Chapter 16
Two New Elementals
Over the weekend Ryo and Rowen spent as much time as possible with Munchkin and Midget. The others visited at least once for a few hours. Practice continued without them, but everyone agreed that it just wasn't the same. Everyone was hoping they would be back by Monday.
Monday arrived and both girls insisted on going to school. They had rested the entire weekend and were feeling almost one hundred percent again. Both knew that they needed to start practicing again. The former Warlords had warned them that the Dynasty had been gathering soldiers. Not enough for a full attack, but enough for them to make a second attempt at kidnapping the girls. Everyone was a bit on edge again. This time they were better able to deal with it, though.
After school they went to Karate practice. They did a lot better this time around, causing Sensei Maxwell to breath a sigh of relief. Next they headed for Midget and Munchkin's houses to pick up Flame, White Blaze, and Star. Afterwards they headed over to Mia's house, so that Midget and Munchkin could get caught up in their practicing. When they arrived they found the former Warlords and Kayura there, looking very anxious.
"What's up," Ryo asked, tensing.
"We found out that Katrina and Sheeva have left the Nether Realm," Dais informed them gravely.
"Where are they," Munchkin asked, fists clenched.
"We don't know," Seckhmet said unhappily.
"So what are we going to do," asked Kento.
"We were hoping you all would agree to split up and help us search for them," Cale said quietly.
"Split up," Jaya repeated in disbelief.
"In pairs, right," Sara asked hopefully.
"Yes. In pairs," Kayura replied. "The others may go looking for them or this may be a trap, so keep your guard up."
"What do we do if we find one or both of them," asked Sage reasonably.
"Let the rest of us know," Cye suggested.
"How," asked Penny.
"Use our armors link to tell us," Rowen told her.
"Where are we going to start looking," Munchkin demanded.
For a moment there was silence, then Midget spoke. "Why don't we have one pair check the places they fought at before. There were three, one where both of them were and two where they fought separately."
"That's a good idea," Ryo said. "Sage, Kento, Cye, why don't you and your girlfriends check there."
The three agreed and were soon on their way. As soon as they were gone something caused the former Warlords and Kayura to stiffen.
"The Warlords and I must go back to the Dynasty," Kayura told them urgently. "Something is happening there."
With that they disappeared. The four left behind looked at each other in confusion.
"Now what are we supposed to do," Munchkin asked impatiently.
"I don't know," Ryo confessed frustrated.
"Why don't we go looking for them," Rowen suggested.
"Where," Ryo asked clearly bothered.
"We don't have any idea of where to start," Munchkin added.
"Why don't we try the places they were taken from," Midget asked rationally. "We can ask Anubis if he knows where that was."
"I do know," Anubis' voice told them, as he appeared nearby. "One was taken from her place of meditation, up in those mountains near the city. The other from a place in the forest that borders the city."
"They are in opposite directions," Munchkin pointed out, a little curious.
"They have different personalities," Anubis replied, shrugging.
"So, who wants to take what," asked Ryo.
"We'll take the mountains," Munchkin said decidedly. "If that's all right with you, Ryo."
"That's fine with me," Ryo replied, looking ready to go. "Let's get started."
The two quickly headed across town, riding on White Blaze and Flame. Rowen and Midget shake their heads, then turn to each other.
"I guess this means that we're headed for the forest," Midget said resignedly.
"Well, we'd better get started," Rowen returned mildly.
Midget turned to Anubis. "Anubis, do you know why they left? Or where they are?"
"I spoke to them before they left. Our conversation could have been the reason. We were talking about the old days," Anubis said in a reminiscent tone. "As for where they are, I really don't know that."
"Thanks anyways," Rowen told him.
"Yeah, thanks," Midget added, then turned to Rowen. "Let's get going."
With that they headed out into the forest, Star right beside them.
Sage and Sara had been transported to the place where they had first fought all of the Warlords. They didn't see anything for a moment. Then all of a sudden, soldiers popped up out of nowhere. There were dozens of them.
"This doesn't look good," Sara commented.
"We'd better get into our armor," Sage told her.
Both called on their full armor. As soon as the transformation was finished, the soldiers that had been pressing closer attacked.
After a long time Sara finally had a chance to pause for breath. Looking around, she noticed that she and Sage had a few dozen feet and thousands of soldiers between them.
Uh-oh. I don't like the looks of this. I'd better try to get back to Sage, pronto. With that thought firmly in mind, she headed toward her boyfriend, fighting all the way.
Sage found himself surrounded by a sea of soldiers. He had lost sight of Sara a while back and was becoming anxious. After a moment he was able to take a quick glance around. A few dozen feet away he saw her fighting. It looked like she was trying to head in his direction. I'd better get back over to her. This time I'm going to be more careful, though. I don't want to take the chance of Sara getting injured.
After what seemed like hours the two had finally dispatched all of their opponents. They had managed to get to within three feet of each other during their fighting. Both looked at the other, then started toward each other. When they met in the middle they hugged. Quickly they checked each other over for any serious injuries. Having reassured themselves that the other was okay, they turned their attention back to the landscape.
"I wonder why they were hear," Sara said aloud.
"They may have been guarding something," Sage replied. He had a funny feeling, as if they were missing something, but there was nothing there.
Just then Kayura appeared. "Come, we must go quickly," she told them urgently.
"What's wrong," they asked in unison.
"The attack has begun and we need your help," Kayura responded. "We need to hurry."
They stepped over to her. In a moment they found themselves standing at the edge of the new battlefield.
Kento and Penny returned to the street they had fought Sheeva on just a few days earlier. Looking around, they found it once again deserted.
"There's something funny going on here," Kento said in a subdued voice. "I've got a bad feeling about this."
At Penny's silence he turned to look at her. Her eyes were almost completely unfocused and were slightly glazed. He went to her side and asked her what was wrong, but she made no reply. Then suddenly, she snapped out of it. She looked at Kento with a haunted expression.
"I know why the street is deserted," she whispered.
"What? How," Kento asked.
"I saw it. I saw what happened," Penny replied vacantly.
"What happened," Kento asked.
"The guy in purple armor, Mase, he appeared and started hurting people," Penny responded. "When they ran he just laughed and shouted they had better hand us over to them."
"Why that no good little...," Kento said, steaming. "Just wait until I get a hold of him."
Just then three dozen soldiers arrived. The pair put on their armors. It took them awhile to finish them off. When they killed the last one Dais suddenly appeared in front of them.
"Come on, you two," Dais said, gesturing urgently. "We need to get going."
"What are you talking about, Dais," Kento asked.
"Where are we going," Penny added.
"The fight has begun. We got to join the others, who need your assistance," Dais informed them impatiently. "So let's go."
The two walked over and Dais transported them away. They arrived at the edge of a new battlefield.
Cye and Jaya headed for the beach once again. When they got there they found it completely empty. There weren't even any pedestrians. After a few more minutes of looking around they had decided to go back. Then all of a sudden the two found themselves surrounded by dozens of soldiers. Transforming into their full armors the two began to fight. After what seemed like hours the two had finally killed the last of the soldiers.
"What was that all about?" Jaya asked.
"I have no idea," Cye responded. "Are you ok though?"
"Yeah. I'm fine," Jaya answered. "Did they seem a little easy to you?"
"Now that I think about it yes they did. Do you think they were sent to keep us from finding something out?" Cye replied.
"You might just have something there. I wonder what it could be," Jaya said.
Right after she finished saying that Cale showed up. "We need to leave right now. You both are needed in a different battle."
"Where is it that we are going?" Cye asked.
"What is so urgent?" Jaya added.
"There is another battle going on right now. We need your help. Just hurry up," Cale said urgently.
The two gathered around Cale and were transported out of there. They then found themselves standing at the edge of a new battle field.
Rowen and Midget walked beside Star, following an old path. As they walked they noticed that the area around them seemed to become increasingly still. It was as if the wild life in the area had left.
"This is strange," Rowen commented. "The forest is so quiet. Usually there is always some sound, like the rustling of leaves or birds chirping. You know, something."
"I know what you mean," Midget replied quietly. "I can sense something up ahead, though. Maybe that's what has scared everything off."
"Do you know what it is," Rowen asked seriously. "I sense danger and yet I don't."
"That is because the danger could or could not be for us," answered Midget. "Up ahead is Katrina of Tornado."
Just as Rowen was about to ask how she could not be a threat to them, they walked into a clearing. There, in the middle, sat Katrina. She was in her sub armor. Her eyes were closed and she held something in one hand. At their arrival she opened her eyes.
"What are you doing here," Katrina hissed, surprise and annoyance on her face.
"We came looking for you," Rowen shot back.
"Are you so eager for another battle, then," Katrina asked in a malicious tone as she rose to her feet. "All right then, I'll give it to you." She went to call her full armor.
"You don't need to do that," Midget told her quietly. "We didn't come here to fight. We only want to know why you left the castle and if you are on our side now."
"Your side? You must be joking," Katrina spat at her. "I wouldn't be on your side for anything."
"Really. Then why did I see hope in your eyes just now," Midget replied, unruffled.
"You're imagining things, girl," Katrina retorted. She couldn't hide the flash of surprise in her eyes, though.
"I don't think she is," Rowen commented quietly. He could now see the yearning and loneliness that lay in Katrina's eyes. "You want to be one of us, if only because you long for friends like us."
"Why would I want friends like you, boy," Katrina asked waspishly. They could see that she was becoming more and more agitated.
"Because of the bonds between us," Midget responded mildly. "You can see how much we care for each other by our actions."
"Has anyone ever treated you that way? Has anyone ever cared about you like that?" Rowen asked, pressing slightly.
Katrina's eyes became distant and unfocused. "Yes," she responded quietly.
Midget watched her closely even as she let her other sight take over. She saw her gray aura, with large holes in it. Then she noticed something else. As she watched in amazement, the holes began to be filled. Reaching out to her, she felt the pain and confusion of before, underlined by one specific emotion. Suddenly, Midget knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what both her virtue and her ability were.
"Your virtue is hope," Midget announced softly. "And your ability deals with healing the soul." At Katrina's amazed look, Midget smiled gently. "I am an empath. Now I understand how they were able to turn you."
"Oh, yeah. Then how did they do it." Katrina tried to sound arrogant and disbelieving, but it didn't work. Instead she sounded uncertain and slightly fearful.
"They offered you something you had always hoped for," Midget replied calmly. "Then they destroyed it. They destroyed your dreams and twisted the pain and confusion inside of you. All this time they've been controlling you with it."
Katrina started, her face losing all color. She stammered, "W-W-what m-m-makes y-y-you th-th-think th-th-that?"
Midget gave her a reassuring smile. "When I saw you in my dream, I saw a black aura surrounding your gray one. The gray aura was struggling against the black, but weakly. Right now, the black is gone, but it left your aura badly injured. That is how they turned you. They broke your spirit down as far as they could, allowed you to heal, then started the process over again. Although your ability to heal the soul will fix the damage done to it, and thereby survive repeated attacks, your mind can not."
"So they turned her virtue against her, making her continue to hope for something they will never allow," Rowen said, quickly comprehending what she was getting at. "And they used her ability to change her thinking. I can't believe anyone could be cruel enough to do that to someone." Disgust and sorrow were evident in his tone. Midget nodded her head in agreement. her own disgust and sorrow reflected on her face.
Katrina looked at both, wide eyed. Confusion was written on her face. In her eyes there was hope as she read the understanding and compassion in their eyes.
"I wish there was some way we could make it all better," Midget told her quietly. "A spell or something that would undo everything. Unfortunately, there's not. All we can offer you is our friendship, support, and what little help we may be able to offer to help you recover. That is, if you want them."
Katrina looked at her, stunned. "You're offering to be my friend, even after everything I've done," she asked. Disbelief and growing hope warred in her eyes.
Rowen smiled at her. "Of course. That doesn't matter much now, it's in the past. Besides, it wasn't entirely your fault."
"Are you serious," Katrina asked, still not quite believing.
"They mean what they say," a gentle but firm voice said from nearby. Anubis appeared a moment later. "Katrina, believe me when I tell you that you can trust them."
"She confirmed your story," Katrina told him, slightly abashed. "I'm sorry I didn't believe you before."
"That doesn't matter now," Anubis responded softly. "What matters is that you now have the chance to start over. The question is, will you take another chance?"
Katrina remained silent for awhile, evidently thinking. Rowen and Midget waited patiently, every now and then speaking to each other or Star. The three tensed as they felt the call of their friends. They knew their friends needed their help.
"We've got to go," Rowen said urgently.
"We can wait a few more minutes for Katrina to make up her mind," Midget responded as calmly as she could. Inside she was a mass of tangled emotions. "This is not a decision to be made lightly."
"Our friends need us," Rowen stated, but he subsided.
Katrina watched them, noting their anxiousness and their willingness to wait for her. Making up her mind she said, "I will take you there." She looked a little anxious but Midget smiled happily.
Midget walked over to Katrina and gave her a light hug. "It's good to have you join us."
Rowen smiled and held out his hand. "I'm glad you've decided to become a part of the team."
Katrina looked at the two for a moment, awed. No one had ever accepted her as completely and without her proving herself before. Suddenly, she smiled. "Let's go," she said softly, feeling almost as if she were a brand new person.
With that, she took all of them, including Star, to the battlefield. The four found themselves standing at the edge of chaos.
Munchkin and Ryo made good time riding Flame and White Blaze. Within half an hour they had made it to the top of a mountain. Bursting into a clearing, they found Sheeva sitting in the middle, on top of a boulder. Her eyes snapped opened at their arrival.
"How dare you interrupt me," Sheeva snapped turning to face them. "What do you think you are doing here?"
"We are here to check on you," Munchkin replied.
"We want to know why you left the Nether Realm," Ryo added.
"Why on earth does it matter to you?" asked Sheeva evilly.
"We thought that you might join us if you were going against the Dynasty," Munchkin answered.
"Me join you. Ha! That would never happen," Sheeva sneered.
"Who do you think you are sneering at," asked Ryo, highly insulted.
"A bunch of pathetic little kids," retorted Sheeva in a malicious tone.
"Hey. We only made a suggestion. If you are against Talpa and Tara then you should fight with us," Munchkin stated with superiority.
"Who said that I was against Master Talpa and Madam Tara?" Sheeva replied with a sly grin.
"Why would you want to stay with people that are controlling and lying to you?" Ryo asked a little confused.
"They aren't controlling me," Sheeva quickly said, but with an uncertain look in her eyes.
"What about the lying to you?" Munchkin asked.
"Is that why you always look sad?" Ryo asked.
"That doesn't matter. All that does matter is that they are happy," Sheeva said forcefully.
"Do you mean to say you actually like to hurt people?" Munchkin asked stunned. "Do you even realize that you are killing people just to please a psycho?"
A look of sadness filled Sheeva's eyes for a moment. Ryo and Munchkin thought they had her convinced when all of a sudden her eyes started to glow a dark red. Sheeva looked straight at them then disappeared. As soon as she left a dozen or so soldiers replaced her.
The two easily defeated the soldiers in a matter of minutes. They then looked to each other in confusion and frustration.
"We almost had her there. If that stupid spirit would have just stayed out of it we would have her on our side," Ryo said frustrated.
"I know, but maybe we will have another chance later," Munchkin said hopefully.
When they finished talking they decided to head back. Right before they left Seckhmet showed up.
"Hurry up you four. We need to help the others," Seckhmet quickly stated. He gestured for them to come over.
"Where are we going?" Ryo asked.
"Are the others ok?" Munchkin asked getting worried.
"The battle has started. Everyone is just now getting there. Just hurry," Seckhmet answered.
They found themselves entering a new battle field. Looking around Ryo realized that they were in the Nether Realm. Spread out in a semicircle, a few feet in between each, they saw the other groups. To the right they saw Midget and Rowen standing next to Tornado.
Rushing to Midget's side Munchkin asked, "Did you convince her to join our side?"
"Yeah. She is one of us now. Did you find Sheeva?" Midget responded.
"We found her, but we couldn't convince her," Munchkin answered.
"We almost had her, but the spirit controlling her was stronger than our words," Ryo added.
Just then Mase and the other three new Warlords appeared. Noticing Katrina, Mase yelled, "TRAITOR." He then ran at them. As he did a good twelve dozen soldiers popped up out of nowhere.
Everyone took this time to put their full armors on. They all dropped into a defensive stance. Flame and White Blaze dove for Bear and Blade, knocking them both back. Star knocked Mase to the side with her powerful body.
Sheeva was standing in the back still not completely certain of what she wanted to do. Noticing her restraint Mase took her as a traitor as well. He then yelled, "You are a traitor also. You both will suffer." Powering up for his sure kill he yelled, "Electric Shock Torture."
Noticing his target Munchkin jumped in the way of the attack. Mase's power hit her sending her to her knees. A few minutes later Cye and Jaya arrived.
Sheeva looked down at Munchkin dazedly. She noticed that Munchkin's kanji was glowing. "W-w-why d-did s-she do that?"
Jaya looked up to Sheeva then said, "Her virtue is Friendship. I guess she considered you worthy of being a friend."
"Why should I believe such a ridiculous thing?" Sheeva snapped.
"Because it is the truth. You see my virtue is Truth, which means I can't tell a lie to save my life," Jaya responded.
"We have to leave her here with you so we can help our friends. Do you mind?" Cye announced.
"W-w-why would you trust me?" Sheeva stammered shocked at the thought of these people doing this.
"She trusted you so I will trust you. Also my virtue is Trust," Cye said with a grin. "So will it be ok?"
A new light shone in her eyes. She seemed happy and excited at the thought of helping someone else. "I will take very good care of her."
Cye and Jaya saw this new light in her eyes. They knew that Munchkin would be safe in her care. Getting up Cye and Jaya rejoined the battle. As they did so they heard Ryo yelling, "You will pay for hurting her."
Looking behind them they saw an enraged Ryo battling Mase. A few seconds later a pissed Midget also joined the fight with Mase. From a nearby tree she fired one silver arrow after another, in between Ryo's attacks.
Sage, Sara, Kento, and Penny were fighting Bear, while Cale, Seckhmet, Katrina, and Rowen fought Blade. The other four were taking care of the soldiers. Sheeva had taken to keeping anything and everything from the injured Munchkin. She was joined by Flame, White Blaze, and Star. They each were taking out soldiers left and right.
Bear and his personal soldiers were having a rough time taking out Sara, Sage, Kento, and Penny. Kento and Penny had gone straight for Bear. Sage and Sara were trying to keep the soldiers away from them. The soldiers were tougher than any they had previously fought, though.
After taking a hit from behind Kento sprung to his feet, saying, "I thought you were going to keep them from attacking us."
"We're trying to, Kento," Sara said in exasperation as she stabbed one of her daggers into the side of the soldier who had gotten him.
"These soldiers are a bit tougher than the others," Sage added as he sliced one in half, then barely managed to dodge an attack from the side.
"I'm glad you appreciate my bodyguards," Bear growled at them. "They were made to be stronger, faster, and smarter than the average peons."
"Since you haven't had them before I take it that it took you guys awhile to figure it out," Penny said sarcastically. "No wonder you're so proud of them."
"Well, aren't you the witty one," sneered Bear. He lunged at Penny, swinging his scythe to the side, trying to disarm her. Penny jumped backwards, narrowly dodging the blade.
Kento came at him from the side, hoping to get him while he was distracted, but Bear turned and blocked his naginata. Then he punched him, but Kento just rocked back on his heels before tackling Bear. Kento quickly jumped to his feet, but so did Bear. Concentrating on Kento, Bear said, "You're pretty strong, boy. With that kind of strength you could easily gain power in the Dynasty. Why don't you joins us?"
"No, thanks," Kento retorted angrily. He hit Bear in the stomach, knocking him backwards a few steps. "I'd rather die than join you."
"So be it, young fool," Bear hissed. Then he started to power up. "You'll die, then. Life Draining...Ahhh!"
Penny, seeing him power up, had gone around behind him. Now she used her own sure kill, calling out, "Wild Vine Choke." Her attack caused vines to shoot up around him, pinning his arms to his sides and holding him in place. "Kento, get him," she told him.
Kento nodded and performed his own sure kill. Calling, "Iron Rock Crusher," Kento blasted Bear. The power of the sure kill ripped Bear out of the vines' hold.
Sage and Sara had finally dispatched all of the guards and had come to join the battle. A seriously injured Bear had other ideas, though. "You haven't seen the last of me," he hissed at them as he disappeared.
In his place he left another two dozen soldiers. The four friends looked at each other.
"Does anyone else have a feeling like deja vu," Sara asked dryly.
"Does anyone not," Sage shot back. Then the four were too busy fighting to talk anymore.
At the same time Blade and his soldiers were having similar difficulties. Cale and Seckhmet were fighting Blade's soldiers. Katrina and Rowen were fighting Blade himself.
"Katrina, how could you turn on us," Blade asked her. He was attacking with his daggers. "And after all Master Talpa and Madam Tara have done for you."
"You mean how could I not after all they have done to me," Katrina retorted, blocking.
"I see. So they have already begun to poison your mind with lies," Blade said, shaking his head. He lunged at her, then spun to the side when she took the opportunity to fling one of her num chucks at him. "Evidently you are too weak to be of any use to the Dynasty, anyways."
"What would you know about it, since you're still stuck under their thumbs," Cale asked, slicing into one of the guards.
"I'm not stuck under their thumbs," Blade retorted angrily.
"Then why are you behaving like a puppet on a string," Seckhmet asked maliciously.
"Don't you realize that they manipulate your movements so that you do their dirty work," asked Rowen reasonably. He stood on the branch of a nearby tree, firing arrows at Blade when he was distracted by Katrina. From his position he was also guarding the backs of the two former Warlords.
"You are all out of your minds," Blade stated. He then lunged at Katrina, bringing one dagger up to hit her in the side. With a cry she fell over. Blade powered up. Just as he was about to fire his sure kill, Rowen interrupted with his own.
Yelling, "Arrow Shock Wave," Rowen sent a blast of energy into Blade, knocking him backwards.
Katrina swiftly jumped to her feet and added her own attack. Calling out, "Gail Force Blast," she sent Blade flying several feet.
The seriously injured Warlord struggled up onto his feet. "You may have beaten me this time, but I'll be back," he shouted defiantly at them as he disappeared. He left more soldiers to take his place.
Cale and Seckhmet looked at each other, then the others. "We just got finished killing the last ones, and now there's more," Cale grumbled in annoyance.
"You'd think they had enough out here already," Seckhmet returned. The soldiers then attacked, leaving them no more time to talk.
In another area Mase was also finding out the hard way that these warriors were harder to take down than they had thought. He had brought fewer guards, feeling sure he would not need them. However, the ones he had brought were long gone, dispatched by the archer in the tree and the sword wielder in front of him.
"Where is this power coming from," Mase wondered aloud, blocking an attack from Ryo. "You aren't supposed to have this kind of power."
"You should never underestimate your opponent," Midget informed him calmly, shooting a soldier that tried to sneak up on Ryo.
"I see. You are stronger than I gave you credit for," Mase said condescendingly. "It doesn't matter, though, because the Dynasty will when anyways."
"That's what you think," Ryo retorted, still seething with rage. He swung both katanas at Mase, forcing him back. "We defeated the Dynasty before, and we'll do it again now."
"Why don't you wake up, boy," Mase snapped at him. He swung his flail at him, but Ryo knocked the blow away with one katana. "Your precious little delusions aren't even close to reality."
"Oh, really," Ryo returned sarcastically. "And what makes you think that?"
"The time of man has ended. A new Era is dawning. One that will see demons controlling humans with Master Talpa and Madam Tara ruling over all," Mase replied, excitement in his voice. His eyes burned with a maniacal fervor. He used his whip to block Ryo's next attack as he continued, "Only those who are loyal to Master Talpa and Madam Tara will be allowed any power. Why don't you join us, boy? It's your only chance to keep your armor."
"I thought Talpa wanted our armor back," Ryo said, slightly confused. "It is what makes up his armor."
"Master Talpa no longer needs your armor," Mase answered slyly. "He has found a more powerful armor. Now all he needs are the Elemental armors. Once we have those, there will be no stopping us."
"There's no way I'm going to let you have them," Ryo shot back hotly.
Mase ignored him. "Just think of it. First we start with that injured one over their, then one by one we gather the others," Mase said in an almost reverent tone. Madness was in his eyes, blinding him to the anger on Ryo's face.
"You won't get near her," Ryo shouted. "You won't get near any of them again." Ryo powered up. He jumped into the air, yelling, "Flare up now!"
At the same time Midget let loose her own sure kill. Calling, "Heavens Meteor Shower," she aimed her attack right at the Warlord.
The two attacks combined, forming a massive attack of flames and flaming rocks. It ended in a large explosion. They could hear Mase yell, "Nooooooooooooo!" just before the roar drowned out any other noise. When the attack cleared there was nothing left of Mase or the soldiers that had been nearby. That was when they heard the sound of other sure kills being used to finish of the rest of the soldiers.
"Quake With Fear!"
"Web of Deception!"
"Wind Water Strike!"
"Super Wave Smasher!"
"Sun Flare Ignite!"
"Thunder Bolt Cut!"
"Snake Fang Strike!"
"Black Lightning Slash!"
"Massive Rock Avalanche!"
"Blaze of Fury!"
Within moments the area was devoid of soldiers. Everyone looked around at each other, then began to gather together in the middle. Ryo rushed over to Munchkin.
"Are you all right," Ryo asked anxiously, wrapping his arms around Munchkin carefully. She smiled reassuringly.
"I'll be fine," Munchkin said, already looking better than she had before. She looked around at the others as they neared. "Is everyone all right?"
"We're all just fine, Munchkin," Midget told her reassuringly. She stood nearby, wrapped in Rowen's arms.
One by one the others murmured their assent. Then the others began to stare at Sheeva and Katrina curiously. They stood a few feet away, looking slightly uncomfortable. Midget and Munchkin looked at each other and nodded. Gently pulling away from their boyfriends, the two walked over to the pair. Munchkin took Sheeva's arm and Midget took Katrina's as they led them over to the others.
"Guys, I'd like to introduce Katrina of Tornado, a recent addition to the Elemental's and our new friend," Midget announced calmly. Most of the others' eyes widened at this.
"And this is Sheeva of Mountain," Munchkin informed them impishly. "The newest Elemental and friend of ours."
Both warriors looked at the two with expressions of astonishment. Their expressions then changed to ones of incredulous wonder as first the other Elementals, then the Ronins and former Warlords walked up to them and welcomed them aboard, shaking their hands. They looked at each other as the same thought passed through their minds. These people are incredible. Slow grins came across both faces.
"Well, I don't know about anyone else, but I'm hungry," Kento stated.
"You're not the only one," Penny told him.
"This is probably the first time no one has burst into laughter at those words," Rowen said thoughtfully.
"It'll probably be the only time, too," Dais said dryly.
"Enjoy it while you can, Kento," Kayura advised mildly.
"Why don't I cook us all something to eat when we get back to Mia's," Cye volunteered.
"I'll help," Jaya offered.
"We'll set the table," Sara said, indicating Sage and herself.
"She all ready speaks for you, boy," Cale teased Sage.
"I'd watch it if I were you," Seckhmet told Cale. "If she's able to handle him you don't stand a chance against her."
"That's right, Cale," Sage said smugly, then realization dawned and he smacked his forehead. "What did I just agree to?"
Everyone laughed at that. Then they all headed for Mia's house, glad that this battle was finally over.
To be continued....