Disclaimer: Yoroiden Samurai Troopers is the property of Sunrise. Ronin Warriors is the property of Bandai Entertainment.
Author's Note: This is a quieter chapter, but it's also important to the plot moving forward. So I hope the lack of action doesn't disappoint.
A reviewer mentioned that I forgot to say what kind of shoes Sage was wearing in Chapter 9. Oops... That'll be corrected either tonight or tomorrow.
You are sure to recognize the reference for the chapter title if you watched Nickelodeon in the early 90s. For those who don't, the title is a reference to the teen sitcom Clarissa Explains It All, which starred Melissa Joan Hart in the title role (prior to her Sabrina the Teenage Witch days).
Enjoy, and please review!
The Wicked Knights
by Jake the Fearless Leader
Chapter Eleven
"Kayura Explains It All"
Upon returning to their headquarters, the three Warlords brought Strata down to the residential wing, where they fortunately ran into Kayura. She had been busy while the warriors were away, tidying up one of the rooms to make it hospitable for the Ronins. After all, there was a good chance that they were going to be staying in the Nether Realm for at least a couple days.
An hour after Kayura had sent the teens into the city, Kayura had found the scroll she'd been looking for. She immediately sent the Warlords to go track down the Ronins and bring them back to the castle. Apparently, that was a good call on her part, given the trouble Rowen had stumbled into. The last of the Ancient's clan sent Kale to get Ryo and Kento while directing Sekhmet Dais towards the appropriate bedroom.
As soon as Rowen was settled, the Warlord of Venom went to gather his medicinal supplies from his own room. He had pretty much become their primary healer since leaving Talpa's services. Kayura wasn't exactly bad at first aide, but she could only do so much.
"How bad does it look?" asked Dais, watching her examine the cut on Strata's head.
"The bleeding seems to have stopped," Kayura responded.
"He was lucky," said Sekhmet, rejoining them. "The way things were going, Halo and Torrent could've killed him. We got there just in time."
"We can't count on that happening again. The next time we face them, we have to be ready," said Dais.
"Right. We should start working on a new plan, preferably one that will lead to getting those two back," Sekhmet said. He picked up a cloth, dipped it in water, and began to wipe the blood away from the cut on Rowen's forehead.
"There has to be a reason why Zankoku decided to brainwash Torrent and Halo. If we could just figure that out, then we might find the key to saving them," reasoned Dais.
"They haven't been brainwashed."
The Warlords turned to face the last of the Ancient's clan, taken aback by the conviction in her voice.
"Kayura, babe, what're you talking about?" asked Sekhmet.
She ignored the use of the slang. It was a fairly new development, one Kayura hadn't been too fond of initially, but had slowly gotten used to.
"I'll explain later, once Kale has returned with the others," she told them. "For now, let's focus on healing Rowen."
"In that case, I think I'm gonna go do some research of my own," said Dais. "Brainwashed or not, those two were definitely given some kind of power boost. They were never that strong before."
Sekhmet glanced over his shoulder. "Yeah. Did you get a look at Torrent's hair? It's turning black."
"Black?" questioned Kayura. "What would cause that kind of reaction?"
"Nothing I've ever heard of," admitted Dais.
"Hence the research," Kayura noted.
He nodded. "I'll keep an eye out for Kale while I'm gone," Dais called over his shoulder as he turned around. He walked swiftly out of the room as the other two returned to tending to the Ronin Warrior.
It was nearly dawn when Cye came waltzing into their living quarters, where Sage was in the middle of deep meditation. The blonde Wicked Knight had decided to call it a night early, as being that close to Strata and his emotional baggage had taken it's toll on him. He figured some peace and quiet would help him regain control over his new gift. His partner hadn't been interested in returning to the castle, so he'd gone to check out another city. And based on the contentment radiating off him, Cye had found something to keep him entertained.
"Still meditating? I figured you'd be done by now," Cye said.
"And I figured you'd be back hours ago." Sage opened his eyes to gaze over at the older teen. "What did you end up doing?"
"Oh, a little of this, a little of that," said Cye evasively, crossing over to sit on the chaise.
"Care to be more specific?" said Sage.
Cye shrugged casually. "I'd hate to interrupt you. You're probably not interested in hearing about murder."
"Murder?" Sage asked, raising an eyebrow. "Are you saying you actually killed someone?"
"Not someone," replied Cye. Slowly, he raised four fingers into the air.
"Huh…" Sage told him, shifting into a more casual position. He had lost all interest in meditating. "Didn't think you had it in you."
"Neither did I," said Cye honestly as he stretched out across the chaise. "I didn't even mean to kill the first one. I just wanted her to shut up. Her voice was screechy, even in my head."
"I thought the tonic was supposed to control your power," said Sage.
"Me, too, but I guess Melaina underestimated how strong telepathy actually is."
"So, how was it? Killing, I mean," Sage clarified.
The Wicked Knight of Tsunami sighed. "It was intense. There was this… this surge of energy rushing through me… I've never felt anything like that before. And then the river rose up, like it was responding to my will."
"Or your armor," Sage said.
"Maybe," agreed Cye, though he wasn't too sure. He decided to slightly change the topic. "You should give it a try."
"What, you mean go out and kill someone?" Sage asked incredulously.
"Sure. Why not?" asked Cye.
"Lord Zankoku might have an assignment for us today," said Sage. "Even if he doesn't, I'm not really looking forward to the possibility of yet another run-in with the Ronins."
"Wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing, though. You could just off one of them. Save Lord Zankoku the trouble of having to do it himself," Cye pointed out.
The Wicked Knight of Dawn considered it and started to grin. "Now, that's an idea."
Ryo, Kento, and Kale returned to Talpa's castle around the same time that Rowen regained consciousness. Kayura insisted that they gather everyone together in the library, since Dais hadn't returned from doing research. As she and the Warlords lead the way through the corridors, they listened to Strata filling in the other two Ronins on his encounter with the Wicked Knights.
"Man, I can't believe Sage and Cye went after you like that," Kento said as the group entered the library. "Who know they could be so evil?"
"I want to know why Cye's hair is changing color," said Ryo worriedly.
"I wouldn't be surprised if Dais has already come up with a theory to explain it," said Sekhmet.
"And you would be wrong about that, Sekhmet," Dais spoke up from his chair at one of the nearby tables.
"I take it you've had no luck," stated Kayura.
"Yes and no. I've found several types of glamour spells, but you'd have to be a Caster to perform them," Dais explained.
"And Torrent's a Mundane from the Mortal Realm," Kale said.
"Exactly."
"Then, that particular mystery is going to have to wait for now. In the meantime, let's get back to the matter at hand," said Kayura with authority, crossing over to where she had left the Ancient's scroll.
"Right, you said something earlier about Torrent and Halo not being brainwashed. Would you care to explain what you were talking about, now that we're all here?" Sekhmet reminded her.
"Wait, what?" asked Ryo, confused.
"Why do you think they weren't brainwashed?" questioned Rowen.
"I read something in these scrolls just before you three arrived. They were written by the Ancient One," Kayura told them all as she picked up the parchment. "This one holds the answer we've been looking for."
She began to read to them from the scroll. The Ronins and Warlords listened to the words of the Ancient in hopes of understanding what it was that his successor believed would help them. The true capabilities of the Seasonal Armors amazed the three teenagers from the Mortal Realm, though for the Warlords, none of this was new information. Part of their new lives was finding a way to use their abilities for good rather than evil purposes. When Kayura got to the passage describing the Elemental Armors, however, the entire group's attention began to wane.
Kento let out a loud groan. "Yeah, yeah, we already know this!" he exclaimed.
"There's more," Kayura said patiently. She read the section that described the telepathic and empathic abilities of the Torrent and Halo Armors. Without even looking, she knew that she had their undivided attention.
"Hang on, are you telling me that all those times we faced each other, Torrent was able to hear my every thought? Then, how the hell didn't he figure out I was the one behind Red Torrent?" Sekhmet wondered.
Dais shook his head. "Obviously, he didn't have the power, then, Sekhmet, or you would never have been able to capture him that day."
"Sage and Cye don't have those kind of powers. We'd know it if they did," Rowen told them.
Kayura continued to read aloud from the scroll:
With this discovery, I have begun to conduct further research. There are many documented cases across the realms, and I have been fortunate enough to speak with some of these extraordinary individuals. Empaths and Telepaths have used their gifts to provide guidance and aide to those in need. Several have become renowned healers and advisors. However, while most have embraced their power, there are some Empaths and Telepaths who reject their gifts. In rare cases, the ability may manifest before the individual is mentally or emotionally prepared for it to do so. For these young Empaths and Telepaths, their power can overwhelm them as they fight to maintain control. All of these cases, sadly, share the same unhappy ending, with the youths having to be removed from society in order to keep their powers from driving them into insanity.
This cannot be allowed to happen to my young armor bearers. I must cast a binding spell that will seal the empathic and telepathic abilities of the Halo and Torrent Armors until the day comes that the chosen two have reached the emotional and mental maturity required to control these precious gifts.
The room had gone silent as the Ronins and Warlords realized what Kayura had already figured out.
"That's it. That's what happened. Torrent and Halo are being corrupted by their new powers," said Kale quietly.
"Zankoku must have awoken their abilities too soon. The moment he did, they were overwhelmed, and the atmosphere of the Nether Realm only made things worse," Dais concluded. "Think about it. This place has been poisoned by hatred and evil for millennia."
"No wonder they were so willing to join Zankoku's ranks," said Sekhmet.
"So, how can we save them?" asked Ryo.
"If it's the Nether Realm that's causing them to act like this, then maybe if we can get them back home, we might be able to get through to them," Rowen suggested thoughtfully.
"That's what I was thinking," agreed Kayura.
"All right, what are we waiting for? Let's get out there, find Sage and Cye, and open a gate back home!" exclaimed Kento excitedly.
"Hold on," said Dais. "We were speculating yesterday that Zankoku specifically targeted Torrent and Halo. Now, we may have figured out why. It's possible that Zankoku knew about their powers. If that's the case, he wouldn't have wanted either one of them around when he decided to put his plan into motion. If their powers awoke naturally before then, chances are Halo and Torrent could have been the key to thwarting him. Capturing them was a surefire way to eliminate the threat. He may have even been planning to kill them, and whatever he did was what triggered their powers."
"That makes sense," Rowen said thoughtfully.
"Right, but here's what doesn't. How did Zankoku know about the Torrent and Halo Armors possessing those powers? We didn't even know about it. So how did he?" questioned Dais.
"That's a good question," acknowledged Sekhmet. "We're gonna have to ask him that when we finally face him."
Ryo sighed. "Okay, so let's stop wasting time."
Kale shook his head. "First things first, Wildfire. We've been up all night. Let's get some rest first, and then we'll come up with a strategy. Maybe we can figure out where those two are going to appear next."