ShadowDancer and SunSinger
Chapter 2
Rocky Oberlin
Disclaimer: I'm not Mercedes Lackey or whomever owns the Ronin Warriors. I have enough trouble.
Anubis wasn't happy. He was far from happy he was downright pissed. His "Master" wanted him to find a ShadowDancer. "Yeah, right. Find one in the middle of the day. You're the one who cursed them to the darkness and you want me to find a ShadowDancer at high noon."
Anubis stalked through the forest by a lake Mia liked to dance by. May be he should suggest that she goes some place else for a while until Tulpa can't sense the power she releases anymore. Anubis made a mental note to talk to Cale and Mia when he came back from his doomed mission.
He sighed as he thought of his "little sister". She had been so heartbroken when she found she couldn't go into the sunlight. She would practically corner Seckmet, Dais, and him to ask questions about the daytime life. He wished that he could help the Dancer see what she was missing just once, but then Tulpa would know who she was and where she was. No, it was better if they let her come to the Mortal Realm during the night instead of risking her capture.
A rustle of leaves from a nearby bush alerted Anubis to the presence of another person in the area. He went into a defensive crouch and his hand lowered to his dagger. May be he should have brought his kusari gama, at least that way he would have a fighting chance.
To say that Ryo was mad would be an understatement. He was about as mad as Anubis was, had he known the person. His anger was at his friends' stubborn lack of acceptance of a ShadowDancer. Who were they to talk; FireDancers were just as suspicious of them as they were of the ShadowDancer. Ryo was almost breaking rules just being with them.
"But the Clan would be happy that at least one ShadowDancer survived the Curse. I wonder where she's hiding during the day?" Ryo mused.
His feet went on autopilot as he thought about the fellow Dancer from the previous night. He could tell she was drawn to Sage. It might have been a bonding that the others couldn't see yet and Sage didn't know about for all his being in tune with himself. If Sage was the Mage of the group, then Ryo was the "priest". He could see things that Sage needed help even glimpsing.
Ryo finished his thought as he started to recognize where he was headed. It was Cye's lake. After breakfast was made, Cye would be coming out here to see his finny friends and work his other magic. Ryo was going to miss the Healer's culinary magic, but he didn't want to have his meal soured by four accusing stares and questions. He'll just eat off the land as he did for years before joining the group.
Ryo found a berry bush close to the clearing around the lake and started to pick the berries. The bushes rattled and parted enough for him to see a red headed man crouch down and reach for a dagger. Ryo wondered what he was doing so far out here and where he came from.
The FireDancer called his power to him and stepped quietly out of the dense bushes to face the stranger. "I don't recall ever seeing you around here before."
"That's because this is my first time to this area," answered back the stranger. Still his hand rested on the hilt of his dagger, but he hadn't pulled it out yet. "I was looking for something."
Ryo turned cautious. What if he was looking for Sage? Ryo would have to get rid of the stranger and hope he didn't have back up. "What was it you were looking for?"
The red haired man shook his head. "I don't think you would know what I'm looking for. They are all but gone."
"Try me."
"I was looking for a ShadowDancer."
Ryo was stunned. A ShadowDancer. Then he was right and she didn't work for Tulpa. That would be a good sign if he could convince her to come back to the house with him. May be he could tell if there was a bond between her and Sage. "I haven't seen any around these parts for a long time," Ryo lied. "May be you were mistaken in your information."
The man shook his head. "I know there was one here last night; she told me she was here."
Ryo went back on the defensive. There was something about this man that puzzled Ryo. If he knew the ShadowDancer, then why was he looking here for her?
"But if Tulpa thinks that I'm going to hand over Mia to him, he's got another thing coming. I'll just go back and lie to him about not sensing her. May be that will put him off the track," mused the man quietly. But Ryo had sharp ears and heard the whole thought.
"You work for Tulpa," he growled.
The stranger's head came up and he looked harder at the boy staring at him. "Yes, I 'work' for him. Wish I didn't though. Wish there was some way to get rid of him from the Mortal Realm and the Nether Realm. Then may be Cale and Mia can find a way to break the curse."
This was getting to be too much for Ryo. First the man was "looking for the ShadowDancer", then he was going to tell his Master, Tulpa, that he didn't find her when he really did, and now he was saying that he wanted to get rid of Tulpa. This was getting stranger and stranger. "Why don't you want to give the ShadowDancer to Tulpa," he spat. "I'm sure that he would reward you handsomely."
The man shook his head. "Because I don't want to give something that can help bring down a tyrant an edge over helpless people. The ShadowDancer can help stop Tulpa, but not if he is using her powers for his own gain."
"And why do you care? You work for him."
"I'm a slave to him. We all are. Promise me this, FireDancer, if you and yours fight us, please don't kill us. We are the only ones who are protecting Mia ShadowDancer right at this moment. If someone else took over that job, then either free us or kill us. I don't want to work for a tyrant and a madman."
To Ryo's surprise the stranger turned and passed through a Gate that hadn't been there before. Then a thought struck him. How did that red haired man know he was a FireDancer? Ryo brought the whole conversation back to his mind and ran through it. The others were going to have to be told about this little conversation.
Cale watched his sister as she absently worked in the kitchen. She was humming and almost dancing to a tune that only she could hear. It took him several tries to get Mia's attention and then it was only given to him. Cale wondered it Mia was coming down with something.
Dais and Seckmet entered the kitchen and duly noted Mia's absent look. "She's got it bad," noted Dais.
"Got what?" asked Cale.
"Don't tell me that her own brother can't tell what's wrong with his little sister?" asked the one eyed warrior.
"I can't tell either," said Seckmet. "What are you talking about?"
Dais sighed. "She's in love."
Cale had been drinking his tea at the time and when Dais revealed what was going on with his sister, well, the tea was all over Seckmet. "WHAT?"
"Thanks for the bath," grumbled Seckmet as he wiped his face. "What do you mean that our little sister is in love?"
"Exactly what he said," said Anubis entering the kitchen.
"Where have you been?" asked Cale.
"Getting yelled at by Tulpa for not finding the ShadowDancer from last night," he growled. "You should ask Mia not to go to that lake she likes for a while, that was how "Master" knew there was one around."
"I don't know if it will do any good if what you and Dais say is true. She'll want to see the person who has captured her fancy."
"Then one of us should go with her," said Seckmet.
"Good idea," congratulated Anubis. "You just volunteered. I already had a run in with a FireDancer near the lake. There may be others."
"Great. This is just more good news," grumbled Cale as Seckmet threw a dirty look at Anubis.
"Do you think that it's the FireDancer that she likes?" asked Dais.
Cale shook his head. "No. They were like cousins to us before the curse. It would have to someone else."
"Wonderful."
Mia ignored her older brothers' conversation and thought of the blond man from the lake. She didn't understand, but she was drawn to the stranger with an intensity that she didn't understand. She didn't know who he was, but she did know that she wanted to see him again. I wonder if I could find him this evening before the sun completely sets, she thought. It was a possibility.
"Mia," called her brother, "we have to talk."
Mia sat down at the table and noted the grim faces on her brother's face. "What is it?" she asked quietly.
"Tulpa sensed you last night. He sent Anubis to find you this morning. You know how we try to protect you, but if Tulpa sends someone else out, they may find you. I think that you should go someplace else tonight."
Mia was horrified. Not see the blond stranger? It was worth risking Tulpa finding her, but her brother was right. If there were a way to get rid of the curse, then she would have to stay free from the dark being. "As you wish, brother."
Cale looked sadly at his little sister. "I know that you found someone, but you will have to wait on it. At least this way you can go back to find him later."
"How did you know I found someone last night?" asked Mia quietly.
Cale snorted with laughter while his friends tried not to laugh too loudly. "It was written all over your body movements. You nearly burned breakfast."
"Oh." Mia blushed and got up from the table. "Was there anything else?"
Her brother shook his head. "No, just the regular warnings. I'm sure I don't have to repeat them."
"No, you don't." Mia left the kitchen to get some rest. For her, day was night and night was day. She wanted some rest before getting dinner ready for her brother and his friends. At least this kept her from Tulpa's prying eyes for a while longer.
Sage listened to Ryo's account of his adventure in the morning. He looked at his fellow Singers and Dancer and saw the looks of skepticism and worry.
"Are you just saying this to help that ShadowDancer?" asked Kento.
"Kento, he may have a point. We may not know what is really going on, but we should listen to Ryo," urged Cye quietly.
"For all we know, he was just trying to get our trust and then, bam, we are now prisoners of Tulpa," said Rowen.
Ryo heaved a sigh and said, "You know my abilities. Do you really think that he would be able to fool me?"
"It can happen, Ryo," said Sage. "But we will take it in perspective if we run across any of them."
The other four could see the anger rising in the FireDancer's eyes. "Be careful when you do fight. I plan to keep my promise," he said as he rose from the table. Again he stalked out of the house and left his fellows to talk to themselves.
"I think that may be we should keep him closer to the house," said Kento.
"You may be right," said Rowen. "He seems to want to defend that ShadowDancer an awful lot. May be someone should watch him."
"I'll go," offered Cye. "I think I know where he's going."
"Careful Cye," said Kento. "You know how the forests near the volcano affect you."
"Don't worry so much Kento," said Cye. "Ryo took me through them once just like I got him to come near my lake. I should be fine."
"I agree with Kento," said Sage. "I'm going out again. I'll see you later and, hopefully, with Ryo."
"May be one of us should go with you," said Rowen.
Sage shook his head. "I should be fine. I'll see you guys later." He left the same way Ryo and Cye did, but with less slamming of the door and hurrying. He strolled down to the lake he had been the night before when twilight had caught him far from home. Birds were singing in the trees and animals silently watched him as they fed. Sage sat down next to the lake and accompanied the birds in their songs. The wildlife near the lake seemed to still as they listened to the SunSinger weave his power unconsciously.
It was growing late when he realized that it was getting close to dark. He cursed the fates that lead him to the nightly coma he had to endure because of the Dynasty leader. His family could only take care of one SunSinger and he wasn't it so he left to try to survive on his own. It was a good thing he came across Rowen, Cye, and Kento. They didn't have the problems he did, but were willing to help when night fell. Well, if he was going to avoid having the same trouble as last night, then he had better get back.
Sage started his journey back to the house. On his way, he saw something in the shadows of the forest he was walking in. After checking to see how much time he had left, he started after the figure. The figure was fast, but he was faster. He caught up with the running figure and tackled it, thinking it was one of Tulpa's soldiers. He was surprised to see it was a woman with long auburn hair and green eyes. She looked up at him in fear and something else, but didn't say a word. Sage scrambled to get off the woman and apologized profusely.
"I am so sorry, I didn't know who you were; I thought that you were someone from the Dynasty."
The woman was going to say something, but another voice called and it wasn't one of Sage's friends. "Mia, where are you. Tulpa thinks that he senses you again, Mia ShadowDancer. You had better come back early."
The woman, Mia, looked at Sage sadly. "I'm sorry," she said and fled from the stunned man. She ran up to a man with blue hair that hugged her and looked at Sage strangely. It looked like he was seeing if the SunSinger had done something to the ShadowDancer and threatened that he would find a way to make him pay if Sage had harmed the woman. Then they both disappeared into the shadows of the forest.
It was close to nightfall when Ryo and Cye found Sage still staring at the spot where Mia had been. All he said was "I'm sorry" over and over. Ryo looked at Sage and saw a look he never seen before in the SunSinger's eyes. He proudly turned to Cye and said, "I told you so." Then they caught the unconscious Sage as the sun set.
Chapter 2
Rocky Oberlin
Disclaimer: I'm not Mercedes Lackey or whomever owns the Ronin Warriors. I have enough trouble.
Anubis wasn't happy. He was far from happy he was downright pissed. His "Master" wanted him to find a ShadowDancer. "Yeah, right. Find one in the middle of the day. You're the one who cursed them to the darkness and you want me to find a ShadowDancer at high noon."
Anubis stalked through the forest by a lake Mia liked to dance by. May be he should suggest that she goes some place else for a while until Tulpa can't sense the power she releases anymore. Anubis made a mental note to talk to Cale and Mia when he came back from his doomed mission.
He sighed as he thought of his "little sister". She had been so heartbroken when she found she couldn't go into the sunlight. She would practically corner Seckmet, Dais, and him to ask questions about the daytime life. He wished that he could help the Dancer see what she was missing just once, but then Tulpa would know who she was and where she was. No, it was better if they let her come to the Mortal Realm during the night instead of risking her capture.
A rustle of leaves from a nearby bush alerted Anubis to the presence of another person in the area. He went into a defensive crouch and his hand lowered to his dagger. May be he should have brought his kusari gama, at least that way he would have a fighting chance.
To say that Ryo was mad would be an understatement. He was about as mad as Anubis was, had he known the person. His anger was at his friends' stubborn lack of acceptance of a ShadowDancer. Who were they to talk; FireDancers were just as suspicious of them as they were of the ShadowDancer. Ryo was almost breaking rules just being with them.
"But the Clan would be happy that at least one ShadowDancer survived the Curse. I wonder where she's hiding during the day?" Ryo mused.
His feet went on autopilot as he thought about the fellow Dancer from the previous night. He could tell she was drawn to Sage. It might have been a bonding that the others couldn't see yet and Sage didn't know about for all his being in tune with himself. If Sage was the Mage of the group, then Ryo was the "priest". He could see things that Sage needed help even glimpsing.
Ryo finished his thought as he started to recognize where he was headed. It was Cye's lake. After breakfast was made, Cye would be coming out here to see his finny friends and work his other magic. Ryo was going to miss the Healer's culinary magic, but he didn't want to have his meal soured by four accusing stares and questions. He'll just eat off the land as he did for years before joining the group.
Ryo found a berry bush close to the clearing around the lake and started to pick the berries. The bushes rattled and parted enough for him to see a red headed man crouch down and reach for a dagger. Ryo wondered what he was doing so far out here and where he came from.
The FireDancer called his power to him and stepped quietly out of the dense bushes to face the stranger. "I don't recall ever seeing you around here before."
"That's because this is my first time to this area," answered back the stranger. Still his hand rested on the hilt of his dagger, but he hadn't pulled it out yet. "I was looking for something."
Ryo turned cautious. What if he was looking for Sage? Ryo would have to get rid of the stranger and hope he didn't have back up. "What was it you were looking for?"
The red haired man shook his head. "I don't think you would know what I'm looking for. They are all but gone."
"Try me."
"I was looking for a ShadowDancer."
Ryo was stunned. A ShadowDancer. Then he was right and she didn't work for Tulpa. That would be a good sign if he could convince her to come back to the house with him. May be he could tell if there was a bond between her and Sage. "I haven't seen any around these parts for a long time," Ryo lied. "May be you were mistaken in your information."
The man shook his head. "I know there was one here last night; she told me she was here."
Ryo went back on the defensive. There was something about this man that puzzled Ryo. If he knew the ShadowDancer, then why was he looking here for her?
"But if Tulpa thinks that I'm going to hand over Mia to him, he's got another thing coming. I'll just go back and lie to him about not sensing her. May be that will put him off the track," mused the man quietly. But Ryo had sharp ears and heard the whole thought.
"You work for Tulpa," he growled.
The stranger's head came up and he looked harder at the boy staring at him. "Yes, I 'work' for him. Wish I didn't though. Wish there was some way to get rid of him from the Mortal Realm and the Nether Realm. Then may be Cale and Mia can find a way to break the curse."
This was getting to be too much for Ryo. First the man was "looking for the ShadowDancer", then he was going to tell his Master, Tulpa, that he didn't find her when he really did, and now he was saying that he wanted to get rid of Tulpa. This was getting stranger and stranger. "Why don't you want to give the ShadowDancer to Tulpa," he spat. "I'm sure that he would reward you handsomely."
The man shook his head. "Because I don't want to give something that can help bring down a tyrant an edge over helpless people. The ShadowDancer can help stop Tulpa, but not if he is using her powers for his own gain."
"And why do you care? You work for him."
"I'm a slave to him. We all are. Promise me this, FireDancer, if you and yours fight us, please don't kill us. We are the only ones who are protecting Mia ShadowDancer right at this moment. If someone else took over that job, then either free us or kill us. I don't want to work for a tyrant and a madman."
To Ryo's surprise the stranger turned and passed through a Gate that hadn't been there before. Then a thought struck him. How did that red haired man know he was a FireDancer? Ryo brought the whole conversation back to his mind and ran through it. The others were going to have to be told about this little conversation.
Cale watched his sister as she absently worked in the kitchen. She was humming and almost dancing to a tune that only she could hear. It took him several tries to get Mia's attention and then it was only given to him. Cale wondered it Mia was coming down with something.
Dais and Seckmet entered the kitchen and duly noted Mia's absent look. "She's got it bad," noted Dais.
"Got what?" asked Cale.
"Don't tell me that her own brother can't tell what's wrong with his little sister?" asked the one eyed warrior.
"I can't tell either," said Seckmet. "What are you talking about?"
Dais sighed. "She's in love."
Cale had been drinking his tea at the time and when Dais revealed what was going on with his sister, well, the tea was all over Seckmet. "WHAT?"
"Thanks for the bath," grumbled Seckmet as he wiped his face. "What do you mean that our little sister is in love?"
"Exactly what he said," said Anubis entering the kitchen.
"Where have you been?" asked Cale.
"Getting yelled at by Tulpa for not finding the ShadowDancer from last night," he growled. "You should ask Mia not to go to that lake she likes for a while, that was how "Master" knew there was one around."
"I don't know if it will do any good if what you and Dais say is true. She'll want to see the person who has captured her fancy."
"Then one of us should go with her," said Seckmet.
"Good idea," congratulated Anubis. "You just volunteered. I already had a run in with a FireDancer near the lake. There may be others."
"Great. This is just more good news," grumbled Cale as Seckmet threw a dirty look at Anubis.
"Do you think that it's the FireDancer that she likes?" asked Dais.
Cale shook his head. "No. They were like cousins to us before the curse. It would have to someone else."
"Wonderful."
Mia ignored her older brothers' conversation and thought of the blond man from the lake. She didn't understand, but she was drawn to the stranger with an intensity that she didn't understand. She didn't know who he was, but she did know that she wanted to see him again. I wonder if I could find him this evening before the sun completely sets, she thought. It was a possibility.
"Mia," called her brother, "we have to talk."
Mia sat down at the table and noted the grim faces on her brother's face. "What is it?" she asked quietly.
"Tulpa sensed you last night. He sent Anubis to find you this morning. You know how we try to protect you, but if Tulpa sends someone else out, they may find you. I think that you should go someplace else tonight."
Mia was horrified. Not see the blond stranger? It was worth risking Tulpa finding her, but her brother was right. If there were a way to get rid of the curse, then she would have to stay free from the dark being. "As you wish, brother."
Cale looked sadly at his little sister. "I know that you found someone, but you will have to wait on it. At least this way you can go back to find him later."
"How did you know I found someone last night?" asked Mia quietly.
Cale snorted with laughter while his friends tried not to laugh too loudly. "It was written all over your body movements. You nearly burned breakfast."
"Oh." Mia blushed and got up from the table. "Was there anything else?"
Her brother shook his head. "No, just the regular warnings. I'm sure I don't have to repeat them."
"No, you don't." Mia left the kitchen to get some rest. For her, day was night and night was day. She wanted some rest before getting dinner ready for her brother and his friends. At least this kept her from Tulpa's prying eyes for a while longer.
Sage listened to Ryo's account of his adventure in the morning. He looked at his fellow Singers and Dancer and saw the looks of skepticism and worry.
"Are you just saying this to help that ShadowDancer?" asked Kento.
"Kento, he may have a point. We may not know what is really going on, but we should listen to Ryo," urged Cye quietly.
"For all we know, he was just trying to get our trust and then, bam, we are now prisoners of Tulpa," said Rowen.
Ryo heaved a sigh and said, "You know my abilities. Do you really think that he would be able to fool me?"
"It can happen, Ryo," said Sage. "But we will take it in perspective if we run across any of them."
The other four could see the anger rising in the FireDancer's eyes. "Be careful when you do fight. I plan to keep my promise," he said as he rose from the table. Again he stalked out of the house and left his fellows to talk to themselves.
"I think that may be we should keep him closer to the house," said Kento.
"You may be right," said Rowen. "He seems to want to defend that ShadowDancer an awful lot. May be someone should watch him."
"I'll go," offered Cye. "I think I know where he's going."
"Careful Cye," said Kento. "You know how the forests near the volcano affect you."
"Don't worry so much Kento," said Cye. "Ryo took me through them once just like I got him to come near my lake. I should be fine."
"I agree with Kento," said Sage. "I'm going out again. I'll see you later and, hopefully, with Ryo."
"May be one of us should go with you," said Rowen.
Sage shook his head. "I should be fine. I'll see you guys later." He left the same way Ryo and Cye did, but with less slamming of the door and hurrying. He strolled down to the lake he had been the night before when twilight had caught him far from home. Birds were singing in the trees and animals silently watched him as they fed. Sage sat down next to the lake and accompanied the birds in their songs. The wildlife near the lake seemed to still as they listened to the SunSinger weave his power unconsciously.
It was growing late when he realized that it was getting close to dark. He cursed the fates that lead him to the nightly coma he had to endure because of the Dynasty leader. His family could only take care of one SunSinger and he wasn't it so he left to try to survive on his own. It was a good thing he came across Rowen, Cye, and Kento. They didn't have the problems he did, but were willing to help when night fell. Well, if he was going to avoid having the same trouble as last night, then he had better get back.
Sage started his journey back to the house. On his way, he saw something in the shadows of the forest he was walking in. After checking to see how much time he had left, he started after the figure. The figure was fast, but he was faster. He caught up with the running figure and tackled it, thinking it was one of Tulpa's soldiers. He was surprised to see it was a woman with long auburn hair and green eyes. She looked up at him in fear and something else, but didn't say a word. Sage scrambled to get off the woman and apologized profusely.
"I am so sorry, I didn't know who you were; I thought that you were someone from the Dynasty."
The woman was going to say something, but another voice called and it wasn't one of Sage's friends. "Mia, where are you. Tulpa thinks that he senses you again, Mia ShadowDancer. You had better come back early."
The woman, Mia, looked at Sage sadly. "I'm sorry," she said and fled from the stunned man. She ran up to a man with blue hair that hugged her and looked at Sage strangely. It looked like he was seeing if the SunSinger had done something to the ShadowDancer and threatened that he would find a way to make him pay if Sage had harmed the woman. Then they both disappeared into the shadows of the forest.
It was close to nightfall when Ryo and Cye found Sage still staring at the spot where Mia had been. All he said was "I'm sorry" over and over. Ryo looked at Sage and saw a look he never seen before in the SunSinger's eyes. He proudly turned to Cye and said, "I told you so." Then they caught the unconscious Sage as the sun set.
