Recarnation 3
Chapter 1
_________
Disclaimer: I did not make
up the Sailor Senshi, yada
yada. You know the drill,
I don't have to waste my time
writing this.
Okay, this is the third part
of recarnation. Since I took
U.S. History AP last year, some
of the facts of the Civil War
might be little off. Bear
with me, I'm about to have
a nervous breakdown. Too
much work, to much studying,
too much school.
Character Profile:
Scarlet Yue - Serenity
Matthew Yan - Endymion
Keith - Kunzite
Melinda - Minako (Sunshine - Aphrodite)
Jared - Jadeite
Rachel - Rei (Firefly - Eris )
Zachary - Zoicite
Anna - Ami (Waterlily - Athena)
Nathan - Nephrite
Michelle - Makoto (Thunderbird - Hera)
____________
Recarnation 3
Chapter1
Part 3, West Virginia, 1863, One month before the burning of Atlanta
________________________
"Jared?"
A littering voice spoke from behind the swishing curtains of the carriage.
"Yes, Scarlet?" The young soldier driving the carriage turned half around,
one eye on the carriage and the other on the road.
"Where are we right now?"
"West Virginia."
A stiffening silence descended upon the group as Jared's answer sunk. West
Virginia, which tore itself somewhat illegally from Virginia the year before, was
filled with poor white trash. And anyone with half a functioning brain cell would
realize, from the carriage's elaborate exterior design, that Scarlet's family was
wealthy and would pay any unholy amount of sum to have her back, sound and safe.
The young, silver-haired man riding on the right of the carriage ran a hand
through his hair as his cold, gunmetal grey eyes suspiciously scanned the surroundings.
They were passing through a narrow stretch of land, enclosed by hills that created
excellent places for ambushes, which he, as a hardened soldier, knew well.
It was truly an odd picture that these people presented. One beautiful noble
lady, traveling with four young, extremely handsome men. Would one not think that this
lady's elders had better sense than letting her alone all these men? But Scarlet's
parents were long dead, and she lived with her dear uncle, who trusted these soldiers
with his whole heart and soul.
A strawberry-haired young man with surprisingly feminine features rode on
the carriage's left. His leaf-green eyes were sharp, his soft appearance belying his
steel-hard intelligence. His hand absently stroked the holster of his gun, opting for
a bored expression, while in reality he was intently calculating the angles of attacks,
and estimating the position and speed they would need to defend themselves. Zachary,
or Zach, was the strategist of their group, the man who was good who drew up the battle
plans when he had time, but in surprise attacks, he, like everyone else, relied on
Keith's military expertise. Little did he know how useful his thoughts would prove to be.
At the same time, the soldier with the long, chocolate colored hair and eyes was
riding behind them, keeping off any surprise attacks from behind. There was nothing
to be nervous about, nothing he could see or hear, anyway, but he could not shake of
the feeling of foreboding. He had been meditating, asking the stars the night before,
and they had promised that their lives would be changed forever by today's events.
Of course, since they were so mysterious, whether did would be changing for the good
or bad he did not know.
Jared was the driver, a young man with sun-kissed blond hair and merry azure
eyes. But now, the normally ever-present smirk on his features and the dancing spark
in his eyes had been submerged by alertness. He is an incorrigible flirt that chases
everything with an attractive face and curvaceous figure. Jared is a man of many talents.
He's an excellent soldier, proud and alert, but unlike others, he stills views life
through a playful eye. His motto is 'Life is short, make most of it,' or in other words,
enjoy life while you can, and a trip once a while to the nearest brothel wouldn't hurt
either.
The object of their protection was inside the carriage: Scarlet Yue. Scarlet,
niece of a wealthy planter, was an extremely mysterious and intriguing beauty. Her
ash-blond hair trailed behind her in a cute hairstyle, and seemed almost silver in
the sunlight. Her limbs were proportioned attractively, her body slender and petite.
Her skin was as smooth as silk, unmarred by any kind of imperfection, and her
lily-white hands, listlessly folded in her lap, had never seen a hard day of work.
Those big, innocent blue eyes were full of trust, without guile or deviousness,
every emotion displayed on her sweet features. She was always quick to smile,
a gentle and kind-hearted young virgin who had been the recipient of many
unwanted proclamations of gentlemen's undying love.
But now, every nerve on each of the travelers' bodies was on high-alert.
Though Scarlet had no certain clue on why she was feeling uneasy, she was almost
able to touch the tension in the air. Her male guardians outside, however, felt
watchful eyes on their back every step on the way, and all four men were prepared
to do battle. A small bird singing was the only sound that broke the silence.
Keith cursed under his breath for the interruption before going neatly back on
track as he surveyed his surroundings. This time, he thought an entire string of
curses that would make any sailor blush. The narrow stretch of road would be hard
to fight on: no place to maneuver and to retreat. He could almost feel the weight
resting on his broad shoulders. Among them, in a case of emergency, he was the one
who came up with the plans as the leader, his instincts being one of his most
lethal weapons. And right now, his gut feeling was telling him that something was
very, very wrong – not to mention dangerous.
He had no idea how correct his gut feelings were.
_______________________________________________
Melinda raised an eyebrow as she watched the carriage's slow progress
through the deserted land. Her eagle-sharp eyes immediately memorized the guards'
position, and her mind went into over-drive, drawing up battle-plans at the speed
of light. She fingered the sword strapped to her belt lightly, and voiced a serious
of trills that would sound like a nightingale's song to anyone else listening.
She waited a few minutes, her eyes never leaving her target. Even as she felt a
presence behind her, she refused to turn around.
"Well, well, I never thought Lady Fortune could be this beautiful. That carriage
alone must be worth half a fortune."
Melinda smiled slightly at Rachel's sarcastic voice. She twirled a strand of
golden hair around a finger, before turning to face her raven-haired friend, addressing
her by her alias.
"Really, Firefly, I thought I heard you curse Lady Fortune to the seven hells and
beyond yesterday, calling her the ugliest of demons you've ever had the misfortune to lay
your eyes on? Who could have thought that that fickle tramp could return into your good
graces this quickly? I don't even think I could do that."
Rachel smiled sardonically, her violet eyes bored. Melinda turned to the tall
auburn-haired girl in their group.
"Michelle, what do you say? Attack now, or attack later?"
Michelle rolled her emerald orbs.
"Sunshine, hon, you ALWAYS ask me this question, and my answer is ALWAYS the same."
She drew a green mask over her face, revealing only her eyes, and noticed out the
corner of her eyes that Rachel had done the same.
"We attack now."
Melinda gave a curt nod, her eyes straying back to the carriage.
"Thunderbird, you're too rash, but I think I'll agree with you on this one.
We know those hills like the back of our hand, but I don't believe those things"
she nodded her head in the carriage's direction "have any clue that they'll be attacked.
Time to use our strongest weapon: surprise!"
Having securely pulled her mask over her face, Melinda prepared to launch an
attack, but an arm in front her stopped her movement. Her surprised sapphire eyes
turned to rest on the last person in the group, a young girl with short dark hair,
which always seemed have a curious bluish tint to it, and raised an eyebrow.
"What is it, Anna?"
Anna was quickly scanning the group, and her voice was hushed and low as
she spoke.
"We need to be careful. Those guards, they're strong. And Melinda, you're
wrong in your assumption. They know very well that they're being watched; it is
visible in the way their muscles are tense. These guardians are guarding more
than just valuables, I am certain they're guarding whatever is in the carriage,
and it's not a non-human object. Keep your eyes on those guns, these men
definitely know how to use them."
Melinda turned back to the carriage, though one eye was still kept on her
friends.
"I think Waterlily is right. These guards will definitely put up a fight;
we have to capture whatever is in the carriage. The Seagian cliffs," she indicated
the twin boulders on the side of the road "use them as hide bases. We charge on my
command."
The four girls, masked and fully prepared, split off into groups. Anna's
blue robes mingled with Melinda's gold ones as she stopped suddenly. Rachel and
Michelle also halted in their tracks, wondering what the petite girl would say.
Anna, however, had an unusual mischievous glint in her eyes.
"Sunshine, I think they'll be really _confused _ when we attack."
The rest of their group echoed Anna's smirk, and disappeared behind their
assigned posts. It was time for a surprise attack.
________________________
Keith felt burning eyes boring into his back the whole way, and he mentally
cursed when his sharp eyes found no one. Whoever it was, they were good if they
could escape his detection. No one spoke, and even Scarlet had decided not to chatter
constantly as was her usual manner on trips. His hands tightened on the reins of his
horse as he felt Nathan suddenly stiffen.
The brown-haired man spurred his chestnut stallion forward, his chocolate
eyes worried beyond what Keith had ever seen. Nathan's tone was low and urgent.
"Keith, I've just felt incredible power shifts in the air. And what's more,
not even I was able to trace or follow the surges of energy, let alone identify them."
Keith nodded absently.
"There are two group we have to be careful of, so keep your eyes peeled."
Nathan raised an eyebrow.
"Two? I thought there was only one."
"No, there are two. They call themselves The Goddesses of Vengeances, and
the other group is known as The Daughters of Death. They both work for The Phantom
in Black."
Nathan shook his head, his long, wavy hair flying.
"That's one group, Keith. Haven't you noticed that the attackers are always
female, and there are always four of them? Not to mention that the two groups use the
same eastern fighting techniques, roughly translated as: The Fire Dragon, The Shimmering
Rhapsody, The Golden Phoenix, and the Sizzling Tiger."
Keith raised an eyebrow as he motioned to Zach to watch the back also as Nathan
continued talking to him, explaining to Keith the reasoning behind the attacks. The
silver-haired man was a good soldier, but he did not have Nathan's extensive knowledge
of techniques. Then again, Nathan spent most his time pouring over ancient manuscripts
with Zach and watching the stars. Keith glared at his second-in-command, annoyed but
intrigued at the same time.
"What in the names of all that's holy are those?"
Nathan sighed; he shouldn't have gotten into this discussion at all. But too
late now, he thought as he wearily tried to summarize.
"The Shimmering Rhapsody is an ancient but solid defensive technique that
starts with the sword tip pointed directly outward, allowing the user to react quickly
to any changes in the opponent's movements and thus prevent serious injury.
The Fire Dragon is comprised of two broad swords, slightly shorter than normal
ones. The starting position consists of both swords crossed over the user's chest, a
technique that is extremely violent and bloody. It kills quickly, but leaves a bloody
mess. The Fire Dragon is powerful in the sense that the user controls his movements
separately, each sword moving completely independently of the other, making it almost
impossible for the opponent to predict their slashes.
The Sizzling Tiger is used with a curved saber. Whenever those bandits kill
someone, the saber is used always as the last tool for slicing up the body; it's their
trademark. But the Sizzling Tiger is also very dangerous, beginning with the dull side
resting lightly against a hip. It is very difficult to avoid the tip when the user cuts
a figure eight slash, or an upward z-slash. There is always an incredible amount of
power behind each thrust and hit, for the saber has a unique quality caused by its
curved form that magnifies the strength used three times.
The leader of them, either known as Aphrodite or Sunshine, is the wielder of
the Golden Phoenix. They say she's deadly than any cobra, and lovely than the goddess
of beauty herself. She's the only one of the four girls who ever shows her face.
Rumors has it that men are so blinded by her looks that they lose the will to fight,
wishing only to gaze upon her. Her face is supposed to be as enchanting as the
fairest flowers, skin the color of freshly poured cream, eyes as clear as the Aegean sea…"
Keith was almost ready to strangle Nathan as he raved about the girl's beauty.
This was not a time to be daydreaming about a female bandit, no matter how pretty she
was. He was only concerned about them getting out of West Virginia as soon as possible.
If it meant that he would never see this girl, then he would welcome the chance with
open arms.
"Cut out the poetry, Nathan! Now what can the Golden Phoenix do?"
Nathan shot Keith a most wounded look, but decided against pissing his already
aggravated leader royally off.
"The Golden Phoenix is a sword technique that originated in the Far East. It is
said that no one but the founder of it has ever truly mastered all the movements. The
Golden Phoenix is extremely hard to learn. It requires agility and flexibility to an almost
inhuman extent. No one has ever seen the ultimate attack of the Phoenix, and those who
have fought Aphrodite are said to be plagued by nightmares of her sword slashing at them.
From what I've read, the Phoenix is the deadliest of all techniques, both in attack and
defense style, but it's so difficult that no one else has ever survived the training.
The sword is extremely thin and slender, but harder than steel and softer than a whip.
They say that she raided a ship carrying the deceased master's body to get a hold of
the sword. The starting defensive stance consists of the sword held horizontally across
the chest, while the attack one causes the sword to be pointed downward toward the
opponent, at a 45-degree angle with the x-axis. Because of its mysterious origins,
that's all that has ever been known. No one has ever survived an attack by Aphrodite
unless she chose to let them live. Some whisper that she is the reincarnation of the
founder of the Golden Phoenix."
Keith dipped his head gently to show that he understood. This was more, much more,
dangerous than he thought it would be.
________________________________
Melinda held herself flat against the backside of the cliff, ignoring all sounds
except the pounding of the hoofs. Anna was standing casually next to her, but Melinda could
tell that her senses were all on full alert. The pounding of hoofs became closer and louder,
and the golden-haired girl quietly pulled a long slender chain with heart-shaped links from
the inside of her left sleeve, before throwing it out in a violent motion, hitting the sand
with enough force to cause a mild tornado. She smiled evilly as she heard shouts and the
panicked neighing of horses, whispering softly;
"Ryou Jian Feng!" (A.N. Those three words mean 'Swirling Dragon Wind' in Chinese,
since this is where the Golden Phoenix originated.).
She whistled shrilly, and moved gracefully to stand before the bewildered group
of men (who hadn't noticed them yet), shielded momentarily by the tornado she had created,
Anna following at her heels, meeting up with Rachel and Michelle to face their opponents.
She smirked as she heard a loud voice bellow out,
"Draw closer!"
So, it seemed that their assumptions had been correct: there definitely was
something valuable in the carriage.
_____________________________
Keith was completely puzzled. Never had he ever encountered something like
this in all the years he had served as a personal bodyguard and soldier. The flash
of gold was the all the warning he had received when a strong gust of wind blew sand
into his face. And suddenly, he felt what Nathan had felt: a strong shift of power
that had gone into the sand to create this air current. But all other thoughts flew
out his head as his horse tossed his head, dancing on all fours. Keith pulled the
reins back harshly, trying to control his panicked animal. He violently barked out
an order to his fellow soldiers:
"Draw closer!"
When the sand storm finally calmed down enough for him to see, he had to
bite his tongue to stop a gasp from escaping: standing right before him were four w
omen dressed in flowing robes with brilliant colors which covered them from head to
toe. He heard Jared whisper:
"The Goddesses of Vengeances!"
Followed by Zach's stunned voice.
"The Daughters of Death."
Each girl was holding out their swords, using the positions that Nathan had
described to him only moments ago. And the Golden Phoenix's attack stance was pointing
right at him, the girl's blue eyes (the only features revealed by the mask) cold enough
to freeze his blood. He noticed that the one using the Fire Dragon's double sword
technique's eyes were fastened on Jared, or more accurately, the carriage. He prayed
silently to any god listening that Scarlet would keep quiet just as a feminine voice
called out,
"Jared, what's going on?"
and the curtains of the carriage parted to reveal Scarlet.
'Shit!'
________________________________-
Love it, hate it? Please leave me a note whether I should continue this. And of course,
I'd love to hear your opinions. Heck, I even welcome flames (as long as they can help
me write better. If all you'll gonna write 'I hate this' without any reason, then please
spare me and yourself the time and agony). And to all you Endy fans, I promise he'll be
up very soon, probably next chapter.
Chapter 1
_________
Disclaimer: I did not make
up the Sailor Senshi, yada
yada. You know the drill,
I don't have to waste my time
writing this.
Okay, this is the third part
of recarnation. Since I took
U.S. History AP last year, some
of the facts of the Civil War
might be little off. Bear
with me, I'm about to have
a nervous breakdown. Too
much work, to much studying,
too much school.
Character Profile:
Scarlet Yue - Serenity
Matthew Yan - Endymion
Keith - Kunzite
Melinda - Minako (Sunshine - Aphrodite)
Jared - Jadeite
Rachel - Rei (Firefly - Eris )
Zachary - Zoicite
Anna - Ami (Waterlily - Athena)
Nathan - Nephrite
Michelle - Makoto (Thunderbird - Hera)
____________
Recarnation 3
Chapter1
Part 3, West Virginia, 1863, One month before the burning of Atlanta
________________________
"Jared?"
A littering voice spoke from behind the swishing curtains of the carriage.
"Yes, Scarlet?" The young soldier driving the carriage turned half around,
one eye on the carriage and the other on the road.
"Where are we right now?"
"West Virginia."
A stiffening silence descended upon the group as Jared's answer sunk. West
Virginia, which tore itself somewhat illegally from Virginia the year before, was
filled with poor white trash. And anyone with half a functioning brain cell would
realize, from the carriage's elaborate exterior design, that Scarlet's family was
wealthy and would pay any unholy amount of sum to have her back, sound and safe.
The young, silver-haired man riding on the right of the carriage ran a hand
through his hair as his cold, gunmetal grey eyes suspiciously scanned the surroundings.
They were passing through a narrow stretch of land, enclosed by hills that created
excellent places for ambushes, which he, as a hardened soldier, knew well.
It was truly an odd picture that these people presented. One beautiful noble
lady, traveling with four young, extremely handsome men. Would one not think that this
lady's elders had better sense than letting her alone all these men? But Scarlet's
parents were long dead, and she lived with her dear uncle, who trusted these soldiers
with his whole heart and soul.
A strawberry-haired young man with surprisingly feminine features rode on
the carriage's left. His leaf-green eyes were sharp, his soft appearance belying his
steel-hard intelligence. His hand absently stroked the holster of his gun, opting for
a bored expression, while in reality he was intently calculating the angles of attacks,
and estimating the position and speed they would need to defend themselves. Zachary,
or Zach, was the strategist of their group, the man who was good who drew up the battle
plans when he had time, but in surprise attacks, he, like everyone else, relied on
Keith's military expertise. Little did he know how useful his thoughts would prove to be.
At the same time, the soldier with the long, chocolate colored hair and eyes was
riding behind them, keeping off any surprise attacks from behind. There was nothing
to be nervous about, nothing he could see or hear, anyway, but he could not shake of
the feeling of foreboding. He had been meditating, asking the stars the night before,
and they had promised that their lives would be changed forever by today's events.
Of course, since they were so mysterious, whether did would be changing for the good
or bad he did not know.
Jared was the driver, a young man with sun-kissed blond hair and merry azure
eyes. But now, the normally ever-present smirk on his features and the dancing spark
in his eyes had been submerged by alertness. He is an incorrigible flirt that chases
everything with an attractive face and curvaceous figure. Jared is a man of many talents.
He's an excellent soldier, proud and alert, but unlike others, he stills views life
through a playful eye. His motto is 'Life is short, make most of it,' or in other words,
enjoy life while you can, and a trip once a while to the nearest brothel wouldn't hurt
either.
The object of their protection was inside the carriage: Scarlet Yue. Scarlet,
niece of a wealthy planter, was an extremely mysterious and intriguing beauty. Her
ash-blond hair trailed behind her in a cute hairstyle, and seemed almost silver in
the sunlight. Her limbs were proportioned attractively, her body slender and petite.
Her skin was as smooth as silk, unmarred by any kind of imperfection, and her
lily-white hands, listlessly folded in her lap, had never seen a hard day of work.
Those big, innocent blue eyes were full of trust, without guile or deviousness,
every emotion displayed on her sweet features. She was always quick to smile,
a gentle and kind-hearted young virgin who had been the recipient of many
unwanted proclamations of gentlemen's undying love.
But now, every nerve on each of the travelers' bodies was on high-alert.
Though Scarlet had no certain clue on why she was feeling uneasy, she was almost
able to touch the tension in the air. Her male guardians outside, however, felt
watchful eyes on their back every step on the way, and all four men were prepared
to do battle. A small bird singing was the only sound that broke the silence.
Keith cursed under his breath for the interruption before going neatly back on
track as he surveyed his surroundings. This time, he thought an entire string of
curses that would make any sailor blush. The narrow stretch of road would be hard
to fight on: no place to maneuver and to retreat. He could almost feel the weight
resting on his broad shoulders. Among them, in a case of emergency, he was the one
who came up with the plans as the leader, his instincts being one of his most
lethal weapons. And right now, his gut feeling was telling him that something was
very, very wrong – not to mention dangerous.
He had no idea how correct his gut feelings were.
_______________________________________________
Melinda raised an eyebrow as she watched the carriage's slow progress
through the deserted land. Her eagle-sharp eyes immediately memorized the guards'
position, and her mind went into over-drive, drawing up battle-plans at the speed
of light. She fingered the sword strapped to her belt lightly, and voiced a serious
of trills that would sound like a nightingale's song to anyone else listening.
She waited a few minutes, her eyes never leaving her target. Even as she felt a
presence behind her, she refused to turn around.
"Well, well, I never thought Lady Fortune could be this beautiful. That carriage
alone must be worth half a fortune."
Melinda smiled slightly at Rachel's sarcastic voice. She twirled a strand of
golden hair around a finger, before turning to face her raven-haired friend, addressing
her by her alias.
"Really, Firefly, I thought I heard you curse Lady Fortune to the seven hells and
beyond yesterday, calling her the ugliest of demons you've ever had the misfortune to lay
your eyes on? Who could have thought that that fickle tramp could return into your good
graces this quickly? I don't even think I could do that."
Rachel smiled sardonically, her violet eyes bored. Melinda turned to the tall
auburn-haired girl in their group.
"Michelle, what do you say? Attack now, or attack later?"
Michelle rolled her emerald orbs.
"Sunshine, hon, you ALWAYS ask me this question, and my answer is ALWAYS the same."
She drew a green mask over her face, revealing only her eyes, and noticed out the
corner of her eyes that Rachel had done the same.
"We attack now."
Melinda gave a curt nod, her eyes straying back to the carriage.
"Thunderbird, you're too rash, but I think I'll agree with you on this one.
We know those hills like the back of our hand, but I don't believe those things"
she nodded her head in the carriage's direction "have any clue that they'll be attacked.
Time to use our strongest weapon: surprise!"
Having securely pulled her mask over her face, Melinda prepared to launch an
attack, but an arm in front her stopped her movement. Her surprised sapphire eyes
turned to rest on the last person in the group, a young girl with short dark hair,
which always seemed have a curious bluish tint to it, and raised an eyebrow.
"What is it, Anna?"
Anna was quickly scanning the group, and her voice was hushed and low as
she spoke.
"We need to be careful. Those guards, they're strong. And Melinda, you're
wrong in your assumption. They know very well that they're being watched; it is
visible in the way their muscles are tense. These guardians are guarding more
than just valuables, I am certain they're guarding whatever is in the carriage,
and it's not a non-human object. Keep your eyes on those guns, these men
definitely know how to use them."
Melinda turned back to the carriage, though one eye was still kept on her
friends.
"I think Waterlily is right. These guards will definitely put up a fight;
we have to capture whatever is in the carriage. The Seagian cliffs," she indicated
the twin boulders on the side of the road "use them as hide bases. We charge on my
command."
The four girls, masked and fully prepared, split off into groups. Anna's
blue robes mingled with Melinda's gold ones as she stopped suddenly. Rachel and
Michelle also halted in their tracks, wondering what the petite girl would say.
Anna, however, had an unusual mischievous glint in her eyes.
"Sunshine, I think they'll be really _confused _ when we attack."
The rest of their group echoed Anna's smirk, and disappeared behind their
assigned posts. It was time for a surprise attack.
________________________
Keith felt burning eyes boring into his back the whole way, and he mentally
cursed when his sharp eyes found no one. Whoever it was, they were good if they
could escape his detection. No one spoke, and even Scarlet had decided not to chatter
constantly as was her usual manner on trips. His hands tightened on the reins of his
horse as he felt Nathan suddenly stiffen.
The brown-haired man spurred his chestnut stallion forward, his chocolate
eyes worried beyond what Keith had ever seen. Nathan's tone was low and urgent.
"Keith, I've just felt incredible power shifts in the air. And what's more,
not even I was able to trace or follow the surges of energy, let alone identify them."
Keith nodded absently.
"There are two group we have to be careful of, so keep your eyes peeled."
Nathan raised an eyebrow.
"Two? I thought there was only one."
"No, there are two. They call themselves The Goddesses of Vengeances, and
the other group is known as The Daughters of Death. They both work for The Phantom
in Black."
Nathan shook his head, his long, wavy hair flying.
"That's one group, Keith. Haven't you noticed that the attackers are always
female, and there are always four of them? Not to mention that the two groups use the
same eastern fighting techniques, roughly translated as: The Fire Dragon, The Shimmering
Rhapsody, The Golden Phoenix, and the Sizzling Tiger."
Keith raised an eyebrow as he motioned to Zach to watch the back also as Nathan
continued talking to him, explaining to Keith the reasoning behind the attacks. The
silver-haired man was a good soldier, but he did not have Nathan's extensive knowledge
of techniques. Then again, Nathan spent most his time pouring over ancient manuscripts
with Zach and watching the stars. Keith glared at his second-in-command, annoyed but
intrigued at the same time.
"What in the names of all that's holy are those?"
Nathan sighed; he shouldn't have gotten into this discussion at all. But too
late now, he thought as he wearily tried to summarize.
"The Shimmering Rhapsody is an ancient but solid defensive technique that
starts with the sword tip pointed directly outward, allowing the user to react quickly
to any changes in the opponent's movements and thus prevent serious injury.
The Fire Dragon is comprised of two broad swords, slightly shorter than normal
ones. The starting position consists of both swords crossed over the user's chest, a
technique that is extremely violent and bloody. It kills quickly, but leaves a bloody
mess. The Fire Dragon is powerful in the sense that the user controls his movements
separately, each sword moving completely independently of the other, making it almost
impossible for the opponent to predict their slashes.
The Sizzling Tiger is used with a curved saber. Whenever those bandits kill
someone, the saber is used always as the last tool for slicing up the body; it's their
trademark. But the Sizzling Tiger is also very dangerous, beginning with the dull side
resting lightly against a hip. It is very difficult to avoid the tip when the user cuts
a figure eight slash, or an upward z-slash. There is always an incredible amount of
power behind each thrust and hit, for the saber has a unique quality caused by its
curved form that magnifies the strength used three times.
The leader of them, either known as Aphrodite or Sunshine, is the wielder of
the Golden Phoenix. They say she's deadly than any cobra, and lovely than the goddess
of beauty herself. She's the only one of the four girls who ever shows her face.
Rumors has it that men are so blinded by her looks that they lose the will to fight,
wishing only to gaze upon her. Her face is supposed to be as enchanting as the
fairest flowers, skin the color of freshly poured cream, eyes as clear as the Aegean sea…"
Keith was almost ready to strangle Nathan as he raved about the girl's beauty.
This was not a time to be daydreaming about a female bandit, no matter how pretty she
was. He was only concerned about them getting out of West Virginia as soon as possible.
If it meant that he would never see this girl, then he would welcome the chance with
open arms.
"Cut out the poetry, Nathan! Now what can the Golden Phoenix do?"
Nathan shot Keith a most wounded look, but decided against pissing his already
aggravated leader royally off.
"The Golden Phoenix is a sword technique that originated in the Far East. It is
said that no one but the founder of it has ever truly mastered all the movements. The
Golden Phoenix is extremely hard to learn. It requires agility and flexibility to an almost
inhuman extent. No one has ever seen the ultimate attack of the Phoenix, and those who
have fought Aphrodite are said to be plagued by nightmares of her sword slashing at them.
From what I've read, the Phoenix is the deadliest of all techniques, both in attack and
defense style, but it's so difficult that no one else has ever survived the training.
The sword is extremely thin and slender, but harder than steel and softer than a whip.
They say that she raided a ship carrying the deceased master's body to get a hold of
the sword. The starting defensive stance consists of the sword held horizontally across
the chest, while the attack one causes the sword to be pointed downward toward the
opponent, at a 45-degree angle with the x-axis. Because of its mysterious origins,
that's all that has ever been known. No one has ever survived an attack by Aphrodite
unless she chose to let them live. Some whisper that she is the reincarnation of the
founder of the Golden Phoenix."
Keith dipped his head gently to show that he understood. This was more, much more,
dangerous than he thought it would be.
________________________________
Melinda held herself flat against the backside of the cliff, ignoring all sounds
except the pounding of the hoofs. Anna was standing casually next to her, but Melinda could
tell that her senses were all on full alert. The pounding of hoofs became closer and louder,
and the golden-haired girl quietly pulled a long slender chain with heart-shaped links from
the inside of her left sleeve, before throwing it out in a violent motion, hitting the sand
with enough force to cause a mild tornado. She smiled evilly as she heard shouts and the
panicked neighing of horses, whispering softly;
"Ryou Jian Feng!" (A.N. Those three words mean 'Swirling Dragon Wind' in Chinese,
since this is where the Golden Phoenix originated.).
She whistled shrilly, and moved gracefully to stand before the bewildered group
of men (who hadn't noticed them yet), shielded momentarily by the tornado she had created,
Anna following at her heels, meeting up with Rachel and Michelle to face their opponents.
She smirked as she heard a loud voice bellow out,
"Draw closer!"
So, it seemed that their assumptions had been correct: there definitely was
something valuable in the carriage.
_____________________________
Keith was completely puzzled. Never had he ever encountered something like
this in all the years he had served as a personal bodyguard and soldier. The flash
of gold was the all the warning he had received when a strong gust of wind blew sand
into his face. And suddenly, he felt what Nathan had felt: a strong shift of power
that had gone into the sand to create this air current. But all other thoughts flew
out his head as his horse tossed his head, dancing on all fours. Keith pulled the
reins back harshly, trying to control his panicked animal. He violently barked out
an order to his fellow soldiers:
"Draw closer!"
When the sand storm finally calmed down enough for him to see, he had to
bite his tongue to stop a gasp from escaping: standing right before him were four w
omen dressed in flowing robes with brilliant colors which covered them from head to
toe. He heard Jared whisper:
"The Goddesses of Vengeances!"
Followed by Zach's stunned voice.
"The Daughters of Death."
Each girl was holding out their swords, using the positions that Nathan had
described to him only moments ago. And the Golden Phoenix's attack stance was pointing
right at him, the girl's blue eyes (the only features revealed by the mask) cold enough
to freeze his blood. He noticed that the one using the Fire Dragon's double sword
technique's eyes were fastened on Jared, or more accurately, the carriage. He prayed
silently to any god listening that Scarlet would keep quiet just as a feminine voice
called out,
"Jared, what's going on?"
and the curtains of the carriage parted to reveal Scarlet.
'Shit!'
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Love it, hate it? Please leave me a note whether I should continue this. And of course,
I'd love to hear your opinions. Heck, I even welcome flames (as long as they can help
me write better. If all you'll gonna write 'I hate this' without any reason, then please
spare me and yourself the time and agony). And to all you Endy fans, I promise he'll be
up very soon, probably next chapter.