A/N: Hello! I'm back again in a flash… Kind of. Thank you for reviewing. I hope you enjoy this next chapter! What do you guys think of the story so far?
Chapter 8: Life and Death
"NOOO!!"
"Iyuko… I'm sorry…"
"No! No! NO!!…."
"Iyuko..."
"How…? Why…? Why did this happen?!"
"I… It's my fault. I-I shouldn't have let her come with me…"
Garet was curled tightly into a ball, sitting on the plush, blue carpet of his living room. He covered his ears as best as he could to block out his mother's cries. He wanted to cry too, but he couldn't find the energy to do so. He quietly whimpered as his mother wailed once more on the cold, stone steps of their porch.
His grandfather was standing in the living room doorway, burying his face in his hands and shaking his head. Slowly, his grandmother wrapped her arms around Garet and gently stroked his hair.
"Is she gone?" he asked his grandmother. She began to sob as she quietly whispered "Yes."
Feeling the pain within him finally seeping out, Garet softly moaned and began to cry. "No… I…" he whimpered.
"Shh… Don't talk," his grandmother cooed in a gentle tone.
"She's gone, grandma!… Kaylina… She…She's…" he cried. He didn't want to believe it. He didn't want to believe anything that happened today. The explosions, the cries, the battle, the dragon, the earthquake and… the death.
"Shh. It's… It's alright, Garet. She's… She's safe. She's in a safe haven above us now, watching over us. She's not gone, Garet. Not gone at all. Now," she whispered softy, "Go to sleep, my dear. Everything will be alright…"
Garet listened with each word slowly lulling him to sleep. After hearing the last sentence, he was too tired to cry anymore. His grandmother's warm embrace made him forget the things around him. Listening to her calm, gentle voice was enough for Garet to fall into a deep slumber.
Jenna cried deeply in her mother's arms who also wept along with her. They both trembled and sobbed together on their living room floor. Shina's right arm was badly injured, but she ignored the pain as she tightly held her daughter closely. Blood-soaked bandages covered her arm completely from a deep sword wound.
She was lucky to survive the onslaught of the army. But… Riko was not. He fought along side with her, protecting her at all costs. Even if it meant sacrificing his life for her… She didn't see the samurai behind her who wielded a long shining blade before it was too late… Riko pushed her aside in time but he wasn't quick enough to get away…
Shina shook her head, wanting to erase that scene from her memory. She didn't want to remember it. No…
She didn't want to recall it. Riko…
She wanted to forget it all. Riko, I'm sorry…
It was too late to save him… After it happened, she lost control of herself. Full of rage and hatred, she savagely attacked the killer, not caring for her own safety as she fought recklessly against him. She emerged victorious in the end, and right then, the Ancient Dragon had appeared. It roared and the earth trembled under it's might as golden light broke through the ground. A protective barrier surrounded her as she watched the Fire Clan vaporize before her eyes. Their screams rang through her ears as they helplessly tried to get away…
When the light disappeared, she stayed closely to Riko's side. Ignoring the smell of blood and rain, she stayed close, holding his warm hands. The large shadow above the sky vanished as the Ancient Dragon disappeared for another one hundred years, and the rain fell upon them once again. Roads and houses showed no damage, untouched by the powerful attack inflicted upon them by the Ancient Dragon.
She didn't go back home to check on her children. Felix and Jenna came to her instead, wondering what happened to their parents long after the battle.
When they saw her kneeling beside a body, they knew, first hand, what had happened. Jenna ran towards her, tears filling her eyes. Shina had to get up and hold her back, not wanting her daughter to see the gruesome scene before her. Felix remained back, frozen. Staring hard at the fallen body of his father.
Shina carried them home after that and here they were now, mourning his death. Felix stood by the window, looking out with no expression on his face. Shina was sure he felt the same as her and Jenna. But she knew he would never cry in front of anyone. He was a brave, strong boy… And they don't cry. Never…
Never…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Open your eyes…
The time will soon come…
Destiny and fate will merge…
The balance of power will fall…
Darkness will reign the heavens and earth…
Beware, young one…
When the time comes…
You will awaken…
Your true purpose will soon show…
We will await thee…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yime jerked awake when the nurse shook him. She gave him a small smile as she placed the food tray on the table beside Isaac's bed. Yime smiled back. He stretched and yawned as the nurse quietly left the room.
He sighed deeply, rubbing his tired eyes. One day has already passed since the battle. And since then, Isaac has not regained consciousness. The boy only suffered from the marks on his neck. Someone had tried to strangle him…
Immediately after the violent, earth-breaking attack from the Ancient Dragon, Yime had ran to the hospital, carrying Isaac in his arms. Although he was a little stunned and shaken up from what had happened, he managed to find his way through the bloody streets and into the hospital without making a wrong turn like he used to.
There were no signs of any Fire Clan survivors in the village as he ran. They must've all been caught in the dragon's Light of Earth…
Yime had stayed by Isaac's side. He never left, even when the doctors tried to force him out. He promised to take care of Isaac. He would watch over him for now on… Because… no one will. Both Isaac's parents were gone.
They were much like parents to Yime as well. They took him in, even though he was an outsider. Yime couldn't remember anything of his past. He didn't know if he even had parents. It didn't matter to him… Kyle and Dora were the greatest parents he ever had…
Dora had help him train to be a village ninja. And all her training had gotten him to a high-level Genyin. The day he received his recognition for Genyin was his most memorable moment he could ever remember. Dora and Kyle were so proud of him.
Sometimes, he had wanted to call them "Mom" or "Dad", but he was too shy to say so. When Isaac was born, Yime was very excited to have someone he could call "brother." And brothers they were; they played games together , tackled one or the other, and sneaked in treats before supper whenever Dora wasn't looking.
But when missions came along, they were sadly separated for awhile depending on the mission status. Some missions took days, some took weeks.
But during those short times between missions, Yime treated each day like it was his last as he took Isaac all over Vale to reach his one favourite spot of all places: high atop Mt. Aleph. It was forbidden to enter Mt. Aleph, but he managed to sneak both himself and Isaac through the dangerous trap-filled rooms of each level. He was a ninja after all, sneaking and stealth were his specialties. He knew if Dora had known where he had taken Isaac, he would have been grounded for life.
Atop Mt. Aleph was a magnificent sight. The village below looked as if it were inhabited by ants. The Vale Forests reached as far as the eye can see. The single river running through the village could be seen miles away, disappearing into the far open plains beyond the forest boundaries. Those open plains… It was Yime's dream to explore them. He wanted to experience the feeling of not being surrounded by forests all the time. Maybe… that was where he came from.
Wait a minute… he snapped fully awake. "You! You're a Lemerca!" he remembered that woman say to him. She said it with hatred too. A Lemerca… Is that what I am?
He had never really thought of himself to be different among the over people of Vale. No one treated him differently. He knew, though, that he was different. He stood out among the crowd with his blue hair and golden eyes. Everyone knew who he was: the boy with the healing powers.
"A Lemerca…" he whispered to himself. What's a Lemerca?
He continued to watch Isaac's sleeping form, deep in thought.
"Oi," said a familiar voice, breaking his thoughts.
A strong hand placed fell on his shoulder as her turned to see. It was Yamaka. He had his left arm in a sling and bandages around his hands. Yamaka grinned at him.
"Yamaka-san! Thank goodness you're still alive!" Yime breathed, happy to see his comrade.
"Heh. That fine, young woman was tougher than I thought. I nearly lost my head twice in a row in that fight. Good thing the Ancient Dragon came to save my butt…" Yamaka sighed. "You know, I think she liked me…" He grinned.
Yime let out a short laugh. "Yamaka-san, stop dreaming such things."
"Oh? I'm not dreaming. I really think she did," Yamaka chuckled. Then in a more serious tone, "I heard what happened… It's hard to believe that she's really gone."
Yime looked away and stared at the floor. "It's… impossible to believe…" he whispered.
"She was the greatest leader I had ever known… Kid, she held up strong to all of us. Even in the end…" Yamaka said. He pulled up a chair and sat beside Yime, looking carefully at the boy in bed. "Her son…"
Yime looked up at him. Yamaka shook his head sadly. "Are you both going to be okay?" he asked him.
Yime shook his head. "Of course not. It won't be the same… Isaac's going to grow up with no parents… And I… I…" he trailed off, hot tears stinging his eyes. He shook his head again. "I wish they were back. They were both like parents to me, Yamaka-san. Isaac… He and I are brothers. We were all a family… A family I can only remember…"
Yamaka placed his hand on his shoulder. "Kid, I know how it is…I-I lost my little sister when I was young. She and I were inseparable together. But one day, she fell in the river and drowned because I wasn't' brave enough to jump in and save her… Life wasn't the same without her. The only way I could go on was to just stop thinking about the past. There's no point in moping around anymore. The future is what you need to stay focused on, kid."
"But, I don't think…" Yime began, but Yamaka interrupted.
"You need to stay strong, kid. For yourself and for those around you. Isaac needs you more than anything now… Don't break down yet… I know it's tough to get over it, but… life is still ahead of you. Dora… I would think she'd say the same thing. She never gave up in every battle and in every mission when things didn't go so well. Like that time with the Wolf Demons. There was a slim chance that we would make it out alive, but we managed to pull through. Mostly."
"I wasn't a Genyin back then so I wasn't there…" Yime said.
Yamaka smiled. "I know. But I'm telling ya that she never gave up hope."
"She almost died… I remember that…"
Yamaka nodded. "I know… But she pulled through, didn't she? She never held regret or guilt for those lost in battle, because it's part of being a ninja. Ninjas are trained to feel no such emotions because it could disrupt the missions…"
"Yamaka-san… I don't understand…"
"It's simple, kid. Never give up hope… Life goes on. Stay strong for those you love. I know how tough it is… Don't give up, kid. I don't want to see you breaking down…"
"Yamaka-san…" Yime whispered. He thought through what Yamaka had said, unsure if he should just forget the loss of his "parents." "It's not that simple…" he said.
Yamaka grinned. "Don't be too hasty then. Take it one step at a time… Just remember: Those who died are never truly gone, they remain in our hearts as they watch over us…"
A small smile formed on Yime's lips. "Thanks… Yamaka-san."
A sudden movement in bed caught his attention. Isaac stirred and his eyes fluttered open.
"He's awake!" Yime cried, relieved.
Yamaka nodded. "I'll leave you two alone," he said quietly as he closed the door behind him.
Isaac looked at his surroundings, a look of confusion clearly on his face. When his eyes settled on Yime's, he froze.
Yime gave him a smile. "Isaac, how are you feeling?" he gently asked the boy.
Isaac blinked, fully confused. He furrowed his brow and shook his head. "I…Isaac…?" the boy asked. "Is…is that my name?"
Fear gripped at Yime's insides as he sat beside Isaac. "Yes… it's your name. Don't you remember?" he asked fearfully.
The boy closed his eyes and slowly shook his head. "No… I… I can't remember…" Isaac said as he slowly sat up. "Who… are you?"
Yime bit his lower lip as more tears stunned his eyes. Slowly, he sadly shook his head as he said, "I'm Yime… I'm… I'm your brother, Isaac," he choked back a sob. "Don't you remember?"
"Yee…may…" the boy answered. "It sounds… familiar… But I don't… remember…"
Yime couldn't take it anymore. He draped his arms around the unwary boy and sobbed. He felt him tense under his touch but he soon relaxed as Yime continued to cry. "Isaac… I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"
Isaac turned his body to look at him. "Sorry…? Why?" the boy asked quietly.
Yime didn't answer him. He tightened his hold on him and continued to cry. I'm sorry Isaac… Hidekeru-sama… Hidekeru-san…