Obsidian Fires
Part 8
By Mieren
Mieren whimpered softly as the sun peeked on the horizon, desperately clutching a bloody mass of fabric to her shredded stomach. Trembling in the cool morning air, she wished again that she had the strength to heal the wounds blanketing her pale form.
A rough tongue rasped her cheek, catching her attention enough to turn her head slightly towards the great cat that had survived the last battle. She reached out with one bloodstained hand and caressed the leopard's smooth fur, hooking her hand around its neck to pull herself slowly to a sitting position. The leopard made a soft noise in its throat and nuzzled Mieren worriedly when she slumped against it, panting loudly.
Licking her face one last time, it slowly closed its teeth around the edges of the bloody rags Mieren was clinging to, pulling the sopped cloth away from the vicious disemboweling wound across her stomach. Crying out weakly, she reached for the still bundle in its mouth, eyes watering when it moved out of reach. She only had the strength to shiver slightly in protest as it moved away with the cold roll of cloth in its mouth, disappearing into the trees in a smooth lope.
Once the massive feline vanished from view, she slumped against the nearest tree like some broken thing, quivering slightly in agony. Sighing weakly, Mieren pulled another strip from her tattered cloak and wound it firmly around her now-slender midsection, grinding her teeth at the burning pain arising from her movements. Forcing herself to her feet, she stumbled deeper into the trees in search of a place where she could rest.
* * *
Ryo stiffened suddenly when Rowen groaned softly in his sleep and rolled over sluggishly in the hollowed out area Kento had created in the cool earth. Rowen made a soft growling noise in the back of his throat as he opened his eyes and squinted around blankly.
"Heads up, guys," Ryo called out firmly. "Rowen's awake."
Everyone in the small cavern immediately came to full attention and moved closer to the two of them warily. Rowen only blinked at them once before his expression degenerated into something murderous.
"Calm down, Rowen," Sage murmured, moving forward with no regard for his well being. Rowen twitched slightly at his voice, beginning to look confused.
"Why are they here?" he snarled, pointing to three of the Warlords.
Cye's eyebrows shot up to his hairline. "They're came to help find Mieren, remember?"
Rowen raised one hand to his forehead slowly as though the movement caused him great pain. "Then what about the dark elf?"
"Switched sides when we saved him," Sehkmet called out softly.
Rowen's eyes narrowed. "What the hell is that?" he snarled, indicating Sehkmet with a small toss of his head.
"What's left of the ugliest Warlord in history," Dais snickered.
"Gee, thanks. You don't look much better, you know."
"And what does that mean?" Rowen snapped.
Sage exhaled noisily. "Dais and Sehkmet pissed of the two elves, and they retaliated much like Mieren would have." Dais flinched under his stare and opened his cloak to display the six arms he now sported.
Rowen trembled slightly as though fighting with himself for control. Sapphire eyes flashing, he stood and turned to leave, features twisting into a snarl when Ryo grabbed his arm to stop him.
"I'm sorry, Rowen," Ryo said quickly. "I won't bother you anymore. Just don't run off again." Rowen blinked and looked at him blankly for a moment.
"Why would I want you guys to come along? You'll just slow me down. I don't even know why you came here in the first place."
"Rowen," Cye began slowly. "We all came here to look for Mieren. Don't you remember?" He turned slowly away from the opening of the cave, staring intently at the youngest Ronin. He walked back to the younger boy with questioning eyes.
"What happened to you?" he asked slowly, tweaking one of Cye's pointed ears. Cye's eyes widened.
"You don't remember?" he whispered. Ryo looked to Kento and Sage warily when Rowen shook his head slightly. They quickly gathered into a small huddle and spoke frantically, careful not to let their voices carry.
"Um… how are we going to break this to him?" Kento asked the others silently.
Ryo shook his head. "I don't know."
"We should see how much he remembers first," Sage said carefully, turning to face his best friend with worried eyes. "Uh, Rowen? How much do you remember about what happened to us?"
For the first time since waking up, the scowl slid from Rowen's face, replaced immediately by utter confusion. He raised his hand to his forehead again hesitantly, eyes narrowing in pain.
"Do you remember the caves?" Ryo asked. Rowen struggled with himself for a moment before nodding slowly, the memory dawning in his eyes.
"How about Kimen and Turriv?" Sage asked carefully. Rowen paled suddenly and nodded, looking almost ill.
"And the original Mouri," he murmured, indicating Cye. "I remember." Without waiting on them, he tried to leave a second time, eyes shifting into a smoldering garnet as he entered the early evening dimness. The others scrambled after him. Rowen's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I told you I don't want you slowing me down. Go home."
"We can't," Cye growled back at him.
"And why not?"
"The lighter magics aren't working and we can't use the dark without frying ourselves in the process. Besides, we're not leaving you or Mieren here."
Rowen and Cye locked gazes and engaged in a battle of wills. Kayura stepped between them, scowling angrily.
"We don't have time for you two to engage in a testosterone-induced pissing contest," she snapped, staring them both down instantly. "We are going to find Mieren as a group whether you like it or not. And if either of you utters a single word to the contrary, I'm going to make you regret the day your father first laid eyes on your mother. Understand?"
Rowen and Cye continued to glare at each other, but both nodded acquiescence. Kayura smiled angrily and flipped her hair out of her face. "Now," she said firmly. "Neris, where did Siellon say that the next major battlefield was?"
The two elves engaged in a swift interchange before Neris pointed north. "The mountains."
Cye's eyes glazed over slightly. "In the final day of the War of Sorcerers, the Exodus spell ravaged the lands and world to the horizon and beyond. The Mountains of Omnipotence were once level plains that stretched for endless miles. The shock wave from the Exodus spell caused the earth to scream in protest, the grounds bucking in agony as the fiery spell unleashed devastation upon the world, the fiery blast extending over three fourths the way around the planet in places where the defenses were not sufficient. The grounds heaved, and the mountains rose in the massacred grasslands. The sheer force of the spell left a magical resonance in the air that can be detected and used by even the most unskilled mages and novices," Cye trailed off suddenly as his eyes came into focus. He looked around and started down a well-hidden path without thinking about it.
"Uh, Cye?"
"Yea?"
"Where are you going?" Kento asked patiently.
Cye blinked. "The direct trail to the mountain's peak is this way."
The Ronins and Warlords looked at each other in consternation for a moment.
Ryo cleared his throat softly. "And how do you know that?" he asked sweetly. Cye pursed his lips thoughtfully before shrugging and starting down the path again.
"I have no idea. But the peak is this way."
Sage poked Neris in the ribs demandingly. "Is he right?" The elf looked at Cye before nodding worriedly.
"How in the hell does he know that?" Cale demanded, falling in behind the others.
Kento shrugged. "I don't know. Hell, I thought he had stopped doing that."
Sage snagged his shoulder and stared at him incredulously. "He's done this before?" he hissed angrily. Kento shrugged.
"He used to do it all the time in high school. It really freaked me out for awhile. After I met you, I figured it was something like your little psychotic thing."
"That's psychic," Sage grumbled as he left to walk beside Rowen.
"I meant what I said," Kento called out happily. Sage's cheek twitched.
"You should have told us about that," Ryo grumped.
"I didn't think it was a big deal. I thought he stopped that when we started fighting the Dynasty, after all," Kento muttered defensively.
"What all did he say when he did that before?" Dais asked slowly. Kento shrugged and made baffled face.
"Half the time I didn't have any idea, and the other half usually depended on whatever we were doing at the time. The ones where I didn't know at the time usually came up within the next few days."
"You mean that he was telling the future?" Cale snapped softly. Kento paused and stared at the ground for a moment before shrugging and nodding.
"Pretty much. He used to talk kinda weird when he did that. I never really understood what he was saying. It was some pretty weird stuff."
"Define weird," Sehkmet growled, eyes flashing angrily.
"Well… the first day I met him, he said something that really freaked me out when he was at my place. Let me see. It was 'blazing flames blinding the night sky in the glaciers of forbidden fires, the black lights shall destroy the white. Crystals of living obsidian will banish the presence of the light, and thus shall the world be cast into darkness. In the blackest shadows of the night shall a figure emerge, and he shall stain the ground with the blood of his friends before freeing the world to the light' I believe. Does that classify as weird?"
Ryo paled. "Do you have any idea what you just said?" he hissed, eyes wide.
Kento thought carefully for a moment before paling. "Oh shit."
"I don't think I want to travel with you guys anymore," Dais murmured, looking ahead to Rowen warily before eyeing Cye uncertainly. "Were those his exact words?"
"To the last syllable. It freaked me out so badly at the time that I remembered that one to the word."
"That's it. I'm outta here," Sehkmet muttered, looking around uncertainly.
Kayura looked to the stars above for a moment before sighing loudly. "There's no place like home. There's no place like home," she whispered, clicking her heels together noisily.
"And how would you know American literature?" Sage called over his shoulder.
"Unlike the idiots trailing me, I'm not oblivious to the world."
"Oh, shut up," Dais grumbled.
"Bite me."
"Where?"
"Can I kill him now?" Kayura pleaded, tugging on Ryo's sleeve. Ryo rolled his eyes wearily and shook his head.
"This is serious," Cale growled, looking around to the others. "How often was he right?"
Kento swallowed nervously. "I'm not sure. Some of the things he said didn't make any sense to me. They may have just been things that haven't happened yet. For the most part, he only spouted obscure history and premonitions that always seem to come true at some time or another."
"What were some of the others?" Ryo murmured, eyes worried.
"Well… There were a lot of the things. Give me a second. Uh… 'Destroying a dimension and the faith in the light, a shadow of the darkest midnight will be reborn in the billowing fires of the brightest opal lights. A sacrifice of blue fires shall lead to the freedom of the worlds.' We all know what that sounds like, right?"
Ryo and the Warlords nodded numbly.
"Any others that haven't been fulfilled?" Cale whispered, eyes wild.
Kento made a face. "Quite a few. I'll tell you when I remember what he said."
"Think harder," Kayura hissed.
"Um… something about an elemental dragon of fire and air. I don't remember anything past that except that it was blue and had a white mane. Sorry."
"Blue?" Ryo murmured, eyes narrowing.
"White mane?" Kayura breathed, eyebrows lowering thoughtfully.
"Do you know who that sounds like?" Ryo asked sweetly, eyes flashing.
Kento tripped on his own feet. "Uh… yea," he stammered, staring at the ground.
"Then do you remember anything else about that one?" Cale demanded. Kento shook his head forcefully and resumed studying the ground.
"I can get Cye to repeat it if you really want," he murmured.
"He remembers what all he said when he does that?" Ryo stammered.
Kento shook his head forcefully. "Not a word of it. But if you repeat part of it in front of him, he'll finish it."
"I can only imagine how you discovered that," Kayura muttered, rolling her eyes.
Shrugging to himself, he trotted up to the lead to walk beside Cye, eyeing his best friend nervously when he didn't acknowledge his presence. He cleared his throat softly with no better results. Sighing, he began with what he remembered, hating himself for playing with his friend's mind like this.
"Uh… 'Spawning of the shadow's past…'" he murmured, waiting for Cye to pick up the premonition. Cye's shoulders went rigid and his eyes blanked suddenly. Kento struggled not to sigh again. He couldn't stand seeing his best friend like that, and it didn't help to know that he was at fault this time.
"Spawning of the shadow's past, elements shall follow the dragon's fires through the night airs as blue armor framed in white rises to his call. Looking to the midnight stars and shrieking fury into the night, shall he fight the world alone. Armors rise to fight again, falling to burning arts under a dragon's tears. Ancient fires shall rise again, breaking free as dimensions fall to fight the powers of past mistakes now broken into shards. Fires rise and fires die, falling to the dragon's cry."
Nodding slowly, Kento edged back to the others, eyes watering slightly. He looked to his friends uncertainly. Ryo cleared his throat roughly.
"Where did you get the idea that it was blue with a white mane?"
Kento shrugged. "Weren't you listening? You saw Mieren when she fought, her scales were pretty much armor and kinda contrasted with her white mane."
"The colors don't matter," Cale hissed angrily. Kayura nodded in agreement.
"The other clues pointed out plainly what it means. 'Spawning of the shadow's past' is definitely Mieren's kid. 'Midnight stars' is a reference to both Mieren and Rowen. 'Armors rise to fight again.' We're going to be stuck fighting this kid and you know it," Kayura hissed, glancing warily at Rowen's back.
Dais began studying the ground intently. "What was it about 'Ancient fires'?"
Ryo paled and looked up. "Cye mentioned 'past mistakes now broken into shards' as well. Our ancestors created Talpa, and he made the Armor of Chains. The armors are only shards of the original, in a way. But why would they be fighting us?"
Kento shook his head slowly, closing his eyes wearily. "He also said that we're going to lose," he breathed, beginning to tremble slightly. "Cye hasn't been wrong yet."
Silence greeted his statement of the obvious. Sage glanced over at them when they went silent and fell back to walk beside them again.
"Rowen's not talking to me anyway," he murmured at their inquisitive stares. "I've just been wasting my breath for awhile now. What're you guys talking about?"
Ryo took a deep breath to steady himself and relayed the conversation to Sage, who was all but white before he was halfway through. He looked up ahead to Cye uncertainly and swallowed a lump forming in his throat.
"And do you have any idea of when this is going to happen?"
Kento shook his head. "The first one Cye ever uttered in my presence looks like its only about to come true now, so there's no way to tell."
Sage nodded slowly and walked over to Cye. "Hey Cye. 'Blazing flames blinding the night sky…'"
Cye looked up towards the sky blankly, eyes glazing. "Blazing flames blinding the night sky in the glaciers of forbidden fires, the black lights shall destroy the white. Crystals of living obsidian will banish the presence of the light, and thus shall the world be cast into darkness. In the blackest shadows of the night shall a figure emerge, and he shall stain the ground with the blood of his friends before freeing the world to the light."
Making a face, Sage started again. "'In the blackest shadows…'"
Cye twitched. "In the blackest shadows of the night shall a figure emerge, and he shall stain the ground with the blood of his friends before freeing the world to the light."
Sage nodded thoughtfully and opened his mouth to try again when Kento snagged his shoulder and pulled him away from the younger boy.
"What in the hell do you think you're doing?" he spat. Sage made a face.
"I'm trying to see if I can get him to say anything else that may help us."
"It won't help!" Kento hissed angrily, eyes flashing. "Everything he says will come true no matter what you do. I know. I tried once when I saw it coming. Trying to change what I thought was going to happen was the direct cause of its happening."
"You didn't tell us that," Ryo drawled, moving over to join the argument.
Kento paled. "I'd rather not talk about it. It wasn't exactly an enjoyable experience, you know."
"What exactly happened?" Sage murmured. Kento closed his eyes and swung back to the trail to catch up with the others, who hadn't stopped to wait on them when they fell behind to talk.
"Kento…" Ryo growled.
"I tried to kill Mieren to prevent what happened to me and to Rowen. Are you satisfied?" he hissed, refusing to look up from the ground.
Sage and Ryo immediately paled.
"You knew what was going to happen?" Sage whispered, eyes widening.
"My God, Kento. What did he say?" Ryo stammered as he began to study the ground along with his friend.
Kento sighed noisily. "As an innocent falls to the darkness, a shadow waits in the midnight's sheltering arms, hidden and alone." Cye froze and began to tremble slightly. "Shit. I didn't mean for him to hear."
"As an innocent falls to the darkness, a shadow waits in the midnight's sheltering arms, hidden and alone. Only the light shall evade destruction brought by the first shadow's coming, but will fall to the second. Golden fires rise to a plea coming from the night, and thus shall the Diamond be taken. Flames of sapphire will fade into the night, and the darkness will fall in the wake of their destruction."
Scrubbing his hands through his unruly bluish gray hair, Kento looked to the others. "Yuley was killed by the demon that came while Mieren remained hidden. When we were captured, only Sage escaped without something happening to him. The second demon to come along was the one that got him. Turriv came in golden flames."
"And your armor is sometimes called Diamond," Sage breathed.
Kento nodded sharply. "Rowen died in blue flames, and Mieren led an attack on the Dynasty shortly thereafter. But if I hadn't attacked Mieren, she wouldn't have called Turriv and she would have been there to protect Sage from what happened with the wolves. If she hadn't fought me, she would have been strong enough in the battle that I wouldn't have been injured. She wouldn't have passed out that night from using energies she didn't understand and would have been there to have stopped Cye from casting the spell that accidentally killed Rowen. Second guessing the premonitions doesn't help!"
The ensuing silence was broken by Rowen's snarl.
"We're here."
* * *
White Blaze roared furiously as a portal of black flames rose in the distance, nearly causing Mia to fall out of her chair. She glared at the tiger angrily, unable to feel the presence of the dark magic at work like he could. Growling softly, he herded her out of the room and into the basement and hovered by the door protectively, ignoring her protests as the fur on his neck and shoulders rose dangerously. She might not be able to sense it, but something was moving in quickly from the distance.
* * *
For at least the hundredth time since passing through a wall of fog lining the edge of the magically saturated area on the mountain, Cye jerked his cloak closer and spat out a curse that caused both Siellon and Neris to blink in shock. He peeked up from under his heavy hood and swore again as he looked out across the endless fields of ice stretching to the horizon. He flexed his frozen fingers from where he had them jammed fiercely under his arms, scowling darkly at the snowy trail in front of him.
He heard a soft crunch behind him and turned to look at it curiously. Sehkmet was lying in the snow between two largish trees where he had apparently collapsed, Dais hovering over him worriedly. Rowen snarled at them angrily and swatted the white-haired man out of the way as he stomped by, ruby eyes flashing in the night. Dais didn't even look at him askance, merely hopping out of the snow and pulling his best friend with him. Steadying his swaying friend carefully, he ripped off his cloak and set it about Sehkmet's shoulders before lifting him onto his back and starting down the trail in an unsteady lope to catch up with the others.
Cye's eyes narrowed as he looked around to the others. Kayura was curled up on Sage's back and had been for some time, Cale riding just behind her with a glazed look in his eyes. Sage had done something that he usually tried to avoid, shifting into his wolf-like form for the sole purpose of covering himself with thick gray fur. Ryo and Kento had shifted into their demonic forms as well to conserve what little heat they could with their thick fur.
After a moment, Dais caught up with him, squinting at him wildly with his one eye in the darkness before reluctantly shifting it to a glowing crimson. He made a face and trotted over to Sage, murmuring something too softly for Cye to make out. Sage blinked his golden eyes and looked over at him thoughtfully for a few seconds before shrugging and moving over. Cye squawked indignantly as he was hauled off the ground by his friend and placed just in front of Kayura, who gasped and spit out something about a 'human icicle' that he was sure he didn't want to hear.
Scrubbing one hand through his hair angrily and making a face, Cye froze in shock and realized suddenly what had caused Dais to ask Sage to carry him. Ice coated his nose and most of his jaw and was beginning to form in his hair. He experimentally tried to pull the edge of one of the clear crystals off of his cheek, grunting when his skin tore and began to bleed. Eyes narrowing, he decided to leave it there.
Neris growled out something to him as he huddled against Sage as he walked stiffly down the trail. Cye nodded slowly.
"Hey Ryo. Kento. Come over here."
The two immediately spun and circled back to walk on either side of him. Kento's golden eyes widened when he glanced up.
"Damn Cye. You're blue."
Cye sniffed and decided to ignore him. "You two need to do something about Neris and Siellon. They can't keep this up for much longer."
"What about Rowen?" Sage murmured over his shoulder.
Cye looked ahead to the blue head a little ways ahead of them on the trail and shrugged stiffly. "He's fine. I don't think the cold bothers him."
Ryo and Kento looked up to their friend and sighed loudly, their breaths billowing clearly in the sharp air. They spun sharply and moved to the elves. Neris hopped onto Kento's back willingly, lying down fully and burying his hands in the thick golden brown fur beneath him with a grin. Siellon decided to be difficult, growling at Ryo and storming off to walk just behind Rowen.
Ryo glanced over at Cye and sighed at the demanding gesture thrown at him. Circling through the trees well out of the dark elf's line of vision, he darted in from the side and pinned the squirming figure with a grin. Scowling darkly, Siellon surrendered and allowed himself to be placed on Ryo's back, growling vulgarities into the frigid night. His curses immediately ceased when he laid along the heavily muscled back beneath him and burrowed his hands and face alike in thick black fur with a contented sigh, trying to bury himself beneath the leathery wings on either side of him. Ryo rolled his eyes and threw a grin over to Kento when he heard Neris snickering softly.
"Are we there yet?" Sehkmet whined from atop of Dais, looking around weakly with a decidedly blue face. Dais made a face at him over his shoulder.
"No we're not, you cold-blooded idiot," he grumbled.
"Not my fault," he grumped, glaring over at the dark elf.
"One thing though," Dais murmured.
"What?"
"Remind me to put your ass on a diet."
Sehkmet twitched at the threat and looked at his friend fearfully before his mouth twisted upwards in the semblance of a grin.
"Not a good idea. Remember what happened last time?" Dais winced.
Cye only looked at them for a moment before asking, "And what was that?"
Sehkmet stiffened and Dais struggled to keep from grinning.
"He went vegetarian."
Cye blinked and frowned slightly. "And?"
"He devastated the trees in the Dynasty," Cale snickered.
Exchanging baffled looks with the other Ronins he turned to the Warlords again.
"And?"
"Did I forget to mention that the only trees that would grow in the Dynasty are evergreens?"
Struggling to keep from snickering and failing miserably, Cye turned to the scaly Warlord. "You're as bad as Kento."
"Shut up," Kento growled, refusing to look back at them. Ryo and Sage snickered evilly.
"What did he do?" Kayura giggled.
"Last time we put him on a diet, he mowed the lawn with his teeth," Ryo called out merrily, squeaking and darting back to walk beside Sage when Kento snapped at him viciously, his teeth clicking shut in empty air as Ryo slid beyond his reach.
"It was just the clover," he grumped defensively.
Sehkmet looked over at him curiously. "Those are the ones on the ground with heart-shaped leaves that are kinda tangy, right?" Kento nodded and grinned at him.
"They're pretty good, aren't they?"
"Yea. But you haven't lived until you've roasted a few earthworms with a little salt and a few types of pepper."
"Been there. Done that. Have the souvenir T-shirt. I assume you've done the same with the grasshoppers, right?"
"Of course. Those're great! Nice and crunchy."
"So are the earthworms if you cook 'em right."
"Why bother? The cicadas taste better anyway and you don't have to cook 'em."
"I think I'm gonna be sick," Kayura moaned, taking on a greenish tint.
"You're going to have to wait in line for that one," Cye groaned.
Kento turned to blink at them curiously. "What?"
"Shut up," Sage spat out as sweetly as he could manage.
Neris grinned widely and mumbled something in Siellon's direction, sending the dark elf into a fit of laughing. Cye looked over at them curiously. Neris lifted his head and began speaking haltingly in horribly broken Japanese.
"Siellon says worms better if made in soup but best is lizard gut sandwich."
Dais paled and stumbled, nearly dropping Sehkmet into the snow. The scaly Warlord looked at the dark elf thoughtfully.
"Hey elf-boy. Ask your friend what he uses for seasoning."
Neris blinked. "Sea sunning?"
"Seasoning. You know, flavor or spices when he cooks it."
Making a face, he mumbled something to the dark elf. Siellon blinked and made a face at the Warlord. Neris grinned.
"He wants know why you cook it."
This time, even Kento made a choking noise. Sehkmet's face changed color to match his scales. The two elves looked at each other and snickered.
"I'm gonna be sick," Cale moaned.
"Why? It's no worse than some of the stuff you cook," Kayura teased, elbowing him gently in the ribs.
"Gee thanks."
Rowen growled angrily at them and swung into the trees suddenly, hitching his cloak protectively around himself and huddling in the snow. The others immediately stopped and followed him off of the trail, looking to the east and waiting expectantly. The sun burst over the horizon suddenly, bathing the area in burning light. The snow melted before their eyes, the water sinking into the ground and vanishing completely in the span of a few seconds.
The Ronins and Warlords looked to each other incredulously before turning to the elves with inquisitive expressions. The two elves looked at each other and shrugged, hopping off of Ryo and Kento to begin poking around curiously.
Cye stared at them for a moment before sighing and turning to the others.
"They're as confused as we are," he mumbled, eyebrows quirking when the ice on his face and hair melted suddenly. He shrugged in resignation and began looking around.
"I thought the hills were supposed to be glaciers or some such," Sage muttered as he shifted back to his centaur form, squirming uncomfortably as it continued to get warmer rapidly.
Ryo looked over at him with a quizzical expression as he shifted back suddenly. "The flames are in the night sky, aren't they? Theoretically, it should be warmer in the night."
"He also mentioned glaciers," Kento said slowly, looking around blankly.
"The glaciers of forbidden fires might have something to do with the time that you can get at the crystals of living obsidian," Kayura murmured, careful not to let her voice drift over to Cye.
"Flames might be magic," Neris suggested, looking to them questioningly and shucking off his heavy cloak. He pointed to the sun on the horizon before peeling off his shirt. "About to be hot," he murmured.
"Good," Sehkmet grumbled. "I'm tired of being frozen."
Neris shook his head forcefully. "Hot like it was cold. Will be bad."
"How hot are we talking about here?" Cale whispered, eyes widening.
Cye glanced over at them and turned to Siellon. "Question. How hot is it about to get? Neris just said that it's going to be pretty bad."
"He's right, Mouri of the Torrent."
Cye made a face. "For the last time, my name is Cye. Now how bad are we talking about?"
Siellon sighed loudly and peered around questioningly. "Well, I'll see if I can get it in numbers that you understand. At what temperatures does water freeze and boil?"
"Zero and one hundred."
Looking around uncertainly, he dropped to his knees and began drawing symbols in the dirt carefully, making a face as he rose and brushed himself off.
"Well Mouri of the… uh… Cye, it couldn't have been any warmer than around one hundred and fifty below zero a little while ago. So if I'm right, by the early afternoon, it'll pass around two hundred and fifty."
Cye paled instantly, jerking suddenly when Ryo placed one hand on his shoulder. The youngest Ronin looked at him numbly and cleared his throat hesitantly.
"He said that sometime in the afternoon, it will pass two fifty."
Every head swiveled towards him instantly.
"What is that in Celsius?" Sage murmured, swallowing nervously.
"That IS Celsius," Cye breathed, sinking to the ground bonelessly.
Ryo cleared his throat loudly. "If that's the case, I think we need to get moving. There has to be somewhere safer than this to stay." The others nodded agreement and followed him uncertainly as he swung back to the trail, Sage pausing to toss his cloak over Rowen and pick him up gently.
Rowen growled and tried to buck out of his grip, freezing when the cloaks wrapped around him fell free, awarding him with a clear view of Sage and the early morning light. Ceasing his struggling, he pulled the cloaks back in place and decided to remain still as they moved out.
To Be Continued…
I learned how to make a bomb today using nothing more than a Cornish hen and a pressure cooker… Go figure.
