"Anyone have any ideas of how to slay the dragon?" Cye asked as he and the others kept their attention on the beast.
Sage frowned deep in thought as he was trying to remember the fight between Captain Yamato and the night dragon. There was something the captain was telling them in his own way during the fight. He continued to drown out their voices as he concentrated more on the fight. 'What did Yamato attack first? Come on Date, think. What? No way it can't be so obvious can it?' Sage turned away from the others and made his way to Kaye and Blaze. "Can you make room for me?"
Blaze studied Sage and moved back from him. The tiger looked towards the others as they were coming towards them.
"Sage, what are you trying to do?" Ryo asked when he and the others watched Sage get ready to heal Kaye.
The green Ronin looked up, "During the captain's first attack did you notice where he was teleported?"
Rowen frowned as he recalled, "The eyes. Of course, a dragon's eyes are extremely sensitive especially to bright light."
Sage gave a nod, "Right, and then the other place they're vulnerable is the underside. It's why he went for the neck and then kept on going further down."
Ryo raised a brow towards him, "Wait a minute, you're saying the captain was mapping out attack strategies on the dragon?"
"Something like it yes. But it wasn't just his physical attacks he was using, it was also the silver light coming from Kaye's aura which helped him during his fight."
Kento was not liking the sound of this, "Wait a minute, so what are you trying to get at Sage? Are you wanting Kaye to teleport us around the dragon? She doesn't have enough power to pull off teleporting all of us at once. Especially after she collapsed doing the same thing with Yamato." He got between Sage and Kaye's body and glared at him. "I'm not going to let you sacrifice her. You can forget it!"
Sage put his hands up, "Relax Kento, I wouldn't even consider the idea. She's my friend too in case you've forgotten. We just need her to raise her aura bright enough to temporarily blind the dragon so we can finish it off the rest of the way."
The orange Ronin crossed his arms still not liking the idea. But he knew Sage was right in what he was suggesting. Kento sighed a bit as he gave a nod and moved so Sage could heal her. Watching them close he and the others waited for Kaye to wake up.
Sage placed his hands on Kaye and closed his eyes as he concentrated. The green aura enveloped them both. After a short time, then it returned back to him. He opened his eyes and smiled a little when he saw Kaye's eyes starting to open. "Welcome back."
Kaye blinked a few more times before her vision became clear. "Sage?" She glanced around and saw the others standing around them. Kaye pushed herself to sit up. After she recovered a bit more, Kaye remembered why she collapsed. "Captain Yamato, where?"
Cye reached down and took a hold of her hand and helped Kaye to her feet. "I'm sorry Kaye, but he didn't make it."
Kaye looked over towards the dead captain's body. Her eyes closed as she looked away and then opened them when she turned around and seen Kento standing next to her. "Kento, I'm so sorry."
"Yamato was a great captain and even better friend. He fought like a true warrior. With what the two of you pulled off, it helped us figure out how to defeat the night dragon once and for all. Sage has a plan, but I'm not too enthused about it."
Kaye turned around and looked at Sage. She listened closely to what he had to say. When he was done explaining his plan she started to think it over. 'What Sage is suggesting doesn't seem to be too taxing since he did just heal me. How he explained his theory makes sense. I noticed it too when the captain was attacking the night dragon. The light did seem to hurt it enough to bring down its defenses long enough to have Yamato cause physical harm to the beast. But Kento believes it'll drain me even more than the teleporting? I don't see how it could, all I'd be doing is sending out my silver aura to blind it enough for the others to strike the dragon down. Not much time to debate the issue.'
"Well? What's your decision?" Ryo asked when he looked over towards her.
"I'll do it."
"Just in time, because it looks like the beast is starting to stir," Rowen said as he motioned to the night dragon as it was getting back to standing. "Ready?"
Kaye gave a nod and took off towards the highest wall. It was at the dragon's eye level, plus just out of its reach if it tried to swipe at her while she was on the wall. 'Ok, here goes nothing.' She made it to the top of the wall and secured herself making sure the night dragon didn't spot her just yet.
The Ronins and Blaze were in their positions as well. Sage stabled himself on a ledge not too far from the dragon's face. His nodachi raised and set.
Kento and Blaze kept to the ground. The orange Ronin connected with his dragon spirit in order to increase his power a bit more. He needed all he could collect in order to bring the huge dragon down.
Rowen was also high but father back behind Kaye providing cover from behind.
Ryo and Cye were standing on the far walls opposite one another. The two gave a nod as they were set on their end.
The night dragon composed itself and noticed something was off, the beast glanced around trying to search for its prey. It was going to move to a different location but sensed something familiar. It was the same light the mutated captain had around him when he attacked. Where was the source? There right in front, the beast started to build up its fire.
Kaye froze for a moment when she locked eyes with the dragon. In all her life she has never been so close to a real one. But now here she was face to face with the most dangerous dragon of them all.
"Puny mortal, a little girl trying to be a martyr."
These words snapped Kaye out of her daze, her eyes gleamed in anger. Her fists clenched at her side. The markings on her body started to glow silver, and then as soon as her eyes shifted to their full intense silver so did her markings. Her aura intensified even more as she then brought her arms up and pushed them out towards the dragon's eyes.
The night dragon roared as its head flew back from the intensity of Kaye's aura. The dragon's claws thrashed around in the air crashing through anything which was nearby. Its claws crashed through a few trees and a half destroyed wall. A spew of fire raged through the dragon's mouth and shot across the remaining tree tops catching the rest of them on fire.
Rowen leaped into the air and drew back his bow. A couple of arrows were released right into both of the dragon's eyes. He then latched his bow upon his back and jumped back out of the way. He reached out towards Kaye when he was jumping back.
She grabbed hold of Rowen's hand and held on tight as the two of them were making their way to the ground. Once the two of them made it, Kaye looked over towards Kento and gave a nod telling him she was alright.
Kento turned his attention back to the dragon and summed up his power to the maximum. He leaped into the air and delivered a double-fist slam into the ground which caused the beast to fall upon its back. The force of Kento's strike went so hard it rocked the very foundation of the walls Cye and Ryo stood.
They launched off a bit sooner than anticipated, but it was better than being buried. Cye and Ryo held up their weapons and sliced across the underbelly of the beast.
Sage saw his chance and leaped into the sky, he called upon his thunderbolt cut one more time and sent it directly to the night dragon's wounds. Once Sage's attack made contact it cut all the way through which made the beast split in half.
"Oh man, gross! Dragon innards!" Kento exclaimed in disgust as he came close to losing his lunch.
"We did it! We actually pulled it off! Bloody hell!"
Kaye and the other Ronins looked at one another and blinked in surprise. They turned their attention back to Cye.
"What? I swore before, just, well, never mind." Cye stated as he tried to change the subject. "We're not done. We still have the Senators to check up on, and an assassin to take care of yet."
"Anyone happen to see which way they went?" Ryo asked when they started looking for them.
"Earlier, I think I saw the Senators heading towards an exit. But Talon, I have no idea." Kaye remembered as they picked up the pace. "You don't think Talon found them."
"Maybe he did, or it could be possible they found him. Either way, they're going to be in a fight of their own." Sage reasoned as they found the exit Kaye remembered from earlier.
The clashing of metal on metal could be heard not far from them. Voices yelling to one another as their fight intensified.
"Sounds like you're right Sage. They're up ahead and it looks like they're fighting Talon." Ryo confirmed when the small group came upon the fight.
Talon glanced behind him for a moment as he blocked Senator Ming. 'I don't believe it. They took down the night dragon. Insane. Well then so am I not much of a difference if I think about it. I'm a bit impressed. Well then, it looks like I have a decision to make.' Talon broke away from Senator Ming and jumped onto the nearest boulder overlooking all of them. "I guess congratulations are in order."
"We don't care about your congratulations Talon! You are outnumbered and you'll be taken into custody back to the District of Justice to be on trial." Kento said as he narrowed his eyes at the assassin.
Talon laughed, "You take me in? You can't be serious. Besides, the first time I was arrested it had been in the plans from the start. My partner and I were sent to be arrested so we could spy on all of you and report to Talpa and his Warlords. But as things go, my partner got sloppy when he bombed your Senates main building at the District of Justice. But also you and I were going to go toe to toe back at the prison, weren't we commander?"
Kento growled low in his throat as his hands balled up into tight fists. His eyes narrowed at him as he remembered the officers who Talon and his partner injured back at the prison. He also remembered how he felt when he thought the Senators and Kaye might have been caught up in the blast. But thanks to Kaye's father, Lightning teleported them out just in time.
"Don't let him pull you in Kento, it's what he wants," Cye said as he tried to reason with his friend.
Talon looked at Cye in amusement, "A quick one your friend is commander. I do want to goad you into our fight. I know you want it too, I can see it. But we all know you and your friends as well are depleted of your powers, and the Senators are too long in the tooth to face me."
The Senators glanced at one another and then scowled at Talon.
"Long in the tooth? He called us old! Forget about taking him back for trial! Kick his ass here and now!" Senator Ming roared.
"This is too much! If I had known I'd be having this much fun messing with you, then I'd would have done it sooner and more often." Talon chuckled as he looked over them. "Hmm, maybe I should start picking off your friends commander one, by one. Or possibly I should just kill off your girlfriend. What a choice, where should I begin?"
"Enough! You're not going to lay a hand on any of them! I won't allow you to even come close!" Kento roared when he leaped after Talon and tackled him off of the boulder and down the steep cliff.
"Kento!" Kaye exclaimed as she and the others rushed to the edge. They stopped and saw just in time Kento and Talon landing on a ledge as they rolled away from one another and faced off.
Talon smirked as he whirled his daggers in his hands, "Looks like we'll be getting our one on one after all. Once I take your life, I'll deliver on my promise and take theirs."
Kento shifted into a defensive stance, he knew Talon was right, there were no powers to draw from their fights with Talpa and the night dragon made sure they were powerless. Was this also part of Talon's plan? It didn't matter right then and there, what did was taking care of Talon once and for all, even if it's barehanded. "You know Talon. Talpa said close to the same thing, and look where it got him."
"True enough, but I have no intention of failing," Talon replied as he whipped back one of his daggers straight at Kento.
The orange Ronin saw it coming straight for him. He dodged out of the way, but not before it nicked him on his left shoulder. Kento seethed internally from the cut on his shoulder. But he kept on moving forward. Once he made his way inside of Talon's defenses, Kento whipped his elbow around and drove the point into Talon's jaw.
Talon stumbled backward into the cliff wall supporting his jaw. The assassin didn't have much time to bring himself back together because he saw Kento coming at him with ruthless fists and kicks which connected to Talon's body.
Kento jumped back a little giving space between him and the assassin. He kept his eyes on Talon the whole time. 'He should have gone down. What's keeping him on his feet?'
Talon stood up tall and readjusted. "You're better than what I thought commander. But you still need to up your game in order to stop me." Talon held up one hand towards Kento and beckoned him to come at him again.
The orange Ronin faced off with him again. He studied Talon a little closer this time as he was trying to wrap his head around why he hasn't been taken down yet. 'I've beaten guys stronger than Talon, but somehow he's able to still stand. It's like I haven't been able to land anything on him. But I know I have. I can feel the connection.'
"What's the matter? Are you afraid of me, or are you afraid of what I'll do to the ones you care for? I think you should be, don't you?"
"You're just trying to get into my head to throw me off balance."
"Who said I haven't already? You're questioning why you haven't been able to take me down right? But I think your blonde friend has," Talon taunted as he glanced up towards the others. "I'm right, you figured it out, didn't you Sage."
"Sage, what does he mean?" Cye asked as he looked over towards him.
Sage closed his eyes and sighed, "He has a symbol burned into both of his arms near his wrists. I noticed it when Kento tackled him over the edge. I just didn't remember the marking until now."
"What do the markings mean?"
Sage opened his eyes, "Talon made a pact with a low-level demon for immortality. The assassin more in likely promised him his soul in return."
Talon smirked, "Well your explanation is only half right. I did make a pact for immortality. My price wasn't my soul, he wasn't interested in such a thing."
"What was this demon interested in if he didn't want your soul?"
"He wanted the soul of Talpa's dragon of course. The night dragon had been giving him nothing but trouble for centuries. He didn't care how he got it either. He said I could have others kill the night dragon for me and he could collect later and he got it." Talon laughed a bit with a touch of insanity. "So I guess I should thank you and the others for my immortality commander."
"Kento! Get out of there! Kento!" Kaye pleaded to him. 'Please, Kento I can't lose you too.'
Kento didn't move from his position. 'Great, just great, no armor, no sub armor, no powers, just my bare hands. How am I suppose to take down an insane immortal?' Kento mused to himself as he was trying to think of options. 'He's toying with me, has been since we started fighting. How much longer does he intend to keep this going?'
Talon looked up and zeroed his sights on Kaye and grinned, then he looked back at Kento and leaned back on the cliff wall behind him. "I'll tell you what commander. Since you and the others gave me the gift of immortality. I'll give you a gift as well. I'll let you and the ones you care for to live. The Senators can address the people and tell them the war between the districts is finally over and peace has started between them once again. But no one can say anything about me or my immortality to anyone. Ever. Otherwise, I'll find out and I will hunt every one of you down, and take your lives. I'll make sure to enjoy the entire process while doing it too. So what do you say? Do you accept?"
