The New Phoenix
Chapter 4
Rocky Oberlin
Disclaimer: I can not tell a lie, I don't own the Ronin Warriors. Sigh.
"Don't forget anything from the ceremony Mom."
"How about you telling the ceremony. I'm sure that you could remember more than I. After all, I _am_ getting old."
"Haha. No, I'll let you tell it. I'll just add what you forget later."
The four Guardians made a circle and Windy stood on the outside. The Griffin took the North point; the Unicorn took the south. Anubis stood at the East and Mia stood across at the West. Windy stood behind her with her hands on Mia's shoulders.
"I call upon the Power that I protect, come to me," called the Griffin.
"I call upon the Power that I protect, come to me," called Anubis.
"I call upon the Power that I protect, come to me," called the Unicorn.
Mia glanced back at Windy. She quietly told Mia what to say and Mia repeated, "I am the new Guardian. Power the I must protect, please accept me and come to me."
An earthy brown color of Power coalesced in the Griffin's hands. Green Power filled Anubis' hands while the White Power gathered into the Unicorn's hands. Mia watched in interest as the scarlet Power gathered above the circle and seemed to look at her and Windy.
"Here is where you must go on alone, Mia. The Power must test you to see if you will uphold the responsibilities of the Phoenix," said Windy quietly as she removed her hands.
From Ryo's point of view the scarlet Power enveloped Mia and swirled around her. He could somehow feel Mia being tested by that same Power. Then it was gone. Windy stepped further away and the other three Guardians followed her example. Ryo watched as flames sprouted from the ground at Mia's feet and engulf her and he ran out screaming, "Can't you save her? Why didn't you save her?"
Windy moved swiftly as her namesake to stop him. "This is part of the ceremony, Ryo." Windy looked at the crying boy and then back at the Fire Power engulfing Mia. "Armor up then join her, Ryo."
He looked startled, but did as she told him. When the armor of Wildfire finished forming around its bearer, Ryo ran to the inferno that Mia stood in the middle of. He jumped into the fire before the other Guardians could stop him and the inferno flared higher before dying around the two figures.
The Griffin turned to the Court of Magic's Bailiff. "How could you let him do that?! No one has seen this ceremony in millennia and now he has desecrated and possibly destroyed the Phoenix Guardian of Magic."
Anubis rested his hand on the fuming Griffin. "No, I think that they are both safe and from the looks of it, Mia is now the new Phoenix. See for yourself."
He was right. Mia stood in her gold and scarlet robes with a fiery image of a phoenix behind her. Three feet away from her Ryo of Wildfire knelt on the ground and, like Mia, a smaller image of a phoenix showed behind him.
"The Guardian of the Phoenix has found her Protector," announced Windy.
"So, what now?" asked the Unicorn Guardian cheekily.
"Anubis, Mia, and Ryo will be returning to her house for some rest before gong to school in the morning and the Griffin will be doing whatever he wants-" started Windy.
"Which will be going back to my forest and waiting for the signal for the battle against Tulpa," interrupted the Griffin.
"-And you will come with me, young man," finished Windy. "I need you to do something for me."
"Ooohhh, maaannnn, I'm in trouble now," whined the Unicorn Guardian.
"You asked for it Bill. Next time, I suggest you keep your mouth shut."
"Yes, Mom."
"I didn't do that!"
"You most certainly did; I have witnesses. So did I remember everything?"
"Yes."
Giggling.
"Now, now, don't laugh at your uncle's expense. It's not polite."
When Sage went to open Ryo's door the next morning, he found Ryo's bed empty and the door to the deck closed. He woke Rowen and Kento and demanded, "Cye, did you let Ryo out last night."
Cye sat up, looked at them, and got out of bed. He gathered his clothes and walked to the bathroom with the other three yelling demands. The only response they got was Seckmet telling them to shut up and let them sleep.
"You should be up and practicing, not sleeping in," retorted Rowen.
"Actually, Strata, we are having a day of rest. Tomorrow, Windy, Wildfire, Mia, Torrent, and we are going to practice. I don't know what Halo, Strata, and Hardrock will be doing, it depends on if you will still be wearing them or not," said Kayura.
Cye stepped past the three stunned Ronins and went downstairs. The four Seasonals followed shortly after him, shooting dirty looks at the stunned Ronins.
"We've got to find out what's going on," announced Rowen. He ran down the stairs and into the kitchen where he found Ryo and Cye eating with Mia, Anubis, and the Seasonals and Windy cooking.
Ryo glanced up and then returned to his breakfast, but Cye didn't even look up. Windy looked at them and pointed to the three empty places at the end of the table. They were promptly ignored and when it was time to go to school, they were left the back seat while Cye drove and Ryo was in shotgun.
"Should we talk to them after school?" asked Dais.
"Probably should. They should know why they almost ruined our chances of defeating Tulpa," said Windy.
"Let's wait until after dinner," suggested Cale. "Let them sweat for the heart attack they almost gave us."
Windy looked at Anubis. "What do you think?"
Anubis shrugged. "It may help them learn to talk more before making quick decisions."
"That sounded cruel, Grandma."
"It was, but it was also an object lesson. The Protector had to be bonded to the Phoenix. If Cye hadn't let him out, then he may not have had the chance. It wasn't for the Protector, then Tulpa may not have been defeated."
"So, when do I meet my Protector, Mom?"
"When he is ready, now let me continue."
Sage, Rowen, and Kento were again seated at the end of the end of the table. Everyone except Windy ignored them. She sat eating her dinner and staring with silver eyes at the three. She seemed distracted at moments and the three seemed to feel something brush against their consciousness.
"Are we going to ostracized for the rest of the night?" asked Sage.
Ryo sighed. "No, but you will need to know why I had to be with Mia."
This perked up the interest of the other two Ronins and they sat back to listen to Windy.
"Before Tulpa tried to take the Mortal Realm, the four Guardians of Magic existed. When he tried to enter the first time, they quietly withdrew from the Mortal Plane to hide. Unfortunately, Tulpa was able to sense them in that Plane, but could do nothing about them because the Ancient came to fight him. When the Ancient banished Tulpa back to the Nether Realm and formed the Elemental and Seasonal armors, the Dragon approached him. The Dragon was old and wished to leave the service of the Guardianship. The Ancient, after much meditation and questioning, agreed to become the new Dragon Guardian."
"So that's how the Ancient lived so long?" asked Kayura.
Windy nodded her head. "Dragons live for a very long time. They measure their lives in centuries and millennia. The Ancient stayed in the Mortal World to watch for his adversary and watch over the armors. He led his village in his endeavors until Tulpa sent his troops in to capture Lady Kayura and destroy the village. He wandered the world watching and waiting and knowing that he will need help. He began to look a little closer at the armors he formed and started to see similarities in four of them as to the four Guardians. When I was brought in as the new Unicorn Guardian for my short time, I looked at them as well and I agreed. The Ancient wanted to see who would get the armors before trying to bond them to the Guardians. It was a good thing too, because later two of the Guardian's Protectors went into the service of Tulpa."
Anubis looked down and flushed a little and Kayura looked over at him. "Why are you looking so disappointed in yourself, Anubis? Tulpa tricked you and promised you things he wasn't going to give, it's not like you were betraying someone."
Anubis looked up. He started to answer, but Windy shook her head. "I'll tell you at a later date why, Lady Kayura." The rest of the table looked puzzled, but understanding dawned on Mia's face and she felt sorry for her new brother. It was going to be hard on him when he did tell Lady Kayura.
Windy looked over at Anubis. "It will be all right, Anubis. You were forgiven a long time ago or else you wouldn't be here right now." Anubis smiled slightly at the Horse Lady. "As I was saying, two of the Guardian's Protectors were under Tulpa's command and the other two still hadn't been chosen. When the Elemental armors finally chose you, the Ancient watched you to see if you could do what needed to be done. During one of the times that he actually spoke to me during the Dynasty Wars, he decided to try an experiment. He wanted Ryo to bond with his partner, the Phoenix Guardian, when she came into her birthright. They compliment each other and if need be can trade powers back and forth if situation has need for it. So, as nice as it was that you were looking out for Ryo, Mia, and trying to defeat Tulpa again, it was misguided. You nearly jeopardized the whole fight before it began."
Rowen, Kento, and Sage bowed their heads. "We're sorry for not coming down to talk with you about our worries," offered Rowen.
"And we're sorry for locking you in your room, Ryo," added Sage.
"I'm sorry," muttered Kento.
Looks were traded around the table and Ryo accepted the apology. "That's alright. I know that you were worried about fighting Tulpa and you wanted to make sure that any advantage we had wouldn't be thrown away. But, please, next time, talk to me or someone, I wasn't very happy that I couldn't follow the pull I had been getting all day."
The three chastised Ronins looked up to see smiling faces again. All had been forgiven for a slight misjudgment. Hopefully they would learn to look at the whole picture before making crack decisions.
"So were they totally forgiven?"
"By Ryo and Mia, yes. The Seasonals were a little down on them for a while, but Anubis did take time to point out some of their mistakes. They quieted down after that."
"Are you going to tell me who my 'Protector' is or am I going to have to guess?"
"You have to figure it out and you still haven't told Griffin that he has one too."
"Do you really want to find another Unicorn Guardian, Mom?"
"Why?"
"Because when I tell him that, he's going to take my head from my shoulders."
"Oh, no he's not."
Hey, I'm doing good. I manage to get two chapters done in a day's time and may be after work I can get this one up. By the way, I'm working primarily days now so we'll see what happens now.
Rocky
Chapter 4
Rocky Oberlin
Disclaimer: I can not tell a lie, I don't own the Ronin Warriors. Sigh.
"Don't forget anything from the ceremony Mom."
"How about you telling the ceremony. I'm sure that you could remember more than I. After all, I _am_ getting old."
"Haha. No, I'll let you tell it. I'll just add what you forget later."
The four Guardians made a circle and Windy stood on the outside. The Griffin took the North point; the Unicorn took the south. Anubis stood at the East and Mia stood across at the West. Windy stood behind her with her hands on Mia's shoulders.
"I call upon the Power that I protect, come to me," called the Griffin.
"I call upon the Power that I protect, come to me," called Anubis.
"I call upon the Power that I protect, come to me," called the Unicorn.
Mia glanced back at Windy. She quietly told Mia what to say and Mia repeated, "I am the new Guardian. Power the I must protect, please accept me and come to me."
An earthy brown color of Power coalesced in the Griffin's hands. Green Power filled Anubis' hands while the White Power gathered into the Unicorn's hands. Mia watched in interest as the scarlet Power gathered above the circle and seemed to look at her and Windy.
"Here is where you must go on alone, Mia. The Power must test you to see if you will uphold the responsibilities of the Phoenix," said Windy quietly as she removed her hands.
From Ryo's point of view the scarlet Power enveloped Mia and swirled around her. He could somehow feel Mia being tested by that same Power. Then it was gone. Windy stepped further away and the other three Guardians followed her example. Ryo watched as flames sprouted from the ground at Mia's feet and engulf her and he ran out screaming, "Can't you save her? Why didn't you save her?"
Windy moved swiftly as her namesake to stop him. "This is part of the ceremony, Ryo." Windy looked at the crying boy and then back at the Fire Power engulfing Mia. "Armor up then join her, Ryo."
He looked startled, but did as she told him. When the armor of Wildfire finished forming around its bearer, Ryo ran to the inferno that Mia stood in the middle of. He jumped into the fire before the other Guardians could stop him and the inferno flared higher before dying around the two figures.
The Griffin turned to the Court of Magic's Bailiff. "How could you let him do that?! No one has seen this ceremony in millennia and now he has desecrated and possibly destroyed the Phoenix Guardian of Magic."
Anubis rested his hand on the fuming Griffin. "No, I think that they are both safe and from the looks of it, Mia is now the new Phoenix. See for yourself."
He was right. Mia stood in her gold and scarlet robes with a fiery image of a phoenix behind her. Three feet away from her Ryo of Wildfire knelt on the ground and, like Mia, a smaller image of a phoenix showed behind him.
"The Guardian of the Phoenix has found her Protector," announced Windy.
"So, what now?" asked the Unicorn Guardian cheekily.
"Anubis, Mia, and Ryo will be returning to her house for some rest before gong to school in the morning and the Griffin will be doing whatever he wants-" started Windy.
"Which will be going back to my forest and waiting for the signal for the battle against Tulpa," interrupted the Griffin.
"-And you will come with me, young man," finished Windy. "I need you to do something for me."
"Ooohhh, maaannnn, I'm in trouble now," whined the Unicorn Guardian.
"You asked for it Bill. Next time, I suggest you keep your mouth shut."
"Yes, Mom."
"I didn't do that!"
"You most certainly did; I have witnesses. So did I remember everything?"
"Yes."
Giggling.
"Now, now, don't laugh at your uncle's expense. It's not polite."
When Sage went to open Ryo's door the next morning, he found Ryo's bed empty and the door to the deck closed. He woke Rowen and Kento and demanded, "Cye, did you let Ryo out last night."
Cye sat up, looked at them, and got out of bed. He gathered his clothes and walked to the bathroom with the other three yelling demands. The only response they got was Seckmet telling them to shut up and let them sleep.
"You should be up and practicing, not sleeping in," retorted Rowen.
"Actually, Strata, we are having a day of rest. Tomorrow, Windy, Wildfire, Mia, Torrent, and we are going to practice. I don't know what Halo, Strata, and Hardrock will be doing, it depends on if you will still be wearing them or not," said Kayura.
Cye stepped past the three stunned Ronins and went downstairs. The four Seasonals followed shortly after him, shooting dirty looks at the stunned Ronins.
"We've got to find out what's going on," announced Rowen. He ran down the stairs and into the kitchen where he found Ryo and Cye eating with Mia, Anubis, and the Seasonals and Windy cooking.
Ryo glanced up and then returned to his breakfast, but Cye didn't even look up. Windy looked at them and pointed to the three empty places at the end of the table. They were promptly ignored and when it was time to go to school, they were left the back seat while Cye drove and Ryo was in shotgun.
"Should we talk to them after school?" asked Dais.
"Probably should. They should know why they almost ruined our chances of defeating Tulpa," said Windy.
"Let's wait until after dinner," suggested Cale. "Let them sweat for the heart attack they almost gave us."
Windy looked at Anubis. "What do you think?"
Anubis shrugged. "It may help them learn to talk more before making quick decisions."
"That sounded cruel, Grandma."
"It was, but it was also an object lesson. The Protector had to be bonded to the Phoenix. If Cye hadn't let him out, then he may not have had the chance. It wasn't for the Protector, then Tulpa may not have been defeated."
"So, when do I meet my Protector, Mom?"
"When he is ready, now let me continue."
Sage, Rowen, and Kento were again seated at the end of the end of the table. Everyone except Windy ignored them. She sat eating her dinner and staring with silver eyes at the three. She seemed distracted at moments and the three seemed to feel something brush against their consciousness.
"Are we going to ostracized for the rest of the night?" asked Sage.
Ryo sighed. "No, but you will need to know why I had to be with Mia."
This perked up the interest of the other two Ronins and they sat back to listen to Windy.
"Before Tulpa tried to take the Mortal Realm, the four Guardians of Magic existed. When he tried to enter the first time, they quietly withdrew from the Mortal Plane to hide. Unfortunately, Tulpa was able to sense them in that Plane, but could do nothing about them because the Ancient came to fight him. When the Ancient banished Tulpa back to the Nether Realm and formed the Elemental and Seasonal armors, the Dragon approached him. The Dragon was old and wished to leave the service of the Guardianship. The Ancient, after much meditation and questioning, agreed to become the new Dragon Guardian."
"So that's how the Ancient lived so long?" asked Kayura.
Windy nodded her head. "Dragons live for a very long time. They measure their lives in centuries and millennia. The Ancient stayed in the Mortal World to watch for his adversary and watch over the armors. He led his village in his endeavors until Tulpa sent his troops in to capture Lady Kayura and destroy the village. He wandered the world watching and waiting and knowing that he will need help. He began to look a little closer at the armors he formed and started to see similarities in four of them as to the four Guardians. When I was brought in as the new Unicorn Guardian for my short time, I looked at them as well and I agreed. The Ancient wanted to see who would get the armors before trying to bond them to the Guardians. It was a good thing too, because later two of the Guardian's Protectors went into the service of Tulpa."
Anubis looked down and flushed a little and Kayura looked over at him. "Why are you looking so disappointed in yourself, Anubis? Tulpa tricked you and promised you things he wasn't going to give, it's not like you were betraying someone."
Anubis looked up. He started to answer, but Windy shook her head. "I'll tell you at a later date why, Lady Kayura." The rest of the table looked puzzled, but understanding dawned on Mia's face and she felt sorry for her new brother. It was going to be hard on him when he did tell Lady Kayura.
Windy looked over at Anubis. "It will be all right, Anubis. You were forgiven a long time ago or else you wouldn't be here right now." Anubis smiled slightly at the Horse Lady. "As I was saying, two of the Guardian's Protectors were under Tulpa's command and the other two still hadn't been chosen. When the Elemental armors finally chose you, the Ancient watched you to see if you could do what needed to be done. During one of the times that he actually spoke to me during the Dynasty Wars, he decided to try an experiment. He wanted Ryo to bond with his partner, the Phoenix Guardian, when she came into her birthright. They compliment each other and if need be can trade powers back and forth if situation has need for it. So, as nice as it was that you were looking out for Ryo, Mia, and trying to defeat Tulpa again, it was misguided. You nearly jeopardized the whole fight before it began."
Rowen, Kento, and Sage bowed their heads. "We're sorry for not coming down to talk with you about our worries," offered Rowen.
"And we're sorry for locking you in your room, Ryo," added Sage.
"I'm sorry," muttered Kento.
Looks were traded around the table and Ryo accepted the apology. "That's alright. I know that you were worried about fighting Tulpa and you wanted to make sure that any advantage we had wouldn't be thrown away. But, please, next time, talk to me or someone, I wasn't very happy that I couldn't follow the pull I had been getting all day."
The three chastised Ronins looked up to see smiling faces again. All had been forgiven for a slight misjudgment. Hopefully they would learn to look at the whole picture before making crack decisions.
"So were they totally forgiven?"
"By Ryo and Mia, yes. The Seasonals were a little down on them for a while, but Anubis did take time to point out some of their mistakes. They quieted down after that."
"Are you going to tell me who my 'Protector' is or am I going to have to guess?"
"You have to figure it out and you still haven't told Griffin that he has one too."
"Do you really want to find another Unicorn Guardian, Mom?"
"Why?"
"Because when I tell him that, he's going to take my head from my shoulders."
"Oh, no he's not."
Hey, I'm doing good. I manage to get two chapters done in a day's time and may be after work I can get this one up. By the way, I'm working primarily days now so we'll see what happens now.
Rocky