I don't own anything.
A/N: I know I said this would be the last part, but it was running longer than expected and I didn't want to cut anything out, plus I've been under pressure to get something, ANYTHING out. Last minute dedication goes out to raine and her soon to be enlarged family. Good luck, you'll be in my thoughts and prayers, and hurry back.
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Tai did not go back to the castle immediately, he first went back to The Dawn Treader and gulped down a large cup of mead, hoping, but not really expecting that the alcohol would help to dull the stinging pain of being away from Sora. And as he had thought the mead offered no relief at all. He let out a heavyhearted sigh and scribbled down a message for Cody on a napkin; asking the monk to keep a certain young woman safe from harm, and to contact him when the underground was ready to move. Tai gave the note to a bartender whom Cody had mentioned as being trustworthy, and then went sulking out the door, farther from his love, and closer to his potential death.

Tai was not so much fearful of the possibility that Sora might be hurt in the insuing conflict. (though that thought did cross his mind) He was more concerned that Sora might wake up to find him gone, and think that he had left her forever. He was scared almost to death that Sora might awaken to the feelings of betrayel and abandonment that Tai had promised to protect her from. If these thoughts managed to attack her heart even for a second before she understood. It would be a second of such pure sorrow and heartbreak that Tai would never be able to forgive himself for causing her such pain.

These depressing thoughts occupied Tai's thinking while he made his way back to the castle, but when he reached the entrance to the secret passages that ran all through the castle walls, something in his heart made him divert from the way to his own chamber, and instead steered him towards the rooms of those he cared for. Perhaps to show him why he had come back instead of running away forever.

He first peeked in on Jyou, who was sprawled out on his bed snoring loudly. In between all the horrendous noise Tai could hear him mumble something about "dying for sure this time", and the young prince could not hold back a small laugh. Everyone who was close to the Lord of Kido knew that all his whining and moaning was just Jyou's way of coping, and that beneath all the prophecies of doom there lay a resolve harder and sharper than steel. A resolve that had always been there for his friends, to keep them steady in the roughest storm. A resolve that Tai had always been able to fall back on.

The young prince left Jyou's chamber, and slipped quietly through the hidden halls to the room that Hikari and Takeru now shared. A solemn smile played on his face as he observed them. The lovers slumbered in stillness and silence, and the silver moonlight made them seem like a sculpture made of cool marble. Even in sleep the youths clung tightly to one another, as if afraid that their other could be stolen by the darkness.

Contrary to popular belief, Tai had never been angered by their relationship. If anything he was jealous of them. Jealous of how they managed to find such strength in each other's embrace, while he stood weak and alone. Jealous of how they planned and built for the future, while Tai seemed stuck trying to preserve the past. But now he had Sora, and he was finally able to understand just how special and powerful the bond between his sister and her young warrior was.

Tai once again retreated back into the secret passages and moved towards Davis' room. When he got there he was surprised to find it empty, though the sheets and pillows on the bed were thrown about in a way that suggested a fair amount of recent tossing and turning by the bed's owner. Tai grimaced as his mind fashioned a picture of what the young knight must have been going through; the despair and humiliation of having his feelings of love rejected by one he practically worshiped. The young prince chided himself harshly for not being more sensitive to his friend's feelings when he made his plans, and began to move swiftly towards the place where Davis always went to find peace when he was troubled; the castle stables.

In recent memory there was no one anywhere who could equal the young knight from Motomiya as a horseman. Davis was so adept at riding, training, and caring for horses that it seemed almost as if he shared a telepathic bond with the animals. It was joked that if he ever asked a horse to fly, the animal in question would immediately sprout wings and soar off into the clouds.

When Tai arrived at the stables he was not at all surprised to see Davis gently brushing the flanks of an energetic young charger. When the horse began to paw nervously at the ground the boy whispered soothing words into its ear that inspired an almost magical calm. Tai suddenly felt very apprehensive, and he coughed to alert Davis to his presence.

The young knight turned and gave him a shallow smile. "Oh, you're back early." He did not sound very enthusiastic.

"Yes." Tai answered as he rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Something happened, and I thought I had better come back while I still could." His heart panged as an image of Sora's smiling face flashed in his mind.

Davis nodded as if he understood, but then turned away from Tai as if implying he had no desire for a conversation. Tai pressed on anyway. "How are you holding up Davis?"

Davis shrugged his shoulders weakly as he went back to rubbing the horse. "Pretty good I guess, considering the girl I love with all my heart is completely in love with someone else." He grinned sadly and his eyes scrunched down as if he was fighting tears. " Its kind of funny, I mean I was so confident I would be the one to win Hikari's heart, and then it turns out the race was over long before I even got a chance to start."

"It was never a race Davis." Tai stated with a cold undertone. "Hikari and Takeru fell in love because for all intents and purposes they've had only each other to rely on for the past six years. They need each other to keep going."

"I understand that." Davis growled as he turned back towards Tai. "I can also certainly understand why they didn't tell anyone. I mean they were doing something forbidden under a promise of death. They had no idea of who they could fully trust, or how anyone might react. It was safest for them to keep quiet."

The young knight paused as he cast a cold, hurt stare at Tai. "What I cannot seem to understand is why my 'friends' would let me go on making a fool out of myself when they knew the truth." Davis' words suddenly began to flash with wounded anger as he continued. "Do you think I'm so spoiled and juvenile that I would raise the alarm on them?! Do you think I am so vengeful and petty as to ruin the lives of two good people, just because they happened to fall in love and break my heart?! Do you?!" Davis demanded with clenched fists. "Or do you just think I'm not smart enough or strong enough to handle it!"

Tai took a step back as the accusing tone of his friend shocked him. "N-no Davis of course not! We were just trying to protect you!"

"I don't want to be protected!" Davis snapped. "My parents have already done enough of that to last me a life time! I came here to join your fight in freeing this kingdom, not to be coddled like a little child!"

For a moment after this outburst Davis just stood and seethed with rage. Tai could do nothing but stare at him until he finally found the will to speak out in a voice tinged with hurt. "People do their best to protect those they care about Davis." He whispered. "If that wasn't true than I wouldn't even be here right now. And next time you feel like you're being shielded and coddled, maybe you should give thanks that there are people in this world who care enough about you to do that."

Davis felt his anger fading as he listened to Tai's words. Then he looked into his friend's eyes and was startled by what he saw reflected in them; all of the tears, heartbreaks, and screams of Tai's short life were displayed in vivid detail. He could almost hear the heart rending wails Tai had let loose as he stood over the bloody forms of his parents.

Davis suddenly felt the tears he had been struggling against all day suddenly fight to the surface. He stared down at the ground in shame as they trickled down his cheeks. "I-I'm sorry Tai." He choked out. "It just....it just hurts...... a lot right now."

"I know Davis." Tai placed a supportive hand on his young friend's shoulder. "But Jyou and I are here for you, so are Hikari and Takeru even." Tai wanted to say more but he could not find the right words, too many of his own troubles were eating at his heart. "I think I'm going to bed now." He finally conceded. "You should try to get some sleep too."

The young knight nodded and wiped his eyes and nose with the back of his sleeve. "I will in a minute." He said as he went back to brushing the charger, which moved to nuzzle his shoulder in a comforting manner

With a final sigh Tai turned from his friend and walked out into the courtyard, wishing to breathe some fresh air instead of the musty atmosphere of the secret passages. His shoulders and head slumped listlessly as his feet dragged along the ground. He was suddenly so tired in body and spirit that all he wanted to do was crawl into bed and sleep for days.

In an effort to pull himself out of his funk, he thought ahead to the happiness of the future. He saw Sora standing at his side as his wife and queen, he saw his friends rejoicing in their own dreams of happiness, and he saw his people cheering wild and free. A small smile crept to his lips. He had absolute faith that his vision would one day be true, just as long as he had the courage and strength to keep trudging towards it.

He was almost done trudging towards his bed when something flickered in the corner of his eye. He did not stop walking, but he did turn his head to see a platoon of the King's guard marching towards him on their routine morning parade. Tai turned away disinterested and continued his walk.

Suddenly a thin sliver of dread poked at his gut as a thought occurred to him; his uncle's guard always had their parade at midmorning, when most of the townspeople would be awake to be awed by their gleaming armor and pointy weapons. At the moment the sky was just beginning to turn gray with the dawn. Tai stopped in his tracks and again turned back towards the soldiers moving towards him at a steady clip. His practiced eye caught how they tensed their muscles under his gaze, how they gripped their lances just a little tighter. And in that horrible instant when the whole world seemed to stop, Tai knew.

He turned on his heels and ran as fast as his weary legs could carry him back to the stables. Behind him he heard the clatter of chain mail as the guards likewise broke into a run. His heart seemed as if it would burst from exertion when he finally reached the stables and shut and bolted the light wooden door behind him.

"Tai?" Davis asked, still brushing the same horse. "I thought you were going to bed."

"Davis," the prince responded breathlessly. "Get on the best horse we have and ride as fast as you can to Heighten View Manor! Tell the nobles they have to march now!"

The young knight's eyes widened with fear as he caught the meaning of the dread and desperation in his friend's voice. "Tai...you should...I-I mean....I wouldn't know what to do."

Tai raced over and grasped Davis roughly his shoulders. "Listen Davis..." He spat out "You are the greatest rider in the country, and you are the only one who has any chance in hell of making it to our allies in time."

"But Tai.." Davis started with a pleading whine.

"GOD DAMNIT DAVIS, GO NOW!"

Davis took one last look at the simmering rage in Tai's eyes and then sprang into action. "Put a bridle on that one over there." He pointed to tall, strong looking horse in the corner.

Without a word Tai hurriedly let go of Davis' shoulders and did as he was ordered. His heart beat like mad as he heard the horrible cracking of the frail stable door. Davis appeared beside him and slung a thick woolen blanket over the horse's back, then expertly swung himself on to the animal. Tai grasped his hand as he eased the horse out of its stall. "Godspeed Davis." He whispered.

Davis nodded gravely as he settled himself on his mount. The sharp pitch of cracking wood grew louder as the door rapidly approached its breaking point. Davis waited until the door was a second away from its end before spurring his steed into a charge.

The guards finally burst into the stables and immediately had to throw themselves to the ground as the horse went storming over them. As they watched Davis speed away in shock, Tai unsheathed his sword and dived into their cramped ranks. He growled like an animal as he wildly slashed and stabbed with his weapon.

For a moment the guards were pushed into chaotic disorganization. They were under strict orders to take the prince alive, but Tai fought like a cornered lion and there seemed to be little chance of capturing him without more than a few of them expiring themselves. When they pulled back a little to regroup, five of their number were already laying dead or dying on the ground.

The prince snarled savagely as he faced them down, his wild courage inspired uneasiness in the hearts of his opponents. But the guards were trained professionals, and they managed to muster up enough courage of their own to rush him as one body.

Tai swung his sword and cut down the first to reach him, and the second, but the rest came like a breaking wave to overpower him. They forced him to the ground with sheer weight of numbers, and though he twisted and turned wildly he could not escape their clutches. One of the guards raised a blunt club and brought it down on Tai's head with a muffled thump, cooling his fire, and bringing darkness to his senses.

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"Wake him up."

Tai's senses abruptly returned to him as a bucket of cold water was flung in his face. He coughed and sputtered as the voice that had ordered his dousing spoke again. "Now leave us. All of you."

Tai could barely make out the heavy clumping of retreating boots as all of his systems warmed back up. He was sitting, bound to a hard wooden chair by cords so tight that they kept full feeling from flowing into his fingers and toes. He felt tender and bruised all over, and his head was pounding from its second hard knock in three days. His swollen eyes slowly forced themselves open to the early morning sun streaming through a window at his side. Then he lifted his head and saw the cold eyes of a killer staring back at him from over a roasted chicken leg. They were the eyes of Tai's uncle; King Claudius of Kamiya.

The king was tall and wiry, and he seemed to be made up of nothing but jutting angles and sharp points. He had jet black hair and a matching beard, both of which were always kept neatly trimmed. His eyes were the color of obsidian, and seemed to absorb light rather than reflect it. His mouth opened in a perpetual sneer that proudly advertised a streak of not so hidden cruelty. As he slowly tore at his breakfast he kept his eyes glued on his nephew. His left eyebrow spasmed sporadically; the result of a twitch he had lived with and hated his entire life.

At last he put the chicken leg down and calmly leaned back in his chair as he used a small bone to pick between his teeth. "I was secure enough," He addressed Tai with an icy tone. "to let the peasant underground go about their foolish missions of mercy... I looked the other way while your sister and her bodyguard engaged in these activities, as well as some more... 'private' ones of their own." Claudius casually flicked the bone away as he used his eyes to bore into Tai. "I even stood by and let you play your silly little games of intrigue...... But when you dare to raise an army against your king, then I'm afraid I will have to draw the line."

"you're not my king." Tai spat through parched lips. His rage was building again.

For a brief instant after the remark Claudius grinned like a starving wolf. Then without warning his mouth twisted into a feral snarl as he leapt at Tai and knocked him backwards in his chair. "Learn to show a little respect to your betters boy." He sneered as he picked himself off of the young man and proceeded to kick him over and over again in his unprotected abdomen. Tai was helpless to do anything except mash his eyes shut and try to brace himself for the continuous series of blows

When Claudius' foot grew tired he picked Tai up off the ground, chair and all, by the prince's hair. "You think you're so clever don't you?" He growled. "Probably thought you'd catch me with my proverbial pants down! Well dear nephew let me give you a pointer for the next time you attempt a coup! There are two things which can pry any secret from a man's heart; money, and pain. If one doesn't work the other most assuredly will!" With that he punched Tai in the face and sent him toppling over backwards once more.

"You're nothing" Tai spoke through a mouth filling up with blood.

Claudius bent down next to him and lifted up his head. "You want to be king?" He smashed Tai's head down on the hard stone floor. "You want the responsibility?" He pulled Tai's head up and again beat it against the floor. "Then know you are responsible for the death of everything and everyone you hold dear!"

"No...." Tai moaned. His vision blurred. His heart screamed.

"Yes." Claudius flashed a deadly smile. "Your little brat knight was allowed to escape, he'll lead your traitorous nobles right into the deadliest ambush in history." He stood up and kicked Tai hard in the face. "And once he's done that, I have some friends who would just looove to get their hands on a cocky little rooster like him. We'll see how proudly he can hold his head after they're through with him."

The king kicked him again. He stepped on Tai's fingers and ground them into the floor. "And do you want to know what I'm going to do to the Lord of Kido?"

"Please no..." Tai's voice was barely a whisper, his tongue felt mangled in his mouth.

Claudius' eyes lit up with cruel fire. He was loving it. "I'm going to rip out his eyes with a hot poker, all four of them. And then I'm going to send him down to work in the mines, to spend the rest of his life crawling around in the dirt like the worm he is."

He took out his sword and used the flat of the blade to beat Tai all over. "I'm going to let your sister watch as her lover is whipped to death in the public square. And then I'm going to slit her throat just like I did your parents."

Tai looked up at his uncle with horror and shock. "You....killed.....them?"

"You didn't know?" Claudius burst out in a fit of laughter. "My God boy, you're stupider than you look." He let his mouth turn into its wolf-like sneer. "Of course I killed them. How else could I get the crown and start a war with just a flick of the wrist."

Tai put his head down and closed his eyes, a single cold tear trickled down his cheek.

Claudius smirked. "You've failed nephew. Failed horribly. Even the leaders of the underground are being rounded up for execution; a monk, and some peasant girl you seem to be fond of."

"No!" Tai rasped as loud as he could. "Leave her alone or I'll rip out your heart! I swear!"

The king laughed and spat in Tai's face. "Somehow I doubt that." He walked to the door. "Guards!" He called. "Throw him in the tower...Let the rats finish him off."

Tai felt armored hands cut him loose from his bonds and drag him along the ground. After what seemed like an endless series of halls and stairs, they stopped and threw him in a dark room that smelled of mold and decaying flesh.

Tai offered no resistance, he was broken. His uncle was right; he had failed them all; his friends, his sister, his country, his parents. He had failed Sora. Tai curled up in a ball and sobbed like he never had before. All his worst fears had come to life, and he no longer had the courage or strength to fight them.

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They had been there when TK woke up. It was dark, and he heard Kari screaming along with the clanking of steel. For a horrible moment he thought he was back when the men in black armor had come to kill his parents and steal his brother. The memory faded fairly quickly, but it left the childhood feelings of fear and anger, and TK had used them to fight.

He fought so hard that the guards thought they were facing a god of war, but there so many of them and only one of TK, who was just trying to protect Kari. Eventually they pulled him to the ground and beat him until he stopped struggling so much. Then they had taken Kari away and put a blindfold on him. They carried him down some stairs to a place that was cold and smelled like burning hair. A soft oily voice whispered in his ear. "Its been a long time since I've been able to work with such a young, strong specimen." The voice had cooed. Then the pain started, and all of TK's thoughts and strength was dedicated to not screaming.

Every since he was a little boy, scared and alone, people had been doing horrible, unspeakable things to him. But he had never let them hear him scream. And he was not going to scream now, no matter how bad the pain got. Because if he screamed that would mean he was dying, And there was no way he could die because that would mean he was breaking his promise to Kari. So he would not scream, and he would not die, and he Kari would live happily ever after on their farm surrounded by their children and grandchildren.

These thoughts were all that allowed TK to keep silent through all the pain, and the taunts of the oily voice. "Was she worth it slave? My what a fine collection of scars you have...Shall we add some more?"

At one point in the torture, when he had retreated into half-dream state where the pain was not as sharp, he heard a gasp and the voice left, only to return a little later with another voice. A thin, metallic one that TK recognized as belonging to the king.

"Its impossible." The king had said with contempt. "The whole line was wiped out generations ago."

"But I tell you the mark is there." The first voice wheezed. "See for yourself."

A cold pair of hands roughly grabbed his head and moved away the hair from the back of his neck. "By damn." The king whispered.

"I told you!" The voice rasped gleefully. "The hair, the eyes, the mark! The boy is of the house of Ishida!"

The king was silent for a moment, then finally. "When he dies that family will finally die with him."

"But," The oily voice sputtered. "Think of what this could mean."

"It means he must die!" The king snapped. "And so must my niece. Why if that prophecy ever came true...A child born between the houses of Kamiya and Ishida...."

Both voices flitted off for a while, and when they returned he only heard a bit more before pain pushed everything out of his mind. "Conventual torture won't work on this one." The king said casually. "Maybe you should get out the leeches."

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Sora was not in her hovel when she opened her eyes. She was somewhere very dark and warm, and she was laying on what felt like a pile of old clothes with a thick blanket wrapped around her.

"Tai?" She called instinctively.

Only silence answered her, Tai was not there. Though for some strange reason Sora felt like he was with her, and that he always would be. She smiled to herself in the dark, even though she had no idea where she was, something told her she was safe.

As her eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, she noticed a thin line of light at the opposite end of whatever it was she was in. Curious, she wrapped the blanket tightly around herself and slid off her makeshift bed. Her bare feet touched a floor made of smooth wood that was sticky with moisture.

A basement? Sora wondered. She extended her left hand and carefully prodded the air in front of her as she inched towards the light. After going a little ways her foot hit something, and when she leaned down to investigate she found that she had arrived at a flight of stairs.

Tentatively, she placed one foot on the first step to see if it would hold her weight. It seemed firm enough and so she started up the stairs, cautiously, but with a shred more confidence.

She came near enough to the light to discern that it marked the bottom of a closed doorway. When she came close enough, she reached up and felt along the wood for a knob, and was surprised when she could not find one. She stepped back a bit and looked at the light in puzzlement. She was just about to bend down to peak through the slender opening when the door opened.

Surprised, Sora stumbled backwards a few steps and came dangerously close to going tumbling down the stairs. When she had steadied herself she looked up into the light and her jaw dropped in shock. She was not sure what she expected to be behind the door, but a monk was certainly not high on her list of possibilities.

"Sora I presume?" The monk inquired as he bowed. His tone and expression were every bit as somber as his coarse brown robe.

"Ah, yes." Sora answered confused. "Who are you?"

"Brother Cody of the Hidian order." He answered. quickly "And I'm sure you have many other questions so let me try to anticipate them in order to move things along faster."

Cody grabbed an already lit lantern from somewhere behind him, and motioned for Sora to move so he could enter the stairway. "You are in a safehouse of the underground network." He began as he closed the door behind him and proceeded to move past Sora and down the stairs. "You were brought here because someone asked me to look after you, and because the king has somehow gotten it into his head that you are a leader of the underground, and as such he seeks to make you die an extremely slow and painful death."

Cody stopped talking at this point in order to take note of Sora's reaction. He turned around to look at her and was honestly a little taken back by what he saw.

Sora was still at the foot of the stairs, and was crouched down on the floor. She was sort of doubled over, and her hands were clasped over her heart. Her eyes had a vacant, faraway look. And her lips moved ever so slightly, as if she were whispering.

"Sora, is something wrong?"

She remained silent for a few seconds longer, and then suddenly began shaking her head wildly. "Its Tai." She said in a distant voice. "Someone's hurting him." Her head stopped shaking and a fresh light came into her eyes. "Where is he?" She asked. Before he could even answer she jumped up and raced to him, taking the collar of his robe in her hands. "Where is Tai?! And who the hell is hurting him?!" She demanded.

The young monk was literally speechless. All he could do was stare at the look of white-hot fury in her eyes. He had seen that look just once before, in the eyes of a she-wolf when he had accidentally stepped between her and one of her pups.

As Sora's grip grew unconsciously tighter, Cody took a deep breath of composure and reminded himself that now was a time of thoughtful words and actions. "Look down at your finger." He told her softly. "Do you know what that is?"

Sora released her grip and looked at her hands. Puzzlement spread across her face, she had not been wearing that ring when she fell asleep in Tai's arms. "Its the seal of the royal house of Kamiya." She answered confused. "How did it get on my finger?"

"To be more exact," Cody answered. "it is the signet ring of Prince Tai, rightful heir to the throne of Kamiya. And it is a family heirloom from many generations in the past."

For some reason Sora was not shocked to find that the man she loved was a prince. In all honesty it would not have mattered if he was a stable boy or an emperor, nothing could change her love for him. What made her blood freeze in her veins was the warning that lay beneath the revelation. "The king has him." She spoke breathlessly, her eyes filling up with fear.

Cody nodded gravely. "Along with the princess and her bodyguard, the Lord of Kido, and Sir Davis of Motomiya." Cody gulped as mental pictures of what could have been happening to his friends flashed into his mind. "And unless we do something they will soon die."

Sora's heart skipped a few beats, but she looked down at the gold ring shining in the lamp light. She felt a burst of loving strength blow out from her heart and through her veins. She looked back at Cody with fire and determination in her eyes. "Ask me to do anything and I'll do it. I'm not going to lose Tai, not now that I've finally found him."

Cody nodded and briskly moved towards a chest in one corner. "From what my informants have told me, I don't think the king knows about the army gathered to the North. So if we can get everybody out and get to Heighton View Manor, everything should work out just fine."

"How are we going to get them out though?" Sora asked as Cody began to rummage around in the chest.

"Well," He answered. "we're going to use that ring Tai gave you, my limited knowledge of the secret passages of the castle, and as much help as God can find in his eternal love to provide."

He finally found what he was looking for and stood up. In one hand was an elegant yellow court gown, in the other, a simple black suit." Now the guards are on the lookout for a monk and a peasant girl of beauty that rivals the princess. So tomorrow the Lady Sora of Takenouchi and her faithful servant Iori are going to stroll through the castle gates, slip into the secret passages, crack a few skulls, break everyone out, and go riding off into the sunset." He smiled at her reassuringly.

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If only it could have been that easy.