Disclaimer: I borrowed some characters from a site I sometimes RP on, but at the moment they are experiencing difficulties with finding a good message board. I play Samantha Tarson...total opposite of me. I am 5'10 with red hair and my character on there is 5' with black hair...after appearances, most of her is my personification though. members.tripod.com/roninholt is where you can find it. Also, I shall warn you, this chapter is VERY VERY VERY LONG!!! It says down at the bottom that it is 36 pages long, and I dont feel like fixing gramatical errors on this one, so figure it out on yer own, dad'gummit!!! If a Texan chick like me can make sense out of some of the stuff I read on ff.net, then you can make sense of this...mostly..
NNF: Just get on with the story all ready!!!
FINE!!! HERE GOES NUFIN'!
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Twenty five years have gone by. Each of the Ronins have married and had children, who have taken over the armors at the age of 18. Cye married and had Rune. Shortly after Rune's fifth birthday, Cye movd in with Kento and Myra. Kento had married a woman named Elizabeth and they had Myra. Not a year after Cye moved in, due to sickness, Elizabeth dies and leaves Kento a quiet, very different man. Rune and Myra grow to have a very strong friendship. Rune and Cye visit Cye's wife every summer, but they do not stay because she is a drunk, and has a horrible temper. Sage married and had Aric and Bram. Aric was paralyzed from a motorcycle accident. Rowen married and had Evan. Ryo married and had Kyle. Aric, Evan, and Kyle were racing their motorcycles for a farewell race and a drunk driver pulled in front of them. Kyle was the only one who had time to throw the bike on its side and avoid collision. Evan hit the car and flew over it, only recieving a broken arm, broken leg, and bruises and scratches. Aric was thrown into the windshield. He was in a body cast for a long time and emerged from it paralyzed. They returned to Japan to fulfil the oath and hand over the armors to the children. With the armor, Aric can walk and do everything that any normal person can, but he has to be near his wheelchair when he calls it away. They have been battling Sekmet, who has taken over for Talpa.
"Evan, catch!" Rowen shouted to the unsuspecting Evan. Of course, with reflexes greater than those of his father, he leapt up and caught the frisbee. "Care for a game?" Rowen asked, smiling. Evan threw it back and thus began the game. Off to the side, Myra and Rune sat, watching and chatting. Inside, Aric was studying and Kyle was watching the news. The rest of the adults were talking in the kitchen. It was a peaceful day at the lovely home in the middle of the woods. I looked on in envy. I could have been part of that. Instead I had to live with evil. Time to change that. I stepped out into the clearing, pulling the big hat down over my eyes to shield them from the sun and shifting my scepter in my hand, and moved toward them. Evan caught the first glympse of me and shouted for everyone to come outside. Rowen whipped around to see who it was. He looked alarmed. He didnt recognize the clothes. The household gathered on the porch to stare. I walked with a slight limp from the recent injury from Sekmet. I still refused to marry him and he slashed my leg. I escaped with some soldiers, like a coward, but oh well. I am alive. I continued walking toward the Ronins and Ryo walked toward me. "Who are you?" he asked, suspiciously. "I am surprised you didnt recognize my red hair, Ryo" I said with my melancholy voice. My voice had changed considerably to a low, melancholy, depressed-sounding tone. He stopped, surprised. "Why are you wearing those clothes?" he asked. "I am hiding like a coward. This is what I wore during training in Talpa's castle so many years ago" I answered. "Where have you been?" he asked softly. "Sekmet had me captured, shackled, malnourished, beat, and almost any other torture you can think of. This is my most recent scar." I said and pulled the skirt of the robe up to show him my calf. The slash ran all the way up my left leg, but I was not going to show him that much. He winced and said "Come in" and led me to the house. "Mia, could you doctor her leg please?" he asked her. She did. I walked into the living room and glanced at the people. They stared at me questioningly. "You all have beautiful children," I whispered. I pulled the hat off and they gasped when they saw my face. "Amber?" they all said, disbelieving. Rowen's eyes teared up and he fled the room, his wife following behind. I watched him go and hung my head and sat down on the floor, being careful of my leg. The only feature about my face that had changed was that I now had a scar on my left cheek and a black eye from that last bout, and that I had fixed my hair differently. "I am sorry, but I at least wanted to see you guys one more time," I whispered. Kento moved toward me and picked me up and hugged me. "I missed not having you to slam against the wall when I was frustrated." he said and smiled. For the first time in over twenty years, I got teary eyed and smiled and laughed. I hugged him and then Sage, Ryo, and even Cye. I was then introduced to the boys. Evan eyed me suspiciously, having seen his dad run out of the room. Instead of greeting me, he got up and left to go find his dad. I sat back down on the floor and told them what happened those twenty six years. What I didnt know was that Rowen was just outside the room, listening.
After I finished my story I looked up at the people in the room who were staring at me in astonishment. I stood, with the aid of a nearby table, and excused myself from the room to go find Rowen and apologize. I ran into him, literaly, just as I walked out of the living room. "I need to talk to you." he whispered quietly and pulled me out to the porch. When we sat down, I said that I was sorry. He wouldnt let me say more. "I heard your story. I am sorry that I was not able to help you." he said, sadly. "You need to find you someone else now though. I am too old for you. I am sorry," He stood and dashed back inside. I sat and stared at the door, then at the clearing and thought. Regular, mourning-type thoughts. I heard the door open and a wheelchair roll out the door and the door shut. "Hello Aric." I said, softly. "Are you ok?" he asked carefully. "Kind of," I answered. I turned to him. He smiled and offered me his hand. I grabbed it and hoisted myself up. "Thanks," I whispered. He nodded and opened the door for me. I smiled and went in and held it for him. I got behind him and pushed him to the living room. Sage smiled and winked to him and he blushed and turned his face away. I smiled and put the brakes on for him. He thanked me and I took my place on the floor. I stydied everyone in the room as they spoke to each other. I muttered "Jin" and I was in my normal clothes from before that I used to wear around the house. The teenage boys' eyes widened. Except for the scar on my face and the bandage on my leg, I was still a beautiful, 18-year-old-looking woman. I never thought I was beautiful, though. Aric blushed and glanced to his father, who looked at me and whistled. "I forgot how beautiful you were," he said with a smile. "But of course, we are too old to persue you now, although our sons are not though." he guestured to the teenagers. They blushed and looked away. I smiled and shook my head. "I am going back to school first." Mia whispered to Ryo who nodded. "Would you like to stay with us? You can stay in the room with the teens. Myra will be in there so you won't be the only girl." She explained. I thought for a moment and decided to take them up on it. I set up a bed in between Kyle's and Aric's and then helped Aric into his bed. He thanked me and lay back and closed his eyes. I lay down and did the same. "This is the first time in twenty six years that I will be sleeping laying down," I blurted out, and blushed. Aric chuckled and sighed and relaxed. I fell asleep and had a good night's sleep.
The next morning I got dressed and went to school with the teenagers. I went and enrolled and everything. My first class was Pre-Cal, and it was exactly where I had left off. I whizzed through it and met some people. One girl, who had her hair like I had mine at the time, kind of, was visibly having trouble with the class. Her hair was blonde and her personality was the perfect example of a blonde's. She whined every five minutes. Myra was in there and she was sitting by herself. I moved to a seat beside her and asked her why she was sitting alone. "I am not a preppy, make-up obsessed, cute-looking girl like they are. I dont fit in." she said. "Girl, you are beautiful, and you have one thing that most of them dont have, but want: a boyfriend!" I said to her, picking up her spirits. "You just be yourself." I talked to her the rest of the class. The bell rang and i scurried to find my next class. I finally found it and bearly made it in before the late bell rang. I saw Rune and Aric in there. History. The teacher, a young woman in her twenties, introduced me to the class. The boys stared at me and her wide-eyed and the girls rolled their eyes. I sat beside Aric and opened my book to study. I studied while she spoke. The class went by quickly and I was off to find my next class, Chemistry. Evan was in there. He glared as I walked in and I made a note to sit far away from him. Chemistry was ok. Next was lunch. I picked out healty food consisting of a salad, water, and an apple. I walked around the cafeteria and spotted Aric. I walked toward his table. A girl came up and asked if she could sit. He looked over his book and said something about he didnt want anyone to sit with him and she left. I walked up and asked if I could sit with him. He glanced to the girl and said "sure". I sat down and also glanced at the girl. She glared at me with hatred. My eyes widened and I decided to bring my attention to my food. I scarfed it and brought out my history book to study some more. "You sure are interested in that history book," Aric said over his book. "I have been in captivity for twenty six years," I said, not looking up. I heard something over all of the noise that sounded like a 'whoosh'. Aric pushed himself out of his chair and onto the table and caught a knife that was flying toward my head. I looked, wide-eyed and scared, to the knife and to the girl. She smiled an evil smile at me. I pulled Aric off of the table by his under-arms and sat him back in his wheelchair, glaring at the girl. "Do you want to go outside?" he asked. I said "sure", got my things together, threw the backpack over my shoulder, and wheeled Aric outside. I stopped at a cherry blossom tree that was kind of away from the school so I would see the girl if she came out. I put his brakes on, picked him up, and sat him against the tree. I sat down by him and pulled out the history book. He read his book, looking up at me and at the school every now-and-then. The bell rang and I helped him back in his chair and wheeled him to the school. We parted to go to our respective classes. I had music class. In there she introduced me and put me near the front so I could hear. The song was a wonderful piece that I remembered from my days in the castle when I was working for Talpa and all was chaotic. Flashbacks and bad memories came in a rush to me. I grabbed my head and passed out.
I woke up and four of the teenagers were in a room with me. "I think she is ok," Myra said to the nurse. I sat up, dazed. "Where am I?" I asked. Aric moved to me and said softly "You are at school. You were in Music class and you passed out. What happened? I had just seen you." I looked at him in confusion and said, "I....dont know. I think the song we were singing brought back some bad memories or something." He moved up beside the cot and put his hand on my head, then on my hand. "Your temperature is back to normal. You will be ok," he said cheerily. I looked around me. The nurse's office was a big room with health posters plastered all over the walls. I looked at the four teenagers looking at me worriedly. I stood, shakily, and walked around to get over the dizziness. I suddenly felt old, like my many years were catching up to me. I asked the nurse if I could be excused to go home and she said that it was ok. I went to get my work from my classes, Aric showing me around. He decided he would go home with me also. As soon as I stepped out of the van, I had another rush and passed out. He was able to get himself into his chair, wheel around, and pick me up into his lap. He wheeled me and him up the ramp and into the house. The guys were surprised to see us home early, but even more surprised to see me passed out in Aric's lap. Kento picked me up out of his lap and brought me upstairs and to my bed. Sage helped Aric up and he wheeled himself to my bedside and stayed there. He refused to leave. When I finally came out of it, he had fallen asleep in his chair. I didnt want to wake him, so I lay there. He sensed my change in breathing and this woke him up. He smiled at me and touched my head. "Fever is gone again." he announced. I smiled and grabbed his hand. He held it for a few seconds and then lifted it to his face and kissed the back of my hand. I watched, transfixed by this small show of affection. I finally decided to say what I was plotting out loud. I had been thinking about this for a while, but never mentioned anything about it. "I am going to visit my home of this incarnation in America. Would you like to join me?" I asked. He nodded and said he would like to. I shouted for Sage to come in the room and asked his permission. "Sure," he said. He smiled and winked at Aric. Aric blushed and turned away. I gathered a couple of pairs of my clothes up and put them in a small overnight bag. I then helped Aric do the same. We went downstairs and I went outside to put the bags in the compartment under the motorcycle seat. We said farewell to everyone and I wheeled him to the motorcycle. "How are we going to pull this one off?" he asked, looking in confusion at the motorcycle. I picked him up and sat him back against the two-seater seat and made sure he was comfortable. I whispered "Jin" and the wheelchair shrank to pocket-sized. I put it in a smaller compartment in the handlebars. "Ready?" I asked. He nodded. I carefully climbed on in front of him and told him to lean against the back-bar, put his hands tightly around my waist, and to put the helmet on. I whispered "Shin" and a portal appeared in front of us. I revved up the motorcycle and drove into it. We came out of it ant the Interstate 10 intersection. I drove down the long and winding Highway 583 and stopped at the intersection, trying to remember where to go. I went straight and turned right on belton and then left into the Harvest subdivision. I found my house and, after all these years, nothing had changed. I pulled up to the small walkway in front of the house and stepped over the motorcycle and got out Aric's wheelchair. I made it regular size again and sat him in it, took off his helmet and mine, and hung them over the back-bar. I took a deep breath and wheeled him up to the door and rang the bell. My mom answered the door and threw up her arms and screamed, "Amber is home!" I broke into laughter and pushed Aric into the house. My mom kissed my cheek and hugged me so tight that she picked me up off of the floor. Aric laughed and recieved a pat on the back from my dad. I introduced Aric and wheeled him near the couch and sat down. They asked about the wheelchair, and he told them. He then hung his head and stayed quiet. I looked at him worriedly and said, "Excuse us. He needs some fresh air," and wheeled him quickly outside. I looked at him and whispered, "Are you ok?" He didnt say anything. I begged for him to answer me but he didnt. I stroked his hair and begged some more. I said "Please dont be sad," over and over. He never changed expressions. I looked at him for a minute and, exhausted, with nothing elst to do that I haven't done all ready, I kissed him. When I pulled away, he looked at me wide-eyed. I turned red and sat down on the bench next to his chair. I mumbled an "Oh no," and put my head in my hands. He asked me what was wrong and I said "Well. I dont know what to do. Every time I fall in love it ends in a tragedy." His eyes got wider. "You are in love with me?" he asked. I nodded and sulked more. He picked my face up by the chin and kissed me softly. My eyes teared up and I returned the kiss. "Aww....how sweet!" a voice boomed, startling us. I looked up, wide-eyed, at a short, brunette woman. "Midget?" I asked. "Yep! It is me! I still aint any taller!" she beamed. "How?" I asked. "Your mom called me and told me you were here. You havent aged at all! What are you, immortal or something?" she asked. "Unfortunately, yes," I said sadly. "I can become mortal if I want, though." She kicked the ground, "Well, I gotta go. I told my husband that I wouldn't be very long. He is taking me to the movies tonight. Talk to ya later!" she said and hopped into her yellow '69 beetle and drove off. I leaned my head on Aric's shoulder and sighed. He smiled and grabbed a pigtail to play with. "My parents!" I exclaimed and hopped up. I wheeled him in and apologized. I told them that we could only stay for a day or two because of the commotion. I prepared myself for a shower. I finished my shower and Aric said he needed a shower also."I, um, need help though," he said nervously. I hesitantly volunteered to help him. I helped him undress, put him in the bath tub of warm water (keeping my eyes on the wall) and helped him out and to get dressed. The whole time he and I were blushing. I wheeled him to my brother's room where we were going to stay. I put him in the bottom bunk and I sat beside him. He held my hand and looked deeply into my eyes. "Although Mishima, the girl that was angry at you for sitting with me, had a crush on me, I never cared for any other girl. Before the accident I was like my father, flirting with everyone. I enjoyed the attention, but I didnt care for them. I care for you though. Since you came to our house I have. I felt a connection to you, at first, because I felt your pain was as strong as or stronger than mine. It grew into...love. I......love you for your personality and your caring. I love you for your gentleness and willingness to help, even if you feel strange or embarassed or threatened doing it. "He finished, surprised at how much he said. I smiled, blushing from the acclaim. He got over his embarassment and pulled my arm untill my face fell on his chest. I giggled and relaxed. He pulled my face up to his and kissed me more deeply than before. I returned the kiss. A burning was growing in my chest. I carressed his hair and face. This one was more than the others. I wished to every god that it did not end. We finally moved apart and I climbed to the top bunk. I said good night and drifted off.
I awoke to a jolt of the bed. I peered over the railing and saw Aric clinging to the bar that leads up to my bunk. I watched him let go, take a step, and grab for it again. I watched him for a while, until he gave up and took to steps and dropped himself into his chair. "The doctor lied to you," I said, quietly. He looked up, startled, and muttered a "huh?" I climbed down, not caring that i didnt have my robe on and he could see my shorts-pajamas. "If you were truly paralyzed, you wouldnt even be able to stand. With physical therapy you will be able to walk again. If you want, I will help," I said. He looked at me seriously and asked me if I was joking. I said no and I helped him stand. In thirty minutes, with a few breaks, he was able to take ten shaky steps at a time. He was so proud of those steps. The rest of the day he wanted to work on it so he could surprise his dad and the guys. The ten steps grew to fifteen, then twenty, then more and more. He could walk almost normally. Slow, but almost normally. We decided that we had stayed away for a little too long and that we needed to get back. We got our things together, bid my parents farewell, and we climbed onto the motorcycle, Aric getting on by himself this time. I opened the portal and drove through, waving to my parents. We came out right where we entered the portal, in front of the house. We decided to really surprise them. I helped him up the stairs and let him open the door and walk in. Everyone was in the living room talking loudly. I walked in and said hello to everyone. Sage got up and asked why Aric wasnt with me. "He is," I said with a smile. Sage looked around in confusion and asked, "Well....Where is he?" Aric stepped through the door and around me into the room. "Right here," he said, beaming. The whole room full of people gasped and gaped and muttered "How?" over and over. Sage stared, wide eyed. I stepped forward. "The doctors lied. He was not paralyzed. He just had extensive damage to the lower and middle back. I worked with him while we were gone, because he wanted me to, and he can walk pretty well on his own now," I said, my smile widening. Sage moved up to Aric and gave him a big hug. Aric blushed and smiled when his dad finally moved away. "So, are you going to flirt with all the girls now that you can walk again?" Sage asked with a big smile and wink. Aric shook his head and put his arm around me. "Why do I need to flirt when I have the perfect one right here," he said with a smile and planted a kiss on my forehead. I blushed. Rowen smiled and nodded to me. I had a horrible feeling of dread though. I heard something outside and I jumped. Sage and Aric heard it also and became alert. The Halo armor is one of hightened senses. The others looked at us with confused expressions as we moved to the door and out the door. White Blaze's offspring, Streak and Midnight, were growling at a figure emerging from the woods. It was Sekmet. "Aric of the Halo armor, You have attempted to steal my bride-to-be from my clutches. You will pay for..." he tried to say. I was so pissed off that I stepped forward, with no armor on, and walked all the way up to him and shouted in his face. "Bride-to-be?!?! Who the hell do you think you are? I would never in an eternity marry a snake like you!" He slashed at me and I expertly leapt into the air and transformed into my yellow and white sub-armor. The teens had never seen me in armor and they were surprised. Kento smiled and shouted, "She is back! She has her attitude back!" I smiled an evil smile and Sekmet lunged at me. "Bitch! Come back here and face me or I will kill your little crippled boyfriend over there and come after you!" he shouted angrily. I leapt into the air and shouted, "So...You want to see what this bitch can do?!?! Armor of lightning...Dao Shiname!!!" I emerged from the cherry blossoms in my yellow armor. I smiled and landed a kick to his chest. He fell back and flipped back up onto his feet. I concentrated, found his weak spot, and screamed my attack. "White lightning slash" and called forth a dagger. It transformed into a lightning bolt when I threw it at Sekmet. He dodged it somehow and tackled me. I kicked and screamed. Aric ran toward us, transforming into his armor as he ran. Sekmet smiled and retreated back to his realm, taking me with him. "Noooo!" Aric and I shouted in unison. I disappeared into the blackness and found myself in shackels when I came out of it. I hung my head and tried not to cry, because to cry is to show weakness. I couldnt hold back though, and I cried.
A couple of days went by and, bored, I began to swing back and forth by my shackels for entertainment. Sekmet watched and smiled. "You will be mine. There is only so many times that you can break a person's spirit and I feel that your number is up," he said arrogantly. I glared at him and said, visibly pissed off at this remark, that Aric would come for me. He smiled and said something about that is exactly what he wanted, and then just watched me, entranced, for a while longer. He heard something and dissappeared. He came back not thirty minutes later, smiling. "Guess what? I have your little female friend, Myra of the Hardrock armor now. You two can enjoy each other's company for the rest of her life since you are immortal and she is not. You will have the pleasure of watching her wither away and die if you do not marry me." He chained her up beside me. I strained against my chains, calling him every foul word in every language that I knew, and kicking at him with my free legs. "I have just decided that you have too much freedom of movement, and I do not appreciate you kicking me or kicking at me. I shall see what I can do about that," he said. He grabbed a bow nearby and with two swift and practiced movements he broke both of my legs. I screamed a high-pitched scream of pain as the feeling crawled up my legs and into my abdomen. I fell limp, causing more pain to my wrists and arms. I cried and cried. Sekmet's face got this puppy-dog look and he said really fake-sympatheticaly, "Aww, did that hurt?" His face then contorted into an evil smile and I could see that he got pleasure from my pain. Myra reached over and was able to pat my head. "Please dont cry," she soothed. Pain seared up my legs and took over my entire body. I quit crying and hung there, limp. I spoke nothing. Sekmet seemed alarmed again and left. I heard Myra whisper to me but could not make out words. I dwindled into black unconsiousness.
I remained unconscious for what seemed like forever. I woke up in my bed at the guys' house. Aric was at my bedside, asleep, with his head on the edge of my bed. I felt clean, so I guessed that someone had given me a bath. I lifted the covers and I saw that I had casts on my legs. I got mad and threw the covers down back over my legs and crossed my arms. This movement caused Aric to awaken, fully alert. "I am sorry," I apologized. He waved it off and said that he shouldnt have been asleep anyway. He moved up and kissed me and stood to stretch. "Do you want to go downstairs?" he asked me. I asked how and he pointed to his wheelchair. I smiled and said sure, to get some clothes out for me to change into. I had him turn around and I quickly dressed. We went downstairs, him being real careful not to jostle me too much. Everyone was so surprised to see that the tables were turned and that Aric was pushing me instead of me pushing him in the chair. I laughed and looked around. Myra had a bandage over her head and Rune was caressing her hair. Evan looked at me with respect for once, Kyle with admiration. The guys smiled at me like they always did. I asked if I could please go outside to the porch, and Aric pushed me out. I breathed in the cool air. "You know, we have school tomorrow and people are going to freak out and ask questions that we dont want to answer," I said dismally. "And I feel that Sekmet still has some hold over me, like he is standing behind me instead of you. It is weird." Aric bent down and kissed me on the cheek. "Dont worry. Everything will be ok." I smiled and watched the sun set, and fell asleep again. (This is getting predictable, wouldnt you say? I sleep entirely too much, but then again, I need it!!!)
The next morning, when I woke up, Mia and Myra helped me shower and get into my school uniform and into the van. Mia dropped us off and promised to pick us all up after school and wished us a good day. I half smiled and tested the wheelchair. It was good arm excercise, but hard work since I had never done that before. After my first class, Aric met me, huffing and puffing, in the hallway. "This is hard," I said with a smile. He smiled back and wheeled me to my next class. I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and thanked him. He also wheeled me to chemistry and to lunch and all other classes that day. His fan club, surprised at the change of him walking and me being in the chair, glared at me with jealousy, but I didnt care. In P.E., I got to watch them do my favorite sport, swimming. The girl that threw the knife was glaring at me and smiling. I wheeled myself to the office and asked if I could go ahead to my next class since I couldnt swimm and they gave me permission. I passed Evan in the hallway. He was sitting just outside a classroom with his head down. I stopped and put the brakes on. "What's the matter, Evan?" I asked quietly. He looked up at me and he said that he had gotten mad at the teacher because they were disagreeing on something and she sent him out to sit in the hallway. I reached over and ruffled his hair. "You look so much like your father. I bet you are as smart as or smarter than him too," I said softly. He smiled. "I do well on tests, but not on daily because I dont do my homework." I smiled and said that I use to be the same way. I told him that I had better get to the classroom. He hopped up, peeked in the door way, and when he decided that the teacher was not looking, he took off the brakes and sped me down the hall to my class. I had a hard time keeping my laughter down to a giggle, but I some how managed. He ruffled my hair and said to take care and rushed back to sit outside his class room door. I smiled, smoothed my hair and clothes, and wheeled myself into the art room. The fourty-year-old woman greeted me enthusiastically and bid me to work. I moved to a desk and produced a book from my backpack entitled 'Landscape Photographs'. I settled on one of a farm with a tree with a tree house off to the side and a pen of animals. It reminded me of Anahuac and my friends. I quickly started to work and had it sketched by the time the bell rang to switch classes. I moved to the place where I was to sit during my actual class period just as the person who occupied the space that I was sitting in a moment before arrived to fill it. When class started I set to work on painting it. It turned out very well when I finished it. I set it out to dry and wheeled myself around the room to see what the others were doing. When the bell rang, I wheeled over to where I sat the painting, grabbed it, asked the teacher to grade it real quick, and sped to my next class as fast as I could. By the end of the day, my arms were sore. Aric took over and pushed me to the van. I lay down with my head in his lap and stared out at the trees that were quickly moving by. He played with my braid and also stared out the window. The trees became a green blur as I began to drift off into sleep. The car stopped suddenly, throwing me into the floor of the van and bringing me out of my nap. I sat up, shook my head to clear the sleepiness, and looked outside to see what we stopped for. There appeared to be a wreck of a building in front of us, but we could not make it out well. Evan got out to investigate and came back to tell us that it appeared to be some remnants of Talpa's castle. "They were not here this morning though," Mia said nervously. "No it wasn't. I just put it there!" a voice boomed. We glanced at each other nervously and then outside. There stood one of Sekmet's demons. Its hair was a series of bull-whips that moved about like a bunch of snakes. It reminded me of Medusa, who was one of three mythological sisters, and the ugliest, with snakes instead of hair, and whoever looked at her ugly, scaly face turned to stone. It had an old fashioned samouri armor on and a mask over its face, with two slits for eyes, a slit for the nose, and one for the mouth. The guys thundered out of the van. I tried to follow, but I ended up face down on the asphault with my legs screaming in pain. In a flash of light, the guys had their sub-armors on, and in another their armors. I used my arms, still hurting, to climb back up into the van. Mia had deserted the van. "Mia!" I screamed. "Help! Please!" She didnt come back, though. I guessed that she didnt hear me. I crawled further into the van and locked the doors and balled up as much as I could under the seats. Something hit the van. I looked to the window and, amidst the blood and blonde hair, I saw the pain on Aric's face. "No!" I shouted. I crawled out, transformed into my armor, and bounded out of the van, being careful not to step on anyone. The warriors were on the ground in pain. I flinched at the sight and put on my fighter's face. "You son-of-a-bitch! Come get me!" I shouted. He came toward me at an incredible speed, but not quickly enough. I leapt into the air and gracefully landed in a tree, although my legs were screaming even more. I ignored it and leapt into the air again. I quickly called forth a single katana and brought it down on the demon, shouting for my sure kill and incinerating him with a great deal of electricity. I stood for a moment, numb from shock, and then collapsed. I cried for a very long time from the pain and eventually drifted into a bleak and black unconsciousness.
I awoke to the sound of crackling and the warmth of a fire and slowly sat up. We were in the woods, in my secret clearing where I go to find peace and quiet for my meditations. 'Well,' I thought. 'Its not so secret anymore.' Anubis emerged from the other side of the fire. "How do you feel?" he asked of me. I nodded that I was ok and crawled over to Aric. He shifted and fell back to sleep. "Good. You need your sleep after all of that." I whispered and kissed him on the head. He smiled and grabbed my hand. I lay down on his shoulder and sighed. "Amber." Anubis said. I looked over to him. "You know you cant get into a relationship. You have an arranged wedding. The ancients looked into the future and decided who you were to marry. You can not just keep going around and falling in love with people. I will tell you one thing, though. He is alive now and he is one of the four boys you see before you, but I am afraid it is not Aric." he said grimly. I looked at him in disbelief. "You think I dont really love Aric, dont you? I do! This is not like the others. I got taken from him, but he came after me and rescued me! Why cant it be him? Why?!?!" I said, exasperated, but trying not to wake the others. He looked at me, a pain in his eyes, for he knew how I felt. "If I could change it, I would.....for you I would.....but you know it is not my decision. I am sorry." he said and turned away. He walked into the woods, disappearing. "How will I know who it is," I spoke aloud. *Tomorrow night you will have a dream........The one who you are marry will be revealed to you then.....Farewell sister.* A single tear slid down my cheek. I lay my head back down on Aric's shoulder, looked at his handsome face, and decided to move back to where I was. Sad and heartbroken, I cried myself to sleep.
I woke up to Evan feeling on my legs where the breaks had been and Aric holding me in his arms. I looked in confusion to Evan. He sat back on his heels, shaking his head. "Move your legs," he commanded, dumbfounded. I protested weakly, but he silenced me and commanded me once again to move my legs. I did and they moved without any pain. I stood with no pain. I walked, hopped, and did a backflip with no pain. I looked to him and shrugged. "I guess I am a quick healer," I said in a melancholy voice, still upset about the night before. "Well," Mia shouted, "lets pack up and go home!"
We arrived at the house, just waiting for the worried fathers to greet us. Ryo bounded out the doors with the others behind him. "Where have you guys been?" he shouted. We leapt out of the van and bolted for the house. The fathers caught their child and asked about our whereabouts. Sage caught me and Aric in his arms and led us to the living room. I glanced nervously to Sage and Aric. *I dont want to tell him. I dont want to break his heart.* I kept thinking. I decided it would be better to do that though. I broke free of Sage's grip and grabbed Aric, explaining that I had something important to tell him. I told him about what Anubis had told me the night before. "And tonight you are supposed to dream about who you are supposed to marry." he asked in disbelief, the sadness showing in his eyes. I nodded, eyes tearing up and over-flowing. "And what is worse is that it is one of the other three guys. I cant believe that, just as I have found a true love, he has to burden me and you with this. I cant....believe..." I trailed off and broke into deep sobs again. He put his arms around me to comfort me, but it made me feel worse. I broke free and ran upstairs to our room. I threw myself down on the bed and cried until I fell asleep again. I woke up in a beautiful grove of cherry blossom trees. The wind blew and shook a few loose to flutter down to me. I held one in my hand and it disintegrated. I looked down and saw that I was wearing a long, flowing white dress. I stood and walked around, but soon found out that it was a enclosed space, sort of like a sphere, but it had no solid walls. A form appeared in front of me. As it slowly took shape, I could see that it was Rune. I walked forward, but he turned and ran, dissappearing into a tree. I looked in confusion at that direction, but a flash of light behind me brought my attention to another form appearing. It was Evan. He had his lute with him, playing a slow, sad tune. I moved toward him and he did the same thing that Aric had done. I began to get scared. *Ok, it is not Evan and it is not Rune.* I thought to myself. I took a deep breath and turned as another flash of light came from my right side. It took a little longer to appear than the others, but as it took shape I knew who the one I was going to have to marry was. The figure that took shape was Aric. He looked sad and forlorn. That left Kyle, the leader of the Ronins. As Aric dissappeared, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I slowly turned around, and there stood Kyle. He smiled at me and took my hand. *I know you are dissappointed that it was not Aric, but I am sure that we will be happy together. We will guard this world from evil and keep it safe for as long as we can......together.* he spoke without speaking. I looked at him with no expression on my face. He tilted his head to the side. *Why do you say nothing?* he inquired. The space around us dissolved and I was falling into a blackness. I screamed and screamed. I was extremely scared. I fell farther and farther into the hole.
"AMBER!!!" a voice shouted. I awoke, dripping wet with sweat and panting. Rowen was over me with his medical kit looking in worry. The household was standing around watching in worry. I started shaking and I brought my knees up to my chest and hugged them. "Are you ok?" Rowen asked. "You were screaming. What happened?" I sat there, not answering, and trying to catch my breath. "Did you have the dream," Aric asked. I looked at him sadly and nodded. "Well, I told them about it. Who is it?" he asked. I shook my head. "Tell us, please." they repeated. I shook my head again. "Why reveal the future. You will know when it comes along." I said. Aric stepped up. "Please?" he begged. I sighed and lifted a shaky finger into the air. I moved it from Aric, to Rune, to Evan, and stopped at Kyle. His eyes widened as it clicked that her hand was not going to move anymore. Everyone looked to the wide eyed, blushing Kyle. I dropped my hand back to where it was, around my knees. I explained the dream, in detail, to them. They decided that it was true, and Aric and I decided that we would have to, unfortunately, live with it. My eyes overflowed again. I explained to Kyle that it was not his fault that I was crying, but the fact that this had to come about after I had fallen in love. They left, one-by-one, for the living room. I got up and showered and dressed. I slowly made my way down to the living room. "Amber, hurry up! It is a school day." Mia shouted. I quickened my pace and made my way, instead, to the van. I hopped into the front seat, being the first one there, and buckled myself in. The others began piling into the van. I stared ahead, not looking at anyone. Mia eventually made it to the van and off we went to school. I watched the trees go by and wondered what it was going to be like with Kyle. I had been wondering for so long that it surprised me when we stopped in front of the school. Where had all the time gone? I hopped out and bolted for my locker and my first class. Classes went by quickly. At lunch, I sat outside, but I was able to see Aric on my way out. The girl that threw the knife at me was sitting with him. I winced and quickened my pace, keeping my head down. After school, I made it to the van first again and sat in the front. When we got home I went straight up to our room and studied. I dont know why, because tomorrow we did not have school. Just to get away from everyone. Kyle joined me after a while, studying for an extra class that he took some days after school at a local college. It was a psychology class, and he had some research to do. I helped him with the knowledge I had, and the rest he looked up on the internet. Mia called for everyone to come to dinner, and I bolted for the table. I had not eaten much for lunch and I was starving. As I scarfed down my food, I thought about school and work. I needed a job. I thought about who might be hiring, and narrowed my choices down to a clothing store that I thought was neat. I thanked Cye for the wonderful meal and took my dishes to the kitchen and headed outside. I sat on the porch and listened to the night creatures and the wind. Why were the ancients angry with me? They have put me through much heartbreak and many obstacles. Why can I not live a normal life for once? I kicked at the air. Spontaneous decisions are one thing that I am good at. I decided that I would try my hardest to not fall in love anymore untill everything fell into place, and that is kind of hard when your kanji (virtue) is love. I hopped up and spun around, running into Kyle and knocking both of us down. I apologized and we helped each other up. I asked him how on earth he was able to sneak up so close to me like that. He smiled and said that he had no idea. My heart stopped for a moment when he smiled. *Uh oh....no...falling....in....love....girl!!!* I smiled and giggled. "Oh well. HEY! Are you guys going to the dance tonight? I totally forgot about that!" I blurted out. He nodded and said that the guys were getting ready now, and that it is taking so long because Myra is in the bathroom. I laughed and headed for the door. "I need to head up there and accompany her in there. I have to wash my hair and dress in something better than this," I said pointing to my skirt and rolled up shirt. I bounded up the stairs and dashed to our room. the remaining three guys were beating on the door and yelling threats. I skipped to the closet and picked out a blue pleated skirt and a light-blue baby-tee with my kanji on it in black and yellow confetti and smiley faces and hearts surrounding it. I also picked out a pair of stockings with my kanji imprinted all over them, a pair of yellow tennis shoes, a yellow long-sleeved shirt to wear over the baby-tee, yellow hair accessories, a yellow watch and earrings and necklace, a yellow belt, and a pair of undies and a bra. I pushed the cursing boys out of the way and asked throught the door if I could join her in the bathroom. She said it was ok and let me in. I showered again and dressed and put on some make up, also helping Myra with her make-up. We emerged from the bathroom as beautiful young ladies. The guys' eyes widened and we smiled and stuck a pose. They shook their heads and ran for the bathroom. We narrowly ducked out of the way and muttered a "humph" and dashed downstairs. Mia was just walking into the living room when she saw us emerge. She smiled and clapped her hands together. "Well, dont you two look glamorous!" she shouted. We walked into the living room and the fathers gasped. "Myra?!?!" Kento shouted, surprised. "You look......BEAUTIFUL!!!" he said, bursting into tears. "You remind me of your mother!!" She ran to him, trying to quiet him. I looked on, wide eyed, and decided to go back out onto the porch. As I walked out the door, Kyle looked up at me. His eyes widened when he saw me. I smiled and walked over and sat by him. He kept his eyes on me. "What?" I said, blushing. He muttered one word: beautiful. That made me turn a much darker shade of red. He swept past me to go up to the room to change. I sat down and stared up at the moon and dream some more. I saw a flash of light off to my left and I brought my attention to that direction. Anubis was approaching. I hopped down off of the porch railing and sat on a step. When he reached me he sat down next to me on the step. For a while, we didnt speak. I continued my staring at the moon. "Why are you angry with me, sister?" he asked quietly. "You know I didnt mean for you to have to give up your love. Kyle cares for you, also. He..." I cut into his sentence, "But it is not the same! In an arranged marriage you have to put up with the person. With real love, there may be more heartbreak and confusion, but it lasts longer!" I exclaimed. I took a few breaths to calm down and relaxed. "You know he cares for you in another way than that. You can tell by the way he looks at you. It is not lust you see in his eyes, but true love and caring. I can not help your being angry or anything, but at least try to get over your anger and see Kyle's true feelings." he said and left. I gritted my teeth and hopped back up onto the railing. Rune came out of the house with his lute and began playing quietly, not seeing me sitting on the railing. "That sounds nice, Rune. Where did you learn to play like that?" I asked, startling him. He blushed and said that he had purchased a few lesson books. I urged him to play on. He played a tune I recognized, so I hummed along and eventually began singing along. He ended the song and looked up at me wide-eyed. I opened my eyes and turned red again when I found out that I had been singing again. He sat his lute down and sat down in a nearby chair, staring at me wide-eyed still. "Where on EARTH did you learn to sing like that?!?!" he exclaimed, astonished. I smiled and sat up on the railing. "When you have been around for over 400 years, you begin to pick things up. I like to sing, but I am not THAT good. I just do it when my heart tells me to." I said. He sighed and shook his head. "You are the best singer I have ever heard! Dont be so modest!" he said. I laughed and hopped down from the railing and walked around a bit to stretch. Evan came out the door and sat next to Rune. "Hey there Rune. Why dont ya play something. I need to work on my dancing so I can sweep all of the ladies off their feet." he shouted, happily. Rune picked up the lute again and played the same song he had just played. I sang along again, feeling better now and not so angry. When the song was over, I heard clapping. I looked up and there stood all of the teens, their fathers, and Mia. I turned real red and slinked to the van and sat down in the front seat. The teens hopped in and buckled themselves in. "Where did you learn to sing like that?" a few of them asked me. I shrugged and said that I was not taught. I just sing. I watched the stars and the moon during our little car trip to the dance. Mia dropped us off and handed us one of the cellular phones she had with her and told us to call her when we were ready to come home. We shouted 'ok' and rushed to get inside the gym. People were everywhere and it was more than crowded. We made our way to an area where there were few people and stood and talked for a while with a few friends from school. I glanced at Kyle a few times and caught him watching me with interest, but when he noticed me looking he quickly turned his attention elsewhere. I felt flattered and continued to move around and talk to people. My favorite song came on, and I hopped up and down happily. I looked for the guys, but couldnt find them. I finally found Kyle and asked him if he wanted to dance with me, because that was my favorite song and everything. He agreed and we headed out onto the dance floor. Wile we were dancing, we passed Myra, who was dancing with a handsome blonde. She winked at me and shot me a thumbs-up. I grinned and rested my chin on Kyle's shoulder. I felt him shudder and relax. I smiled and closed my eyes, moving with the music. I heard someone move near us and I looked up. A lanky, weird looking boy was leering at me. He giggled and dissappeared. I frowned and looked around for him. "What's wrong?" Kyle asked. I told him and he also frowned. All of a sudden I heard glass breaking and the music stop. I looked to the glass windows that were on either sides of the doors, allowing people to see outside. There stood soldiers, grabbing people and throwing them out of their way. They grabbed one of my art partners that I spoke with often and held a knife to her throat. I moved forward quickly and shouted "hey!" I grabbed the soldier and shoved him backward with my strength, causing him to lose his grip on my friend. She scurried into the crowds. I looked to my left where more soldiers were harassing people. I moved toward them quickly. They looked up and released their victims. They readied themselves for a fight. I leapt into the air and landed a kick, knocking a few of them over. One of the ones still on its feet swung a sword at me and I ducked and did a sweep kick and knocked him down. One of the soldiers grabbed the girl that had thrown the knife at me and for a split second I contemplated letting him have her, but I decided that I had better help her anyway, despite the desputes. I punched him in the face and kicked him in the midsection. I caught her when she fell out of his grasp. She looked at me and glared. "YOU!" she shouted. I dropped her. "That is the last time I try to help you out," I muttered and moved to more soldiers. Kyle and the others were doing the same now. We thought we had them beat with out having to use our armor when we heard a high-pitched laugh. We looked up and there stood a warlord recruit. He leapt up and dissappeared again. Before I had time to react I felt arms wrap around me. I struggled and bit and kicked and did everything I could but he would not let me go. I gave the others a helpless look that meant that I would have to transform. They nodded and Kyle called us to arms. The recruit was blinded by the light of goodness for long enough for me to escape and turn on him. Now in my armor, I called forth a bull whip, wrapping him up in it. He screamed an undistinguishabe word and my bull whip dissappeared. My eyes widened and I narrowly escaped a quick tackle toward me. I hopped up and over him, grabbing him from behind and locking him in my grip with my strength. He shouted the word again and I felt a burning in my arms. I screamed and leapt back a few feet. I looked over and the guys were occupied with the soldiers. I felt him kick me in the back and then in the abdomen. I groaned and looked up at him with a squint. He smacked me in the face with the back side of his hand and sneered at me. He then took out a dagger and held it above me. "Any last words for the trickster before I put you out of your misery?" he giggled. I tried to get up, but fell back down when he drove the dagger into my left shoulder. I screamed in agony and grabbed at my shoulder. I looked around scared. I could not get away. I decided I would have to try to save myself though. I kicked him in the groin area and slapped him in the face and landed an elbow to his neck, temporarily paralyzing him. Gingerly holding my shoulder, I made my way to the guys, who had just finished off the last of the soldiers. Kyle ran to me, a worried look in his eyes. He inspected the damage and ordered Aric and Evan to get a medi-kit and try to clean and doctor it up. The warlord recruit was waking up. I stared in alarm as he stood and shook his head to clear the grogginess. "Get her out of here! She is in no shape to fight!" Kyle shouted. He moved angrily toward the recruit and said in his most mature sounding voice, "What is the meaning of this? Why do you choose to interrupt a small gathering and treat all of these people with disrespect? And foremost, why did you do that to my wife-to-be?" People gasped as he said that last bit of information. The recruit smiled. "I only do what my master bids me do. As for your little slut over there, I think she will get over it. Hey sweetie, will you forgive me if I take you out for a ROUSING night on the town?!?!" he shouted at me. I cringed and Kyle grew even more furious. "That is enough. You wish to pick a fight? I will fight you!" he shouted and leapt up to the ceiling. He grabbed onto a beam and did an ally-oop through the sky-light. The recruit followed. We saw them land in front of the gym and begin fighting. I shrugged Aric and Evan off and moved forward to watch. Kyle got a few good moves in, and so did the recruit, but the recruit drew first blood. He nailed Kyle in his left shoulder. I winced as I saw the blood flow. The recruit attacked relentlessly. He drew much more blood. I decided that Kyle needed help. I dissappeared into the crowd. With my lightning speed I moved around behind him and leapt into the air. I called forth a katana and brought it down. He sensed my attack and countered it with a dagger. I used my strength to try and bring it closer to him, but I could not. He threw up the dagger in a complicated move, sending my sword off to my right to land in a tree. I slowly brought my eyes back to the recruit. I looked at him and put a silly grin on my face and shrugged, giggling. He frowned and punched a button on the blade, making it grow from a dagger to a sword. I gulped and backed away. He took a few swipes at me and I ducked, hopped, and slid out of the way of the blade. I glanced nervously at Kyle, who started moving toward us quickly. I lost my balance and he landed a blow to my left leg, creating a slash that went accross the scar. I wimpered and slinked back more. Kyle snuck up on him and called out his sure kill, forcing the recruit to retreat. I winced as Kyle touched the leg and the shoulder. He looked at me with a worry in his eyes. "Are you ok?" he asked very seriously. I returned the stare and nodded. He picked me up and carried me to the parking lot. He sat me down and called away his armor. I did the same, experiencing much more pain. He took out a couple of strips of material from his pocket and tied them around the wounds. "I keep these around because I am always getting hurt," he explained. I kept my eyes staring into his. He sat down beside me, inspecting his work. I smiled and said 'thank you'. He smiled back, worry still in his eyes. I asked him, shyly, if there was something I could do to repay him. He smiled and shook his head. I moved forward and planted a kiss on his cheek. He turned red and looked away. I lay back on the pavement and stared up at the stars. Kyle lay down also and pulled me over to lay on his shoulder so I would have a pillow. I moved closer to him, absorbing his warmth and breathing in the smell of his after-shave. I relaxed my muscles and the pain lessened. Sirens began blaring nearby and we looked up and a police car and an ambulance pulled into the parking lot. We stood and started walking toward them. We then heard a screech of tires and saw a truck pull in front of the ambulance and start heading right toward us. Kyle grabbed my hand and ran, half dragging me behind him. The truck gained on us. In a flash of light Kyle was in his sub-armor and he turned, grabbed me, and jumped out of the way of the truck, landing on his back to keep from hurting me and keeping his arms around me as a shield. He started rolling, making sure I didnt get caught on anything while he was doing it, and fell into a cement ditch that was pretty deep. He rolled over on top of me incase they tried anything and then didnt move. I moved my head slightly and whispered in his ear, "Are you ok?" Not moving, he answered that he was ok. I said, "Good," and shifted beneath him. "Are you uncomfortable? I can move some if you are." he said. "No, I am fine. My leg is falling asleep. Probably from blood-loss. It is ok though." I said and turned so I could see his eye. It was turned to see me and it had that worried look in it still. I smiled and said that I was ok and kissed him on the cheek. His eye glazed over and he blushed. He raised up a little and smiled at me. I could now see his whole face. He had scraped his face on the concrete. I reached up my hand and gently touched the scrape. He brought his hand up and put it over mine. He slowly moved his face closer to mine. I felt his lips meet mine and I kissed him back. I had promised this about Aric and it didnt work out, but I tried again. I didnt want it to end. I felt something hit Kyle and he arched his back in pain. I looked up from under him, helpless with his weight on me, at the soldier on top of him. He had a bloody knife in his hand and he smiled. I pushed Kyle off of me, apologized and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, and transformed into my armor as quickly as possible. I called forth a katana just in time to counter an attack. I tried to get close to him, but my senses were not as strong as usual from the blood-loss. I finally got a slash at his leg, and then one at his shoulder, causing him to draw away from me. I called forth one of my lesser attacks and easily defeated him. I ran back to Kyle and checked his back. He had stabbed him in the shoulder. I called away my armor and bid Kyle to do the same so I could take him up to the medics. He did and we helped each other out of the ditch and just barely made it to the ambulance before they left. They checked us out and decided that they had better take us to the hospital. The other guys hopped into the ambulance with me and Kyle and rode to the hospital with us. I tossed Myra the cellular phone and she called Mia to tell her to meet us at the hospital and told her what happened. The medic who was overlooking our injuries gave us a pain killer. It put me to sleep.
When I woke up, I was in a room by myself. I searched for the buzzer for the nurse. I finally found it and punched it. She came in and asked what I needed. "Where is Kyle?" I asked frantically. "Why, he is in another room on a higher floor. Why?" she said. "Please, can I be put with him, or the opposite?" I begged. She shook her head. "We can not allow a male and a female to stay in the same room." she stated. I explained that we slept in the same room at our house and that we are going to be married and everything but she still would not allow it. "Well, can I go see him?" I asked. She shook her head again. "Ma'am. You are in no condition to be seeing him. He is in a better shape than you are. At least he can walk." she said. "Well, can he see me?" I asked. Frustrated, she said she would try. I asked her what the phone number of his room was and she dialed it for me. Mia answered. "How is Kyle?" I asked. She said he was ok and asked what my room number was. I told her and she let me go. I relaxed and surveyed myself. I had a bandage on my head, one on my left shoulder and arm, one on my left leg, one around my body from above my chest to my abdomen, a wrist brace on my right hand and an ankle brace on each ankle. I now saw what she had been talking about. I laughed to myself and closed my eyes. Mia then walked in with the teens and their fathers, minus Kyle and Ryo. I smiled and waved to them as best as I could. They winced when they saw me. "How on earth did you get into such an awefull shape?" Mia shouted and ran to my bedside. I told her with a laugh that I did not know I was in such a bad shape until just a second before when I had looked at what all they had wrapped around me. She shook her head and touched my hand. "Kyle will be heartbroken when he sees you." she muttered. Just then he came in the room with the assistance of a nurse and Ryo. He brushed them off when he saw me and stood in shock. "Oh my god....how..." he muttered and stumbled over to my bedside. He took my hand, eyes widening, and started muttering 'forgive me' over and over. I took my hand out of his grasp and raised his head to see him eye-to-eye. "Listen to me closely. I dont want you to blame yourself. Ok? Listen! It...is...not...your...fault....I am the one who decided to do all of that and attack them when they were breaking in and disrupting the dance. I am the one who was not concentrating enough. I have forgotten my meditations today. I did not meditate once. Please listen to me. You did not cause this, I did! Ok? I am more worried about you than I am of me. Are you ok?" I said. He nodded and grabbed my hand again and kissed it. I turned red and smiled. "Ok Kyle. It is time to get you back to your room." the nurse said. Kyle shook his head. "I want to stay in here." he said. "But...I cant let you stay in here....males and females are segregated here...I am sorry but.." she said, frustrated. Kyle walked over and plopped down on the couch. "I am not leaving this room. You can bring my stuff in here or it can stay in the room and I can sleep on the couch and go get it in the morning." he stated. Frustrated, she took off to his room to get his stuff. I looked at Ryo. "And who taught him to be so up-front and direct?" I asked with a grin. The fathers laughed and Ryo smiled and turned red. I looked back to Kyle who sat and stared at me, not moving. I would have bet anyone money that if the doctors tried to come in with security guards and everything to get him back to his room, he would have fought them and won. I smiled and relaxed into my bed, closing my eyes. When I heard the nurse wheeling a hospital bed in I opened my eyes. On the bed were his extra clothes that Mia had brought, my extra clothes because she did not know the room that I was in, and the other things like IVs and such that were for him. He got situated in his bed and said 'thanks' to the nurse. He looked over at me and smiled. "Hey dad. Come here." he said. Ryo went over and Kyle whispered something in his ear. Ryo said 'ok' and got to work on what Kyle had asked him to do. He moved a desk out of the way that was in-between my bed and his and then he pushed the two beds together. I looked at Mia with a bewildered look on my face and said, "Can you believe this?" She smiled and patted my hand. She muttered something that sounded like 'true love' and stood to leave. "We will leave you two love birds by yourself now. Just dont do anything we wouldnt do!" Kento boomed, causing the room to erupt in laughter. "Go to sleep. You need rest." Rowen said. "Yeah, you would know, Dr. Hashiba." I said with a smile. I relaxed as they left. "Sheesh. I have known most of them for a very long time, but I still get nervous in a room with a lot of people, even them." I muttered aloud to myself. Kyle snickered and reached over to touch my hand. I looked into his deep blue eyes and the burning began in my chest again. I squeezed his hand and felt myself slip into a deep sleep as my drugs kicked in. I smiled and fell asleep.
I woke up to a crash and a scream. I looked wide-eyed at the nurse who was staring at me in horror. "What?!?! Nobody looks perfect when they first wake up!!!" I shouted, laughing at my own joke. "Dr. Hashiba, Dr. Noshano. Come here quickly!" she screamed. I sat up and looked at myself. The bandages were half-off like she had been changing them or something. My wounds were, for the most part, almost completely healed. I looked over and Kyle was up and dressed normally instead of in his hospital gown. "Dont worry. The other nurse who changed mine did the same thing. Dr. Hashiba, um, I mean, Rowen, will give her some drug to make her forget." he said with a smile. "It will sure be good to get home." He reached in his pocket and brought out a pair of sunglasses. He slipped them on and did a double thumbs-up. "So, do I look like a cool American dude?" he said, smiling. I laughed and said that he looked like a biker. He smiled and hopped up and walked to my bedside. He helped me sit up and stretch. I leaned into him and stared up at his eyes. His face moved to mine and he kissed me. I smiled and kissed back. Just then, Rowen walked in. Kyle hopped up and scratched his head and turned a very dark shade of red. "Man. We get no privacy around here." he said, chuckling. "Well, a hospital is not exactly the best place to make out." Rowen said with a smile. "Looks like you will be able to go home. Tell Mia I will be a little late. I have an extra surgery and a meeting tonight." he said. I hopped up, ran to get my clothes, and dashed for the bathroom. In ten minutes I emerged from the bathroom and grabbed Kyles arm. He escorted me to Mia's van. Rowen had called her while I was dressing and told her to pick us up. I sat in the back with Kyle on the way home. He pulled the collar of the jacket off of my shoulder, pulled the sleve of my baby-tee up a little, and surveyed the scar. "It is almost fully healed! I wish I could heal that quickly." he said with a smile. "How are your leg and back?" he asked. I raised the shirt up in the back to let him see and he gasped. "What?" I asked. "Wha....wha....what are those other scars from?" he asked, wide eyed. I blushed and looked away. "What are they from?" he demanded. I stared out the window, not answering. "Please.......tell me." he said. The desperation in his voice was extremely evident. I sighed and told him that Talpa and the warlords, mainly Sekmet, did it to me while I was captured there. They came to my school in America and took me and imprisioned me, putting me back into this body and torturing me. When I finished I looked at him. He was glaring at the floorboard. My eyes softened. I touched his shoulder and he looked at me, anger flaring. "I am going to make Sekmet pay for this." he hissed. "Calm down. You need to worry about making him pay for what he is doing now. This was a very long time ago. I am still alive, although I wish I were not sometimes. I was hoping that something would kill me one of these days and I would not have to be alive for forever. I dont care now. I only care about the safety of the people now, even if it means self-sacrifice. I dont worry about that stuff anymore." I said. I felt like I was just rambling. He looked into my eyes and sighed. "You know, you have way too much courage for a girl of your size. I wish we had half of your courage." he said. I blushed and looked back out the window. I felt his arm slip around my shoulders. I turned around and leaned against him, snuggling in. Just about that time we pulled up at the house. I groaned and unbuckled myself. I got out of the van and stretched. I winced as pain bolted up my leg. I limped back to the van and sat down in the floorboard. I pulled up the skirt a little bit and saw that the wound had re-opened and it was bleeding badly. I shouted for Mia to come. Kyle hopped out and took out a strip of material and applied pressure to it to stop the bleeding. I winced, and watched as he tied it tightly. He picked me up and carried me to the house, even though he still had an injured shoulder. I kept protesting, along with Mia, that I could walk and that he did not have to do this, but he brused it off and did it anyways. When he sat me down he plopped down next to me. I looked at him angrily. "What!?!?" he said, exasperated and in pain. "I specifically told you not to carry me in your condition! I heal faster than you and you are not healed yet." I stated. He grinned and sat back. I saw a red blotch growing on his shirt. My eyes widened and I reached for his pocket. He gave me a look that said 'what are you trying to grab' and I looked at him and said, "Look. You are bleeding. Dont even go there!" He laughed and took his shirt off so I could get to his shoulder. I gasped when I saw him shirtless. He had a very muscular upper body. Not the Arnold-type muscular, but built well. He had a very defined six-pack. Trying to keep my mind on his shoulder, I unwrapped a strip and wrapped it tightly around his shoulder. He winced as I applied pressure to it. I looked down at my leg and the bleeding on me had not stopped yet. "Um....Help!" I shouted. Mia finally stumbled in with a first-aid kit. She surveyed the scene and called for someone to come help her and for Kento and Myra to come too. She instructed Kento to hold Kyle down and Myra to hold me down. She thoroughly cleaned our wounds, which did not feel too well, and wrapped them up with a lot of Neosporin and clean bandages. They helped us back up to the couch where we sighed relaxed. I lay my head back on the back of the couch and closed my eyes. I felt something hit my good shoulder. I glanced down at my shoulder, not moving my head, and saw that Kyle had passed out on my shoulder. I smiled and closed my eyes again. I felt wonderfully calm. I dont know if Mia had given me a pain killer or not but I felt like I was numb, and it felt wonderful. I decided that it was safe to fall asleep, but as I was drifting off a young man crashed through the door. "Ru-ru-Ryooooo!!!" he shouted. I flinched and stared at the young man thoughtfully. "Hey...you look awefully familiar. Do I know you?" I asked. He looked at the couch, startled because he did not know I had been there. He gasped and a huge smile spread across his face. "AMBER!!! YOU ESCAPED!!!" he shouted. He ran to the couch and half-fell down onto the floor. I struggled to remember who this was. Then it hit me. Dark hair, short, skateboarder, YULI!!! "Yuli? Little Yuli?" I asked in disbelief. He nodded his head and somehow the smile grew. "Yup! It is me!" he shouted. Kyle sat up, shook his head and rubbed his eyes, said a few curses and looked up at Yuli. "Hey Yuli. Why did ya hafta wake me up like that, huh? I was having such a great dream. Argh." he said and grasped his shoulder. Yuli glanced at his shoulder and looked at me with a confused expression. I explained to him that we just had a very nasty battle and me and him were badly injured in it. Kyle lay his head in my lap and smiled up at me. I raised an eyebrow at him. "Dont think you can get comfortable there." I said, matter-of-factly. He gave me a sly smile. "And what are you going to do if I do get comfortable here?" he asked. I sighed, frustrated. "Nothing. I forgot. YOU are the leader and I am just some girl." I said and gave Yuli a smile. Kyle raised a hand and stroked my face. "You know I love you." he said. My breath caught in my throat and tears welled up in my eyes. "You...what?" I said, turning red. "Must I repeat everything I say?" he asked with a smile. I laughed and nodded. He sat up and stared me straight in the eyes. "Yuli....go..uh..talk to my dad about whatever you need to talk to him about, ok?" he said. Yuli grinned and ran off. Kyle moved himself to the edge of the couch and struggled to get off and onto his knees. I protested, trying to keep him on the couch, but he insisted. He reached in his pocket and brought out a small box. My eyes widened and I put my head in my hands, remembering what Cye did when he took out a small box. "Not again not again not again...." I whispered to myself over and over. He gave me a confused look and sat the box down on the couch. He lifted my face up and asked what was wrong. I told him the whole story about Cye and he nodded, understanding. "Well, I had something a little different in mind." he said with a grin. He picked the box back up and opened it up. In it was a smaller, velvet, flip-top box. He hid it behind his back and flipped the top up. "Amber....will you marry me?" he asked, producing a silver ring with a diamond in the middle. I couldnt breathe. I turned beet red and I think my heart skipped a few beats. I finally was able to calm down and breathe again. I nodded and said that I would. He took out the ring and slipped it on my finger, giving me a quick kiss. I gulped and squeeked out a question. "Hu-how did you know my ring size and, uh, that my favorite...jewelry was...silver?" I asked, stuttering. He smiled and said that he had made a little trip to my town to ask my mom and dad about my interests and stuff like that. I blushed and stared him straight in the eye. He did the same and smiled. I reached up and moved a stray hair out of his eyes and his smile widened. He made an attempt to get back up on the couch, but couldnt quite make it. I pulled him up the rest of the way and he toppled on top of me. I grinned up at him and he smiled and pinched my cheek. "You are too cute." he said. I turned red again and relaxed. He did the same, not moving from on top of me. I looked at him with fake anger and said to get off of me. He smiled and shook his head. Ryo burst into the room and shouted for us to get up, that there was an important meeting in the study room. We laborously stood and limped to the study. Yuli hurriedly told us about what he had run into on the way over here. He had seen Sekmet himself attacking people, trying to find the offspring of the other warlords. I looked at Ryo in alarm. He gave me a questioning glance. I stepped forward. "Who are the offspring of the warlords? I have never seen them, but I have heard of them. I know of Sekmet's child, Killian, but none of the others." I said. Yuli told me that he had heard about the marriages. Kayura and Dais married and had Angel and Gavin. Kale married and his wife had Cutler. They killed Kale and Kayura was captured. He had also heard that Dais, in desperation, sent the children to earth to find the ronins and to call others to arms. I nodded and said that I was going to start looking for them. Kyle offered to help, but I said that he did not need to. I limped to our room and found a crystal in my 'special' drawstring bag and called Kyle in. "I might as well use it on both of us so it wont go to waste." I said. I held it up as high as I could, closed my eyes, and concentrated. The crystal lit up like a light bulb and then turned into a ball of pure energy. I brought it down slowly, stopping at my abdomen. The ball of energy floated above my outstretched hands. It then exploded outward and imploded back into my hands and formed a small black stone. I smiled and opened my eyes. "Check your shoulder." I said. He did and found only a slight scar. One not big enough to open and cause serious injury. He looked at me in wonder as I showed him my leg and shoulder. "Wu-Where did you learn to do that?" he asked. I smiled and said that I learned it in the netherworld and that it was about time I visit there to replenish my crystal stocks. I hurried out the door, giving Kyle a kiss on the cheek on my way out, and rushed down the stairs and out the door. I hopped on my motorcycle and sped off to town. On the radio I heard something about some teens were sighted and two of them looked critically injured, and something about them being dressed in white gi's. I turned around quickly and went back to the turnoff that I had just missed and hurried to the place that was spoken of on the radio. Apon my arrival to the scene, I saw all of the medics trying to get near them. The girl seemed to have a shield of some sort up to keep them away. I rushed forward. When I got closer I recognized Killian. "Killian!" I shouted. The other three looked at me in astonishment. Two of them looked a whole lot like me, Kayura, and Anubis. I raised my right sleeve, showing my dragon tatoo that me and my brother and sister bore. The two recognized it and the boy limped forward, up to the shield. "Who are you and why do you have the same tatoo as our mother?" he asked. "What? She never told you that she had an older sister and brother?" I asked. He tilted his head to the side in confusion. "She told us of Anubis, but no one else." he stated. "Well.......I am Anubis' twin sister, Amber. I know Killian over there because his father took him to see me while I was imprisioned there. I have been imprisioned there for twenty five years and I had heard about you, but never got to see you." I said, looking apologetic. He smiled and touched the barrier, creating a hole. I walked through and it closed behind me. I rushed to Killian's side. "What happened?" I asked. *Sekmet did it. Help please.* the girl sent to me through telepathy. I smiled to her. "Dont worry. The ronins will help. One is a doctor and another bears an armor that heals." I said. I helped them pick up Killian. I looked over at my motorcycle and said an ancient word. It dissappeard and reappeared inside the barrier. They looked at me in surprise. "You could have gotten in the barrier?" they asked. I nodded and said that the reason that I did not was because I am drained and could bearly do the motorcycle. I concentrated hard and brought forth a warp that led to the ronin house. I helped carry Killian through and made sure the others made it through. We rushed Killian inside the house. "I found them. Help! One needs serious medical attention. Has Rowen gotten home yet?" I shouted. The whole household flooded down the stairs, including Rowen. They cleared off the kitchen table and Rowen set to work on Killian's poisoned wounds. When he finished, they made a comfortable bed on the floor and lay him down in it. We took turns monitoring him. Aric and Sage helped some with the armor's power of healing. They eventually revived him. He glanced around the room, eyes stopping on me. "You?!?! You....made it out of there? How?" he asked. I smiled and said that I had snuck out with some soldiers. He relaxed and grasped my hand. "I am glad that he did not manage to kill you. That was stupid of him to do that to you." he sighed. I called Kyle and Ryo in and told them that Killian had awaken. The netherworld teens then proceded to tell us about what drove them from their home and what Dais and Kayura had given them. Ryo nodded, indicating that he knew what to do. I stood and took my place next to Kyle and awaited instructions. He told us to go the shrine on the eastern outskirts of Tokyo and we will find something there that he needs. "What are we looking for?" Kyle asked his father. "Believe me, son. You will know when you see it." was his answer. I dashed outside and hopped onto my motorcycle. Kyle called Midnight to him and hopped on. He instructed Streak to stay and watch over the house. We rode off into the direction of the temple. I saw the birds fly in all different directions to flee some force that was unseen to us a few miles ahead. We continued on and almost literally ran into a tree in the road. I hopped off of my bike and ran up to it. I surveyed it to try and guess the weight. I decided that I might be able to lift it. I tried and succeeded in lifting it a bit. Kyle rushed over and helped. We were able to get it up enough to move it slowly toward the side of the road. I got frustrated with this. "Drop it Kyle." I instructed. We both dropped it and I brought out my armor orb, transforming into my sub-armor. He did the same. I explained to him that the tree was probably here to slow us down. I then transformed quickly into my armor. I called forth a chain and sickle. I used the sickle part to cut the tree up into a few peices and then proceeded to tie the chain around one peice. I used my motorcycle to move them out of the way. It took all of five minutes to do it that way. We finally were on our way again, in armor, to the temple. When we made it there it looked like it had been almost totally destroyed. Kyle stood there, wide-eyed and open-mouthed, staring at the rubble. "It is still here. I sense it." I said. I closed my eyes and sat down. Concentrating my whole being on the rubble I found a power trapped a few feet underground. Using my power of psycho-kinesis, I was able to slowly un-earth the object with all of that power trapped in it. It was a staff. It was not that different from mine and the ancients. I could sense a great force emmiting from it and I quickly dropped my hold over it when it began a counter attack, assuming I was an enemy. I countered it and was able to make it cease the attack. I called it to me and it dissappeared and reappeared in my hands. I looked over to Kyle who was staring at me in awe and smiled. "Why look at me like that. I am not dis-similar from you or anything. This is just part of the armor that I was given. As long as I have this armor, and maybe after if I am alive and have to pass it down, I will have some of these powers out of armor. It is a truly amazing thing." I said, walking towards the motorcycle. He followed and an unspoken agreement was made between us that we needed to hurry home. We encountered no obstacles this time and made it home in one peice, with the staff of course. Ryo smiled as we entered the door holding the magnificient sceptor. "Good! I knew you two would be able to find it. Now, this will be used to get you and the recruits into the nether demension that Sekmet has claimed. You will then launch a full-scale attack on Sekmet and his dark followers. We will also, for now, use this to find the recruits for all of those armors that Dais and Kayura forged. Lets see..." he said and began studying the staff to find out how to use it. I closed my eyes and a light enveloped me. I emerged from it in a yellow gi and holding my staff. I walked forward and held my staff up to the one he was holding. They began to glow and an image formed above them. It showed us where the ancient's staff was. It was hidden in the temple of security, where Cye, Ryo, Yuli and White Blaze had been attacked by Dais those many years ago. I moved my staff away and concentrated on the light again and was transferred back into normal clothes. Kyle and I headed out the door to the temple of security to retrieve the staff. This time, we had absolutely no trouble, which was strange. When we got home, I took the one that Ryo had and gave it to Angel. I gave the one we just retrieved to Gavin and I called back my staff. I explained to Ryo that the reason I gave it to them was because our bloodline was the same as the ancient's and that is why Anubis was able to take over for the ancient. We concentrated our energy together and held the staffs out to each other so that they were almost touching. Images appeared above the staffs. Many, many images of those who were the chosen ones for the armors. We remembered the faces, each and every one, like they had been ingraved in our minds. When we had seen all of the faces the staffs stopped glowing and we moved apart. Ryo proceeded to tell us that we were to separate and find these chosen people. I volunteered to take Hawaii, because that was one place that I had never been before. Kyle wanted to come with me, but I refused. I told him that we needed to split up and cover more area. I dashed upstairs and prepared a duffel bag with things I would need in it. Weapons, clothes, and personal items. I dashed outside in time to see a few of them leaving all ready. "Wait!" I shouted. They turned to look at me in confusion. "Here. You guys can get where you are going quicker with these." I shouted and threw them each a crystal. "What is this for?" Evan asked. I smiled. "Concentrate on where you want to go and it will open a portal to your destination." I explained. I waved farewell to them and dashed to my motorcycle. Kyle was waiting for me. "I want you to be careful, ok? If you are in trouble, send me a mind message or something and I will rush as fast as I can to get there." he said very seriously. I smiled and tossed him a crystal. I opened the compartment under the seat of the motorcycle and stuffed the duffel bag in it and slammed it shut. I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and told him not to worry. I waved farewell to him as I dissappeared into a warp tunnel to find my first recruit.
I came out of the tunnel in a desolate part of Hawaii. I was on the beach looking out into the beautiful water. It was night time and I could see the reflection of the moon in the water. I breathed in the tropical scent and pushed my bike forward some. "Hey! That was a good one. I bet you cant do it again!" I heard a feminine voice shout. As my eyes adjusted to the darkness I could see a figure emerging from the water carrying a surf board. The person was heading for another person who was sitting in the sand. I guessed that the one in the sand was who had shouted. I moved forward to see who they were. They immediately sensed my presence, though, and took stance. "Who is there? I dont want to fight anyone, man, but if I must I will win." the one holding the surf board shouted. I could tell it was a male by the gruffness in the voice. "Please. I mean you no harm. I am only looking for someone." I shouted to them. They held their stance. "We know everyone on this island. Who is it that you seek?" the female shouted. "I am looking for those who have recieved the call to arms. I sense that they are very close by. In fact, I sense it is you two. Tell me, are you Dimitri and Talamari Ka'apana?" I shouted back to them. They turned toward each other and whispered something to each other. "Who is it that wants to know? If you are another fool from the evil side we refuse to say anything." the male shouted. I dropped the motorcycle and moved forward, changing into my gi and calling forth my sceptor. "It is a person of goodness who seeks them. I am with the ronins and I have come to take them to Japan to train with the origional ronins, who are now passing down their armors to their children. Dimitri...Talamari, or Tala as you like to be called...Your destiny is to fight in the ultimate battle against evil. To do this, you must trust me and come with me to Japan." I said as I continued moving forward. When I was close to them, I commanded my sceptor to put forth light so I could see them. They were twins, though the differences in appearance were numerable. Dimitri was very muscular and Tala was somewhat small. When Dimitri saw my face, his seriousness colapsed into awe. "It is you! I saw you in my dream. You came to a strange chamber where I was separated from my sister and I was in there with many people I did not know who did not speak the same language but had armors and you set us free and we fought someone who's face was never shown." he said. I nodded. "You are having visions of the final battle. We must go to Japan as soon as possible. The others have scattered to all different places over the globe to find the others. We haven't much time." I said. They nodded and led me, after I grabbed my bike, to their house. There I met their younger sister. I played with her for a while, a pain growing in my heart for some reason, and then helped put her to sleep. We talked for a while about responsibilities and such and I explained the situation in Japan. We decided that we would leave immediately. As they packed, I packed the younger sister's clothing and put her in a carrier. With me carrying the child and her belongings, and the other two carrying their things, we stepped into a portal that led to Mia's house. We were in shock as we came out. There were so many people moving about. We stepped around them and made our way into the crowded house. "Mu-mu-Mia! Wu-where are you!!!" I shouted above all of the chatter. I answered questions from people in Japanese, Russian, English, Icelandic, and many other languages. I still shouted for Mia. I finally found her in a room upstairs. "Mia. Are these all of the recruits? There are so many of them. Where do I put these two, uh, I mean three?" I asked. "I dont know. We are well past out of room. We need another house for all of these people." was my answer. I sat the child down on a bed and told the other two to wait here just a moment. I whispered something to Mia and she nodded her head eagerly in agreement. I rushed downstairs and searched for Angel and Gavin. I quickly whispered my plan to them and they rushed outside with me. We concentrated our energy together again and were able to move some rooms from the remains of Talpa's castle into this realm and we divided them into female and male dormitories. I was also able to find my room left in the rubble and I brought it also so I would not disturb the others during training and would have some privacy for once. Kyle wanted to move into it with me and I let him. While we moved our things into my new/old room, the recruits moved into their dorms. When we were all finished, we all sat down where ever we could to eat. The adults were seated at the table and the rest of us sat where we could. I sat out on the railing and ate just a little bit of food. For some reason I was not as hungry as I usually was. I had a few scraps of meat and some rice. When I finished I took my dishes into the kitchen and washed them, dried them, and placed them in their spots in the cabinet. I washed the rest of the dishes and put them up also. I then wiped down the stove, sink, dining room table, and the windows around the stove. When I passed through the dining room again, I heard Mia saying in a very worried tone that she was running out of food quickly and that she did not know if she had enough money to keep this up. I quickly thought about finding a job again. I decided that I should look into it. I excused myself, telling them that I had an errand to run in Tokyo and that I needed to also run by the library for some study material. Rowen gave me a sideways glance and I grinned at him. I rushed past the recruits and teens and warlord teens that were lounging around and dashed to my motorcycle. I turned the key and nothing happened. I inspected it and found that someone had moved a few wires on it. I moved them back, glanced around and hopped on. I turned the key again and it finally gave a roar. I revved it a few times to make sure everything sounded right and kicked up the kickstand. I sped past the sleeping tigers and down the road to the highway. I decided that I would drop by a medical research institute and see if there was some way I could find work there. I walked in and asked if I could speak to the head of the institute. She directed me to the office. I knocked on the door and a woman bid me to enter. I slowly opened the door and walked in. The woman sitting behind the desk looked like she was in her late twenties or early thirties. She was a brunette with bright blue eyes and glasses. Her eyes were different from any I have seen in a while. They had no oriental slant to them like most of the people around here. She was definetly American. I greeted her in Japanese to test her language skills and she also greeted me in Japanese. "I was wondering if you had any openings for a researcher on your staff. If you do, I would like to apply for the job." I said. She looked at me over her glasses. "You dont look old enough to be working in this field. I will have to test you." she said skeptically. I grinned and said that it would be fine. She asked me a series of questions, or, should I say MANY questions. I answered every one of the questions correctly and even exaggerated some, giving more information for my answer than was required. Dumbfounded, she gave me the job. She led me to the research room where she gave me a briefcase with my study material and everything in it and showed me the subjects. They were all cryogenically frozen and lined up side-by-side. They were frozen because of various diseases that were life-threatening. The goal of the research was to find cures. I was given a subject who had a strange disease called Xanthophoritis. It is a disease that attacks the spinal cord and then moves up to the brain and disintegrates it. I was told that the subject I was working on had just gotten it a very long time ago and wanted to be frozen until a cure was found so that it would not even damage his spinal cord too badly. I was taken to the cylinder that my subject was in so I could see what he looked like. She pushed a button that removed the metal cover from it and turned on a light, illuminating the subject. I gasped when I saw him. It was my best friend Matt. I read his full name out loud from the plaque near the top of the cylinder. "Matthew Ryan Flinchum. Diagnosed 3-14-2003. Xanthophoritis in early stages. Hmmmm. Never thought I would get to work on my own best friend." I whispered to myself. "Huh?" the woman asked. "Hmm? Oh, nothing. Just talking to myself Mrs...er....I am sorry. I dont know your name." I said. "Miss Thomas." she said. "Ok Miss Thomas. When shall I start?" I asked enthusiastically. "How about tomorrow?" she asked, grinning. "Ok boss!" I shouted and bounded off to my motorcycle. "Uh, Amber. Just how old are you?" she asked. I stopped and turned around slowly. "Ummmm........I am sorry, but I just cant tell you. You wouldnt believe me." I said. She nodded and waved that I could go now. I rushed to my motorcycle and sped off to the library. I checked out a few books on diseases and a few poetry boks to pass the time. I then returned home and headed to my room. I sat the books down and opened my briefcase. In it were a microscope, blood samples, a few medical chemicals for home tests, and various other test items and such. *This is going to be fun.* I thought sarcastically. I looked up when I heard the door opening and saw Rowen enter. "I sensed some medical practice going on in here. Tell me, just where did you go?" he asked and sat on the bed next to my briefcase. "A medical research center. I figured I could use my wisdom from being on this god-forsaken planet for so long to do something good for someone in need of a cure and to also help Mia with the bills since she now has so many new people in this house." I said and gathered up the blood samples to store in the refrigerator. "Ah. So you decide to take the medical approach to earning money. Did they ask your age? I am sure they did. What did you tell them, huh? I am real curious." he said. I could sense some tension and anger in his voice. "Yes, they asked my age. I told her that I could not tell her because she wouldnt believe me. She tested my knowledge. I passed. I start tomorrow. Dont tell anyone. I want it to be a surprise, and dont be so angry with me. I am working on my best friend from my school that I was taken from twenty five years ago. He helped me through a lot and I am going to help him through this." I said. He nodded, still visibly pissed off, and stormed out of the room. I looked at him, a bit confused, and went back to organizing my things. I had it all put up and organized just as Kyle walked in. "Hey there beautiful. Whatchadoin?" he boomed. I smiled and leaned back on the bed. "Whatever you want." I said, pouring on the cheezy moves and such. He smiled and planted a kiss on my forehead. He pulled me up and I put my arms around him. I kept my head back and stared him in the eyes and smiled real big, showing all of my teeth. He laughed and pulled me close. I have never felt so wonderful. I swore to myself that if Sekmet messes with my life now that he would pay severely. I heard Mia shout that it was dinner time. I told Kyle to go ahead. I didnt want anything to eat. He kept asking me if I was sure that I didnt want anything and I kept telling him that I didnt. I finally got him to go eat and I started to work on finding a cure. I surveyed the picture that they gave me of how his blood was before he contracted the disease and I compared it to the one of how his blood looked with the disease. I could very visibly see the difference. I took the blood sample and I tested a few of the drugs with it. I could not get it to work. I fished around for some regular house hold medicines that I could try to mix with the drugs that I was given with. I found some painkillers, antibiotics, and some other over-the-counter drugs as well as some perscription drugs. I tried many different combinations and none worked. I heard the door to Mia's house open and people talking. I guessed that they had finished eating. I quickly put up my medical equipment, hid it all and cleaned up my mess. I changed into my pajamas and grabbed a book and hopped onto the bed. When I hit the bed I suddenly didnt feel like reading anymore, so I sat it on the small bedside table and lay back and stared at the ceiling. Kyle came in holding a bowl with a lid on it and smiling. "What do you have with you?" I asked. He smiled and thrust the bowl toward me. I took it, eyeing him suspiciously, and opened it. There was a grilled chicken salad, expertly made with all of my favorite ingredients in it. I looked up at him. "Who made this, and how did you know it was my favorite?" I asked. His smile grew. "I made it and I found out from my father that it was your favorite." he stated. I smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you. It looks and smells delicious." I said and dove in. He watched me eat it until I finished every last bite. I glanced up at him, laughing. "What?" I asked. He reached over and pushed a hair out of my mouth. I giggled and kissed his hand. He stood and went to the bathroom to change and emerged in his pajamas. I stood and told him that I was taking the bowl to the kitchen. He said that he would take it, but I told him that I would and for him to get in that bed. He smiled at me devilishly and got in bed. "I will be waiting for you." he said in a cheezy french accent. I giggled and dashed to the kitchen. I entered the kitchen the back way so I wouldnt wake anyone up and washed the bowl and put it up. I decided to sneak through the house and check on everyone before I headed back outside. I knealt down beside Killian and checked on his burns. "Still trying to mother everyone, eh?" I heard from behind me. "So? What's it to 'ya, Ryo?" I asked and spun around. He was sitting at the dining room table, alone. "Nothing. Just wanted to try to startle you is all." he stated and smiled. "Man, everyone is sure smiling a whole lot lately." I said and sat down. He glanced at me curiously. "I sense that you are nervous around me. Why is that?" he asked. "Well...uh....I dont want to say. You will laugh at me." I said and looked down. "Tell me. If you tell me I will know what to do to make you not so nervous. I am going to be your father-in-law pretty soon." he stated. "Well, it is nothing that you can do really. I just think about the fact, when I am around you, that if it werent for dynasty interference that I would have had to marry you and Kyle would have been my son instead of my fiancee. It just makes me a little nervous." I said. He chuckled. "It is destiny. You were not meant to marry me, but you were meant to marry the leader of the ronins. Kyle is the one who is in your destiny to marry. You two will bring about a new revolution. You two will rescue humanity from evil." he stated. I was taken aback from the wisdom that was in his voice. "You definitely don't sound like the Ryo I knew before." I said. He chuckled again. "I have more wisdom now and I have my years behind me." he said. I smiled and lay my head down on the table, thinking about how I also have my years behind me. I just wish it werent so many. I am kind of bored with immortality, although others would disagree with me and try to argue with me that immortality was a wonderful, fulfilling thing. I sighed and then popped my head up. "I forgot. I was going to check on everyone and count how many we have now, including me and the 'origional' warriors and warlord children. I will see you in the morning." I said and hopped up. "Goodnight." he whispered. I began upstairs and counted the teenagers that slept in the room I use to. Then I went downstairs and counted the warlord children. After that I went and counted the females and the males in their respective dorms. When I finished I had a count of thirty nine, including me of course because I am a warrior. There were only ten females, not including me, who were recruited though. Including me it was eleven. I stretched and patted the tigers on their heads when I passed, heading to my room. I stepped into the room, finding Kyle reading the book that I had on the table. "Love, love, love...hmmmm....they just dont have any good poems in this book!" he exclaimed, shooting a sly smile at me. I grinned at him and snatched the book out of his hands. "It is not supposed to have any good poems in it, or any that you are supposed to like. I happen to enjoy this kind of poetry very much." I stated. "And did you know that there are now thirty nine of us fighting against Sekmet. I counted all of us, new and newer, and old in my case!" I grinned. His eyes widened. "Thirty nine?!?" he exclaimed. I nodded and hopped into the bed. I eyed him suspiciously. "You arent going to try anything while I am asleep, are you? We aint married yet." I said, still eyeing him. He shot me a devilish grin. "Who? Me?" he asked innocently. I smiled and turned over with my back facing him. I felt him reach down and pinch my butt. "Owwww!" I shouted and flipped over. "Oooo! You are in for it now!" I shouted, jumping up and landing with a foot on either side of his chest. I sat down on his chest, pinning him, and tickled him. He struggled to get out from under me but was no match for my strength. "Uncle! Uuuuuuncle!" he shouted between gasps. I quit and got off of him, grinning triumphantly. "Now, I need sleep. I have places to go tomorrow." I stated seriously and leaned back into my pillow. He smiled over at me sweetly and reached over to push a strand of hair out of my eyes. "You are so beautiful. Sekmet dosent deserve a wonderful girl like you." he said, drifting off. My eyes teared up and I whispered a thank you to him and also drifted off, his hand still on my face.
I woke up the next morning to an empty room. I could hear people moving about outside and I decided to investigate. I peeked out the door and saw that the warriors, warlord children, and recruits were training. I watched them for a little while and then I thought frantically about how I was going to sneak the breifcases out. I decided to shrink them to fit in my pocket. I showered, groomed, and dressed myself and prepared to go to work. I shrank my briefcases to fit in my pocket and headed to my motorcycle. Kyle looked up from his training drill. "Where are you going?" he asked. "I told you that I had things to do today in town." I shouted back. He nodded and returned to his drill. He was trying to learn how to use the chi of his body to create an energy ball out of armor so that he wouldnt be totally defenseless when he couldnt transform. He looked exhausted. My eyes softened and I rushed to my motorcycle. I turned the key and, again, it wouldnt start. I glared at it and checked the wiring. The wires were moved again. I growled in frustration and started putting them back where they were supposed to go. A few of the people training near me, including Kyle, looked up at me in confusion. "What's wrong Amber?" Kyle asked. "Some one keeps moving my wires!!! Every time I need to go, I turn the key and it wont start. I check the wiring and someone has messed with it and plugged certain wires in where they are not supposed to be plugged in and just leaving some unplugged!!!" I shouted, very frustrated now. He stood and walked over to survey what was left. He glanced around after he saw what I was talking about. "Any of you been messing with her bike?" he asked. They shook their heads and returned to their drills. He glanced back at the bike and then to me. "I am guessing that it may be a shadow warrior. Probably that practical joker." he though aloud. I nodded and kissed him on his cheek. "Well, gotta go." I said and finished moving the wires back. He smiled and bid me a good day. I nodded and rushed off to town. I pulled in around at the back this time and started up to the door. The guard stopped me and asked me for some identification. I fished around in the briefcase and produced a key card that was in a small pocket. He scanned it through the computer and it verified that I was an employee. He eyed me suspiciously, but let me pass. I grinned at him and rushed to my subject. I got a few ideas in my sleep last night that I wanted to try. I had noticed that one of the experimental drugs that I had recieved was closer that the others to a cure and that, if mixed with the right thing, may bring about a cure. I tried it mixed with a few more drugs that were available in the lab and one came real close to eliminating the disease. I happily showed the boss my progress and her eyes widened in shock. "You are doing extremely well for a new girl." she exclaimed. I smiled and excused myself to return to my work. I found some chemicals that were a bit stronger than the one I had just used and decided to try them mixed in with the other one. I anxiously watched as it began eliminating the disease. One by one I saw the good cells become stronger and over power the disease cells and demolish them. I hoped to myself that it demolished all of the bad cells. Finally, I watched as it demolished the very last disease cell. I hopped up and down, squeeling with happiness. The boss rushed to my side to see what my excitement was about. Her mouth dropped open as she saw that I had indeed found a cure. I quickly created more of the drug while they began the defrosting and re-animation processes on Matt. I tested it, just to make sure it would still work, and it did. When they finally finished it all they made sure he was in a deep sleep. I entered the room with the drug in a bottle and they injected it into his spinal cord. We monitored his blood as it began to slowly kill off the disease. We were relieved when it was over and the drug finished killing all of it. I wheeled him to a room and waited for him to awaken. When he did, he looked at me in confusion. "Amber? Is that you?" he asked, dumbfounded. I smiled and nodded. "It has been a while, eh? I have not seen you since the year 2000." I said. He slowly sat up, with my help, and surveyed his surroundings. "How on earth did you find a job here? I would think that they would not hire someone as young looking as you without asking a few questions." he whispered. I nodded and told him about the interview. "Well, now what?" he asked. "Well. You can come stay with us if you would like. You will be in the guy's dorm, of course. I guess I have a lot of explaining to do about how times have changed and everything." I said. He nodded and looked me over. "You havent changed much. Hey! Let me see your hand." he said. I held up my hand and he grabbed it. "Where on earth did you get that ring. Your not going to be married are you?" he asked in astonishment. I nodded to him that I was and began explaining everything about how things have changed. I felt something strange while I explained it all to him. I felt a connection to him for some reason. It felt kind of like I was near a ronin or a recruit. While I continued my explanations, I explored his mind and found out that he is supposed to answer 'The Call'. Although I was in shock, I continued the explanation without a hint of it.
It was late when I finally finished. Mrs. Thomas came in and told me that it was time to leave. I told her that I would let the subject stay with us and she gave me approval. "Just keep an eye on him to make sure he will be all right." she warned. I nodded, distracted with my job of searching for clothes for him. She asked me if I could lock up and I said that I could. She bid me farewell. I finally found some clean doctor's scrubs, and before handing them to him I concentrated, found his virtue and armor name and called apon his crystal orb. I placed it in a pocket and handed the scrubs to him and then stepped out into the lab to get the vial with the remaining medicine in it and a syringe and slipped them into my briefcase. I then made it pocket-sized and slipped it into my shorts pocket. "You dressed yet?" I shouted. "Yes. Where did you go?" he answered. "In here. Just follow my voice." I said and started humming. He eventually found me. "I will be ready in a moment. I am trying to find a place to put my lab scrubs." I said. "Ah. Here is a hamper." I exclaimed and aimed and threw the scrubs into it. "Three pointer!" I yipped, hopping up and down. Matt burst into laughter. I looked at him angrily and said, "What?!?! I cant be young every now and then?" I said and also burst into laughter. "C'mon!!! I gotta introduce you to everyone!" I exclaimed. We rushed out the doors, remembering to lock up and arm the safety devices. I ran to my bike and fired it up. "And when did you get this?" he asked and stared at the bike with some aprehension. "Dont worry. I am an expert with this thing. I have brought many first timers on this thing. Hop on!" I shouted and revved the engine a few times. He nervously put one leg over and made himself somewhat comfortable on the bike. "Ready?" I asked, handing him a helmet. He shot me a nervous thumbs-up and put on the helmet. I told him to hold on and I sped off to the house.
As we pulled up, I noticed that they were still training. I parked the bike and dashed to Kyle. He was eyeing Matt suspiciously. "If you guys train too hard you will be burnt out in the morning and wont have the energy to fight if we are attacked!" I warned. He looked at me and back at Matt. "Where did you pick him up?" he asked with some tension in his voice. I laughed. "You dont think I will cheat on you, do you?" I asked. "He is my subject at the lab. He is also my best friend from a very long time ago. Before I was captured and brought back over here. He has been cryogenically frozen until a cure was found for his disease." I whispered. He nodded, still eyeing him suspiciously. "Matt! Come here." I instructed. He nervously plodded over to where we were standing, looking everyone over curiously. When he stopped in front of us, he noticed that Kyle was eyeing him and he decided that it would be humorous to eye him back. Kyle, frustrated, stormed to our room. I glanced back and forth between the two and called for Mia. "Mia, this is my friend Matt from my school in America a very long time ago. He has been frozen. Can you introduce him to everyone and find some clothes or something for him and help him move into the guys dorm? Please? Oh, and here." I said, handing her a wad of twenty dollar bills. She looked at them in disbelief. "Where did you get these and what are they for?" she asked. I told her that I had heard her say that they needed money because of all of the new people and that since I needed no training I went and found a job to earn money. She smiled at me and gave me a big hug. "Thank you." she whispered. "Oh. I am going grocery shopping in a minute. Can I borrow the van?" I asked. She nodded and started to the house to find clothes for Matt. "Well. Follow her." I told him. He looked at me sideways, but followed her. I rushed to my room and searched for Kyle. He was punching a trainers punching bag. "Kyle?" I nervously called. He whipped around, visibly angry. "Um. Please dont be mad at me. He is another warrior. I could sense 'The Call' in him." I nervously whispered. He approached me and threw his arms around me. "I can never be angry with you Amber. You know that dont you? I just lost it for a second." he whispered, reassuring me. "Do you want to go to town with me?" I asked quietly. "Sure." he said, hugging me closer. "Are you scared of me?" he asked. "Not you, your anger, not to be rude or anything. Anger scares me." I said. He hugged me even closer. I smiled and closed my eyes. "We need to go before it gets dark." I warned. He reluctantly went and showered off and dressed. We went and got the keys from Mia and were off to town. Kyle helped me with the groceries and even helped me put them up when we got home. I retreated to our room and slipped into my PJ's and went to sleep.
"Amber! Help me! It HURTS!" Kayura shouted. "Sister! Help! PLEASE!! Aaaaaahhhh!" she screamed and collapsed in front of me. "Kayura! I am trying!" I said, struggling to move. I found that I could not move forward. I watched as she was taken out of my sight. I awoke, gasping and sweating. I looked over to make sure I had not woken Kyle up and he was sleeping soundly. I stood and changed and headed out the door. I took one more look at the sleeping Kyle and started off on my kamakazi mission.
"Dammit! Leave us alone!" Dais shouted. His eyes glared laborously at the shadow warrior in front of him and his bride. "Yes, please leave us in peace for once. We are in enough pain." Kayura said, wincing from a gash in her side. The shadow warrior grinned and lashed at them again with the whip. "You should never be disobedient." he said and continued the tortures. "I will make you paiiiiieeeeeeeeee!" he shouted and was tossed aside by an unseen force. A pair of yellow eyes gleamed in the darkness and began to approach the shackeled couple. "Who are you?" Dais asked, glancing over at his smiling bride. "Why are you smiling?" he asked. "I am surprised that you dont recognize my infamous glowing eyes, brother-in-law." I said, stepping into some light. "Amber!" he said, grinning. I called on a dagger and picked the locks on their shackles. They rubbed their wrists, relieved to be out of the chains. "No time to rest." I shouted, throwing one of them over each shoulder and dashing for the hole I had made in the floor. I dashed with lightning speed down the corridors, searching for a window. Shadow warriors appeared in front of me. I reached a speed so fast that I passed right through them with ease. I began to get tired and had to slow down. More warriors appeared in front of me. I leapt into the air and landed a kick to one and raced past him. I found a window and ran at it with full speed and leapt into the air. I turned my body where my feet were to meet the window instead of my head and I passed right through it, fell about five stories and landed in ankle-deep water. I raced for the portal at full speed. Another, more powerful warrior appeared in front of me. I leapt over him, landing in the portal. I came out of it in front of my room and closed it quickly. I sat the couple down on the ground and, exhausted and panting, fell to my knees and groaned in pain. Obviously this woke everyone up and they came rushing to us from every direction. "Amber? Sister? Are you ok?" Kayura questioned. I tiredly shook my head and fell face-down into the dirt and passed out. I could hear everyone freaking out around me and then it all went quiet.
"Hey! I think she is waking up!" I heard Dais and Rowen shout in unison. "Huh?" I muttered and sat up. Pain flooded into my head, causing me to lean back onto my elbows. "Wu-what hu-happened?" I stuttered. "You just broke into Sekmet's castle, broke through the defenses, saved your sister and brother-in-law, broke through more defenses and made it back in one peice. These kids should be training from you also." Rowen blurted out, still in disbelief. Mia walked up and smacked him in the back of the head. "HEY! What was that for?!?!" he shouted. Mia stormed around to stare him in the eyes. "All of those years in medical school and I KNOW MORE THAN YOU! You are supposed to let her remember these kinds of things, not force it apon her." she stated angrily. He rubbed his sore head. "SOOOOORY!!! I forgot in my excitement." he mumbled angrily. I grinned and patted him on the head. "It's ok." I said. I stood and stretched. They watched me to make sure I was ok. I left and went to my room. Kyle was sitting on the bed and staring at the wall. "Um. Are you ok?" I asked. "Why did you not tell me you were going to do that? I could have come with you to protect you." he said solemnly. "I, er, um....It was a kind of a spurr of the moment thing. I had a dream and I woke up with the incentive to go do that. I thought you needed your sleep and I didnt want you to worry about me." I said. He looked at me and smiled. I plopped down on the bed and sighed. "You know what I really have on my mind. How people see me. I dont know how anyone feels about me anymore. Well, except for Kento. He probably still views me as a moving punching bag, put there for him to take out his frustrations on and also to give him a challenge." I said with a grin. He chuckled and closed his eyes. "I have been with those guys for a long time. I know everything about them. Shoe size, clothes size, favorite food, favorite color, favorite brands, EVERYTHING, except.....well...what they think about me." I said with a sigh. "I look into the minds of guys at school and they see me as a walking eye toy, for them to have fantasies about. Ergh! I dont see how they can stand to look at me though. I am not pretty. I promised the guys that I would not look into their minds, and I havent intentionally I dont think, but I dont know how they feel about my presence here." I said, leaning back. Kyle stood and walked around to my side of the bed and picked me up in his arms. "What on EARTH are you doing?" I asked. "We are going to go find out how they feel about your presence here, like you want." he said. I protested but he wouldnt hear it. He carried me into the house and sat me on the table. I looked around at the guys who were sitting there conversing. They quit when they noticed my presence on the table in front of them. "Amber here wants to know how you feel about her presence here. She knows how Kento feels but not the rest of you." Kyle said with a smile. I blushed and looked down at the table. Kento looked me up and down. "And HOW, may I ask, do you know about how I feel?" he asked in a matter-of-fact tone. "Oh come on! You know that I know you view me as a walking punching bag!" I said. He grinned evily and ground his right fist into his left hand. "Speaking of which, I think it is about time for another session. PREPARE YOURSELF, SPAWN OF TALPA!" he said, giggling madly. My face contorted into a look of horror and I leapt up and over him just as he made a dive for me. I landed near the stair case and dashed up the stairs. He was following close behind. I bolted through the teen's bedroom. "Excuuuuuse me!" I shouted as I leapt out the open balcony door and did an ally-oop up onto the roof of the house. Kento did the same and cornered me against the chimney. "Ah-hah! We meet again!" he shouted in an evil voice. I heard the teens below asking each other if they knew what was going on. I thought frantically about what I could do to get away and not harm Kento. He made a dive for me and I leapt over him and tried to land on the roof again, but I slipped and fell. I caught a footing and leapt into the air again and prepared to land on the ground. Something happened and pain shot up my whole body from my legs. I screamed and lost focus, landing on my side in the mud. I struggled to get up but couldnt move my legs. I yelped in pain and fell back to the ground. I felt the ground vibrate as Kento landed near me. He picked me up and slammed me against the wall of the house. My face contorted as the pain consumed me. "I....give......up..." I gasped, shuddering. His face softened up when he realized I was in pain. "What's wrong? I have done worse before and you have never complained or given up." he said, confused. "I....dont...know.." I gasped and went limp. He threw me over his shoulder and quickly carried me into the house. "Mia. Cover the table with some towels or something." he instructed and she did it. He laid me down on the table and I winced. "Whats wrong?" Rowen asked, checking me over. His eyes widened and he stumbled backwards. "So...Whats wrong with her?!?!" Kento shouted. He went into a long, medical explanation about what was wrong with me. Kento stood and was about to slap him upside the head when I grabbed his hand. I shook my head and told him to sit. "Now, Rowen, could you please translate that into a language that we could understand?" I calmly asked, producing a few nervous giggles from those around me. "Well, figuratively speaking, it looks like someone took a high-speed blender to the muscles in your legs and lower back." he said and set to work massaging them, trying to straighten them out. It took him a while but he finally succeeded. I stood and took a few wobbly steps. "What could cause this?" I asked, losing balance and falling to my knees. He helped me up. "Well, figuratively speaking, I have no idea." he said helplessly. Kento stood and threw me over his shoulder and carried me to my room. He sat me down and apologized. I told him it wasnt his fault, but of course he didnt believe me. Kyle came in and Kento left. "You ok?" he asked. I smiled and nodded, shifting positions on the bed. We heard a crash outside and Kyle went to investigate. I heard some commotion outside and, to my astonishment, I saw Kyle thrown into my bed on top of me. I stared out the open door at a shadowy figure standing just outside the door. I saw other figures come into the scene and try to keep it away from us. They were not very successful in this attempt and the figure made its way into my room. I saw then that it was Sekmet. He lunged at me and held me down so that I couldnt transform into my armor. I screamed and kicked at his stomach. He sneered at Kyle and dragged me into a warp, screaming and cussing.
I woke up in shackels. I saw Sekmet in front of me, staring and smiling. I looked down and I saw that my pajamas were shreaded. "Pervert!" I screamed. His smile only widened as he moved closer. "I will have you now. You can not escape. You see over there," he said, pointing to a case with a shield around it to keep out everyone except him, "is your armor crystal. You can not transform and escape, like before." he said, cackling. I stood my ground. "Well....You see this?!?!" I said, showing him my ring. "This is a bond between me and KYLE, not you. You can not break the bond. We are to be wed!." I shouted, feeling proud of myself. "Tsk, Tsk. Looks like I am going to have to do something about that ring." he said, bringing out a sword. I shuddered away from him. He moved up close to me, pressing me into the wall. "What is the matter? You are not....SCARED...are you?" he said, smiling an evil smile. I turned my face away and tried to move away from him. All of a sudden, I felt the presence of a ronin. I think he felt the presence also because he stopped for a moment. I looked quickly through the walls to see who it was. It was Dais. I sent him a message through my mind to tell him to quickly use his illusions because Sekmet could sense him. He did, and I threw an extra illusion around him to make it seem more realistic. He illusioned himself as a dynasty soldier, and I threw the illusion that there were more around him. He thanked me for the added illusion and I sent him a feeling of helplessness. He quickened his pace. Sekmet seemed satisfied that there were no problems and went back to my torture. "Now...what to do about that ring." he pondered. He brought the sword up to my wrist. "Shall you do something about it, or" he pressed on the sword a little, making blood seep down my arm, "shall I?" he finished. Tears welled up in my eyes and I let my head fall against his chest. "Please. Just kill me. I have gone through enough all ready. No one will miss me. Just hurry and get it over with." I said, lifting my head so he could cut my throat or whatever. He dropped the sword and stroked my face. "Dont you get it? I dont want to KILL you, I want to HAVE you, to own you. You are the most beautiful girl I have ever seen. I have wanted you since I saw you the first time, when Talpa brought you and Anubis to the dynasty." he said, kissing my forehead. I winced, shuddered, and drew away from him. He moved away and snapped his fingers. His recruited warriors apeared around him. "You called master?" they asked in unison. "I need the females only." he instructed and the males bowed and vanished. The females gathered closer to him. "I want you to bathe her and dress her in something decent. Watch her though, for she is a tricky little bitch. She was taught some illusions from Dais and a few others from some of the other warriors and she is a very skilled warrior." he said with a smile. I could hear him mutter something about how that was why I was such a good prize. He then vanished and the females set to work. One of them seemed to hate me more than the others. I found out that she was Sekmet's adopted daughter and that she didnt like the thought of there being competition for attention. I sat back, too tired to struggle. I heard the door open and Dais entered, still under the illusion. He stepped forward and said that he needed to take me to a different room when they had me dressed. *What about my orb?* I sent to him. *Never mind that. We need to get you out of HEEEEEEEEEREEEEE!!!* he sent, but the end was messed up as pain seared through him. I looked around him and saw Sekmet standing behind him. He had struck a blow to his head, bringing him out of the illusion. I writhed, trying to free myself. I saw him lash out at Dais. I then saw other warriors enter, including Kyle. He struck at Kyle, causing blood to flow. "I will kill you for trying to steal my bride!" Sekmet shouted. He knocked Kyle down and prepared to strike the final blow. "NOOOOOOO!!!!" I shouted. With every ounce of my strength, I pulled upward and broke the shackels. I leapt up to my feet and glared at Sekmet. "THAT IS IT!!!" I shouted and screamed. It came out as an animal roar that peirced the ears of those around me to the point where they couldnt stand it. I turned to face my orb and called it forth. It came toward me at the speed of light. It broke the shield and it landed in my hands, knocking me back a few dozen feet. I held it above my head and screamed my transformation. It skipped the sub armor and went straight to the armor. I faced him, extremely pissed off now. "Sekmet! Face me!" I shouted. He turned and fell to his knees. "I dont want to hurt you." he whimpered. My arms dropped to my sides and I stood there, stunned. I looked to Kyle for an answer and he shrugged his shoulders. "Dammit! Now you will make me feel guilty for this." I shouted and kicked at the wall. I sensed a surge come from Sekmet. I looked, just in time to see him leap at me. I didnt have time to duck and I was thrown into the wall. Pain surged through my body. I kicked at him, but it didnt do much damage. "AMBER!!!" Kyle shouted and dove at Sekmet, pulling him off of me. I couldnt breath, move, anything. I sent my love to Kyle and everything went black.
"SEKMET!!! YOU ARE GOING TO PAY FOR THIS!!! YOU WILL PAY SEVERELY!!!" Kyle shouted. I looked down and saw the scene from above. I looked over and saw my limp, dead body lying there, blood flowing everywhere. Cool. I thought. Wait. What am I saying?!?! I am dead. That is not cool. I was going to have a normal life for once and Sekmet ruined it. That is not cool. I thought angrily. Why does everything bad always have to happen to me? I asked myself and floated down to where I was in front of Sekmet. I slapped him and his face felt the hit, but he could see no one. Now this IS COOL!!! I thought. I started slapping, kicking, punching, and throwing him around. The warriors looked at him in confusion. Myra sat back and laughed. She definitely had her father's humor. I thought sarcastically. I threw him through a window and watched as he hit the ground. HA HA!!! Serves you right! I thought. I skipped over to my body and touched my face. Hellooo? Wake up! I tried to say, pushing the head around. I got frustrated with that and sat back. Kyle moved up to my body and listened for breath or a heart beat. When he could find none, he sat back with me in his arms and cried. I tried to soothe him but it is not too easy with no body. He could feel some tears being wiped away, but he didnt know what was doing it. "Amber?" he asked. I found a rock and picked it up and dropped it. He watched in astonishment. "Amber?" he repeated. I picked it up again and wrote 'YES' on the floor. He reached out around my body to feel the air. "Where are you? Come back, please." he whimpered. I wrote on the floor again. 'I tried. Failed. Sorry.' and drew a sad face. He burst into more tears. I prayed and prayed and prayed. I felt something, as if a giant vacuum was turned on. I felt a whooshing and all went black again.
"Errrrargh." I mumbled and moved around. "Mia, for the fifth time, it is too damn early for scu-scu-schooooo*yawn*oool." I mumbled and turned over. I felt something warm, and then something cold and wet hit my face. "Eeeeeeyuck!!! Who let the furballs in?!?!" I shouted and bolted upright. "AMBER!!!!" Kyle shouted and threw his arms around me. "Whu-whu *yawn* what did I do?" I mumbled. "You were dead, silly. Do you even know where we are???" Kyle asked joyously. "Home I suppose." I mumbled and stretched and yawned again. "We are in Sekmet's castle!!!" he shouted. I leapt to my feet. "Where is that bloody bastard? I just remembered what he did to me. Oooooooooo! He is going to die. D-I-E!!!! DIE!!!" I shouted and let out another animal wail. I could feel my incisors grow longer in my mouth as my animal soul emerged because of my anger. My animal soul is a jet-black panther. I grinned, showing my lengthy incisors and frightening the younger of the teens. I closed my mouth and giggled and apologized. My eyes began to glow an errie yellow as my strength increased. I ran to the window to see if I could find Sekmet. He had obviously gotten up from the fall and re-entered his castle. I began to sniff the air for his scent and found it. I bounded out of the room on all fours and then on two again, racing top-speed down the halls. I found the room where the rest of the recruits and such were being held and I entered the room by knocking down the door. It was dark except for the candles around the recruits. I slowly walked forward, not able to tell if there were others in the room besides the recruits because there were so many recruits. For some reason, pain shot up my body, banishing my armor. I looked down and I was dressed in a translucent kimono. I tried to call my armor and nothing happened. Frustrated, I just set to work freeing the recruits. "What are you doing?" a voice hissed from behind me. I turned to see Sekmet there, watching me. I ignored him, continuing my task. "Why do you ignore me? You know I can easily kill you. Why do you not at least attempt to defend yourelf?" he asked quietly. Again, I ignored him. I heard the guys enter the room. "Sekmet!!! Uh......Amber!?!?!" Kyle exclaimed as he saw what I was wearing. I blushed and turned around to see them. They gasped when I did this. Evan, Aric, and Rune turned their eyes downward. I made a move toward them, but a sound behind me made me halt. "Amber!!! Watch out!!" Kyle shouted and ran toward me. I looked at him strangely and was about to turn around when I felt it. A sharp pain, beginning at my belly and radiating from there, spread throughout my body. I looked down and saw the tip of a sword jutting out of my abdomen. My eyes flashed in horor and my glaze met with Aric's. His eyes were those of a scared rabbit as he also ran toward me. I then looked toward Kyle who was running full speed toward me. I turned to see who it was that had impaled me and saw the eyes of my best friend staring back at me. "Ma-ma-matt? Uhhhhh....." I stammered and colapsed to my knees. I felt a sharper pain as he pulled the sword out of me. My eyes watered and I clasped my hand over my belly. My eyes met with theirs once more and I collapsed onto the floor, feeling my strength and energy fading as the blood poured out of me. I fell into blackness as Kyle reached me. "Gu-good bu-byeee....uh....." I whispered as the darkness crept up.
Once again I was allowed to see the proceeding events from above as my spirit left my dead body. I could not hear or touch anything though. I only saw it in semi-slow motion. I saw Kyle pick me up and start crying. He stood to challenge Sekmet and did not see Aric take his place in holding me. I could see the look in Aric's eyes that I saw so much while we were together before. I smiled and floated down near him. I could see his virtue glowing on his forehead: wisdom. I saw Sekmet drop to his knees and weep. I glanced at him in confusion and then returned my stare to Aric. An errie green light engulfed him and spread around the room. This caused Kyle to turn and it looked like he was yelling at Aric. I watched in amazement as the blood dissappeared and my wound healed. He lay my head on the ground and proceeded to do CPR on me. I felt that damn whooshing again as I was pulled back into my body.
"Aaaaric!!!" I coughed into his mouth as he was about to release another breath into my body. He pulled back and his face lit up in relief. I smiled at him and looked at Kyle. He looked a little jealous, and turned his back to us and focused his attention on Sekmet again. I looked over to Matt and he was shaking his head, as if to clear it. Aric lay me down on the floor and stood. "Relax. You need rest." he said and prepared to join the battle that was seemingly about to take place. "You are the one *cough* who needs to rest." I wheezed. He smiled fondly and returned his attention back to Sekmet. He sat there, staring at me with what looked like happiness.(Although with a face like his you cant really tell the difference) He stood and knocked the guys out of the way with little trouble and made his way swiftly to me. He scooped me up in his arms and, again, all I could see was blackness.
I shifted uneasily on the soft surface before I opened my eyes. I looked at the serene surroundings with confusion. *What happened? I thought I was in the castle.* I thought. You are. Sekmet sent to me telepathically. I sat up quickly and searched for him. He appeared slowly in front of me in a dark green and black gi. I was still in the translucent kimono. I backed a little ways away from him. He moved forward and enveloped me in his thin arms. I was so worried. I thought I had lost you forever. he sent. I shuddered as he kissed my shoulder. Why are you afraid of me? I did not mean for that blow to kill you back in that other room. I did not even want it to injure you, but I was not able to control my strength. I am truly sorry. he said as soothingly as he could. Feeling out of place, I just sat there. I did not know what to do. I had never in my entire life seen this side of Sekmet. Please. Return my embrace. I only want to be with you. he sent in a desperation. I...I cant. I am sorry, but I have an arranged marriage. I have been torn away from many relationships because of the dynasty and such. I wish every day that I was not imortal. I have to watch my friends grow old and die. I am sorry if I do not return you caring, but I can not. I would be punished if I did. I sent back to him, also with a deep sorrowful feeling. Hmmmm....I see. he said, pulling away. I hung my head and stood. Please take me back to them. I do not mean to shun you away from me, but I need to be with them. I sent. He did so, changing back to his armor before the others saw him. I slowly walked over to the guys, still hanging my head. Thank you. I sent and he sent his love and a 'your welcome'. I continued past the guys and out of the room. I heard arguing behind me as I kept on walking. I finally reached the castle gates and the soldiers let me through. I walked through the portal and arrived back home. I came back to reality then and panicked. *What am I doing? They need my help! I must have been under a trance or something.* I thought and turned to see that the portal had vanished. I kicked at the ground and began to walk home. The trees swayed with the wind and a single cherry blossom floated down and landed in my outstretched hand. I smiled and tilted my hand to let it float down to the ground. *I wonder if Sekmet decided not to fight. I wonder what they are all doing.* I thought. I found the strength to knock on the door. Mia answered it, in shock to see me alone. "Where is everyone else?" she asked. I shrugged and cast my eyes downward. "Sekmet put me in a trance that sent me to the gate home. He didnt want anything else to happen to me." I stated sadly. "Anything else? What on earth do you mean by that?" she asked. While she escorted me into the house I told her of the deaths I encountered. She stopped and shuddered. "You died? More than once? Wow." she murmered. I shrugged again, sitting down near Ryo. "You ok?" he asked. I nodded and leaned against the wall. *Something dosent feel right.* I thought worriedly. "I will be right back. I, uh, need to find Anubis. His ass better be somewhere close." I crankily muttered and stood. I finally remembered that I was still in the see-through robe and I threw my arms around myself to cover my flesh showing through. "Sorry for flashing you guys." I muttered. I quickly made my way outside and sat on the porch. Anubis. Come here now please. I sent out. "You called?" he asked and appeared. "Do you have any idea how the guys are?" I asked worriedly. He grimly nodded and told me they were doing well. "Um. Your destiny has, changed, though. I will tell you more when they return." he said and dissappeared. *What does he mean by that?* I thought and gave a sideways glance. I stood and went to my room to change. Halfway there, I heard something above me. I glanced up in time to see something red fall on me. "What tha......hey you! Get offa me!" I shouted and pushed the red thing off of me. I sat bolt upright to see Kyle staring at me with a big grin on his face. "We won!!! He surrendered!!!" he shouted. I slowly stood and brushed myself off. All around me, portals were opening and the recruits and the others were appearing through them. I smiled and kept walking to my room. "Um. Amber, wait. Anubis has something to tell you." he murmered. I noted a hint of uncertainty in his voice and turned to look at him. I searched his eyes for what was wrong but couldnt figure it out. "First...We PARTY!!!" I heard someone shout, and thus began the party.