"The Power of Love"

Part Nine

      "Let's continue this battle, then." All the guys go toward Dasha and try to attack, but they all miss. She attacks each one of them and knocks each of them to the ground.

      "Man, she hits hard," Kento replies.

      "Come on, girl, you know that I could wipe out these boys in a second. I want to fight you, you're the challenge." Mia gets up as Dasha comes straight for her. Mia dodges a couple of her attacks, but gets struck down.

      "Mia." Ryo moves and Mia crashes right into him.

      "I'm so sorry, Ryo."

      "No problem. Just get that witch." He gives her a huge smile. Mia widens her eyes.

      "Right." She smiles back, gets up and attacks with the others. Dasha dodges most of the attacks, but Mia gets in a few and knocks her to the ground.

      "All right, Mia! Go and get her!" Yuli screamed.

      "Now that's what I'm looking for, a real warrior." Dasha gets up and attacks with her sword, but Mia blocks it with her staff.

      "Hey, you guys, why don't we show this old hag what we're made of?"

      "Okay," they say in unison.

      "Mortal Spirit Blaze!"

      "Rage of Inferno!"

      "Arrow Star Shock!"

      "Super Tsunami Smasher!"

      "Thunder Scream Crash!"

      "Iron Earth Quake!" All the attacks combine and hit her dead on. "There's no way anyone could survive that blast."

      "So wrong, Hardrock." When debris clears, Dasha stands tall without a mark.

      "No way! That's not right!"

      "I'm much more powerful than you think, Halo."

      "That's it. I'm sick of fighting. I want to get this over with."

      "That's fine with me, girl." They start to fight each other, but quickly stop. "Silent Star Crusher!"

      "Mortal Spirit Blaze!" This time, Mia's attack is almost as equal as Dasha's. "Not bad, huh?"

      "Not bad at all, girl." This girl is getting stronger the more she fights. I better get rid of her now. When the two attacks disappear, Dasha comes straight toward Mia. She freezes in surprise and gets knocked to the ground. Dasha continues to attack Mia a few times.

      "Silent Star Crusher!" The attack goes straight toward Mia and hits her. She screams and falls to the ground, unconscious.

      "Mia!" Yuli and White Blaze run over to Mia's side. "Mia, please wake up. Mia, wake up." He shakes her trying to get an answer.

      "Oh no, Mia," Ryo says.

      "There's no way you can defeat me now. Not without the girl's help. I must say, she was a strong opponent, but not strong enough."

      "I'm so sorry. I've failed you guys," Mia says, lying on the ground.

      "Mia. You must save this world."

      "Who's there?"

      "We are the spirits of the ones who wore the armor before you. You are the one chosen to bring peace back to this world."

      "Why me?"

      "Unlike us, you have a pure heart. We just wanted to fight for the power. But you, you want to fight to save your friends."

      "What can I do?"

      "Gather your strength and go back to your world and defeat Dasha."

      "But I can't defeat her without the armor of the Heavens. I've tried and I'm too weak."

      "Mia."

      "Hiro?"

      "Mia, look in your heart for the answer and trust in the spirit orb. It will guide you. Do you remember that vision you had of Dasha?"

      "Yes, I do."

      "That is what is going to happen if you do not go back and fight. That vision was preparing you. Wildfire and the others have done everything to get you ready for this battle. They've trained you and protected you all this time. Pay them back for what they've done for you. Right now they are fighting for you. Open your eyes and look." Mia slowly opens her eyes halfway and sees the others fighting Dasha, even though they seem no match for her and closes her eyes again. "They are hoping that you are still alive and are trying to weaken Dasha for you. Even Yuli and White Blaze are hoping you are alive. They need you."

      "I know I have to help them. I have to save this world and my friends."

      "Mia, listen and believe in your heart, and you will find what you are looking for."

      "I'm the only one. My friends need me." Love. Mia's eyes start to flutter.

      "Mia, wake up. I know you can wake up," Yuli says. White Blaze licks her face.

      "Come on, boys. Let's fight. I'm getting bored." The guys try to stand up but are all beaten pretty badly.

      "I wish Mia was here right now," Rowen said.

      "Too bad, boys, she's gone."

      "Hold it right there, hag!"

      "What?" Dasha turns around and sees Mia getting on her hands and knees. She grabs her staff and starts to get up. "How could you be still alive?"

      "All right, Mia!" Kento screams. Mia slowly lifts up her head and looks at Dasha with serious eyes as a few strands of hair across her face.

      "I am Mia of the Heavens. Sworn to protect all thing in this world, both living and nonliving. I will fight for virtue, life, wisdom, justice, trust, and love. I will destroy all evil and work toward a peaceful future. And most of all, I will fight for ones I love, my friends!"

      "What a touching speech. If I had a heart, I bet I would actually care. But it's time to get rid of you once and for all. Silent Star Crusher!"

      "I won't let you win, Dasha. This is for my friends!" Love. "Mortal Spirit Blaze!" Mia's attack is overpowered very easily and heads straight for her.

      "Mia!" Each of the guys' armors starts to glow their colors and the light from their armor travels faster than Dasha's attack and surrounds Mia. When the attack hits, there is a huge explosion that destroys most of the building. Everyone winds up on the courtyard. The guys struggle to get up and look for Mia.

      "Ryo, Mia isn't here."

      "I know she isn't here, Yuli." What are we going to do without Mia? We can't win this battle without her. Ryo sulks his head in disappointment.

      "Finally, that girl is out of my hair. Took long enough," Dasha says looking at the pile of rocks. Suddenly, the rocks start to move and a pair of wings sprout out of the rubble. "No! It can't be!" The figures continues to come out right before everyone's eyes and Mia appears surrounded in a bubble, staring straight at Dasha.

      "Mystic Barrier. You should know your enemy's attacks better."

      "No matter. I will still defeat you."

      "There's no way you're going to win this battle, Dasha. Armor of the Heavens!" Out of the spirit orb, dozens of beams of stars surround Mia, and form her armor. The spirit orb forms the staff and Mia grabs it then twirls it around. Then her wings sprout from the back and spread out.

      "No way!" Sage screamed. Mia stands before them with her eyes closed in a golden armor with a gold staff next to her and her wings fully spread out. "She did it, you guys!"

      "But how can this be? Why can't you just die?"

      "Frightened, are we, Dasha?" Hiro appears in front of her.

      "Hiro, you helped her out! How dare you! I thought I got rid of you."

      "Dasha, you underestimated one crucial thing that could have saved your life," Mia says as she opened her eyes, "you underestimated the power of love. Love is stronger than any other force on this planet, even the most powerful of all evil. And now, it's time to get rid of you and your evil ways."

      "You'll never destroy me. Silent Star Crusher!"

      "Mystic Barrier!" The barrier blocked the attack with no problem and deflects it. "Now let me show you real power." Mia spreads out her wings and lifts off the ground. She spins her staff above her head and the staff starts to glow. The guys look at their armor and at everything around them as it starts to glow too. The glow from everything goes toward Mia and concentrates on the staff and makes it glow brighter. "Celestial… Heavens… Cry!" Mia throws her staff toward Dasha and a beam of golden light follows. It stabs through Dasha's heart and the light surrounds her like a hurricane.

      "No! I can't be defeated!" In a bright flash of light, Dasha is killed and the light swallows up everything around it.

      Ryo opens his eyes to see that he and the guys are in front of the house and that everything is dark. "What happened?"

      "I think Mia destroyed Dasha," Cye says, getting up.

      "Way to go, Mia!" Kento screams.

      "Hey, where is Mia?" Rowen asked. They look around and see her nowhere. "Do you think that the blast was too powerful to handle and Mia's gone?"

      "Don't say that, Rowen. She's strong. She wouldn't let something like that kill her," Ryo said.

      White Blaze looks up to the dark sky and starts to roar. "What is it, White Blaze?" Yuli asks.

      Ryo looks up and sees something sparkle. His eyes open wide. "It's Mia! Hey, Mia! We're over here!" Ryo waves his hand in the air.

      Mia sits in a gold bubble and starts to float gently down to the ground in her kimono. She opens her eyes and sees Ryo waving. "Ryo?" Her eyes open wide. "Ryo!" The bubble goes closer to the ground and closer to Ryo. Mia jumps out of the bubble and puts her arms around Ryo's neck. "Did you see me this time, Ryo?"

      "I sure did. You did it, Mia." They give each other a huge hug.

      "I was so worried about you guys. When I didn't see you guys coming down, I thought you were caught in the blast."

      "You were great, Mia," Kento commented.

      "You found the armor of the Heavens and totally creamed Dasha," Cye said.

      Mia lets go of Ryo and stands next to him. "Wait a minute, you guys. The sky is still dark. What is that supposed to mean?" Sage asked. The spirit orb around Mia's neck starts to glow.

      "I know what's wrong." Mia takes off the spirit orb from around her neck and places it in the palm of her hands and closes her eyes. "The end of all life will come to us soon, just as our hearts are consumed by blackness, the devil will appear from its cocoon, and across the land will spread its darkness.

      "When darkness slowly swallows ev'ry light, and the planets form into a straight line, be prepared for a long and costly war, 'cause war will start that you cannot deny. When the darkness has finally been burned, then will become strong the bonds of true love, it is then when the light will be returned, for everyone to see up and above. When it seems like the end will come to all, only love will completely stop the fall." The spirit orb starts to glow and leaves Mia's hands and goes straight up into the sky, clearing it up. Mia starts to fall, but Ryo catches her He kneels down and cradles Mia in his arms.

      "Are you all right, Mia?" Everyone gathers around Mia and Ryo.

      "I'm fine. I'm just tired." She smiles at him and sits herself up. All of a sudden, a flash of light appears and Hiro stands in front of everyone.

      "Congratulations, Mia, I told you could do it. You found the armor of the Heavens."

      "But where did the spirit orb go?" Mia asked.

      "It only came to this world because it was needed. It will come back when it is needed again."

      "I don't get it, Hiro. How come Mia was chosen?" Sage asked.

      "All the other wearers of the armor were warriors and only wanted power. Mia fought for love and to protect her friends, and that's why I think Mia was chosen. The spirit orb itself chooses who will use its power. I guess that before it chose warriors because of their fighting skills, but it learned from its mistakes."

      "That makes it sound like it has a mind of its own," Ryo commented.

      "No one knows exactly how the spirit works, but I guess it knew what it was looking for after so many mistakes. It wanted a someone with a pure heart."

      "Just like you, right?" Cye asked.

      "That's right. That was the fifth and last part she needed for armor."

      "It's still hard to believe that Mia did that all on her own."

      "She didn't do it all on her own, Hardrock?"

      "What?"

      "You guys helped her out. Without you guys, she would of never of found her armor. At one incident, each one of you guys helped Mia out with her armor. Ryo, when you sacrificed your life for Mia against Persha, that's when she got her armor of the Spirits. And then there was Rowen with Mia's barrier, Cye with Mia's staff, Sage with Mia's sixth sense, and Kento with Mia's wings. Even Yuli and White helped Mia out with always being there for her."

      "I know that each time I saw you guys help me out or needed my help, I got this weird feeling through me and that's when I developed one of my powers."

      "So it was Mia's love for us and our love for Mia that helped her out. That's what the poem meant by love. But then, what's the part about true love?" Rowen asked.

      "That part already happened." Mia and Ryo look at each other and blush while the guys giggle. "Well, I'm off. Thank you so much for releasing my soul, and the world is forever grateful. Congratulations." In a flash of light, he disappears.

      "So, what should we do now?" Kento asked.

      "I think we should celebrate," Mia said, "but after I take a nap."

      "I think we all need a break," Ryo said.

      "I want something to eat first. I'm starving." Kento charges into the house.

      "Hey, Kento! Leave some for us!" Everyone except for Ryo and Mia follows. Ryo lifts Mia up as she leans against his chest. She lifts her head and kisses Ryo softly, which Ryo returns back. Mia slowly lets go and puts her head back down.

      "I love you, Ryo." She puts her head back on his chest and falls asleep.

      "I love you too," he says as he kisses Mia on the forehead and takes her inside.