ShadowDancer and SunSinger
Chapter 3
Rocky Oberlin
Disclaimer: No I don't own Ronin Warriors or the idea of the
SunSinger and ShadowDancer.
Mia didn't go out that night. She stayed with her brother and his friends while they talked about how to overthrow a tyrant. She didn't say much; she just sat there listening to plans on how to defeat the monster that ruled the Nether Realm. It was around midnight when they retired to their beds, but Mia didn't leave. This was her day and she had nowhere to go.
She sat watching the shadows as they told her stories of what the Nether Realm was like before Tulpa came. They wove what the realm was like before the ShadowDancers were cursed to the darkness that protected them. Creatures that hadn't been hunted and killed approached the woman, but retreated from the quiet sounds coming from her. That was how Dais found her in the murky dawn of the Nether Realm; no light graced the land. She just sat there thinking of the man of sunlight and the curse that kept her from approaching him. Dais saw the tear tracks that graced her face.
"It's that bad, isn't it?" he asked his "little sister".
"Hmmm?" Mia turned to see one of her brother's friends looking at her. "What did you say?"
"I said 'It's that bad, isn't it?'" he repeated. "You love him, but you can't touch him."
Mia's head lowered as she nodded it dejectedly. She did love the sunlit stranger, but she had to love him from afar. She couldn't come close to him unless she wished to die. "I suppose it is," she whispered.
"I wish I could help you, little sister, but even I can't stop Tulpa with my friends. If there was some way of getting you the help, may be you could stop Tulpa, but we don't know where to find it. All we have is a vague memories from Cale and a lot of guesses."
"I wish there was something I could do. Oh, Dais, I want to see the sunlight with out dying. I want to see the life that you three take for granted. Not even Cale knows what the Mortal Realm in the sunlight looks like. I want to see it. I want to live in it."
"And you want to see that man again, hmmm, Mia ShadowDancer?" teased Dais. Mia blushed a rosy color, but a smile did grace her lips. "That's my Mia. This sad stranger wasn't the Mia that I teased when she was a little girl."
Mia stuck out her tongue. "It wasn't fair either. There were four of you and just me. You always went on adventures while I had to hide." Mia grew serious again. "I wish I could have had the adventures you did."
Dais shook his head. "No, little sister, you don't. Do you know what we did? We had to conquer others for Tulpa. We had to kill innocent people and enslave others. We have blood on our hands. At least you were spared what we had to do. And don't doubt that we wouldn't do it again because we would, to keep you safe."
Dais escorted his friend's little sister back to her brother and waited for her to make breakfast for them. It was a tradition for them and Dais took comfort that she did this for them after what he had told her. After she had eaten her supper, Mia left to sleep and Dais told the others what she had told him. Anubis shook his head and Seckmet looked saddened. Cale pounded his fist on the table and cursed Tulpa for making his sister miserable. If only they could figure out what he had been told so long ago.
Sage woke with "I'm sorry" on his lips. Cye and Ryo were sitting near him when he woke. Cye's face had a sad smile on it, but Ryo looked like a cat that ate the canary and was given cream to boot. Sage didn't like that smug smile that twitched at his lips, but couldn't think on why he was smiling so.
"Why are you so smug?" growled the SunSinger.
"He's been like that all night. Rowen and Kento threatened to beat the answer out of him, but he countered with a threat of his own. I, personally, don't like the idea of the stove burning breakfast, so I sided with him."
"Rowen said something about Dancers always sticking together," added Ryo. "But Cye has the right idea. I can make meals miserable if I really wanted."
"That's nice, now about my question? Why are you so smug?" asked Sage.
"Oh, something I thought was confirmed last night when Cye and I found you." At Sage's questioning look Ryo continued, "No, I'm not going to tell you. It's enough that Cye knows, but he can keep his mouth shut. You have to figure this one out on your own."
"So says the Priest of our outfit. I agree with him on this one too, Sage. You do have to figure out you're feeling about the ShadowDancer."
Sage growled as he got out of bed. The Healer and the Priest weren't going to help him on this one and the other two didn't know what was going on. They did know that Ryo was defending the ShadowDancer for some reason and Cye was slowly agreeing with the FireDancer. Things were going to be rocky around this place for a while until people started to talk.
"I would tell you about what I knew of the ShadowDancers," said Ryo. "But some people seem to not want to listen."
Sage shook his head while the two Dancers left his room. Why did it seem like Ryo was reading his mind again?
"Because I saw what you were thinking written all over your face," called the retreating FireDancer.
Sage pulled a face at the parting shot given by Ryo. Sometimes it seemed that nothing was sacred to the FireDancer and he would comment about everything. In a way he was just like Kento, but there were times when he would keep his mouth shut. Kento always was running off at the mouth at the worst times. Sage looked himself over in the mirror before leaving his room. Time to face the new day.
"Why don't the two of you just hook up since you agree with each other so much?" asked Kento with a biting tone.
"Kento, I don't think that was necessary," cautioned Rowen.
Sage walked down in time to see fury on both Dancers' faces and a look of worry on Rowen's. Kento had a look of contempt and opened his mouth to let more idiotic phrases out, but Sage beat him. "I don't think that that was called for, Kento. Besides, they may know something that the rest of us don't have inkling about. You know that Ryo sees thing even I couldn't and Cye can figure out what others are feeling before they do."
"Besides," hissed Ryo. "I don't swing that way. Be careful, EarthSinger. I might leave for good."
"Is that a threat or a promise?" snapped back Kento.
"Cool off both of you," yelled Cye. "This is getting us nowhere. We have to know about the ShadowDancers and Ryo is the only one who knows about them, Kento. Ryo, you know Kento and his runaway mouth. Cut him some slack and don't take it to heart."
Ryo stood down, but still glared at Kento. Rowen hovered near the large EarthSinger, but he wasn't sure if he could have done anything to stop the larger Singer from doing any damage. Finally he snorted and sat down heavily in his chair with his arms crossed. "Fine."
Sage looked at his equal in almost everything and asked, "Alright, what do you know about the ShadowDancers?"
Ryo looked at Rowen and said, "Only a little more then the HeavenSingers. The ShadowDancers were friends with the FireDancer clans for as long as there were the Singers and Dancers. Once in a while a HeavenSinger would come to ask about us and would stay to see the dances that the two clans would hold."
"I know what was written down, but everyone of the people who wrote what they saw said there was more to both of the clans then what was told," protested Rowen. "Your people were very secretive."
"We had good reason," answered Ryo. "People needed fire to survive, but they also feared it. Look how you all responded to me when I first came around. Kento nearly had me buried in the ground and Sage had his sword near my neck when I told you my name."
"And we apologized for it after you told us that you weren't here to do anything," said Sage.
"Yeah, but that was my first impression of you. I could have blamed you for the loss of my clan just as easily as you took me for an enemy working for Tulpa," returned Ryo.
"Can we talk about this later?" asked Cye. "I want to hear what you know of the ShadowDancers."
Ryo nodded and returned to the subject at hand. "Before the ShadowDancers were cursed by Tulpa, they moved between the Nether Realm and the Mortal Realm. They were almost like gypsies in their wandering, but there were a few that stayed in one Realm or the other. When Tulpa cursed the ShadowDancers, the ones caught in the sunlight died quickly. Others were rushed to hidden places to escape the sun. Then we started to get refugees from the Nether Realm. They told of how Tulpa would kill entire clans from the oldest grandfather down to the newest baby. Then the stream stopped. The FireDancer Elders figured that any of the ShadowDancers still there were killed or captured. That left the ones left here in the Mortal Realm. They started to leave the areas we were in and spread out to different regions. They told the Elders that it was best if they did this in case Tulpa decided to try for them here in the Mortal Realm. The more spread out they were, the more trouble it would be fore Tulpa to find and kill them. It also protected us from the same fate as the ShadowDancers. A FireDancer may not be light, but we come close and have close to the same qualities that SunSingers have to be a problem to Tulpa."
"So if something happens to Sage, then it is possible for you to stop Tulpa?" asked Rowen.
Ryo shrugged. "May be. It may be no more then imprisoning him again. I think the only way for Tulpa to be destroyed completely is for opposites to work together in ridding the Realms of him." Ryo paused and thought over his last comment. "At least that was what I was taught as a child before my clan was killed."
"And what opposites would that be?" asked Kento. "You and Cye?"
Ryo shook his head. "Wrong elements. Didn't your clan tell you about Tulpa?"
Rowen laughed. "They might have, but Kento probably wasn't listening."
Kento scowled at his fellow Singer and swatted him up side the head. Rowen almost fell out of his chair from the force of the swat and threw the other a dirty look.
"Knock it off you guys," said Sage. "What elements did your Elder tell you, Ryo?"
"Sun and Shadow."
"But that would be Sage and that ShadowDancer," said Cye.
"That's right," said Rowen, "but how would either one of them be able to do it if they can't be in each other's elements?"
"Do it at twilight," answered Ryo and Sage together. Sage continued, "I ran into the ShadowDancer last night when I was coming home from the lake. I heard something and went to see what it was. I thought that she was a soldier from Tulpa and I, uuhh, tackled her." He threw a dirty look at Ryo who snickered. "When I saw who it was I apologized and got off her. She didn't get to say anything because she was called away by a man with blue hair. Then they disappeared."
"That was when we found you apologizing to thin air before nightfall," finished Cye.
"Did you get her name?" asked Rowen.
"Yeah. The blue haired guy called her Mia ShadowDancer."
Chapter 3
Rocky Oberlin
Disclaimer: No I don't own Ronin Warriors or the idea of the
SunSinger and ShadowDancer.
Mia didn't go out that night. She stayed with her brother and his friends while they talked about how to overthrow a tyrant. She didn't say much; she just sat there listening to plans on how to defeat the monster that ruled the Nether Realm. It was around midnight when they retired to their beds, but Mia didn't leave. This was her day and she had nowhere to go.
She sat watching the shadows as they told her stories of what the Nether Realm was like before Tulpa came. They wove what the realm was like before the ShadowDancers were cursed to the darkness that protected them. Creatures that hadn't been hunted and killed approached the woman, but retreated from the quiet sounds coming from her. That was how Dais found her in the murky dawn of the Nether Realm; no light graced the land. She just sat there thinking of the man of sunlight and the curse that kept her from approaching him. Dais saw the tear tracks that graced her face.
"It's that bad, isn't it?" he asked his "little sister".
"Hmmm?" Mia turned to see one of her brother's friends looking at her. "What did you say?"
"I said 'It's that bad, isn't it?'" he repeated. "You love him, but you can't touch him."
Mia's head lowered as she nodded it dejectedly. She did love the sunlit stranger, but she had to love him from afar. She couldn't come close to him unless she wished to die. "I suppose it is," she whispered.
"I wish I could help you, little sister, but even I can't stop Tulpa with my friends. If there was some way of getting you the help, may be you could stop Tulpa, but we don't know where to find it. All we have is a vague memories from Cale and a lot of guesses."
"I wish there was something I could do. Oh, Dais, I want to see the sunlight with out dying. I want to see the life that you three take for granted. Not even Cale knows what the Mortal Realm in the sunlight looks like. I want to see it. I want to live in it."
"And you want to see that man again, hmmm, Mia ShadowDancer?" teased Dais. Mia blushed a rosy color, but a smile did grace her lips. "That's my Mia. This sad stranger wasn't the Mia that I teased when she was a little girl."
Mia stuck out her tongue. "It wasn't fair either. There were four of you and just me. You always went on adventures while I had to hide." Mia grew serious again. "I wish I could have had the adventures you did."
Dais shook his head. "No, little sister, you don't. Do you know what we did? We had to conquer others for Tulpa. We had to kill innocent people and enslave others. We have blood on our hands. At least you were spared what we had to do. And don't doubt that we wouldn't do it again because we would, to keep you safe."
Dais escorted his friend's little sister back to her brother and waited for her to make breakfast for them. It was a tradition for them and Dais took comfort that she did this for them after what he had told her. After she had eaten her supper, Mia left to sleep and Dais told the others what she had told him. Anubis shook his head and Seckmet looked saddened. Cale pounded his fist on the table and cursed Tulpa for making his sister miserable. If only they could figure out what he had been told so long ago.
Sage woke with "I'm sorry" on his lips. Cye and Ryo were sitting near him when he woke. Cye's face had a sad smile on it, but Ryo looked like a cat that ate the canary and was given cream to boot. Sage didn't like that smug smile that twitched at his lips, but couldn't think on why he was smiling so.
"Why are you so smug?" growled the SunSinger.
"He's been like that all night. Rowen and Kento threatened to beat the answer out of him, but he countered with a threat of his own. I, personally, don't like the idea of the stove burning breakfast, so I sided with him."
"Rowen said something about Dancers always sticking together," added Ryo. "But Cye has the right idea. I can make meals miserable if I really wanted."
"That's nice, now about my question? Why are you so smug?" asked Sage.
"Oh, something I thought was confirmed last night when Cye and I found you." At Sage's questioning look Ryo continued, "No, I'm not going to tell you. It's enough that Cye knows, but he can keep his mouth shut. You have to figure this one out on your own."
"So says the Priest of our outfit. I agree with him on this one too, Sage. You do have to figure out you're feeling about the ShadowDancer."
Sage growled as he got out of bed. The Healer and the Priest weren't going to help him on this one and the other two didn't know what was going on. They did know that Ryo was defending the ShadowDancer for some reason and Cye was slowly agreeing with the FireDancer. Things were going to be rocky around this place for a while until people started to talk.
"I would tell you about what I knew of the ShadowDancers," said Ryo. "But some people seem to not want to listen."
Sage shook his head while the two Dancers left his room. Why did it seem like Ryo was reading his mind again?
"Because I saw what you were thinking written all over your face," called the retreating FireDancer.
Sage pulled a face at the parting shot given by Ryo. Sometimes it seemed that nothing was sacred to the FireDancer and he would comment about everything. In a way he was just like Kento, but there were times when he would keep his mouth shut. Kento always was running off at the mouth at the worst times. Sage looked himself over in the mirror before leaving his room. Time to face the new day.
"Why don't the two of you just hook up since you agree with each other so much?" asked Kento with a biting tone.
"Kento, I don't think that was necessary," cautioned Rowen.
Sage walked down in time to see fury on both Dancers' faces and a look of worry on Rowen's. Kento had a look of contempt and opened his mouth to let more idiotic phrases out, but Sage beat him. "I don't think that that was called for, Kento. Besides, they may know something that the rest of us don't have inkling about. You know that Ryo sees thing even I couldn't and Cye can figure out what others are feeling before they do."
"Besides," hissed Ryo. "I don't swing that way. Be careful, EarthSinger. I might leave for good."
"Is that a threat or a promise?" snapped back Kento.
"Cool off both of you," yelled Cye. "This is getting us nowhere. We have to know about the ShadowDancers and Ryo is the only one who knows about them, Kento. Ryo, you know Kento and his runaway mouth. Cut him some slack and don't take it to heart."
Ryo stood down, but still glared at Kento. Rowen hovered near the large EarthSinger, but he wasn't sure if he could have done anything to stop the larger Singer from doing any damage. Finally he snorted and sat down heavily in his chair with his arms crossed. "Fine."
Sage looked at his equal in almost everything and asked, "Alright, what do you know about the ShadowDancers?"
Ryo looked at Rowen and said, "Only a little more then the HeavenSingers. The ShadowDancers were friends with the FireDancer clans for as long as there were the Singers and Dancers. Once in a while a HeavenSinger would come to ask about us and would stay to see the dances that the two clans would hold."
"I know what was written down, but everyone of the people who wrote what they saw said there was more to both of the clans then what was told," protested Rowen. "Your people were very secretive."
"We had good reason," answered Ryo. "People needed fire to survive, but they also feared it. Look how you all responded to me when I first came around. Kento nearly had me buried in the ground and Sage had his sword near my neck when I told you my name."
"And we apologized for it after you told us that you weren't here to do anything," said Sage.
"Yeah, but that was my first impression of you. I could have blamed you for the loss of my clan just as easily as you took me for an enemy working for Tulpa," returned Ryo.
"Can we talk about this later?" asked Cye. "I want to hear what you know of the ShadowDancers."
Ryo nodded and returned to the subject at hand. "Before the ShadowDancers were cursed by Tulpa, they moved between the Nether Realm and the Mortal Realm. They were almost like gypsies in their wandering, but there were a few that stayed in one Realm or the other. When Tulpa cursed the ShadowDancers, the ones caught in the sunlight died quickly. Others were rushed to hidden places to escape the sun. Then we started to get refugees from the Nether Realm. They told of how Tulpa would kill entire clans from the oldest grandfather down to the newest baby. Then the stream stopped. The FireDancer Elders figured that any of the ShadowDancers still there were killed or captured. That left the ones left here in the Mortal Realm. They started to leave the areas we were in and spread out to different regions. They told the Elders that it was best if they did this in case Tulpa decided to try for them here in the Mortal Realm. The more spread out they were, the more trouble it would be fore Tulpa to find and kill them. It also protected us from the same fate as the ShadowDancers. A FireDancer may not be light, but we come close and have close to the same qualities that SunSingers have to be a problem to Tulpa."
"So if something happens to Sage, then it is possible for you to stop Tulpa?" asked Rowen.
Ryo shrugged. "May be. It may be no more then imprisoning him again. I think the only way for Tulpa to be destroyed completely is for opposites to work together in ridding the Realms of him." Ryo paused and thought over his last comment. "At least that was what I was taught as a child before my clan was killed."
"And what opposites would that be?" asked Kento. "You and Cye?"
Ryo shook his head. "Wrong elements. Didn't your clan tell you about Tulpa?"
Rowen laughed. "They might have, but Kento probably wasn't listening."
Kento scowled at his fellow Singer and swatted him up side the head. Rowen almost fell out of his chair from the force of the swat and threw the other a dirty look.
"Knock it off you guys," said Sage. "What elements did your Elder tell you, Ryo?"
"Sun and Shadow."
"But that would be Sage and that ShadowDancer," said Cye.
"That's right," said Rowen, "but how would either one of them be able to do it if they can't be in each other's elements?"
"Do it at twilight," answered Ryo and Sage together. Sage continued, "I ran into the ShadowDancer last night when I was coming home from the lake. I heard something and went to see what it was. I thought that she was a soldier from Tulpa and I, uuhh, tackled her." He threw a dirty look at Ryo who snickered. "When I saw who it was I apologized and got off her. She didn't get to say anything because she was called away by a man with blue hair. Then they disappeared."
"That was when we found you apologizing to thin air before nightfall," finished Cye.
"Did you get her name?" asked Rowen.
"Yeah. The blue haired guy called her Mia ShadowDancer."
