- TOH SHIN DEN: To Challenge Fate -

a Battle Arena Toshinden fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh


CHAPTER EIGHT: Entrance



Translations:
ganbatte-ne - good luck
gomenasai - I'm sorry [polite]
mina-san - everyone [polite]


*************


The next and final battle wasn't until twenty-four hours after Sofia's, and it was scheduled to be between Ellis and Rungo, the big man with the giant club. With a little help from Eiji and Kayin, Ellis used her free time to get some sparring practice beforehand.
It was about a little less than an hour before the match started, and Ellis was staring at her reflection in a mirror. She had changed into her gypsy dancing costume for the first time at the tournament, baggy translucent-white chiffon sleeves and leggings that met in pink-striped cuffs at her ankles and wrists, the sleeves and pants attached to a white bodysuit with pink trim. The collar around her neck was an elaborant one: dark cherry-pink highlighted by many small blue jewels of some sort, the largest one set in the middle. On her feet were a pair of pink and white dancing slippers. Her double-edged Dirks lay on the dresser beside her, but instead of practicing some more, Ellis was taking this time to think about her mission, and just what may come of it, as well as how far she had come from the sweet young girl she used to be.
Hey, little girl, she thought to her reflection while applying a light layer of frosty pink lipstick. So, are you me? Are you really a warrior now? Or are you just that passive innocent little gypsy girl? She cast her eyes downwards. Just who am I? And what am I supposed to be? Ellis picked out a thick pink ribbon from her suitcase and pulled it around her waist, tying it in a large bow at the back. I guess I'm used to all this violence by now. But I still get scared. I'm only a teenager. I've lost my innocence too soon. A tinge of pink entered her cheeks. And Eiji-kun...it's so strange, we're so far apart in age, but still...he means something to me. I'm not going to let him down. She opened a small box that she had taken out of her suitcase and just looked at the contents. In it was her small silver heart locket, dangling on a delicate chains of links. Ellis held it up to the light, watching it sparkle and dance. She sighed. My mission...is to find my father. And I'm not giving up now. I never give up. Ellis looped the chain around her neck, attaching the clasp at the back. She then tucked the necklace and locket under her jewelled collar, straightened her emerald-green hair, and smiled faintly at herself. Father, I will find you, I swear it.
A knock at the door brought Ellis out of her thoughts. She curiously went over to the door, and opened it. Standing before her was Eiji.
"Oh! Eiji-kun, hi," Ellis greeted him happily, quick to recognize her friend.
"I, uh, just wanted to wish you luck," Eiji quietly said. "Hey, you look great. That's an awesome costume."
"Thanks, how nice of you! Please, come in," Ellis let Eiji in and closed the door. "Thank you for the extra practice. Thank Kayin for me too. I really did need it."
Eiji smiled. "You're a great fighter. I know you'll do well out there tonight."
"I sure hope so," Ellis answered half-heartedly. She strode over to the window and looked out into the approaching dusk. "But still, Eiji-kun, there's no way to tell what's coming next. They're after us. And who knows what's going to happen. It'll just be us four against what could be a huge army." Ellis paused and turned to look at Eiji. "I never told anyone this, but after that night when we were attacked, I've been scared. And--and I know I shouldn't be. I'm a fighter now. But I'm still practically a kid. And I don't have that much confidence in myself right now. I...I don't know how much use I'll be, to you and the others."
Eiji calmly walked over to her and tilted her chin upwards. "Ellis-chan, don't worry. Everything's going to be fine. We're here for you. You know that, don't you?"
"Eiji-kun, I..." Ellis started, but she stopped when she saw the trusting look on Eiji's face.
"No matter what happens, I'll be there to watch over you. I'll protect you. I promise."
Ellis' eyes widened, and for a second she thought she was going to cry. Eiji turned and headed towards the door. He opened the door and looked back at Ellis. "We're all meeting at my cabin in five minutes. We have to discuss how the four of us are going to handle this." He winked and saluted her. "Ganbatte-ne, Ellis-chan."
With that, Eiji left the cabin, slowly closing the door behind him. Ellis just stood there for a second, staring. She almost did cry right then and there. But she stopped herself, picked up her daggers, and headed out.
Keep standing firm, Ellis.

*************

"Everyone's here," Eiji stated, glancing around the room at the group of allied friends. Kayin was leaning against the wall, looking almost uninterested in his typical way, Sofia was sitting on a chair turned backwards, and Ellis was perched sitting on top of a table. They were all in their battle costumes, with their weapons either sheathed or at their sides. Eiji nodded. "I just wanted to talk to all of you about what we're going to do."
"I personally think we don't have much of a chance," Kayin muttered, eyes closed. "It's us four rebels against an organization that wants to either enslave us or kill us. We're good fighters, but hell, they're probably better."
"Kayin-chan, you're such a pessimist. That's not known for sure," Eiji pointed out. "We may be able to take them."
"Just how do we know that they're going to be coming after us?" Ellis asked. "Do we know that for sure?"
Eiji shook his head. "I just have this feeling."
"Eiji is very much correct," Sofia commented for the first time that night. "From all of my encounters with the Himitsu Kessha, I know for a fact that they do not like fighters who defy them. At previous tournaments, no one has been able to defeat their champions."
Eiji stared. "What? Champions?"
Sofia nodded slowly. "Yes, champions. At the end of every Toshindaibukai, the Himitsu brings out their greatest warriors to challenge the survivors of the tournament." Her eyes narrowed. "We have been the only victors thus far. Let us just say they will not be, how you say, rolling out the red carpet for us once the final scheduled match is over, perhaps even before we start into the elimination rounds between us."
"What do you mean?" Kayin spoke out. "That there are more fights after the last one?"
"Exactly."
"Damn."
Ellis was very quiet. She had the next match, which was also the last one. She had to move fast now, if she wanted to find her father.
The group exchanged glances, knowing fully well what must be done. Kayin shrugged. "So, Eiji-chan, you're practically our leader. What are we gonna do? Fight them against impossible odds or back down?"
Eiji stood silent for a moment, then pounded his fist against the table in determination. "No. We're gonna show them what happens when they mess with us."
Ellis and Sofia both looked up, surprised. Kayin looked satisfied. Eiji continued, "Whatever happens, we're in this together. We're all too caught up in this to escape now. And we're not backing down. We're not giving up. Not without a fight!" Eiji grinned and held up a fist. "We're gonna kick some ass!"
"That's right!" Ellis cried. "We're going to teach them a lesson for everything they've done!!"
Sofia rose from her chair. "I agree, yes! It is better to go down fighting than to yield!"
"If we don't stop them, who will?" Kayin added, nodding in agreement. "So everything's in our hands now. We're gonna give them a fight they ain't never gonna forget, goddammit!!"
Eiji did nothing but put out his hand, palm facing down. Kayin smiled and put his hand on top of his best friend's. Ellis and Sofia followed. Eiji then simply said his final comment.
"We know what's needed to be done. It's all up to us now."
With that, the four turned and headed towards the door together. Eiji reached out to open it, but instead, it was opened for him.
From the outside.
Tracy.
"Well, well, kids," she commented, "I heard everything and it looks like you're goin' out to do some ass-kickin' without me. That's not very nice." She gave all of them a warning look. "And don't give me any of that "you wouldn't understand" bullshit. I've been doing some research of my own, and I have just as good an idea as all of you have as to what's goin' on here." Eiji simply smiled. He glanced at the others. Their looks spoke for themselves. They needed as many allies as possible now. "Gomenasai, Tracy-san. We're going to destroy the Himitsu Kessha. Want to come?"
"Thought you'd never ask, Eiji. Let's get our asses in gear. Me n' the rest of the force have been wanting to arrest these guys for a long time now."
Joined with the newest member of their team, the five headed off towards the battle arena, ready for the oncoming war.

*************

The group arrived at the main arena just in time. Ellis clutched her daggers, took a deep breath, and smiled at her friends. "Well, everyone, looks like it's my turn now. Wish me luck!" After her friends offered words of encouragement and took seats in the stands, Ellis turned and walked onto the floor of the arena, and began to warm up, practicing various slashes and kicks in rapid succession. She only stopped when she found Rungo towering over her small frame. He looked down on her for a second, then started the conversation.
"Girls don't belong here. Go home, kid." To this, Ellis solemnly replied, "I can't. I must go on."
"I have a son your age. How do you think I'd feel if he were in your place?"
"I understand. But I'm not giving up now. My friends need me."
And my family needs me too. All right. Here's to a good fight, girl." Rungo offered a huge hand, which Ellis took gratefully. "And to you."
Ellis and Rungo squared off and took up their stances.
"Mina-san, welcome to the final fight of the Toshindaibukai! Your match for tonight: RUNGO IRON versus ELLIS!! Bout One! FIGHT!!"
Rungo started the fight by bashing his club to the ground with a yell of "Fire Wave!!", releasing a large wave of fire that caught Ellis offguard. She quickly recovered and lept in for her Screw Dancing, which hit neatly and impressively. She followed up with a combination of two slashes to the middle, two kicks to the gut, two slashes to the shin, and and uppercut that sent Rungo flying. He came back fast, though, and unleased another Fire Wave that pushed Ellis towards the brink of the ring. However, Ellis herself didn't notice how close she was to the edge until she took a step backwards--and her foot slipped.
"Ellis-chan!!" Eiji called from the crowd, concerned.
Fortunately, it wasn't a long fall, and Ellis wasn't seriously hurt. She nodded at Eiji to let him know that she was okay. Bout One went to Rungo, thanks to the ring out.
Ellis prepared for Bout Two, resolving to herself not to make that foolish mistake again. And besides, she now knew the trick to taking Rungo down. He was a projectile-thrower. Every time she got too far away, he'd launch Fire Waves at her. Therefore, she needed to move closer and stay there, where her speed had a definate advantage over his.
Ellis somersaulted through the air, landing on her feet in front of her opponent and performing a spectacular Flaming Crescent uppercut that slashed Rungo in the jaw. Unfortunately for her, though, Rungo recovered and bashed her with his club while she was coming down, then grabbed her and headbutted her in the face. This time, however, Ellis rolled forwards and began one of her deadliest combos. Two quick slashes to the stomach, two long hard slashes to the same spot, a slide to the knees, two more quick slashes, an uppercut, then a Flaming Crescent. But then, as she was about to strike the final blow to a very beat Rungo, a buzzer sounded, and the announcer declared, "TIME OVER!!"
"Damn!" Ellis growled in annoyance. She felt better, however, when she was declared the winner for landing more hits and taking away more energy. Now the fighters were tied at one match each, so a third bout was called to break the tie.
As soon as the last round started, Ellis took to the air and dove towards Rungo yelling "Arc Slash!!", releasing a large explosive fireball from her daggers when it hit. When she landed, she headed back into the combo she had used last time, adding some kicks as well as more low slashes. Finally, once Rungo was almost out for the count, Ellis pooled her ki and started into an amazing attack. Surrounded by yellow and blue sparks, she went from Flaming Crescent to Screw Dancing to Arc Slash to a final cry of "Goodnight Baby!!" and letting a sparkling blast explode from her Dirks. Rungo was clearly out. Ellis was awarded the final victory, much to the delight of the audience and her friends both.
After it was over, Ellis ran over and helped her opponent up, saying apologetically, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have used that strong an attack."
"Hey, kid, it's all right. It worked fine. I'm tougher than that," was Rungo's answer when he got up. "You're pretty strong for a little girl. Plus you've got guts and determination. You'll be all right."
"Thank you." Then, as an afterthought, Ellis asked, "But what about you? What will you do now?"
"I'm going to try a different route to find my family," Rungo replied. "But no more fighting kids, I'll tell you that. Good luck."
"I will do my best."
On the outskirts of the arena, Ellis found Eiji and Kayin waiting for her, soon joined by Sofia and Tracy.
"A terrific fight, Ellis-chan, one of the best I've seen," Eiji congratulated with a proud smile.
"You're hurt!" Kayin interjected. "Are you all right?"
When Rungo had swung his club at Ellis, he had hit her in the arm with a sharp part of the weapon. There was a jagged tear in the right sleeve of her outfit, and a long gash in her arm, right below her shoulder. Crimson blood was starting to seep out of it.
"I can take it," Ellis reassured the others. "It's not that deep, really."
Changing the subject quickly, Ellis added, "Well, that was the last fight on the schedule, and the crowds have all left. Now I guess we find what we were looking for."
No sooner had she said this when the lights flickered and went out. The five fighters all drew their weapons and automatically took up defensive stances. When the lights came back on, more dimly this time, another figure had appeared on the battle arena floor. He was huge, his size practically dwarfing all of them, and was covered in a set of black armour, with two long claw-tipped appendages attached to his back that were waving slightly in the air. His face was very much shrouded, and in one hand he held a huge double-edged sword.
"Who are you?" Eiji yelled.
"I am Gaia, the organizer of this tournament," was the answer, in a deep booming tone.
"Gaia...you are the Head of the Himitsu Kessha!" Sofia exclaimed after some thought. "I have much to ask you!"
"Right!" agreed Kayin. "I need to know who the champion of last year's tournament was!"
"Where's your organization's hideout?" challenged Tracy.
"And where is my brother?" Eiji snarled.
Gaia simply, but slowly, shook his head. "Too many questions. And I am not to answer them."
"What??" The four were shocked and angry. Ellis simply stood at the back, silent. She had a quiet suspicion, but one nonetheless.
Gaia continued, "I have come to challenge the winners of the Toshinden tournament rounds. You five are the survivors of the Toshindaibukai. Now you have to fight me to determine the champion."
They all exchanged glances, trying to decide who should start, but Eiji stepped forward. "Fair's fair. I'll fight first."
But Gaia shook his head again. "I shall choose the person whom I will fight. And I choose the young girl. Ellis."

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