Another chapter. Tell me what you think!
For six years, Hyoga had suffered the cold torment of a frozen wasteland in Siberia. He had survived...His eyes scanned the barren plains of ice stretched out before him. Somehow.
He ran his fingers down the length of his shoulder-level blonde hair to dislodge the ice crystals forming at the ends of it. He didn't deserve to wear the Cygnus cloth. Given the circumstance, he didn't even WANT to wear it. He longed for ice to settle into his soft heart and dull the burning pain.
His master had always said he was too soft to be a saint.
Isaac. Mama.
He couldn't help his softness. Everyone close to him died. And their deaths weighed heavily on his heart. He would never forget the look on Isaac's face as the black water sucked him down. He himself powerless to save the person who meant the most to him.
"Hyoga!"
The tall, athletic blonde turned towards the sound of his name. A little boy was running towards him.
"Jacob?"
The child threw himself into Hyoga's arms.
"Ohh...you're wet! Did you-you know?"
The child gazed up at him with wide-eyed curiosity.
Hyoga ruffled the boy's hair affectionately.
"Yes. I was able to go down and say goodbye to Mama."
"Will you be back, Hyoga?"
Hyoga smiled sadly.
"I don't know, Jacob. I honestly do not know."
Jacob blinked back tears.
"So this is goodbye, then?"
Hyoga said nothing.
Goodbye...Goodbye.
Why was he always saying goodbye?
Dragon Shiryu found sunrise at Rozan Peaks to be one of the most beautiful sites in the whole world. He stood atop a crest, overlooking the waterfall. A breeze tossed his long, black hair and the intoxicating scent of fresh, flowing waters and wild flowers teased him.
He smiled at the petite girl tucked under his arm. She looked exceptionally beautiful to him that morning, with her hair loose from her usual braid.
"When do you leave?" She asked.
Shiryu plucked a flower and tucked the blossom into her dark hair.
His Shunrei.
"Tonight" he told her. "But I will be back as soon as this tournament is over."
She smiled at him.
"You promise?"
"Of course. This is my home."
He was going to miss this every second he was away from it. Waking to birds, the feel of sunshine. Going back to the Grande foundation felt like being put in prison.
He slipped his hand into Shunrei's, determined to enjoy what time he had left and not dwell on his return to the Grande foundation. He couldn't change it and there were better ways to spend his last few hours than brooding about it.
The pair leaned forward towards the waterfall's stream, enjoying the feeling of the water droplets on their faces. Their black hair blew behind them like a banner in the wind, proclaiming their promise to stand by one another to the world.
Shun stood, doubled over, with his hands on his knees. He coughed, expelling mouthfuls of sea water from his lungs. He was exhausted and his chest burned, but he was alive.
And he had done it.
"Shun!"
A girl hurled herself into his arms.
"You did it!" She cried.
He gazed down at her. Though her face was masked, he knew she was smiling.
"I did."
"I never doubted you could."
She pulled away and he smiled at her. He was glad June believed in him, because he had been losing faith in himself.
"Well done, Shun."
A tall, slender man with a long blonde ponytail joined them on the cliff.
"Master Daidalos."
Daidalos smiled.
"You completed your training. Are you ready to go home? There's a boat waiting for you."
Go home. That would mean he would see Ikki again. At the same time, he was hesitant. His training had been far from easy - it had almost killed him - yet he had grown to love his master as a father and June...
She had endured everything he had and had been by his side through it all.
As much as he wanted to see Ikki, he couldn't bear the thought of leaving June and Daidalos.
As though sensing his hesitation, Daidalos said "Go on home, Shun. Go see your brother. You can come back and visit us any time you'd like."
Shun's face split into a grin.
"Really?"
"Of course."
Daidalos gave him a quick hug.
"Why don't you escort him to the docks, June?"
The two set off in a companionable silence.
He had survived. He was going home.
Phoenix Ikki knew all about Hell-and he was no longer afraid of it. The stories his mother used to tell him as a child-even the stories Tatsumi had tried to scare him with before his arrival at the island-nothing compared to what he had endured.
Then he had received word that "Miss" Saori Kido expected all the Saints who survived their training to meet up at the Grande Foundation to fight one another for sport in a specialized arena. Like she was making a mockery of all they had to go through. He would like to see her survive training. She would have died the first or second night.
Saori had no strength. She hid behind her money and her power. Having a well-built body guard probably helped, too. Not against a Saint. Ikki was sure any of them could best Tatsumi - easily - but against a normal person.
Ikki snorted bitterly.
Normal. What was "normal" about any of this?
He fixed his eyes on the burning foliage and what had once been a cabin in front of him.
Burn. I hope you're still alive, Guilty, and can feel your flesh melt off your bones.
If he could, he would have blown up the entire island, instead of just setting the ground on fire. Erase all traces of it completely. Watching it burn would have to do.
To say he was angry was an understatement. The only thing that kept him from chucking the Phoenix cloth out to sea and telling Saori some very explicit comments was his promise to his brother. They had sworn they would both survive and would reunite when the six years were over.
He was a man who kept his promises. Except one.
Esmeralda. He had loved her. There was no denying what he had felt for the girl had been love. Her smile, her laugh. A warm touch in the moonlight, a conversation on a sleepless night. Those had been the things that kept him going on nights he was too injured to move. Days when he was too dehydrated to think clearly. Times when he had lost so much blood, he was sure he would die - because no one could bleed that much and still be alive.
She had pulled him through. He had promised her that he would take her with him when he left the island.
A dam burst behind his eyes and all the tears he had been holding in broke free. He covered his face in his hands and sobbed, finally allowing himself to grieve the loss of the only girl he had ever cared about.
Pegasus Seiya pushed past a group of guards and stormed into the Grande Foundation, yelling for Saori. He was livid, having just learned that out of the one hundred children sent to train for cloth, only eleven of them had survived. Not only that, he still had no idea where his sister was. Finding Seika was the only reason he had bothered enduring six years of hell to begin with.
"Pipe down, Seiya. You're being way too loud."
A boy came into view. He was a little taller than Seiya, but leaner. Less muscular. Unlike Seiya, his jeans and shirt were new and clean. He wore boots and black, fingerless gloves, no doubt made of real leather and purchased for him by Saori. His white-blonde hair looked freshly washed.
"So you're still acting as Saori's lapdog, are you, Jabu?"
Jabu's pale cheeks flushed with color. Seiya blinked, understanding immediately.
Jabu was in love with Saori.
"I'm doing my job and protecting her. You're in no position to just come storming in here and start making demands."
"The hell I'm not! Her grandfather promised me that if I made it through training, he would tell me where my sister is! The old geezer is dead! So she has to keep his promise and tell me where my sister is!"
Jabu's blue eyes turned down cast, and for just a second, he looked vulnerable instead of cocky.
"We've ALL endured Hell, Seiya."
Seiya felt himself soften. He shouldn't be taking his anger out on Jabu. The blonde was just doing what he thought was right.
"Where is Saori?"
"She doesn't wish to be disturbed."
Seiya felt his anger flaring again.
Daisuke strolled into the Grande Foundation to an unusual sight. Seiya and Jabu were standing in the main foyer, looking as if they were seconds away from coming to blows.
Seiya looked rumpled and disheveled. His jeans were ripped, the sleeves of his tank top frayed, his hair a mess. He looked a sore sight next to Jabu, who was clean and well-kept. if not a little tired-looking. No doubt Saori was taking advantage of his loyalty towards her.
Something about seeing Seiya so wild-looking made Daisuke's blood race. While there was no denying both boys were attractive, Seiya just looked exceptionally so. His brown eyes glowed with such a passion that they almost seemed red.
"What is going on in here?" Daisuke demanded.
Jabu backed down immediately, as he always did when dealing with authority. Daisuke was not surprised the boy had survived, because he'd always known he was strong enough. No, Jabu's weakness laid in the fact that he was too obedient.
Again he was taken with Seiya. The brown-haired boy still looked defiant as he whirled around to stare Daisuke straight in the eye.
"I'm looking for your sister! She has to tell me where my sister is so I can go find her!"
Daisuke clicked his tongue, not particularly caring about the location of Saori. He doubted she would keep her promise of finding Seiya's sister, either.
"What about the tournament?"
Seiya stared at him as though he had three heads.
"I'm not participating in it. Only eleven of us made it through. I am not going to fight in a tournament that pits us against one another!"
"Look, Seiya. I doubt Saori will keep her promise."
Seiya's hands clenched into fists and his eye color darkened and brightened. He was about to cry, but was holding the tears in.
"Jabu." Daisuke fixed the boy with a look. "Why don't you go get some sleep? You look exhausted."
"Uhh... Sure."
Once Jabu was out of earshot, Daisuke put a hand on Seiya's shoulder.
"Participate in the tournament. Then I will help you find your sister."
Seiya eyed him warily.
"What choice do I have?"
"None."
Daisuke released the boy's shoulder and left him standing in the foyer.
He already knew what Seiya's answer would be.
Only eleven had survived, and most of them were not surprising - Seiya, Jabu, Shun, Shiryu, Hyoga, Ikki, Geki, Ban, and Nachi... all of them had shown promise during training. Ichi had also somehow survived to become the Hyrda Saint, but he supposed people got lucky once in a while.
He stretched his arms over his head. Tomorrow the tournament would start. He would have the first battle, against Nachi.
He decided to relax himself and explore the foundation.
Tomorrow he would be in for some fun.