Kyoya: DragonFang2011 does not own Metal Fight Beyblade or any of the characters!
Mary Sue: Ah... but she does own her characters! King Hayato, Queen Aimi, Sir Hotaka, and Miyako! And let's not forget, me! *poses beautifully* But I'm not that great...
Miyako: Very modest. Another Mary Sue trait... *writes it down*
Me: I'm so sorry for not updating in a long time! We spent the entire week packing, then flying, then unpacking, and getting settled here... damn, it's cold in this country! Where's the love? I just got here and all I get are a gray sun and a gloomy atmosphere!
Ryuga: That's winter for you.
Me: Well, I do like my new boots! Hopefully, there's going to be snow, but knowing that NC's kind of less cold than the Northern states, and because of stupid global warming that may result in the world's ocean levels skyrocketing, I highly doubt it! I also rushed this chapter, but I didn't bother to proofread, so bear with me!
If there was anything that Ryuga had learned from being stuck in a cramped tent with a snobby cross-dresser, a loudmouthed brat, and a quiet kid, it was that nobles are not to be trusted. He was willing to trust their advice, because things were not looking very rainbow-filled and sun-shiny so far.
Hotaka led them through a maze of hallways and staircases with so many twists and turns that it made his three guests dizzy. The passageways grew darker—the number of windows had began to dwindle—until the only available light were torches mounted on the left side of the corridors—about ten feet apart from each other.
Then, they came upon a dead end.
"Is this some kind of joke?" Ryuga snapped. Expecting some kind of enemy to come crawling out of the walls, he quickly reached for his bow and arrows, before remembering that they had been taken away before he was allowed into the castle.
"Oh, no," Hotaka said, amusement evident in his voice. "This is certainly no joke at all. I am simply obeying the queen's orders, is all. There is no need to be afraid." He spoke as if he were talking to a bunch of children.
Before Ryuga could think of a snarky comeback—or perhaps grab a torch off the wall and set Hotaka's hair on fire—he felt Kyoya's rough hand clamp around his wrist. "Just calm down, will ya?" the green-haired teen muttered. "You've gotten us into enough trouble already."
The baron reached for the last torch and pulled on it. The entire sconce slid out of the wall. Suddenly, the stones that made up the wall quivered—making a few sediment grains fall from the ceiling—and slid backwards, one by one, in a seemingly random order, until a crude doorway was made.
Hotaka set the torch back into its place in the wall. Then, he tapped on a large stone in the wall, and a few more stones shifted to reveal a twisted black torch with a pointed end—unlit—in the wall. He grabbed the torch and the stones automatically slid back into place, as if nothing had happened.
Hotaka turned to Gingka, smirking. "Would you like to try it, young magician?"
"Me?"
Ryuga exchanged a confused glance with Kyoya.
"Yes, you," Hotaka said. "Your father hasn't taught you any Elemental Spells?"
Gingka shook his head.
"Pity," he muttered. "Ignis." The torch burst into flame, and Hotaka stepped into the hole in the wall, the light of his torch illuminating the darkness that lay within. "Well, what are you waiting for?" he asked. "An invitation?"
"You're a sorcerer?" Gingka exclaimed.
"Fortunately, no," Hotaka said.
"But you just—"
"The torch is charmed to obey its trigger word—no matter who says it," the baron explained. "This is a form of Summoning, when you create a sort of subconsciousness and place it into an inanimate object in order to make it respond to your will."
Gingka was shaking in a rather amusing way—as if he had worms in his robe. "Cool!"
"You will not be learning it for a while," Hotaka said. "It is a very high-level spell."
"Oh."
Hotaka had already turned and walked away, his torch's orange light already fading away. Kyoya was quick to follow him, glancing over his shoulder at the other two members of their little party. Ryuga hesitated at the mouth of the gaping hole. Gingka grabbed his tunic sleeve in what seemed like a fit of anxiousness. "I'll go in if you do," the redhead said, giving him a thumbs-up. "We'll do it together, Ryuga!"
"Sap," the archer scoffed, but he put one foot through the doorway, then the other one. He stepped further into the tunnel, keeping his eyes on Kyoya's unruly mane, and felt Gingka's footsteps closely trailing behind him. His eyes adjusted quickly to the pitch-blackness until he could make out the stones that lined the corridor.
Must be a Shadow Hunter thing, he thought dryly.
They descended a flight of stairs, with only the single torch flickering eerily in the darkness. It was cold and damp and smelly in the strange little staircase and a few stones were often missing from the steps. Others were slick with wetness and slime, making Ryuga wonder if that part of the castle used to be underwater, or was at least flooded for some time.
Hotaka expertly avoided the gaps, his snow-white hair turned orange by the firelight. Kyoya ambled more slowly behind him, eventually being overtaken by Ryuga's more nimble feet and lighter weight. Gingka was a bit clumsier than his companions, falling more then once.
"We're almost there," Hotaka assured them.
"So, Gingka," Kyoya said, breaking the silence between the three boys, "you're a sorcerer."
Gingka let out a sheepish laugh. "Yup."
"Care to explain?"
"Uh... let's see... Do you want the long version or—"
Ryuga interrupted the redhead. "The short version."
Gingka nodded, and a sharp intake of breath was heard. "Five days ago I was accused of stealing an apple and before they could punish me this magician came and took me back to the palace then he revealed himself to be my dad and I've been learning magic from him ever since," he said in one breath. "Now... was there something I—oh yeah, Madoka, Yu, Kenta, Toby, the twins, and Hikaru are here, too."
"Hik—uh, they're here?" Kyoya sounded a little too excited—his head had jerked up at the sound of Hikaru's name. Judging by his reaction, Ryuga was starting to think that the green-haired teen liked Hikaru... not that Ryuga cared, of course.
He didn't care at all.
Right?
His treacherous thoughts were cut off as Hotaka's voice echoed through the tunnel, making it seem emptier and creepier than it already was. "We're here," he announced, gesturing to yet another dead end. He touched one of the bricks, and just like the first one, the stones in the wall shifted to create an entrance. This one had light and warmth radiating from the room beyond.
The three teens followed Hotaka through the doorway.
Queen Aimi was seated in one of the chairs, looking as if she had been expecting them, which—Ryuga assumed—she was. Prince Tsubasa was standing, staring into the stone fireplace on one side of the room, his arms crossed in a way that reminded Ryuga of himself whenever he was brooding.
The prince did not even glance at the newcomers.
There was a stranger in the room, though. A very tall, red-haired man cloaked in a blue velvet tunic and tights, his belt sagging awkwardly with the weight of several pouches and trinkets. He was the spitting image of Gingka, with the same lightning-bolt-shaped eyebrows and gleaming golden eyes.
"My name is Ryo," he said, nodding at them. "Gingka's father."
Of course.
"Nice to meet you," Kyoya said. He elbowed Ryuga, who just grunted—he wasn't one for formal introductions.
The queen stood slowly, her gossamer hair and dress flowing ever so fluidly with her every movement. "Gingka Hagane, Kyoya Tategami, and Ryuga Kishatu," she said. "I have dreamed of meeting you in person for a very long time—ever since I was a mere child."
"I don't think we were alive when..." Ryuga closed his mouth at Aimi's raised eyebrow. He had a feeling that even though she looked as delicate and as fragile as a flower, the queen could be as deadly as one of his own arrows.
"All three of you... I have been hoping to talk to you personally, however, the king found out about my plans and insisted on seeing you as well." She turned to the silken tapestry hanging at the back of the room. It showed three shadowed figures—one with a sword, one with a bow and arrow, and another one with a thin stick that Ryuga guessed was a "magic wand," like the ones from fairy tales.
"There is a prophecy, yet unfulfilled," she said. "About three who are destined to save the world from falling into an endless darkness."
Ryuga met Kyoya's gaze, wondering where this was going. She didn't mean to say that they—Gingka, Kyoya, and Ryuga—were the three who were supposedly going to save the world, right? However, he restrained himself from rolling his eyes, and let her continue.
"Those words..." Gingka breathed, his eyes fixated on the tapestry. "I know those words..."
Ryuga quirked his brow at the strange embroidery, written in a language he didn't understand.
"Filius de magicis," Aimi muttered.
"Susurratori de mortuorum
Dimidio sanguine de tenebris bellatorum
De equus alatum
De leonis
De ignis draco
Coniungimus ad vincere tenebras
Natus ab terra."
"What do those words mean?" Gingka asked, stepping forward to kneel down at the queen's feet. "Your Majesty, I must know... The words... They're... they're Latin, aren't they? The words?" He was trembling as if he had just taken a dose of Madoka's sugar rolls.
"They are, young one," Queen Aimi said. "And this is the meaning behind them...
"Son of magic
Whisperer of dead
Half blood of the dark warriors—"
Ryuga barely managed to stop his knees from buckling. Half blood of the dark warriors...
"Of the winged horse
Of the lion
Of the fire dragon
Join together to defeat the darkness
Born from the earth."
The first thing Ryuga said was, "Whoever wrote this needs some help with his grammar."
This earned him a dirty look from Hotaka, and amused glances from Queen Aimi, Tsubasa, and Ryo.
"Child, this was written a long time ago, when magicians knew every word of Latin—the language of the dead, which is usually spoken, not written," Aimi explained. "You should not expect them to speak as we speak today."
"Did you just call me 'child?'"
"The point is," Ryo interjected, "you three are the chosen ones to a thousand-year-old prophecy that was given to mortals by the gods themselves."
"What do you expect us to do about it?" Gingka asked.
"I gave you this information simply to inform you," Queen Aimi said, turning to the tapestry. "I am only the messenger—the child of a prophet gifted with the ability to see into the future. I do not expect the world to start ending at this very heartbeat. We must simply wait until the time is right. For now... I ask a favor of you."
Kyoya stepped forward, much to Ryuga's concealed irritation. "What can we do for you, your Majesty?" he asked.
Queen Aimi reached for the scroll in her gold braided belt and pulled it out. She handed it to Kyoya. "This is a message to the king of Vienedour—Kuroi. I wish for you to deliver it to him, wait for his response, and come back here."
"Why us?" Kyoya asked. "Wouldn't it be better to send it along with the guards?"
"Kuroi only accepts messages from a member of the royal family," Aimi said, "and our king and I are occupied at the moment."
"But how can you trust us—you just met us!" Kyoya said. "And we're not royalty..."
"You will be accompanying Prince Tsubasa."
For the first time, the silver-haired prince acknowledged them, his eyes meeting Ryuga's. An uncanny intelligence lurked in those golden depths that matched the dangerous glint of the knife he was holding. Ryuga made a note not to let his guard down around him. One thing was for sure—Tsubasa was no snot-nosed brat.
"And," Aimi said, her voice taking on a rather soft and desperate tone, "perhaps two of the last survivors from Ensis will be able to persuade Kuroi to go along with our plans."
Gingka tore his eyes away from the tapestry, his expression contorting from a bewildered one to a shocked one. "Two?" he began, scratching the back of his neck. "My queen, don't you mean three? There are three of us."
"I meant two," Aimi told him firmly. "You will be staying here with your father in order to learn as many spells as you can."
"Yes, my queen," Gingka mumbled, sounding disappointed.
"Now!" Hotaka said, sounding as if he'd just woken up from a long nap. He bowed to Tsubasa, Kyoya, and Ryuga. "His Highness, and you two should go up to your rooms and pack. You will meet in the stables at midnight to begin your journey."
Queen Aimi's voice was nearly a growl. "Do not fail me."
Gingka: WHY DO THEY GET TO GO ON A QUEST, AND NOT ME?
Me: Because they're awesome and you're just Gingka.
Gingka: *sulking in his emo corner*
Me: I'm just kidding, Gingki, I love you!
Gingka: *still sulking*
Me: Fine. Ruin it, then! *crosses arms and huffs*
*Awkward silence*
Ryuga: Who wants mango juice?