The Armor of the Soul

By Dixxy

Chapter Four: Kaze's Entrance

(Rona)

Friday night came. The five of us staked the place out from inside a pizza parlor, playing video games, eating pizza, and hanging out. I could tell the manager, a chubby guy with a funny looking mustache, didn't seem to like us. He kept mumbling something in Italian. Even though I speak Spanish fluently (typically you ARE fluent in Spanish when you have relatives who don't speak a word of English), a sister sort of language to Italian, I hadn't a clue what he was talking about.

Eventually, the place closed and we got kicked out. And told to never come back. I thought it was rude and stuck my tongue out at him. He stuck his back out at me and gave me some sign language. I think Sam returned it from the scolding that Ria gave her.

So we averted to hanging out on the sidewalk for a while. It was dark, close to midnight, and we were starting to get sleepy. Luckily we still had soda, which was loaded with caffeine. "My mom is gonna kill me," said Keisha. "I'm out WAY past my curfew."

"So's mine," said Sara.

"Aw, out parents will deal with it," said Ria. "Or, aunts, in my case and Sam's case. It's Ronin Senshi business- we can get away with a lot of stuff if it's legitimately got something to do with that little thing, you know?"

"But we're doing this without advice from Anubis," I said. "We could get in trouble for THAT."

"Shh!" Sam said suddenly. She stood up and looked around. "I think I heard something."

We then heard an echo-like laugh. "That's him," said Ria quietly. "Gotta be."

A figure in a trench coat and hat jumped down. Both the trench coat and hat were black, as were the gloves on his hands. I also noticed a black scarf covering his face. All we could see were piercing, demonic eyes looking out at us. It creeped me out.

"Hello, Senshi brats," he said. His voice was echoing, almost as if more than one person was speaking at the same time. "Nice to meet the rest of you."

"Well, we'd like to say the same but we aren't since we're here to stop you from doing whatever it is you're doing to try and take the Mortal Realm!" said Keisha, taking a fighting stance.

"Ooo, snippy, snippy," said the figure.

"Who are you? Why do you hide behind your disguise?!" said Sara. The smallest of our numbers held clenched fists at her sides, her large pink eyes wide in determination. "Show yourself, coward!"

"Fine, as you request, small fry," said the figure.

Sam had to hold Sara back before she charged him. Whatever you do, never call Sara short, small, little, and all other words meaning not big. She hates that.

The figure leapt into the air and in one swift movement, shed the trench coat and his accessories. He landed swiftly on the ground before us, wearing a dismal gray body armor much more smooth than our subarmors where. He was also tall, thick, and had a dangerous glint in his eyes.

That's not what disgusted me about him, though.

"Oh my God," said Sara. "What is he?"

The young man that stood before us was some kind of a freak. His skin was a patchwork of different skin tones, the lines of pink separating them giving him an almost Frankenstein kind of look. His eyes were the same way, a mix of a dark blue, an ice blue, and a pale green with a hint of red and black. The hair was an oily slick of a dark, purplish blue, a pale blonde, and a soft auburn.

"That is sick," said Keisha. "What happened to you?"

"That is not important. We are known as Kaze, loyal servants to Mistress Trulpa," he said.

"Guys, armor up! Wildfire of the Senshi, Tao JIN!" cried Ria. We all followed suit, ready to battle. Keisha was beginning to look nervous, though, which I couldn't explain at the time.

"We do not care that you armor up. We will still defeat you," said Kaze, looking rather smug and over-confident.

"We? Why are you talking as if you're more than one person?" asked Keisha. Her fighting stance was weakening, her eyes looking. . . sympathetic. Did she actually feel BAD for Kaze?

Kaze laughed. "You won't live long enough to find out," he said. "Now, what should we use first? We think we'll use our extra special magic."

"Extra special?" asked Sara.

Before anyone else could say or do anything, a glowing orbe of yellow light appeared in his hand. He threw it down at the ground, creating a huge shock wave of energy. We were all caught in it.

"This feels like Anubra's magic!" said Ria. "But how is that possible!?"

The attack stopped, and the Senshi were still standing. Kaze snarled created a green energy ball. This time a huge lightening storm was created. I screamed in pain as we were suddenly jolted with Lord knows how many volts of electricity.

"HIYA!"

I heard Kaze yelp after the battle cry. The attack on us was over. I looked over and saw that Sam had struck him with her own lightening magic. Somehow, she had avoided that strike.

"Why is Kaze's storm so much like Sam's?" asked Sara. "It felt like her powers!"

"That's nothing! It didn't do a thing to me!" said Sam. She sounded half pleased, but half nervous.

"You'll be hurt by this!" said Kaze, this time a bright orange bubble forming in his hand. The ground then began to shake. We all fell to the ground, unable to stand, except for Keisha, who remained on her feet throughout the whole attack. She had a strange, almost desperate look in her eyes.

"Keisha! Hit him now!" said Ria, trying to regain her balance.

"I, I, I don't know," she said. "Kaze. . . is hurt."

"Who cares?! He's evil!" I said. "Now is not the time to be a bleeding heart!"

Keisha frowned and then threw her own attack back at him. Still, she looked like she didn't want to. That allowed the rest of us to stand our own grounds. Ria, Sara, and I quickly started on our own attacks, firing apon Kaze, but while he cried out whenever we hit him, he just kept coming.

"What the heck is this guy!?" asked Sara.

"I don't know," I said. "Anyone have an idea?"

"Armor up and let me, Key, and Sara take this chump down?" asked Sam.

"It's our best shot outside of the Inferna," said Ria. "Go for it!" With that command, we armored up. Sam, Sara, and Keisha began to prepare their special, "forbidden" attacks.

Sometime during the first war, the three I mentioned discovered special, really strong attack magic that Anubis said they weren't supposed to have. However, since they'd already used it he didn't bother taking it away or blocking it. Sam's Thunderbolt Cut, Sara's Super Wave Smasher, and Keisha's Iron Rock Crusher are invaluable to our team. They provide three aces up our sleeve for tight spots like the one we were currently in.

Kaze laughed. "You don't scare us, Senshi girls," he said.

"I'm not sure if it's the 'we' thing or the fact he's a tough enemy that bugs me more," said Ria.

"Really, well, maybe the 'we' thing is a clue to defeat him," I said. Still, I notched an arrow in my bow, ready to let it fly, just in case. Ria also had her swords at the ready, her green eyes peering out from the red Wildfire helmet she wore.

Sara and Sam let their attacks loose while Keisha just stood there, her staff shaking. "Keisha, what are you waiting for!?" asked Sam. "This guy's still going strong!"

"I, I, I can't!" she said. With that, Keisha armored down and ran off. Ria and I stared in wonderment while Sam swore at her.

"She must have picked something up with her psychic senses," said Sara. Then, she turned her head. "Hey! He's gone!"

The rest of us turned our own heads and saw that sure enough, Kaze was gone. "Where did he go?" asked Ria.

My eyes widened. "If it went after Keisha, we've got to save her!" I said. Sam was about to protest, but I held my hand up. "She must have had a reason for not helping you two with it, let's go!"