(5/4/05) I lie sometimes.
Django awoke rather early in the Spirit World. Strange dreams had plagued him the night before, leaving the boy restless. They were odd dreams, all about two children. One of the children, a boy, had the same features he had. He had sandy hair, big gray eyes, and a crimson scarf. The other was a girl who seemed eerily familiar, with black and green hair, vaguely familiar purple eyes, and an emerald scarf. He looked at Arison's sleeping figure in the bed close to his and sighed. She would kill him if she found out he wasn't sleeping before a big day. He mentally chuckled and slid back under the covers. As he entered his sanctuary of dreams, he only saw the back of Sabata, stifling sobs. He found it uncharacteristic for the Dark Boy to be crying.
"Why does it happen to the ones I love? WHY!"
Before him, a battlefield was painted in front of Django, upsetting his stomach. Bloody bodies littered the floor, barely giving any walking room at all. From the garbs, he realized they were mostly boks, but they were never purified. Django felt like vomiting as the scene unfolded, revealing his own corpse lying in front of Sabata. He was about to "walk" over to "Sabata" when he felt something pounce him.
"WAKEY WAAAAAAKEY!"
Startled, Django sat up forward.
"I think you scared him. Good morning, squirt."
He looked up at Arison sleepily, then down to Kazemusu, who was clinging to the sheets.
"I think I scared him." He yawned. Before his head could hit the pillow, it hit the floor.
"No, you're not going back to sleep." Arison announced. "If I had to wake up early, you have to stay awake early too!"
He groaned sleepily and climbed back onto the bed.
"Ally, can you at least tell me where we're going today?"
"We're going to a burnt up forest close to a volcano." Kazemusu answered for her. "It used to be a part of the Lost Forest, but the volcano from a part of the Forgotten Mountain ranges erupted, sending a wind of embers and hot rock to scorch and kill the trees. Okaasan says that Enbara, Suzaku's chosen, lives in the largest one. She also said Enbara has a nasty temper."
"Nasty temper? How bad is it?"
"Very bad."
Django turned around to face Kourihi, arms folded across her chest.
"As I told you before, in order for all of us to become the chosens, we need our faces branded in proof that we accept our destiny." Kidenkou said. "Enbara refused to be tattooed, but the knife struck her face. However, the damage was done and that was how she was forced to become Suzaku. Since then, she's developed an anger problem. For a while, scorpions from the Lost Forest have traveled into the Deserted Grove but found themselves in a fiery battle with Enbara. She always crisps them to bits, but ever since the Necromancer arose... The scorpions have been growing larger with thicker exoskeletons to protect themselves against her fire. She may not stand a chance any longer..."
"So we help her against the scorpions..."
"Or speed up her death process."
Kidenkou bowed slightly, grim taking over her face.
"Whatever seems the right way when you get there." She stated firmly. "Do not choose your path now, but when you are ready."
After Kidenkou and Kourihi departed, the trio went on to the south. Twigs and leaves turned into ashes as they stepped on the unfamiliar terrain. The landscape around gloomy with bare trees erect from the dry soil. The fog made it impossible to see anything a few feet ahead in any direction.
"Is it just me or can you actually feel the fog?" Arison mused.
"You can feel it!" Django cried out in surprise. "It's kind of cold... Why would a phoenix live in a cold area?"
"It's only temporary." Kazemusu answered. "When they sleep, it gets cold because they're not creating heat. When they wake up, everything will clear."
"So if Enbara gives me whatever turns her into Suzaku, it'll always be foggy?"
"She'd summon some phoenixes, no one's that stupid."
"Django is."
"Ally!"
There was a pause before Django spoke again.
"Hey Kazemusu, can you blow his fog away?"
"I don't think that's a good idea. All things on the floor could easily turn into dust and get picked up, either getting into our eyes or disturbing whatever lives here. We don't want anything upset at us, especially those mutating scorpions. We'll just have to wait for Enbara to wake up."
"Or we just wake her up ourselves. Look!"
The three stopped. Dead in front of them was the largest dead tree any of them had ever seen. The bark was gnarled and filled with various burn gashes and insect holes. Only a few leaves grew at the top branches of the gloomy wood, all of which turning a lucid brown.
"This was once a solar tree." Kazemusu said sadly. "There used to be several solar trees that began their life here in the Spirit World. Sadly, they began to wither and die as more humans became corrupt. The ones on Earth are the only ones left blooming, but how long will it be until they join their cousins here?"
"I helped restore the one in Istrakan. I remember there was one on Sun Avenue of San Miguel, but..." Django trailed off.
"It's dying from a lack of care. I revisited San Miguel" Arison sighed. "Most of the houses were destroyed or filled with undead. Only a small settlement remained, protected by a weakening solar barrier. I was going to see who was there, but I stopped when I saw a vampire roaming around."
"Why didn't you purify it?"
"No pile driver, no coffin to drag its ass over to a pile driver, and low energy."
"Can we go in now?" Kazemusu growled with annoyance. Django looked at Byakko's chosen and then at the tree.
"Better yet, how do we get in?"
"That is a good question." Arison whistled. She patted the trunk of the tree and showed the males her palm darkened with ash. "The bark is unstable so climbing is out of the question."
"Unless you had something to stick into the wood." Kazemusu unsheathed two daggers from his belt and passed them to Arison. "I'm not very strong, and seeing how you tossed Django out of bed this morning, I'd say you're the best one for pulling yourself up."
"Once I'm up there, how are you two going to get up?"
"Hmm, I forgot to bring one. We can always use an alternative."
Django suddenly felt to devious pairs of eyes upon him.
"You're not using my scarf as a rope!" He shrieked. "It's fragile!"
"Quit your whining, it's just a piece of cloth!" Kazemusu bickered
"It's not just a piece of cloth! I was my father's!"
"That's all right, I have an alternative." Arison sighed. "So just stop arguing. That scarf is one of the only things left that Django has of his father's." She rummaged around her belt and pulled a small seed from a small pouch. Dropping it on the floor, she cast a quick growth spell. A thin vine burst from the seed and crept up the side of the tree. Once it reached the ledge, Arison took out her roped blade and sliced the vine from its base. The vine fell limply to the floor as she picked up the roots and reversed its growth back into the seed and pocketed the item. Finally, she rolled the vine up and slung it around her arm. "Honestly, you guys are so whiny!"
Arison stabbed the tree with enough force to bury it deep enough for it not to loosen up and drop out when she would be higher. She repeated each movement, alternating hands, pulling herself up with her entire upper body. Soon enough, she was at the top of the ledge where she tied one end of the vine to the hilt of one of the daggers and forced the blade all the way into the wood. Then, she tossed the rest of the vine down, hitting Django's head.
"Climb up, or if you can't climb, I'll drag you up." Arison hissed down at the two boys below. Django made a jump for the rope first and began to climb, his feet slipping from the loosened ash. Kazemusu managed to get on the rope below Django when the ash wasn't falling on his face. Arison sighed and began pulling the rope up, carrying Django and Kazemusu with it. "You guys take too long to climb, you know."
"Not our fault, the ash is too loose!" the Solar Boy complained. Before the boy could say anymore, there was a loud screech echoing through the halls. The temperature rose higher and higher, the end of the hall illuminating once in a while with the red glow of fire.
"Get out, now!" was all Arison warned as she jumped out of the tree. Not being the type to question her, Django had followed in suit, landing painfully on a pile of dead leaves and twigs. Kazemusu's curiosity took over as he waited to see what the problem had been. Hurtling towards him was a great fireball that threatened to burn him to a crisp. He sighed. The tiger brought his hands together in a booming clap, sending a surge of wind that split the fireball in half, forcing it part in front and reform behind him. The fireball exited the tree rather quickly and disappeared, leaving only a cloud of smoke as a remnant.
"Kazemusu…" Django whispered, his voice shaky.
"Don't worry about me, I'm alright!"
"But how do we get back up?"
"I've still got the rope!"
"Great, but you better come down here yourself." Arison instructed. "I suppose Enbara just woke up."
"You suppose correctly."
A girl appeared behind Kazemusu, nearly scaring him out of the tree. Her orange-tipped white hair was covered in a red wrap, melting well with her short top that ended no further than her belly. Her earthly colored shorts matched her sandals that had many straps, perhaps to serve as a silencer. Her eyes were like copies of the ruby around her neck, but nothing stood out more than the jagged scar that ran from below her right eye and above her nose.
"I take it that you are Enbara?" Django inquired, looking straight at the new girl.
"Hmph. What are you two doing in the Spirit World?" She demanded before turning to Kazemusu. "And what are you doing in my land?"
"We are only here to gather enough power to stop a Necromancer in the mortal realm." Arison explained. "And Kazemusu just wanted to see you and help guide us through our last stop."
"Ah yes. Solar Boy Django and Saigon Knight Arison…" Enbara gazed at them lazily for a moment, then pushed Kazemusu out of her tree. "You'll find nothing here. I do not need your help."
"Maybe Kidenkou should have warned us about your ego instead of your temper!" Kazemusu shot angrily. The phoenix visibly twitched and stared coldly at the trio.
"If you value not being a piece of charcoal, I suggest you get out of here, NOW." She snarled fiercely.
"No." Django called back. "We can't leave here until we finish our task, and if our task is to fight you, then so be it."
The girl grinned.
"I was hoping you'd say that."
Flipping backwards with both grace and flexibility, she landed on her feet, the air around them instantly clearing. She instantly created a sword made of fire as Django quickly switched his gun frames around. She quickly swiped a long flaming blade at him, causing him to hastily move aside and drop his frost lens. Enbara was ready to stomp on the lens, but a fast gust of wind caught and knocked her aside.
"Hurry Django!" Kazemusu cried out, holding his naginata out in a striking position.
Django quickly scrambled to retrieve his lens, but was thwarted when Enbara kicked it up into the air. Before she could strike him with her fire sword, the Solar Boy hastily rolled out of the way. Kazemusu quickly created a mini tornado to knock the blue lens over to Django as Enbara charged at him again.
"Ice mist!" Arison called out, casting a quick spell to temporarily immobilize Suzaku's chosen. A thick mist rushed at Enbara's legs and solidified into a block of ice, causing her to trip before she could reach Django. Django caught the frost lens and quickly replaced his Solar lens. Enraged, Enbara's body was engulfed in flames, instantly melting the ice that had caused her to fall. Her form began to change from fragile looking girl to fierce fowl. The noise of dead leaves and twigs snapping beneath many legs eventually grew louder. Alarmed, the phoenix flew up and screeched. Reverting back to human form, Enbara landed on her feet, glaring at Django, Arison, and Kazemusu.
"An unfortunate visitor has arrived." She growled. "I'll deal with you later!"
Turning around violently, several leaves and twigs snapped beneath her heel as she dashed off.
"Should we follow her?" Kazemusu asked.
"Yes." Django answered, staring at the girl's fleeting form. "I have a feeling she's talking about the scorpions."
It had seemed like a good idea to follow her, but the area was unfamiliar to the trio and proved difficult to track Enbara down. All the dead trees looked the same, every bit of ground had been covered in upturned or broken leaves, twigs, and various exoskeletons, presumed to be from the scorpions. An hour had passed since the phoenix's chosen ran off to fight her foe, an hour of running around in circles with no idea of where to go. They were officially lost.
"Damn, if this was the plains, we'd be there by now." Kazemusu cursed.
"But we're not, so shut up." Arison growled. The group decided to rest on a rock formation, seemingly odd in the area.
"Doesn't it seem odd that we've actually found these rocks?" Django pondered aloud.
"There's also a lot less trees over here…" Arison observed. "And I think I see some green in the distance."
"…"
Kazemusu remained quiet, staring off in the direction Arison had been looking at.
"What's with the silence?"
"We're close her."
"To Enbara?"
"No. Her."
"…Care to explain?"
"The supreme ruler over the gods… The guardian of the worlds… The original Iron Maiden's soul, along with her successors whom have passed the torch down to the present Iron Maiden, Rosette. THE Iron Maiden Selene. The Iron Temple is in ruins, but the land there is so fertile, anything can grow there without rain for years. I fear that is how the scorpions grew. They sought shelter in the temple grounds and flourished there. No wonder Enbara is so angry… She thinks it's her fault the temple had been defiled by her enemy."
"I can't believe how silly that is." Django muttered. "I mean, she had no other choice, and the scorpions decided to go to the temple. They could easily go back home to the Lost Woods…"
"Shall we go then? We won't get anything done by sitting around here." Arison said, smiling a bit. "Kazemusu, you can feel the Iron Maiden's soul, right?"
"Yes…"
"Take us to her."
Kazemusu stood up, eyes focused before transforming into an enormous white tiger. His head motioned for Django and Arison to get on his back. As soon as both boarded, he dashed off, streaking towards their goal at an amazing speed. He soon stopped in front of the ruins of a great temple and let the two on his back get off before reverting back to his human form.
"The ruins of the Iron Temple." Kazemusu zoned off. "The birthplace of the Iron Maiden Selene, the place where the souls of the past Iron Maidens reside… Once magnificent, the rule of the undead has turned this sacred temple into this…"
The temple had an eerie feel with moss and vines growing all over stone walls, whether in rubble or in tact.
"Who knows what's in here…" Arison muttered.
"The undead cannot even get close." Kazemusu said. "The temple has the holy powers of both Taiyou and Tsuki. These scorpions are not undead. They are merely pests that have mutated."
"Great. We have to deal with bugs."
"Bugs that can't be killed by fire."
"Peachy."
The trio had peered into the entrance of the structure to see thousands of scorpions on the floor.
"Enbara must have flown over them." Django murmured. "What can we do?"
"We can sprout wings and fly or try fighting our way through."
While Django and Kazemusu tried desperately to think of a plan, Arison quickly conjured a spell.
"Water Dance!"
A clone made completely out of water appeared and dashed into the building. The scorpions gathered to attack the intruder, but their pincers and stings did nothing to the water girl. She spun around, spraying water everywhere before giving a bow and collapsing into a shapeless glob of water.
"Now we can freeze them!" Django exclaimed. Arison nodded, throwing an icy mist across the floor to create a frozen path. Taking out her roped blade, she jumped onto her ice path and slid across the room, hitting whatever dared attack her. Django and Kazemusu followed in suit, freezing and slashing the scorpions.
"Kazemusu, defend the fort!" Arison commanded as soon as they reached the end. He blinked at her in utter confusion.
"She means stay here and make sure nothing follows us." Django explained. Kazemusu scowled, but complied.
"Alright, I'll make sure nothing gets past me."
With that, Django and Arison ran down the long hall and to the center room where Enbara stood.
"How dare you use this sacred temple as a place to mutate." She snarled. There was a loud clacking in the shadows, where an enormous scorpion emerged. "I'll make sure to roast you and your minions for this heinous crime!"
Enbara leaped into the air, morphing into her phoenix form. Flames burst from her wings with every flap, forcing Django and Arison back from the intense heat. Fire erupted from her beak, raining down on the scorpion. When the flames cleared, the scorpion remained clacking its pincers threateningly, exoskeleton armor scorched. Suddenly, the stinger on its tail extended and struck the phoenix on her shoulder, causing her to shriek in pain and fall to the floor. Enbara landed with a thud and almost immediately turned back into a girl, terribly wounded on her shoulder. The scorpion raised the stinger high for a last blow, but was foiled by an ice shot from the Gun Del Sol. Django quickly ran to the girl, pelting the scorpion with more shots to keep it from finishing her off. He lifted her up, realizing he had no defense while carrying her. Arison quickly jumped at the scorpion, throwing her roped blade at its head. The metal clanged painfully against it, but seemed to do little or no damage at all. Thanking her, Django quickly carried Enbara to the entrance of the hall, checking on her wound.
"Ally, she's been poisoned!"
"Then give her a damn antidote from my bag!"
Django's eyes quickly found the said bag and searched for a blue potion and bandages. He found the small vial and poured the contents into Enbara's mouth. Holding her chin up, he made sure she swallowed before cleaning the wound with a small piece of a bandage and water from Arison's canteen. He quickly dressed the wound, making a note to get someone with more experience to teach him how to properly bandage things.
"Ally! Flip it over!"
Arison swiftly kicked the scorpion on its side, forcing it to roll onto its back. Django carefully aimed a powerful shot at its belly, but the shot had only reflected.
"Damn… Its skin is way too thick on both sides…" Arison cursed. Django grabbed a heavy spear from the wall, jabbing at the scorpion. The arachnid simply grasped the pole in a claw and snapped it. Both teens made gulping noises.
"Maybe if we find something heavy enough to smash it?" Django quickly suggested.
"It's the only plan we have…"
The two scavenged the room for any objects to throw at the scorpion, items arranging from spears, hammers, axes, and large rocks. Django climbed up an altar staring at a single sheathed sword. The sheath itself was silver, decorated with golden stars. A soft, yet eerily familiar voice rang through his head.
/Draw the sword if you are ready/
Django carefully lifted up the sword, surprised by the lightness of the object. Grabbing the hilt in one hand and the sheath in another, he pulled with all his might but could not remove the sword from its covering.
"Squirt, quit fooling around and throw it!"
The boy shrugged and tossed it at the scorpion, but it acted as a boomerang and landed at Arison's feet.
"Squiirt!"
"I swear, I didn't mean for that to happen!"
The girl growled, picking up the sword only to hear the same voice Django had heard.
/Draw the sword if you are ready/
'…That voice…'
She gripped the hilt and sheath and carefully pulled the sword out. The blade itself was impressive, pitch black with dots of light outshone by a large swirl. The edges of the sword waved around like wisps, flowing upwards. A golden star connected the white hilt to the blade with two sharp handles protruding from the sides.
/You are ready/
Arison gave a loud battle cry and swiped her new sword at the scorpion. Miraculously, she had created a deep scar in the exoskeleton. She leaped up, kicking claws and stinger away as she drove the sword through the scorpion. However, it was still flailing around, as it had not been hit.
"What the!"
She quickly grabbed the sword from the scorpion's body and rolled away before the stinger could hit her. Django quickly jumped to Arison's side and fired several shots at the scorpion. Most had reflected off of the armor but a few had made it into cracks Arison created. The Saigon Knight quickly made a horizontal slice at the top of the exoskeleton and kicked it off, revealing bluish flesh in the scorpion. Django fired a shot at the flesh, creating a dent in it. He manually grabbed a grenade from his gun and quickly tossed it into the hole in the flesh as Arison grabbed the plate she knocked off and re-covered the hole in the exoskeleton. A mix of smoke and charred guts came spilling out from the cracks before the scorpion's legs gave out. The rest of its body turned to dust, collapsing from its own weight.
"It's finally dead!" Django exclaimed happily, falling to the floor.
"This mission isn't over yet, squirt." Arison sighed. "We have to see if Enbara is alright."
"No need to."
The two quickly turned around to see the Enbara and Kazemusu behind them.
"The scorpions are gone!" Kazemusu happily chirped.
Enbara remained silent, crimson eyes staring at her feet.
"Hey." Django said, surprising her for a bit. "Are you feeling okay?"
She seemed to blush a bit, nodding in answer.
"Alright, but what do we do now?" Kazemusu asked.
"We should get back to Enbara's tree just to make sure she is okay." Django said. "You can feel okay but be dying from the inside."
"…Alright..."
As Kourihi were checking over Enbara, and Django and Kazemusu casually chatted, Arison examined her new sword.
"I see you found your grandfather's sword." Kidenkou said, sitting next to Arison.
"My grandfather's?"
"Yes. Your mother inherited it, but it would not let her wield it. So she hid it where only one who was worthy of wielding it would be able to take the blade out from its sheath."
"…Why didn't it kill the scorpion when I stabbed it?"
"I do not know the full story. Your sword, the Sword Del Galaxia, is one of many weapons that are from another galaxy. I believe from where half of your blood comes from. Their enemies were crystal monsters, so they created weapons that could slice through any object, except living things. There was a magical restraint put in each of them to stop anyone who went corrupt with the weapons."
"So… How is it that I can use solar magic if I'm not a Gaian or Solar Child?"
"That is a question that only your mother or father can answer."
"…"
"So, how are we getting out of here?" Django asked when Enbara was diagnosed "okay."
"You need all four jewels." Kourihi said. "You'll keep them when you return to the mortal realm, but once you call upon us, we must take them back. Use them carefully; use them wisely."
Kazemusu removed the earring from his year and placed it in Django's hand as Enbara slowly removed her necklace and placed it around the boy's neck.
"Farewell." She said sadly. "Get that necromancer!"
Django nodded and took Arison's hand.
"We'll do our best!"
They disappeared, leaving the four gods to go back to their lands.
"Ahh, Enbara has a crush on Django!" Kazemusu teased.
"Shut up." She muttered. "Besides… It's just a… tiny infatuation… I'll get over it."
"Why?"
"He saved me even after I attacked him. His goal was to either kill the scorpion or kill me."
"He know you were only doing your duty to get rid of the scorpions from the temple. It was the right thing to do, even if it was harder."
"…You're right… Thanks… I'll get over it."
Finished. At last D: Bits of it will be explained later, I'm much too tired. Went much better than the original version. (9/1/05)
