Tears of Twilight
Chapter 24.
Flash was so angry there were no words to describe it. Her body temperature was rising steadily, and Ryo could actually feel himself being strengthened by it. This would have awed him if he himself wasn't as angry as she was. Sage was watching the two with much concern, even though he was a little furious himself. He could sense that Flash had a lot of fire power within her, and now with the two fire elementals being totally pissed off, how far along would it be, before they got out of control?
Ryo took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. Getting angry because of this wasn't going to help them any. They had to figure a way through this. He looked at Sage, then at Flash. "We need to find Rowen and Kento and Scorpio," he said.
"The question is, how do we find them?" Sage asked as he crossed his arms over his torso and looked around the surrounding area. So far he could see nothing, but that didn't mean there weren't soldiers lurking about, just waiting for the right moment to ambush them. They had to be careful at all cost, otherwise they would fall into a trap that may have been laid out for them.
Flash was silent as she was thinking. She could try connecting to Scorpio, but she was worried even their link may have been blocked off, just as the Ronins' had been. There didn't seem to be a lot they could do, unless...yes, that was it. It was dangerous, but well worth the risk. She turned to the boys. "I have an idea at finding them!"
The two Ronins looked at one another, then at her, wondering what she had planned.
"I'm going to look for them," she stated simply.
"Are you crazy?!" Ryo nearly shouted at her.
Flash crossed her arms and raised one eyebrow, staring back at him with her cerulean blue eyes. Sage studied her, his eyes narrowing as he realized he had seen that look many times before. In Kaye.
"Ryo, I can run very fast. No soldier will see me, and if they do, I'll toast them. And we all know I'm not wanted by Talpa or Jakada. If anything they want to keep us from the castle. And that's where we need to get. But we can't go in there without the others!"
Sage nodded his head, looking at his friend. "She has a point you know."
Ryo sighed, shaking his head. He hated when he was forced to think between two ways. Either he let her run off and endanger herself, and try to find their friends, or he kept her here with them, and they waste more time on finding them. Finally, he nodded unwillingly. "Alright, but take White Blaze with you," he added.
Flash blinked at him, then shrugged, figuring it would make him feel much better if she did. "Okay, be back when we can. Let's go, White Blaze." The tiger leapt to his feet and bounded after the girl who began to run off in the distance.
Sage watched them go before he slowly turned back to face Ryo. The black haired Ronin had his back to him and was already walking northeast, heading in the direction of the castle. He blinked, a little confused. Why was Ryo heading there now? He knew he couldn't defeat Talpa on his own. So what was he doing? Shaking his head, he quickly ran to catch up to his friend. "Ryo, wait a minute! What are you doing?"
"Getting a head start," Sage," Ryo replied as he kept on walking.
Sage blinked, a little confused as he continued to follow his friend. He couldn't understand why Ryo would do this. Shouldn't they at least wait until Flash and White Blaze returned, and hopefully with their friends again? He felt they should, because if they were separated for very long, anything could happen. It was best to stay in hiding and wait until a better time.
"Ryo, I really think we should wait here," he began to say, but Ryo cut him off.
"The Dynasty is everywhere now, Sage. Sooner or later, they're going to find out where we are and come looking for us. Which is why we have to keep moving. I bet that Jakada already knows where we are since he can read minds. He found us once before."
Sage sighed with a slow nod. "Yes, he did. I still can't figure that one out. Was that how he was able to capture Cye, Kaye, and Thunder?"
"I'm willing to bet it was," Ryo replied.
Sage decided just to follow him. Two was better than one at any rate. They marched across the vast Dynasty landscape, sneaking from building to building, trying to avoid any soldiers they saw as much as they possibly could. It wasn't easy, and three times they were almost spotted. At last they reached a small rounded shaped building that seemed to be relatively deserted. After a quick check, they bolted inside, and shut the door behind them. Ryo sank to his knees and glanced out the small window, watching for any foe or friend that might come near. Sage sat down against the opposite wall, his arms crossed, his demeanor frowning slightly. This building, though it was't the same one, brought back horrible memories; memories he'd just soon forget and bury deep within the back of his mind.
Scorpio frowned deeply as he and Rowen both tried their best to hold Kento back. The big guy had been cursing at the top of his lungs, and threatening to go after Talpa and Jakada himself. And at this point, that was very unwise to do. "Kento, enough!" Rowen tried to reason with him. He grunted as he felt himself being dragged across the land, through some dead grass, and the feeling didn't make him feel any good.
"I'm going to kill them both with my bare hands!" Kento roared angrily, his rounded face red and his small eyes burning with anger.
Scorpio tried in vain to hold him back, but he was pulled along with Rowen. "Stop this, Kento! You can't do it alone! You need to calm down and think this through!"
Kento wasn't listening though. He continued to make his way across the lands, heading toward the castle, wanting with all his will to just be there at this moment, pummeling both Talpa and Jakada, then escaping with Kaye in his arms and Cye and Thunder behind him. He was going to make them pay for abducting his fiance, his best friend, and the other guy who he didn't even know.
Rowen wasn't sure how much longer they could keep this up. If they didn't stop Kento all hell would break loose. The two continued to struggle to hold him back, but it seemed no good. And then suddenly, Scorpio noticed a familiar tiger and gasped. "Hey, Lightning's back!"
Kento immediately stopped struggling and turned to look in his direction. The tiger was slowly making his way toward him. "About time he got back!" he huffed.
Rowen was frowning though. Something didn't look right. Lightning seemed to be sad and angry at the same time. As if something had happened that he couldn't change. But what could that be though? The three boys made their way toward the tiger who sat down on his haunches.
"Where were you?" Kento demanded.
"Have you found the others?" Scorpio asked, hopefully.
"Why do you look so miserable?" Rowen asked.
Lightning's ears flattened back against his head as he slowly answered their questions one at a time. "I went to see Blaze in the mortal realm. No, I didn't find the others. Blaze told me that the Prophecy that Talpa seeks for, will come to pass. And that there's nothing any of us can do."
"WHAT?!"
Flash came to a stop on a tall mountain's ledge as she looked around. So far she and White Blaze were the only ones out, but that didn't mean she wasn't being watched. There was always that chance of that, and if so, then she had to be very careful. She glanced down at White Blaze.
"Think someone's watching us, boy?"
The tiger looked back at her with his wise eyes and rumbled affirmatively, before looking back toward that tall castle far in the distance. Yes, someone was watching them, and the tiger could about figure out who that someone was. And he didn't like it at all. But yet, what could they do to stop him?
Just then, the tiger noticed the rise in temperature and quickly looked back at Flash. Her symbol was flaring brightly in her forehead, sweat slowly dripped down her face as her hair began to blow freely behind her.
Back inside the castle, Jakada had been watching Flash and White Blaze through some kind of mystical mirror he had himself, a sneer upon his face. What did those two think they were doing? Did they think they would stand a chance at finding their other friends? Ha! They had another thing coming. He would just separate them again and this time imprison them all far away from one another, making sure they could never escape.
Wait, what was that smell? Something's burning. He snorted. It was probably Cale burning something in the kitchen again. Gee, it sure was hot in here. He could have sworn he had the temperature down to cool. Something flickering caught his eyes though and he immediately looked down at his armored feet. And suddenly, his screaming voice echoed throughout the castle.
Flash smirked as she let her power down. That would keep him busy for a while. She turned to White Blaze. "Let's go!"
And the tiger followed her quickly and silently.
Lightning shook his head, whether it was to calm himself, or to get rid of an oncoming headache, it was hard to say. He wasn't surprised at their reaction as he remembered having argued with Blaze that the Prophecy could be stopped, and yet the wolf had proved to him otherwise.
"Listen all of you!" he snapped, causing each of them to become still as they waited for him to speak. "I know none of you like this. Neither do I. For now there doesn't seem to be much that we can do. Once Talpa absorbs that power he will be too strong for any of you. However there is catch. He cannot get stronger than what he will become after he absorbs the presence that Kaye has seen in her dreams."
"Whoa, wait," Kento interrupted. "How did you know.."
"Blaze told me that as well," the tiger replied. "Now as I was saying, even though he can't gain more power, however you Ronins and Warriors can. All you need to do is keep practicing and gaining your strength."
"Flash grows more in power every time she uses her pyrokinesis," Scorpio said thoughtfully.
Lightning nodded. "Yes, I know. But I'm afraid it will take more than just fire power to defeat Talpa this time. It will take courage, determination, trust, hope, forgiveness, and so much more."
"So what do you suggest we do?" Rowen asked.
"Find the others and reunite with them. That's all I can say for now."
Night had come all too quickly for Cye and Thunder. Both boys were sitting on their beds and were silent for the time being. Every once in a while they would look toward Kaye, but so far she hadn't awoken. Cye was glad though. She needed all the sleep she could get, especially after what she had been through earlier today. His fists tightened and a tear dripped down out of his eye as he felt the anger build up inside of him. Thunder looked toward him with a frown. Should he say something, or no? He couldn't decide on what to do. Then the lights went out with no warning. Well, so much for struggling to make a decision. He laid down with a grimace and closed his eyes. Cye didn't even attempt to lay down. He was too angry to even think of sleeping, and he wasn't planning to. He was going to stay up and think of ways to humiliate Jakada if it took him days without sleep. Thunder stayed awake for about fifteen minutes before he finally succumbed to sleep, too exhausted to even stay awake anymore. Cye stayed awake for another hour and a half before sleep finally overtook him.
Talpa checked his viewing mirror carefully. Good, all three prisoners were now asleep. They would all need their rest for the final testing tomorrow. With a wave of his hand, the mirror vanished, and he stood up from his throne. It was time to retreat to his own room now. In an instant, he was suddenly gone from the throne room.
Ryo and Sage were both feeling tired now. One of them had to stay awake just in case Flash and White Blaze returned, or in case they were ambushed. After some thinking, Ryo allowed Sage to sleep first as he took the first watch. Each of them would sleep every two hours, and then guard after that. For now all was quiet. He couldn't see anyone coming or even sense anything. He was worried about Flash though, hoping she was okay. He couldn't understand why he felt close to her, but he did. And he wasn't sure if it was because they had the same element or not. He didn't think it was because of that. It had to be something so much more than that.
After two hours had passed, he shook Sage awake. The Ronin of Halo sat up, rubbing his tired eyes and stretched. "Two hours didn't seem two hours to me," he grumbled a little.
Ryo shrugged. "It never does when you're sleeping."
Sage nodded and stood up. "Go to sleep then, Ryo. I'll wake you when it's your turn again."
Ryo nodded and laid down as Sage stood near the window. Both boys were hoping this night would pass quickly, and that they would soon be reunited with everyone they knew.
Flash felt a quick tug of her shirt and turned her head to look at White Blaze. The tiger was staring at her with such intensity. Immediately she understood what he was trying to tell her.
"I know, time to sleep, right?"
The tiger let go of her and nodded, rumbling softly in reply.
Flash smiled and scratched his ear. "Okay, boy, you win. Know any good places?"
The tiger turned toward the left and led her down to a small abandoned cave. She followed him there and had to crawl through a low tunnel for about ten minutes before finally being able to stand up in the mouth of the cave.
"Not bad.. for being in the Dynasty," she said.
White Blaze laid down, watching her. Finally at last she laid down too, next to him, using his warm body as a pillow. The tiger didn't seem to mind at all. Both of them closed their eyes and soon drifted off to sleep.
In the end, there didn't seem to be much that Rowen, Kento, or Scorpio could even do for the time being. So instead they found shelter underneath a bridge that hid them well. For a while they stayed awake, talking of old memories they all had, laughing silently at the fun times, feeling sad at the bad times, and feeling miserable because they weren't altogether, and probably wouldn't be for a long time now. At last they all fell asleep, each of them breathing either softly, or snoring, their dreams taking them far away to a place where they could all be together, a place that not even Talpa could enter.
Kaye slowly awoke the moment the light had come on. She sat up, rubbing her eyes, expecting it to be around midnight or so. How wrong she was. A quick glance at her watch showed her it was about seven in the morning. "How did I sleep so long?" she wondered in surprise. She didn't know the answer, and she wasn't sure she wanted to know either. She stood up, stretched, and glanced over at the boys. Both were sound asleep. She thought about waking them, but decided against it. Instead, she grabbed some clean clothes and went to take a shower.
Thunder was the second one to wake up. He grimaced as he sat up and looked at his bandages. He would be glad when Talpa gave the permission to heal himself, but he doubt that would be any time soon. He heard water running, and when he didn't see Kaye in bed, he figured out the source of it. Cye was still asleep, and probably would be until breakfast arrived. The bathroom door opened a few minutes later, and Kaye emerged, dressed in a pair of dark blue jeans and an orange t-shirt. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail.
She looked up and smiled at Thunder. "Morning."
"Morning. You feeling better?" Thunder asked.
Kaye nodded. "Yeah, I think so. I don't believe I slept so long before."
"What happened last night took a lot out of you, I think," Thunder told her.
Kaye nodded as she sat down on her bed. She wasn't sure what to think of last night, and she could barely remember what had taken place. Nor was she certain whether or not she should feel concerned about it. She glanced toward Cye and saw he was still asleep. That was surprising.
"When did Cye fall asleep, Thunder?"
Thunder shrugged. "Sometime after I did think. So I can't really tell you." Kaye nodded her head.
The next several minutes were spent in silence. About twenty minutes later Cye awoke. He didn't greet the others, nor smiled at them, or even spoke to them. Instead, he took clean clothes and disappeared into the bathroom. When he emerged, showered and cleaned, he saw that breakfast had been delivered, and that his sister, and their new friend were now eating. He walked over to the remaining plate and silently ate his meal. Thunder and Kaye glanced at him worriedly. They had never seen him this silent before. Could something be wrong?
"Um, Cye, you okay?" Kaye asked.
"Just fine," Cye replied curtly. Kaye bit her lip and looked down at her meal.
Thunder frowned, but said nothing. Instead the three finished their meals and sat there in silence, neither knowing what to say to the other. Soon, to their dismay a soldier appeared with Talpa and Jakada behind them. The soldier took the empty trays away while Talpa and Jakada looked toward the prisoners.
"Good, you've all eaten," Talpa said. He looked toward Thunder. "Take your bandages off. If I see you've healed yourself, you know the consequences."
Thunder stood up, muttering. "I didn't heal myself." He slowly unwrapped the bandages, grimacing in pain. He allowed them to fall to the floor. The wounds he had were dried, crusted, red, and awfully horrifying looking. Nonetheless, they were no longer bleeding. Cye and Kaye grimaced at the sight of them.
Talpa studied them closely, and nodded. "Alright, good. Now, you may heal yourself."
Thunder nodded in relief and closed his eyes as he concentrated. He glowed red, his lightning bolt symbol flashed in his forehead, and his wounds began to heal, slowly at first, but then more quickly until finally, they were all gone. He opened his eyes, feeling much better, but a little drained.
"Thunder, you okay?" Kaye asked in concerned.
He nodded as he sat down on his bed. "Yeah.. just tired."
"Aww," Jakada smirked, "she cares for the boy, how touching."
"Yeah, and what's it to you?" Kaye retorted.
"Oh, nothing," Jakada sneered. "but what if Hardrock was to find out you've developed feelings for another?"
Kaye was a little confused at first, but then it hit her. "You bastard!" she screamed at him.
Thunder's eyes widen, and he made a face. "You're disgusting, Jakada! Besides, I, too, already have a girlfriend."
"Oh, really?" Talpa asked, interested.
Thunder crossed his arms. "Ask me no questions, I'll tell you no lies."
Talpa snorted. "Whatever, it's time for the last test. Let's go, all of you."
Thunder and Kaye unwillingly began to follow them, however Cye didn't move. Talpa stopped and looked back at him. "Let's go, Torrent!" Cye slowly stood up and followed them, but he was very quiet though.
They got to the throne room and looked around. There was some kind of large star in the center of the floor. On three different points there was a symbol which resembled their symbol. There was the kanji of determination, the kanji of Trust, and a lightning bolt. They armored up when told to, and then were chained to their places where their kanjis and symbol were, hooked up to several wires which were all connected to one another.
But they were confused though. What was this test suppose to do to them? Talpa must have guessed what they were thinking, because he suddenly said, "I suppose you are curious about this test here. Well, let me enlighten you. This test will cause each of you to feel incredible pain. It will be the worse you have ever felt here."
"You are a cruel monster!" Kaye shouted at him.
"Thank you for the compliment," Talpa said carelessly. He nodded at Sekhmet who was standing behind a machine with a lever on it. "Begin."
Sekhmet pulled the lever back toward him. Energy sparked through the wires that lay about on the floor, heading to each teenager. Immediately, Cye was surrounded by fire and poison, Kaye was surrounded by dead plants with large snapping thorns, and Thunder was surrounded by rubber and electricity. And then suddenly the pain began. Each of them screamed out in pain as the opposites of their elements attacked them viciously. What was worse, was the fact they could feel one another's pain besides their own.
Sweat poured down their faces, wounds developed on the bare places their armors did not cover. But even with their armors on, they could still feel the pain. It was terrible, burning, nauseating, making them feel weakened with each passing moment.
Talpa and Jakada watched closely, taking note of how they struggled against unconsciousness. They realized their prisoners were getting stronger, which was a good sign. They would need them to stay awake as long as possible for the Prophecy to become fulfilled.
Then at last, they had all sank to their knees, and then fell forward, unconscious, Talpa nodded to Sekhmet. "Shut it down."
Sekhmet obeyed, and then stood there in silence as his master and Jakada approached the prisoners.
"They took it quite well, don't you think?" Jakada smirked.
"Yes, and they are much stronger than the last two times. Now I just need for the Dreamwalker to train her brother, and once the training is over, I will have that which I desire."
He signaled Cale and Dais over and had them unchain Kaye and Thunder, having them sent back to their room. He, himself, then unchained Cye and lifted him up. The boy's head went back, but he didn't awake. Talpa carried him back to the room and laid him on his bed. The other two prisoners were already on their bed, out cold. It would probably be a few hours before they all awakened. Talpa stepped out of the room, then looked at Cale who was still standing there. "Get someone to put a new door on here. One made of steel, so it cannot be broken again." Cale nodded, bowed, and left his presence.
Talpa turned around, and smiled as he walked down the hall. Soon, in less than a week, he would have what he had been waiting for, and no one, not even Ryo of the Wildfire would be able to stop him, with or without the power of the Inferno Armor. And his laughter suddenly echoed throughout the castle.
Chapter 24.
Flash was so angry there were no words to describe it. Her body temperature was rising steadily, and Ryo could actually feel himself being strengthened by it. This would have awed him if he himself wasn't as angry as she was. Sage was watching the two with much concern, even though he was a little furious himself. He could sense that Flash had a lot of fire power within her, and now with the two fire elementals being totally pissed off, how far along would it be, before they got out of control?
Ryo took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. Getting angry because of this wasn't going to help them any. They had to figure a way through this. He looked at Sage, then at Flash. "We need to find Rowen and Kento and Scorpio," he said.
"The question is, how do we find them?" Sage asked as he crossed his arms over his torso and looked around the surrounding area. So far he could see nothing, but that didn't mean there weren't soldiers lurking about, just waiting for the right moment to ambush them. They had to be careful at all cost, otherwise they would fall into a trap that may have been laid out for them.
Flash was silent as she was thinking. She could try connecting to Scorpio, but she was worried even their link may have been blocked off, just as the Ronins' had been. There didn't seem to be a lot they could do, unless...yes, that was it. It was dangerous, but well worth the risk. She turned to the boys. "I have an idea at finding them!"
The two Ronins looked at one another, then at her, wondering what she had planned.
"I'm going to look for them," she stated simply.
"Are you crazy?!" Ryo nearly shouted at her.
Flash crossed her arms and raised one eyebrow, staring back at him with her cerulean blue eyes. Sage studied her, his eyes narrowing as he realized he had seen that look many times before. In Kaye.
"Ryo, I can run very fast. No soldier will see me, and if they do, I'll toast them. And we all know I'm not wanted by Talpa or Jakada. If anything they want to keep us from the castle. And that's where we need to get. But we can't go in there without the others!"
Sage nodded his head, looking at his friend. "She has a point you know."
Ryo sighed, shaking his head. He hated when he was forced to think between two ways. Either he let her run off and endanger herself, and try to find their friends, or he kept her here with them, and they waste more time on finding them. Finally, he nodded unwillingly. "Alright, but take White Blaze with you," he added.
Flash blinked at him, then shrugged, figuring it would make him feel much better if she did. "Okay, be back when we can. Let's go, White Blaze." The tiger leapt to his feet and bounded after the girl who began to run off in the distance.
Sage watched them go before he slowly turned back to face Ryo. The black haired Ronin had his back to him and was already walking northeast, heading in the direction of the castle. He blinked, a little confused. Why was Ryo heading there now? He knew he couldn't defeat Talpa on his own. So what was he doing? Shaking his head, he quickly ran to catch up to his friend. "Ryo, wait a minute! What are you doing?"
"Getting a head start," Sage," Ryo replied as he kept on walking.
Sage blinked, a little confused as he continued to follow his friend. He couldn't understand why Ryo would do this. Shouldn't they at least wait until Flash and White Blaze returned, and hopefully with their friends again? He felt they should, because if they were separated for very long, anything could happen. It was best to stay in hiding and wait until a better time.
"Ryo, I really think we should wait here," he began to say, but Ryo cut him off.
"The Dynasty is everywhere now, Sage. Sooner or later, they're going to find out where we are and come looking for us. Which is why we have to keep moving. I bet that Jakada already knows where we are since he can read minds. He found us once before."
Sage sighed with a slow nod. "Yes, he did. I still can't figure that one out. Was that how he was able to capture Cye, Kaye, and Thunder?"
"I'm willing to bet it was," Ryo replied.
Sage decided just to follow him. Two was better than one at any rate. They marched across the vast Dynasty landscape, sneaking from building to building, trying to avoid any soldiers they saw as much as they possibly could. It wasn't easy, and three times they were almost spotted. At last they reached a small rounded shaped building that seemed to be relatively deserted. After a quick check, they bolted inside, and shut the door behind them. Ryo sank to his knees and glanced out the small window, watching for any foe or friend that might come near. Sage sat down against the opposite wall, his arms crossed, his demeanor frowning slightly. This building, though it was't the same one, brought back horrible memories; memories he'd just soon forget and bury deep within the back of his mind.
Scorpio frowned deeply as he and Rowen both tried their best to hold Kento back. The big guy had been cursing at the top of his lungs, and threatening to go after Talpa and Jakada himself. And at this point, that was very unwise to do. "Kento, enough!" Rowen tried to reason with him. He grunted as he felt himself being dragged across the land, through some dead grass, and the feeling didn't make him feel any good.
"I'm going to kill them both with my bare hands!" Kento roared angrily, his rounded face red and his small eyes burning with anger.
Scorpio tried in vain to hold him back, but he was pulled along with Rowen. "Stop this, Kento! You can't do it alone! You need to calm down and think this through!"
Kento wasn't listening though. He continued to make his way across the lands, heading toward the castle, wanting with all his will to just be there at this moment, pummeling both Talpa and Jakada, then escaping with Kaye in his arms and Cye and Thunder behind him. He was going to make them pay for abducting his fiance, his best friend, and the other guy who he didn't even know.
Rowen wasn't sure how much longer they could keep this up. If they didn't stop Kento all hell would break loose. The two continued to struggle to hold him back, but it seemed no good. And then suddenly, Scorpio noticed a familiar tiger and gasped. "Hey, Lightning's back!"
Kento immediately stopped struggling and turned to look in his direction. The tiger was slowly making his way toward him. "About time he got back!" he huffed.
Rowen was frowning though. Something didn't look right. Lightning seemed to be sad and angry at the same time. As if something had happened that he couldn't change. But what could that be though? The three boys made their way toward the tiger who sat down on his haunches.
"Where were you?" Kento demanded.
"Have you found the others?" Scorpio asked, hopefully.
"Why do you look so miserable?" Rowen asked.
Lightning's ears flattened back against his head as he slowly answered their questions one at a time. "I went to see Blaze in the mortal realm. No, I didn't find the others. Blaze told me that the Prophecy that Talpa seeks for, will come to pass. And that there's nothing any of us can do."
"WHAT?!"
Flash came to a stop on a tall mountain's ledge as she looked around. So far she and White Blaze were the only ones out, but that didn't mean she wasn't being watched. There was always that chance of that, and if so, then she had to be very careful. She glanced down at White Blaze.
"Think someone's watching us, boy?"
The tiger looked back at her with his wise eyes and rumbled affirmatively, before looking back toward that tall castle far in the distance. Yes, someone was watching them, and the tiger could about figure out who that someone was. And he didn't like it at all. But yet, what could they do to stop him?
Just then, the tiger noticed the rise in temperature and quickly looked back at Flash. Her symbol was flaring brightly in her forehead, sweat slowly dripped down her face as her hair began to blow freely behind her.
Back inside the castle, Jakada had been watching Flash and White Blaze through some kind of mystical mirror he had himself, a sneer upon his face. What did those two think they were doing? Did they think they would stand a chance at finding their other friends? Ha! They had another thing coming. He would just separate them again and this time imprison them all far away from one another, making sure they could never escape.
Wait, what was that smell? Something's burning. He snorted. It was probably Cale burning something in the kitchen again. Gee, it sure was hot in here. He could have sworn he had the temperature down to cool. Something flickering caught his eyes though and he immediately looked down at his armored feet. And suddenly, his screaming voice echoed throughout the castle.
Flash smirked as she let her power down. That would keep him busy for a while. She turned to White Blaze. "Let's go!"
And the tiger followed her quickly and silently.
Lightning shook his head, whether it was to calm himself, or to get rid of an oncoming headache, it was hard to say. He wasn't surprised at their reaction as he remembered having argued with Blaze that the Prophecy could be stopped, and yet the wolf had proved to him otherwise.
"Listen all of you!" he snapped, causing each of them to become still as they waited for him to speak. "I know none of you like this. Neither do I. For now there doesn't seem to be much that we can do. Once Talpa absorbs that power he will be too strong for any of you. However there is catch. He cannot get stronger than what he will become after he absorbs the presence that Kaye has seen in her dreams."
"Whoa, wait," Kento interrupted. "How did you know.."
"Blaze told me that as well," the tiger replied. "Now as I was saying, even though he can't gain more power, however you Ronins and Warriors can. All you need to do is keep practicing and gaining your strength."
"Flash grows more in power every time she uses her pyrokinesis," Scorpio said thoughtfully.
Lightning nodded. "Yes, I know. But I'm afraid it will take more than just fire power to defeat Talpa this time. It will take courage, determination, trust, hope, forgiveness, and so much more."
"So what do you suggest we do?" Rowen asked.
"Find the others and reunite with them. That's all I can say for now."
Night had come all too quickly for Cye and Thunder. Both boys were sitting on their beds and were silent for the time being. Every once in a while they would look toward Kaye, but so far she hadn't awoken. Cye was glad though. She needed all the sleep she could get, especially after what she had been through earlier today. His fists tightened and a tear dripped down out of his eye as he felt the anger build up inside of him. Thunder looked toward him with a frown. Should he say something, or no? He couldn't decide on what to do. Then the lights went out with no warning. Well, so much for struggling to make a decision. He laid down with a grimace and closed his eyes. Cye didn't even attempt to lay down. He was too angry to even think of sleeping, and he wasn't planning to. He was going to stay up and think of ways to humiliate Jakada if it took him days without sleep. Thunder stayed awake for about fifteen minutes before he finally succumbed to sleep, too exhausted to even stay awake anymore. Cye stayed awake for another hour and a half before sleep finally overtook him.
Talpa checked his viewing mirror carefully. Good, all three prisoners were now asleep. They would all need their rest for the final testing tomorrow. With a wave of his hand, the mirror vanished, and he stood up from his throne. It was time to retreat to his own room now. In an instant, he was suddenly gone from the throne room.
Ryo and Sage were both feeling tired now. One of them had to stay awake just in case Flash and White Blaze returned, or in case they were ambushed. After some thinking, Ryo allowed Sage to sleep first as he took the first watch. Each of them would sleep every two hours, and then guard after that. For now all was quiet. He couldn't see anyone coming or even sense anything. He was worried about Flash though, hoping she was okay. He couldn't understand why he felt close to her, but he did. And he wasn't sure if it was because they had the same element or not. He didn't think it was because of that. It had to be something so much more than that.
After two hours had passed, he shook Sage awake. The Ronin of Halo sat up, rubbing his tired eyes and stretched. "Two hours didn't seem two hours to me," he grumbled a little.
Ryo shrugged. "It never does when you're sleeping."
Sage nodded and stood up. "Go to sleep then, Ryo. I'll wake you when it's your turn again."
Ryo nodded and laid down as Sage stood near the window. Both boys were hoping this night would pass quickly, and that they would soon be reunited with everyone they knew.
Flash felt a quick tug of her shirt and turned her head to look at White Blaze. The tiger was staring at her with such intensity. Immediately she understood what he was trying to tell her.
"I know, time to sleep, right?"
The tiger let go of her and nodded, rumbling softly in reply.
Flash smiled and scratched his ear. "Okay, boy, you win. Know any good places?"
The tiger turned toward the left and led her down to a small abandoned cave. She followed him there and had to crawl through a low tunnel for about ten minutes before finally being able to stand up in the mouth of the cave.
"Not bad.. for being in the Dynasty," she said.
White Blaze laid down, watching her. Finally at last she laid down too, next to him, using his warm body as a pillow. The tiger didn't seem to mind at all. Both of them closed their eyes and soon drifted off to sleep.
In the end, there didn't seem to be much that Rowen, Kento, or Scorpio could even do for the time being. So instead they found shelter underneath a bridge that hid them well. For a while they stayed awake, talking of old memories they all had, laughing silently at the fun times, feeling sad at the bad times, and feeling miserable because they weren't altogether, and probably wouldn't be for a long time now. At last they all fell asleep, each of them breathing either softly, or snoring, their dreams taking them far away to a place where they could all be together, a place that not even Talpa could enter.
Kaye slowly awoke the moment the light had come on. She sat up, rubbing her eyes, expecting it to be around midnight or so. How wrong she was. A quick glance at her watch showed her it was about seven in the morning. "How did I sleep so long?" she wondered in surprise. She didn't know the answer, and she wasn't sure she wanted to know either. She stood up, stretched, and glanced over at the boys. Both were sound asleep. She thought about waking them, but decided against it. Instead, she grabbed some clean clothes and went to take a shower.
Thunder was the second one to wake up. He grimaced as he sat up and looked at his bandages. He would be glad when Talpa gave the permission to heal himself, but he doubt that would be any time soon. He heard water running, and when he didn't see Kaye in bed, he figured out the source of it. Cye was still asleep, and probably would be until breakfast arrived. The bathroom door opened a few minutes later, and Kaye emerged, dressed in a pair of dark blue jeans and an orange t-shirt. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail.
She looked up and smiled at Thunder. "Morning."
"Morning. You feeling better?" Thunder asked.
Kaye nodded. "Yeah, I think so. I don't believe I slept so long before."
"What happened last night took a lot out of you, I think," Thunder told her.
Kaye nodded as she sat down on her bed. She wasn't sure what to think of last night, and she could barely remember what had taken place. Nor was she certain whether or not she should feel concerned about it. She glanced toward Cye and saw he was still asleep. That was surprising.
"When did Cye fall asleep, Thunder?"
Thunder shrugged. "Sometime after I did think. So I can't really tell you." Kaye nodded her head.
The next several minutes were spent in silence. About twenty minutes later Cye awoke. He didn't greet the others, nor smiled at them, or even spoke to them. Instead, he took clean clothes and disappeared into the bathroom. When he emerged, showered and cleaned, he saw that breakfast had been delivered, and that his sister, and their new friend were now eating. He walked over to the remaining plate and silently ate his meal. Thunder and Kaye glanced at him worriedly. They had never seen him this silent before. Could something be wrong?
"Um, Cye, you okay?" Kaye asked.
"Just fine," Cye replied curtly. Kaye bit her lip and looked down at her meal.
Thunder frowned, but said nothing. Instead the three finished their meals and sat there in silence, neither knowing what to say to the other. Soon, to their dismay a soldier appeared with Talpa and Jakada behind them. The soldier took the empty trays away while Talpa and Jakada looked toward the prisoners.
"Good, you've all eaten," Talpa said. He looked toward Thunder. "Take your bandages off. If I see you've healed yourself, you know the consequences."
Thunder stood up, muttering. "I didn't heal myself." He slowly unwrapped the bandages, grimacing in pain. He allowed them to fall to the floor. The wounds he had were dried, crusted, red, and awfully horrifying looking. Nonetheless, they were no longer bleeding. Cye and Kaye grimaced at the sight of them.
Talpa studied them closely, and nodded. "Alright, good. Now, you may heal yourself."
Thunder nodded in relief and closed his eyes as he concentrated. He glowed red, his lightning bolt symbol flashed in his forehead, and his wounds began to heal, slowly at first, but then more quickly until finally, they were all gone. He opened his eyes, feeling much better, but a little drained.
"Thunder, you okay?" Kaye asked in concerned.
He nodded as he sat down on his bed. "Yeah.. just tired."
"Aww," Jakada smirked, "she cares for the boy, how touching."
"Yeah, and what's it to you?" Kaye retorted.
"Oh, nothing," Jakada sneered. "but what if Hardrock was to find out you've developed feelings for another?"
Kaye was a little confused at first, but then it hit her. "You bastard!" she screamed at him.
Thunder's eyes widen, and he made a face. "You're disgusting, Jakada! Besides, I, too, already have a girlfriend."
"Oh, really?" Talpa asked, interested.
Thunder crossed his arms. "Ask me no questions, I'll tell you no lies."
Talpa snorted. "Whatever, it's time for the last test. Let's go, all of you."
Thunder and Kaye unwillingly began to follow them, however Cye didn't move. Talpa stopped and looked back at him. "Let's go, Torrent!" Cye slowly stood up and followed them, but he was very quiet though.
They got to the throne room and looked around. There was some kind of large star in the center of the floor. On three different points there was a symbol which resembled their symbol. There was the kanji of determination, the kanji of Trust, and a lightning bolt. They armored up when told to, and then were chained to their places where their kanjis and symbol were, hooked up to several wires which were all connected to one another.
But they were confused though. What was this test suppose to do to them? Talpa must have guessed what they were thinking, because he suddenly said, "I suppose you are curious about this test here. Well, let me enlighten you. This test will cause each of you to feel incredible pain. It will be the worse you have ever felt here."
"You are a cruel monster!" Kaye shouted at him.
"Thank you for the compliment," Talpa said carelessly. He nodded at Sekhmet who was standing behind a machine with a lever on it. "Begin."
Sekhmet pulled the lever back toward him. Energy sparked through the wires that lay about on the floor, heading to each teenager. Immediately, Cye was surrounded by fire and poison, Kaye was surrounded by dead plants with large snapping thorns, and Thunder was surrounded by rubber and electricity. And then suddenly the pain began. Each of them screamed out in pain as the opposites of their elements attacked them viciously. What was worse, was the fact they could feel one another's pain besides their own.
Sweat poured down their faces, wounds developed on the bare places their armors did not cover. But even with their armors on, they could still feel the pain. It was terrible, burning, nauseating, making them feel weakened with each passing moment.
Talpa and Jakada watched closely, taking note of how they struggled against unconsciousness. They realized their prisoners were getting stronger, which was a good sign. They would need them to stay awake as long as possible for the Prophecy to become fulfilled.
Then at last, they had all sank to their knees, and then fell forward, unconscious, Talpa nodded to Sekhmet. "Shut it down."
Sekhmet obeyed, and then stood there in silence as his master and Jakada approached the prisoners.
"They took it quite well, don't you think?" Jakada smirked.
"Yes, and they are much stronger than the last two times. Now I just need for the Dreamwalker to train her brother, and once the training is over, I will have that which I desire."
He signaled Cale and Dais over and had them unchain Kaye and Thunder, having them sent back to their room. He, himself, then unchained Cye and lifted him up. The boy's head went back, but he didn't awake. Talpa carried him back to the room and laid him on his bed. The other two prisoners were already on their bed, out cold. It would probably be a few hours before they all awakened. Talpa stepped out of the room, then looked at Cale who was still standing there. "Get someone to put a new door on here. One made of steel, so it cannot be broken again." Cale nodded, bowed, and left his presence.
Talpa turned around, and smiled as he walked down the hall. Soon, in less than a week, he would have what he had been waiting for, and no one, not even Ryo of the Wildfire would be able to stop him, with or without the power of the Inferno Armor. And his laughter suddenly echoed throughout the castle.