Alecie looked at the Ronins then back to her father, taking a deep breath. She had anticipated this reaction.

"Father, these are the Ronin warriors, I have brought them to help us." She said. King Tallas gave his daughter a piercing look then turned his attention the Ronins.

"I'm sorry for your inconvenience, but my daughter was wrong, we don't need your help." He said as he turned his back, preparing to leave.

"Father!" Alecie said trying to get her father to reconsider is decision. "I saw what the city looks like. This is going to turn into a war. We can't win this on our own…" Alecie was cut off as her father turned around with an angry look.

"Yes, you are right, this is turning out to be the beginning of a war, but we do not need the help of …." He gave a nasty look to the Ronin's "earthwalkers." He spat.

Alecie looked to the Ronin's with an apologetic look. "Then I brought them here for nothing." She said.

"You should have thought of that before you abandoned your people." Her father said to her. Alecie scowled as she took a step closer to her father.

"That's not true! I was trying to help my people. I had a feeling that this was going to turn into something big and I was right! We can't win this alone…."

"Silence!" King Tallas yelled as Alecie took a small step back. "I will not have my daughter talk to me that way." Alecie bowed her head unsure of what to do. She knew that the Ronin's help would be required, but her father refused to listen to reason.

"Your Highness." Sakura spoke up as she stepped out of the cluster of her friends. King Tallas looked her over assessing her.

"Who are you?" he demanded.

"I am Sakura Sanada." She said giving a slight bow. "And I believe that me and my friends will be able to help you. We have encountered Broadway before; we know the way he works. I think that we could be a valuable asset in helping you defeat him."

"You?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. "A woman? Who fights?" He turned to Alecie. "You brought back a girl warrior? What use is that?" Sakura looked shocked then she took on a look of determination.  Apparently cloudrunner girls weren't allowed to fight as so the king assumed that earthwalker girls couldn't either.

"Don't underestimate me because I'm a girl." Sakura said evenly. "I can fight just as well as Ryo or any of the other Ronins." She said as Ryo and the others nodded to show that this was true.

"Please your highness, let us help you. And together we can beat Broadway." King Tallas studied Sakura intently. She was persistent he would give her that, and the spark of determination in her eyes reminded him of his own daughter. He gave a deep sigh.

"I'll tell you what. I will allow you to stay the night here. I will talk this over with my advisors and generals. I will let you know in the morning if you are allowed to stay or not."

Sakura gave a bow. "I thank you, your highness." She said. King Tallas looked at her before her turned to Alecie.

"Alecie Lynette" he said as she gave a small cringe. She was defiantly in trouble. "You will show these…Ronins to a place that they can stay for tonight. Then, I want to talk with you."

Alecie gave a small bow. "Yes sir." She said obediently as she walked out of the room, the ronin's following her. After they were out of hearing distance Rowen spoke up.

"Why didn't you tell us what your father's reaction was going to be?" he asked. Alecie hung her head. She knew that this was going to happen.

"Because, I was afraid that if I said something that you wouldn't have come. And we desperately need your help. My father knows it too he just…doesn't like to admit it."

Everyone fell silent as she led them to another room.

"I'm sorry. I'm going to talk to my father. Maybe he will allow you to stay." She said. "Please don't hold this against him. He really is a good ruler; he is just trying to do what is best for the cloudrunners."

"We understand." Rowen said. Alecie flashed him a grateful smile "I will be back soon." She said as she left to go talk to her father. Once she had left everyone sat down.

"Well, that was interesting." Ryo finally commented.

"Defiantly not the reaction I was expecting." Cye said.

"Why do you think that the king hates us so much?" Rowen asked.

"I don't think is it us personally, but all earthwalkers." Sakura said.

"I guess the best thing for us to do it to just wait and see how things turn out." Anubis said. Everyone nodded as they sat there, waiting for Alecie's return