Author's Note: Well, we've come to yet another climax. Enjoy.
Hellos and Goodbyes
Reddish brown eyes fluttered open after a stunned moment. Their owner was in a pale blue room, still chained, and facing the orange-clad boy from earlier."Did any of you get the license plate of that train?" A somewhat deep but still boyish voice asked the shadowed air as the sound of clinking metal assured its owner wasn't any better off than the first young man.
"Indeed. Those things really should be better marked, Hardrock." This amused voice was far more familiar to both of the other occupants of the room. They looked down to watch a heap of metal and fabric rise from where it had been so rudely acquainted with the floor and regain it's proper alignment.
"Anubis!" The two said as one while the red head laughed.
"Who else? How are you both? I don't suppose you've been formally introduced. Kento, this is Seiya of Pegasus, a Knight of Athena. Pegasus, Kento of Hardrock, a Ronin Warrior." The older man explained, gesturing to his companions in turn. "Kento and his team have long been aquatinted with us, but not as allies, I'm afraid to say. Seiya and I met in the merging of the worlds."
"Huh?" The two boys once again spoke in unison.
"I came to him in a dream. And as for the Warlords history with the Ronins, it will have to wait for another time. It's a bit of a long story. For right now. . ."
"You'll not interfere further!" The smooth, feminine voice rang from above them as she descended, swatting the reinstated Warlord of Cruelty away as if he were a rag doll and settling between the two victims.
"OH! Why does it always have to be women?!" Seiya exclaimed as he struggled with his bonds.
"I don't think she's really a woman, just a monster, and monsters get hammered if they mess with the Ronin Warriors!" Kento called back, his dark blue eyes leveled on his assailant as he, too, strained against the chains.
"Wait a minute, we're. . ." But Seiya was not allowed to finish voicing his revelation.
"Now, now, I'm going to make this horsey a quiet pet. Be good, or I'll break you!" She warned, her eyes flashing red. Seiya writhed against his constraints, then getting a hold of himself, he smirked through the pain as he sent his cloth away. It patiently waited for him to reclaim it, reassembling behind him, Anubis noted.
'I'm impressed.' The Warlord mused. 'I expected this one to be a little thicker -- he seems so much like Hardrock in most other ways. Speaking, well, thinking of which. . ." The redhead glanced over at his huskier comrade to find Kento's eyes, at first squinting in pain, widened when he noticed Pegasus was free and un-armored. Hardrock must have then decided he might as well see if the latter caused the former. It did. Ereshkigal was gone with an unsteady note of defeat.
"Shall we find the others?" Anubis didn't wait for an answer, instead turning on his armored heel, he started towards the wall and threw the blade of his kusarigama at it. An energy wave was emitted from the weapon that crumbled the pliant material, revealing a very put out Warlord of Venom.
"I was about to do that, you know." The snake pouted, before a broad, somewhat smile broke across his reptilian features. "Well, at least we know you still got it. It's been a while. I was a little disappointed you were so easily defeated -- to think, our former fearless leader beaten by that pompous Badamon! Even if you were the youngest."
"Well, so sorry to take the fun out of it for you! And you had to know I wouldn't be able to leave you alone for long. We all remember what happened the first time I tried that!"
"Ha ha. I hate to interrupt this touching reunion, but he's not the only old friend in need of greeting." Cale's smooth voice was strained with fatigue, but his eyes were bright with tears as he faced the younger man. "Forgive our blindness, Lord." The Warlord of Darkness knelt in supplication.
"There is no need for such titles. As you said, we are old friends." A very surprised Anubis offered a hand up to his comrade. Meanwhile, Sekhmet's hand was occupied with removing something from his eye, his face averted to better grasp it, whatever it was. The snake changed the subject hastily without turning back.
"Well, I suppose we had best be finding the others. They are above us. Dais, Torrent, Wildfire, Dragon, and Phoenix are further away, probably on a higher level. The rest are closer -- probably only one level up."
"We must let them do for themselves. This is perhaps the best way for the two teams to get acquainted." Cale replied. "Besides, I think we could use a break. It's Kayura's turn to do something this time."
"Um, guys. . ." Hardrock finally spoke, gaining the undivided attention of all three older men. Seiya and Kento, until now, had been mute observers, feeling both forgotten and very out of place.
"Pegasus!"
"Hardrock!"
"Sorry!"
Sekhmet, Cale, and Anubis at last were snapped completely back to their surroundings. They had tried to focus on what was going on, but only now were able to truly turn from the strange dream reality had become.
"I suppose we had best get started with those long stories, hmm." The Spring Warlord replied sheepishly after a moment.
-----
"Here we go again, no rest for the wicked, as they say." Dais intoned, his head still leaning against the wall and his eye closed as if in sleep.
"I think it's rest for the weary, but in your case I'll agree." Cye shot back. Phoenix had sensed her power growing, but said nothing. Now he rose, followed by Shiryu. Wildfire had been lost in thought, and almost didn't even hear Dais. He reacted to Torrent instead.
"Huh. . . Oh!" Ryo was on his feet in a flash, katanas in hand.
"Welcome back, Wildfire, I was beginning to think you'd left us for good. Pity." Dais cooed, smirking.
"Shut up." Four voices enjoined as they readied themselves for a fight.
At last, the dirty mist began to shape itself into the familiar, hateful from or Ereshkigal. Her beauty was gone now replaced by a far more fitting repugnance for a creature of such malignancy. Now she could not make herself as corporeal, the strands of mist remained somewhat transparent and blurred her outline. Her hair billowed out around her, grey tentacles of filthy air. Her skin was pasty and wrinkled like the waves on a calm sea. Her face sagged, her eyes like coal with only the faintest hint of red, and her lips were so pale a purple they seemed already touched by death.
"I have not yet been defeated! You still can not escape here alive!" She rasped, her voice trembling with age and hoarse with fatigue. There was a wildness about her, a desperation, that still made her a force to be feared, but also almost to be pitied. But all such softer emotions would have to wait.
"Flare Up NOW!"
"Phantom DEMON!"
"Rising DRAGON!"
"Super Wave SMASHER!"
As the Flare Up Now soared through the air, a great bird materialized in it's front, making the rest of the attack seem like a Phoenix tail. The Red Bird gave a battle call as it was joined by a great dragon of water, which roared in answer. The two beasts twirled around each other in a beautiful, deadly dance before careening into their target.
-----
"That was a lovely rest, but it looks like she's regrouping." Kayura's head shot up from her chest, bringing the others to their feet.
"How can you tell?" Hyoga asked, still trying to let all he'd heard about these Ronins sink in.
"She's here." Shun replied, his chains finally reacting.
"So this is it." Rowen murmured softly, meeting Sage's gaze.
"Let's get this right." Halo agreed.
"Don't think you have beaten me yet!" The voice seemed far less centralized than before, but deeper and more ominous, even if it had aged and was more labored. The young warriors decided not to wait and find out what it meant.
"Diamond Dust!
"Thunder Bolt CUT!"
"Arrow Shock WAVE!"
"Nebula Chain!"
Each of the individual crystals formed for Hyoga's attack was merged into a droplet of light from the Halo armor, making the two glow a brighter white. Once touched by the green band of energy and it's precious cargo, the mist actually froze, creating a large, many sided, murky crystal on the ceiling. An arrow turned energy screamed from it's bow, entwining with the Nebula Chains. Silver and gold played upon one another, brightening the shards of the crystal as it shattered from their impact.
-----
Below these two confrontations, Ereshkigal had also appeared to the final group, and they, too, were doing their part.
"Black Lightning SLASH!"
"Snake Fang STRIKE!"
"Pegasus METEOR PUNCH!"
"Iron Rock CRUSHER!"
Black and red swirled, merging into one power. The earth beneath them was rent as with the sound of beating hooves, and the Jewel of Life flared, catching those above in cushions of light as the keep collapsed. The mist was demolished, and the fifteen fighters disappeared. Dais noted with some satisfaction that they left behind a crumpled female figure with long, black hair and dark skin.
---
Yuli and Mia had been working at the computer all night to no avail. They'd found no further evidence of this Erishkigal or what she could possibly be after. As Mia became more fatigued, her frustration also rose. Yuli couldn't help but turn his thoughts to the past as he fingered the Jewel of Life under his cream colored sweater. Once Mia had pounded the keyboard in frustration three times, Yuli finally spoke the thoughts that they'd both been afraid to verbalize the whole time the guys had been gone.
"I wish Anubis were here. He'd know how we could help." A long silence followed this assertion. Mia stared at him in shock, her anger momentarily checked, replaced by unwelcome, though happy, memory. She collected herself, pulling her pale pink skirt taught out of habit, she responded.
"Well, he isn't. And besides, we've managed to help them on our own before. We will manage again. We have to."
"Yeah. But still. . . Huh?" As Yuli looked back after hiding the tear that was making its solitary trek down his cheek, he noticed Mia was hard to see for some reason. He stood up quickly, gaining the full attention of both Mia and White Blaze, before the whole room was bathed in golden light. As the light faded, the room was left empty, reminding one of a modern Pompeii.
---
Sienna and her scientists had been completely confounded by the cryptic message. Its origins and validity seemed insolvable enigmas. They had been unable even to think of a way to contact the sender. And it was all getting on the young goddess' nerves. Severely.
"There has to be something we can do! We have the most advanced computer system on the planet, the best minds in the world, and we're sitting here doing nothing! What's wrong with this picture?"
Luckily for her technicians, they were spared answering the still pacing princess, when her cosmo expanded and extended around Kiki who had been following her in an attempt to relay yet another hair-brained scheme his tiny mind had latched onto. The pair were bathed in a beautiful golden aura, nearly causing Tatsumi, who had been standing helplessly at a distance, arms permanently fixed in a placating gesture, to feint on the spot. But he recovered quickly enough to rush towards her. The blustery bodyguard was incapable of even finishing her title before her own exclamation of surprise left the room speechless. The girl, the boy, and the man were gone without a trace!
-----------------
Yes, that was majorly different from the first post. Before, they went straight from the ceremony thing to wherever they are now. Aren't you glad I added everything else? You don't have to answer that, naturally, but if you'd like to, please do.