk to the gate and...

"Wow, the gate is so huge!" Yulie said in amazement.

"Looks like a job for me!" Kento said before he starts to push on the gate to open it.

It took Kento five minutes of pushing before the gate opens.

"So now what? Yulie and I have no way to fight the soldiers if we come across any." Mia said looking at the six.

"Well, if Anubis promises not to run White Blaze will protect you two." Ryo said looking at Anubis and White Blaze.

"I will not run if you take off the ropes on my ankles." Anubis said with a sigh.

"Okay, now that is finished, go now then we go inside." Ryo said now looking at the two that they are sending away.

"Fine, come on White Blaze." Mia said just before leaving.

After the two was gone, "Kento, I want you to shut the gate after we're inside." Ryo said calmly.

"Shut it?" Kento asked confused.

"He does not want them to follow." Anubis said after the ropes on his ankles was off.

They go in and Kento shut the gate. After five blocks of no soldiers or attacks from the other warlords they started to get edgy.

They hear laughter, the Ronin know who is laughing and they call out to Dais trying to figure out where he is, save Anubis he looks at the spot where Dais is going to show himself.

"Welcome Ronin Warriors, I'm impressed. You came all this way just to die." Dias said looking down at them.

"No way." Ryo said before attacking the illusion of Dais. "An illusion, show yourself Dais."

"As you wish, and please enjoy my hospitality. Open the gates." Dais orders and the four gates opened, Anubis wide eyed knows what that will do he had to get rid of the ropes binding his wrists off.

The Gates opened with speed and there was wind coming inside the castle instead of the other way around. The wind sucked the six of them up and when the wind made a barrier dome they fell to the ground hard, the Ronin Warriors are protected by their base armor just get winded. Anubis used every trick to land back on his feet, from jump on the buildings to flattening himself.

"Check it out." Ryo looked around seeing the spirits.

"Damn, Dais is using Nether Spirits." Anubis said staring at Dais.

"What?" three of the five asked at the same time.

"Hey Dais, you coward. Come out and face me." Kento said just before getting hit by Dais's mace.

"Dais, you're no match for the five of us." Ryo said after Kento got back up. Anubis tries to loosen the ropes so that he could do something.

"That is your opinion." Dais said going for an attack and the five jumped away so Dais went to attack Cye, Sage went to attack but was deflected by Dais's nun-chucks, Kento went to attack and got hit by said nun-chucks.

"All right, our armor has more power, come on guys." Ryo said acting like a true leader.

"Yes, please, show me this powerful armor of yours." Dais said goading them.

"Run while you can, or face your death. Yeah. Armor of the Wildfire... Dao Jin!" Ryo said as the others did the same for their armors, Anubis winced when they realized that they didn't put their armor on. "Hey didn't work, ah."

"What is the matter warriors? Where is the awesome power you promised?" Dais asked laughing at their falling into his trap since they are the reason Anubis is going to be killed.

"It's the Nether Spirits, it keeps us from gaining any part of our armors." Anubis said after getting one of the wrists loose. "I am guessing master is displeased with me."

"Yes, if I kill you I will be the leader of the warlords, Master Talpa has ordered you dead for betraying us." Dais said warning him in the best way he can.

"So, that is the reason why I could not tell the way in." Anubis mumbles then gets ready to fight. Dais just goes and tries to hit Anubis with the nun-chucks but Anubis goes under it and then he grabs it taking it from Dais. Anubis dodging Dais's mace hitting Dais but got wrapped up be the mace's rope.

"To bad, if you were in base armor you would have won, but your attempt to make me forget that the Ronin Warriors is still here was futile. Web of Deception!" Dais said going to wrap them up, now he knows that it is now part of the plan. They were not expecting Talpa to kill them instead of getting them back. "Where is that spirit warriors?" After making sure that he had them wrapped up save Ryo, "You are finished."

"If only we had the use of our armor." Ryo said before Dais started to wrap him up.

In an hour Dais had the six of them in his spiders web. All nice and wrapped up ready for him to kill by any means.

"The more you struggle the more my web bites into your flesh." Dais said acting like a spider, the only one not struggling is Anubis but as said he is out of base armor. Dais gets closer to the one they hope will kill Talpa.

"Get lost." Ryo said not wanting to get close to the man in the armor.

"There is still fight in you, Ryo of the Wildfire. It is a shame I must kill you, but perhaps I can spare you if you pledge your loyalty to the Emperor and become my follower." Dias said trying to get Ryo to not agree.

"When I get free I will get you." Ryo said basically spitting on the offer.

"Me?" Dais asked confused.

"Then I will get your master!" Ryo said loudly and confidently.

"Hum, I will give him your regrets." Dais said just before using one of the kama to cut down Ryo so that he lands on the ground for a fight. "Not much of a challenge, it is almost a shame that you cannot use your armor."

"You haven't won. I will never bow down either to you or your master." Ryo said trying to get up from the fall.

"Such foolish pride, it will do nothing to save you now." Dais said with some banter in it. He starts to spar against Ryo to see how well he does against someone that overpowers the opponent. After a few hits he knows, "Time to die, Ryo of the Wildfire."

"Ryo!" Mia's voice called out in surprise.

"Yulie, Mia, get out of here. Stay away." Ryo said as soon as he heard Mia.

"What is this? A woman and a boy? Why are you here?" Dais asked looking at them and all of a sudden the staff in the woman's hands started glowing, "Ah, that light! It's destroying..."

"The spirits, they're leaving." Ryo said as soon as he saw them flee from the light.

"My plan!" Dais said as he looked to Ryo.

"Armor of the Wildfire... Dao Jin!" Ryo said putting on his armor and drew out his katana. Dais took one step back, hoping that Ryo will not go for a kill shot since he knows that they are human. "Meet your worst nightmare. Flare up Now!" and the attack was big enough to cut into the castle. Then the gates fell, showing that it is now vulnerable.

Inside the castle...

"Ryo if the Wildfire, your armor is powerful, but it will not save you from my wrath. I will never allow you and your friends escape." Talpa said aloud letting the Ronin hear him.

Back outside with the Ronin Warriors...

"I'm sorry that I forced you two away from the battle." Ryo said looking at Yulie.

"Hey, if we came with you you guys would still be in their trap." Yulie said making the warriors blink at that thought.

"It's a good thing you came then to save the day." Kento said calmly as if he was beating himself up for getting trapped.

"Well, it wasn't us really it was this staff." Mia said looking at the staff that she was basically given.

"That means that someone is on our side." Sage said optimistically for once.

"That staff belongs to Talpa's enemy." Anubis said looking at the staff.

"What!" the others said at the same time.

"I never got the details but Talpa has an enemy here on Earth and from one thousand years ago." Anubis said looking at them hoping that they will let him join them.

"Well, let's go. We need to find this person and get some more help so that we can defeat Talpa." Ryo said looking bravely.

A/n: And now Talpa's fear of one of his warlords going against him is realized. Will this truce between Anubis and the Ronin last? Ahh, let me say sorry for the length of last chapter, i am going by episodes so that i can get it just about right. so enjoy!