Shadow within the Darkness
(Day 12 – Part 1)
By: Little Ucchan
"C'mon!! This way!"
The young girl lead Sage by the hand through what seemed like countless swerving passageways. They had traveled deep down into the very foundation of the castle, where dark tunnels and hidden doorways were commonplace. It amazed Sage that this girl actually knew where she was going, not guessing like most other people would have done by now. On a number of occasions, they had come across an open space that broke down into three or more different passages. But not once did the girl's memory falter. She'd stop for a moment to think and then, grabbing his hand again, would walk off with him down one of the paths.
Sage had remembered asking her how she became so familiar with the underground workings of the castle.
"I've played here ever since I can remember," she had told him. "And it's the safest way to go in and out of the castle. This is how I got home without passing through the gates."
"So these passages run underneath the entire city?"
She nodded. "They say that it runs through the whole kingdom too. But I've gone through this place a lot of times and I've never found it."
The young girl then ran ahead as they entered another room much larger than the previous ones they've been in. Sage whistled, looking at his surroundings. This room was definitely big, similar to the size of an audience hall with a high domelike ceiling. Up ahead was a platform with a cylinder shaped altar made of stone about 4 feet tall.
Using one of the protruding blocks as a stepping-stone, the girl peeked over the structure's edge. Sage followed up behind her, getting a good look at what she was staring at. It seems that there was more to this object than he first thought.
There were two large circular patterns etched into the top of the cylinder. The outside ring, being the biggest one, resembled that of a compass, containing degrees and marks to signify direction. The inside ring was raised an inch above its counterpart, and the only distinguished feature about it was a triangular marker at the top. At the very center of both rings were two other objects of equal interest. The first was a glass crystal ball protruding halfway out of the stone. The second was a square indentation resting in front of it.
Sage regarded the girl curiously as she took off a necklace from around her neck. Feeling him come in closer to watch what she was doing, the girl giggled and then placed the stone she wore in the small depression. It fit in perfectly.
Immediately the star design embedded in the pendant lit up with a dark purplish glow, as did the rest of the patterns on the altar. The crystal ball was the last to shine, flashing brilliantly before quietly dying down. Once it did, a small click was heard, as if unlocking some secret hidden deep within the structure.
The young girl smiled. Reaching out to the second circle, she placed both hands on it and began to pull it in one direction. Sage was surprised when the dial turned easily, coming to a stop with the marker pointing in the northeast direction. Once that was done, she placed her hand over the crystal, causing it to glow again. A slight rumbling sound had caught Sage's attention, making him turn in the direction of where the marker was pointing. He could do nothing but gawk and stare as the wall opened up to reveal yet another hidden passage.
The girl giggled again when she caught a glimpse of his expression. Taking her necklace out of the keyhole, she quickly looped the chain around her neck, jumping off the platform while doing so. She then took his hand and started pulling him along again.
"So… what was that all about?" Sage asked, finally able to talk after a few more minutes of walking.
She only shrugged. "I don't know really. Papa says that they're ancient ruins left behind long time ago. I just know it opens up a lot of passageways down here."
"And your necklace?"
"…It's an heirloom," the girl said after a slight pause. "My sister has one too. But hers has six points on the star while mine has five."
Sage's eyes went wide for a second. Something wasn't right about what she had just said. From what he knew, those symbols represented black and white magic. Darkness and light. But why would this young girl have a dark talisman as a royal family heirloom? It didn't make any sense.
"Hurry up! We're almost there!" the princess urged him along, tugging at Sage's sleeve when he had slowed down due to his musings.
She ran ahead again, but this time stopping at what looked like a dead end. Sage sighed at thought of having to go back the way they came, but when he reached her he saw that a ladder had been drilled into the side of the wall. He instinctively looked up, judging how far they had to go. He was surprised that it wasn't that far, considering how deep the tunnels were.
Getting up onto the ladder, the girl wasted no time, climbing up as fast as she could for someone her height. Sage waited a bit until she was a good distance ahead before following suit.
Coming to the top of the ladder, the girl reached out to one of the walls, her hands feeling around the small bricks until she found what she was looking for. Pushing on one of the bricks, it easily slid forward about one third of the way before a familiar click was heard. The roof of the shaft pulled up and slid to the side, giving them a clear way through.
When Sage had gotten out after the girl, he was surprised at where he was. He was standing in the middle of the isle to a church, dark and dull from the lack of use. He searched around, with his eyes and with his senses. But they were no longer near the fighting and the chaos contained within the city walls. All was quiet. There was no one there.
"This church has been abandoned for a few years now," the girl explained. "It's in the woods outside of the city."
"You come here often?" Sage asked while examining a suit of armor towards the back of the church. An unlikely place to be seeing such a display.
The girl nodded. "My sister used to come here too. She was the one who showed me how to get here."
"You're sister?" he asked, remembering the image of the elegant young lady he saw in the throne room.
"Yup. She's the only one who knows about this passage," the girl said, smiling with renewed hope. "I'm sure she'll be here. It's our meeting place when we can't find each other."
A sense of déjà vu suddenly washed over him. Sage recalled his first encounter with a demon on the streets of Tokyo and how he had found Sammy… waiting for her sister. He shook his head, trying to get the thought out of his mind. Why did he just think of that? He couldn't figure it out. And now… he had no time. His heart started racing, feeling two auras heading their way. One of them, he knew all too well. Unsheathing the sword from the suit of armor, he quickly tested its weight and checked the sturdiness of the blade.
"What are you going to do?" the girl asked, alarmed by his sudden movement.
"Stay here, " he said once he was done with his observations.
"But…"
"Stay, alright," Sage ordered, rushing towards the front entrance to the church. "I'll be back in a bit. Just don't go outside."
With that he left the safety of the building and prepared himself for the battle to come.
***
Walking casually down the sidewalk, Ryo turned into a gated building, coming up to the entrance. Stopping in front of the glass doors, he pulled back his jacket sleeve to look at the time. 6:30. He smirked. Oh, he'll really love this.
Passing through the door, he walked down the hall to the nearest elevator shaft. While waiting for the elevator to come down, Ryo recalled what had happened yesterday after school. Naturally, both him and Rowen had to wait till 4 o'clock to see Laura, since she also had detention. It was ironic to see her and Sage walk out at the same time, and even more astounding that they weren't bickering like usual. Dismissing the thought, he had cut down to the chase, asking if he and Rowen could speak with her.
Looking at the time, she had asked for how long and, when Rowen had given her his estimate, she cringed. She had an appointment in an hour. So instead, they had scheduled their meeting for today, before school started.
Rowen had put up quite a fight, not being a morning person and despising the thought of rising out of bed at the crack of dawn. However, he had no choice but to agree since lunch wouldn't give them enough time and their meeting with the rest of the guys was after Sage's detention, which Laura was serving as well. There was no other time to talk. And the match was coming up soon.
So, as Ryo entered the elevator and punched in his friend's floor level, he could only hope that Rowen had at least made an attempt to get up this morning by remembering to set his alarm. But then again… this was Rowen after all. Ryo sighed, now busying himself with trying to come up with an effective way to get his friend out of bed.
Walking down the corridor with hushed footsteps, he stopped in front of Rowen's apartment and knocked on the door.
No answer.
He tried again, this time more forceful.
Again, no reply.
Ryo sighed. Not wanting to wake everyone else up with his knocking, he crouched down and lifted up Rowen's floor mat, picking up the key from under it. Unlocking to door, Ryo slowly crept inside to have his worst fears confirmed. Rowen was still asleep.
Closing the door behind him, Ryo turned on the lights, raising a slightly amused eyebrow at the mess scattered across the floor. Well… Rowen was true to his nature. Brilliant genius. Bad housekeeper.
Stepping around the books and other miscellaneous objects, Ryo entered him room, also finding that a complete mess. Now he was beginning to wonder how Sage put up with this kind of thing when they all had been living at the Koji manor. And, remembering how clean Sage's room was when he was there the other night, he could only imagine that the two friends must have gotten into several arguments about it.
Seeing the mound of blankets where Rowen was supposed to be buried, Ryo walked up to the bedside and was about to shake him gently when he caught sight of his alarm clock… lying several feet away from where it should be. So Rowen had made an attempt to get up this morning but, as expected, failed miserably. Shaking his head he decided to just skip the warm up.
"Rowen! GET UP!!" Pulling up the blinds, Ryo went a step further and yanked the blankets off of the young man, making him curl up into a ball to compensate for the sudden loss of heat.
"It's 6:30 in the morning and we said we'd meet with Laura before seven!!" Ryo yelled into Rowen's ear. He only cringed at the noise, mumbled something inaudibly, and pulled a pillow over his head.
Ryo instantly grabbed the pillow and whacked Rowen over the head with it. "Damn it!! Rowen!! If you don't get up soon, you're gonna regret it!!"
He decided to give the boy a chance and stood there towering over him for a few more minutes. When he didn't move at all, Ryo only sighed. If only he had brought White Blaze with him. Now there was a good alarm clock. Looking at Rowen's sleeping form, Ryo smiled, driven by new resolution. It was time for Plan B.
Laughing diabolically to himself, Ryo walked out of Rowen's room and went straight for the kitchen. Searching through the overhead cabinets, he picked out a glass and poured some nice, ice cold water into it. He made his way back to his friend's room, whistling as he went. But a new idea had struck him.
Glancing to the side, Ryo spotted a plastic bucket lying at the corner of the living room. His grin grew even wider than before, looking from the bucket to the glass of water in his hand. Bigger is always better.
Two minutes later, Ryo had rushed into Rowen's room and with one swift movement, threw the water contained in the bucket directly at the unexpected dreamer. He screamed so loud and jumped out of bed as if he had just been set on fire. Ryo couldn't help himself and started bawling with laughter at the sight. But one glimpse of Rowen's icy eyes, set to kill, had turned the Ronin leader's dark complexion into a pale ghostly white.
"Ryo…" His voice was so low, and his eyes narrowed with rage, causing the other man to quiver in fear.
He gave a nervous laugh, taking a step back. "…Meet you down stairs?"
By the time Rowen had managed to get around the clutter of his disorganized room, Ryo was out the door and running down the hall.
***
"Are you going to be like that all day?"
Silence.
"C'mon! You're killing me!"
Silence.
"I said I was sorry!"
"Sorry doesn't cut it," Rowen snapped.
"…Well at least you said something," Ryo mumbled.
"Couldn't you have found some other way of waking me up?!"
"Aw c'mon Ro. You'd be mad at me regardless of how I did it. The only difference this time is…" He snickered. "…you woke up faster."
*WHACK*
"OW!!" Ryo cried, clutching the back of his head where Rowen's book bag had skillfully made its mark.
"I already took a shower last night!"
"Geez Rowen! Get off it already!"
"Hmph."
Ryo sighed, knowing that Rowen was NOT going to let go of the "incident" that happened this morning. Not without some begging on his part anyway. Giving up on trying to get his friend's forgiveness, for now, Ryo decided to take up a new topic.
"So… did you think of a way to talk to her about it?"
"…Sorta," Rowen replied, deciding to let go of the previous subject to tackle a more serious one.
"Well?"
"Just let me handle this ok?"
Ryo narrowed his eyes at his companion. "…You're gonna wing it, aren't you?"
Rowen didn't respond… but his face said it all.
"Rowen!!"
"Don't worry about it!! I know what I'm doing," he assured him. But Ryo was still skeptical.
"You sure?"
"Positive."
"Alright then," he sighed, giving up. "Whatever you say."
***
At school, out in the lawn area, a young girl waited patiently. She drummed her fingers against the wooden picnic table, trying to figure out what this was all about. It was unlikely for Ryo and Rowen to suddenly have to talk to her. And for Rowen to agree to meet in the morning… it must be important. But what could it be? Laura couldn't place her finger on it. What did they need to know?
A quiet laugh had pulled her away from her thoughts.
"As I recall," Ryo began. "Rowen was in that exact same position the last time we were out here."
She smiled, turning around to face the two boys. "And he was also pondering the same thing I am right now."
"Which is?"
"Exactly why am I out here?"
"Be patient," Rowen said, sitting across the table while Ryo took a seat next to her. "Answers will come soon enough."
"So what's up you guys?"
"Well… we're kinda in a predicament here," Rowen started, resting his elbows on the table.
"Oh? What kind of predicament?"
"It's kind of embarrassing to say. But here goes." He paused, making some last minute adjustments at the fib he was about to tell. "Ryo's family treasure, the Twin Fangs of the Sanada clan, has been stolen."
Ryo immediately opened his mouth to say something, but a swift kick to the shin from Rowen had effectively silenced him. He bit back a yelp, turning away from Laura before she had a chance to see his pain-stricken face.
"The Twin Fangs?" Laura asked, turning to Ryo. "Why do you have something like that in your house? Didn't your grandfather leave the clan?"
"Well… you see…" he tried to answer.
"It was a parting gift," Rowen interjected.
Laura shot a questioning look towards Ryo, who only nodded in agreement. She then looked at Rowen. "Funny how you know so much about Ryo's clan, eh Rowen?"
"Of course I would!" Rowen laughed, at the same time cursing at how sharp she was. "Ryo and I are buds!! Ain't that right, Ryo?"
"Right!"
"Besides, you know I like learning about this sort of stuff. But, getting back to business…"
"Yes. You said that Ryo's family treasure was stolen?"
Rowen nodded.
"By who?"
"That's what we needed to talk to you about. You see…"
"You think I had something to do with it?" Laura questioned, giving Rowen a deadly glare.
"NO! No!" he cried out, holding his hands up defensively. "I just thought you could help us find the thief! That's all."
Rowen sighed in relief when he saw Laura visibly calm down. He had almost forgotten to watch what he said around her. Even though they were now friends, he and Ryo only knew her for a little over a week. He still didn't know much about her, although the way they talked could state otherwise.
"But… how would I be of any help?"
"Easy." Rummaging through his bag, Rowen pulled out the sheet of paper he had been preparing last night just for this occasion. Setting it flat on the table, he pushed it gently towards Laura. "This is a description of the thief, including skills and special abilities. If you analyze the information, all the techniques she used can only come from someone who has studied ninjutsu."
"And, because of my background, you were hoping that I could tell you something about her. And maybe find some clue as to her identity and current whereabouts," Laura finished for him.
"Correct," he nodded, glad that he and Laura understood each other. "I know it's a long shot, but it's the only lead we can go on that might get us somewhere."
"…Did you talk to the police?"
"They'd take too long. Besides, I doubt the Sanada clan would want them involved in this."
"Oh? Is that true Ryo?" Laura asked, once again turning her attention back to the boy sitting next to her. He quickly nodded, refraining from speaking.
Laura looked at him curiously. "You know, I think it's kinda strange that you hardly said anything about this." She didn't notice Rowen tense on the spot. "I thought you'd be more fired up since something this important was taken from your home."
"I am! I mean—"
"He's still embarrassed about it. Probably in shock," Rowen butted in, saving Ryo from yet another tricky situation. "I mean he gets like this every time we talk about it!"
"Wow." Giving a sympathetic look towards Ryo she asked, "Was it that traumatizing?"
"Oh yes," Rowen had answered for him instead. "Witnessing a thief steal your family's prized possession while you just stand there idly, helpless to do a thing about it can have some serious effects on people."
Ryo's eyes flashed dangerously at Rowen, but the blue-haired boy only shot back an equal glare that told him to play along with this charade or else. So when Laura had looked to him for confirmation, he only nodded sadly, keeping to his role as the "helpless" victim of a tragic event. All the while cursing mentally at Rowen, who had decided that this was the perfect opportunity to pay him back for this morning.
"So, can you help us?" Rowen asked. "Or is this too little information."
"No, not at all," Laura replied, picking up the piece of paper. "This is more than enough. I can probably tell you a few things based on the techniques alone."
"Great!!" Rowen cried not being able to contain his happiness. Ryo had an equal expression on mirth on his face. This was working out a lot better than either of them had hoped for.
Scanning over the paper's contents, Laura smiled at how thorough it was. Rowen was very detailed in his work. That's for sure. But, as she continued to read on, something began to bother her. Several of the skills described were oddly familiar. This almost looks like…
She suddenly drew in breath, trying to stop her heart from racing. But the beating inside her chest continued to escalate as she neared the paper's end. She could feel that deep sinking feeling churning within the pit of her stomach. It was so strong, and rooted in so deep, that she found herself taking in long breaths of air in an effort to calm herself.
"Laura?" Ryo called out to her, his voice alarmed. "Laura, are you ok?!"
She took in another deep breath, letting it out slowly. But her palms were sweating. Her whole body felt weak. Just from that one sheet of paper.
"Where… where did you get this information?" she asked, her voice unusually quiet, still in shock.
Rowen didn't speak, not knowing how to answer her question. Should I say the truth or…
"Where did you get this Rowen?!" she demanded, rising from her seat. "Tell me!!"
Her breathing pattern had increased, her lungs not being able to accommodate for her sudden outburst. Ryo saw her waver, and was immediately up, placing a strong hand around her shoulder to steady her. Looking at his friend, he gave Rowen a worried, almost pleading look. The other man sighed, closing his eyes.
"Some of it was from what Ryo and his grandfather gathered on the day the swords were stolen. But most of it is based off of my observations, having had coincidentally run into the thief several times. And, on one occasion, done battle with her."
Aside from that first sentence, what Rowen had told Laura was the truth. Ryo looked him over, his eyes silently thanking him for the effort. But at the same time, he was still worried. Why did she react so violently?
"So… you've met her?" Laura asked, calmer than she was a few seconds ago but still had that slight edge in her voice.
Rowed nodded. "Now I have a question for you. Why are you so upset?"
Allowing Ryo to slowly pull her back down to her seat, Laura sighed, sliding the paper over to Rowen. "It's this," she said, pointing to one of the paragraphs. Rowen quickly skimmed it over, recognizing it to be the technique Sierra had used to fake her location during their fight.
"It's called the gihen."
"Gihen? As in, deception?"
She nodded.
"Laura…" Ryo spoke her name cautiously once reality sunk in. "How do you—"
"I'm familiar with the technique… because it's been in my family for generations."