The Furious Omnidirectional Attack!
(猛烈な全方位攻撃!)
When they opened their eyes, Aqulia Yuna and Lionet Souma did not expect to see their surroundings bathed in sunlight. They didn't expect to have strength in their bodies—to be alive—and were able to stand off from the wall and onto their feet. They saw their Cloths nearby, in their restored, constellational forms, standing in wait. A turn of their heads, and a gasp of shock left both Saints, seeing Megaera on the ground. Then, further ahead, they saw another motionless body.
"Ryuho!" Yuna and Souma ran up to their fallen friend and knelt next to him.
"That Cosmos we felt…he must've beaten the Terrae." Yuna slowly turned Dragon onto his back and saw his mellow face. His eyes were closed. Neither Saint could sense his Cosmos from him. Yuna looked pained. Souma's face contorted in regret.
"Damn it." He mumbled, punching the ground.
Rapid footsteps—a clatter clatter— echoed in the chamber; Eden and Kouga appeared in a rush.
"Ryuho!" Kouga was exasperated; he felt the entire battle of clashing Cosmos while on the steps, which he suffered climbing up to no fault of his own. Right before reaching the threshold, it was Ryuho's Cosmos that rose than ebbed. If only he made it in time, he thought. Eden crouched down and placed an ear on Ryuho's heart, a finger on his wrist. Everything was slowed to a near stop.
"It's hard to say, but it looks like he may…" Orion stopped there and bowed his head. Kouga swiftly broke down onto his knees. All that effort he pulled on the stairs, the pain he felt, welled up and exploded in snuffles and loosened tears.
"Don't cry Kouga," uttered Eden in a low breath.
"I thought I was a goner," said Souma. "Ryuho, somehow, he defeated the Terrae and saved us. That should be proof of his powerful will,"
"Therefore, we must fight hard for him," said Yuna. Kouga, who took in a deep breath to calm down, was pulled back onto his feet by Aquila, Orion and Lionet. Kouga glanced at the door and clenched his teeth.
"One more. Just one more."
Outside the 3rd Garden, as they rushed up the steps, the four Bronze Saints talk it over on what might be the best approach to stop Demeter. Should they face the next Terrae, or pass him or her to confront the Mother Goddess about Shaina's Cloth? They had to leave Ryuho's body, still carrying the idea that he would reunite with them. Whichever fate he faced, Dragon Ryuho was out of commission and would not make it to the next tribulation with the others.
The Saints passed the temple threshold, ignoring the cornice above that read the name of the last Garden: "Horae, Thy Phases of Everlasting Life." The outside was a typical Ionic architecture with scroll like capitals—the volutes— atop the columns, and extra stairs. What made it stand out the most was the paint: a sky blue contrasted with bright white and red. In fact, at higher levels, there were more polychromies upon simple shapes such as suns, crescents, arrows, stars, leaves, and thin waves. At the doorway were two sculptures of kneeling Trojan archers.
Inside, the 4th Garden evinces a breath of relief after experiencing a long, arduous journey or a nightmare. The atmosphere felt charged by incandescent magic: The walls and spirals were typical for a temple, painted sky blue, but there was an open grassy field in a sunbeam, severed by a marble road. The road led to a carved in arch door, which stood upon a higher platform after a small flight of steps. Two sculptures of small ivory dragons stood aside the door.
However, despite anticipation tightening their chests, no one was around to greet the Saints. Souma mentioned that it was best not to get caught like in the 2nd Garden, and they all headed for the other side. But when the Saints did, a bright discharge appeared between there and them, bouncing them off the exit doorway.
"A barrier?" said Eden. As they stared, the Saints realized a glass like shimmer across the arc door.
"If Demeter Temple is just ahead, then this makes sense, right?" surmised Souma.
"Let's attack it at one time!" Kouga's impulsiveness had rallied everyone in a row in front of the door. They locked their arms at their hips and gathered their Cosmos around their bodies.
"Hold it." A voice, an imperious echo, reached out and froze the Saints in place, and a gold halo suddenly appeared before them. Right after that, Yuna's voice raised in a cry; alarmed, the other Saints broke formation and leapt backwards in a retreat.
"Look out!" Eden warned imperatively, then he felt a jolt in his body, clenching his teeth. Flying out from between the halo was a swaying red bullet with a tail, which swooped back and forth like an insect. It threaded through each Saint, starting with Yuna and ending with Kouga, landing everyone on their backs. They groaned loudly, their eyes filled with a deep red visual; a caustic burn consumed each of their bodies.
"Welcome to the Garden of Horae, Saints of Athena." The gravitas of voice was enough to pull the attention of Kouga and the others to the halo. A man emerged from it, the halo then compressing to a small size below his feet and sliding onto his wrist. A robed man with gold eyes and a chiseled face now stood before the barriered door.
After the redness and the burning went away, Kouga looked up and saw a violet mane in the wind. "It is you after all!"
"Pegasus."
"Arion! If you're the one that's left, then prepare yourself!"
"You express such confidence even in the 4th Garden of Horae." Hands crossed below his waist, Arion stared down at the Saints sitting up from their backs. Compared to the last three Terrae, he would seem the most patient and placid, but a suspicion rose that he was hiding massive power.
"Hark. Horae is everything," Arion spoke as he slowly went down the stairs. "The cycle of the seasons, the time of earth. In other words, order. Correctness. The nature that all the deities has brought us. Twelve hours of day, twelve hours of night. Everything contains substance and prosperity."
"I say that to every visitor. Had it been an address to the people, who come to pray to the goddess Demeter, my words would be ideal. But the situation is different."
The burning of their bodies went away and the four Saints returned to their feet. Arion continued as he reached the base of the steps.
"I can't help but praise the effort of you all. But, how could you kill Megaera, Pegasus?"
Kouga's only answer was a defiant scowl. He knew well that he didn't kill the Third Terrae, but Ryuho's effort and pain during the battle could be shared among all the Saints. He was a testament for what the youths would do for one another to reach their goal.
"To go through Terrae, particularly Meg, who has a direct attachment to the Underworld. That can only be described as…a miracle." Rather, Arion wasn't surprised that a warrior with a God-flouting spirit could make it. He knew the myths of the Cloths, which appeared when Athena was in peril during the first war of the gods.
"You are here, so the question is now – how will you Saints celebrate Athena's death?"
"What was that?!" As Kouga's shout, the other Saints glowered at Arion.
"Saints, as of now, your Goddess is imprisoned in Limbo, standing in wait for the soul and body of the Underworld King to return."
"Say what?!"
"Yes, she is in our custody, thanks to one of your…ilk."
"You're lying!"
That was enough to set Kouga off; he cared none for the reason, and light billowed his entire body. He pulled his arm back; the others follow suit and advance on the Terrae in a synchronized leap. Arion kept still; Yuna, Eden and Souma suddenly convulsed in mid-air, dropping again. With both arms, Kouga held himself tightly to stay on his feet.
"This feeling!" He groaned through a surge of pain that went up and down.
"Remember Pegasus? Chthon Impulse."
"Shit!" Kouga barked. "Guys, don't use your Cosmos!" Damnit, did he get all of us? That attack from the ring…Pegasus immediately guessed; it all came back to him when the "bullet" struck him and felt that burn afterward, but shortly afterward he felt fine. It was just like when he first met Arion when he approached the Four Gardens.
"This way you'll be defenseless, and Demeter's safety is assured," said Arion. He held his tongue, and almost told the Saints to turn back now. In the back of his mind, however, he wondered if he should deliver a death sentence.
"The same attack won't work on me twice!" Kouga rushed in and threw a punch, which floated in mid-air inches from Arion's palm. His fist caught in compressed air, furious eyes were fixed on Arion.
"You lie about Athena!"
"Do I?"
"Get out of our way!" At this moment, Arion raised his other hand—He took Yuna's foot, took a step forward and shoved Kouga and Yuna back. Then, he nearly doubled over. A punch was pushed into his stomach. He wrenched back; Eden landed a punch, and then his kick went into Arion's thigh.
"Heads up pal!"
Arion's head turned to look over his shoulder, and his cheek was pressed in. He stumbled a step to one side, then the other; Yuna's kick pushed him into Eden, and he was then punched and kicked by Orion and Pegasus. The swiftness of the attacks made him disoriented and distracted to the point that he lost the thought of defending himself. All four Saints cardinally surrounded the Terrae.
'I see. Their martial prowess beyond the Cosmos. Did they train diligently?"