In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,
the legend's final chapter has begun...

- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -

a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh


CHAPTER EIGHT: Sacrifice



Translations:
nan desu te? - what are you saying?
shimatta - dammit
doko na no? - where are you?
isoge - hurry up / let's go
kisama - bastard
me o samashite! - open your eyes!
hanashite! - let me go! / unhand me! etc.
yada! - no! / don't!


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


"I guess our hunch was right on," Kayin muttered as he and Eiji looked around at David's room the next morning. David and Ellis had uprighted all the furniture that had been overturned, but there was still quite a bit of evidence of the previous night's battle.
"We were lucky there was only one of them this time," David replied. He smiled, but it seemed to be more directed at Eiji in particular, and it didn't seem that friendly either. "It was also pretty lucky that Ellis showed up when she did. She's pretty good."
Eiji's look turned to that of dark annoyance under the younger boy's satisfied gaze. Taking a deep breath and trying to calm himself, Eiji asked, "Where is Ellis-chan, anyway?"
"In her room. She said something about not getting out of bed for a while, and that we should start without her."
"Fine." Eiji turned on his heel and left the room, Kayin following after. The latter was quite amused. "Makes you wanna hit that brat, doesn't it?"
Eiji started to punch the wall, but, remembering that this was a hotel, stopped just in time. "That's your answer."
"Jealous much?"
"You could say that."
"If you feel that strongly about her, why not ask her out?"
"Well...you know...we're not...not really-"
"So? Start now. She's a fine lass. If you hadn't snagged her I would've taken her myself."
"Shut up."

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

Once breakfast was over in the small hotel restaurant, Eiji got right down to business with the rest of the group. "We need to figure out what we're going to do from here. As much as I hate to admit it myself, I don't think we can hide David from the Soshiki. These guys are good, way better than the Himitsu Kessha. And the reckoning, or whatever the hell it is, is supposed to be today. They'll be making their move soon."
"I s'pose putting Davey-boy on the first plane out of Japan wouldn't help much, huh?" Tracy replied, leaning back in her chair and folding her arms.
"Hey, I already told you, I don't run from my battles," David retorted. "And don't call me that if you wanna live to see tomorrow."
"Yo, Iwashiro," Tracy whispered to her partner. "He been takin' lessons from you?"
Before Nagisa could answer (he just glared instead), Sofia finished the question. "I doubt that would work. They have found him twice already." She glanced over at David. "It is extremely obvious that they are not letting you go without a fight."
"I could've told you that. They chose me to be the host; no one else will work now."
"We've all seen what these organizations are capable of," Eiji said, looking thoughtful. "What we really need now is some sort of plan to deal with them."
"Here's a plan," David interrupted. "We go into the Soshiki headquarters and take care of them all like that." He snapped his fingers. "All this talk is getting us nowhere while they're getting closer. We need action, not some dumb plan. They think they can get the better of us, but if we make the jump on them today, before the sacrificial ceremony, they won't know what hit them."
"That's risky," Kayin put in. "They could capture you anyway while we're in their headquarters."
"So? I can fight. I escaped once and I'm NOT going back."
"David-chan," Shizuku began quietly, as if she'd heard this numerous times before. Nagisa leaned over the table. "If you ask me, I think the kid's got the right idea. It's obvious that this Soshiki isn't going to wait for us to finish our discussion, and if they ARE going to attempt to resurrect some sort of god today, then action's better than just sitting around talking."
"I wouldn't mind a bit o' action myself," Tracy agreed with a grin. Everyone else just sighed and exchanged reproachful looks. However, Shizuku cast Tracy a concerned glance. "Tracy-san, are you really the sister of one of the Soshiki's warriors?"
Tracy looked shocked for a second, then hung her head. "Yeah. It's true, all right. That really was Rachael, not some clone or man-machine."
"Do you have any idea why she would turn to them?"
"Revenge, no doubt. That's what she said."
Nagisa looked over at his American partner. "It's probably going to be hard for you, but...we have to get rid of them. All of them. Even if one's left, it all could come back."
Tracy sighed. "I know...I'll try my best, but it might not be good enough."
Sofia smiled encouragingly. "Tracy, you have always been one of our best allies and fighters. I am sure you will do fine."
"I guess so," Tracy murmured. As the rest went back to talking about their new plan, Tracy sat in lapsed thought.
Rachael, I'll make sure you don't die. I'll bring you back, I promise.

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

Ellis awoke sometime during then. Glancing at the digital clock's glowing face on her table, she muttered, "Geez, it's 10:30 already. I still wanna sleep." Rolling over, she attempted to fall asleep again, but instead lay wide awake.
What is going on, anyway? A new organization, David, new allies, the reckoning, another battle beginning...what are we going to do? According to David, it's not going to be as easy as the other two times, and those were definitely NOT easy. She closed her blue eyes sadly.
Today could be the end of the world...
Finally deciding to get up, Ellis lazily rose out of bed, shedding her night wear and pulling on some street clothes from her suitcase.
Maybe I should go for a walk...I don't think the others are back anyway, and it might help calm me down. I'll leave them a note, just in case.

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

Finally, after much negotiation, the battle plan was set: the entire group was to head out to the Soshiki's headquarters (with Shizuku's directions) later that morning, try to sneak in as quietly as they could, and attempt to stop the "reckoning" and take out the Soshiki's leaders before they got to them.
Eiji rose from the table, satisfied. "All right then, it's settled. I'm going to go tell Ellis-chan."
David got up too. "I'll go with you."
Eiji looked slightly annoyed, but sighed and said, "Fine." He turned to the rest of the group. "Minna, see you all later. Meet outside in an hour, get your battle outfits on and remember your weapons." He winked one red eye. "This is going be a fight no one's gonna forget."
As David and Eiji headed down the long corridor to Ellis's first-floor room, there was obviously enough thick tension and heavy silence between them to choke. Out of nowhere, David muttered (more to himself than Eiji), "Sure hope Ellis hasn't decided to go anywhere."
Eiji looked confused. "What do you mean?"
"What I'm saying is, today's the reckoning. Obviously, the Soshiki knows I'm here, and they're gonna be out in full force to get ahold of me. But..." he shook his head, "any one of you would do well as a bargaining chip. I know how these guys work."
Eiji abruptly whirled around to face the boy. "Nan desu te?!? You mean, if Ellis-chan's left to go outside or something...she could be captured?"
"Well, no shit, Sherlock. You're smarter than you look."
Eiji disregarded this and started running towards her room. "Ellis-chan!!"
He flung open the unlocked door to her room to find it empty, with a note on the table.

Hey everyone,
I've gone for a walk. Don't wait up for me, I won't be too long.
- Ellis

"Shimatta!!" Eiji growled in frustration. "They could have gotten her by now!"
David nodded. "We'll have to hurry. I'll get everyone together, you go looking for her. Okay?"
"Got it!" Eiji sped out of the room and down the hallway, out the door to search for what could be the Soshiki's newest victim.

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

It was a bright summer morning, and Ellis, who was walking on the hotel beach near a forested grove, was enjoying the sunshine and warmth the day was bringing. She smiled, wishing that Eiji was here with her to enjoy this. Suddenly, her eyes widened -- she had heard something. It was coming a pathway to her left, and it sounded like a faint voice, calling for help. And the voice sounded pretty desperate.
Due to her usual helpful nature, Ellis headed off in that direction without a second thought, searching for the source of the voice. She paused again and listened hard. Either she or the voice was getting closer. She determined it to be almost right near her.
I should probably go back and get Eiji-kun and the others, she thought quickly. But the voice came again, sounding more pleading than before, and she hesitated.
There wouldn't be enough time. Sounds like it's serious, and I'm perfectly capable of handling things myself. It might not be anything anyway. No sense bothering them until I'm sure what it is. With that Ellis quickened her pace, dashed down the forest path, turned a corner, and froze in her tracks.
There, blocking her way, stood all five menacing Soshiki warriors: Vermilion, Leon, Zola, Rachael and Atahua, each with their weapons drawn and ready.
"Well, well," Vermilion said mockingly. "I knew you Toshindaibukai fighters were gullible, but it seems you're the most gullible of them all. Not to mention stupid. Rushing into an unknown battle all by yourself? Not exactly what I'd expect from the daughter of Gaia."
"At least I'm not gullible enough to underestimate my opponents," Ellis shot back as she gauged the distance between her and the hotel door. Too far, but if she ran fast enough... "Which I know is something you often do."
"No? You and your friends were stupid enough to walk right into our trap. Getting what we want has never been easier." He smiled coldly. "The reckoning is today. You'll be a good bargaining piece in exchange for the boy."
"You haven't won yet!" Ellis turned and made a break for it.
"Leaving so soon?" Zola said, wrapping her whip around Ellis's ankles. The young girl stumbled and fell to the ground. "The party's just getting started."
As Ellis started to get up, she found Vermilion standing over her, wielding his guns with a wicked grin. Then came a voice that startled them all.
"Ellis-chan!! Ellis-chan, doko na no? Ellis-chan!!"
"Eiji-kun," she whispered.
"It's him!" snarled Leon, getting ready to fight. Vermilion put out a hand in front of him. "No, Leon, the Shinjo boy is mine to deal with."
"No! It's my duty to destroy him...I'm his countertype!" Leon protested angrily. Seeing this as a positive distraction, Ellis knew she had to warn Eiji somehow.
"Eiji-kun, watch out!!" she screamed as loud as she could. "It's a-"
"That's enough out of you," Rachael growled, and struck her hard in the back of the head with the bottom of one of her tonfas. Ellis's world exploded with light and pain, then slowly faded into darkness.

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

"Ellis-channnnn!!" Eiji yelled, getting more desperate by the minute. Shit, he thought, this can't be good. Where is she...? If anything's happened to her, I'll-
Suddenly, both his thoughts and cries were interrupted by a loud scream. "Eiji-kun, watch out!! It's a-" The rest of it ended with short cry of pain, and then silence.
"ELLIS!!" Eiji dashed in the direction of her voice as fast as he could.
The rest of the fighters appeared outside, in their battle costumes with their weapons in hand, just in time to hear Ellis's cry, then Eiji's yell shortly afterwards.
"That was Ellis!" David cried.
"It sounded like it came from that way," Shizuku said, jabbing her pointed staff in the direction of one path. "Isoge!"
They all hurried down the pathway, but found nothing. No sign of anyone, let alone Ellis or Eiji. Kayin ran forwards, looking from one direction to another. "Blast! Eiji's not here either! What the hell happened?"
Suddenly, a figure turned the corner and smashed right into Kayin, nearly knocking him over. Kayin, enraged, grabbed the other's collar. "You damn Soshiki punk-ass, I'll kill-"
"Kayin-chan, it's me!" Kayin calmed down enough to see that he was nearly throttling Eiji. Letting Eiji go with one hand behind his head, Kayin laughed nervously and said, "Sorry `bout that, Eiji-chan, took me by surprise..."
"Yeah, well, same here. I hope that's not the way you treat everyone you run into." Eiji turned the rest of the group, concerned. "Have any of you seen Ellis-chan?"
"No," David answered. "We heard her voice, and then yours..." He stopped, cutting himself off abruptly. "Shit...they're here."
As if on cue, from behind them, came an all-too-familiar voice:
"So, warriors, we meet again. This time I can assure that victory is ours."
Everyone turned around in time to see Vermilion materialize behind them. Simultaniously, they all reached for their weapons. Eiji snarled in rage. "Kisama, what have you done with Ellis??" He unsheathed his sword and took a warning step towards Vermilion.
Ignoring this, Vermilion quietly cautioned in a mocking tone, "I wouldn't do that if I were you." He motioned behind him, as his accomplices appeared next to him. Rachael was holding Ellis, whose eyes were wide with fear, and Leon held the tip of his sword to her throat. "Unless you want something particularly nasty to happen to your little girlfriend," he finished.
Eiji stopped in his tracks, but said one demand in return. "Let her go. Now."
"We have a little proposal for you, Eiji Shinjo," Vermilion said with a smile. "You ARE the leader of this group of rebelling fighters, after all. You give us what we want, the boy, and we'll give you back what you want, Ellis here. A simple trade. And I don't think I need to explain what will happen if you turn us down. Leon, if you would."
Leon smiled, happy to oblige to anything that would enrage Eiji. "Of course." He pressed the sword a bit tighter on Ellis's throat, and a small trickle of blood ran down it. The fighters gasped in dismay, and Eiji was fairly bristling.
Vermilion smirked, happy that this was going according to plan. "All you have to do is hand him over."
"If you think we're handing David over to you just like that, then you really as dense as you look," Nagisa replied, waving his gun at the group.
"And you shouldn't be so overconfident," Vermilion rasped in return. Ellis choked a bit from the tight headlock and whispered, "Don't...don't do it...not for me..." just before passing out cold from lack of air.
"NO! Ellis-chan!!"
David, meanwhile, was being awfully quiet. Images of Ellis, talking to him in the hotel room, and after they fought Atahua, and then the next morning, kept flashing through his mind.

"I care about you."
"What? You...you do?"

"We want to protect you from the Soshiki, like we all said we would. And we wouldn't be doing this for you if we didn't care."

"You did all this for me? Why?"
"I told you, friends care about each other, and they look out for each other."

For the first time in years, ever since he was forced to watch his parents suffering in the blaze of their burning house, before he locked all of his emotions away in a corner of his mind, David felt sorrow.
She really is my friend.
With that in mind, he made his decision.
"Wait."
David stepped out from behind Sofia and Shizuku. "If I do surrender, first you've got to let Ellis go and then you've got to promise not to hurt her or any of my friends. Promise that, or I won't do it."
Vermilion smiled again. "Of course. You have my word."
"All right, then."
This raised a lot of protest from their group.
"David-chan, you can't!" Shizuku cried out.
"Don't trust these guys!"
"We'll figure out another way!"
"You don't have to sacrifice yourself for us!"
David looked back at them, his blue eyes seemingly a lot less colder than usual. "You guys have all done so much for me. It's time I did something for you in return." He turned back to Vermilion. "Now. Let her go."
Vermilion snapped his fingers, and Leon grabbed David tightly. Vermilion then shook his head and started to laugh. "Give the girl back? Not a chance. She'll make a fine sacrifice to our Overlord."
"You bastard!" Eiji yelled furiously. Enraged, he slid in on Rachael with a yell of "Shugekidan!!", driving his foot in at her shins and causing her to fall over with a cry, dropping Ellis in the process. Eiji quickly grabbed Ellis' limp body and backed up out of range. Rachael recovered quickly and swore, but Vermilion simply said. "Never mind. We'll take one of the other ones."
As Eiji dashed back to the group, they all crowded around as he laid Ellis' small frame on the ground. "Ellis-chan! Me o samashite, Ellis-chan!" Shizuku, though she was concerned, was baring her staff and debating whether or not to attack Leon on her own in order to free David.
As if he was able to read her thoughts, David managed to say, "Don't...Shizuku...I'll be okay...and tell Ellis...thanks...I...appreciated it."
"We still need one more blood sacrifice for the Overlord," Vermilion said as he scanned the rest of the group. Then he reached out, before anyone could react, grabbed Shizuku by the arm and pulled her away from them. "His guardian. You're a feisty bitch, trying to defy us when you knew all along who you were harbouring. You'll do."
"Yada!" Shizuku screamed and struggled. "Hanashite!!"
"What do we do with the rest of this group?" Leon asked.
"They'll just interfere if we leave them as they are," Vermilion simply replied. "Leon, you're coming with me back to headquarters. Zola. Atahua. Rachael. Destroy them."
As Zola, Atahua and Rachael got ready to attack, Vermilion gave the group one final, evil look.
"Remember the reckoning. Today we shall rise to rule this world." He laughed, as he and Leon teleported out, carrying David and Shizuku with them.

**********