Disclaimer: I'm fed up with saying it but I will anyway.... I don't own the trademarks contained in this chapter or in fact any of them! (Haha?)
Chapter 5: Orion's Staff
Shopping was, in a way, complete bedlam! I ran to get water bottles for everyone while Joey went to get new food while Abe got pots and pans for cooking them in. But of course that consisted of practically every kind of soup thinkable. "Um, excuse me miss is this all?" The cashier asked, seeing I was looking over at the grocery store where Joey was. "Oh, yes that'll be all." I sighed, and left with a sack full of water bottles (which looked quite odd in a city like Riana) Soon, well an hour and a half, we were finally done running back and forth like mad people and we were finally ready for an early lunch. "Let's wait to eat until we exit this city... Katerina let me see that map of yours." Lance snapped, and pulled it out of my pocket hastily. "All right if we go this way we'll run into the famous Ruins of Orion." He smiled. "What's so happy about a ruin named after Orion?
"Orion's Staff... The legendary staff with the power to heal. But if it's used by an evil person it has the power to destroy." Joey sighed, and something just didn't seem right about Lances smile...
"Let's leave at once. There are all kinds of stuff there. Maybe even a hengar doll possibly." He laughed, and we left straight out of Riana. "Hey, wait! You can't go to The Ruins of Orion!" Someone called, and we turned to see a dino with a gold chain around his neck. He looked like a punk to me. "And why not?" Clarice asked, putting her hands on her hips critically. "You need a crew." He insisted. "Don't we already have one." I smiled, but he shook his head. "No, I mean a professional team that knows about the ruin more then you do... But I can provide that. The names Tory, I'm a guide for the Ruins of Orion." Tory smiled, but we all shook our heads. "Sorry, we don't have any money for a team of experts." Abe said, and he nodded sadly.
Though we left them behind I wasn't really sure if they were truly gone forever. Maybe it was the look that Plant monster on his team gave me. It told me that they weren't going to back down. "Are we far enough away now to eat Lance? I thought Katerina was the leader?" Pixie whined, and Lance stopped the group. "All right then, let's get a small fire started and we'll have the vegetable soup we never got when Katerina was the leader." He snapped, and I glared at him. "Hey, wait up Katerina!" Joey begged, when we left to collect wood for the fire again. "Here, I bought this for your crystal... I think it'll be more fire proof then the old one." He smiled, and handed me a gold chain. "Thanks!" I smiled, and put it on my neck along with the crystal. "Here's some nice firewood. Hey, why did you pick you and I to get the firewood?" He questioned. "Because I knew eventually you would come to your senses and like me." I smiled, and we came back to the group with all the fuel for the fire.
"Light the match and tadda! You have a fire!" Orion laughed, and we began to cook our soup. "Plastic bowls?" I asked, and I was handed nine bowls in which I laid down next to the pan until the soup was finished... Then I placed the, to me, hot liquid in each one and we gobbled it up hungrily. I used my water bottle and generously dumped some of the precious water on the fire to put it out for good. "No more forest fires... Right Katerina?" Orion cackled, and I just nodded. "I guess every group needs a wise guy... And that doesn't pertain to real wisdom." Tory chuckled, and came over to our circle of people and monsters. "Look Tory we told you th-" I started, but his voice rose over mine. "No, I'm not here to stay I just wanted to warn you of something. Rotten fruit stay rotten." He winked and left. "And what does that mean? We didn't buy any fruit?" Smasher chuckled, and we continued to eat until at last we were done.
"About a mile of walking and we should be there." Lance smiled, and licked his lips. "And why are we in such a hurry?" Mac asked, not quite sure why he was acting so strange. "You do know that this is just a legend about Orion's Staff and that it might not be TRUE." Clarice insisted, but he seemed not to notice. At this point in time I didn't understand what Tory meant by, "Rotten fruit stays rotten..." But I was soon to find out that exact definition. "Hey look at that old ancient ruin in the distance!" Pixie noticed, and Lance smiled and made the group run as fast as we could. "What's the hurry? Aren't we after Nichiro and the Phoenix?" I asked, as we panted at the gloomy ruin entrance. "Let's go in!" Lance smiled. "How about we relax? We're already dead tired from running pretty much the whole way here." Abe insisted, and leaned up against the side of the ruins.
"Fine, I'll go in on my own." He snipped, taking out a lantern he had bought and lighting with a match. "No, I'm going in with you." I said, not completely trusting him anymore. "Okay, that's fine with me." He smiled, and we left into the ruin while the group got back their strength. "Aah, there it is." He laughed evilly, and put the lantern up to the inscription. "The days go by quickly now; it seems life itself is at hand. Inside this temple is the Orion's Staff... To help end the evils rein over this planet and help set the Phoenix free. But the Staff is powerless withou-" He read but stopped because the words were so old it had faded. Lance slammed his fist up against the wall and pulled me deeper inside the ruin. "Hey, shouldn't we wait for the others?" I questioned, as he forced his way through cobwebs and mold. I stopped and looked back at the way out as it grew dimmer and dimmer to see. "Come on let's go!" He roared. "No, the group will be coming soon; I'm going to wait here." I said, stopping. Now he was getting pushy. He grabbed my hand and began pulling me farther into the cave. "LET ME GO!" I roared, and the group had to have heard. "Fine, you can go!" He growled, and pulled out a knife. "Let her go!" Joey called, and there was the group. "Hahaha. Fools, do you really think I would have ever had wanted to stop the evil? Why I want to start it!" Lance crowed, and stabbed me in the arm, leaving the knife there. "Aah!" I cried, in pain and fell down when he let go of my arm and went after Orion's Staff.
"We have to stop him!" I whined, to weak to even pull out the knife in my arm. "Oh, Katerina... What have we gotten into?" Joey sighed, "We should have never have gone on this journey I-" He started but I slapped him softly. "You're overreacting again Joey." I said, and he nodded. "Okay, we have to stop him!" I insisted, but the pain in my arm reminded me of what he can do. "Well, first we'll have to bandage up your arm." Abe noticed, and I winced.
"Hey you guys... I finally realized what Tory meant by rotten fruit stay rotten. Lance was originally evil so that's mostly the way people stay when there like that." I sighed, after I had a cast on my arm. "Then let's go!" Mac smiled, as we used up a match to light our own way. "Hey, wait for us!" Tory's gang smiled, and we turned to see Tory and three other members. "No charge now... It's on us." The Plant monster winked at me and we turned to continue our new destiny. "He's after Orion's Staff to destroy the world and obviously rule it." Pixie said, and we all nodded and began to run. "We know this place head to toe..." Tory insisted, and came to the front of the group. "Then you know where Orion's Staff is?" Joey asked, and he nodded in the light of one wimpy match. "The why didn't you claim it for yourselves before us?" I asked, knowing how greedy most people are. "We were waiting for you miss." The Plant monster bowed, and I was shocked. "That necklace Joey gave you is legendary and was going to be given to you anyway by destiny." Tory said, and I started to laugh. "No, that's not possible, I'm not destined for anything. Really, it's just a normal necklace Joey got for me for my birthday... How did you know Joey got it for me?" I asked, and looked at Tory while we continued to run. "Because he bought you a new chain for it and it's kind of obvious he likes you." A Moochi chuckled, and even in the dark I knew he was blushing again.
"Hey, there's a light in the next room, that has to be Lance!" Clarice called, and went through first. I had become a little slower then I had expected but I went as fast as I could. When we got to the light though, it was a whole different story. "Ha, ha, ha. Fools! I have the staff and you little wimps couldn't get it from me." Nichiro cackled, and out of no where Lance knocked him over making the staff go flying. "Someone catch it!" I roared, knowing I was to slow at the moment to catch the fragile staff. So Joey went after it instead. Inches from the ground Joey just barely caught it in his hands right before it hit the ground. "Go Joey!" Abe cheered, and Tory stood forth against Nichiro. "You're a fool Tory... You actually believe you can beat me?" Nichiro laughed, but he saw through that line.
"Yeah because guess who has the staff?" Joey smiled, and stood up with it in one hand. "Joey watch out!" I cried, but it was too late. Lance swiped the staff right from him and he smiled menacingly. "Now there's nothing you can do!" He cackled. "I'm sure, Ishabi try to attack him." Tory sighed, to the Plant monster. "Grrrr, stay back!" Lance growled, but Ishabi got even closer. "S-stay away stupid plant thingy or you'll be cooked cabbage." He flinched. "Oh, give me a break, it's not the Trident, what do I look like a mermaid?" Ishabi chuckled, as he pointed it at Ishabi and nothing happened. "Give me that!" Nichiro roared, but again neither of them caught it and it slide over to me. "Give me that you little brat!" Lance insisted, and reached his hand out from a distance. "Ha, you? Why would I give you THE Orion's Staff to a slime ball like you? Oh, and you'll never get that kiss." I coughed, and I for once observed the staff. It was gold with a mantle piece as if something was suppose to fit in it. "I get it now!" Nichiro crowed, and shoved Lance off of him with a Thwack attack.
In a flurry of slender movements Nichiro had me in its claws. "Hand over that staff and no one gets hurt." He insisted. "Oh, yeah right! Even if I let go of it you'll destroy the world! Never you snake!" I cried, as he bent back me bandaged arm. "Aah, stop it!" I cried, the pain getting more intense. "Life isn't fair is it? Just like Ganki's disappointment..." He cackled, and I kicked him. "AAH, stupid girl! You have no idea what kind of power you posses. But yet you'll never find out!" Nichiro roared, and raised his stinger inches from my neck. "Now, give me it or you will never see the light of day again!" He hissed, and put the stinger even closer. That's when I heard a voice inside of me I've never heard before... It was my fathers voice. "Katerina... I'm going away now, but I'll never truly be gone." I took the crystal and put it in the missing mantle piece... It fit perfect! "Crystal Saber maximize!" I cried, and the chain Joey bought for me broke.
"What the heck? That sounds like it's from a Sailor Moon episode or something!?" Nichiro insisted, practically up against the opposite wall from me. "No matter, I now understand that in which I hadn't. I'll never be alone..." I said, and brought the staff forth. "Not only is the staff a healing devise for her, it is also a weapon!" Tory announced, and the team that followed us into the ruins gave each other high fives. "Now what?" I questioned, and put both hands on the holy object. "Say Saber Power Energize and givem what you got... From your heart." Ishabi smiled, and Lance dropped the kerosene lamp on purpose so we couldn't see them anymore. "Oh, how do I use this thing... Oh, what the heck Spiral Fire Light!" I called, and the left over light brightened up the entire rooms by the candles that coincidentally hung on the walls. "Wow, I can do that?" I cried, and they kept back.
"Grrrr, you don't know how to use that little girl!" Nichiro called, and dived after it while I stood there. I jumped up and slammed it on his head. "Now I do, Crystal Saber Power Energize!" I cried, and the entire thing became crystal! Nice and sparkly! "Oh, no you don't!" Lance backed up Nichiro and grabbed me around the waist and knocked me over. I held it out as far as I could with my good hand. "Aah, nice work Lance... Now it's powered up just for me... I'm out of here! Golem's attack!" Nichiro laughed, and snatched the staff a.k.a. saber and found his way to the exit. But now with attacking Golems and no defense for me... I was in no condition to fight!