Disclaimer: This is what you might call a 'renewing' of a contract of sorts. I am now renewing my disclaimer immediately at this point.
Card Captor Sakura, in its entirety, does not belong to me though I wish it could be so. Oh how I envy the creative minds of CLAMP who do own the series, manga, and everything that is under the category CCS that belongs to them (including the smallest eraser shown in their creation). The Sword of Gales: Tysterisk and the Sword of Waves: Kirsdarke are mine in all but name, which originates from the Rhapsody series by Elizabeth Hayden (great books that I recommend). All other original characters, places, and scenery are mine and mine only. Thank you for understanding.
Reviewers Note: To BlackApple: Yes, I know, my character sounds like Kyo from Fruits Basket in all but character. That's because the description was inspired by Fruits Basket. In case of trouble: Kyo's general description is owned by the author of Fruits Basket.
To feathergriffin: Thank you for pointing out that the name of the Sword of Gales and Sword of Waves are from the Rhapsody series. Look at disclaimer above.
Author's Note: In the last chapter, the city where the group is heading is typed as Sorrenson. It should actually be Sorenson. Thank you for understanding and please keep this trivial correction in mind for this chapter's reference.
This is just something I found on line; here are two quotes for today:
He who has a thousand friends has not a friend to spare,
And he who has one enemy will meet him everywhere.
Ali ibn-Abi-Talib, A Hundred Sayings
(602 AD - 661 AD)
You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.
Dale Carnegie
Summary: There's a certain prophecy that tells of four legendary swords with the powers of the elements. This prophecy was passed down until it became legend... and then myth. Now, a thousand years later, the swords have resurfaced and two people set forth to claim these powerful weapons. What will happen when their paths cross?
Ruler of the Elements
Chapter 12: Journey to Sorenson: The Dark Path
Part II –
"Let's go!" Tomoyo yelled atop a magnificent chestnut horse (that was a tad too big) in black riding pants and a light blue blouse. Over her outfit was a black cloak found somewhere in the belongings she had reclaimed from the remains of the Old Dreamer Hotel. Dark brown boots that had probably never known the essence of dirt, mud, and dust finished her attire. The early morning sun reflected off the silver clasp keeping the cloak from being swept away by the early morning breeze that was not so much a breeze as a gradually quickening wind.
Shadows covered the already bustling town as another day graced Sakura, Tomoyo, Clow, Syaoran, and Kyo. The quintet shivered in the cold wind sending their clothes into a flurry of motion. Adopting a similar uniform to her best friend's riding clothes, Sakura deadpanned at the sight of the roan horse waiting patiently for her to get on its back as it playfully nipped at a hint of grass in the hard, dirt-packed ground. "I'm not getting on that," Sakura stated with fervent conviction.
"You don't have a choice," Clow replied, "Unless, you're thinking of giving up the second Sword?" In a long robe of blue adorned with a pattern of white roses, Clow ignored Sakura's protests by leaping onto his own dark chestnut colored mount which shook its head at its extra weight, tossing its white mane in a tolerating annoyance. "We should leave as soon as the sun rises higher in the sky, keeping it to our backs as we head west to the Dark Path."
"The Dark Path… I don't like the sound of that," Kyo muttered ominously. He finished cinching the saddle on his sorrel horse. Finishing his preparations by attaching a bundle of necessities to the back of the saddle, he also made the motions that set him comfortably on the back of his horse. His outfit was closer to practicality than to fashion but Tomoyo had insisted that he wear a black cloak similar to her and Sakura's home over his otherwise not notable clothing.
"Saikatou-san, I thought you had broken ribs," Tomoyo spoke up suddenly from restlessly pacing her horse. "Isn't it common sense that you shouldn't be riding a horse?"
Kyo chuckled uncertainly and replied with fake innocence, "My ribs are fine, I recover faster than most people and I'm sure that the nurses were too caught up in tormenting the Prince to check me thoroughly." Said Prince did not find this reassuring, convincing, or anything of the like – nor did the two girls.
Syaoran ignored the jest at his rank and instead chose to look into the sky at the rising sun and state that it was about time to go. Sakura glared at him, up at his vantage point where he sat astride an excitable black horse. Despite her reasons for staring balefully at Syaoran, his image stayed in her mind when she shifted her gaze to Tomoyo at the sound of her voice: regal in his posture astride the large horse that was his mount. A dark green coat contrasted nicely with the light green shirt underneath and the dark brown riding pants he wore added to his overall, naturally 'princely' look.
It's nothing special, Sakura told herself as Tomoyo ranted on about losing time and wanting to be able to look around the Sapphire City before the tournament began. "What I want to know," Syaoran interjected suddenly and unexpectedly, stopping Tomoyo's rambling mouth and Sakura's thoughts, "is why you lot decide to call me 'Prince' yet do nothing in any other way to indicate that you assume I am one?"
"Simply put;" he added at Sakura's confused gaze, "why do you insist on calling me Prince when you don't treat me like one?"
"That's because we want to," Sakura answered before returning to the object of her previous attention: the horse she was to ride. "I don't think I can do this," she conceded a moment later before Syaoran had the chance to ask her to elaborate on her earlier comment. Instead of trying to speak again, he leaped effortless from his horse and roughly manhandled her onto her own despite her shrieks and protests. Tomoyo took the chance to take out her notebook and scribble down descriptions despite the loud exclamations for help that attracted the curious gazes of some of the townspeople but otherwise were to no avail (Clow and Kyo were to amused, like Tomoyo, to be of any help). With a final push, Syaoran walked back to his own horse leaving a dazed Sakura finally astride her roan horse.
Sakura, at least, had the decency to not fall off when the five began their journey west to Sorenson, the Sapphire City.
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"Why didn't you tell us you had never ridden a horse before?" Tomoyo asked after Sakura nearly fell for what must have been at least the fiftieth time. Their pace was a good mix between trotting and walking so that they covered a fair amount of distance without overly tiring their horses out. The sun had still been high above their heads when they had entered the entrance to a forest of extremely dense foliage that signaled the beginning of the Dark Path, but the golden orb hanging in the sky was now nowhere to be seen.
"What are you saying? You knew all along!" Sakura exclaimed, or rather tried to as the oppressive mood of the forest that had wrapped the group in unnatural silence upon entry sapped her of the strength needed to produce noise louder than a strained whisper. All she got for her effort was an unnaturally hushed, trilling laugh.
Grumbling in her mind, Sakura put her mind off of her friend's betrayal to survey her surroundings. Dark, dreary shrubs lined the uneven ground. Stray roots sprouted everywhere, getting underfoot the horses' cautious tread. Great white oaks deprived of sunlight branched overhead, intermeshing like forbidding and foreboding arches in a dark, abandoned church hall. What sunlight reached the ground had been filtered through a dark green canopy of ancient trees growing over the oaks; as a result, the going was dark and slow.
Soon, the darkness hid the companions' features even from each other until each one in the group felt they were riding with ghosts swimming alongside them through the almost tangible aura that originated from the silence. Even their breaths seemed loud to their own ears and the absence of the normal calls of living creatures further added to the dread forming in their minds.
One and all let out a sigh of relief along with breaths they had not noticed they had held as they came into a clearing where the blessed sunlight streamed down. They took a break with gratefulness not unlike one coming from travelers in the desert coming upon a beautiful oasis.
"I don't know if I can take any more of this," Sakura groaned, stretching her legs from the ache that had been gradually building up from her unaccustomed exercise from riding a horse. Following Sakura's example, the rest of the group hopped off their mounts and took a breather.
"Can't take anymore of what; the darkness or managing to slip off your saddle seventy times?"
Sakura glared at the culprit and said, "How do you know how many times I slipped? Were you watching me the whole time?"
Syaoran uncomfortably shot back, "I don't have a choice, do I? You're riding in front of me; where else would I look other than over your head?" He walked over to Sakura as he spoke and stood above her head to prove his point.
"Curse you for being so tall!" Sakura exclaimed and they started debating about the virtues of height.
Sighing in disbelief at the ease the two could fight, Tomoyo looked up at the sun and asked, "Will there be another spot like this? I don't feel like sleeping among the trees at night. I doubt we would be able to see one inch past our noses."
"My thoughts, exactly," Kyo agreed, turning to Clow for an answer.
Their guide cleared his throat, gaining the attention of the two bickering rivals before he spoke. "There is one more sight like this along our path and we'll reach there before the sun sets completely. However, as we go deeper into the forest, there will be fewer clearings like this one and the danger of separation is even greater. We'll discuss this tonight at the next rest point but don't forget that monsters might decide to attack at any point on our six day journey."
With the speech finished, Sakura and Syaoran nodded together before they restarted their bickering. Tomoyo shrugged at Kyo's questioning gaze and just shook her head before reaching for her horse. The unoccupied trio had taken a few dozen steps on horseback before Sakura and Syaoran noticed they had been left behind. As the silence overtook the group again, two red gleaming eyes watched its prey for a second before heading the opposite direction, eager for night to fall.
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The next few days went by without much difference; two rest stops a day, one in the afternoon and one for rest at night. Always heading west, in the span of three days only a handful of conversations had occurred that could be counted on a person's hands (mainly arguments between Sakura and Syaoran while the rest were discussions on how to best proceed).
On the fourth day of the journey west, Clow motioned them to gather around him as they took another break at a clearing with the sun shining above their heads like a jewel so bright you could only see it through a protective material, the trees acting as one such barrier.
"The road will start to get narrower starting from today onwards. Also, we'll have to change our direction from a pure westerly course to one more drifting south. Finally, at the end of today's trip, we'll have to rest immediately as, starting tomorrow we will be riding nonstop for one and a half day's worth. The reason for this course of action is the fact that there will be no rest stops until we reach the final clearing on our sixth and final day."
Sakura groaned in dismay at having to stay atop horseflesh for that long a time, though she had been getting at controlling her balance. Her new record was slipping only ten times in half a day.
"I have a question," Syaoran spoke up, interrupting Sakura's self-praise. At Clow's acknowledging nod he asked, "Why haven't we been attacked yet? Didn't you say this path was extremely dangerous and that the risk of attack has been gradually increasing?"
"That's also been on my mind," the others supported in one form or another.
"I can't say," was the answer they got but there was no time left for speculation so they got on their mounts and continued riding ever west though now with a more obvious dip towards the south.
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On the eve of their last stretch (that night), Sakura lay awake as the others slept peacefully, gathering their strength for the long and hard ride the next day. She found that sleep was evading her tentative grasp for no other reason than to spite her. Weird images of red demonic eyes and the Four Swords of Legend swirled in her mind when her eyes remained closed. To counteract the spiteful inability to sleep, she kept her eyes open. She sighed and rolled over in her covers, careful not to wake Tomoyo sleeping beside her in their little sheltering contraption. Like all the days before, they had set up tents in the middle of the clearing with the girls sharing one and the men the other.
Careful not to disturb Tomoyo, Sakura crept out of the warm covers providing them with warmth and crawled out through the tent flap and over to the dying embers of the camp fire. With a nearby stick, she stirred the fire to dim life, shivering as she fed the creature scraps of wood to bait it towards life. A smile on her face, she stared into the fire and sat there until she felt more inclined towards sleep. Her eyes grew heavy as she rested her head on her knees, keeping them still by wrapping her arms around them for comfort.
Yet, before she could totally fall asleep, a sudden noise brought her to semi-wakefulness and she groggily picked up the nearest thing she could find as a weapon. Syaoran froze in mid-step, finding a stick with a rather large and sharp point aimed at his throat. "I guess I'm not welcome here," he said, backing away from the stick.
"Eh, Li-kun?" Sakura snapped out of her fire-induced daze.
"So it's Li-kun now?" Syaoran grinned at her slip-up. To his evident surprise, Sakura ignored the jibe and shifted to give him some room near the warmer part of the fire, a slow wind shifting the flames towards Sakura's position near the burning wood. He sat down.
A moment passed before Syaoran asked, "Are you awake?"
"Hoe?" Sakura exclaimed in surprise. "Where did you come from?"
Syaoran chuckled weakly at her and said, "You invited me over."
"Really?" she asked incredulously before shrugging.
The ground grew brighter than before as the moon came out from the clouds which it had been hiding previously. Syaoran glanced over at his midnight companion in the new light and caught his breath. For more than one reason Sakura looked different. Her auburn tresses caught the moonlight, shifting slowly in the night breeze still affecting the fire's movement. Similarly, her skin glowed luminescent and he realized for the first time that she was not dressed fit for public in her nightgown decorated with little bunny shaped designs. He quickly looked away before Sakura could catch him watching. The last thing that he felt was different was the mood. It was not as cold and tense as before.
Gradually, he realized she was talking, "There's been so much going on that I feel like my brain's overflowing with thoughts. Though there's so much to think about, one thing's been on my mind the whole way: who was that guy with the other Sword?"
Syaoran didn't have an answer for her so he stayed silent. There was an inkling of suspicion growing in his mind when he felt a soft weight on his shoulder. He looked over to find Sakura's face inches from his, eyes slightly open to gaze at the fire. There was no way he could help it, he blushed and fought down the urge to scream in shock. With the others asleep, no one would know anything happened unless he opened his mouth and woke them all up. Almost desperately, he tried to shift his burden back to her own side, but she did the opposite of what he thought she would do and resisted.
Very uncomfortable now, Syaoran tried to edge away but that proved to be of no avail for he could not get up without letting her fall over (and that might wake her up to common sense where she would try to kill him). Resigned to his fate, he supported her weight indifferently. Sighing at his own folly, he chanced another glance to check if she was really asleep. Bright sparks from the fire reflected in her emerald eyes as she gazed faraway into some distant world…
Syaoran managed to leap away when a dagger flashed out from Sakura's boot, leaving her to fall over onto the ground. If he had stayed second longer, he would have been decapitated instead of escaping with the scratch on his throat. Luckily, he had managed to kick the dagger out of her hands and into the fire as he backed away from the, otherwise fatal, swing of the dagger. Sakura rose unsteadily like a drunkard knocked down in a brawl but managed to stay upright.
His suspicions were confirmed when her gaze proved to be empty, glassy, and unseeing. There was no doubt about it, she was either possessed or controlled (hopefully not possessed). His thoughts broke and scattered when his opponent summoned a sword from her cards and attacked. Dodging the thrust with a backwards hop, Syaoran caught a glimpse of the sword in the moonlight and his thoughts clicked into sequence. She was not possessed, for when possessed, everything the host touches turns into a demonic representation of the object. Sakura's sword was clean and as elegant as ever in its rapier-like form.
There was no more time to think however when her sword sliced through the air in a horizontal slash that almost chopped him too. He flipped back to his feet with a hand using the momentum from his leap to land effortlessly with bent knees. Wildly moving his head, he scanned the trees for the distinctive red eyes of the demon responsible for the control of his rival swordswoman. There!
Blocking Sakura's vertical strike with a quickly summoned sword of his own, he dashed past her and thrust his razor-sharp blade through the head of an unsightly monster that bled greenish-black blood on the forest floor and eating away at the vegetation like acid. With a last gargling cry, the monster evaporated, leaving behind stone blood as a souvenir.
Behind him, Sakura crumpled and fell to the floor. The camp became a flurry of activity with the others woken up by the monster's death cry. Tomoyo checked Sakura for injuries in the privacy of their room while Clow interrogated Syaoran and Kyo attempted to cook.
The first thing Sakura did when she woke up was to smack him upside the head yelling, "Who invited you over for a midnight chat," with a hint of a blush on her face, which was hidden by the darkened night as the moon decided to hid behind the clouds for fear at the wrath she would turn towards it if it further embarrassed her with its enlightening glow.
"It seems we'll have to leave," Clow stated after consuming a spoonful of the decent soup Kyo managed to brew.
"Now?" Sakura and Syaoran asked together. Sakura glared at Syaoran who only smiled, feeling relieved that the tense and icy, but normal, atmosphere between the two.
Tomoyo noticed the exchange but Clow, who either, didn't see or decided to overlook it, answered their question. "Yes, now. It seems the monsters that have been following us have decided that we are now available targets and their prey. We can be attacked at any time they want due to their better understanding of the mysteries in this dark forest."
Tomoyo, the only one untrained in such matters, exclaimed, "There were monsters following us?"
The others nodded confirmation and Clow continued his exhortations to go. With a sigh, they acknowledged his request and packed their stuff. Not bothering to wait for the sun, the five rode through the night under the dark blanket of black, swelling clouds.
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The once silent forest was now full of noise… unnatural noises that is. Pandemonium itself seemed to chase after their heels causing panic and confusion among the horses. It was all Sakura could do to aim hers after the one in front without crashing into trees in its terror. Howls, roars, and bellows chased them through the dark woods though Clow was still in control of their direction. All manner of noises echoed eerily in the confining branches hovering overhead like skeletal arms waiting to pluck the riders out of their saddles. The night was filled with stench of sweat from the horses caused by both terror and exertion.
Gradually, signs of pursuit died off as they rode further in the forest. "Technically, it would be further out of the forest, wouldn't it?" Tomoyo asked when Sakura voiced the thought.
"That's right, Daidouji-san," Kyo answered, turning sideways in his saddle. "That's probably why the monsters are drifting away. Added to the fact that it should be early dawn now, I think it's safe to say the monsters will have lost interest by now."
"No, it's not safe to say that," Syaoran contradicted, pointing up front to where an amazing sight met their eyes.
The great trees of the forest had been scattered and tossed about, some uprooted and some even split in half. Slowing down to avoid the jagged edges of fallen trees and branches, it took a few moments before they reached the center of the trail of destruction. There, waiting for them, was a man that seemed strangely familiar to Sakura.
"We meet again," he said, halting the five in their tracks. His short cropped blond hair caught the sunlight streaming down from the uncovered area of desolation, the topaz earring pinned to his left ear glittering in the sun. It became obvious who he was immediately after he brought out a sword with a similar, though more magnificent topaz gem set into the blade's guard.
"You," Sakura replied eloquently.
His jet black eyes narrowed slightly as he whispered, "It's all or nothing…"
"Huh?"
A rumble shook the earth as the man raised the Sword of Quakes into the air. Following the blade's upward path, three chunks of the ground around him rose with snaps from the force pulling them upwards. A swing of the sword ending with the blade pointed at Sakura's heart sent them careening forward, quickly gaining momentum.
"Watch out," Syaoran yelled, jumping from his horse to land in front of Sakura.
He thrust out one of those strange slips of paper and chanted, "Keeper of the Ground, raise up your palm to shield your follower!" At his words, the slip of paper glowed brightly, its inscriptions clearly seen before a wall of dirt, stone, and mud rose from the ground to block the spires thrown at them. It held, just barely.
The resulting impact launched Sakura and Tomoyo off their horses to the ground, sending the horses rearing in panic with Clow and Kyo just managing to stay on. Crumbled dirt and mud littered the ground around the area, ending at the feet of the man who just whistled in appreciation of the event.
"That was exhilarating, but I don't have the time to mess around. Now give me the Sword of Gales or…" he trailed off, the message clear enough without his words to fuel the effort.
"Why do you want it in the first place," Sakura asked, regaining her footing after her harsh landing. She drew Tysterisk, the touch reforming their bond.
Careful now… watch his movements carefully.
"I know that without you needing to tell me," Sakura hissed under her breath.
"It's what my master wants so that's what I need," Sakura heard, wrenching her up to look at the strangely impassive fair haired man. "I'll leave you alone if you're not going to give it though."
"Isn't that contradicting your statements?" Syaoran demanded, summoning his own sword and readied himself for what might come next.
"Not at all; since, I'm not your immediate opponent." With a snap of his fingers, the ground rumbled again though it was different this time.
"He's summoning monsters?" Kyo cried out incredulously reminding Sakura of the fact that he had experience in witnessing that occurrence.
Three cracks appeared behind and to the sides of the man, which widened and split open to reveal a dark dimension beyond. Inside, hundreds if not thousands of monsters teemed in eager anticipation for the chance of seeing light for the first time… and corrupting it.
Sakura readied herself for the fight but before she could do anything, Clow summoned a gust of air which created a veil of dust between the two fighting parties and yelled, "Get on your horses! We can't hope to win against a legion of that size!"
"But-" Sakura complaint by Clow's shake of the head and a meaningful look that told her to obey. Since he was her master (or former master) she obeyed out of habit and common sense, edging towards her horse and getting on quickly though ungracefully.
A strange laughter chased after them as the horses galloped quickly, urged on by their riders and the terrifying beings appearing behind. Sakura gritted her teeth for she knew nothing could be done.
"How are we supposed to escape?" Tomoyo called out behind her. "Isn't the next stretch of the journey a two day ride?"
"Yes, it is, but we were taking that route for obscurity, not speed. Now, with the monsters aware of our presence, we won't need to head west and double back east once outside of the forest. We can head straight South if the monsters don't catch us first."
"How reassuring," Syaoran muttered to her right so softly that Sakura believed she was the only other person who heard.
Just when they thought the pursuit had lagged behind, a piercing scream came behind Sakura. She reined in her horse and turned around to find Tomoyo struggling in the grasp of a monster comprised of two large hands and a floating eye. Three black eyelash shaped horns rose from the eyes, bobbing as it blinked. It moved forward, the shoulder-like sections of the arms ripping through nearby trees with the jutting blades on each end. One hand was clasped securely around a wildly panicking horse and the other held Tomoyo to the ground.
Aim well and true child, for you shall receive only one chance…
Words filled her head and she plucked one phrase out, drawing back the Sword of Gales until its blade pointed behind her. "Slice the air with your divine blade; Gale's Edge!" She released the tense muscles in her body into the swing, uncoiling like the strike of a snake. The blade sliced through the air, cutting apart dust motes still floating in the air from her horse's grinding halt, releasing a thin blade of combined wind and light that separated the shoulder-blades from the arms and dividing the floating eye in half.
Tomoyo gratefully pulled free from the loosened grip and raced over to Sakura, shivering from fright. A cracking noise caught Sakura's attention and she looked down to find the amethyst gem in Tysterisk's guard shattered, the pieces falling out when she lifted it for inspection. Surprised, she jumped when Clow approached from behind and told her that they had to go lest they risk the horde of monsters cutting them off form their destination.
"But the poor horse…" Tomoyo protested.
Clow smiled gently yet his bitter words contradicted his gentle features. "Unfortunately, we can't spare the time we need to get it both loose and upright."
"Can't you do anything for it?" Tomoyo asked, close to tears.
Clow nodded slowly and walked over to the chestnut colored horse. With one hand, he stroked its head gently to calm it and whistled a light merry tune. The horse grew still and Sakura felt a tear land on her hand from Tomoyo's watering eyes as she watched the quick merciful use of magic.
"I don't have time to explain anything right now," Clow told them. "For now, Tomoyo-chan, please ride with Sakura-san. We have to go!" On his last words, he raised his voice and his hand motioning the two boys to ride on first.
With one last look at the peacefully resting horse, the two girls calmed down Sakura's roan and galloped away towards a brighter place than the one they left behind…
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"I told you not to fail me!" the crystal haired and crystal eyed man yelled, driving his wand into the stomach of his subordinate. "What use is the Sword if you don't use it, Dysael?"
Coughing on the ground, Dysael smiled to himself and said, "Just proving my own worth, master. It seems you haven't killed me which means I still have reason to live."
"Insolent cur," the man retorted, pulling up Dysael by his fair blonde hair. "I thought you couldn't show emotion, you deceptive traitor."
"Deceptive I may be but never a traitor, Lord Crystos."
"Enough!" Crystos uttered with such force and anger that Dysael grimaced in pain. Throwing him to the ground, Crystos waited a second for calmness to grace his otherwise perfectly masked face from scrutinizing eyes analyzing him for emotions. "I'll give you some time to rest yourself before I call you for your next mission. You have a week to prepare yourself."
"Yes, master," Dysael acknowledged after a struggle of emotions distorted his face.
After his departure, Crystos muttered, "Though it was all part of the experiment, this lack of control is irritating. Now that I know what happens when I lower the spell's strength on him I won't have to do it again."
Summoning up a crystal mirror from apparently thin air, he looked upon it to see five figures on horses galloping out of the Forest of Deterioration that protected the Dark Path from every becoming bright. "Sorenson, eh?" He laughed lightly at the thought. "Then he'll be the first to awaken, the Wolf of Wrath! Melchior it is!"
-To be continued…
Note for the Storyline: I expect this story to go to around thirty something chapters, forty at most. Also, this can most probably be called a 'rough draft' since I plan on revising the whole thing (fixing errors, combining short chapters, adding details, basically making it flow more smoothly). (Just to let you know of course.)
A Note for Further Characters: For those of you expecting an appearance by Keroberos and Yue, I say maybe and maybe not. I don't want to give away anything from the story but I think withholding information on two important characters in CCS will do more damage than good. Same note for Yukito, Toya, and Meiling.
Keroberos – Expected to appear in the NEXT chapter.
Yue – Undecided but will make an appearance in the story.
Yukito – Soon, maybe after chapter twenty.
Toya – Appearance will always be with Yukito.
Meiling – Halfway through the story wherever that is.
Eriol – Around chapter twenty-one to twenty-five… probably
Other less important characters will be added in various positions, jobs, and etc…
Ending Note: To those of you who celebrate it, Thanksgiving was about four days ago my time, so Happy Thanksgiving. I think that just gave away a hint of where I live but it doesn't really matter. Hopefully, you enjoyed this chapter and if you didn't or want something to change, feel free to suggest it. Next Chapter: Shady Dealings. Keroberos makes an entrance! (And I'll leave you on that note!)