"Well, heroes, it looks like it's down to you and me." Shiree spread her hands and smiled viciously. "I wonder what's going to happen now."
"Cye, get back to back," Ryo ordered, tensing. He wondered what this woman was up to. "If you see another creature..."
"Oh, don't worry about the creatures," Shiree interrupted, that strange smile still on her face. "Worry about this." She raised her hand palm upward, then relaxed with a triumphant smile.
There was a pause. "Worry about what?" Cye asked, curious despite himself.
Shiree sighed long-sufferingly. "That," she said, pointing behind him. Ryo took a step back and half turned, keeping his focus on Shiree, but able to look back over his shoulder. His eyes widened. "Cye, get back!"
------------------------------
Back at the Koji house, Kayura looked on in complete confusion as Mia dashed around the house. "Mia-san, I mean no disrespect, but just what on Earth are you doing?"
"We have to find them!" Mia stopped leafing wildly through books and looked at Kayura strangely. "You're not going to just stand there while they're in danger, are you? The Ronins would come for me. Now somebody has to come for them."
"Yes, but Mia, what can you possibly do? Er, no offense." Kayura flinched slightly at the annoyed look the taller woman flashed her.
Mia held up a floppy disk with a triumphant smile. "I can find out what's going on."
-----------------
"Whoa... where am I?" Rowen asked groggily as he opened his eyes.
"Have you ever noticed that's the first thing people say when they come to?" a voice replied brightly from somewhere in the darkness. "It's always 'what happened?' or 'where am I?' They never pause to think that maybe the person they're asking doesn't have a clue either."
Rowen winced at the cheerful, vaguely familiar voice. "Uh, that's Tigermoon, right?"
"Yes, it's me. And no, before you ask, I don't know what happened, where we are or what your name is," she replied from wherever she was. She started humming a little tune he didn't recognize.
Rowen decided not to bother asking anything else, this person was just going to give him some incoherent answer he stood no chance of understanding with his headache. He sat up, surprised that he could move, since even breathing was a very painful experience. "I think I broke a rib," he croaked, adding a swear he picked up at an airport.
Tigermoon stopped humming in some surprise. "Never heard that before," she said in interest. "You're armor's gone, isn't it," she added in an entirely different tone.
Rowen swore again as he brushed his fingers down the very un-armor-like cloth of his t-shirt. "That's never a good sign."
---------------------------------------------------------
"Found anything?" Kayura asked impatiently, leaning over Mia's shoulder.
The woman looked up from her computer. "Please stop hanging over me. It's distracting, and your hair keeps slipping into my face." Mia swatted aside Kayura's dark hair as she focused intently on the computer screen. "Why don't you go outside and keep an eye on that distortion in the sky," she suggested, more to get Kayura out of her way than anything else.
The last of the Ancients sighed heavily, spinning on her heel. "All right, call me if you need any help," she called as she left.
"Sure I will," Mia sighed under her breath, rolling her eyes. Kayura could do a lot of things, but hacking into old computer encryptions was not one of them.
Mia sighed and took a swig of chai as she typed in some keywords. It wasn't likely that her grandfather had any information on energy distortions, but it was worth trying.
Suddenly she sat forward and blinked. In response to her search, a single listing had come up, from a folder in her grandfather's database she hadn't known existed. Mia typed in the DOS command for the file and the archaic document opened. There were only a few lines in it.
"Legends seem to indicate that between the mythic Nether World and ours, there was a buffer realm acting like a hallway between two rooms. However, around the year 900, all myths relating to this world ceased... as if the realm had been 'lost' to history..."
Hadn't Talpa started his conquest around the year 900? Mia finished off her chai as a few scattered jigsaw pieces started rattling in her mind. Well, she was lucky today. She had a genuine person from the Netherworld right in her home. It wouldn't be too hard to ask.
"Kayura!" she called out, leaping from her chair. "I think I found something..."
-------------------------
Kaye groaned as she came to. She checked herself quickly for broken bones, finding herself whole except for a long, nasty gouge down her arm. She was in a tiny, dim room with barely enough light for her eyes to pick out shapes. There weren't really any shapes to see, just a crumpled-looking figure next to her.
Kaye knelt down next to Dais's body and looked him over. His armor had vanished, leaving him in some ancient-style clothes that looked like a karate gi. The creature's claws had left her relatively unhurt, but Dais was breathing strangely and there was a series of diagonal slashes down his chest.
Kaye sat back, wondering what to do. There wasn't enough light for her to see the damage and she didn't want to just leave him there. Touching her finger to her forehead, she attempted to summon her kanji so that its aura would give her some light. Before her symbol could react, there was a sudden flash of light as the cell door opened.
"I'm sorry about this, little tigress," a voice said behind her. Kaye whirled and looked up into the facemask of a very familiar helmet. It was orange, with a heavy jawline, a purple crest on top, and lopsided horns on either side. However, the eyes behind the mask were not a deep warm indigo. They were a strange, half-wild golden green.
"But remember," said the voice of the person who was not Kento of Hardrock, "You did pick the hard way."
------------------------------------
"That's right," Kayura said excitedly. "The lost realm! I remember hearing about that..." She trailed off and looked into the distance, her eyes clouded painfully, as if her memories were not good.
"What did you hear?" Mia asked, absently ruffling the fur on White Blaze's head.
Kayura heaved a huge sigh. "Talpa completely stripped the realm of its power to fuel all sorts of projects. Lava pits. Netherspirits. Gates. Brainwashing." She fiddled with the end of her ponytail, avoiding Mia's gaze. "I'm pretty sure he used all the inhabitants the same way he used the ones here. Herded them into towers and burned off their energy. That was a long time ago."
"Well, then, that's our lead," Mia said, sitting back. "I just don't know what to make of it."
------------------------------------
"You have the advantage of my name," Kaye said evenly. "But I don't know who you are."
"I am Hardrock."
"No, you aren't," Kaye said, shaking her head, eyes wide.
"Very well... I'm Cosa. I do believe we've met," he said, pulling off Kento's helmet.
"What did you do to Kento?" Kaye whispered, taking a step back.
"I don't need to answer that," Cosa said, hefting the massive naginata. "It would only... upset you."
"I suppose you're here for our armors," she said casually, fighting down a wave of nausea. "Supposing I did give mine to you. What would happen then?"
Cosa blinked at her, grip relaxing on the iron naginata. "We would spare your life."
-----------------------
Back in the cell with Tigermoon and Rowen...
"Lest new flamingos be begot
Like llamas in the rain.
Like llamas in the rain, my friends, like llamas in the raaaaaaaaiiiin...."
Rowen whimpered, clutching his forehead, as Tigermoon sang cheerfully to herself in the corner. Why couldn't he have been stuck in a cold, dark, damp cell with someone moderately sane, like Sage? At this point, he would settle for anyone -- even Talpa. Tigermoon abruptly grew bored with her song and started a new one. Rowen tried very hard not to listen, by stuffing his fists in his ears and humming, but some of the words carried through. It seemed to feature a python, a pillowcase and several large birds.
The girl paused in her song as she struggled to think of a rhyme for "owl." "Tigermoon?" he asked quickly.
"Owl, cowl, dowel... hmn?"
"Why are you doing this to me?"
"Singing?"
"Yes."
"Oh. It's habit I guess. When I was in the Dynasty, and I did something wrong, Badamon used to lock me in the shower stall in the dungeon bathroom of the north tower. Don't ask me why the dungeon was in the tower, I worked there for centuries, never figured it out myself."
"You had shower stalls in the Dynasty?" Rowen blurted before he could stop himself.
"Of course, where else would we wash up, the lava pits?" Tigermoon replied severely. "Anyway, he used to put a few netherspirits on guard in case I tried to space shift... downright annoying those things are, with all the flutes and the awful music..." she trailed off into annoyed mumbling before picking up the topic again. "So I used to sing at them... drove 'em wild, that did..." she trailed off again, laughing to herself.
"I can see why," Rowen muttered, plugging up his ears again. He unplugged them when another question struck him. "You're how old?"
"Er... four hundred fifteen this July."
"Ah," Rowen said blankly, having nothing else to say.
-------------------------
"Not a very good deal." Kaye leaned against the wall. "You underestimate me. What's in this so-called deal for me?"
Cosa's eyes turned crafty as he looked at the woman. She looked back at him coolly. "You want to join us...?"
"Only if it's worth my time." Kaye bit her lip as she forced her gaze to remain even. "What are you planning to do?"
"We're going to take our own back," Cosa snapped with narrowed eyes. "Talpa ruined this place. The whole realm is falling apart -- we thought we would die with it. Then you people came on the scene." He shot an utterly disgusted look at her. Kaye put her hands behind her back and refrained from strangling him. "That staff had enough power to piece it back together, but you're all so protective of it... Then Doste came up with the only good idea he's ever had. Why don't we just take your armors? There's enough energy in them to resurrect this place."
"Oh," Kaye said queasily.
"So will you give up your armor, or do I take it from you, like I did to Hardrock?"
Kaye's breathing changed as her fingernails dug into her palms. "Go away. Let me think."
Cosa bowed in a very exaggerated way and left. The heavy door slammed behind him, leaving her in darkness.
"That bastard," Kaye said very softly.
"Classic villain," a voice croaked behind her. "... idiots, all of them..."
Kaye jumped as she turned around. "Dais?"
"Just look at them cross-eyed and they instantly dump their evil plans on you. Always. You know, it makes the real villains look quite bad," he said, struggling to sit up.
Kaye lit her kanji and watched as the Warlord tugged his eyepatch into place. "You were listening?"
"You learn a lot about people when they think you're out of it," he stated, looking annoyed at the wounds across his chest. "I suppose now you're going to find Hardrock?"
"You bet," she replied cheerfully, bending down to help him up. "And you're coming with me."
"Cye, get back to back," Ryo ordered, tensing. He wondered what this woman was up to. "If you see another creature..."
"Oh, don't worry about the creatures," Shiree interrupted, that strange smile still on her face. "Worry about this." She raised her hand palm upward, then relaxed with a triumphant smile.
There was a pause. "Worry about what?" Cye asked, curious despite himself.
Shiree sighed long-sufferingly. "That," she said, pointing behind him. Ryo took a step back and half turned, keeping his focus on Shiree, but able to look back over his shoulder. His eyes widened. "Cye, get back!"
------------------------------
Back at the Koji house, Kayura looked on in complete confusion as Mia dashed around the house. "Mia-san, I mean no disrespect, but just what on Earth are you doing?"
"We have to find them!" Mia stopped leafing wildly through books and looked at Kayura strangely. "You're not going to just stand there while they're in danger, are you? The Ronins would come for me. Now somebody has to come for them."
"Yes, but Mia, what can you possibly do? Er, no offense." Kayura flinched slightly at the annoyed look the taller woman flashed her.
Mia held up a floppy disk with a triumphant smile. "I can find out what's going on."
-----------------
"Whoa... where am I?" Rowen asked groggily as he opened his eyes.
"Have you ever noticed that's the first thing people say when they come to?" a voice replied brightly from somewhere in the darkness. "It's always 'what happened?' or 'where am I?' They never pause to think that maybe the person they're asking doesn't have a clue either."
Rowen winced at the cheerful, vaguely familiar voice. "Uh, that's Tigermoon, right?"
"Yes, it's me. And no, before you ask, I don't know what happened, where we are or what your name is," she replied from wherever she was. She started humming a little tune he didn't recognize.
Rowen decided not to bother asking anything else, this person was just going to give him some incoherent answer he stood no chance of understanding with his headache. He sat up, surprised that he could move, since even breathing was a very painful experience. "I think I broke a rib," he croaked, adding a swear he picked up at an airport.
Tigermoon stopped humming in some surprise. "Never heard that before," she said in interest. "You're armor's gone, isn't it," she added in an entirely different tone.
Rowen swore again as he brushed his fingers down the very un-armor-like cloth of his t-shirt. "That's never a good sign."
---------------------------------------------------------
"Found anything?" Kayura asked impatiently, leaning over Mia's shoulder.
The woman looked up from her computer. "Please stop hanging over me. It's distracting, and your hair keeps slipping into my face." Mia swatted aside Kayura's dark hair as she focused intently on the computer screen. "Why don't you go outside and keep an eye on that distortion in the sky," she suggested, more to get Kayura out of her way than anything else.
The last of the Ancients sighed heavily, spinning on her heel. "All right, call me if you need any help," she called as she left.
"Sure I will," Mia sighed under her breath, rolling her eyes. Kayura could do a lot of things, but hacking into old computer encryptions was not one of them.
Mia sighed and took a swig of chai as she typed in some keywords. It wasn't likely that her grandfather had any information on energy distortions, but it was worth trying.
Suddenly she sat forward and blinked. In response to her search, a single listing had come up, from a folder in her grandfather's database she hadn't known existed. Mia typed in the DOS command for the file and the archaic document opened. There were only a few lines in it.
"Legends seem to indicate that between the mythic Nether World and ours, there was a buffer realm acting like a hallway between two rooms. However, around the year 900, all myths relating to this world ceased... as if the realm had been 'lost' to history..."
Hadn't Talpa started his conquest around the year 900? Mia finished off her chai as a few scattered jigsaw pieces started rattling in her mind. Well, she was lucky today. She had a genuine person from the Netherworld right in her home. It wouldn't be too hard to ask.
"Kayura!" she called out, leaping from her chair. "I think I found something..."
-------------------------
Kaye groaned as she came to. She checked herself quickly for broken bones, finding herself whole except for a long, nasty gouge down her arm. She was in a tiny, dim room with barely enough light for her eyes to pick out shapes. There weren't really any shapes to see, just a crumpled-looking figure next to her.
Kaye knelt down next to Dais's body and looked him over. His armor had vanished, leaving him in some ancient-style clothes that looked like a karate gi. The creature's claws had left her relatively unhurt, but Dais was breathing strangely and there was a series of diagonal slashes down his chest.
Kaye sat back, wondering what to do. There wasn't enough light for her to see the damage and she didn't want to just leave him there. Touching her finger to her forehead, she attempted to summon her kanji so that its aura would give her some light. Before her symbol could react, there was a sudden flash of light as the cell door opened.
"I'm sorry about this, little tigress," a voice said behind her. Kaye whirled and looked up into the facemask of a very familiar helmet. It was orange, with a heavy jawline, a purple crest on top, and lopsided horns on either side. However, the eyes behind the mask were not a deep warm indigo. They were a strange, half-wild golden green.
"But remember," said the voice of the person who was not Kento of Hardrock, "You did pick the hard way."
------------------------------------
"That's right," Kayura said excitedly. "The lost realm! I remember hearing about that..." She trailed off and looked into the distance, her eyes clouded painfully, as if her memories were not good.
"What did you hear?" Mia asked, absently ruffling the fur on White Blaze's head.
Kayura heaved a huge sigh. "Talpa completely stripped the realm of its power to fuel all sorts of projects. Lava pits. Netherspirits. Gates. Brainwashing." She fiddled with the end of her ponytail, avoiding Mia's gaze. "I'm pretty sure he used all the inhabitants the same way he used the ones here. Herded them into towers and burned off their energy. That was a long time ago."
"Well, then, that's our lead," Mia said, sitting back. "I just don't know what to make of it."
------------------------------------
"You have the advantage of my name," Kaye said evenly. "But I don't know who you are."
"I am Hardrock."
"No, you aren't," Kaye said, shaking her head, eyes wide.
"Very well... I'm Cosa. I do believe we've met," he said, pulling off Kento's helmet.
"What did you do to Kento?" Kaye whispered, taking a step back.
"I don't need to answer that," Cosa said, hefting the massive naginata. "It would only... upset you."
"I suppose you're here for our armors," she said casually, fighting down a wave of nausea. "Supposing I did give mine to you. What would happen then?"
Cosa blinked at her, grip relaxing on the iron naginata. "We would spare your life."
-----------------------
Back in the cell with Tigermoon and Rowen...
"Lest new flamingos be begot
Like llamas in the rain.
Like llamas in the rain, my friends, like llamas in the raaaaaaaaiiiin...."
Rowen whimpered, clutching his forehead, as Tigermoon sang cheerfully to herself in the corner. Why couldn't he have been stuck in a cold, dark, damp cell with someone moderately sane, like Sage? At this point, he would settle for anyone -- even Talpa. Tigermoon abruptly grew bored with her song and started a new one. Rowen tried very hard not to listen, by stuffing his fists in his ears and humming, but some of the words carried through. It seemed to feature a python, a pillowcase and several large birds.
The girl paused in her song as she struggled to think of a rhyme for "owl." "Tigermoon?" he asked quickly.
"Owl, cowl, dowel... hmn?"
"Why are you doing this to me?"
"Singing?"
"Yes."
"Oh. It's habit I guess. When I was in the Dynasty, and I did something wrong, Badamon used to lock me in the shower stall in the dungeon bathroom of the north tower. Don't ask me why the dungeon was in the tower, I worked there for centuries, never figured it out myself."
"You had shower stalls in the Dynasty?" Rowen blurted before he could stop himself.
"Of course, where else would we wash up, the lava pits?" Tigermoon replied severely. "Anyway, he used to put a few netherspirits on guard in case I tried to space shift... downright annoying those things are, with all the flutes and the awful music..." she trailed off into annoyed mumbling before picking up the topic again. "So I used to sing at them... drove 'em wild, that did..." she trailed off again, laughing to herself.
"I can see why," Rowen muttered, plugging up his ears again. He unplugged them when another question struck him. "You're how old?"
"Er... four hundred fifteen this July."
"Ah," Rowen said blankly, having nothing else to say.
-------------------------
"Not a very good deal." Kaye leaned against the wall. "You underestimate me. What's in this so-called deal for me?"
Cosa's eyes turned crafty as he looked at the woman. She looked back at him coolly. "You want to join us...?"
"Only if it's worth my time." Kaye bit her lip as she forced her gaze to remain even. "What are you planning to do?"
"We're going to take our own back," Cosa snapped with narrowed eyes. "Talpa ruined this place. The whole realm is falling apart -- we thought we would die with it. Then you people came on the scene." He shot an utterly disgusted look at her. Kaye put her hands behind her back and refrained from strangling him. "That staff had enough power to piece it back together, but you're all so protective of it... Then Doste came up with the only good idea he's ever had. Why don't we just take your armors? There's enough energy in them to resurrect this place."
"Oh," Kaye said queasily.
"So will you give up your armor, or do I take it from you, like I did to Hardrock?"
Kaye's breathing changed as her fingernails dug into her palms. "Go away. Let me think."
Cosa bowed in a very exaggerated way and left. The heavy door slammed behind him, leaving her in darkness.
"That bastard," Kaye said very softly.
"Classic villain," a voice croaked behind her. "... idiots, all of them..."
Kaye jumped as she turned around. "Dais?"
"Just look at them cross-eyed and they instantly dump their evil plans on you. Always. You know, it makes the real villains look quite bad," he said, struggling to sit up.
Kaye lit her kanji and watched as the Warlord tugged his eyepatch into place. "You were listening?"
"You learn a lot about people when they think you're out of it," he stated, looking annoyed at the wounds across his chest. "I suppose now you're going to find Hardrock?"
"You bet," she replied cheerfully, bending down to help him up. "And you're coming with me."