Disclaimer: I do not now nor will I ever own Digimon or Highlander I am
just borrowing the characters and themes for my own amusment I will give
them back when I get around to it.
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The room was divided into two groups in the aftermath of Daisuke's tale. Hikari and Takeru were comforting Daisuke on one side of the room while Yamato and Taichi huddled silently on the other. The three younger immortals felt the loss deeply the elder two felt Daisuke's pains on a much deeper level. Immortals lives were long and unpredictable they were not promised another day and they lived as such; Daisuke was glad to be surrounded by the two people he cared most about in the world. He had never been as close to their older siblings, and his other friends were dead.
The three immortals had had an interesting relationship over the decades, sometimes they were friends, other times they had been enemies, now they were something that transcended both states. Daisuke looked from one friend to the other, he saw their tears and remembered the others that had died he felt new tears wash over him. Yamato and Taichi were in similar states, Sora had been close to both of them and her death shook them. The group mourned like this for more than two hours before they could pull themselves up. They had to mourn now and move on, death was a part of their existence and they couldn't dwell on it for long without risking insanity.
" We're going to need a place to train," the younger ones looked up at Taichi, " You younger ones are going to need to be ready, this won't be easy if you're not prepared." They nodded in agreement as they felt the true gravity of their situation, they were going to have to fight to avenge their friends. Yamato got on the phone and began looking for more permanent dwellings Taichi began to repack the few things they had taken out. Daisuke braced himself and stood up his two defenders right beside him.
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By noon the next day the group was stationed in an old martial arts dojo, there was a large apartment on the second floor as well as two training areas, one on the ground floor and one in the basement. After two hours unpacking and setting up Daisuke was nice enough to show off his new sword to the others and the younger ones took turns sparring.
Yamato and Taichi were only interested in sparring with each other. Their blades were at the same level but they had very different strengths, Yamato was strong and fast he preferred fighting at an almost blinding pace. Taichi fought at a slightly slower pace in order to put more power into his blows, when they fought the battles lasted for a long time and they were always spectacular.
Taichi faced Yamato in the lower training room, his sword was drawn and ready, he led it with both hands toward his side ready for quick side strikes. Yamato was across the room in a different battle stance but with the same state of mind he held his blade in front of him both hands gripping tightly. The two combatants stared at each other for a spit second longer before charging in. Yamato struck first with a savage thrust to the midsection; Taichi parried the blow and countered with an upper body slash. The blonde dodged the blow and aimed a sweep kick at the brunette's legs. Taichi back flipped over the kick before going back onto the offensive with several strong slashes. Yamato did his best to parry as he waited for an opening, his arms were feeling the strain from Taichi's attacks and he knew he couldn't keep blocking the blows. Quickly ducking under one of the higher attacks, Yamato spun and swung toward Taichi's neck at blinding speed. His blade stopped millimeters from the brunette's neck as he claimed victory in the bout.
" Well that three out of five. You're still too slow Yagami," Yamato declared smugly. " You swing that sword like an old man."
" I am an old man, baka," Taichi said crossly, " and you're older than I am." Yamato shrugged and walked upstairs to check on the others.
The younger immortals were collapsed in a heap breathing heavily; they had been sparring longer than their brothers and Davis had managed to beat the other two quite soundly. His victory was tainted with the knowledge that his sword had been bought with Sora's blood. After the three had convinced Yamato that they were okay Daisuke went to take a nap and fell into a fitful sleep just as the others sensed new arrivals. It was about five and the sun was setting making it hard to see through the dojo windows. The windows were heavily tinted on the inside so student would not be distracted by outside disturbances but people could still watch the practices.
The two eldest of the group went forward with their swords drawn and ready they watched the door closely, so closely that they didn't sense the presence behind them until Tai felt a blade at his throat.
" For shame Taichi, surely I taught you better than to neglect your back while guarding your front." Taichi slowly turned to face the childlike immortal that was holding a long-bladed titanium spear. The child's eyes were deep brown, they seemed to have unimaginable depth and wisdom. Those eyes were set into the rounded face of prepubescent boy, his hair was a deep red and though he was barely five feet tall his body was as solid as steel. He had a faint smirk as he appraised the brunette he had helped train. " If this is the best you can do Taichi I should probably take your head right now. It would be better than letting one of the others get it."
" If you fought me fair Ewan you might see I'm more than a match for you." Ewan seemed to roll his eyes as he lowered his spear.
" If you're back here than who's out front?" Yamato asked trying to keep his eyes on the door and the child at the same time.
" Druce," The three looked toward Daisuke who had just entered the room. " It's Sora and Yamato's teacher Druce; I can feel it."
" Correct young one," A young man said as he entered the door; his hair was brown and tied into a ponytail and his blue eyes seemed somewhat tired. He wore a long open tan trench coat and his blade was just barely visible as it hung at his side. " I see Sora's unique gift lives on in you, her death pained me, but I am glad you were the one to take her powers." He then turned to Yamato and smiled a bit. " Well little one I'd say you've grown but I'd be lying. You've definitely gotten better though; I can only hope you are good enough." His eyes grew grave and sad, " We had better wake the others, I would rather not tell this story twice." After the others had been woken up properly the seven of them sat around a table in the apartment, Druce and Ewan sat side by side facing the other five.
" As you all know the gathering has officially begun, and once begun it cannot be stopped for any reason." Druce spoke slowly trying to instill his words with the gravity of the situation. " This means that the fates of most of us are currently sealed, most if not all of the people in this room will most likely die very soon. More than that this battle will decide the fate of the mortal world for all eternity. To my knowledge there are at least three other immortals seeking the prize. Their intentions are malicious and they will surely plunge this world into darkness should they receive they it."
" Well we have them outnumbered so this shouldn't be too hard; we can just take them out and refuse to finish the contest right?" Takeru asked hopefully, however his brother's teacher only lowered his eyes and sighed.
" Unfortunately numbers are no help this time, all of the dark ones have blades a full level above those of Taichi and Yamato, though both my and Ewan's are close to it, we would be no match against the power they hold. All of us together at our current states would not be enough to match two of them together, fighting them now would be suicide."
" We both came to this conclusion and it left us with a riddle," Ewan spoke up his high voice cloaking his true age. " How could we change the outcome of a fight we could not hope to win? We discussed it and we have come to a solution; Yamato, Taichi, we must speak with you both in private." The four of them stood and prepared to leave for the lower training room. " The rest of you must stay here this will be done with shortly." They left the younger group upstairs and quickly went to the lower training room too discuss their plans.
" Boys we trained you both and have come to see you as sons to us," Druce said once the door had been locked. " And you have proven to be the strongest of the students we have trained. Therefore we believe one of you may have the best chance of winning this battle."
" In that we found the answer to our riddle, the only way we could affect the outcome of a battle we could not win would be to give our power to those that can." Ewan spoke calmly as he readied his spear, " but don't think our heads are yours for the taking, nothing should ever come easy."
" I don't want to take your head sensei," Yamato said quickly.
" The same goes for me," Taichi added as he watched his small mentor. " Isn't there another way? Couldn't we just train naturally?"
" We're sorry but there isn't enough time," Druce said sadly, " Your power must go up now or all is lost. The time for training is past, now it's time to test your skills." The ancient swordsman drew his blade and faced the boys. " Don't hold back," Both boys nodded slowly.
" We wont," they said simultaneously. They had been fighting for centuries and understood the nature of the quickening, this battle wasn't a killing it was a joining for the sake of survival. As both boys drew their swords and held them ready they spoke the maxim they all lived by.
" There can be only one." With that they charged their teachers with the intent to kill. _____________________________________________________
While this was happening the younger members of the group were waiting above trying to sort out the situation. None of them spoke even after they realized what was going to happen, they just huddled together and waited. Slowly their minds became tranquil and calm as they drifted into the realm of the mind, as they slept their consciousness' joined in the dream world.
Daisuke opened his eyes and looked at the new landscape, it was a rolling meadow with emerald green grass and a sapphire sky. His appearance had changed as well, he looked like the guardian of his sword, a golden armored dragon. He searched for the others and found them just a few steps behind him, one was an angel and the other was a humanoid cat. He smiled as they walked over to him; Takeru immediately challenged Daisuke's new form to a race and Hikari watched as they sped along the countryside. They were in the ethereal realm, a place of the mind reserved for immortals, any nearby immortal would be both sensed and seen by others already in the realm. Hikari could see her brother and the others fighting on a nearby hillside, she turned her head quickly to avoid the sight. Daisuke and Takeru had finished their race and Daisuke had won, both boys were panting from the exertion and eventually collapsed one the grass. Kari started to sit with them but froze, as something appeared on the horizon, it was strong and very evil. Storm clouds gathered as the being approached it appeared to be a dragon with two heads, one red, and one blue.
" Who is that?" Kari asked a slight tremor in her voice as she felt it's power approaching.
" I've never heard of anyone with that blade before," Takeru said as he looked to Daisuke, who was staring hard at the approaching figure.
" We need to get out of here, we can't be asleep when he arrives," Daisuke said calmly as he started to fade, the other two joined him and they were soon back in the real world. They all drew their blades as they felt the other presence get closer. They had to fight this enemy alone since the older ones would not return until their fight was over.
" Who goes there?" Takeru called as a shadow appeared in the doorway, the figure could not be seen under his black hood but his blade was clearly visible.
" Ask Daisuke" The hooded figure growled, recognition flashed on Daisuke's face for a moment before changing to confusion.
" It couldn't be.Ryo?" Daisuke said slowly, the figure pulled back its hood revealing a young man of about nineteen years old with deep brown hair and blue eyes. His face was somewhat rounded and looked like it should always have a smile on it; however this time it held a smirk.
" You remembered, it's so nice when one is remembered." The man's voice was cold and harsh. " I heard about what happened to Sora; such a sad thing really I can tell you're broken up about it." Daisuke frowned at him.
" What happened to you?" Daisuke asked softly.
"Well you remember when Ken and I came up with our little plan; you know the one where we remove all of the evil immortals so there doesn't have to be a final battle. Well it turns out powers that be didn't like our little plan, so they showed is what happens when one tries to take too much of the evil into ones self." Takeru's eyes grew with recognition and took an involuntary step backward.
" The dark quickening, if an immortal takes the power of too many dark ones the immortal is consumed by the darkness completely. It's supposed to be myth, a scary story told to the young and the gullible." Takeru slowly shook his head as he spoke, as if trying to deny the possibility with his entire being.
" One could say the same thing about us Angel-cakes." The blond bristled at the nickname. " Still so sensitive, it's a wonder you lived this long, I'm still surprised you outlived Ken." Now it was Daisuke's turn to react.
" Did you know that Oikawa claimed him? Were you there when he died?" The redhead accused, anger in his voice and in his eyes. "ANSWER ME!" He looked ready to charge the other boy right then.
" Of course I knew, I just didn't care." Ryo's tone was almost spiteful; he wanted Daisuke angry. " Ken was weak just like you are; your brothers are the only real threat here and while they're busy I can take your heads. My blade should be at it's strongest but I can feel it's potential, the meager amount of power you three hold should give me what I need to ascend." His smirk vanished as drew his blade, " so who's first, I believe our dear Daisuke want's a crack at me." The boy in question stepped forward and held his blade out.
" The Ryo I know is already dead, I will not hesitate in killing you. To protect my friends and to ensure the prize will not go to one such as you I will take your head. I am Daisuke Motomiya, trained by Sora I wield magna-dragon I challenge you."
" Fine I Ryo Akiyama, holder of millennium-demon accept your challenge. Let's get this over with quickly." Ryo held his sword with both hands, it was a single-edged cutlass designed to be held with one or two hands, on the hand guard was a red demonic creature, Daisuke thought it resembled the chimera on Oikawa's blade except it had fewer arms and seemed more sinister. The younger boy charged into the battle with his sword flashing. His first strike was parried immediately and it was soon apparent that Ryo was well taught. Daisuke attempted fast slashes at his neck and chest only to hit the air as the brunette dodged around each blow. Ryo quickly countered with a powerful forward strike that nearly slammed Daisuke into a wall when he tried to block it. Daisuke simply dodged his opponent's blows from then on, Ryo was slower than he was but was much stronger physically. After ducking below a particularly vicious horizontal slash the redhead thrust forward and managed a deep cut on Ryo's right arm. The brunette snarled and continued his assault, his attacks were more forceful but less controlled than before and he wasn't getting close to hitting the faster Daisuke. The young boy managed three more cuts before Ryo realized what was going on. " Not a bad strategy trying to get me angry so I would make mistakes. You're much smarter than you look, Ken must have taught you a few tricks." Daisuke bristled at the mention of his friend and prepared to start attacking again. " Not so fast, don't you want to hear about how Kenny-boy died? I was there you know; I watched it all." Daisuke stopped for a moment, both Takeru and Hikari knew he shouldn't have been listening but they were bound not to interfere. " He was doing quite well for a while; he managed to get some decent cuts in against Oikawa, but in the end he still lost his head." Daisuke was visibly upset now he was loosing his composure. " You know Oikawa tried to challenge me after he beat Ken, he lost so horribly I decided to let him live. He was too weak to be a threat to me, at least he managed to kill Sora before he died so he wasn't totally useless." Ryo smirked seeing his desired reaction Daisuke was in a rage now, he wouldn't be thinking strait so he would be easy prey.
Hikari wanted to scream at her friend she wanted to tell him to calm down. But any interference on her part could render both of their lives forfeit. Takeru was as angry as Daisuke was, his helplessness was infuriating and he feared he was about to lose another friend. Daisuke simply cried out in a rage as he charged his former ally, Ryo easily blocked the savage blows as he took control of the fight. The redhead was too angry to see strait as he attacked his enemy with reckless abandon. At first it seemed that Ryo's plan had backfired, the ferocity of Daisuke's assault was forcing Ryo back. The brunette was a bit worried but he soon found an opening in Daisuke's defenses, without hesitating Ryo ducked one of Daisuke's blows and countered with one of his own that removed the boy's right arm and his sword with it. Daisuke could only stare as he dropped to his knees, two tears fells from his eyes as he bowed his head.
" I'm sorry Sora, I wasn't strong enough" He whispered and he closed his eyes.
" In the end, there can be only one" Daisuke was struck down as his head was taken by his former friend. Takeru and Hikari were watching with impotent fury, they were so focused on the battle they didn't notice their blades were shining.
" The power is amazing!" Ryo cried as the demon on his blade changed, the image became a clear crystal that seemed to be filled with a dark liquid, its two red eyes glowed with ominous fury. " Behold the moon-millennium- demon the worker of destruction, and the executioner of worlds." The boy looked at the other two children and their newly changed blades and his smirk grew. " Well since your brothers are still indisposed I think I'll take your heads as well, don't bother choosing who goes first I'll take you both on maybe together you'll be more of a challenge than Daisuke was.
" Don't you dare mention his name." Takeru said his voice filled with cold anger. The blonde looked down at his new blade, his angel now had more armor and another pair of wings. " I am Takeru Ishida wielder of holy-angel I accept your challenge to avenge my friend." Kari then stepped forward with her new blade it was a female angel with six wings and a large bow with an arrow ready to fly. She readied herself and addressed Ryo.
" I am Kari Yagami and holder of angel-archer I also accept your challenge to avenge my friends." Both of the immortals faced the other with a grim determination as they prepared to fight, the odds were not in their favor but they were too angry to care. Ryo readied himself as he sized up his new opponents, their blades had grown but so had his; all of them were not used to the extra stamina needed to use stronger blades. Both of the children were skilled but not close enough to Ryo to pose a threat, or so Ryo believed.
Ryo charged both of the others and quickly found himself between the two angered immortals. Had they been a level stronger the fight wouldn't have lasted long but Ryo's power advantage made it hard for them to land a hit. Ryo did a forward flip too get from in between the other two he then knocked Takeru back with a heavy slash and attempted to take out Hikari before he could recover. Hikari found that her blade was a bit fast in its new form and managed to get a cut or two in before he started to overpower her. Ryo brought his sword down and Kari blocked, she braced her blade with both hands as she watched Ryo's blade inch downward. Before she could lose her hold completely Takeru kicked Ryo in the side and the match continued the young blond let loose a flurry of attacks trying to break down Ryo's defenses.
Though the blond had caught him off guard Ryo was soon able to force him back again. However Hikari rejoined the blonde and the two of them prepared for a combined assault. Ryo found himself between the two once again as they attacked from opposite sides, for the first time he regretted issuing the double challenge. Finally Takeru used a strong overhand blow forcing Ryo to block with both hands Hikari took advantage as she plunged her sword into his heart. As the evil brunette collapsed to his knees the pair slashed at the same time their blades meeting at the center of Ryo's neck. As his head hit the floor the power within him was sent into both of the victors, electricity flowed through their bodies as the shock waves shattered the windows in the dojo. Takeru and Hikari were lifted a few inches off of the ground by the force of the quickening before collapsing in a heap. As they slowly pushed themselves off the ground they were surprised by a voice.
" What the hell happened here?" Both of the younger immortals turned to face Hikari's older brother followed soon after by Yamato, it seemed that the elder siblings had emerged. Taichi looked at the bodies on the floor and the new blade his sister held with a bit of apprehension. " Okay what did we miss?"
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A/N: Well that took a long time, I apologize to however reads this if anyone. Hikari and Takeru sort of split Ryo's powers between them so the quickening did not corrupt them. The blades of immortals grow naturally as the owner grows in skill and strength Daisuke's blade was forced to grow to accommodate Sora's power, while Hikari's and Takeru's grew out of emotion and necessity. Well one of the enemies has fallen but so have some of the allies, the remaining forces are strong but will they be enough? Next time the four remaining heroes adjust to their new powers and plan their next steps. Please R&R
The room was divided into two groups in the aftermath of Daisuke's tale. Hikari and Takeru were comforting Daisuke on one side of the room while Yamato and Taichi huddled silently on the other. The three younger immortals felt the loss deeply the elder two felt Daisuke's pains on a much deeper level. Immortals lives were long and unpredictable they were not promised another day and they lived as such; Daisuke was glad to be surrounded by the two people he cared most about in the world. He had never been as close to their older siblings, and his other friends were dead.
The three immortals had had an interesting relationship over the decades, sometimes they were friends, other times they had been enemies, now they were something that transcended both states. Daisuke looked from one friend to the other, he saw their tears and remembered the others that had died he felt new tears wash over him. Yamato and Taichi were in similar states, Sora had been close to both of them and her death shook them. The group mourned like this for more than two hours before they could pull themselves up. They had to mourn now and move on, death was a part of their existence and they couldn't dwell on it for long without risking insanity.
" We're going to need a place to train," the younger ones looked up at Taichi, " You younger ones are going to need to be ready, this won't be easy if you're not prepared." They nodded in agreement as they felt the true gravity of their situation, they were going to have to fight to avenge their friends. Yamato got on the phone and began looking for more permanent dwellings Taichi began to repack the few things they had taken out. Daisuke braced himself and stood up his two defenders right beside him.
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By noon the next day the group was stationed in an old martial arts dojo, there was a large apartment on the second floor as well as two training areas, one on the ground floor and one in the basement. After two hours unpacking and setting up Daisuke was nice enough to show off his new sword to the others and the younger ones took turns sparring.
Yamato and Taichi were only interested in sparring with each other. Their blades were at the same level but they had very different strengths, Yamato was strong and fast he preferred fighting at an almost blinding pace. Taichi fought at a slightly slower pace in order to put more power into his blows, when they fought the battles lasted for a long time and they were always spectacular.
Taichi faced Yamato in the lower training room, his sword was drawn and ready, he led it with both hands toward his side ready for quick side strikes. Yamato was across the room in a different battle stance but with the same state of mind he held his blade in front of him both hands gripping tightly. The two combatants stared at each other for a spit second longer before charging in. Yamato struck first with a savage thrust to the midsection; Taichi parried the blow and countered with an upper body slash. The blonde dodged the blow and aimed a sweep kick at the brunette's legs. Taichi back flipped over the kick before going back onto the offensive with several strong slashes. Yamato did his best to parry as he waited for an opening, his arms were feeling the strain from Taichi's attacks and he knew he couldn't keep blocking the blows. Quickly ducking under one of the higher attacks, Yamato spun and swung toward Taichi's neck at blinding speed. His blade stopped millimeters from the brunette's neck as he claimed victory in the bout.
" Well that three out of five. You're still too slow Yagami," Yamato declared smugly. " You swing that sword like an old man."
" I am an old man, baka," Taichi said crossly, " and you're older than I am." Yamato shrugged and walked upstairs to check on the others.
The younger immortals were collapsed in a heap breathing heavily; they had been sparring longer than their brothers and Davis had managed to beat the other two quite soundly. His victory was tainted with the knowledge that his sword had been bought with Sora's blood. After the three had convinced Yamato that they were okay Daisuke went to take a nap and fell into a fitful sleep just as the others sensed new arrivals. It was about five and the sun was setting making it hard to see through the dojo windows. The windows were heavily tinted on the inside so student would not be distracted by outside disturbances but people could still watch the practices.
The two eldest of the group went forward with their swords drawn and ready they watched the door closely, so closely that they didn't sense the presence behind them until Tai felt a blade at his throat.
" For shame Taichi, surely I taught you better than to neglect your back while guarding your front." Taichi slowly turned to face the childlike immortal that was holding a long-bladed titanium spear. The child's eyes were deep brown, they seemed to have unimaginable depth and wisdom. Those eyes were set into the rounded face of prepubescent boy, his hair was a deep red and though he was barely five feet tall his body was as solid as steel. He had a faint smirk as he appraised the brunette he had helped train. " If this is the best you can do Taichi I should probably take your head right now. It would be better than letting one of the others get it."
" If you fought me fair Ewan you might see I'm more than a match for you." Ewan seemed to roll his eyes as he lowered his spear.
" If you're back here than who's out front?" Yamato asked trying to keep his eyes on the door and the child at the same time.
" Druce," The three looked toward Daisuke who had just entered the room. " It's Sora and Yamato's teacher Druce; I can feel it."
" Correct young one," A young man said as he entered the door; his hair was brown and tied into a ponytail and his blue eyes seemed somewhat tired. He wore a long open tan trench coat and his blade was just barely visible as it hung at his side. " I see Sora's unique gift lives on in you, her death pained me, but I am glad you were the one to take her powers." He then turned to Yamato and smiled a bit. " Well little one I'd say you've grown but I'd be lying. You've definitely gotten better though; I can only hope you are good enough." His eyes grew grave and sad, " We had better wake the others, I would rather not tell this story twice." After the others had been woken up properly the seven of them sat around a table in the apartment, Druce and Ewan sat side by side facing the other five.
" As you all know the gathering has officially begun, and once begun it cannot be stopped for any reason." Druce spoke slowly trying to instill his words with the gravity of the situation. " This means that the fates of most of us are currently sealed, most if not all of the people in this room will most likely die very soon. More than that this battle will decide the fate of the mortal world for all eternity. To my knowledge there are at least three other immortals seeking the prize. Their intentions are malicious and they will surely plunge this world into darkness should they receive they it."
" Well we have them outnumbered so this shouldn't be too hard; we can just take them out and refuse to finish the contest right?" Takeru asked hopefully, however his brother's teacher only lowered his eyes and sighed.
" Unfortunately numbers are no help this time, all of the dark ones have blades a full level above those of Taichi and Yamato, though both my and Ewan's are close to it, we would be no match against the power they hold. All of us together at our current states would not be enough to match two of them together, fighting them now would be suicide."
" We both came to this conclusion and it left us with a riddle," Ewan spoke up his high voice cloaking his true age. " How could we change the outcome of a fight we could not hope to win? We discussed it and we have come to a solution; Yamato, Taichi, we must speak with you both in private." The four of them stood and prepared to leave for the lower training room. " The rest of you must stay here this will be done with shortly." They left the younger group upstairs and quickly went to the lower training room too discuss their plans.
" Boys we trained you both and have come to see you as sons to us," Druce said once the door had been locked. " And you have proven to be the strongest of the students we have trained. Therefore we believe one of you may have the best chance of winning this battle."
" In that we found the answer to our riddle, the only way we could affect the outcome of a battle we could not win would be to give our power to those that can." Ewan spoke calmly as he readied his spear, " but don't think our heads are yours for the taking, nothing should ever come easy."
" I don't want to take your head sensei," Yamato said quickly.
" The same goes for me," Taichi added as he watched his small mentor. " Isn't there another way? Couldn't we just train naturally?"
" We're sorry but there isn't enough time," Druce said sadly, " Your power must go up now or all is lost. The time for training is past, now it's time to test your skills." The ancient swordsman drew his blade and faced the boys. " Don't hold back," Both boys nodded slowly.
" We wont," they said simultaneously. They had been fighting for centuries and understood the nature of the quickening, this battle wasn't a killing it was a joining for the sake of survival. As both boys drew their swords and held them ready they spoke the maxim they all lived by.
" There can be only one." With that they charged their teachers with the intent to kill. _____________________________________________________
While this was happening the younger members of the group were waiting above trying to sort out the situation. None of them spoke even after they realized what was going to happen, they just huddled together and waited. Slowly their minds became tranquil and calm as they drifted into the realm of the mind, as they slept their consciousness' joined in the dream world.
Daisuke opened his eyes and looked at the new landscape, it was a rolling meadow with emerald green grass and a sapphire sky. His appearance had changed as well, he looked like the guardian of his sword, a golden armored dragon. He searched for the others and found them just a few steps behind him, one was an angel and the other was a humanoid cat. He smiled as they walked over to him; Takeru immediately challenged Daisuke's new form to a race and Hikari watched as they sped along the countryside. They were in the ethereal realm, a place of the mind reserved for immortals, any nearby immortal would be both sensed and seen by others already in the realm. Hikari could see her brother and the others fighting on a nearby hillside, she turned her head quickly to avoid the sight. Daisuke and Takeru had finished their race and Daisuke had won, both boys were panting from the exertion and eventually collapsed one the grass. Kari started to sit with them but froze, as something appeared on the horizon, it was strong and very evil. Storm clouds gathered as the being approached it appeared to be a dragon with two heads, one red, and one blue.
" Who is that?" Kari asked a slight tremor in her voice as she felt it's power approaching.
" I've never heard of anyone with that blade before," Takeru said as he looked to Daisuke, who was staring hard at the approaching figure.
" We need to get out of here, we can't be asleep when he arrives," Daisuke said calmly as he started to fade, the other two joined him and they were soon back in the real world. They all drew their blades as they felt the other presence get closer. They had to fight this enemy alone since the older ones would not return until their fight was over.
" Who goes there?" Takeru called as a shadow appeared in the doorway, the figure could not be seen under his black hood but his blade was clearly visible.
" Ask Daisuke" The hooded figure growled, recognition flashed on Daisuke's face for a moment before changing to confusion.
" It couldn't be.Ryo?" Daisuke said slowly, the figure pulled back its hood revealing a young man of about nineteen years old with deep brown hair and blue eyes. His face was somewhat rounded and looked like it should always have a smile on it; however this time it held a smirk.
" You remembered, it's so nice when one is remembered." The man's voice was cold and harsh. " I heard about what happened to Sora; such a sad thing really I can tell you're broken up about it." Daisuke frowned at him.
" What happened to you?" Daisuke asked softly.
"Well you remember when Ken and I came up with our little plan; you know the one where we remove all of the evil immortals so there doesn't have to be a final battle. Well it turns out powers that be didn't like our little plan, so they showed is what happens when one tries to take too much of the evil into ones self." Takeru's eyes grew with recognition and took an involuntary step backward.
" The dark quickening, if an immortal takes the power of too many dark ones the immortal is consumed by the darkness completely. It's supposed to be myth, a scary story told to the young and the gullible." Takeru slowly shook his head as he spoke, as if trying to deny the possibility with his entire being.
" One could say the same thing about us Angel-cakes." The blond bristled at the nickname. " Still so sensitive, it's a wonder you lived this long, I'm still surprised you outlived Ken." Now it was Daisuke's turn to react.
" Did you know that Oikawa claimed him? Were you there when he died?" The redhead accused, anger in his voice and in his eyes. "ANSWER ME!" He looked ready to charge the other boy right then.
" Of course I knew, I just didn't care." Ryo's tone was almost spiteful; he wanted Daisuke angry. " Ken was weak just like you are; your brothers are the only real threat here and while they're busy I can take your heads. My blade should be at it's strongest but I can feel it's potential, the meager amount of power you three hold should give me what I need to ascend." His smirk vanished as drew his blade, " so who's first, I believe our dear Daisuke want's a crack at me." The boy in question stepped forward and held his blade out.
" The Ryo I know is already dead, I will not hesitate in killing you. To protect my friends and to ensure the prize will not go to one such as you I will take your head. I am Daisuke Motomiya, trained by Sora I wield magna-dragon I challenge you."
" Fine I Ryo Akiyama, holder of millennium-demon accept your challenge. Let's get this over with quickly." Ryo held his sword with both hands, it was a single-edged cutlass designed to be held with one or two hands, on the hand guard was a red demonic creature, Daisuke thought it resembled the chimera on Oikawa's blade except it had fewer arms and seemed more sinister. The younger boy charged into the battle with his sword flashing. His first strike was parried immediately and it was soon apparent that Ryo was well taught. Daisuke attempted fast slashes at his neck and chest only to hit the air as the brunette dodged around each blow. Ryo quickly countered with a powerful forward strike that nearly slammed Daisuke into a wall when he tried to block it. Daisuke simply dodged his opponent's blows from then on, Ryo was slower than he was but was much stronger physically. After ducking below a particularly vicious horizontal slash the redhead thrust forward and managed a deep cut on Ryo's right arm. The brunette snarled and continued his assault, his attacks were more forceful but less controlled than before and he wasn't getting close to hitting the faster Daisuke. The young boy managed three more cuts before Ryo realized what was going on. " Not a bad strategy trying to get me angry so I would make mistakes. You're much smarter than you look, Ken must have taught you a few tricks." Daisuke bristled at the mention of his friend and prepared to start attacking again. " Not so fast, don't you want to hear about how Kenny-boy died? I was there you know; I watched it all." Daisuke stopped for a moment, both Takeru and Hikari knew he shouldn't have been listening but they were bound not to interfere. " He was doing quite well for a while; he managed to get some decent cuts in against Oikawa, but in the end he still lost his head." Daisuke was visibly upset now he was loosing his composure. " You know Oikawa tried to challenge me after he beat Ken, he lost so horribly I decided to let him live. He was too weak to be a threat to me, at least he managed to kill Sora before he died so he wasn't totally useless." Ryo smirked seeing his desired reaction Daisuke was in a rage now, he wouldn't be thinking strait so he would be easy prey.
Hikari wanted to scream at her friend she wanted to tell him to calm down. But any interference on her part could render both of their lives forfeit. Takeru was as angry as Daisuke was, his helplessness was infuriating and he feared he was about to lose another friend. Daisuke simply cried out in a rage as he charged his former ally, Ryo easily blocked the savage blows as he took control of the fight. The redhead was too angry to see strait as he attacked his enemy with reckless abandon. At first it seemed that Ryo's plan had backfired, the ferocity of Daisuke's assault was forcing Ryo back. The brunette was a bit worried but he soon found an opening in Daisuke's defenses, without hesitating Ryo ducked one of Daisuke's blows and countered with one of his own that removed the boy's right arm and his sword with it. Daisuke could only stare as he dropped to his knees, two tears fells from his eyes as he bowed his head.
" I'm sorry Sora, I wasn't strong enough" He whispered and he closed his eyes.
" In the end, there can be only one" Daisuke was struck down as his head was taken by his former friend. Takeru and Hikari were watching with impotent fury, they were so focused on the battle they didn't notice their blades were shining.
" The power is amazing!" Ryo cried as the demon on his blade changed, the image became a clear crystal that seemed to be filled with a dark liquid, its two red eyes glowed with ominous fury. " Behold the moon-millennium- demon the worker of destruction, and the executioner of worlds." The boy looked at the other two children and their newly changed blades and his smirk grew. " Well since your brothers are still indisposed I think I'll take your heads as well, don't bother choosing who goes first I'll take you both on maybe together you'll be more of a challenge than Daisuke was.
" Don't you dare mention his name." Takeru said his voice filled with cold anger. The blonde looked down at his new blade, his angel now had more armor and another pair of wings. " I am Takeru Ishida wielder of holy-angel I accept your challenge to avenge my friend." Kari then stepped forward with her new blade it was a female angel with six wings and a large bow with an arrow ready to fly. She readied herself and addressed Ryo.
" I am Kari Yagami and holder of angel-archer I also accept your challenge to avenge my friends." Both of the immortals faced the other with a grim determination as they prepared to fight, the odds were not in their favor but they were too angry to care. Ryo readied himself as he sized up his new opponents, their blades had grown but so had his; all of them were not used to the extra stamina needed to use stronger blades. Both of the children were skilled but not close enough to Ryo to pose a threat, or so Ryo believed.
Ryo charged both of the others and quickly found himself between the two angered immortals. Had they been a level stronger the fight wouldn't have lasted long but Ryo's power advantage made it hard for them to land a hit. Ryo did a forward flip too get from in between the other two he then knocked Takeru back with a heavy slash and attempted to take out Hikari before he could recover. Hikari found that her blade was a bit fast in its new form and managed to get a cut or two in before he started to overpower her. Ryo brought his sword down and Kari blocked, she braced her blade with both hands as she watched Ryo's blade inch downward. Before she could lose her hold completely Takeru kicked Ryo in the side and the match continued the young blond let loose a flurry of attacks trying to break down Ryo's defenses.
Though the blond had caught him off guard Ryo was soon able to force him back again. However Hikari rejoined the blonde and the two of them prepared for a combined assault. Ryo found himself between the two once again as they attacked from opposite sides, for the first time he regretted issuing the double challenge. Finally Takeru used a strong overhand blow forcing Ryo to block with both hands Hikari took advantage as she plunged her sword into his heart. As the evil brunette collapsed to his knees the pair slashed at the same time their blades meeting at the center of Ryo's neck. As his head hit the floor the power within him was sent into both of the victors, electricity flowed through their bodies as the shock waves shattered the windows in the dojo. Takeru and Hikari were lifted a few inches off of the ground by the force of the quickening before collapsing in a heap. As they slowly pushed themselves off the ground they were surprised by a voice.
" What the hell happened here?" Both of the younger immortals turned to face Hikari's older brother followed soon after by Yamato, it seemed that the elder siblings had emerged. Taichi looked at the bodies on the floor and the new blade his sister held with a bit of apprehension. " Okay what did we miss?"
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A/N: Well that took a long time, I apologize to however reads this if anyone. Hikari and Takeru sort of split Ryo's powers between them so the quickening did not corrupt them. The blades of immortals grow naturally as the owner grows in skill and strength Daisuke's blade was forced to grow to accommodate Sora's power, while Hikari's and Takeru's grew out of emotion and necessity. Well one of the enemies has fallen but so have some of the allies, the remaining forces are strong but will they be enough? Next time the four remaining heroes adjust to their new powers and plan their next steps. Please R&R