Chapter 10: The game begins

"Cacth me then! Draw first blood." Mona heard herself call to some people as she ran, someone shouted they was going to cacth her but Mona only laughed and kept running. She had to run, not let her friends cacth her even if she knew they wouldn't really hurt her. Mona ran saw a glint out of the corner of her right eye, though it was just a flash of color she stopped and looked around. All the wraning she had was hearing something cut thourgh the air before she was knocked backwards and pain cut thourgh her left leg. Mona looked around and saw nothing but there was a thin trail of blood across her leg, just below the knee. "First blood to me Haru." A male voice said mockingly as a figure stood in the shadows of the trees. Mona knew that voice. "Anubis." She whispered.

Mona sat up straight in her bed her breathing coming into short gasps of air. She looked around and dorpped back onto the bed. "Anubis you have got to leave me alone! This can't keep going on, so knock it off with the dreams!" She hissed into the night.

The next day ..... "Ryo, have you seen Mona? She's not here at the training grounds." Enquired Cale, Ryo just shook his head. "Cale, my friend, I haven't seen Mona since lunch." He replied but stopped as he walked passed the living room. "I think I know where she is." He ponited to a figure curled up in a chair. "Mona, it's time for training." Ryo said, gently nudging Mona. "Just five more minutes." Mona responded in a sleepy voice. "Let me try." Cale said, Ryo looked up at him and nodded. "Ok but don't rough her up too badly." He said, as he stepped back.

Cale went up to the chair and promtly garbbed Mona by the collar of her shirt and jerked her out of the chair causing her to hit the floor with her head. "Hey!" Mona objected looking up at him. "Training time Mona, now get to training or I'll have you training until sunset!" he roared, THAT got Mona to her feet qiuckly. "I'm going!" Mona said as she nearly flew out of the house. "Nice job." Ryo commented as he walked outside as well.

After training Mona closed her eyes tightly getting light headed, finally she swung up from her upside down postion. "I don't see how Dais can do that!" She muttered as she stood up on the tree banch carefully to keep her balance, she saw Rowen walking around under her. Careful to be qiuet she knelt on the limb and waited. Her charge had no idea what he was getting into as he walked under her. Now! Mona thought and jumped. "Quake With Fear!" She yelled knocking Rowen down.

"What the ... Mona! Give a heart attack why don't you?!" Rowen asked sitting up, Mona crossed her arms over her chest. "Serves you right Rowen, you should be more aware of your surrounding. A Warlord could attack you as easily as I did." She said in a serious matter of fact tone of voice, Rowen looked at her in surprise then shook his head. "What?" She asked. "Nothing, nothing." He said getting up, Mona knocked him back down.

"Uh uh Rowen. I'm not letting you up until you tell me." She said to him. "Just ... you remind me of Anubis when you talk like that." Rowen said, Mona stiffen visibly. "Well ... well, I guess it is a habit." She said qiuckly and let Rowen up and walked away. The blue haired Ronin wacthed with confusion as Mona broke into a run, running deep into the wood.

Mona didn't stop running until she had to, only when her lungs burned with need for air did she slow down into a walk. Mona walked to a pond she seen when she was walking with White Blaze weeks ago and sat down because her head was light and spinning.

Suddenly a hand pushed aganist the back of her neck bowing her head. "Just take some deep breathes, you will feel better in a moment." A bristh accented voice said, Mona would have jumped up under normal cricustances but she knew whose voice that belonged to. "I guess I overdid it a little. Huh Cye?" She asked and looked up at him. "How did you keep up with me anyway?" She asked. "It wasn't easy. And I got a question for you Mona. Are you on the track team or something?" He asked, Mona shook her head. "No but I've always liked running, jogging and anything else involing speed." She said, Cye nodded and sat down beside her.

"So why did you run off?" He asked. "Just got some things on my mind." Mona said qiuetly. "And?" Cye asked gently, he could tell from her actions and tone that what ever she was going to say was something she was uncomfortable about. "And since I can't think them away I needed to run them off. Need to wear myself out." She answered. "Did it work?" Cye asked. "I'll let you know tommorw moring." Mona repiled as she stood up, Cye on the other hand did not get up and stopped her from standing up.

"Mona let me see your hands." He said, Mona was confused by the request. "Why?" She asked. "Just let me see your hands." Cye requested again and Mona compiled after a moment holding her hands out, plam up. Cye took her hands in his, and closed his eyes contrecting. "Cye ...?" Mona started to ask but then felt warmth on her forhead as the symbol of trust glowed fanitly on Cye's. For some reason Mona felt panic wash thourgh her and jerked away from Cye, Cye did not say anything for a moment as he stood.

He looked at her for a few momentsas if looking for something, he must have found what he was looking for because he turned away. "Come on, we had better get back to the others." He said and one confused Mona followed him but there seem to be an agreement between the two not to speak or ask about what had happened.

That night Mona fell asleep before her head hit the pillow, she wore herself out as she planned and hoped she would be too tried to dream but her sleep was distbured by one dream.

"Haru." "Hope." "Mona." Three different voices called three different names but Mona knew instinctly that all three was directed towards her. "Who is there?" She called back into the shadow, all she could see was outlines of people, five people to be excat. "Be careful bearer of Cruelty. The darkness has decied the game is to begin again and you will not always be able to depend on the Ronins to help you. Instead it is you that must help in saving them and your own self." A faintly famliar male voice said. "What? Save us from what?" Mona asked trying to pin down this mystery. "Just remember what was said. The game has begun." Another voice said and Mona's dream ended as she slipped into a dreamless sleep.

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Hey Lady Icefire here first I like to say I did not own the Ronin Warriors but I own the
new charaters and the plot of this story so no copying. Also I like to give credit to my
friend Harry for helping me with this story, he deserves a lot of credit. And I ask that you
please read and response, I accept all criticism and compliments.